Digimon: I really didn't want to be the Digimon Emperor!

“I’ll contact the Public Security Bureau tomorrow to inquire about the issue of unregistered residents,” Cheng Yuan readily agreed. “As for living expenses, don’t worry, the Gear Beast’s daily expenses are even less than the Puppy Beast’s.”

Upon hearing this, Mr. Cheng's eyes lit up, and his wrinkles smoothed out: "Don't worry about that. Gear Beast is a skilled worker; he gets paid, and his salary is even higher than mine. It's just your mother's side..."

"Leave Mom's to Little Dog Beast." Cheng Yuan winked, a sly smile spreading across his face. "I guarantee it'll be done in three minutes."

After making the decision, Cheng's father took the gear-like creature home after get off work that day.

"Mom, we're back!" Cheng Yuan's voice rang out in the entryway. He stepped aside to let his father and the black gear beast enter first.

The gear-like beast's shell gleamed matte in the twilight, its mechanical body slightly curled up, as if trying to hide behind Cheng's father.

The sound of spatulas clattering came from the kitchen. Cheng Ma poked her head out and stared at the black gear-like creature for a moment: "What is this...?" The spatula in her hand was suspended in mid-air, a drop of oil slowly sliding down the edge.

Cheng Yuan cleared his throat: "Mom, this is a Gear Beast, and it will be a member of our family from now on." As he spoke, he subtly kicked the little dog beast's butt with his toe.

"Woof!" The little dog understood perfectly, leaping gracefully into Cheng's arms and nuzzling her arm affectionately. "Mommy~ It's so well-behaved, it promises not to destroy the house, much more sensible than that guy who always leaves his socks lying around~"

Cheng Yuan's eyes twitched, barely suppressing the urge to pick up the little traitor.

After listening to the father and son's explanation and the little dog's help, Cheng's mother nodded thoughtfully. Only then did she notice that the black gear beast was cowering behind Cheng's father's legs, its red optical lens cautiously observing her.

Seeing his wife remain silent, Mr. Cheng nervously rubbed his hands together: "Um... if you feel uncomfortable, we can..."

“I’m thinking…” Cheng’s mother suddenly spoke, her brows furrowing slightly, “This metal thing… does it eat or charge?”

Cheng Yuan crouched down to be at eye level with the gear beast. He gazed at the pair of flashing red optical lenses and said gently, "Don't worry, you're welcome in our home."

"Sizzle... sizzle..." The gear beast's shell emitted a slight electrical sound, and its gear-shaped hands twitched restlessly.

"Don't be nervous, our family is very friendly, right, Little Dog Beast?" Cheng Yuan gave Black Gear Beast a kind smile.

"Wang!"

"Tsk—I-please take care of me from now on..." The black gear beast seemed startled, data streams rapidly flowing across its body as it stammered.

"That's right, woof~" the little dog wagged its tail proudly, "Remember your family hierarchy: Mom first, me second, you third, and Cheng Yuan last~"

Cheng Yuan sighed, rubbing his forehead, utterly baffled as to where his Digimon had learned these nonsensical hierarchical concepts.

As everyone went inside, Cheng's father couldn't help but touch his hair, wondering, "What number am I?"

Chapter 81 Knowledge Changes Destiny

"You two get along well, I'll go tidy up the room." Mr. Fang smiled and walked towards the storage room, carrying a small mattress he had just bought specifically for Digimon.

Cheng Yuan watched his father's busy figure, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up—this family was finally about to welcome its second Digimon.

The gear-like beast hesitated before extending its mechanical arm, and Cheng Yuan stepped forward to meet it, letting the edge of its gears gently touch his fingertips.

Despite the cold metallic touch, Cheng Yuan felt a warmth. In this era where Digimon and humans coexist, ownerless Digimon like these often face a difficult situation.

Since the digital world merged with the real world twenty years ago, a large number of Digimon have migrated to the human world. In addition to the partner Digimon registered with the Tamers Association, many "unregistered" Digimon have integrated into ordinary families.

These Digimon are strictly prohibited from developing military capabilities; if discovered, the entire family will be severely punished.

Digimon are a double-edged sword. If there are no restrictions, anyone can keep them at will, and society will fall into chaos. That's why the Digimon Tamers Association has introduced a series of important regulations.

"Dinner's ready!" Cheng's mother's call interrupted Cheng Yuan's thoughts.

At the dining table, the little dog was wolfing down its sacred data packet mixed with rice, occasionally stealing glances at the gear beast sitting next to Fang's father—"Waaah, eating 555 batteries for dinner is so pitiful..."

If Cheng Yuan heard this, he would probably retort, "Don't you know that Zhao Lu's Gear Beast X eats high-voltage electricity?"

In the dead of night, the Gear Beast lay in the converted storage room.

The three-square-meter space was tidied up by Fang's father into a cozy and clean place: a small bed, a bookshelf, and neatly arranged old books from Cheng Yuan's student days—from textbooks to comics, everything imaginable.

"Get some rest. If you can't sleep, you can read a book." Mr. Fang gently closed the door. "I'll take you back to work at the factory tomorrow."

The red optical lens of the Gear Beast gleamed faintly in the darkness. It turned gently, its mechanical fingers tracing the spine of the book.

Memories of being abandoned by his former master flashed back like fragments of data: the indifference when the partnership agreement was torn up, the alienation from the other gear beasts in the factory, the long nights spent alone curled up in the corner of the conference room...

But tonight is different.

The warm acceptance from Cheng Yuan's family caused its digital core to heat up slightly.

It pulled out a comic book with exaggerated little figures and illustrations, which it couldn't understand, and lost interest after reading a few pages.

Human fictional stories are too abstract for it.

It pulled out a copy of "Introduction to Programming in the Digital World"—the worn spine indicated that the book had been frequently read.

When the first line of code entered the optical lens, the data stream of the Gear Beast suddenly accelerated, as if it had found its destined home.

But tonight is different.

"Didn't you sleep well last night?" Cheng Yuan noticed the dark circles under the eyes on the Gear Beast's shell during breakfast.

The gear-like beast shrank back nervously, afraid that its secret study would be discovered—something that would always have brought it a scolding from its former owner.

"It's okay, you'll get used to it soon." Cheng Yuan handed over a new battery. "If you have trouble sleeping, you can look at my programming textbook. I guarantee it will have a top-notch hypnotic effect."

"..." The Gear Beast felt its data stream suddenly become disordered.

After watching his father leave with the gear beast, Cheng Yuan began preparing for school.

On the way, he made a detour to a digital store and bought several rows of high-performance lithium batteries—"snacks" for the Gear Beast.

In class, teacher Liu Liuyan was explaining the tactical command input techniques for the Digivice. Cheng Yuan listened attentively while glancing at Zhao Lu beside him out of the corner of his eye.

"Hey," Cheng Yuan said in a low voice while the teacher was writing on the blackboard, "what procedures do we need to follow if my family wants to officially adopt a stray Digimon?"

Zhao Lu raised an eyebrow: "Do you have an adoption quota?"

"What metrics?"

"The new policy stipulates that non-trainer families can also adopt Digimon, but they need to participate in a lottery," Zhao Lu explained.

Cheng Yuan's eyes lit up, but the words "lottery" instantly made his face fall. Based on his past luck, he was unlikely to get such a stroke of good fortune.

"A lottery? That'll be waiting forever!" Cheng Yuan scoffed, winking at Zhao Lu. "Or... could you think of a way?"

In his view, why take the main road when there is a shortcut?

"Well..." Zhao Lu leaned closer mysteriously, her voice extremely low, "I need to ask Dad first. But..." she smiled slyly, "with your achievements in the Public Security Bureau, maybe they can make an exception..."

Today's training session lasted until evening. After returning home, the little guy was simultaneously controlling the Golden Holy Light Ball and the Purple Shadow Ball, the two groups of energy balls engaged in a fierce five-in-a-row duel in mid-air.

This is a special training method designed by Cheng Yuan—to train the ability to multitask by simultaneously manipulating energies with opposing attributes.

"Quite a progress!" Cheng Yuan noticed with satisfaction that even when the little dog beast was completely absorbed in watching the movie, the energy ball could still autonomously switch between offense and defense. In addition to Gomoku, they also developed various training modes such as Go and drone battles.

Suddenly, an idea flashed into his mind. Cheng Yuan sat bolt upright and quickly opened his laptop: "It's time to try the 'Swarm Holy Light Bullet Control Algorithm'..."

However, reality quickly threw cold water on his enthusiasm. When he opened the programming software, his fingers hovered above the keyboard but hesitated to fall—although this body had studied programming, the memory was as blurry as if it had been pixelated.

"Sizzle—" Three holy light orbs suddenly shot out from the crack in the door, and at the same time a scream came from outside the door.

Cheng Yuan turned his head and saw three purple shadow orbs circling around the gear beast, which stood at the door in a panic.

"Gear Beast, are you off work?" Cheng Yuan softened his tone, trying to ease the tense atmosphere. "Want to play with Puppy Beast?"

The Gear Beast shook its head, but its gaze remained fixed on the jumping code on the computer screen.

Suddenly, it turned around and scurried away, slamming the door to the small room shut.

Cheng Yuan couldn't help but wonder if the Gear Beast's personality was a bit too sensitive.

At dinner time, the little dog went to call the gear beast for dinner, but exclaimed in surprise, "Oh dear! Gear beast, you've drawn all over the wall, woof!"

Cheng Yuan rushed into the room, and the sight before him made his eyes widen in disbelief—

The entire wall was covered with dense code and algorithm diagrams. The two programming textbooks on the bed were worn and curled at the edges, clearly having been studied repeatedly. The Gear Beast huddled in the corner, its optical lens flickering like a child who had done something wrong.

Cheng Yuan crouched down, looking directly at the Gear Beast: "Did you write all of these?"

The gear-like creature nodded timidly, like a child who had done something wrong, its mechanical arm turning nervously, as if afraid of being kicked out of its home for dirtying the walls.

Gearmon's electronic eyes flickered on and off as Puppymon trotted over, carrying two crumpled textbooks in its mouth. The covers of "Introduction to Digital World Programming" and "Algorithm Basics" were covered in creases.

"Woof! It's ruined your 'collector's edition'!" The little dog put the book on the ground, wagging its tail happily.

Cheng Yuan picked up the book, looked at the curled pages and smiled helplessly—this was hardly a treasured book, but rather an introductory textbook he had casually bought to prepare for an exam years ago.

In the corner, the mechanical body of the Gear Beast was curled up in a ball, its optical lens flashing on and off, looking just like a primary school student caught by his parents reading comics.

Cheng Yuan stared at the metallic figure, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.

This abandoned virus-type Digimon repeats the simplest assembly work day after day on the assembly line, without even the most basic evolutionary resources.

Its metal shell is covered with fine scratches, and the rotating gears occasionally make a rough friction sound—in the eyes of tamers who pursue combat power, such a Digimon has no value in training.

But at this moment, Cheng Yuan carefully examined the code on the wall, becoming increasingly astonished. These algorithms, though basic, were structurally rigorous and logically clear, unlike anything a beginner would attempt. Even more astonishing was that the Gear Beast had actually carved a complete flowchart onto the wall using its metal fingers.

In this digital age, programming has become one of the most valuable skills.

From smart homes to digital space maintenance, from automated factories to urban management systems, code builds a bridge for the symbiotic relationship between humans and Digimon. Digimon proficient in programming are a scarce resource that major technology companies are vying for.

"Perhaps it won't shine on the battlefield," Cheng Yuan thought, "but if it could become a programmer-type Digimon..."

His gaze fell on the Gear Beast's precise and flexible mechanical gear hands—those nimble gear joints were practically the hands of a programmer, born for programming.

A Digimon that has mastered programming skills can easily work as a developer in a technology company or enter the digital space maintenance department, which is far more promising than tightening screws in a factory.

He slowly crouched down, keeping eye to eye with the Gear Beast: "You know what? This is really amazing."

Cheng Yuan's voice was gentle yet firm, "My teacher always says that knowledge changes destiny. Would you... like to learn more about programming with me?"

The Gear Beast's optical lens eyes shone with a bright and steady light. It nodded solemnly, and the gears made a cheerful "click" sound.

Chapter 82 A Chance Encounter with the Ancient Music Beast

"From now on, this computer will be your personal learning tool." Cheng Yuan patted his old-fashioned laptop, which had just been downloaded as an electronic tutorial for "Introduction to Algorithms".

The red optical lens of the Gear Beast instantly lit up with excitement, and the mechanical gears involuntarily began to spin at high speed, making a "click-clack" sound.

After hesitating for a moment, it took out a bank card from the inner layer of the outer shell and carefully pushed it toward Cheng Yuan.

"Hiss...wages..." The gear-like beast's electronic voice trembled slightly. In its limited understanding, handing over its pay card to the tamer was a way of expressing loyalty.

"Take it back!" Cheng Yuan and his father shouted in unison, startling Cheng's mother who was busy in the kitchen.

Cheng Yuan gently pushed the bank card back to the Gear Beast: "In our family, your salary is yours. Save it carefully; you can use it to buy data to improve yourself in the future."

"Thank you... teacher..." The data stream of the Gear Beast fluctuated slightly, and the optical lens shone with a warm light.

"What kind of teacher is this? Calling me by my name like a little dog!"

Over the next few days, during the day, Cheng Yuan took the puppy beast to school for battle training courses, while the gear beast went to work at the factory with Cheng's father to continue its work of assembling precision parts.

In the evening, the three "students" squeezed into Cheng Yuan's room, each busy with their own things—Gear Beast focused on learning programming, Puppy Beast practiced playing Go with Holy Light Ball and Shadow Ball, while Cheng Yuan tutored Gear Beast and studied how to apply algorithms to optimize Puppy Beast's skills.

The Gear Beast has demonstrated an amazing talent for learning programming algorithms.

In just one week, it taught itself all the programming courses required for elementary school.

Even more amazing is that, as knowledge accumulates, the amount of data within the Gear Beast grows exponentially—a growth rate far exceeding what one would expect from simply memorizing textbooks.

"The saying 'knowledge is power' is truly embodied in the Gear Beast," Cheng Yuan remarked, looking at the increasingly bright data stream on the Gear Beast's shell.

Knowledge is data, but the volume of data far exceeds the data itself.

Gear Beast's focus and dedication to programming have allowed it to progress at an astonishing pace. Cheng Yuan even suspects that he may have inadvertently discovered a programming genius.

Of course, this is inseparable from the Gear Beast's hard work - it studies until late at night almost every night, and its dark circles are so obvious that even its black shell can't cover them up.

This worried Cheng Yuan's family, as it might become the first Digimon to die from overworking.

"This can't go on." At dinner on Friday, Cheng's mother looked at the metal panda eyes of the gear beast and said with heartache, "Xiaoyuan, you have to find a way to help this child relax."

Therefore, the travel plans for Saturday were officially announced.

"No studying today!" Cheng Yuan slammed the Gear Beast's laptop shut without another word. "Let's go to the amusement park!"

To help Gearmon relax, Cheng Yuan decided to take the two Digimon to an amusement park for half a day. Even though Puppymon had been born for so long, it had never been to an amusement park before. Cheng Yuan clearly remembered the longing look in Puppymon's eyes when he described the amusement park to Silverhornmon in Savage Valley.

However, the gear beast's eyes dimmed slightly, and it made a pitiful "zzzz" sound.

The little dog is furious! Do you know that this spoils the fun and might prevent me from going either?

The sacred ring glowed with a threatening holy light.

"Don't do that," Cheng Yuan said while stuffing snacks into his backpack. "Work and rest should be balanced. The little dog is training hard, and you are studying hard, but you should still go out for some fresh air on the weekend."