From star gatherer to leader of humanity

Space City, Immortal Path Street.

Carrying over 40 strands of spiritual energy, Xu Bai stepped into the largest magic weapon shop in Space City.

As soon as Xu Bai entered, the manager of the Dharma Treasure Hall seemed to have received some news and walked enthusiastically towards Xu Bai.

"Don't bother me, I just came to take a look. I can't afford it right now." Xu Bai waved his hand, he really just came to take a look.

"A genius like you could easily buy our entire store someday."

"What kind of magical artifact would you like to see? I'll explain it to you in more detail." The manager stood beside Xu Bai, bowing slightly with a humble smile on his face.

"Let's take a look at the treasure robe first." This is the magic item that Xu Bai wants to buy most right now, because it can replace the bulky protective suit.

"Yes, please follow me, esteemed guest."

Xu Bai was led to an exhibition hall, which was about the size of a basketball court. Various kinds of precious garments were hanging on the walls, most of which were in the style of Taoist robes.

"Because most of the people who buy magic treasures are members of the Star Gathering Team, the treasures they usually wear are equipped with Pure Qi Runes, Constant Temperature Runes, and a protective array."

As the supervisor introduced the items, Xu Bai stood in front of a Taoist robe in the style of ink painting and Tai Chi, looking at the price tag below.

"100 million strands of spiritual energy~"

"This treasure garment is called White Ink. It is equipped with three major runes: Pure Qi, Constant Temperature, and Spiritual Energy, as well as a wind shield formation, which can withstand attacks from beasts in the mid-to-late stages of Qi Refining."

"Fellow Daoist, if you wish to purchase, the down payment is 20, and the remaining amount can be paid off over 10 years. As a valued customer, the interest rate is only 8%," the manager enthusiastically recommended.

"Can I pay it off early?" Xu Bai asked casually.

"I have the authority to reduce the interest rate by another 0.5%, making it 7.5%, but I can't get approval from headquarters for early repayment." The manager gave a polite but slightly embarrassed look.

Xu Bai then looked at the other precious garments, each with a distinct style, and there were all sorts of styles.

Arriving at the center of the exhibition hall, Xu Bai saw the store's prized possession, priced at 15 million strands of spiritual energy.

The robe was entirely azure blue, radiating a soft, luminous glow. The surface of the robe seemed to have star patterns that flickered between light and shadow, making it look incredibly beautiful.

"Xuanxing is a top-tier magical artifact, imbued with nine runes: Pure Qi, Constant Temperature, Purification, Hardening, Enlightenment, Star Concealment, Spirit Transformation, Summoning, and Healing, as well as three major formations: Star Shield, Sky Crossing, and Illusionary Body."

"This precious garment is a masterpiece of a master craftsman; it can be used even at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage," the supervisor explained.

Xu Bai looked around the entire exhibition hall and realized that there wasn't a single piece of clothing in the exhibition hall that cost less than a million strands of spiritual energy. He understood that even though he had worked hard for a month and seemed to have accumulated a lot of spiritual energy, he still couldn't buy a single piece of clothing here.

After viewing the store's prized possession, Xu Bai returned to the Daoist robe in the ink-wash Tai Chi style that he had initially admired.

Xu Bai felt that after this treasure robe was given six white attributes, it should be no less valuable than the shop's prized possession.

"I've reserved this white ink robe. It will be available in three months at most," Xu Bai said.

"Alright, then I'll reserve it for our distinguished guest."

Xu Bai then looked at the other magical artifacts, each of which cost at least several hundred thousand, making him exclaim that he didn't need them right now.

Inside the residence, Xu Bai took out a small bag of spirit pearls from inside his protective suit.

There are 55 spirit beads in total, each containing 140 strands of spiritual energy, which he gathered on his way back using the Spirit Gathering Technique.

"Every little bit helps; every little bit saved counts."

As Xu Bai spoke, he placed these spirit beads into the spirit chamber outside the spirit chamber. This way, when the spirit chamber was running, it could extract the spiritual energy contained in the small spirit beads.

After washing up, Xu Bai lay down on the luxurious bed and fell into a deep sleep.

The next day, in the spiritual energy room, Xu Bai absorbed the pure spiritual energy and fully activated the "Spiritual Energy Technique".

Xu Bai stopped practicing after only an hour.

"The speed of cultivation is the same as inside the mining spaceship. There, I also need to use my mental power to remove impurities from the spiritual energy before cultivating."

"Without the amplification of mental power, the speed of cultivation by absorbing pure spiritual energy is not as fast as I imagined, so the cost-effectiveness is not high."

"It would be better to go to the Shattered Star Sea, mine for minerals, and cultivate at the same time."

With this thought in mind, Xu Bai got up, tidied himself up, and left the villa for the spaceport.

"Keep grinding, mine 200 million strands of spiritual energy in 3 months!"

In the spaceport, when the mining ships were resupplying, Xu Bai specifically switched them all to armor-piercing anti-magic bullets. It would take 10 strands of spiritual energy to make up a large quantity.

"Three shots are enough to kill a Foundation Establishment stage Starry Sky Beast, and you can break even on the cost of just one."

After resupplying, Xu Bai piloted the spaceship onto the road.

What was supposed to be a simple mining trip turned into a sense of crisis as soon as Xu Bai entered the Shattered Star Sea.

"Is someone lying in ambush on me?"

Xu Bai immediately turned the spaceship around, bypassing the route he used to take.

The spider robot that had been lying in ambush here leaped up from the shattered celestial body and instantly attached itself firmly to the outside of Xu Bai's mining spaceship.

"Beep beep beep! External device detected. Clear it?" Hakimi's voice rang out.

Countless thoughts flashed through Xu Bai's mind, and finally, a murderous intent flashed in his eyes.

"Not cleaned!"

Xu Bai deliberately slowed down, but even so, it was still far faster than the speed at which an experienced pilot could maneuver a spaceship in the Shattered Star Sea.

The spider robots attached to the mining ship drop a locator every so often.

The mining ship stopped in a region of the most complex star-shattered sea, quietly waiting for its pursuers.

Three hours later, signals from 50 small spaceships flashed around the area, most of which were small combat ships.

"Damn it, we didn't even get to fight the alien beasts, and we wasted our ammunition on you guys instead. I should have brought a whole load of regular ammunition."

At this moment, the mining spaceship received a communication request.

After Xu Bai answered the call, the voice of the leader of the Mancang Gang rang out.

"Kid, I'm inviting you to join my Mancang Gang one last time." The threat from the Mancang Gang leader was palpable.

"Hasn't our feud been settled?" Xu Bai asked calmly.

"Would you believe me if I said the score was settled?"

Fifty small combat ships had already surrounded Xu Bai.

"I don't believe it~" Xu Bai said calmly.

"So, today, this is where you will die!"

Fifty combat ships accelerated toward Xu Bai's location.

"I said I didn't believe you, and at least you'll live a little longer!" Xu Bai put one hand on the joystick, and the spaceship started up.

"Looks like you're very confident in yourself," the leader of the Mancang Gang sneered.

"Guaranteed to win!"

Xu Bai piloted his spaceship, transforming into a silver-gray streak as he charged towards the nearest combat spaceship in this complex region of shattered stars, thus beginning a major battle.

Between two massive celestial bodies, Xu Bai maneuvers his spaceship to encounter a small combat spaceship.

Upon meeting, Xu Bai immediately locked onto and fired three armor-piercing machine guns, then rushed towards the second small combat spaceship nearby without even looking at it.

"I'll beat you up, I'll beat you up, I'll beat you up, I'll beat you up!"

"boom!!"

A heat-sensing tracking missile crashed into the massive, half-meter-thick iron shield, bursting into blazing flames in the shattered star sea.