Chapter 176

Consciousness returned to reality; Bai Zeming sprang up like a leaping carp, rolled off the bed, and swiftly retrieved the temporarily stored items from the group mall, arranging them on his single dorm bed.

Gazing at those extraordinary items that didn’t belong to this world, Bai Zeming was so moved he nearly shed tears.

Sinian …… Zhengzhengsinian ！

He could finally take control of his own destiny!

Without hesitation, Bai Zeming sprinted to the bathroom, turned on the showerhead, adjusted the water temperature with his palm, and filled the bathtub to the brim with warm water.

Afterward, he stripped off his clothes at breakneck speed and stepped into the tub, clutching the serum.

About ten minutes later, Bai Zeming, wrapped in a towel around his waist and barefoot and bare-chested, pushed open the door, feeling refreshed, and stood before the full-length mirror in his bedroom.

At this moment, he seemed reborn; his entire demeanor had transformed, exuding newfound confidence, sharpness, and a subtle aura of pressure.

His height had increased by two to three centimeters due to the serum, and his chest and abdominal muscles—already toned from a year of training—swelled dramatically, bursting with explosive power and strength.

Gazing at his new reflection in the mirror, Bai Zeming wore a satisfied smile.

He turned his head toward the bathroom floor, soaked with water, and the bathtub now noticeably lower in water level.

The water in the tub had turned slightly black, as if filled with impurities expelled from his body.

Indeed, the cultivation-specialized serum enhanced the meridians, granting the ability to unblock the celestial circuit and purge toxins from the body.

A faint stench permeated the room, causing Bai Zeming’s heightened senses to wrinkle his nose slightly.

After a moment’s thought, he turned and walked into the bathroom, gripped the tub’s edges, and with a slight exertion, effortlessly lifted the entire tub and dumped out its murky contents.

“Thud!”

A muffled thump echoed as the heavy wooden tub landed on the floor.

Bai Zeming clenched his fist, his face lighting up with excitement.

The solid wood tub he’d purchased weighed forty to fifty kilograms on its own; combined with nearly seventy percent water inside, its total weight certainly exceeded two hundred kilograms!

In his former state, even moving it would have been nearly impossible.

But now, he could lift it effortlessly by simply gripping its edges.

This strength must be at least one or two tons!

Realizing this, Bai Zeming became cautious in every movement, even as his excitement surged.

Especially with the two anti-aging serums—he dared not even touch them, fearing he might accidentally crush the fragile-looking syringes.

But leaving them lying on the bed wasn’t sustainable.

After some hesitation, Bai Zeming opened the group chat and asked the senior members for advice.

Soon, Yun Ye, a senior member from the Tang Brick world, gave him a surprisingly brilliant suggestion—

Use the group mall’s mechanism to temporarily list items for storage within the group chat!

Learning this, Bai Zeming finally understood why some items in the mall carried absurdly high prices—they were temporary storage items left by veteran members!

Without delay, he listed every item on his bed for sale, keeping only the suitcase-style powered armor.

That night, Bai Zeming carried the disguised briefcase out of his room, climbed to the building’s rooftop, confirmed no one was around, placed the case on the ground, and stepped onto it, barely containing his excitement.

“Hum—”

Instantly, the blue glow of the Arc Reactor ignited within the case.

Silver and red metal began to reshape, surging upward along Bai Zeming’s thighs.

Unlike the original Mark 5, the upgraded armor now deployed at lightning speed—merely placing his right foot on the case triggered automatic deformation, spreading the armor across his entire body.

Within seconds, a sleek, mechanical, sci-fi suit enveloped Bai Zeming.

He swung his arm excitedly, stretching his joints and body, discovering the armor not only didn’t hinder his agility but dramatically amplified his strength and speed.

The next instant, a silver faceplate descended over his face, its square eye sockets glowing blue.

Simultaneously, a blue holographic screen materialized before his eyes, projecting the world outside the armor.

“Loading artificial intelligence…”

“Loading complete. Good evening, Mr. Bai!”

“Yibaoge product, Intelligent Butler #46. It’s a pleasure to serve you!”

An AI?!

Bai Zeming was stunned and thrilled.

After some questioning, he learned the AI wasn’t built into the armor itself, but rather a perk granted to every group member—once Brother Lin located this world, he’d be able to meet #46’s physical form in the Dao Hall.

“No wonder Brother Lin runs the group mall—he’s truly extravagant!”

Bai Zeming praised the senior member internally, then began chatting with #46.

Like other members’ intelligent butlers, #46 possessed rudimentary consciousness and could respond to Bai Zeming’s questions with logical, real-time replies like a real human.

After briefly familiarizing himself with #46’s communication style, Bai Zeming decisively changed its voice to a sultry, mature female tone and renamed it Lucy.

The name derived from Lucy, the earliest known human ancestor—the first human ever.

Bai Zeming bestowed this name hoping she would one day awaken advanced consciousness and become a true sentient being… not just a mecha girl, but a genuine artificial lifeform!

Having done this, he finally reached the moment he’d been eagerly awaiting.

Bai Zeming took a deep breath, mimicking Iron Man’s pose from the movies, letting his arms hang at his sides.

The next instant, the thrusters ignited; the silver-red armor shot skyward, leaving two distinct white trails as it vanished into the dark starry night above.

“Hahaha!!”

High in the sky, Bai Zeming laughed loudly, savoring the long-desired thrill of flight.

Unfortunately, the armor blocked the rushing wind, robbing him of true, unrestrained freedom.

He felt a pang of regret, resolving that once he mastered flight spells, he’d try flying bare-bodied.

“Whoosh—”

The silver-red armor roared across the sky, stirring a furious gale.

In just ten seconds, his speed surpassed three hundred meters per second, nearing the speed of sound.

Just as Bai Zeming prepared to test the armor’s top speed, Lucy gently warned him that exceeding the speed of sound might cause sonic booms and public panic.

Bai Zeming agreed it made sense, so he abandoned the idea and slowed down.

About twenty minutes later, Bai Zeming returned to his original location and descended slowly onto the rooftop.

Once the armor detached and reverted to a suitcase, he picked it up, gazing intently at the city below, shrouded in night.

He had already tested every item purchased from the mall except for spiritual roots, spiritual stones, and spiritual artifacts.

“Then it’s time to prepare for the impending time reversal!”

With that thought, Bai Zeming descended the rooftop stairs.

To ensure none of this would be altered by Qi Shen, he first needed to pinpoint the exact time of the super-volcano eruption—the moment Qi Shen would reset the world.

If the time reversal truly spanned a full year, he had only four days left.

But since he hadn’t lived through the actual reversal, he couldn’t be certain.

To guarantee he’d avoid the time reset entirely, he decided to venture into the forbidden zone avoided by magicians—to visit Renwu County and witness the super-volcano of Yu Ge Mountain firsthand.

……

……

Time flew by; two days passed in the blink of an eye.

During these two days, interactions between the group members and the two newcomers remained harmonious.

As cautious as Anzu was, he had begun uploading his knowledge of various magics to the group chat and listed several powerful items for sale at low prices in the group mall.

Lin Yu purchased numerous mid- to high-grade weapons and gear from him, carefully studying this game-based power system.

Most of the files Anzu uploaded originated from in-game books and items.

In truth, Anzu himself understood none of the magic theory within them.

But Lin Yu was different.

He already possessed magic knowledge from the Furiiren world and could easily extrapolate the rank-based magic system of the Overlord universe.

In just two days, his mastery of rank-based magic skyrocketed—he could now cast ninth-rank spells.

Such an astonishing pace left Anzu awestruck, prompting him to humbly inquire about the theoretical foundations of rank-based magic.

In raw power, Anzu’s game character was already max level—he could effortlessly cast even tenth-rank or higher ultra-rank spells.

But the way he cast rank-based magic, he only knew how, not why.

In terms of magical theory and knowledge, he was inferior even to the lowest-tier mages in the other world.

Coupled with the intense daily group activity, Anzu began feeling uneasy about this effortless power.

He gradually shifted his mindset, aspiring to master true, self-owned power like the other members.

Lin Yu, naturally delighted by this change, began teaching Anzu magic within the group chat.

Until the morning of the third day, when the group’s daily activity reset to zero, Bai Zeming—who had vanished for a day—suddenly reappeared, requesting Lin Yu’s help to implant a spiritual root.

【Lin Yu: You bought the spiritual root nearly three days ago—why are you only now thinking about implanting it?】

【Bai Zeming: Brother Lin, no time to explain—just pull me over right away!】

…Huh?

Something’s happened?

Lin Yu raised an eyebrow and immediately clicked his name to send an invitation.

In an instant, silver light erupted, forming a shimmering silver portal.

Bai Zeming, clad in his silver-red armor, burst out of the portal and crashed onto the ground of the Reincarnation Pavilion.

Lin Yu chuckled, waved his hand to suspend him midair, and asked curiously:

“Tell me, what’s going on?”

Bai Ze stabilized his stance, let out a long breath, then removed his faceplate and chuckled with a hint of dread: “Almost—I was so close! All that blood serum I just made is wasted!”

“Oh?”

Lin Yu’s heart stirred; he mused aloud: “Time rewound?”

(End of Chapter)