Super Mechanic: God of Superpowers!

Chapter 160 The Tender Sprout Magic Empire

[Congratulations on triggering the C-rank quest – [Find the Statue]!]

[Mission Summary: You have been asked by a singer named Morning Star to help her find a peculiar statue.]

[Mission Objective: Find the remaining two [Mysterious Statues]!]

[Task Rewards: Base reward 10 Inar, 120 experience points!]

[Note: After the task is completed, a score will be given based on the completion time; the shorter the time, the higher the score!]

"Very good." Ye Xiu's eyes flickered slightly, and he was delighted.

This is one of the few tasks he has, and it's also the most suitable for him to boost his ratings.

And in some respects, there is almost none.

After all, he wasn't Master Han.

Finding the items themselves is not difficult, but it requires a lot of time and effort.

The usual procedure requires traveling around to locate the remaining statues and gathering information from various sources, making the whole process quite cumbersome.

Moreover, the core criterion for task evaluation is the completion time.

The shorter the time, the higher the evaluation.

To some extent, this is undoubtedly good news for guys who are only good at chatting after the age of 25.

Getting back to the point, this requirement was not a problem for Ye Xiu either.

Thanks to his good friend Han Xiao, he already knew the location of the last two statues, completely skipping the usual exploration process and directly locking onto the target area. Getting the highest mission rating was a sure thing.

Considering the strategy of avoiding A-level powerhouses, he chose to use a roundabout tactic, taking advantage of the random reward mechanism attached to high-rated missions to obtain mission settlement cards.

Regular task rewards have become a secondary option; the strategic focus is on the opportunity to draw random rewards each time.

"This statue is yours to handle. Find the other two as soon as possible." Morning Star handed over the items.

Ye Xiu examined the newly acquired statue, which was a humanoid creature with a blurred face and a huge single eye on its chest, exuding an eerie aura.

The inventory still displays "Mysterious Statue," but a special note has appeared:

[Then you suddenly realize that these statues seem to be a set; perhaps something special will happen if you collect them all!]

After putting the two statues into his bag, Ye Xiu asked, "For the reward of 100,000 inars, I'll take this job."

How can I contact you after the task is completed?

"My schedule is tight, and you won't be able to gather everyone in the short term anyway. I'll have my assistant give you their contact information later; just let him know when you're done."

As Chenxing spoke, she revealed her signature charming smile, her eyes sparkling with allure.

Although he knew the exact location of the statues, Ye Xiu deliberately left one uncollected—collecting all three at once would arouse suspicion.

Morningstar still believes that this encounter was purely accidental.

In fact, the singer had been searching for the statue for a long time without success, and only by collecting two of them could he expand the range of his senses.

If it weren't for her exceptional sensitivity to the unique fluctuations emanating from the statue, Morning Star wouldn't have been able to notice Ye Xiu in the crowd.

Despite Chenxing's seemingly calm demeanor, Ye Xiu knew that his heart was already churning with excitement.

Ye Xiu knew his bottom line perfectly well; claiming to be a collector was complete nonsense.

Morning Star is actually a master of telekinesis, transmitting telekinesis through sound waves.

Beneath her seemingly gentle and refined exterior lies a deadly banshee shriek or soul shockwave that can erupt at any moment; her actual combat strength is at least at the B-rank.

The reason why his singing is so captivating is precisely because it incorporates a special spiritual resonance.

Meanwhile, the sacrificial totem formed by these four statues originated from the Void Spirit Sect. Through long-term worship by believers, it has significantly enhanced Morning Star's mental cultivation.

Unlike the pragmatism of the Crimson Empire or the liberal ideology of the Glorious Federation, the Void Spirit Cult is a cosmic-level civilization.

Its theocratic system is shrouded in mystery.

In the understanding of most galactic-level civilizations, religious belief is often regarded as a spiritual sustenance or philosophical speculation.

Some regimes even regard it as a factor of social instability.

The paths of life evolution vary greatly, and most religions worship nothing more than man-made spiritual totems.

However, in a few exceptional cases, there are indeed real divine entities.

The Void Spirit Cult happens to be one of these few special cases.

Although their civilization also originated in the period of ignorance, it did not follow the path of technological innovation or the elemental awakening of magical civilization.

Their ancestors accidentally discovered a way to establish contact with life in the real dimension.

When the object of faith can provide tangible feedback.

When religious activities directly drive technological advancements and social change.

The evolutionary logic of the entire civilization thus differed fundamentally from the conventional model.

Regarding the nature of divine existence, magic scholars tend to define it as a kind of superdimensional energy aggregate.

Just like a warlock who obtains power from another world through a contract.

Researchers on the scientific side believe that it is a higher-dimensional life form that cannot be detected by conventional senses.

Its appearance in the material world often defies conventional understanding.

Therefore, most of the statues of gods that conform to popular aesthetics are fakes.

Both theoretical systems acknowledge that faith relationships have two-way value.

However, the more advanced a civilization is, the more cautious it is about studying divine topics.

The Confucian sect has put forward a unique theoretical framework in this field and has mastered the core technology of materializing fictitious beliefs.

They claim that all divine beings have long existed in the dimensional gaps, and that so-called creation is merely the establishment of channels for offering.

Such esoteric arguments are naturally difficult for pragmatists to believe.

Besides the Supreme Spirit, the chief priest, this sect also brought together countless belief systems across the stars, becoming a trans-interstellar religious hub.

Those four mysterious statues are the embodiment of a certain materialized belief, carrying the spiritual energy accumulated over a long period of time.

Besides the Void Spirit Cult, the other two major cosmic-level civilizations also possess the power to defy common sense.

Of course, Ye Xiu is still quite far from being able to come into contact with such an existence.

However, he had already considered the route thoroughly.

That is, joining the [Void Spirit Cult].

Moreover, due to the existence of clones, contact can also be made with the other two major civilizations.

As the celebration came to a close, Ye Xiu bid farewell to Morning Star and returned to his rented starship.

At this moment, Caroline said excitedly, "This time we received a big order of 100,000 inars. If we can save up some more funds, we can buy a better spaceship."

"The spaceship maintenance cost is too high, let's talk about it later." Ye Xiu shook his head.

"Fuel replenishment, equipment maintenance, and system upgrades are all bottomless pits."

After all, in the interstellar era, the cost of maintaining a spaceship often exceeds its purchase price.

Ordinary players will not have private ships until the later versions, and in the early versions, only large guilds can afford the expenses of their fleets.

However, rather than buying a spaceship, Ye Xiu prefers to replicate a superpower that can transform into a spaceship-like ability.

Moreover, he felt strange that he had to be in control of himself, and that others were controlling "himself".

Especially when piloting the spaceship, you absolutely must not let Han Xiao do it.

After setting the navigation coordinates, the spaceship's engines roared to life.

Thanks to his familiarity with the mission process, Ye Xiu skipped the intelligence gathering and area investigation steps.

The first three statues are buried deep within the strata of three barren planets. His precise positioning ability has compressed the process, which originally took more than twenty days, into the minimum time required for the journey.

The final goal, however, is somewhat troublesome.

The statue had already been taken by someone else and was already owned.

The group has traveled through multiple star systems to complete this mission, and now they have returned to the Terrarim Cluster, crossing the gravitational boundary of the fourth sector of the East River system.

"This Azure Star is home to a native civilization." Ye Xiu pulled up a holographic star map to explain, mainly for Hela and Aurora's sake.

Although their knowledge has broadened considerably compared to before, the limited time they have given them means there are still many things they are unaware of.

"This planet was discovered by probes from interstellar civilizations long ago."

"It's just that the interstellar civilization that passed through here, due to unknown considerations, neither established contact with the native civilization nor left any trace of contact."

"This means that the inhabitants of the planet Mystic are unaware that visitors have ever been there, and have no way of understanding the true nature of interstellar society."

"In some ways, they are closer to a primitive state than the civilization of Aquamarine."

"However," he tapped the star map to zoom in on a specific area, "that planet happens to be located at the intersection of the trajectories of the wormhole swarm."

"This causes large amounts of interstellar waste to periodically fall into its atmosphere."

The suspended star chart suddenly flashed with dense red dots, each spot representing a crash event.

"These extraterrestrial objects have allowed local scholars to reverse engineer and discover results that surpass the level of our own civilization."

"However, due to the generational gap, the technology transfer rate is less than 30%."

"Interestingly, the remnants of different civilizations brought with them diverse technological systems—magical circuits, quantum chips, psionic matrices, and crystalline engineering."

"Experiencing such a complex technology tree in the early stages of civilization may not be a healthy development."

Ye Xiu tapped the projection interface with his finger, and the holographic image instantly transformed into a torrent of data.

"More importantly, the target is a special piece of debris that crashed three years ago and is currently being kept under tight control by a local force as a strategic technological artifact."

"Boss, what are you planning to do?" Jason Wood asked.

"Deploy directly, then make demands; if they aren't met, attack." Ye Xiu's tactical goggles gleamed coldly.

Caroline, adjusting the phase comparator, interjected, "Isn't this a bad idea? Perhaps we could exchange interstellar observation data?"

The latest novel is first published here!

"I've tried it." Ye Xiu pulled up a section of encrypted files. "In one possibility, after the negotiators met the other party's conditions in seven rounds of negotiations, the other party also requested the interstellar fleet's assistance in suppressing the hostile city-state."

"As it turns out, this is the case for these kinds of opportunistic regimes," he closed the file, the particle dagger flashing coldly between his fingers.

"Showing the license code for the Star Destroyer is more effective than saying nice things."

……

Southwest Region of Azure Star, the Sprout Magic Empire.

This small empire, built with runic energy technology, is hidden deep within a primeval forest.

The surface of the building complex is covered with meandering indigo and silver-white patterns.

Energy obelisks are scattered among the towering triangular prism-shaped buildings.

These tower-like structures, engraved with energy-gathering runes, form the city's power network.

The city-state was not surrounded by traditional city walls, and the height of the buildings gradually decreased as the forest extended.

Eventually, they merged into a cluster of villages, blending seamlessly with the lush forest.

Decades ago, interstellar debris falling from outer space brought about the enlightenment of rune technology.

The Sprout Empire's predecessor, the Sprout Organization, deciphered some of the secrets and then gradually built this technological marvel.

Today, this place has become a crucial stronghold of power on the planet Mystic Blue.

Deep in the dark forest, orange-red talisman fires flickered in a makeshift camp forty kilometers away.

More than twenty adventurers dressed in rune-inlaid leather armor sat around the thermal rune array.

The beast-repelling talismans surrounding the camp glowed with an eerie green light, keeping restless nocturnal creatures at a safe distance.

"Boss, how many times can this shipment be sold on the black market?"

The young team members rubbed their frozen hands, their eyes gleaming with greedy fire.

The lean team leader grinned, revealing a rodent-like smile:

"Hehehe, the underground market in Sprout City has been frantically buying up space junk lately. Our stockpile can be exchanged for at least seven thousand Sprout Coins."

This team of interstellar relic smugglers specializes in searching for cosmic debris spewing from wormholes.

Although various forces are vying to recover these foreign objects containing technological codes.

However, some always slip through the net, which in turn gives rise to a massive black market trading chain.

"call out--"

Suddenly, a piercing sound tore through the night, and everyone sprang to their feet as if electrocuted.

A crimson meteor streaked across the sky, leaving a blinding trail as it hurtled toward the camp with a thunderous roar.

The hunters, who dealt with interstellar debris year-round, instantly erupted in excitement; they were all too familiar with that sound.

"It's space debris!"

The burning debris of the star stirred up violent air currents that swept across the treetops, causing the entire forest to sway violently as if it were being ravaged by a hurricane.

With a deafening crash, a plume of smoke rose into the sky from the forest two kilometers away, and the ground trembled, causing half of the team members to stumble and fall.

The team leader grabbed the night-vision binoculars, the lens reflecting the still-smoking impact crater: "Excellent! The recovery team from Sprout City won't arrive for at least half an hour!"

The smugglers grabbed their gear and rushed to the crash site, their lanterns illuminating the impact crater, which was ten meters in diameter.

An egg-shaped metal structure, about two and a half meters high, is inserted diagonally into the bottom of the pit, its surface adorned with geometric patterns from an unknown civilization.

"This material doesn't look like ordinary wreckage." A team member hesitated as he touched the outer shell.

"Who cares what it is! Load it onto the truck!" the team leader urged sternly.

Just as everyone was about to make a move, a blinding light suddenly exploded in the dark forest.

The frozen ground in front of the team leader's feet was instantly melted by the energy beam, creating a deep crater the size of a bowl. The smell of burning mixed with blue smoke permeated the cold night.

"Everyone stay still!" A deep warning voice came from deep within the dense forest, followed by the sound of metal clashing.

A squad of soldiers clad in alloy armor emerged from the shadows of the trees, tactical grenades hanging from their waists and standard-issue rifles in their hands.

The team leader was wearing tactical goggles, and the silencer of his sniper rifle still emitted a faint blue smoke—the warning shot had come from this very weapon.

"It's the mobile force of the Pipi Black Mechanical City-State!" The smugglers' faces turned deathly pale instantly.

As one of the five major powers on the planet Mystic Blue, this city-state, renowned for its mechanical technology, has always swept across the battlefield with its heavily armored vehicles.

Its cast alloy armor is a major headache for all its opponents.

More rustling sounds came from the woods as combat squads in different uniforms converged from all directions.

The debris from the fallen planet acted like a magnet, attracting forces from all sides, and warriors in various outfits became wary of each other.

The air was thick with tension.

According to the unwritten rules of the planet Mystic, any space artifact that falls into the territory of any faction will attract a task force from that faction.

In other words, if you can't seize the opportunity, then destroy it completely!

"Pipi Black Mechanical City-State, Arcane Society, Samsara Temple, Veler Horde, Card Master Alliance."

Five elite units formed a ring around the central crash hull.

The smugglers, who had been eager to make their move, had already retreated into the bushes, trembling with fear.

I dare not move!

In this airspace belonging to Sprout City, every minute and every second is crucial to strategic advantage.

Therefore, the standoff lasted only a few breaths before gunfire shattered the silence of the night.

"biubiubiu!"

The warriors of the Pipi Black Mechanical City-State were the first to attack, their assault rifles unleashing a barrage of bullets that wove a fire net in the darkness.

Faced with this force renowned for its gunpowder technology, most people chose to temporarily avoid confrontation.

Only the warriors of the Card Master Alliance remained unmoved.

The brass discs on their waists suddenly unfolded, and as the crystal cards were inserted into the slots, a flash of white light appeared on their bodies.

At the same time, a cold, emotionless voice suddenly rang out: "Armor Combination!"

A pale blue force field instantly formed, and the metal storm was completely annihilated in the energy ripples.

This is merely the beginning of chaos.

Arcane torrents and bio-claws intertwined, crystal cluster rays danced with combat potions, and the entire forest transformed into a furnace of surging energy.

The exploding grenade burst into flames on the arcane barrier, and the metal gun barrel was snapped in two by the beast-like claws.

When the poisoned spear pierced through the reinforced body, it released a foul-smelling mist of blood.

The out-of-control energy card exploded into a ring-shaped shockwave, carrying humus soil everywhere.

The unique combat systems of the five factions clash fiercely here: the arcane emblems of the Arcane Society, the radiation crystals of the Temple of Reincarnation, and the mutant serum of the Veler tribe.

Whenever someone tries to approach the stellar debris, they are met with a combined attack from the other four parties.

This delicate balance persisted amidst bloodshed until a new variable broke the deadlock.

(End of this chapter)