38: Chapter 38 Celebration Showcase: Technological Excellence

The morning light still hung on the metal edges of the test flight field as Chen Wuwang's fingers finally released the dagger. He didn't draw the blade, nor did he turn back, simply walking slowly down the high platform. His boot heels struck the stone steps, each sound heavier than the last.

The crowd below had not yet dispersed; the clansmen squeezed into the front rows, their eyes burning with brightness. But further out—the representatives of the minor clans who had been invited stood in small groups, whispering to each other, their lips curled in sneers.

"Those who crawled out of the ruins dare to hold a celebration?" a Cultivator in green robes sneered in a low voice, waving his folding fan. "Could it be they are worshipping a few iron shells as their ancestors?"

As soon as the words fell, his companion tugged at his sleeve: "Keep your voice down. They just blasted a bug swarm and their eyes are still bloodshot."

"What is there to fear?" The man's sneer deepened. "No matter how high those iron lumps fly, can they trigger the resonance of heaven and earth? Can they refine a Golden Core? It's nothing more than grandstanding!"

These words were not suppressed, drifting with the wind to the front rows.

Chen Wuwang heard it. He didn't stop walking, proceeding directly to the center of the main platform. He rested his left hand lightly on the tabletop, his right Mechanical Prosthetic Eye turning slightly. A scanning light swept across the venue, precisely locking onto the green-robed Cultivator who had spoken.

He suddenly smiled.

Not angry, not cold, but rather as if he had heard a joke.

"You are right," he said. His voice was not loud, yet it drove into everyone's ears like a nail. "We started from the ruins—but today, we want to let you see what the ruins can grow."

The entire venue went silent.

Even the wind paused.

The next second, he raised his right hand and tapped the tabletop three times.

Tap, tap, tap.

The rhythm was clear, like some kind of activation command.

"Hum—"

The lights across the entire square suddenly went out!

Only the central test flight field burst into a deep blue Spirit Array pattern. Complex spiritual energy circuits emerged on the ground, with electric currents slithering through the grooves like snakes, emitting a low hum.

Everyone's pupils constricted.

"That is... a battle Formation map?"

"No! It's a mecha activation array!"

Before the words faded, a heavy mechanical sound came from underground.

Twelve silver-gray mechas slowly rose from the underground platform. Their bodies were streamlined, with spiritual energy cannon ports embedded in the shoulders, and blades retracted at the sides of their arms. Their surfaces were covered with fine Talismans, and pale gold patterns lit up in synchronization with the spiritual energy circuits.

In the shape of the Big Dipper, they stood in Formation!

"Is... is this an upgraded version of that 'po shan' from last night?" someone asked with a trembling voice.

"More than that!" another person stared at the micro-furnaces at the mecha joints. "This is full spiritual energy drive! No external Talismans! It relies entirely on internal circulation!"

Commotion erupted below the stage.

Just then, Chen Xiaodao leaped onto the command platform. The mechanical interface on his left arm clicked, ejecting a data cable that plugged directly into the control hub.

He closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, the sharp edge of Sword Intent burned in his eyes.

"Activate 'Star Track Sword Array'—target, three hundred miles into the firmament!"

"Boom!"

Twelve mechas drew their swords simultaneously!

The blades unfolded, infused with spiritual energy, and actually resonated faintly with the thunderclouds in the sky. In an instant, they fired their spiritual energy cannons in unison. Twelve thick beams of light shot into the sky, exploding at high altitude and transforming into a massive golden lotus, its light illuminating half the horizon!

The rolling thunder was not naturally generated, but caused by the resonance between the Formation and technology!

"My god... they really triggered the resonance of heaven and earth!"

"That's not fireworks! It's the Law vibration after spiritual energy is compressed to the extreme!"

There was dead silence below the stage. The green-robed Cultivator who had been sneering just a moment ago stood with his mouth agape, not even noticing his folding fan fall to the ground. He looked up at the light trails that had yet to dissipate in the sky, his throat bobbing, unable to utter a single word.

Meanwhile, in the southeast, another phenomenon quietly emerged.

Old Lin, leaning on a cane, walked tremblingly out of the Medicinal Field observation deck. He held a wooden remote control in his hand, covered in cracks, looking like an old object used for decades.

He looked at no one, only squinting toward the depths of the Medicinal Field.

He pressed the button.

"Ssh—"

Pale cyan mist gushed out from the underground pipes, and nano-level nutrient solution fell like rain. The originally plain-looking "Dew-Condensing Grass" was instantly enveloped. Its stems and leaves stretched, shimmering with gold threads; the flower stamens turned from white to red, and within three breaths, it flowered and bore fruit!

Even more astonishingly, after the fruit matured, it did not fall to the ground but automatically hovered, slowly floating toward the prepared jade boxes, each one landing precisely inside.

"This... is this automatic harvesting?"

"The spiritual plants have evolved! Look at those gold patterns! That is a leap in the level of life!"

An old man who was an Alchemist widened his eyes, nearly dropping the pill bottle in his hand: "Impossible! The growth of spiritual plants relies on the nourishment of heaven and earth; how could machines accelerate it? It must be stained with gold powder to deceive people!"

Old Lin heard him and turned slowly. His face was wrinkled, but he wore a hint of mockery.

"Deceive people?" He spoke hoarsely, his voice not loud, but every word was like a hammer. "I stayed up for three months, failing seven hundred and twenty-six times, just to get the System to run the first set of data. You say... it's a deception?"

He raised his hand and pointed to a mother plant in the center of the Medicinal Field. A thin tube was connected to the root of the grass, continuously absorbing spiritual energy solution.

"This is not forced ripening—" He paused, a flash of light in his eyes, "It is evolution."

The entire venue went silent again.

The sound of someone swallowing could be heard.

Just then, Chen Wuwang raised his hand again.

His fingertips landed on the tabletop, tapping lightly.

Once, twice, three times.

The rhythm was steady, like a heartbeat, like a countdown.

He scanned the surroundings, his lips slightly raised. His voice was not loud, but it penetrated the entire venue:

"The scene just now—"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the faces that had sneered, over the representatives of the major clans who were pretending to be calm, and over every pair of eyes holding their breath.

"Was just the beginning."

As his voice fell, the massive light screen behind him suddenly lit up!

The five characters "Chen Family Technology Tree" appeared, with four major branches clearly outlined below:

[Mecha System]—from "po shan" to "Star Track Sword Array", and then to the future concept of "eye of wuwang";

[Spirit Array Engineering]—Earth vein resonance, cross-domain transmission, automated Formation deployment;

[Alchemy System]—Spiritual energy irrigation, mutation cultivation, AI temperature-controlled harvesting;

[Sword Array Fusion]—Sword Intent programming, Talisman drive, neural synchronization control.

The blueprint unfolded, and the future had arrived.

The entire venue was silent.

Those who had mocked the "iron lumps" were now pale.

The forces that thought the Chen family was just a flash in the pan finally realized—this was not just a rise; this was overtaking on a new track!

Chen Wuwang stood in the center of the main platform, his left hand still resting on the table edge. His Mechanical Prosthetic Eye flickered slightly, reflecting the technology tree on the light screen, cold light flowing within. He said nothing more, just standing quietly, like an unshakeable monument.

Chen Tiezhu stood at the edge of the mecha display area, his hands supporting the frame of a mecha. He looked up at the residual light trails in the sky, his mouth widening, a proud smile shining through the grease on his face. He didn't leave, nor did he intend to.

Chen Xiaodao stood by the command platform, the mechanical limb interface slowly retracting the data cable. His gaze sharply scanned the reactions of the guests around him, his body tense as a sword, ready to deal with any sudden situation at any time. His hand remained pressed on the hilt of his sword.

Old Lin stood on the Medicinal Field observation deck, leaning on his cane. The wooden remote control in his hand was turned off. He squinted at the spiritual plants as their golden glow faded, murmuring softly: "It's done... this old man didn't endure these three months in vain." His figure swayed slightly, appearing exhausted yet satisfied, and he did not leave his spot.

The morning breeze blew across the square, carrying a hint of scorched smell, the scent of machine oil, and the fresh fragrance of the new spiritual plants. The clansmen began to cheer in low voices, the sound growing from weak to strong, eventually merging into a wave.

And Chen Wuwang remained standing quietly, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, over the faces that had finally lowered, and over the depths of the Eastern Wasteland.

He knew that this display was not just a deterrent.

It was a declaration.

The path of Cyber Cultivation had already stepped into reality.