CHAPTER 246: CHAPTER 154: THE MECHANICAL ORIGIN! THE INCOMPLETE MECHANICAL CORE!

This was a pitch-black work of art!

Indeed, Su Ping still described it as a "work of art."

Mainly, its design was just too exaggerated.

Su Ping could see every cool pose and ferocious feature he could imagine embodied in this thing.

It was entirely pitch-black. Where the wheels should be, bright red lines snaked across, resembling fresh blood or perhaps blazing flames.

It was fancy, yet without that ghostly vibe. The texture of the car’s body was extremely unique.

Its low-slung body, combined with a floating chassis, ensured it could glide over almost any terrain with ease.

As Su Ping caressed the shell of this thing, he was dazzled and mesmerized.

It truly is cool.

There was no doubt about its appeal, evident from the gazes of guests coming and going at the Yuntian Resort entrance, and the many people who had gathered to look.

Few men with conventional tastes could dislike such a thing.

Dong Muyun stood by, a smug smile playing on her lips. "Like it?"

"Love it, love it!" Su Ping immediately nodded.

"Glad you like it! This thing’s value is even higher than my Red King!"

Su Ping raised an eyebrow, looking at the woman in surprise. "Oh?"

Dong Muyun gave him a knowing glance, tossed the keys over, and then slipped into the passenger seat of this thing.

Su Ping caught the keys and got into the car as well.

The interior was still dominated by black, but it was blended with a dark, night-blue style.

Evidently, the restless energy of its black and red exterior signified an unrivaled, surging passion.

Meanwhile, the dark, night-blue interior was designed to keep the driver cool and composed at all times.

A great design style; I really like it.

However, it’s clear this thing isn’t just about its appearance.

"For this thing of yours, value-wise, several hundred million wouldn’t cover it!" Dong Muyun said, a self-congratulatory smile on her face.

"Oh? Are the materials very precious?"

"More than just precious materials?" Dong Muyun snorted lightly. "Generally speaking, the Mechanical Core of an intelligent sports car is a semi-finished product from a failed Mechanical Pet Beast awakening, but this one is different!"

Su Ping looked at the triumphant Dong Muyun. "What?"

The value of a Mechanical Core was clear from their previous bet.

Su Ping felt a keen pang of regret for not having obtained that Mechanical Core.

"You mean, this isn’t just an intelligent sports car? It’s a Mechanical Pet Beast?"

Among all Pet Beasts, Mechanical Pet Beasts—a type that had emerged in the last century—were renowned as luxury items.

Time-Series Pet Beasts were exceptionally rare, while Mechanical Pet Beasts demanded vast sums of money and resources for both their creation and cultivation.

Still, as a special type of Pet Beast with great potential, countless Beast Tamers, once they had sufficient resources, chose a Mechanical Pet Beast as their Contracted Beast.

A sports car that’s a Mechanical Pet Beast with an awakened Mechanical Core? Its value is indeed far greater than a regular intelligent sports car.

Could this woman really have gotten an awakened Mechanical Core to use as her big toy?

Isn’t that too extravagant?

Clearly, Su Ping had been overthinking it.

Dong Muyun touched her nose, slightly embarrassed, then gave him an irritated glance. "What are you babbling about? If you want to use a Mechanical Core to attempt to awaken a Mechanical Pet Beast, that’s possible. But how could I let you play with an already awakened Mechanical Pet Beast?"

"So this is..." Su Ping trailed off.

Thrown off by Su Ping, Dong Muyun lost the desire to keep him in suspense. "This Mechanical Core is in a state of semi-awakening, but it can no longer continue the process."

"Semi-awakening?" Su Ping asked.

Mechanical Pet Beasts were luxury items, so Su Ping clearly didn’t know much about Mechanical Cores.

Dong Muyun patiently continued to explain, "The origin of a Mechanical Pet Beast is its Mechanical Core; you should know that, right?

"A Mechanical Core is to Mechanical Pet Beasts what the heart and brain are to animal-type Pet Beasts, what roots are to Plant Type Pet Beasts, what Crystalline Cores are to Elemental Beast Pets, and what Soul Fire is to Undead Pet Beasts.

"The birth of the Mechanical Core was an accidental discovery by a Breeder from Lion Country, the so-called Sun Never Sets Empire. It’s a special object formed from the combination of the Heart of Gold Element and Electromagnetic Force.

"People discovered that after this combination, this ’Heart of Gold Element’ transformed into something entirely new.

"This new object could integrate with and control any mechanical entity, developing a consciousness similar to Elementalization, except it couldn’t possess an elemental body. Instead, it would use the connected mechanical structures as its body."

Su Ping nodded. In the industrial age, the emergence of such a Pet Beast, perfectly suited to the era, represented another leap forward in the history of human Pet Beast cultivation.

"So, there are two steps in the awakening process of a Mechanical Core!" Dong Muyun explained. "The first step, which is the hardest and most important, is to transmit information to the Mechanical Core to allow it to develop intelligence and self-awareness!"

She continued, "Usually, once this first step is completed and the Mechanical Core successfully develops self-awareness and intelligence, the Mechanical Pet Beast’s awakening can be considered complete.

"This is because the second step—connecting to a mechanical body and shaping its mechanical form—is quite simple."