"Shopkeeper Sylvester's Curio Trash Cans truly deserve to be called the greatest Curios in the entire cosmos."
Jing Yuan admired the pair of boots in his hands, completely satisfied. Though they were only green-grade, for some reason, he found them far more pleasing to the eye than any blue-grade Curio.
In contrast to his delight, Sylvester was left utterly bewildered.
Was it really that amazing? Even when Feixiao pulled a gold-grade Curio, she hadn't praised it half as much.
Could Effect Resistance really be more important than a boost to combat power?
Well… admittedly, it kind of was.
If Jing Yuan stacked enough Effect Resistance, he could very well evolve from the Crash General of the Xianzhou into the General of Durability.
After all, when there's a zero-turn gap between the Lightning-Lord's tenth phase and actual victory, the feeling must be akin to Pangu splitting heaven and earth—except he accidentally cleaved himself and the underworld straight out of existence. That wasn't just a taste of hell; that was the original, primordial hell itself!
Every time Sylvester thought of this, he couldn't help but sigh. Lightning-Lord, oh Lightning-Lord, isn't it Jing Yuan who's supposed to be controlled, not you? Why do you collapse so easily? Come on, pull yourself together!
But the Lightning-Lord never listened. Its attitude toward resets was just like Feixiao's attitude toward big victories—utterly addicted!
And every time, it left its master hovering between ecstasy and death.
Ahh~~ just thinking about it raises my blood pressure.
Sylvester pressed a hand to his forehead, forcibly suppressing the painful memories. Then he waved his hand dismissively. "It's nothing serious—think nothing of it."
Nothing serious? You sure don't look like it's nothing serious.
Jing Yuan looked at Sylvester's pained expression, quietly grumbling to himself while gazing once more at the boots in his hand.
He genuinely liked the item, yes—but he also knew full well what it was worth. One man's poison is another's honey. That he preferred it over a blue-grade Curio didn't mean it truly held greater value.
Besides, Sylvester had sold gold-grade Curios without batting an eye. Why, then, did he look so heartbroken over this green one?
Could there be some deeper secret behind it?
Jing Yuan turned the boots over and over, letting his Path energy flow through and retract, testing every method he could think of.
He even came this close to sniffing them. Yet no matter what he did, he found nothing unusual.
If Sylvester could've heard his thoughts, he might've had a stroke on the spot.
Heartbroken? Who in the Aeons' names would feel heartbroken over this thing?! Even Peppy from the Herta Space Station would shake her head. Even the Xianzhou's Diting would refuse it! Before I transmigrated, if someone offered me a million Credits just to keep it, I'd pocket the money and still throw this Relic straight out the airlock!
What I'm heartbroken about is you, oh "Dozing General" Jing Yuan! Every time you get CC'd, you live up to your title—your eyes shut and they just… never open again!
Some people blink, and a day passes. You blink once, and a whole lifetime nearly does!
Fortunately, Jing Yuan didn't say any of that aloud.
He quietly turned back toward the shelves and reached for the final trash can.
Let's finish this quickly, he thought. Once it's done, I can return and study that Digital World matter properly.
Given how unusual that world was, entering it would be no small feat.
The technology capable of datafying real-world humans…
Even though Jing Yuan's scientific education back in his blurry student days had been rudimentary, he knew enough to understand: not even the Xianzhou—or any major power in the cosmos—had advanced far enough down that technological path.
That Planner, or the Digivice, though proven to exist, remained utterly out of reach.
Jing Yuan's mind began to race. A newly discovered world—possibly vast enough to rival the universe itself. And the Xianzhou, not only having the earliest knowledge of it but also the first Digi-Egg—already far ahead of other great powers like the Interastral Peace Corporation or the Genius Society.
Speaking of which… should I perhaps cooperate with the Genius Society?
Surely, such a topic would attract the interest of some genius willing to devote their life to studying it. With the Xianzhou holding the only Digi-Egg as research material, securing a share of the discoveries would not be difficult.
He clearly remembered: both Herta and Screwllum—two geniuses—each commanded simulations of entire universes, one Simulated and one Differentiated, and had already achieved substantial results, even gaining insight into the Aeons themselves.
If he could gain their cooperation, progress would surely come at lightning speed.
And if Digimon truly had infinite evolutionary paths—then perhaps, through the Simulated Universe, they could evolve toward the realm of the Aeons themselves…
Toward the Aeons?
Before this thought, the Aeons had been nothing less than sacred and unreachable in Jing Yuan's heart. He could never forget the battle to save Xianzhou Fanghu, when Master Diviner of Yuque and the Marshal of Yaoqing gave their lives.
A single radiant arrow—one!—had wiped out the living planet alongside the legions of the Denizens of Abundance.
Emanators were already the pinnacle of humanity, yet compared to the Aeons, they were as eagles beneath the vast heavens—able to soar high above all life on the ground, but no closer to the stars themselves. The difference was truly cosmic.
But now, perhaps… there was a chance. A chance to create a being whose might could rival that of an Aeon.
The very thought startled him. But then, his heart began to pound violently, a surge of passion he couldn't quite suppress.
He wasn't a man obsessed with divine power, yet the moment this idea arose, it ignited an indescribable flame within him.
Because… it felt possible.
If a Digimon's evolution truly knew no limits…
Lost in grand imagination, Jing Yuan had nearly forgotten that his hand still rested upon the trash can's lid.
Caught up in excitement, he absentmindedly pulled.
A brilliant blue light burst forth. The can's body dissolved slowly in the glow, disappearing completely.
An electronic device appeared in Jing Yuan's hand—shaped much like an ancient mobile phone.
Around it, faint orange cubic particles flickered in and out of existence.
Jing Yuan stared at it in awe.
Before he could even ask, Sylvester spoke first.
"Congratulations, General Jing Yuan. This is precisely what we mentioned earlier—a variant of the Digivice. And not just any variant—this is one of the earliest models, one of the very few ever recorded to have acknowledged an adult as its rightful owner. Furthermore…"
He smiled. "It is the only one capable of allowing its user to harness the Digital World's power—to cultivate in accordance with its unique battle system!"
"So, this is a Digivice?!"
Jing Yuan's drifting thoughts snapped instantly into focus.
Then he caught sight of Sylvester's playful grin.
"Congratulations once again, Jing Yuan, my dear boy—starting today, you are one of the Chosen Children!"