Chapter 445: Killer Ace

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Of the Chen family descendants who stayed behind, Chen Junfeng, in his forties, was the most capable. He was also one of the more senior members of the clan and was very reliable.

He was, furthermore, a liaison—an important member of their personnel, who was responsible for contacting Chen Jin and reporting on the situation.

Inside the villa.

“Recently, Grandpa, there have been some rumors coming in from the Protoss. It seems that several of their large clans are targeting our family and want to meddle with us.

“In addition, there is a very strong Protoss clan that has actively expressed goodwill towards us. They’ve stated that… they can provide us with asylum.”

He couldn’t help but clench his fists as he said this. He felt frustrated and depressed.

Asylum. The Chen family had once been the number-one clan and had controlled immeasurable wealth, power, and resources. Now, did they actually need others to provide asylum?

An insult. When he heard that word, it felt like an insult.

It demonstrated the greatest contempt and disrespect for the Chen family.

Indeed, after their “family separation,” the modern-day Chen clan had scattered their interests, and its members were going their separate ways, so that they could be one step ahead in the headlong rush into the era of intergalactic colonization.

But they still were not to be underestimated.

The Chen family had many resources because they had mastered many core technologies.

For example, the Federation’s Fourth Sub-Division Fleet was still controlled by the family. It relied on the funds that the family sponsored, by which they just barely maintained it.

They had technology and power, and were not a target that just any rubbish force could go after.

Considering the fact that that they needed the humans’ help, the Protoss currently did not dare not to go overboard with their greed concerning a large family clan such as this.

Even if only out of caution toward the Fourth fleet of the Federation, the Protoss had to maintain a certain degree of respect. After all, the Chen family was still a behemoth that was not to be intentionally roused.

However, it was not a good sign that others were thinking about the Chen family a lot.

“How about this: we will give them a cut of our pie through financial methods again,” Chen Jin said. “Excluding Xing Hai Technologies, we’ll cede them 50% of the shares in Xing Hai Entertainment and Xing Hai Game Company. They’ve been holding themselves back for at least two or three years. If they continue to restrain themselves, the dam will break sooner or later.”

Chen Jin’s instructions gave the same response again—he planned to give away a share of the “pie” so they could make a bigger one. He wanted to share a portion of their benefits to win over a few partners.

But it was uncertain if this kind of practice would be effective in a world where the Protoss’ culture of “strength determines respect” prevailed. How long could the Chen family keep the Protoss at bay?

“Grandpa!” Chen Junfeng gritted his teeth. “Based on the appetites of the Protoss clans, 50% of the shares may not be able to satisfy them.” In truth, it might barely be enough to gratify their cravings.

Moreover, multiple clans would be competing for the shares.

“Then we’ll drag it out,” Chen Jin said. “Drag things out for another three to five years and try not to start a conflict with any Protoss clan.” He had decided that they would lay low and ride this situation out for a period of time.

“But what about after three to five years?” Chen Junfeng asked. He did not think that dragging things out was a solution. It only served to delay the time when they would be gobbled up. Moreover, the Chen family would seem weak if they backed down even further and gave away more concessions. Those greedy Protoss would become more aggressive the weaker they appeared.

Moreover, most of the Protoss were not very interested in shares. They did not have a culture or habit of sharing with others.

In any area of investment, they were used to either gobbling things up or splitting them up into different businesses that they would then manage separately.

The Protoss were sometimes really unreasonable to deal with.

Once you were a target, the only thing to do was to display your strength. Otherwise, things could become very difficult.

Chen Jin’s plan to drag things out might not have any effect.

“Then approach the strongest clan nearby, the Ironwood Clan, and explain the difficulties that we’ve encountered. Ask if they can guarantee the absolute safety of the Chen family. If they can do so, then 50% of our annual net profit will go to them.

“If they can’t guarantee it, and they can’t or won’t do even a single thing for our safety, then we’ll terminate our cooperation with them and stop paying the protection fee.

“In this way, we’ll offer a deal up as tender, the purpose of this bidding being to recruit the strongest asylum providers. If there is any death or injury to the core children of the Chen family during the period of asylum, our cooperation with them will be terminated, and the offer of tender will be reopened.

“Also, we’ll put a bounty on the forces that have hurt our children. Whoever can help the Chen family exact revenge will receive 50% of the net profit for that particular year.”

After pondering for a while, Chen Jin had come up with this solution.

50% of the annual net profit from the Chen family’s various corporations and holdings across the globe was no small figure. These assets were worth at least a trillion celestial dollars.

Even the most powerful Protoss clan would feel an immediate stirring in their hearts when faced with such tremendous spoils. They would then immediately issue a request to provide asylum.

But it was also a “hot potato.”

Chen Jin was, in truth, demanding a “true asylum” that could ensure that the safety of all the Chen family’s children. It had to yield results.

If their protection failed and their children were attacked or injured, then their cooperation would cease immediately. The agreed remuneration would turn into a bounty-like reward.

It was harsh. Chen Jin’s requirements were quite demanding.

“This strategy is good, but it would have side effects,” Chen Junfeng said, raising his concerns. “That is, our children may become the target of attacks by other forces. The more powerful clans among the Protoss may not accept this clause.”

“You’re right,” Chen Jin said, nodding. “If a clan doesn’t have the ability to follow through, then they shouldn’t start something that they can’t finish. There is no such thing as enjoying the benefits without taking on the risks. The Chen family is not a weakling that can be easily destroyed… It won’t be that easy for them to get their hands on our money.

“I know the risks involved, as well. After we offer this tender, the probability of our children being attacked will definitely increase. But we have no choice. The world is like this. No matter what we choose, there will be risks and the possibility of being bullied.

“The most foundational way to solve this problem is to become stronger and stronger. Only when we are strong and powerful can we protect everything that is ours!

“The reason that I want to drag things out is also to buy time so that our family can gain strength.”

This was all because the Chen family was secretly implementing the “Sage Plan.” It was bound to be a great success after another three or five years.

As long as the plan proved successful, it would lead to an increase in the speed at which powerful practitioners were created. The process would be hundreds, even thousands of times faster. They could even mass produce powerful experts in batches.

The Sage Plan was mainly comprised of two parts.

The first was the super brain chip. They would integrate a biochip with a computing speed of more than one trillion Flops into the human brain, thus speeding up its operating speed and greatly improving the individual’s intelligence. The person would, to a certain extent, become an intellectual “freak.”

After all, in terms of computing power, the human brain could never be compared to a chip. Even the practitioners of the Shenguang Order and the Sage Order did not necessarily have an operating speed of one trillion Flops.

As long as the super brain chip was successful, any practitioner with average aptitude and comprehension skills could become a “genius.”

The second part was the plan called “Body of a Sage.”

The main content of the plan was to use genetic engineering to change the genome sequences inside the human body, enhance the natural aptitude of the physical form, and bring it ever closer to a “genius physique.” Like the evolution of genes, it would gradually remove the shackles that were on ordinary mortals and losers.

The essence of this plan was, in fact, similar to how the Protoss practitioners looked for artifacts everywhere they could and took medicinal herbs. Both aimed to improve one’s constitution, change one’s genes, and to strengthen oneself.

However, the unique features of the Body of a Sage program rested in its use of biotechnology. Many of the allocated containers for the chemical agents that acted on genes had a distinguishing feature: they could be mass-produced. They were “factory” products and did not require a variety of herbs, elixirs, or such.

Hence, there were no concerns about poisoning or the buildup of heavy metals.

As long as the “Body of a Sage” program was successful, the super-genius suitable for spiritual cultivation would, after multiple periods of genetic evolution, become a product that could be mass-produced.

However… Even though Xing Hai Technologies had accumulated a wealth of inventions, the Sage Plan had already been underway for nearly two decades.

After all, the structure of the human body was the most complicated subject, and genes could not be edited on demand. In actual clinical experiments, attempts had led to the collapse of multiple genes in the experimental bodies. Many problems arose that they had not encountered in their computer simulations.

Therefore, the clinical success rate of the Sage Plan was currently less than 30%, and the mortality rate was nearly 40%.

However, the trick to success had been found. In three to five years, as long as the clinical success rate of the “Sage Plan” reached 60% and the mortality rate dropped below 10%, it could be distributed and implemented. Batches of spiritual cultivation geniuses could be nurtured.

Chen Junfeng certainly knew about the Sage Plan and was actually very excited about it. He was looking forward to an early success.Above all, the Chen family had never stopped strengthening their power, and they were now standing firmly on their own two feet. Chen Junfeng found that there were still great benefits for the family in staying on Earth.

Firstly, the concentration of natural spiritual energy here was higher than on other planets.

Secondly, there were many artifacts and all kinds of herbs and elixirs, which were being grown on a massive scale. Not only were these items easy to find, but they were also relatively affordable.

Thirdly, there was an abundance of high-level monks and powerful magical weapons. The soil, minerals, vegetation, and beasts shipped from the Heavenly Realm had turned the entire Earth on its head.

Staying on Earth would allow also them to come into contact with higher-level cultivation exercises, richer ores at a discount, and elixir resources… It was a place very suitable for spiritual cultivation practice.

But this premise demanded that the Chen family be able to stand through their own power in the long-term and continue forward development.

…

After a few more words, Chen Junfeng returned with Chen Jin’s solution and prepared himself mentally for the compromise.

He knew very well that the Chen family was not lacking money. The only thing they were short on was time.

“Three years, five years… The sooner the better! The Chen family will rise above the Protoss sooner or later!”

…

Haierfa.

Crater City.

Chen Jin came over because he had to deal with several things.

He faced the screen, summoned the AI Nuwa, and asked a few questions.

“Where did Guo Yan go? Why don’t I see her around?”

“She went to the moon. She got tired of exploring Haierfa and wanted to go out for a change of scenery.”

“Oh.” Chen Jin smiled helplessly. “She used to be a homebody back on Earth. She never moved once in the decades that she lived just outside of my neighborhood. But she seems to have been having crazy fun ever since she arrived here. Has this triggered a switch? She’s suddenly become so open.”

“It’s probably due to some kind of catharsis,” Nuwa analyzed. “You belonged to other women on Earth. She had no hope for anything besides waiting silently by the sidelines. Now, this universe is a world that belongs solely to the two of you. No third party can interfere with this relationship. Hence, her originally dull and gray world has become rich and colorful. Life has become beautiful. Speaking metaphorically, I would say that she is experiencing her second spring.”

“She waited on scum like me for decades?” Chen Jin smiled bitterly and shook his head. “No matter how I think about it, I committed a serious sin, one that was unforgivable. But she’s just so silly.”

“Persistence is victory, Master. That is what she herself said. She has never had any regrets. She was the first one to whom you told your biggest secret. All her efforts have been rewarded. She is the ultimate winner; of course she wanted to cheer and celebrate,” Nuwa said with a teasing smile.

“OK, OK. Let’s drop this topic.” Chen Jin beckoned Nuwa over. “How’s the execution of the ‘S Plan’ going along? Can you achieve the finished product in the near future?”

‘S plan,’ naturally, referred to the plan for the S-class interstellar warship. It would be the pinnacle of military power on Haierfa.

In fact, the technological aspects of the project had been ridiculously difficult in the previous stage of planning. It required countless technologies that were of a mythical nature. It would only be possible to manufacture it after a few hundred years, at least.

A few simple examples of the black-box technologies involved were as follows.

Firstly, there was the defense. The mainframe used in the S-class warship would be a highly interactive material that was extremely hard and tough. It was a substance made up of water droplets. It had the unique characteristic of remaining unchanged even if it were to bust through a planet.

Another piece of equipment was the latest fifth-generation force-field alloy armor. It would rebound almost all physical and energy attacks. It was the ultimate energy shield, with a beyond-ridiculous defensive ability.

Such a warship could even crash into a star and remain unscathed.

Secondly, in terms of attack power, it called for a primary particle cannon that could release a blast that was half-matter and half-energy in nature. It would be the most powerful cannon in existence, equivalent to a nuclear bomb with a yield of 1 billion tons. There was practically no substance that could withstand the flow of a particle attack traveling at nearly the speed of light and the huge amount of energy it represented.

There were also more powerful gravity bombs, force field cages, and antimatter bombs, all of which would be extremely terrifying.

Lastly was the power system, which demanded the most advanced fourth-generation curvature engine in order to complete a flight across the universe at up to 150 times the speed of light. In addition, after it had stored ample energy, the engine could stretch the curvature of space by a factor of over 1,000 in an instant. Thereafter, it could actualize the effect of “leaping across space.” It would take only an instant for the warship to move Point A to Point B, which could range from a few to dozens of light-years away.

However, the flaws of the “space leap” were obvious. Beyond general direction, the flight distance and position were random; such a ship could not travel accurately.

The three major systems of the ship—attack power, defense, and mobility—would bring the S-class interstellar warship’s energy consumption to a terrifying level. Ordinary fusion reactors were simply not enough.

They had to develop a matter-antimatter reactor that would double their energy efficiency.

Such a reactor could convert 100% of any physical substance into energy.

Notably, just one gram of antimatter was equivalent to the energy of 43,000 tons of explosives.

Even if only a little bit of “fuel” was put into such a reactor, the result would be equivalent to the explosion of a terrifyingly powerful bomb.

The technical difficulty of its construction was higher than that for the fusion reactor. The challenge had increased to a whole new level.

Even so, Nuwa and Alice had conquered all the technical difficulties.

They had also integrated multiple types of black-box technology, which were so powerful that one’s breath would stop in awe.

“Master, the first S-class warship has been completed.”

Nuwa continued, “This is all thanks to the celestial technology on Earth and the many varieties of celestial particles. They have provided miraculous solutions to many technical problems that seemed to have almost no explanation. Although it is defined as a mere S-class warship, it has the ability to destroy a whole fleet of A-class ships. It could even easily destroy a powerful civilization.

“We have an almost invincible killer ace in our hands.”

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