Chapter 726 - 82: Fishing Village
Su Changxing opened his eyes and noticed that it looked like dusk outside the factory; a considerable amount of time had passed.
No one had interrupted him during this period, and it was quiet outside.
Descending the stairs, he saw Wogen lying on a mattress on the first floor, breathing evenly with closed eyes, seemingly asleep.
Mike quickly stepped forward and said, "Sir, according to your request, we have cleaned the entire factory. Due to its sheer size, this is the best we could do."
Su Changxing had just mentioned it casually and wasn’t particularly concerned about it, as he glanced around, he said, "Not bad, that stench in the air is almost undetectable."
Receiving the praise, Mike showed a trace of delight and then asked, "Is there anything else you require, sir?"
Su Changxing shook his head and said, "No, I’m going to the place downstream where survivors still exist to have a look."
"Do you need me to lead the way? I roughly know where it is."
"No need, just stay here and make sure these people don’t cause trouble."
"Alright." Mike’s expression was meticulous.
Eliza watched the two who were talking, her face full of bewilderment, not understanding why her father was so respectful towards that person, overly respectful.
She also couldn’t understand why these previously fierce Rat God Cult believers suddenly followed her father’s orders as if he had become their High Priest.
Thinking about it, she found it incredible, but when she asked her father, he just smiled without providing further explanation, leaving her feeling puzzled as well.
Moreover, those Rat God Cult believers seemed to have turned over a new leaf, no longer running around naked but wearing clothes, appearing rather quiet.
Su Changxing noticed this as well; after he arrived, the believers’ emotions stabilized significantly, forming a stark contrast with before.
He wasn’t quite sure about the underlying reason and could only conclude that these people were directly influenced by the Evil God initially, thus exhibiting such distorted changes.
And now, the influencer has become him, a human, so even if there is an influence, it wouldn’t be so distorted.
Upon reaching the door of the abandoned warehouse, there were still believers guarding the entrance. Upon seeing Su Changxing, they shouted, "Master!"
Su Changxing showed no particular reaction and said flatly, "Open the door, I’m going out."
"Yes!"
With the stretching of iron chains and the rotation of the axle, the factory door was slowly pulled open.
Golden sunset light shone through the gap and continuously expanded, illuminating their faces.
Then.
He walked along the riverbank all the way downstream to the location with the survivor gathering area, which happened to be outside the Rune Warriors’ search range.
There were quite a few corpses along the riverbank, all killed by Rune Warriors.
Not long into his walk, he heard the sound of metal clashing in front; a Rune Warrior was patrolling along the riverbank.
It was walking upstream along the riverbank while Su Changxing was walking downstream, and they happened to meet.
At this time.
Su Changxing suddenly remembered that he wasn’t familiar with the patrol routes of these Rune Warriors and that there was nothing to hide behind along the riverbank. Once encountered, he would definitely be discovered.
"Heretic detected, engage immediately."
The Rune Warrior thundered over towards Su Changxing with heavy steps, its arm blades slicing through the air, the relatively unstable riverbank was cracked underfoot and seemed ready to collapse at any moment.
In this world, the "Ancient Buddha in the Heart" was greatly weakened, so he wasn’t planning to use it, opting instead to confront the opponent head-on.
He was thinking that Rune Warriors were likely akin to robots with a fixed action pattern, and if the system wasn’t highly advanced, some loopholes might be found.
Through these loopholes, he could handle future encounters more easily.
It was certain that the genius scientist Eric had likely sided with the Duke and begun mass-producing Rune Warriors.
The Duke had seized Wodan, merely occupying Woguan, other places did not acknowledge his rule.
If the Duke didn’t possess absolutely strong martial power, the final result would likely be that the vast Empire would fragment into several smaller kingdoms.
This generally aligns with the pattern of dynastic changes, long united must divide, long divided must unite.
However, one thing Su Changxing was quite concerned about was why Eric defected to the Duke.
What could appeal to him?
What does a genius who illuminated the entire era with wisdom and creativity lack, wealth, power, or perhaps women?
None of these, certainly.
With the clash of blades, Su Changxing engaged in close combat with the Rune Warrior wielding a scythe.
In pure close combat, he wasn’t able to gain any advantage; instead, the Rune Warrior kept analyzing his movements and learning from them.
Noticing this, Su Changxing was shocked, these Rune Warriors seemed stiff but possessed an exceptionally advanced system, operating according to instructions yet possessing learning abilities.
Isn’t this the perfect soldier?
From previous battles, he already knew that the Rune Warrior’s weakness was located at one spot on its chest; as long as it’s pierced through, it will trigger self-destruct.
"Strong adversary detected, engaging in the highest level combat mode."
Mechanical sounds emitted from the Rune Warrior’s body.
A red light flashed across its face, its overall speed increased again, and its power rose by one level; even Su Changxing found it somewhat strenuous.
But at this moment, Su Changxing caught a breach in the Rune Warrior’s movements, deflected the attack with his scythe, and quickly pulled out his revolver to shoot at the gap in its chest armor.
The bullet pierced through the chest armor and easily penetrated the Rune Warrior’s chest, blasting out a heap of mechanical parts stained with blood.
As the chest was penetrated, the Rune Warrior’s movements came to a halt.
Su Changxing lifted his scythe and slashed at the Rune Warrior’s punctured chest, slicing through its body as he pulled horizontally.
"Sustaining lethal attack."
"Sustaining lethal attack."
"Sustaining lethal attack."
The voice dwindled, and the Rune Warrior kneeled before Su Changxing, gradually losing motion.
This time.
It didn’t even have the chance to self-destruct.
"No wonder it’s the design of a genius, this thing has weaknesses, but each one’s weakness is in a different spot, so it’s not really a weakness."
Su Changxing casually tossed the Rune Warrior’s body into the Pocket Galaxy, estimating that its value was likely considerable, and after repairs, it should still be usable.
The sound of the battle earlier was quite formidable and could be sensed from afar.
Continuing onward, he saw the place Eliza mentioned earlier, at the edge of the riverbank, which looked to be a fishing village, with low houses and quite a few people watching from behind.
Su Changxing walked forward at a steady pace, appearing like a normal person, but when he sped up, he started hobbling.
Mechanical decay was still increasingly burdening him, but the symptoms lessened somewhat after absorbing Faith earlier.
Acquiring enough Power of Faith could suppress mechanical decay.
That old monk, as the Abbot of Magpie Mountain Temple, surely enjoyed the incense of Magpie Mountain Temple, what is referred to as mechanical decay was probably wielded through Faith.
Similarly, he should also be able to utilize enough Faith to counter it and expel it from his body.