Chapter 159: Dual Talent, The Mechanical Heart

Chapter 159: Dual Talent, The Mechanical Heart

As he spoke, tears welled up in Yuan Hecheng's eyes.

Lu Heng was moved, finally understanding the reason for his urgency.

A father, upon learning that his ten-year-old daughter had been conscripted for the Abyssal Battlefield, couldn't help but feel anxious.

Lu Heng furrowed his brows, trying to recall any information about Yuan Hecheng's daughter.

Yuan Hecheng was a well-known Tempered Master in Daxia, renowned in the later eras.

There were numerous news reports about Yuan Hecheng in the future, but after Lu Heng recalled them, he couldn't find any information about his daughter.

Perhaps, out of the desire to protect his daughter, he had kept her out of the media spotlight.

Or, there might be another possibility; his daughter could have perished in the Abyssal Battlefield.

The Abyssal Battlefield conscripted Mutants without age restrictions, but the recruitment rules followed a pattern based on the Mutants' combat power.

The lower the combat power, the lower the chances of being conscripted, so life-based Mutants were rarely recruited.

According to the recruitment patterns of the Abyssal Battlefield, only those with a certain level of combat power would be drafted.

However, Yuan Hecheng's daughter was only ten years old. What reason could have led to her conscription to the Abyssal Battlefield?

This question was difficult to ask.

Lu Heng thought for a moment and asked, "How much time is left on the conscription countdown?"

"There are still two days... no, only a day and a half left," Yuan Hecheng replied, realizing halfway through that it was already afternoon, and most of the day had passed.

Hearing this, Lu Heng frowned and said, "Even if I give you ten million now, you won't have enough time to find a suitable Skill Crystal Core."

Yuan Hecheng sighed and said, "I have no other choice. I'll have to take whatever I can get."

For so many days, Lu Heng was the first person willing to listen to him talk at length.

Therefore, he saw Lu Heng as his last hope, and his eyes shone with a glimmer of hope, "Mr. Lu, I don't need ten million. Eight million is fine too. I'm willing to sign a twenty-year bondage contract. I'll do whatever you ask."

After a moment's consideration, Lu Heng said, "I can sign you up. Ten million is no problem. However, you'll need to be my Tempered Master assistant. I can handle commercial orders up to Tempering Level 3. Also, it's probably too late to buy Skill Crystal Cores now. I'll have my assistant bring over a list of Crystal Cores, and you can take any suitable ones from the list."

Yuan Hecheng couldn't believe his good fortune had come so suddenly that he almost knelt down, "Thank you, Mr. Lu. Thank you."

At that moment, Lin Zeyu entered the room, saying, "I've been waiting for you for ages. The manager said you were here. What's the matter? Can we leave now?"

Lu Heng waved him over, "Perfect timing. Have someone draw up a Tempered Master contract for ten years. The advance payment is ten million, and also, have someone bring over the list of Skill Crystal Cores."

Lin Zeyu blinked and pointed at Yuan Hecheng, asking, "Are you signing him?"

Yuan Hecheng quickly stood up and bowed to Lin Zeyu, "Boss, my name is Yuan Hecheng, and I'm a Tempered Master."

As Tempered Masters weren't in high demand, Lin Zeyu couldn't see anything special about Yuan Hecheng.

More importantly, Yuan Hecheng had never entered the Tempering Castle or undergone any assessments, so how did they skip straight to the signing stage?

Lin Zeyu blinked and asked, "Do you need to conduct an examination?"

At the mention of an examination, Yuan Hecheng's heart clenched with anxiety.

Although he was confident, he couldn't help but worry about the possibility of failure.

If the examination didn't go well, the agreed-upon contract would fall through, and he'd rather die than risk his daughter's life.

After all, it was a gamble with his daughter's life at stake, and even a one-in-a-million chance of failure was too much for him to bear.

Lu Heng waved his hand dismissively, "No need, just do as I say, and do it quickly."

Lin Zeyu didn't ask further and agreed, "Alright, I'll get it done."

He turned and called for someone to handle the matter.

The company was highly efficient, and they already had a ready-made contract that only needed adjustments to the duration and amount.

Yuan Hecheng signed the contract, and upon seeing Lin Zeyu stamp the company's seal, the weight of worry finally lifted from his heart.

Lu Heng continued, "Old Yuan, is it okay to address you like this?"

"Yes, yes, you're too kind, Mr. Lu," Yuan Hecheng nodded eagerly in agreement.

"We have some Skill Crystal Cores in stock, and you can take the suitable ones for now. But you'll need to bring your daughter here so we can choose the skills that match her talents," Lu Heng handed him a list of Skill Crystal Cores.

"Okay, I'll bring her right away. Is it here?" Yuan Hecheng had signed the contract, but he wasn't sure if there were suitable Skill Crystal Cores for his daughter.

If there weren't any suitable ones, he'd have to purchase them elsewhere, which might not leave enough time.

After all, the countdown to the draft was less than a day and a half.

...

An hour later, Yuan Hecheng arrived with a young girl.

The girl was adorable and well-behaved.

When they met Lin Zeyu at the entrance, Yuan Hecheng hurriedly said, "Yao Yao, greet the gentleman, this is Uncle Lin... or should I say, Brother Lin?"

Lin Zeyu's eyes widened, "Do I look that old?"

"Then call him Brother Lin," Yuan Hecheng quickly agreed.

Yuan Yao Yao blushed a little and shrank back, then whispered a greeting.

After they sat down, Lu Heng examined the girl, feeling a vague familiarity but unable to recall where he had seen her before.

He was certain she wasn't the peak-powered mutant from the future, as he had never heard of such a young mutant with such power in his previous life.

"What talent have you awakened?" Lu Heng asked.

"Um..."

Yuan Yao Yao placed her hands on her knees and fidgeted with her nails before hesitantly answering, "Metal Ion Restoration."

Lu Heng was puzzled by this talent and glanced at Su Muyu, who understood and left the room. After a while, she returned with a cup of blue liquid, "Copper Sulfate Solution."

Lu Heng pushed the cup of blue solution towards her, "Can you do it?"

Yuan Yao Yao didn't speak but slowly extended her hand, dipping her right index finger into the copper sulfate solution.

After about ten seconds, she withdrew her finger, which was now covered in a layer of reddish-purple metallic substance.

This talent was unique and valuable in the research field, but it didn't translate into significant combat power.

Lu Heng asked further, "Can you control this ability? Can you activate it when needed and deactivate it when not?"

Yuan Yao Yao shook her head, "When I touch water, a layer of something forms on my hand."

She didn't like this ability.

Whenever she touched water, a layer of metallic substance would form on her skin.

It didn't have to be a highly concentrated copper sulfate solution; even regular tap water would trigger a reaction.

Since tap water also contained trace amounts of metal ions, her ability would restore them, causing them to adhere to her skin.

Although the amount was minimal, it would accumulate over time, and she could feel it.

It was bearable on her hands, but the most uncomfortable part was taking a shower.

Lu Heng could read her thoughts from her expression and smiled, "As you level up, you'll gradually learn to control this ability and deactivate it when it's not needed."

Yuan Yao Yao's mood brightened at the prospect of being able to control her ability in the future.

Lu Heng continued, "Are there any other talents or abilities?"

"No... none," Yuan Yao Yao shook her head, lowering it further with each shake.

"Are you sure?" Lu Heng asked again.

Yuan Yao Yao nodded with her head down, but Lu Heng felt she wasn't being entirely truthful.

After all, the Metal Ion Restoration talent didn't offer much in terms of combat power.

Additionally, her current physical condition was weak, and with a low level, it was unlikely she'd be drafted onto the Abyss Battlefield based on the established patterns.

Therefore, there were only two possibilities: either she wouldn't be drafted, or she was hiding a talent with significant combat potential.

Lu Heng continued, "How much time is left on your countdown? Recite the numbers."

Yao Yao recited a series of numbers: "One day, eight hours, twelve minutes, and nineteen seconds. Eighteen seconds, seventeen seconds..."

Lu Heng quickly checked the time, and the countdown seemed to match the time of midnight tomorrow.

The countdown was accurate, and it was unlikely that the young girl would lie, as she seemed to constantly keep track of the countdown.

Furthermore, this was her first conscription, so it was unlikely that she could accurately recite the countdown.

In other words, she had indeed been conscripted.

That left only one possibility—she was hiding a powerful combat-related talent.

Lu Heng's tone turned serious as he said, "You're lying."

Upon hearing this, Yao Yao froze, while Yuan Hecheng, standing beside her, looked puzzled and defended his daughter, "Mr. Lu, Yao Yao is a very sensible and well-behaved girl."

Lu Heng stared at the girl's expression, but her head kept lowering.

"The countdown has less than a day left. The survival rate of the Abyss Battlefield conscripts is less than 30%. In other words, after the countdown ends, there's a 70% chance you won't return, and you'll never see your father again. Are you sure you want to keep lying?"

Yao Yao's body began to tremble, and she bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Mr. Lu, Yao Yao is a sensible girl; she wouldn't lie," Yuan Hecheng continued to defend his daughter.

Lu Heng raised his hand to interrupt him and said, "Let her speak for herself."

Yao Yao wiped her tears with her hand and nodded in admission, "There's another talent in the data, but I think I might have a mental illness."

Yuan Hecheng was unaware of this, and she had never thought her daughter would lie to him, "What's going on?"

Having two initial talents was extremely rare, one in a million.

Lu Heng asked, "What is the other talent?"

Yao Yao's hands clutched her skirt, and after a moment, she replied, "Mechanical Heart. I can hear the refrigerator and rice cooker at home talking. I must have a mental illness."

Yuan Hecheng's expression changed when he heard this, and he tried to explain, "Yao Yao's mother passed away from a mental illness, so..."

Lu Heng's eyebrows raised slightly upon hearing the talent was 'Mechanical Heart'.

This talent was very unique, just as she had described.

It was said that those with this talent could hear machines speak, and in their eyes, all machines had a 'life' of their own.

Of course, without understanding this talent, one might indeed think it was a mental illness based solely on the description.

Lu Heng considered this and explained, "The Mechanical Heart talent does allow one to hear machines speak, but it's not a mental illness. Moreover, this ability is powerful if used correctly."

If her talent was indeed 'Mechanical Heart', her conscription made sense.

Conscripts for the Abyss Battlefield were chosen based on the mutants' combat power, talents, and skills.

In his past life, someone had proposed a theory that the combat rating of the same mutant entering different Abyss Battlefields would vary.

For instance, if a mutant with the 'Mechanical Heart' talent entered the Demon God's Graveyard, their talent rating would be low because there were few mechanical units to utilize this talent.

Conversely, if they entered the Cyber World, the 'Mechanical Heart' talent would soar, and the rating would be exceptionally high.

This theory had never been proven, but Lu Heng believed there was some truth to it.

Following this theory, it was highly likely that Yao Yao would be conscripted into a world with mechanical units.

If it were a world without machines, her talent rating would be low, and she wouldn't meet the conscription threshold.

Therefore, the Abyss Battlefield she was conscripted to likely had a significant number of mechanical units.

Moreover, since there was no mention of Yuan Hecheng having a daughter in the news in his past life, it was likely that Yao Yao hadn't survived her previous conscription.

After all, she was just a ten-year-old girl with no other life-saving skills, making survival in the Abyss World extremely challenging.

Su Muyu felt pity for the young girl and took the initiative to say, "Let's help her."

Lu Heng picked up the core crystal list and said, "Then let's see if there's a suitable skill core crystal. By the way, how many skill slots do you have?"

Yao Yao held up three fingers, "Three."

"No lying this time, right?" Lu Heng joked.

"I'm not lying. I... I just..." Yao Yao pouted, wanting to explain.

"Brother Lu is just teasing you, be good," Yuan Hecheng quickly began to search through the core crystal list.

All he wanted now was to prepare a few more life-saving skills for his daughter, nothing more. He only wished for her to return alive from the Abyss World.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end