162: Reincarnation

Starlight flowed and time flew by; Luo Xing was now five years old.

These five years were his golden years for understanding the world and building bonds.

Little Luo Xing inherited his father Luo Mie's flame-like brilliant hair color and his mother Chen Yuanmeng's star-like clear eyes.

At only five years old, the vigorous life Aura belonging to his Innate Martial Body was already not to be underestimated; energy flowed faintly with his every move, making him a literal little superman in the making.

But in his small world, the brightest star was neither his majestic father, the Blaze Army Lord, nor his gentle and beautiful mother.

It was the one living in the deepest part of the Pillar of Leaders, respectfully called "Ancestor Chen" by everyone—his Great-Grandfather, Chen Jun.

That sense of closeness seemed innate, etched deep within his soul.

When his parents first took him to visit Chen Jun, little Luo Xing looked at his "young" Great-Grandfather, who was slumped in a giant lounge chair and smiling at him, without the slightest sense of strangeness or fear.

He broke free from his mother's hand, trotted over on his short legs with a "patter-patter-patter," hugged Chen Jun's calf, tilted his little face up, and called out in a milky voice:

“Great-Grandfather!”

The intimacy and dependence in that voice surprised both Luo Mie and Chen Yuanmeng nearby.

Chen Yuanmeng was gratified that her son was as close to his Great-Grandfather as she was, while Luo Mie felt awe at Ancestor Chen's unfathomable charisma.

Only Chen Jun knew clearly in his heart that this was the System's [Kin Source] rule at work, and the effect was even more outstanding than imagined!

From then on, Luo Xing became a frequent guest at Chen Jun Manor.

His favorite thing to do was to lean by Chen Jun's soft lounge chair and listen to his Great-Grandfather tell bizarre "stories" in a lazy and somewhat playful tone.

“Great-Grandfather, Great-Grandfather!” Little Luo Xing's eyes sparkled. “What story are you telling today? Is it the story of Grandpa Shi Yue punching a planet to bits? Or Grandpa Li Qingshan cleaving a nebula with one sword strike?”

Chen Jun gnawed on a White Hole Milk Candy and said slowly, “Those stories about fighting and killing are so boring. Today, Great-grandfather will tell you about your grandfather Chen Zhaojing's 'glory days' when he was young...”

So, Chen Jun recounted how Chen Zhaojing "bravely shouldered heavy burdens," worked "day and night," and faced the "earnest expectations" of "hundreds of concubines"... using extremely subtle and humorously exaggerated language.

Little Luo Xing listened with partial understanding, only feeling that his grandfather was very impressive and busy, having to accompany so many grandmothers.

“Wow! Grandfather works so hard!” Luo Xing exclaimed. “But for the sake of the family, Grandfather is truly great!”

A meaningful smile curved Chen Jun's lips. “Yes, very great, very hard-working... You should learn from your grandfather in the future.”

“Mm!” Little Luo Xing nodded vigorously, his face full of longing. “In the future, Xing'er will be like Grandfather and contribute to the family! I'll marry many, many wives and have many, many children!”

Chen Jun: “...Ahem, such ambition!”

Yun Qinglan wordlessly handed over a cup of green tea, her gaze sweeping over the excited little Luo Xing, a very faint trace of... sympathy flashing through?

Besides listening to stories, Luo Xing's other great joy was playing and studying with his vast number of cousins.

Within the Chen Family, a complete “Family Core Values” education system had long been established.

It was personally led by the “retired” Chen Zhaojing, with Chen Yuanhai and other “senior backbones” assisting in teaching.

In the classroom, Chen Zhaojing looked at the grandchildren sitting in a packed room, their eyes burning with the “fire of procreation,” and felt conflicted.

He cleared his throat and began the lesson:

“Children! Why can our Chen Family stand at the peak of the sea of stars? What do we rely on?”

The audience replied in unison, their voices booming: “Spreading the branches and leaves! Bloodline legacy!”

Chen Zhaojing: “...Correct! Then, how can we better spread the branches and leaves?”

The audience: “Cultivate hard! Strengthen the body! Marry more wives! Practice eugenics!”

Chen Yuanhai added from the side: “Also, pay attention to rational resource allocation, providing emotional value, and... uh, strategic recuperation.”

Little Luo Xing sat in the first row, listening with utmost seriousness, his small fists clenched, and a firm light shining in his eyes.

He only felt a surge of hot blood rushing through his chest!

That was responsibility!

That was glory!

It was the ambition to conquer the sea of stars... No! It was the ambition to populate the sea of stars!!!

He looked at his grandfather and uncles on the podium; though their auras were powerful, there was always a faint trace of fatigue between their brows, filling his heart with admiration.

“Grandfather and Uncles have truly sacrificed too much for the family! In the future, I must work even harder than them!”

Time flew by like accelerated starlight.

In the blink of an eye, another thirteen years passed.

The little tot Luo Xing of yesteryear had already grown into a valiant young man.

His flame-like red hair flew wildly, his handsome features inherited the best of his parents, and his Planet-level Peak cultivation was far ahead of his peers... His whole body exuded confidence, sunshine, and... that “procreation mission” that seemed innate to Chen clan descendants!

Under the influence of the family's core values, the temptation of the “Guaranteed Innate Martial Body” brand, and the frantic “feeding” and pursuit from countless top powers in the Cangqiong Seat... Luo Xing's criteria for a partner were simple and pure—to recruit virtuous wives for the family's great cause!

Today was his eighteenth birthday, the day he officially reached adulthood and was about to hold his grand wedding ceremony!

The wedding venue was still the same void platform where his parents had married years ago.

But the scale far exceeded that of the past!

Number of brides: Three thousand!

These three thousand brides were personally and actively selected by Luo Xing himself from a “mass audition” of one hundred million top beauties across the entire Cangqiong Seat!

They came from different civilizations and possessed different charms—some gentle as water, some passionate as fire, some intellectual and elegant, some cute and charming... but without exception, they were the brightest pearls of their respective civilizations, with top-tier aptitude, looks, and family backgrounds.

For these three thousand slots, various civilizations nearly fought to the death, and the dowries they offered could fill an entire planet!

Luo Xing wore a custom-made wedding robe that blended military style with festive elements, standing in the center of the Star Sea Hall.

Looking at the three thousand brides in their phoenix coronets and embroidered robes, each beautiful in her own way, he was high-spirited and full of grand ambitions!!!

His father Luo Mie stood beside him, looking at his son with a complex gaze.

There was pride and relief, but more than that, a sort of... hesitation to speak?

He patted his son's shoulder and said in a heavy voice:

“Xing'er, from today on, you are a real man. Remember, a soldier must have accountability and responsibility! You must take full responsibility for your choices!”

Luo Xing held his head high, his voice resonant. “Don't worry, Father! I understand! I will not fail expectations; I will spread the branches and leaves for our Luo family and achieve new merits!”

On the observation stand, Chen Zhaojing and Chen Yuanhai sat together.

Chen Zhaojing looked at his grandson's “high morale,” which was exactly like his own in his youth; his lips twitched slightly as he whispered to his son:

“See that? Doesn't he look like you back then?”

Chen Yuanhai had an expression of not wanting to look back at the past, covering his face:

“Dad, don't say it... My kidneys still ache faintly even now...”

Chen Zhaojing sighed, his eyes filled with the weariness of someone who had been through it all. “Reincarnation... This is reincarnation...”

Meanwhile, one of the absolute protagonists of this wedding, Chen Jun, was still slumped in his exclusive Supreme VIP viewing seat, eating the latest “Singularity Popcorn” with great relish.

“Tsk tsk, three thousand... This kid is much fiercer than his uncles and grandfather!” Chen Jun commented while munching. “He has my old self's... uh, he has ideals!”

Yun Qinglan sat quietly beside him, watching the couple in the star sea... no, that large group of newlyweds, her eyes still as calm as an ancient well.

Only occasionally, when her gaze swept over Luo Xing's face glowing with excitement, would a nearly imperceptible trace of... amusement flash by?

The wedding was grandly held, witnessed by trillions upon trillions of people.

The collective wedding of Luo Xing and the three thousand brides had a streamlined yet magnificent process.

When he and the three thousand brides took their vows together, their voices merging into a torrent that echoed through the star sea, the entire Cangqiong Seat seemed to tremble!!!

Countless young men were red-eyed with envy, and countless power leaders stroked their beards with satisfaction, thinking about the descendants of the Chen family daughters their own families had married who were also nearing adulthood; they seemed to already see the beautiful vision of countless Innate Martial Body geniuses emerging in their families' futures.

Luo Xing felt that his life had reached an unprecedented climax!!!

The wedding night?

There was no traditional bridal chamber.

The “Three Thousand Star-Brilliance Palaces,” specially expanded for him by Star Dream Fort, were put into use immediately!

It was a massive architectural complex consisting of three thousand palaces with different styles yet connected to each other, each corresponding to one bride.

According to a “scientific” schedule, Luo Xing needed to “rotate” among the different palaces, a request he had proactively made based on the Chen Clan core values.

This night was destined to be a sleepless night, a night of struggle, a night of... battle!

Like a marshal commanding a fleet of billions, Luo Xing spiritedly stepped into his “battlefield.”

He firmly believed that with his powerful Planet-level Peak physique and his heart full of passion to contribute to the Family, he would surely be able to gallop freely and achieve great things in this brand-new “sea of stars”!

...(To avoid censorship, millions... uh, no! Tens of millions of words of indescribable details are omitted here again. Anyway, the battle was extremely fierce; Luo Xing's initial offensive was like a tide, sweeping away all obstacles)... Three years later.

The Three Thousand Star-Brilliance Palaces, the core main hall—“Star Radiance Palace.”

The once high-spirited young commander Luo Xing, with fire in his eyes, was now slumped on a lounge chair made of Ten-thousand-year-old Soul-Soothing Wood... which felt slightly cramped for his size.

Yes, slumped.

This posture was one he had only seen on his great-grandfather Chen Jun before; at the time, he thought it was the ultimate posture of laziness and enjoyment.

Now that he was practicing it himself, he finally tasted the unspeakable... soreness and fatigue within it.

Three years!

Three whole years!

He finally personally experienced the bottomless fatigue in his grandfather's and uncles' eyes back then, and the heavy weight of his father's words, “take full responsibility!”

What kind of life had he been living these past three years?

Three thousand wives!

Three thousand maternal families!

Three thousand sets of expectations!

He used to think assisting his father in managing a legion was complex enough, but now he realized that managing three thousand wives and the forces behind them was the ultimate challenge in the universe for emotional intelligence, IQ, and... physical stamina!

A “scientific schedule”? That was just the basic of basics!

To increase the probability of “hitting the mark,” the wives and their maternal families took internal competition to the extreme!

Today, your maternal family offered Life Spring from the “Ancient Life Star,” claiming it could cleanse genes and enhance activity;

Tomorrow, her father sent a fertility robot from the “Mechanical Ark,” said to provide precise navigation straight to the target;

The day after, another one's ancestor personally took action, laying down a “Spirit-Gathering Seed Array” to converge the starlight of the heavens, all to create the optimal environment... all sorts of unheard-of secret medicines, folk remedies, technology, and metaphysics... were thrown at him as if they cost nothing!

That wasn't even the scariest part.

The scariest part was the “competition” and “cooperation” between the wives!

To seize the “prime slots,” they could instantly turn from fake sisters into life-and-death allies, and then instantly turn against each other over a tiny bit of uneven resource distribution.

Forming factions, horizontal and vertical alliances, overt and covert schemes... the palace drama unfolding was ten thousand times more exciting than the Federation's most popular interstellar TV series!

Luo Xing felt he was no longer a marshal but had become a precious... super mineral vein coveted by countless forces!

Everyone wanted to dig a gem of the “Innate Martial Body” out of him!

The key was, this mineral vein... would get tired!

A Planet-level Peak physique was strong, but it couldn't withstand this continuous, ever-changing, high-intensity extraction that was often enhanced by various “buffs”!

He felt like a super engine being overclocked; although the materials were top-tier, it was about to start smoking!

The flame-like brilliant red hair he was once proud of now seemed a bit dull... His once bright and sharp eyes now had faint dark circles under them that even Stellar Level energy could hardly eliminate... His once straight-as-a-pine back now felt a faint ache whenever he saw the schedule light screen of the “Three Thousand Star-Brilliance Palaces,” and he would subconsciously want to find a place to... slump.

“Sigh...”

A long sigh, filled with complex emotions, echoed in the empty Star Radiance Palace.

Luo Xing rubbed his kidneys, his eyes gazing blankly at the simulated starry sky on the ceiling.

He finally understood.

Completely understood.

He understood his grandfather Chen Zhaojing's “nothing left to live for” expression when telling stories back then;

He understood his uncle Chen Yuanhai's “grief-stricken” yet hesitant sigh;

He understood the blood and tears behind his father's words, “a soldier must be responsible”;

He even... somewhat understood why his Great-Grandfather liked to “slump” so much... This damn well isn't a life for a human!

No, this is simply not the life a Planet-level Peak powerhouse should lead!

Conquer the sea of stars?

Right now, he even feels powerless to conquer the "Three Thousand Star-Brilliance Palaces"!

"I miscalculated..." Luo Xing regretfully struck his forehead, feeling limp and weak... "I was too young back then, brainwashed by the Family's core values... no, the immersion was too successful! I was completely fooled by those old guys... especially Great-Grandfather's stories!"

Looking back now, deep within the smiling eyes of his Great-Grandfather as he told stories about his grandfather, there was clearly a hint of "watching a show"!

That wasn't encouragement at all! That was... the pity of a spoiler?!

And his grandfather and uncle, they must have known it would end up like this long ago!

They actually didn't stop him!

They even said things like "I have high hopes for you"!

Trapping their grandson!

Trapping their nephew!

Luo Xing wanted to cry but had no tears.

Is it too late to regret now?

Looking at the schedule on his wrist that kept flashing, reminding him which palace he should go to next to "fulfill his duties," Luo Xing felt a surge of despair.

Run?

Where could he run to?

The entire Cangqiong Seat was his Great-Grandfather's "territory." Where could he, a mere Planetary Level, run to?

Even if he ran, would three thousand wives and three thousand sets of in-laws let him go?

Would the Federation military let him go?

Would his iron-blooded father let him go?

Moreover... the effects of the Innate Martial Body and the Innate nourishment Reverse-Feed were right there.

Even if he didn't want to have children, the wives did, and the in-laws wanted it even more!

Those powers that married off their daughters had invested huge costs, all counting on being able to hold a grandson with an Innate Martial Body!

If he dared to say "no more children" now, believe it or not, hundreds of Stellar Level fathers-in-law and ancestors would come knocking the next day to have a "heart-to-heart talk" with him?

It might even alarm Great-Grandfather... At the thought of Great-Grandfather's seemingly lazy gaze, which could actually decide the fate of the star sea, Luo Xing shuddered.

He had no doubt that if he dared to slack off, Great-Grandfather would definitely take action personally to "help" him regain his vigor... "Is this... the curse of the Bloodline?" Luo Xing thought indignantly, "Or... a happy trouble?"

He lowered his head, looking at his kidneys which, though still strong, clearly felt a bit "hollow," and let out another long sigh.

"No, I can't just sit and wait for death!"

Luo Xing suddenly sat up from the lounge chair, a flicker of flame reigniting in his eyes. It was the unyielding spirit of a military family, and... a longing for freedom!

"I must find a way! I must formulate a strategy!"

He recalled the experience of the "Father-Son Anti-Coercion United Front" taught by his uncle Yuan Hai during a visit a year ago.

Although his uncle ultimately failed to escape the clutches, at least... he had struggled!

He, Luo Xing, son of the Blaze Army Lord and a future star of the Federation, how could he give up so easily?

"First, I need to establish an intelligence network! Find out the movements and 'trump cards' of all the wives!"

"Second, I need to find allies! See if there are any cousins also in dire straits to form a strategic alliance!"

"Finally, I need to... I need to go to my grandfather and uncle for advice! They are experienced and must have higher-level coping strategies!"

No sooner said than done!

Luo Xing immediately opened his communicator and began contacting those cousins who also had a flock of wives.

However, most of the replies he received were similar wails:

"Brother Xing! Help! I can't hold on against three hundred over here! How did you survive three thousand?!"

"Seeking advice? I was just about to ask you! Any special medicine recommendations? I'm about to be drained dry!"

"Alliance? Great, great! From now on, we'll cover for each other, saying we're visiting to exchange Cultivation insights!"

...Looking at these replies, Luo Xing's heart sank halfway.

It seemed the situation of his cousins was not optimistic either; he couldn't count on them.

Ultimately, he pinned his hopes on his most experienced grandfather Chen Zhaojing and uncle Chen Yuanhai.

He carefully chose a "safe" time, avoided the wives' sight, and quietly slipped to the Bai Xi Palace.

Inside the secret room, three generations gathered once again.

Only this time, the roles were reversed.

Chen Zhaojing and Chen Yuanhai were ruddy-faced and relaxed, even... a bit chubby?

While Luo Xing had slight dark circles under his eyes and a haggard face, looking completely drained.

Seeing his grandson's familiar "look," Chen Zhaojing couldn't help but burst out laughing, only barely restraining himself after Chen Yuanhai gave him a secret pinch.

"Ahem... Xing'er, why have you come to see your grandfather and uncle?" Chen Zhaojing tried to make his tone sound serious.

Luo Xing, as if seeing a savior, lunged forward and hugged Chen Zhaojing's leg, crying out:

"Grandfather! Uncle! Help! I... I can't take it anymore! Three thousand! That's three thousand! They... they aren't human! They're three thousand perpetual motion machines! Three thousand bottomless pits!"

Chen Yuanhai patted his nephew's shoulder empathically and sighed:

"Xing'er, I understand your suffering. But... this is the mission of our Chen Clan direct line!"

"Mission?!" Luo Xing looked up, eyes brimming with tears, "But this mission... it ruins the kidneys! I'm of the Luo Family direct line!"

Chen Yuanhai stroked his non-existent beard with the air of a grandmaster:

"Xing'er, in your Great-Grandfather's eyes, great-grandsons and great-grandsons-in-law are all the same! You must know that when Heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on a man, it will first exercise his mind with suffering and his sinews and bones with toil... You are currently undergoing the test of this great responsibility from Heaven!"

Luo Xing: "...Uncle, did Grandfather fool you the same way back then?"

Chen Zhaojing's old face turned red: "Ahem! How can you call it fooling? This is inspiration!"

Chen Yuanhai added from the side: "Xing'er, things have come to this, and escape is useless. You must learn to... find joy in hardship... No! It's to optimize the process and improve efficiency!"

"Optimize the process?" Luo Xing's eyes lit up. "Uncle, you have a way?"

Chen Yuanhai lowered his voice: "First, you must learn to 'strategically preserve strength.' For example, if some wives' 'auxiliary methods' are too intense, you must learn to skillfully... divert them, or lead them elsewhere to be consumed."

"Second, be good at using 'external pressure.' For example, use the excuse of busy military affairs, the need for secluded Cultivation, or... go to your Great-Grandfather to pay your respects! Stay for a whole day! That is an absolute safe zone!"

"Finally, and most importantly!" Chen Zhaojing took over, his eyes flashing with the light of wisdom(?):

"You must adjust your mindset! Don't treat this as a task; treat it as... a form of Cultivation! An ultimate Cultivation of will, physique, and even management ability! Think about it, if you can navigate with ease among three thousand wives, what else in this Universe could stump you?"

Luo Xing listened, dumbfounded.

Treating being drained by wives in turns as... Cultivation?!

Grandfather's mindset has already reached the Divine Rank, hasn't it?!

"But... my kidneys..." Luo Xing protested weakly.

"Kidneys?" Chen Zhaojing waved his hand. "Don't worry! Your Great-Grandfather already considered that! Why do you think Aunt Qinglan and the others 'pass by' the Three Thousand Star-Brilliance Palaces from time to time? They are secretly helping you condition your body and stabilize your Foundation! As long as you don't court death yourself, your Foundation won't be damaged! At most... you'll just be a bit tired."

Luo Xing: "!!!"

So his Grand-aunts had been secretly guarding him?

He recalled those gentle energies he occasionally felt; so they weren't illusions!

A warm current surged in his heart, but it was immediately submerged by a wave of despair.

Even slacking off... was completely calculated?!

Great-Grandfather, you truly are a master of calculations!!!

Seeing his grandson's expression of total despair, Chen Zhaojing and Chen Yuanhai looked at each other, both seeing a "just as expected" smile in the other's eyes.

Chen Yuanhai patted Luo Xing's shoulder again and said earnestly:

"Xing'er, accept your fate. This is the destiny of our Chen Clan descendants. Look at your grandfather and me; didn't we both make it through? Once you complete the 'basic quota,' you'll be able to enjoy 'freedom' like us."

"The basic quota... is how many?" Luo Xing asked with a final glimmer of hope.

Chen Zhaojing smiled and held up two fingers.

Luo Xing's pupils shrank, his voice trembling: "Two... two thousand?"

Chen Zhaojing shook his head.

Luo Xing breathed a sigh of relief: "Two hundred? That's not too bad..."

"In your dreams!" Chen Yuanhai ruthlessly shattered his fantasy, "It's two two-thousands! Father's was two thousand, our generation's was two thousand, and by your generation, the population base is larger, and your cultivation starts at the Planetary Level, so the standard naturally increased. Grandfather set it: two two-thousands, four thousand."

Luo Xing: "..."

He felt his vision go dark and collapsed directly onto the ground, as if seeing his dark "Cultivation" career for the next few decades, or even centuries... Four thousand children?!

With his Planetary Level conception rate, where even a hundred battles a night might not result in pregnancy, he couldn't produce them even if he were taken apart!!!

"Haha! Hahaha!" Chen Zhaojing finally couldn't help but laugh loudly, tears coming out, "You brat, you finally have your day! Let's see you laugh at your grandfather when you were a kid listening to your Great-Grandfather's stories! Now you know how tough it is, don't you?!"

Chen Yuanhai also couldn't help but smile, but he "kindly" helped his nephew up and handed him a bottle of Medicinal Pills:

"Here, my personal collection of 'Foundation Consolidating Pills,' they're very effective. Hold on, your uncle... has high hopes for you!"

Holding that bottle of pills, Luo Xing looked at these two "schadenfreude" elders with a mix of grief and indignation, wanting to cry but having no tears.

He finally deeply understood an old proverb—

"If you don't listen to your elders, you'll suffer before your eyes!"

No! It's "If you listen to your elders, you'll suffer even sooner"!!!

He was just too obedient to these "elders" in the beginning!!!

...Returning to the Three Thousand Star-Brilliance Palaces in a daze, Luo Xing looked at the dense, seemingly endless schedule and sighed in resignation.

He picked up the pill his uncle gave him, poured out one, and swallowed it with a look of death-defying resolve.

A warm current spread through his body, and his fatigue seemed to dissipate a bit.

But the mental despair spread like a nebula.

"Four thousand... four thousand... with my Planet-level Peak fertility rate, I've only just reached forty. This... this kind of life will last for... at least three hundred years? If... I Breakthrough to the Stellar Level... then... when... will it ever end?!!!"

He muttered to himself, his eyes vacant.

Just then, an exquisitely beautiful wife with a gentle temperament walked in gracefully, carrying a bowl of fragrant soup.

"Husband~ You're back? This is the 'Dragon and Phoenix Harmony Soup' I brewed using 'Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass' and 'Stellar Essence.' It's most nourishing, please drink it while it's hot~"

Luo Xing looked at the bowl of soup, which was brimming with Spiritual Qi and clearly valuable, then at his wife's expectant gaze... He silently took the bowl and drained it in one gulp.

The taste... was a bit bitter.

Just like his mood at this moment... He knew that this war belonging to him, and to all male descendants of the chen clan bloodline, regarding "kidneys," was still far from over... The greatest winner of this war, the one who always sat firmly in his seat, leisurely winning while watching his descendants "grow sturdily" amidst "happy troubles"—the Old Ancestor, Chen Jun.

At this moment, he picked up the latest report on Luo Xing's "performance" just sent by Chu Yueyao's subordinate, and looked at the data "Successfully conceived offspring: forty-seven" on it, nodding with satisfaction.

"Hmm, based on the Planetary Level conception rate, the efficiency is good. At this rate, the four thousand quota... well, there's still a long way to go."

"But it's much better than that kid Chen Zhaojing's 'productivity' back then. His grandfather was at the War God Peak and had 2,045 children in over ten years."

"After reaching the Stellar Level, even if the granddaughters-in-law try their best to 'love freely,' they can't have many in a year."

"Unfortunately, adding the suppression of cultivation Realms to the family's core values was useless. Evolution is a biological instinct; those little rascals basically all breakthrough to the Planetary Level before they even reach adulthood..."

"It would be even better if my Chen family had fewer cultivation maniacs and more casanovas like Yuan Hai, who not only didn't breakthrough past the Planetary Level but also married many wives."

"The idea of the System upgrading in less than a hundred years might be a bit optimistic, but it's more or less there, no big deal..."

He put down the report, picked up a new flavor of "Black Hole Sandwich Cookie," and took a delicious bite.