Chapter Fifty-Two: You Have Arrived

“Oh, you’re here?” Xuan Xuan turned her head and saw Zhan Yu standing there, slightly dazed.

Looking into Xuan Xuan’s clear blue eyes, Zhan Yu replied earnestly, “Yes, I’m here.”

Xuan Xuan paused, a bit taken aback by his seriousness. Why so solemn?

“Look, my ‘Illusory Shape Grass’ has sprouted!”

Her joy was palpable. Glancing at the thriving seedlings all over the ground, Zhan Yu nodded approvingly.

Xuan Xuan narrowed her eyes playfully. “Come on, did you buy the simulation mechs I asked for?”

“I did.” The reason he logged in a little later than her was because she’d messaged him, asking him to buy several simulation mechs.

He was admittedly curious—what did Xuan Xuan want them for? And why so many, all of them basic military models? “What are you going to do with them?”

“Take them apart for fun.” Xuan Xuan headed toward the laboratory Zhan Yu had set up for her. While not as professional as her own, it was spacious and roomy.

Zhan Yu’s mouth twitched. What exactly were these simulation mechs? Were they not just for practicing control and piloting? Could they really be taken apart for fun?

Had he misheard?

Soon, he realized he hadn’t. Once inside the lab, after placing the three simulation mechs he’d bought, he watched as Xuan Xuan immediately focused all her attention on one of them.

Though she didn’t say it outright, Zhan Yu guessed she was probing the mech with her spiritual power.

Indeed, Xuan Xuan was carefully examining the inner workings of the mechs. An alchemist’s expertise extended far beyond potions and plants; their creations were many and varied, ranging from elixirs and weapons to intricate mechanical devices.

Mechanical alchemy products touched every aspect of daily life.

When it came to alchemy, Xuan Xuan dared claim second to none; on the entire Mata Continent, no one would dare claim to surpass her.

After a meticulous inspection of the internal structure—excluding the AI, which wasn't her focus—she understood the mech completely.

She immediately set to work dismantling it. In just a few minutes, right before Zhan Yu’s stunned eyes, Xuan Xuan had completely disassembled the simulation mech.

So, these really could be taken apart for fun?

But what was the point?

Xuan Xuan soon showed him. In another few minutes, with deft hands, she reassembled the pieces. Now, the mech looked exactly like the other two beside it.

Of course, Zhan Yu wasn’t aware that the mech was now unusable. Xuan Xuan had already removed its AI, making it impossible to operate with the control panel.

After thinking it over, having grasped the entirety of the mech’s structure, Xuan Xuan realized the only part she didn’t understand was the control system—yet that was precisely the part she intended to replace.

So, without hesitation, she began dismantling the second mech, ready to install something new.

Zhan Yu watched, dumbfounded—was this really so much fun? Otherwise, why would she take apart another one?

He forced a smile and kept watching her movements.

She disassembled all the mechanical parts, then fetched several metals from the lab bench to begin smelting them. This was Zhan Yu’s first time witnessing Xuan Xuan perform alchemy outside of potion-making.

He’d seen her brew elixirs before, but never this. Eyes wide, he watched as she melted ordinary metals, shaping them precisely with her spiritual power.

Then she brought out several rare metals.

Xuan Xuan increased the heat, trying to smelt them, but even with her high spiritual power, her magical energy was sorely lacking.

She simply couldn’t affect the rare metals.

Drooping her head in frustration, she realized she needed to hasten her magical training.

Zhan Yu picked up the metals she’d set aside. He’d always had a knack for manipulating metals, though he wasn’t sure about these.

Suddenly, with delight, he noticed that metals which had remained stubborn in Xuan Xuan’s hands now yielded to him as easily as clay.

He could shape them however he wished.

“What shape do you want?” Zhan Yu asked, avoiding the intense look in Xuan Xuan’s eyes.

After a moment’s thought, she leaned in and sent him the image she’d prepared in her mind.

Zhan Yu felt as if his heart had suddenly lost power, unable to beat.

Xuan Xuan nudged him. Why was he spacing out?

He realized she’d already moved away, and a pang of emptiness struck him—suddenly, he understood.

Recalling the image she’d transmitted, he began carefully manipulating the metals. Though it became more taxing, the growing joy in Xuan Xuan’s eyes made it all worthwhile.

When everything was ready, he handed the finished pieces to Xuan Xuan, wiping sweat from his brow—the exertion had nearly exhausted his spiritual power.

He watched as Xuan Xuan immediately set to assembling the pieces, integrating them with the mech’s components, then finally inserting a power stone.

With a soft hiss, Xuan Xuan pricked her slender finger, letting a drop of blood fall onto the mechanism.

Her finger healed instantly, but Zhan Yu, still not entirely happy, watched as she completed the final assembly.

“It’s done,” Xuan Xuan said, eyes smiling with irrepressible delight, unconcerned about her recently pricked finger.

Zhan Yu, now truly curious, asked, “What is this?”

“Don’t the Mukai mechs use a control panel?” Xuan Xuan countered.

“They do,” Zhan Yu nodded.

Xuan Xuan smiled, her pride shining. “My simulation mech doesn’t need a control panel.”

Huh? Zhan Yu blinked. “Then what does it use?”

“Spiritual power,” Xuan Xuan enunciated. “My simulation mech is operated entirely by spiritual power. It won’t adversely affect children’s spiritual strength, and prolonged operation actually trains the mind.”

Zhan Yu was still processing when Xuan Xuan finished her explanation, but then amazement dawned on him. Currently, simulation mechs were controlled via panels.

True, some full-sized mechs and interstellar warships could be operated by spiritual power, but the technology was far from mature—requiring too much, too bulky, suitable only for large-scale machinery.

Controlling something as compact as a simulation mech with spiritual power? He’d never heard of it.

But if it could be done, then what couldn’t be controlled by spiritual power? Especially with mechs—Xuan Xuan’s breakthrough could take mechs to a whole new level.

And that step would be nothing short of revolutionary—epoch-making, even.

Zhan Yu was convinced of it.

ps: This is a story by Xiao Ran.
[bookid==“Rebirth of the Supporting Actress in the Apocalypse”]