Chapter 14.4 – Habit
Following the continuous battles, especially after the extermination of the mutant tribe, Li and Li Gaolei also obtained enough evolutionary points to produce fifth level abilities. Li ultimately decided to increase defense to five levels, while Li Gaolei chose to increase defense to four levels, as well as increasing three levels in speed. On the battlefield, defense and speed were the best selection for survival. Meanwhile, Kane finally had enough points to increase his moulding ability to three levels, so he could now work with a few primary grade new era alloys. The significance of this ability was extremely great, because right now, Kane could already process the primary grade alpha model overweight alloy. This type of alloy could be used to create electromagnetic rifle bullets, and Steel Gate had the equipment to produce this type of alloy.
This further affirmed Su’s resolution to capture Steel Gate. As for Kelan City, if a commercial pact both sides could accept was created, maintaining the current situation wasn’t out of the question. He didn’t want to destroy Kelan City’s gene medicine manufacturing facility, because this laboratory could produce enough medication to support an entire army. Meanwhile, scientific researchers were all lunatics; if they were forced too heavily and they blew up the laboratory, Su would end up with nothing. Kelan City’s higher level formulations could only produce small amounts of sixth level abilities. This level of science and technology was naturally more than ten years behind the Blood Parliament who could produce eighth level formulations, but they were already enough for Su’s soldiers. What Su needed the most was actually first or second level formulations. As for Li and Li Gaolei, they already displayed enough talent, and Su wanted them to develop abilities on their own. Even though they couldn’t control it as well, they were much more powerful than formulated abilities, and they came with much more additional effects.
When Base N69’s work was starting to come to a close, Victor reached Su through that rather poor quality communications device, and from the intermittent voice, Su captured a rather surprising piece of news. Steel Gate’s higher level figures were extremely angry towards the death of judgment knights’ leader, moreover deciding to start a war against Su’s Base N69. For obvious reasons, Sinking Blade could only maintain a neutral standpoint on the surface, not intending nor able to participate in this war. All combat personnel belonging to Midnight City were going to withdraw. However, those few hundred slaves that used to be armed refugees were all left behind with Su, and because ‘there was nothing he could do about it’, he intentionally had those who withdrew not bring back weapons. This was enough firepower to arm 200 individuals!
Su who already more or less developed a bit of social wisdom understood that this was, actually, already pretty much undisguised support.
Victor then told him that Steel Gate had an intimidating army. This army that exceeded a thousand members had close to a hundred ability users with at least three levels of ability, ten second generation passive mobile armors and thirty first generation active full body mobile armors, enough to guarantee the annihilation of any armed force in this region. Compared to the prosperous Midnight City that was happy with maintaining status quo, Steel Gate, who relied on the military industry, definitely had more invasive tendencies. The reason they hadn’t touched Midnight City or Kelan City was because they feared that these two cities would destroy their water treatment and biological laboratories before defeat. In addition, this army was suited to regional battles, so once Sinking Blade who originally excelled at guerilla warfare returned to this profession, that would definitely not be good news. In this area where the science and technology of power sources were lacking, those several dozen steel giants definitely couldn’t run more than a hundred kilometers.
In the eyes of true high level ability users, these second generation mobile armors were just a pile of easy targets. They were a bit stronger than main battle tanks, but even that was extremely limited.
Su silently listened to the old-fashioned communications device, and only when the battery was about to die did he say, “You seemed to be investing quite a bit in me. This doesn’t seem to agree with the customs of a businessman.”
The voice that came from the receiver was intermittent, but he could still hear Victor laugh loudly. “Habits can be changed. The more one invests, the bigger the return! Instead of being called a businessman, I like the term gambler more!”
Su surprisingly believed Victor’s final sentence. This fella who was a businessman,head of military affairs, as well as a gambler was betting everything on his eighth level ability. Su’s eight levels of Perception Domain ability had definitely been looked down on by others before, but that was within the Blood Parliament. Those that dared to look down on him were also similar eighth level or higher ability users. At most, there might be a few fellas with multiple seventh level abilities who might show a bit of contempt; those with less than seven levels of ability didn’t even have the chance to compare themselves to Su. Even if it was an ability user with eight levels of ability in the Perception Domain, Su was definitely not an existence sixth level ability users should even think about comparing themselves to.
The number of people who looked down on Su was quite large, but those that dared to take action against him weren’t many. Those that took action and were still alive were practically nonexistent.
Su was used to being looked down on, to the extent where he vaguely hoped for others to look down on him. If Persephone learned about this way of thinking, then she would definitely tell Su that it was because he had been oppressed for so long that he might have developed a sense of pleasure from it.
In reality, Su actually didn’t like being looked down upon, and he hated being constantly chased after and having to run even more. He wasn’t good at communicating with others, and even if he was good at it, he still wouldn’t tell others the reason why he so stubbornly focused on developing the Perception Domain. It was because in the wilderness, or it could be said in this world that was always in turmoil, only by understanding danger, could one avoid it. Regardless of what kind of expert it was, if they couldn’t detect danger, they all might fall under endless battles. However, life in the Black Dragonriders pointed out another path for Su, and that was that by establishing his own power, by gathering vassals and cannon fodder, they could be sent out during dangerous battles to control and withstand the enemy. Someone who had vassals with power would become incredibly terrifying, just like how a pack of hyenas could easily eliminate an isolated lion.
