176: Chapter 176 I don't know any Ye Xiao?! (Two chapters combined)

Su Ming sat cross-legged on the top floor of the unfinished building,

and with a thought, he looked at the core sequence column.

The icons of the three main sequences had changed from dark gold to silver-blue, and the 'Lv2' next to them had upgraded to 'Lv3'.

His eyes lit up as he clicked to check them one by one.

[Sequence One: Mass Amplification Lv3]

[Passive Effect: True Mass increases by a fixed 3% of its current value daily.]

Su Ming gasped.

His True Mass was currently just over 1,100 tons.

3% meant thirty-three tons a day.

This compound interest—even loan sharks wouldn't dare charge this much!

He swallowed and continued reading.

[Sequence Two: Mass Reconstruction Lv3]

[The pressure limit of the electron-degenerate body is increased by two orders of magnitude. The automatic repair speed of the damaged body is increased by 300%. mass points can be actively consumed to complete particle-level body reconstruction.]

[Body Reconstruction (Enhanced): Forcibly triggered upon receiving fatal damage. Consumes 30% of the mass points equivalent to the current True Mass to complete full-body particle reconstruction within 1 second. Cooldown reduced to 12 hours.]

[New Feature - Shape Fine-Tuning: Freely adjust body volume, facial contours, and muscle lines within a range of ±10%, without consuming additional mass points.]

Consumption discounted, cooldown halved—his resurrection armor had upgraded.

What really interested Su Ming was that last new feature.

A ten percent volume fluctuation, and he could sculpt his facial features however he wanted...

In the future, he could change his face whenever he went out, shaping it into anyone. It would save so much trouble.

[Sequence Three: Mass Devouring Lv3]

[The body turns into a microscopic mass-energy vortex, allowing direct contact through any part of the body to devour all matter and pure energy bodies at or below the electron-degenerate state. This includes electrical energy, thermal energy, and ionizing radiation.]

[The maximum limit of mass points devoured in a single instance is increased to 500,000.]

[New: Rapid Devouring Mode—For low-density matter, devouring efficiency is increased by 200%.]

The devouring limit had increased by a whopping twenty-five times.

It even had a special bonus against construction waste—demolition teams would have to call him their Ancestral Master from now on.

All three core sequences were now at Lv3!

"This... is a massive profit! Next..."

Su Ming's gaze slid down to the collapsible tab labeled 'Redeemable · Unlocked' beneath the core sequences.

He was already used to this routine.

Every time he upgraded, the System acted like a dishonest merchant, dangling a few sweet treats first before showing off a bunch of even more enticing goods, only to slap on a heart-attack-inducing price to fleece him of the meager savings he had worked so hard to accumulate.

This crappy System was lucky to have a hardworking host like him who built wealth through labor; anyone else would have gone fucking bankrupt long ago.

The first sequence lit up with a thin silver-blue line, ending with a gravity symbol.

[Gravity Anchoring Lv1] (Gravity Sequence)

[Effect: Compresses the thousand-ton degenerate mass within the body into a microscopic 'spacetime gravitational string' and shoots it precisely at any target within a hundred-meter range. Once locked, the target's mass is instantly bound to the host's absolute mass, forcibly pulling them toward the host's position.]

[Maximum Effective Distance: 100 meters. Maximum target mass that can be anchored: Not exceeding 30% of the host's current True Mass. Currently 1,100 tons, can pull 330 tons.]

[Consumption: 500 mass points/time, cooldown 5 seconds.]

[Redemption Price: 50,000 mass points.]

"Holy shit!" Su Ming blurted out.

Isn't this basically a god-tier hook?!

Within a hundred meters, pulling something over three hundred tons on a whim—when fighting someone, they wouldn't even get a chance to run, they'd just get dragged right into his face!

A god-tier hard control skill!

He suppressed his excitement and looked at the second one.

[Gravity Tides Lv1] (Gravity Sequence)

[Effect: The host's celestial-scale body automatically exerts gravitational interference on the surrounding space, 'capturing' all ranged physical weapons and dense energy projectiles fired at the host into its own orbit, forming a defensive ring that rotates around the body. Captured objects can be thrown back at any time using the momentum.]

[Maximum simultaneous objects maintained: 5. Duration per instance: 30 seconds.]

[Consumption: None. Cooldown: None. Permanent passive.]

[Redemption Price: 50,000 mass points.]

Su Ming froze for a full three seconds.

Capturing ranged attacks directly and even throwing them back?

Isn't this a fucking real-life Roche limit?!

Flying knives, artillery shells, Source Energy projectiles sent by opponents—no matter what they were, they would automatically start orbiting him once they got close.

"Am I... really turning into a celestial body?"

He was both thrilled and excited, feeling as if he were already invincible under the heavens.

These two skills combined cost one hundred thousand mass points. His current balance...

Su Ming glanced at the top right corner of the panel.

[mass points Balance: 101,932]

Over one hundred thousand.

Just enough!

But he was in no hurry to redeem them, because there was still one last item below.

[Origin Mimicry Lv1] (Origin Sequence)

[Grants the host maximum mimicry authority. Allows the autonomous, temporary dissociation and reconstruction of silicon-based matter from the body's surface to the shallow subcutaneous layer into conventional carbon-based molecular structures. After mimicry, the texture, temperature, humidity, softness, sensitivity, and all other biological signs are completely indistinguishable from an ordinary human. The core's high-density structure and combat power suffer no loss.]

[Status: Actively toggled on/off, no consumption, no cooldown. Remains active continuously once turned on until actively deactivated by the host.]

[Restriction: Only affects the surface to the shallow subcutaneous layer, approximately 1 centimeter deep; does not affect internal organs or skeletal structures.]

[Redemption Price: 300,000 mass points.]

Su Ming's expression went from anticipation to a smile, and from a smile to freezing solid.

"...Three hundred thousand?"

He counted the digits several times to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

"System, get the fuck out here! Are you sure you didn't add an extra zero?"

"Just to change my skin! Just to simulate a single centimeter of carbon-based camouflage! You're charging me three hundred thousand? Is my hair made of gold, or is my skin made of gold?!"

Ignoring his outburst, the System coldly popped up a line of text:

[Origin Mimicry belongs to the Origin core sequence, which is on the same level as Mass Amplification, Mass Reconstruction, and Mass Devouring. It can progressively unlock higher-level abilities as life forms evolve, including—reproductive capabilities.]

Su Ming's mouth, which had been poised to unleash a torrent of abuse, froze mid-air.

He stared intently at the words 'reproductive capabilities,' standing completely still.

Dammit.

He had almost forgotten that he was no longer human.

Forget kissing Shen Qingci; with his current body density, a gentle touch could scrape her entire face off...

How terrifying!

As for deeper interactions...

Don't even think about it.

Not wanting to let the System provoke him further, he closed the explanation window, but he couldn't help but turn those words over and over in his mind.

[Mass Concealment] could hide his weight and make him look like an ordinary person, but it couldn't hide skin that was harder than alloy, nor could it hide the drum-like thumping of the stellar core in his chest.

And Origin Mimicry was the key that would allow him to truly 'turn back'.

Three hundred thousand to buy a 'permanent ID card' that would allow him to live normally in human society, romance Shen Qingci, and upgrade along the way.

It was a bit expensive.

But it seemed... indeed worth the price.

"You win."

Su Ming cursed under his breath and swiped away the purchase interface for Origin Mimicry for now.

He also noticed that these three new sequences, just like the three major Origin sequences, had 'Lv1' or 'Lv3' markers next to them, clearly a tier higher than those ordinary sequences without levels.

"System, can my other skills without levels be upgraded?"

[You can perform sequence resonance draws through the Star Rail Mall to obtain advancement fragments for the corresponding sequence or entirely new sequences.]

The System interface shifted, and a brand-new lottery interface popped up.

When Su Ming saw it, his scalp went numb again.

"Are you so fucking eager to squeeze coins out of me?!"

The lottery interface was a circular star rail composed of countless points of light, looking incredibly cool. Ten glowing icons rotated slowly on the rail, each representing a powerful sequence skill.

The prize pools were even split into two.

'Common Sequence Star Rail Pool' cost ten thousand mass points per draw, or ninety thousand for a ten-fold draw, offering a ten percent discount.

'Core Sequence Star Rail Pool' cost twenty thousand per draw, or one hundred and eighty thousand for a ten-fold draw.

"System, are you running a casino?"

His current net worth was only a bit over one hundred thousand. After redeeming Gravity Anchoring and Gravity Tides, he would have nothing left. Let alone a ten-fold draw, he could barely afford a single pull in the common pool.

Meanwhile, that Origin Mimicry was still mocking him from afar with its three-hundred-thousand price tag.

Looking at the enticing prize pool and his own flat wallet, Su Ming closed the interface resentfully.

Poverty was the ultimate sin.

"I won't think about it anymore. Let's just redeem them first!"

Steeling his heart, Su Ming spent one hundred thousand mass points to redeem the two skills, [Gravity Anchoring] and [Gravity Tides].

[mass points Balance: 1,932]

Two streams of silver-blue data instantly surged into his body.

Su Ming felt his connection with the surrounding space grow closer and more subtle.

He stepped out from the shelter of the unfinished building and stood under the curtain of rain once again.

The next second, a bizarre scene unfolded.

The raindrops hurtling toward him, upon reaching about three centimeters from his body, seemed to hit an invisible curved barrier. They slid off to both sides along the curve of the force field, splashing noisily into the puddles at his feet.

In just a few short seconds, the damp patches on his shoulders and chest stopped growing. He looked as if he were wrapped in an invisible gravitational raincoat.

"Not bad," Su Ming raised an eyebrow. "I won't even need an umbrella when going out in the future."

He oriented himself and walked in the direction of 'Heaven on Earth'.

There was no rush to make money; he would go back and enjoy himself first.

However, just as he reached the intersection, he saw a military anti-riot vehicle roaring over from the direction of 'Heaven on Earth', followed by several assault vehicles from the special forces team.

Su Ming instinctively ducked into the shadows of an alley.

He saw Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng step down from the passenger seat with a look of sheer bad luck on his face, making a call on his military terminal.

Su Ming's heart stirred, and he also pulled out his own terminal.

Just as he turned it on, Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng's communication request popped up.

"Su Ming! Where the hell did you run off to? Why did you only pick up now? I couldn't get through at all!"

As soon as the call connected, Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng's suppressed, angry voice came through.

Su Ming lied with a straight face, "There was a city-wide power outage just now, so there was no signal."

His terminal had been sitting in the System Space the entire time.

"A power outage caused no signal? Is your phone some ancient landline? Does it need to be plugged into an outlet to work?"

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng grumbled speechlessly on the other end, but he couldn't be bothered to dwell on such a minor detail.

He lowered his voice, his tone turning somewhat strange.

"I need to tell you something... That friend of yours, the one named Ye Xiao..."

"Hmm? What about him?" Su Ming feigned surprise.

"...He was just pinned down by us at 'Heaven on Earth', buck naked."

The corner of Su Ming's mouth twitched violently.

Being stared at completely naked by a squad of fully armed special forces members—that scene... tsk tsk.

To keep himself from laughing out loud, Su Ming forced a straight face and spoke into the terminal in an extremely cold, righteous tone:

"Ye Xiao?"

"Yeah, that little lightning-type martial fanatic. Weren't you guys together? He was discharging electricity all over the private room. At first, we thought a high-Rank lightning beast was feeding on the power grid..."

"Brother Chu," Su Ming interrupted him, his tone solemn.

"Hmm?"

"I don't know any Ye Xiao."

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng froze.

Su Ming continued righteously, "For this kind of indecent individual who streaks in an Advanced club and is suspected of violating the Federal Public Security Administration Regulations, please make sure the military punishes him severely.

Detain him if he should be detained, notify his parents if they should be notified. It has absolutely nothing to do with me, Su Ming."

There was three seconds of silence on the other end of the line.

"...Didn't you two go there together tonight?"

"I don't know him, I've never been there. Do you have any proof?"

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng squeezed his phone, his temples throbbing.

He looked back at Ye Xiao, who was being held by his collar—the guy was sneezing pitifully, his bathrobe wide open at the collar, with two suspicious lipstick marks on his neck.

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng squeezed out through gritted teeth, "Su Ming, don't think I can't check your spending records. The interstellar black card was swiped for eight hundred thousand in the Emperor Suite of Heaven on Earth tonight."

Su Ming's expression remained unchanged: "It was stolen and fraudulently used. I want to report a crime."

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng: "...???"

Ye Xiao: "Su! Ming! You are not human...!!"

...

(Update time 2026-06-21 23:59, I really am a time Great Master! o(╯□╰)o...