After resting for half a day, Priest Zhong Ye finally opened his eyes.
But he looked even older than before.
Between the two wrinkles already carved into his face, a third had somehow squeezed its way out.
"Lord Priest." Luca crouched by the bed where Zhong Ye rested, carefully handing him a cup of brown potion. "Have some medicine. You expended too much today."
Zhong Ye drained the potion from Luca's hand. "Heh, you didn't see Priest Ban's eyes. I have a feeling he will agree to my request."
A moment later, Ah She knocked and walked in carrying a blanket.
"Lord Priest, Priest Ban has already gone to sleep. He said he might need to rest for a long time."
Priest Zhong Ye nodded. "The seal on his body is not simple; it must drain his energy. However, it seems he isn't too worried about his own physical condition. That is good news."
Ah She dropped to one knee and draped the blanket over Priest Zhong Ye.
In this regard, Ah She was far more meticulous than Luca.
Priest Zhong Ye didn't hesitate. "We won't head west; we'll go north. There's an abandoned base there. We can wait for Priest Ban to recover, and gather information about Trash City while we're at it. Priest Ban falling into this world likely means a new world has collapsed and dropped in. They won't let these fresh, original bodies slip away."
Luca sighed and offered words of comfort, "Lord Priest, you should focus on your own health. Right now, our branch of the Ash Alliance doesn't have the strength or energy to save other Originals."
"I know. Don't worry, I just want to confirm Trash City's movements." Priest Zhong Ye's cloudy eyes were full of worry. "We've already lost several allied teams. If this continues, who knows what the artificial intelligence will turn this world into—"
Just as Priest Zhong Ye, Luca, and the others discussed their next destination, two warriors clad in full-body mechanical armor arrived at the site where they had fought the Mechanical Dogs.
The pair moved leisurely, completely lacking the high state of alert and vigilance shown by the Ash Alliance.
They only glanced around occasionally, waiting for electronic feedback from their helmets.
The yellow sandstorm that filled the sky battered against them, yet it hindered them no more than a gentle spring drizzle.
Both of their helmets bore a string of characters on the side.
In the language of this world, they read: Sergeant 132 and Soldier 9899.
[Signal source reaction detected. Marking in progress—Marking complete.]
Sergeant 132 received the prompt and turned toward a massive pile of scrap metal nearby.
On the display screen before him, blue lines outlined several irregular shapes that closely resembled the contours of Mechanical Dogs.
He raised his hand. A miniature cylindrical gun barrel extended from his arm, taking aim at the marked scrap pile.
A split second later, the four-meter-tall pile of metal junk was blasted apart.
Scrap rained down from the sky, some clattering sharply against the two mechanical warriors.
The remains of the Mechanical Dogs, which hadn't been buried very deep, were exposed.
Soldier 9899 stepped forward to investigate. After waiting for her screen to formulate a conclusion, a female voice rang out from her helmet.
"Sergeant 132, the bodies of most of the Mechanical Dogs are intact, but their cranial chips have malfunctioned. There are also signs of a struggle on the ground; they didn't have time to cover their tracks completely. Should we pursue them immediately?"
"9899, you're too impatient."
Sergeant 132 was a man, but judging strictly by their armor, the two of them had virtually identical builds.
"The vast majority of the Mechanical Dogs are physically fine; only their chips failed. This proves they have the ability to crash the chips. If we can't pinpoint their exact capabilities, our Phantom Armor might be compromised as well."
"I was reckless," 9899 admitted, lowering her head without hesitation. "Should we try resetting them?"
"Keep two samples. Use an isolated grid plate to reset the rest. Do not establish a direct data connection between them and yourself."
9899 detached a standalone steel plate from her back.
The moment the steel plate hit the ground, it shifted and reconfigured into a square box.
9899 picked up a piece of scrap iron, used it to select two relatively intact Mechanical Dogs, and tossed them into the metal box.
Then she magnetized the box to her back and retrieved a small square chip from her arm.
This small square piece looked very similar to the one Li Ban possessed, except instead of circular grooves, its surface was lined with vertical metal strips.
It looked just like a grid.
The instant she slotted the grid plate into the back of a Mechanical Dog's head, the plate began to flash.
It flashed rapidly, emitting a red warning light.
9899 found it odd and was about to try again, only for the warning lights on her own arm to flare to life.
Without a shred of hesitation, 132 raised his arm and fired a shot directly at 9899's arm.
Bang!
9899's arm plummeted to the ground, accompanied by a massive spray of blood.
"Ah!" 9899 cried out in pain, but her screams quickly ceased. Her trembling body steadied, as if the pain had suddenly vanished.
Blood also stopped pouring from her severed stump.
The severed steel armor automatically reassembled, sealing off the wound and hiding the flesh inside from view.
"Why did you shoot me?" 9899 stood back up.
She asked Sergeant 132 in an incredibly steady voice. There was no anger, only deep confusion.
"Your arm armor's signal went anomalous. The Main Brain prompted me to perform a physical isolation as quickly as possible."
9899 gritted her teeth, staring at the severed arm on the ground. "That was my last original arm."
132 showed zero remorse. "Then you should thank yourself for using your left hand. City residents can modify their original limbs into mechanical prosthetics for free, and severed original arms can be sold for money. But if you had used your right hand, the cost to repair the mechanical prosthetic would have been enough to wipe out half a year of your wages."
9899 still felt a bit wronged. "But now I have to repair my armor too."
132 fell silent for three seconds. "If there's a bounty for this discovery, I'll give you half."
Hearing this, 9899 instantly perked up.
She could already tell that the hacking method used on these Mechanical Dogs was unprecedented. As the discoverers, they were guaranteed a hefty payout in bounty points.
It would absolutely cover her current losses, with plenty left to spare.
As for losing an original arm... so be it.
Keeping a few original limbs wasn't popular in Trash City anymore anyway. Full mechanical bodies were the new trend.
132 said, "We'll take the samples back right now."
"What about those people from the Ash Alliance?"
"Based on our informant's report and the Main Brain's analysis, their next route should take them toward the primitive tribes in the west. I'll notify the soldiers out west to intercept them nearby."
9899 had originally thought about seizing whoever—or whatever system—possessed this hacking tech. But glancing at her severed arm, she realized that with just the two of them, they might not make it out in one piece. It was better to secure the merits they already had in hand.
As for those dangerous missions, she'd let someone else handle them.
9899 nodded in agreement. The two of them carefully inspected the metal box on her back one more time. Only after confirming that the internal data of the Mechanical Dogs hadn't breached the isolation box did they retrace their steps and head back.
Early the next morning, Li Ban handed the seed to the newly awakened Cat Girl and pushed the door open to step outside.
He had heard movement in the courtyard just moments ago. As soon as he stepped out, he saw Lady Kui taking Shi Ming's pulse in the small yard.
—
"Young Master Jin, there are no major issues with your body. You are simply too frail. It would be best if you increased your food intake."
Shi Ming touched his distinct, protruding ribs. "I went through a phase of binge-eating once, but I never gained an ounce. Instead, several people around me ended up with stomach ailments."
"Hm?" Lady Kui tilted her head in confusion.
"Ahem!" Deng Jun stepped forward, wedging himself between the two, and said to Shi Ming, "Young Master Jin, their stomach issues had nothing to do with you. They were just a bunch of paupers who seized the chance of you treating them, stuffed themselves silly, and ruined their guts."
Deng Jun didn't want anyone else noticing Shi Ming's anomalies and growing suspicious of his identity.
Lady Kui smiled and asked no further questions.
"Lady Kui," Li Ban called out, stepping up behind the group.
"Young Master Wen, you are finally awake." Shi Ming stood up, a sincere smile on his face.
It was just that the words didn't sound all that pleasant, considering it was nearly noon.
Lady Kui walked over to Li Ban and bowed. While her head was lowered, she murmured softly, "Young Master Wen, Miss Miaomiao's condition requires a lot of rest."
Li Ban froze for a second before he realized what Lady Kui was insinuating.
Still, the public personas he and the Cat Girl were putting on really made it easy for people to misunderstand.
And it wasn't like they could clarify things, either.
Whatever. Let them think what they want.
"Uh, actually, Miaomiao is feeling a bit under the weather. Could you go in and take another look at her, Lady Kui?"
Lady Kui hastily nodded. "Yes, of course. I'll go check on Miss Miaomiao right away."
Upon entering the room, the Cat Girl was absorbing spiritual rhinoceros while keeping a close eye on the seed.
Li Ban shut the door and asked, somewhat puzzled, "Didn't we agree you'd visit every other day? Why did you come over this morning?"
Lady Kui looked a bit embarrassed. "I was a little worried about the seed, so I wanted to come take a look."
She was probably afraid that Li Ban would mess up one of the steps and damage the seed.
In truth, as a superior-grade element, Cyan Silk Algae seeds possessed extremely tenacious vitality. They wouldn't easily lose their vigor, but successfully cultivating them was still no simple task.
But too much concern breeds anxiety.
Li Ban invited her into the east bedroom.
Lady Kui knew her boundaries. She was well aware that even if she tried to snatch it, she stood no chance against the two people before her. Thus, she deliberately refrained from getting too close. She only inspected the seed's condition and aura from a distance before retreating to the door.
She smiled and said, "There are no anomalies. I'll take my leave for now. I'll come back tomorrow to give Miss Miaomiao her acupuncture."
Just as she was walking out, her sleeve suddenly shifted. A small sapling twig poked its way out.
"Is that your child, Miaomiao?" Li Ban asked as he followed her out, catching sight of the little branch while he closed the door.
Lady Kui looked down and gently tucked the little twig back into her sleeve. "Yes. He caught the scent of it, too, and got a bit excited."
"Can he leave the soil now?" Li Ban remembered that the last time he saw Miaomiao, the child's legs still needed to be rooted in the dirt.
"It's best if he stays in the pot, but you know children—they can never stay still."
Lady Kui was in high spirits. With a cure for Miaomiao now in sight, she had relaxed considerably, her face brimming with an indulgent, doting smile.
She could see that the Cat Girl and Li Ban were earnestly guarding the Cyan Silk Algae Seed. Even though she knew the Cyan Silk Algae was immensely useful to them as well, she still expressed her gratitude.
"Thank you for your diligence, Young Master Wen and Miss Miaomiao."
Li Ban shook his head. "As long as you hand over the Flesh on White Bones to me afterward, that's enough."
"I will absolutely keep my word," Lady Kui promised.
After seeing Lady Kui off, Shi Ming jogged over to Li Ban, leaned in close, and whispered in his ear, "There's a dark shadow over Lady Kui's brow. I can't shake the feeling that something terrible is going to happen to her."