Chapter 29: Hanshui

Chapter 29: Han River

The presence of the blood skull was a tremendous shock to Chen Jian's four‑person squad, making them realize that on this wasteland, colossal monsters were not the only threat.

But for the Sanctified Blood adepts and the Machine God cult, who were already accustomed to the waste, and even for the ordinary folk here, the emergence and repulse of the water ghosts under the blood skull’s command was perhaps as ordinary as a ship encountering a few squalls.

After confirming that the steam engine’s spirit had not gone on strike, Captain Big Anchor, speaking reason, did not levy extra fees on the squad; instead, after delivering a hard kick to Leijie, he let him disembark.

This act left the four Sanctified Blood members trembling with dread, fearing that offended Chosen Ones might, at a single discordant word, tear back the canvas draped over the ox’s back and slaughter every Machine God crewman aboard.

There was no doubt that these four Chosen Ones were capable of such a deed; they possessed the full power to do it.

Fortunately, the Chosen Ones never ceased to maintain an admirable rationality; they merely smiled, as if it were a joke.

——

Perhaps they truly did not care.

They looked down upon everything here, as if gazing at a swarm of ants.

Before disembarking, as they passed Big Anchor, Xu Lie patted his shoulder and said:

“I’m glad you made it out alive.”

Big Anchor smirked contemptuously and replied:

“Just some water ghosts; I’ve fought them countless times already.”

“I wasn’t talking about those useless water ghosts.”

Xu Lie kept his thoughts to himself, hurriedly catching up with the group ahead and heading toward the nearby Han River district.

Meanwhile, walking at the front, Chen Jian listened intently to Xie Liu’s explanation.

““Han River’s scale ranks among the top ten in the southern region, with about five thousand inhabitants.””

““Most residents live on the fringe of the ruins, between the two lakes.””

““There is a vast tract of land that was cultivated before the Great Cataclysm, growing rice, sweet potatoes and other staples; the locals call it the ‘Rice Plains.’””

““To the east of the Rice Plains lies a large ruin known as the Ecological Cocoon, where abundant crops also grow.””

““Yet it is strange that those crops grow only within walls ten or so meters high, as if someone had penned them in there.””

““No one knows why this is; do plants even need to be penned?””

““Nevertheless, these two food sources sustain the five thousand people here, while the ruins’ various resources give the Machine God cult a foothold.””

““Still, for the most part, the locals avoid entering the ruins.””

““It’s dangerous in there.””

When Xie Liu finished speaking, Chen Jian nodded thoughtfully.

According to the old map in their hands, the Han River settlement lies on a small plain between Pinglang Lake and Lu Lake, originally a farming zone where abundant rice would naturally grow.

As for the so‑called Ecological Cocoon, it is actually the remains of an ecological agriculture firm; its original purpose was vertical farming, so ‘keeping plants inside a building’ makes perfect sense.

The only thing that puzzled him was what danger lurked within the urban area.

Monsters?

He posed the question to Xie Liu, but before she could answer, Xu Lie, who had caught up, interjected:

““It is a colossal monster of at least grade three.””

““Its range lies in the ruin’s deepest core, about forty kilometers from Han River.””

““That creature’s power is immense; the Machine God cult launched several hunts against it, all ending in total annihilation.””

““Since three years ago, the hunts have ceased entirely, and the locals coexist peacefully with the beast.””

““Yet both the Sanctified Blood Hall and the Machine God cult believe this is merely the monster’s temporary hibernation.””

““Should it awaken again, it will surely flatten Han River.””

““So we, too, are seeking a way to utterly slay this beast.””

““But obviously, we are presently powerless to do so.””

““After all, the threat to Han River is not limited to that one monster; the surrounding areas occasionally spawn grade‑four and grade‑five horrors, each appearance a grueling battle for us.””

““Is that why you take the offensive?” Chen Jian interjected.

““Exactly.””

Xu Lie nodded and replied:

““As soon as we detect a monster’s trace, even if it has shown no hostility toward us yet, we will strive to eliminate it swiftly.””

““Because by the time it displays hostility, we will likely be too late to react.””

““Understood.””

With preparation, by exploiting a weakness, four of us stand a chance to hunt a grade‑four monster.

Without preparation, hundreds facing a sudden grade‑five assault could suffer grievous losses.

That makes perfect sense.

Chen Jian did not press further, but he had already resolved to enter the ruins—that is, the old Han River district.

Not only because the monsters occupy it, but because substantial resources may still lie there.

More importantly, he must go to the coordinates indicated for the Military Ordnance Academy to see what lies there.

The party proceeded all the way into Han River’s urban zone, a place far more prosperous than the Xia Ma Town Chen Jian had seen before—by how much, he could not tell.

Most houses and buildings are newly erected, bearing a strange style that blends tradition with modernity.

Even the streets are paved, albeit with stone and shattered concrete, yet sufficient to attest to the settlement’s level of civilization.

At a glance, Chen Jian roughly judged that the city’s development remained profoundly aberrant.

It bears the hallmarks of both agrarian and steam eras, yet mingles with elements of the post‑industrial age.

One word: chaotic.

Can you picture neon lights flashing in five‑colored glory alongside rag‑clad woodcutters, backs bent under bundles of firewood, hawking their wares in the same town?

Can you imagine guards wielding rust‑streaked Type‑81 assault rifles, clad in armor woven from vines?

Han River is exactly that.

With no electrical grid and no capacity for large‑scale fossil‑fuel extraction, what else is there but to burn wood?

Most suitably sized metal goods have already rusted and rotted; to bolster protection, one might as well don vine‑woven armor.

What this city displays is no longer a mere technological gap; it is practically—

a technological vortex.

a vortex of chaos.

Following the Sanctified Blood squad, Chen Jian made his way to the city center, where he beheld a towering metal “statue” standing in the square.

Xu Lie pointed to the statue and explained:

““This is the Machine God cult’s holy effigy; legend says it was the battle fortress of their saint, the Trinity, before the Great Cataclysm.””

No one knows what battles it endured here, but it's obvious it's been utterly wrecked—nothing more than a pile of rusted steel.

"Bullshit!"

Xu Lie hadn't finished speaking when a passerby nearby shouted him down:

"This is the Nine-Nine Sacred Elephant, one of the strongest fortresses of the saints!"

"Even if it's rusted, its machine soul shall endure forever!"

The other party, fired up, Xu Lie wanted to retort as a Saint-Blooded, but Chen Jian reached out and grabbed him.

After that person stormed off muttering, Chen Jian finally spoke:

"He wasn't wrong."

"This truly is the Nine-Nine Sacred Elephant."

"It's just the 99A model."

"99A? What's that?"

Xu Lie was clueless, and Chen Jian offered no explanation.

He simply stared at the 99A, weathered by storms, standing silently on the plateau formed from the ruins, sinking into a long silence.

The Machine God's followers were right.

The steel has rotted.

But the soul that forged the steel is destined to be reborn upon this land!

(End of Chapter)