"Phantom Beast series strengthening serum?"
Hearing the term for the first time, Han Qiuli blinked her eyes, her expression filled with confusion.
"Yes!"
Han Xianxing nodded, "This is also the strengthening serum I want you to inject!"
"Everyone knows that after injecting strengthening serum, in addition to the overall strength and speed of the human body being enhanced, it can generally strengthen one aspect of a person's abilities, and this ability is usually related to animals."
"Ordinary examples include acquiring the agility of a wolf and its sharp claws, the burly physique of a tiger, the keen sense of smell of a dog, or the wings of a bird..."
"Some can also gain a certain connection ability with the corresponding animals..."
"But these are all ordinary animal series!"
"And like my Tyrannosaurus Rex, your Uncle Xu's Pterodactyl, and Uncle Tie's Armored Dragon, the three of us should all belong to the ancient animal series!"
Han Xianxing paused here. He took a deep breath, as if adjusting his state of mind, and then spoke again, "And in the strengthening serum series, there is an extremely mysterious strengthening serum called the Phantom Beast series... Injecting this strengthening serum grants abilities that transcend human cognition!"
"In the Phantom Beast series, there are creatures that exist in human myths and legends, such as the Hellhound, Yamata no Orochi, the Kraken of the North Sea, the Nine-tailed Heavenly Fox, the Seven-Colored Thunder-Devouring Python... and even the Phoenix, Vermilion Bird, and White Tiger..."
Han Xianxing listed dozens of types of Phantom Beast series strengthening serums, leaving Han Qiuli's eyes wide open and her small mouth agape in shock.
"Fa... Father... This... This..."
Han Qiuli wanted to say something, but she didn't know where to begin.
"Lili, don't just say it's you. When I first learned this news, my jaw dropped. It literally fell off... and I had to click it back into place..."
Han Xianxing was not too surprised by Han Qiuli's overwhelming shock.
"Father, where did you get this... information?"
"How have you never told me all these years!"
After a while, Han Qiuli calmed down a little and asked.
"It was 20 years ago, when I obtained the Tyrannosaurus Rex strengthening serum!"
"The location was here, in this Red Bank Ruins, it was an underground laboratory..."
"Hoo~!"
Han Xianxing let out a long sigh, "Lili, the world after the Great Cataclysm is incredibly cruel. Seas turn into mulberry fields in an instant, a moment's thought, a single glance. This is not an exaggeration, it's something that can truly happen!"
"My Tyrannosaurus Rex strength is already very powerful in the eyes of many, but compared to some people, it's nothing..."
"Hoo~ Lili, do you know how this Red Bank Ruins got its name 'Red Bank'?"
Han Xianxing let out a long sigh and looked towards the direction of the crimson grand canyon they had flown over earlier.
"How did it come about? Was it due to sudden geological changes?"
"Something like an earthquake?"
Although Han Qiuli had heard about it before, Han Xianxing's question made her a little uncertain.
"No!"
Han Xianxing gently shook his head, "It was split open by someone's sword!"
"Wh-what?"
"A grand canyon hundreds of meters wide... someone... someone split it open with a sword..."
Han Qiuli blinked her eyes, full of disbelief.
"Yes~!"
"That scene back then... I even thought I was hallucinating... but the fractured surface of the grand canyon, its strangely neat and smooth appearance... constantly reminded me that the strike from the sky that day was real and definite..."
Han Xianxing also spoke with emotion when mentioning this.
"That strike came from the sky?"
Han Qiuli looked up at the sky with curiosity, but there was nothing there except clouds.
"Let's not talk about that anymore... Twenty years ago, while exploring the Red Bank Ruins, I accidentally found the Tyrannosaurus Rex strengthening serum. I risked injecting it, but I couldn't withstand the surging power that was like a mountain collapsing, and I was about to explode. "
"But an old man passed by and saved me with a silver needle... Then he soared into the sky and flew away, like a legendary immortal..."
"I don't know that person's name, I could only faintly sense the arcane energy fluctuations emanating from them..."
"This is also why I taught you to cultivate arcane energy since you were young!"
Han Xianxing's tone shifted, and he quickly explained to Han Qiuli, his eyes full of memories.
"I see... No, Father, since it's arcane energy, why didn't you send me to the Arcane City to study?"
Han Qiuli nodded, but then as she thought about it carefully, she shook her head.
"That's because the Arcane City is too complicated!"
"And the strengthening serum Xu Kuang obtained, while perhaps not as good as the Tyrannosaurus Rex strengthening serum, given his infrequent combat, his fighting strength is likely no less than mine!"
"Furthermore, the Arcane City is very far from here, and I dare not risk sending you alone to study there!"
"Xu Kuang... there's something strange about him too. I can't figure out what his situation is. I investigated in secret for several years before I got some clues!"
As if he had expected Han Qiuli's question, Han Xianxing spoke very quickly.
"Xu Kuang?"
Hearing this, Han Qiuli's brows furrowed again.
She had always had a question: her father was clearly much stronger than Xu Kuang, yet Han Xianxing had specifically instructed her not to provoke Xu Kuang unless absolutely necessary.
Could there be some hidden story behind this?
"Lili, you should know that at the beginning of the Great Cataclysm, the forces possessing mechs were not limited to Mech City, right?"
Han Xianxing said as he walked around, observing their surroundings.
"This... I remember Mech City was just a minor force back then, even considered a large exploration team..."
"At that time, the one with the most and strongest mechs was Star Stepping City... It's said they even built things like interstellar warships..."
"Back then, when almost everyone was struggling to survive during the Great Cataclysm, Star Stepping City had already vowed to unify the entire continent..."
"However, later... Star Stepping City was almost completely annihilated overnight..."
"The reasons for its annihilation are widely debated, with all sorts of theories..."
Han Qiuli recalled for a moment and spoke.
"It's hard to imagine how Star Stepping City was annihilated... That was a place said to be able to withstand nuclear bombs!"
"And after Star Stepping City was destroyed, many forces explored the ruins... and began to obtain mechs, developing various mech forces, among which Mech City developed the fastest..."
Han Qiuli paused and added.
"That's right! Mech City did develop afterward!"
Han Xianxing nodded and continued, "Lili, do you know why, among so many mech forces, only Mech City grew to become the behemoth it is today?"
"It's because Mech City possessed the most important thing for mechs, and other forces didn't have it, nor had they ever heard of it!"
Without waiting for Han Qiuli to answer, Han Xianxing spoke again.
Han Qiuli remained silent, looking at her father with a questioning gaze, knowing he hadn't finished.
"That thing is called the Seed Record!"
Indeed, Han Xianxing spoke again.
"Seed Record? Is it related to the mech core component, the seed?"
Han Qiuli frowned slightly.
"It should be related, but I don't know what the Seed Record is... Here, take this. It might be useful in the future!"
Saying that, Han Xianxing's hand flashed, and three bamboo slips appeared in his hand.
"Father, this is?"
Han Qiuli was completely bewildered as she took them.
...