Silas's form flickered as he appeared in the virtual space. Looking around, a thought suddenly struck him.
"Rion, how many manuals have been bought?" he asked, strolling towards the library.
Rion did not respond for some time. Then, after five seconds of silence, it replied.
[15 manuals have been bought.]
"That much?" Silas exclaimed, stopping in his tracks for a few moments before continuing.
"Well, although it might only be to the Expert rank, it is very fast," he muttered. "Especially when its price is compared to those ones that increase the whole of the mortal realm cultivation."
He soon reached the library, taking a seat in his regular chair.
He began to delve into books as usual, not wasting a single second of his time.
Soon, Rion's notification flashed in his sight, alerting him that his session had ended.
He disappeared from the spot, appearing on his bed again with a smile.
"With the amount of books I read on guns and aether batteries, I should have no problem deducing my own method," he smiled as he slumped onto his bed.
The exhaustion he had endured for a week slammed into his body as he drifted off in less than a minute.
The rays of the morning sun tore through the window, resting on Silas's silver eyes, making them glow with a golden sheen.
"It is morning already?" he muttered with a tired yawn. "Just five minutes," he thought, closing his eyes again.
A knock suddenly came from the door, jolting Silas awake.
"I can't even enjoy an extra five minutes of sleep," he groaned, standing up from his bed.
"Who is there?" he asked.
"Master Silas, lunch is ready," the person said with a gentle voice.
"Ohh, I am…" The words hung in his mouth as he heard the person.
"What is the time?" he asked, opening the door.
"It is 2 p.m.," the maid said with a bow on seeing Silas walk out.
Silas shook his head at this.
"How did five minutes turn into this?" he muttered to himself.
"I will be there soon."
He walked into the room, freshened up, and wore his clothes before walking back outside, going to the dining table immediately.
Everyone was there, eating while chatting.
"You didn't even wait for me," Silas said as he took a seat beside Amelia.
They just rolled their eyes at this, not even bothering to reply.
"Amelia, how is your training going?" he asked, looking at Amelia by his side.
"Fine," she replied, not offering any more words.
"Going the cold lane, huh?" Silas chuckled, dipping a spoonful of rice into his mouth.
"You are just saying that to show off your talent," she clicked her tongue. "I have not even fully opened a meridian."
Silas just smiled.
'Rion, send her a copy of the manual,' he commanded Rion mentally.
"I understand. Your talent just can't be compared to mine."
He was shocked to see that Amelia did not reply to his taunt this time.
"Silas, do you need anything?" Max asked from across the table.
Silas pondered for a few seconds. He needed some resources, especially after advancing to the Expert rank. Those previous ones weren't going to be as effective as before.
But he thought of the situation of the planet. What he needed at the Expert rank was enough to take 10% of their annual income.
"No, don't worry, President," he finally said.
"Are you pitying this president?" Max asked with a smile. He admired Silas's care, but he valued his advancement more.
"No, not after you took the last chicken wrap from us," Silas waved.
"I just don't plan on continuing my cultivation yet."
Alfred furrowed his brows, turning to Max.
"Your pettiness has even been witnessed by these children?"
Everyone smiled at this joke before continuing their meals.
Silently, they finished, returned to their places, and continued whatever they were doing.
Silas just entered the virtual server, continuing his study on aether batteries and firearms.
He peeked into the mind space, seeing that the process was already coming to an end.
"Maybe in the next five hours," he muttered, continuing his study.
Even though the deduction was going to end soon, he still needed to learn more for better versions of the gun in the future.
Silas's form flickered as he appeared in his room.
He rested his back on the bed's frame for a moment before he spoke again, this time with a flash of surprise.
"The gun blueprint is ready," he muttered. According to his calculation, it should have taken much more time, about five hours.
"Was it because of the new books I read?" he said, absorbing the content of the blueprint.
"Rion," he called without wasting time. "Upload this to the server."
He synced his brain to the AI, which quickly materialized the blueprint.
[Private or Public?]
"Private. Additionally, no one is allowed to use the blueprint except me," he added after a thought.
Rion flickered with a blue light.
On a distant planet, billions of light years away, a woman connected to quintillions of webs reviewed a new upload.
"Enough to advance to Tier 1 scientist," she answered.
Back at Silas's, he was eagerly waiting for Rion to answer him. He did not wait long. Rion's screen flashed in his face.
[Your achievement has increased your citizen rank to Rank 2.]
[Privileges of a Rank 2 citizen:
22 hours access to the virtual server per day
Can own a property in the virtual server
Tier 2 AI assistant]
[You have become a Tier 1 scientist.]
[Privileges:
10,000 credits monthly
Access to public scientific databases
Access to shared laboratory facilities in virtual servers or reality]
Silas stared at the window, his eyes wide with surprise.
"That was enough to upgrade me to a Tier 1 scientist?" he wondered aloud.
Although the thought had passed his mind previously, he brushed it off.
"With this, it will be even easier to make the gun and buy materials," he smirked, glancing at the new log that appeared in his face.
[Your bank account name is Silas Lancaster. Your number is 9064341713.]
[You have been credited with 10,000 credits.]
His smile only grew wider as he read them.
"They even created an account for me, how generous."