Is Unlocking the Stellaris Tech Tree in Star Rail Really Okay? [91]

The ancients once said: Help others to the end, escort the Buddha all the way to the West.

A few days ago, Chen Lin heard Clara mention that most of the inhabitants in the settlement were ironclad robots. Svarog would often cling to the medicine Chen Lin gave Clara, meticulously inspecting it, occasionally even freezing up or reporting errors like a malfunctioning computer.

Since Clara found it inconvenient to apply the ointment herself and refused to trouble the wanderers outside the settlement, Chen Lin readily took on the responsibility upon learning of it. He began helping Clara apply the medicine daily.

This little girl wasn’t simple. Most people walking barefoot on the icy floors daily, their legs exposed and braving frozen puddles, would already be dealing with frostbite or necrotic cells from the cold. Yet Clara seemed immune to it, her legs miraculously fine.

Not only was she unscathed, but her physical resilience was remarkable. At most, her body would succumb to chilblains when the cold became unbearable.

Even that was enough to make most people envious.

“…It tickles,” Clara murmured softly, lips pursed.

“If it tickles, that means it’s working.” Chen Lin, holding her small foot, diligently massaged the ointment in, his movements deliberate to help the medicine absorb faster. He explained, “At least it doesn’t hurt as it did at first. That’s a sign your body is healing well, and the adverse reactions are subsiding. See? The new skin growing here looks great—smooth and tender. You’re still young, so treating it early will reduce the chances of scars forming. Scars are tough to deal with later, and most girls prefer to avoid them.”

“… ”

Clara’s face flushed red as she sat at the foot of the bed, remaining silent. Occasionally, she would glance shyly at Chen Lin, who was focused on applying the ointment.

In her life, Chen Lin was the first person she had met who showed such meticulous care and thoughtfulness in both words and actions.

Mr. Svarog was also very kind to her, but he was often stern, and his logic didn’t always align with human reasoning. Explaining things to him was often exhausting. Yet Clara persisted, teaching Svarog how humans think, even if all she got in return was a sarcastic remark about the instability of human reasoning.

She considered both Svarog and Chen Lin as family. To her, walking barefoot on the ground was unclean, yet Chen Lin didn’t show the slightest bit of disgust while applying the ointment. That, to Clara, said everything.

A few days ago, wearing the new shoes Chen Lin gifted her, she excitedly showed them off while carrying the medicine to report to Svarog. After confirming the medicine posed no irreversible harm to humans, Svarog approved its use.

However, Svarog’s mechanical design made applying ointment with precision difficult. Clara herself struggled with the correct dosage, fearing that using too much or too little might worsen her condition. This led her to seek out Chen Lin, whom she saw as a selfless and kind-hearted “doctor,” willing to help her for free.

To Chen Lin, helping Clara apply ointment was hardly an inconvenience. He agreed without hesitation, not giving it much thought.

For the past few days, whenever he had time, Chen Lin would help Clara treat her frostbite. Even on areas without frostbite, applying the medicine helped prevent new chilblains from forming.

“Thank you, Big Brother, for helping me so much…” Clara said, her gratitude earnest.

“It’s nothing,” Chen Lin replied with a smile. “If the medicine works so well for you, it proves its efficacy, making it easier for me to sell. You’re actually helping me out quite a bit, solving my manpower issues at the factory.”

“No, I’m not…”

Seeing Chen Lin’s sincerity, Clara felt relieved and added, “Big Brother has found jobs for everyone. Now that they have income, their lives have improved. All I did was pass along your messages to the uncles and aunts in the settlement.”

Clara paused, hesitating briefly before asking, “Big Brother, do you know anyone who can repair energy devices? The settlement’s energy device is broken, and I can’t fix it.”

“Energy device?” Chen Lin frowned slightly. “The kind that uses geomarrow to generate heat?”

“Yep! But it’s quite large, about three times as tall as me, and that’s just the smallest model. The largest is the ‘Core.’” Clara gestured animatedly to illustrate the size of the device.

Hearing this, Chen Lin waved casually, “I can fix it, but I’ve got something to take care of today. I can ask our cold-faced prodigy, Dan Heng—who’s known as a genius mechanic and an expert learner—to handle it. For him, it’ll be a breeze.”

Dan Heng is pretty much a jack-of-all-trades, he thought to himself. Even if he doesn’t know how, he can probably learn on the spot. Nothing’s too difficult for him.

Dan Heng had spent time learning mechanical repair with Silvermane in the Overworld. Chen Lin chose Dan Heng over the equally skilled Stelle because he feared Stelle might cause a commotion in the Robot Settlement, tarnishing the Trailblazers’ reputation.

Dan Heng, on the other hand, was reliable—quiet, methodical, and thoughtful, embodying the principle of thinking thrice before acting.

This guy has the makings of a great emperor. He’s destined for greatness!

Seeing Clara’s relieved expression, Chen Lin decided to drop the matter.

Chen Lin knew Clara’s status in the Robot Settlement. Even though he had never visited the massive Core, the fact that it suppressed the blazing geomarrow fire so effectively meant the settlement had no shortage of robots.

Most of Chen Lin’s time was spent mingling around Boulder Town and nearby settlements. Occasionally, he would contact Bronya and the others to exchange information, keeping tabs on the Overworld’s situation.

From his conversations with the trio, Chen Lin sensed their hidden motives. They constantly reached out to him, asking questions without fully disclosing their intentions. They probably thought Chen Lin would disapprove of their rebellion. Little did they know that Chen Lin not only knew about their plans but had also designated Jarilo-VI and its star system as part of his domain from the moment he arrived.

His original plan was to take over the planet peacefully. However, with Cocolia—a ruler—revealed as a traitor, he had to consider military options.

As for the rebellion in the Overworld, that was their issue, entirely unrelated to him.

After finishing the ointment application on Clara’s arms, Chen Lin asked, “Do you have another request?”

“Uh… you noticed?” Clara scratched her head sheepishly and murmured, “The spare parts you gave me last time are mostly used up. I kept the broken scraps, just like you said, and stored them outside the settlement…”

“You need more parts?”

“Mm…” Clara quickly explained, “But I won’t take them for free. I’ve already gotten Svarog’s approval to let some robots help with tasks. If they break down, I can repair them myself.”

After knowing Clara for nearly a week, Chen Lin realized he still hadn’t fully grasped the extent of her mechanical engineering and automation expertise. However, he had heard that Clara had mastered all the knowledge in Svarog’s databanks regarding machinery. There was no doubt that this little girl was a genius.

It wasn’t just hearsay. The first time they met, Chen Lin saw a modified automaton soldier with a reconfigured internal structure—a creation of Clara’s. The electric ignition device she crafted was unheard of in a place as technologically stunted as Belobog. That alone proved her unparalleled talent in this field.

Chen Lin was in desperate need of capable people. So far, the only “talent” he had was Herta, who he’d practically kidnapped without her consent to serve as his chief scientist.

If Clara’s foundation was solid, Chen Lin wouldn’t mind teaching her some advanced knowledge. It could prove useful in the future if he needed a genius engineer to lead a research ship.

Ahem. Thinking too far ahead.

After a brief pause, Chen Lin suddenly spoke, “Clara, you haven’t properly toured Boulder Town yet, have you?”

“No, I haven’t. Everyone is so busy, and I didn’t want to disturb them,” Clara replied, looking at Chen Lin curiously.

“In that case, how about I take you to see Boulder Town’s factories today? If you notice any problems, you can let me know.”

Clara’s eyes widened, and she quickly shook her head. “No, no, I’m not that skilled…”

Chen Lin smiled, coaxing her, “But I heard from Seele that you’re amazing at mechanical engineering. There are so many smelting and manufacturing operations in the Underworld, and I can’t oversee everything alone. If you can spot any areas for improvement, it’d be a huge help to me. Don’t you want to build better relationships with everyone? By helping to enhance production efficiency, you’ll be making a big contribution.”

Though Clara still doubted her ability, Chen Lin’s words softened her resistance.

Chen Lin had plenty of experience entertaining young relatives and knew how to interact with girls her age. He continued, “Here, we treat everyone as equals. Don’t you want to earn some money? You could buy tasty food, fabric for making clothes, or explore machines you’ve never seen before. And you’d have free access to the parts manufactured in the factories.”

“Then… then I can give it a try?” Clara said hesitantly. “But I don’t know if I’ll do a good job…”

Hearing this, Chen Lin smiled and gently held Clara’s small hand. “That’s okay. If you run into anything you don’t understand, I’ll teach you. By the way, automatons function based on the logic and computations of their internal cores, right?”

Clara’s eyes widened in surprise. “Big Brother, how do you know that?”

“I’ve studied similar principles about core operations and their mechanisms. Clara, would you like to build a robot core yourself?”

“Yes!” Clara nodded enthusiastically. She had always been fascinated by robots like Svarog that could think independently, but the underlying mysteries eluded her.

Whenever a robot broke down, Clara would inspect its core. If the core was damaged, it could only be repaired by Svarog. If the damage was too severe, the settlement would permanently lose one of its automatons.

Clara was deeply interested in robots of all shapes and sizes. Knowing that Chen Lin might understand similar technologies erased her last bit of hesitation.

Seeing her reaction, Chen Lin smiled in relief. “When we have time, I’ll teach you programming and some computer science basics. In the empire, that’s how robot cores are made. Oh, and I know this incredibly arrogant person who built hundreds of identical robots to do her bidding. She uses them to slack off whenever she can…”

---

After successfully piquing Clara’s interest, Chen Lin refrained from elaborating further. When Seele, who had been sent to work overtime the previous night, finally arrived, the three of them hurried off to Boulder Town’s massive factories.

Before long, Chen Lin led them to the most advanced parts manufacturing and mechanical assembly plants in Boulder Town. Nearby, there was also a military factory dedicated to producing firearms and ammunition.

While Seele had long grown tired of these places, it was Clara’s first time observing them up close. As they approached, the armed guards stationed around the factory raised their weapons and called out, “Who goes—oh! It’s Boss Chen and Officer Seele!”

“Just bringing a friend to tour the factories. Don’t mind us,” Chen Lin replied casually.

The armed Wildfire member finally noticed the nervous little girl clinging to Chen Lin’s sleeve. “Huh? Isn’t that the kid from the Robot Settlement, the one from—”

“Clara,” Seele interjected.

“Oh, right! Welcome, welcome!” The guard smiled and stepped aside.

As they passed through the metal gates, Clara tugged on Chen Lin’s sleeve and asked, “Big Brother, how much money do all these buildings and machines cost? They look like they’d require a lot of resources to build.”

After the town’s miraculous economic recovery, even Clara, who rarely left the settlement, had developed a basic understanding of money.

“I have no idea.” Chen Lin shrugged. “Wildfire built these, and Seele was involved in the process. You can ask her. Besides, your Sister Seele is rich. How about we let her treat us to dinner tonight?”

Seele shot Chen Lin a glare. “This man here is the big boss. After paying the workers and buying materials, most of the money ends up in his hands. He decides how to spend it.”

“Ah, I miss the days when I first arrived here, penniless and relying on others’ charity,” Chen Lin sighed. “I’ve never liked money. Never even touched it.”

Seele and Clara: “…”

Chen Lin was about to say something else when he suddenly stopped, a faint smile playing on his lips. He turned and said, “Seele, take Clara to tour the factories. I have something to deal with.”

“What is it?” Seele asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Ask again, and I’ll dock your pay next month.”

“Ugh, damn capitalist. Clara, let’s go,” Seele muttered, grabbing Clara’s hand and leading her toward the factory.

Meanwhile, Chen Lin found a quiet spot to sit and sank into his consciousness.

Seconds earlier, a message had arrived from his destroyer.

“Federation Class-A Destroyer #1 has entered its designated orbit. Requesting next instructions!”

Chen Lin sent the coordinates of several desolate mountains outside Jarilo-VI’s city limits to the destroyer, along with another command:

Enter the stratosphere and execute ten rounds of deterrent bombing at the designated location.

---

T/N: thats crazyyy thats messed up

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!