Chapter 127: All Pregnant?

Chapter 127: Are They All Pregnant?

As the squad departed from Caohé Town, every resident of the little town rushed out, kneeling on the ground as if in worship of deities, seeing off the few.

Perhaps for Chen Jian, this was merely a simple transaction with a settlement within his territory.

But for them, it was a resurrection from the brink of death.

What are a few piles of plastic, after all?

If the Machine God Cult had come to do the same, they might have demanded over half of Caohé's population as tribute.

By contrast, the Huaxia Army of Huangshi City's conduct could no longer be called merciful.

It was nothing short of a blessing!

Chen Jian ignored the kneeling crowd, instead, after hastily packing his gear, he climbed onto the cat-cart and rode off.

Their next target was Susong Town, sixty kilometers away, with plans to rest there for a night before pressing on.

Considerable stretches of the route were ruined, slowing their advance.

To reach their destination before nightfall, they had to make every moment count.

The cat-cart surged forward as Jixing and Zengyi swapped places; Chen Jian, operating his PDA, spoke to Zengyi.

“Xie Liu found something peculiar in the demons’ camp; I didn’t have her bring it back, but the drone snapped pictures.”

“Take a look at this.”

Chen Jian handed the PDA to Zengyi, then said:

“This is a desiccated human arm, turned by the demons into an ornament.”

“The arm bears a clear tattoo pattern; according to Xie Liu, it matches the distinctive ink of the Huadu sirens.”

“What do you think—does it look like it?”

“No need to liken it; this is it.”

Zengyi nodded firmly, then said:

“The tattoos of the Huadu sirens are unique; though each differs, the style is unmistakable.”

“Only they would bear such markings—but why would the demons have a Huadu siren’s arm?”

“Do they dare attack Huadu? Impossible, surely.”

“We’ll discuss that later.”

Chen Jian swiped the PDA to the next image and continued:

“This is a hairpin forged from a human spine—do you notice anything different about it?”

“Not really different, but it seems… rather finely crafted?”

Zengyi replied, thoughtful.

“Yes, it’s overly refined. This spine hairpin shows clear signs of delicate workmanship—something those clumsy demons couldn’t produce.”

“Add to that the high‑intelligence demon horde we saw earlier, and I suspect either the Huadu have gathered the clever demons they found, or they’ve discovered a way to boost demon intellect.”

“But the former seems more likely.”

“Come, let’s look at the third.”

“This is a single‑shot rifle, engraved with markings indicating it once belonged to someone from Anqing City’s defense force.”

“It was likely seized by the demons in a skirmish with Anqing’s defenders—but how did it end up here?”

“Caohé lies nearly two hundred kilometers from Anqing; if the demons can haul gear this far, their power has swollen to its limits and they may be spilling outward.”

“That bodes ill.”

Hearing Chen Jian’s words, Zengyi nodded slowly, then said:

“Not necessarily.”

“The migration of the blood‑skulls is inherently random; their instinct drives them to seek fresh blood and greater carnage.”

“If the human settlements near Anqing’s ruins cannot satisfy their bloodlust, moving to other regions is perfectly normal.”

“The presence of this rifle here cannot be simply labeled a bad omen; it could even be a good sign.”

“Perhaps it indicates that Anqing has checked the demons’ expansion, pushing them into other areas.”

“Reasonable.”

Chen Jian nodded, then said:

“Regardless, we can be certain that these demons are linked to Anqing, and thus they are undertaking a large‑scale migration.”

“It follows that the place we’re headed may hold even more demon traces.”

“The closer we get to Anqing, the graver the problem may become.”

“We need to prepare ourselves.”

“Small bands of demons are manageable, but we have yet to face a true horde—we must stay vigilant.”

“Understood.”

Zengyi instinctively tightened his grip on his rifle, while Xie Liu, standing nearby, interjected:

“The demons’ total numbers fall short of the water ghosts; according to our earlier estimate, the southern continent can hold at most about a hundred thousand of them.”

“Moreover, these demons are mostly scattered across regions, so each camp remains relatively small.”

“If we later find that the demon camp near Anqing exceeds a certain threshold, that would signal trouble.”

“I don’t know exactly what Huadu is up to, but I suspect their dealings with the blood‑skulls may tie into a shared fertility cult.”

“Possible.”

Chen Jian stowed his PDA, pondered a moment, then said:

“As you say, demons are a species balanced by extreme birth and death rates; Huadu could indeed be studying them.”

“But those questions can wait until we reach Anqing.”

“Understood.”

The group fell silent; the cat‑cart surged ahead as Zengyi and Li Shi hacked away at a few nameless small beasts with their cold weapons, clearing the path thereafter.

By five in the evening, the convoy had neared Susong Town; the party lingered on its outskirts while Zengyi ventured inside to make contact.

It, too, was a modest settlement of a few hundred souls, yet its position on Longgan Lake blessed it with rich fisheries, making life here clearly more prosperous than in Caohé. Countless towering wind turbines stood along the lakeshore, most now wholly rusted, collapsed or twisted, motionless; yet even in their decay, the stark contrast between these once‑high‑tech relics and the primitive village struck Chen Jian with a vivid sense of dissonance.

Chen Jian suddenly grasped why the Machine God Cult venerates the “Triune” as their symbol.

Not only them—even Chen Jian himself felt awe when standing beneath the colossal blades of those wind turbines.

While waiting on the periphery, Chen Jian watched several villagers approach the relatively intact turbine that still turned feebly, light a bonfire, and launch into an uncanny dance.

The dancers smeared their bodies with white paint, arms outstretched, spinning incessantly, mimicking the rotation of the blades.

Those beside him brandished still‑smoldering sticks, striking sparks into the air.

Whenever a gust swept through, the overhead blades turned with a shrill screech, accompanied by excited cheers.

The sight even sent a chill down Chen Jian's spine.

Human, or imitation?

What kind of environment could have forged such a belief?

Moments later, the simple 'ritual' was declared complete.

They gathered the scattered torches and headed back to Su Song Town; at that moment, Zeng Yi, having finished his communication, also returned to the squad.

No problem; we'll stay the night here posing as merchants.

Su Song Town occasionally sees merchants come by to trade metal goods; they are not strangers to traders.

There are lodgings prepared especially for merchants; I just checked and they're fairly clean.

How about it—shall we go in now?

Let's go—are the locals acting oddly?

Nothing unusual so far.

Zeng Yi shook his head and replied:

They worship the 'wind wheel,' they worship electricity, yet it's laughable that there isn't a trace of electrical use here.

Probably long ago, anything related to electricity was taken away by the Machine God Sect.

Including batteries, wires, and the like.

In short, this is just an ordinary settlement; only their faith is a bit strange.

Understood.

Chen Jian nodded and led the team into Su Song Town.

As the headlights of the cat‑vehicle flared on, the townsfolk turned curious gazes toward them, tinged with a hint of envy.

They revere electricity, yet they have none.

Perhaps they can only witness the "miracles" of electric current through outsiders like us.

It's also ironic.

Upon entering the preparation room in Su Song Town, Lei Jie suddenly spoke:

You say there are so many wind turbines here, their main bodies clearly haven't been dismantled—could we tear them all down and refit the generators as waterwheels to bring back to Huangshi?

.They've been in service for hundreds of years—could they still work?

Chen Jian asked, slightly doubtful.

At least the permanent magnets inside won't easily lose their charge—that's valuable stuff.

We could consider it; let's first note it as a clue on the PDA.

Chen Jian placed the 201‑class aircraft he was holding on the table inside the room, then shifted his tone:

Never mind the generator issue for now—have you really not noticed that this town is a bit off?

I have.

He Shuo removed his helmet and then said:

There are far too many pregnant women here.

That's right.

As Chen Jian's words fell, everyone finally realized.

Ji Xing exclaimed in realization:

Indeed, it seems every adult woman we've seen is pregnant, and already showing.

By rights, it shouldn't be so concentrated—are the locals' physiques that special?

.Special my ass.

Chen Jian rolled his eyes at Ji Xing and then said:

Perhaps it's a coincidence, or perhaps some factor we don't yet know is at play.

Either way, it doesn't really concern us.

It's getting late; tomorrow morning we'll wander the town and see if there's anything tradable.

If there is, we'll trade; if not, we'll just leave.

As long as we've passed through and scouted the route, that's enough.

Our further plans, for now—

Ah!!!

Chen Jian hadn't finished speaking when a heart‑rending howl burst from outside the door.

Everyone instinctively grabbed their weapons; Chen Jian leaned against the bed, listened for a few seconds, then said:

A woman's voice.

Xie Liu, go check it out.

Everyone else, hold position!

Understood.

Xie Liu slipped out the window, and Ji Xing followed close behind.

Chen Jian tried to stop them, but their silhouettes had already vanished.

He frowned in displeasure, but could only stay put and wait.

Moments later, the two returned through the front door.

She spoke:

She's in labor.

But... the situation seems a bit off!

(End of chapter)