92: Chapter 93 Mech Warriors

This declaration struck like a bolt from the blue.

It exploded within the hall.

After a brief silence,

mingled with some cheers and gasps of surprise,

an enthusiastic round of applause erupted.

Lu Chen stood motionless.

He felt only an inescapable weight pressing down upon him.

However,

beneath this heavy pressure,

he also sensed something rising from the depths of his heart.

It was responsibility.

A responsibility to lead the Lu family through thorns and brambles, to survive in this apocalyptic wasteland.

The Human Race today was far too fragile.

And the wasteland held far too many secrets.

Whether it was civilizations from within the star system or those beyond,

those powerful beings would one day return.

He would not retreat.

Tomorrow,

he would let everyone witness the bearing of the Lu family heir.

Afterwards, Lu Chen, Luo Nianwei, Luo Nianyin, Lu Guagua, and Lu Lina walked out of the hall together.

In the Lu Family Manor of the afternoon,

the air carried not only the faint scent of ozone from alloys

but also a subtle hint of the sea.

Lu Daohong turned his head.

A trace of a smile appeared on his stern face.

"You really should see this city first,"

he told Lu Chen.

"Come find me... after you return."

Lu Chen nodded calmly.

"Alright."

Then he descended the steps.

Arriving at the garage,

a black anti-gravity car was there in standby mode.

As they approached,

the gull-wing doors on both sides opened silently.

Lu Lina was the first to get in.

She sat in the back seat with Luo Nianyin.

Luo Nianwei followed closely behind,

sitting next to Luo Nianyin.

Lu Chen took the passenger seat.

And Lu Guagua was responsible for driving.

His large frame expertly adjusted the seat.

The car lifted from the ground with a gentle surge of anti-gravity thrust,

slid out of the garage,

and flew out of the Lu Family Manor.

This was a flying car rarely seen in ordinary Base Cities.

When Lu Guagua drove,

his entire demeanor became animated.

He glanced sideways at Lu Chen

and introduced,

"Our A-1 Base City has another name—Ember City, symbolizing the embers of the Human Race, passed down through generations."

His tone was filled with pride.

"It's the first A-class city for humanity, and the first fortress the Alliance built while reclaiming the wasteland."

"You can see many things here that you won't find elsewhere."

Just as they were speaking,

a massive oval-shaped building came into view.

Its roof was a holographic display panel,

actively flashing with various information.

"That is the Hope Library of A-1 Base City,"

Lu Guagua explained.

"Cultivation Technique research, historical archives, restricted artificial intelligence data..."

"Any information you can't access from other Base Cities, you can find answers to here."

"If you have time, you should go explore it properly. You might find some pleasant surprises."

Next,

they passed through a fantastical district of towering skyscrapers.

Skyscrapers pierced the clouds one after another.

Car lights flickered like starlight.

Flying cars weaved back and forth among them,

sometimes hovering in mid-air,

sometimes starting to move,

drifting and navigating in an orderly fashion.

Lu Chen silently watched this futuristic, sci-fi-like scene.

While feeling moved in his heart,

he couldn't help but feel a sense of unease.

This dreamlike prosperity, amidst the apocalypse,

was like a tall building built from sand.

Magnificent yet fragile.

Half an hour later,

Lu Guagua slowed the car in front of a complex of buildings covered in massive glass curtain walls.

Guards in dark blue uniforms patrolled various entrances.

"This is the Alliance Scientific Research Headquarters,"

Lu Guagua introduced.

"Most of our humanity's high-grade combat armor and origin energy weapons are designed here."

As he spoke,

various details within the building complex became visible.

Such as concealed laser cannon ports, scanning towers, and rooftop anti-aircraft turrets.

The flying car continued onward.

Lu Guagua drove

while pointing at each building,

introducing them like listing family treasures.

"That white archway is the Cultivation Technique Archive. Over there, the building with the cross-and-serpent emblem, that's the Genetic Research Institute."

Lu Chen's gaze drifted forward with his introductions.

Suddenly, he froze.

At an intersection ahead,

stood a giant humanoid machine twenty meters tall.

Its armor was painted red and blue,

looking like a Transformer from movies in his previous life.

"That... what is that?"

He blurted out.

Lu Guagua immediately laughed.

Clearly quite pleased with this reaction.

"This is a mecha warrior, one of the latest technological developments in humanity's military robotics field."

"It requires at least three operators to pilot. However, even ordinary people who haven't undergone Awakening can control it."

"One mecha warrior can at least engage a C-Class Monster head-on."

Hearing this,

Lu Chen couldn't help but feel a surge of genuine admiration.

"Truly incredible."

Lu Guagua's expression, however, turned slightly grave.

"It's a measure of necessity. On the wasteland today, we humans have only seventy B-rank Warriors. But the monsters? Perhaps hundreds, perhaps thousands."

"It's only because they are scattered across various regions that we humans have a chance to catch our breath."

"If one day, they unite and launch an attack against us,"

"...we simply couldn't hold."

"That's why we are desperately researching mecha warriors."

"We are, in truth, constantly racing against death."

Lu Chen turned his head to look at Lu Guagua,

reassessing this cousin of his.

His eyes were bright, his expression earnest.

His voice was low, steady, and serious.

Despite appearing carefree,

he was indeed worthy of being a member of the Lu family,

Lu Chen thought.

In the back seat,

Luo Nianyin, seeing the gleaming golden mecha warrior,

couldn't help but widen her eyes.

Panting heavily, she shouted,

"Look, sister! It's like a superhero from TV!"

Luo Nianwei leaned forward.

Her entire profile was illuminated by the light scanned from the mecha warrior.

Even Lu Lina's expression was unusually somewhat serious.

A few minutes later,

Lu Guagua parked the car in front of a six-story tower of pure milky white.

There was only a simple sign at the entrance.

It read:

Trial Tower.