Amidst the fierce competition between Yuanlong, Qin Corporation, Stellar, Mo Group, and nearly half of the tech industry, the annual Xia Nation Technology Summit commenced.
The venue was set in Jingzhou’s "Future City."
This was no longer just a blueprint from seven years ago.
From the initial investment of 100 billion, the total funding had now surpassed the trillion mark.
And "Future City" lived up to its name.
Within its boundaries, low-noise maglev tracks weaved between mirror-like skyscrapers.
Driverless vehicles glided silently along dedicated lanes.
The exteriors of buildings themselves served as massive flexible displays, streaming real-time weather updates, news, and artistic data visualizations.
Seven years ago, Lu Chenyuan had drawn this grand vision.
Seven years later, Xia Nation’s top tech giants and national resources had turned it into reality.
The summit’s main venue, resembling a colossal silver seashell, stood at the heart of Future City.
At the entrance, crowds surged.
Tech moguls, investors, and journalists from across the globe gathered here.
The atmosphere was tense and charged.
All eyes, intentionally or not, were drawn to two directions:
Yuanlong Tech’s exhibition booth.
Qin Corporation’s exhibition booth.
One to the east, the other to the west.
Separated by the central plaza, they faced each other like two titans poised for battle.
The air was thick with the scent of gunpowder.
Everyone wondered how these two giants, after months of brutal infighting, would clash today.
Inside Yuanlong’s lounge, Ren Qian stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, holding a cup of coffee.
Her gaze fixed on Qin Corporation’s glaring logo in the plaza below, her brow slightly furrowed.
"Qin Ya has thrown half the company’s budget into this," she murmured.
"Looks like it’s a fight to the death."
Beside her, Lin Yuan was handling urgent matters for Lianshan on his tablet.
He didn’t look up, merely responding with a quiet "Hmm."
Since marrying Ren Qian, he had grown even more composed.
As if, with her by his side, even the sky collapsing wouldn’t faze him.
"Will Lu Chenyuan show up today?" Ren Qian still felt uneasy.
"He said he would," Lin Yuan set the tablet aside and met her eyes.
"But not in the way we expect."
Ren Qian sighed.
She seemed to have guessed Lu Chenyuan’s intentions.
Yet the more he acted this way, the heavier the pressure in her heart grew.
The summit’s opening ceremony proceeded as usual.
Speeches from officials, industry reports, white paper releases.
Everything seemed uneventful—until the keynote address.
The host stepped onto the stage, wearing a mysteriously excited smile.
"Ladies and gentlemen, our next speaker is… extraordinary."
"He has been absent from the public eye for a long time."
"Yet everything he has built has profoundly shaped our era."
"Let’s give a warm welcome to…"
The host paused, deliberately building suspense.
Spotlights instantly converged on the center of the stage.
"The founder of Yuanlong Tech—Mr. Lu Chenyuan!"
For a moment, the room fell into dead silence.
Then, thunderous applause and gasps erupted.
Everyone rose in shock, staring at the stage entrance.
Lu Chenyuan?
The man who had announced his "retirement," who had been living a reclusive life with his family?
Under the collective gaze, Lu Chenyuan walked calmly onto the stage.
He wore simple casual attire—a white shirt and dark trousers.
No tie, no designer labels, not even an assistant in sight.
Alone, he reached the center.
Behind him, the massive screen displayed no slides, no script.
Just a single line of text:
"Widen the Road."
Lu Chenyuan picked up the microphone and scanned the audience.
His gaze was calm yet carried a power that instantly silenced the thousands present.
"Hello, everyone. I’m Lu Chenyuan."
His voice, crisp through the speakers, reached every corner.
"Long time no see."
He smiled, as if greeting old friends.
"The past year has been… eventful for our industry."
"Price wars, PR battles, talent wars."
"Everyone has worked hard. Sacrificed much."
"But I have a question."
He paused, his eyes sweeping over familiar faces in the front row—
Ren Qian, Lin Yuan, Qin Ya, and Baker, Stellar’s China CEO.
"Are we racing on a narrow mountain path?"
"Chasing, overtaking, refusing to yield—until we’re battered and bruised?"
"All for the sake of being the sole champion who reaches the summit?"
"And yet, we’ve forgotten."
"On either side of this path… are bottomless cliffs."
"Below those cliffs stand our real opponents—armed with rifles."
The room was deathly still.
His metaphor was too vivid. Too brutal.
It sent a chill down the spines of everyone listening.
"Is this truly the only road we can take?"
Lu Chenyuan’s voice rang out again.
"Can we stop racing?"
"Can we work together?"
"To widen this narrow path into an eight-lane highway?"
"Where every vehicle can speed ahead without obstruction?"
......
Lu Chenyuan’s entire speech lasted barely ten minutes.
Then, he set the microphone down, bowed deeply, and walked offstage.
Yet after he left, the room remained silent.
Until, from the front row, a woman in a red dress slowly stood and began to clap.
It was Qin Ya.
Like sparks igniting a prairie fire, applause erupted across the venue.
Amid the ovation, Baker wore a professional smile as he joined in.
But his eyes held no warmth—only icy vigilance.
Leaning toward his assistant, he whispered, barely audible:
"Alert headquarters immediately."
"Lu Chenyuan just flipped the table."
The assistant nodded and slipped out unnoticed.
Baker straightened, watching Lu Chenyuan’s retreating figure with a deepening gaze.
He knew Stellar’s golden days in Xia Nation’s tech circle were over.
During the summit’s break, behind the closed doors of an exclusive VIP lounge, a private meeting took place.
Lu Chenyuan, Mo Qingli, Qin Ya, Ren Qian, Lin Yuan, and founders of other leading tech firms were all present.
No outsider knew what transpired during those four hours.
Only that it must have been a fierce battle of wits—of bargaining, compromise, and high-stakes gambles for the future.
When the doors reopened, each attendee wore a different expression.
Some relieved, some solemn—but no losers.
That afternoon, a joint statement sent shockwaves through the tech world:
The Xia Nation Technology Industry Healthy Development Alliance had been formed!
On the list of initiators for this joint statement, the names of companies such as Abyss Dragon Technologies, Mo Group, and Qin Group stood out prominently.
transmigrates into the role of a villainous rich second-generation kid in an urban fantasy novel, and gets bound to a god-tier choice system. Right at the start, he catches the female lead stealing exam papers! This triggers the villain's choice options! [Choice 1: Pretend you didn't see anything] [Choice 2: Loudly call her out, drawing everyone's attention] [Choice 3: ...] And thus, a twisted villain is born. To avoid getting killed by the protagonist, he has no choice but to take down all the protagonists first. Jiang Che: Nobody understands being twisted better than me!
tions: attribute allocation, analysis, proficiency, and simulation. Specializing in mechanical alchemy, from crafting sorcerous battle armor to handcrafting mechanical maidens, his mechanical legion conquers endless realms... Relying on his wits, he begins with a student-teacher romance, wins over a female director, enslaves a female assassin and a underworld queen, becoming the husband of a Grand Duchess... He enslaves the Goddess of Magic from the divine realm, developing his power simultaneously in both the Wizard World and the Realm of Gods...
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.
