---o---
Hearing Herta's words, Ron shifted his gaze from her to the simulation light screen in front of him.
The game's main interface on the screen was gradually fading, and new text materialized—
[Astral Calendar 8100, Month 2.]
[Through your observation and calculation, you have confirmed that Fu Xuan is a Chosen One, same as you.]
[After careful planning, you decided to go directly to the Luofu Divination Commission to reveal your identity as a Chosen One to Fu Xuan, and to expose the fact that she is one as well, hoping to use this to reach a cooperative agreement with her regarding the future of the simulation.]
[But before you could reach a consensus with her, Herta appeared out of nowhere, suddenly materializing in the Luofu Divination Commission before you, forcibly inserting herself into the negotiation that you had not yet begun.]
[Under the pressure of her uninvited arrival, Fu Xuan was forced to accept your request, leading you to the jade abacus data hub of the Matrix of Prescience deep within the Luofu Divination Commission. Inside the data hub, you engaged in an extremely thorough exchange of ideas…]
[With this, you reached a consensus regarding the future of the simulation and identified the enemy influencing this sea of stars from the not-too-distant future… At the same time, you have prepared for the actions to come.]
Looking at the concise introductory plot on the screen, Ron felt it was a bit too simplistic.
Could the preparations the three of them made in the data hub of the Matrix of Prescience be summed up by a single, dry sentence about preparing for action?
He knew that in the nearly three hours they had just spent, the three of them had been meticulously planning how to perfectly utilize their time in this next simulation. They needed to find a way to complete the forging of the "Blade" that could pierce the veil of fate while also attempting to resolve the Luofu's crisis, pushing the plan entry "Piercing the Veil" to its next stage.
Phantylia's behavior in the last simulation was highly problematic. An Emanator self-destructing with such disregard for the cost was not normal. Even with Herta here now, giving the Luofu two Emanator-level combatants, they couldn't be certain they could truly resolve the trouble Phantylia posed.
At most, they could only guarantee that the Xianzhou [Luofu] wouldn't be completely destroyed by this calamity and fall from the sea of stars, reduced to a pile of cold, pale ash in an endless inferno.
And if that situation occurred, the research on the "Blade" would naturally be impossible to complete. He needed the scientific facilities on the Xianzhou [Luofu], but if he stayed on the ship, he would inevitably be limited to a research period of less than half a month.
No one could guarantee they could flawlessly deal with the currently abnormal Phantylia. Thus, this less-than-half-a-month research deadline was an inevitability in the simulation.
While they could temporarily flee to the Herta Space Station, or even to various other places in the sea of stars to avoid Phantylia, who wanted to burn the Xianzhou [Luofu] to the ground, and that would naturally give them enough time for research… the three of them had clearly not chosen to abandon the Xianzhou [Luofu].
If they really did that, by the time Phantylia actually burned the entire Xianzhou [Luofu], they would have no time left to find a way to save it.
The "Blade" needed to be forged, and the Xianzhou [Luofu] needed to be saved. Only then could their plan be considered sound.
However, even after making this decision, completing everything would still be incredibly difficult for them.
Whether it was finding Phantylia's hiding place and dealing with her within this short half-month period, or researching a miracle design, both were tasks of considerable difficulty. Therefore, to make full use of their three individual strengths, Ron had come up with a simple plan.
It was truly very simple, mostly just shuffling Herta around from place to place.
Ron needed Herta as an assistant to complete the "Forging the Blade" phase of the plan. Fu Xuan also needed Herta's help as an Emanator, to join her and Jing Yuan in dealing with the threat of Phantylia. This meant Herta would have to run back and forth, being moved wherever she was needed.
But even so, even if they successfully resolved the Phantylia problem in the simulation, it might not be enough in terms of real-world time.
After all, saving the Xianzhou [Luofu] was not something that could be accomplished by just thinking about it in a simulation.
Even if it was achieved in the simulation, everything in reality had yet to begin. There was no guarantee there would be enough time to replicate everything from the simulation in reality.
Therefore, to save time, Fu Xuan was already on her way to the Seat of Divine Foresight in reality, preparing to recall the Cloud Knights and arrest the criminals of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus.
However, despite this, Fu Xuan was not acting rashly. She was preparing to run the simulation first. After successfully completing a step in the simulation, she would then perform a divination in reality to get a result before leading the Cloud Knights to pay a visit, ensuring she wouldn't alert the enemy and could steadily resolve all threats on the Xianzhou [Luofu].
The core of her plan was a two-pronged, steady advance. Hearing this, even Ron could only give her an encouraging thumbs-up.
However, although Ron didn't need to be shuffled around like Herta, whose "great power came with great responsibility," nor did he need to run a two-pronged operation in reality and the simulation like Fu Xuan, it didn't mean his task was any simpler.
The first stage of the plan entry "Piercing the Veil" was "Forging the Blade." Although it could be completed by simply finishing a miracle design, this was a design to pierce the veil of fate. Ron wanted to make it the best it could possibly be.
Miracles, big or small, were still miracles. Ron definitely wanted the biggest one.
Therefore, he planned to use the Lantern of [Salvation] that Herta had brought as a foundation, using it as the base material to forge the blade that would pierce the veil of fate. A miracle design made this way would always be far more powerful than one made through other means, and it would be more advantageous when it came to breaking through to the next stage of the plan.
But… this approach didn't just have advantages; the costs were also significant.
Let's not even mention that by using the Lantern of [Salvation] as base material, they would lose another Emanator-level combatant out of thin air. After all, even if the lantern was this dilapidated, with its help, it could temporarily be considered an Emanator of [Salvation] without issue.
Just consider the difficulty of using a shattered Path and the remnant of an Aeon to complete a miracle design—it was not something that the missile launcher Ron had created in a previous simulation could even compare to.
Even the cosmic miracle Ron had completed before, the ideal city "New Belobog" forged according to his design, was far less difficult than forging the remnant of an Aeon into a miracle.
Even if that Aeon was Ron himself, the current Ron was not an Aeon, and he could absolutely not complete such an operation with ease.
He could only try his best and take it one step at a time.
Ron sighed softly in his heart and placed his hand on the Lantern of [Salvation] on the table. The dim flame inside the lantern flickered for a moment, then seemed to leap up joyfully, as if from Ron's touch.
A sliver of warmth infused with hope flowed from Ron's palm into his heart, completely washing away the helpless feelings that had just made him sigh.
Beside him, Herta said casually, "I'm not familiar with the Xianzhou [Luofu]… Where are we going in the simulation? I'll follow your lead."
Ron nodded lightly, then focused his attention on the screen before him. The text on the screen faded, and a new simulation option box appeared:
[Fu Xuan has already departed from the Divination Commission with the task of dealing with [Lord Ravager Phantylia]. You and Herta have taken Fu Xuan's writ. With this writ, you can pass through the vast majority of areas on the Xianzhou Luofu, enter the Six Commissions, and engage with the Six Charioteers to find everything you need.]
[Right now, time is of the essence. To complete the plan's stage "Forging the Blade," you must complete a miracle design, and the facilities of the Divination Commission are clearly not equipped to help you with this… You must find a new laboratory on the Xianzhou [Luofu].]
[With Fu Xuan's writ in hand, aside from the hard-to-enter Ten-Lords Commission and the heavily guarded Seat of Divine Foresight, you can enter any of the Xianzhou's Six Commissions at will. Where will you go?]
[Herta is now your assistant and is awaiting your decision…]
---o---
[1. "The Xianzhou [Luofu]'s tech tree has reached the forefront of the cosmos, but only its biotechnology is unimaginably advanced… Perhaps you can leverage this experience to complete your new miracle design?"]
[You know that the Xianzhou [Luofu] is extremely skilled in biotechnology due to its connection with [The Abundance] Yaoshi. High-precision biological materials might be usable on the Lantern of [Salvation], providing assistance for your miracle design.]
[You decide to head to the [Luofu Alchemy Commission]. With the help of Fu Xuan's writ, you will find any medical officer in the Alchemy Commission and apply for a crucible room and sufficient biological materials.]
[2. "Biotechnology is good, but the Alchemy Commission is simply too dangerous… The Artisanship Commission's Creation Furnaces are capable of forging divine weapons, which might be effective for the miracle design."]
[You know just how dangerous the [Luofu Alchemy Commission] is… The largest reactionary force on the Xianzhou [Luofu] is rooted in the Alchemy Commission. Even the current second-in-command, the Elixir Censer Master, is a member of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus. Going there is asking for trouble.]
[You decide to head to the [Luofu Artisanship Commission]. It is the structural core of the Xianzhou [Luofu], where master artisans gather and forge countless creations with the help of the Creation Furnaces.]
[A blade that pierces the veil of fate can be considered a divine weapon—the [Luofu Artisanship Commission] might be a good place to go.]
[You decide to head to the [Luofu Artisanship Commission]. With the help of Fu Xuan's writ, you will find any artisan in the Artisanship Commission and apply for the right to use a Creation Furnace and sufficient metallurgical materials.]
[3. Blank Choice.]
---o---
Because Ron still didn't have the colored entry "The Way of Salvation" loaded, he would still get a blank option for every choice in this simulation, allowing him to make his own choice when needed.
And now, looking at the screen before him, Ron hesitated slightly.
The Alchemy Commission was naturally out of the question. Just as the simulation option said, the Alchemy Commission was the place where the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus were most deeply entrenched. No one would want to work within their sphere of influence, because there was no telling what kind of trouble they might stir up for you.
However, Ron wasn't too keen on going to the Artisanship Commission either.
The Luofu's Artisanship Commission wasn't the Zhuming's. It had no special features. Aside from a Creation Furnace located near the Ambrosial Arbor that was used to imprison the Heliobi, the artisans here couldn't even compare to Blade, a short-life species artisan. Their skill level was far from that of the Zhuming Xianzhou.
Since he was on the Luofu, he should naturally leverage the useful conditions here.
The Luofu clearly had a high-grade material like the Ambrosial Arbor. How could he not try to use its materials in conjunction with the Lantern of [Salvation] to complete a miracle design?
After a moment of thought, Ron finally made his decision.
He tapped the third option and entered his own choice into the blank text box on the screen.
Herta, sitting beside him, saw the text on the screen fade away, and new simulation text appeared:
[Faced with the choice of where to go, you couldn't be bothered to think, temporarily handing over leadership to Ron.]
[After some simple thought, Ron made his decision.]
[He led you to the [Luofu Alchemy Commission], but did so cautiously, disguised as a patient to infiltrate it. You did not alert the enemy or attract anyone's attention, nor did you use Fu Xuan's writ to apply for research materials and a crucible room. Instead, you sought out a little kid about the same height as you…]
[You have found the Vidyadhara Dragon Lady doctor, Bailu.]
Looking at the text on the screen, Herta was silent for a moment. Then, she nonchalantly scooted her body to the side, distancing herself from Ron.
She looked at Ron, who was focused on the simulation, and said in a serious tone:
"Ron… she's too young. It's a crime."
Hearing Herta's words, Ron dazedly shifted his attention from the simulation to her. A giant question mark popped into existence above his head.
What in the world… How is this a crime?
Seeing Ron's obviously puzzled expression, Herta added with a grave tone:
"Tricking a child is a crime even on Jarilo-VI… Stop, Ron."
Ron: "..."
He just wanted to use Bailu to open the passage to the Scalegorge Waterscape. How did that become tricking a child?!
And how could this be considered tricking her? It was, at most, letting Bailu take on the mission of saving the Xianzhou [Luofu]! As the reincarnation of a former member of the Cloud-Quintet, she would definitely agree… right?