Mecha Battle: Why Do You Use Body to Destroy Stars?

“It’s equivalent to granting every member of the civilization a Soul Contract.”

“More importantly, it can enhance the probability and strength of talents appearing in contracted Mecha…”

Jiang Chen felt somewhat tempted.

Although [Contractor] didn’t boost the members’ strength as much as [Protector],

its effect of enhancing the talent probability and strength for contracted Mecha could also apply to Jiang Chen!

The benefit to him was evidently higher.

Moreover, Jiang Chen possessed the ability to open Void Rifts.

If the civilization of Planet Blue Star successfully invaded and occupied the Void Dimension in the future,

then this Contractor trait could allow every mecha pilot of Planet Blue Star to have the ability to contract with Void creatures—

Essentially equivalent to mass-producing spatial Mecha!

Li Xiao seemed to see Jiang Chen’s temptation and spoke up.

“I think this trait is quite good.”

“…”

Jiang Chen fell silent for a moment but still shook his head.

“Forget it.”

“I really do like this trait.”

“However, Planet Blue Star currently lacks suitable abyss creatures for mecha pilots to contract… Even if we choose it now, it can’t take effect immediately.”

“I’m also not planning to contract a new mecha at the moment.”

“Choosing this would be dragging our feet.”

“Let’s go with Protector.”

“The fivefold talent effect is a huge boost for the civilization of Planet Blue Star.”

“As long as I am strong enough, the civilization of Planet Blue Star can rival ancient civilizations!”

Jiang Chen paused for a moment, revealing a smile.

“The third choice for civilization trait requires 500 Civilization Potential.”

“It’s not too difficult. I’ll just earn some Civilization Potential quickly, and I can choose again next time.”

Oh, the effects of civilization traits were all too enticing.

It’s a pity you can only select one at a time.

If there were an item that allowed you to select them all at once, even if the odds of acquiring it were very low, Jiang Chen promised he would grind till it broke!

“Alright, let’s go with Protector,”

Li Xiao nodded, having no objections.

In fact, the Protector trait was also the one that got the most votes from the alliance’s upper echelons.

The refresh count for the Light of Hope was uncertain.

Jiang Chen left five uses to prevent a situation where he might not get the desired civilization trait next time because he lacked enough refresh count when his Civilization Potential reached the threshold.

Afterward, he made his choice.

[Protector]

The other two traits dissipated from view.

Only a light shaped like a tree or an umbrella remained, hovering in front of him.

[A large tree grows from the tiniest sprout; a nine-story tower is built from a pile of earth. You deeply understand the importance of legacy and have decided to shelter the weak, to provide shade for the next generation.]

[Planet Blue Star has gained the civilization trait: Protector]

…

[As the Light of Hope for Planet Blue Star civilization, you have received civilization feedback, and your permissions have been unlocked.]

…

[Permission: Protection]

[Effect: The effectiveness of your mecha pilot talents is increased.]

[Description: Transform into a mighty tree.]

…

What is this?

Jiang Chen’s breath caught, and he immediately touched the Abyss Rune to open his personal information.

In the talent section, a new suffix had appeared.

[Protection: When the mecha shatters, the absorption base multiplier is increased by one. (Example: Normal two times, Excellent three times.)]

“Hmm?!”

Jiang Chen’s eyes showed delight.

Unlike the plethora of other permissions before, Protection was straightforward and brutal, adding one directly to the multiplier.

It was tantamount to enhancing the quality of all mecha by one grade, significantly speeding up growth.

“Transform into a mighty tree, does it mean that only with personal strength can you shelter more of the future generations…”

“I’m TM directly transforming into the World Tree!”

While Jiang Chen was basking in his joy,

Li Xiao’s voice sounded next to him.

“Jiang Chen, what does the Protection permission do?”

“The Abyss Rune advises me that upon gaining five Hope permissions, I can unlock one from Fire Transmission, Joint Burning, or Protection…”

“Choose Protection. This permission can permanently enhance the effects of a mecha pilot’s talents,” Jiang Chen said.

Fourteen years ago, Li Xiao had already become an 8th Rank mecha pilot.

During his rank-up trials, the Seeds of Civilization he had kept either had already crossed the abyss on their own or had been destroyed due to insufficient potential.

At this point, even if he unlocked the Fire Transmission trait, he wouldn’t be able to go back and pass on the flame.

It would be better to just unlock the Protection permission, to increase the strength of his talents, which would help his subsequent plans as well.

Upon hearing Jiang Chen’s recommendation, Li Xiao made his choice immediately.

Afterward, he took a look at his personal information and then spoke after a moment of silence.

“The base multiplier for talent enhancement has been increased by one.”

It appeared the effect was the same for everyone.

Jiang Chen nodded, curious, he asked,

“By the way, senior, what exactly is your talent?”

“…It’s what everyone has been guessing—Mecha Supercharge.”

As an older-generation mecha pilot, Li Xiao not only shared his Mecha Blueprints for rookie mecha pilots to study and learn from,

but he also teamed up with many mecha pilots and demonstrated his power.

In such circumstances, it wasn’t difficult to deduce his talent information and specific strength.

He had never denied any of the various speculations on the internet.

Now, he simply sent his talent information directly to Jiang Chen.

[Talent: Mecha Supercharge]

[Effect: After loading a module onto his own mecha, it gains an additional temporary supercharged term, providing corresponding attribute enhancements. (Only provides attributes, does not affect the Mecha’s advancement in quality, etc.)]

[Temporary supercharged terms can stack with Supercharge Modules, multiplying together.]

…

[Protector: The Mecha you own, has its supercharging effect enhanced, with the base multiplier increased by one fold.]

“…”

As everyone speculated, Li Xiao’s mecha pilot talent had no difference.

It could not only enable his Mecha to supercharge, attaining a tenfold increase; it could also take effect on a supercharged Mecha, supercharging it a second time…

However…

Jiang Chen’s gaze fell on the Protector’s effect and he fell silent for a moment.

This didn’t seem quite right, did it?

The supercharging effect was enhanced, and the base multiplier was doubled.

Now the question was—

The effect of the [Supercharge] entry was not [increase module attributes by tenfold], but [allow the module to perform as if it were one rank higher].

Under such circumstances, what would happen if the base multiplier was increased by one fold?

“There are two possibilities, one is to supercharge twice, for a hundredfold attribute.”

“The other is for the supercharging effect to double, first ascend by one rank, then multiply by two, for a twentyfold attribute.”

“I am the latter.”

Li Xiao provided the answer, starting to speak.

“However, I’m still quite lucky.”

“What it increases is the [Supercharge Multiplier], not the [Multipler of the Supercharge Talent].”

“I just checked, and even without considering the talent bonus, the supercharge modules equipped on my Mecha have also had their attribute multipliers doubled.”

“They multiply together.”

“Which means…”

“My talent strength bonus has actually increased from tenfold to fortyfold.”

“…Boss, have you hacked the system?”

Jiang Chen was dumbfounded.

With the same Protector privilege, his own base multiplier was increased by one fold.

The boss directly increased by thirtyfold.

That gap was way too big, wasn’t it!

Fortunately, his own cheat code had always been on.

The increased base multiplier was not a strength multiplier, but a growth multiplier.

As long as he expanded his armor thirty times, it was equivalent to an increase of thirtyfold in bonus as well.

The more he exploded, the more he gained!

After making a slight comparison, Jiang Chen felt at ease again.

“It’s not really hacking if it’s minor, Boss. You still need to work harder.”

“Just in time, Boss, with your talent strength upgraded, I have a gift for you.”

Li Xiao, who had been looking forward to the so-called local specialties and gifts for a long time, perked up with curiosity and a quickened heartbeat at the mention.

He saw Jiang Chen touch the Abyss Rune and a magnificent box appeared in his hand as he spoke with a smile.

“This is the local specialty I brought back from the rank-up trial—”

“A 9th Rank supercharged Mecha.”

“I’m going to help Boss, reconstruct your Supreme Bone!”

“…?”

A Supercharged Mecha?

Li Xiao looked towards the opened box, saw the neatly arranged colorful chips inside, and his heart skipped a beat.

Mythical Item: Supercharge Upgrade!

A tradable version!

A full forty-nine!

“Hiss… so many top-quality Mythical Items??”

“Did you rob an ancient civilization?”

“It’s not that exaggerated; I just farmed a little.”

Jiang Chen waved his hand and spoke with a smile.

“Boss, you don’t have to be polite. These supercharge upgrade tools, I still have nearly two hundred in my warehouse, they are overflowing and I can’t use them all.”

“You take them and use them.”

“There’s no need to think about juniors, rookie mecha pilots…”

“They are now grinding the abyss, with plenty of supercharge modules to use.”

“Instead it’s you, as a 9th Rank mecha pilot, if you get a supercharged Mecha, you can grind the 9-Level Abyss, producing modules from the higher levels of the abyss.”

“Moreover, once you overcome the abyss, you get the qualification to tackle the Endless Difficulty Level.”

“By then, you’ll be able to farm your own supercharge upgrade tools and strengthen your other Mechas.”

“As a Light of Hope candidate, when you rank up in the future, you’ll likely go through the Hope Trial… Only if you’re supercharged, will you have security.”

Li Xiao silently accepted the box.

It seemed to have no weight, but felt as if it contained mountains, immensely heavy.

After a moment, he finally spoke, sighing.

“Jiang Chen.”

“In these years, the luckiest thing for me was meeting you.”

After saying this, Li Xiao stood up and touched the Abyss Rune.

Aura spilled out, forming a Mecha a thousand feet tall with numerous phantom runes swirling around its surface.

It floated above the jungle, looking majestic and enigmatic.

This was Li Xiao’s main Mecha.

[Divine Lord Mecha]

At this moment, Li Xiao threw out the box, and dozens of supercharge upgrade tools transformed into colorful lights, encircling the surface of the Divine Lord Mecha, merging into it.

Under the influence of these lights, the aura of the Divine Lord Mecha climbed higher and higher.

During this process, the forehead of the Divine Lord Mecha released a beam of light, shrouding Li Xiao within it.

“Boss, are you setting off already?”

“…The sooner I leave, the sooner I’ll return.”

As Li Xiao’s words ended, his figure merged into the Divine Lord Mecha.

Boundless darkness surged forth, completely engulfing it.

…

On this day, two major events shocked Planet Blue Star.

One, Planet Blue Star acquired a new civilization trait, all mecha pilots of 4th Rank and below had their talent effects surged to fivefold.

This included even those who had not yet gone through the basic trials, who all received the bonus as well.

Second, the Symbol of the Alliance crossed the 9-Level Abyss.

People celebrated wildly!