CHAPTER 128: CHAPTER 128: PLANS

The morning air of Suarez, Iligan City, carried the hum of the megaplant’s construction. Richard stood on an elevated observation platform, overlooking the vast construction site. His eyes scanned the progress, noting every detail from panel laying to intricate wiring. A few miles away, the Lugait fabrication plant, inside the Bytebull compound was also rising rapidly, dedicated to Solid State Batteries and Carbon Nanotube (CNT) chips, outfitted with the latest automation.

A Japanese contractor, Mr. Sasaki, approached Richard. "Santamo-san," he began, bowing slightly, "the progress is exceptional. Your vision, combined with our teams and local expertise, has accelerated beyond initial projections." He gestured expansively. "Completion for both the megaplant and the fabrication plant, we estimate by the end of the year. November at the earliest."

Richard offered a rare, genuine smile. "Excellent, Sasaki-san. Your efficiency is unmatched. I look forward to working with you again very soon with the expansion. We’re already planning the next phase: EV megafactories in Marawi City for Solid State battery production, expanded EV production line in Clark, Pampanga, and CNT chip fabrication in Cebu, specifically Lapu-Lapu City."

Sasaki’s eyes lit up, bowing deeply. "Truly! An honor, Santamo-san! Bytebull’s ambition knows no bounds, and we are privileged to be a part of it."

The costs involved were staggering. These two current projects alone had already consumed $594 million USD. The planned expansion, which would dot the Philippine archipelago with Bytebull’s industrial might, was projected to swallow another $2 billion USD. Yet, for Richard, money was merely a tool, a necessary lubricant for the gears of his true objective.

Richard’s gaze drifted, seeing not construction, but an invisible counter in his mind, a glowing tally of System Points. Money is just money, he affirmed internally. SP... SP is eternal. His last mental tally, after Lina’s physical body and other crucial System purchases, showed 33 million SP. A substantial sum, a testament to Bytebull’s explosive global impact, but agonizingly inadequate for the coming storm only he and Lina fully comprehended. He needed more. Much, much more. A primal hunger for raw power, quantifiable in SP, clawed at him.

He had set a new, immediate target: at least 100 million SP. This was the minimum, the bedrock of power required to prepare for the brutal battle with the Krill Empire. To underestimate such an ancient, interstellar foe, one that saw humanity as cattle, would be catastrophic. If humanity was to win, it wouldn’t be through conventional warfare alone; it would be a "shock and awe" tactic on a scale never before conceived, a systemic disruption so profound it would buy humanity precious, irreplaceable time – time to build up, to consolidate, to prepare for a full-scale war that Richard knew was not a distant threat, but an encroaching reality.

His mind raced, processing Bytebull’s public strategy through the lens of his hidden, crucial agenda. The most efficient way to build SP, bypassing cumbersome physical resources and suspicious capital consumption, was through the System’s core mechanics: software. Information. Accessibility. Ubiquity.

He had a plan. A bold, disruptive, and utterly necessary gambit. They would release a new Operating System. A unified, universal OS for both mobile and PCs, seamlessly integrating their advanced Phoenix AI. It would, without a doubt, disrupt existing tech giants, sending shockwaves through the global market.

But holding back now, adhering to traditional strategies, would spell terrible trouble. It would slow down critical SP generation. He could apply the same disruptive strategy to Phoenix AI itself. He would open-source a foundational version – its kernel, its core source code – making it freely available for anyone to use, modify, and distribute.

The public justification would be simple, elegant, and disarmingly generous: an "advanced" version of the OS, packed with premium features, enhanced AI capabilities, and exclusive services, would be available for subscription plans. That commercial tier would assuage any suspicions about why Bytebull, a company renowned for its revolutionary technology, would give away something so powerful for free.

Money is money. SP is eternal. The mantra resonated deep within him, a silent, burning hunger that eclipsed all other desires. Every download, every line of code adopted, every user integrated into his new digital ecosystem would be another increment, another precious System Point, another step closer to the insurmountable power he needed to defy an Empire.

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Later that afternoon, Richard lay on the plush, ergonomic chaise in his private room at the Bytebull HQ, the silence a stark contrast to the earlier industrial clamor. Nearly three months had passed since his forced awakening, his body’s dramatic transformation having settled into this new, unsettling normal.

The initial stress of concealing his altered appearance from the myriad employees, including Mira—his acting secretary since Lina was consumed by far more critical, covert tasks—had been considerable. He hadn’t heard directly from Lina in days, but he anticipated her next report with a mix of eagerness and trepidation; her information was always paradigm-shifting.

He had fabricated a convincing rumor, carefully disseminated through Mira, that his drastic change in appearance—the pure white skin, the startling white hair—was the result of an experimental, cutting-edge surgical operation, a "Korean idol-style makeover."

He’d considered dyeing his hair black, a quick return to normalcy, but it wouldn’t align with the elaborate excuse. So, he’d merely had it cut short, maintaining the striking white. Beneath this meticulously crafted facade, however, he was no longer merely human. He was a force to be reckoned with, an Anu, or whatever unfathomable designation the universe chose to bestow upon him.

He extended his right hand, and the familiar holographic interface of the System shimmered into existence. His personal status profile glowed before him:

Richard Santamo’s latest known status and attributes reflect significant transformations and advancements, as detailed in the sources.

Name: Richard Santamo

Race: Anu

Path-Awakening: Anu 1st Grade Psi-Warrior

Anu Blood Concentration: 100%

Age: 24

Weight: 184 lbs

Height: 6’8"

SP: 33,401,145

[ SHOP ] [ SKILLS ]

System Level: 3

Mindspace: (Incomplete) { Please Collect More Knowledge Crystals }

Stat Points Left: 685

Attributes:

STR (Strength): 500

CON (Constitution): 500

AGI (Agility): 500

PER (Perception): 500

VIT (Vitality): 500

INT (Intelligence): 501

PSY (Psionics): 50

Technologies Learned 6/10:

Vector Core

Advanced Modular Fabrication System (AMFS)

Quantum Server Architecture (Quantum Server Rack 34QU - ZT Model)

Quantum Cogitator Core

Quantum-Flux Generation Reactor (Q-MFR)

Quantum-Flux Capacitor Cell (QFCC)

Skills:

Information Processing (Lvl 3)

Knowledge Acquisition

Nanite Integration:

Internal Nanite Regeneration & Biological Augmentation

External Nanite Deployment & Manipulation

Pain Dampening

Static Paralysis

Adaptive Perception & Kinetics

Psionic Sovereignty.

Richard was more or less amazed by the 500 stat in each attribute, and the impressive 50 in his PSY stat. However, his attention quickly gravitated towards the Mindspace entry: (Incomplete) { Please Collect More Knowledge Crystals }. Where the hell am I going to collect those? he wondered, a fleeting wave of frustration washing over him.

He sighed, dismissing his stat profile, and opened the System Shop. He was just window shopping, mostly, hoping to stumble upon something useful that wouldn’t bankrupt his SP reserves and he was about to feel very broke again.

Category: Infrastructure (From complex facilities to planet-spanning constructs)

[Blueprint: Advanced Orbital Habitat]

Description: A large, self-sustaining orbital station or city-sized habitat, offering diverse biomes, closed-loop ecosystems, and robust shielding for thousands of inhabitants.

Price Range: 1,000,000 SP - 50,000,000 SP (Depends on size, population capacity, and specialized functions like research or manufacturing)

[Blueprint: Automated Resource Extraction Network (Planetary)]

Description: A fully autonomous planetary-scale system for efficient and environmentally controlled extraction, processing, and transportation of minerals, gasses, or liquids from a planet or large asteroid.

Price Range: 100,000,000 SP

[Blueprint: Stellar Gateway Array]

Description: A massive, stable array of synchronized jump gates or warp portals, enabling instantaneous or near-instantaneous travel between star systems. Requires immense power and precision.

Price Range: 1,500,000,000 SP(1.5 Billion SP)

[Blueprint: Ecumenopolis (Planetary City Overlay)]

Description: The complete infrastructure and environmental control system required to transform an entire habitable planet into a single, continuous city, extending into the atmosphere and sub-surface.

Price: 1,000,000,000 SP (1 Billion SP)

[Gigastructure Blueprint: Niven Ring (Habitat)]

Description: A smaller, more manageable version of a Ringworld, typically planetary-orbit sized (e.g., 1000 km radius). A rotating habitat providing artificial gravity on its inner surface, often with transparent sections to allow for a "sun" and "sky."

Price: 4,000,000,000 SP (4 Billion SP)

[Gigastructure Blueprint: Ringworld]

Description: A colossal artificial ring, often 1 AU in radius, encircling a star and rotating to create artificial gravity on its inner surface. It provides an astronomical amount of habitable land area.

Price: 50,000,000,000 SP (50 Billion SP)

[Gigastructure Blueprint: Alderson Disk]

Description: A flat, disc-shaped megastructure, many thousands of kilometers thick, with its outer radius equivalent to a planetary orbit. The star sits in the hole at the center, offering quadrillions of square kilometers of habitable surface.

Price: 100,000,000,000 SP (100 Billion SP)

A collective of highly expensive and advanced technologies ranging from 1 billion for an Ecumenopolis to 100 billion Alderson Disk. "Jesus Christ," Richard muttered. "How am I gonna find that much SP?" The System always had a personality, a sarcastic flair that seemed to tease his apparent poverty. He then switched to another category, continuing his window shopping.