The reconciliation between Wasteland Development Company and Legal Front, which had been on the brink of war, caused quite a stir in both the East and the West.

Envoys from all directions flocked to Sand Port, trying every possible means to gather intelligence and uncover the secrets behind the cooperation. The official statement only mentioned that the two sides were deeply cooperating on a significant technological project.

It was a matter of great interest what kind of benefits brought the two warring sides to a sudden handshake.

However, the visitors were only able to contact the Minister of External Trade, Red Kestrel.

The most frequent response from him was: "No comment."

The Chairman himself refused to see any guests, residing quietly in the High Castle.

Many tried using various advanced surveillance devices to peek at Chairman Zhou's activities, hoping to find some clues from his reclusive lifestyle.

They discovered, however, that besides living with his assistant Yuan Xiao, Liang Zi from the Outer Sea also moved in, and occasionally, glimpses of two Angel of Death figures could be seen.

Rumors quickly spread, claiming Zhou Yi had a peculiar fondness for the Angel of Death, especially a preference for sister pairs, leading to all sorts of gossip.

Some even suggested that the young Angel of Death, Sun Hao, was actually Zhou Yi's illegitimate son, but to avoid suspicion, he had him take on Sun Chonglai's surname.

There were tales saying that Zhou Yi had abandoned Yuan Xiao many years ago, but after his success, he sought to make amends...

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi was furious: "Anyone who spreads more of such slander or gossip will be sent to Mechanical City for hard labor!"

These peeping individuals were soon arrested and expelled.

One night, Zhou Yi arrived in Sand Port City on Hei Fu, stopping at the rooftop of the sea lord's mansion.

"Mr. Zhou, what brings you here?"

The ever-smiling Lord Sand Sea welcomed him warmly.

Zhou Yi said, "I came to check the progress of the Electric Soul development."

The smile on the Lord's face turned bitter.

"Mr. Zhou, this... well..."

It seemed the progress was not smooth.

Lord Sand Sea appeared significantly thinner than before. "Please, Mr. Zhou, come with me."

Zhou Yi followed him into the basement, walking a tunnel about seven or eight hundred meters long, and then climbed a set of stairs.

He observed his surroundings: "This is a secret passage connecting to the Dead Sea?"

"Yes, Mr. Zhou. During Duke Baili's threat, I created several such passages in different directions for emergency evacuation."

So saying, Lord Sand Sea led the way to the end of the staircase.

Here, above the Dead Sea, stood a high platform, with a massive circular electric ring, about ten meters in diameter, suspended atop.

Zhou Yi sensed a familiar wave of consciousness.

It was Shali Huo.

It had grown significantly stronger than before. Though not yet a Light Core Body, its energy density and intensity far exceeded that of ordinary Skywalkers, creating visible vortices around it.

Lord Sand Sea spoke: "Mr. Zhou, since the discovery of the Electric Soul, I've cultivated a total of 13 Electric Souls. But now, only 3 remain."

"Electric Souls possess a power characteristic stronger than electric cats but have an extreme hunger for energy. They have a very strong territorial instinct. If two Electric Souls exist in a large area, they will engage in deep conflicts and mergers. Electrical engineers call it an electromagnetic domain feature..."

He scratched his head with a paw: "It's like forging two molten iron clumps; when close, they merge into one. This merging characteristic means they must be kept far apart, one per region; otherwise, they approach and merge."

"Merged Electric Souls are stronger but also more unstable, with increased energy consumption."

Lord Sand Sea pointed to the quiet Electric Soul beside him: "Shali Huo merged with Shali Jian and Shali He to become this large. But now, it has become very silent, nearly motionless, and unwilling to communicate through the Electric Cat Transcoder."

Zhou Yi reached out to touch Shali Huo.

Their consciousnesses synchronized.

"Shali Huo, are you in trouble?"

A sluggish voice came from the arc: "Chairman, I... I don't know what to say, I'm just very hungry, very hungry, my mind is blank, just hungry."

Zhou Yi took out the Guangna Box and allocated 10,000 Light Seeds.

The Electric Soul absorbed them all.

It was simply too hungry to speak.

Zhou Yi fed it nearly 400,000 Light Seeds before Shali Huo regained vitality.

The once almost static ringlike structure began to change, its arcs spreading out, forming a peculiar silver wreath, revolving around Zhou Yi.

"Thank you, Chairman! I feel much better now!"

Shali Huo's voice became bright and strong again.

Zhou Yi turned to the sea lord: "Have you been feeding it energy at all?"

"Yes, Mr. Zhou, I swear to the Heavenly People. It just felt like no matter how much I fed, be it electricity or Light Seeds... it always seemed to be eating without giving any feedback."

Lord Sand Sea cautiously said: "So I thought, maybe it's not just about the energy."

Zhou Yi chided: "More like you were too stingy."

"... ..." Lord Sand Sea rubbed his paws with a bitter smile: "Mr. Zhou, you know the income of Sand Port. It used to be just about 7,000 Light Seeds per year. Things only got better after partnering with the company these past two years."

"With the company's consumption boost, Sand Port City's annual revenue reached 30,000 Light Seeds. Though I have some savings and a share of the post-war division, this kind of consumption testing is unsustainable..."

Zhou Yi thought for a moment.

He too had been tight on funds, stretching every dollar.

But Sand Port City's poverty surprised him.

After careful consideration, Zhou Yi said to the sea lord: "Cultivating Electric Souls for the company and the Alliance is a great contribution. I'll subsidize you 100,000 Light Seeds for each Electric Soul."

He handed over the funds on the spot from the Guangna Box.

The sea lord, resembling a giant sea lion, lit up but hesitantly declined: "Working for Mr. Zhou is my honor! I can't take this money; it's mostly due to my personal abilities..."

"Payments for work are justified."

Zhou Yi insisted: "We don't do empty formalities here."

"Indeed. You are right."

Lord Sand Sea finally accepted.

Zhou Yi asked, "Where are the other Electric Souls?"

"They're in the Cat House."

The sea lord pocketed the Guangna Box: "To prevent issues, I placed them in special cat houses, surrounded by Light Blockers to shield them from sensing each other, keeping them relatively stable and restful."

On the other side, in separate rooms, were large cat houses.

Through the transparent glass, Zhou Yi saw the Electric Souls, like serpentine lightning, almost stationary, seemingly asleep.

These Electric Souls were named Shali Mei and Shali Xiao.

Lord Sand Sea explained: "Chairman, Shali Mei has a good personality, outgoing and cheerful, but loves to play with its arcs, seeking symmetrical and perfect forms. So I called it Shali Mei."

"Shali Xiao is more aggressive, a natural-born warrior, fond of combat. Its desire to merge and grow stronger is the strongest, causing me the most headaches."

Lord Sand Sea seemed hesitant.

Zhou Yi said, "Out with it. If there's a problem, we'll solve it together."

"Yes, you are right."

Lord Sand Sea took a deep breath: "Originally, there were 4 Electric Souls, including Shali Qing. Shali Qing was the strongest, in the best condition, having merged with 5 others."

"But during a test activity in the Dead Sea, it flew off and went missing."

"It flew away?"

Zhou Yi frowned: "You mean, to the Outer Sea?"

"No."

Lord Sand Sea said solemnly: "According to satellite data, Shali Qing not only left the Outer Sea but continued into space... It escaped."

Zhou Yi immediately contacted the Star Axis for image records.

The footage showed a ring-like Electric Soul breaking through the atmosphere, ascending to space.

Its rings nested within rings, resembling the ring-toss toy from Zhou Yi's childhood.

These rings, like the Electric Soul's tail, extended from its body, forming a more three-dimensional electric cone structure.

The rings absorbed energy, creating a form with a top intake and a tail output, propelling it into space like an electric comet.

Lacking conductive materials in the upper atmosphere, it couldn't maintain high speed or reach orbital velocity, ultimately falling back into the Outer Sea, with no further updates.

Zhou Yi asked Shali Huo: "Do you like space?"

"Chairman, it's the proximity to energy." Shali Huo replied: "Higher energy density attracts us. The higher the energy, the more active and comfortable we are."

"In the sky, we sense more energy, instinctively wanting to fly up, though I can control it."

Zhou Yi pondered.

The mutated Electric Cat form of Electric Souls' characteristics became clearer.

They possessed stickiness and jet abilities.

Required large amounts of energy.

Had to be kept far apart to avoid merging and consuming each other, forming larger structures.

Instinctively attracted to high-energy areas, like the Circular Flow source, the sun.

With this in mind.

Zhou Yi said to Lord Sand Sea: "One Electric Soul is enough for Sand Port. Shali Huo will be officially listed as a company employee, continuing defense tasks, connected to Heaven and Earth Net, synchronizing information with the company and Sand Port."

"Shali Mei to support Shuanghe Region. It's far from the Alliance core and needs a high-intensity defense unit. They have enough resources to support an Electric Soul."

"As for Shali Xiao, the bold one, I'll have Hei Fu send it to Mars Base. Mars' energetic and violent environment will test its adaptability."

"Keep cultivating Electric Souls, Old Sand."

"Understood, Mr. Zhou."

Lord Sand Sea breathed a sigh of relief: "With them gone, my pressure eases. I can start cultivating more without fear of another escape..."

"No worries. Cat God will communicate with them. We'll treat those who stay well and won't force any to stay unwilling," Zhou Yi assured, patting the sea lord's sturdy forearm. "No mental stress, just stay in touch."

"Yes!"

...

With the Electric Soul issue settled.

Zhou Yi prepared for a long-desired experiment.

Hei Fu, now a Light Core Body, safe to traverse space. Time to explore other worlds.

Zhou Yi decided to start with a lower difficulty.

First, the Moon.

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