Chapter 735 - 41: Spoils of War
In this unconventional challenge, everyone has their own understanding of how to win.
Unlike Chen Zhou, who values teamwork and hopes his partner can handle some trivial matters for him, the Black-robed Man has clearly chosen a different path.
To achieve this, he did not hesitate to kill his partner, seize his companion’s survival tools, discard burdensome baggage, and pursue ultimate personal mobility and combat strength.
Of course, the reasons that prompted him to make such a decision are varied.
If the combat strength gap between him and his partner wasn’t so large, if the survival tools he acquired weren’t so formidable, if he wasn’t participating in the "trial" for the second time and still had precious Regeneration Capsules at hand, he might have shown leniency, bringing along the companion viewed as a burden for a longer walk, a longer survival.
Unfortunately, there’s no "if."
...
After stripping the Black-robed Man of his equipment, the most valuable items Paul found among all the materials were undoubtedly the Black-robed Man’s Light Armor and Long Saber.
The Light Armor only covered the upper body, with particular emphasis on protecting the front chest, back, and waist.
In those raised diamond-shaped blocks, special anti-piercing materials were wrapped. Even the long spear thrown by Chen Zhou could only pierce a little bit, a testament to its formidable defense capabilities.
Although the back of this Light Armor was damaged due to the Black-robed Man’s bait setup, more than eighty percent of its area was still intact.
Compared to the simple leather armor sewn from animal skins, this modern Light Armor can undoubtedly be called a "Divine Artifact."
Especially when worn by Chen Zhou, it can compensate for his lack of defensive capabilities, elevating his combat effectiveness to another level, like adding wings to a tiger.
If the Light Armor makes up for defensive power, the Long Saber greatly enhances Chen Zhou’s ability to inflict damage.
Maybe to fit the Black-robed Man’s tall physique, the entire length of the saber reached 120cm, about 20cm longer than a normal blade.
The blade was heavy, forged from refined steel, hard yet flexible, capable of bending within a limited range. The handle was equipped with a copper guard. For Chen Zhou, this blade was still not weighty enough, but it was far better than a short Military Saber or crudely made long spear.
If, when they first met, their weapons had been exchanged and he had used the saber, the Black-robed Man might have been beheaded within three minutes, avoiding all these subsequent troubles.
Apart from the Long Saber, the scabbard also used a lot of metal and could also be used as a weapon in emergencies.
...
Before cooking camel meat, Chen Zhou specially took the Light Armor and Long Saber to a water source for cleaning.
The saber was easy to clean since it was metal; the bloodstains washed off easily. However, it was very difficult to wash away the strong bloody smell from the Light Armor.
To deal with this, Chen Zhou could only pull some spicy-smelling shrubs and wild grass, using them as a scouring pad to scrub the bloodstained parts of the Light Armor. Although this couldn’t completely eliminate the bloody smell, the stronger spicy aroma could cover it.
As for the remaining fishy smell, he could only rely on the power of time.
After cleaning, returning to the camp, Chen Zhou also tried to sew up the damaged Light Armor.
But the needle and thread they had were evidently not suitable for clothing made of this special material. In the end, although it was awkwardly patched up, it was far from the state it was in when the Light Armor was intact.
However, patching up the gap in the back could still provide some defensive effect. Since it was free, he was satisfied with this.
...
The Light Armor and Long Saber were the main sources of the Black-robed Man’s combat power.
Excluding these two items, the quality of the Black-robed Man’s clothing was quite good, especially the long boots on his feet—heavy and sturdy, with metal plates possibly embedded within the rubber soles.
After acquiring them, Chen Zhou immediately swapped out his shoes and put on the Black-robed Man’s boots.
If it weren’t for daytime activities, he might have also changed into the Black-robed Man’s pants.
In the inside pocket of the Black-robed Man’s Light Armor, Paul found a fire starter kit, a small Dagger, a bottle of anti-inflammatory medicine, a bottle of purifying tablets, a bag of salt, and a rubber thermal water pouch.
In addition, the Black-robed Man’s belt was also equipped with a small smoke bomb and a half-transparent blue empty bottle.
Chen Zhou had witnessed the power of the smoke bomb.
But this thing was quite useless to him. If there was an enemy he couldn’t handle, throwing or not throwing this smoke bomb wouldn’t make much difference.
If it’s an enemy he can handle, the smoke bomb is just as ineffective, so he directly tossed the smoke bomb to Paul.
In Paul’s hands, the smoke bomb could at least stall time and confuse the enemy, possibly saving his life in a critical moment.
What really piqued his interest was that half-transparent blue empty bottle—
Simply because the hue of the bottle was identical to the blue favored by the Space-Time Administration Bureau. Coupled with rumors of the Black-robed Man’s previous challenge participation, Chen Zhou had reason to believe that this bottle was somehow connected to the Space-Time Administration Bureau.
...
The stew in the army pot was cooking, and since most of the two people and three tigers present were patients, Chen Zhou extravagantly added some salt to the pot, allowing everyone to enjoy a heavier flavor while also supplementing some salt.
The fire was blazing, and Paul was using the hammer side of the Hand Axe to strike the coal rocks on the ground, throwing those with structures that leaned towards coal into the bonfire to see if these black stones could be used as fuel.
Chen Zhou moved Tiger Third to his side.