72: A fruitful return and a breakthrough in "Spirit Network"

Using the treacherous environment of the Black Swamp, Wen Youyi and the other six successfully escaped Fire Cloud Child's pursuit, circled a great distance, and silently returned to Qingxuan Sect.

This excursion yielded immense gains.

On the surface, they brought back eight priceless sword gallstones and established an initial cooperative relationship with Lin Feng, a powerful reinforcement.

Secretly, Wen Youyi also obtained crucial intelligence about the potential star core fragment clues in Falling Star Lake, as well as valuable information fragments deciphered from the Black Swamp ruins regarding the operation of the net (which he called the Heaven and Earth Shackles) System.

Upon returning to Ding Zi Courtyard, Wen Youyi immediately convened a core meeting.

He took out the sword gallstones and distributed them to Zhao Iron Pillar and the other three according to their contributions, keeping only two for his own research. This item could not only be exchanged for a large amount of resources but also used to commission a Great Master of Artifact Refining to forge Divine Weapons, greatly enhancing the team's combat power.

Next, he shared the intelligence about Falling Star Lake.

"Elder Heisha's territory?" Wang Wu frowned. "That's a Dragon's Den and Tiger's Lair! With our current strength, it's too dangerous to investigate there."

"I know." Wen Youyi nodded. "Therefore, our most important task right now is to improve our strength! Personal cultivation, team coordination, and... our 'technology'!"

He looked at Senior Brother Zhang: "Senior Brother Zhang, the focus of the Research Hall will be to combine the characteristics of the sword gallstones and research how to integrate them into our Five Elements Formation Base to enhance the stability and power of the Formation. At the same time, continue to improve various practical tools and Talismans."

"Understood!" Senior Brother Zhang nodded solemnly, his eyes gleaming with the light of a researcher.

"Iron Pillar, Senior Brother Wang, Senior Brother Li, the three of you are responsible for leading the War Hall and the various labor halls. Use the newly acquired resources to fully enhance the members' strength, accept more Advanced missions, and hone your coordination."

"Yes!"

After making these arrangements, Wen Youyi went into seclusion again.

The first thing he had to do was to digest the information fragments obtained from the Black Swamp ruins.

"monitoring nodes," "protocol conflicts," "cradle protocol," "Origin Pool pollution," "ark"... these words constantly swirled in his mind.

He speculated that "monitoring nodes" might be Sects like Qingxuan Sect, or special locations similar to the Black Swamp ruins, responsible for monitoring and maintaining the operation of the net. "protocol conflicts" and "Origin Pool pollution" seemed to indicate that this System was not flawless, suggesting some kind of loophole or internal contradiction? And "cradle protocol" and "ark" sounded more like some kind of... response mechanism or escape plan?

There was too little information to piece together the whole picture, but it undoubtedly pointed him towards a deeper research direction.

Temporarily setting aside these grand mysteries, Wen Youyi focused his energy on the most urgent technical challenge at hand—the development of "spirit net 2.0".

After the adventures in Sword Scar Fissure and the Black Swamp, he increasingly felt the importance of instantaneous, covert, and long-distance communication.

He abandoned the previously complex and unstable "encoding" method, turning instead to a more fundamental solution. He once again immersed his mind into the star core fragment, no longer trying to "create" fluctuations, but to "understand" and "guide" the unique Origin fluctuations of the fragment itself that could carry information.

This was a more difficult process, requiring extremely high Comprehension Ability and patience.

Days passed by.

Just as Wen Youyi was about to exhaust his Mental Energy and prepare to give up again, a turning point appeared!

He stopped trying to "carve" information with his Mental Energy, and instead tried to naturally "integrate" his "will," like a drop of water merging into the ocean, into the vast fluctuating background of the star core fragment.

Not forcefully changing it, but going with the flow, becoming part of the fluctuation!

In an instant, an unprecedented sense of smoothness surged into his heart!

He "felt" a simple thought of his—"safe"—spreading out like ripples, centered on the star core fragment, silently transmitting into Zhao Iron Pillar's mind, who was guarding outside the door!

Clear! Stable! Almost no delay or loss!

Moreover, the coverage seemed to... reach the entire courtyard!

Success! The core principle of "spirit net 2.0" had been found!

Wen Youyi's tired face broke into a smile of ecstasy. Although he could currently only transmit simple thoughts, and transmitting complex information and expanding the range would require more research and the assistance of "relay stations," the most crucial step had been taken!

This meant that they were about to have a secure internal communication network completely independent of the net!

This technological Breakthrough would bring infinite possibilities to the Mutual Aid Society and their future.

(End of Chapter)