This is really not mechanical ascension - Chapter 888 - 459: Invitation

Overnight, Tangning became a big slave owner in the southern United States with three large plantations and hundreds of black slaves who could be driven at will.

Tangning was very satisfied with the result of such a time-travel, but then he sadly discovered that he could only enjoy three years of such a good life, because three years later would be the “Civil War”, what should he do after this?

- Description from novelbuddy

Xu Wendong acquired a dual cultivation technique called the Dragon Phoenix Creation Art, setting forth on an extraordinary life unlike any other.

“Leave, you're free. Don't ever come back here again.” She said, hoping he wouldn't return and she'll get to liveHael was shocked, “Are you abandoning me, My Lady?”Corvina Cory lived her first life like a typical villainess and the consequences of her actions were pretty obvious. She died at the hands of the person she was in love with. Yet she gets a second chance at her first life even though she didn't want it. She didn't want to face the man she was madly in love with again and she definitely didn't want to get killed again by him as well.

Facing extinction, humanity seeks salvation in the Astral Verge, a dangerous dimension accessed via portals that threatened to wipe out the entire planet.Few years later, aspiring recruit Daniel Vance enters the Verge for his final assessment, hoping to Awaken a Talent and secure his future. While others gain common abilities, Daniel secretly Awakens the mythical SSS-Grade Talent: [Soul Assimilation]. This allows him to absorb essence, enhancing gear, gaining stats and EXP from slain creatures, and crucially, absorbing attributes and skills from fallen Awakened.Witnessing the swift death of the arrogant Jaxon Rex, Daniel makes a grim choice: he assimilates Jaxon, gaining his first skill, [Kinetic Pulse]. This sets his path: scavenging the aftermath of others’ battles. He enhances gear and, after achieving his first kill on an injured beast, waits patiently to assimilate two more fallen recruits, acquiring [Quick Step] and the invaluable passive [Aura Sense].Starting as average, Daniel rapidly gains power in secret, enhanced gear, multiple skills, and boosted stats , far exceeding his peers while remaining outwardly unremarkable. He navigates the lethal Verge alone, using its inherent dangers to fuel his growth, wrestling with the moral cost of his unique, overwhelming power.