Chapter 388: Human Civilization Museum |
Some time ago.
The twenty-seven God-Level Civilizations had jointly launched a virtual reality game called "New Universe." This virtual game was extremely unique; dying in the game meant dying in reality, and any blueprints or resources dropped in the game could be brought into the real world for use.
To this day, the game was still running, and it remained the absolute most popular game in the entire universe, bar none.
He had been quite curious about this game back then.
However, after he annihilated the previous Human Civilization, their AI promptly deleted the database, preventing him from obtaining much information. Now, he had finally acquired the relevant data from the Zerg Queen.
"New Universe."
A game spearheaded and operated by the previous Human Civilization. Its design concept was quite unique, though not far off from what he had guessed. By using a massive amount of Dream Stones, it turned people from various civilizations into players, sending them into a virtual network crafted from those stones to gather resources from the remote corners of the universe.
Just as he had mentioned before.
In the universe, high-resource zones were a minority. The vast majority of space was composed of resource-poor regions. Although these areas lacked abundant materials and couldn't even cover the expenses of constructing two-way Wormholes for traditional mining, utilizing Dream Stones drastically reduced extraction costs while simultaneously bringing the resources back to the God-Level Civilizations.
The total resources left to him by the Tier-7 Rugged Civilization amounted to nearly ten thousand Background Units of iron ore.
Meanwhile, the total resources left by the God-Level Zerg Civilization came to nearly one hundred thousand Background Units of iron ore.
The gap between the two wasn't actually that vast, merely a tenfold difference.
Aside from the massive daily expenditures of a God-Level Civilization, the main reason was that mining resources was quite troublesome even for them. The design concept for this game was proposed by the previous Human Civilization, but creating such a virtual network required a colossal amount of Dream Stones. Since the previous Human Civilization did not have enough on their own, they allied with all the other God-Level Civilizations to bring the game to life.
It was a truly perfect design concept.
"Quite interesting."
Chen Mang nodded slightly. The AI for this game was also a max-level entity newly created by all the God-Level Civilizations, who had pooled their resources equally to maintain and operate the system.
This design was fascinating, and it could also help him gather resources from every corner of the universe much more efficiently.
Of course.
That was provided the game could be promoted to as many civilizations as possible. If it was limited only to God-Level Civilizations, the population would be far too small, and the resource collection speed would be dreadfully slow.
Everything that followed fell into place naturally.
After the Stellar Train easily wiped out the previous Human Civilization and seventeen Immortal Emperors, the strength it displayed was enough to explain everything. Following a long period of silence, the various God-Level Civilizations didn't even bother discussing countermeasures with each other; they simply chose to surrender one after another, joining the Human Civilization.
Under such circumstances, there was no need for communication.
What was there to discuss?
Even if they banded together, they still wouldn't be able to win.
Submission was the only option.
Sixty days later.
Only one God-Level Civilization remained in the universe: the Human Civilization. The rest had chosen to assimilate into it, though this wasn't the kind of integration truly recognized by the Universal Laws.
After all, they weren't of the same race.
But—
Did that even matter anymore?
When you possessed enough strength, you became the Universal Laws. Whether the Universal Laws acknowledged it or not was irrelevant. As long as the Human Civilization recognized it, everyone belonged to the same civilization.
The Human Civilization formally migrated out of the train. All residential planets were moved out and relocated onto the territory of the previous Human Civilization. Naturally, Water Blue Star, the place where his dream began, became the core planet—the unified center of politics, economics, and Military power.
It was the most vital planet for the Human Civilization, and indeed, the entire universe.
Consequently, housing prices on Water Blue Star began to skyrocket.
This caused a massive number of real estate agents to halt their sales entirely. The prices were rising so rapidly that selling property now meant the faster they sold, the more money they lost.
Many foreign civilizations also came to visit Water Blue Star, the political mother planet of the Human Civilization.
For a time.
The planet became exceptionally bustling.
This was a civilization that had risen to power abruptly, even in an incredibly short span of time. Many were intensely curious about the history of its ascent.
Thus, On Water Blue Star, in Taiping City, stood a magnificent and imposing building meticulously crafted by Doba and a group of Goblins.
Countless tour guides led travelers from foreign civilizations to visit the site.
"Just ahead is the Human Civilization Museum. It records the various milestones in the rise of the Human Civilization. Do you see those ruined relics over there? That represents a time long, long ago when the Stellar Train was merely an ordinary train, and this planet was facing an apocalypse brought about by the Zerg Civilization."
"The mountains and rivers were shattered, and the people were plunged into profound misery."
"The Stellar Train experienced its very first major battle there, slaying an enormously colossal spider monster."
"..."
"And over here, behind this Space Portal, is the very first Ore Star mined by the Stellar Train after leaving Water Blue Star. It contained roughly no more than ten trillion units of iron ore."
"That little?"
"Yes, at the time, the Stellar Train was located in a region where resources were extremely scarce and difficult to obtain."
"..."
"These are some of the Civilization Wonders acquired by the Stellar Train, all highly spectacular to view. This one is called 'New Universe.' It was the reward the Stellar Train received for being the first in the universe to upgrade the 'Space Portal' component to the maximum level. That one over there is called 'Creator'..."
"..."
"This is from a core member of the Stellar Train named Biao Zi. After an intense battle, the Mecha he wore was completely shattered. It was deliberately left here to commemorate Biao Zi's bravery."
"That over there is the 'Goblin Train.' It was the opposing train destroyed by the Stellar Train during their first encounter with the Goblin Clan. Because of that, the gears of fate for both sides began to slowly turn. Today, the Goblin Clan holds the highest status among all foreign civilizations within the Human Civilization and is deeply trusted."
"And there's this..."
The magnificent and grand museum was extremely lively at the moment, gathering a massive crowd of foreign tourists who had come to visit.
"Phew..."
Biao Zi and Lao Zhu stood in a room within the museum, looking down at the crowd below. They exchanged a glance, both seeing the amusement in each other's eyes ever since they found out Boss Mang intended to open this museum to the public.
They immediately had their own little selfish motives.
Who didn't want to leave a legacy that lasted a hundred generations? Who didn't want their name and heroic deeds to be widely known by the masses?
And so, They treated Doba to drinks on several occasions until they finally managed to leave their own marks in the museum as well.
For example, Biao Zi had taken the Mecha fragments that used to be framed inside the train and moved them into the museum. Every time a tour guide introduced them, he couldn't help but feel a thrill of secret delight.
As for Lao Zhu.
He didn't have any tangible items to place in the museum. After all, his achievements were mostly intangible and couldn't be displayed so conspicuously. If he had died, it would have been easier.
They could have just hung up a photo and written down his meritorious deeds.
But he wasn't dead.
Therefore, He commissioned two statues. One was of Boss Mang, placed right at the entrance of the museum. He stood with one hand resting on a cane, gazing into the distance, his profound eyes seemingly carrying the weight of the entire world's sorrows.
The other was a statue of himself, standing right behind Boss Mang.
Engraved on the pedestal beneath his statue were his name and his accomplishments. He felt his idea was simply flawless.
But perhaps it was a little too flawless.
Everyone wanted to add themselves to the display.
As a result—
Now, there were several more statues at the museum's entrance. Boss Mang stood at the very front, followed by Lao Zhu, Biao Zi, Doba, Li Shu, and others, making the display look extremely crowded and lively. Beneath each pedestal was an inscription detailing the positions they held on the train.
Surprisingly, the person with the most titles was Li Shu.
"Former Captain of the Breeding Carriage, Accountant for Neon City, Treasurer of Train Resource Expenditures... currently serving as the Principal of Humanity University."
The long string of titles was enough to make anyone dizzy just looking at them.
"I suppose we've finally hit our stride."
"It looks like I'll get a peaceful ending after all."
Lao Zhu looked down at the endless stream of people with a sigh of emotion. Today, the Human Civilization was the most powerful civilization in the universe. Numerous God-Level Civilizations began constantly contacting the subordinate Tier-9 Civilizations, who would in turn reach out to the Tier-8 Civilizations.
Layer by layer.
Every day, an immense number of civilizations joined the Human Civilization. Soon enough, true universal unification would be achieved.
As for him.
From his initial position as the deputy train captain, all the way to now when their story was nearing its grand finale, he remained the deputy train captain. His position hadn't changed at all—neither promoted nor demoted.
Promotion was definitely out of the question.
Any higher, and he would be taking Boss Mang's seat.
He was quite satisfied that he had never been demoted. At the very least, it meant Boss Mang still recognized the value of his work.
"The young master should be born soon, right?"
Biao Zi chuckled and said, "I've noticed Boss Mang visiting Sister Xiao Fang a lot lately. He already adores that kid. When the young master is born, he'll be showered with the affection of thousands."
"That's for sure."
Lao Zhu couldn't help but laugh out loud as well. "Reincarnation is a true art form. Who knows what lucky soul managed to reincarnate into Sister Xiao Fang's womb? The moment he's born, he'll possess things that others couldn't attain in a lifetime."
"Maybe Kun Ye reincarnated as the baby."
"..."
Hearing this, the corner of Lao Zhu's mouth suddenly twitched. He turned his head to look at Biao Zi. "That joke is a bit too morbid. If Boss Mang heard you say that, he would absolutely twist your head right off on the spot."
Biao Zi also realized he had misspoken and shrank his neck, refusing to continue that line of conversation.
They had never referred to Ji Chuchu and Yan Yao as 'sister' before because they both clearly knew that those two weren't truly Boss Mang's women.
Except, No one expected that the one who would ultimately secure the top spot would actually be Xiao Fang.
A maid of Boss Mang, a girl solely responsible for tidying up his daily life, had completely transformed into Sister Xiao Fang. The whole situation forced the two of them to sigh and admit that it really was much easier for a woman to rise in status.
Most importantly.
She was pregnant with a son.
That was undeniably the First Heir. When that overwhelming fortune arrived, there would truly be no stopping it.
Ever since Biao Zi made that morbid joke, both of them fell silent.
Finally, it was Lao Zhu who spoke up. "Since the Second Universe exists, and Boss Mang didn't know about it back when he killed Kun Ye, Kun Ye's soul should be intact. He might still be alive in the Second Universe right now. Why don't we go to the Second Universe, track down Kun Ye, and finish him off for good?"
"If he actually manages to reincarnate as the young master, that would be a disaster."
Even though it was just a morbid joke.
But after Lao Zhu gave it some thought, if that really happened, all hell would break loose...
"That shouldn't be possible."
Biao Zi said hesitantly, "I was just running my mouth about reincarnation. The Universal Laws explicitly stated there is no such thing as reincarnation. It's just an old wives' tale. The birth of every new life is entirely brand new; there is no such concept as past lives or next lives."
"That's a relief."
The two exchanged a look and didn't mention it further. Instead, they continued chatting casually, sipping tea while gazing out over the bustling crowd below.
Meanwhile, in another room.
Doba, Meng Duo, and the former Goblin pirate leader Pluplu were gathered together. As they gazed at this landmark of the Human Civilization, which their Goblin Clan had built with their own hands, an immense sense of pride and accomplishment welled up spontaneously in their hearts.
"Time really flies!"
Pluplu sighed with deep emotion. "It's only been a little over a decade, yet the Human Civilization has already reached this level. Thinking back to when I first met Boss Mang, I was just a happy and carefree pirate."
"Was being a pirate really that joyful?"
"It wasn't bad. The only issue was not having any of my kin around, so I'd feel quite lonely from time to time. But otherwise, it was a lot of fun."
Doba didn't reply; he merely smiled amiably as he looked down. Faintly, his thoughts drifted back to his own first encounter with Boss Mang. He had been piloting the Goblin Train, shuttling deep underground, when he accidentally drove right into the Doomsday Abyss and collided with Boss Mang's train.
Before that moment.
He didn't know how much time had passed as he worked tirelessly in that pitch-black cavern to forge a Goblin Train that truly belonged to him.
He hadn't known why at the time, but he just placed an exceptional amount of trust in Boss Mang. He felt that this human was completely different from the rest, exuding a unique and compelling charisma.
And the facts proved him right.
Boss Mang really was unlike any other human.
Because of him, the Goblin Clan had managed to rise to prominence.
They had even become the highest-ranking foreign civilization in the entire universe.
At that exact moment—
Inside the Stellar Train.
Chen Mang sat in his chair, quietly listening to Xiao Ai's report.
"Medical checkup complete. The fetal signs are perfectly normal, and Xiao Fang is in excellent health."
"Mhm."
Chen Mang gave a faint nod, a hint of a smile surfacing in his eyes. His greatest priority now was simply waiting for his child to be born. Once the kid grew up enough to inherit the Human Civilization, he could finally step out and see exactly what lay beyond the bounds of this universe.
And he had already picked out a name for his child.
He would be called Chen Jiang.
A slightly ordinary, yet rather pleasant-sounding name.
"It is estimated that within ninety-one days, all civilizations at Tier-4 and above will join the Human Civilization. As for those below Tier-4, it will take considerably more time, primarily because the sheer number of lower-tier civilizations is simply too massive."