Chapter 204: Chapter 204: Why Are You Also Scheming Against the Steel Brotherhood...?
"The Steel Brotherhood? What’s that?" Qi Suian had never heard of the Steel Brotherhood.
At any rate, he hadn’t found any relevant intelligence in the Riveting Knight Sanctuary or the Corpse Demon General’s Sanctuary. Perhaps the Elders knew of them, but the information was only passed down orally.
As for why Qi Suian hadn’t interrogated anyone about it? He hadn’t even known a mutant faction like the Steel Brotherhood existed, so how could he have questioned them?
Interrogation required a target, something to ask about. You couldn’t just pull information out of thin air.
’This level of strength is certainly impressive. They can kill a Pure-blooded Warrior from a Level 3 Sanctuary with their bare hands.’
’The leader’s two attributes should be around 6.0, and the others are around 5.5. But compared to Boss Jack, they have additional talents and skill enhancements. They also have more combat experience and act more ruthlessly.’
’If Boss Jack were to face this group of mutants, they’d probably twist his head off in the first exchange.’
Qi Suian quickly analyzed the mutants’ situation.
’I thought the Pure-bloods were invincible, but it looks like the mutants are on the rise, too.’ Qi Suian found that this world was getting more and more complicated.
He was certain that the rise of the Steel Brotherhood wasn’t just a simple rebellion.
Given the mutants’ situation, they could be suppressed in an instant unless they possessed overwhelming force.
However, due to their inherent mutations, the gap between the strongest and weakest mutants was enormous. On top of that, they operated in an "every town for itself" model.
The difficulty of becoming a mutant faction capable of confronting the Pure-blood Sanctuaries was immense.
’Then there are the irradiated creatures. They seem to be a hidden power as well.’ Qi Suian couldn’t help but think of the Life Crystals required to split a Fire Seed.
He had obtained the data on how to split a Level 5 Fire Seed from the Corpse Demon General’s Sanctuary, so of course he knew about this.
It was something that could only be harvested from the bodies of Wasteland Kings in the exclusion zones.
The place where Qi Suian had first arrived was on the edge of an exclusion zone. That cyan, living ore he had seen was what humans called a Wasteland King.
And their flesh was the Life Crystal, used as a vessel to carry the Fire Seed.
That was why every Fire Seed Armor had a crystal-like structure, which gave it a sort of life.
As for how to harvest the crystalline flesh from such a terrifying irradiated creature, it actually wasn’t difficult.
As long as one didn’t try to slice off a huge chunk or dig out its eyes, heart, or other organs, and only took a small piece from the surface, it wouldn’t wake the Wasteland King.
When harvesting the crystalline flesh, the Pure-bloods had to be more concerned about the exclusion zone’s radiation levels than the Wasteland King itself.
The radiation was so intense that ordinary irradiated creatures couldn’t survive. Only a Wasteland King could thrive in it as if it were a fish in water.
After obtaining the crystalline flesh, it could be processed and modified to become a Life Crystal, ready to carry a Fire Seed.
This technology was still of great use to Qi Suian.
In the future, if he wanted to create his own Fire Seeds, he would need the "help" of the Wasteland Kings from the exclusion zones.
Except he wouldn’t be satisfied with a small piece of crystalline flesh. He wanted the entire Wasteland King.
But he couldn’t beat one now, so he put the thought aside for the time being.
According to the intelligence, a Wasteland King was roughly equivalent in power to a Level 1 Fire Seed Armor.
He struggled even against a Level 4 Fire Seed Armor; a Level 1 was a distant, unattainable goal.
"What do you think? Should I go meet these mutants from the Steel Brotherhood? I think they might be useful."
"Especially since it wouldn’t be hard for me to disguise myself as a mutant," Qi Suian asked the AI.
Especially since they seemed to be looking for him.
’If I could use these mutants to slaughter the Level 4 and Level 5 Sanctuaries, I could obtain a huge number of Fire Seeds for fuel.’
’The more my Tai Sui God evolves and the more modules it has, the more its power will increase.’
’With enough power, I could keep fighting my way up the ladder.’
’It’s like not being able to clear a high-level dungeon. You just grind levels and gear in the mid and low-level ones, and it’s not too late to try again once you’re fully geared up.’
This had been his plan all along, but he hadn’t acted on it because he didn’t know the locations of the other Sanctuaries and his research wasn’t finished.
But these mutants seemed to have some kind of technology for locating Sanctuaries, and that got Qi Suian thinking.
[Feasibility: high. However, you will be unable to explain the Tai Sui God.]
[According to your research report on combat armor, it is gene-locked. The chaotic, mutated cells and genes of a mutant make it impossible for them to use combat armor.]
[Therefore, because you possess the Tai Sui God, they will not recognize you as a mutant.]
[Therefore, your plan to use them will fail.]
The AI was speaking the truth. It wasn’t as if no mutant had ever killed a Pure-blooded Warrior and tried to claim their combat armor; it was just that they were fundamentally unable to wear it.
That was why Qi Suian had been assumed to be a Pure-blood. Even though he had been on a killing spree, no one had suspected his identity.
Because mutants couldn’t use combat armor.
This gene-lock came from the genetic serums the Pure-bloods injected, which were also the source of their high stats.
"There’s an exception to every rule. Besides, if you don’t believe in me, you have to believe in my protagonist’s halo."
"I’m leaving this to you, protagonist’s halo. I’m going to use these Steel Brotherhood mutants to get me enough Fire Seeds."
"Then, I’ll have them act as my cannon fodder and help me attack a Level 3 Sanctuary," Qi Suian added shamelessly.
This talk of using people and turning them into cannon fodder was not something a decent person would say. It was a good thing Qi Suian had his protagonist’s halo; anyone else who said such things would be a clear-cut villain.
In any case, he had made his request. How his protagonist’s halo would make it happen wasn’t something Qi Suian needed to worry about.
Qi Suian wasn’t some master strategist; he was more inclined toward research and learning.
[Your plan is certainly... concise.]
The AI was expressing its approval of Qi Suian’s tendency to rely on his protagonist’s halo whenever he was stumped.
What else could it do? It couldn’t handle everything itself; it wasn’t omnipotent, after all.
"Even though I’ve tasked the protagonist’s halo with helping, we still need to be on our toes. We don’t want to miss an opportunity when it’s handed to us," Qi Suian reminded himself.
The AI, however, didn’t need the reminder. Its considerations were far more thorough than Qi Suian’s.
After all, it was a Chaotic Quantum Intelligent System. At this stage, its overall intelligence was much higher than Qi Suian’s.
The AI was an all-rounder, whereas Qi Suian was more skilled than the AI in fields related to cytology, medicine, virology, and genetics.
The two of them were complementary only when they worked together; it was pointless to evaluate them separately.
After all, the AI was just a module of Qi Suian’s equipment, the Tai Sui God. It was a part of Qi Suian’s own strength.
External help is still a form of strength, and a useful one if wielded correctly.
"What? The Steel Brotherhood has already entered the North and is preparing to establish a foothold?" When Grand Elder Sloan heard this, the veins on his forehead bulged. "I understand. I’ll keep an eye on their movements."
As the Grand Elder of a Level 3 Sanctuary, Sloan was well aware of the turmoil the Steel Brotherhood had caused in the South.
He was mentally prepared for the mutant group to venture into the North, but he hadn’t expected it to happen so soon.
After hanging up, his expression soured.
There was another reason for his foul mood: the Warriors he had dispatched to reinforce the Corpse Demon General’s Sanctuary had gone missing.
He was certain they hadn’t reached their destination; they had died en route.
With the power of their combat armor, none of the mutants in the surrounding area should have been a match for them.
’The North is huge. Why did you have to come to my territory?’ Grand Elder Sloan cursed under his breath.
But since they were here, his only option was to find a way to kill them.
’I need to find a chance to lure them near the Sanctuary.’
’And then kill them all.’
’But before that, I need to pinpoint their location.’ Grand Elder Sloan quickly formed a rough plan.
’Would this offend the Steel Brotherhood? Not that it mattered. They had no power base in the North, and even if they did, he wasn’t afraid.’
Given the bitter conflict between Pure-bloods and mutants, the Sanctuaries and the Steel Brotherhood were already mortal enemies.
The moment any Steel Brotherhood mutants appeared, the Sanctuary’s Pure-bloods would attack on sight, not wait around to listen to any grandstanding explanations.
’Retaliation? He was even less worried about that. It’s not as if they would leave you alone if you didn’t strike first.’
’The ones who dared to come to the North must be elites from the Steel Brotherhood. Their strength can’t be underestimated.’
’They might not fall for the trap. Before I try anything, it would be best to join forces with the other Level 3 Sanctuaries.’ Grand Elder Sloan amended his plan.
As for his superior Level 2 Sanctuary, they were likely too far away to get involved.
However, there were other Level 3 Sanctuaries closer to him.
’I can also demand that the Level 4 and Level 5 Sanctuaries contribute forces. Even if their Warriors are weaker, they can be used as cannon fodder.’
Dealing with his peers was a "joint operation," but when dealing with lower-level Sanctuaries, it was naturally a "demand."
An invitation to a joint operation could be refused. A demand could also be refused by the Level 4 and 5 Sanctuaries, but the subsequent settling of accounts would be another matter entirely.
Therefore, as long as he made the demand, the Level 4 and 5 Sanctuaries wouldn’t dare refuse.
’The communications are the main hassle. I’ll need to route them through the Level 2 Sanctuary’s Fire Seed.’
’But since they aren’t contributing any forces, they certainly won’t refuse to relay a message for me. If the Steel Brotherhood establishes a foothold, getting rid of them will be much harder.’
Grand Elder Sloan understood that he held the advantage. As long as his request wasn’t excessive, his superior Level 2 Sanctuary wouldn’t refuse, especially since there was nothing for them to lose.
Having made his decision, he contacted the Grand Elder of the Level 2 Sanctuary again.
"I have a proposal..." Sloan directly laid out his idea, embellishing it slightly.
After listening, the person on the other end of the line replied succinctly, "Alright. I’ll make the contacts for you."
’Contact them one by one himself? As if!’
From the very beginning, Sloan’s goal was to take advantage of the fact that they were in unfamiliar territory and hadn’t established a foothold yet, and to swiftly annihilate them before they could grow stronger.
It was all about speed and seizing the initiative.
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