Bai Zhongqi held the Crimson Gemstone owned by the Silver Feather Army in his hand, repeatedly feeling its surface, but unlike last time, there was no interface resembling a game’s prompt. His own bizarre dream still had no explanation, and the shadow of betrayal and his fall from the high tower remained unsolved. Bai Zhongqi worried that in the days to come, everyone he saw would seem like a traitor, leading him to make an even more regrettable mistake.
"Maybe this dream isn’t accurate, or my speculation doesn’t match reality," Bai Zhongqi comforted himself.
He had been somewhat on edge these past few days, even considering, at one point, seeking out a dream-interpreting master to look into it, although he understood such things were unreliable. Even if he were to find a master, it was likely to be someone like Wang Lin.
Bai Zhongqi wasn’t particularly carefree, but he was very rational. When he realized that dwelling on this issue wasn’t going to help him find a way out, he deliberately blocked out the matter and continued with his work.
And about the strange dream, he didn’t mention it to anyone.
After returning to Earth, Bai Zhongqi immediately headed to an institute within the Star Alliance Scientific Research Institute. The Star Alliance Scientific Research Institute had become the Alliance’s largest research institution, with a comprehensive and authoritative research center at the central level of the Star Alliance. Across many areas on Star Alliance territory, there were established professional research institutes of varying ranks and directions.
What pleased Bai Zhongqi was that although many Earth scientists still had gaps in their knowledge structures, after training and learning, many of them were able to work alongside scientists from Iridium Star, and even independently manage projects. The abundance of resources in the Star Alliance naturally meant that all research institutes, except for a few resource-related issues, did not lack funding. The massive deployment of bionic humans and robots freed up the researchers, previously bogged down with repetitive tasks, allowing them to engage in more high-end work. Consequently, top graduates from Earth’s major institutions flocked to the Star Alliance Scientific Research Institute to partake in various research-oriented jobs.
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No matter how insignificant or inconsequential their research topics might be, even potentially duplicating previous research from Iridium Star technology, Bai Zhongqi firmly believed that with a broad foundation and years of exploration and consolidation, these talents would become important cornerstones for the continuous growth and development of Star Alliance civilization.
The one to receive Bai Zhongqi was still Linyin, the beautiful researcher who had become busier recently. She, too, felt the pressure as a batch of talented researchers, after frantic studying, began to grow. Linyin was not accustomed to being second best, so she spent a great deal of time on her research topics to stay ahead.
Just that the damned Chancellor Bai Zhongqi would often catch her out to undertake some urgent research, this time it was about the Eternal Crystal Stone.
In the face of the Chancellor, Linyin, though somewhat resentful, was largely respectful. She wore a white lab coat, a custom-made piece with only the length of a mini-dress, revealing her enticingly white legs. Bai Zhongqi kept his gaze straight ahead, as if upholding the principle of "look but don’t see," yet the sight of Linyin’s possibly G-cup breasts above made his face flush with heat.
Seeing the Chancellor’s discomfort, Linyin was very pleased. She wasn’t particularly interested in men, but after all, Bai Zhongqi was the Chancellor, and making him blush was an amusing affair to her.
"Your Majesty, we have conducted extensive research on the Eternal Crystal Stone, and we can now almost confirm that the substance which allowed Taoran Star to recover from a radioactive wasteland into a habitable planet was the Eternal Crystal Stone present on the planet. These stones absorbed an excessive amount of radiation, ultimately reducing it to normal levels. We’re not yet certain how much Eternal Crystal Stone exists on Taoran Star, but it is likely to be a significant amount," she said.
Bai Zhongqi was, of course, aware of this. The confessions of the two detained Benefactors also indicated as much.
"Besides absorbing radiation, does the Eternal Crystal Stone have any other uses?" he asked.
Linyin gave a playful smile and said, "If it only absorbed radiation, this stone wouldn’t be of much help to our Star Alliance. But our research has also found that the Eternal Crystal Stone has a strong influence on energy, particularly on enhancing concentrated energy’s properties and even its strength. I think this might be why the Controllers are so obsessed with the Eternal Crystal Stone. Controllers themselves are energy-based life forms with somewhat limited lifespans. When their energy body weakens, they perish. The Eternal Crystal Stone essentially provides them with a significant boost and might even help them mutate, enhancing their power."
Bai Zhongqi immediately thought of an extremely troubling possibility. "If the Controllers use their energy tendrils to dominate other lives, and if the Eternal Crystal Stone can strengthen them, wouldn’t that enable them to control more people or exert control over more powerful beings?" he questioned.
Linyin’s expression turned serious, "Theoretically, this possibility cannot be ruled out," she responded.
Bai Zhongqi nodded and pondered, "If that is the case, we must decisively keep the Controllers from touching any other Eternal Crystal Stones. Fortunately, the Benefactors have been slacking over the years and haven’t provided the Controllers with too much of the Eternal Crystal Stone; otherwise, we might be in even more trouble."
In fact, the Benefactors were quite innocent. The Guiyun Star Domain was an extremely distant stretch of the universe from them, making it somewhat impractical to send large fleets or forces there. Moreover, the Benefactors had limited understanding of the Eternal Crystal Stone itself and were unclear on the proper methods of extraction. They had tried large-scale hunting of local monsters but reaped very few stones. Consequently, the Benefactors simply outsourced the task to the local Hunting Groups, seemingly more likely to find monsters with Eternal Crystal Stones inside them.
The Benefactors also dug up the ground trying to find Eternal Crystal Stones but failed.
"Do we now know how the Eternal Crystal Stone forms?" Bai Zhongqi asked Linyin.
Linyin looked somewhat embarrassed and admitted, "It’s quite baffling. We’re clear about the structure and material composition of the Eternal Crystal Stone, yet when we try to replicate the process using Atomic Substance Construction equipment, the result is nothing more than plain synthetic crystal with no significant utility."
However, Linyin quickly added, "We did discover that the Eternal Crystal Stone might be commonly found within the soil and rock of Taoran Star but in exceedingly minute amounts. Furthermore, prolonged exposure to air causes the stones to gradually dissipate, which is probably why the Benefactors didn’t discover them during their mining attempts. And once dissipated, the Eternal Crystal Stone causes strong interference with electromagnetic wave communication and quantum communication."
Bai Zhongqi exclaimed in surprise, "So the emergence of Taoran Star’s communication jamming dome is due to the aftereffects of the dissipating Eternal Crystal Stone."