Chapter 1599: 408: Desperate Reversal, Earth’s Newcomer

Shuyan’s war with the Mingwu Clan was still ongoing. During this period, a large number of players surged toward the Ascension Sea, following the Mingwu Army as it devoured the "heritage" of the Ascension Clan.

Quite a few players made a killing during this time.

Vast amounts of resources were digested by players in various ways.

Building wreckage was generally tossed to Emperor Zhao to Decompose into sacrificial power, while the Ascension Clan’s Spiritual Body remnants, Spirit Root Crystal Stones, and other resource-type goods were put up on the Trading House.

In this gluttonous feast, even though the players didn’t lift a finger.

They still got to join in on a lavish all-you-can-eat banquet.

And the epic battle between Shuyan and the Mingwu Clan wasn’t forgotten by the players; frontline reporters advanced along the routes where both sides were withdrawing.

The Guiding Water Ball’s viewpoint zoomed in from high altitude, broadcasting live.

They used this to gain heat, and even tips from onlookers watching the drama; this was also one way many players earned sacrificial power.

In terms of war foundations, the Mingwu Clan held a clear advantage.

But on the level of war system architecture, Shuyan held an absolute edge.

Before obtaining the Spirit Root Rules, Shuyan’s army architecture actually had a severe problem.

Its Story Army under its command was entirely generated by Ink Power; this Energy granted its creations Infinite plasticity.

Shuyan could freely shape warriors into any form, weave any backstory, and even simulate all kinds of Attack methods and life structures.

But the trait of Ink Power only worked at the "shaping" layer, with no Combat Power empowerment whatsoever.

It was like a lump of clay, able to be kneaded into vivid, structurally complex Life.

For example, generating a savage giant dragon.

Yet this dragon’s Breath potency and Scale Armor strength were entirely dependent on how much Ink Power Shuyan invested.

It could not grant its creations Rule-level traits surpassing the grade of the Energy itself.

In contrast, in the Black Tide System, every Species had Rule efficacy backing it, including the Evil Moon Rule, Devouring Rule, Rebound Rule, and so on.

Even the weakest Black Tide Species enjoyed numerous buffed enhancements.

But the Shuyan Army possessed no buff traits at all.

Its Species, while enjoying a System advantage, had no true specialties and were rather mediocre in all aspects.

The Species only changed their life form, but had no Strength that transcended life form.

The addition of the Spirit Root Rules completely resolved this core flaw.

The Derivative Energy of the Spirit Root Rules was itself a powerful Rule-level Combat Power empowerer.

It could inject into Life an engine and Energy circulation system with innate special attributes: the Spirit Root.

The Ascension Clan’s development model was structured around the Spirit Root Rules.

By combining seeds with Spirit Roots, they allowed their people to gain Rule characteristics blessings from birth.

This was a path of "innate empowerment."

It turned their people into existences akin to Rule-derived Life, born with tremendous growth potential.

Then, by integrating lower-level Cultivation Mini Worlds, they industrialized their people’s Cultivation and growth into an assembly line.

After Shuyan obtained the Spirit Root Rules, its choice was even more direct.

It used Ink Power to shape one "Cultivator" form after another; this part could be regarded as a hollow shell.

The Spirit Root Rules generated corresponding Spirit Roots (metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, thunder, ice, etc.) for the shell.

This allowed the Cultivator’s growth and combat methods to come with corresponding Rule characteristics.

For example, metal’s invincible sharpness, wood’s Life Continues, fire’s burning of all things, water’s ultimate softness overcoming hardness...

Ink Power was responsible for creating the life architecture and backstory, while the Spirit Roots injected soul and traits.

The combination of the two completely patched Shuyan’s shortcoming; the army it forged underwent a qualitative leap in Combat Power.

You could regard this as a simplified version of the Star Vein System.

Different Life Souls of players could be used in combination, producing an effect where 1+1 is greater than 2.

After obtaining Spirit Roots, Shuyan also used a similar method to build an army in which two Rule characteristics were combined.

Although it couldn’t achieve fusion at the Rule characteristic level, it did achieve Rule-level complementarity.

On the brutal frontline against the Mingwu Clan, Shuyan’s newly born Cultivation Army displayed astonishing adaptability.

In the face of the Mingwu Warriors’ all-pervading Corrosion.

Within the Shuyan Army, the Sword Cultivators bearing a Geng Metal Spirit Root slashed out peerlessly sharp Sword Qi, which would be instantly coupled with Earth Power by comrades bearing a Thick Earth Spirit Root, turning into countless flying stone torrents wrapped in Solid rock shells, piercing through the mist.

The sharpness of metal and the heaviness of earth combined to create a wondrous complementarity.

They preserved penetration while vastly enhancing durability against the Mingwu Corrosion traits.

Then there were Cultivators with the Li Fire Spirit Root unleashing Heaven-Burning Flame, which, under the Control of Cultivators with the Yinwater Spirit Root, was not neutralized by the mutual restraint of water and fire; instead, it was bound by Water Technique and shaped into streams of high-pressure scorching rotating airflow, like ultra-high-temperature water knives, precisely slicing through Fog Beasts.

Fire’s Frenzy and water’s Control merged, becoming a chaotic Destruction strike.

Though they did not achieve complete fusion on the Rule level to give birth to entirely new traits, they did accomplish architectural complementarity at the army level.

They could also adjust the "ability combination" at any time according to the battlefield situation, greatly slowing the Mingwu Clan’s advance Speed.

But Shuyan’s ambition went far beyond this.

While maintaining the frontline situation, its will had already started to operate frantically across other pages of the Rulebook.

It was grafting and transplanting this powerful seed, the "Spirit Root Rules," into other, radically different story Systems.

In one Technology war narrative depicting an iron torrent and gigantic Mecha, the original Energy Core was modified and replaced.

A new type of engine named the "Spirit Furnace" was written into being, its core precisely a transformed Thunder Spirit Root.