The Mech Touch

Chapter 6492 The Implications of Universal Transcendence

"I have spoken briefly with Ves about systematic cultivation over the galactic net." Ketis answered the last question. "He is fully supportive of any attempt to make our Larkinsons stronger. He is fond of high-ranking mech pilots, but he is also optimistic about qi cultivation. The latter will become a growing trend in our society. It is foolish to neglect it, or worse, reject it altogether. Those that commit to qi cultivation without. hesitation will rapidly grow more powerful in the coming years. Our clan cannot afford to be left behind."

"Qi cultivation is not only useful for mech pilots. It is also useful for other Larkinsons." Saint Commander Casella Ingvar reminded everyone. "Our mech designers, mech technicians, tactical officers and so many more people will all become stronger, faster, smarter and be able to postpone their retirement by decades if not centuries. Baseline humans will cease to exist in any form. Everyone will become superhuman. That is not a process that we can change. The only difference is to what extent we have grown stronger. That is a process that we can control."

The logic was very clear. E energy radiation had the capacity to directly fuel qi cultivation.

It was a huge waste to let all of that energy fly past or allow the human body and spirit to passively absorb it in an inefficient manner.

Systematic cultivation turned a natural but highly wasteful process into an artificial but much more brutally efficient strengthening cycle.

A part of Ketis did not like it. Compared to the painstaking struggle of trying to hone oneself into an excellent warrior before proceeding to break that limit through

willpower alone, the more structured progression pattern of qi cultivation did not sound so challenging, at least at first.

Having read through a dozen modern qi cultivation manuals herself, Ketis found that their makers felt a compulsive need to classify and categorize everything.

Big cultivation steps got split up into multiple smaller steps. This made it easier to make steady incremental progress, but deprived the practitioner of her freedom and ability to deviate from the standard recipe.

It all seemed too precise and clinical to Ketis. It was as if they wanted to turn every qi cultivator into a precise machine. There was little room for variation and choice, which was probably one of the goals.

Less variance usually resulted in less accidents.

Perhaps she was mischaracterizing modern qi cultivation as she had very limited experience with them. The later chapters of most cultivation methods were purportedly a lot deeper and more profound.

In any case, not even Ketis could afford to ignore qi cultivation herself. She did not

necessarily need it as a Swordmaster, but she definitely needed to rely on it to remain competitive as a mech designer!

Yes, even mech designers gained access to their own forms of auxiliary qi cultivation methods.

The Red Collective already included several cultivation method series that were tailor-made for mech designers of any rank and tech level.

Ketis enjoyed the rare luxury of being able to acquire useful Skills at a reasonable effort through her access to the Mech Designer System.

However, that did not negate her need to improve her basic Attributes such as Intelligence. Becoming smarter and more creative helped enormously in all aspects of mech design. It was one of the key reasons behind Ves' overwhelming success! Unfortunately for Ketis, the System had suddenly decided to take a 1 month-long break after it decided to undergo an upgrade or whatever. She would not be able to exchange any cheap but necessary enlightenment fruits anytime soon.

This unexpected interruption served as a small wakeup call for her. It reminded her that she needed to take Ves' warning seriously about not growing overly dependent on the System's services.

Who knew whether it would disappear permanently rather than temporarily one day? Ketis finally recalled that she was doing just fine before Ves introduced the System to her. It was not difficult for her to restore her old mentality and design her mechs without thinking about what sort of System goodies could help her improve her work. With the rapid gains that she had already made in the past year, Ketis grew more and more confident that she would be able to advance to the rank of Senior Mech Designer sooner rather than later.

She previously thought that absorbing enough knowledge to reach the standards of a Senior Mech Designer would take her the longest. It took long hours of solitary study to master all of the advanced sciences and engineering wisdom of a second-class mech designer.

The study burden was at least 10 times worse if Ketis aspired to become a first-class mech designer!

The meeting continued for half an hour. Many commanders freely raised topics and asked tricky questions about systematic cultivation. They could never be too careful, as a matter as big as this directly affected the success and survival of all of their troops.

Ketis also mentioned another important priority.

"Now that our patriarch has jumped into a high position in the Red Collective, he is able to do much more than before. It should be easier for him to obtain first-class combat. carriers, which means that our clan can also field more first-class mechs. He is currently split between recruiting existing first-class mech pilots and promoting them from then/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

ranks of our mech legion. The latter used to be unthinkable outside of allocating an EdNet quota to our second-class mech pilots, but this cultivation business changes everything. As long as our best and most promising mech pilots practice the Intelligent Controller Auxiliary Qi Cultivation Method to a high stage, they should be smart enough to acquire the bare minimum of first-class mech piloting certifications at an accelerated timeline."

The gathered mech commanders all looked surprised.

They never thought about it, but now that Ketis mentioned it, it may actually be possible for a second-class mech pilot to become a first-class mech pilot a lot easier than before! In the past, it took millions of MTA credits, 5 to 10 years of continuous training and education and a huge amount of effort for second-raters to competently pilot a genuine first-class mech.

This was without taking the much more difficult to control first-class multipurpose mechs into account!

The leaders in the conference room gained a whole new appreciation for systematic

cultivation.

Even the weaker auxiliary qi cultivation methods opened up brand new opportunities for

a huge amount of mech pilots!

The more far-sighted among them also made a connection between systematic

cultivation and the New Elites Program.

The synergy between the two was incredibly strong!

The New Elites Program granted the bravest and most dutiful mech pilots of any background opportunities that were previously reserved for the wealthiest and most

talented first-raters.

However, many of the goodies that mech pilots could obtain through War Exchange

were not so easy to digest.

Auxiliary qi cultivation methods could help mech pilots overcome some of the hurdles in their way and rise up much faster than before, thereby allowing them to take better advantage of the benefits of the New Elites Program!

People such as Commander Melkor and Commander Sendra realized at this time that even third-class mech pilots could become first-class mech pilots as long as they worked and fought hard enough!

"Any mech pilot has a chance to qualify for the Premier Branch of the Larkinson Clan." Saint Commander Casella Ingvar noted. "Unless there are unavoidable circumstances, each of our mech pilots can earn enough merits and improve fast enough to pilot a first-class mech within a decade, if not less. What is important though is that we keep winning."

That was easier said than done, but everyone became more motivated than before.

"What about us?" Melkor asked. "What if legion commanders such as ourselves work hard and become eligible to become first-class mech pilots? Are we allowed to resign from our current positions and transfer to the Premier Branch?"

Ketis smiled. "If that is what you truly want. I do not think that Ves will mind. None of our mech legions have set up formal first-class mech units as of yet, but it is only a matter of time before that happens. If you think that you have already spent enough time leading the Avatars of Mechs, then you are free to transfer leadership to a subordinate that you trust to be able to do a good job."

"I think it may be better if we rotate leadership of the mech legions on a regular basis." The Saint Commander proposed. "None of you should hold onto your positions for an entire generation. There are advantages and disadvantages to maintaining such a long continuity, but I think it is better that the mech legions must ultimately become strong, independent institutions as opposed to your personal kingdoms."

"This is not an urgent issue at the moment. We don't know whether we will be able to

live past this year. We can discuss a solution later when we can afford to think about the long-term implications of raising the frequency of leadership shuffles. Is there anything else you would like to discuss?"

A brief pause ensued before the leader of the Penitent Sisters asked a question.

"Since all humans will undergo massive improvements with the help of systematic cultivation, I fear that the changes to our clan and society will quickly spin out of control. Yes, I am aware that the Red Collective will not sit around and let us descend into anarchy, but it is still too new to be able to enforce its laws everywhere. I don't think that our clansmen will intentionally hurt others with their newfound powers, but accidents are a different matter. Then there are others who have begun to practice all manner of cultivation methods. I think we need to bolster our security to guard against both internal and external threats."

"We are already doing that." Ketis said. "Maybe not against the threat of cultivators, but we are hardly defenseless. Our planetary branches are the most vulnerable against outside threats, but it should be easy enough for them to invest more in their defensive measures. As for potential dangers from our own ranks... I believe that the Golden Cat is more than up to the task of warning us of any dangerous cases."

"Nyaaaaa-" Goldie communicated without bothering to manifest herself in the conference room.

That was a definite confirmation from the ancestral spirit. "What if something truly unforeseen happens?" The Peninent Commander pressed. "The Red Collective warnings reminds me of what went wrong with Taon Melin and Lanie Larkinson, Accidents can happen on the battlefield, and when mech pilots have become superhuman, their ability to damage everyone and everything around them has become much stronger than before."

"Then we need to rely on tougher means to restore order." Ketis responded. "We cannot

afford to be too reluctant to resort to force. I hope that our clan won't suffer too many of these incidents, but I can never guarantee what will happen in the future. I have learned that there is a greater chance to make mistakes when attempting to practice the more advanced and complicated qi cultivation methods. The side effects can include personality shifts, extreme mood swings, a growing propensity towards violence and so on. This is an outcome that can occur without malice or fault. Those who are more desperate to chase after power are more prone to take the wrong turn. This is not much different from mech piloting. If you want to make greater achievements in qi cultivation, then you must pay a greater price and brave greater dangers. This is also why talent is so important. If you are talented in a specific form of cultivation, you can make great achievements without making so many sacrifices."

"Is there an easy way for people to ascertain their talents, swordmaster?" "Not as far as I know. This should be a priority of the Red Collective. Just wait."