5: Chapter 5 The Unpredictable Lord

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"Your Majesty."

Hearing this heavy title, Su Yang pondered for a long time before nodding in response.

Although Su Yang was not yet qualified to bear this title, as a leader, ambition and aspiration were indispensable.

Without the ambition to become the First Emperor, or even surpass him, how could one lead such a great Empire?

Quickly composing himself, Su Yang's gaze fell upon the sword at the side of the Armored Elite Soldiers.

It was a cyan-white bronze sword.

Unlike the bronze swords in Su Yang's memory, this sword had a wide blade, almost twice the size of a primitive bronze sword.

The edge of the blade reflected silver light and was incomparably sharp.

The sword body was covered with intricate markings, exquisite and imposing.

The most peculiar thing was that a square mechanical device was connected to one side of the hilt.

Based on its shape, it was not hard to guess that it was a small steam device.

It should be able to spray steam when slashing or stabbing to increase its power.

This was simply a piece of equipment born for slaughter!

Su Yang felt a faint sense of anticipation, wanting to see the scene of the Armored Elite Soldiers killing the enemy.

That scene would definitely be very shocking!

However, thinking is one thing; Lord warfare is not a game for reckless men.

Every step requires careful planning.

Su Yang must now quickly determine his situation and decide on his first target.

[command points - 100]

He spent command points to summon another Armored Elite Soldier.

"Scout the situation within the safe zone."

Su Yang ordered, and the two Elite Soldiers responded quickly, turning to leave.

Meanwhile, Su Yang opened the panel to check all currently unlocked buildings.

There were three resource types: Steam-powered Mining Machine, Steam High-pressure Pump, and Liquid Compressor.

There were two storage types: Solid Resource Warehouse and Liquid Resource Warehouse.

These were all devices for obtaining natural resources in the early stage.

In addition, there was a barracks that came with the Imperial Armor Camp.

It was a building that provided healing, maintenance, and rest for the Armored Elite Soldiers.

Each time an Armored Elite Soldier was summoned, a barracks with a capacity of 1 unit could be obtained.

Building a barracks did not require any resources, but using it did.

Repairing armor damage required consuming 1 unit of copper ore resources.

Replenishing the power for the Imperial Armor required 1 unit of concentrated water and 1 unit of fuel resources.

If the Armored Elite Soldier continued to move without triggering combat, the power of the Imperial Armor could last for about 6 hours.

Once combat was triggered or high-speed movement was performed, the duration would drop rapidly.

Once the Imperial Armor power disappeared, the combat effectiveness and mobility of the Elite Soldier would be greatly affected.

Currently, the amount of resources in Su Yang's inventory was 0.

Not only did the Armored Elite Soldiers need power, but those devices for obtaining natural resources also required energy.

While Great Qin technology brought a lot of improvements through steam technology, it also brought huge energy consumption.

If he could not solve the energy problem within a certain period, he would fall into a huge predicament.

Compared to other civilization starts, Su Yang's early stage was undoubtedly more urgent.

The energy problem was the number one enemy!

Su Yang opened the information about the Heart of the Hive sent by the official authorities and quickly analyzed it.

The energy currently needed consisted of two parts.

One was concentrated water, and the other was fuel resources.

First was water; according to official data and the surrounding environment, the Insect Hive Forest had very abundant water resources.

However, most of the water resources in the forest existed in the form of underground rivers.

This required finding areas with higher humidity and building water pumps.

Su Yang already had a Steam High-pressure Pump, so he only needed to find areas with higher humidity; the difficulty was not high.

The other item was fuel resources, which was much more difficult.

The Insect Hive Forest was not like a normal forest start, which had woody plants that could be used as fuel once cut down.

Everything around was crystalline mushroom-shaped plants, and Su Yang did not think that could be used for burning directly.

Without trees, he could only look for minerals.

According to the data, there were coal resources in the Insect Hive Forest.

If there were coal resources in the safe zone, then everything would be easy.

If not...

The last resource was food.

The animal resources in the Insect Hive Forest were quite abundant.

It was worth noting that the Xenomorphs were also a carnivorous race.

As long as he hunted, there was a possibility of encountering Xenomorphs.

However, food was okay; it was fine to be hungry for a short time.

But mineral resources were immediate necessities; if they couldn't be found, there would be big problems.

Footsteps sounded, and the two patrolling Armored Elite Soldiers returned to Su Yang's side.

After reconnaissance, the good news was that the safe zone had abundant water resources and biological activity had been discovered.

The bad news was that there was not a shadow of mineral resources...

...

"This, this is exoskeleton armor!?"

"This armor craftsmanship is already stronger than modern technology!"

"Incredible, incredible!!"

In the Military Department conference room, several military industry experts stared at the Armored Elite Soldiers on the big screen with shining eyes.

They wished they could rush into the Forbidden Ground on the spot and strip the armor off the Armored Soldier to study it.

It guaranteed both defensiveness and flexibility.

It was also driven by steam power and could perfectly move according to the wearer's actions.

This exoskeleton technology was unknown generations more mature than modern technology!

"It's simply unimaginable!"

Several military industry experts exclaimed, took out paper and pens, and began to copy the armor structure from the screen like hungry wolves.

The mood of the officers was also very excited.

Exoskeleton armor could definitely greatly improve the combat effectiveness of the initial soldiers.

This would undoubtedly make up for the weak combat effectiveness of the Qin Dynasty in the early stage.

It had to be said that the Qin Dynasty chosen by Su Yang had brought them another surprise.

After analysis, several military industry experts quickly deduced the strength of the exoskeleton armor.

"According to the soldier's walking speed, this set of armor has increased the soldier's physical function by at least 80%."

"As long as a numerical advantage is formed, there is a great chance of winning against the early Xenomorphs."

"But the problem is that the early units of other civilizations only need to eat things, while our armor must consume fuel to operate!"

"The Heart of the Hive is resource-poor, and it is very likely that there is no fuel in the safe zone."

"If Su Yang cannot realize this quickly and save energy, the armor will not be able to last until the Xenomorph invasion at the end of the seven-day novice period!"

On the screen, two Armored Elite Soldiers were quickly patrolling the territory within the safe zone.

Every puff of steam ejected from behind indicated the consumption of energy.

Su Yang obviously did not save energy as the experts thought.

The people in the hall looked solemn, and worry rose in their hearts.

There was a full seven days in the safe period; such things as scouting the territory could be done slowly by oneself.

Why spend precious energy to let soldiers explore?

If this consumption continued, whether the soldiers who lost the armor power could resist the Bug Swarm Tide would become a big problem.

The General of the Military Department had a solemn expression; the once-a-week communication opportunity had already been used.

They had no way to influence Su Yang's choice.

Everything had to be left to fate...

...

Official live broadcast room.

"Su Yang has installed a steam water pump; this is the first resource acquisition device we have built!"

Host Xiaoxue shouted excitedly, trying to boost the atmosphere in the live broadcast room.

"So cool, so cool, the mechanical craftsmanship is so cool!!"

"Steam power is the eternal god! I really want to have a set of Imperial Armor!"

"Long live our Great Dragon Nation; with such soldiers, we don't need to be afraid of the Xenomorphs seven days later!"

...

Contrary to the excited emotions of the public, the experts in the live broadcast room had been silent for a long time.

They did not find fuel resources in the safe zone, which meant that Su Yang was just wasting the energy of the Armored Elite Soldiers in vain.

The best choice was to stop all consumption of soldiers, pass the seven-day novice protection period smoothly, and then summon them all at once to resist the Bug Swarm Tide.

However, Su Yang was completely unaware of this; he actually drove the soldiers to walk around, wasting energy!

Soon, the public in the live broadcast room also began to notice that something was wrong.

"I feel that Su Yang's operation is very unreasonable; he shouldn't keep consuming energy like this."

"That's right, there is no fuel in the safe zone at all; this is just a waste of energy..."

"I hope Su Yang discovers the problem as soon as possible and honestly doesn't do anything weird."

"Holy crap, holy crap, the Imperial Armor Camp has started to move; he actually summoned soldiers again!"

On the big screen of the live broadcast, the Imperial Armor Camp began to rumble, and one Armored Elite Soldier after another walked out of the gate.

"What's the situation? Is he crazy!!"

"There is novice protection in the early stage; why waste resources to summon soldiers!"

"Why summon so many soldiers in the safe zone? Does he think there are Xenomorphs in the safe zone?"

...

In the eyes of everyone's astonishment, Su Yang led the troops directly out of the safe zone.

[Warning]

[Dragon Nation contestant has left the safe zone, the seven-day novice protection period has ended]

[Warning]

[Dragon Nation contestant has left the safe zone, the seven-day novice protection period has ended]