《Before Global Motorisation, I Bought a Heavy Truck》 Chapter 1 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Ping¡¯an City, Blue Dragon Empire. In a small district in the northern area of this county city with a population of one million, a young man in his early twenties was woken up by his phone alarm and then slowly opened his tired eyes. It was February 14, 2021, 7 a.m. He looked at the time and date on his phone. The next second, he immediately propped himself up. Pa! He slapped himself. When he felt the pain on his face, the young man was stunned for a long time. Am I back again? His name was Lin Qing, 21 years old. He was supposed to die ten years later, but he never expected to return to ten years ago in the blink of an eye. On February 15, 2021, the Transformers Civilization arrived. As a result, everyone turned into Motorbots, and all vehicles under their names became Motorbots as well. In his previous life, he only had a motorcycle. So after becoming a Motobot, he was too weak and no match for the other giants. It was already a miracle that he could live for ten years. Unfortunately, he still died in the end. It¡¯s February 14th, so I still have a day to prepare. In this life, I want to live! Lin Qing gripped his phone tightly as he thought about those steel monsters, his eyes full of murderous intent. The arrival of the Transformers Civilization was followed by the transformation of countless animals into steel. There were mechanical dogs that could bite through concrete, ten-meter-tall steel bears, hundred-meter-long steel pythons¡­ In his previous life, Lin Qing was weak, so he could only play the role of a strategist. This time, he had another chance and more choices now with the knowledge of those secrets in advance. He would definitely live until the end. Lin Qing, half-naked and wearing large shorts, went to the bathroom to wash up. His parents had passed away when he was young and left him with only this house with three bedrooms and one living room. He was the only one at home, so there was no need to cover up. After washing up, he ate breakfast to his heart¡¯s content. After becoming a Motorbot, he was cut off from the necessity of daily food and rather missed it. While he was eating, his phone rang. The caller ID showed that it was from Brother Liu. After graduating from high school, Lin Qing entered society and found a delivery job after getting his driver¡¯s license. It was only when he turned 21 a few months ago that he upgraded his driver¡¯s license to B-grade. So he planned to buy a truck for transportation. Meanwhile, Brother Liu was the leader of the transportation company¡¯s transportation fleet. In his previous life, Lin Qing had planned to visit the car showroom on February 15th. However, he never expected that he would take the form of a second-hand motorcycle when he woke up. ¡°Little Lin, didn¡¯t you want to buy a car? I happen to have a second-hand truck with me. I¡¯ve only had it for three years, and the price is reasonable¡­¡± ¡°Forget it, Brother Liu. I still want to buy a new one.¡± ¡°Little Lin, there¡¯s no need to buy a new car. These things run tens of thousands of kilometers a month and will be useless in a few years. A second-hand car is still more worthwhile.¡± Brother Liu was very unhappy with Lin Qing. This boy was open to persuasion in the past, but he was now extremely unyielding. If you want to stay in my convoy, how can you not buy my car? Without another word, Lin Qing simply hung up the phone. How could a new car be the same as a second-hand car? If the Transformers Civilization wouldn¡¯t arrive, and he only had to make long-distance journeys, he would buy the second-hand vehicle. However, it wouldn¡¯t do this time. His vehicle was his life, and the better his vehicle was, the stronger he would be. He didn¡¯t want to be smashed into pieces in two punches. Moreover, he no longer wanted to buy a light truck. Since he only had one chance, if he wanted to buy a vehicle, he would definitely buy a heavy truck. Some people had numerous vehicles under their name and would usually transform into their largest one in the Cataclysm. If not for the fact that he didn¡¯t have enough money, he would have wanted a ten-million-yuan mining truck. Its wheels were four meters tall, and any vehicle would be reduced into pieces when facing it. It would kill anything that stood in its way. After eating breakfast, Lin Qing took his driver¡¯s license and went straight to the local heavy truck dealer. ¡°Hello, sir. Welcome to the East Wind Shop. How may I help you?¡± The salesperson was a beautiful woman in her thirties. Her hair was tied up, and she wore a suit with a short skirt. She enthusiastically led Lin Qing into the store. ¡°How about that truck?¡± Lin Qing scanned the trucks and took a fancy to the biggest heavy truck at the entrance. The red truck was four meters tall and twelve meters long. It had eight tires, each nearly the height of an adult. From a distance, it had a very strong impact on him. ¡°Hehe, you have good taste. This is our new brand, the Tyrannical Dragon! Its use is for transporting stones in mines. It has eight engines and weighs ten tons, allowing it to drag thirty to forty tons like nothing.¡± ¡°What is its highest speed?¡± ¡°One hundred and ten kilometers per hour.¡± ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll take it. How much is it?¡± The speed of the heavy truck couldn¡¯t compare to that of an ordinary car, and it definitely couldn¡¯t be any faster. After all, it couldn¡¯t stop when it was hauling goods. So the highest speed of 110 km/h was acceptable for Lin Qing. Lin Qing didn¡¯t ask about the fuel consumption. He bought insurance for the engine and interior decor for the truck. Upon seeing this, the beautiful salesperson smiled even more happily. ¡°This is a new truck that costs 688,000 yuan. However, since you are the first sale this morning, it¡¯s yours for 683,000 yuan.¡± ¡°Good. Please help me get me a loan and calculate the minimum down payment.¡± He was now the owner of the truck. After tomorrow, he would be a Motorbot, so he didn¡¯t care about paying a few hundred thousand yuan. If not for the fact that his strength didn¡¯t allow it, he would have even thought about buying a plane. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll help you do the calculations immediately. In the meantime, come in and have a seat. Let¡¯s drink some water and chat.¡± He had taken a car loan. Furthermore, the salesperson would earn another sum of money for helping process the loan, and insurance was included as well. So she earned a lot from this deal. A few minutes later, the minimum down payment was calculated to be 168,000 yuan. The inheritance Lin Qing¡¯s parents had left him and his savings over the past few years were enough to cover this. Since he had a house under his name, it wasn¡¯t a problem for him to get a decent credit score. He easily got the loan. After paying, Lin Qing drove to the car dealership to obtain his license plate by drawing lots. It was already noon when he finished. With a temporary license plate, he went to the roadside repair shop on Huan City Road. ¡°Could you help me weld a machete?¡± ¡°Ahem. Are you kidding? We¡¯re a proper shop. We don¡¯t do those things.¡± The repairman, covered in engine oil and with a cigarette in his mouth, waved his hand. Some hooligans who liked to make their own weapons for fighting often came to his place. It was fine if nothing happened to them. But if anything did, he would have to shut down his shop. Taking such a huge risk for a few dozen yuan wasn¡¯t worth it. ¡°I want an eight-meter long and one-meter wide machete. The craftsmanship should be good.¡± Lin Qing handed over 2,000 yuan and smiled. ¡°This is the payment.¡± A machete that was eight meters long and one meter wide would weigh at least a few thousand kilograms and was definitely not something people could use. The repairman nodded and accepted the money. ¡°Any other requests?¡± ¡°Yes. Polish and sharpen it on one end to make a thick blade. I want it done by today.¡± ¡°No can do. I still have other work. I can¡¯t just do this for you and nothing else. It¡¯ll take at least a week.¡± Lin Qing handed over his remaining 5,000 yuan of cash and used his phone to transfer another 28,000 yuan to the repairman. ¡°There¡¯s no need for it to look good. Just welding steel plates together will do. The most important thing is speed. I want it by today.¡± ¡°Hehe, that¡¯s easy then.¡± The repairman threw away his cigarette and flashed his white teeth. ¡°I happen to have a friend who works with steel. I can assure you that it will be done.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go over now. I¡¯ll go with you.¡± Lin Qing drove the repairman to the steel shop. As soon as he got out of the truck, he heard the noisy sound of cutting machines and saw dazzling sparks all around. After explaining the requirements for the machete, the boss of the steel shop was straightforward. He immediately gathered a few workers and started working on it. More than a dozen one-meter long steel bars were welded into a knife handle that was as thick as an arm. Then multiple steel plates were stacked and cut into the shape of a machete. Welding, polishing, cutting, and buffing were done in sequence. At 10 p.m., Lin Qing received his machete. Including the handle, the machete was eight meters long and weighed 3,200 kilograms. With a straight blade and slanted tip, it was similar to the Tang Heng Dao1. Chapter 2 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Lin Qing didn¡¯t go home. Instead, after putting the machete in his truck, he ate a filling meal and then laid down in the truck to sleep. In his dreams, he felt his body sinking into endless darkness. He couldn¡¯t move his limbs or speak. After some time, he opened his eyes. The sky was dark and full of grey clouds. There wasn¡¯t a single person on the street, and the surroundings were eerily quiet. He moved his hand slightly, but the only response was the creaking of machinery. Lin Qing looked down and saw that he had become the Tyrannical Dragon truck. He had become one with his truck¡ªhe was the truck, and the truck was him. A thought flashed past his mind, and his wheels began to move forward. He could brake, turn on the headlights, and turn, all with just a single thought. ¡°Rise!¡± The Tyrannical Dragon let out a mechanical sound. First, the front of the truck lifted up, the transmission axis turned, the wheels contracted, and then a pair of giant mechanical feet appeared. His waist changed, his head changed, and his hands changed. In the short span of merely a few seconds, Lin Qing had become a Transformer standing upright. Standing at 15 meters tall, his entire body was red, and he carried a long sword on his back. ¡°Is this what they call power?¡± Lin Qing opened his mouth and said in a cold, robotic voice. He could clearly feel the strength of his body. The three-story residential building in front of him was just like a toy in his eyes, as he could easily knock it down with a punch. He was as tall as a five-story building, and his body was extremely heavy. However, his movements were not clumsy at all. He tried punching and kicking and realized that he was more agile than a martial artist. Since he was standing tall, he could see half of the city. Lin Qing saw Motorbots running all over the streets in the distance, as well as the elderly and children dressed in pajamas. ¡°How did I become like this?¡± ¡°I¡¯m so strong.¡± ¡°Save me! Save me!¡± Shouts rang in his ears as the Motorbots around him gradually awakened. At the same time, the mutated steel monsters also arrived. People¡¯s pet dogs had doubled in size, and their entire bodies had turned into steel. They would bite anyone they saw. There were a billion people in the Blue Dragon Empire. On average, only one in five families owned a car. This meant that there were at most 200 million Motorbots, while 800 million people were still ordinary people. In comparison, how many animals were there? No one could count exactly how many there were. There were thousands of ants in an ant¡¯s nest and at least hundreds of thousands of animals, large and small, in and on a mountain. And the rats in the city sewers could drown a crowd. Among the humans, only those who owned vehicles would become Motorbots. However, animals were different, as every one of them could turn into steel. As a result, they were 100, 1,000, or even 10,000 times more numerous than Motorbots. Around him, Motorbots started charging toward their homes while fighting with the steel animals that jumped out along the way. Who didn¡¯t have family and friends? Typically, those with cars were the heads of their families. Their wives and children were still in their houses. They could run, but how could their wives and children run? ¡°That big guy over there, come over and help!!¡± Lin Qing turned around and saw a thin Motorbot fighting with a steel dog a few dozen meters away. From the look of things, this guy was a tricycle. At this moment, the dog was biting one of the tricycle¡¯s legs. Sparks flew in all directions, and the tricycle was about to die. Inside the house was a woman with a pale expression and a child with fearful eyes. Lin Qing¡¯s body shrank into the heavy truck as he fiercely stepped on the accelerator and rushed over. His large body was quite intimidating, and he simply flattened the wall in front of him. After the transformation, his heavy truck was no longer made of ordinary steel but was instead several times stronger. So even when he collided into the three-meter wall, the paint wasn¡¯t even scratched, and he didn¡¯t slow down at all. Bang! Lin Qing¡¯s tires crushed the one-meter-tall steel dog with glowing red eyes into two. The head of his truck was only half a meter away from the building in front of him. The tricycle subconsciously wiped the cold sweat off his forehead as he said with lingering fear, ¡°Brother, thank you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not safe here. Hurry up and leave.¡± Lin Qing transformed into the 15-meter-tall robot. Then he picked up the green crystal from the steel dog¡¯s chest and tossed it into his mouth. This was the power source of the steel dog, which had replaced its original heart. At the same time, it was also the only way for Motorbots to evolve. They had to eat crystals in order to strengthen their bodies. Every steel beast had a crystal like this, and so did Motorbots. With that, Lin Qing ran away. When he reached the roadside, he turned into the truck and sped toward the city center. He was not worried about this area. After all, the steel beasts here were merely small cats and dogs. With so many vehicle types present, as long as everyone worked together, they could easily eliminate them. However, the city center was different. There was a zoo there with large animals. This force wasn¡¯t something that ordinary Motorbots could handle. After entering the city, he saw that the streets were full of Motorbots running out of the city. Some brought their families along, while others were alone. So it was rather unusual for Lin Qing to go against the current alone. Boom! At the entrance of an old street some distance away from the city center, a bunch of two-meter-tall steel wolves and a group of Motorbots were fighting. There were eight steel wolves and more than twenty Motorbots. The elderly and children were running with their heads lowered, not daring to look at the fight at all. Some were even shivering in their houses. Gan Qian was a teacher. At this moment, she was lying in the middle of the road in fear, unable to walk. In front of her was a huge steel wolf with flesh in its mouth. Just as she turned around and was about to run away, a red truck sped toward her. Gan Qian saw that it was about to collide into her and closed her eyes helplessly. There was a creak. When the truck was a meter away from her, it suddenly slammed its brakes. Then Lin Qing placed a hand on the ground to support himself as he flew over her head. When he landed on the ground, he was already in combat mode. He grabbed the charging steel wolf¡¯s head with one hand and slammed it down against the ground. Boom! A meter-deep hole was formed in the concrete floor. The wolf¡¯s head was smashed into pieces, and the people nearby fell to the ground. Without even looking, he swung out his other giant fist, pounding the head of another wolf running over, pulverizing the steel wolf into pieces on the spot. Without a word, Lin Qing walked toward the remaining steel wolves. With a 15-meter-tall body, ordinary people did not even reach his knees, while ordinary Motorbots only reached his waist. In his eyes, these people were all his younger brothers. In the next scene, ordinary people witnessed what violence was. The fierce steel wolves were like toys in Lin Qing¡¯s hands. His fists trampled, slapped, smashed, and pinched them to death. In less than three minutes, the eight steel wolves were all dead. Lin Qing took out the power crystals from the wolves and swallowed them under everyone¡¯s gaze. A warm current flowed through his body. He felt that he had become stronger once again, and his skin had also become much tougher. ¡°Since Ping¡¯an City is near mountains, there are many animals here. If you don¡¯t want to die, hurry up and run away. Go to a first or second-tier plains city instead. It¡¯s safer there.¡± Ping¡¯an City was located in the Northwestern Mountains. Despite being a small county city, it had two parks and countless mountains. As a result, the cost of living was not high. Even though there were cars here, there were not as many cars as in first and second-tier cities. So staying here would simply be courting death. If not for him wanting to improve his strength while saving some people at the same time, Lin Qing would have already run away. ¡°I¡¯m not leaving. Someone will come and save us. I won¡¯t listen to his lies.¡± ¡°Yes, there are only some mutated wolves. A few rocket launchers can deal with them. There¡¯s no need to leave.¡± ¡°Everyone, listen to me. Don¡¯t panic. Go home and stay there. Don¡¯t run around.¡± Some people were unwilling to leave, and Lin Qing didn¡¯t bother forcing them to either. After all, people were the ones who chose their own paths, and it was none of his business if others died or not. Ten minutes later, he arrived at the city center. The streets here were basically deserted. At a glance, he could see Motorbots and steel beasts fighting all over, and there was wreckage everywhere. Fierce zoo animals such as tigers, bears, and elephants were all here. On the Motorbots¡¯ side was a group of yellow-colored vehicles. They were all ten-meter-tall heavy trucks, and among them were excavators with drills for arms and bulldozers with enormous fists. The most eye-catching one was a twenty-meter-tall yellow giant who destroyed a building with a single punch. He even laughed loudly as he fought. Throughout his journey, this was the first time Lin Qing saw someone bigger than him. There weren¡¯t many people with such a physique in this world. This was a mining dump truck. If he remembered correctly, this vehicle weighed 240 tons and had a maximum load of 360 tons. So its maximum weight was 600 tons. Traveling on an ordinary concrete road with this vehicle would be no different from plowing through the road. Chapter 3 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios A mining dump truck cost tens of millions of yuan. Other than big companies, no one could afford this thing, and no one would buy one either. It was slow, couldn¡¯t be used on the road, and couldn¡¯t carry people. Why buy it? However, Lin Qing didn¡¯t expect to see a Motorbot who could transform into a dump truck here. This meant that the owner of this vehicle was possibly very wealthy and also a person who was bored to death. Currently, the dump truck was engaged in a battle with an eight-meter-long crocodile. The battle was earth-shattering, and several buildings were knocked over. ¡°Brother, let me help you!¡± Lin Qing shouted as he pulled out his machete and rushed forward. This person had such a tall figure, was rich, and was also from Ping¡¯an City, so Lin Qing could roughly guess who this dump truck was. In this world, he was known as the Battle God of the Land¡ªHuang Quan. He could be a massive source of support. If Lin Qing didn¡¯t curry favor with him now, when else would he be able to do so? Rip! Just as Huang Quan was about to kill the steel crocodile, he suddenly heard a loud shout from behind. Then a red figure rushed over. A white light flashed, and a machete struck the crocodile¡¯s stomach from below, creating a series of sparks. Boom! The attack sent the crocodile flying five meters away. Before it even landed on the ground, Huang Quan saw the red figure leap. As the red figure stepped on the crocodile¡¯s head, he stabbed his long sword downward into the crocodile¡¯s head until the handle disappeared. Then he stared at the ground. Then the red figure punched through the crocodile¡¯s stomach a few times before taking something out to swallow. I¡¯ve struck it rich this time! After the fist-sized power crystal entered his stomach, Lin Qing rubbed his stomach in satisfaction. This crystal was even bigger than the crystals from all the steel wolves he had killed earlier. The crocodile was enormous, and the strength of the small wolves was no match for it. If Huang Quan hadn¡¯t beaten it to death first, Lin Qing might not have been able to win. ¡°Brother, you¡¯re awesome. You have good skills.¡± Huang Quan returned to his senses and walked toward Lin Qing with large strides. He hadn¡¯t been able to kill the crocodile even after fighting for more than ten minutes, but this man in front of him had done it in a few seconds. ¡°You¡¯re too polite. The crocodile¡¯s weakness is its stomach, and I simply took the chance. Are you okay?¡± ¡°What could possibly happen to me?¡± Huang Quan patted his chest. Suddenly, a scream came from beside him. He turned around and saw that the other heavy trucks couldn¡¯t withstand the impact of the steel beasts, shocking him so much that he immediately charged over. ¡°Let¡¯s talk after we settle the trouble in front of us.¡± Huang Quan chose a ten-meter-tall elephant to fight. Its steel skin shone with a black luster, and its two-meter-long tusks emitted a cold aura. With a single charge, it collided through a large Motorbot. The other Motorbots were totally no match for it. This kind of horror wasn¡¯t something that one person could take down. However, Lin Qing didn¡¯t hastily rush forward. Instead, he glanced at the steel corpse on the ground. Before he arrived, Huang Quan had already started fighting the steel beasts. So there were eight large animal corpses lying on the ground. However, the other Motorbots didn¡¯t know about the power crystals and didn¡¯t take them out. It¡¯s a waste not to take advantage of others. Brothers, thank you. I¡¯ll help you after I¡¯m done absorbing the crystals. Lin Qing ran to the periphery of the battlefield and started digging out crystals. He punched through the chests of the corpses with familiarity and ease. Then he reached out to grab the crystals and opened his mouth to swallow them. In his previous life, people only discovered that the steel beasts¡¯ power crystals could be consumed half a month after the Cataclysm. In the later stages of the Cataclysm, an ordinary crystal could be used to buy a few hundred kilograms of food. And the crocodile crystal he just ate was even more valuable and couldn¡¯t be bought with money. Now, there were corpses of various steel beasts, including lions, tigers, and bears, all over the ground. Lin Qing took advantage of all of them. After he consumed all the crystals, his qualities started to change. His red body turned even darker, and a black line appeared in front of his chest. The small spare parts previously exposed had disappeared, making his entire body look even simpler. ¡°Brother, help!¡± Huang Quan held the elephant with both hands and looked back at Lin Qing with great difficulty. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be right there!¡± With a sprint, Lin Qing jumped dozens of meters forward and smashed his fist against the elephant¡¯s neck. Accompanied by a series of explosions, this punch knocked over the elephant weighing dozens of tons. It was hard to imagine that such a giant machine could have such agility. After consuming so many crystals, Lin Qing knew that he had evolved. He would only be fully evolved when the lines on his chest completely appeared and formed a large ¡®Ü‡¡¯ (vehicle) character. ¡°F*ck!¡± Huang Quan was dumbfounded. This power¡­ It was no weaker than his. It was obvious that the red heavy truck was not as tall and as powerful as him, but how could it be so impressive? This simply didn¡¯t make sense! ¡°What are you waiting for? Go!¡± Lin Qing pulled out his machete and shouted, ¡°Target the heart!¡± ¡°Oh, got it!¡± Huang Quan numbly nodded and joined the battle at full force. A weight of two hundred tons was not something to be scoffed at, as one punch from him could break a train into pieces. When the two of them fought together, they caused the earth to quake and the ear-splitting sound of metal rubbing against each other to come in waves. More and more fist marks appeared on the elephant¡¯s body, while blade marks whittled down one of its tusks. The elephant¡¯s painful roar shattered the glass nearby, causing the people hiding in their houses to cover their ears and roll on the ground. Boom! Huang Quan punched the elephant¡¯s chest dozens of times. Just as he was about to pierce through its chest, Lin Qing stabbed it from behind and began to take over. ¡°Go help the others first. Leave this to me.¡± ¡°Brother, be careful.¡± They had only met by chance and didn¡¯t even know each other¡¯s names. Now, they were fighting for their lives with each other. Huang Quan was extremely touched by his actions. He had a basic understanding of Lin Qing¡¯s strength through the battle just now. Lin Qing wasn¡¯t weaker than him, so it shouldn¡¯t be a problem for him to deal with an elephant on the verge of death. He didn¡¯t know if it was an illusion, but he felt that Lin Qing looked a little different from before. However, he couldn¡¯t tell exactly what was different about him. ¡°Die!¡± Lin Qing punched through the elephant¡¯s heart, took out its crystal, and swallowed it in less than a second. Another huge profit just rolled in! Lin Qing panted heavily as he looked down at the broken machete in his hand. Then the corners of his mouth curled up. All his efforts had not gone to waste. If not for this machete, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to defeat this elephant so easily. He turned around and looked at Huang Quan, who was bathed in blood. What a good person! ¡°Brother Huang, let me help you!¡± Lin Qing had already made up his mind to reap benefits from Huang Quan. In this Cataclysm, the strength of a vehicle was determined by its type. No matter how impressive a bicycle was, even if it evolved many times, how strong could it be? On the other hand, his heavy truck was already considered one of the most powerful among the top-tier vehicles. The strength that an ordinary car could achieve in a lifetime would be his starting point. But compared to Huang Quan, his strength still wasn¡¯t enough. After all, this fellow was too abnormal. What could withstand a punch from a mining truck that weighed hundreds of tons? He was definitely at the peak of the peak, and not many people in the world were as impressive as him. If he were to grow even stronger later on, who would be his match? He would take the chance before this fellow developed to reap some benefits for himself first. Half an hour later, Huang Quan crushed a steel beast with one hand and shouted, ¡°Brothers, retreat!¡± ¡°You guys go first. I¡¯ll cover you.¡± Lin Qing calmly swallowed another crystal as he spoke. There were no longer any steel beasts, but there were still many corpses with crystals left to be harvested on the ground. Lin Qing took the initiative to cover the retreat, so Huang Quan was moved again. ¡°Brother, it¡¯s safe now. Let¡¯s go together.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯m fast, so I¡¯ll catch up with you guys in no time. Stop dawdling and get out of here quickly.¡± ¡°Alright, take care. We¡¯ll wait for you in front.¡± Huang Quan rapidly left with the remaining troops, consisting of eight heavy trucks. Meanwhile, Lin Qing immediately started cleaning up the battlefield. After he swallowed the crystals, slightly less than half of the ܇ character appeared. Chapter 4 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The second evolution was complete. Some of his useless parts had disappeared. For example, the tire attached behind his leg was gone and replaced by fiery red steel. Furthermore, his head had prototypes of facial features, his muscles bulged, and his body now had a waistline. He was also much stronger. To become a true Motorbot, you needed to evolve five times. After five evolutions, you would become a fully capable Motorbot soldier with explosive strength. In Lin Qing¡¯s previous life, most of those who could live for ten years had evolved five times, and he was the same. However, he was a motorcycle and did not have a good foundation, so he wasn¡¯t as strong as the others even after evolving five times. Boom! Boom! Boom! There was a massive roar from his engine as he transformed into vehicle form. Then he stepped firmly on the accelerator and caught up with Huang Quan¡¯s convoy. After he evolved twice, his maximum speed had increased from 110 km/h to 150 km/h. A few minutes later, on Purple Forest Nunnery Road, Lin Qing saw a convoy parked by the road. Even when Huang Quan was in vehicle form, he could not hide his seven-meter-tall body even if he wanted to. ¡°You¡¯re finally here. If you hadn¡¯t come, we would have gone to find you.¡± Huang Quan stood up and transformed into a giant when he saw Lin Qing. ¡°Sorry for worrying everyone.¡± Huang Quan patted Lin Qing¡¯s shoulder and smiled. ¡°Thank you for today. My name is Huang Quan, and I¡¯m twenty-six years old. How should I address you?¡± ¡°Call me Lin Qing. I¡¯m twenty-one years old.¡± Hearing what Lin Qing said, Huang Quan was surprised. In the mecha state, their voices were cold and mechanical. Furthermore, he couldn¡¯t see Lin Qing and thus didn¡¯t know how old he was. He thought that Lin Qing would be in his thirties or forties. After all, since he could drive a heavy truck, this meant that he wasn¡¯t young. He didn¡¯t expect him to be only 21 years old. This was an age when people were usually still in university. When Huang Quan recalled Lin Qing¡¯s fierceness, he sighed. ¡°You are really¡­ promising! Have you thought about where you want to go?¡± ¡°Qingzhou, a first-tier city with a military district. It¡¯s safer there.¡± Ordinary firearms were useless against the evolved steel beasts, but rocket launchers and tanks were still able to piece through them. Qingzhou was a first-tier city with many vehicles and Motorbots. Furthermore, it had an army. So it was definitely a safe zone for the time being. In his previous life, this place had persisted for ten years without collapsing. Huang Quan was from this camp as well. ¡°What a coincidence. I¡¯m going to Qingzhou too. Let¡¯s go together.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great.¡± Lin Qing was excited at the thought of being able to reap some benefits again. ¡°However, I still need to find someone,¡± Huang Quan said with a grave expression. ¡°His name is Yang Feng. He¡¯s my brother, but he hasn¡¯t bought a car.¡± Just an ordinary person? Lin Qing smiled playfully. ¡°If we continue to wait, there will be more and more steel beasts. Are you sure you want to wait?¡± ¡°Manager, why don¡¯t we stop waiting?¡± said a heavy truck with the license plate ¡®North A9527¡¯. When they recalled how terrifying the steel beasts were earlier, everyone¡¯s hearts trembled. They said one after another, ¡°We¡¯ve already looked for him once, and we¡¯ve done our best. If this continues, we might all die.¡± ¡°Manager Huang, it¡¯s not that we don¡¯t want to give you face. But we¡¯ve already lost a few lives for someone we don¡¯t even know. Old Wang was bitten in half by the crocodile and died with his eyes wide open. I have my family, and I can¡¯t take the risk.¡± In his panic, Huang Quan said, ¡°I will give everyone another five hundred thousand yuan each. If you die, I will give you one million. You all know what kind of person I am. I assure you that this money will definitely reach your families.¡± Lin Qing understood that money could solve all problems. It seemed that Huang Quan had gathered these people together with money. Although there was no need to eat or drink after becoming Motorbots, everyone had family and friends in their lives. These heavy trucks all worked in construction sites, but they also had wives and children back home. As long as you were an ordinary person, you would need money. Coincidentally, money was what Huang Quan lacked the least. This was apparent from the fact that he was in his twenties and could afford to buy a dump truck worth tens of millions. He was a true rich second-generation scion! When he bumped into them in the city center, they must have gone to look for Huang Quan¡¯s friend. But not only did they not find his friend, they had even fought with steel beasts and lost a few people. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Manager Huang. I can¡¯t take the risk with you.¡± 9527 stood up and smiled bitterly. ¡°Those monsters are too strong, and I¡¯m afraid of them.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want the money you promised me. Although my family isn¡¯t rich, I have my abilities now. It shouldn¡¯t be difficult to get some money.¡± ¡°F*ck. I¡¯m really stupid.¡± Another heavy truck gave himself a big slap. ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m a Motorbot now. One punch has the force of a few thousand kilograms. I won¡¯t lack money in the future. Why take the risk?¡± The man suddenly recalled that Huang Quan was still here and shut his mouth. Previously, they had been scared silly. They worked at a construction site where Huang Quan was the most intimidating manager. So once he mentioned money, everyone lost their minds and followed him foolishly. Now that they thought about it, with their capabilities, they would be able to earn hundreds of thousands of yuan a month even if they went to construction sites to carry sacks of cement. There was no real need for them to risk their lives for Huang Quan in exchange for just 500,000 yuan. However, even if they didn¡¯t give their lives to Huang Quan, they still couldn¡¯t offend him. He was 20 meters tall and weighed over 200 tons. If they provoked him, he could cripple them with a single punch. But everyone was spirited on the inside. None of them said anything, but their intentions were clear¡ªthey were ready to part ways. ¡°I will give you two million. Who¡¯s coming with me?¡± Even while knowing that the situation was hopeless, Huang Quan did not give up and asked again. ¡°Can you just treat this as helping a friend?¡± He was very familiar with these eight people. They ate together at the construction site, and he gave them many red packets during the Lunar New Year holidays. He did not treat them unfairly during ordinary times either. He would always try his best to help anyone who needed to borrow money or take urgent leave. ¡°Manager Huang, it¡¯s not that we¡¯re disloyal. It¡¯s just that¡­ we can¡¯t let go of our families. If we were all alone, we would follow you through hell and high water without any hesitation.¡± ¡°Manager Huang, you know that my wife is pregnant. My child can¡¯t live without a father.¡± ¡°Manager Huang, I¡­¡± ¡°Forget it.¡± Huang Quan waved his hand. ¡°I understand if you want to leave. I won¡¯t force you. If you¡¯re willing to stay, I¡¯ll owe you a favor, and I can¡¯t thank you enough.¡± The group didn¡¯t say anything. All of them lowered their heads and did not dare to look at Huang Quan¡¯s eyes. At the end of the day, their relationship was only that of a normal worker and the boss. Furthermore, they had not reached the point of life and death. Everyone had strength now and wouldn¡¯t lack money, so there would be many good days for them in the future. ¡°Manager Huang, take care.¡± With 9527 taking the lead, the others left one after another. For a moment, the forest was empty. ¡°What¡¯s all this for?¡± Lin Qing sat on the ground. The corners of his lips curled upward before he hurriedly concealed his smile. ¡°We¡¯re just waiting for a person, not risking our lives. If there¡¯s danger, we can just retreat. These people are really disloyal.¡± Huang Quan really wanted to punch Lin Qing in the face. It was because he had spoken that everyone ran away. He said angrily, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you leaving?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you? Let¡¯s go to Qingzhou together.¡± ¡°Things might be different now. I need to find someone. Do as you please.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll wait for you. There¡¯s no hurry.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of losing your life?¡± Huang Quan was astonished. ¡°I¡¯m afraid.¡± Lin Qing nodded seriously. ¡°But I won¡¯t die here. Besides, I¡¯m not a fool. I¡¯ll run away if there¡¯s danger.¡± Those who had left had poor foresight and had actually given up the chance to befriend the future Battle God of the Land. Lin Qing almost laughed out loud when he thought about this. They were brainless. They didn¡¯t even think about the concept of a 20-meter-tall Motorbot that weighed more than 200 tons and how bright their future prospects could have been. It was not an exaggeration to say that as long as Huang Quan was willing to join the military, tens of thousands of troops would drive over to find him. ¡°I¡¯ll befriend you!¡± ¡°Hehe. So were you lying when you called me brother earlier.¡± ¡°Hahaha. That doesn¡¯t count.¡± Chapter 5 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios With Huang Quan¡¯s strength, he was naturally not afraid of ordinary steel beasts. He fought as many as they came and killed them with a single punch. He was only afraid that there would be too many steel beasts but no one around him who could protect his friend¡¯s life. ¡°Then let¡¯s go find Yang Feng now. He¡¯s very smart. If he isn¡¯t at his residence, he must have run toward the police station.¡± Lin Qing asked, ¡°What if he¡¯s not at the police station?¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll search again. In short, we¡¯ll do our best.¡± Lin Qing admired Huang Quan¡¯s loyalty to spend so much effort just for a friend. ¡°You can¡¯t look for him like this. Although the city isn¡¯t big, there are hundreds of thousands of people. And he won¡¯t be able to recognize you since you look like this. He¡¯ll miss you even if he happens to see you from afar.¡± ¡°Then what should we do?¡± ¡°Instead of searching all over the city, why don¡¯t we get him to find us? Does he know your company¡¯s logo?¡± ¡°He even signed a contract yesterday, so he definitely knows!¡± ¡°Then that¡¯s easy. Follow me.¡± After finding the largest building in Ping¡¯an City, Lin Qing took away the flagpole by the roadside and collected a few white bedsheets. He then asked Huang Quan to paint his company logo and hang it on the flagpole. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. Should I leave it by the roadside?¡± ¡°Who can see it if it¡¯s by the roadside?¡± Lin Qing rolled his eyes at him and looked up at the tall building. ¡°If you want to put it somewhere, you should put it in a conspicuous place.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Send me up.¡± Huang Quan understood and was even more shocked. Lin Qing actually wanted to go to the roof and stick the flagpole there. This building had more than ten floors, and it was almost fifty meters tall. With their bodies, they definitely couldn¡¯t get on the elevator. So the only way was to climb up. His body weighed hundreds of tons, and the building would collapse if he climbed it, so Lin Qing was the only one who could do it. Lin Qing held the flagpole with one hand, retreated dozens of meters, and then shouted, ¡°Just turn around so that your back is facing the wall. Stand firm.¡± ¡°Alright, go ahead. I can handle it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m coming!¡± The ground rumbled as the sprinting Lin Qing created a huge pit with every step he took. The distance of tens of meters only took a few steps. He arrived in an instant. Boom! He stepped on Huang Quan¡¯s shoulder, and Huang Quan¡¯s 20-meter tall body sank a few meters. The two of them were 35 meters tall in total, so it wasn¡¯t difficult for Lin Qing to jump more than 10 meters and touch the roof with his hands. In less than two seconds, he could see the entire city. More than half of his body was above the roof. He took the flagpole and stabbed it downward, piercing through the edge of the roof and sticking it in firmly. Then his body fell! What did it mean for a truck that weighed several dozen tons to fall from a height of 50 meters? Huang Quan wasn¡¯t good at math, but he could still guess the result. He immediately dodged to the side. ¡°F*ck! How disloyal!¡± Lin Qing turned his body in the air. When he crashed on the ground, he twisted his body to disperse the impact. The moment he landed, the ground quaked, and a large area collapsed with him at the center. Smoke and dust rose up, cracks spread out for over a hundred meters, and the utensils in nearby restaurants bounced up half a meter high. ¡°Cough, cough, cough!¡± Lin Qing walked out of the deep pit with a face full of dust and blue sparks flying all over his body. After falling from such a height, it was impossible to say that nothing happened. However, this small injury wasn¡¯t a big problem for him. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Huang Quan ran over from the side. ¡°Try it next time, bastard. Why didn¡¯t I stab you from behind with the flagpole earlier.¡± Huang Quan cupped his fists and said embarrassedly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. You¡¯re just too freaking tall. I¡¯ll treat you to a drink later.¡± Lin Qing pointed at Huang Quan¡¯s steel body. ¡°Do you think we can still drink now?¡± ¡°Yeah, we can¡¯t. Why don¡¯t I treat you to gasoline?¡± Huang Quan suddenly had an idea. ¡°At the end of the day, we Motorbots are still vehicles, so our energy supplement should be gasoline.¡± Lin Qing admired his imagination. But since they were already Motorbots, why was he still thinking like a human? What was he thinking when he wanted to drink gasoline? Regardless of whether it was Motorbots or steel beasts, crystals were their hearts that supported the activity of their limbs. There was no need to drink gasoline, as their only supplement was eating crystals. ¡°Sure, I remember that there¡¯s a gas station ahead. Let¡¯s go and drink a few buckets. Yang Feng probably won¡¯t be able to come for a while anyway. When we finish drinking gasoline, he¡¯ll be here.¡± Huang Quan nodded thoughtfully. ¡°I have a big body. After a few battles, I¡¯m actually a little hungry.¡± Lin Qing held back his laughter. In his previous life, there seemed to be someone who was so hungry that he couldn¡¯t help but eat a steel beast. He swallowed it along with its crystal, leaving his mouth full of sparks. However, he realized that he was no longer hungry. That was how everyone survived during that time. They only understood when they saw a steel beast take out the crystal of a Motorbot and swallow it. Twenty minutes later¡­ ¡°Hey, brother. Are you going to drink some gas?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not thirsty. You go ahead and drink.¡± ¡°This gas is a little off. It feels like it¡¯s been watered down.¡± ¡°That¡¯s normal.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not right. Why do I still feel hungry? My stomach is rumbling when I walk. Could this be fake gas? How do I get it out?¡± ¡°You probably haven¡¯t digested it yet. Let¡¯s find a few steel beasts to practice our skills while you digest it.¡± ¡­ ¡°F*ck! That gas was poisonous! F*cking evil boss.¡± Huang Quan was sitting on the ground weakly at a chicken farm in Ping¡¯an City. There were dozens of dead black steel-winged chickens around him, each about a meter tall. At this moment, he felt his strength decreasing and his body becoming heavier. Then a huge rooster flew over and aimed its sharp beak at his chest. Crack! A large hand descended from the sky and grabbed the rooster. Its five fingers exerted some force, and the sound of machinery cracking rang out. Lin Qing smiled as he held the rooster. ¡°Do you want to eat chicken heart hotpot later?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of your mouth breaking?¡± Huang Quan was speechless. ¡°Forget it if you don¡¯t want to eat. Don¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t ask you.¡± Looking at Lin Qing collecting the dead chickens, Huang Quan asked, ¡°Where did you go? Why are you only here now?¡± ¡°I went to the pet shop!¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t I already swept through that area?¡± ¡°Yeah. But how else can I eat dog meat hotpot?¡± ¡°Those things are all steel. Can they really be eaten?¡± Lin Qing tore off a chicken drumstick and threw it to Huang Quan. ¡°Definitely. Why don¡¯t you try it?¡± ¡°This thing can be eaten? Don¡¯t scare me.¡± Huang Quan picked up the half-meter-long drumstick and smashed it against a stone. The stone shattered. Then he bit into the drumstick half-heartedly, and his teeth almost broke. It was steel! But when he looked at Lin Qing, he realized that he was eating very well. ¡°That¡¯s not right. What are you eating?¡± He realized that Lin Qing was eating something different from him. ¡°I¡¯m eating the chicken heart.¡± Then Lin Qing quickly swallowed a few more crystals. His cheeks were stuffed full like a squirrel. Picking up a chicken, Huang Quan took out the ¡®chicken heart¡¯ and tried to eat one. A few seconds later¡­ ¡°F*ck you, Lin Qing! I¡¯ll kill you!¡± ¡°Brother, let¡¯s talk nicely. Don¡¯t hit me.¡± ¡°You big liar! You lied to me and even tricked me into drinking gasoline. No wonder I feel that you¡¯ve grown taller and look much more handsome. Moreover, you aren¡¯t hungry either.¡± In the morning, Lin Qing was only 15 meters tall. He looked like a country bumpkin with a few big wheels on his body. Now that Huang Quan took a closer look, Lin Qing was over 16 meters tall with bright colors and a sturdy body. Furthermore, most of the car elements had disappeared from his body, making him look like a mecha from a movie. After eating the ¡®chicken heart¡¯, Huang Quan felt warm, and his hunger lessened a little. Needless to say, this was the food of the Motorbots, not some rubbish gasoline. Furthermore, Lin Qing knew about this secret but didn¡¯t tell him. Lin Qing even asked him to do some post-meal activities and find steel beasts for practice. After that, Huang Quan worked himself to death while this bastard ate a full meal behind him. ¡°Cough, cough. It¡¯s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. I called you over when I was eating, but now you¡¯re blaming me because you didn¡¯t eat?¡± ¡°You gave me a few pieces of f*cking steel. How am I supposed to eat them?! Why didn¡¯t you say that the hearts could be eaten?¡± ¡°Because you didn¡¯t ask!¡± Chapter 6 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Huang Quan dragged his hungry body and fought with Lin Qing. Finally, he managed to snatch over ten chicken hearts from Lin Qing¡¯s mouth and swallow them with tears in his eyes. After this, he was no longer as hungry. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to apologize to me or something?¡± Huang Quan said resentfully. ¡°Sorry!¡± Huang Quan thought, Can¡¯t you be more sincere? You should spit out the ¡®chicken hearts¡¯ in your cheeks when you apologize. Gulp! Seeing Huang Quan staring at him, Lin Qing had his eyes wide open as he swallowed the crystals without chewing, causing several crystals to get stuck in his throat. Black lines appeared on Huang Quan¡¯s forehead. ¡°Do all steel beasts have this thing?¡± ¡°Not only do steel beasts have them, we have them too. They are power crystals, which are equivalent to hearts. Not only can they fill the stomach, they can also strengthen the body.¡± Lin Qing poked the crystals down his throat with his finger. These secrets would be exposed to the world in a short time. Everyone would know about it, so it was not a big deal to tell Huang Quan. ¡°So your appearance changed because you got stronger?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°And the bigger the steel beast, the bigger the crystal?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Suddenly, Huang Quan remembered the group of steel beasts they killed in the city center this morning. There were many large ones among them. But when he thought about how Lin Qing had stayed behind before catching up, his face darkened. With a calm expression, Lin Qing said, ¡°Old Huang, now that you already know this secret, do you still want to go with me?¡± Huang Quan flew into a rage. ¡°Bullshit. You ate so many of my crystals. If you don¡¯t return them all to me, don¡¯t even think about running away. If you dare to cheat me, you might be young and capable, but you¡¯ll be useless for the rest of your life.¡± Upon hearing this, Lin Qing felt relieved and smiled. ¡°I know a market that has a lot of fish and chickens. Do you want to shop around?¡± ¡°No. I don¡¯t know how long we¡¯ve been gone. Yang Feng might have already arrived.¡± Huang Quan glared at Lin Qing. ¡°Let¡¯s go and pick him up first. We can talk about getting stronger later.¡± He wasn¡¯t afraid of being cheated, but he was afraid that Lin Qing would cheat him without him knowing. After all, Lin Qing had been helping him unconditionally. To be honest, he had been a little afraid. After knowing that he was doing this for the crystals from the steel beasts, he heaved a sigh of relief. On the way back, Huang Quan asked Lin Qing some questions about evolution. Lin Qing told him the truth, including the fact that the ܇ (vehicle) character would fully appear after evolving five times. The corners of Huang Quan¡¯s mouth twitched when he saw that three-fifths of the ܇ character had appeared on Lin Qing¡¯s chest. When they returned to the building, there was no one there. Both of them sighed. ¡°Ahh. I can¡¯t get through to him on the phone, and there¡¯s no signal either. How am I supposed to find him?¡± ¡°Look up.¡± ¡°Look up at what?¡± Huang Quan raised his head. The sky was pitch-black, covered in thick black clouds. Lin Qing admired how his brain worked. ¡°Didn¡¯t you notice that something¡¯s wrong? The sky was already like this in the morning. Is it normal for it to be like this now in the afternoon?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a little abnormal. I can¡¯t see the sun, and I don¡¯t even know what time it is.¡± ¡°Brother, am I asking what time it is?¡± Lin Qing really didn¡¯t have the energy to complain. ¡°Black clouds are covering the sun, and the sunlight can¡¯t shine through. What will happen if this continues?¡± After Huang Quan pondered for a few seconds, his face paled. Without the sun, plants wouldn¡¯t be able to survive. Furthermore, the temperature of the Earth would decrease day by day. As a result, the surface temperature would decrease by 20¡ãC in at most a month. There would be no electricity, no water, no heating, and no crops. Ordinary people wouldn¡¯t be able to live for long after they finished all the food. At this moment, Huang Quan finally realized just how devastating this calamity was. He gulped. ¡°Can¡¯t we just use artillery to scatter the dark clouds?¡± ¡°These aren¡¯t normal dark clouds. Since Motorbots and steel beasts have turned into steel, these black clouds have also turned into steel. This layer of clouds blocks the sky while a strange magnetic field paralyzes satellites. As a result, a large number of electronics have lost their effect. In the future, we can basically say goodbye to cell phones and computers.¡± ¡°Nonsense!¡± Huang Quan¡¯s heart was in turmoil. Everyone who had been on a plane knew how big a cloud was. A cloud looked small from the ground, but it was actually a few kilometers wide. Scientists had researched that a small cloud could weigh up to 10,000 kilograms. Some clouds were seven to eight kilometers thick, and their weight was even more frightening. If these clouds had turned into steel, even missiles wouldn¡¯t be able to penetrate them. Dark clouds covered the sky. There was no end in sight, and no one knew how far they extended. Huang Quan¡¯s heart trembled. ¡°Why aren¡¯t such heavy clouds falling? What is above the clouds?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Looking at the dark clouds, Lin Qing said slowly, ¡°Maybe one day you can go up and take a look.¡± In his previous life, the thin layer of clouds had been shattered, and a group of experts had gone up. Huang Quan was also among them. But after this group of people went up, they were unable to come back down. ¡°I will go there!¡± Huang Quan clenched his fists and had a firm gaze. ¡°Let¡¯s go together. If there are any demons or ghosts, we¡¯ll sweep them away together.¡± Lin Qing thought about it¡­ ¡°Forget about me. Unless I have absolute strength, I won¡¯t go even if you beat me to death.¡± He had a rough idea of Huang Quan¡¯s strength back then. It wouldn¡¯t be too late to go when he could single-handedly crush beings of that level. Otherwise, he would be sending himself to his death. ¡­ They sat at the entrance of the building and waited. A few hours later, the sky was clearly darker, and the sun about to set. The black clouds blocked the sunlight, but the sun did not disappear. In the day, the city was dim under the strong light, and you could barely see your surroundings. But it was different at night. You couldn¡¯t even see your own fingers stretched out in front of you. Lin Qing opened his eyes and said solemnly, ¡°Although animals have turned into steel, they still maintain their habits, and most of them move around at night. It¡¯s too dangerous for us to wait here.¡± Huang Quan¡¯s expression changed. For Lin Qing to say the word ¡®dangerous¡¯ meant that it was really dangerous. ¡°We¡¯re in danger even in the city at night. Wouldn¡¯t Yang Feng have no way out then?¡± ¡°This sounds awful, but I have to tell you something. You should be able to see such a big flag from eight hundred meters away. However, it¡¯s been a day, and he¡¯s still not here. He has either escaped or is dead.¡± Huang Quan¡¯s heart was confused, and he was in a struggle. A few seconds later, he sighed. What Lin Qing said made sense. ¡°Let¡¯s go. Perhaps he¡¯s already left.¡± They transformed into vehicles and switched on their headlights. Then the two of them started their engines, and loud sound waves blasted out in succession. Beep beep beep!! The two of them had only moved a bit when they heard a persistent beeping from an electric scooter. Then a figure rushed down the street. Huang Quan forgot that his headlights were still on and turned around. There was a vast expanse of white in front of him. As a result, the owner of the electric scooter couldn¡¯t see the road clearly and crashed into an obstacle. He cursed in English before falling to the ground. ¡°What the f*ck!¡± He was being chased by a steel beast. When he heard the sound of an engine, he wanted to ask for help, but he didn¡¯t expect to crash due to this bastard¡¯s headlights. ¡°Eh, it¡¯s Yang Feng.¡± After seeing the person on the ground, Huang Quan shouted and ran over. Lin Qing followed him. After a few steps, he knew why Yang Feng was running so fast. Behind him were countless red-eyed rats that were as large as rabbits. The rat fur on their bodies stood up like steel needles, and a cold light flashed from them. The rats were densely packed and formed a black torrent. Just looking at them made his scalp go numb, let alone fighting them. He wasn¡¯t afraid of ferocious steel beasts as most of them moved alone. What he was most afraid of were these social creatures. After all, every time they appeared, there would be tens of thousands of them. ¡°Retreat!¡± After grabbing Yang Feng, Huang Quan turned around and began to run frantically. Lin Qing didn¡¯t go over to help them. Instead, he swung his fist at the residential building beside him and destroyed it with a few punches. The collapsed building formed an obstruction in the middle of the road. Huang Quan ran past it and used it to block the rats for a few seconds. Meanwhile, Lin Qing slammed on his accelerator and drove at full speed, allowing him to drive at the front. Chapter 7 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios When Yang Feng learned that it was Huang Quan who had saved him, he couldn¡¯t help but sigh. If he had known earlier, he would have bought a car under his own name. He traveled everywhere in a year and took more than ten flights every month. Furthermore, his daily trips were arranged by the company¡¯s chauffeur. As a result, there was no need for him to drive. ¡°Is the person in front your friend? Why is he running so fast?¡± Lin Qing was far ahead and driving at full speed. In a few seconds, he had already left Huang Quan, who had a top speed of 50 km/h, behind. It couldn¡¯t be helped. After all, a vehicle¡¯s condition determined its fate. One that weighed a few hundred tons was never designed for speedy travel. Glancing at the disappearing taillights, Huang Quan¡¯s face darkened. ¡°I just met him today. This kid isn¡¯t a good person.¡± The fierce army of rats was rushing over from behind him while chattering. Huang Quan didn¡¯t have time to scold Lin Qing. He slammed on his accelerator and used all his strength. His slow speed was a drawback, but there was no other way. In such a situation, he could only run for his life. With so many rats, they would eat him up in minutes if they caught up to him. After a while, Huang Quan chased Lin Qing to the gas station. If he ran with this guy, he could still live. But if he left, he would die sooner or later. Fifty meters behind him, the rats were still chasing them relentlessly. Their eyes were all glowing red as they waited for their feast. Sitting in the truck, Yang Feng felt his tears and snot flowing from the wind. Furthermore, the rats almost climbed into the truck a few times, making him tremble in fear. Boom! Boom! At the gas station, Lin Qing hammered the ground with his steel fists. A pit a few meters deep formed in the ground, and gasoline spurted out like a fountain, filling the air with the smell of oil. ¡°F*ck! F*ck! F*ck!¡± When they saw Lin Qing, Huang Quan didn¡¯t even have the chance to be happy before Yang Feng started swearing! ¡°Slow down. Don¡¯t run anymore. Don¡¯t produce any sparks from the soles of your feet. This is gasoline, so be careful of any explosions.¡± ¡°What are you waiting for? Run!¡± Lin Qing turned around and ran away. He stood dozens of meters away and picked up the machete that was full of holes on his back. Then he squeezed it into a ball and prepared to throw it. This blade was made of ordinary steel. After slashing so many steel beasts, it was almost useless. Seeing his actions, Huang Quan broke out in cold sweat. ¡°F*ck! Wait! We haven¡¯t run that far.¡± ¡°Too late.¡± Lin Qing threw the steel ball as he watched the army of rats chase them to the gas station. Huang Quan didn¡¯t care if sparks would fly from the soles of his feet. He floored the accelerator and ran for his life. A few seconds later, the steel ball hit the ground at the gas station and caused sparks to fly. This ignited the gasoline in the air that had yet to dissipate and even lit up the pool of oil below. Boom! An explosion thundered throughout the entire city. A mushroom cloud appeared above the gas station, and a hot blast wave quickly spread into the surroundings. The army of rats was very close to the explosion. They were first overturned by the blast wave and then melted by the high temperature. The glass within a few hundred meters of the gas station shattered as all the debris on the street disappeared. Lin Qing had changed into his mecha form and jumped behind a small building, so he didn¡¯t suffer any injuries. But Huang Quan was in hell. He protected Yang Feng and drove into a shop by the street, but most of his buttocks were roasted by the heat wave outside. After a few minutes, Lin Qing ran out and asked with concern, ¡°Old Huang, are you alright?¡± ¡°Screw you and your eight generations of ancestors.¡± Huang Quan¡¯s entire back was black, and he was on the brink of tears. ¡°How¡¯s Yang Feng?¡± ¡°Ah, what did you say?¡± ¡°I said, are you alright?¡± Yang Feng¡¯s ears were buzzing, and he couldn¡¯t hear anything clearly. Fortunately, he had covered his ears and opened his mouth when the explosion happened. Otherwise, even if the explosion didn¡¯t kill him, the blast wave would have turned him into an idiot. ¡°It should be fine. Let¡¯s go first. I won¡¯t be able to handle an even bigger monster if one comes later,¡± Lin Qing urged. The three of them fled from the city and ran to the suburbs before Yang Feng regained his sense of hearing. Then the tense Yang Feng started to vent his grievances. ¡°You said that you didn¡¯t want to become the chairman in Qingzhou and called me over for some bloody investing. I almost lost my life because of that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m the one who saved you this time. You don¡¯t even have a driver¡¯s license. You might have died in Qingzhou.¡± ¡°Bullshit. I don¡¯t know how to drive, but other people in my family can. My brother has a helicopter. What could happen?¡± ¡°Cough, cough. Who can say for sure what their fate will be? Speaking of which, I¡¯ve been looking for you for a whole day. I even lost a few brothers when I went to the hotel to look for you this morning.¡± Yang Feng was silent. ¡°I went for a run before dawn and was chased by a steel dog for no reason. I hid in a convenience store and didn¡¯t come out until night time, which was when I met you guys.¡± ¡°No wonder we couldn¡¯t find you.¡± Huang Quan sighed. Lin Qing leaned over and observed the handsome young man wearing gold-rimmed glasses. ¡°Brother, what¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°His name is Yang Feng. He was my roommate in university and is from Qingzhou. His family is rich, and the governor is his uncle.¡± ¡°F*ck, why are you saying all this?¡± Lin Qing retorted angrily. ¡°I never look at whether someone has money when I make friends. No matter how poor he is, can he be as poor as me?¡± ¡°Brother Yang, right? Why sit in a crappy truck like Huang Quan? Come to my driver¡¯s seat. There¡¯s plenty of space and air-conditioning here.¡± Huang Quan sneered. ¡°Haha, do you think he¡¯s that kind of¡­¡± ¡°Thank you, brother.¡± Yang Feng wiped his snot and crossed his arms. ¡°Actually, I¡¯ve been wanting to get into your truck for a long time. Huang Quan is slower, and it¡¯s so cold in his truck.¡± Lin Qing opened the truck door and let Yang Feng get in. ¡°There¡¯s bread and water in here. If you¡¯re hungry, you can eat it.¡± This was the unfinished food that he had bought yesterday. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m sorry to trouble you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re being too polite. We¡¯re all on the same side.¡± The governor of Qingzhou was a big shot who was in charge of the Qingzhou military camp. In his previous life, Huang Quan had followed this big shot. From the looks of it, Yang Feng should have been the one who pulled the strings. Lin Qing met two big shots on the first day of the Cataclysm, causing him to admire his luck a little. Moreover, he heard from Yang Feng that his brother had a helicopter. That was impressive. Lin Qing turned on the air conditioner and the water cooler. Then he slowed down and drove alongside Huang Quan. ¡°Old Huang, you¡¯re not a local, right? Why are you going to Qingzhou?¡± ¡°My family is from Qingzhou. I was just here to supervise a construction site.¡± ¡°What family? You bought a mining dump truck to play with, while everyone else registered theirs under their companies.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just from a small family with eighty billion yuan,¡± Huang Quan said calmly. ¡°Other people register their trucks under their companies to reduce their taxes, but I don¡¯t lack money. So I naturally registered it under my name.¡± ¡°And you took a picture and posted it on your social media to show off,¡± Yang Feng interjected. ¡°Tell me, why are you so lucky? You casually bought a truck and didn¡¯t even drive it often. It was usually driven by construction workers. In the end, you¡¯re the most popular one here. I haven¡¯t seen anyone else bigger than you along the way. ¡°If I had known that this day would come, I would have bought a luxury yacht even if it cost me everything. It¡¯s a few hundred meters long and can accommodate tens of thousands of people.¡± Huang Quan frowned. ¡°Stop bragging. Even if you can afford one, how can you sail a boat in Qingzhou? The largest private yacht in the country is only 120 meters, and it¡¯s in Island City.¡± There were many rich people in the country, but the geographical conditions were limited. So not many people owned yachts, and those who did had theirs affiliated with a company. There were only a few dozen people who had yachts registered under their names, and there were only a few large yachts. He had gone to Island City to discuss business last year and was served on a boat that was 120 meters long. It could hold a helicopter and had everything needed available, including a bar, a hotel, a restaurant, and a swimming pool. ¡°You¡¯re talking about Long Sihai¡¯s ¡®Emperor¡¯, right?¡± Lin Qing knew who it was the moment Huang Quan mentioned this. ¡°Do you know him?¡± Huang Quan was slightly surprised. ¡°I know a little. He¡¯s an old turtle who¡¯s afraid of death.¡± Chapter 8 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Long Sihai, 39 years of age, was the leader of the Long clan, one of the four great clans of Island City. When he was young, he dabbled in business and was known as Uncle Longsi. Not long after the Cataclysm, he established his own independence from the four clans that had joined forces. He didn¡¯t listen to orders and guarded his own piece of land, claiming that he only wanted to live a few more years. Although he had the biggest mecha, he was the most timid and had always been a coward. He didn¡¯t even leave Island City before Lin Qing died. Lin Qing slowed down and chatted with Huang Quan. The two of them quickly got on the highway. Not long after, the sky turned completely dark, and more people gradually appeared on the road. They were all from the city. ¡°Are we going to rest here?¡± Huang Quan asked Lin Qing. ¡°No, there are a lot of mountains here, and there might be wild animals. There¡¯s a service area about eighty kilometers ahead, so let¡¯s rest there.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll listen to you.¡± Huang Quan shouted to the people on the side of the road, ¡°Hey, there are many wild beasts around here at night! Don¡¯t rest here!¡± No one paid any attention to him. Only a young woman in a suit said, ¡°Brother, can you give me a ride? I¡¯ll pay you.¡± ¡°Sure, come on up.¡± ¡°Brother, bring me too. Please help me. I¡¯ll pay for the ride too.¡± ¡°Please, I don¡¯t have a car or money. Can you save my life?¡± ¡°Brothers, I can¡¯t fit so many people in my car. Since your trucks are big, and you have nothing to do, bring some of us along.¡± Huang Quan was dumbfounded. When he allowed the first person to get into his truck, he didn¡¯t expect dozens of people to immediately surround him. Some of them didn¡¯t even wait for him to speak as they climbed into the back of the truck. Bang! Bang! Bang! Someone slapped Lin Qing¡¯s truck hard and shouted at Yang Feng, ¡°Mister, my grandma¡¯s legs aren¡¯t good. Quickly open the door and let her in.¡± After letting Yang Feng out, Lin Qing transformed into his mecha form and said with an unfriendly gaze, ¡°If your legs aren¡¯t good, then don¡¯t go out. If you keep talking, I¡¯ll send her to hell.¡± ¡°Why are you like this? We¡¯ve all fallen into misfortune at the same time. What¡¯s wrong with helping others?¡± ¡°You¡¯re so heartless. Has your conscience been eaten by dogs?¡± Lin Qing narrowed his eyes as he looked at the white car that scolded him for having a bad conscience and punched it. The punch sent the five-meter-tall Motorbot flying more than ten meters away. He left behind a trail of sparks as blue smoke rose from his body. The people around them kept quiet out of fear and instantly left. Even the old lady with bad legs jumped a few meters away. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go to the city and bring out the people who haven¡¯t come out?¡± Lin Qing looked around coldly. ¡°I don¡¯t owe you anything. Get lost!¡± With so many people on him, they would be a burden in an emergency situation. After all, he would have to put them down one by one before transforming into his mecha form. He would die seven or eight times before he could do it if he were to do that. Also, if he helped them, some people would cling to him. In the following days, he would also have to cover their meals and accommodation. Furthermore, if he did anything wrong, others would immediately say that he was heartless and cruel. He had encountered too many such incidents while escaping in his previous life and almost lost his life several times. Meanwhile, Huang Quan was stunned by Lin Qing. Although they had only known each other for a day, he knew that Lin Qing was definitely not a hard-hearted person. He never thought that Lin Qing would leave others in the lurch. ¡°Old Huang, throw them away.¡± Yang Feng shrugged his shoulders and rubbed his hands together. ¡°There are many people like them on the road in front. How many can you save?¡± ¡°Why are you speaking like that too? Do you believe that I¡¯ll throw you out first? I know what you mean, but what¡¯s the big deal if I can help them to the best of my abilities? ¡°The service area is still eighty kilometers away. Do you know what it means for these people without cars to walk there?¡± They had escaped in a hurry, so many of them didn¡¯t bring any luggage and came empty-handed. However, it took half a day for them to reach here. If no one carried them for the next 80 kilometers, they would really die. ¡°Fine, you¡¯re a good person, and I¡¯m a bad person, alright? There are so many people here. How many do you plan to bring along? There are probably quite a few people in front too. Do you want to bring them along as well?¡± Huang Quan threw down the people who jumped onto his truck and transformed into his mecha form. Then he pointed at some women who had children but no cars. ¡°All of you, come up. The rest, scram.¡± His truck was enormous, so it wasn¡¯t a problem for him to fit dozens of people at once. However, the conditions were a bit harsh, as there was no roof, unlike Lin Qing¡¯s truck, which was completely closed and didn¡¯t need to be exposed to the sun. With a wave of thanks, the group of women and children climbed into the truck while crying tears of joy. Meanwhile, those who couldn¡¯t go up stared at Huang Quan with vicious eyes and cursed him in their hearts. The two trucks went back on the road. Just as Yang Feng said, the highway was full of people. They were old, weak, sick, and disabled. There were also children and their mothers. Some were sleeping in cars, some were sleeping on the ground, and some were sleeping in the middle of the road. In fact, there were even many corpses lying there stiffly. Every time they saw a car pass by, these people would cheer excitedly, but their hopeful eyes would soon turn numb once again. ¡°F*ck!¡± Half an hour later, Huang Quan said to Lin Qing, ¡°I can¡¯t take any more people. Can you take some?¡± Lin Qing was unmoved. ¡°Big Brother, it¡¯s all thanks to me that you can bring so many people safely. You don¡¯t have the ability to fight, so I¡¯m the only one who can do it. If I take people, both of us will lose our ability to fight.¡± ¡°I know. But I really can¡¯t stand it anymore. For every person you take, I¡¯ll find you a crystal. Just tell me if you want to do it or not.¡± Clang! Lin Qing¡¯s truck door opened. A few minutes later, the two trucks were on the road again. In the driver¡¯s seat, Yang Feng said curiously, ¡°Lin Qing, you were from the lower classes of society, so you should have more compassion than Old Huang when facing these people. Why is it the opposite?¡± ¡°What about you? Didn¡¯t you agree not to bring anyone along?¡± ¡°Ha, I¡¯m different. I know my limits. It¡¯s fine if it¡¯s during normal times, but now I can¡¯t even protect myself. How can I protect them?¡± ¡°You and I are the same.¡± Lin Qing sighed. ¡°The difference is that I come from the lower classes, so I understand the lower classes better. It¡¯s fine if I don¡¯t show mercy, but once I show mercy, I will definitely invite a lot of trouble.¡± ¡°Haha, but aren¡¯t you taking people along with you now?¡± ¡°You heard Old Huang tempt me with crystals. Compared to danger, crystals are obviously more tempting.¡± Yang Feng couldn¡¯t help laughing. ¡°But according to my observations, you aren¡¯t someone who would be willing to put yourself in danger just for some benefits. You can¡¯t bear to do this either, right?¡± Lin Qing didn¡¯t say anything and just sounded his horn to urge the people in front to get out of the way. The 80-kilometer journey would normally take an hour. But on this road, they only reached the service area during the middle of the night. Seeing hundreds of people standing outside the service area and a group of Motorbots arguing, Lin Qing said, ¡°Look, here comes the trouble.¡± ¡°One packet of instant noodles costs one hundred yuan, and water costs fifty yuan. Are you going to buy it?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be three hundred yuan for fast food and thirty yuan to use the toilet once.¡± ¡°Gasoline costs one hundred yuan per liter. Those who want Overlord Oil instead should consider how much you can pay.¡± ¡°By the way, all Motorbots friends will enjoy half price.¡± When he got closer, Lin Qing saw the situation clearly. It turned out that the boss of the service area had raised the prices dozens of times for all the food. If the boss were an ordinary person, he would have been beaten to death long ago. However, he wasn¡¯t an ordinary person but a Motorbot. He was a Wuling van who had snatched the job of refueling after the Cataclysm. There were more than ten Motorbots beside him who had all transformed into their mecha forms. They had their arms crossed in front of their chests and cracked jokes as they guarded the place. Most importantly, Lin Qing had seen these thugs before. They were all from Brother Liu¡¯s fleet. Chapter 9 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios As soon as Lin Qing braked, someone from the gas station stepped forward and asked coldly, ¡°Brother, are you here for gas or lodging?¡± There was someone in the driver¡¯s seat, but the truck had no license plate, so the staff assumed that it was a stolen truck. Yang Feng stuck his head out. ¡°Can I use my card?¡± ¡°Bullshit. We only accept cash. If you have no cash, watches or gold and silver jewelry will do.¡± Yang Feng took off his watch and handed it over. ¡°Its original price is one-point-four million yuan. Treat our two trucks of people well and bring us a car of food and water when we leave.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t even have an invoice, so how would I know how much it¡¯s worth? It might be fake.¡± The staff¡¯s eyes lit up. Then he said without batting an eye, ¡°How ¡¯bout this? I¡¯ll give you fifty packets of instant noodles, arrange an overnight stay for you, and give you half a box of gas when you leave.¡± It was too exploitative. After living for more than 20 years, this was the first time Yang Feng had encountered such a corrupt shop, where a watch that cost 1.4 million yuan was only worth 50 packets of instant noodles. He was so angry that he wanted to chop someone up. ¡°Brother, in that case, I won¡¯t buy them.¡± They didn¡¯t make use of the opportunity given to them. When Lin Qing stepped in, it would no longer be an issue of money. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to buy anything, scram.¡± The staff put the watch in his pocket and turned to leave with a cold face. ¡°F*ck!¡± Seeing his watch being stolen, Yang Feng jumped down from the truck and called out to him. ¡°Brother, aren¡¯t you being too unkind? Give me back my watch.¡± ¡°Let me go. When did I take your watch?¡± After Lin Qing had stopped, people had jumped out one after another. Seeing this situation, then they all gathered around. ¡°What do you want? What do you all want? Boss, someone is causing trouble!¡± When the staff shouted, a group of Motorbots walked over. They were all part of Brother Liu¡¯s group. They were large and all about ten meters tall. A normal car would only be four to five meters tall after transforming into a mecha. However, these trucks were twice as big and were also very strong. ¡°What happened?¡± Brother Liu asked. ¡°He accused me of taking his watch and said it cost one-point-four million yuan. What a joke. How could someone who can wear a watch worth more than a million not even have a car? He¡¯s even driving a stolen heavy truck.¡± ¡°A heavy truck? What heavy truck?¡± The Wuling boss walked over. ¡°Isn¡¯t this the new truck I bought a few days ago? I haven¡¯t found it since it was stolen. Kid, you¡¯re in trouble.¡± A heavy truck was much more valuable than an ordinary car. After all, it was a great tool, regardless of whether it was used to transport goods or load people. He was originally the owner of a restaurant in the service area. After the Cataclysm, he became a Wuling van, but his wife and son had not transformed. Brother Liu from the transport team was his brother-in-law. When they arrived here at noon, the two of them decided to make a living and make it big. After all, no one cared anyway. Surrounded by a group of 10-meter-tall Motorbots, Yang Feng swallowed his saliva and took a few steps back to Lin Qing¡¯s side. ¡°You should do it. I can¡¯t handle it.¡± Lin Qing climbed up from the ground as he transformed into his mecha form. After three evolutions, he was almost 17 meters tall. These ordinary trucks were only at his waist. Brother Liu and the rest were dumbfounded when they saw the fiery-red heavy truck transform into a mecha. Others had always been looking up at them, so they never thought that there would be a time when they would look up to someone else. This body was way too big! ¡°Brother, when did you buy that watch? Why don¡¯t I know about it?¡± Lin Qing¡¯s tone was unkind. ¡°It¡¯s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding.¡± The Wuling van was so scared that his legs turned to jelly. ¡°It¡¯s my fault for being blind. Everyone can eat whatever you want. I¡¯ll fill you up with gas later too.¡± Lin Qing looked at Yang Feng. ¡°Look, aren¡¯t they easy to persuade?¡± Yang Feng thought, Brother, if I had your size, they would be very nice to me too. ¡°Thanks, boss. I¡¯m really sorry to make you spend so much money.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. We should help each other when we¡¯re out.¡± Brother Liu heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that this major matter had been reduced to a minor one. He didn¡¯t even dare to breathe loudly just now, and his heart was in his throat. He was afraid they would be killed. After all, he didn¡¯t know how many punches their small arms and legs could withstand. Boom! Suddenly, there was a loud bang. The Wuling truck¡¯s head sank into his chest, and his legs broke. Then he glowed red before instantly exploding. In the blink of an eye, he had turned into scrap metal. Lin Qing retracted his foot and said calmly, ¡°You have to thank me. I think it¡¯s quite painful to see you become a van. I hope that you will have good karma in your next life and can find a Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, or BMW so that you can live an easy life.¡± Lin Qing had been talking cheerfully and wittily just one second ago, but he killed someone in the next second. The surrounding people were shocked. Meanwhile, the angry Motorbots who had been blackmailed by the boss but didn¡¯t dare to say anything almost applauded when they realized what happened. ¡°Brother Liu, I didn¡¯t expect to meet you here. It¡¯s really fate.¡± Lin Qing looked at the group of trucks. ¡°Um, Brother, you are¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Little Lin. You introduced a car for me to buy the day before yesterday. Do you still remember that?¡± Brother Liu forced a smile. ¡°So it¡¯s Brother Lin. We are indeed fated to work together even after going in circles. If you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like to work with you. ¡°We don¡¯t have anything else but our strength. In the future, if Brother Lin wants me to go east, I won¡¯t dare to go west.¡± ¡°Forget it. I¡¯m not your brother anymore.¡± Lin Qing suddenly grabbed Brother Liu¡¯s neck and lifted him up with one hand before slamming him down. Bang! The asphalt cement road cracked as Brother Liu¡¯s head smashed a pit into the ground. Green smoke floated up, and his limbs were motionless. Upon seeing this, the rest of the transport team turned around and transformed into vehicles. Then they pushed the accelerators and ran. In the eyes of ordinary people, they were giants. But in Lin Qing¡¯s eyes, they were just like his little brothers. Lin Qing was so violent that he killed one of them with a single move without giving them any chance to retaliate. Lin Qing crossed several meters in a single step and caught up with them in a few seconds. Then he delivered a punch and broke the waist of the last person. Following that, he crushed several people beneath his feet. Someone saw that he wasn¡¯t as fast as Lin Qing and turned around, wanting to fight him head-on. But when he turned around, he was faced with a constantly expanding steel knee. About ten seconds later, piles of scrap metal lay on the highway. This wasn¡¯t a battle but a one-sided massacre. The Motorbots watching this were scared out of their wits. This was the first time they realized the importance of foundation. After all, the difference between different vehicles was like that of heaven and earth. Then they heard the hum of machinery behind them. Everyone looked back as an even larger Motorbot appeared. The 20-meter-tall Huang Quan stood up and looked at Lin Qing with a complicated gaze. ¡°Actually, you¡­¡± Lin Qing took out the power crystals and threw a few over to Huang Quan. ¡°Just tell me if you want them or not.¡± The second half of Huang Quan¡¯s sentence was stuck in his throat. He could only gloomily swallow the crystals. Looking down at the ordinary people in the service area, Lin Qing said loudly, ¡°If you want to eat, take some food for yourself. As for those who know how to cook, go to the cafeteria to help. You can eat your fill, but don¡¯t take the food away. There are many people behind, so leave some for them.¡± A Jetta Motorbot nervously asked, ¡°Brother, I want to bring my wife and children to the capital. Can we have some food for the journey?¡± ¡°Why are you going to the capital? It¡¯s a few thousand kilometers away. According to the current road conditions, you won¡¯t be able to get there even after traveling for half a month. Who knows how many cities you¡¯ll have to pass through and how many steel beasts you¡¯ll encounter along the way?¡± ¡°B-but there¡¯s nothing I can do.¡± The Jetta Motorbot was on the verge of tears. ¡°Where else can we go other than the capital?¡± Lin Qing glanced at the Motorbots that were dragging their families along and guessed that they were all thinking the same thing. At this time, they were out of their wits and could only run toward a big city. ¡°Isn¡¯t this place pretty good? It¡¯s a flat piece of land that¡¯s less than a hundred kilometers away from Ping¡¯an City. Furthermore, it¡¯s only a day¡¯s walk away from the next city, so it¡¯s very easy to find food. ¡°Furthermore, I estimate that after dawn, the imperial soldiers stationed to protect Ping¡¯an City will come and set up camp here to gather displaced citizens.¡± ¡°Really?¡± The Jetta Motorbot couldn¡¯t believe this. ¡°You¡¯ll know tomorrow whether I¡¯m lying to you or not.¡± The incident happened so suddenly that the soldiers of Ping¡¯an City had yet to retreat. When they realized the strength of the steel beasts and knew that they couldn¡¯t defend against them, they would naturally withdraw. Now that communication was cut off, the only thing they could do was to gather citizens and build a fortress while waiting for orders from above. Lin Qing knew all this because this service area in his previous life was a safe place that he had stayed before. Chapter 10 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The service area was full of people and snoring. Lin Qing also closed his eyes and fell asleep. He was tired from working all day. Although the bodies of Motorbots did not experience fatigue, their minds were still human. In the morning, the ground was still dim at the first glimmer of dawn. Suddenly, the sound of the ground shaking woke everyone up. Then they saw dozens of tanks rumbling as soldiers with guns followed behind. Other than a few thousand soldiers, there were also thousands of civilians. It was an enormous group that was impossible to see the end of. After waking up Huang Quan, Lin Qing carried Yang Feng, and they secretly slipped away. On the highway, Huang Quan asked in confusion, ¡°Why are we running? We didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡± ¡°Do you want to stay behind and work with dozens of tanks facing you?¡± ¡°Damn. Surely not, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not wrong to be more careful. Anyway, I¡¯ve already rested. We have to leave even if you don¡¯t want to.¡± The early stages of the Cataclysm didn¡¯t belong to the Motorbots. Instead, the empire still reigned supreme. With a fleet of rocket launchers, tanks, and armed helicopters, would the empire be afraid? The empire¡¯s approach was to collect all the Motorbots they encountered. What, you wanted freedom? Then they would talk using anti-tank rocket launchers. When an armor-piercing shell exploded, it would reach a temperature of more than a thousand degrees Celsius. When such missiles hit early-stage Motorbots, it would usually result in a basketball-sized hole through their bodies. Shenbei City was the provincial capital. It was 150 kilometers away from Ping¡¯an City and had a population of five million people. Although it was a third-tier city, its economic development and various aspects were much better than Ping¡¯an. At noon, Lin Qing stopped at Shenbei. The sky was still dark, but the temperature was colder than yesterday. Yang Feng got off Lin Qing¡¯s truck to get supplies. He also wanted to find some food and clothes to wear. ¡°When are we leaving?¡± Huang Quan asked curiously when he saw Lin Qing squatting on the ground and studying the bus stop sign. ¡°Old Huang, do you still remember owing me dozens of crystals?¡± ¡°Yes, I remember.¡± ¡°If you help me, you don¡¯t have to return those crystals to me.¡± Huang Quan simply couldn¡¯t believe that Lin Qing would say that he didn¡¯t need to return the crystals. ¡°Tell me. I will definitely help you.¡± With his current strength, there were very few things that he couldn¡¯t accomplish. Looking at a certain place at the bus stop, Lin Qing said, ¡°I want to find someone, so we might need to stay here for a few days.¡± Huang Qian looked around guiltily. ¡°Exactly how many days are we going to wait for?¡± There were many people in cities like this, and the animals here were also fierce. If he remembered correctly, North Spirit Mountain Park was in Shenbei City. The mountains in the park that was full of wild monkeys were very famous in the country. He had gone sightseeing there when he first arrived here. Other than the monkeys that could be seen everywhere, there was also a zoo, a lake, a bird park, and so on. There was a large and rather complete collection of large animals there. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe ten days, half a month, or even maybe a month. But I¡¯ll leave today if I¡¯m certain that he¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°Sure. It¡¯s my fault for owing you crystals.¡± ¡°Thanks. When Yang Feng comes back, we¡¯ll go look for that person.¡± More than ten minutes later, Yang Feng came out of a clothing store wearing a green military coat and a hat on his head. He had wrapped himself up tightly. When Lin Qing told him that he wanted to find someone, Yang Feng was straightforward and even said that he would help. After walking a short distance, they saw a running crowd and a Motorbot fighting with steel beasts. ¡°Lin Qing, protect Little Feng. I¡¯m going.¡± Huang Quan was extremely hungry, so he couldn¡¯t help but want to look for steel beasts to eat. He transformed into his 20-meter mecha form and rushed forward. Then with a light tug, he tore a steel beast apart. His hunger only disappeared after eating over a dozen crystals. ¡°Where is the person you¡¯re looking for?¡± In the truck, Yang Feng asked Lin Qing as he looked enviously at Huang Quan killing everything around him. ¡°He¡¯s at Yalong Titanium Condensation Research Institute, one stop before North Spirit Mountain Park.¡± When Yang Feng heard the words ¡®research institute¡¯, he was curious as to how Lin Qing knew such a person. But he didn¡¯t ask and simply nodded. The closer they got to North Spirit Mountain Park, the fewer people there were and the more steel beasts they encountered. There were lions, tigers, elephants, jackals, leopards, birds, and so on. In the end, even Huang Quan couldn¡¯t withstand the steel beasts, so Lin Qing could only join the battle. When they were two kilometers away from the research institute, they saw a few people hiding in the parking lot below. Lin Qing said, ¡°It¡¯s not far from here. I¡¯ll run over to take a look. Wait for me here.¡± ¡°Okay, be careful.¡± Huang Quan didn¡¯t object. Although his strength was great, his speed was slow, and he was not as agile as Lin Qing, so he had no advantage in running. ¡­ ¡°Professor Chen, let¡¯s go. We can¡¯t hold on here.¡± ¡°I will not leave. This place is half of my life¡¯s work. Even if I die, I will die here.¡± ¡°Old Chen, as long as there¡¯s life, there¡¯s hope. If the laboratory is gone, we can rebuild it. But if there¡¯s no one, there¡¯s really nothing left.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t build it anymore.¡± Chen Chong was a man in his seventies in the research institute. He was wearing a white lab coat and had a head full of silver hair. At this moment, he had lost all hope. ¡°The empire invested billions of yuan into this project. We¡¯ve been researching for more than ten years, and all our efforts are here. ¡°Once we leave, I don¡¯t know how badly we¡¯ll be ravaged by those monsters. I plan to bury myself here with these tools. You can leave now. Don¡¯t worry about me.¡± ¡°Teacher, with your reputation, the empire won¡¯t give up on you. I believe that they have already sent people to save you. You must persevere.¡± Wang Xiaoming, a researcher in the lab, tried to persuade him. He had a sparse beard and messy shoulder-length hair. He wore a pair of rimless glasses and seemed to be an ordinary man in his thirties. From his appearance, it was hard to imagine that he was Chen Chong¡¯s proud disciple. Only those who knew him would know how capable he was. In terms of the ability to condense titanium, Chen Chong was the only person in the lab who could surpass him. This technology was heavily supported by the empire and would be used in the military once it was complete. It was a considerable breakthrough. There had been more than 200 people in the lab, but less than half of them were left. Someone said in panic, ¡°We¡¯ve lost contact with the satellites, and we can¡¯t get through over the phones. There are so many monsters outside. Is there really hope?¡± ¡°Old Zhang, Little Jia, and the rest have turned into Motorbots and ran away. If we stay, we will be sending ourselves to our deaths. Furthermore, the capital is thousands of kilometers away. By the time they arrive, our ashes would have turned cold.¡± ¡°I think we should retreat. From my observations, those monsters seem to be evolving. They have grown in size and become much stronger in the span of one day. If we continue to drag this out, I¡¯m afraid we won¡¯t be able to wait for the empire to rescue us.¡± ¡°Without food and water, we will die if we go out, but we will also die if we stay here. What should we do?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a matter of leaving or staying. Someone, please come up with a solution. We can¡¯t afford to delay any longer.¡± ¡°All of you, shut the f*ck up!¡± Looking at everyone with bloodshot eyes, Wang Xiaoming growled, ¡°This place is close to the park, and there are the most monsters here. If we head out, we definitely won¡¯t be able to survive. My suggestion is to stay here and wait for reinforcements from the higher-ups.¡± ¡°Wait, wait, wait. You told us to wait yesterday, but the monsters have mutated several times in a day. I don¡¯t want my life to depend on uncertain reinforcements. I want to leave. Who¡¯s coming with me?¡± ¡°Me.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to wait any longer either. Let¡¯s escape from this street. There are plenty of Motorbots nearby, so it should be safe to follow them.¡± ¡°Alright. Follow me if you want to leave.¡± A blonde-haired, blue-eyed foreigner led the way as around 80 people pushed open the door of the research institute and ran out. After a few steps, blood-curdling screams rang out as a group of steel wolves rushed out and tore them apart. Wang Xiaoming¡¯s pupils constricted, and he hurriedly closed the bulletproof glass door before taking a few steps back instinctively. Chapter 11 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The Yalong Titanium Condensation Research Institute was close to North Spirit Mountain Park. This area had been a danger zone ever since the early stages of the Cataclysm. There were no survivors within a radius of a few kilometers, and the streets were full of corpses and the bodies of broken Motorbots. If not for the bulletproof glass door at the front of the research institute, the people here would have died long ago. But now that they were stuck here without food, there was no way they could survive. Everyone would be dead in at most three days. Bang! Just as everyone couldn¡¯t bear to see their colleagues being torn into pieces by the steel beasts, a steel wolf descended from the sky and smashed into the bulletproof glass door. Its body was twisted and broken at the waist, leaving only a few steel bones connected. Bang! Bang! Bang! After a few consecutive explosions, the steel wolves that were eating humans died. At the entrance of the research institute was a small plaza. Everyone saw a huge fiery-red mecha fighting in the plaza. The pack of wolves charged forward one after another to tear at the mecha. But the mecha killed each wolf with a single punch, causing the ground to crack and large pits to appear everywhere. Within a few minutes, the ground was full of the corpses of steel beasts. After dealing with this pack of wolves, Lin Qing panted heavily as he ran to the entrance of the research institute and shouted, ¡°Is there anyone inside?¡± The glass door was a one-way tinted door, so he couldn¡¯t see what was inside. ¡°Yes!¡± The door opened, and someone cheered. ¡°Are you here to save us?¡± ¡°Where is Professor Chen Chong?¡± Lin Qing looked around. Then his gaze landed on an old man in the crowd. Chen Chong walked out. ¡°That¡¯s me. Who are you?¡± ¡°My name is Lin Qing. I¡¯m just an ordinary citizen. My time is limited, so let me make this short. I have a way to achieve a breakthrough in your titanium condensing technology.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Chen Chong was shocked. They had been researching this problem for so many years, but this person called Lin Qing said he could help them solve it so easily. ¡°Brother, why are you saying this at a time like this? Help us out first.¡± Someone stomped his feet anxiously. ¡°This area is full of steel beasts, so I can¡¯t fight while bringing you guys with me.¡± A roar came from afar, and a group of steel beasts slowly walked over. Lin Qing quickly said, ¡°But I can send food to you regularly until the empire sends people to save you.¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± Wang Xiaoming asked calmly. If Lin Ping hadn¡¯t been sent by the empire, he definitely had a request since he was risking his life to help them at this moment. ¡°I¡¯ll provide you with a way to condense titanium and ensure your safety. In return, help me build a weapon. Don¡¯t worry. You can definitely make this weapon.¡± In his previous life, Huang Quan had passed by this place and saved these people. Along the way, he also captured a few steel beasts for them to research and pass the time. However, he never expected that Chen Chong would achieve a breakthrough in his research on condensing titanium because of the crystals. Furthermore, he also used the best technology in this research to forge a longsword for him. It was the Flame Devil! It was a sword that could produce extremely high temperatures. Huang Quan was pretty big, but in the entire country, there were quite a few Motorbots taller than him. The main reason he could suppress others and become the Battle God of the Land was because of this sword. In Lin Qing¡¯s previous life, he had the fortune of seeing Huang Quan easily slice an adult steel beast into two. Due to the high cost of manufacturing and the lack of materials, such weapons were extremely rare in the world and could not be popularized. Since Lin Qing was living his life once again, in order to fight with even greater enemies in the future, he had to obtain this high-end weapon. ¡°Alright, deal!¡± Wang Xiaoming didn¡¯t care what sort of sword he wanted and agreed right away. Lin Qing didn¡¯t look at him and looked at Chen Chong. After pondering for a few seconds, Chen Chong said, ¡°If everything is as you say, I agree.¡± ¡°Great. I¡¯ll bring you food later.¡± Looking at the hundreds of steel beasts surrounding him, Lin Qing turned into his heavy truck form and pushed down the accelerator. After killing more than ten of them, he escaped from this place. Just now, he saw that the glass door of the research institute wasn¡¯t an ordinary door, so the steel beasts wouldn¡¯t be able to break through it in a short time. ¡­ ¡°How is it? Did you find him?¡± Huang Quan asked when he saw Lin Qing return. Lin Qing was covered in scratches after just a trip. He was now in a sorry state and looked completely different from before. ¡°I found him, but there were too many people for me to bring out.¡± ¡°Then what should we do?¡± Yang Feng asked in puzzlement. ¡°We¡¯ve talked about it. I¡¯ll guarantee them food for the next few days until the empire sends people to pick them up.¡± When Yang Fang thought about how many more days they would have to wait, his heart palpitated. ¡°What exactly is this research institute doing? Are you sure the empire will send people to pick them up?¡± ¡°Professor Chen is very important to the empire. Don¡¯t worry. People will come to pick them up.¡± ¡°How important is this person that you¡¯re willing to risk your life to wait so many days?¡± Lin Qing sighed when he thought about Professor Chen. ¡°It can be said that the entire city isn¡¯t as important as him. You will know the details later.¡± There were too many steel beasts, and their evolution abilities were strong. The Motorbot warriors couldn¡¯t resist them at all. Furthermore, when winter arrived in a few months, many firearms would become unusable, as ordinary weapons were ineffective against the adult steel beasts. That would truly be the start of the disaster. In Lin Qing¡¯s previous life, it was all thanks to Professor Chen¡¯s use of titanium condensing technology to combine crystals and form weapons that allowed ordinary people to use their combat abilities. Only then could they barely withstand the attacks of the steel beasts. It could be said that without him, the humans of the empire wouldn¡¯t have been able to survive except the Motorbots. Yang Feng and Huang Quan were silent and didn¡¯t continue asking. They only saw that Lin Qing¡¯s gaze was getting more and more strange. His entire body was full of secrets that no one could see through. ¡°Let¡¯s go and collect some supplies to send over later.¡± After resting for a while, Lin Qing stood up and raised his head to look at Yang Feng. ¡°It¡¯s not safe here. There might be many battles ahead, so I¡¯ll send you to the research institute.¡± ¡°Okay, be careful.¡± Since he wasn¡¯t a Motorbot, he would only be a burden if he stayed behind. This was something Yang Feng understood. In the afternoon, while Lin Qing was collecting a cart of supplies, Huang Quan said to him, ¡°I¡¯ll be the vanguard this time. You¡¯ll be in charge of hauling the goods and carrying Little Feng.¡± Since Huang Quan was stronger than him, Lin Qing didn¡¯t refuse. He nodded in agreement. ¡°If we encounter anything, we will retreat. If we can¡¯t send the goods over this time, we¡¯ll just find another chance.¡± ¡°Nonsense. Do you want me to risk my life just to deliver a few packets of instant noodles?¡± ¡°Hahaha, it¡¯s good that you have such awareness. I was afraid that you would be inflexible.¡± Compared to when he was at his peak, the current Huang Quan was not as decisive in killing and was ignorant of the consequences of his actions. Lin Qing was really afraid that he would protect Professor Chen with all his might after knowing the importance of Professor Chen. He might even sacrifice himself. Hundreds of steel beasts were napping on the ground in the plaza at the entrance of the research institute. It seemed like they were planning to use this place as their nest. Huang Quan floored his accelerator and charged forward to kill. He drove to the bulletproof glass door, turned into a 20-meter-tall giant, and started fighting. Behind him, Lin Qing shouted, ¡°Open the door!¡± As soon as the door opened, he reversed while in truck form and threw the food he had prepared on the ground while putting down Yang Feng. Then he pushed everything into the institute in his mecha form. ¡°This is my friend. I¡¯m sending him to your place to hide for a few days.¡± Chen Chong nodded heavily. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will definitely ensure his safety.¡± Then Lin Qing turned around and shouted to Huang Quan, ¡°Old Huang, throw a steel beast over.¡± Chapter 12 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Catch!¡± Huang Quan picked up a monkey and threw it over from dozens of meters away. Lin Qing caught it with one hand and crushed it to death on the spot. ¡°There¡¯s something called a power crystal in the bodies of the steel beasts. We Motorbots also have these crystals. They are the power source of all things, and they can help you achieve a breakthrough in your titanium condensing technology. ¡°Apart from food, I¡¯ve also brought a few fireworks with me. After you make a breakthrough in your condensation technology, light the fireworks. I¡¯ll come over when I see them. We can talk about my weapon then.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll remember.¡± Chen Chong¡¯s eyes were burning with desire. He could hardly wait to study this steel beast. Wang Xiaoming licked his lips and said excitedly, ¡°Lin Qing, can you help me get another steel beast?¡± Bro, who are you? Why would I do it because you asked me to? Lin Qing looked at Chen Chong. ¡°Who is he?¡± ¡°He¡¯s my student, Wang Xiaoming. He¡¯s also one of my trusted aides and very talented.¡± ¡°Old Huang, give me another beast!¡± Lin Qing shouted, but there was no response. He turned around and saw that Huang Quan was drowned in steel beasts. Monkeys were hanging on his head, his back, his chest, and his thighs. There were advantages and disadvantages to having a large physique. An advantage was obvious¡ªpossessing great strength. But a disadvantage was evident in the current situation¡ªnot being very flexible before reaching adulthood. ¡°F*ck!¡± Lin Qing ran forward to help. Along the way, he destroyed a steel beast and threw it behind him without even looking back. He didn¡¯t even care if Wang Xiaoming could catch it or not. ¡°Hurry up and come! Close the door and go to the basement!¡± Wang Xiaoming urged everyone while dragging the steel beast along. Yang Feng squeezed his way in and saw Chen Chong use his card to swipe at the wall. The wall opened up automatically, revealing a tunnel staircase that led downstairs. After taking a few dozen steps, the area around him suddenly became open and clear. He saw an enormous space filled with all kinds of equipment he had never seen before. The group wolfed down their food without caring about their image. Meanwhile, Wang Xiaoming walked over while chewing on a piece of bread. ¡°My name is Wang Xiaoming. Brother, how should I address you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Yang Feng. Just call me Little Feng.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you guys. The two people outside are¡­?¡± ¡°They are my brothers, my very good brothers!¡± Yang Feng said solemnly. Wang Xiaoming smiled gently. ¡°Rest well here for the next few days. If you need any help, just let me know. My name is rather useful here.¡± ¡°Brother Wang, what do you do here?¡± Wang Xiaoming looked left and right and then said in a low voice, ¡°Let me put it this way. Before, if you had taken a single look at anything here, you would have spent the rest of your life in prison. ¡°But that¡¯s not a big deal now. I¡¯ll show you around later.¡± Outside, Lin Qing and Huang Quan escaped in disorder after fighting the steel beasts. They were chased for more than ten kilometers before they were completely safe. ¡°My god. These monkeys are really relentless. We only took a few crystals from them. Is there really a need for this?¡± Huang Quan was sitting on the ground and panting in a small estate. He held a handful of crystals in his hand. There were around 25 crystals in his hand, not including the ones he swallowed while running. It was because of these crystals that the army of monkeys kept chasing them. ¡°What were you even doing back there?¡± Lin Qing took out a few fist-sized crystals from somewhere and said with disdain, ¡°Those little monkeys haven¡¯t evolved even once. How much energy could their crystals contain? ¡°You should increase the scale next time. Otherwise, I¡¯d be embarrassed to say that I know you when we go out next time.¡± Unless the crystals were from large animals such as tigers and bears, he didn¡¯t even want them after killing ordinary steel beasts because they contained too little energy. Now, his targets were evolved steel beasts. After all, the crystal of any evolved steel beast had much more energy than that of an ordinary steel beast. ¡°F*ck, do you think I¡¯m you? You¡¯re so fast. It¡¯s good enough that I can get these.¡± He threw handfuls of crystals into his mouth and chewed them as crunching sounds rang out. As Lin Qing ate crystals, his smile disappeared, and he said in a serious tone, ¡°Old Huang, do you think that steel beasts are easier to kill in the early or late stages of the Cataclysm?¡± ¡°Rubbish. It¡¯s definitely easier to kill them in the early stages. If we wait a while longer, each and every one of them will grow as large as an elephant. I won¡¯t be able to hold off a swarm of them if they come.¡± ¡°The supply of food at Professor Chen¡¯s place will be enough to last them for more than ten days, so I want to improve my abilities quickly during this period of time. Let¡¯s work together and do something big.¡± Huang Quan¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°How big?¡± Lin Qing stretched out two fingers. ¡°Two hundred crystals?¡± ¡°That¡¯s too small. That scale is too small. We have to evolve at least twice.¡± Starting from the first evolution, each subsequent one was twice as difficult as the previous one. In his previous life, he had spent eight years before reaching adulthood. The main reason was that he was too negligent in the early stages and missed the best time to hunt. In the later stages of the Cataclysm, the steel beasts had become stronger and were no longer as easy to kill. He didn¡¯t want to miss this opportunity in this life. The faster he increased his strength, the safer he would be. This was the only way he could gain a foothold in the Cataclysm. Huang Quan slapped his thigh and said excitedly, ¡°Let¡¯s do it! I also want to increase my strength. Otherwise, it will be too embarrassing if I can¡¯t even defeat you.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s strength was different almost every day. In comparison, he felt that he was almost no match for Lin Qing. ¡­ Ten days later¡­ Early in the morning at a side gate of North Spirit Mountain Park, the steel beasts that had been active the entire night started to return to their nests. The first to return were eight crocodiles. They were more than ten meters long and five to six meters tall, and almost half of the character ¡®ÊÞ¡¯ (beast) had appeared on their bodies. These were steel beasts that had evolved twice. The buildings beside the road had collapsed at some point in time. The crocodile steel beasts looked curiously at the buildings before they continued walking with their heads lowered. When they entered the park, they were greeted by the sight of a winding river that extended deep into the mountains. Then the crocodiles jumped over the 10-meter-tall railing along the river. Whoosh¡ª When there were only two crocodiles left, a collapsed building exploded, and two figures jumped out behind the crocodiles. Huang Quan knelt on one of the crocodiles, crushing the ground with his weight of over a hundred tons, causing a crater to form. Then punches started to rain down. Meanwhile, Lin Qing grabbed the tail of the other crocodile and smashed it backward. He grabbed the crocodile¡¯s mouth with both hands and tore it with force. With a cracking sound, the crocodile¡¯s upper and lower jaw broke as it died. ¡°Hurry up and finish this quickly!¡± After reminding Huang Quan, Lin Qing pierced through the crocodile¡¯s throat, took out a big crystal, and opened his mouth to eat it. The large ܇ (vehicle) character on his body was now only missing one stroke. Boom! After piercing through the crocodile from the back, Huang Quan swallowed the crystal excitedly. ¡°I¡¯m rich. I¡¯m rich. We didn¡¯t waste our time waiting for them overnight.¡± Over the past few days, the two of them had ambushed seven waves of steel beasts and swept through dozens of them. The steel beasts were all large, and their crystals were brimming with more and more energy. Huang Quan didn¡¯t know if it was because he was too big, but it was harder for him to evolve than Lin Qing. Even after eating so many crystals, he had only evolved twice. Lin Qing had evolved for the fourth time a week ago. He was now 17.5 meters tall and only needed to evolve one last time to reach adulthood. ¡°Roar!¡± The crocodiles in the water realized that something was wrong. They climbed onto the shore and rushed toward them with their mouths wide open. The largest crocodile was more than twenty meters long and eight meters tall. It had a half-meter-long barb on its back that shone with a cold light, and its long tail was like a sledgehammer. ¡°Come, come, come. I will fulfill all your wishes. A family should be united, and no one should be left out.¡± Rubbing his fist against his palm, Huang Quan took large strides as he charged forward. After evolving twice, his body was much more agile and wasn¡¯t as clumsy as before. Although his height hadn¡¯t changed much, his overall strength had more than doubled. His huge fist smashed into the crocodile¡¯s back, causing it to fall and even crack the ground. ¡°Whoosh!¡± The leading crocodile had already evolved four times. It swept its long tail and smashed it against Huang Quan¡¯s thigh. Huang Quan fell to the ground. Without even thinking, he rapidly rolled to the side. The next second, a hammer smashed into where he had fallen. The crocodile¡¯s tail created a two-meter-deep pit in the ground. If he hadn¡¯t dodged fast enough, his body would have been destroyed by this tail. Chapter 13 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios After Lin Qing finished dealing with the other crocodiles, he came over to help Huang Quan. He picked up a utility pole by the road and threw it at the crocodile. The surrounding buildings had been destroyed and reduced to a wasteland, while the streets were full of potholes and large holes. The incessant roars of wild beasts resounded, and the sound of fists hitting flesh echoed far away. Five minutes later, the battle was over. After emptying the crystals from the crocodiles with great ease, the two of them quickly left. When they reached a deserted neighborhood, Lin Qing and Huang Quan counted their spoils of war. ¡°These six crystals are mine. You can have the big one.¡± Huang Quan gave Lin Qing the crystal from the giant crocodile that they had killed together at the end of the battle. ¡°You¡¯re really generous. This big crystal is from a steel beast that has evolved four times. It¡¯s incomparable to crystals from steel beasts that have only evolved twice.¡± The energy from the six crystals that Huang Quan took couldn¡¯t compare to the energy contained in this large crystal. Lin Qing didn¡¯t expect him to portion the crystals like this. With a crooked smile, Huang Quan said, ¡°I should be able to evolve for the third time after either eating these six crystals or eating just the big crystal. It¡¯s all the same. ¡°But you¡¯re different. You can reach adulthood by eating the big crystal but not the small ones.¡± Lin Qing had already evolved for the fourth time a week ago and had eaten many crystals during these few days. He was just one step away from evolving for the fifth time. ¡°Thanks, Old Huang. When I reach adulthood, I¡¯ll definitely help you find a few big crystals.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve saved me so many times. What¡¯s there to thank me for? If you really want to thank me, just be gentler when you train me next time.¡± During these few days, the two of them had been either hunting steel beasts or sparring. Lin Qing¡¯s body only reached his shoulders, but he was stronger than Huang Quan, so Huang Quan would be the one getting beaten up every time. After being defeated for so many days, his usage of his strength had improved by leaps and bounds. Previously, when he walked on the streets, he would create potholes with every step because he couldn¡¯t control his strength. Now, this situation no longer happened at all. He could even perform a high-difficulty backflip on the spot easily. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s practice later.¡± Lin Qing silently sighed as he looked at Huang Quan. This feeling of beating up the Battle God every day would probably be less common in the future. Huang Quan¡¯s combat talent was very strong. His foundation was also very good, and he would become stronger every time he fought. Now, he was completely used to fighting as a mecha. ¡°Cut the crap. Hurry up and eat the crystal. I want to see what adulthood looks like.¡± Lin Qing smirked. ¡°I definitely won¡¯t disappoint you.¡± As the crystal entered his stomach, the energy in his body became saturated and instantly exploded. If he only had steel bones in the past, now it seemed as if he also had steel blood vessels. He could clearly feel that there were more tiny tubes in his limbs and bones. The energy from his crystal flowed through the tubes before returning to the crystal in a continuous cycle. In terms of appearance, he was at least 18 meters tall, and his entire body was blood-red. There was not a single spare part on his body. He was simply a perfect work of art. His right arm started to creak and move mechanically. A thought flashed through his mind, and his hand retracted. Then a round barrel with nine holes in it stretched out from his wrist. Huang Quan jumped up. ¡°F*ck, what are you doing?¡± Without saying anything, Lin Qing raised his arm and aimed at a building. The gun barrel spun crazily, and bullets with golden light shot out. In less than ten seconds, the wall broke. ¡°F*ck!¡± Huang Quan widened his eyes in shock. ¡°This doesn¡¯t make sense. You don¡¯t have any bullets, so how can you fire them? Moreover, that was such a powerful attack.¡± ¡°They aren¡¯t metal bullets.¡± Lin Qing blew at the smoking muzzle before it turned back into a hand. ¡°They are laser bullets, supplied by the crystal energy in my body.¡± Lin Qing stood up and jumped into the air before suddenly spinning around in front of the dumbfounded Huang Quan. He spun 720 degrees, making him more agile than a diver, and then turned into his heavy truck form after landing. Afterward, he transformed into the mecha again. He jumped 50 meters without any sense of heaviness. Then he punched the ground and spiderweb-like cracks spread out in all directions, extending to Huang Quan¡¯s feet. The greatest benefit of reaching adulthood was that he could use the energy from his crystal. When he delivered a punch, energy from his crystal would gather at his fist, and his strength would increase by several times. His hand could also transform into a gun barrel that shot laser bullets at enemies. However, the disadvantage was that the energy from his crystal was limited and would be depleted if used without restraint. When the time came, he wouldn¡¯t even be able to carry out even the most basic control of his body and would enter a dead state. At that time, he could only slowly wait to recover. ¡°Isn¡¯t this too heaven-defying?¡± ¡°This is nothing. Those who have reached the Lord and Overlord levels are the truly terrifying ones. A single person can destroy a city and an entire country.¡± This was the first time he had heard Lin Qing talk about the Lord level and the Overlord level. Huang Quan knew that it was time for him to start learning again, so he immediately turned into Lin Qing¡¯s student and sat up straight. ¡°Tell me about the Lord and Overlord levels.¡± Satisfied with the Huang Quan¡¯s attitude, Lin Qing slowly said with his hands behind his back, ¡°Normal Motorbots will reach adulthood after evolving five times, and the character ܇ will appear on their chests. The same goes for steel beasts, but the character ÊÞ will appear instead.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s tone was serious. ¡°When that time comes, steel beasts will develop intelligence and become many times stronger than when they were wild beasts. ¡°Whether it¡¯s an adult steel beast or an adult Motorbot, they will reach the Lord level after evolving another five times. Even missiles can¡¯t kill them at that level.¡± Then he stretched out his arm and transformed his hand into a gun barrel. He glanced at Huang Quan and asked, ¡°What do you think of this weapon?¡± ¡°Ten times stronger than most machine guns.¡± ¡°When you reach the Lord level, this gun barrel will be the foundation from which a laser cannon evolves. It can penetrate a mountain with just one shot.¡± Huang Quan swallowed hard. ¡°What about the Overlord level?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Hehe, I can only tell you when I reach that level.¡± In his previous life, there were very few Overlords. Furthermore, he had never seen these people go all out. He had only heard that they could destroy the world and fight against an entire country. Suppressing the shock in his heart, Huang Quan asked, ¡°Lin Qing, how did you know about these things?¡± ¡°Would you believe me if I said I dreamed about it?¡± Huang Quan thought, I don¡¯t believe you. Even if you don¡¯t tell me, I¡¯ll find out one day. ¡­ On the twelfth day after Yang Feng entered the research institute, Professor Chen achieved a breakthrough in his titanium condensation technology. He laughed excitedly and almost died from his laughter. After seeing the fireworks signal, Lin Qing and Huang Quan came over at noon along with a car of supplies. Lin Qing, who had evolved to adulthood, used his laser bullets to sweep across the plaza, killing the group of steel beasts in the plaza. ¡°Professor Chen, congratulations.¡± Professor Chen¡¯s pupils constricted when he saw Lin Qing, as he knew that Lin Qing had evolved. ¡°I should be the one congratulating you. Now that I have achieved a breakthrough in the titanium condensation technology, what weapon do you want me to forge?¡± ¡°A sword, a flaming sword that can heat up¡­¡± He didn¡¯t know the specific functions of the Flame Devil, so he could only describe it roughly according to what he had seen in his previous life. Since this sword was from the research institute, he believed that they should know about it. Chen Chong¡¯s brows tightly knitted together. After a while, he said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t make the sword you want. It¡¯s too difficult. Even the materials alone are not easy to find.¡± Lin Qing was dumbfounded. Then he was furious. ¡°Professor Chen, I know that the research institute can create this sword. Otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t have asked you.¡± In his previous life, he was able to forge this sword for Huang Quan, but he couldn¡¯t when it came to Lin Qing. Wasn¡¯t this bullying an honest person! ¡°I really can¡¯t do it.¡± Chen Chong sighed helplessly. ¡°I¡¯m a researcher, not a weapons expert.¡± ¡°Old man, don¡¯t force me. How about I find a few more steel beasts for you to recall? Maybe you¡¯ll remember how to forge the sword then.¡± ¡°Hold on. I can do what you said,¡± said Wang Xiaoming, who had been listening attentively. ¡°Teacher, I remember that there¡¯s a material in the laboratory suitable for the weapon Lin Qing mentioned.¡± Chapter 14 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Chen Chong was stunned and widened his eyes. ¡°Are you talking about that weapon? You¡¯re driving us to our deaths. If we forge that weapon for him, we¡¯ll be shot to death when we go back.¡± Upon hearing that there was a chance, Lin Qing glared at Chen Chong. ¡°If you don¡¯t give it to me now, I will kill all of you immediately.¡± Wang Xiaoming spread out his hands. ¡°If we don¡¯t give it to him, we¡¯re going to die immediately. Why don¡¯t we give it to him? If the higher-ups want to pursue this, we can just say that we lost it when we were attacked by steel beasts. ¡°Of course, I won¡¯t take the blame alone. Everyone, raise your hands and vote. If anyone disagrees, I¡¯d rather die to protect the experimental equipment.¡± Lin Qing revealed his gun barrel, and it started rotating with a buzzing sound. Laser bullets fell like raindrops and instantly flattened a building. ¡°Who agrees and who objects?!¡± The sound of people gulping could be heard, but no one spoke. In the end, that thing was simply public experimental equipment and insignificant compared to their own lives. Who would risk their life to protect the empire¡¯s assets? That was insane! Wang Xiaoming¡¯s lips curled up slightly, and he returned to his cold expression. ¡°I¡¯m asking everyone one last time. Is there anyone who disagrees with this? ¡°Since everyone agrees, don¡¯t push the blame onto me when something happens. ¡°Mr. Lin, please wait a moment. I need to use a machine to scan your body structure.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Wang Xiaoming moved the machine from the basement and scanned Lin Qing while everyone else stood far away. This machine produced a lot of radiation and was not meant for human use. Ordinary people would suffer from liver and kidney failure, lymphoma, and bone hematopoiesis when exposed to this radiation. ¡°Brother, what exactly is that material? Is it very important?¡± In the crowd, Yang Feng asked the person beside him in a low voice. ¡°Rubbish. It¡¯s used in rockets and is mainly used to isolate high temperatures during launch. Its value can no longer be discussed in terms of money.¡± Yang Feng clicked his tongue. He was now even more curious about what kind of weapon Lin Qing was making. A few minutes later, Wang Xiaoming finished gathering the information. ¡°Mr. Lin, I still need some time here. Please wait a few days. Also, our food is almost gone.¡± ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll send the supplies to you later.¡± Lin Qing never expected that the Flame Devil didn¡¯t come from Chen Chong but his student instead. He sighed. In his previous life, Huang Quan had obtained this sword from the research institute, and the most famous person in the research institute was Chen Chong, so he naturally gave the credit to Chen Chong. But its creator turned out to be Wang Xiaoming! ¡°Old Huang, bring them some food.¡± Lin Qing turned around and looked at Huang Quan, who was busy digging out crystals. Many steel beasts had died with the sweep from Lin Qing¡¯s laser gun, and Huang Quan was enthusiastically gathering the crystals from them. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll do it right away.¡± Then Huang Quan grumbled as he looked up, ¡°Can you be more accurate when you shoot next time? Some of the crystals broke.¡± For the next few days, Lin Qing stayed at the entrance of the research institute and didn¡¯t go anywhere. With his current strength, he was no longer afraid of ordinary steel beasts. Even if he encountered hundreds or thousands of them, he could still run if he couldn¡¯t beat them. Occasionally, an ignorant steel beast would come over and be shot down by him. Then Huang Quan would run over and retrieve the crystal obediently. After a few days, he had gained quite a lot of crystals, but he was still unable to break through and evolve for the fourth time. ¡°Is this mining truck poisoned?¡± On this day, there was still no sign of a breakthrough even after swallowing a handful of crystals. Huang Quan sat on the ground, his eyes dull. Lin Qing found it funny to see him so helpless. ¡°It¡¯s normal. The bigger you are, the more crystals you need. This also shows that you have great potential.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t we exchange bodies?¡± Huang Quan exhaled helplessly. ¡°Who wants this crappy mining truck? I really can¡¯t afford it.¡± He was the only one who knew just how many crystals he had eaten during this period of time. Lin Qing hadn¡¯t taken a single crystal and gave him them all. He even helped him hunt many steel beasts. Even then, there was no sign of the fourth evolution. He didn¡¯t dare to imagine what it would be like without Lin Qing. It would have probably taken him several years to reach his current state. ¡°Young man, look in the long term. Most Motorbots haven¡¯t even evolved once. You¡¯re already very fast, especially as a large-scale mining vehicle. ¡°Go out and take a look. Who can fight as well as you? You¡¯re practically invincible among those of the same level. If you can still evolve rapidly like this, you¡¯re really not giving anyone a way out.¡± Lin Qing was very envious of Huang Quan for having such a powerful weapon like this mining truck. Only those who had experienced the Cataclysm understood how important a good foundation was. Ordinary people didn¡¯t have vehicles, so the fate awaiting them was death, hunger, and cold. Although motorbikes, tricycles, and vans didn¡¯t have to worry about food and water, their combat strength was limited. They were at the lowest level of Motorbots and were cannon fodder on the battlefield. The middle-rank Motorbots included family sedans, light trucks, cars, and so on. Their abilities were ordinary, and it was difficult for them to improve further. Only a small portion of them could stand out, but most of them would be mediocre for the rest of their lives. Heavy trucks, large excavators, cross-country vehicles, and bulldozers were high-end powerhouses. Only Motorbots of this level could settle down in this world of chaos. Meanwhile, people who were mining dump trucks, helicopters, and large yachts such as Huang Quan had explosive power from the beginning, so they were extremely popular wherever they went. ¡°I know I¡¯m improving fast enough. After all, haven¡¯t I been hanging out with you every day, only to be completely defeated?¡± ¡°Heh, then I¡¯ll try my best to improve more slowly next time.¡± ¡°Uh¡­ forget it. I don¡¯t plan to be with you when we get to Qingzhou. Out of sight, out of mind. I don¡¯t feel any sense of accomplishment from acting cool with you around.¡± He was 20 meters tall and weighed more than 200 tons. He could crush a building with a single punch. Who wouldn¡¯t shower him with praises when they saw him? However, Lin Qing had defeated him eight times in a single day, causing him to be almost traumatized. ¡°Don¡¯t. Qingzhou is your territory. I still need your protection there.¡± ¡°Get lost. I don¡¯t want to see you.¡± As the two of them were talking, the bulletproof glass door of the research institute opened. Yang Feng and Wang Xiaoming walked out with dark circles under their eyes. Meanwhile, the rest of the researchers were lying on the ground and taking a nap. They hadn¡¯t slept for the past few days and nights in order to forge this weapon. All of them had cooperated with Wang Xiaoming to assist him. ¡°Try it out and see what its effects are like.¡± Wang Xiaoming exerted all his strength to carry the sword forward. It was 2.5 meters long and completely black. It was circular on one side, while the other side had a dragon¡¯s head with its mouth wide open. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re not lying to me? Where¡¯s the sword?¡± Lin Qing was dumbfounded, as there was only a handle but no blade. Wang Xiaoming replied with a mysterious smile, ¡°You¡¯ll know once you try.¡± Lin Qing held the handle of the sword effortlessly. It was very light and weighed at most 300 kilograms. It felt pretty good in his hand, but there was no blade. ¡°There¡¯s a red switch on the handle. You need to push it up.¡± Following Wang Xiaoming¡¯s instruction, Lin Qing gently pushed the switch up. The next second, half of the crystal energy in his body was extracted and channeled into the sword handle through his arm. A huge beam of light shot out from the ferocious dragon¡¯s mouth. It finally stopped when it reached a length of eight meters and formed a red blade. From the looks of it, the red sword had a single edge, and the tip of the sword slanted upward. It was very simple but also very strange. Wang Xiaoming took a few steps back as a scorching heat wave hit him in his face. ¡°This sword will absorb the crystal energy of its owner. After the energy is converted by an internal device in the sword handle, it will turn into a scorching hot blade. Actually, the blade isn¡¯t a physical substance but a beam of light with a high temperature and density. ¡°The blade has three tiers. The first tier has a temperature of one thousand five hundred degrees Celsius, the second tier has a temperature of five thousand degrees, and the third tier has a temperature of ten thousand degrees.¡± This was a laser weapon. Although it was a piece of high-end technology, it was available in many countries. However, the difficulty of making this sword lay in the heat-resistant material of the handle, as well as how to integrate it with the crystal in a Motorbot¡¯s body to supply energy. At present, Wang Xiaoming was the only one who could make this kind of weapon. Even Chen Chong, who had mastered the condensation of titanium, could not do so. ¡°Nice!!¡± Lin Qing was excited as he held the sword in his hand, dashed to a three-story building, and slashed diagonally. The fiery-red blade flashed and disappeared without a trace as it cut the three-story building diagonally, causing half of the building to slide to the ground, revealing the living room, bedroom, and bathroom inside. Chapter 15 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios It was truly a fine weapon! Lin Qing was very satisfied as he looked at the sword. His combat power increased by several times with this sword in his hands. When facing enemies of the same level, he would be able to kill each enemy in one slash. The only drawback was that it expended too much crystal energy. Expanding the blade consumed half of his energy, and every slash he made would use up a small portion of energy. It would take at most two minutes before he was completely exhausted. ¡°It produces high temperatures after injecting crystal energy into it. Let¡¯s call it the Flame Devil then.¡± Lin Qing simply mentioned the name of the sword from his previous life. ¡°Flame Devil! What a good name!¡± Huang Quan¡¯s eyes were fixated on the sword as he turned around and said to Wang Xiaoming, ¡°I want one too!¡± This sword was too impressive. Who could withstand a single strike from this sword? It was definitely a great killing weapon. ¡°No!¡± Wang Xiaoming shook his head in rejection. ¡°What?¡± Huang Quan rubbed his hands together. Lin Qing could use his laser gun to destroy a building, but he couldn¡¯t. Wasn¡¯t this bullying an honest person? ¡°I really can¡¯t make any more such weapons. After all, the material is scarce, and there¡¯s only so much. I¡¯ve used all of it up.¡± The main material for making this sword was a heat-resistant steel used for rocket launches. Moreover, its internal parts were made using their titanium concentration technology and could only be forged after gathering the strength of the entire research institute. Under normal circumstances, it would be possible to replicate the same sword, but where would he find the material during such a time? After all, the entire empire was in chaos. But Huang Quan was unwilling to give up and said pitifully, ¡°It¡¯s fine even if it¡¯s a bit inferior to this one. There must be some scrap material left. At the very least, make me a sword.¡± If he had known that Lin Qing wanted this kind of killing weapon, he would have gotten one no matter what. After all, once he missed this opportunity, there wouldn¡¯t be another one. Wang Xiaoming sighed in pity. ¡°I might be able to do it again in the future, but not now.¡± ¡°Lin Qing, let me take a look at the sword.¡± Huang Quan stared at the Flame Devil. How could Lin Qing not know what he was thinking? If the Flame Devil fell into Huang Quan¡¯s hands, he would definitely run away with it overnight. ¡°I have to go home and discuss it with my parents.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you¡¯re an orphan, the child of destiny? Where did your parents come from?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why there¡¯s no room for discussion!¡± Huang Quan thought about it¡­ Lin Qing pushed the switch back, and the blade disappeared. Then he put away the sword handle. Buzz buzz buzz buzz! As they were talking, they heard a noise coming from the horizon. When they looked up, they saw a black helicopter rapidly circling the city. After stopping for a few seconds, the helicopter charged toward a tall building. Just when everyone thought that the helicopter was about to crash and be destroyed, it turned into a mecha and stood on the roof of the building. Then mecha turned around in the dark and looked at the research institute a few hundred meters away. The next second, the mecha jumped down from the building, turned into a helicopter midair, and flew toward them. ¡°This is¡­ an armed helicopter?¡± As the helicopter approached them, Lin Qing couldn¡¯t remain calm after seeing its full appearance. It was 14 meters long and 4 meters tall. Normal civilian helicopters weren¡¯t that big. But who in the world would have a private military helicopter? This was the Blue Dragon Empire, where ordinary civilians wouldn¡¯t even be able to see a real gun in their lifetime, let alone a private military helicopter. In contrast, it would not be surprising for private tanks and military helicopters to appear in small countries that had been fighting wars for years. ¡°No, this is a modified military helicopter.¡± Huang Quan was experienced and knowledgeable, so he could tell what was going on with just a glance. ¡°That helicopter has no weapon system.¡± Lin Qing looked over and realized that there was really no weapon system. ¡°Second Brother, I¡¯m here!¡± Yang Feng jumped up and waved at the helicopter. Then he smiled and said to the few of them, ¡°We¡¯re on the same side. That¡¯s my brother, Yang Ao.¡± ¡°Is he the one you said had a helicopter?¡± Huang Quan was no longer calm. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s him.¡± ¡°Is your family going to launch a revolt?¡± ¡°Pfft, your family is the one rebelling. This military helicopter is a retired product with the weapon system removed long ago. My brother is a pilot in the military, and he bought it through his connections. It looks like a military helicopter from the outside, but it¡¯s actually quite similar to ordinary civilian helicopters.¡± Huang Quan pointed his middle finger at him. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± Even though the weapons system had been removed, what about the radar? What about its engine? What about the other systems? These were all genuine military hardware. The military helicopter was very fast. Within a few seconds, he landed in front of them. After putting away the four-winged propeller behind him, he turned into a 15-meter tall black mecha. ¡°Brother, are you alright?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, I¡¯m fine.¡± Yang Feng walked forward while in his military coat. ¡°How¡¯s our family?¡± ¡°Grandfather, Grandmother, Second Uncle, and Second Aunt have all been sent to a safe place. You¡¯re the one everyone is most worried about.¡± After Yang Ao finished talking to Yang Feng, he turned to face the building that had been cut diagonally. His eyelids twitched. Why does it look like it was cut with a knife? ¡°Let me introduce you. These two are my friends, Lin Qing and Huang Quan. It¡¯s all thanks to the two of them that I¡¯m alive now. Otherwise, I would have died long ago.¡± ¡°Hello, Brother Lin. Hello, Brother Huang. I¡¯m Yang Ao, Yang Feng¡¯s younger brother.¡± Yang Ao extended his hand and shook hands with the two. He had noticed these two big guys from afar. The reason why he flew here wasn¡¯t because he saw Yang Feng, but because he saw Lin Qing and Huang Quan. More than ten days after the Cataclysm, he had seen all kinds of Motorbots, but it was rare to see such large ones. ¡°Hello, I¡¯ve heard so much about you.¡± Lin Qing didn¡¯t expect Yang Feng¡¯s younger brother to be Yang Ao. He was familiar with this person. After all, Yang Ao was also a famous person in the later stages of the Cataclysm. There were very few helicopter mechas in the country and even fewer such military helicopters. In fact, these mechas were even rarer than mining dump trucks like Huang Quan. This was because they could fly! Since the dark clouds covered the sky, magnetic fields were greatly disrupted. As a result, planes were unusable, and helicopters were the fastest in long-distance transportation. They could ignore ground traffic and obstructions, so they would take only a few hours to travel from the south to the north at a speed of 200 km/h. ¡°Do you know me?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard Little Feng mention you many times. He said that he has an amazing younger brother. Now that I¡¯ve seen you today, you truly live up to your reputation.¡± Yang Ao came from the army and was very powerful. Lin Qing remembered that this bigshot was one of the first people to break through to adulthood. Later on, he became one of the few Overlords and a representative of the army. ¡°Haha, not at all. I¡¯m still far behind compared to you guys. Oh right, have you guys thought about where you want to go? Why don¡¯t you come to Qingzhou? Everyone should have companions.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They are going to Qingzhou.¡± Yang Feng sniffled. ¡°Lin Qing, Old Huang, remember to look for me when you¡¯re there.¡± ¡°Sure thing. But we might not be able to get there anytime soon, so please take care of my parents.¡± ¡°Leave it to me.¡± Yang Ao turned into his helicopter form, and Yang Feng hopped on. The people from the research institute shouted anxiously, ¡°Brother, bring me along.¡± Yang Ao looked at the research institute sign and said, ¡°Ten minutes ago, I saw helicopters from the capital on the way here. They¡¯re here to pick you up, so there¡¯s no need to squeeze in me.¡± ¡°F*ck!¡± Yang Feng slapped the dashboard and chuckled at the researchers. ¡°Professor Chen, Brother Wang, everyone, do you want to join us? Whatever the capital can provide you, Qingzhou can. Our welfare benefits in all aspects are definitely top-notch.¡± After staying at the research institute for a few days, he knew how terrifying this place was. Furthermore, their titanium condensation technology would definitely be an incredible thing in the future. There was also Wang Xiaoming, the chief designer of the Flame Devil, who was absolutely a genius. Putting all this aside, there were dozens of scientists who would be treasures wherever they went. Chen Chong cupped his hands in thanks. ¡°Thank you for your kind intentions. But since the empire has sent people to pick us up, I can¡¯t leave.¡± Wang Xiaoming chuckled as well. ¡°See you next time then. If I have the chance, I¡¯ll definitely look for you in Qingzhou.¡± The other researchers also rejected Yang Feng. First, Yang Ao could only take a few people. Second, since the empire had already sent people to fetch them, there was no need for them to go to Qingzhou. Feeling regretful, Yang Feng punched the dashboard again. If Yang Ao hadn¡¯t said that the imperial helicopters were coming, he would have kidnapped Chen Chong and Wang Xiaoming today. Chapter 16 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Yang Feng rode in Yang Ao¡¯s military helicopter and left. Knowing that people from the empire were coming, Lin Qing didn¡¯t stay any longer, as he didn¡¯t want to be recruited by them yet. Furthermore, he had previously threatened these researchers. If a few of them were to report him to the higher-ups later, the people from the capital might come and kill him. ¡°Old Huang, let¡¯s retreat!¡± A puff of black smoke spurted out as Lin Qing pushed his accelerator and ran away. Huang Quan also sped up and followed him. After three evolutions, his speed had increased to 90 km/h. A few minutes after the two of them left, a fleet of military helicopters flew over. There were 15 pitch-black helicopters whose sides were lined with cold muzzles and golden shells. The researchers waved their hands and shouted. They almost cried when they saw them. ¡°Who is Professor Chen?¡± A group of soldiers wearing camouflage uniforms and armed with machine guns alighted from the helicopters. The leader of the group had a high military rank and wore black sunglasses. ¡°I am Professor Chen.¡± Chen Chong stood up. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you. The empire sent me to receive you. Get in the helicopters. I¡¯ll bring everyone back to the capital.¡± Chen Chong turned around and looked at the research institute with a frown. ¡°Then what about the equipment here? Should we take them with us?¡± ¡°Sorry, we can¡¯t take them. The best way to handle them is to destroy them.¡± ¡°No!¡± A group of researchers immediately rejected him. Wang Xiaoming¡¯s objection was the loudest. ¡°The equipment here is priceless. They are too precious. We can¡¯t destroy them.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t destroy them,¡± Chen Chong said in a low voice. ¡°With the current conditions, it will be extremely difficult to build another batch of equipment like this.¡± It was difficult to get a set of such equipment in peacetime, let alone now. Once the equipment was destroyed, they might not be able to completely replicate this set of equipment anymore. ¡°What should we do then? We can¡¯t possibly get our soldiers to move the equipment back over multiple journeys, right?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need to move the equipment. After all, normal steel beasts won¡¯t be able to break through the research institute¡¯s main entrance. There¡¯s also a sealed explosion-proof door in the basement that no one can enter. When the time is right, we can come back again.¡± ¡°I have no objections if you¡¯re willing to do this. Get in the helicopters. Let¡¯s not waste any more time.¡± The scientific research equipment here couldn¡¯t be used by steel beasts. Moreover, the equipment was worse than a pile of scrap metal in the eyes of ordinary people. No one would want them even if they were left here, so there wasn¡¯t much point in destroying them. ¡­ In a small district, Huang Quan looked at Lin Qing in confusion. ¡°Aren¡¯t we running away? Why are you squatting here?¡± ¡°What do you know?¡± Lin Qing slapped the back of Huang Quan¡¯s head. ¡°Can they take away the research equipment?¡± ¡°Nonsense. Of course, they can¡¯t take the equipment away. Even if they do, who knows how many journeys they¡¯d have to make.¡± ¡°Then, do you want a weapon?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± Lin Qing smiled mysteriously. ¡°After they leave, we¡¯ll steal the equipment and find the materials. Then we¡¯ll kidnap Wang Xiaoming to make weapons for us.¡± ¡°Hehehe, this is a good idea.¡± Apart from the equipment being useful in the future, Lin Qing also had selfish motives for taking them away. After all, he didn¡¯t want a weapon like the Flame Devil to fall into the hands of warmongers. The capital was also in chaos right now, as there were many ambitious and ruthless people who wanted to rise up in this chaotic world. They didn¡¯t know that Wang Xiaoming had created the Flame Devil yet. But the moment they found out, they might head back to retrieve the equipment. After taking away the data and equipment, it wouldn¡¯t be long before a second and third Flame Devil were born. It was one thing to use such weapons to kill steel beasts, but it would be too scary if someone used them to kill Motorbots who didn¡¯t obey them and satisfy their ambitions. Half an hour later, after confirming that the people from the empire had left, Lin Qing and Huang Quan sneaked to the research institute. Seeing that Lin Qing was about to chop down the door with his sword, Huang Quan waved his hand. ¡°Leave such a small matter to me. Using the Flame Devil is a waste.¡± He threw a punch, and the bulletproof glass door shattered into pieces. The awkward thing was that the two of them didn¡¯t go in. Instead, they stood rooted on the spot while looking at each other. ¡°This door is a little small.¡± Huang Quan turned his head. ¡°Should I punch a few more times?¡± Lin Qing was 18 meters tall and couldn¡¯t enter, let alone the 20-meter-tall Huang Quan. ¡°Forget it. I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll destroy the building with a few punches. You¡¯ll destroy all the equipment inside before we can take them out. Step back and let me do it.¡± Lin Qing pulled out the Flame Devil and extended the blade. A red blade appeared. He retreated a few meters before swinging it at the roof of the research institute. Rip! The sound of metal scraping against metal rang out while the stench of something burning spread. Then the research institute was dug open, revealing its internal structure. The surface of the roof was made of tiles, but there was a layer of steel plates underneath it. Huang Quan now understood. ¡°I was wondering why the steel beasts couldn¡¯t break in after so many days. So it was because of this ¡®tortoise shell¡¯.¡± ¡°Cut the crap and get to work.¡± Lin Qing put away his sword and started to tear down the research institute from top to bottom. The two of them worked together, and soon, only the ground of the research institute was left. Lin Qing observed the steel-plated basement door. Then after consuming a few crystals to replenish his energy, he took out his sword again and gently made a cut in the door. He ignored the red-hot metal in the door and used his hand to tear open the steel-plated door. The entrance was getting bigger and bigger. It was not until dark that they saw the equipment in the research institute. There were hundreds of computers, huge machines that were three to four meters tall, various crystal tubes, and sealed boxes of resources in the room. ¡°Put the equipment in the back of my truck. Start moving,¡± Lin Qing said to Huang Quan after turning into the heavy truck. Ten minutes later, there were only a few packets of instant noodles left in the underground research institute. ¡°Where are we putting these things? We can¡¯t keep bringing the equipment with us, right?¡± After leaving the research institute, Huang Quan ran out of the city with Lin Qing. ¡°It¡¯s impossible for us to bring the equipment along. Let¡¯s find a place to bury them first. We can come back to retrieve them later.¡± Afterward, they found an abandoned semi-trailer truck. Lin Qing took out its trailer and put all the equipment inside before digging a hole to bury it. The roads at night were not safe, but they were not in a hurry to travel, so they found a place to rest and left Shenbei City the next day. The next stop was Handong Province, a first-tier province in the country with a permanent population of 60 million. ¡­ As the two trucks sped through the highway, Huang Quan asked, ¡°Lin Qing, is there something in Qingzhou that you¡¯re in a hurry to go there?¡± ¡°It was important at first, but it¡¯s not important now.¡± Previously, he had wanted to go to Qingzhou to seek protection. After all, his strength was limited, and it was easy for him to die if he wandered around. But it was different now. After all, he had broken through to adulthood and obtained the Flame Devil. Now, he was not weak at all and could kill anyone that stood in his way. ¡°Since it¡¯s not important, let¡¯s go for a round of killing steel beasts in Handong. It¡¯s important for us to increase our strength as soon as possible. After all, it won¡¯t be easy to kill steel beasts once they evolve.¡± Yang Feng had already returned, and Huang Quan had entrusted the care of his parents to him, so he wasn¡¯t worried about his family. All he wanted to do now was to increase his strength and gain a foothold in the Cataclysm. After spending this period of time with Lin Qing, he had observed that the Cataclysm was getting worse every day, and his sense of crisis was getting stronger by the day. Without absolute strength, he wouldn¡¯t even have the right to survive in the future. ¡°Haha, since you¡¯ve said so, I will definitely risk my life to play with you.¡± Lin Qing turned around, got off the highway, and then drove in another direction. In the early stages of the Cataclysm, very few people had the intention to hunt steel beasts. First, no one knew that crystals could let them evolve. Second, they might not even be able to protect their lives and would be grateful if steel beasts didn¡¯t seek trouble with them. Who would dare to take the initiative to look for steel beasts? It was the same for the empire¡¯s military, whose primary mission was to ensure the safety of the citizens. They were already badly battered from the lack of food and the cold. Since Huang Quan wanted to hunt steel beasts, Lin Qing would support him. Furthermore, he also wanted to increase his strength. It would be safer for the two of them to work together. After entering Handong, they didn¡¯t go straight to the provincial capital. Instead, they planned to start with sweeping the remote city areas. However, they encountered trouble the moment they stepped into the area. Roadblocks surrounded the road, and dozens of Motorbots stood by the roadside with unfriendly gazes. Chapter 17 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios These Motorbots were of all sizes. There were light trucks, cars, vans, sedans, and even motorcycles and scooters. What was surprising was that the motorcycle Motorbots and the scooter Motorbots had guns in their hands. These brand new automatic rifles were loaded and aimed at the two of them. The motorcycle Motorbots were about the same height as ordinary people. They were short and didn¡¯t have much strength. The only difference between them and humans was that their bodies were made of cold steel. This type of Motorbots would become the main labor force at the bottom of society in the future. ¡°What are your names? Where did you come from? What are you doing here?¡± a red Alto Motorbot asked them. Looking at the muzzles of the guns, Huang Quan took half a step back and smiled. ¡°Big Brother, don¡¯t be rash. My name is Huang Quan. This is my brother, Lin Qing. We came from Shenbei to seek refuge.¡± A short white scooter Motorbot picked up a pen and wrote their identities on a piece of paper. ¡°It¡¯s everyone¡¯s responsibility to protect humans. From now on, the two of you will be conscripted. In return, your food and drink, as well as your safety, will be ensured. Is that alright?¡± Huang Quan was dumbfounded. They had only just arrived, but they had already been conscripted. ¡°Big Brother, allow me to ask one thing. You said that our food and drink will be ensured, but what will we drink?¡± ¡°Gasoline, of course,¡± the red Alto said seriously. ¡°The gas station here has been occupied by us, so outsiders can¡¯t drink gas.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t tell you. We Motorbots will die without gas to supplement us.¡± Huang Quan thought about it¡­ ¡°Brother, don¡¯t you feel your stomach rumbling?¡± ¡°It does rumble. But whose fuel tank doesn¡¯t?¡± ¡°What do you eat then?¡± ¡°The corpses of beasts!¡± ¡°Do you eat them raw?¡± ¡°No shit. How else would we eat them?¡± Huang Quan felt a chill run down his spine at the thought of eating a raw steel beast. It was no wonder that everyone¡¯s teeth were about to fall out. ¡°Lin Qing, what should we do?¡± Huang Quan cast him a questioning look. There were only a dozen rifles that wouldn¡¯t cause much damage to them. He would only need five seconds to crush these gunmen into scrap metal. If Lin Qing made a move, it would be even easier. He could defeat all of them with a round of laser bullets. But Lin Qing shook his head slightly and said to the Motorbots, ¡°What do you need us to do?¡± ¡°It¡¯s simple. Just search for food on the streets every day and repel wild beasts when you encounter them.¡± As expected, this was what Lin Qing had guessed. He nodded. ¡°Okay, we brothers agree.¡± ¡°At least you know what¡¯s good for you.¡± The Alto waved his hand, and the people behind him lowered their guns. ¡°Leave a team behind to guard the place. The rest of you, follow me to sweep across New Eighth Street. As for the two new people¡ªLin something?¡ªfollow me.¡± Following behind them, Huang Quan said softly, ¡°This isn¡¯t your style. Why didn¡¯t you destroy them?¡± Lin Qing sighed. ¡°These people are different from Brother Liu and the others in the service area. They are organized and gather Motorbots to protect ordinary humans. ¡°There are many organizations like this in other places. As long as they¡¯re not too much, we don¡¯t need to care. In any case, we still have to hunt steel beasts, so just treat it as helping them.¡± After the Cataclysm, officials started to recruit Motorbots. But there were also some who didn¡¯t want to be under others, so they gathered a group of people to survive independently. About ten minutes later, they arrived at the periphery of New Eighth Street. Lin Qing could see hundreds of steel beasts on the street from afar. Instead of rushing forward rashly, they hid behind a building. Then the red Alto revealed his battle plan. ¡°The machine gunners will take turns to fire from the left and right and advance in layers. After taking over the street, the first team will go up to the tall buildings on the left, and the second team will go up to the tall buildings on the right. ¡°Since the new guys are big, you guys will go up first. If you dare to run away, the people behind you will turn you into pulp.¡± ¡°No problem.¡± With that, Lin Qing turned into his mecha form, and so did Huang Quan. For some reason, the sky turned dark again. The two giants stood behind a motorcycle Motorbot who was holding a gun, causing him to shiver while stunning the rest. ¡°C-C-C-Captain Jiang.¡± ¡°If you have something to say, then say it!¡± The Alto¡¯s eyes were focused forward, and he didn¡¯t turn around at all. ¡°C-C-Captain Jiang, t-t-t-this is too big.¡± Looking at a four-meter tall dog on the street, the Alto said, ¡°It¡¯s indeed very big. This will be a tough battle. Where¡¯s Ye Daying? Have you found him?¡± ¡°Captain Jiang, I¡¯m not talking about the dog.¡± The person behind him was about to cry as he gently patted the Alto¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Look back and see for yourself.¡± Sensing the silence behind him, the Alto turned around and saw a dark mass. ¡°Eh, why is there a wall here?¡± That wasn¡¯t right. He raised his head and looked up along the wall to see two large faces facing him. They belonged to two mechas, one red and one yellow. Unlike ordinary Motorbots, these two mechas were perfect and looked like works of art. One of them had the character ܇ printed on his chest, while the other only had half of the character on his chest. He had seen this symbol before. A person called Ye Daying in his team had this symbol on his body, but it wasn¡¯t obvious. Huang Quan laughed. ¡°You¡¯re Captain Jiang, right? When are we charging?¡± Gulp! The Alto swallowed a mouthful of air and said with a bitter smile, ¡°Just call me Little Jiang. If there¡¯s anything, let¡¯s finish this battle first before talking about it, okay?¡± He knew that they were big guys when he first met them. After all, one of them was a heavy truck, and the other was a mining dump truck. They would be at least ten meters tall after transforming. But he didn¡¯t expect them to be this big. One of them was 18 meters tall, and the other was 20 meters tall. This was just too terrifying! In particular, this red heavy truck didn¡¯t seem to make sense. He had seen heavy truck Motorbots before, but they were only at most 15 meters tall. What¡¯s going on with these Motorbots that are much taller than usual? ¡°Okay!¡± Lin Qing nodded expressionlessly. After taking a deep breath, the Alto said in a low tone, ¡°All teams, listen to my command. Act according to our original plan. Now go.¡± Da da da!! Da da da! The motorcycles and scooters rushed out with their rifles in their hands. The two-man teams cooperated very well and put their arms around each other as they slowly approached the steel beasts. Bullets pierced through the bodies of the steel beasts one after another as the Motorbots gunned them down. On average, it took several dozen bullets to kill one steel beast. Upon seeing this, Huang Quan said indifferently, ¡°They¡¯ve been training for a long time. This is a little interesting!¡± ¡°Captain Jiang is probably responsible for that.¡± Lin Qing looked down at the red Alto, who was staring nervously at the battlefield. In the Cataclysm, only motorcycles and scooters could operate firearms. This was because their bodies were similar to ordinary people, but they were also stronger than ordinary people. On the other hand, slightly larger Motorbots wouldn¡¯t be able to use guns. In fact, their fingers wouldn¡¯t even be able to fit into the trigger guards, let alone use guns. To them, holding a gun was like holding a toothpick. These scooters and motorcycles matched well. They had strong mental fortitude, and none of them took even half a step back. Furthermore, not only was every shot accurate, but they were also steady. Lin Qing didn¡¯t know whether it was an illusion, but he could see the aura of soldiers from them. After shooting down a group of steel beasts, the gunmen went up the stairs of the buildings on both sides of the street. The sound of glass shattering rang out. Then guns were positioned at the windows on the second floor of the buildings. ¡°It¡¯s our turn. Let¡¯s go!¡± Captain Jiang waved his hand as he looked at the enraged steel beasts. As they rushed out from behind the building, the group of Motorbots charged forward fearlessly. From the wounds and aura on these people, Lin Qing could tell that this was not the first time they had done this. ¡°Old Huang, I¡¯m going!¡± ¡°Wait, I¡¯m going too!¡± With one hand on the roof, Lin Qing jumped out nimbly and walked to the middle of the street while Huang Quan followed behind him. Chapter 18 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Boom! Descending from the sky, Huang Quan landed a punch on the four-meter tall dog. The dog¡¯s spine collapsed, and its stomach swelled. Then the first steel rib broke out of its body, followed by the second and third. Its limbs exploded starting from its knees, and its massive body collapsed to the ground. But this wasn¡¯t the end. Its body continued to sink into the asphalt ground. Then the ground cracked, and its body sunk into the dirt, causing the dirt to explode. Bang! The ground caved in, and the sewer below the street was pierced through. Then a five-meter deep pit appeared as countless waves of excrement spurted out. ¡°F*ck your ancestors!¡± Lin Qing, who had taken out his gun at some point and killed adult steel beasts, jumped out of the battlefield without hesitation and climbed to the third floor. ¡°Don¡¯t you feel disgusted? Do you need to use so much strength to fight a steel beast that has only evolved twice?¡± ¡°Cough, cough, cough. It¡¯s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding.¡± Huang Quan tiptoed and leaned against the wall. He said awkwardly, ¡°I just wanted to test how powerful my punch is.¡± The sewers broke, and all the feces and urine were flowing up. In the blink of an eye, the excrement reached the knees of an ordinary person and caused the entire street to reek. It was impossible for them to go any higher, so Huang Quan and Lin Qing hid far away in fear of being splashed on by this deluge of sewage. This thing didn¡¯t have much destructive power, but it was extremely disgusting. ¡°Gray Wolf, help Little Seven. Suppress them with your firepower.¡± ¡°Ground Wolf, stop fighting. Leave this street and lure them out to fight.¡± Huang Quan had underestimated these people¡¯s strong mental endurance. They could still continue fighting in such an environment and completely ignored the excrement on the ground. Captain Jiang had ordered the retreat not because he felt disgusted but because he knew that Huang Quan and Lin Qing would not attack in this situation. He wanted to lure the steel beasts out so that everyone could attack together. Densely packed bullets shuttled through the streets, and sparks flew from walls as a result of stray bullets. Every few seconds, a steel beast would fall. Without Lin Qing and Huang Quan¡¯s participation, casualties started to emerge among the Motorbots. A few seconds later, the entire line of Motorbots fell apart, and they ran away desperately. If not for the fact that there were armed Motorbots protecting them from higher elevation in the buildings, they would have been long dead. ¡°The two teams must have merged,¡± Huang Quan said while observing the situation. ¡°Those with guns are well-trained, calm, and can obey orders. ¡°But the other Motorbots are much weaker. They look alright on the surface, but once they encounter danger, they turn into a disorderly mob. They can¡¯t hold on much longer. Do you want to take action?¡± Lin Qing raised his arm, turned his hand into a gun barrel, and aimed at the steel beasts. If he didn¡¯t make a move now, this team would die. Bang! The head of a steel beast and metal sheets exploded into countless fragments in the air. However, Lin Qing wasn¡¯t the one who fired. He turned to look at the source of the gunshot. Only a sniper rifle could have such power. Furthermore, it was a sniper rifle with a large caliber. Rumbling resounded. A black motorcycle rushed over from the end of the horizon. A second ago, Lin Qing estimated that the source of the gunshot was at least 1,000 meters away, but it only took a few seconds for the motorcycle to arrive. ¡°Hu!!¡± Just as the black motorcycle was about to reach the street flooded with sewage, it started to climb a wall. It was also at this time that Lin Qing and Huang Quan finally saw the motorcycle clearly. It was a fully-customized Kawasaki H2. But there were no rear-view mirrors or headlights because they were unneeded. It was a race vehicle with a maximum speed of 400 km/h, making it faster than a high-speed train. Since the motorcycle was unmanned, this meant that it was a Motorbot. Ta! The motorcycle leaped into the air from the wall and transformed. A 1.8-meter-tall Motorbot with a completely black body appeared. A sniper rifle had appeared in his hand at some point in time. The motorcycle performed a backflip jump in the air and shot through the heart of a steel beast before landing steadily. ¡°How awesome!¡± Huang Quan was stunned as he clapped his hands and shouted praises. Carrying the sniper rifle on his back, the motorcycle flamboyantly stroked his nonexistent hair back and said calmly, ¡°Stay low-key, low-key.¡± ¡°Be careful!¡± Not far away, Captain Jiang shouted anxiously when he saw a large group of steel beasts charging toward them like a fleet of motorcycles. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You know how fast I am. They are chasing¡­¡± Da da da da da!! Lin Qing¡¯s gun barrel rotated, and dozens of laser bullets shot out every second. All of the bullets landed on the steel beasts. Unlike ordinary bullets, these laser bullets essentially penetrated these steel beasts. In less than ten seconds, more than a hundred ordinary steel beasts lay soaking in the flood of excrement. The whole place was silent, so deadly silent that it was terrifying. Captain Jiang and the others had their mouths wide open but were unable to say anything for a while. ¡°Urgh!¡± The motorcycle retched while supporting himself against a wall. He seemed to have been splashed with feces and urine just now. ¡°Old Huang, don¡¯t say I don¡¯t take care of you. I won¡¯t fight with you for the crystals this time. They¡¯re all yours.¡± ¡°They¡¯re all soaked in shit. Who¡¯s going to be able to eat them? Who wants them? In any case, I don¡¯t want them.¡± He found this scene nauseating, let alone swallowing these crystals. Hiding behind the building, Huang Quan exposed half of his body and shouted at the motorcycle, ¡°Kid, these steel beasts are for you. Good luck. Come on!¡± Five minutes later¡­ A few dozen meters away from the battlefield, Huang Quan was leaning against a building with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He was imparting some common knowledge to this group of Motorbots. After some introductions, he found out that the Kawasaki H2¡¯s name was Ye Daying. His parents had passed away, and he was a second-generation scion. He was 20 years old this year. The red Alto was called Jiang Cheng, a captain of the criminal police team, while those with guns were his comrades. The soldiers had run away ten days ago. In order to save more people, Jiang Cheng and his comrades opened their armory and built a base with their weapons. In addition, they also collected supplies for ordinary people every day. Almost all the wives, children, parents, and relatives of these Motorbots were at the base, so they came out to help. Jiang Cheng knew that the more people there were, the more power they would have. So when he was free, he would block people and recruit more Motorbots to join their forces. ¡°What? These things are called steel beasts, and we can evolve by eating the crystals from their bodies!!¡± Ye Daying lost his composure as he looked at the steel beasts in the one-meter-deep ¡®water¡¯. Everyone else was tempted too. But they soon turned their heads away after staring at the ¡®surface of the water¡¯ for a few seconds and felt disgusted. Ye Daying put down his sniper rifle and walked toward the ¡®pool¡¯. He dragged out a steel beast and took out a crystal with great effort. ¡°Brothers, I¡¯ll do it first. Come on!¡± With that, he closed his eyes and swallowed the crystal. ¡°Urgh!!¡± There was a series of retching sounds. Huang Quan couldn¡¯t bear to look at him. He turned and said to Lin Qing, ¡°This brat can achieve great things in the future. Urgh!¡± Lin Qing nodded in deep agreement. This guy was brutal! Even after knowing that crystals could allow them to evolve, no one dared to fight with Ye Daying over the hundreds of steel beasts in front of them. After single-handedly consuming over a hundred crystals, Ye Daying rose by two levels and evolved twice. Everyone was envious and impressed. ¡°Brother Lin, are you guys here to hunt steel beasts? I¡¯m familiar with this area, so I¡¯ll lead the way for you. Burp!!¡± Ye Daying even burped after eating the crystals. Lin Qing was about to pat his shoulder but paused for a moment before retracting his hand. ¡°Alright, the show is yours.¡± ¡°Daying is smart and has good eyesight. You won¡¯t go wrong with him as your guide.¡± Jiang Cheng smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s return to our base first. If you need anything, just let me know.¡± When they left, Jiang Cheng even gave Ye Daying a knowing look. With the two giants, Huang Quan and Lin Qing, all they had to do was pick up the resources from the steel beasts after Huang Quan and Lin Qing eradicated them. Chapter 19 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Boss, Handong Province overlooks a river and is made up of plains. There are a total of twelve cities here. Right now, we are in Jinpu City, which has a population of four-point-eight million. Excluding those who have already turned into Motorbots and those who have escaped, about half of them now remain in the city¡­¡± Ye Daying introduced the area to Lin Qing non-stop while staying half a step behind him. ¡°Hey, who¡¯s your boss?¡± Lin Qing¡¯s mouth twitched. They had only known each other for half an hour. ¡°That¡¯s not important. I¡¯ve already decided to follow you. From now on, you¡¯re my boss. If you want me to go east, I definitely won¡¯t go west.¡± Huang Quan lifted Ye Daying up and laughed. ¡°What gives you the right to follow us?¡± Killing steel beasts had always been their goal. If it hadn¡¯t been for the sewer explosion, this fellow wouldn¡¯t have obtained those crystals. But it was fine now. After all, he was now addicted to eating crystals and depended on them. ¡°It¡¯s because I have good marksmanship.¡± Ye Daying¡¯s face turned red as he struggled but couldn¡¯t move. He took out the large sniper rifle on his back. ¡°I won¡¯t miss any shots within one thousand meters. ¡°Besides, I¡¯m small and can run fast, so I can scout ahead and run errands.¡± Huang Quan shook his head. ¡°Steel beasts evolve quickly, so it won¡¯t be long before your sniping can only hit mosquitoes. Besides, Lin Qing can kill countless beasts with a single shot, so there¡¯s no need for you. ¡°As for running fast, what¡¯s the use of that? After all, our current speed is enough. We don¡¯t even need to scout ahead since Lin Qing and I can defeat anyone in the world if we work together. Who are we afraid of?¡± ¡°Then you¡­ then y-you¡­¡± Ye Daying was anxious, and his brain worked quickly. ¡°You need to clean up the battlefield, right?¡± ¡°We do everything ourselves. Isn¡¯t this something an expert should do? How low-classed!¡± ¡°In the future, you two brothers only need to be in charge of combat. I¡¯ll scout the way, gather intelligence, clean up the battlefield, and collect crystals. Ahem ahem. Of course, I only need a little reward of just a few crystals.¡± It had been half a month since he became a Motorbot, but this was the first time he had seen someone able to defeat hundreds of steel beasts with just a lift of a hand. That scene earlier had shocked him. This was a true expert worthy of him following. Of course, Lin Qing¡¯s magnanimity was his main motivation. After all, he had rejected the more than one hundred crystals simply because he didn¡¯t want them. This made him seem very generous. He would become stronger if he followed such a person. ¡°F*ck, do you want to steal my job?¡± Huang Quan slapped Ye Daying on the head. ¡°Once you¡¯ve done everything, what am I supposed to do?¡± ¡°Second Brother, didn¡¯t I just say that you¡¯ll be in charge of fighting?¡± ¡°Bullshit. Do I even need to fight? Also, don¡¯t call me Second Brother.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll call you Second Boss. Trust me. I¡¯ll definitely be useful. Leave the chores to me. If you encounter any danger, just run away without saving me.¡± Whether they wanted to add more people to their team wasn¡¯t up to Huang Quan, so he looked at Lin Qing. ¡°His ability is a bit useless, and he doesn¡¯t have much potential. His only advantage is that he can run fast. Do you want to take him in?¡± ¡°Sure, why not?¡± Lin Qing rolled his eyes. ¡°I even took in a good-for-nothing like you. What¡¯s one more?¡± Huang Quan was anxious. ¡°I¡¯m very strong. I can destroy a building with one punch. Who else has the strength to do that?¡± ¡°Yes, yes, yes, you¡¯re strong. But you¡¯re not as fast as me, your combat strength is inferior to mine, and your intelligence is also average. What do I want you for? If you can¡¯t achieve adulthood in less than a month, we¡¯ll part ways. I can¡¯t afford to raise you.¡± Walking at the back, Huang Quan cursed, ¡°F*ck, you idiot, don¡¯t give me the cold shoulder! If I had known earlier, I wouldn¡¯t have given you the large crocodile¡¯s crystal.¡± ¡°I¡¯m the one who should feel regret. Even after hunting crystals for so many days, you still haven¡¯t grown¡­¡± Hearing the two big shots cursing at each other, Ye Daying trembled and didn¡¯t dare to make a sound. He only encouraged himself to become stronger in his mind. Even someone as strong as Second Boss was about to be kicked out of the team. If he remained at his current strength throughout, they wouldn¡¯t even need him to do odd jobs in the future. Under the guidance of Ye Daying, the three of them arrived near the biggest wild game market in Jinpu City half an hour later. The first thing they saw were collapsed buildings, corpses of Motorbots, burned residential buildings, and dilapidated streets. ¡°Big Boss, I¡¯ll go check the situation first.¡± Ye Daying was very self-aware and took the initiative to take up the job of scouting ahead. He turned into his motorcycle form and disappeared into the corner of the streets in the blink of an eye. But what he didn¡¯t know was that with Lin Qing and Huang Quan¡¯s height, the two of them had already seen the situation in the market. This area was already occupied and full of steel beasts. Rubbing his chin, Huang Quan was puzzled. ¡°Boss, that¡¯s not right. Why do the steel beasts here get along so well? Why don¡¯t they kill each other?¡± Previously, when they had stayed in Shenbei, there were numerous steel beasts of many types there. Overall, they all grouped together in their various races, and it was common for them to kill each other. But this was a market for wild animals. With almost a hundred kinds of steel beasts here, the situation was even crueler than in North Spirit Mountain Park. It was strange and unusual that there were no steel beasts killing each other! ¡°It¡¯s simple. It¡¯s because they have a leader who has used its absolute strength to suppress all the steel beasts and make them not dare to resist.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s eyes were deep as he stretched his neck and strode toward the market. ¡°Let¡¯s go and meet this leader.¡± ¡­ A few hundred meters away from the market, at the window of the eighth floor of a certain building, Ye Daying observed the surroundings using his 8x scope. The more he looked, the more shocked he became. The streets were full of powerful steel beasts, each as big as a water buffalo. The steel beasts they had killed previously definitely couldn¡¯t compare to these beasts. His line of sight slowly moved. A 40-meter long and half-meter wide alley appeared out of thin air in his field of vision. No, it wasn¡¯t an alley! ¡°That¡¯s not an alley.¡± Ye Daying saw an enormous head. It was a horrifying-looking giant steel python with eyes bigger than lanterns. What was more worrying was that Huang Quan and Lin Qing were moving in that direction. ¡°You can¡¯t go there!¡± Bang! Bang! Bang! Three gunshots broke the silence, and the cement beside Lin Qing¡¯s feet scattered in all directions. Looking in the direction of the gunshot, Huang Quan asked, ¡°What¡¯s he trying to do?¡± ¡°He¡¯s probably telling us not to go over there. It¡¯s probably dangerous up ahead.¡± ¡°This joker. His gunfire was so loud. Even if there was no danger, there¡¯s danger now.¡± As soon as he finished speaking, the light around them dimmed a little. A giant python was circling around a hotel, and its 40-meter-long steel body continuously scraped against the tiles on the wall. It was rare for Lin Qing and Huang Quan to look up at other creatures. This beast was the largest steel beast the two had seen so far. The scales of ordinary pythons were only the size of a fingernail, but the scales of this python were the size of a palm. Its red eyes were like two lanterns hanging in the air, and its wide mouth had two rows of sharp teeth. The most eye-catching thing was the ÊÞ character on the top of its head, as if it was the king of this area. Da da da da da! Lin Qing raised his arm and shot his laser gun. With such a large target, there was no need for him to aim. Sparks flew everywhere. But these laser bullets that could even penetrate steel and cement walls were ineffective against the python. This was a rare sight. The python simply twisted its body in pain, immediately destroying the hotel. ¡°How impressive.¡± Huang Quan raised his head and sighed. ¡°I thought laser guns were invincible. At this rate, it will take half an hour to kill it.¡± ¡°Not really. Dozens of laser bullets can penetrate its body if they hit the same spot.¡± Seeing two of them still chatting, Ye Daying, who was standing on a tall building in the distance, collapsed. ¡°Big Brothers, what are you talking about at this time? Hurry up and run.¡± He had seen the effect of Lin Qing¡¯s laser bullets before, and he still couldn¡¯t forget it. But since he wasn¡¯t even using such a powerful weapon, why didn¡¯t he run? Chapter 20 - The Domineering Flame Devil Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Do you want to go fight the python, or do you want me to do it?¡± Looking at the giant steel python, Lin Qing put his hand behind his back and prepared to pull out the Flame Devil. ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± Huang Quan moved his arms and legs. ¡°I want to see where my limits are. If I can¡¯t handle it, then you can attack.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll leave it to you.¡± Lin Qing stepped back and prepared to watch from the side. Lin Qing couldn¡¯t possibly be the one doing everything. After all, if this went on, he wouldn¡¯t be able to train Huang Quan, and Huang Quan¡¯s god-like physique would go to waste sooner or later. With a loud roar, Huang Quan charged toward the python step by step. He ran faster and faster, and his aura became more and more imposing. He created huge holes as he stepped on the concrete road. He could cover a distance of over a hundred meters in a matter of seconds. Even then, by the time he reached the python, he had already gathered his strength. He took a heavy step, twisted his waist, and punched the python. Boom! The punch knocked down the steel python, which was as thick as a bucket and over 40 meters long, and smashed it into a building, causing smoke and dust to rise and the ground to shake. In the distance, Ye Daying was so shocked that he couldn¡¯t close his mouth. He had been taught another lesson. ¡°Ridiculous. How can he kill even such a large steel beast? Is he still human?¡± However, there was not even the slightest hint of happiness on Huang Quan¡¯s face as he stood on the spot. On the contrary, his expression became even more solemn. He was very clear about how powerful this punch was. Although he had already used his full strength, it didn¡¯t feel right, as it didn¡¯t break through the thick, scaly armor of the python at all. Instead, it only caused a superficial wound. ¡°Sss¡ª¡± The python raised its head from the ruins. With most of its body suspended in the air, it roared and then opened its mouth wide to bite down on Huang Quan at an unbelievably fast speed. A gust of wind blew past as it reached Huang Quan. ¡°Pfft!¡± Before he could react, Huang Quan¡¯s shoulder was bitten. He was now using both hands to block the python¡¯s mouth that was about to close. If the python really bit down on his shoulder, this arm would definitely be gone. Ye Daying¡¯s heart was in his throat as he watched this scene. ¡°Why hasn¡¯t Big Boss made his move yet? We¡¯re going to die!¡± Huang Quan specialized in his strength, so the python was unable to bite down on him no matter what when he was holding its mouth. It could only swing its body and crash into a large building. Rumble! When Huang Quan¡¯s back came into contact with the countless steel bars and cement, half of his body went numb. All of a sudden, he felt the python loosen its grip on him. Regardless of the consequences, he swung his fist at the python and smashed it. Both man and beast were giants, so their battle was in full swing and extremely intense as tall buildings collapsed one after another. Ye Daying felt his blood boiling as he watched this battle. Seeing that other steel beasts were going to surround them, Lin Qing attacked and killed each beast with a punch. This area was full of the sounds of battle that rumbled into the distance. ¡°F*ck! I can¡¯t take it anymore!¡± Five minutes later, Huang Quan sent out a cry for help. He had been fighting well, but the python suddenly wrapped itself around him. Its 40-meter-long body locked him from head to toe, causing him to be unable to move at all. Its scales had fallen out countless times. The panting python raised its head and prepared to swallow him. Bang! Ye Daying opened fire and hit the python¡¯s head. But this only caused sparks to fly and a white mark to appear on its head. Bang! Bang! Bang! He raised his hand and fired three more shots at the python¡¯s eyes. Unfortunately, the python tilted its head, and he missed. ¡°Second Boss, have a safe journey!¡± Ye Daying lost all hope. ¡°Tilt your head!¡± A faint voice sounded in Huang Quan¡¯s ears. He immediately tilted his head without thinking. Shua! A red blade light rushed over fiercely and flashed past him. The next second, the steel python roared as its upper body was sent flying. Looking at the other half of the python¡¯s body that was still struggling, Lin Qing quickly stepped forward and stepped on its heart. Then he stabbed the Flame Devil in his hand downward, penetrating the python¡¯s head and nailing it to the ground. The Flame Devil was so domineering that very few enemies at the same level could withstand a single strike from it. Moreover, Lin Qing had launched a sneak attack and caught the steel python unaware, so the python died just like that without any suspense. Sitting in ruins, Huang Quan weakly shouted in Ye Daying¡¯s direction, ¡°Kid, it¡¯s your turn to work.¡± A loud voice rang out as Ye Daying hugged Huang Quan¡¯s thigh and cried, ¡°Second Boss, I almost thought you were gone!¡± ¡°Get lost. Get to work!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Ye Daying quickly rushed toward the steel python. When he looked at the neat and smooth wound, he couldn¡¯t help but look at Lin Qing. He had witnessed the entire process. That red sword was so powerful that it easily sliced apart the giant python that even Huang Quan couldn¡¯t kill. He now had a new understanding of Lin Qing¡¯s strength. ¡°How are you? Still okay?¡± Lin Qing walked to Huang Quan, who was in a sorry state. ¡°Ahhh, let¡¯s not talk about it. I originally thought that with my strength, I should be able to deal a shocking blow to this python. But I overestimated myself.¡± ¡°Actually, you¡¯re already very strong. You were able to defend against an adult python after evolving three times. What else do you want?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to comfort me. I understand.¡± Looking at Huang Quan¡¯s downcast expression, Lin Qing couldn¡¯t help laughing. ¡°You suffer in terms of your combat skills and your lack of understanding toward the habits of these wild beasts. ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about your combat skills. After all, you probably haven¡¯t fought many times since you were young. Although you have my guidance, you can¡¯t become an expert in a day or two. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about the habits of the beasts. Although they¡¯ve turned into steel, their basic body structures and habits are still present. ¡°Pythons rest in dark corners, while the crocodiles we previously encountered like to hide in water. This is their nature that has been carved into their bones and can¡¯t be changed. ¡°Crocodiles are strongest in their tail lashing and instantaneous biting force. And pythons are good at binding their opponents. Its long body and flexible bones can allow them to strangle prey several times stronger than themselves. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t been careless and allowed the python to restrain you but instead continued fighting it, no one can say for sure who would have won. Furthermore, when you fight a snake, you should aim for its heart. What use is there if you hit its tail and spine¡­¡± While Lin Qing was teaching Huang Quan, Ye Daying was eavesdropping with his ears pricked. He didn¡¯t even pay any attention to what he was currently doing. These things far surpassed what Jiang Cheng and the rest at the base could teach. After all, these things had been summarized from many life and death battles. If Lin Qing hadn¡¯t mentioned them, he might not know for his entire life. After a while, Ye Daying handed the crystals he had gathered to Lin Qing. Lin Qing grabbed two handfuls of crystals and swallowed them to replenish the energy he spent today. Then he picked out the crystal from the python and gave it to Huang Quan. ¡°If you can¡¯t break through and evolve for the fourth time today, I won¡¯t play with you anymore.¡± He finally found out why Huang Quan had joined the military in his previous life. Ordinary people really couldn¡¯t afford to raise such a big eater. ¡°Ahem ahem! Big Boss, I¡¯m following you now. Can you really bear to let me starve?¡± Huang Quan received the crystal with a smile and swallowed it. The injuries on his body slowly recovered, and some parts of his body that the giant python had beaten were restored to their original form. His body was now as white as snow, and his eyes shone brightly. But this wasn¡¯t the end. His body grew a meter taller and became lighter as his strength increased again. The fourth evolution finished, and the ܇ character on him was only one stroke away from completion. ¡°How comfortable!¡± Huang Quan stood up and jumped. He clenched his fist and tried to throw a punch, causing a loud and dull sound to echo in the air. ¡°If I have to fight another python, I can kill it.¡± ¡°Second Boss is mighty!¡± Ye Dayang raised his hands and cheered. ¡°Stop flattering him. If you can¡¯t improve your strength, it¡¯s best that you get lost quickly.¡± Lin Qing gave him the remaining dozens of ordinary crystals. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a suggestion. Practice your shooting skills well, as that¡¯s your only way out.¡± In his previous life, he had been a motorcycle himself, so he naturally knew the limits of this type of Motorbot. It was impossible for them to rely on their strength, so they could only rely on external forces. Chapter 21 - Come and Hit Me Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The sky started to darken. Lin Qing didn¡¯t continue fighting and decided to rest for the night and continue tomorrow. Ye Daying led the two of them to the base. ¡°How many ordinary people and Motorbots are there in your base?¡± Lin Qing asked casually on the way. Ye Daying didn¡¯t reply immediately. He thought for a few seconds and only spoke after organizing his words. ¡°There are about one hundred thousand ordinary people. There are also quite a number of Motorbots, more than two hundred of them.¡± ¡°Where are the soldiers? Where is the main base? Why haven¡¯t you gone there?¡± ¡°The imperial forces have long since withdrawn. The newly established base is in Yang City, a few hundred miles from Jinpu. It¡¯s not that everyone doesn¡¯t want to go there, but they don¡¯t want the old and the weak, as well as women and children. They only accept Motorbots or special workers. ¡°Right now, our base is in a university. Most of the people here are the elderly, children, and students. Some of the Motorbots who stayed behind are teachers, while others are kind-hearted people like Captain Jiang.¡± ¡°Are the imperial forces still human?¡± Huang Quan couldn¡¯t believe it and said coldly, ¡°Why are they still dividing people into different levels during a time like this?¡± Ye Daying smiled bitterly. ¡°Second Boss, you don¡¯t know this, but it¡¯s good that people are being divided into different levels. At the very least, the treatment they receive is different. We are just afraid that we won¡¯t even be considered as part of the lowest level. ¡°When I turned into a motorcycle, I thought that the situation was slightly imbalanced at first. Later, I saw too many tragic cases involving ordinary people and felt that I was quite lucky. At least I didn¡¯t have to starve or freeze.¡± Lin Qing smiled at Huang Quan. ¡°Look, he is truly aware. You should stop being such a good person as soon as possible. Otherwise, it will drag you down sooner or later.¡± Over the ten years of the Cataclysm, Lin Qing had seen more cruelty than Ye Daying. He had witnessed all kinds of tragedies. Under such circumstances, a normal heart would gradually become numb and lose its senses. The only thing that could allow him to support his beliefs was getting stronger. After all, only by becoming stronger would he have power and influence. ¡°No. Although my body has mutated, my soul is still human.¡± Huang Quan shook his head slowly, his gaze firm. ¡°If I don¡¯t care about anything, then what¡¯s the point of living?¡± ¡°Do you think that you¡¯re very strong? There are many steel beasts and Motorbots stronger than you. Live first before¡­ Achoo!!¡± It was rare for Lin Qing to sneeze. He touched his nose. ¡°Who¡¯s talking about me?¡± ¡­ Three figures stood at the entrance of the research institute in Shenbei City. They were a 15-meter-tall black mecha wrapped in a bedsheet, a human male wearing Hello Kitty clothes, and an untidy-looking Wang Xiaoming with bird¡¯s nest hair that reached his shoulders. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that they didn¡¯t touch the equipment? Where did it go?¡± The man wearing Hello Kitty clothes glared fiercely at Wang Xiaoming. ¡°Big Brother, I don¡¯t know! They really didn¡¯t move the equipment when I left! They left them all behind!¡± Wang Xiaoming¡¯s face was bitter as he said speechlessly, ¡°Also, Yang Feng, who the f*ck are you trying to fool by wearing a mask? You haven¡¯t even changed your clothes! If you want to act, you should at least act more properly!¡± ¡°See, I told you that your disguise skills aren¡¯t good enough.¡± The black mecha pulled off the bedsheet on his body, revealing the retractable propeller on his back. Yang Feng was exasperated. ¡°F*ck, are you an idiot? He must be bluffing us. Hurry up and put on the bedsheet.¡± ¡°Do you have a screw loose in your brain?¡± Yang Ao couldn¡¯t help roasting his brother. ¡°Alright, I admit it. It¡¯s my fault.¡± Yang Feng took off his mask and said solemnly, ¡°We must take the equipment with us. We must have them in our hands. Old Wang, could you please remember where exactly you hid then?¡± ¡°We really didn¡¯t hide them! I was forcefully seized by you right after we left. It¡¯s only been a short while, so how would we have had the time to hide the equipment? Besides, no one wants the equipment, even as scrap metal. It¡¯s useless to normal people even if they take them away, so we chose to leave them here and come back later to retrieve them.¡± Wang Xiaoming was on the brink of tears. Speaking of which, he was really unlucky to be attacked not long after leaving in the empire¡¯s helicopter. Yang Feng had brought his brother Yang Ao to do it. They had destroyed the helicopter that Wang Xiaoming had been sitting in. After the two kidnapped him, they went all the way back to the research institute to look for the equipment. Yang Feng walked into the ruins of the research institute with his hands behind his back. He squatted down and looked at the traces of high-temperature burns on the cut steel. He said indifferently, ¡°It¡¯s useless for ordinary people to take the equipment away. Those who would take them away aren¡¯t ordinary people. ¡°The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Lin Qing, your hands are fast. I underestimated you.¡± Since the equipment had been sealed here, only Lin Qing and Huang Quan could have taken away the equipment in such a short time. Yang Fang turned around to look at Wang Xiaoming and grinned. ¡°But it¡¯s useless even if you have the equipment. Since Wang Xiaoming is with me, we¡¯ll have to work together sooner or later.¡± Yang Feng clapped his hands and stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s go back to Qingzhou.¡± ¡°Are you not looking for the equipment anymore?¡± Yang Ao asked. He had taken the risk to attack the team sent by the imperial capital because Yang Feng had told him about the importance of the equipment. He didn¡¯t expect that they would leave after just walking around. ¡°No. Let¡¯s go to Qingzhou and wait.¡± ¡­ Ye Daying brought Lin Qing and Huang Quan to a university in the suburbs. This was their safe base. The originally two-meter tall wall had been reinforced into eight meters tall, transforming the entire university into a fortress. ¡°Whoa, you guys sure are extravagant!¡± Upon entering the campus, Lin Qing heard the sounds of many generators. He saw that the classrooms were brightly lit, while 18 or 19-year-old students were playing soccer on the soccer field. A couple in love held hands as they walked down the road, and the elderly and children were laughing happily. There was no sign of the desolation he had expected after the Cataclysm at all. Those who didn¡¯t know would have thought that it was before the Cataclysm. Ye Daying stuttered, ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t support everyone being like this either. But they can¡¯t deal with the steel beasts and are too weak to do anything. They can only eat in the cafeteria and sleep after eating.¡± Even the most trash Motorbots could handle the work of dozens of ordinary people. Furthermore, there were hundreds of Motorbots in the base, and they were very efficient, so these students didn¡¯t even have a chance to do manual labor. They didn¡¯t even need to cook. Food was prepared in the cafeteria, and everyone could eat when it was time. Lin Qing smiled and said to Huang Quan, ¡°You¡¯re the boss of your family¡¯s business. Tell me, what do you think of this management style?¡± Huang Quan furrowed his eyebrows. ¡°The Motorbots are working hard outside, but they have to come back and raise a group of people. If this goes on, no one will be willing to work, and this base will be done for sooner or later.¡± ¡°You¡¯re being too polite. If you ask me, this is how pigs are raised. No, pigs are still useful. On the other hand, these people are completely useless. They¡¯re still playing around at this time. Do they really think that they¡¯re ancestors to be served?¡± As they spoke, the soccer ball from the soccer field flew over and landed by their feet. A few youngsters shouted, ¡°Hey, brothers, kick it over!¡± Lin Qing gently raised the ball to his feet, then bounced it onto his knees, arms, and back. His movements were smooth and natural. He didn¡¯t know how to play soccer in the past, but after becoming a Motorbot, his movements were mechanical and precise, so he could do these movements easily. ¡°Big Boss is amazing!¡± Ye Daying laughed and clapped his hands. Pa! After bouncing the ball, Lin Qing stomped on it. Ye Daying¡¯s smile froze. ¡°Hey, what are you doing? Why did you step on our soccer ball?¡± Seeing their soccer ball crushed, a few youngsters were furious and ran over to argue with him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, he accidentally lost control.¡± Ye Daying went forward to apologize. ¡°You guys can find another one.¡± ¡°Where else can we find one? We don¡¯t even have anything to buy right now. There were only a few soccer balls in the gymnasium, and this was the last one!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I did it on purpose.¡± Lin Qing smiled and bent down to look at the boys. ¡°So what? Just come and hit me!¡± Chapter 22 - Fair Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Lin Qing was 18 meters tall, making him almost as tall as a six-story building. The boys gulped as they looked at his sandbag-sized fist. ¡°Y-y-you can¡¯t ruin our ball for no reason.¡± ¡°I just don¡¯t like you guys. What can you do to me?¡± After Lin Qing teased them, the boys¡¯ faces turned red as they clenched their fists before relaxing them. They were angry, but they didn¡¯t dare to say anything as they glared at Lin Qing. If looks could kill, Lin Qing would have died hundreds of times by now. Lin Qing waved his hand as if he was shooing flies. ¡°A good dog doesn¡¯t block the way. Make way. I want to walk over.¡± ¡°Who are you calling a dog?¡± ¡°I¡¯m scolding you guys! Oh, that¡¯s not right. It¡¯s already an honor to call you dogs. At least dogs can take care of their homes. You dogs are worse.¡± Seeing that the university students were angry, Ye Daying was afraid that they would suffer and stopped them. He then turned around to say to Lin Qing, ¡°Big Boss, don¡¯t mind them. Let¡¯s go somewhere else first.¡± Lin Qing snorted. He walked toward the dormitories and said calmly, ¡°Actually, you didn¡¯t have to stop them. If they had the courage to hit me, they wouldn¡¯t be fed like pigs every day.¡± Upon hearing this, the boys gritted their teeth. If it weren¡¯t for their lack of strength, they would have killed Lin Qing. Seeing Lin Qing walk away, one of the boys pushed Ye Daying away and said angrily, ¡°Is this how you help outsiders bully us?¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Ye Daying almost vomited blood. This brother obviously didn¡¯t understand the current situation. If Ye Daying hadn¡¯t stopped them, they would have died long ago if they dared to talk to Lin Qing like this. ¡°You? You what? Move aside!¡± With that, the students left while cursing and swearing. Ye Daying could vaguely hear them saying things like ¡®What¡¯s the big deal about Motorbots¡¯. Huang Quan laughed as he walked beside Lin Qing. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you today? Why are you teasing them when everything is alright?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I just can¡¯t stand it.¡± He mourned for their misfortune and was enraged at their incompetence. This was how Lin Qing felt when he saw those boys. In his previous life, he had been around for ten years and had seen too much cruelty. All the major safety bases didn¡¯t raise trash, and people like this would¡¯ve died a long time ago. On the other hand, those who could live for more than three years, regardless of whether they were old or young, had their own value. Since they didn¡¯t have any skills, they would go all out. Every day, they would sweep streets, carry food behind Motorbots, or build fortifications, carry cement, and pick rocks with Motorbots. Although they were not efficient, those who worked had different attitudes from those who did not. If they believed that they could do nothing and would be excused because they were weak, they wouldn¡¯t be able to survive for more than a month. ¡°Jiang Cheng and the others are fighting for their lives outside, but the people here are playing soccer. It¡¯s really not very appropriate.¡± Huang Quan sighed as he recalled the few Motorbots who had died in today¡¯s battle. ¡°That¡¯s right. They threw their lives away just to raise this bunch of trash. I guess those brothers died discontent.¡± ¡°What can we do? As Ye Daying said, these people can¡¯t do any work and can¡¯t fight. They can¡¯t be armed with machetes to fight steel beasts, right?¡± ¡°Are you sure that they can¡¯t do anything?¡± Lin Qing questioned him before sighing. ¡°Forget it. This is their business, so I can¡¯t be bothered. At any rate, we¡¯ll be leaving soon.¡± They stopped talking about this topic. As they walked in the dormitory area, Huang Quan observed the female dormitory. His face was full of envy when he saw that it was a mixed-gender dormitory. With 100,000 people living in a university, it was unrealistic for everyone to have their own room. The original six-people rooms were now being used to accommodate those with families. Meanwhile, classrooms had also been transformed into sleeping quarters and were filled with bunk beds. There were dozens of people living in each classroom, mostly students and single men and women. They had only taken a few steps when Jiang Cheng appeared and ran over to greet them. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I was in a meeting just now. I¡¯ve arranged a place for you to stay. How long do you plan to stay here?¡± Jiang Cheng¡¯s heart tightened as he stared at Lin Qing. He really wanted the two of them to stay. Most of the Motorbots in the city had gone to the empire¡¯s base, and the combat power of the Motorbots here was not high. So people were dying every day, and their lives here were just too tough. ¡°Judging from the situation, we might stay here two or three days, or even three to five days,¡± Lin Qing said indifferently. Disappointment flashed across Jiang Cheng¡¯s eyes, but he quickly returned to normal. He refused to give up. ¡°The world is so chaotic. Where are you planning to go?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to Qingzhou!¡± ¡°You¡¯re going so far away? Actually, I feel that with your strength, you two can shine wherever you go. Why don¡¯t you stay behind and fight side by side with us?¡± ¡°I can give you the position of the base leader, and I¡¯ll listen to you from now on.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not interested.¡± Lin Qing shrugged and calmly said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to be a nanny and work hard while others enjoy the fruits of my labor.¡± ¡°We¡¯re all miserable people, so we should help out wherever we can. After all, it¡¯s not easy for everyone.¡± Lin Qing looked at a dormitory. In the dormitory, a family of five was joyous and harmonious, a couple was leaning on each other, and an old man was playing with a child. ¡°Who has it easy in this world? Why should I risk my life to protect these people? How have you helped settle the families of the Motorbots from your team who died today?¡± ¡°Settle? Does being well-fed count?¡± ¡°What else?¡± ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± Jiang Cheng shook his head slowly. ¡°Money is useless now, so we can only compensate them with food.¡± ¡°Ha!¡± Lin Qing sneered. ¡°You eat at the cafeteria here, right? They¡¯ll only get a few more pieces of meat. Do you consider that as compensation? ¡°Do you know why most Motorbots want to go to bigger bases that are more competitive? Although the rules there are cold, they are fair! The stronger you are, the better you¡¯ll be treated. And the amount of benefits you receive depends on how much you work. ¡°Typical Motorbots with wives and children can be assigned separate apartments. They can receive a large amount of food every day, and their children can enroll in school. ¡°If the Motorbots die in battle, the base will raise their children and provide them with an allowance. ¡°Now take a look at what you guys are doing. Everyone gets the same treatment and is compensated with no regard for their performance. What right do you have to get them to sell their lives to you? ¡°Some families can enjoy a separate room, while others have to live in classrooms with many other people. Why should they be treated this way?¡± Jiang Cheng didn¡¯t expect Lin Qing to be so agitated. ¡°What can I do? I can¡¯t split people into different levels like those people, right?¡± ¡°It seems like you still don¡¯t understand the current situation.¡± Lin Qing gave him a look. ¡°This is the bloody end of the world. Do you understand what that means? ¡°There¡¯s no savior here. Only you can save yourself. If they want to eat food, you can get them to search for food on the streets, sew, cook, cut bricks, or carry cement, right? ¡°Repairing circuits, building new houses, restoring factory assembly lines, making and processing food, planting crops¡­ You need people to do all these things.¡± After taking a deep breath, Lin Qing continued, ¡°You should know how much food 100,000 people eat a day. How many days do you think you can last? If they don¡¯t provide for themselves, these 100,000 people will die sooner or later. ¡°With such a huge population, you can¡¯t possibly support them with several hundred Motorbots using a few lousy guns to gather food every day.¡± Chapter 23 - The Human Heart Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Lin Qing had seen many bases like Jiang Cheng¡¯s in his previous life. However, most of them wouldn¡¯t even survive past a year. The main reasons were that their workers were compensated regardless of their performance and the division of labor wasn¡¯t clear. In the end, they had internal strife, and the workers left one by one. Breathing hard, Jiang Cheng said in a shaky voice, ¡°I¡¯ve never thought about these things.¡± Lin Qing patted Jiang Cheng¡¯s shoulder. ¡°If you haven¡¯t thought about it, then think about it carefully. Also, your personality isn¡¯t suitable to be the base leader. Find someone who can manage the base among the ordinary people. You just need to be in charge of fighting usually.¡± ¡°Mr. Lin, can you tell me what needs to be improved?¡± ¡°There are too many! First, you need to conserve electricity and save the fuel of your generators. But with your current usage, the base will collapse in at most a year.¡± Every household had electricity in their rooms for warmth. This was the first time Lin Qing had seen such a luxurious base. He had to admit that this was awesome! ¡°I¡¯ll have them improved immediately. They don¡¯t need the generators during the day.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Lin Qing nodded. ¡°Other than the necessary departments, no one else should use the generators. Don¡¯t turn on the lights at night either, as it will attract steel beasts. It¡¯s best to use firewood or coal for warmth¡­¡± Lin Qing told Jiang Cheng about his survival experience after the Cataclysm in his previous life one by one. The lives of countless people had been exchanged for this knowledge. ¡°Finally, let me give you a suggestion. Leave this place and go to a larger survival base.¡± Jiang Cheng shook his head slowly as he looked at the dormitory buildings and sighed. ¡°What will happen to them if I leave?¡± ¡°Everyone has their own fate. Don¡¯t underestimate a person¡¯s potential. Those who can live will be able to survive even without you around. As for those who can¡¯t live, even if you provide for them every day, it¡¯s only a matter of time before they die.¡± There were many bases in his previous life that didn¡¯t depend on Motorbots. Everyone provided for themselves, and they were still able to live well. Jiang Cheng sighed. ¡°¡­ We¡¯ll see. I won¡¯t abandon them until the very end.¡± Jiang Cheng arranged for Lin Qing and Huang Quan to stay beside an experimental building before leaving. There was a temporary rain shed here, which was enough for them to rest under. Huang Quan lay sprawled out on the floor and yawned. ¡°Damn, this is quite a hard time for me. I used to sleep in big hotels, but now I¡¯m sleeping on the floor every day.¡± ¡°We¡¯re just resting our minds. Is that really necessary?¡± Lin Qing transformed into the heavy truck and closed his eyes to rest. After ten years, he had long since broken away from the resting state of a normal human body. After a while, Huang Quan opened his eyes. ¡°You have a sharp tongue but a soft heart. You clearly want to help them, so why did you use that tone?¡± ¡°Because I don¡¯t want to get into trouble.¡± ¡°Haha, why? Are you afraid that they¡¯ll make you stay behind as their leader? Actually, it¡¯s not bad to be a leader. The feeling of controlling the lives of 100,000 people with a single thought is like being an emperor.¡± ¡°Ha, once I take over this place, I won¡¯t be an emperor enjoying himself but a freaking nanny. It¡¯s fine if I help them occasionally, but I¡¯ll never build a base for human survivors.¡± Huang Quan rolled over and blinked as he held his head. ¡°So, what do you want to do?¡± ¡°I want to live!¡± After a few seconds of silence, Lin Qing looked up at the sky. ¡°Also, if possible, I want to go up and see who the hell made the world like this.¡± Huang Quan chuckled. ¡°What if there are aliens up there?¡± ¡°Then I will destroy them.¡± ¡°How ambitious. I want to go up too, so let¡¯s destroy them together.¡± ¡­ The nights after the Cataclysm could only be described in two words: cold and dark! At night, the temperature dropped below -10¡ãC, causing the ground to freeze. Furthermore, dark clouds blocked out the light and made it impossible for people to see their fingers in front of them. The darkness gradually swallowed up everyone¡¯s courage. Lin Qing and Huang Quan had gone to bed early. But they were woken up by some noise after dusk. The soccer field was brightly lit and filled with people. The audience was full of men, women, and children shivering in their coats. At this moment, several Motorbots led by Jiang Cheng were standing at the rostrum. ¡°Why is the power cut off? It¡¯s such a cold day. If there¡¯s no heating, people will freeze to death!¡± ¡°It¡¯s minus ten degrees Celsius, but we can¡¯t even take a hot shower if the electricity is cut. You guys are made of steel, so of course you don¡¯t need to take a bath, but we do!¡± ¡°There are several gas stations in the city with diesel in there. There¡¯s no lack of resources!¡± Jiang Cheng froze. He didn¡¯t expect these people to show such a strong reaction just because he mentioned that electricity would be restricted. But when he thought of Lin Qing¡¯s words, he gritted his teeth and shouted into the microphone, ¡°Not only will electricity be cut, everyone will have to work in the future as well. We will be responsible for sweeping the steel beasts outside, while young people will follow behind to carry the supplies. Meanwhile, the elderly and children will stay at home to knit, make clothes, and do whatever they can.¡± Whoosh¡ª Jiang Cheng¡¯s words were like a bomb exploding. In an instant, everyone flared up and widened their eyes in disbelief! An old cell phone smashed against Jiang Cheng. A commotion broke out on the campus as words like human rights, freedom, equality, and so on thundered throughout. There was also a group of old ladies who rushed onto the stage to fight Jiang Cheng. In the distance, Lin Qing and Huang Quan were already wide awake. A shocked expression appeared on Huang Quan¡¯s face as the two of them watched everything. ¡°I finally understand why you didn¡¯t become the leader of the base. This is a living example of the farmer and the viper. ¡°He didn¡¯t ask them to fight with their lives on the line, yet they¡¯re already reacting so strongly when asked to do simple tasks. If they were to fight with steel beasts, the graves of their ancestors would need to be overturned.¡± To be fair, carrying some food behind the Motorbots wasn¡¯t a problem at all, let alone doing chores at the base. Moreover, not being able to take hot showers was even more ridiculous. Since they were about to die, why would they care about regulated showers? Jiang Cheng probably had more things to say, such as the fact that Motorbots would have preferential treatment. But if he said this, he would be killed. Looking at Jiang Cheng, who was motionless on the stage, Lin Qing said, ¡°Let¡¯s see how he¡¯ll suppress the situation now. If he can¡¯t even implement what he mentioned today, there¡¯s no need to even think about it in the future.¡± Da da da da da da!! Finally, Jiang Cheng made his move. He fired shots into the sky with his gun. The entire venue instantly fell silent, and the old ladies on the stage jumped off the stage without any regard for their lives. ¡°I call the shots here. Those who are willing to work may stay. As for those who are unwilling to work, leave!¡± ¡°This is our school. Why should we leave? If anyone should leave, it should be you!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. This is our school. You have no right to chase us away.¡± ¡°Yes, I do!!¡± Jiang Cheng shouted. ¡°For those who are willing to follow me, gather here tomorrow.¡± ¡°Get out!¡± ¡°Get out!¡± ¡°Get out!¡± Once one person shouted, there would be a second and a third. Then tens of thousands of people started shouting. All of them wanted Jiang Cheng to scram. In their eyes, they already had a lot of resources and could survive even without Motorbots. If they were hungry, they would go to the supermarket to get food. If they were thirsty, they would get something to drink. After all, there were so many hotels, supermarkets, convenience stores, and wholesale markets full of food. ¡°Shit, we¡¯ve gone too far!¡± Lin Qing touched his nose awkwardly. ¡°Let¡¯s retreat. We don¡¯t want someone to burn us with gasoline.¡± ¡°Yeah, we can¡¯t afford to offend them. Let¡¯s run!¡± Under the moonlight, the two of them left secretly. But they didn¡¯t expect to bump into Ye Daying, who was on duty at the school gate. ¡°Big Boss, Second Boss, wait for me. I¡¯ll go with you.¡± He could hear the loud commotion clearly. Furthermore, he didn¡¯t like this place to begin with. If not for Jiang Cheng, he would have left long ago. Now that Jiang Cheng was leaving, he was also planning to leave. Chapter 24 - Beast Tide Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Although Ye Daying was only a motorcycle, his speed of 400 km/h was among the top in the world and considered a rare talent. As such, Lin Qing didn¡¯t chase him away but kept him by his side. After telling the rest of the people on duty, Ye Daying left with Lin Qing. Then the three of them found an abandoned bridge to rest under and planned to leave at dawn. A few hours later, the sky gradually brightened and bathed the earth in a faint light. After waking up the other two who were fast asleep, Lin Qing climbed onto the bridge to observe their surroundings. ¡°Little Ying, where are the fiercest and most numerous steel beasts in this area?¡± ¡°Haha, Big Boss, you¡¯ve asked the right person. I¡¯ve traveled to all the surrounding areas, big and small, so I¡¯m most familiar with the areas where strong and weak beasts can be found. ¡°There are a total of eight steel beasts here that are at the same level as the python yesterday, and there are more than a hundred ordinary steel beasts clustered in dozens of groups. So, when are we going to attack?¡± Huang Quan¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Looks like we came to the right place. Let¡¯s do it then. Let¡¯s sweep this area first.¡± After a few steps, Lin Qing stopped. Huang Quan turned to look at him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Something¡¯s not right. Do you two hear anything?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Look, the water is moving.¡± Ye Daying pointed at the rippling river. ¡°Is something trying to come out?¡± Ripples appearing on the surface of the river¡­ Lin Qing frowned. ¡°This is a vibration. It isn¡¯t coming from the bottom of the river, but¡­¡± Roar! In the distance, tens of thousands of beasts were chasing after hundreds of thousands of commoners and Motorbots. All whom the beasts caught up to were instantly torn to pieces. Their shouts, screams, blood, and cries formed a living hell. Ye Daying¡¯s eyelids twitched as he said in a trembling voice, ¡°They¡¯re people from another base.¡± Although this was a suburb, it wasn¡¯t deserted at all. After all, this was a university city, and there were seven universities within a few kilometers, so the number of people here was shocking. Ordinary people who couldn¡¯t escape after the Cataclysm all headed to the universities, so groups of Motorbots like Jiang Cheng¡¯s built safe bases for them in the universities. This area had a population of around 800,000 people. Essentially, those who couldn¡¯t leave were all gathered here. Ye Daying was worried about the situation on Jiang Cheng¡¯s side and said solemnly, ¡°Big Boss, you guys retreat first. I¡¯ll inform Captain Jiang.¡± After finishing speaking, he transformed into his motorcycle form and left in the blink of an eye. It was morning, and many people were sleeping. So once the army of steel beasts charged over, they wouldn¡¯t be able to escape. Looking at the few gigantic creatures among the army of steel beasts, Lin Qing said unhurriedly, ¡°Looks like we don¡¯t need to look for them. They¡¯ve delivered themselves to our doorstep.¡± ¡°Are we going to attack them just like that? Isn¡¯t that a little too hasty?¡± There seemed to be no end to the army of steel beasts, which meant that there were at least tens of thousands of them. Huang Quan wasn¡¯t confident facing such a scene. ¡°Are you kidding me? How are we going to attack with so many of them? Of course, we¡¯re going to fight them one-on-one. We¡¯ll engage in street fighting in the many alleys of the city and destroy them. Let me make this clear first: the crystals each of us obtain from killing will count as our own.¡± Then Lin Qing turned into his heavy truck form and went toward the city with Huang Quan following behind him. ¡°Why do you think so many steel beasts are moving together? Is there an even bigger beast controlling them?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the specifics, but this situation is different from that of the python we encountered before.¡± When tens of thousands of steel beasts attacked Motorbots together, this situation was called a beast tide. This would occur every once in a while in every city. Lin Qing had encountered them many times in his previous life. The results of the higher-ups¡¯ research showed that beast tides weren¡¯t organized by a powerful steel beast but instead seemed to be spontaneous. Their goal was to wipe out all the Motorbots in the city so that no one could live a peaceful life. But no answer had been given as to exactly why this took place. ¡­ ¡°Captain Jiang, you can¡¯t just leave us behind!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I was wrong. Please bring me along.¡± ¡°Jiang Cheng, you are a police officer. Why don¡¯t you care about us? Are you worthy of your profession?¡± ¡°If you dare to run away, I will definitely report you to the higher-ups later!¡± At the university campus, everyone panicked when they knew that a large number of steel beasts was coming. As a result, the people who wanted to chase Jiang Cheng away begged him to stay. Seeing his gloomy expression, Ye Daying said, ¡°Captain, why bother with them? Let¡¯s retreat. The steel beasts will be here in at most two minutes. When the time comes, we won¡¯t be able to escape.¡± But Jiang Cheng couldn¡¯t bear to see this. Ye Daying cursed silently. ¡°I¡¯ve already said my piece. Anyway, I won¡¯t help them, so I¡¯ll leave first. Take care!¡± After Ye Dayang left, some of the Motorbots followed after him. Some ordinary people who believed that helping themselves was best also packed their belongings and left. ¡­ Boom! In the city, Lin Qing and Huang Quan punched tall buildings one after another. In a few minutes, fallen buildings split the broad eight-lane road into two. The two of them continued to topple buildings without rest, forming small paths that were three to four meters wide and had walls that were seven to eight meters tall. The countless forks eventually led to two places¡ªan abandoned construction site and an urban village. After doing all of this, Lin Qing smiled. ¡°Which path are you going to choose?¡± The road leading to the construction site was the widest, so it was inevitable that there would be the most steel beasts there. Furthermore, it was a dead end. Huang Quan definitely didn¡¯t dare to choose the road leading to the construction site. ¡°I¡¯m not as bold as you, so I¡¯ll choose the urban village. At least I can run if I can¡¯t win.¡± Lin Qing looked up at the sky. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s meet at noon.¡± ¡°I just realized that you usually hunt steel beasts in the morning or afternoon. That isn¡¯t auspicious. Can¡¯t you just do it at noon?¡± Lin Qing ignored his dry joke. He raised his middle finger at Huang Quan before turning to leave. ¡­ Everyone in the city was running for their lives as the beast tide chased after them. Those who had cars drove their cars, while those who didn¡¯t ran away on foot. Those who couldn¡¯t run would crawl into the residential buildings and find a place to hide. The Motorbots were also running for their lives, but their chances of survival were much higher than ordinary people¡¯s. After all, ordinary people couldn¡¯t compare to them, be it in terms of strength or speed. Lin Qing transformed into his heavy truck form, stopped in an alley, and then used a cloth to cover himself. Soon, he heard the roar of the steel beasts. Steel beasts came from the junctions in an endless stream as they chased after humans. After he silently counted to one hundred, Lin Qing transformed into his mecha form and punched the tall building beside him. The building, already on the verge of falling, sunk and collapsed, colliding with the building across the street. The building lay diagonally across the middle of the road and blocked the street, keeping a large number of steel beasts from continuing. The ground rumbled as Lin Qing caught up with the steel beasts running in front of him. Then he smashed his fist down. This simple action destroyed more than ten steel beasts, and countless cracks spread throughout the ground. Da da da da! With sufficient energy, he fired his laser gun bullets at the beasts without any restraint. The bullets that shone gold rained down on the steel beasts, who had no way of escaping as they were trapped in this narrow street. It was as if the God of Death had swung his scythe. The steel beasts collapsed one after another in waves like wheat being blown by the wind. ¡°Hahaha, how satisfying!¡± In Lin Qing¡¯s previous life, he was either being hunted by steel beasts or on the verge of being hunted down. This was the first time he was able to kill so freely. Chapter 25 - Chasing Thousands of Steel Beasts Al Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios In a span of 100 seconds, at least 4,000 Steel Beasts had run through this street. And Lin Qing had ambushed about 300 of them at the rear. They were all ordinary steel beasts who had not reached adulthood and had only evolved at most three or four times, so they couldn¡¯t withstand his laser gun at all. In ten seconds, they fell one after another, accompanied by the clattering of bullets. Some bodies were even torn apart. After killing most of the steel beasts, Lin Qing didn¡¯t use his gun to kill the remaining ones. After all, there were only a few dozen left, so it would be a waste of energy to continue firing his laser gun. Crack! He rushed over and crushed a steel beast with one hand. Then without slowing down, he punched the 12-meter tall steel wild boar in front of him. Its fangs broke, and its entire head exploded. This attack was rough and simple! Lin Qing aimed all his punches and kicks at the vital parts of the steel beasts without using any showy moves. The muffled sound of wind and thunder echoed in the air as his kicks snapped the tall buildings in half while he punched the steel beasts. He didn¡¯t leave a single corpse intact, smashing them all to smithereens. Boom! An intelligent steel monkey jumped onto his back, but he pulled it up and slammed it down. The next second, the cement cracked under his fist, leaving only a head in his hands. Adult Motorbots were so terrifying that a casual punch could have the force of a cannonball, so Lin Qing slaughtered these ordinary steel beasts easily. Two minutes later, the tall buildings on both sides of the street were badly damaged, and the ground and walls were awash with the corpses of steel beasts. Lin Qing took a deep breath and prepared to clean up the battlefield. Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes and raised his hand to shoot the wall on his left. ¡°It¡¯s me, Big Boss. Don¡¯t attack me.¡± The one-meter tall cement pillar in front of him shattered, and Ye Daying raised his hands as he quickly spoke. ¡°I heard gunshots and came here!¡± Lin Qing glanced at him. ¡°I¡¯ll chase after the other steel beasts. You follow behind and dig up all the crystals. If you can¡¯t bring them away, bury them in the ground and come back later to get them.¡± ¡°I promise to complete the mission!¡± Ye Daying immediately jumped down from the wall and started digging up crystals. His heart trembled as he looked at the corpses of the steel beasts all over the ground. The last time he saw such a heart-pounding scene was yesterday. Back then, it was also Lin Qing who had taken action. But back then, Lin Qing had only used his gun and didn¡¯t use any of his melee combat power. Just now, he clearly saw how Lin Qing had single-handedly fought dozens of steel beasts. He was too ferocious. His pair of iron fists crippled any beast who came into contact with them. His body was also unbelievably agile, and his combat experience was extremely rich. The various kicks, jump kicks, and elbow strikes that Lin Qing had executed made Ye Daying¡¯s scalp tingle. Furthermore, after the fight, his face wasn¡¯t red, and he wasn¡¯t panting. Instead, he even went to chase after a few thousand steel beasts. If others knew that someone was chasing after thousands of steel beasts alone, they might go crazy. ¡°If you dare to run away with my crystals, hehe¡­¡± Lin Qing sneered before he left, making Ye Daying¡¯s heart turn cold. More than ten minutes later, Ye Daying followed the sound of the gunshots while carrying a sack to the second battlefield. This was originally a luxurious district, but it was no longer luxurious now. Instead, it was a scene of devastation. Broken buildings and corpses of steel beasts littered the ground. There were many steel beasts here, more than a thousand of them, and there was no lack of large beasts that had evolved four times. When Ye Daying arrived, Lin Qing was sitting in the abandoned area with the Flame Devil in his hand. Beside him were layers upon layers of steel beast corpses that reached two stories high. ¡°Give me the crystals. Get to work!¡± Lin Qing waved his hand. ¡°Alright!¡± Ye Daying didn¡¯t dare to look into his eyes. He passed the sack of crystals over and turned around to continue digging out the crystals from the steel beasts. For some reason, he felt a chill down his spine as his back faced Lin Qing. He felt uneasy as he turned around. Crack, crack, crack! A crisp sound came from behind him. ¡°If you want to replenish your energy quickly, chew a crystal and eat it. This way, you¡¯ll digest it faster. But during ordinary times, you just have to swallow a few crystals to satisfy your hunger.¡± While speaking, Lin Qing continued to take out crystals from the sack to eat. His stamina depleted very quickly after using the Flame Devil, so he had to replenish his energy quickly, or it would be difficult to fight the next few tough battles. ¡°Gulp!¡± With his back facing Lin Qing, Ye Daying picked up a crystal and swallowed it. After all, taking out crystals was also hard work, and his hands were sore. After finishing the sack of crystals, Lin Qing took a deep breath and stood up. ¡°There¡¯s a tough battle ahead, so don¡¯t get too close.¡± The farther he walked, the stronger the steel beasts became. After all, there were several adult beasts on the battlefield. ¡°Got it!¡± Ye Daying nodded. Huang Quan had arranged to meet Lin Qing at noon. When it was time, Huang Quan dragged his tired body to the place they had agreed on. There weren¡¯t too many steel beasts on his side, but there were still quite a number of them. He had faced more than two thousand steel beasts. If not for the fact that he had been eating crystals and fighting the entire time, he would have long been exhausted to death. In the end, he ate all the crystals he had obtained in the morning without leaving any left over. However, this was not without its benefits. After successfully breaking through to adulthood, he became much thinner and wasn¡¯t as clumsy as before. Like Lin Qing, he also felt the power of the crystal in his body flowing through his entire body. The force of his fists was several times stronger than yesterday. Da da da da da! He waved his right hand and turned it into a gun barrel. Then countless laser bullets shot out like a surging river, but he could only see sparks flying out from his hand. ¡°Oh, not bad. It looks like you¡¯ve broken through!¡± Two figures, one big and one small, slowly walked out from the corner of the street. Lin Qing walked in front while Ye Daying carried four sacks on his back. The sacks were so heavy that his waist was almost crushed. Keep a low profile, keep a low profile! Huang Quan waved his hand with a smile. ¡°Let¡¯s spar when we get back later.¡± Huang Quan was confident that he was invincible among those at the same level as him. Previously, when his level wasn¡¯t as high as Lin Qing¡¯s, he naturally couldn¡¯t defeat him. But now, it was different, as both of them had reached adulthood. As long as Lin Qing didn¡¯t use the Flame Devil, he was confident in beating him. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll wait for you!¡± Lin Qing smiled sinisterly. ¡­ In the city center plaza, Lin Qing swallowed his crystals in large handfuls. This kind of rich behavior made Huang Quan and Ye Daying jealous. ¡°You really don¡¯t treat me like a human!¡± Ye Daying felt his heart ache, as though Lin Qing was eating his crystals. Lin Qing took out a handful of crystals and threw them to Ye Daying. There were around 30. ¡°Here, take it as today¡¯s fee.¡± ¡°Thank you, Big Boss! Big Boss is so handsome. Big Boss is awesome.¡± It was impossible for Ye Daying not to be envious that Lin Qing had obtained thousands of crystals. But even though he was envious, he knew how these crystals came about. There were several times when he saw that Lin Qing was in danger and had nearly lost his life. In comparison, he hadn¡¯t really done anything. It was already decent that he received a few dozen crystals for helping to pick them up. Furthermore, he had eaten a lot of crystals along the way to ¡®replenish his stamina¡¯. So it wasn¡¯t a loss! Under the watchful eyes of Huang Quan and Ye Dajing, Lin Qing quickly cleaned out the few sacks of crystals without leaving a single one. Then he stood up and stretched his body. Seeing that his appearance hadn¡¯t changed at all, Huang Quan was confused, but he breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. ¡°There¡¯s no time like the present. Shall we practice?¡± ¡°Sure!¡± The two of them got into a fighting stance as Ye Daying sat in the distance while eating his crystals excitedly and watching them intently. ¡°Let me tell you first. You can¡¯t use the Flame Devil.¡± Huang Quan warned him. After all, its destructive power was too strong, and he wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand it. He would be dead in one slash. ¡°Sure, no problem.¡± Lin Qing grinned and put his right hand behind his back. ¡°Not only will I not use it, but I will also use only one hand.¡± ¡°F*ck, you¡¯re too arrogant.¡± Huang Quan was furious. This was the first time he was humiliated like this. Someone actually wanted to beat him with a single hand. Chapter 26 - Armament Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Before yesterday, it was impossible for Lin Qing to torture Huang Quan with one hand without using the Flame Devil. Furthermore, Huang Quan had now broken through to adulthood, and both of them were at the same level. ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t hold back then!¡± Huang Quan sneered and twisted his neck. ¡°This is what you wanted. I didn¡¯t force you.¡± Their background and foundation were different, and his current strength was definitely above Lin Qing¡¯s. Thus, he didn¡¯t even need to go easy. He could take down Lin Qing, who was showing off by using only one hand, with a few punches. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Feel free to come at me.¡± Lin Qing stretched out his left hand and calmly said, ¡°If you can withstand a punch from me, then consider it my loss.¡± This was the first time Huang Quan had seen someone be so pretentious. Even Ye Daying couldn¡¯t stand it, let alone Huang Quan. ¡°How arrogant!¡± Huang Quan bent his body slightly and exerted strength beneath his feet. Then his entire body shot out like a spring as he launched a punch at Lin Qing¡¯s face. Lin Qing took half a step back to dodge the punch and clenched his left hand. Then from his fist to his arm, a layer of pitch-black ink covered it. Boom! He landed a punch on Huang Quan¡¯s stomach. At this instant, Huang Quan¡¯s expression changed dramatically. His facial features distorted, and his entire body flew out in a parabolic trajectory before crashing more than ten meters away and kicking up a cloud of dust. The crystal in Ye Daying¡¯s hand fell to the ground unknowingly, and he was in a daze. A full three minutes later, Huang Quan finally got up from the ground. His pupils shrank as he looked at Lin Qing¡¯s pitch-black arm. ¡°What is this? What kind of fist was that? An aura of death descended in that instant, and I felt like I was going to be pierced through.¡± Lin Qing shook his fist, and the black color faded away. He slowly walked over and said, ¡°It¡¯s normal because this is my sixth evolution.¡± ¡°Are you talking about the layer of black that covered your arm?¡± ¡°Yes! Every evolution is a dividing line, especially starting from the fifth evolution. It¡¯s not an exaggeration to say that the difference between evolutions is like the difference between heaven and earth. From the sixth evolution onward, your body will be strengthened by an additional layer that I call ¡®Armament¡¯. It will turn black when used. Regardless of whether it is the power or the intensity of your punches, they will greatly improve. Even a rocket launcher can¡¯t compare.¡± Lin Qing raised his left arm, and it turned black again. ¡°When your limbs and torso are completely covered, you will reach the Lord level.¡± He had just broken through and evolved for the sixth time after swallowing thousands of crystals. Although the foundation of every Motorbot was important, the number of times they evolved was equally important. If an adult Motorbot could defeat over a dozen fourth-evolution Motorbots, then one Lord could defeat over a hundred adult Motorbots. In his previous life, during the early stages of the Cataclysm, everyone was avoiding steel Beasts, so they missed the golden period to improve their strength. Later on, the steel beasts evolved faster over time, and it was no longer easy to hunt them. This led to the slow improvement of everyone¡¯s strength. The further they progressed, the more this was the case, forming a vicious cycle. During the ten years of the Cataclysm, Lin Qing had suffered a lot to break through to adulthood, but that was all. Back then, the streets were full of adult steel beasts, and Lords occupied all the areas. Putting aside hunting steel beasts, it would be good if they weren¡¯t hunted by them instead. Obtaining enough crystals to break through to the Lord level was simply a dream. In this life, he had a powerful foundation as a heavy truck and the Flame Devil in his hands, so he finally had enough capital to evolve six times. ¡°F*ck!¡± Huang Quan cursed. ¡°You¡¯ve already evolved six times, yet you¡¯re still fighting with me. Aren¡¯t you bullying me?¡± Lin Qing shrugged. ¡°You wanted to practice. I didn¡¯t force you.¡± ¡°F*ck, I¡¯ve been bullied!¡± Huang Quan raised his middle finger. He had been punched and almost died. ¡°You two rest here. I¡¯ll find a few steel beasts to adapt to my strength.¡± In his previous life, he had only reached adulthood, so the sixth evolution was a realm that he had never come into contact with before. He needed to familiarize himself with his strength as soon as possible. After leaving the plaza, Lin Qing found a small group of steel beasts and used his Armament-covered arm to fight them. He didn¡¯t kill the steel beasts in a few punches. Instead, he deliberately let them bite him and then used his left arm to block their bites. After practicing for half an hour, he retracted his Armament and pulled out the Flame Devil. ¡°I¡¯m more or less adjusted to my strength. It¡¯s time to send you guys off.¡± Lin Qing really wanted to know what the second tier of the Flame Devil was like. He pushed the switch to the second tier, and the crystal energy in his body was sucked away, as if a water pump had been installed. The blade light of the Flame Devil was unstable and flickered between a length of eight to ten meters. The blade light became stronger and stronger, and the surrounding temperature rose by 4¡ãC. Just when Lin Qing thought that he was going to be sucked dry, the Flame Devil stopped absorbing his crystal energy, and the blade light stopped at eight meters. This was the same length as before. However, its color was even redder, as if it was about to bleed blood. Furthermore, its high temperature was distorting the air within two meters of the sword. Looking at the 20-meter tall office building in front of him, Lin Qing raised the Flame Devil and slashed it downward. After delivering this attack, Lin Qing quickly turned off the second tier. After all, the energy in his body couldn¡¯t withstand a second absorption from the sword. Two seconds later, a black line appeared in the middle of the office building. With a gentle push, half of the office building collapsed, revealing a smooth cut surface. ¡°Hiss!¡± Lin Qing gasped. ¡°What a sharp blade. Who can withstand it!¡± The temperature of the Flame Devil at its first-tier was 1,500¡ãC, while its second-tier was 5,000¡ãC. It was now several times stronger. ¡°The second tier will definitely be able to cut through armor. With this sword in hand, I dare to challenge even a Lord!¡± He finally understood why the Huang Quan was called the Battle God in his previous life. With this sword, who would he not dare to slash? Challenging someone of a higher level wasn¡¯t a problem at all with this sword. Even though his crystal energy after six evolutions could only support one slash from the second-tier Flame Devil, it was enough. If he encountered someone stronger than him, he would feign weakness to take advantage of his opponent and deliver a slash at the crucial moment. They would definitely die! ¡­ Meanwhile, a few hundred meters away, Jiang Sheng was covering the escape of a group of people while dozens of steel beasts chased him from behind. Just as they turned a corner and ran out of the street, they saw a scene that they would never forget. A 18-meter-tall red mecha wielded a blood-red long sword and hacked a 20-meter-tall office building into two. Everyone was stunned, their minds fixed on this stunning blade. ¡°How is this possible?! How can a human do this?¡± ¡°Not good. Stop daydreaming and run!¡± Jiang Cheng returned to his senses and remembered that there were still steel beasts after their lives behind them. But as soon as he turned around, he saw the dozens of steel beasts turning around and running away. These beasts had seen this figure before, and it was too terrifying. Previously, this figure had chased after thousands of their kind and killed them. They had managed to escape from Lin Qing¡¯s sword after great difficulty, but they never expected to meet this god of death here once again. ¡°Oh?¡± Lin Qing turned his head and looked over, scaring the steel beasts into running even faster. A few of them accidentally tripped and rolled away. These animals didn¡¯t have high intelligence, but they knew how to avoid danger. They would simply run when they encountered powerful enemies. Gulp! In the crowd, people from other bases swallowed their saliva and said with difficulty, ¡°Who is this? One look from him is enough to scare the steel beasts away.¡± Jiang Cheng looked over with a complicated gaze and sighed. ¡°His name is Lin Qing, a very strong person.¡± He had seen heavy Motorbots that weighed several tons before leaving the main base, but Lin Qing was definitely the first in terms of combat strength among all the Motorbots he had seen. He doubted that there were many people who could fight Lin Qing in the entire country, let alone Handong Province. This guy was an expert, not a normal person. Thinking of the novels he had read when he was bored, Jiang Cheng had thought that Lin Qing might be the kind that had a system more than once. Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t make sense. After all, everyone had changed into Motorbots at the same time, so why was he so strong? Furthermore, he was ridiculously strong. Chapter 27 - Team Battle the Heavens Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Captain Jiang, are you still leading them?¡± Lin Qing and Jiang Cheng had returned together. Ye Daying¡¯s eyes widened when he saw the thousands of people behind them. He had already seen what kind of shameful behavior these ingrates had displayed. He didn¡¯t expect Jiang Cheng not to give up and keep these people by his side. ¡°Sigh, everyone has run away. We should save as many as we can.¡± Jiang Cheng looked back at the people covered in dust and sighed. ¡°After all, they have other bases to go to.¡± The beast tide had chased after hundreds of thousands of people. He didn¡¯t even know if he could survive, so how could he care about others? He had bumped into these people while he was trying to avoid the beasts, and they insisted on following him. Since there were pregnant women and children among them, he simply couldn¡¯t bear to leave them behind. Leaning against rubble with his eyes closed, Huang Quan sat on the ground without moving and said lazily, ¡°We¡¯ve killed most of the steel beasts nearby. If you want to live, go find food yourself before it gets dark.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± Jiang Cheng cupped his hands and turned to everyone. ¡°What are you waiting for? Go find some food. Are you waiting for me to feed you?¡± Trembling in fear, the civilians headed to the surrounding shopping malls and convenience stores in groups of three to five. After this battle, Jiang Cheng had matured a lot and was not as indecisive as before. Lin Qing nodded silently. He said to Huang Quan and Ye Daying, ¡°Let¡¯s go as well and continue our next adventure!¡± ¡°Wait!¡± Seeing that Ye Daying was leaving, Jiang Cheng stopped him. Then he took out a few boxes of bullets from his luggage and threw them over. ¡°These are special sniper bullets. There are still three hundred bullets left. I have no use for them, so I¡¯ll give them all to you.¡± ¡°Thank you, Captain Jiang! I also have some crystals here. Take them to increase your strength.¡± ¡°Get lost. I¡¯m much stronger than you, so I don¡¯t need them.¡± ¡°Hehe, not necessarily!¡± Ye Daying was grateful to Jiang Cheng for appreciating his abilities and couldn¡¯t be ungrateful, so he forced the crystals into Jiang Cheng¡¯s hands and ran away. Huang Quan also threw the second and third-evolution crystals that he had been playing with in his hands over and laughed. ¡°You did what I wanted to do but couldn¡¯t. If we have the chance to meet again, I will definitely drink a few barrels of gasoline with you.¡± ¡°Bye. There¡¯s no need to send us off!¡± Strong winds gathered the smoke in the city. Under the dark sky, three figures walked farther and farther away. Clenching the crystals tightly in his hand, Jiang Cheng looked at them leave with a complicated expression. ¡­ On the way to the next city, Lin Qing set the rules for their team. ¡°The two of you aren¡¯t young anymore, so the rules of our team have to change. In the future, all the crystals obtained from your individual operations will belong to you. As for group operations, we will distribute them according to the amount of work each person puts in. Any objections?¡± Ye Daying didn¡¯t dare to have any objections. After all, it would be good enough if he could follow along. Huang Quan raised his head and said, ¡°Of course, I have no problems with that.¡± ¡°Alright, let¡¯s move on to the next topic. I¡¯ll assign tasks to the two of you. As our sniper, Little Ying¡¯s mission in battle is to attract firepower, investigate the terrain, cover the retreat, and clean up the battlefield.¡± Ye Daying suddenly braked and created tens of meters of skid marks on the ground. He said with a bitter face: ¡°Big Boss, I have no problems with the rest, but covering our retreat is a little difficult.¡± Having to cover their retreat meant that even Lin Qing and Huang Quan had to run away. How powerful would the steel beasts be then? Wouldn¡¯t he be sending himself to death if he covered their retreat? ¡°Nonsense. If it was simple, I would do it myself. Why would I need you? Just tell me if you can do it or not.¡± ¡°Yes, I can!¡± Ye Daying gritted his teeth and forced a smile. ¡°It¡¯s difficult, but it doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s impossible.¡± Lin Qing was right. If it was simple, why would he need Ye Daying? If he wanted to gain a foothold in this powerful team, he had to show his worth. After all, anyone could clean up the battlefield and retrieve crystals, and who knew when a new member would replace him. Only by revealing his talents and displaying his irreplaceable nature would he be able to continue staying with them. Huang Quan snickered beside them. Lin Qing glanced at him. ¡°In the future, you will be the main firepower of our team. If anything happens, you will be the first to take the lead.¡± ¡°Gah!¡± The smile on Huang Quan¡¯s face froze. A few seconds later, he said, ¡°I have no problem with it, but why should I do so? You¡¯re stronger than me, so you should be the one taking the lead!¡± ¡°We should employ limited resources where they are needed most. Regardless of whether it¡¯s the Flame Devil or my Armament, the energy consumption is too great, and it¡¯s a waste to use them on small fries. The right thing to do is to kill a powerful enemy in a critical moment.¡± ¡°Also¡­¡± Lin Qing paused and touched his chin. ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s not cool to have an expert like me do everything? ¡± Huang Quan thought about it¡­ ¡°Can¡¯t you just say that you want to be a bully?¡± He was clearly so strong, yet he wanted to play dumb to take advantage of the enemy. Huang Quan was really speechless. Lin Qing played ¡®Today Is a Good Day¡¯ at the highest volume and said loudly, ¡°Since we¡¯re a team, I suggest giving our team a name.¡± ¡°Good! Since we¡¯re going to give our team a name, then we should give it an intimidating one!¡± Looking up at the dark clouds, Huang Quan said with a profound look in his eyes, ¡°Since our goal is to one day slaughter the gods in the sky, we should call ourselves¡­ F*ck the Heavens!¡± Ye Daying thought about it¡­ Lin Qing thought about it¡­ ¡°Ahem, ahem, ahem. This name is a little too high-profile and not nice at all. Why don¡¯t we call ourselves Battle the Heavens!¡± ¡°How domineering!¡± Ye Daying clapped. ¡°Actually, I think that F*ck the Heavens isn¡¯t¡­¡± Ignoring Huang Quan, Lin Qing waved his hand and said, ¡°Alright, since there are no objections, we¡¯ll call ourselves Battle the Heavens. Next up will be the captain. As the number one expert in the team, I will not shirk from this responsibility.¡± ¡°The vice-captain will be Huang Quan, and the first squad leader will be Ye Daying!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that I¡¯m an inhumane dictator. If you have any objections, just say so. I¡¯ll definitely listen to different opinions and actively make improvements.¡± Speechless, Huang Quan stared at him with his big eyes. The moment he opened his mouth, he decided the team name, captain, vice-captain, and first squad leader. Since he already arranged everything, what else did he expect them to say? Pa! Pa! Pa! As the number one henchman under Lin Qing, Ye Daying clapped his hands excitedly. ¡°No objections. We will definitely obey Captain¡¯s orders.¡± ¡°Why are you so excited?¡± Huang Quan rolled his eyes. ¡°There are three people in the team¡ªcaptain, vice-captain, and squad leader. You don¡¯t even have a single person under you!¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. I believe that our team will grow stronger in the future.¡± Lin Qing grinned and patted Ye Daying¡¯s shoulder in satisfaction. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a whole lot of fortune in the future. Let¡¯s make it big and strong. We will create glory!¡± ¡°Captain, I don¡¯t want fortune. I want an anti-tank Barrett!¡± ¡°No problem. I will definitely give you one!¡± What was the most important thing at the end of the world? Personal strength was one thing, but more importantly, you had to have a good team. How many could one person fight? Could you fight a thousand, ten thousand, or even a hundred thousand? It was not convenient to do many things alone when you were weak. Furthermore, you couldn¡¯t do everything by yourself either. But it was different when there were more people. Lin Qing had been coveting Huang Quan for a long time. After all, the future Battle God of the Land would definitely be a great help to his team. He wanted to create a team of Motorbots, one that could sweep through the world despite having a small number of people. This was the only way to gain a foothold in the Cataclysm and not fear the powerful. Since citizens had turned into Motorbots, governors and corporations of various regions would assemble their own troops and present a challenge to the central government. Thus, the Blue Dragon Empire was going to change soon. The strong preyed on the weak, and the world was in chaos. Without enough chips, you would not even have the qualifications to sit at this gambling table. Individuals would simply be eaten by predators and bankers. Chapter 28 - Han River Monster Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios On the way to Qingzhou, they had to pass by Yang City, which was the safe base of the Handong army. Two days later, in the afternoon, Lin Qing and the other two arrived at Han River Bridge, which was more than ten kilometers away from Yang City. The cold wind that blew in their faces was biting. Ye Daying stood on the bridge and looked down at the sparkling Han River. This bridge was 100 meters long and the closest route to Yang City. The strange thing was that no one walked on it. There was a sign at the edge of the bridge that said, ¡®Be careful of the monster in the river.¡¯ Over the past two days, Lin Qing and the others had hunted almost all the adult steel beasts in other parts of Handong and were preparing to leave Handong. Thus, the few of them headed straight for the Han River Bridge without taking a long detour. When they saw the sign on the bridge, not only did they not retreat, but they were even interested. ¡°It should be an adult steel beast.¡± Ye Daying¡¯s eyesight was good, and he saw a shadow flash in the river. Lin Qing said, ¡°Get to work and follow the usual rules.¡± But Huang Quan looked at the bridge and felt apprehensive. ¡°With my physique, can I still float if I fall down? Will I sink to the bottom of the river?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know whether you will sink, but if you don¡¯t move, I¡¯ll sink you immediately.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t rush me. I didn¡¯t say I wouldn¡¯t move.¡± They stepped onto the frozen bridge. Ye Daying walked in front while Lin Qing turned into his heavy truck form and followed behind them. When they reached the middle of the bridge, everything was calm, and there was no movement at all. Ye Daying ¡®suddenly¡¯ slipped, and the sack of crystals on his back fell to the ground, causing a few crystals to fall into the river and make plunking sounds. Seeing this, Lin Qing smiled. ¡°This kid is quite smart.¡± The whirlpool in the river grew bigger and bigger. Huang Quan stared at it from the corner of his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s coming up. Get ready.¡± Bang! Before Lin Qing could respond, the surface of the river exploded, and a gigantic black fish jumped out. It blocked out the sky with its body that was dozens of meters long and had four legs. Its opened mouth, revealing two rows of sharp sawteeth inside, was like a black hole. ¡°Captain, save me!¡± The giant fish was about to bite Ye Daying. It was planning to use its tail to propel itself from the surface of the water and land on the other side of the bridge after swallowing him. Boom! Huang Quan made his move. He quickly transformed into his mecha form and punched out with an earth-shattering fist that looked down upon everything. The air blasted apart, and an ear-splitting boom thundered. This was the ferocity of the Battle God in his previous life. The giant fish was just about to swallow Ye Daying when Huang Quan¡¯s fist smashed its waist, causing sparks to fly as a long row of scaly armor fell to the ground. The giant fish was sent flying more than ten meters away and crashed on the bridge. But Huang Quan felt that there was something wrong with the efficacy of his punch and shouted, ¡°My hand slipped on its scaly armor, and I missed!¡± This punch didn¡¯t land on the body of the giant fish but slipped at the instant of impact, reducing a lot of its strength. Even so, the giant fish was still quite exhausted. It had almost become crippled, but it got up and tried to escape. It jumped seven meters toward the other side of the bridge. From the punch just now, it could feel that it was no match for the yellow mecha, so if it continued fighting, it would die. It jumped into the air. But before it even reached the river, a red blade flashed in front of it. The giant fish¡¯s heart tightened as an aura of death rushed toward it. It subconsciously turned its head and shrunk its body. ¡°Pfft!¡± The giant fish landed on the bridge and trembled. Most of its tail was separated from its body as it lay on the ground and roared. The black scaly armor on its wound had turned red from the high temperature of the sword. After attacking once with the Flame Devil, Lin Qing didn¡¯t stop. He charged forward at almost the same moment as the giant fish landed and slashed it with his fiery red blade. ¡°Roar!¡± At such a close distance, the giant steel fish knew that it couldn¡¯t dodge at all and simply didn¡¯t dodge. Instead, it opened its mouth to bite Lin Qing¡¯s head. Veteran hunters all knew that animals were fiercest during their final counterattack before their death. Smart people generally wouldn¡¯t fight animals head-on during such moments. But Lin Qing was an exception. He didn¡¯t dodge or evade. Instead, he put his left arm in front of him to block the giant fish, allowing its mouth to bite down on him. Meanwhile, the blade in his hand didn¡¯t slow down at all, and a fiery red color appeared in the air. ¡°Idiot!¡± The giant fish could already foresee the fate of this mecha in front of it. It would bite off his arms and head. After all, its sharp teeth could easily bite through even steel and concrete. It had chewed at least 500 Motorbots to bits. Dang! Pu!! Two different sounds rang out at the same time as the giant fish bit Lin Qing¡¯s arm. But its sharp teeth that could usually bite a building couldn¡¯t even bite his arm. Lin Qing waved his sword, and an enormous head flew into the sky. The battle ended in less than three seconds. ¡°Captain is amazing!¡± With a chuckle, Ye Daying ran over to retrieve the crystal. It wasn¡¯t the first time the three of them had done something like this, so they cooperated very well. Adult steel beasts couldn¡¯t bite Lin Qing¡¯s arm at all when his Armament covered it. So every time, he would use his left hand as a shield while holding his sword in his right hand to kill the enemy instantly without fail. ¡°Stop!¡± Ye Daying had just taken out the crystal and had not placed it in his sack yet when a loud shout came from across the bridge. Five tanks quickly drove over with 15 heavy trucks behind them. All of them were red Tyrannical Dragons. They were the exact same model as Lin Qing, except that they weren¡¯t as tall as him. Some of them were 16 meters tall, while others were 17 meters tall. Judging from the ܇ (vehicle) characters on their chests, all of them had evolved at least twice. Most of them had evolved three times, and the most powerful Motorbot had evolved four times. ¡°Friend, this is our prey. We¡¯ve been waiting here for a few days!¡± said the fourth-evolution Motorbot from the end of the bridge. Huang Quan narrowed his eyes. ¡°So?¡± ¡°First, put down the energy crystal. Second, you have been conscripted. From now on, you must join the Yang City Motorbot Troops.¡± ¡°Ha, f*ck.¡± Huang Quan finally knew what the empire was like. It was no wonder Lin Qing didn¡¯t want to interact with the empire¡¯s people. After all, they captured any able bodies they saw. But what he didn¡¯t know was that the empire didn¡¯t capture any able bodies when their people saw them. After all, they didn¡¯t care about ordinary Motorbots. If there was anyone to blame, he and Lin Qing could only blame themselves, as the empire would never let go of such large Motorbots. ¡°What if I don¡¯t choose to do either?¡± The fourth-evolution heavy truck waved his hand, and the five tanks aimed their cannons at the three of them. ¡°You can try!¡± ¡°F*ck, do you think I¡¯m scared?¡± Lin Qing rubbed his fists and strode forward. ¡°Let me make this clear first. I¡¯m not joining the Yang City Motorbot Troops because I¡¯m afraid of you guys. I¡¯m only joining you guys mainly because I admire Governor Jiang¡¯s character and worship him.¡± ¡°Little Ying, give them the crystal!¡± Unwillingly, Ye Daying handed over the crystal that wasn¡¯t even warm yet. Then Lin Qing winked at Huang Quan, and the two of them followed. ¡°Captain, this crystal is huge!¡± exclaimed someone in the fleet of heavy trucks. The crystals they usually saw were only fist-sized, but this one was the size of a basketball. It was obvious how much energy it contained. ¡°Hmph, at least you know your place.¡± After receiving the crystal, the fourth-evolution heavy truck was very satisfied with Lin Qing¡¯s attitude. In the past 20 or so days of the Cataclysm, very few people dared not to show respect for the tanks. The weeds at the grave of the last stubborn Motorbot were already several feet tall. Suddenly, someone in the Yang City Motorbot Troop saw the sack on Ye Daying¡¯s back. He went forward to their captain and whispered, ¡°Captain, there¡¯s a fat sheep. There must be a lot of good stuff in the sack.¡± The fourth-evolution heavy truck¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°We are the most elite team among the Yang City Motorbot Troops. I think you two have potential. Give me all the crystals, and I¡¯ll help you to join us.¡± ¡°Hehe, Big Brother, what team is that?¡± Lin Qing took a few steps forward and reached the end of the bridge. ¡°Have you heard of Nine Nether?¡± Huang Quan stepped forward with interest. ¡°No, can you introduce them to us?¡± ¡°This team was created by Lord Jiang. Only large Motorbots that have evolved at least once can join. You will receive the highest welfare benefits in Yang City, and you can receive over a hundred crystals every month.¡± ¡°Oh, I see!¡± Lin Qing took out the handle of the Flame Devil and said with a smile, ¡°Then I¡¯d better not join you.¡± Chapter 29 - Trouble Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios In an instant, Lin Qing activated the first tier of the Flame Devil, and the fiery-red blade appeared. Looking down from above, he waved his blade at the fourth-evolution heavy truck. Rip! Its 1,500¡ãC temperature was enough to melt steel. Coupled with the strength of Lin Qing¡¯s sword skills, the head of the heavy truck soared into the sky as the heavy truck fell to his knees. Boom! Meanwhile, Huang Quan punched one of the tanks that were as hard as iron. Countless Motorbots were terror-stricken when they saw the tank being smashed into smithereens. Even the electric scooter Motorbot inside the tank had been crushed. ¡°Fire!¡± The team of heavy trucks reacted. The four tanks turned their cannons and aimed at the three of them. Lin Qing was disdainful. If he were on the bridge, he would still be a little afraid, worried that he would be shot like a sitting duck, or the bridge would collapse and he would fall into the river. But it was different now. Beating them up at such a close distance was child¡¯s play. The motorcycle Motorbot in one of the tanks had a ferocious expression as he aimed his cannon at Lin Qing. ¡°Go to hell.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s Armament covered his left arm as he held the muzzle of the cannon with his five fingers. There was a loud bang, but the shell hadn¡¯t shot out. Instead, the tank exploded. Lin Qing waved the Flame Devil in his hand and split the tank into two. Meanwhile, after Huang Quan punched and shattered the remaining tanks, he fired his laser gun, and bullets poured out. Then the Motorbots collapsed one by one. At the bridge, Ye Daying held his sniper rifle and raised his gun toward the sky. Bang! A bullet shot through a drone that had been investigating them from the sky. Then it wobbled as it flew away into the distance. ¡°Captain, we have to retreat quickly. The drone definitely saw us. A large number of reinforcements will arrive soon.¡± With the principle that he would never let go of anything that he passed by, Lin Qing quickly took out the crystals of the heavy trucks and then started to run. Ye Daying stayed behind to observe the situation while Lin Qing and Huang Quan ran side by side toward a road. ¡°F*ck, I¡¯m really associating myself with a criminal here. You actually dared to touch the empire¡¯s tanks. Do you want to die? Hundreds of thousands of soldiers will annihilate us in minutes.¡± The fight was unbelievably fierce, and Huang Quan was in a panic afterward. He had faced imperial tanks that he typically had to bow down and show respect to, but these tanks were now crippled. He might even be wanted by the empire in the future. ¡°What are you panicking for? The empire is in such a mess now, so it doesn¡¯t have the time to care about you. Besides, who knows if the current Yang City troops are under Jiang or Shen.¡± Jiang was the governor of Handong, while Shen was the last name of the Blue Dragon Empire imperial family. If Lin Qing remembered correctly, after the Cataclysm in his previous life, Jiang Tianyun, the governor of Handong, occupied Yang City and established a force here. Then he became a local tyrant and turned into an Overlord. There were many people like Jiang Tianyun, not just one or two. As long as it was a corporation, company, or group with some ability, they would become independent. This was a true struggle between a hundred clans! Lin Qing¡¯s team was small and could run away at any time. He would simply get rid of the imperial army if it dared to block his way, not to mention Jiang Tianyun¡¯s troops. ¡°But they still have hundreds of thousands of Motorbots! They even have countless rifles and cannons!¡± Huang Quan¡¯s face turned pale. ¡°If they come after us, it won¡¯t be enough even if we have ten lives.¡± ¡°Calm down. We will face many such things in the future, and there will only be more people who want to kill us. Who does Jiang Tianyun think he is? He can¡¯t even be ranked among the top.¡± ¡°Brother, is it too late for me to get off the ship now?¡± The hum of helicopter propellers buzzed in the sky, and Lin Qing looked up. ¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s too late!¡± Five minutes later, Ye Daying, who stayed behind to cover the retreat, saw troops coming and quickly caught up with Lin Qing and Huang Quan. Compared to his speed of 400 km/h, the two of them were as fast as turtles. ¡°Captain, we¡¯ve stirred up a hornet¡¯s nest this time!¡± Ye Daying¡¯s lips were trembling as he spoke. ¡°There are ten military helicopters, and all of them have armed weapon systems.¡± Lin Qing looked at him with disdain. ¡°It would be fine even if they were all Motorbots, let alone ten military helicopters. We can handle them.¡± Motorbots were too agile, which was quite a problem for him. But it wasn¡¯t a big problem if he was only facing ten ordinary military helicopters. They would be like sitting ducks in the sky, and he could take each helicopter down with a wave of bullets. ¡°I didn¡¯t finish my sentence. There are still more than a hundred heavy trucks that are more than ten meters tall. It¡¯s quite scary!¡± Clang! Huang Quan accidentally knocked into the protective railing by the side of the road. His eyes widened. ¡°Did you say more than a hundred heavy trucks?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a massive black mass of at least a hundred heavy trucks. I also saw small Motorbots with rocket launchers following behind them.¡± My god¡­ Huang Quan¡¯s eyelids were trembling. ¡°I told you we couldn¡¯t fight them. Now that they¡¯ve come knocking on our door, there are military helicopters in the sky and rocket launchers on the ground. They¡¯ll turn us into ashes in a few rounds.¡± ¡°Stop talking. You were the one who killed the most tanks!¡± Lin Qing accelerated while speaking. ¡°It¡¯s definitely not possible to get on the highway since they¡¯ll catch up sooner or later. ¡°There¡¯s a scenic spot not too far ahead called the Officer Appointment Deck. Let¡¯s run there.¡± The Officer Appointment Deck was located on White Head Mountain outside of Yang City. It had steep terrain with a wide mountaintop that would become visible after climbing a few hundred meters uphill. In ancient times, an emperor had personally led an expedition here and appointed officers at this place. Because of this history, it was developed as a tourist attraction early on. Stone steps that wound all the way to the top were built on the slope, and monuments and pagodas were erected on the mountaintop. Behind the Officer Appointment Deck was mountain range that stretched over dozens of kilometers. Every year, it would attract many tourists to cross it on foot. Swish! The military helicopters above launched portable missiles at the three of them. The first missile fell on them, then the second, then the third¡­ Continuous explosions resounded. As the missiles landed, they blasted huge pits into the ground. The three covered their heads and fled. Ye Daying shouted, ¡°Captain, I¡¯ll go to the Deck to scout the path for you.¡± He accelerated as he spoke. A burst of sound blasted out, and he disappeared completely. Even the military helicopters were not as fast as him. ¡°Let¡¯s get rid of the ones flying in the sky first.¡± Lin Qing transformed into his mecha form, armed his left arm with his Armament, and turned around to punch a missile. Boom! The missile and fist collided, causing an explosion. The powerful shockwave knocked him back a few meters as countless metal shrapnels pelted across his body. Da da da da da!!! Da da da da da!! Lin Qing and Huang Quan opened fire with their laser guns and swept toward the military helicopters in the sky. Caught off guard, five helicopters were knocked down. The other military helicopters were like birds startled by the pull of a bow. They flew high in the sky and didn¡¯t dare to approach them. With some buffer time, Lin Qing and Huang Quan rushed toward the Officer Appointment Deck. Before long, the army of over a hundred heavy trucks arrived. Their leader, 18 meters tall and dressed in blue, looked at the remains of the military helicopters and said angrily, ¡°Trash, all f*cking trash. Didn¡¯t I say that they¡¯re Motorbots who have evolved five times and that they should stay far away?¡± ¡°Chase them immediately. Hit them with missiles and firearms. Their bodies won¡¯t be able to take it.¡± When an ordinary soldier operating one of the military helicopters heard this, his face turned red. Then he clenched his cyclic stick tightly and spat out a sentence from between his teeth. ¡°Yes, Captain Jiang!¡± They had never suffered such humiliation before. It was fine if they were scolded by their team captain, but who was Jiang Yanjun? He was a construction worker before the Cataclysm who relied on his distant relationship with Governor Jiang to do his business. He also had a batch of heavy trucks under him. After the Cataclysm, he brought this batch of heavy trucks to join Jiang Tianyun and became an important figure in his troops. Jiang Tianyun had even asked him to form a large fleet of Motorbots and become their commander. Chapter 30 - Huang Quan Versus Nine Neth Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Bang! At the pavilion at the top of the Officer Appointment Deck, Ye Daying saw Lin Qing and Huang Quan being chased from 1,000 meters away. He made up his mind and shot down a military helicopter. The pilot died on the spot, and the helicopter fell straight down. ¡°F*ck, there¡¯s no way out now. Captain, don¡¯t abandon me!¡± After he killed the imperial military helicopter, his palms were sweaty. Before the Cataclysm, he was just an ordinary commoner who abided by the law. He had never even entered a government office since he was young. He never expected to go against the empire one day. However, it was quite exciting. Lin Qing and Huang Quan covered the distance of 1,000 meters in the blink of an eye. They arrived at the foot of the Officer Appointment Deck, transformed into their mecha forms, and started climbing up the mountain. Behind them were countless missiles, rocket launchers, and machine guns attacking them. In just a few seconds, the flames of war covered the thousand-year-old landscape. Smoke and fire rose everywhere, and gravel exploded, forming potholes all over. Boom! A missile formed a white line in the air as it flew toward Huang Quan from behind. Lin Qing grabbed the missile with his Armament-augmented left hand. An explosion sounded behind them. Huang Quan was struck by the impact of the explosion and fell to the ground. ¡°You go first. I¡¯ll hold them off.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s calm voice came. Huang Quan didn¡¯t think too much about it and could only get up to run toward the top of the mountain. As long as he could climb up this mountain, he would be unrestrained. Bang! Bang! Bang! At the top of the mountain, Ye Daying aimed his sniper rifle at the military helicopters one after another. Every shot was accompanied by the fall of a helicopter. Military helicopters were a scarce resource, and it was almost impossible to rebuild them in a short time. Jiang Yanjun cursed in anger as he watched the helicopters fall one by one. He would definitely be punished for losing so many military helicopters. ¡°Men, stop firing! Destroy that lousy motorcycle on the mountaintop first!¡± More than ten small Motorbots stood in a row with rocket launchers on their shoulders. They aimed at the peak of the mountain and pulled their triggers. ¡°F*ck!¡± Ye Daying¡¯s eyelids twitched. He put his rifle away and jumped down from the pavilion. This side had an incline of more than 70 degrees and a slope that stretched over 100 meters. And at the bottom of the mountain was an endless forest. ¡°Captain, this is all I can do. We¡¯ll meet again if there¡¯s a chance!¡± Boom! More than ten rocket launchers were fired at the same time. And the mountaintop, which was the size of a basketball court, was instantly flattened. Huang Quan, who hadn¡¯t reached the top of the mountain, was shocked. ¡°Luckily, I didn¡¯t go up.¡± With his body, a shot from a rocket launcher would be able to penetrate him. He would have died several times with so many rockets hitting him at the same time. On the mountainside, Lin Qing unsheathed the Flame Devil and became a god of death. The fiery-red blade light flashed as he reaped the lives of countless people. Each blade strike caused a heavy truck to collapse. The dozen or so heavy trucks that had caught up to him died instantly. Meanwhile, the heavy trucks rushing up were so scared that they stopped in their tracks. They were all heavy trucks, so how could he be so good at fighting? He killed each truck with one slash. Was he chopping cabbage? ¡°Rocket launchers, pay attention. Don¡¯t break that weapon.¡± Jiang Yanjun was instantly envious when he saw the Flame Devil, as this was truly a divine weapon. ¡°The rest of you, attack together and exhaust him to death. Even if we chase him out of the province today, I will still catch him.¡± Without the rocket launchers attacking Lin Qing, it was much easier for him. Meanwhile, at the top of the mountain, Huang Quan fired his laser gun and protected Lin Qing to the mountain top in no time. At this moment, the two of them were panting, and Lin Qing almost couldn¡¯t hold his sword. As far as the eye could see, it was a scene of devastation from the foot of the mountain to halfway up the mountain. There were corpses of Motorbots everywhere, as well as more than 70 large Motorbots. This was the power of firearms in the early stages of the Cataclysm. Coupled with Motorbots, their combat effectiveness more than doubled. If not for the military helicopters and rocket launchers, he and Huang Quan would have fought and retreated at the same time, and the hundreds of Motorbots would have all died as well. ¡°You can¡¯t run anymore. Hand over that weapon, and I¡¯ll let you die with an intact corpse!¡± With his hands behind his back, Jiang Yanjun looked at Lin Qing from 100 meters below. Looking back at the endless forest, Lin Qing sneered. ¡°You aren¡¯t qualified enough.¡± As long as he was willing, he could jump into the mountains at any time. With the forest and so many mountains, it would be extremely difficult for them to catch up to him. Moreover, the mountains were high, and the forest was dense. This environment wasn¡¯t suitable for a large army to fight in. ¡°Heh, do you really think I spent so much time just to exhaust your stamina?¡± Lin Qing frowned. He had an unpleasant premonition. He looked into the distance and saw that there were nearly a thousand Motorbots rushing over from the road below the mountain. There were heavy trucks, excavators, front loaders, dump trucks, and all sorts of construction vehicles. ¡°The Nine Nether Army has a total of 3,000 people. I picked them out from hundreds of thousands of Motorbots, and they are all large Motorbots. It¡¯s not too late to surrender now.¡± Facing almost a thousand large Motorbots, Lin Qing couldn¡¯t possibly handle them, even if he had three heads and six arms. Huang Quan forced a smile and said, ¡°Brother, it¡¯s all a misunderstanding. As the saying goes, no discord, no concord. I still have some crystals here. Take them as compensation and just forget about this matter, okay?¡± Jiang Yanjun smiled faintly as he looked at the wreckage of the military helicopters and the corpses of Motorbots strewn all over the mountain. ¡°If you said this half an hour ago, I could still consider your proposal. ¡°But now that you¡¯ve killed so many of my people, do you think that it¡¯s as easy as compensating me with a few crystals? You will die, and your sword will stay behind.¡± Earlier, he had received news that someone had killed one team from the Nine Nether Army, so he had specially brought his men over. But he didn¡¯t expect that he would lose so many people along the way. The more he fought, the angrier he got. There was no turning back. This could no longer be stopped. Even with his status, he would definitely be punished when he returned. Only by taking back the red sword could he redeem himself. ¡°You want my sword? Sure.¡± Lin Qing smiled crazily. ¡°How about a bet?¡± ¡°What kind of bet?¡± ¡°All of us won¡¯t use firearms. I¡¯ll challenge all of you here. Whether you can take me down depends on your capabilities.¡± ¡°F*ck, you¡¯re crazy!¡± Huang Quan grabbed Lin Qing¡¯s shoulder in agitation. ¡°If you turn around and run into the mountains, you¡¯ll still live. But if you stay, you¡¯ll die.¡± Jiang Yanjun roared with laughter before withdrawing his expression and saying solemnly, ¡°Alright, I agree!¡± Lin Qing and Huang Quan were adult Motorbots and had laser guns. So after a few rounds of attacks, even if the Nine Nether Army could attack them from downhill, it would suffer heavy casualties. Although he had rocket launchers on his side, once Lin Qing was forced into a corner and destroyed his sword, it wouldn¡¯t be worth it. ¡°Huff, huff! Captain, why aren¡¯t you leaving yet? I was waiting below for a long time!¡± Covered in dust, Ye Daying climbed up the slope. ¡°We can¡¯t leave.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s eyes were shining as he looked at the one thousand large Motorbots. ¡°Even if we hide in the forest, the possibility of being caught is still very high. ¡°The only way is to exhaust a large number of their troops first and then¡­ wait for nightfall!¡± It was already afternoon when they killed the giant fish, so it wasn¡¯t far from sunset now. If they hid in the forest then, they wouldn¡¯t be able to see their own hands in front of them, and Jiang Yuanjun wouldn¡¯t be able to catch up. Even if Jiang Yuanjun and his troops dared to chase after them, they wouldn¡¯t dare to turn on any lights. They could only blindly look for them. Furthermore, the night was the home ground of steel beasts. If they turned on any lights, they would simply become sitting ducks. ¡°Give me the giant fish¡¯s crystal. You two retreat first!¡± With an expression full of worry, Ye Daying took out the giant fish¡¯s crystal from his sack. He had already run away, but somehow, he came back. For some reason, he just wanted to stay and fight alongside Lin Qing. Huang Quan grabbed a handful of crystals from his sack and swallowed them. Then he shouted down the mountain, ¡°It won¡¯t be much to include me too, right?!¡± Jiang Yanjun¡¯s eyes were dark. He looked at Huang Quan as if he had killed his father. After all, he had killed just as many people as Lin Qing did. ¡°I never intended to let you go!¡± Chapter 31 - Young People Dont Care About Virtues Chapter 31: Young People Don¡¯t Care About Virtues ¡°Didn¡¯t we agree back then? I¡¯m the main damage dealer in this team. How can I let you, the captain, charge in front?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Captain. The mission you gave me was to cover the retreat. Since the both of you haven¡¯t left, how can I leave?¡± ¡°Alright then. We¡¯ll follow the same old rules. Get to work!¡± Lin Qing didn¡¯t say anything like ¡®you go first, I¡¯ll take the rear¡¯. Instead, he ate the giant fish¡¯s crystal and got to work. He shouted down the mountain, ¡°Remember, my name is Lin Qing. I¡¯ll kill your people!¡± ¡°My name is Huang Quan!¡± ¡°My name is Ye Daying!¡± ¡°F*ck you, are you taking advantage of me?!¡± Lin Qing was speechless. ¡°I don¡¯t need to remember the names of the dead.¡± With a gloomy face, Jiang Yanjun waved his hand. ¡°The slope can¡¯t accommodate too many people, so three hundred people will take turns going up the ladder. Be careful of that red sword.¡± After Lin Qing consumed the crystal of an adult steel beast, his stamina had almost recovered. He said in a low voice, ¡°Get ready. They¡¯re coming!¡± A group of 300 people rushed forward. Each of them was at least 12 meters tall, and just looking at them all made their hearts tremble. ¡°Kill!!¡± Ten seconds later, the first batch from the Nine Nether Army arrived. An excavator Motorbot punched Lin Qing in the chest. His arm was a meter-long drill that was spinning at high speed. This drill was specially used to open mountains. A hole would instantly appear even in a boulder that was several tons. He had experimented with the drill before and discovered that ordinary Motorbots would be crippled after being hit. It would create a hole as large as a washbasin! Without dodging, Lin Qing raised his Armament-equipped left arm and punched out. ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk, you¡¯re courting death!¡± The excavator Motorbot sneered. At the foot of the mountain, Jiang Yanjun¡¯s expression changed. ¡°Not good!¡± These troops came later and didn¡¯t know Lin Qing¡¯s methods at all. Apart from the sword, his blackened arm was also a great killing weapon. Not only was it invincible, but its offensive power was also terrifying. But it was too late to remind them now! Crack! Their fists collided, and the drill of the excavator Motorbot shattered, followed by his entire arm. Then Lin Qing¡¯s second punch landed on his chest and penetrated it. As Lin Qing retracted his fist, he took out the crystal and swallowed it. His movements were as smooth as water and took less than two seconds. As the rest of the Motorbots surrounded them, Lin Qing pulled out the handle of the Flame Devil and slashed at them. Seeing his crazy actions, the few heavy trucks almost laughed out loud. ¡°Didn¡¯t your mother teach you that you can¡¯t slash with the handle of the sword¡­ Pfft!¡± Suddenly, the ferocious dragon¡¯s mouth at the handle of the Flame Devil spat out a red, eight-meter-long blade beam. The air instantly heated up. The four heavy trucks only saw a flash of light before they felt their vision slipping down and they were cut in half. Bang! Ye Daying appeared out of nowhere, smashed the chests of the dead heavy trucks with a few well-practiced punches, and quickly took out their crystals. On the other side, Huang Quan waved his steel fists and shattered each heavy truck with one punch. In less than half a minute, seven heavy trucks had fallen. None of them had been able to reach the top of the mountain. Lin Qing waved his Flame Devil, and a few large motorbikes died with every slash. Not a single one of them had an intact corpse. Either their heads had flown away, or their waists had been cut off. The two of them worked together, one on the left and the other on the right, causing heavy trucks to collapse one after another. After Lin Qing killed more than a hundred Motorbots, his hands were sore. Just when Jiang Yanjun thought that Lin Qing could no longer hold on, Ye Daying brought a pile of crystals to Lin Qing and Huang Quan. Jiang Yanjun spat out a mouthful of blood as he stared at the scared heavy trucks retreating non-stop. ¡°Everyone, attack! If anyone dares to take a step back, I¡¯ll kill you first!¡± The two people at the top of the mountain were clearly exhausted and would die in at most two minutes. But these bastards had actually been scared away and gave them time to recover for nothing. One hundred people had been sacrificed for nothing. After eating a few crystals, Lin Qing looked up at the sky and said in a low voice, ¡°It¡¯s about time. Don¡¯t fight them head-on!¡± It would be dark in at most ten minutes. By then, if they hid in the mountains, even the gods wouldn¡¯t be able to find them. The reason they didn¡¯t run earlier was that there was still some time before the sun set. So even if they entered the forest, they would still be chased relentlessly and might be caught if they stayed for too long. At the foot of the mountain, Jiang Yanjun saw Lin Qing looking up at the sky and reacted within a few seconds. ¡°Not good. He¡¯s going to wait until dark to get away. Hurry up and charge after him. We can¡¯t let them get away.¡± If he let them escape after losing more than a hundred Motorbots, he would have to suffer a loss when he got back. Jiang Yanjun found a large battle-ax and personally led the charge toward the peak. ¡°Old Huang!!¡± Lin Qing shouted. He and Huang Quan simultaneously revealed their laser gun barrels, raised their hands, and swept toward the mountainside. Da da da da da!!! Countless bullets flew out, and a large number of heavy trucks collapsed. Jiang Yanjun shrunk his head and retreated. He cursed as his arm turned into a gun and shot even without looking. ¡°F*ck, young people don¡¯t talk about virtues anymore. We agreed not to use firearms!¡± ¡°There can never be too much deception in war. Do you really think I¡¯m an idiot who would foolishly fight with you?¡± Their laser guns were much more lethal than their fists or the Flame Devil. A group of Motorbots would collapse with every wave of shots. In less than five seconds, dozens of Motorbots died. ¡°Don¡¯t stop. Continue charging forward. We¡¯re only a few meters away. We have to reach the summit even if we die!¡± Jiang Yanjun was furious. He was 40 years old this year and had done all kinds of dirty work, including both legal and illegal businesses. Although there were no human lives on his hands, he had chopped plenty of people. When had he ever suffered such a loss? When two sides were fighting, the most taboo thing was to be scared. Even if the other party didn¡¯t care about their lives, as long as they went up, even Lin Qing would die. After all, no matter how strong someone was, they only had one pair of hands. With hundreds of people ganging up on them at the same time, they would die in less than three seconds. Clang! A Motorbot tightly held Huang Quan¡¯s gun muzzle, and in an instant, more than ten people pounced on him. Seeing Huang Quan about to die, Lin Qing strode forth and slashed out with the Flame Devil, sending several heads flying. Lin Qing knew that he was going to be hit even without turning his head. His arm turned black to block the attack. With a clang, his arm came into contact with Jiang Yanjun¡¯s battle-ax. In just a few seconds, more than a hundred Motorbots had climbed up to the mountain peak and surrounded them. With a cold glance, Lin Qing shouted, ¡°Old Huang, retreat!¡± ¡°Hmph, you want to leave after killing so many of my people? How can it be so easy? If you run away today, it will be my loss!¡± Shua!! Lin Qing activated the second tier of the Flame Devil, and the blade turned even redder under the high temperature of 5,000¡ãC. The temperature rose, and the surrounding air distorted from the heat. Lin Qing turned around and rushed into the group of heavy trucks. Then using all his strength, he swung his arm! The blade and the handle of the Flame Devil were slightly more than ten meters long in total, while Lin Qing¡¯s arm was over six meters long. This resulted in a total length of 17 meters. Lin Qing unleashed a terrifying slash. With him as the center, all the Motorbots within a radius of 17 meters were cut in half. Screams echoed through the mountains. Then the surroundings were empty. Lin Qing put away his sword and jumped down the mountain slope with Huang Quan and Ye Dayang following closely behind him. Meanwhile, those who had survived were shocked and scared. No one dared to chase after them in fear that he would attack them again. Halfway up the mountain, Jiang Yanjun held his battle-ax tightly as he walked up. When he saw the corpses on the ground, he was furious. He had felt that something was wrong when Lin Qing¡¯s blade was bright red. His years of experience in the underworld made him feel scared, and he subconsciously retreated. If he hadn¡¯t dodged quickly, he would have been among the people lying on the ground. ¡°Captain Jiang, do you want to chase after them?¡± ¡°Sure, you lead the team.¡± Jiang Yanjun looked at his subordinate calmly. Seeing his subordinate not saying anything, he suddenly swung the battle-ax in his hand, and a head fell. ¡°F*ck, what are you looking at? Clean up the battlefield and retreat!¡± The sky was completely dark, and Lin Qing had already disappeared into the forest. Jiang Yanjun clenched his fists tightly as he looked in the direction that Lin Qing had left in, and his killing intent surged. ¡°Lin Qing, I¡¯ll remember you!¡± Chapter 32 - Becoming Famous Chapter 32: Becoming Famous Lin Qing and the other two ran through the forest all the way to a small city a few hundred kilometers away from Qingzhou. They ran hundreds of kilometers without rest all night. After arriving in the small city, they lay on the ground, not wanting to move at all. ¡°Damn it! We suffered a huge loss this time. We almost lost everyone just because of a crystal. If I had known, I wouldn¡¯t have made a move!!¡± It would be a lie to say that he didn¡¯t regret it. Even Lin Qing didn¡¯t expect things to turn out this way in the end. More than a dozen military helicopters and over a thousand Motorbots had joined the battle at the same time. They even used rocket launchers and other weapons. If not for the fact that the sky had turned dark and Jiang Yanjun was desperate for the Flame Devil, they would have died long ago. ¡°Are you only enlightened now, Big Brother?¡± Huang Quan grumbled when he thought about the possibility of becoming a wanted criminal. He was a rich second-generation scion who had changed completely after meeting Lin Qing. He was supposed to live a good life, but now he was facing bullets and rocket launchers and struggling on the brink of death every day. On the other hand, Ye Daying took out a plastic bag from behind him and said tiredly but excitedly, ¡°Not necessarily. I think this trip was worth it!¡± He opened the plastic bag, revealing around 60 shiny crystals lying inside. He had dug them up while Lin Qing and Huang Quan killed the troops of the Nine Nether Army. At that time, everyone was watching the two of them fight, so no one cared about Ye Daying. The 60 or so crystals were at least second-evolution crystals. Many of them were third-evolution crystals, and there were even several fourth-evolution ones. This small bag alone was worth thousands of ordinary steel beast crystals. Apart from these crystals, Lin Qing and Huang Quan had also replenished their energy during the battle. They had achieved a complete victory this time, and their rewards were equivalent to several days of hunting. It wasn¡¯t a loss at all. ¡°Ahem, ahem. I¡¯m seriously injured. I¡¯ve suffered a few stabs at my waist, and I need to replenish my energy,¡± Huang Quan said weakly as he supported his waist. Lin Qing shot a glance at him. Huang Quan¡¯s back was full of cuts from various weapons. There were even a few bullet holes. ¡°Sure, you can take twenty crystals then!¡± Ye Daying was eagerly expecting crystals as well. But when he thought about how he didn¡¯t contribute much, he smiled bitterly and looked away. These crystals had all been obtained by Lin Qing and Huang Quan, but he didn¡¯t obtain any. ¡°Little Ying, take twenty crystals too. We¡¯ll use the rest as our reserves.¡± Then Lin Qing grabbed ten crystals and tossed them into his mouth. With bulged cheeks, he said, ¡°This was a team operation, and Little Ying put in a lot of effort. If you hadn¡¯t supported us a few times with crystals, the vice-captain and I would have fallen long ago.¡± ¡°Captain, t-then I don¡¯t need so many crystals. Why don¡¯t I take ten too?¡± All the crystals here were evolved ones, so 20 could compare to hundreds of ordinary ones. ¡°Just take them. Old Huang ate quite a lot during the battle, and he doesn¡¯t lack any. I also swallowed the adult crystal earlier. If I didn¡¯t need energy, I wouldn¡¯t even want these ten.¡± Lin Qing was very fair to his own people. He would never let others suffer, and he would reward them according to how much work they had done. Today, both Huang Quan and Ye Daying had fought with their lives on the line. To be honest, 20 crystals was slightly too few. It was still him who had taken advantage by getting the adult crystal. He could only compensate them along the way. Seeing that Lin Qing was determined, Ye Daying stopped insisting. After thanking Lin Qing, he put away the 20 crystals, leaned against the wall, and swallowed them one by one. After a major battle and escaping through the night, the three of them were exhausted. After finding a place to hide, they closed their eyes and rested. They only started moving again the next day. This city also had a survivor¡¯s base. While walking along the desolate streets, Huang Quan encountered several groups of Motorbots collecting supplies. ¡°Lin Qing, did you notice that they¡¯re looking at us strangely?¡± ¡°Well, there¡¯s a mixture of curiosity and fear, and there also seems to be a little excitement.¡± ¡°Should I catch someone to ask?¡± ¡°Forget it. Don¡¯t meddle in other people¡¯s business. Let¡¯s find a big city and kill the steel beasts there first. It¡¯s more important to increase our strength as soon as possible.¡± Taking a detour, the three of them headed toward the belt highway, intending to leave this place. But before they reached the highway, they encountered trouble. The roar of engines came from behind them. Then more than two hundred Motorbots crowded around them. Among them were trucks, three-wheelers, and motorcycles. A few of the motorcycle Motorbots even had pistols in their hands. ¡°What do you want?¡± Huang Quan was the first to ask them. A cross-country vehicle, which was about ten meters tall after transforming into a mecha, stood up. Then he looked at a bulldozer. ¡°Old Dong, everyone is here. What are you waiting for?¡± Crack! The bulldozer stood up and looked at the three of them. ¡°Their height and build are right. It¡¯s them for sure.¡± ¡°Well, although it was your men who discovered them first, I also brought over eighty brothers with me here. I want forty percent of the rewards.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll only get twenty percent. If you want to do it, then do it. If you don¡¯t want to, then let¡¯s split up. You know that if I wasn¡¯t afraid of you ambushing me, I wouldn¡¯t need you at all considering my strength.¡± ¡°Give me thirty-five percent, and I¡¯ll do this. After all, it¡¯s business. It¡¯s more interesting to earn together.¡± The bulldozer called Old Dong said calmly with his hands behind his back, ¡°I have twice as many people as you do. I¡¯ll give you thirty percent. Take it or leave it!¡± ¡°Alright, deal!¡± ¡°Hey, hey, hey!¡± Ye Daying couldn¡¯t stand it anymore. ¡°You two, are you treating us like we don¡¯t exist?¡± The cross-country Motorbot said domineeringly, ¡°Lin Qing, Huang Quan, and Ye Daying, right? Hand over what you stole in Yang City, and I can leave your corpses intact.¡± The three of them narrowed their eyes and looked at one another. Then Huang Quan stepped forward. ¡°We don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re talking about. Why don¡¯t you explain it clearly?¡± ¡°Ha, you¡¯re still pretending.¡± Old Dong took a newspaper from a Motorbot behind him and threw it at Lin Qing¡¯s feet. ¡°Take a look yourself.¡± ¡°Lin Qing, Huang Quan, and Ye Daying stole a treasure sword from me, Jiang Tianyun, in Yang City. The reward is as follows: killing Lin Qing will yield 5,000 crystals, killing Huang Quan will yield 3,000 crystals, and killing Ye Daying will yield 800 crystals. If you find the treasure sword, you will receive another 5,000 crystals¡­¡± In addition to the reward, there were also portraits of the three and the Flame Devil. Huang Quan was stunned and angrily said, ¡°Why is my reward lower than Lin Qing¡¯s? Who assigned these rewards!¡± ¡°Vice-Captain, that¡¯s not the main point.¡± Ye Daying wiped the non-existent cold sweat off his forehead. ¡°The main point is that they are slandering us.¡± Instead of an imperial wanted notice, they got a wanted notice with a bounty. How unlucky. They could still deal with a wanted notice. After all, in this chaotic world, who would have the time to arrest them? In contrast, a bounty was very troublesome. Moreover, who knew how many copies of this kind of newspaper had been issued. Killing the three of them would add up to 8,800 crystals, and obtaining the Flame Devil would yield a total of 13,800. What kind of concept was 13,800 crystals? It was enough to produce an adult Motorbot. This temptation was too great, so great that countless people were willing to take the risk out of desperation. They were willing to kill them at any cost, just like now! Looking at the three of them, the cross-country Motorbot said in a loud voice, ¡°Are you going to take out your sword, or do you want me to do it myself?¡± Then a few guns were aimed at Lin Qing¡¯s and Huang Quan¡¯s heads. ¡°Okay, okay. I¡¯ll give you the sword. But is there a need for such a lousy sword?¡± Huang Quan said in a lazy voice. ¡°But if I give you the sword, can you let us live?¡± The cross-country Motorbot laughed out loud before his expression turned cold. ¡°Of course¡­ that¡¯s impossible. The heads of you three are worth eighty-eight hundred crystals.¡± ¡°Oh, I understand!¡± Huang Quan raised his hand, and his arm turned into a gun barrel. Then he swept his gun toward the 200 or so Motorbots in front of him. Chapter 33 - No Overnight Grudges Chapter 33: No Overnight Grudges Most of these Motorbots hadn¡¯t even evolved once, and even the strongest had only evolved at most twice. So they were no match for Huang Quan. In an instant, all of them were lying on the ground. Meanwhile, Ye Daying had blown off the heads of the Motorbots with pistols before they could even fire. In five seconds, the team of more than 200 Motorbots scattered in all directions. The leaders, the bulldozer and the cross-country vehicle, wanted to run, but Lin Qing lashed out with his leg, causing the air to explode. Then the cross-country vehicle¡¯s waist collapsed, and his steel body broke. After running a few steps, the bulldozer was also punched, and half of his body was destroyed. Lin Qing didn¡¯t chase after the electric scooters or motorcycles. After all, there was no point in chasing after them. How much energy would their crystals have? As usual, Ye Daying was responsible for taking out the crystals from the corpses. Huang Quan frowned as he held the newspaper. ¡°This Jiang Tianyun is really resourceful. The newspaper has already been sent here. I was just wondering why there was the sound of a helicopter flying over this morning.¡± ¡°Open your 24K titanium alloy eyes wide. Is this the Yang City newspaper?¡± Lin Qing pointed to a corner of the newspaper. ¡°It was issued by the White Pigeon Group!¡± ¡°The White Pigeon Group? This name sounds familiar!¡± ¡°Express delivery services in any city all belong to it. But other than delivery, it is also involved in the magazine business. Now that it has even published newspapers, it looks like it has already gathered its forces and gained a foothold.¡± Taking a closer look at the newspaper, Huang Quan saw that other than the bounty notice, there were also recruitment notices, as well as sections publicizing some evolved Motorbots after the Cataclysm. Every section featured a different Motorbot, and these sections were published by the empire. Furthermore, there were many recruitment notices in the newspaper. Dozens of organizations, big and small, were all recruiting people. In particular, large Motorbots received the best welfare and treatment. Not only were their families provided with a safe shelter, but they would also receive a certain amount of crystals every month. Huang Quan widened his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s definitely not free to publish information in the newspapers. Furthermore, normal Motorbots will definitely need crystals to purchase a newspaper. This White Pigeon Group is smart at doing business.¡± The people who published information in the newspapers were not ordinary people. They were all big forces who didn¡¯t lack crystals. The price of a newspaper shouldn¡¯t be high. In fact, newspapers were very cheap, and most Motorbots could afford them. But the number of consumers was massive. After all, there were hundreds of millions of motorists in the country. Even if only one in one thousand bought the newspaper, it would still be an enormous profit. Not to mention that newspapers were frequently issued. The White Pigeon Group was very fast to have launched this business in such a short period of time. This was simply a monopoly! ¡°With its financial resources, it definitely has a lot of helicopters for delivery, and this newspaper will definitely spread all over the empire. What should we do then?¡± Lin Qing didn¡¯t immediately answer Huang Quan¡¯s question. He lowered his head and pondered for a long time before saying, ¡°Money moves people¡¯s hearts. With such a high reward, even I¡¯m moved. ¡°There¡¯s no way for us to hide unless we run into the mountains. But that¡¯s not an option unless we hide there forever.¡± ¡°Then what should we do?¡± Huang Quan was surprised. Lin Qing raised his head and smirked. ¡°Simple. We¡¯ll cripple the person who posted the bounty. The bounty won¡¯t be issued then, right?¡± Ye Daying gulped. ¡°Captain, y-you¡­ what do you want to do?¡± ¡°I have always been a good-tempered person. If Jiang Tianyun has the guts to mess with us, he should be prepared for us to take revenge on him. We¡¯ll turn back and kill him.¡± That¡¯s the f*cking governor. Huang Quan shuddered. ¡°Are we really doing this?¡± ¡°Yes!!¡± In this era, if you wanted to have a stable foothold, you had to be ruthless! In order not to be bullied by others, you had to display either your influence or your strength. Lin Qing didn¡¯t have any influence now, but he still had a decent amount of strength. Furthermore, his team was small, and they could run away at any time. They had nothing to lose and didn¡¯t fear those in power. Who should be afraid now? Ye Daying raised his hand and said weakly, ¡°Such a large force should have a lot of crystals, right? Let¡¯s not be too ruthless. Let¡¯s stop once we steal their crystals. We shouldn¡¯t be too cruel, and we should leave some leeway for ourselves to escape too.¡± Huang Quan wanted to vomit blood. One of them said that he wanted to kill people, while the other said that he wanted to steal their crystals and even asked them not to be too ruthless. If they really stole all the crystals in Yang City, Jiang Tianyun could chase them to the ends of the earth. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Bad people are all extremely wealthy. Stealing their crystals will be much faster than painstakingly hunting steel beasts. It¡¯s decided then!¡± ¡°Ahem. Let me say a few words.¡± Huang Quan felt that this was a bit too risky. Lin Qing said slowly, ¡°After sweeping through Yang City, it won¡¯t be a problem for you to evolve one more time.¡± ¡°F*ck, let¡¯s do it!¡± Without any delay, the three figures secretly left the city. There were many steel beasts in the forest. Although their combat power wasn¡¯t high, snakes, insects, rats, and ants were not an ordinary nuisance, so they chose to travel by the main road instead. They sped up and arrived at the Officer Appointment Deck before nightfall. Standing at the top of the mountain, Lin Qing looked into the distance and saw a brightly lit area several kilometers away. In such a dark night, Yang City was simply a beacon. ¡°There are so many of them. One spit from each of them can drown us. It won¡¯t be easy!¡± Huang Quan frowned. Ye Daying rolled his eyes and laughed. ¡°We definitely can¡¯t fight them alone, but we can make use of the situation.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Lin Qing asked. ¡°We will make them suffer and then take advantage of the crisis for our personal gain.¡± Putting away his smile, Ye Daying continued, ¡°I will lure steel beasts to Yang City and let them fight. Then we¡¯ll take advantage of the chaos to loot the crystal warehouse.¡± ¡°No!¡± Huang Quan shook his head and firmly disagreed. ¡°Doing this can indeed achieve our goal, but the civilians in the city are innocent. They have no resistance against such a large number of steel beasts.¡± Ye Daying¡¯s method was too vicious. He even involved the civilians and didn¡¯t care about their lives. Yang City was the largest safe base in Handong Province. Currently, there were at least eight to ten million people in the city. If steel beasts were allowed to enter the city, no one knew many families would be torn apart. ¡°No, you¡¯re underestimating the resistance of Yang City. Jiang Tianyun has at least a few hundred thousand troops under his command, and there are probably more than one million Motorbots. But whether the steel beasts that we¡¯re going to attract are going to be a match for them is another problem.¡± Huang Quan was stunned. That¡¯s right. Jiang Tianyun had tanks, rocket launchers, armed helicopters, and numerous Motorbots in his army. Ordinary steel beasts were simply no match for this kind of battle strength. ¡°Then let¡¯s do as Little Ying says!¡± Lin Qing decided. ¡°The current steel beasts can¡¯t shock a big city like Yang City yet. We will lead them to start a riot outside the city, and then¡­¡± ¡­ The steel beasts in Yang City had long been wiped out, and the entire city was divided into various classes. The special workers lived in one district, the family members of the Motorbots lived in one district, and the hardworking refugees lived in another district. Meanwhile, the army of Motorbots was split into four camps and were stationed in the four directions¡ªnorth, south, east, and west. The next day, when night fell, Huang Quan came to a hill in the south of the city and said to Lin Qing, ¡°I¡¯ve checked. The crystals are hidden in warehouse No. 82 of Shangyuan Road.¡± ¡°Is this information accurate?¡± ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be fake. That guy took twenty crystals and ten bags of rice from me. Besides, his family is still outside the city, so he wouldn¡¯t dare to lie.¡± Lin Qing looked up at the night sky. It was very dark today. ¡°Alright. Then we¡¯ll wait for Little Ying.¡± Not long after, the unique sound of the Kawasaki H2 pierced through the night, and a black motorcycle sped toward Yang City. ¡°This kid isn¡¯t bad!¡± Huang Quan praised Ye Daying as he saw the dense horde of steel beasts following behind him. In order to attract these beasts, Lin Qing had hunted a lot of crystals during the day and deliberately gathered more than 200 crystals for Ye Daying to attract them. Chapter 34 - We Meet Again Chapter 34: We Meet Again With a suave drift, Ye Daying stopped at the bottom of the hill and panted as he jumped to their side. ¡°Well done. You¡¯ll be rewarded later!!¡± Huang Quan smiled and patted his shoulder. ¡°I didn¡¯t do that!¡± Ye Daying turned around and looked at the unending wave of red-eyed steel beasts, whose roars resounded throughout the sky. He was dumbfounded. ¡°Heaven took pity on me. I only sprinkled a few crystals, but suddenly, the entire city erupted, and all the steel beasts chased after me.¡± A steady stream of steel beasts rushed toward Yang City. Meanwhile, many Motorbots who were alone outside the city all rushed into the city. Lin Qing was stunned as he watched this scene. ¡°It can¡¯t be. There must be hundreds of thousands of steel beasts. I¡¯m afraid all the steel beasts in the nearby cities are here. What exactly did you do?¡± ¡°I really didn¡¯t do anything.¡± Ye Daying opened his sack that contained hundreds of crystals inside. ¡°I didn¡¯t even use the bait.¡± ¡°F*ck! They¡¯ve probably encountered a large-scale beast tide. Forget it. Let¡¯s sneak into the city now.¡± Bullets flew out, and the sound of artillery shells rang out incessantly. The entire city was filled with smoke as countless Motorbots had moved to the main gate of Yang City to resist the steel beasts. On the ground, hundreds of tanks continued to bombard the area. And in the sky, the gun muzzles of the military helicopters were burning red. Even so, the army of steel beasts was still fearless. They charged forward and stepped on the corpses of their comrades. There were crocodiles that were tens of meters long, rhinoceros that were so tough that even missiles couldn¡¯t penetrate their skin, gorillas that were more than twenty meters tall, and black bears with punches weighed more than ten thousand kilograms. All kinds of large animals were displaying violence. The entire city was retreating, leaving the battlefield in front. After turning into his heavy truck form, Lin Qing sneaked into Yang City from the border and went straight to warehouse No. 82 on Shangyuan Road. This place was originally used as a depot by a logistics company, but it was naturally requisitioned after the Cataclysm. ¡°Captain, I¡¯ll go and cut the generator. Then I¡¯ll find high ground to cover you guys.¡± Seeing the street lamps lighting up the streets, Ye Daying stopped in his tracks. ¡°Okay, be careful.¡± This area was considered a military area. Usually, there were many Motorbots guarding the area, so no civilians came. Now that most of the Motorbots had been transferred to the battlefield, only a few remained. After passing through a few streets, Lin Qing and Huang Quan encountered a few groups of guards. They killed all the guards and quickly approached the warehouse. ¡°Captain, the battle ahead is very fierce. Should we go and provide support?¡± There were 50 construction truck Motorbots standing outside the warehouse. One of them was asking Jiang Yanjun. ¡°F*ck you! If you want to die, go ahead!¡± Jiang Yanjun cursed angrily with a dark expression. ¡°I applied to come and look at the warehouse precisely because the situation over there is dangerous.¡± ¡°Hehe, Sir Jiang, calm down. This kid is new and doesn¡¯t know any better. I know you brought us here because you treat us as your own people.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. You¡¯ve been with me for quite some time now, so there are some things that you have to understand. In our line of work, you don¡¯t necessarily need strength, but you need to have good vision. If you rush into everything, it won¡¯t be enough even if you have ten lives.¡± ¡°Of course, of course. Sir Jiang is right!¡± Jiang Yanjun nodded his head slightly. Then he looked around and suddenly sighed. ¡°During the steel beasts¡¯ large-scale attack tonight, there were Motorbots taking advantage of the situation for their own benefit. They snuck into the warehouse and caused us to lose 5,000 crystals.¡± ¡°What?¡± The subordinate was stunned. ¡°With Sir Jiang personally guarding the warehouse, how would a thief dare to ambush us?¡± ¡°Are there no thieves who have done so?¡± Jiang Yanjun narrowed his eyes and stared at him intently. ¡°Are there¡­?¡± Clang! Jiang Yanjun kicked open the door of the warehouse as his arm turned into a gun barrel. Then he shot down the people inside who were holding Gatling guns. The eight ordinary soldiers didn¡¯t have time to react and were shot into a pulp in the blink of an eye. Jiang Yanjun then turned around and said calmly, ¡°The corpses are here. Were you asking me where the thieves are?¡± ¡°S-S-S-S Jiang, they w-were our own people. How could you¡­¡± one of the Motorbots stammered as he watched this scene in horror. But before he could finish his sentence, another Motorbot brandished a large mace and smashed his head. ¡°Captain, with so much destruction on the scene, it¡¯s possible that more than five thousand crystals were lost. We¡¯ve lost at least eight thousand crystals.¡± Jiang Yanjun looked at the Motorbot, who was a head taller than the rest, with appreciation. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°My name is Xiong Ba!¡± ¡°Alright, you¡¯ll be the platoon leader in the future.¡± ¡°Thank you, Captain!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go in and take a look. Stay on guard outside, and don¡¯t let anyone in!¡± ¡°Yes, I will complete the mission!¡± Lin Qing and Huang Quan were dumbfounded by Jiang Yanjun¡¯s actions. It turned out that Jiang Yanjun was also an ingrate who specialized in tricking his own people. With a light cough, Lin Qing strode out of the darkness. ¡°He sacrificed a large Motorbots and a few soldiers. Such a brutal bandit. I think the loss should be worth at least thirty to fifty thousand crystals.¡± F*ck! Jiang Yanjun staggered and almost fell down. Who was the one who was more ruthless than him and said that 30,000 to 50,000 crystals had been lost? Jiang Tianyun would kill him if he knew about this. Just as he was about to turn around and curse, he suddenly felt that something was wrong! Why does this voice sound so familiar? ¡°Brother Jiang, we meet again. Long time no see!¡± Then Lin Qing and Huang Quan slowly walked forward as the construction trucks retreated step by step. Meanwhile, Xiong Ba retreated to the door of the warehouse guiltily, ready to run away at any time. They had all experienced the battle at the Officer Appointment Deck the day before yesterday. The scene of Lin Qing killing dozens of large mechas with one slash was still deeply imprinted in their minds. ¡°Haha, I was wondering who it was. So it¡¯s you. There¡¯s a path to heaven, but you didn¡¯t take it. Instead, you barged into hell and brought yourself to ruin.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s a path to heaven, but this is definitely not hell.¡± Lin Qing pulled out the Flame Devil, and its eight-meter-long fiery red saber light illuminated the surroundings. Meanwhile, Huang Quan aimed his gun at Jiang Yanjun. ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± ¡°We have fifty people here. I don¡¯t believe that you two can kill all of them in an instant. As long as one of them escapes, there will be tens of thousands of Motorbots surrounding you in three minutes.¡± ¡°Heh, are you threatening me?¡± Lin Qing pointed his sword at Jiang Yanjun as he walked to the door of the warehouse. ¡°I can¡¯t kill fifty of them in an instant, but I can definitely kill you.¡± ¡°How about we make a deal?¡± Jiang Yanjun raised his hands. ¡°Your target should be the crystals, right? You won¡¯t be able to leave if I attract a large group of people here.¡± ¡°And then?¡± ¡°Take away two boxes of crystals, and I¡¯ll pretend I didn¡¯t see you. Everyone will mind their own business.¡± He turned out to be a coward¡­ Lin Qing smiled. ¡°But you even brought people to kill me the day before yesterday, right?¡± ¡°Those were all orders from the higher-ups. I¡¯m just an employee. How would I dare disobey them? If you want to look for Jiang Tianyun, go look for him. I won¡¯t stop you.¡± After thinking for a few seconds, Lin Qing looked at Huang Quan and said, ¡°I¡¯m giving you two minutes. Take as much as you can.¡± Just as Jiang Yanjun had said, there were 50 people here, and they couldn¡¯t kill all of them. As long as one of them ran away to report the matter, the entire army would arrive in no time. After the Cataclysm, crystals were an important resource. So Jiang Tianyun would never allow anything to happen to the warehouse. But since they were already here, it would be a waste for them to risk their lives and just take away two boxes of crystals. This was their only chance, so the more crystals, the better. The warehouse was the size of a football field, with hundreds of boxes neatly stacked on top of each other. These boxes were labeled ¡®1¡¯, ¡®2¡¯, ¡®3¡¯, and ¡®4¡¯. These were the number of times the crystals in each box had evolved. Huang Quan took out a large sack that he had prepared beforehand. He opened a box and poured the contents inside the sack. Jiang Yanjun¡¯s heart bled as he watched him take fourth-evolution crystals. ¡°Goddammit. I¡¯m not done with you¡­ Leave some for me!¡± Chapter 35 - Team is Reborn Chapter 35: Team is Reborn Fourth-evolution crystals were rare, so there weren¡¯t many of them here, only about two hundred. Huang Quan then went after the third-evolution crystals. Along the way, he even found three adult crystals in a small box. What should have happened still happened. Jiang Yanjun knelt on the spot. ¡°Brother, take as many ordinary crystals as you want, but you can¡¯t touch those. If you touch those, I¡¯ll lose my life.¡± Adult steel beasts were too special, and countless people had died just for these three crystals. If they were lost, Jiang Tianyun would kill him. But Huang Quan ignored him and threw the crystals into the sack. ¡°If you keep talking, you¡¯ll lose your life immediately.¡± Bang! A bullet hit the warehouse door. This was Ye Daying¡¯s signal, indicating that there was danger. Lin Qing said quickly, ¡°Old Huang, let¡¯s leave. Brother Jiang, I¡¯m not familiar with Yang City. Please send us off.¡± Jiang Yanjun winked at Xiong Ba and then followed Lin Qing obediently. He had no choice but to cooperate. After all, a pair of iron pincers was strangling his neck. With Jiang Yanjun leading the way, the three of them quickly left the city and arrived at the familiar Officer Appointment Stage. Seeing Lin Qing staring at him with ill intentions, Jiang Yanjun said, ¡°Brother, I didn¡¯t stop you when you wanted to leave, but you have to keep your promise. You promised to let me go.¡± ¡°Did I say that?¡± Jiang Yanjun was an adult Motorbot, and Lin Qing didn¡¯t want to let him go. ¡°I won¡¯t talk about loyalty, filial piety, or benevolence, but you should pay attention to the most basic integrity.¡± Jiang Yanjun¡¯s face fell, and he was about to cry. ¡°If you treat your words lightly and go back on your word, if you don¡¯t even have this bit of credit, will your two brothers still dare to follow you in the future?¡± ¡°Hehe!!¡± ¡°The more friends you have, the more options you have in life. In this life, who doesn¡¯t have difficulties? Let me off today. I swear that if I meet you again in the future, I will definitely let you off.¡± Without saying anything, Lin Qing raised his fist. Then the black color of his Armament faded and reappeared again. A few seconds later, he looked up and grinned. ¡°I¡¯m a man of my word. How can I go back on my promise? Leave!¡± Phew! Jiang Yanjun heaved a sigh of relief. He had lost count of how many times he had been at death¡¯s door in the past few seconds. ¡°Thank you!¡± Jiang Yanjun retreated step by step. When he was far away from them, he turned around and ran. In less than two minutes, he met Xiong Ba and his group on the road. He was so touched that tears were about to fall from his eyes. ¡°Why is it just the few of you? Where¡¯s the main force?¡± The people who came were part of his personal troops, which included about 50 construction truck Motorbots. Before he was hijacked, he had winked and sent a secret message, signaling to Xiong Ba to call for help. He thought that Xiong Ba had understood, but he didn¡¯t think that there would only be so few troops. ¡°What main force?¡± Xiong Ba waved his hand, and one of the Motorbots under him threw a sack he was carrying forward, revealing the bright crystals in it. ¡°Didn¡¯t you ask me to take the remaining crystals and shift the blame onto Lin Qing?¡± My god¡­ Jiang Yanjun¡¯s heart was racing. ¡°I didn¡¯t die in the hands of Lin Qing and those bandits, but I will die in your hands sooner or later.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t I return these crystals now?¡± Xiong Ba knew that he had misunderstood and scratched his head awkwardly. ¡°What the f*ck? The warehouse has been looted. If we go back, we¡¯ll be shot to death. We¡¯ll just wash our asses and prepare to run.¡± So many pairs of eyes had seen Lin Qing take him out of the city. Now, a portion of the crystals was in his hands. This was simply hard to explain! This was worse than eating shit. Jiang Yanjun asked with a straight face, ¡°How many crystals are there?¡± ¡°About fifty thousand ordinary crystals. The ones that have evolved more have all been snatched by Lin Qing.¡± The crystals in the warehouse were the pay that Jiang Tianyun had prepared for the Nine Nether Army this month. But they were all gone before the end of the month. ¡°Fifty thousand crystals isn¡¯t a small amount.¡± Jiang Yanjun looked at his old brothers and said resolutely, ¡°We¡¯ll split the crystals, and each of us will take a thousand. If you work with me in the future, I definitely won¡¯t treat everyone unfairly!¡± ¡°Captain, since we are here, it means that we¡¯re determined to follow you!¡± ¡°We¡¯ve long had enough of their stinginess. Why should we hand over the crystals we¡¯ve worked so hard to hunt? It¡¯s all for those bastards!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Those high-level bastards aren¡¯t human. They are more ruthless than vampires. I don¡¯t want to work for them.¡± ¡°Screw them. I¡¯m not serving them anymore!!¡± Jiang Yanjun was embarrassed, as they seemed to be referring to him. After all, he was one of the higher-ups in the base. He typically didn¡¯t have to do anything, but he was good at stealing crystals. Otherwise, how could he have achieved adulthood? ¡­ The next day, after running out of the forest, Lin Qing and his team found a remote town to hide in and split the loot. They were tired from working all night, but when they saw the sacks full of crystals, they were full of energy, and their faces were glowing. As someone who had lived two lifetimes, this was the first time Lin Qing had seen so many crystals even though he had witnessed many major scenes. This trip wasn¡¯t a loss! Whoosh Huang Quan poured all the crystals onto the ground, forming a small hill a few meters high. The three adult crystals were the most dazzling. ¡°Lin Qing, you¡¯re the captain. You¡¯ll be the one to distribute them.¡± ¡°Alright. Since everyone contributed this time, let¡¯s split the crystals evenly. Let¡¯s start with the adult crystals. Each of us will take one.¡± After dividing the largest loot, Lin Qing began to divide the fourth-evolution crystals, of which each person received 65. Then he divided the rest of the third-evolution crystals¡­ Half an hour later, after dividing the crystals, the three of them devoured their portion of crystals. The first to change was Ye Daying. He had evolved twice, and he jumped two levels after eating the crystals and evolved for the fourth time. The further you progressed, the slower your evolution became. So it was rare for anyone to experience a two-level jump. But Ye Daying had absorbed a lot of crystals during the battle at the Officer Appointment Deck, so with this accumulation, he was able to jump two levels. Meanwhile, the Big Belly Huang Quan had also accumulated quite a lot of crystals previously. After swallowing all of these crystals, he barely evolved for the sixth time. But Lin Qing wasn¡¯t as lucky as them. His body was simply more solid, and his strength and agility had increased, but he hadn¡¯t evolved. At his level, the amount of crystals needed for each breakthrough was astronomical. Even if he had accumulated a lot before, it was still not enough. ¡°Lin Qing, get up and practice!¡± Huang Quan¡¯s Armament appeared on his arm, turning it black. He couldn¡¯t wait to test its power. ¡°You can use the Flame Devil to cut it.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± Lin Qing placed his thumb on the second tier switch. ¡°Use the first tier. Be gentle. Take your time.¡± Fear filled his heart. He still didn¡¯t dare challenge the second tier of the Flame Devil. Its high temperature of 5,000¡ãC was too violent. Furthermore, with Lin Qing¡¯s strength, he might be able to cut off his arm with one slash. Lin Qing activated the first tier, and an eight-meter long red light shot out from the dragon¡¯s mouth. He said lightly, ¡°I¡¯ve never attacked a sixth-evolution Motorbot. Be careful.¡± ¡°Yeah, come at me.¡± Dang! Using 30% of his strength, Lin Qing only made a small white mark on Huang Quan¡¯s arm that quickly disappeared. ¡°Again!¡± Dang! Dang! ¡°Pfft!¡± Lin Qing used 50% of his strength, then 80%, then all of his strength. After using all his strength, he finally cut through Huang Quan¡¯s Armament, leaving a wound more than ten centimeters deep. To a Motorbot more than twenty meters tall, a wound more than ten centimeters deep was nothing. Huang Quan stared at his arm thoughtfully. After a while, he said, ¡°Let¡¯s try another slash.¡± Boom! This time, Huang Quan also used his full strength. When the sword and his fist collided, a gust of air burst out from the point of impact. Ye Daying blocked his eyes. When he saw the situation through the gaps of his fingers, it was unbelievable. ¡°How is this possible?!¡± Chapter 36 Huang Quan actually blocked the Flame Devil without a single injury! The previous attack had clearly left a wound on his arm, but he was now completely fine. Not only was Ye Daying curious, but Lin Qing was as well. He put away his sword and asked, ¡°How did you do it?¡± In his previous life, he had only evolved five times, so he didn¡¯t know many things at the higher levels. ¡°The first few times, I only used my arm to resist your blade. This time, I mobilized my crystal energy and focused it on my fist.¡± ¡°You can do that too?¡± Lin Qing¡¯s jaw dropped in shock. As expected of the Battle God, his combat instincts were extremely strong. Lin Qing simply couldn¡¯t compare to him. It had been a few days since Lin Qing had evolved for the sixth time. He had always been armed and ready to fight, but he had never studied his techniques like this before. ¡°Then let¡¯s try it out. I¡¯ll use my Armament too.¡± Lin Qing¡¯s arm turned black. Then he and Huang Quan punched each other. Lin Qing took half a step back, but Huang Quan didn¡¯t. The difference brought about by your innate strength and foundation slowly disappeared as your level increased. So even without the Flame Devil, Lin Qing felt that he could win against Huang Quan with his powerful combat skills. Of course, under normal circumstances, a normal heavy truck would still not be a match for Huang Quan if they were of the same level. The ratio of being killed to surviving would be 40:60. In Lin Qing¡¯s previous life, Huang Quan had relied on the Flame Devil to forcefully suppress the ratio from 40:60 to 20:80 and then to 10:90 before eventually becoming an invincible existence among those of the same level. At the side, Ye Daying saw how strong the two of them were and silently clenched his fists. He wanted to become stronger too. But as his opponents got stronger, he could clearly feel that his sniper rifle was a little insufficient. Unless it hit the eye socket of his opponent, a single shot wouldn¡¯t kill them. If he faced someone like Huang Quan, his opponent wouldn¡¯t die even if he shot them a dozen times. As though he read his thoughts, Huang Quan said, ¡°Everyone has their strengths. Little Ying, your strength is not in your power. Instead, you should practice your marksmanship well. I¡¯ll get a friend to get you a Barrett when we arrive in Qingzhou.¡± ¡°Really? Thank you, Brother Huang!¡± ¡°Work hard. You still have a lot of potential.¡± Lin Qing bent down and patted Ye Daying¡¯s shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s not impossible for you to destroy a Lord in the future.¡± ¡°Is that possible?¡± Huang Quan pouted. ¡°Don¡¯t try to trick him.¡± The Barrett was considered very strong among the anti-materiel sniper rifles, and even adult Motorbots wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand a shot from it. But this seemed to be Ye Daying¡¯s limit. ¡°What? Don¡¯t you believe me?¡± Lin Qing pointed at his Flame Devil. ¡°Don¡¯t you know how my sword came about?¡± ¡°You mean¡­¡± Huang Quan was shocked by Lin Qing¡¯s boldness. A Flame Devil was already very scary. How terrifying would it be if a modified sniper rifle could be used to destroy a Lord from 1,000 meters away? At a distance of 1,000 meters, no one would be able to see him. His opponent would die without even fighting or knowing how they had died. ¡°That¡¯s not impossible.¡± ¡°What are you two doing?¡± Ye Daying was itching to know this inside story, but Lin Qing simply didn¡¯t say anything. He only smiled mysteriously and said that Ye Daying would find out later. ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about this anymore. Have a good night¡¯s sleep and rest up. We¡¯ll set off for Qingzhou tomorrow.¡± ¡­ The next day, when Lin Qing and the others woke up, the sky and the earth were snow white, and a layer of silver frost covered the entire town. Icicles draped from the eaves of roofs, while trees, roads, and houses were all frozen. The entire world was white, and even the light became brighter. It had been nearly a month since the Cataclysm, and the temperature was dropping every day. It was now close to -20¡ãC, and the fields were desolate. No crops could be planted, and ordinary people were unable to move about outdoors. The true disaster was coming. In the near future, food shortage would be the biggest problem. If this problem remained unsolved, many people would die. It was no longer possible for anyone to act alone. You could only hope to survive by joining a large base. In a month, Motorbots would also face danger as steel beasts grew. After all, the steel beasts who could live until now had either joined a group or had become powerful. Motorbots could survive for a few days without eating crystals, but steel beasts couldn¡¯t. Beasts had no human nature, and if they were hungry, they would hunt. On the way to Qingzhou, Lin Qing and the others saw too many tragedies among the people. Human corpses were everywhere, and Motorbots had been broken into scrap metal and piled into small mountains. Only broken wells and ruins were left in the once beautiful cities, and the entire world was brimming with a rotten aura. ¡°Haha, retribution!¡± On this day, Huang Quan was looking at the newspaper he snatched. The newest bounty notice had been published on it. Jiang Yanjun, Reward: 3,000 crystals. Dead or alive. It appeared that Jiang Tianyun was really angry and would rather spend money to kill this traitor. ¡°Captain, we don¡¯t seem to be having a good time either, right? Please make way.¡± Ye Daying pulled out the Motorbot that Huang Quan was stepping on and dug out its crystal skillfully. Meanwhile, there were about 50 Motorbot corpses behind him. Even though a bounty notice had been put up for Jiang Yanjun, they couldn¡¯t idle around either. Every day, they were either killing or being killed. There were times when there were only one or two waves of troops, but there were also times when there were as many as eight waves after them. Furthermore, there were many fugitives among them who had simply been sent to their deaths. ¡°What¡¯s there to be afraid of? With our strength, as long as it¡¯s not a battalion of aircraft and tanks, anyone who comes will be courting death.¡± Seeing Huang Quan being slightly complacent, Lin Qing warned him, ¡°Don¡¯t lower your guard. There are experts among the people, and there may be people stronger than us.¡± ¡°I want to battle them too, but none of them can fight. Sigh, experts are lonely!!¡± ¡°Amitabha, may this monk come and meet you, benefactor?¡± The three of them were shocked and looked up at a tall building. At some point, a Motorbot had been standing there with a string of iron beads around his neck, each the size of a watermelon. It was a sports car that was only ten meters tall and snow white all over. Strangely, he had pulled a few bedsheets from somewhere and draped them over his body as a kasaya. He wore Buddhist beads and a kasaya while chanting ¡®Amitabha¡¯. If he hadn¡¯t been standing on the shoulders of an adult steel gorilla, they would have thought he was crazy. Lin Qing and the others had seen this 20-meter-tall great gorilla before. It was present on the night they had attacked Yang City. Compared to its savage and violent nature back then, the current gorilla was extremely docile. Looking at the completed ܇ (vehicle) on the Motorbot¡¯s chest, Huang Quan retracted his smile and asked seriously, ¡°Who are you?¡± With a faint smile, the white sports car Motorbot placed one hand in front of his chest. ¡°I am Zhi Zhang, a monk. I have come for the bounty. After traveling for five hundred kilometers, I have finally caught up to you.¡± ¡°Idiot[1]?¡± Huang Quan laughed when he heard this name. ¡°Even you want to get the bounty? I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t have the rest of your life to spend it.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, benefactor. I have my own ways to spend the bounty. Please!¡± Zhi Zhang gently patted the head of the gorilla. Then the gorilla jumped from the tall building toward the three of them. Ye Daying had just raised his sniper rifle when Lin Qing stopped him. ¡°You can¡¯t do it this time. Stand aside and watch.¡± One of them was a monk Motorbot, and the other was a steel beast. There was no other pair in the world like this. Demon Monk Zhi Zhang was a famous Overlord in Lin Qing¡¯s previous life. He came from the Shaolin Discipline Hall and had practiced martial arts from a young age. So he was proficient in the 72 Secret Arts, and his combat strength was off the charts. Other than his own combat skills, his greatest feature was the steel beast he was riding on. This steel beast changed every now and then. Lin Qing had seen him once in his previous life. At that time, he was riding a Lord-level flood dragon. [1] in Chinese, ¡°Zhi Zhang¡± sounds like ¡°idiot¡± Chapter 37 After moving his hands and feet, Huang Quan walked up with some interest. ¡°Lin Qing, I¡¯ll leave this gorilla to you. I¡¯ll deal with the monk. Don¡¯t fight me over it.¡± Every time they met a strong opponent, it was Lin Qing who took care of them. As a result, he didn¡¯t feel any sense of achievement at all as the vice-captain and was too embarrassed to boast to Ye Daying. Now that he finally met one, he naturally had to display his strength. ¡°Be careful. This monk isn¡¯t easy to deal with. Don¡¯t capsize.¡± ¡°Me, capsizing because of him?¡± Looking at Zhi Zhang, who only reached his waist, Huang Quan chuckled. ¡°This small river won¡¯t drown me.¡± Only Lin Qing could suppress Huang Quan. Huang Quan had yet to find an opponent of the same level. ¡°Benefactor, you are wrong. Didn¡¯t the news say that someone drowned in a palm-sized waterhole?¡± ¡°Heh, that¡¯s a drunkard¡­ I¡¯m not!¡± Boom! As soon as Huang Quan finished speaking, his fist blasted out, creating a whistling gale. Zhi Zhang placed his palms together and stood on the spot without dodging, looking as though he was frightened. But the next second, he took half a step back and easily dodged the punch. Roar!! The gorilla was furious. It hammered its chest with its fists and roared as it charged toward Huang Quan while raising its huge arms, prepared to dismember him. Both of them were giants who possessed earth-shattering strength. It was definitely not easy to take a punch from either. ¡°Beast, your opponent is me!¡± Lin Qing dodged and stood in front of Huang Quan, blocking the punch for him. He equipped his Armament on his left arm and used it to block the gorilla¡¯s fist. Under his feet, the cement road broke into pieces. Observing with the naked eye, you could see that the ground within a radius of two meters had sunk a few centimeters. Zhi Zhang glanced over. His calm eyes suddenly narrowed, and his expression turned solemn. ¡°No wonder you are able to remain unscathed even with a bounty worth so many crystals. This little monk is really impressed this time.¡± ¡°Hehe, monk, did you just find out?¡± Huang Quan charged over with all his might. Then his arms, which were thicker than Zhi Zhang¡¯s thighs, swung out one punch after another. ¡°It¡¯s too late to run now.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not too late. It¡¯s not too late.¡± Normally, a sedan would only be about ten meters tall by the time they reached adulthood, and it was very difficult for them to grow any taller. And Zhi Zhang was a sports car, so he wasn¡¯t large and didn¡¯t have an advantage when fighting with Huang Quan. But in his eyes, whether a person was strong or not didn¡¯t depend on their size. Otherwise, how could this gorilla have been subdued by him? ¡°This little monk will release your soul from its suffering right now. Have a taste of my absolute art, Staining Clothes in Eighteen Kicks!!¡± Zhi Zhang, who was more than ten meters away, covered the distance in a single step and was right in front of Huang Quan in less than a second. He was so fast that Huang Quan could only see an afterimage. ¡°Was that bloody move Staining Clothes in Eighteen Kicks?¡± ¡°Of course not. It was Eight Steps Chasing Cicada.¡± Zhi Zhang leaped up and shouted, ¡°Demon Subduing Vajra Fist.¡± Boom! Under Ye Daying¡¯s stunned gaze, Huang Quan was sent flying eight meters away with a series of dents on his chest. Zhi Zhang didn¡¯t throw a punch just now. Instead, he had pulled off the prayer beads hanging in front of his chest and threw them at Huang Quan. This string of Buddhist beads was completely black. Each bead was the size of a watermelon, and there were a total of 36. If you took a closer look, you would discover that the beads weren¡¯t made out of wood but from various body parts of steel beasts that had been removed and strung together. This was why it was so sturdy and could easily send Huang Quan flying, even leaving dents on his body. ¡°F*ck you! You¡¯re a bully!¡± Huang Quan cursed as he got up from the ground. ¡°I swear I will definitely cripple you today.¡± He shouted a certain martial arts technique, but the move he used in reality was completely different. This was too sinister. ¡°Hehe, I¡¯m already a monk. I¡¯m not interested in that.¡± ¡°You!¡± Huang Quan was furious. ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one who knows martial arts? I know martial arts too. Look at my Six Meridian Divine Sword!¡± Da da da da da!! Huang Quan¡¯s right hand turned into a gun barrel, and sparks flew in all directions as he fired countless laser bullets from his arm. But the moment Huang Quan raised his hand, Zhi Zhang turned around and ran away. As though he had eyes on the back of his head, he traveled in an S-shaped path, causing all the bullets to miss him. The sound of bullets raining down stopped. But before Zhi Zhang could heave a sigh of relief, he suddenly felt his scalp go numb as he felt an inexplicable sense of danger. ¡°Tsk tsk tsk, I¡¯ve caught you!¡± He didn¡¯t know when Huang Quan had appeared behind him, but a large hand grabbed his neck and slammed him into a building. ¡°I can take ten punches from you with no problem. But if you take one hit from me, you¡¯ll die.¡± With a fierce gaze, Huang Quan pressed Zhi Zhang¡¯s neck against the building. ¡°In the face of absolute strength, all tricks are useless.¡± ¡°Hehe, not necessarily. Even an ant can shake a tree!¡± Zhi Yuan, who should have been nervous, chuckled and coiled around Huang Quan¡¯s waist at a tricky, impossible angle. Then he twisted his body and instantly spun onto his back. ¡°Great Smashing Stele Hand!!¡± Boom! Huang Quan suddenly felt an immense force from his back pushing him toward the building. His twenty-meter-tall body instantly shattered the building. And countless bricks, steel bars, and rubble buried him. As Zhi Zhang gently landed on the ground, he pressed his palms together and chanted, ¡°Amitabha.¡± ¡°Monk, are you treating me like air?¡± Hearing this, he turned around. A big hand grabbed his neck. Lin Qing held the red Flame Devil in his right hand and firmly held Zhi Zhang in his left, lifting him three meters off the ground. Dozens of meters away, the gorilla¡¯s chest had been shattered, and no one knew when it had stopped breathing. ¡°Old Huang is right. In the face of absolute strength, all schemes and plots are useless. The reason we can¡¯t win against schemes is simply that we¡¯re not strong enough.¡± With Lin Qing¡¯s height, he could cover a distance of seven to eight meters with a normal step. But when he was running, the distance covered would multiply, so he only took a second to cross 100 meters. Zhi Zhang had only finished chanting half of Amitabha when Lin Qing was already behind him. ¡°Seven Stars Flower Fist!¡± ¡°Flower Piercing Hand!¡± ¡°Shaolin Double Ring Hand!¡± ¡°Great Smashing Stele Hand!¡± Zhi Zhang shouted out a series of martial arts techniques, but they were useless against Lin Qing¡¯s arm and only caused sparks to fly. ¡°What other techniques do you have? Use them,¡± Lin Qing said calmly while holding Zhi Zhang¡¯s neck. ¡°Sure, you forced me to do this. The Navy¡¯s Six Techniques, Finger Gun!!¡± ¡°F*ck you!¡± Even before Zhi Zhang could raise his hand, Lin Qing already knew what he was going to do. His hand, which was holding Zhi Zhang¡¯s neck, heavily smashed into the ground, causing the ground to crack. Gravel flew in all directions, and spiderweb-like cracks quickly spread everywhere. ¡°Cough, cough, cough!!¡± Half of Lin Qing¡¯s body was embedded in the ground. Zhi Zhang raised his hand, and his mechanical arm turned into a gun. Then he aimed at Lin Qing¡¯s face. Before he could use his finger gun, Lin Qing grabbed his wrist gently. ¡°Do you want to see what is faster¡ªyour bullet or me crushing your arm?¡± Zhi Zhang was an adult Motorbot, so he could naturally fire his laser gun. But this thing couldn¡¯t kill an opponent with a single shot, especially when the opponent was an adult Motorbot. It was unless he hit a vital spot or randomly fired at his enemy. In a battle against an enemy of the same level, it would deal less damage than his punches. He blinked at Lin Qing and said weakly, ¡°Brother, would you believe me if I said that I was just passing by? A monk doesn¡¯t lie.¡± He would never have thought that this Motorbot, who had a bounty on him, would be so strong that he could kill him in an instant. He wondered if it was too late to admit defeat. Whoosh His face covered in dust, Huang Quan crawled out from the ruins. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to him. This bastard is full of lies.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Lin Qing raised his head and glanced at Huang Quan. Seeing that he was fine, Lin Qing continued to strangle Zhi Zhang and slapped his head repeatedly. ¡°Didn¡¯t you chase us for hundreds of kilometers? ¡°What about your Staining Clothes in Eighteen Kicks? ¡°What about your Demon Subduing Vajra Fist? ¡°What about your Eight Steps Chasing Cicada?¡± Chapter 38 Lin Qing was extremely happy that he was rubbing a former Overlord against the ground. He slapped him again and again until Zhi Zhang almost cried. ¡°A scholar can be killed but not humiliated. You better give me a swift death!¡± ¡°Woah. I couldn¡¯t tell that you¡¯re so strong-willed. But I¡¯m not going to follow your wishes. I want to beat you up.¡± ¡°Tell me. Where did you get the money to buy a sports car? ¡°I earned it myself!¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯m a fool? How can a monk have so much money?¡± ¡°Wuuu, Big Brother, the salary of a monk isn¡¯t as low as you think. You have to graduate from undergraduate studies to even qualify as a monk. Moreover, you have to be a graduate student to qualify for any of the big monasteries.¡± Lin Qing slapped him again. ¡°Even graduate students don¡¯t have millions to buy such an expensive sports car, right?¡± He knew that the Shaolin Temple earned a few hundred million yuan from entrance tickets per year. But it would be an exaggeration if ordinary monks could afford expensive sports cars. Even the abbot didn¡¯t dare to be so high-profile. ¡°I paid for part of it, while my family made up for the rest.¡± ¡°How much did your family pay?¡± ¡°Over four million yuan.¡± It turned out that he was a rich second-generation scion. Lin Qing was slightly surprised. ¡°Why did you become a monk when your family is so rich?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been sick since I was young. The fortune-teller said that I wouldn¡¯t live past the age of twenty-four, so my family sent me to become a monk¡­¡± Zhi Zhang¡¯s family owned a hotel. Compared to those tycoons to whom a few hundred million yuan was a small amount, his family wasn¡¯t considered rich. But they still had over a hundred million yuan worth of assets. But it was a pity that he had encountered many disasters when he was young. He either fell down a manhole or was knocked down by a car while walking, causing him to be hospitalized repeatedly. In short, he was extremely unlucky. Ordinary people wouldn¡¯t experience as many accidents in a year as he did in a month. Later on, he was sent to the temple under the guidance of an expert, who said that he could only come out when he was 24 years old. Thus, he stayed there for more than ten years. Fortunately, his parents could visit him frequently. In the temple, he learned martial arts, got his driver¡¯s license, and read many Buddhist scriptures. Even the abbot said that he had the root of wisdom and wanted to pass on his mantle to him more than once. A week before he turned 24 last month, he had given his parents tens of thousands from his savings and asked them to help him buy a sports car. However, he didn¡¯t expect to wake up as a Motorbot on his birthday. ¡°So, that¡¯s your past?¡± Lin Qing touched his chin and asked what he was most concerned about, ¡°How did you control the steel beast?¡± The most precious thing that Zhi Zhang possessed was not his so-called martial arts skills but his ability to control beasts. Later on, he could even ride Lord-level steel beasts. It would be terrible if he were to rule over thousands of steel beasts. After all, if an army of tens of thousands of steel beasts attacked, their opponents wouldn¡¯t even need to fight them. They would simply kneel down and worship them. ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking. You won¡¯t be able to learn my technique.¡± ¡°How do you know if I can learn it or not?¡± After pondering for a few seconds, Zhi Zhang said in confusion, ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t know how to control them either.¡± ¡°Old Huang, it¡¯s your turn to deal with him. My hands are sore.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t, don¡¯t, don¡¯t.¡± Having just offended Huang Quan, Zhi Zhang knew that this fellow was definitely full of anger and waiting to take revenge on him. The outcome wouldn¡¯t be good if he fell into his hands. ¡°Then tell us properly.¡± Lin Qing squatted beside him and said calmly, ¡°If you speak well, I will let you go. If not, I will bury you here.¡± ¡°Big Brother, are you really going to let me go if I tell you?¡± ¡°I, Lin Qing, swear to the heavens that I¡¯ll be damned if I don¡¯t let you go.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll say it. I can sense the inner world of steel beasts and control them.¡± Lin Qing, Huang Quan, and Ye Daying thought about it¡­ ¡°Alright. Lin Qing, you step back first.¡± Huang Quan walked forward and punched and kicked Zhi Zhang while cursing. ¡°I¡¯m asking you for the science behind it, but you¡¯re talking about theology with me. What bullshit!¡± ¡°Brother, I¡¯m telling the truth. Animals are actually very simple-minded. They don¡¯t hide their emotions and can become your partners through careful communication.¡± ¡°Screw you! Do you think I¡¯m a fool? Tell me the truth!¡± Grabbing his head and covering his crotch, Zhi Zhang curled up like a shrimp and shouted, ¡°I¡¯m telling the truth. The abbot said that this is a talent that others can¡¯t learn.¡± ¡°Besides, I can only control one steel beast at a time, and I need to spend a lot of time nurturing my feelings with them. Otherwise, I will be easily devoured. ¡°Big Brother, think about it. If I could completely tame beasts, I wouldn¡¯t have brought just one to stop you guys. I would have brought tens of thousands.¡± Huang Quan stopped and tilted his head to think. That was true! If this fellow were really so awesome, he would have been invincible a long time ago. Putting everything else aside, if he could make steel beasts commit suicide in front of him, he would have an endless supply of crystals every day and would have already become an Overlord. ¡°Brother, can I go now?¡± Zhi Zhang looked at Lin Qing with teary eyes. ¡°I am a man of my word. I will definitely let you go. But I don¡¯t know if my brother will let you go or not.¡± Zhi Zhang turned to look at Huang Quan, and he felt so depressed that he vomited blood. ¡°Young people don¡¯t keep their promises!¡± Would Huang Quan let him go? Definitely not. ¡°When did I not keep my word? What did I say? I, Lin Qing, swear to the heavens that I¡¯ll be damned if I don¡¯t let you go. But I didn¡¯t say that Old Huang would let you leave.¡± Huang Quan rubbed his fists and wiped his palms as he sneered. ¡°Come, let¡¯s practice a little more. I heard that your Shaolin Temple has 72 Secret Arts. Let me experience them.¡± ¡°Big Brother, what 72 Secret Arts? They¡¯re all lies and are just higher-level combat techniques. I was randomly shouting to show off. Let me go!¡± ¡°Hmph, let you go? I¡¯m afraid you don¡¯t understand the situation.¡± Huang Quan said to Ye Daying, ¡°Little Ying, show him what happens to anyone who tries to take the bounty from us.¡± Without saying a word, Ye Daying used his leg to lift the sack of crystals he was carrying. Crash¡­ There must be at least a thousand crystals in that sack bag¡­ Zhi Zhang suddenly felt his throat go dry. Bandits, they¡¯re definitely bandits. He even suspected that these people had published the bounty notice themselves. Their goal was to attract more Motorbots to come and die in their hands. ¡°Brother, it¡¯s your bad luck to have met me. Be smarter in your next life, and don¡¯t chase after any bounties whenever you see them. Why do you think we¡¯ve been fine for so many days?¡± ¡°Big Brother, do you think I still have a chance?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Lin Qing grinned. ¡°The heavens are kind. I¡¯ll give you a chance to fight with my brother. If you win, you can join us and live a good life.¡± ¡°What if I lose?¡± Lin Qing played with the crystal of the gorilla, and a cruel smile appeared on his face. ¡°Why don¡¯t you guess?¡± Zhi Zhang shuddered and stood up. Then he took off the prayer beads hanging from his neck and wrapped them around his hand, extending them from his fist to his arm. He had obtained these from the bodies of the steel beasts he had hunted. These beads were all made from the toughest bones in their bodies. Zhi Zhang¡¯s arm was pitch-black, and Huang Quan equipped his Armament as well. This time, he wouldn¡¯t underestimate Zhi Zhang. After eating the crystal from the gorilla, Lin Qing sat by the side and watched the two of them fight. Ye Daying followed him and ran over. ¡°Brother Lin, do you believe what this monk said?¡± He was referring to Zhi Zhang¡¯s telepathy and communication with steel beasts. Lin Qing shook his head and said in a deep voice, ¡°There are mixed truths and falsehoods in his words. Some of what he said is true, but some of it is false!¡± In his previous life, Zhi Zhang could control steel beasts, but there was only one steel beast each time. It seemed that it wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t want to control them on a large scale but that he simply couldn¡¯t. As for his telepathy with steel beasts, that was nonsense. But everyone had their own secrets. If he could become a teammate, he wouldn¡¯t mind Zhi Zhang knowing his own secrets too. They didn¡¯t avoid this subject in their conversation, and Zhi Zhang, who was preparing to fight, heard them clearly. His anus tightened, and he broke out in cold sweat. Chapter 39 ¡°Monk, what do you think?¡± Huang Quan shouted loudly. Then he waved his Armament-equipped arm and attacked. But Zhi Zhang didn¡¯t fight him head-on and instead retreated in an orderly manner. After a few rounds, Huang Quan didn¡¯t even touch the corner of his clothes. Instead, he even suffered a few punches. Even Ye Daying, who didn¡¯t know any combat techniques, could tell that Zhi Zhang was indeed an expert. His technique was completely superior to that of Huang Quan, but his strength was lacking. Just as Huang Quan said before, he would be fine even if he resisted ten punches from Zhi Zhang, but Zhi Zhang would be defeated as long as Huang Quan punched him just once. ¡°Monk, can you do it?¡± Lin Qing urged. ¡°We still have to hurry.¡± Upon hearing Lin Qing urging him, Zhi Zhang gritted his teeth. He no longer dodged and took the initiative to attack Huang Quan. His footsteps changed unpredictably as he kicked Huang Quan three times in a row. ¡°Have a taste of my Life-Seizing Consecutive Kicks!¡± ¡°F*ck you!¡± How could Huang Quan still listen to his words after suffering a loss earlier? His gaze was fixed on Zhi Zhang¡¯s hand that was wrapped with prayer beads. Bang! Bang! Bang! This time, Zhi Zhang really did use his legs. He jumped into the air and delivered two kicks. Then when he landed, he turned around and lashed out with his legs, causing the air to boom. Using the Armament on his arm, Huang Quan blocked all his attacks and chuckled. ¡°This is useless against me.¡± Then he threw a punch! It hit Zhi Zhang¡¯s chest! As though he had been hit by a cannonball, Zhi Zhang saw the surrounding scenery rapidly retreat. Then his entire body smashed into a building dozens of meters away. ¡°Cough cough, impressive. As expected of a mining truck.¡± After a while, Zhi Zhang walked out of the building weakly. There was a huge fist imprint on his chest that was a few centimeters deep. ¡°So, are you still going to fight?¡± Huang Quan crossed his arms in front of his chest and teased Zhi Zhang. Zhi Zhang glanced at Lin Qing and said coldly, ¡°I will fight! Will I still live if I don¡¯t?¡± Zhi Zhang bent his body slightly and took half a step back with his right foot. He entered a charging state and looked coldly at Huang Quan. Crack! The next second, the ground cracked open, and Zhi Zhang disappeared. He dashed until several meters away from Huang Quan and then raised his knee. ¡°This again?¡± Huang Quan frowned and silently extended his left arm in front of him. Accompanied by a series of sonic booms, Zhi Zhang¡¯s giant metal leg tore through the air. Just as he was about to come into contact with Huang Quan, he suddenly twisted his waist and shrunk his body as he swept his leg across Huang Quan. Then his foot flipped over his head and smashed down heavily. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Huang Quan didn¡¯t even have time to react before lying on the ground. Boom! The earth quaked. Huang Quan felt his chest constrict as his back was embedded into the pavement. Before he could get up, Zhi Zang grabbed his arm and twisted it between his legs, forming a standard armbar. ¡°I advise you not to move. Otherwise, don¡¯t blame me if your arm is broken. The more you struggle, the more force I will have, and the faster your arm will break.¡± Not only was Huang Quan more powerful than him, but his defensive strength was also greater than his. So Zhi Zhang had never thought of using his strength to win. He could only resort to cheap tricks and use softness to conquer Huang Quan¡¯s strength. And Zhi Zhang succeeded! As long as he wanted to, he could break Huang Quan¡¯s arm in the next second. But he didn¡¯t dare to do so, as Huang Quan¡¯s pitch-black hand was at his waist. If he broke Huang Quan¡¯s arm, he would definitely be punched through by a fist full of rage. Neither of them moved anymore. They were in a deadlock until Lin Qing said, ¡°Old Huang lost, and the monk won. Congratulations!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t lose.¡± Huang Quan refused to admit defeat. When Zhi Zhang let go, he got up and protested, ¡°I want to make a report. The referee was corrupt.¡± ¡°The crowd has the clearest perception. Why don¡¯t you ask Little Ying whether you lost?¡± Lin Qing passed the responsibility on to Ye Daying. ¡°Cough, cough, cough. Brother Huang, you just made a mistake. It¡¯s a draw. It¡¯s a draw at best.¡± ¡°Exactly. I also think that it¡¯s a tie at best.¡± Looking at the two of them, Lin Qing said seriously, ¡°There¡¯s no such thing as a draw on a real battlefield, only life and death. The monk had his concerns when dealing with you and didn¡¯t kill you. Otherwise, that attack just now wouldn¡¯t have been an armbar but a guillotine. ¡°Even if you could have punched him before you died, he would have only been heavily injured at most. In the end, you would have still been the one to die.¡± Huang Quan widened his eyes and stood rooted on the spot. He was clearly stronger than the monk, and his level was higher than the monk¡¯s, but he never expected this outcome. He was extremely depressed. ¡°Why don¡¯t we do it again? I¡¯ll definitely win this time!¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Zhi Zhang opened his mouth wide. He wanted to say something but couldn¡¯t. He had finally won, but Huang Quan wanted to fight him again. No way! How lawless! Isn¡¯t this bullying an honest person? ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious!¡± Lin Qing waved his hand to comfort him. ¡°This time, we will use martial arts to decide the vice-captain. Whoever wins will be the vice-captain, and whoever loses will be automatically allocated under Little Ying¡¯s first squad.¡± ¡°Vice-captain?¡± Zhi Zhang was confused. ¡°You still don¡¯t know the name of our battle team, right? We are Team Battle the Heavens!¡± Ye Daying said arrogantly, ¡°Those who are not strong cannot join us. The minimum requirements are five evolutions and passing a series of tests.¡± ¡°What about you?¡± ¡°Um, I¡¯m the exception. I can reach a speed of up to four hundred kilometers an hour, so please understand.¡± Four hundred kilometers an hour¡­ Zhi Zhang¡¯s eyes almost fell out. Indeed, you couldn¡¯t judge a book by its cover. Furthermore, Ye Daying had evolved quite a few times. He had evolved four times and was a motorcycle. This was enough to defeat 90% of Motorbots. After all, many Motorbots were still hovering around the first and second evolution. This team is so fierce! Lin Qing smiled at Zhi Zhang. ¡°So, are you joining us?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Zhi Zhang gritted his teeth and said, ¡°If I win, can I really be the vice-captain and command them in the future?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re willing to bet, you must be willing to admit defeat. Of course you can. Not only will the vice-captain be decided this way, but the position of captain will be decided by a martial arts competition in the future as well. Whoever can defeat me will become the captain.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Zhi Zhang shouted, giving Huang Quan and Ye Daying a fright. With two peak combatants in front of him, he was inexplicably excited when he thought about how they would be his underlings in the future. ¡°Haha.¡± Huang Quan sneered. After all, Zhi Zhang was still young and didn¡¯t know how cunning Lin Qing was. Just a slash from the Flame Devil could increase his combat power by a few levels. What was the point of fighting then? ¡°Get ready, both of you. You can start whenever you want to.¡± Lin Qing left the battlefield and handed the place over to them. The cold wind blew as gales howled past. The two mechas fought back and forth in an extremely heated battle. All kinds of mysterious martial arts techniques came out of Zhi Zhang¡¯s mouth. ¡°AV 18 Techniques!!¡± ¡°An Old Man¡¯s Cart!¡± ¡°One Shot into the Soul!¡± ¡°Poison Dragon Drill!!¡± ¡°Ah!!¡± After more than ten minutes of fighting, Huang Quan let out an earth-shattering shout. He was holding his buttocks and leaning against the wall with his face distorted. A chill traveled from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. ¡°Are you even human? How can you use such a vicious move?¡± Panting heavily, Zhi Zhang held half of a steel bar tightly in his hands and said, ¡°There are only two words in martial arts¡ªhorizontal and vertical. The winner will stand, while the loser will lie down. There are only a few rules. ¡°If you think my methods aren¡¯t honorable, then don¡¯t use your black arm either!¡± The more he fought Huang Quan, the more familiar he became with his style. In this short period of time, he had been punched several times. Every punch had a force of 10,000 kilograms and almost crippled him. If that went on, he would have surely lost, so he could only resort to his unique skill. In the past, none of his fellow disciples had been able to withstand these 18 techniques, so everyone had praised his talent. ¡°Old Huang, are you still going to fight?¡± Lin Qing shouted. ¡°I-I¡­¡± Huang Quan¡¯s face turned red. He really wanted to fight again. But the moment he saw the steel bar in Zhi Zhang¡¯s hands, he became apprehensive. Just now, Zhi Zhang had used a sliding kick to slide from below his crotch to his back and stabbed him with the steel bar. There had been a ripping sound, and sparks flew. As a Motorbot, his body structure was already different from a human¡¯s. But he still had the psychological reaction of a human and couldn¡¯t accept being forced into a corner by another man. He didn¡¯t know if it was an illusion, but now that the wind was blowing, he felt a chill. [0] A series of 18 techniques by Feng Baobao from the Chinese webcomic ¡®Under One Person¡¯. The names of all the techniques have sexual innuendos, thus the name. Chapter 40 - Looked Down Upon Huang Quan didn¡¯t speak. Seeing this, Lin Qing smiled. ¡°In that case, it¡¯s settled. The position of vice-captain is yours.¡± Seeing the smile on Zhi Zhang¡¯s lips, Lin Qing continued, ¡°Don¡¯t be happy too early. It¡¯s only temporary. In the future, we¡¯ll compete once a month.¡± Zhi Zhang¡¯s smile froze! He had been able to win against Huang Quan by using a trick. Moreover, Huang Quan wasn¡¯t familiar with him yet, so it would be terrible as time went on. If he didn¡¯t hurry up and increase his strength, his position as vice-captain would probably be stripped from him within a few months. He wouldn¡¯t even be able to think of challenging Lin Qing to control this team. ¡°Okay, it¡¯s getting late. Let¡¯s set off and try to reach Qingzhou tomorrow.¡± ¡°Wait!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Lin Qing turned to look at Zhi Zhang. ¡°Can you give me some time? I want to inform my master and fellow disciples first. Furthermore, there¡¯s something I need to settle.¡± ¡°Damn, I thought there was something going on. We¡¯re all on the same team. Your fellow disciples are my fellow disciples, right? If there¡¯s anything, just tell me.¡± Lin Qing put his arm on Zhi Zhang¡¯s shoulders and smiled, as if he wanted to go back with him. Zhi Zhang thought about it¡­ Are you afraid that I will run away? ¡°The base is about to fall apart. This time, I came out mainly to exchange the bounty for food. A bunch of people are waiting for me to eat. ¡°I am the main combat force in the base. Once I leave, their lives won¡¯t be easy, so before I leave, I want them to settle down.¡± ¡°This is a small problem.¡± Lin Qing turned to Ye Daying and said, ¡°Little Ying, check where there are the most steel beasts nearby. We will bring two carts of supplies to the monks as a gift.¡± It had almost been one month since the Cataclysm. Many shopping malls, convenience stores, and supermarkets had been looted clean, and any place that still had food had been occupied by a large number of steel beasts. Their rations were Motorbots, not daily necessities for humans. The difference between the identity of a hunter and their prey was that it was in the hunter¡¯s nature to kill whenever they saw someone. As such, steel beasts only bit ordinary people to death to vent their beastly nature. In fact, it was completely useless for them to eat humans. ¡°Amitabha. Thank you very much.¡± Zhi Zhang placed his hands together and recited the Buddhist proclamation. ¡°I do know about a few groups of steel beasts. There¡¯s no need to trouble this young brother.¡± Under Zhi Zhang¡¯s lead, they arrived at a city 100 kilometers away. When they walked into the quiet city, they saw countless corpses along the side of the road. Zhi Zhang put his palms together, chanted, and then said, ¡°This place has the most steel beasts within a hundred kilometers. But there are no more citizens in the city. ¡°Previously, I came here several times to look for food, and I fought a few adult steel beasts. Every time, they would lead a group of their subordinates to fight me, and I almost died here.¡± ¡°This is a good place. It¡¯s really a paradise.¡± Huang Quan was excited. Only God knew how difficult it was for them to find a few adult steel beasts these days. ¡°We¡¯ll follow the same old rules. We¡¯ll wipe out the adult steel beasts while the monk will be in charge of getting supplies from the back. After all, he¡¯s new here. You should rest and adapt to this team environment first.¡± There were not enough resources to go around. Furthermore, he didn¡¯t know how many steel beasts there were. He already didn¡¯t have enough to share, but if he added one more person, he would have to share more. When it came to hunting steel beasts, everyone on the team was extremely enthusiastic. Huang Quan and Lin Qing pushed on their accelerators and ran ahead first. Seeing Ye Daying also eager to go, Zhi Zhang grabbed him. ¡°What are the old rules?¡± Unable to break free, Ye Daying said anxiously, ¡°If we act alone, whoever kills the beasts will get the crystals. If we act together, we will get credit based on our contribution. Don¡¯t f*cking stop me. I still have to help the captain. If not, Brother Huang will snatch the crystals away.¡± At the mention of work, Ye Daying¡¯s eyes turned red, and whoever stopped him now would be his mortal enemy. Even if God came, it would be useless. ¡°Wait, I want to go too!¡± Zhi Zhang felt fear in his heart and followed behind Lin Qing. He was also afraid that the crystals he hunted after joining the team would be confiscated. The boss would take the biggest reward, while the second-in-command would distribute the rest of the rewards one by one. But now, it turned out that they had already made arrangements. Whoever hunted the steel beasts would receive their crystals accordingly. Meanwhile, for team activities, the rewards would be distributed according to everyone¡¯s contribution, probably to raise those who were slightly weaker. This way, even the weakest person could get some rewards if they dared to risk their lives. By the time Zhi Zhang and Ye Daying caught up, the battle had already begun. Lin Qing and Huang Quan rushed into the crowd of steel beasts and charged recklessly toward the largest adult beast. In an instant, thousands of steel beasts surrounded them. With his heart in his throat, Zhi Zhang came to a sudden halt. He didn¡¯t dare to rush in. After all, he had been surrounded like this the last few times and almost died. He wasn¡¯t afraid of fighting steel beasts one-on-one, but he was no match for so many of them. After all, people¡¯s abilities were limited when outnumbered. If the steel beasts pounced forward together, even a deity would die. Meanwhile, Ye Daying took down the sniper rifle from his back and climbed up a small building. ¡°Hey, what are you doing?!¡± Zhi Zhang shouted. But what he received in reply was a gunshot that pierced through the knee of a fourth-evolution steel beast who had been preparing to ambush Huang Quan. Ye Daying held his breath while holding his gun and focusing. After becoming a Motorbot, many human physiological reactions were gone, such as shaking hands and sweat. This was definitely a blessing for a sniper. Bang! Bang! Bang! Then he fired the second shot, the third shot, the fourth shot¡­ Sparks shot out from the muzzle of the gun, and bullets pierced through the air. With every shot, a steel beast fell. All the bullets either hit the knee, the eye socket, or the elbow of the steel beasts. He fired to cover for Lin Qing and Huang Quan. He knew that with the current speed at which steel beasts evolved, it was very difficult to kill them with one shot using an ordinary gun, so his role was to play support. He would sweep away any potential dangers behind Lin Qing and Huang Quan. ¡°Bandits! They¡¯re definitely bandits! Aren¡¯t they afraid at all?¡± Zhi Zhang was dumbstruck. They were facing thousands of steel beasts! ¡°Hahaha, it¡¯s mine.¡± After a sweep of his laser gun, Lin Qing jumped dozens of meters forward and landed in front of an adult steel beast. ¡°This is mine!¡± Unwilling to be outdone, Huang Quan simply pounced over and crushed a pile of beasts beneath him. With his size, these ordinary steel beasts were not even as tall as his thigh. He could easily trample dozens of them to death. ¡°You¡¯re too late. Maybe next time.¡± As Lin Qing¡¯s indifferent words fell, Zhi Zhang saw him wave his arm, and a fiery red light flashed. Then the adult steel beast was cut into pieces before it could even attack. ¡°It¡¯s that red light again!¡± Zhi Zhang was shocked. He had seen it before, but he didn¡¯t know where Lin Qing had been hiding it, and it disappeared again in the blink of an eye. He didn¡¯t expect it to be so powerful that it could instantly kill an adult steel beast in seconds. Then he subconsciously touched his waist. He reckoned that if this sword targeted him, his outcome wouldn¡¯t be much better than that steel beast¡¯s. What kind of people are they? ¡°F*ck, you always beat me to it. Do you still have any awareness as the captain? Do you know how to respect the old and love the young?¡± Ordinary steel beasts were unlucky when Huang Quan was furious. The gun barrel on his arm spun and fired countless bullets, causing steel beasts to collapse in large groups. Huang Quan killed steel beasts and swallowed their crystals at the same time. But these steel beasts weren¡¯t enough for him to vent his anger. ¡°Take your time to kill them. I¡¯m going to look for the next adult beast.¡± Lin Qing brutally broke through a building and disappeared within seconds. ¡°Wait for me!¡± Huang Quan withdrew his gun and caught up. The battlefield was a scene of devastation. The broken corpses of countless steel beasts lay strewn all over the place, while the remaining steel beasts scattered everywhere as they fled. Ye Daying jumped down and started digging for crystals. As he dug, he cursed, ¡°Wastrel, this crystal is broken. How many times have I told them not to hit the chest? They just won¡¯t listen. ¡°And this one is broken too. Don¡¯t their hearts ache?¡± Zhi Zhang¡¯s mouth was dry. He opened his mouth a few times before finally saying, ¡°Y-you¡­ are all of you¡­ always like this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a small matter. Calm down.¡± Ye Daying took out a cigarette from somewhere and lit it. After taking a deep puff, he turned to glance at Zhi Zhang. ¡°Get to work and dig up the crystals. Don¡¯t just stand there like a fool.¡± ¡°Am¡­ am I being looked down upon?¡± Zhi Zhang was confused. He was an adult Motorbot and one of the best in the country, but was he being looked down upon by a motorcycle?