Chapter 522
Shi Lei had no intention of hiding it, and besides, as her belly grew larger, it would be impossible to conceal it any longer.
"She is two months pregnant, so she needs to rest more and move less in the future, and she also needs to control her diet."
"Ah?"
Texas found it incredible that Mudrock and Shi Lei didn't have reproductive isolation. But then she thought that perhaps she had been misled by conventional wisdom.
For thousands of years, this land has promoted marriage within the same ethnic group and strongly resisted intermarriage. This has led to the formation of ingrained beliefs among the vast majority of Terra.
But in reality, Texas knew Lisa, a 'Half-breed' child born from different races.
Her father was Eastern Volcanic Tribe, and her mother was Syracuse Lupo. As a result of the union between different races, Lisa inherited her father's Vulcan genes and could not show Lupo characteristics in her appearance.
There was also a woman of Half-breed who had dealt with Texas and Shi Lei many times.
That's Talulah, the Former Rhodes Island Leader and Victoria Royal Heir.
Her father was Draco, and her mother was a dragon from the Yan. Although both her parents were dragons, Western Dragon and Eastern Dragon are different races. Like Lisa, Talulah inherited her father's Draco genes. From her physical appearance alone, there were no visible dragon characteristics.
These two examples demonstrate that intermarriage between different races is possible.
It's unclear whether the children born will necessarily inherit their father's race, or whether other factors will influence their fate.
Texas knows very little about this, but it's enough that she knows different races can interbreed.
Mudrock's pregnancy was good news for Shi Lei, and equally good news for her. It served as a reminder to Texas that she too could one day bear children for her lover.
Perhaps influenced by the prevailing values of Texas, she felt that only by Shi Lei's child could she have a complete family.
Only Xi looked somber, her smile slightly stiff.
As a fragment derived from the consciousness of the Sui Beast, she cannot be considered a complete woman. Lacking internal organs, she can naturally go without eating, drinking, or sleeping.
Xi can experience the joys of being a woman, but she lacks the ability to bear children. She has known for a long time that she cannot cultivate herself into a normal person.
Therefore, upon learning of Mudrock's pregnancy, she felt mostly regret and helplessness. However, Xi was already very content to be with Shi Lei.
She will treat the children born to Mudrock and Texas as her own. The Long-lived Race has its own troubles, which are not for outsiders to know.
After sunset, Shi Lei hosted a banquet in Liyue City to celebrate. When generals like Ines learned that Mudrock was pregnant, they all sent gifts and congratulatory messages.
The grand banquet naturally brought up the topic of what Shi Lei had been doing during his absence.
Mudrock took the initiative to tell everyone about her experience of going to the Yinfei Icefield to close the Stargate. She never wanted to encounter the scene of thousands of Demons attacking her again.
Exusiai got goosebumps from hearing this and quickly rolled up her sleeves, stroking the area with her hands.
"Tsk, even the Jade Shield couldn't withstand it? Good thing I didn't go, or I'd definitely be cannon fodder."
"Yes, that's a battle that's simply beyond the reach of us mortals. Only the City Lord and Miss Mudrock have the strength to fight against these Demons."
The generals present all knew that Shi Lei didn't like flattery. After expressing his personal views truthfully, he didn't try to curry favor.
As the saying goes, a bad general leads to a bad army; a good atmosphere is created by the leader.
"Thankfully, the Stargate was closed without serious incident, completely eliminating the threat of the Demons. Afterwards Anmatar wanted Shi Lei to take charge of Sami. Guess what he said?"
"I know that, he definitely refused! If he wanted to dominate the world, he would have made the Great Yan Emperor abdicate when he went to seal the Sui Beast. In the end, he didn't get any reward after he finished his work, which is what I admire about him."
"It's not just Yan; even Victoria, a territory as vast as it is, has no interest from the Lord. Didn't he say he left after the war ended, without taking any territory at all?"
"Haha, that's just how he is. He used to live in Syracuse, and the Madam Sicily left without asking for any territory. She's practically Sage."
The more Shi Lei listened, the more mysterious it seemed, and he coughed twice. The others then stopped and changed the subject.
The next part of the conversation involved acquiring the Pre-Civilization technology provided by Anmatar. Mudrock didn't understand the technical terms, so he looked at his master and asked him to explain them himself.
Shi Lei didn't intend to hide anything, revealing that he would organize a gathering of various countries at the end of the year to share all the selected Energy Technology with them for free.
Everyone shared Kristen's opinion, feeling it was a waste not to take a single penny. However, these technologies belonged to the City Lord, and they had no right to comment.
After a hearty meal and drinks, the banquet lasted for three weeks.
Around nine o'clock, Shi Lei returned to his bedroom to rest.
A short while later, his three girlfriends followed him into the house, and with a smile, they locked the door behind them.
Seeing that Mudrock was about to follow them into the Happy Pot, he said with a hint of helplessness:
"You're pregnant now, so strenuous exercise isn't suitable for you. You should rest early and not come in."
"Ah?"
Mudrock was struck dumb upon hearing this, feeling deeply wronged:
"Then I won't be able to do 'that' with you for seven or eight months? How can I stand that? How about I go in and help out, just watch from the sidelines, okay?"
This answer left the three of them both amused and exasperated.
Actually, intercourse is only prohibited during the first and last three months of pregnancy; it's fine during the four months in between.
Texas, lacking experience in this area, walked over, grasped Mudrock's hand, and explained earnestly:
"Good sister, you'd better not go in. If it were anything else, lending a hand would be fine. But can you guarantee that if you go in and help, you won't have any other ideas? If those ideas are very strong, can you control yourself?"
"I..."
Mudrock was speechless for a moment, feeling extremely disappointed.
Shi Lei, with a smile on his face, leaned over and gently kissed her forehead.
"Listen to me, I'll spend more time with you during the day."
Mudrock nodded with a pitiful expression; she would do whatever her master said.
Shi Lei had already unfolded the Happy Pot on the table, connecting it to his self-created world. He was pulling two boxes of condoms out of the wardrobe drawer when he was suddenly stopped.
"Wait a moment."
"Ah?"
Texas and Xi exchanged a glance and nodded to each other. Then the two walked over and forcibly took the two boxes of condoms from Shi Lei's hands, throwing them into the trash can.
Seeing their smiling faces, Shi Lei knew perfectly well what Texas and Xi were up to:
"You should think this through carefully. If you're several months pregnant, you won't be able to enter the Pot of Heaven and Earth."
"Hehe, what's there to be afraid of? We'll see who can't hold back first, or who can't hold back first."
Despite Texas's provocative gaze, Shi Lei's smile never faded.
"Alright, alright, is this how you play? Go get a few more pairs of stockings, I'll play with you properly today."
Their eyes met, and everything was understood without a word.
Early September, 1098.
Shi Lei, along with his two girlfriends, Texas and Xi, flew to Kazimierz to sign for materials such as cables and Optical Cable.
Mudrock is currently more than three months pregnant and should not move around much; she should stay home and rest to prepare for childbirth.
After leaving Liyue City, Shi Lei first landed in Capital Cinderelme of Sargon.
He found the Lich King Fremont and asked him to prepare Spatial Magic Array in advance to teleport to a neighboring planet.
Shi Lei wasn't afraid of the other party tampering with his equipment; he figured he could just fly back from outer space if Withdrawal Route.
Moreover, after these past few months of development, most of the Sarkaz in the region now know that Empress Theresia has led 30,000 Sarkaz to join Liyue.
In other words, the Sarkaz Orthodoxy in Liyue.
As a lich of the Ten Royal Courts, there is no reason for him to avenge Bloodfiend and other members of the Royal Court Army at this time. This would be an extremely irrational act, and the consequences would be severe if it failed.
After informing the lich, Shi Lei left and continued westward, arriving at the Grand Knight Territory of Kazimierz.
The Supervision Committee this transaction, and the delivered cables, optical Optical Cable, and base stations underwent repeated inspections.
In order to curry favor with Mister Zhongli and leave a good impression, they even pre-assembled and debugged the base station equipment, making it ready to use immediately.
If it were any other buyer, transporting the finished base stations, which are dozens of meters tall, would be an immense headache. But who is Shi Lei? These problems are no problem for him at all.
He was very satisfied with the Council of Supervision Committee's attitude and privately revealed some Inside Information to Russell and others.
They said that once the Cross-border Communication Network is completed, they will provide them with some Energy Technology free of charge so that they can continue to produce materials such as cables and Optical Cable. They plan to carry out Phase Two Project, extending it to Further Countries.
The Supervision Committee overjoyed upon hearing this and wanted to extract more information about New Energy. However, Shi Lei kept them in suspense, telling them to focus on promoting their cross-border services first.
This large transaction already made a lot of money for Kazimierz's producers and middlemen. Knowing about the new technology, they will be even more dedicated to promoting it.
While there are many technologies within the Storage Unit that can be shared, they are not applicable to all countries.
Some countries are affected by extreme weather conditions such as snow-capped mountains, volcanoes, and deserts, which limits their ability to utilize only a portion of Energy Technology and prevents them from enjoying full technological innovation.
After delivery, Shi Lei immediately took the materials and began laying cables and Optical Cable. He used Rock Constructs to support the materials, which weighed over a thousand tons, into the air.
They immediately began laying cables, Optical Cable, and base stations, while simultaneously wrapping the equipment with several layers of Rock Constructs to protect it from Catastrophe and daily wear and tear.
All of this was manipulated by Shi Lei with his mind; from an outsider's perspective, it looked as if AI was assisting in its operation.
The enormous noise during the installation shocked countless Kazimierz residents. Some young people even filmed the scene, intending to post it online.
Shi Lei knew he couldn't hide it any longer, so he simply stopped trying.
They traveled westward from the Grand Knight Territory into Columbia, obtaining the remaining cable materials at Trimon.
However, the vendors here don't have Supervision Committee board members, so the Signal Base Station need to be assembled by themselves. Shi Lei just needs to follow the design drawings, which won't take much time.
After completing this task, head to Rhine Lab, bringing Kristen and various collection equipment. Continue laying the foundation along the northern border of Columbia.
Shi Lei also extended the Signal Base Station cable to the southern part of Sami, making it easier for people in this free trade zone to receive cross-border network signals.
As for the Sami hinterland and the Endless Icefield, we'll wait until the second phase of construction to lay the cables. Shi Lei plans to purchase all the relevant Optical Cable materials from the Supervision Committee.
Once the paving was nearly complete, he led the three men back the way they had come. They returned to the Grand Knight Territory of Kazimierz and continued paving eastward along the route they had previously laid.
As they passed through Victoria, Shi Lei branched off, traversing rugged snow-capped mountains to connect the inter-provincial communication network to Scherzag.
Upon discovering that the Doctor was visiting Enciodis's house, he even went down to say hello. Only after the Cross-border Signal covered the entire territory of Scherzag did Shi Lei continue laying cables eastward.
Given Victoria's vast territory, after crossing the northern border, another route must be extended to the southern border via Sargon.
Kristen accompanied him throughout, watching him lay the plan as if performing a miracle, without raising any objections.
They worked tirelessly from early September to mid-September before finally arriving in Cinderelme.
The Lich King has prepared the Spatial Magic Array, and now everything is ready except for activation.
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Chapter 597 Texas's Sense of Crisis (4K)
After meeting Shi Lei, the Lich King Fremont led the four of them to the outskirts of Cinderelme.
There are pre-drawn Spatial Magic Array here, which can open Space-Time Tunnel to connect to neighboring planets.
Compared to the Space-Time Rift at the Stargate, the Lich's Space-Time Tunnel seems more like a temporary measure.
The difference between the two is like that between a real person and the Fiji Cup. The former can be used for a long time, but there will be many limitations in the later stages. For example, it cannot be used again once it is damaged, and the Magic Array needs to be maintained with special powder after daily use.
"Mister Zhongli, are you ready?"
Shi Lei did not answer directly, but looked at Kristen, waiting for her reply.
Texas and Yu also wanted to go to space, but considering the risks, it was better to go separately.
After Kristen finishes his research, he will take his girlfriends to outer space to enjoy the scenery.
Upon seeing this, Kristen immediately understood and conducted a final check on the data collection device she was carrying.
After confirming everything was in order, she put on the spacesuit, designed to withstand various extreme environments. She also took the opportunity of this space exploration trip to test the spacesuit's performance.
Everyone stood quietly to the side, waiting without urging Kristen. After receiving her affirmative reply, Fremont began chanting the incantation.
Shi Lei had a built-in translator, so listening to these ancient Sarkaz languages felt like chanting scriptures.
In no time at all, the Space-Time Tunnel opened.
Shi Lei bid farewell to Texas and Xi, then raised his hand to create Rock House of sufficient size. After loading Kristen and the equipment, he sealed the roof and entered the tunnel in a floating manner.
As the Magic Array was activated, the two seemed to step into a bizarre underwater tunnel. Everywhere they looked was a kaleidoscope of colors, flowing rapidly like streams of light.
As the light gradually faded, Shi Lei and Kristen successfully arrived at a planet adjacent to Terra. The Space-Time Tunnel behind them also closed, awaiting its next opening.