Chapter 962: Chapter 172:
When Perfikot stepped into the survivors’ camp again, the scene before her made her heart tighten.
Though all of this was part of the plan, and she had anticipated the aftermath of the camp attack, seeing it in ruins still caused her a pang of discomfort.
In the morning mist, the once vibrant camp was now a sight of devastation with charred wooden beams stuck slantingly in the snow, and black smoke still rising from the crumbling walls.
Several flags bearing the Empire’s emblem were half-buried in the rubble, flapping noisily in the cold wind.
The Evil God believers’ assault had come swiftly and mercilessly, like a beast pouncing in the night.
They wielded bone-crafted weapons inscribed with blasphemous runes, the twisted symbols glowing a sickly green in the moonlight, leaving corrosive trails in the air with every swing.
The zealots had not only used their dark powers to destroy most of the buildings, they had also heavily damaged the camp’s critical Energy Tower.
The steel giant’s shell was covered with terrifying cracks, as if shredded by some great beast’s claws.
The core components flickered with unstable light, dimming and brightening like the breath of a dying man.
Accompanied by a piercing metallic wail, the massive structure that sustained the entire camp’s life finally ceased operation, the last jet of steam condensing into ice crystals in the frigid wind.
In such an emergency, Perfikot immediately made a decisive call, deploying a backup Energy Tower from the Floating City module, which had been prepped long ago.
These backup devices played a crucial role at this moment, with a quickly expanding thermal field covering the entire camp, sending much-needed warmth to the survivors who had shivered all night without protection.
As the mechanical spade of the new Energy Tower pierced into the frozen ground with a heavy thud, everyone held their breath.
Hexagonal heat exhaust panels slowly unfolded amidst the rubble, and thermal ripples visibly dispelled the deadly chill.
Perfikot watched the survivors huddle around the heat source with tattered blankets, their blue lips finally regaining some color, and their frost-laden eyelashes showing signs of life.
The children stopped crying, and the trembling hands of the elderly gradually steadied.
She knew that the most lethal threat was temporarily averted.
The large autonomous robots came into great use at this time.
These many-legged machines moved through the camp’s wreckage, avoiding trampling the debris while the various tools and components on their mechanical arms efficiently cleared the site.
Their buckets easily lifted collapsed warehouse roofs, hydraulics accurately grasped twisted steel beams, emitting piercing metallic distortion sounds.
Whenever they detected a possible cavity where people could be trapped, the red warning lights on their heads would spin rapidly, emitting sharp beeps to guide rescuers for inspection.
The Steam Knights clad in Steam Armor operated in tighter spaces, their armor glistening with a cold metallic sheen in the sunlight.
Though not as powerful as the large robots, the auxiliary power provided by the Steam Armor was ample to lift heavy debris.
A Knight knelt on one knee, releasing white steam from his joints, his mechanical fingers carefully removing a pile of broken boards—underneath, a trembling hand was revealed.
The built-in communicator in the armor quickly reported: "Survivor found in B area! Medical support needed!"
Their coordinated efforts significantly increased the efficiency of the cleanup.
The robots were tasked with wide area clearance, while the Knights performed precise rescues.
Thanks to Perfikot’s timely counterattack the previous night, although most of the camp lay in ruins, the core area remained untouched.
Many survivors had fled to the core area in time and avoided the Evil God believers’ assault, only suffering some fright and minor injuries during the subsequent attacks.
Now, these fortunate survivors gathered on the relatively intact central square, with children wrapped in makeshift blankets and the injured lying on stretchers made of doors.
Most were injured by flying debris, with the worst cases merely being knocked unconscious by shockwaves.
Perfikot’s Golden Touching Rod traced over a collapsed cabin, its crimson glow seeped into the wreckage like a flowing river.
The deformed metal frames straightened under her alchemy like iron in the hands of an invisible blacksmith; shattered alchemical glass suspended back into the window frames, spiderweb-like gold patterns sealing the cracks.
When she reached the medical tent, dozens of injured lay groaning on makeshift mats.
The tent reeked of disinfectant and blood, and in the dim light, the patients’ faces twisted with pain.
Some were quietly sobbing over fractured arms, others’ bandages around their abdomens were soaked with fresh blood, and some lay barely alive in the corner, their breathing so faint it was almost undetectable.
Seeing the severe injuries, Perfikot immediately used her human transmutation to aid their recovery.
Having inherited her mother’s achievements in human transmutation, Perfikot wasn’t limited to turning people into stone; her hands were miraculous in treating various injuries.
The green glow at her fingertips swept over fractures, guiding bones like an invisible hand into alignment, and the fractured bones emitted soft ’clicks’ as they rejoined.
Her palm pressed on a festering wound, and the decaying tissue was instantly replaced by fresh flesh, necrotic skin sloughed off visibly, with new tissues quickly growing to fill the wound.
An old man’s spine, crushed by a collapsed beam, astonishingly reconfigured in her alchemy array, like pieces of a puzzle, and his once-gray face slowly regained color.
The miraculous scene left everyone present in awe.
Though many knew of alchemy’s marvels, for various reasons, alchemy had scarcely been applied to healing in the past.
Human transmutation had always been taboo, and although it was lifted by Perfikot’s mother’s generation, few researchers pursued it, let alone achieved anything significant.
Moreover, due to various factors, only a few Alchemists could heal with alchemy.
Perfikot, performing with such ease and miraculous results, was truly one of a kind.
The medical staff nearby were deeply impressed.
An older doctor adjusted his glasses, quietly telling a colleague: "If only we had an Alchemist like Lady Perfikot, skilled in human transmutation, assisting us, many complex surgeries would become much simpler.
Those major operations that require opening up the body might take her just a few minutes."
Hearing this, Perfikot was inspired, finding the suggestion feasible.
Even as she continued to treat the injuries, she was already contemplating a plan to train Medical Alchemists.
For now, though, her focus remained on the disaster relief; that matter could wait until later.
The most critical task was to ensure these patients escaped danger and returned to health as quickly as possible.
