Chapter 195: Chapter 195: Rivet Knight Sanctuary, I’ll Kill First, Out of Respect
"What... No, what is this place?"
Qi Suian looked at the massive energy shield that resembled a giant inverted bowl. This was the Riveting Knight Sanctuary.
"I thought the ’Fire Seed’ you all talked about was just some kind of purification and recycling device." Qi Suian had a strange look on his face.
The Fire Seed was the core of the entire Sanctuary. Since the Riveting Knight Sanctuary was a fifth-generation model, it possessed a Level 5 Fire Seed.
When he first heard them talk about it, Qi Suian had indeed thought it was some kind of special job class related to purification, recycling, or protection.
Now, it looked more like some kind of technological, ecological barrier.
"You’re not a pure-blood? Who the hell are you?" Even as slow on the uptake as Valia was, he had now realized there was something wrong with Qi Suian.
He suspected Qi Suian was a mutant.
A mutant who had stolen a pure-blood’s combat armor through some despicable means.
Qi Suian had no intention of answering him. He snapped the man’s neck and tossed his body directly into the Melting Furnace for fuel.
"You’re useless now. Say goodbye to your life," Qi Suian only spoke after he finished the deed.
Qi Suian only said this after the man was dead. If he’d said it while Valia was still alive, he would have fallen into the trope of a villain who dies from monologuing.
The other pure-blood—the daughter of one of the Riveting Knight Sanctuary’s Elders—was still unconscious.
Qi Suian planned to use her as bait to make the Riveting Knight Sanctuary open its entrance.
Within the Sanctuary, the pure-bloods were divided into three classes: the ruling Elders, the affluent Warriors, and the civilians who only received basic benefits.
Maeve was an Elder’s granddaughter, so she naturally enjoyed the best life in the Riveting Knight Sanctuary.
She didn’t have to work. Her days were spent enjoying afternoon tea in her small villa with its own garden.
Valia’s status was a step down. He was a Warrior, but his life was still quite comfortable.
As for the civilians, life wasn’t too hard. They lived at a normal family’s standard. While they couldn’t compare to the Elders and Warriors, one look at the mutants in the wasteland made them feel like a superior people.
Especially since they faced no mortal danger and never had to worry about their next meal.
In the beginning, these three tiers weren’t so rigid. A civilian could become a Warrior, and with enough skill and merit, could even rise to become an Elder.
But over time, the path to becoming an Elder closed off. It became a hereditary position, passed down from father to son.
Now, the highest a civilian could aspire to was the rank of Warrior. And even that couldn’t be achieved through hard work alone; it required connections and a powerful background.
As for Maeve, who was of the Elder class, why would she go on a mission with Valia?
It was, of course, because she needed to pad her resume to secure her status.
Her current lifestyle was entirely thanks to her grandfather, the Elder. If her father failed to inherit the position, she would be stripped of everything.
Maeve’s father had siblings, but only one of them could become an Elder.
Without that connection, her uncles certainly wouldn’t look after her; after all, they had their own children and grandchildren to provide for.
’Why should they lose out by giving anything to you?’ But if she could secure her status as a Warrior, her life, while not as extravagant as before, would still be far better than that of an ordinary civilian.
Qi Suian had a question of his own. ’These people all claim to be descendants of the Victory Clan. Without any outsiders, wouldn’t they have to inbreed?’
’The fact that they seem fine is probably thanks to some genetic modifications.’
’Otherwise, their rates of infant mortality and birth defects would be terrifyingly high by now.’
[Sanctuary is opening. Prepare to engage.]
The AI’s reminder interrupted Qi Suian’s thoughts.
That unknown technological barrier was actually able to block his reconnaissance network to some extent, otherwise Qi Suian wouldn’t have had to lie in wait.
When the technological barrier opened, several pure-bloods in combat armor emerged, rushing toward the unconscious Maeve on the ground.
The technological barrier hadn’t closed yet. The Tai Sui God’s Wind Master flight system was pushed to maximum power as it shot toward the entrance.
It moved so fast that the people who had just come out had no time to react before Qi Suian reached the gate.
[Identity Scan in Progress...]
However, Qi Suian was stopped at the entrance. A transparent, high-strength membrane blocked his path—one that conventional firearms couldn’t hope to breach.
[Identification Failed. Identity Error. Access Denied. Initiating Expulsion Protocol...]
Since Qi Suian wasn’t a member of the Riveting Knight Sanctuary, he was naturally denied entry. He had also triggered their defensive measures.
But before the technological barrier could react, the Tai Sui God moved even faster.
The Dragon and Tiger Primordial Divine Force, combined with the Evil Dragon and amplified by the Glutton’s Feast, shattered the special membrane blocking the entrance on the spot.
’It’s not that strong, but it’s more than enough to stop conventional weapons and mutants.’
As Qi Suian was evaluating it, the Tai Sui God had already entered the interior of the Riveting Knight Sanctuary.
To be honest, Qi Suian felt a little dazed. ’Is this really the apocalypse?’
The interior had its own complete ecosystem, including its own weather patterns.
The gentle breeze, the bright sunshine, and all the modern equipment made him wonder if he had returned to the time before the apocalypse.
Then, a piercing alarm blared as the barrier announced an enemy intrusion.
The pure-bloods of the Riveting Knight Sanctuary reacted instantly. Guided by the barrier’s system, they rushed toward the entrance.
’Compared to Black Heart Town, the Riveting Knight Sanctuary is the only place that actually deserves to be called a town.’ Qi Suian wasn’t worried about being surrounded by the pure-bloods.
No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than the Tai Sui God began its assault.
A group of them, armed with shoddy energy weapons and wearing combat armor only good for bullying mutants, opened fire.
’At least they have brains.’ Instead of treating their energy weapons like clubs and charging into melee, they fired from a distance.
’High energy consumption, low accuracy, and a long charge-up time are one thing...’
’...but the controls are also cumbersome, and they require a long cooldown.’
’The only redeeming quality is their power. But if an energy weapon doesn’t even have power, it’s completely useless.’
’Besides, powerful energy weapons are supposed to be the norm.’
As Qi Suian listed their flaws, he watched the Tai Sui God slaughter them. The resistance crumbled in moments.
Only the Warrior and Elder classes had energy weapons and combat armor; civilians did not.
However, this was a pyramid structure. In the Riveting Knight Sanctuary, there were only three Elders, a hundred Warriors, and the remaining nine hundred were civilians.
That was why only fifteen Warriors had come to stop him.
Qi Suian didn’t know where the rest were.
After the fifteen Warriors were killed, their bodies were tossed into the Melting Furnace for fuel.
’The equipment seems to be standard-issue. The Elders probably have better gear.’
’But with such a huge commotion at the entrance, why did they only send fifteen people? Where is everyone else?’ Qi Suian had been hoping to wipe them all out in one fell swoop.
’Oh well. This place isn’t that big anyway. I’ll just kill my way through. It’s a good chance to gather some fuel.’
Qi Suian didn’t care about their class. As long as they were pure-bloods, they were fuel.
Their fuel value was quite good.
A civilian’s attributes were rated at 2 points, while a Warrior’s were 5.
It seemed that due to the pure-bloods’ class system and technology, their average stats were much higher and more consistent than those of the mutants, whose abilities were based purely on natural talent.
Of course, back then, Boss Jack was no match for Valia.
To Qi Suian, the pure-bloods’ combat armor and energy weapons held no advantage, but their effectiveness against mutants was extraordinary.
The energy weapons were especially effective, capable of suppressing the mutants’ regenerative abilities.
However, for all their advantages, the pure-bloods had one serious problem: advancing in strength was likely tied to one’s social class.
A civilian could go their whole life without ever obtaining the power of a Warrior, and a Warrior likely had no way to cross the class divide to gain the power of an Elder.
So each side had its pros and cons. As a mutant, if you killed the boss, you became the boss. It was simply the law of the jungle.
The pure-bloods were different. Their society was far more complex.
Of course, this complexity was just another way the pure-bloods justified their superiority and their discrimination against mutants.
"An intruder? Is it one of those mutants?" Grand Elder Noelde asked, his expression sour.
"I’m not sure. But the intruder is wearing combat armor, so it’s more likely a pure-blood from another Sanctuary," Second Elder Meinier said nonchalantly.
Third Elder Murillo arrived late.
The three Elders gathered to discuss how to handle the intruder and, more importantly, how to assign blame for the incident.
"The intruder is powerful. He’s already killed fifteen Warriors," Murillo said, stating the facts without offering an opinion.
"That powerful? Don’t tell me he’s from a Level 4 Sanctuary." Meinier’s casual demeanor vanished.
Noelde’s expression grew grim.
Because the enemy was so strong, he would have to go out and stop him personally. It was the core tenet of the Elders’ Covenant: to protect the Sanctuary.
If he were the only Elder, he could ignore it. But unfortunately for him, the Riveting Knight Sanctuary had three.
The duty fell to him because he controlled the Riveting Knight Sanctuary’s greatest weapon.
A suit of Level 5 Fire Seed Armor, the very source of the Riveting Knight Sanctuary’s name.
Unlike ordinary combat armor, Fire Seed Armor was more powerful, and within the Sanctuary, it could borrow the power of the Fire Seed to activate a Fire Seed state.
It also had the potential to grow. Unlike ordinary armor, which was fixed at creation, this armor could be improved by upgrading the Fire Seed, which would in turn enhance the armor.
Unfortunately, this growth had a ceiling; it couldn’t be upgraded indefinitely.
However, upgrading a Fire Seed Armor to its maximum potential was no easy task. The suit here in the Riveting Knight Sanctuary, at least, had not yet reached that state.
The Second and Third Elders both turned to look at Grand Elder Noelde.
"I understand. I’m going to drive out the intruder now," Noelde said, his face dark.
