The prototype testing phase ended up taking 2 days to be completed.

In this phase, not only was the artillery sniper put under extreme strains up to the point of simulating the weapon being punched by grade 3 martial abomination, even the 2 shell prototypes had been pushed to the limit of usability to see how they fared under extreme circumstances such as being acid bathed by an infamous acid bombardment.

And with now concrete solid objective data under his project, the first thing Aven realized had changed was when he claimed his innovating quest’s reward after settling down in the design room

Faction Contribution Quest: Nation of Eland Military

Innovating: Give your faction new ways to achieve its goals. The more impacting and practical the innovations, the greater the contribution.

Reward: 642 000 FCP

“Oh~ It’s finally showing a bit of its potential~” Whistling in satisfaction, he opened his shop to see how far he was from his next claiming target.

Faction Contribution Shop: Nation of Eland Military

Faction Authority: Six-Star General

Faction Contribution Points: 1 841 550

…

Armored Spirit Treasure Pill (1 900 000 FCP): A pill produced by the Eternal Vow Kingdom to give to its highest authority. Initially designed to help protect the spirit, it ended up accomplishing much more than that with the help it can provide to psy supers. Gives the consumer the armored spirit spiritual talent.

“One more day it is,” he instantly closed the shop once he had confirmed what he wanted.

His current FCP grinding rate was much lower than when he was going all-in with the volunteering quest and the current crisis, but his life was just so much more fulfilling compared to back then that he didn’t even consider turning back.

“And after I get spiritual protection… I don’t know. Should I go back to knowledge?” Musing as he looked over all the computers he had personally infused, hard at work incorporating all the new data they had been given and processing them in the way Aven wanted, he opened his status.

Aven Amias

Faction: Nation of Eland Military

Energy Grade: 2

Energy Cultivation: 335/1 000

Energy Affinity: Tech

Physical Talents: Basic Energy Furnace Cells

Energy Talents: Basic Tech Energy Affinity, Basic Energy Sense, Basic Natural Energy Growth, Basic Self Revolving Energy

Spiritual Talents: Inquisitive Spirit, Advanced Knowledge Integration, Basic Tireless Spirit

Universal Talents: Unawakened Fairy Ancestry, Creative Instinct

“Huhu~ Should I start an experiment on repeatedly taking something that gives me a talent I already have? No, too wasteful… Or is it?” Innerly, his curiosity was fighting his rationality as he questioned which path was more relevant for him.

As it had been 1 month since he had started his project, even with his schedule being filled with “contribution” that only his innovating quest could transform into FCP, Aven had gradually accumulated enough stock to buy things he assumed he needed.

Included in those things he needed were a universal talent and a very powerful sounding physical talent.

Crafter’s Delight Drop (940 000 FCP)

Creative Instinct: Inspiration hits you more often than others when you’re engaged in a craft demanding much from your imagination. Allows you to sometimes combine your conscious and subconscious insights when you’re focused on a crafting task.

Energy Furnace Constitution Mutation Elixir (1 850 000 FCP)

Basic Energy Furnace Cells: Your cells naturally contain and release more energy than they should in exchange for increased metabolic demand. Minimally increases your energy recovery and the efficiency of your energy cultivation.

No miraculous synergy had been born out of those 2, but they were every bit worthy of the price he had paid for them. A talent was something permanent after all, so as long as it could do what it said it would, then it was worth it.

“Anyway! That’s something to think about another day!” Unwilling to go down this line of reasoning yet, he quickly stopped thinking about what to use his FCP for once he got the armored spirit treasure pill. It was more than a week away even if he maintained his current FCP yield in the end.

“For now, I think I should start preparing a user-friendly manual for future users. No way I’m letting other people butcher these perfectly optimized and innovative shells incorporating so many new things. And I’m sure they wouldn't even be able to understand half the design choices I made for the artillery sniper,” condescendingly, Aven created a new file on his data computer.

He didn’t try to be condescending, but when even a grade 4 production tech super had been skeptical about his project, he knew that he couldn’t yet just use his image as a genius to make anyone believe heart and soul in his work.

So he had to take matters into his own hands.

“Let’s start with… The weapon? Yeah, if I was given a new weapon and new shells, then the first thing I would want to know about isn’t the shells but the weapon… It’s so cool-looking too…” Finding a starting point easily, his hands started flying across the keyboard automatically.

He didn’t need to think about what to write or follow a manual, he was the creator and single researcher of this entire project after all.

…

With the end of the prototype testing phase, Aven became extra busy.

All the small defects found during the testing of the 3 integrated production lines had gradually been patched up so it wasn’t like he had a gigantic pile of problems to resolve, but the matter of correcting some small details on the artillery sniper and the 2 shells involved modifying nearly the entire associated line to cater to the new changes.

And that, in addition to the fact that he was alone working on this not-small project, even with a normal awake time of more than 35 hours, and that the abomination surge was still simmering, was the reason why he didn’t relax at all.

Setting his priority right, he first adjusted the different codes, then sent Alain the minorly corrected component units, then came back to the code to confirm he hadn’t messed up somewhere.

The time it took him to do all that was only a week, and by the time he finished preparing for the wrap-up and conclusion of this first project of his, he had nothing else to do but wait for his project colleague to finish doing his part.

However, waiting was clearly not in his blood, so he decided to start farming his volunteering quest all while focusing more on gathering insights for new projects.

He also clearly remembered the existence of a certain “Fairy Crystal”, one surely able to awaken his fairy ancestry, but the task of gathering 189 000 000 FCP was so daunting that he only thought about it for a moment before throwing it back in his messy “bright future” mental shelf.

Eventually, after 4 sleep cycles of nearly all-in volunteering where he had each day earned respectively 2 614 950, 2 677 500, 2 740 650, and 2 804 400 FCP, all while pushing his average tech-production enhancement from 230% to 246%, or an additional 4% every day…

“Aven, the final integrated lines are ready and I’ve already done all the preliminary tests. Do you want to see their activation?” Alain finally came to fetch him at the “dawn” of the 5th sleep cycle.

Having woken up not even half an hour ago, Aven had a hard time mustering his normal enthusiasm, but he still succeeded at displaying a meaningful smile as he arrogantly stood up from the comfy bossy chair he used for his main desk in the design room, “Lead the way, my overly serious and single sidekick!”

What followed was an “unaffected” Alain leaving him in the dust as he clearly unspokenly told him to find a way to the industrial machinery area himself.

“Oh well,” sitting back down, Aven continued enjoying his cup of water while ideas kept fusing inside his head, each trying to make their way to reality in the form of being written down to be remembered, “Taking my time will not change anything on this one.”

…

Casually strolling inside the building the administration had so kindly “given” him for his project, Aven directly saw the previous 3 integrated production line prototypes, left turned off on one side, just waiting to be disassembled.

And on another side, 3 similar machines, but these weren’t turned off, they were even giving out the characteristic sound of industrial activity, meaning massive metal colliding, shaping machines bending the metal to their new forms, and the synthesizer working as if their life was on the line to keep the acid they were producing from eating their inside up.

“I see that he’s not sparing you at all,” recognizing after a few seconds of hearing the intense sounds that all the 3 lines had been pushed to the maximum intensity limits he had personally set, he headed towards the stock area.

There, he saw staff personally inspecting each shell that was produced, making an elementary evaluation of their tech-production enhancement by using the resistance of their alloy shell and all sorts of factors like impact when falling 1 meter, heat dispersal, minimal pressure bending…

Skipping all the tests that were mostly automated, he arrived at the final evaluation area, seeking an answer about how tech-enhanced (tech-production enhancement shortened word) these armor cracking shells were.

And he found his answer when reading the label added to a box at the end of the evaluation area, “956% tech-enhanced… Woah…”

Computing this number in a grander scheme, he realized that with his 246% tech-enhancement, he was already firmly into the non-energy specialization grade 3 domain, and he wasn’t even close to being finished with grinding his knowledge application skill.

‘And he’s not a fairy, doesn’t have a prospective endless list of talents to get, and doesn't have as much knowledge… How high will I reach when I get to his level?’

Dreamingly imagining his future, he made his way back toward the production area.

There, he saw Alain working hard on pushing the 3 lines to their limits, wanting to squeeze out that last bit of defects that should still be in there.

“Well, I’ll be waiting for the news. Until then, I’ll start redacting the project closing report,” not having any idea how he could help, Aven ultimately decided that he had seen what he had wanted to see.

“Hu…” A grunt escaped Alain, probably signifying his agreement to the matter.

Leaving him behind, Aven began his return trip, his mind once again starting an idea war as he got inside a jeep which his escort so kindly used to… Escort him.

“What are the chances of a Canopy assassin targeting me?” He asked out of the blue.

“Unless there’s a mole inside the few people that have been made aware of your existence, then the chances remain zero for now,” using the same tone as ever, a deferential one, Ron straightforwardly established the facts according to his awareness of the situation.

“And what about after my project makes it to the front line?” He pursued this line of question, curious about it more than scared.

“Unless you explicitly want your name to be hidden, then some Canopy people will probably start an investigation on you. But with the current situation, worrying about them should be the least of your worries,” he tried to both paradoxically comfort and intimidate him.

“What do you mean? Like, the Canopy is less of a concern than a potential planetary crisis? How can that be!” Turning the somewhat serious conversation into a sarcastic one in an instant, Aven stopped talking as his idea war started again.

When he reached the building that had pretty much been privatized for him and only him, he quickly headed to the design room to write some very interesting innovation ideas before settling down in front of the main computer and opening a report he had started writing… At some points.

“Do I even need to add more than just the data? It’s not like I intend my artillery snipers and anti-abomination shells to be used by anything other than tech supers…” Leaning towards the wild genius approach for this report, it didn’t take him more than the next 4 hours to redact a “proper” closing report for the project he had led from its inception to its conclusion.

“And with that, I’m only missing the last data from the 3 finished lines and the test results for the artillery sniper, the armor cracking shell, and the expansive empty shell,” pressing the register icon with his cursor, Aven closed the document and stood up to stretch.

Following a few dozen seconds of relaxing moaning, he headed towards the central table, where dozens of cardboard folders were neatly placed next to each other.

“Well… I’ve already farmed 10 million FCP, I think it’s time to decide my next project,” undecided about which project he wanted to start next, he decided to do it by process of elimination.

“I think… All the society projects first. The surge is still of actuality, so revolutionizing the domestic market is not a priority at all,” starting easy, he piled the transport-related, health-related, construction-related, and all other projects like those on one side.

“All the big projects too. I think it may be too early for me to start designing naval ships, military airships, drones, or tanks. Though I’m sure Commander would really like it if I picked on a moving HQ vehicle project~” Being reminded of his mentors as he removed 7 folders, he happily continued.

“Probably… All the digital projects? They’re all too time-consuming, and if I’m just going to optimize all sorts of software, then it’s just not worth it,” he shifted the few folders that were about designing software to do pretty much anything he wanted, from protecting his data to optimizing a simulation.

“The cultivation resources production… This one is a contender, but it’s not something useful against a surge, so out!” Eyeing this one project he was certain to take one day, he evaluated that it wasn’t the right moment yet.

Struggling to decide what to eliminate next, he slowly started picking out all the offensive-minded projects, “I’ve already designed the weapon and the shells needed to fight the strongest targets, I don’t think they need one to deal with the swarm elements, right?”

What remained on the table after his purge were either futuristic long-term projects like designing a working mechanical suit, or very direct and straightforward projects like…

“Full body armor…” Taking this folder, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that if there was to be a logical following to his current artillery sniper project, then this project was surely the apex contender for the position, “The other side of destruction, protection.”

Opening the “Full Body Armor Project” folder, he decided to think a bit more about what it implied before making it his next project.

And it started with a list of knowledge he had written during his volunteering period over the last 4 days.

Knowledge: Advanced Energy Applications (436 300 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Nanomaterials (436 400 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Polymers (622 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Crystallography (636 500 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Super Biology (636 700 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Ceramics (639 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Special Operations (847 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Close Quarters Combat (860 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Mechanical Engineering (891 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Problem-Solving (902 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Expert Biology (1 471 000 FCP)

“Total price… 8 377 900 FCP. A consequent investment I can earn in 4 sleep cycles. Hehe~ What a coincidence,” ridiculing the absurd sum for not being absurd compared to what he could potentially earn, he picked a new blank paper and started pondering on all the ins and outs of this project.

From other knowledge he potentially needed, to how he would go at it, to what he could basically design with his current knowledge base and his understanding of how diverse and chaotic abominations could be.

In the end, after an hour of brainstorming, he couldn’t find anything his past self had let through or missed.

Even the few interrogations about weird knowledge that could potentially help…

Faction Contribution Shop: Nation of Eland Military

Faction Authority: Six-Star General

Faction Contribution Points: 10 954 450

…

Knowledge: Intermediate Robotic Exoskeleton (48 700 FCP)

“It’s… Bad,” he easily found the answer he wanted after browsing through a restricted database, “It’s clearly a nascent technology that was forcefully elevated by making it totally impractical unless it’s used in a secure and controlled environment.”

Dashing the last potential knowledge addition, Aven had basically already decided that this project was his next project. The only thing that remained for him to do was plan how to start it and when to claim all the preliminary needed knowledge.

“Now? After I do another volunteering cycle? Not like 35 hours will decide the fate of the fight against the surge… Let’s do another volunteering cycle then,” determining the best course of action for him, he stood up and began cleaning the mess he had created during his brainstorming.

…

Faction Contribution Quest: Nation of Eland Military

Volunteering: Contribute to the stability of your faction without asking for anything in return. The more time spent and the harder the tasks, the greater the contribution.

Reward: 2 868 750 FCP

“Appreciable~” Thanking his quest reward screen, the effect of having slightly surpassed the 38 hours of allotted time by his still basic-level tireless spirit was already making itself known and his whole body felt a bit numb.

Hence he didn’t wait and opened his shop directly to start claiming all the knowledge he would digest one by one “tonight”.

Faction Contribution Shop: Nation of Eland Military

Faction Authority: Six-Star General

Faction Contribution Points: 13 605 600

…

Knowledge: Advanced Energy Applications (436 300 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Nanomaterials (436 400 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Polymers (622 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Crystallography (636 500 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Super Biology (636 700 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Ceramics (639 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Special Operations (847 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Close Quarter Combat (860 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Mechanical Engineering (891 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Advanced Problem-Solving (902 000 FCP)

Knowledge: Expert Biology (1 471 000 FCP)

‘Yup, these are the ones.’

Comparing the knowledge listed on the paper sheet he held in his hand and the ones he was eyeing, he nodded and claimed them all, turning his 13 605 600 FCP stock into a 5 227 700 one.

Knowledge: Advanced Energy Applications (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Nanomaterials (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Polymers (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Crystallography (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Super Biology (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Ceramics (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Special Operations (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Close Quarters Combat (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Mechanical Engineering (Claim?)

Knowledge: Advanced Problem-Solving (Claim?)

Knowledge: Expert Biology (Claim?)

Adopting the most comfortable sleeping posture, closing his eyes, and stabilizing his breath, Aven saw nothing else to do, so he mentally pushed for claiming a first knowledge.

The next moment, he was swallowed by darkness.