102: Chapter 102 Exclusive Weapon: Sky-Splitting Gravity Ship-Slaying Blade!

6:17 AM.

Su Xiaoqi was curled into a ball, her twin tails a messy tangle. Her head was burrowed into Chen Chen's armpit, her hands tightly clutching the corner of his shirt. Her mouth was slightly open, her breathing even, and she occasionally smacked her lips—she was likely munching on meat in her dreams.

Chen Chen had been awake for a while, but he didn't move.

On the system panel, Shen Wanbing's All-Seeing Eye Daily Supply Blind Box was refreshing.

[Ding! Daily Supply Blind Box (Silver-grade floor) has refreshed!]

[Triggered: Targeted Selection Blind Box (Silver-grade)!]

Three options floated on his retina:

A: C-rank Self-Healing Tactical Armor (Finished Product) — Covers the torso, slowly self-repairs after taking damage.

B: Purple Quality Melee Weapon — [Void-Splitting Gravity Ship-Slashing Blade] (Finished Product). Longsword type. Built-in micro-gravity module in the blade; triggers a hidden special effect when used in conjunction with gravity-type skills during a slash.

C: Intermediate Vehicle Cores × 10.

Chen Chen's gaze lingered on option B for two seconds.

Void-Splitting Gravity Ship-Slashing Blade. Purple quality.

He had been using that Armor-Piercing Military Dagger for nearly ten days. It was a D-rank piece of junk that had pierced the core of a Crimson Hive and penetrated the brainstem of a semi-biochemical cyborg.

However, the chips on the blade were increasing, and the nano-repair layer had reached its limit. It would be scrapped after two more hard battles.

And this sword—combined with his Absolute Control: Gravity Field.

It was a no-brainer.

[Option B selected!]

[Purple Quality Weapon [Void-Splitting Gravity Ship-Slashing Blade] has been generated!]

The silver-grade storage ring grew slightly warm.

With a thought from Chen Chen, a dark gray longsword materialized in his hand.

The blade was narrow and long, about 1.2 meters, with a heavy, substantial weight.

A very thin purple energy vein was embedded in the spine, extending from the hilt to the tip, pulsing slightly like a heartbeat.

The hilt was wrapped in rough, non-slip snakeskin, providing an extremely snug grip.

Chen Chen held the blade upright with one hand and flicked the spine with his thumb.

"Woom—"

A low resonance sound emanated from inside the blade, and the purple veins brightened for a moment.

The micro-gravity module inside the blade was responding to his Mental Power.

It was as if it had found its master.

He tried a half-swing while still on the bed—he didn't dare use much force.

The moment the blade sliced through the air, an extremely brief gravity pulse erupted from the edge.

Su Xiaoqi's twin tails were blown upward by the air current.

She wrinkled her nose, rolled over, and continued sleeping.

Chen Chen sheathed the sword.

The gravity acceleration of this thing was no joke.

With gravity added to the kinetic energy of the swing, combined with the arm strength of his 117 points of constitution—

It was enough to split a monster's carapace in half.

He summoned the old Armor-Piercing Military Dagger from the storage ring and glanced at it.

The blade was covered in cracks, and the edge was curled in three places.

It had been with him for ten days, used from the very first battle until now.

He put it away.

He'd keep it as a souvenir.

The Void-Cleaver Greatsword was hung horizontally at his waist.

The faint light of the purple energy veins could be seen even through his clothes.

Su Xiaoqi was woken up by his movement. She sat up dazed, her T-shirt hanging wrinkled on her body, and one of her twin tails had partially collapsed.

"Brother... what time is it..."

"Six-thirty. Let's go down and eat."

"Mhm..."

Su Xiaoqi yawned and wabbled off the bed barefoot. As she passed Chen Chen, she saw the new sword at his waist.

Her sleepiness instantly vanished halfway.

"So cool!"

She reached out to touch the hilt, but Chen Chen slapped the back of her hand.

"Don't touch it. This sword has a built-in gravity module; if you press the wrong thing, you'll pin yourself to the floor."

Su Xiaoqi pulled her hand back, cradling her reddened hand, and followed him downstairs with a piteous expression.

People were already active in the first-floor cabin.

Shen Wanbing sat before the command console, a holographic projection of the Rusted Waste City's terrain analysis spread out in front of her.

She likely hadn't slept all night, but her makeup and hair were impeccably neat—her long black curly hair was tied back in a low bun, and she had changed into the new clothes bought at the tavern yesterday: a form-fitting dark gray turtleneck, paired with the same black pencil skirt and newly bought black stockings.

Her stiletto heels clicked on the metal floor, her posture upright.

"Morning." She didn't look back, her fingers swiping across the holographic panel.

"I've already scanned the outskirts of the wasteland city."

"What's the situation?"

"Three anomalies."

Shen Wanbing turned her chair, the blue light of the concentration ice heart necklace flickering steadily.

"First, the energy distribution in the city is uneven. It's dense in the East District and sparse in the West District, with a clear dividing line in the middle—as if it were artificially demarcated."

"Second, the entrance to the underground factory is south of the city center, at a depth of about sixty meters. The Tier 2 Crypt Aberrants you're looking for are all gathered near there. The near-Tier 3 one is on the bottom floor; its heat signature is very large."

"Third—"

She paused for a beat.

"There are living people in the city."

Chen Chen's footsteps faltered.

"How many?"

"At least forty independent life signs. They are scattered across various buildings in the East District. Their heart rates and body temperatures are within the normal human range, but seven or eight of them have significantly high energy fluctuations. I can't rule out the possibility of them being other races."

Living people.

In a wasteland city occupied by Tier 2 Aberrants, there were over forty living people.

"There's one more thing."

Shen Wanbing zoomed in on an area of the holographic map. "There's a weak but stable broadcast signal looping at the East District entrance. I've intercepted a snippet."

She pressed play.

A raspy, metallic, distorted male voice came through the communicator:

"...Welcome to the Rusted Waste City Free Trade Zone. This area is under the jurisdiction of the Wasteland Council; wanton killing of civilians is prohibited. All outsiders must register at the East Gate before entering... Violators will be marked as hostile targets by the city defense system... Repeat, welcome to..."

It played on a loop.

Chen Chen leaned against the kitchen partition, his finger tracing a circle on the hilt of the Void-Cleaver Greatsword.

An orderly wasteland city.

It had a council, a city defense system, and a trade zone.

It was similar to the setup in Gluttony Town, but on a much larger scale.

"What about ammunition?" He changed the subject.

Shen Wanbing pulled up the equipment panel. "The armor-piercing rounds for the twin heavy machine guns—we've used most of the eight thousand rounds we extorted from Iron Wall. There are twelve hundred left."

"Not enough."

"So, ammunition resupply is also one of our goals in the city."

Shen Wanbing closed the panel. "If this trade zone is indeed operational, there's a high probability someone is selling heavy ammunition."

Chen Chen nodded.

Three goals: Complete the proprietress's commission—retrieve the refining furnace and energy components from the underground factory.

Search for materials to build an A-rank nuclear reactor.

Replenish heavy machine gun ammunition.

Plus a fourth—see what this Wasteland Council is all about.

"Everyone, get up."

Twenty minutes later.

The Ghost Fortress's A-rank Maglev Engine hummed at a low frequency, blue electric arcs erupted from the chassis, and the twenty-six-and-a-half-ton steel behemoth lifted off the ground.

Jiang Yanxue sat in the driver's seat, hands on the control levers.

Chen Chen sat in the co-pilot's seat, the Void-Cleaver Greatsword resting across his knees, its purple veins pulsing slightly in the morning light.

On the back sofa, Shen Wanxing was curled up in the corner hugging her knees. She had changed into a newly bought light blue cotton dress and was wearing those nude pink heels—she had put them on herself this time, without asking Chen Chen for help.

Su Xiaoqi sat at the folding table, three roasted rhino steaks and a flask of nutrient solution laid out before her as she had her pre-battle meal.

Qin Hongye had already taken her sniper position on the second floor. Her gauss rifle was mounted at the firing window, the scope cover open, in standby mode.

Blood Rose had changed into new clothes—a short black leather jacket and high-waisted tight pants with knee-high boots, all bought from the proprietress.

Her wine-red curly hair was tied in a loose low ponytail, and the bruise on her neck was mostly hidden by the high collar of her undershirt.

She sat in the back row, quietly wiping that High-Frequency Vibration Dagger.

The Ghost Fortress swept across the Gobi at a speed of 160 yards.

Seven kilometers.

Less than three minutes.

The Rusted Waste City appeared ahead.

From a distance—the city was larger than Chen Chen had imagined.

The dilapidated concrete buildings stretched for at least three or four kilometers, varying in height, their exterior walls covered in a thick layer of rust-colored moss.

Several crooked signal towers stood at the city's edge, their tops flashing with faint red warning lights.

To the east was a crude wall welded from scrap cars and steel plates, about four or five meters high. Several machine guns that looked relatively new were mounted on top of the wall.

In the center of the wall was an iron gate driven by hydraulic jacks. Two people wearing patchwork bulletproof vests stood at the entrance.

Living people. There really were living people.