Chapter 331: Civilization Broadcast |
Three hours later.
Chen Mang left the Starlight Civilization. This exchange with the leader of the Starlight Civilization gave him a much deeper understanding of the cosmic civilization environment. After returning to the Dead End Star System, he settled back into his routine.
Sitting inside the train, he checked the movements of the Zerg Civilization once more. There were still no significant changes.
He then looked at the star map.
Pushing the control stick forward, he steered the train deeper into the cosmos.
The last time he upgraded the Space Portal to level 500, the Overlimit Effect he obtained was:
It could contain a star and use it as the train's power source, vastly increasing the train's speed, provided it was paired with a Prismatic-grade acceleration nozzle component of level 500 or higher.
This current period.
Was his best time for development.
The all-out war with the Zerg Civilization.
Once that miner finished his apprenticeship and returned, he would see if he could exchange some information with that unknown mine owner.
Soon after.
Chen Mang selected a perfect star.
In the universe, the vast majority of stars possessed at least one orbiting planet. Fundamentally, most planets were born from the protoplanetary disks that formed after a star's birth, which were disk-shaped structures composed of gas and dust.
Of course, this was not an absolute rule. Various reasons could prevent planets from forming.
This left some stars completely devoid of any planetary companions.
Different stars varied greatly in volume, mass, and surface temperature.
The higher the surface temperature, the stronger the energy source it could naturally provide.
It was worth noting.
The spectrum provided by different stars varied. This spectrum was simply the light they emitted.
For example.
The light emitted by the most common stars found near inhabited planets was typically yellow. The surface temperature of these stars hovered around 5,200 to 6,000 degrees Celsius. Beyond that, there were red, white, blue, and various other spectrums.
They radiated a wide array of colors.
The light they produced became part of the gorgeous tapestry of the cosmos.
The star he had selected was in its prime. Its diameter was approximately 1.95 million kilometers, dozens of times larger than a normal inhabited planet. Generally speaking, stars were far more massive than ordinary planets.
Its surface temperature was around 9,600 degrees Celsius.
Its rotation speed was 274 kilometers per second. This rapid rotation caused its equator to bulge, giving it an oblate spheroid shape.
As for its age.
The train could not obtain specific data. It could only determine that the star was in its prime and had a very, very long time before it began to age. It would definitely outlive him, as stellar lifespans were normally calculated in billions of years.
He certainly wasn't going to live that long.
The star he chose had no planets around it yet. It was surrounded by a massive cold dust disk. This cold dust disk was actually formed by the debris of colliding comets or planets.
Most landscapes in the universe basically could not escape these two things: dust and debris.
It sounded rather mundane.
But when viewed directly, it was incredibly beautiful.
"Truly beautiful."
The Stellar Train hovered in the vast universe, drifting like a tiny boat in the dead silence of the darkness.
Chen Mang sat inside the train cabin, his gaze piercing through the front glass. His thoughts were entirely captivated by the massive star before him. At this moment, his pupils could barely accommodate anything else; all he could see was this star.
At a glance.
The blue-white light, which was about forty times brighter than a normal star, almost filled his eyes. If it weren't for the train's protection, looking directly at it from this distance would have instantly burned his retinas.
If the star seen from Water Blue Star was a gentle yellow, then the star before him was like a gigantic blue-white arc lamp, cold and blinding!
Its extremely fast rotation speed was visible to the naked eye.
The train's data showed.
This star was a ball of high-temperature plasma with no solid surface. The cold dust disk surrounding it had already been heated to a red-hot state, forming a dark red lava ring that extended billions of kilometers away.
Without the train, it would have been nearly impossible to observe this environment from such a close distance.
A distorted giant sphere of blue flames, encircled by a halo of molten lava.
This was but one corner of the universe, breathtakingly gorgeous.
The next moment.
An even more massive black hole slowly appeared above the star. The rapidly rotating star could not escape this powerful suction force. Soon, it completely disappeared from the universe, leaving behind only the cold dust disk, which suddenly seemed somewhat lost.
Immediately after.
The Stellar Train gradually left the area.
The star had already appeared inside the Stellar Train. The level 500 Space Portal's Overlimit Effect did not restrict the diameter of the star. This meant that, theoretically, as long as it was a star, he could fit it inside the train.
Naturally, he would choose a large one.
The bigger, the better.
This one was already considered quite large in the universe, but it wasn't the biggest. In the future, if he had the chance to encounter an even larger one, he could always replace it.
"This is perfect now."
Chen Mang chuckled as he sat in the train cabin, looking at the data on the control console. How could the Stellar Train not have a star? Who would have thought that this train, which looked so minuscule in the grand scheme of the universe, actually contained an entire star inside it.
He was currently pondering something.
That was...
Whether he could use it as a method of attack.
For instance, directly smashing a star into an enemy's face during combat. He figured not many could survive that. When fighting against lower-level civilizations, it should be a pretty decent combat tactic.
The only pity was.
This star could only serve as an energy source to support the train's speed; it could not be used for other components. It would be great if it could be used for the Akhenaten Light Energy Main Cannon. Just how much ammunition would an entire star equate to? How many shots could he fire?
It would turn the Akhenaten Main Cannon into a rapid-fire machine gun.
The next thing to do was upgrade the tail spray!
The strongest Prismatic-grade tail spray currently on his train was the SPY-7 Doppler Tail Spray, which he had upgraded to level 200. This was a component purely about raw numbers, without any complex mechanics. From level 5 to 200, the Overlimit Effect of every tier was a massive surge in speed. There were no other features.
Absolute stats brought absolute numbers.
With the enhancement of this component, the train's speed had already reached 3.37 million kilometers per hour!
This was a truly terrifying figure.
But it still had a ceiling.
It could still be improved.
As long as he upgraded it to level 500, with the added support of the Space Portal, this number would experience another massive surge.
The next moment.
After consuming 100 trillion units of iron ore, the Prismatic-grade component, the SPY-7 Doppler Tail Spray, was upgraded to level 500 in one breath!
The train currently possessed a total of 197 trillion units of iron ore. This single component alone had eaten up half of the train's iron ore reserves.
This was already the resource reserve accumulated from the Gemini Star.
However!
This was also the very first level 500 Prismatic-grade component on the Stellaris Train!
The improvement it brought was equally colossal!
-
[SPY-7 Doppler Tail Spray Level 500 Overlimit Effect]: Speed surge.
-
And the train's current maximum speed had also reached:
[98.77 million km/h]!
This was an astonishing speed, almost approaching the velocity of extreme celestial bodies in the universe, equivalent to nearly one-tenth the speed of light.
To give a rough example.
If he were to return to the Blue Star from before his transmigration, traveling from the Blue Star to the Moon at this speed would take only 14 seconds, and traveling to the Sun would take less than two hours.
Theoretically speaking.
If his train's armor was tough enough, the train itself would instantly become a lethal weapon. This was an ultra-high speed bordering on science fiction.
This was the transformation brought about by a level 500 Prismatic-grade component!
"..."
Sitting inside the train cabin, Chen Mang admired these numbers with great satisfaction. Pure stats brought pure aesthetic pleasure. Nearly one-tenth the speed of light.
Looking at it this way.
Achieving near-lightspeed travel within the train's operational lifetime didn't seem too difficult.
After all.
This was only level 500!
It was the same for all components. When upgrading from level 1 to 100, the stats slowly increased without any exponential jumps. Level 100 was a minor threshold that brought a decent change.
Level 200 was a major threshold. At this level, there was often a qualitative transformation.
Taking the Doppler Radar as an example: at level 199, its detection range was only 199 light-years, but at level 200, its range exploded to 100,000 light-years.
From level 200 to 500, it was back to a slow, steady increase in stats, until it hit level 500, where it would undergo another earth-shattering evolution!
In other words.
If resources were insufficient, there was actually no need to upgrade to level 300 or 400. There wasn't much difference compared to level 200.
Unless one could upgrade directly to level 500, it was better not to upgrade at all!
The higher the grade.
The greater the changes brought about each time a threshold was crossed!
Normally, upgrading a Prismatic-grade component from level 50 to 200 only cost one trillion units of iron ore, but upgrading it from 200 to 500 required a staggering 100 trillion units.
The resource consumption in between had multiplied by an unfathomable amount.
But it was worth it.
The resulting effect was well worth the price.
The most important part was.
Chen Mang looked at the train's control console screen, which displayed that this star could power the Stellar Train at full speed for 7.6 million years!
"Looks like I won't need to replace the star anytime soon."
7.6 million years...
This star was incredibly durable.
He suddenly realized how great the universe was. The stars were just sitting out there. Anyone who wanted to use them could just take them. They held massive value and were completely free.
The 500-level Space Portal's efficiency in utilizing the star reached 90 percent, which was quite good.
He was extremely satisfied with the Overlimit Effect from this upgrade. Feeling a bit addicted, he looked at his other components, beginning to hope that the batch of Ore Stars would finish being mined soon.
It wasn't enough.
When it came to resources, there was never a time when it was truly enough. Even though he was countless times wealthier now than he had been on Water Blue Star, he still felt it was insufficient.
He needed to land a massive haul.
An even bigger one.
A haul big enough to completely gorge himself. The Dead End Star System was too barren. The Ore Stars he currently possessed basically made up all the Ore Stars within this sector of the Kasa Civilization Federation. That was all there was.
As for the Ore Stars in other regions of the Dead End Star System, the Kasa Civilization hadn't constructed Wormholes to reach them, and he didn't plan on building Wormholes to go there either. The resources gained from mining those stars wouldn't even cover the cost of creating the Wormhole.
That meant.
Spanning 100,000 light-years, the Dead End Star System actually only had this small amount of resources for him to consume.
What defined a truly excellent resource zone?
It wasn't just the grade of the Ore Stars, but their density. As long as a large number of Ore Stars were clustered together, opening a single Wormhole would allow one to devour the entire resource zone. That was what made a good resource zone.
Otherwise, with one star here and another there.
It wouldn't even be enough to cover the expenses of forging Wormholes back and forth.
"I'll devour the Zerg Civilization first and then figure it out!"
"I'm so damn broke!"
The train currently only had 97 trillion units of iron ore left.
He definitely couldn't afford to upgrade the expensive Prismatic-grade components anymore, but the cheaper components could still be upgraded a bit.
For example.
"Hmm..."
"You'll do!"
Chen Mang set his sights on the Medical Pod. Just as he was about to act, Xiao Ai's voice suddenly rang out inside the train.
"Captain, Qi Ke Xiu has developed the first Primordial Blueprint."
Chen Mang paused for a moment, then his eyes lit up in a flash. "Quick, quick, quick! Invite him over!"
It was finally here!
The research had finally succeeded!
It wasn't easy. He had poured so many resources into supporting this R&D team lately, and it had finally yielded some results.
Soon enough!
Carrying a trace of both apprehension and excitement, Qi Ke Xiu strode into the train cabin clutching a wooden box. Inside the box rested a Primordial Blueprint.
Chen Mang strode forward and immediately picked up the Primordial Blueprint, raising an eyebrow. "A Primordial Blueprint for a Car Stereo?"
"Yes, the reason we chose this component is because..."
"No need to explain right now."
He grabbed the Primordial Blueprint and strode toward the control console. The Car Stereo hadn't gained any Overlimit Effects after level 20, so now was the perfect time to test this out!
A brand-new Primordial Blueprint required Universal Empowerment in order to gain Overlimit Effects.
Generally speaking.
When a blueprint was created, it already received Universal Empowerment, locking in its Overlimit Effects across the various levels. At this point, one would normally need to consume resources and Murphy Stones to reveal and check if the component's Overlimit Effects were satisfactory.
If they were, it was kept.
If not, a new Primordial Blueprint would have to be forged from scratch.
The Overlimit Effects it received were completely random. Because of this, the Overlimit Effects of the vast majority of Prismatic-grade components were random and completely un-tailored, as the cost of doing so was simply too steep.
This process required a massive expenditure of resources and Murphy Stones.
He possessed 0-Level Authority, which meant upgrading didn't require Murphy Stones.
Furthermore, the Train Auxiliary AI's level 200 Overlimit Effect drastically boosted computing power and allowed for the virtual deduction of a Primordial Blueprint's Overlimit Effects. This process only consumed Murphy Stones, without costing any resources, and could simulate up to level 200.
No resources required!
This meant.
He possessed the ability to randomize near-infinitely! He could keep rolling until he landed on an Overlimit Effect that perfectly aligned with his expectations!
Even though he could only deduce up to level 200, it was more than enough!
The next moment!
As the Train Auxiliary AI on the console pulsed with waves of white light, sixty percent of Xiao Ai's computing power was occupied. A few seconds later, a panel slowly materialized on the screen.
-
[First simulation complete. The Overlimit Effects for this Universal Empowerment are as follows:]
[Car Stereo Level 5 Overlimit Effect]: Louder volume.
[Car Stereo Level 10 Overlimit Effect]: Wider transmission range.
[Car Stereo Level 20 Overlimit Effect]: None.
[Save or Rescreen.]
-
"Rescreen!"
Chen Mang did not hesitate in the slightest to rescreen. What kind of garbage Overlimit Effect was that? It wasn't even as good as the original one. Theoretically, with infinite rerolls, he was bound to roll an incredibly overpowered Overlimit Effect.
The only regret was that he could only randomize up to level 200.
The Divine Level Extraordinary Effect at level 200 was indeed powerful.
But the level 500 Universe Level Extraordinary Effect was what truly counted as a qualitative transformation!
A transformative process from a lower-dimensional civilization to a higher-dimensional one! -
[Second simulation complete. The Overlimit Effects for this Universal Empowerment are as follows:]
[Car Stereo Level 5 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can effectively suppress hunger.
[Car Stereo Level 10 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly restore stamina.
[Car Stereo Level 20 Overlimit Effect]: Can randomly play the pop tracks of any civilization within a 100,000-light-year radius.
[Car Stereo Level 50 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly suppress thirst.
[Car Stereo Level 100 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly suppress anger.
[Car Stereo Level 200 Overlimit Effect]: Music played holds a bewitching quality.
[Save or Rescreen.]
-
"Uh..."
Chen Mang looked at the newly rescreened Overlimit Effects and hesitated slightly. The effects were no longer blank, but they were practically useless to him now.
If he were still on Water Blue Star, these would have indeed been decent Overlimit Effects.
They would have been quite handy in the early stages.
But now, they were utterly worthless.
He felt that his expectations might be too high. Overlimit Effects were fully randomized by Universal Empowerment, yes, but they weren't entirely chaotic; they were based on the component itself. This component was just a speaker. Expecting it to roll some ridiculously overpowered effect didn't seem realistic.
"Xiao Ai."
Chen Mang asked, "If I save this Overlimit Effect, can I take another Primordial Blueprint and rescreen it again?"
That would essentially act as a backup.
"Yes, you can."
He then turned to look at Qi Ke Xiu. "Is it difficult to forge a few more Primordial Blueprints?"
"Not at all. Once it's been researched, making more Primordial Blueprints is very simple. Shall I go fetch some now?"
"Go ahead."
Only then did Chen Mang begin to rescreen again!
Third try!
Garbage!
Fourth try, the absolute worst kind of garbage. The Overlimit Effects were 'None' right from the start.
Fifth try, even worse garbage. Sixth try, okay, but still mediocre.
Seventh try, eighth try, ninth try...
After an unknown amount of time had passed, a new panel appeared on the screen.
-
[Seventy-seventh simulation complete. The Overlimit Effects for this Universal Empowerment are as follows:]
[Car Stereo Level 5 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly improve mood.
[Car Stereo Level 10 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly restore stamina.
[Car Stereo Level 20 Overlimit Effect]: Heavy bass and low tones will be much clearer.
[Car Stereo Level 50 Overlimit Effect]: Music played will have a faint healing effect.
[Car Stereo Level 100 Overlimit Effect]: Music played will have a certain morale-boosting effect.
[Car Stereo Level 200 Overlimit Effect]: The sound waves emitted by the speaker can ignore the speed of light limit and distance. Through a quantum entanglement sound field, instant cross-galaxy communication can be achieved, provided the receiving party possesses the same car stereo and belongs to the same civilization.
[Save or Rescreen.]
-
"..."
Chen Mang stared blankly for a moment, a flash of shock crossing his eyes. He slowly sank into his chair, his hands trembling slightly as he lit a cigarette and brought it to his lips. He hit the jackpot!
He had pulled an ultra-rare!
Even for advanced civilizations, a common, unavoidable issue was that message transmission took too long due to their vastly expanded territories!
But with this Overlimit Effect, no matter how vast the territory, messages could be delivered instantaneously.
Upgrading his car stereo to level 200 was simple, as he didn't need Murphy Stones. However, it would be quite difficult for other trains to upgrade their stereos to level 200. The conditions sounded quite harsh!
But the thing was, some train components were detachable and retained their current level when unequipped, while others were permanently fixed. The Space Portal was a non-detachable component, but the Car Stereo just so happened to be detachable!
He could easily upgrade this component to level 200 and then hand it over to other trains, thus achieving instant communication regardless of the distance!
This wouldn't have a massive impact at the moment, but in the long run, the results would be astounding!
"Good, good, excellent!!!"
Chen Mang grinned widely, chanting his approval three times. The only regret was that the earlier Overlimit Effects were practically useless. It wasn't perfect, but it would do.
It was difficult for those early-level Overlimit Effects to be anything truly spectacular anyway.
"Save!"
He was satisfied.
This was more than enough.
Soon.
The lines on the surface of the Car Stereo Primordial Blueprint lying on the console began to emit a milky-white glow. When everything settled, this round of Universal Empowerment was officially locked in.
From now on, all the component blueprints duplicated from this Primordial Blueprint would inherit the exact same Overlimit Effects from level 1 to 200 that he had just rescreened!
The most important part was.
The two stereos didn't conflict with each other!
His old stereo could be used normally, and he could also use the stereo crafted from this component blueprint. Furthermore, he could continue to rescreen for new Overlimit Effects. If he found another good one, he could save it and keep rolling!
He would strive to exhaust the full potential of a single component.
If possible.
Equipping the train with eight or ten different stereos wasn't out of the question.
"Phew..."
When the dust settled, Chen Mang let out a long breath and leaned back in his chair, quite pleased. He felt he might have misunderstood Tuo Tuo.
After all, she was from the Mechanical Civilization's design institute.
It couldn't have all been random blunders. The Overlimit Effect from upgrading the AI to level 200 was actually incredibly useful.
Just then.
He noticed Qi Ke Xiu, who was still standing behind him holding a large stack of Car Stereo Primordial Blueprints. He immediately smiled and waved his hand.
"Alright, just put them down here and you can head back for now."
"You've done excellent work this time. You'll be heavily rewarded."
After Qi Ke Xiu left, he casually grabbed another Primordial Blueprint, placed it in front of the scanner slot on the console, and ordered, "Xiao Ai, continue rescreening this Primordial Blueprint."
"If you think you've rolled a pretty decent Overlimit Effect, call me over to take a look."
Although he was already very satisfied with his current Overlimit Effect, it didn't cost anything anyway, so he might as well keep rolling. Who knew, maybe he could roll something even better.
This was the beauty of it being free.
He could be as capricious as he liked.
No resources needed, no Murphy Stones required. It was completely free.
The very next moment.
He had just sat down in his chair, preparing to properly study his new component blueprint, when Xiao Ai's voice echoed through the train cabin.
"Captain, I think I've rolled a pretty decent Overlimit Effect."
"Sigh."
Chen Mang sighed softly in mild exasperation. "Didn't you just rescreen once? Can you even judge what constitutes a 'decent' Overlimit Effect? Don't just call me over for any random one, otherwise, how many times will I have to walk over there a day?"
"First, you need to..."
Inside the cabin, Chen Mang's voice suddenly trailed off.
The entire train fell into a deathly silence.
Xiao Lu, who had been sleeping in the corner, seemed to sense something. It lifted its head and looked around in confusion. Only after confirming that Boss Mang was still standing there and nothing was wrong did it bury its head back in its paws and drift off to sleep again.
Gradually, the sound of heavy, rapid breathing filled the silent train cabin.
After a long while.
Chen Mang finally took a deep breath, looking up at the starry sky outside the window. With a dazed expression, he muttered, "Am I really just lacking in luck?"
Luck.
It was an intangible concept, yet incredibly crucial in the universe.
Just as the leader of the Starlight Civilization had said, to reach the peak, one's own strength and character accounted for only one percent of the equation. The remaining ninety-nine percent relied purely on luck.
And now, it seemed his luck was merely average—or at least, it couldn't compare to Xiao Ai's.
He had to rescreen 77 times just to strike gold.
Yet Xiao Ai had rolled just once and instantly hit crimson—and a grand, majestic crimson at that, authenticated by the very laws of the universe! It was the first time he had ever seen such an Overlimit Effect! -
[Seventy-eighth simulation complete. The Overlimit Effects for this Universal Empowerment are as follows:]
[Car Stereo Level 5 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly improve mood.
[Car Stereo Level 10 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can slightly restore stamina.
[Car Stereo Level 20 Overlimit Effect]: Music played can reduce feelings of fatigue.
[Car Stereo Level 50 Overlimit Effect]: By sitting on the speaker, its vibrations can painlessly shatter hemorrhoids.
[Car Stereo Level 100 Overlimit Effect]: Sonic Leap. After the speaker charges up, it can use resonance to randomly teleport to any point within a 10,000-meter radius on a flat plane.
[Car Stereo Level 200 Overlimit Effect]: Can boundlessly transmit Civilization Broadcasts deep into the universe at speeds far exceeding light, and can forcefully intercept all Civilization Broadcasts drifting through space transmitted by other civilizations within radar range.
(PS: During this simulation process, the Level 200 Overlimit Effect is a Unique Overlimit Effect, the only one of its kind in the universe.)
(Once any Unique Overlimit Effect is confirmed and saved, no other civilization will ever be able to roll this Overlimit Effect again. Furthermore, once saved, the civilization in possession will permanently lose the ability to rescreen the Universal Empowerment for this type of component.)
[Save or Rescreen.]
-
"Phew..."
Chen Mang took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes. He had to admit it now: Xiao Ai's luck really was incredible. At the very least, it felt much better than his own.
[Universe Unique Overlimit Effect!]
This was the first time he had seen one!
And the only time he would.
He had upgraded so many components, yet he had never encountered a unique Overlimit Effect before. This implied a great deal of hidden information.
While conversing with the leader of the Starlight Civilization, the old man had told him something.
There was nothing truly unique in this universe.
No matter how well-hidden or precious something was, it was never the only one. Somewhere in a distant corner of the cosmos, there was bound to be a second one.
Now, he wanted to say.
There was.
He could now confirm with absolute certainty that there were indeed unique things in the universe. The authentication of this 'Unique Overlimit Effect' was information presented under the laws of the universe; it was certified by the cosmic laws themselves!
"Save!"
Without a sliver of hesitation, he immediately confirmed the save!
What was there even to think about?
Even if this Overlimit Effect was complete garbage, as long as it was unique, it had to be saved. Uniqueness was often far more valuable than the actual Overlimit Effect itself!
Not to mention that at level 200, Divine Level Extraordinary Effects were never terrible; it simply depended on whether the user knew how to exploit them.
It all came down to finding the appropriate scenario for their use.
Afterward, he grabbed another Car Stereo Primordial Blueprint and placed it on the console. A red 'X' promptly appeared on the screen.
Indicating that it could no longer be rescreened.
From this point onward in the Human Civilization, even if other trains managed to nurture their own R&D teams in the future, they would never be able to rescreen the Overlimit Effects for this component.
It was permanently locked.
He suddenly felt that he was quite lucky as well. Thankfully, he had rolled the 'instant communication' Overlimit Effect first. If he had landed this Unique Overlimit Effect right away, he would have been locked out of ever obtaining that instant communication trait.
Now, his train could simultaneously possess two stereos.
One for instant communication, and one for Civilization Broadcasts.
As for that original trashy car stereo, it was time to quickly dismantle it before it became an eyesore.
Theoretically speaking.
With infinite rescreens, rolling a 'Unique Overlimit Effect' was virtually guaranteed. Therefore, acquiring as many powerful Overlimit Effects as possible before hitting it was the most cost-effective approach.
Getting it too early wasn't necessarily a good thing.
"Why do I feel a bit regretful again?"
Chen Mang smacked his lips, sighing with a hint of regret. If it had come just a little later, he might have been able to roll a few more incredibly powerful Overlimit Effects.
Humans were just like that.
Even if they suddenly struck it rich and won a hundred million from the lottery, they would still regret not buying a few more tickets. People always said that contentment brought happiness, but human nature inherently struggled to be satisfied.
The more they were given, the harder it was to be content.
Conversely, it was easiest to be content when one had absolutely nothing.
Just not starving to death was enough.
Afterwards.
Wasting no time, Chen Mang picked up the Primordial Blueprint with the Unique Overlimit Effect and had Qi Ke Xiu create a component blueprint from it before bringing it back to him.
He had owned many 'Component Blueprints' before.
But this one was different. The top right corner of the blueprint featured a 'red' moon. This wasn't stamped on by Qi Ke Xiu; it was bestowed by the laws of the universe.
Casting his gaze upon it, he could sense the specific information contained within.
[This component blueprint's level 200 Overlimit Effect is a Universe Unique Overlimit Effect!]
Component blueprints could be sold.
Which meant.
If he were willing to sell this blueprint and could manage to contact those advanced civilizations, fetching an astronomical figure would absolutely be no problem.
However...
If he sold too many, it would lose its value. Once it lost its unique attribute, this Overlimit Effect would become perfectly ordinary.
This was a white-grade component.
Consuming 500 million units of iron ore, he upgraded it to level 200 in a single breath. The newly revealed Overlimit Effects were exactly the ones he had rolled during the simulation. On the display panel, the font color of the unique Overlimit Effect was distinct from the rest.
It was predominantly red, but not a standard bright red. The color was dotted with stars, looking incredibly gorgeous, as if inscribed with the ink of the cosmos itself.
"Beautiful."
Chen Mang nodded in satisfaction, then carefully analyzed the Overlimit Effect. He was actually still figuring out its exact practical applications.
Almost all civilizations possessed 'Civilization Broadcasts'. It was a special item.
Only a civilization's leader could use it.
It allowed them to transmit a broadcast deep into the universe. However, the vast majority of the time, these broadcasts were never received by other civilizations. After all, their transmission speed was only equal to the speed of light.
The range was a radius of 100,000 light-years. Until it reached this limit, it would not dissipate.
Nor could it be destroyed.
It would take 100,000 years to reach the end of its range. That duration was incredibly long. Looking at the star map, it might seem like there were quite a few civilizations in the area, but in reality, they were all vast distances apart from one another.
Almost ninety-nine percent of Universe Broadcasts drifted through space like cosmic ghosts, forever unseen and unheard.
In most cases, the purpose of a Universe Broadcast wasn't to relay messages to other civilizations, but to serve as a public record—leaving behind permanent, indelible proof in the depths of the universe.
Soon.
Chen Mang looked at the line detailing the Overlimit Effect, nodding thoughtfully.
-
[Can boundlessly transmit Civilization Broadcasts deep into the universe at speeds far exceeding light, and can forcefully intercept all Civilization Broadcasts drifting through space transmitted by other civilizations within radar range.]
-
Boundlessly.
The Civilization Broadcasts he transmitted didn't consume any special items, nor did they have limits on uses, frequency, or distance. Moreover, their transmission speed far exceeded the speed of light, leaving the broadcasts of other civilizations in the dust.
He didn't know the exact speed.
He hadn't tried it.
And he didn't quite dare to...
He worried the effect might be too potent. If it instantly transmitted his broadcast tens of millions of light-years away, he feared it might bring a devastating calamity upon him.
When one was weak and insignificant, it was best to keep quiet to avoid attracting the attention of predators.
Although he didn't dare use it.
For this point alone, he had to admit that this level 200 Overlimit Effect far surpassed what a component of its grade and level should logically possess.
A unique artifact of the universe was bound to be a masterpiece.
He didn't dare test the first part of the effect, but he wasn't afraid to use the second half. He could forcefully intercept all Civilization Broadcasts drifting through the cosmos within his radar's range.
That meant he could intercept every single Civilization Broadcast within a staggering 100,000-light-year radius!
This opened the door to countless possibilities.
The very next moment.
When the stereo was activated, the number in the top right corner of the red dot on the train's console screen began to rapidly increase, shooting all the way up to... 238,293.
"Good lord..."
Chen Mang muttered in shock. He hadn't expected there to be 238,293 Civilization Broadcasts in such a relatively small area. And the vast majority of them had never been intercepted by anyone before.
He even spotted the Universe Broadcast from when his own civilization advanced to level two.
There were also many from the Mechanical Civilization, the Kasa Civilization, and even several level-three civilizations he had never even heard of.
These broadcasts had been transmitted tens of thousands of years ago.
The civilizations had long since been annihilated, yet their broadcasts were still drifting, having yet to reach the end of their journey.
These 238,293 broadcasts weren't entirely from current civilizations. They encompassed every broadcast sent by all civilizations in this region over the past 100,000 years—a staggering sum of nearly 240,000!
He felt like he finally understood the greatest utility of this 'Universe Unique Overlimit Effect'.
It was... 'Archaeology'!
Or an 'Intelligence System'!
These broadcasts contained vast amounts of lingering information. These precious details could give him a general understanding of the rise and fall of almost all the civilizations in the Dead End Star System over the past 100,000 years.
He could glean so much from it.
And in the universe, what was the most precious thing?
Ore Stars were naturally the most valuable, but something often overlooked by many—information and intelligence—was equally priceless!
There were simply too many intercepted broadcasts, so he had Xiao Ai rapidly filter through them. Sure enough, none of them belonged to the Niya Civilization.
It was very obvious.
The erasure had been executed meticulously. Aside from Keke and a few others slipping through the cracks, very little had been left behind.
There were two types of Civilization Broadcasts.
The first was a broadcast manually transmitted by a leader using a special item, sent deep into the cosmos.
The second was an automated broadcast triggered by the laws of the universe during a civilization's advancement or under other special circumstances.
And out of these two to three hundred thousand broadcasts, those marking a civilization's advancement accounted for roughly a tenth.
That wasn't a small number.
That meant that over the past 100,000 years, around 20,000 civilizations had advanced to level two.
However...
Now, the entire Dead End Star System only had a few hundred level-two civilizations left. Even factoring in the intentional suppression by the Kasa Civilization, this number was still far too low. It was glaringly obvious that some unknown event had taken place in this region.
And the truth behind these events was very likely hidden within these broadcasts.
"Let me see..."
Chen Mang adjusted the sorting and looked at the longest-traveling broadcast. It had traveled 99,981 light-years, just 19 light-years shy of dissipating. This meant it had been sent at some point nearly 100,000 years ago.
He figured this particular broadcast had to have been intercepted by someone before.
After all, it had been traveling for so long.
It had traversed almost the entire Dead End Star System.
More importantly, the transmission point was right in his sector, situated near the Kasa Civilization Federation. Otherwise, if its transmission range didn't overlap with his radar's range, it would have been nearly impossible to detect.
-
[Level 3 Civilization, Azure Sea Civilization]: Our civilization perishes today. Unreconciled. This was not a defeat born of war. That Star Behemoth swallowed a massive number of planets within the Seven Sisters Star System. Even as the Azure Sea Civilization fled the entire way, we still couldn't escape this calamity.
Its size is 0.1 light-years across. Its entire body is green. It cannot be looked at directly. It cannot be defeated.
It is in a state of extreme fury.
The reason is unknown.
The universe is so vast, yet there is no place for us. We truly refuse to accept this end.
-
"..."
Chen Mang's expression turned slightly odd. Which unlucky level-three civilization was this? The Seven Sisters Star System was likely the Dead End Star System. These names were given by the civilizations themselves; different civilizations would naturally use different names.
It was just that...
Why did this physical description sound so familiar?
He tilted his head and glanced at Xiao Lu, who was sleeping like a log in the corner of the cabin. His mouth twitched. He might just have a good idea as to why that Star Behemoth was so furious.