I have to say, traveling with the dragon clan is a truly relaxing experience. Whether it’s their flying speed or their inherent strength, they can support Shu Bao in doing whatever he pleases, going wherever he wants. Even a dangerous volcano crater is no obstacle for an adventure.
Of course, the difference between Western magic dragons and Eastern divine dragons is that they can’t swim in the sea, but even just the land’s scenery is enough to captivate anyone.
The planet they are on is much larger than the one Shu Bao was born on, with many similar environmental features, but also unique landscapes.
For example, there are those dynamic small islands that float and move with the ocean currents. They act as natural water ships. When Shu Bao first saw the shadows of these moving islands from high up, he was quite shocked, thinking that this planet had already developed oceanic transportation systems.
After landing, he discovered that these were actually floating islands made up of several small islands connected together. The floating speed wasn’t slow, and the islands varied in size—some formed groups, while others drifted alone.
These islands move in a unique cycle, drifting between continents, creating a unique system of circulation. The soil and rocks of the islands looked no different from those on land. Eventually, Shu Bao dove underwater and discovered that the underside of these floating islands was covered with various unusual marine plants.
A large amount of marine vegetation intertwined and tightly clung to the islands, supporting them and keeping them afloat. Because of the special environment, the islands had their own unique ecosystem. On large islands and island groups, there were occasionally native inhabitants. When the divine dragons descended from the sky, the natives were so shocked they cried out, believing that gods had come.
Using the translation feature of his live-streaming system, Shu Bao successfully communicated with the natives, informing them that others would soon be coming to the islands and hoped they would accept them.
Perhaps the shock of the divine dragons’ descent was too much, but the natives had no resistance and agreed readily. Shu Bao left a locator on the island, and the signal was transmitted to the distant Xia Wang Tribe. T33674 received the signal and informed the High Priest about the situation.
Not long after, the spatial merchant caravan led by Ru Su departed from Xia Wang City, carrying a large amount of resources. The caravan included many magicians, who would follow the divine signal to travel across the world’s surface.
When needed, the magicians would collaborate to create sturdy roads, allowing Tesla and semi-mechanoids to travel along. The signal Shu Bao left behind would mark their travel path across the world. To be safe, each person carried several spatial teleportation scrolls. In case they got lost or encountered unresolvable dangers, they could return directly to Xia Wang City using the scrolls.
Thus, with the power of the dragon clan’s authority, Shu Bao moved freely across the land. Wherever he found valuable resources, he left a signal source. Whenever he came across a key transport hub, a signal was left. If he found tribes that were developing well and could potentially become allies or subordinate cities, he left a signal there as well.
Of course, for the dangerous areas along the way, Shu Bao also left warning messages. Some of these places were territories of fierce beasts, others were void zones from the chaotic world, and some were natural no-man’s-lands.
The dragon clan didn’t mind Shu Bao’s use of “mouse pretending to have the dragon’s might”, since they knew they would eventually settle in Xia Wang City. Moreover, they had come to realize that this little fluffball seemed to possess some unique talents. He could even find treasures that many dragons had missed. Such an ability was too compatible with the dragon clan!
As they spent more time together, both sides felt an increasing synergy. Not only did they both love treasure, but they were also both passionate about treasure hunting. What could be more comfortable than this journey?
Shu Bao and Yinzi followed the dragon group into the desert, flew over the oceans, and swept past snowy peaks. They saw all kinds of beautiful landscapes and encountered many strange creatures.
Of course, Shu Bao also saw many bases that were rising. Apart from the native tribes, almost all player-built bases were rapidly developing. Over thirty years had passed since the forced landing, and nearly all the bases had moved past the Stone Age and into the Iron Age, with a few even entering the Industrial Age.
Due to technological and resource constraints, almost all the bases in the Industrial Age started with fossil fuels. Watching the large smokestacks billowing black smoke continuously, Shu Bao felt that it was time for a fair and friendly diplomatic intervention.
The dragon clan was equally displeased with the pungent, rolling black smoke, and the two sides quickly agreed on a course of action. The dragon group descended from the sky above the base. The residents of the base were thrown into a panic; they had never seen the legendary dragons before and had no idea how to react.
Soon, the base’s builder appeared. He was just as incredulous about the sight of so many magical dragons. What was even more shocking was that the one who came to talk to him wasn’t any of the dragons, but a small, fluffy mouse that hadn’t even grown as big as a fist!
“Hello, would you be interested in a trade partner with high technology, unlimited energy, and wireless energy transmission? You won’t need to bankrupt yourself; just work for five years and we can modernize your base. You could even participate in interstellar warfare.” The mouse politely inquired.
Contestant: ???
After a moment, the builder finally realized, “You’re Shu Bao?!”
After all, at the sign-up event, Shu Bao’s entrance was particularly special. He even directly confronted the powerhouse Fu Qing, which left a lasting impression on everyone. However, since most people were unfamiliar with mice and some time had passed, they hadn’t recognized him right away.
“Yes, that’s me. So, what’s your decision? Oh, and by the way, I should have told you earlier that I’m now teammates with Fu Qing.” Shu Bao didn’t hide his identity. After all, he was confident that no one on this planet was more powerful than him.
What could the builder do? Of course, he agreed, and they signed an alliance agreement. Thankfully, the terms of the agreement weren’t hard to accept. It simply required them to stop using fossil fuels, adopt Xia Wang City’s new energy sources (though the resources for building this new energy would need to be collected by the base), assist with Xia Wang City’s expansion, and provide trade and transport convenience in the future.
Although the builder wasn’t thrilled about having someone interfere with his construction process, who could resist the temptation to enter modern society directly? The universe was vast and leaving this small planet sooner would bring them closer to going home.
After the agreement was signed, Shu Bao left behind a signal source and continued his travels. Along the way, whenever he came across a base not using destructive energy for development, Shu Bao and the dragons would visit, establish friendly relations, and prepare for future trade and communication.
Every time Shu Bao visited a base and the base showed a friendly attitude, he would leave behind a communicator. With these communicators scattered around, most of the bases on the planet soon established communication with one another. They quickly realized that their planet was about to enter a period of technological explosion.
Everyone wanted to hitch a ride on this technological explosion and no one wanted to be left behind. People eagerly invited Xia Wang City’s merchant caravan, engineering team, and even the knight orders and magician teams to their bases to provide guidance. They worked hard to promote the development of transportation and information exchange between the various bases.
In just half a year, isolated bases began to form a connected network. Naturally, with such overwhelming dominance, many bases worried that they would be absorbed or attacked by Xia Wang City. However, to their surprise, neither Shu Bao, the builder of Xia Wang City, nor its residents had the slightest intention or action of doing so.
The vast majority of Xia Wang City’s large subordinate cities had actively requested to join, with only a few trying to attack Xia Wang City and, in the end, being absorbed instead.
At first, the contestants were cautious and skeptical, but soon they were filled with excitement and joy. As their bases gradually began to produce technological products and their tech trees lit up with countless new blueprints, they finally believed that they had truly latched onto a big, strong leg—one in the form of a mouse.
Shu Bao and the dragons’ travels were both joyful and busy. In fact, the busyness almost caused the dragons and the mouse to forget their main purpose. After wandering for nearly half a year, they leisurely flew to Fu Qing’s base.
As for the dragons’ test, Shu Bao didn’t pay much attention to it. On the one hand, Fu Qing was strong in his own right, and on the other hand, after spending time with the dragons, Shu Bao realized that they weren’t as cold and heartless as he had initially thought.
Just like they said, the Nan Ming Legion’s strength wasn’t recognized by the dragons, but the dragons acknowledged their beliefs, courage, and genuine affection for the dragons.
Even Yu Lingqi, who had been acting like a lazy fish, wasn’t forcibly driven away by the dragons nor harmed in any way. “Under what circumstances would you really kill your adopter?” Shu Bao asked.
The Dragon Clan leader proudly responded, “Anything that goes against the dragon’s values must be eradicated.”
Shu Bao tilted his head and thought for a moment before suddenly understanding. “Oh~ I get it. Is it like the blanket you accidentally burned last night while sneezing?”
The Dragon Clan leader: “…” That was an accident! But something like that, which tarnishes the dignity of the dragon race, naturally need not be explained.
“Well, that’s a pity. I wanted to give you the extra blanket I got.” The mouse shrugged helplessly.
The Dragon Clan leader: !!!
The other dragons quietly flew a little farther away, just in case their leader accidentally sneezed again.
Before long, the dragon group approached Fu Qing’s base, which, unlike Xia Wang City, was a fully modern technological city—more accurately, a steel city.
Yes, Fu Qing had used Mechanoid City as the core to build a groundbreaking base. There were no traces of magic here, only neatly arranged skyscrapers and numerous technological factories.
Using the materials he had obtained from Mechanoid City and the two half-mechanoids he had brought back, Fu Qing spent over half a year stabilizing the base and rapidly developing it, directly entering the technological age. Given this development speed, it was in no way inferior to Xia Wang City.
