A year later...
"Report! The hundred members of the Blazing Squad have assembled!"
"The Blazing Squad is made up of the Martial Alliance's most elite martial artists. Every member has a power level above 2,000!"
"Report complete! Awaiting the Alliance Leader's orders!"
The one giving the report was Bu Chen. He was wearing a Battle Suit, looking dashing and sharp.
Looking at the elite squad before him, Jiang Yun felt a surge of ambition. They were Earth's vanguard as it stepped into the universe. The human race of Earth would surely make a name for itself throughout the cosmos.
With the Martial Alliance's most scientific training methods, along with various recovery devices and the help of the gravity chamber, the Alliance's strength had undergone a tremendous transformation. Only a handful of people knew about it.
Over the past year, the Martial Alliance's members had undergone hellish training, often teetering between life and death. Yet none of them had backed down. When they learned they would follow Jiang Yun into the universe, every one of them trained with burning enthusiasm. Each had a heart set on conquering new territory.
Venturing into the universe was a temptation no one could resist. Of course, many had been weeded out along the way. Those who remained were the best of the best, with the firmest Martial Hearts.
Bu Chen, the strongest among them, now had a battle power of 8,000. The Blazing Squad might seem weak, little more than cannon fodder in the universe, but one thing shouldn't be forgotten: the amplification technique Jiang Yun had passed down. With Jiang Yun's constant improvements, the Jiang Fist had become extremely stable. Not only could it be sustained for much longer, it also placed less strain on the body.
It was essentially an upgraded version of Kaioken. Jiang Yun had even incorporated a way to use Vital Energy into it. Once someone activated Jiang Fist Mode, they would unconsciously absorb the Vital Energy drifting around them to sustain the technique. That was why Jiang Fist consumed less energy than Kaioken.
Jiang Yun had developed it specifically for the Martial Alliance. He didn't expect them to understand how it worked. If he told them that they needed to absorb Vital Energy, how would he explain it? How could he teach them to absorb it? They couldn't even sense its existence. Jiang Yun suspected that it might have something to do with mental strength.
So, after Jiang Yun's modifications, activating the technique would make its user absorb Vital Energy without realizing it. Even his own Jiang Divine Body had become more refined. His body could absorb Vital Energy, and once he activated the Jiang Divine Body, it would absorb Vital Energy automatically. He could even absorb it deliberately.
The strain this put on him was so negligible it could be ignored, and he could maintain it for an astonishingly long time! He could now sustain the tenfold mode for extended periods. With Vital Energy supporting him, he could even keep it going indefinitely. He could convert Vital Energy into ki for combat, though he couldn't convert it directly into battle power.
Still, he could look into that. But that was a matter for later.
During that year of research, Jiang Yun had considered that the others needed to fight in order to gain combat experience.
So he contacted Dr. Brief and had him develop an artificial intelligence. When Dr. Brief first heard Jiang Yun describe artificial intelligence, he was astonished, marveling at how many ideas the boy had—and how far ahead of his time they were.
Since the topic had come up, the technology in the Dragon Ball World deserved a mention. Just like in a certain ninja world, it felt as if their technological development had gone seriously off track. Dr. Gero could even give robots emotions, yet their computing power was still on the level of ordinary computers. They were nowhere near creating a true superintelligence.
Some of their technology was extremely advanced, while other parts were shockingly primitive. They even had inventions on par with Iron Man's, yet still used primitive bombs. They had nothing like the advanced energy weapons one would expect from such a high-tech civilization.
Even energy weapons had only appeared later, and their power was pitiful. They were nothing like the world-shattering weapons one might expect.
But that could be put aside for now. When Brief heard that Jiang Yun wanted to build a virtual network powered by artificial intelligence, he was even more astonished. Jiang Yun wanted to transmit people's consciousness into the virtual network and use it for battles where life and death were at stake. In the virtual world, there would be no need to worry about dying.
What Dr. Brief thought of, meanwhile, was how the extra time in the virtual world could effectively extend people's lives, giving them more time to conduct research.
Dr. Brief exclaimed, "Whoever came up with this is either crazy or a genius!"
Clearly, Jiang Yun wasn't crazy. He was a genius!
After hearing Jiang Yun out, Dr. Brief immediately threw himself into the research. Artificial intelligence was complicated, but it was nothing compared to space. He'd already invented Hoi-Poi Capsules, after all. What was one more challenge?
The virtual network required enormous computing power, so it needed artificial intelligence to keep it running. That made developing an artificial intelligence the first step.
Artificial intelligence was no problem for Brief. Creating a device to guide a person's consciousness out was even easier. After a period of tireless effort, Brief soon invented all the necessary components.
About six months after the Martial Alliance began training, Dr. Brief had finished putting everything together. He tested the virtual network's time flow, but when he increased it to ten times the normal speed, he found that people's consciousnesses became unstable.
Their bodies couldn't keep up with their minds.
"So people who spend time in the virtual network, where time flows faster, end up with their bodies and minds out of sync?"
Jiang Yun was troubled. That absolutely wouldn't do!
"No, no! It's not that serious. Their bodies just need time to adjust to their minds. Besides, there's no need to keep the time flow at ten times the normal speed the whole time."
"That would put a heavy strain not only on people, but on the artificial intelligence as well. Based on my tests, five times the normal speed is the highest rate most people can handle."
"It won't affect them at all."
Dr. Brief explained patiently.
Jiang Yun's eyes lit up. Five times the normal speed! That would let the Martial Alliance develop at a tremendous rate. It wasn't as good as the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, but it had its own advantages. It was like extending their lives.
They could try out all sorts of martial arts ideas in the virtual world, then train and test them in reality.
At first, he'd only wanted to use the virtual network to help the Martial Alliance members gain combat experience. Now it seemed to have all sorts of uses. It could even bring in enormous profits!
"Dr. Brief, how about we name this virtual network the Virtual Universe?"
Jiang Yun looked at the doctor.
"The Virtual Universe? That's a very fitting name. Who knows? Maybe one day this Virtual Universe will even take off across the actual universe!"
Dr. Brief seemed to love the name. He said it happily.
"Dr. Brief, I know it'll be very difficult to let everyone on Earth use this, and the costs will be enormous. But we can charge people to use it."
"With so many people around the world each paying a little, we'd have a fortune greater than any nation's—maybe even one greater than Capsule Corp's!"
Jiang Yun's voice seemed to have a magical quality, making it impossible to resist his words.
"We can turn it into humanity's second world. With the Virtual Universe, humanity's development will become unimaginably fast!"
"But I know you're not someone who cares about money, Doctor. We'd only be raising funds to help us grow."
"Of course, my goal is the pinnacle of martial arts. Money comes second. We can use what we earn to help Earth develop."
Dr. Brief was astonished by Jiang Yun's ideas. Just how many did the boy have in that head of his?
"Doctor, you know I'm a martial artist. I'd like you to help me design a Combat Module, Matchmaking Mode, Ranked Mode, and Custom Room Mode."
"We could even have team and multiplayer modes, though those could be included in the ones I just mentioned!"
Jiang Yun continued.
"You really have a lot of ideas, kid!"
Dr. Brief marveled that Jiang Yun seemed born for martial arts. In his hands, even martial arts had become something extraordinary.
No!
This young man could achieve great things in anything he set his mind to.
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