Chapter 74: Arcane Technology and the Laws of the Elements

A deafening roar echoed through Jiang Chen’s consciousness, sending him into a mysterious and profound state. When he opened his eyes moments later, the world itself seemed to have transformed before him.

“So this is the Stellar level?”

Jiang Chen cautiously channeled the force and psychic power within his body. Under his careful control, nothing in his surroundings was disturbed. With a slight adjustment, he could immediately sense that the destructive power of his force and psychic energy was on a completely different level compared to before his breakthrough. This was a change of essence.

Back when he was at the Planetary stage, with the support of his free attribute points, his psychic strength already far exceeded that of regular ninth-rank Planetary warriors, and in terms of quantity, even surpassed many at the Stellar level. Yet the qualitative gap meant that if he faced a Stellar-level psychic master, even one at the first rank, he would be defeated in short order.

But now, after his breakthrough, Jiang Chen felt that even without relying on the “Goliath Giant,” he could unleash formidable power among Stellar-level warriors—certainly stronger than those few fourth and fifth-rank slaves under his command. This, of course, was the advantage brought by his extraordinarily powerful psychic force, enhanced by free attribute points.

His gaze swept across the system panel, and a complicated feeling stirred within him. In fact, he had already crossed the threshold of “First Rank, Ninth Level” several months prior. What surprised him was that after First Rank, Ninth Level, he did not advance to the Second Rank, but to First Rank, Tenth Level. According to his perception, this stage did not allow him to break through the limits of “Planetary, Ninth Level” or create a tenth miniature planet within. Instead, his internal miniature planets only appeared more solid, almost tangible.

It took him several more months to break through “First Rank, Tenth Level” and finally step into the Second Rank, entering the realm of the Stellar level. This only deepened his curiosity about the system. The level caps for Zero Rank and First Rank were different; what about Second Rank, or even future ranks—would there be even greater changes?

But this question was destined to remain unanswered for now; only when he reached higher levels would he know. Jiang Chen had no intention of overthinking it. The very existence of the system was already far beyond his comprehension, and there was no need to rack his brain over something so unfathomable.

What mattered more was what benefits the system’s upgrade had brought him this time.

He silently called out “System,” and a deep blue interface appeared.

In the next instant, his consciousness was transported into the massive system library. As with his previous advancement to First Rank, a new floor had appeared in the library after reaching Second Rank.

Stepping onto the third floor, Jiang Chen saw that in addition to the previously existing areas—[Natural Science] and [Alchemy Science]—there was now a new section.

[Arcane Science].

“Arcane?” Jiang Chen couldn’t help but speculate as he quickly approached the rows of bookshelves in the Arcane section, his eyes scanning the spines.

On each floor of the library, every bookshelf was labeled with the relevant disciplines of its books, and this floor was no exception: Magical Mathematics, Dimensional Geometry, Occultism, Mental Spaces, Essence of the Soul…

But what astonished him most was the label on a bookshelf deep within the Arcane section, near a tightly closed door: “Elemental Laws.”

Jiang Chen hurried over, glanced at the shelves, and pulled out a book titled Overview of the Law of Wind Elements. To his surprise, no matter how he tried, he could not open the book’s cover.

A line of system prompt appeared before his eyes:

[Prerequisite knowledge required: Magical Mathematics Lv.20, Dimensional Geometry Lv.20, Occultism Lv.15, …]

Prerequisite knowledge?

This was the first time Jiang Chen had encountered a book he could not read without mastering certain knowledge first.

He understood that all disciplines had to be learned step by step, from the simple to the complex. If one hadn’t grasped even 1+1=2, trying to study calculus would be futile. But in both the real world and on the first two floors of the system library, even if you attempted to study advanced topics without the basics, nothing would stop you—at worst, you simply wouldn’t understand.

Yet on the third floor of the system library, without the prerequisite knowledge, he couldn’t even open the books. The system directly blocked his access to more profound “knowledge.”

A strange suspicion arose in his mind: could approaching advanced knowledge without the prerequisites bring unforeseen risks?

If so, why did the geniuses and powerhouses in the world of Swallowed Star skip these steps and directly comprehend domains and laws? Or perhaps the so-called “Elemental Laws” in the system library were not the same as the “laws” in the Swallowed Star universe?

Jiang Chen had no answer, but his curiosity was piqued.

“In that case, I’ll start with the introductory prerequisites.”

His gaze swept the Arcane shelves, pausing at the first two—Magical Mathematics and Dimensional Geometry—and his lips twitched involuntarily.

“So even in the mystical realm of magic and arcane arts, there’s no escaping the tyranny of mathematics!”

Despite the system’s support making his learning ability formidable, only Jiang Chen himself knew how tormented he had been by “mathematics” while studying natural sciences.

No matter how painful the process, the sense of accomplishment when mastering a new, high-level field of knowledge was simply beyond compare. At least, Jiang Chen relished the journey.

Exiting the system library, he habitually opened his quantum computer to review the operation logs for the Earth and Bairan Star bases.

Earth was calm; only Luo Feng had visited several times, perhaps hoping to join Jiang Chen in venturing into the universe. The base on Bairan Star was running smoothly, having completed two more batches of “Goliath Giant” mech transactions and continuing to expand rapidly.

Currently, the number of Goliath Giant mechs either in production or queued for production at the Bairan base had already surpassed six hundred. The only reason the “Steward” had decided to allocate a large sum to upgrade Bairan’s defenses was with Jiang Chen’s approval. When a small planet has little value, it hardly matters, but once a highly profitable industry emerges, it’s likely to attract the attention of interstellar pirates. If defenses are inadequate, a single raid could wipe out all of Jiang Chen’s recent gains.

The affairs on Bairan Star were naturally for the Steward to worry about; Jiang Chen only needed to ensure the overall direction was correct.

Not in a hurry to “remotely control” the Bairan base, Jiang Chen called Luo Feng.

Moments later, Luo Feng’s face appeared on the video screen.

“Ah Chen, you’re out of seclusion?” Luo Feng grinned. “I came looking for you a few times, but your staff said you were in closed training and not to be disturbed.”

“Yes, I just broke through to the Stellar level,” Jiang Chen replied with a slight smile.

Luo Feng’s eyes widened. “Stellar level? So fast?! Babata told me that humans from Earth have weak genes, and even if you’re at eighth or ninth-rank Planetary, it usually takes years to break through to Stellar. Even with treasures, it should take at least a year or two.”

Jiang Chen countered, “Hasn’t it been over a year since you took over the Golden-Horned Beast? Why is my breakthrough so strange, then?”

In truth, Jiang Chen’s path to advancement was entirely different from the norm. Absorbing cosmic energy or treasures had little effect on him; only the system could elevate his level. He suspected this was another limitation imposed by the system. But there was no need to explain all this to Luo Feng—it was easier to let him believe he’d advanced quickly thanks to treasures.

“You’re right. It’s already been over a year, but I keep feeling like our siege on the Golden-Horned Beast happened just yesterday,” Luo Feng admitted with an awkward laugh.

“Shouldn’t you be spending time with your family instead of looking for me? You want to go to the universe, don’t you?” Jiang Chen guessed his intention. The two had grown up together and knew each other too well for secrets.

Luo Feng didn’t try to hide it and nodded. “Babata thinks it’s time for me to go to the universe and handle some identity matters.”

There was only one spaceship on Earth capable of interstellar travel, and it was in Jiang Chen’s base. For Luo Feng to leave the planet, he naturally needed Jiang Chen.

“Come to the base and find me, then,” Jiang Chen said, ending the call.

Several hours later, Luo Feng arrived at the South American base. Jiang Chen was already prepared and, with Number Two and Number Four, boarded the silver-gray spaceship with Luo Feng.

Jarvis’ upgrade had long been completed, but he was still no match for Babata. Jiang Chen handed over control of the ship to Babata.

As the spaceship launched, Jiang Chen and Luo Feng sat together in the control room, chatting idly.

“Here, try this. My people brewed it—it’s better than the finest wines on Earth,” Jiang Chen said, producing a beautifully crafted glass bottle filled with pale brown liquor from who knew where.

As soon as he opened the bottle, a rich aroma filled the control room, making their mouths water.

To enjoy good wine, Jiang Chen had deliberately bought slaves skilled in brewing from the slave market and had them use rare cosmic ingredients to create fine spirits. In the universe, this might not be anything particularly outstanding—the aging time was too short to achieve peak flavor—but compared to ordinary Earth wines, it was in a league of its own.

“This aroma is incredible!” Luo Feng’s eyes lit up. He was fond of good drink, and at the sight and scent, his craving was immediately aroused.

“Have a taste,” Jiang Chen poured them both a glass, clinked with Luo Feng, and drained his in one go.

Luo Feng sipped his slowly, his eyes growing brighter. “The richness is amazing! But this wine is strong—without some strength, you’d be knocked out after just one cup.”

“You need to be at least Planetary level to drink it; otherwise, it could kill you with a single glass,” Jiang Chen laughed. “On the way back, we’ll stop at Bairan Star, and I’ll send you home with a few hundred barrels. Let them age in the casks—the older, the better.”

“I won’t be polite, then. This really is fantastic,” Luo Feng accepted happily.

“So, besides handling your citizenship and opening a virtual universe account, what else do you plan to do in the universe?” Jiang Chen asked.

Luo Feng glanced at Babata. “Babata said I should also register at the Qianwu Dojo. That’s about it.”

“I see. You should also open an account at Universe Galactic Bank. The base on Bairan Star includes a share for you; I’ll transfer it to you. But most of the profits are being used for expansion, so the first dividend won’t be much.”

In truth, if not for the Golden-Horned Beast’s need for metals and the human body’s need for treasures to accelerate growth, Jiang Chen wouldn’t want to pay out dividends now. If all the funds were reinvested, the long-term returns would be staggering. Taking out a hundred billion Black Dragon coins now could mean losing out on hundreds of billions of universe currency in a decade!

Still, helping Luo Feng grow—at least getting his human body to Stellar level—was important. Only then could he inherit the first part of Huyan Bo’s legacy. Jiang Chen wasn’t interested in the Qianwu coins Huyan Bo left for Luo Feng, but that five-star Universe Galactic Bank account was extremely valuable.

Luo Feng had long been aware of this from Babata, so he didn’t protest. Still, it made him a little uncomfortable. He was happy to accept gifts like fine wine from friends, but money was another matter. Yet Babata had persuaded him, so he could only accept for now, resolving to repay Jiang Chen generously in the future.

Babata, oblivious to Luo Feng’s thoughts, suddenly interjected, “Jiang Chen, how much are you planning to give Luo Feng?”

“Hey, Babata!” Luo Feng exclaimed, trying to stop him.

“Don’t worry, Luo Feng,” Jiang Chen patted him on the shoulder and replied to Babata, “For the first payment, I’ll put out two hundred billion Black Dragon coins. Luo Feng gets thirty percent—sixty billion. That should be enough to cover all his resources up to the Stellar level.”

Jiang Chen had calculated the resources Luo Feng would need to advance. The Golden-Horned Beast was a money pit, but just reaching Stellar level would not require more than several dozen billion Black Dragon coins—perhaps there would even be some left for other purchases.

Withdrawing two hundred billion wouldn’t hurt the Bairan base much; it would only slow expansion a bit.

“Sixty billion? That’ll do,” Babata nodded. “We’ll only stay a few days on Qiu Long Star—take care of business and return quickly. Luo Feng, you’re still too weak. Focus on your cultivation.”

(End of chapter)