Chen Ran's proposal received a response from every faction.
The "Heavenly Net Technology Committee" was officially established in the City of Origin.
For a time, this holy city of humanity became more bustling than ever before. Immortals and Gods from every corner arrived in droves, auspicious clouds swirling overhead and treasures shining into the sky, creating a strange yet striking contrast with the city's technology-filled architecture.
The Chan Sect had sent several elites from the Twelve Golden Immortals, led by Guang Chengzi. Each carried himself with solemn grandeur, auspicious clouds rising above his head and powerful innate or acquired spiritual treasures in hand, displaying all the bearing of an orthodox mystic sect.
The Jie Sect was not to be outdone. Lord of the Heavens had sent his direct disciple Zhao Gongming, along with the Three Ladies of Sanxiao: Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao. Behind them followed the Ten Heavenly Lords and many other masters of arrays, numerous in number and overwhelming in presence.
In addition, Zhen Yuanzi had sent the two young Daoist attendants Qingfeng and Mingyue, the Western Sect had sent several ascetic monks, and even the Four Dragon Kings, who had always kept to themselves, had dispatched their Crown Princes to learn.
A "study group" of unprecedented scale, gathering more than half of the Primordial World's technical elite, had thus opened for business.
The committee headquarters was located within a massive building at the Central Academy of Sciences in the City of Origin. This was the core research and development zone for humanity's Rune Technology. When Guang Chengzi, Zhao Gongming, and the others first stepped inside, the sight before them left them stunned.
There were no carved beams or painted rafters here, no meditation cushions or incense burners.
Instead, there were enormous metal chambers, light screens flickering with endless data, mechanical arms automatically transporting materials along aerial tracks, and countless human engineers in white research uniforms hurrying back and forth, bent over instruments they could not comprehend.
A beauty of rigor, efficiency, logic, and order washed over them, forming a stark contrast to the immortal caves and blessed abodes they knew.
"Hmph, mere tricks and contrivances." Guang Chengzi looked upon it all. Though shaken inside, he remained disdainful in words. Proud by nature, he looked down on those born with fur or horns, those hatched from eggs or born of moisture. Naturally, he also held a measure of contempt for humanity's "unorthodox path" of neglecting the Nascent Soul in favor of studying external things.
That neither-loud-nor-soft snort happened to be heard by Zhao Gongming beside him.
Zhao Gongming was loyal and righteous, with a temper like fire. He immediately took offense, glancing sideways at Guang Chengzi with a sneer. "What? Brother Guang Chengzi, you look down on us 'unorthodox paths'? Then what are you doing here? Go back to your Jade Void Palace and hug your Fan Tian Seal!"
"You!" Guang Chengzi's face darkened. "Zhao Gongming, do not be so arrogant! This is humanity's holy city. Out of respect for Junior Sister Nuwa, I will not stoop to the level of a brute like you!"
"Who are you calling a brute?!"
Seeing that the two were about to start quarrelling at the entrance to the research center, the human reception officer beside them—Youchao Shi, the Earthly Sovereign and one of the Three Sovereigns—had no choice but to step forward and smooth things over.
"Esteemed immortals, please calm yourselves. Sir has been waiting inside for some time."
The two glared at each other, then finally snorted and followed Youchao Shi inside.
Chen Ran had long been waiting in the core laboratory of the research center. He did not bother with formalities and got straight to the point.
"Fellow Daoists, welcome to the City of Origin."
"Time is short, so I will skip the pleasantries. Starting today, everyone has only one goal: to fully grasp the principles of Rune Technology in the shortest possible time, combine it with each of your immortal arts, and jointly complete a prototype for the first primary node of the Primordial Heavenly Net."
As he spoke, a giant light screen behind him lit up, displaying an incomparably complex design blueprint.
"This is the prototype's design blueprint. It contains three thousand six hundred and fifty basic rune arrays, one hundred and twenty-nine thousand six hundred energy circuits..."
Chen Ran began explaining the design principles in detail.
At first, Guang Chengzi and the others listened with scrutinizing, critical expressions. But the more they heard, the more solemn their faces became. In the end, they were outright shocked.
What Chen Ran described was an entirely new system of knowledge, something they had never encountered before. It deconstructed and recombined arrays, artifact refinement, energy theory, and even certain fundamental Laws of the Great Dao through a pure, rigorous, quantifiable method.
In the understanding of immortals, laying arrays and refining artifacts relied on one's cultivation, one's comprehension of the Great Dao, and a vague, indescribable flash of "inspiration."
Yet in humanity's system, everything had become calculable formulas and standardized procedures.
It completely overturned their worldview.
After the explanation ended, they entered the group discussion and practical application phase.
And at that very moment, the conflict erupted completely.
"As for the array for this 'spiritual energy compression core,' I believe it should be inscribed using the Nine Revolutions Profound Art of my Jade Void Palace. Only then can its stability and purity be guaranteed!" Guang Chengzi insisted.
"Bullshit!" Qin Wan Tianjun, one of the Ten Heavenly Lords of the Jie Sect, slammed his palm onto the table. "The Nine Revolutions Profound Art may be exquisite, but it is overly forceful and unsuitable for an energy core! We should use our Jie Sect's Myriad Immortals Array Diagram. It embraces all rivers and seas, allowing for complete compatibility while providing the most vast and surging energy!"
"My Chan Sect values 'quality.' Your Jie Sect only knows how to pile up 'quantity.' A rabble like you, what do you know of true refinement?"
"What did you say?! Want to fight?!"
The two groups argued until their faces were red over a disagreement in technical approach. Magic Power surged around them, and they looked ready to come to blows.
Chen Ran, who was responsible for mediating, merely watched them in silence.
Only when both sides' tempers had reached their peak, when they were nearly about to tear apart the laboratory—
Did Chen Ran slowly walk to the central experimental platform.
He did not try to break up the argument, nor did he blame anyone.
He simply said calmly, "Are you done arguing?"
"Since you both believe your own method is the best, then let the facts speak for themselves."
He gave the light screen an order. "Activate the War Sandbox simulation."
Buzz—
The entire laboratory changed in an instant. They seemed to be standing in a cold expanse of cosmic starry sky. Before them, a black diamond-shaped warship slowly emerged from a spatial wormhole.
It was that Explorers warship of the Gestalt, the vessel that had left everyone breathless.
"Now, I will use this warship as the hypothetical enemy." Chen Ran's voice echoed through the vast simulated space, sounding especially cold.
"I will separately use the Chan Sect's and Jie Sect's plans to create two virtual 'Heavenly Net nodes,' then use them as cores to organize a defensive battle."
"Whichever plan lasts longer against the enemy is the correct one."
"The loser will shut up and unconditionally carry out the winner's plan."
Chen Ran's gaze swept over every person present, carrying an authority that allowed no dispute.
"Here, there is no Chan Sect, no Jie Sect, no sectarian prejudice, and no personal grudges."
"There is only right and wrong."
"And life and death."
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