The moment he got it in his hands, Feng Xue realized that the energy-storage property of the [Flesh Maitreya] entry was nothing more than an extra. Its true value lay in its ability to convert source energy into any power he possessed.
Electromagnetic, thermal, nuclear—it encompassed everything. But if that were all, then it would only amount to a lower-grade version of energy-type source energy.
But if cybernetic skills were added into the mix, that was another matter entirely!
Feng Xue had not truly mastered the core power of the magnetic-field system. The Heavenly Martial Killing Dao and the Sword of Hell were, in essence, merely techniques. Thus, even if Feng Xue used Flesh Maitreya to convert source energy into electric current, it would not become Current Drive; if he converted it into a magnetic field, it could not become Magnetic Field Rotation. But there was one exception—
[Intent]!
The [Heavenly Martial Killing Dao] and the [Sword of Hell] were both supreme arts propelled by intent. The [Heavenly Martial Killing Dao] primarily cultivated tyrannical thought and killing intent, while the [Sword of Hell] went even further, merging one’s own [Intent] with the sword. These two supreme arts had helped Feng Xue define [Intent], materializing what should have been an abstract concept into something “visible and tangible.”
And so, through this, Feng Xue crossed a boundary that should only have been achievable with mental source energy, converting all of his extremely high-quality flesh-and-blood source energy into sword intent!
That overwhelmingly powerful intent propelled Feng Xue’s body like a sharp sword, driving straight toward those six pairs of blades—
“Source Energy Rotation · Hell Heart-Piercing Sword!”
In that instant, Feng Xue’s position seemed to shift out of place. After their vision blurred, what the audience saw was Feng Xue’s back facing Richard—and in his hand, a still-beating bionic heart.
Only belatedly did the audience turn their attention to the rigid, motionless Richard. His thick subcutaneous armor and bionic muscles had been completely torn apart, leaving behind only a massive cavity.
In truth, Feng Xue’s use of [Flesh Maitreya] was still rather unpracticed, and in the end, it had given Richard enough time to react. Unfortunately, he had failed to seize that final opportunity. With [Abomination], which guaranteed a hit within its effective range, empowering this killing move once it had already been delivered, Richard could do nothing but die, nothing but lose!
“My God! What just happened? Director, replay! Replay!”
The commentator’s cry of shock represented the emotions of the audience. As the arena’s giant screen began to replay the footage slowed down several times over, the spectators were finally able to witness that astonishing strike.
But when the audience tried to look again at the victor’s heroic figure, they discovered that, at some unknown point, he had already vanished.
……
“Beautifully done! Leaving immediately is very helpful for building a mysterious persona!”
Backstage, the staff member who had signed a contract with Feng Xue and could now be considered half his agent handed over a chip card. She showed no dissatisfaction whatsoever at Feng Xue giving the host no face. She knew very well what kind of persona attracted more attention. The reason she had not reminded him earlier was because an artificially constructed persona was very easy to collapse. It was better to observe the contestant’s own performance first, then decide on a direction for cultivation.
In any case, underground boxing was not entertainment idol-making. Being able to fight was the real truth.
Feng Xue had originally thought he would be forced to go back and accept an interview, so he was rather surprised by the agent’s reaction. Taking the chip, he asked casually,
“How much is in it?”
“Seventy-two thousand,” the agent replied offhandedly.
“This match earned seventy million?” Feng Xue’s eyes widened in disbelief, but the agent rolled her eyes and said,
“The total profit from bets was roughly a little over one million nine hundred thousand. Your cut comes to two thousand. The seventy thousand is the recycling fee for the cybernetics on Richard’s body. But the [Centipede] was damaged by you, otherwise there would’ve been quite a bit more. Mm, I’m not telling you to go easier in the future. Every year, there are idiots who lose because they’re afraid of damaging high-value cybernetics.”
At this point, the agent paused briefly before continuing,
“Here, if you kill your opponent, you get everything on him. Otherwise, how else would we raise the contestants’ killing intent? But don’t think enemies without cybernetics will show you mercy. Organs from flesh-and-blood experts like you are hot commodities that plenty of collectors are after!”
The agent spoke of the boxing arena’s rules without the slightest attempt to hide anything, but Feng Xue’s attention was not on that. He waited quietly until the agent finished, then said,
“If I don’t want the money, can I take the cybernetics?”
“No.” The agent’s answer was decisive, as if she wanted to dispel even Feng Xue’s thought of asking why.
Even so, as a cybernetic doctor, Feng Xue realized something—
Without a doubt, the cybernetics of these boxers were probably also something the organizers needed. They might even be the most important objective.
As for why, there were far too many possible reasons. Just the usage data of the cybernetics alone was enough for Feng Xue to think of seventeen or eighteen uses.
For example, optimizing cybernetic motion modules, using them as AI learning materials, analyzing compatibility between different cybernetics, or even testing new types of cybernetics and the like. Considering it from this angle, the boss behind this place was probably a shareholder of some cybernetics company or something similar?
Feng Xue did not continue thinking too deeply. Although the recycling fee given by the boxing arena was a little low, when he did not have the ability to negotiate terms, thinking too much would do him no good.
And so, he merely nodded silently, turned around, and walked toward the extraction point, leaving only one sentence drifting in the wind—
“I hope there’ll be a stronger opponent next time.”
……
[Extraction successful. Synchronization disconnected.]
[Side mission completed: Kill your opponent without taking damage. Reward obtained: Iron Man Dummy.]
[Reward has been issued. Supplies have been recovered. You may choose to extract/sell them on the exchange page.]
[Your reward: Iron Man Dummy has been issued. This package will be retained for 72 hours. Please claim it before the time limit expires.]
“Mm, it went over fifteen seconds? Good grief, the commentator’s announcement counts as time too? And what the hell is an Iron Man Dummy?”
Feng Xue, who had returned with Kong Wu’s body, narrowed his eyes and immediately opened the warehouse. Aside from a silver-gray suitcase, he also saw the chip card the agent had given him.
Casually charging the chip into point vouchers, Feng Xue looked toward the suitcase—
Name: Iron Man Dummy
Type: Training Equipment
Quality: Purple — Precious
Description: A training device developed by Laiyang Steel Pipe Company with reference to the wooden dummy. Its exterior shell uses a composite process of f27 (Note ①) memory alloy and d29 phase-change alloy. It has built-in learning AI and can adjust training strategies according to the trainee’s progress. However, in this era where one can directly download motion modules online and customize bionic muscles, there are already very few people willing to train painstakingly on their own.
Remarks: Following the soul-searching question from a new director—“In the end, isn’t it just a sparring robot? Why not make it humanoid?”—Laiyang Steel Pipe changed tracks into the bionic robot industry and renamed itself Laiyang Biotech. Through a strange twist of fate, it once again ended up on the same track as its old rival, Rhine Steel, which had renamed itself Rhine Life.
……
“There’s something this good?”
Feng Xue’s eyes immediately lit up. He took it out at once and found the power button that seemed to be universal across the entire multiverse. Accompanied by a brisk musical rhythm, the suitcase rapidly unfolded like a Transformer, turning into something that looked no different from the wooden dummies he had seen in his previous life—except that the material had been changed to metal.
Reaching out to touch it, he could feel a softness similar to that of the human body, though the texture was slightly cool. Yet when he applied force, he could sense the hardness within.
Feng Xue was not surprised by this. After all, many bionic skins used similar technology. But just as he was considering whether this thing also needed him to press and hold for three seconds to boot up, a classic mechanical synthesized voice suddenly rang out—
“Welcome to the intelligent Iron Man Dummy. It has been detected that this is your first time using this product. Please follow the tutorial to register. Facial recognition has been collected. Please say at a normal speaking speed: ‘Begin training.’”
Note ①: f is the designation for flexible materials, just as d represents rigid materials.
But that does not mean the higher the number, the softer or harder the material is. Rather, it is a comprehensive standard.
For example, d-series materials mainly take into account comprehensive indicators such as hardness, toughness, wear resistance, tensile strength, and so on. There would not be a situation where diamond has the highest hardness, therefore it is a d32 material.
In terms of results, d32 may not necessarily be harder than d28, but when facing various forms of destruction, d32 will definitely hold out longer.
Aside from d and f, there are also designations such as c for conductors, x for computing power, p for energy storage, h for heat dissipation, and so on. They can be considered a unified system of measurement. You do not need to remember too much; just know that the larger the number, the more advanced the material, and the better its overall performance.
P.S.: As usual, adding some supplementary setting. Acquired training, such as meditation increasing mentality, breathing exercises increasing energy, and fitness increasing physique, exists—but only the soul has no acquired training method to improve it. Meditation methods are almost monopolized by the upper classes. Breathing methods, on the other hand, are widely spread; basically, once you join a gang, you can get one, though their quality varies wildly. Thus, the soul system is the rarest, followed by the mental system. Energy systems are widespread among gangs and the military, while for the physical system, you can get it after carrying bricks for a few days.
Since it does not involve spoilers, I’ll mention it since someone asked—
The protagonist is purely flesh-and-blood source energy, only of very high quality. You can think of his body as being born with 17 points in flesh and blood, while his other attributes are only at 1. Then, with the arrival of a soul from another world, his mentality and soul reached the normal level of 5 points. Add Flesh Maitreya on top of that, and although his energy recovery speed cannot compare, he can barely be considered half an energy-system user.
Lastly, having only 1 does not mean being mentally disabled. It is more like having no spiritual root in xianxia, or no talent in fantasy.