At first, Caitlyn opposed Li Lin's idea.
For one, she was worried about his safety. Even with the protection of the battle armor, mechanical engineers, and even mechanical troops, she couldn't set her mind at ease. It was a real battlefield where everything could change in an instant. And with the presence of mages in the Noxus army, it was even more dangerous.
Of course, with Li Lin's power, he could easily sweep through Noxus, but Caitlyn simply didn't want her beloved to take the risk.
Moreover, Li Lin was now the most famous figure in Piltover and Zaun, drawing the attention of high-ranking officials from other nations.
His bicycles had already been exported overseas, with distributors in Demacia, Noxus, and Ionia selling these novel, affordable means of transportation. Even commoners knew of Li Lin's name. His involvement in the war between Demacia and Noxus, regardless of which side he favored, would have significant repercussions.
However, when Li Lin mentioned the task Heimerdinger had assigned him and the current predicament of the Kiramman family, Caitlyn was torn.
Heimerdinger had instructed Li Lin to search the Argent Mountains for traces of a fire dragon and had granted him access to summon Gaboga.
Demacia had banned official trade, while Hex Gates had been established in Shurima, Noxus, Ionia, Bilgewater, and Freljord. Only the construction of Hex Gates in Demacia had stalled.
Li Lin told Caitlyn that his trip to Demacia was an opportunity to meet the Lightshield Prince and, through him, arrange a meeting with the Demacian King to discuss the construction of Hex Gates.
Even if Demacia continued to resist opening up official trade, at the very least, the Kiramman family could establish a Hex Gate in a remote Demacian town.
In the end, Caitlyn couldn't resist Li Lin's arguments and reluctantly agreed, promising to keep it a secret from her mother as long as he didn't take as long to return as he did from Shurima.
With the Demacia and Noxus matters settled, Caitlyn went back to her work.
Seizing the opportunity, Li Lin hastily began the production of his new battle armor.
With a direct connection via Hex Gates between Piltover and Trevale, and the mechanical engineers still searching for the fire dragon, while Noxus hadn't made a move on the Gates of Mourning, there was no rush.
However, before that, he needed to complete the Project Genesis series of battle armor he had designed for Caitlyn, Powder, Vi, Ekko, and Vander.
Caitlyn's new armor was similar to her Pulsefire universe armor, fitting her muscle contours and primarily blue and white, with all the advantages of the third-generation Project Genesis armor.
Li Lin named it Project Genesis: Pulsefire.
The Pulsefire armor was powered by three Hex Cores, aided by an AI, and combined with a newly made Hextech sniper rifle that could transform into a hovering motorcycle.
Wearing this armor, Caitlyn alone could influence the outcome of a war.
As for Powder, Vi, Ekko, and Vander's Project Genesis armor, Li Lin based their designs on their appearances in the Project universe, with slight adjustments.
For instance, in the original Project universe, Vi and Ekko's armor lacked fully enclosed helmets, and Powder's was even more outrageous, consisting of regular clothes except for energy weapons and goggles.
Li Lin also adjusted their codenames. Vi's armor retained the codename Judgement, as she was destined to become an enforcer.
Ekko's armor, originally codenamed Liberty, was renamed Time to reflect the winds of change blowing through Zaun.
Powder and Vander's codenames, Madness and Doom, no longer matched their personalities or experiences.
Li Lin renamed their armors Rebirth and Black Wolf, respectively.
Matching weapons were essential for the armors.
At this point in the timeline, Powder's Pow-Pow and Fishbones hadn't been created.
Li Lin redesigned Pow-Pow into an electromagnetic rotary machine gun and Fishbones into a plasma energy cannon, giving them a more advanced feel than the cyberpunk style of the Project universe.
Vi and Ekko's weapons were simple: a pair of gauntlets for Vi and a retractable energy staff for Ekko.
As for Ekko's Chronobreak, he had already made that himself, so Li Lin didn't need to worry about it.
For Warwick Vander, Li Lin thoughtfully equipped his armor with a tracking system similar to Zaun's Wrath, and the weapon system could switch between Steel Fists and Claws, suiting his combat style.
These four new Project Armors all used a single Hex Core, with the capabilities of the third-generation armor but lacking flight.
Of course, he couldn't give these armors to them yet.
Vander wouldn't accept it since he didn't like fighting, and Powder, Vi, and Ekko were still children prone to causing trouble.
Giving them the armor now would likely throw Piltover and Zaun back into chaos.
Li Lin planned to wait for a major event affecting Piltover and Zaun in the future before giving them the armors.
In the meantime, he could unlock new technologies and upgrade the armors.
Why didn't Claggor and Milo get Project Genesis armors?
Time was one reason.
Another was that Li Lin designed based on his impressions, and he wasn't familiar enough with Claggor and Milo to consider them.
All five suits were of artifact quality, each one able to raise Li Lin's level by 1 and grant 5 skill points. With this, he advanced from level 57 to 62, increasing his skill points from 14 to 44. Though still not abundant, it was enough for him to enhance all new technologies.
The Inventor path at level 60 unlocked a key scientific technology: nanotechnology. This allowed Li Lin to create new nano armors, replacing the heavy Project Genesis: Infinity Mark IV and Mark III armors. Additionally, all new individual enhancement branch technologies required nanotechnology.
At level 60, the first unlock was "Nanotech Active Constructs," essential for gene therapy. The second was the "Active Enhancer," an upgrade to the Gene Enhancement Elixir, which further enhanced the body at a genetic level. It could even induce benign genetic mutations, granting extraordinary abilities.
The Active Enhancer, like the Gene Enhancement Elixir, required subcutaneous injection and had three enhancement effects. However, unlike the Elixir, it could be administered indefinitely, targeting awakened superpowers after the initial three injections. Li Lin wondered why the Gene Enhancement Elixir didn't enhance genes while the Active Enhancer did, suspecting a mix-up in the system's naming conventions.
Another new technology in the gene enhancement branch was "Genetic Mapping Record," which identified genetic defects through the level 50 "Gene Test" and enabled customized genetic treatments. This marked a new era of nanotech medical treatments.
Shifting his focus to the combat path, Li Lin unlocked two new weapons at level 60: the "Gigawatt Cannon" and the "Matter Disintegrator." The Gigawatt Cannon, like its megawatt predecessor, was an axial weapon for main cannons, while the Matter Disintegrator could be adapted for various sizes, including hand cannons for the Infinity armor. The Gigawatt Cannon's power was tens of times stronger than the megawatt version, with a reduced minimum charge time of 20 seconds and an increased maximum charge time of 3 minutes.
The Matter Disintegrator, as its name suggested, emitted beams and energy blasts that erased matter at the atomic level, surpassing the annihilation effect of plasma cannons and focused particle beams. Li Lin glanced at the subsequent combat skills, finding none more extreme than the Matter Disintegrator. However, its effectiveness was nullified against entities devoid of matter or atoms.
Spending 17 skill points, Li Lin unlocked all new technologies, including the "Gene Test" skill in the individual enhancement branch. He also spent 11 skill points to upgrade basic prerequisite skills to level 8, providing minor boosts to the respective branches. Additionally, he upgraded the Inventor branch's "Mechanical Refinement" skill to level 20 with 7 skill points, increasing the probability of crafting high-quality equipment. With 9 skill points remaining, he reserved them for future upgrades.
As Li Lin finished allocating his skill points and prepared to close the system interface, he noticed the [Career Advancement] section had lit up. His heart raced with excitement as he switched the interface:
[Congratulations! You have reached level 60 and unlocked a new advanced career: Mechanical War God.]
(Chapter End)
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