Technological practice: leading the human race to the stars

Chapter 1 Source

in the real world.

Early July.

S01 Mechanical City.

Inside the office of Jing'an No. 1 Senior High School.

"See that?"

Yuanze felt like what had just happened was a long and blurry dream, and he just came back to his senses now.

His eyes followed the direction that Teacher Lin was pointing.

In the distance is a building on the edge of the city, a dilapidated building. Under the illumination of the setting sun, it seems like an island in time.

This building is only half of a building, with an inclined and smooth cross-section and slightly irregular protrusions, revealing a tragic beauty, like a thigh cut off by a sharp blade. The rough concrete edges of the fracture are like broken bones, sharp and glaring.

"Yeah." Yuanze responded.

"Many people have seen it, but many people don't know that it was the earliest central site of the Mechanical City." Teacher Lin paused and looked back at Yuan Ze. "It used to be the tallest building in the Mechanical City, but it was destroyed by the Source Beast with just one blow."

Teacher Lin turned back to his seat and tapped on the holographic screen: "This is the casualty data of the Source Warriors fighting against the Source Beasts in the past ten years. Especially in the past few years, the casualty rate has exceeded 50%, and you can't even reach the minimum threshold of the Source Power required for a Source Warrior."

"I know that, but I believe..."

"You have such a good brain. It would be a good idea for you to join the technology class and enter the weapons manufacturing bureau."

Teacher Lin interrupted Yuanze before he could finish and looked at him seriously.

"I believe in myself! There is still more than a month left, and I believe I can reach the entry level of Source Power for a Source Warrior." Yuan Ze's tone became more determined, and he was even more unmoved by Teacher Lin's advice.

Teacher Lin originally wanted to help Yuanze change it privately, but he suddenly received a secret message in the morning, so he had to take the initiative to ask Yuanze out for a talk.

"If you have any ideas, tell the teacher immediately." Teacher Lin hit the enter key heavily, confirming Yuanze's willingness to be reassigned to a different class, "Then you should work hard!"

As soon as Yuanze went out, someone greeted him.

"How's the volunteering going?" He Can asked casually.

"It goes without saying."

"It's really dangerous to fight against source beasts. You should really consider it." He Can's parents are both source beast hunters, so they naturally put the safety of their friends first. "Recently, many students with low source power have disappeared. You should also pay attention."

"Here, whoever bullies you, I will beat him up. I will protect you!" Halma raised his fist high, showing the power of the hairy bear man.

"Trust me, I can make my own way." Yuanze smiled and walked towards his best friend.

"That's natural."

He Can and Hjalma smiled at each other, breathed a sigh of relief, and said in unison.

They walked and chatted for a while, and as it got dark, they went home.

Yuanze walked home alone in silence.

The afterglow of the setting sun cast a long shadow along the road, as if to drag out the heaviness in his heart. His steps were neither fast nor slow, tapping the ground rhythmically, as if he was thinking about something.

When he got home, his father was already waiting for Yuanze.

In Yuanze's eyes, his father was always busy at work, even at home.

"You're home." The father didn't look at Yuanze, and continued to concentrate on his work on the full-department screen. "There's the source power potion on the table, remember to take it. Dad and your master believe that you will definitely be able to enter the top class."

No one knows a son better than his father. As Yuanze's father, he had seen through his son's thoughts long ago and bought some Source Power Potion for his son to use for training. However, one should know that the expensive price of Source Power Potion makes it prohibitive for many ordinary families, and it is a great luxury for Yuanze's family.

"Ok?"

Yuanze found something suspicious: his father did not replace the damaged prosthesis.

My father's hands seemed to be forgotten by technology. His old skin was intertwined with advanced mechanical parts, worn bandages and exposed wires coexisted, and he could smell machine oil and a pungent smell on his fingertips.

"Why didn't you change your prosthetic limbs?"

My father looked up at Yuanze, his brows relaxed, as if all his worries had disappeared at this moment.

"There's been a promotion for the energy potion on the online store these days, and the best one is about the same price as the prosthetic limb. I think the prosthetic limb can still be repaired, but there aren't many chances to get a discount on potions, not to mention that energy is so important to you."

Indeed, since the "catastrophe", Blue Star has undergone earth-shaking changes. Almost all animals have evolved into source beasts, source beasts that can release electromagnetic pulses, source beasts that can hide, source beasts that can use fluid vortexes, source beasts that can manipulate minds...

Humans are no longer the only masters of the Blue Planet, but fortunately, the heavens have not abandoned humans. People who are born with source power are called source warriors. They can continuously absorb source power, continuously evolve themselves, and use high-tech source energy weapons to kill source beasts that threaten humans.

A Source Warrior can change the fate of a family, and a powerful Source Warrior can even control the world, so Yuanze's father and master care about him so much.

Yuanze is a child who is born with source power. He is the hope in his parents' eyes.

Thinking of this, Yuanze felt a warm current in his heart, but his nose felt sore.

Yuanze couldn't hide his heavy feelings. Not wanting to be discovered by his father, he picked up the small blue bottle on the table, slipped back to his room and gently closed the door.

The father continued to work hard, and reminded Yuanze: "Remember to come out for dinner later."

Yuanze relaxed a little after returning to the room. The room seemed like a small world away from the world. It was clean and tidy, making people feel very comfortable.

But Yuanze couldn't feel comfortable at the moment. A week ago, Yuanze, a sophomore in high school, had just finished his final exams and wanted to secretly visit his father to give him a surprise.

But through the glass of the factory, he saw a side that made him feel ashamed. Facing a child of the same age as himself, his father actually put on a flattering attitude and kept nodding and bowing.

At that time, only fragments of conversation could be heard from the two people in the distance, and Yuanze could barely hear that they were talking about "overtime pay" and "payment on time".

Although his father always regarded his dignity as his life, Yuanze had never seen him so humble.

But the child was so disdainful that he thought his father was blocking his way, so he kicked his father away and walked out of the office.

Afterwards, he fled the scene in a panic, fearing that he would be discovered by his father.

"It seems that my father had no choice but to do this in order to get there before the event ended, but he ended up buying the useless source of energy potion that Master mentioned."

"Alas, I don't know how I raised the money later."

Yuanze lay on the bed, his heart filled with anger and dissatisfaction. This was just what he deserved!

Why can some people in this world do whatever they want? Why is this world so unfair!

We all live hard, just wanting to get what we deserve, but we are constantly trampled upon.

Yuanze stared at the ceiling of the room, gradually calming his turbulent emotions, then raised one hand, gradually clenched it into a fist, and silently swore in his heart.

"I have to save my dignity!"

"I can't let anyone step on my family!"

At this time, strong emotions stimulated Yuanze, making his heart feel as if it was being pulled and torn.

Immediately afterwards, it was as if his brain was hit by a hammer, and Yuanze fell into a coma.

Falling into deep darkness, Yuanze almost lost all of his five senses. Only the light surrounding his body moved around like a ghost, bringing him a faint but precious sense of security.

In this endless darkness, that light became his only support and comfort.

"This is where?"

"The darkness a year ago."

"What do you mean? Who are you?"

"The darkness imposed by others here can easily obliterate the soul. I am only temporarily sealing it in the spiritual space and maintaining the seal with my mind."

"Others? So you protected me?"

"You protected yourself, and the power in your body has begun to awaken."

"Then who are you?"

"I exist deep in your soul. I am your inner voice. I am your subconscious. You can say that I am you. When you were a child, you gave me a name, 'Flow'."

"So how can I get out?"

“Find your fear and look it in the face.”

As the light gradually merged into darkness, the sound drifted further and further away. Yuanze gradually fell into deep thought, because he couldn't think of what his fear was.

"Are they those terrifying source beasts?"

"Is it the source of my own power that is holding me back?"

"..."

Many things occurred to Yuanze’s mind and many images flashed through his mind, but he denied them one by one.

Then, a series of images appeared in his mind. It was when he was young, watching his parents working day and night for the family's livelihood; it was when he grew up, his parents saved money just to buy him a new piece of clothing; it was when he entered Jing'an No. 1 Middle School, and his parents ran around to raise money...

All these made him feel powerless, afraid that he could not change the fate of his family and give his parents a better life. This fear, like a cold steel needle, pierced deeply into his heart.

Yuanze trembled. He never realized that this was his fear, because this was his goal, his determination, his motivation, but also his deepest fear, because he was afraid of failure, afraid of not being able to repay his parents, afraid that one day "the son wants to support his parents but they are no longer there"...

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and let his heart gradually calm down.

Then, another picture appeared in his mind: the joy of his parents seeing him grow taller; the indescribable joy of seeing his parents taking him to the martial arts school on the first day wearing new clothes; the proud look of showing off to his neighbors after he entered No. 1 Middle School...

My parents didn't have too high expectations for me. They just wanted me to grow up healthy and happy, and didn't ask me to do anything.

These are just my own fears!

The moment he realized it, Yuanze felt the darkness around him begin to be peeled away, and a little bit of light gathered into a thin curtain of light in front of his eyes, and he gradually woke up.

Yuanze stood up from the bed, stretched his arms, and the moment he clenched his fists, a deep black mist surrounded him.

"That time when he was unconscious, he was attacked? Is it related to the missing students that He Can mentioned? If so, how could he leave such a big hidden danger behind?"

Yuanze shook his head and dispersed the black mist on his fist. He decided not to think about these problems for now and would rather spend more time with his parents if he had time.

Thank you everyone!
If you are interested, you can read the preface.

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(End of this chapter)