Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

On the small chessboard, time is the cheapest resource.

Ron stood on the central observation platform of γ-18, his gaze passing through layers of translucent data panels and landing on the surface of the miniature planet.

The Tripartite Symbiotic System – Body, Echoing Tree, and Stellar Fragment.

After repeated revisions, parameter adjustments, and ratio adjustments, it finally achieved stable operation in the eleventh large-scale experiment.

He named this version "11.0".

The first batch of experimental subjects cultivated under the 11.0 scheme were officially named "Bloodline" by him.

The name refers to their genetic roots as vampires, and also implies the creation of a "new bloodline".

The first batch of stable bloodline individuals were distributed among three different test areas.

Their appearance is highly similar to that of humans—they walk upright, have long limbs, and have clearly defined facial features.

However, upon closer inspection, the differences are clearly discernible.

The skin has a warm, deep amber color, an external sign that star debris is slowly burning beneath the skin.

In bright sunlight, the amber color will deepen, faintly revealing a golden-red hue, as if lava is flowing under a thin stone shell.

Spending too much time in the dark will cause the skin to revert to paleness, approaching the original color of the vampire ancestors.

The iris of the eye is the most prominent feature.

Unlike the crimson of vampires or the multicolored irises of humans, the irises of bloodline individuals exhibit a unique "golden halo."

Under strong light, the pupils resemble miniature coronas.

"It's beautiful, my child has great taste."

Nari couldn't help but exclaim in admiration as he watched the live feed through the mental link.

"There's another detail that I personally really like."

Ron pulled up a set of microscopic images: "Look at their blood."

After the blood of a bloodline is drawn from the body, it will gradually turn pale gold after standing for a few seconds.

Those are the traces left by stellar debris in the bloodstream.

"If we observe using spiritual perception..."

Ron switched perspectives, and the blood in the image turned into a golden band of light.

Tiny stellar fragments are arranged along the blood vessel walls, forming an "energy grid" that covers the entire body, delivering the energy converted from sunlight to every cell.

At the same time, some of the energy extends downwards along deeper channels.

It penetrates the soles of the feet, enters the ground, and eventually merges into the root system of the nearest Echoing Tree.

"Power supply-backup-rebuild, a three-dimensional cycle."

Ron watched with satisfaction the trajectory of the golden dots.
"While alive, the star debris powered the body and the Echoing Tree."

"At the moment of death, the Echoing Tree intercepts the soul and uses the fragments as fuel to rebuild the body."

"The entire system forms a closed loop. As long as there is sunlight and the Echoing Tree, this race will almost... never go extinct."

“Almost,” Acelia’s voice rang out at the right moment: “You said ‘almost’.”

“Yes, almost.” Ron did not deny it.

It's called "resurrection," but it's actually "archiving."

He has confirmed several key limitations through numerous experiments:
First, the fidelity of soul information decreases with the number of "death-reconstruction" cycles.

But in any case, the goal of rebuilding after death will certainly not be the original one.

Second, the reconstruction speed depends on the energy reserves of the Echoing Tree and the density of stellar debris.

If there is insufficient energy, this process will take much longer, or even fail completely.

Third, if the Echo Tree itself is destroyed, all backup information stored within it will be permanently lost.

"now it's right."

Ron, on the contrary, breathed a sigh of relief.

If the recycling mechanism is too cheap, the consequences will be unimaginable.

A race that is not afraid of death has no need to reproduce, does not value life, and will not develop civilization.

Death must have weight, otherwise life has no meaning.

"Therefore, the true value of the Echo Tree does not lie in 'resurrecting' individuals."

He wrote a line of large characters at the very top of the blueprint:
"Inheritance, not resurrection."

"In the vast majority of cases, the core function of the Echo Tree is as a collective memory bank for the race."

"The Echoing Tree is the Achilles' heel of this race, much like the crystal tower in a MOBA game."

Ron wrote that sentence heavily in his notebook and circled it.

"Protecting the Echoing Tree is equivalent to protecting the future of the entire race."

"This means that...bloodline descendants will naturally establish settlements around the Echoing Tree, and will naturally form a cultural tradition of 'guarding the sacred tree'."

"Faith, cities, military deployments—everything will revolve around the Echoing Tree."

This is what he expected to see. Racial characteristics naturally give rise to forms of civilization.

No need for indoctrination or teaching; just plant the seed and let time and the pressure of survival do the rest.

After confirming the basic stability of the bloodline, the next step is practical testing.

Although the environment of cell γ-18 is controllable, the very concept of "controllable" implies a lack of authenticity.

He was clear from the beginning that there was a fundamental difference between sandboxes and public servers.

The experimental lattice is a fully controllable simulation environment.

I am the "creator" of this space, and I can precisely control the temperature, humidity, light, and nutrients.

The results are clean, controllable, and highly reproducible, but that's about it.

Greenhouse flowers can't tell you whether they can survive a storm.

Most importantly, creatures in a sandbox cannot develop true independent intelligence.

This is not a technological limitation, but a fundamental problem at the existential level.

When introducing the miniature chessboard, Antigonus mentioned a concept called the "consciousness threshold."

Simply put, when the "depth" of a space is insufficient, no matter how perfect the genes or how sophisticated the structure of the life forms within it, they cannot cross the chasm between "instinct" and "consciousness".

The experimental lattice is a projected "bubble world".

It can simulate everything on the material level, but it cannot simulate that kind of underlying "weight" that only exists in the "real world".

Public servers are different.

It was a near-realistic environment created by the Creator and maintained by multiple sorcerer kings.

It possesses a complete system of natural rules, a real spiritual realm, and sufficient "depth".

Only those born there can develop true self-awareness, language, and culture—ultimately leading to civilization.

"So the sand table is the laboratory, and the public server is the examination room."

Ron summarized it in his lab log as follows:

"I completed the technical verification of the Echo Tree in γ-17—dual-world rooting, soul engraving, and regeneration mechanism."

"I created the first-generation ternary symbiotic system in γ-18—stellar debris genetics, energy cycle efficiency, and basic species parameters."

"But these are all just 'parts tests'."

He added a self-reflective sentence at the end of his journal:
“All ‘success’ in a simulated environment can only be considered a ‘hypothesis’.”

"You never know which hypotheses will be overturned when real conditions come into play."

In particular, there's that seemingly plausible but ultimately flawed question regarding the "regeneration" mechanism of the Echo Tree.

In the sandbox, the mice exhibited 94.7% behavioral consistency after being regenerated.

But the lab mice lacked "self-awareness" and never asked themselves "who am I".

Once a fully intelligent humanoid individual is reborn, they will face a soul-searching question that can never be simulated:

Am I the one who died? Or am I just a stranger who happens to possess his memories?

The answer to this question cannot be provided by a simulation environment.

It can only be tested under the real conditions of a public service provider, in a truly self-aware individual.

Before deciding to enter the public server, he needed to carefully study the server map and power distribution data provided by Antigonus.

Ron projected the holographic map onto the dome of the observation room and gazed up at the miniature world.

The geographical layout of public service facilities was more complex than he had imagined.

The surface of this miniature planet can be roughly divided into five main regions, each with a distinct ecological environment and resource distribution.

Above these areas, dozens of "early arrivals" are already vying for every inch of living space.

The largest power is marked in the north of the map, centered on a verdant green area that stretches across several continental blocks.

That was the "green tide".

Ron frowned involuntarily when he saw the name.

Behind the green tide lies the core technology of the Tree of Life School—a plant-based semi-intelligent biome derived from the Ash Undead.

These creations are not particularly powerful individually, but their terror lies in their sheer numbers and their ability to transform terrain.

Antigonus's data shows that Green Tide currently occupies about 18% of the server territory, making it the faction with the widest coverage.

Their core area has formed a self-sustaining "living forest".

With its canopy blocking out the sun and its roots extending hundreds of meters underground, the life force of any invader is extracted and transformed into nutrients for the forest's growth.

"The expansion of the green tide is similar to that of fungi."

Ron was taking analytical notes:

"They don't need large-scale military operations; they just need to let the spores of the vanguard plants drift in the wind, take root in new areas, and then slowly transform the soil and ecology."

By the time other forces reacted, that land had already become an extension of the green tide.

"King of attrition warfare." He made a note next to his notebook:
What is the Green Tide most afraid of? Fire? No, they have long since evolved fire-resistant varieties.

What could truly curb them might be the sunlight they depend on for survival.

Although plants need photosynthesis, excessive sunlight can actually inhibit spore dispersal.

Spores enter a dormant state under strong light, which greatly reduces their dispersal efficiency.

Ron marked a spot on the map and continued looking down.

The second largest power is marked in the east of the map, shown in a metallic gray area.

"Iron Tide".

A masterpiece of the mechanical school—a group of self-replicating mechanical beings.

Their design philosophy is completely different from Green Tide.

The green tide pursues "diffusion" and "assimilation," while the iron tide pursues "efficiency" and "replication."

Each Iron Tide unit is a miniature factory.

They will collect the surrounding mineral resources, process them into parts, and then assemble them into new Iron Tide units.

The entire process is fully automated and requires no external instructions.

Occupying about 12% of the territory, it is extremely efficient, but the data also shows a clear weakness—poor adaptability.

The Iron Tide units are designed with a pre-defined scheme. When faced with unfamiliar environments or enemies, they often get stuck in a program loop, repeatedly executing the same ineffective strategy until resources are exhausted. "A rigid efficiency machine," Ron's assessment was succinct and precise: "It will break down when faced with unexpected variables."

The third force worth noting is in the south, marked in dark purple.

"Descendants of the Abyss".

The source is unknown, but Antigonus labels it as an "anonymous team" in his data, suggesting that it may have an official background with the Court of Truth.

The Abyss Descent occupy about 8% of the territory, which is not large, but almost no other faction dares to set foot in that area.

The reason is simple—it's too dangerous.

Creatures of the Abyss are heavily contaminated by the Abyss, possessing extremely high individual combat power but extremely poor stability.

Antigonus's observations show that the Abyssal Descendants experience a large-scale "abnormalization wave" on average every three generations.

A large number of individuals suddenly went out of control, killing each other, causing the population to plummet.

Then the survivors reproduced again, and three generations later, the mutation wave came again.

It goes on and on, endlessly.

“Severe self-destructive tendencies,” Ron wrote in his notes. “Surprisingly powerful in the short term, but extremely unsustainable in the long term.”

Of the remaining 62% of territory, about 40% is “gray area,” which is a neutral, unclaimed zone. This is the focus of contention among various parties and the most common release area for new species.

The remaining 22% was divided among more than ten small and medium-sized teams, resulting in a complex web of power dynamics.

Ron repeatedly analyzed dozens of deployment plans.

Finally, he circled a location on the map.

It was a hilly area in the gray zone, close to the boundary of the green tide, about 800 kilometers away from the core area of ​​the green tide.

"Why did you choose this place?" Acelia asked.

Ron pointed to that area with his fingertip:

Three reasons.

"First, sunlight conditions."

This hilly area is located near the equator and has one of the longest average annual sunshine hours in the entire server.

For those of bloodline, sunlight is their lifeline—this is their paradise.

Second, resources.

Antigonus's data shows that the underground of this hill is rich in a mineral called 'pyroxene'.

The crystal structure of pyroxene allows it to focus and store light energy.

If their bloodline develops to a certain stage, they will discover the value of pyroxene and establish a primitive energy harvesting system around it, which will become a significant driving force for the development of their civilization.

"Third, and most importantly—the opponent."

His fingertips slid 800 kilometers northward from the hilly region, stopping at the forefront of the green tide.

"The green tide is expanding in the direction of these hills."

"Based on the expansion rate provided by Antico, the Green Tide's vanguard plants will reach the edge of the hills approximately 30 to 50 years after deployment (internal server time)."

"At that time, the Bloodline will have to face a truly formidable enemy."

Acelia thought for a moment: "You did it on purpose."

"of course."

Ron did not deny it.

"The greenhouse test is complete; what I need is real-world data. And the best real-world data comes from the most dangerous adversaries."

"The Green Tide is the king of attrition warfare, and the Bloodline's sunlight properties can partially restrain their spore spread—but only 'partially'."

"The real test is whether this young race, with only a few thousand first-generation individuals, can survive by virtue of its own characteristics and wisdom when the green tide surges in with overwhelming numbers."

"If it is possible, it means my design is feasible."

“If not…” he shook his head: “Then go back and change the parameters, and start over.”

"You have a lot of confidence in them?"

"I wouldn't call it confidence."

Ron turned his gaze away from the map:
“A creator should not have ‘confidence’ in his creation. That’s too subjective.”

All I have is data.

"And...a little bit of anticipation."

………………

Before the official release, he took out several seeds from the Echoing Tree.

These seeds have already been "pre-programmed" in lattice γ-17.

They will automatically enter a dormant state after being planted, and will only awaken when they sense the soul signal of the bloodline individual.

Ron planted the seeds in the locations he had carefully chosen.

Their distribution is irregularly circular, covering the core area of ​​the entire planned settlement.

The distance between each seed is precisely calculated to ensure that, once all seeds are awakened, the coverage area of ​​the Echoing Tree can be seamlessly spliced ​​together to form a "soul backup network" that covers the entire area.

"The environment is ready."

He finished setting up the plan and, from a first-person perspective, glanced at the hills bathed in warm sunlight.

At this moment, this place is still a desolate wasteland.

Public servers are liquidated every few decades, and this time it has only been a few years since the last liquidation.

Therefore, most of this simulated planet is in areas untouched by life.

Ochre-red soil, tangled weeds, translucent pyroxene fragments, and a turquoise line slowly approaching on the distant horizon.

Seven days later, thousands of new lives will open their eyes here.

They don't know who they are.

I don't know where I came from.

I wonder what that patch of green in the distance means.

All they knew was that the sun was warm.

And the land beneath our feet is waiting to be called "home".

………………

The southwest quadrant of the arena is currently enveloped by a vast expanse of lush green vegetation.

From above, it looks like someone has splashed a whole pot of thick jade paint onto a chessboard.

Although the public server is reset every time, these plants can evolve new environmental adaptations after each reset.

They are like a well-trained army, each performing its own duties:
The outermost layer is the "pioneer vine," which grows extremely fast and can cover a new territory in a short time. The acid it secretes can dissolve the roots of most of its competitors.

The middle layer consists of "spine trees," giant trees that are tens of meters tall, forming the skeleton of the green tide. Their canopies, like umbrellas, block out all sunlight and deprive the trees below of it.
The core area is the "Mother Nest Flower," a strange flower with a collective consciousness that can coordinate the growth direction and resource allocation of the entire green tide.

Thanks to this system, the Tree of Life school has consistently ranked among the top three in terms of species coverage during the great reckonings of the past few centuries.

But today, something that shouldn't have appeared has appeared on the western boundary of the green tide.

To be precise, it was a cluster of things that shouldn't have appeared.

They were several small, grayish-white plants, no taller than knee-high, with thin, bony branches and leaves so translucent they were almost invisible.

They quietly took root at the boundary between the green tide and the desert, showing no signs of expanding outwards or launching any attack on the green tide.

They just stood there quietly... as if they had belonged to that land from the very beginning.

………………

Deep within the Azure Garden, "Emerald Laurel" Ash is half-lying on a large "bed".

It's called a large bed, but it's actually more like a large lotus seedpod.

The soft petals unfolded layer upon layer, supporting her body, like a mother cradling a baby in swaddling clothes.

The inner side of the petals is covered with a layer of fine hairs, which continuously release special wavelengths that help repair the wounds of the mortal body.

The true appearance of this top wizard is completely different from her ethereal projection, which is as majestic as the World Tree.

"Emerald Crown"... It is indeed emerald green, but the crown is about to fall off.

The trauma she suffered from her confrontation with Cassandra sixty years ago was far more severe than the outside world imagined.

The completion rate of the Void Remains dropped from 88% to 80%, almost causing him to fall out of the ranks of top-tier wizards.

It will take her at least several hundred years to recover to her pre-traumatic state.

During this period, her fighting strength was less than half of what it was at its peak.

At this moment, Ashe's upper body looks like that of a thin middle-aged woman.

Her lower body was completely fused with the lotus seedpod.

The base of those petals connects to the end of her spine, continuously supplying her with nutrients, much like an umbilical cord.

He looked no different from a critically ill patient receiving life-sustaining treatment.

"tutor."

The voice of "Daughter of Bright Eyes," Serafina, came from the entrance to the secret chamber.

The great wizard's voice was just as clear and melodious as it had been sixty years ago, like that of a young girl.

"A new species has been introduced to the western section of the arena."

Upon hearing the student's report, Ash did not open her eyes, nor did she give any response that could be described as a "response".

Serafina stood at the entrance for a full three minutes.

She had gotten used to this kind of waiting.

Since the Cassandra incident, the other party has become increasingly silent.

It wasn't anger that caused the indifference, nor was it a deliberately created pressure.

How to put it... it's more like a kind of "laziness" of lethargy, as if even speaking is something that requires mental effort.

After a while, a spiritual fluctuation finally emanated from the large lotus seedpod.

"what?"

"Unable to confirm at the moment."

The bright-eyed witch entered the secret chamber, her glassy eyes gleaming in the darkness:

“The new species has appeared on the western side of our green tide boundary. They are very few in number and have not yet shown any aggressiveness.”

"It has a rather unique morphological feature—a grayish-white woody plant with translucent leaves and roots that penetrate both the material and spiritual realms."

As she said this, her tone became somewhat cautious:
“I checked the records, and among the great wizards who recently gained access to the small chessboard, only one is a new face.”

"Enough with the nonsense, just tell us who placed it."

Aisha still didn't open her eyes, but her mental state showed signs of impatience.

"Ron Ralph".

The moment the name was uttered, the entire Blue Garden held its breath.

"This name... I remember it."

She finally opened her eyes. (End of Chapter)