Is Unlocking the Stellaris Tech Tree in Star Rail Really Okay? [96]

“Where are we going now?”

“To the docks for some fries.”

“?”

Under Seele's puzzled gaze, Chen Lin shook his head with a smile. “We’re going to meet someone. A robot. He’s been waiting outside the town for quite a while.”

Chen Lin had grown increasingly adept at using his psionic abilities, discovering new applications while refining existing skills like his "surveillance" function.

Boulder Town was entirely under the coverage of psionic projections placed by Chen Lin. If he wished, he could monitor any activity within the town or its outskirts at any moment.

Of course, he wasn’t bored enough to constantly monitor everything. Instead, he programmed the projections with specific instructions to notify him only when something relevant occurred.

Over an hour ago, he had received an image and information from the projections—an area of barren land outside the town had revealed a mechanical construct emitting dangerous energy. One look at its distinct features was enough for Chen Lin to recognize it as the robot from the Robot Settlement, who Clara regarded as family:

Svarog.

Svarog was a figure who had caused Wildfire countless headaches, rendering them unable to assert dominance through force. Chen Lin was curious about just how powerful Svarog was to maintain such a divided state of affairs in the Underworld.

Wildfire wasn’t short of talent—Seele, for instance, had such raw physical strength that even Chen Lin couldn’t defeat her in close combat without resorting to advanced technology. She could dismantle a dozen automaton soldiers bare-handed without breaking a sweat. Yet, Svarog’s name alone could make Seele wary.

If anyone claimed this cool robot wasn’t formidable, Chen Lin simply wouldn’t believe it.

“Svarog?!” Seele’s reaction was instant, her body stiffening like a startled cat.

“It doesn’t seem hostile—just observing Boulder Town from a distance. Probably worried about Clara,” Chen Lin replied.

Seele frowned slightly, her unease apparent. After all, Wildfire and Svarog had clashed many times in the past.

After a few moments of deliberation, she hesitated and asked, “Should we bring more people? I’m worried it won’t be safe with just the two of us…”

“Let’s take a look first. I’ve been meaning to talk to this mysterious robot myself. Of all the major players in the Underworld, Svarog’s actions and motives remain the hardest to decipher. I didn’t expect it to show up on its own.”

“You’re sure this is okay?” Seele was still uneasy. To her, Svarog had long been a symbol of friction and conflict. Its use of force to "resolve disputes" often came across as overbearing.

One incident, in particular, stood out—just over a month ago, not long after Chen Lin arrived. At the time, mining was still the primary livelihood for most Underworld residents. Svarog had taken it upon himself to beat up anyone who entered the mines, claiming it was to "resolve conflict."

Conflict was resolved, sure, but not by addressing the root issues. Instead, Svarog eliminated both parties involved, leaving Seele speechless for days.

Only Clara was an exception. Seele knew Wildfire’s issues with Svarog had nothing to do with the young girl. Let adults handle adult problems; don’t drag the kids into it…

“It’s fine. Clara is still in town—what could he possibly do? But honestly, I’ve always wondered how you’re so comfortable wearing so little while everyone else bundles up.”

Chen Lin’s gaze fell to the exposed skin below Seele’s long coat. “Don’t you ever feel cold?”

During his time in Belobog, Chen Lin had encountered many unique individuals, all carrying a faint aura of peculiar energy. Gepard, Pela, Silvermane Guards, and even Bronya all exuded this mysterious power. Seele, whom he was now familiar with, was no exception.

According to Dan Heng, these energies were said to originate from the Aeons, varying in strength and effect.

Chen Lin had witnessed Gepard’s legendary durability, as well as his ability to conjure ice walls and shields. Paired with Silvermane’s field shields, his defense was nearly impenetrable.

Seele’s capabilities were similar but distinct. Her movements weren’t just fast—they seemed to tear through time and space, allowing her to appear instantly beside her target.

Moreover, she could vanish almost completely. Without psionic monitoring, even Chen Lin would have trouble detecting her presence.

It was fascinating. Now, if only these Aeons could grant me some gold while they’re at it…

Seele followed his gaze, glancing down at her legs. Her thigh strap twitched slightly, and she shifted uneasily.

So that’s why he’s been sneaking looks lately—he’s been wondering about this?

Normally, anyone else would’ve already been punched into the ground. But she didn’t mind Chen Lin’s attention—in fact, she sometimes wished he’d look at her more, talk to her more. It made her feel… at ease, even helped her sleep better at night.

“I used to be a drifter when I was younger. Freezing was just part of life. I fought to survive every day,” Seele recalled. “One day, in the middle of a fight, I suddenly felt a surge of power. Since then, I’ve never really felt cold or hot—not uncomfortable, anyway.”

“Well, that’s quite something,” Chen Lin nodded, continuing toward the outskirts. “As long as there are no side effects, it’s all good.”

No side effects…

Was he worried about me?

Seele froze briefly, then quickly jogged to catch up, a hint of warmth in her chest.

The two left the city streets, the bright lights gradually giving way to uneven terrain. Outside the town, there were no lush forests—only jagged dirt mounds and narrow, slippery paths. Wildfire had paved a broader road with stones nearby, but the muddy crevices still clung stubbornly to their shoes.

Guided by the psionic projection and Chen Lin’s own radiating energy, they soon reached their target.

Behind a dirt mound, the rumble of machinery echoed. A streak of fiery red light flashed briefly before the giant emerged.

Svarog stood taller than Chen Lin by half a head—roughly 2.3 meters tall. Humanoid in form, with no extraneous limbs, his single, prominent eye emitted a faint red glow. Chen Lin guessed he was being scanned.

Sure enough, a deep mechanical voice followed.

“Analyzing… Result: Not affiliated with ‘Wildfire.’ Background: Unknown. Classification: Unknown. Database search in progress… Match found: External traits 95% similar to individual identified as ‘Chen Lin’ by Clara. Given Clara’s significant goodwill toward you and the fact you’ve saved her before, I will overlook the presence of ‘Wildfire’ member ‘Seele’ and activate the peacekeeping protocol. Explain your purpose here.”

“Yes, I’m Chen Lin, Mr. Svarog. It’s a pleasure to finally meet the famous you,” Chen Lin said with a chuckle, stepping forward. “Allow me to introduce myself—I’m Chen Lin, a researcher from a distant world beyond the stars. My specialties include computational science, particle physics, biology, and psionic theory, among other fields.

“As for Seele, she’s temporarily acting as my bodyguard, ensuring my safety. She’s also my friend. We mean you no harm; I simply noticed you were here and decided to come for a chat. As you can see, I’m just a defenseless researcher—I couldn’t possibly pose any threat to you.”

“Scanning… Your physical strength is assessed as: Above average. Cellular activity and regeneration are highly abnormal, assessed as: Unknown. Genetic sequence unreadable, assessed as: Unknown. Overall evaluation: Above average. The claim of being defenseless is inaccurate.”

The red light flickered as Svarog scanned Chen Lin thoroughly, bluntly exposing his lie.

Seele shot him a teasing glance, as if to say, Haha, caught in the act. Serves you right.

Thankfully, Chen Lin’s skin was thick enough to brush it off. He simply waved his hand, unfazed.

“This isn’t exactly what I wanted to discuss. Based on Wildfire’s records and Clara’s statements, I assume you’re a robot with ‘self-evolution logic’ and an ‘autonomous integrated processing algorithm.’ I’ve heard your conflicts with Wildfire stem from calculations you’ve made yourself. Is that true?”

“Accessing database… Authorization: Granted. The Fragmentum’s encroachment on Belobog is growing increasingly severe. The mineral sustaining human survival, Geomarrow, is nearing depletion. Fragmentum incursions that cannot be destroyed are multiplying. Belobog faces inevitable destruction. Human greed accelerates this progress. Politics, economy, and culture will collapse under Fragmentum’s pressure. Constructor’s directive: Ensure human survival for as long as possible.”

“And do you still believe that?” Chen Lin shrugged. “I can handle the Fragmentum. At its core, it’s a phenomenon caused by collisions of unique energy aggregates that compress and expand space. If you exhaust the energy sustaining it, the Fragmentum collapses on its own. I’ve already helped the Overworld reclaim a commercial district from Fragmentum encroachment. Down here, I’ve also cleared out several Fragmentum zones. If you’ve got observers in Rivet Town or Hammer Town, you should have noticed a significant decrease in their presence.”

Standing under the intense gaze of a robot taller than himself by half a head, Chen Lin couldn’t help but feel a chill down his spine. Still, the thought that he’d survived falling from hundreds of meters high reassured him. What’s there to be scared of?

He recalled asking Serval about a robot named Svarog in the Underworld. To his surprise, she already knew about it.

Serval explained that Svarog was an ancient war machine from the Constructor era, officially designated as "Prototype 03 – Overseer Machine." For reasons lost to time, it had remained in the Underworld to safeguard the Expeditionary Team’s activities. Over time, as the team’s numbers dwindled, the machine fell out of official records.

In the past 20 years of isolation between the Overworld and the Underworld, much of the Underworld’s data had been lost. Serval distinctly remembered this because shortly after encountering these records, she stumbled upon sealed data regarding the Stellaron during her research—a discovery that led to her involvement in "forbidden research," her subsequent imprisonment, and ultimately, her fall from grace.

Wildfire’s records indicated that Svarog had appeared suddenly after the Overworld-Underworld blockade, a presence unknown even to veteran miners. Its emergence, accompanied by an army of automaton soldiers, was high-profile and unmissable.

Based on Clara’s account, she had awakened in a scrapyard long ago and found Svarog there.

Chen Lin deduced that Svarog had likely been in a dormant state for special reasons, and Clara had accidentally reactivated it, leading to the formation of the unique Robot Settlement faction in the Underworld.

Svarog rarely initiated violence and even provided shelter for homeless drifters. When conflicts arose between drifters and miners, it would intervene to resolve disputes in its own way. Its likely purpose was to preserve the remaining human population and prevent self-destructive internal strife.

Chen Lin had spent a long time analyzing various possibilities and concluded that this was the most probable scenario.

As a robot nearing a millennium in age, Svarog’s knowledge of Belobog’s history, military technology, and research capabilities made it an invaluable asset. Up close, Chen Lin even felt that Svarog was the last functioning high-performance computer in Belobog—a resource critical for the city’s development.

If possible, Chen Lin wanted Svarog to join the effort to unify Belobog.

Seele had told him multiple times about Svarog’s habit of referencing "calculation results," including detailed estimations of how long the Overworld and the Underworld could survive.

Chen Lin didn’t mind crunching some numbers with him.

Svarog’s eye glowed briefly.

“Accessing surveillance footage… Key locations ‘Rivet Town’ and ‘Hammer Town’ recorded 4,152 video logs recently. Analyzing logs… Verifying event authenticity. This will take time.”

“Take your time.” Chen Lin nonchalantly found a spot to sit and pulled out his phone.

Seeing no conflict or danger as she had feared, Seele also sat next to Chen Lin, curiously watching the glowing glass screen.

She had often seen him pressing on the device and found it fascinating, especially how a few simple taps could display text. Even though the text was in an unfamiliar script, the system automatically converted it into Belobog’s language for her to read.

Chen Lin had no intention of hiding it and let her watch.

Initially, he had planned to message Bronya for an update, but as soon as he unlocked his phone, he noticed messages from two familiar sources: a certain chatty heiress named Asta and his misfortunate "chief scientist," Herta.

Curious, he tapped open the chat with 99+ unread messages.

Starry Skies Are Beautiful: [PDF: "Energy Bridge Construction and Physical Energy Emitter Principles: A Beginner’s Guide to Building a Physical Energy Emitter"] (Sent 67 days ago)
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "Lin! I had my friend’s research lab write a paper based on the question you asked last time. Let me know what you think!"
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "Also, the space station has almost finished clearing the residual antimatter energy. Come visit when you have time! I bought lots of new food for you to try while we chat about my latest astronomical discoveries!"
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "Are you busy? Let me know when you’re free!"
...
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "Lin, look what Peppy did today! It got so dirty—ugh, I’m so mad!" (Sent 51 days ago)
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "Haha, I cleaned Peppy and gave it a new look!"
...
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "I asked Himeko, and she mentioned you’re searching for Stellerons causing navigational disturbances. No wonder you’ve been offline—probably bad signal. Please stay safe! I’m off to dinner now." (Sent 32 days ago)
...
Starry Skies Are Beautiful: "I heard there are space pirates in your region. Be careful! Let me know when the signal improves. If you need help, just call me. Goodnight." (Sent 7 hours ago)

This girl is ridiculously persistent, Chen Lin thought. Two months without a single reply, and she still messages me goodnight every day.

It was clear she valued having someone who shared her niche interests without exploiting her wealth.

As he pondered how to reply, the connection with Asta’s network abruptly dropped.

“Damn it.”

Chen Lin couldn’t help but curse, drawing a curious glance from Seele.

“Brother Lin, is that your family?”

“A friend,” Chen Lin replied. “She researches astronomy. It’s a pretty niche field, so I’m probably the only one who understands her interests. She’s… a stubborn girl in some ways.”

“A… girl?”

“Yeah.”

Seele responded with a soft oh before suddenly standing and running off to keep watch nearby.

---

T/N: oop why am I asta

This is a fan translation of 在星穹铁道点群星科技树真的没问题吗？ by 杏雨诗韵 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!