This Honkai: Star Rail is way too Minecraft!

Jing Yuan pinched his chin as he glanced at Fu Zhu, carefully gauging the intensity of the Path aura emanating from him.

While the aura of the Path of [Erudition] on Fu Zhu was already stronger than that of most Pathstriders, it still lacked that final sliver of power compared to a true Emanator.

If that last bit were to be filled, Fu Zhu would become a bona fide Emanator of [Erudition].

Even if he wasn't one now, Jing Yuan had no doubt Fu Zhu would become one in the future. Judging by how he had just been casually summoned by Nous, perhaps his very next audience would be the moment he ascended.

Regardless, when Huyan-jun of the Fanghu Xianzhou saw the news Jing Yuan had intentionally spread through Yanqing, he would likely remain passive for the time being.

And if Huyan-jun didn't make a move, the other Vidyadhara clans on the other Xianzhou ships would naturally be even less inclined to act rashly. That meant the only ones left to "cause trouble" for the Astral Express would be this particular branch of Vidyadhara on the Luofu.

Thinking this, Jing Yuan finally felt his worries settle completely.

He was now starting to feel a slight pang of regret for having urged Fu Zhu and his friends to extend their stay on the Luofu. Fu Zhu was incredibly powerful, but his talent for attracting trouble was just as formidable.

At that moment, the Dragon Master's mind, which had crashed, finally rebooted. He couldn't help but swallow nervously, his tongue darting out to moisten his dry lips.

"Lord Fu Zhu... did you just have an audience with the All-Knowing Lord?"

"The All-Knowing Lord?" Fu Zhu paused, then immediately realized it was just the local Xianzhou term for the Aeons and nodded.

"Yes. Like you, He was curious how I enable the Vidyadhara to procreate, so He summoned me the instant I was about to speak. Now, do you still wish to know how I did it?"

The Dragon Master's Adam's apple bobbed. He gritted his back teeth and nodded.

"I implore you, Lord Fu Zhu, please do not hold back."

Seeing his expression, Fu Zhu knew the man was now wary of the grand banner he had raised. Furthermore, the questions Nous had asked earlier provided him with an excellent line of reasoning for his explanation.

"Very well. Since you wish to know, I won't be petty about it. The reason is quite simple: it is a secret art unique to me. The coral is merely the key reagent required to perform this art."

Fearing the Dragon Master wouldn't quite grasp it, Fu Zhu pondered for a moment before adding, "I don't know the specifics of your former Dragon Lord's 'Dragon Transformation Art,' but the concept is much the same. He needed certain components to activate his art, and so do I. Do you understand?"

The Dragon Master froze upon hearing Fu Zhu's explanation. The last shred of hope in his heart was utterly crushed.

"Lord Fu Zhu, you mean to say... the coral is not some divine artifact that allows my people to procreate?!"

He had been harboring a fantasy that even if Fu Zhu was unwilling to help them, they could still study the coral themselves. At worst, they could pay a hefty price to commission a genius or two from the Genius Society to aid their research.

But who could have imagined Fu Zhu would claim the coral was nothing more than a minor, auxiliary tool?!

Fu Zhu smiled faintly, lifted his teacup, and took a sip before speaking to the Dragon Master. "Didn't I give you a few pieces earlier? You can take them out and try for yourself. You'll understand what I mean then."

The Dragon Master immediately spun around and shouted to the Vidyadhara women behind him, "Someone, fetch the coral!"

A Vidyadhara woman immediately hurried out of the hall. A short while later, she returned, carefully carrying a tray laden with coral.

Accompanying her was a Vidyadhara man.

The Dragon Master hastily took two pieces of coral from the tray and handed one to the man and one to the woman, urging them, "Quickly, eat these!"

The pair didn't dare hesitate, immediately raising the coral in their hands to their mouths.

Jing Yuan, witnessing this, couldn't help but straighten up in his seat, watching with curiosity to see what would happen after they consumed the coral.

The result was... absolutely nothing.

After eating the coral, the two Vidyadhara felt nothing more than a little full.

The Dragon Master saw no hearts materializing above their heads. This completely confirmed Fu Zhu's claim: the coral was merely a supplementary tool for his secret art.

The one who could enable the Vidyadhara to have descendants was Fu Zhu himself!

"How... how is this possible..."

The Dragon Master muttered in disbelief, his eyes filled with despair. He staggered back a few steps and collapsed into a nearby chair, his head bowed, his entire figure seeming to dim.

Seeing this, Fu Zhu rose and approached the woman holding the tray. He picked up two more pieces of coral, then casually selected two of the Vidyadhara women and addressed them, "You two wouldn't mind having a child, would you?"

The two women froze for a second before nodding with astonishing speed.

Their agreement didn't signify a preference for women; it was simply that the allure of producing an heir for their race was far too powerful to resist! The act of birthing a child alone was enough to elevate their status within the clan significantly—a temptation the vast majority of Vidyadhara could not refuse.

Seeing them consent, Fu Zhu nodded and gestured for them to open their mouths. The moment they did, he stuffed the coral into their mouths.

Though the coral in his hands was larger than his palm, it somehow seemed to dissolve into a liquid stream the moment it entered their mouths, flowing directly into their stomachs without any need for chewing.

In the next second, they saw red hearts bloom above each other's heads, and their bodies were drawn irresistibly toward one another.

This involuntary closeness brought a blush to the faces of the two women, who had never experienced this before. They shyly squeezed their eyes shut, half-expecting to perform an R-rated scene right there and then.

However, a second later, their faces and noses were pressed together, and after that brief moment of contact, the motion stopped. They had regained control of their bodies.

The cry of an infant startled the two women from their tightly shut-eyed state. They hurriedly opened their eyes and bent down to scoop up the Vidyadhara youngling lying on the floor.

The Dragon Master, who had been secretly observing the entire time, let out a long sigh.

Their plan to discreetly study the coral was now completely in ruins.

Jing Yuan, however, pointed at the two women holding the baby with a look of utter astonishment. He turned to Fu Zhu and asked, "It even works between two of the same sex?!"

Fu Zhu nodded. "My secret art is not bound by gender. As long as they are two Vidyadhara, I can enable them to bear offspring, even if they have no gender at all."

Jing Yuan clicked his tongue in amazement. A bold theory then entered his mind, and he asked cautiously, "Then does that mean two babies could...?"

"No," Fu Zhu stated, decisively rejecting Jing Yuan's guess. "Babies won't work. However, if I were to use this secret art to feed a baby the coral, a different sort of situation would occur."

As he spoke, Fu Zhu plucked another piece of coral from the tray and made a motion to feed it to the newborn.

The Vidyadhara woman holding the infant recoiled in panic, her voice tight with anxiety. "Lord Fu Zhu, please don't experiment on my child! If you must experiment, please, use me!"

As a new mother, she couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to her child.

The Dragon Master also shot to his feet. "Lord Fu Zhu, he is only a child!"

Fu Zhu gave them both an exasperated eye-roll. "What do you take me for? This child came into the world because of me, after all. I'm not so heartless as to harm him."

He then looked at the woman holding the baby. "Besides, I need to use this child as the subject of my demonstration to prove my point. You're not a child. Feeding you coral will only result in you giving birth."

Without another word, Fu Zhu reached out and unceremoniously stuffed the coral into the infant's mouth. In the next second, the baby suddenly grew slightly larger.

Fu Zhu visually estimated the child had aged by about a year. Although he could continue using the coral to make the child grow even more, he didn't dare to feed it again.

Vidyadhara babies weren't like the cows and sheep of MC; they needed to learn in order to speak and integrate into their society. Forcibly skipping their childhood with coral would not be a good thing.

The Dragon Master, Jing Yuan, and the Vidyadhara women were all stunned into silence as they watched the infant instantly age a year.

Jing Yuan sucked in a sharp breath of cold air. "To actually accelerate a child's growth... Fu Zhu, your methods are truly extraordinary..."

"You flatter me."

The Dragon Master stood frozen before the child, a blank expression on his face, making it impossible to know what he was thinking.

Just then, Dan Heng suddenly emerged from the side room. "Fu Zhu, could you come here for a moment?"

Fu Zhu nodded and said to Jing Yuan, "Excuse me."

"By all means."

Fu Zhu walked over to Dan Heng, and they entered the side room together. Inside, Bailu was sitting on a long bench, swinging her little feet while playing on her phone.

Dan Heng hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Fu Zhu, I have a request..."

Before he could finish, Fu Zhu raised a hand and clapped him on the shoulder, his tone slightly exasperated. "Since when do we use words like 'request' between family? If you need something, just say it!"

Dan Heng's heart warmed at Fu Zhu's words, and he dropped the distant tone. "Bailu's position among the Vidyadhara is extremely awkward. I want to do something to help her. Don't you have that blade that can copy another's martial arts? I want to use it to impart all of Dan Feng's skills and arts to Bailu."

"Well..."

Fu Zhu was suddenly in a difficult position. It wasn't that he was unwilling to help, but he was unsure if the SlashBlade, which could copy swordplay, could also copy other arts and techniques.

"The Ōdachi can copy another's sword techniques, but as for whether it can copy your Dragon Lord's Inheritance, I really don't know. Want to give it a try?"

"Yes!"

"Alright, then."

Fu Zhu pulled an Ōdachi from his inventory and handed it to Dan Heng. Ever since copying Jingliu's techniques, he had made it a habit to keep a couple of Ōdachi in his inventory, ready to copy skills at a moment's notice. In addition to the swords, he had also "relocated" more than a dozen training dummies from the Luofu's Sparring Grounds, all for the sake of convenience.

Since Jing Yuan and Yanqing had both given him permission to take whatever he wanted, the Luofu wouldn't feel the loss even if he took tens of thousands of them.

Fu Zhu set up a few training dummies in the room and then stepped back.

"Go ahead."

"Mm."

Dan Heng gripped the Ōdachi and began to unleash a flurry of strikes against the dummies while Fu Zhu watched from the side with great interest.

If the Proud Soul Fragment can even copy the Dragon Lord's Inheritance, does that mean... I can copy Jing Yuan's?

He had been coveting Jing Yuan's massive Divine Lord ever since he first laid eyes on it.

Then again, that was probably impossible. The Divine Lord wasn't Jing Yuan's innate power but something bestowed by the Xianzhou Alliance—an "external item." The Proud Soul Fragment could only copy techniques inherent to a person.

That alone was already ridiculously overpowered. If it could copy external items as well, the price tag on the SlashBlade mod wouldn't have been so cheap.

Ten minutes later, the Ōdachi in Dan Heng's hand shattered with a crisp crack. A single Proud Soul Fragment fell at his feet. He bent down to pick it up, then closed his eyes, holding it tightly to experience its contents.

A few seconds later, Dan Heng opened his eyes, a hint of surprise in his voice. "It actually worked?"

"What?"

Now it was Fu Zhu's turn to be shocked. He hadn't thought the Proud Soul Fragment could copy more than just swordplay—it could copy any skill.

Holy crap, that's insane! I love it!

Still, he wasn't in a rush to take this new fragment and forge it onto another blade to test the skill. With Dan Heng around, he could get as many as he wanted later. This first one should go to Bailu.

Dan Heng walked over to the quietly seated Bailu, held out the fragment, and said with solemn sincerity, "Bailu, you must guard this Proud Soul Fragment with care. And you must study the knowledge within it diligently. It will only benefit you."

Bailu tilted her head, confused. She tapped a finger on her lips and looked up at Dan Heng. "What's the use of learning this?"

Fu Zhu leaned in with a smile. "As long as you master everything inside, I guarantee no one will ever stop you from going out to play again. Do you want to learn?"

Bailu, who had been resistant to the idea of studying just a moment ago, immediately shot her hand up in excitement. "I want to learn! I'll learn all of it, I promise!"

With that, Bailu reached out and took the Proud Soul Fragment. The moment her bright, lively eyes touched it, they fluttered shut of their own accord.

Dan Heng stared tensely at the closed-eyed Bailu, praying silently that the Proud Soul Fragment would work for her.

He—or rather, his past self—owed Bailu far too much.