My Core is the Boss
Chapter 300.1: Trouble with Kuang Huan
After a brief exchange with Yang Shan about the Martial Will, Qi Yuan returned home.
The moment he walked through the door, he found his cat splayed across the sofa, limp and thoroughly worn out. She simply gave him a passing glance.
Like a conscientious butler, Zero-One stood at Qi Yuan’s side, attentively serving a cup of hot tea.
Then, the robot commenced its daily report. "Total followers gained: 4,572. Yesterday’s earnings: 2,321 dollars. Kuang Huan’s dispatched goods have arrived and are stored in the warehouse. Seven videos were filmed today. Editing has not yet begun. Estimated completion tomorrow.
"Regarding the limits of Martial Dao, I have searched all publicly available online information and infiltrated the Qin Yuan Kingdom’s classified national database. 145 relevant pieces of information were obtained.
"After analysis and consolidation, a conclusion has been reached. To break through the martial peak, one must travel to a martial relic. There are currently 231 martial relics distributed across the globe."
Having evolved day by day, Zero-One had surpassed even the ordinary puppets of the Canglan World. Its hacking abilities were formidable, allowing it to breach the Qin Yuan Kingdom’s secret databases and extract intelligence.
Nearby, Xie Xinsu was seething. The absolutely insufferable robot was worse than a capitalist. Today alone, it had dragged her in front of a camera seven times! Even though she earned them thousands of dollars a day, she was only fed cat food worth a few dollars per kilogram. There were no toys or climbing trees either. How was this not abuse?!
She failed to realize she had gradually accepted being just a cat. When she heard the last part of the report, she smirked slightly.
What era do they think this is? Still dreaming of cultivating the Martial Dao... Ha! With spiritual energy about to return to Arch Star, only those who cultivate immortality like me have a future. Only through the Immortal Dao could one hope to attain the Great Dao of eternal life.
Of course, even if she had such thoughts, there was no way to voice them. Even if she could, why would she introduce Immortal Dao to this cold, indifferent, and uncultured man? He wouldn’t recognize a treasure even if it hit him in the face! Above all, if she revealed any other talent, she'd obviously end up in front of that wretched robot's camera. When would this life ever end?!
Qi Yuan paused slightly. "Martial relics?"
Yang Shan hadn't mentioned anything about this. Still, it made sense considering that the information had come from a classified database. Though Yang Shan was at the martial peak, his understanding of Martial Dao could well be shallower than some academic's.
In a society like the Qin Yuan Kingdom's, every member of the powerful elite was likely chasing longevity. The experiments surrounding it would be staggering in number. It was perfectly natural that those elites had turned their eyes to Martial Dao.
If martial relics truly held the key to breaking through the peak, then he would make the trip after the tournament was over. With only three days left until it began, there was nothing he could do.
Qi Yuan couldn't help but compliment Zero-One, "It seems your hacking skills are rather impressive, to have stolen information this well-hidden."
At the end of the day, it was still his own creation. The stronger it grew, the more satisfied he felt.
Zero-One replied somewhat pridefully, "If I wished, there is almost nothing online I could not obtain. During my search, I also discovered some interesting materials and compiled them. If Master wishes, I can send them over."
It was becoming more and more human by the day.
"What kind of interesting things?" Qi Yuan asked.
Zero-One lowered its voice. "They are..."
Qi Yuan's expression turned strange as he declined the files. "Distributing obscene and pornographic material is a criminal offense. Besides, you're not my friend. It's only legal when friends share it between themselves."
It's just electronic data. Besides, aren't ordinary human beings also just assemblies of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen?
***
The next day, Qi Yuan went to the martial gym again.
He had only been practicing for a short while when Xu Tiehua came hurrying over. "Junior Brother, the Martial Arts Tournament is in three days. Want to talk through the team event?"
Xu Tiehua had been looking forward to the team competition. Since he had money and influence, what he wanted was fame. A good reputation and a well-crafted image could wield considerable power.
Qi Yuan said casually, "No rush. Let's meet the night before the matches."
Xu Tiehua was thrown off, though he kept his composure. "Isn't that cutting it a bit close? The team event rules are fairly complex. If we set out our strategy in advance, we might get better results."
"Isn't the rule just about who has the harder fist?" Qi Yuan asked, genuinely puzzled. "If I just knock all the opponents flat, problem solved, right?"
Xu Tiehua was rendered speechless again.
Though what Qi Yuan said wasn't wrong, it rested entirely on the premise of overwhelming strength. Their four members weren't all that formidable, especially Qi Yuan. The man probably hadn't even gotten his martial artist certification yet! Where did he get the nerve to talk like that?
Then, Xu Tiehua remembered another certification of Qi Yuan, and could only sigh helplessly. "You're not wrong, but our overall strength isn't there yet. We'll need to rely on tactics."
Qi Yuan casually threw punches. "You all spend your days chatting. No wonder your strength isn't much. If you trained as seriously as I do, would you even need to worry about strength?"
His training had slowed somewhat after reaching the martial peak, but he remained consistent, day after day.
Xu Tiehua's face reddened a little. He hadn't expected Qi Yuan to be such a genuine martial fanatic. He himself had always treated Martial Dao like a brand.
Xu Tiehua decided not to disturb Qi Yuan further. "You're right. If you're going to train, you should really train."
Qi Yuan said quietly, watching Xu Tiehua go, "The Martial Dao is interesting."
In these three months, he had trained every day, and his understanding of the path had deepened with each passing session. He knew he had only barely scratched the surface. Yet the more he learned, the more he believed that the Martial Dao of this world was as promising as the Immortal Dao of other worlds.
Xu Tiehua paused, mildly puzzled. "Martial Dao is interesting?"
He walked away without pressing further.