We Agreed to Set Sail, but You Became the Ruler of the Deep Sea?

The arrival of these five mechanical puppets immediately changed the atmosphere in the bar.

The previously noisy crowd instantly fell silent, looking at them with frightened eyes and not daring to make even a single noise.

Only Jack took the initiative to walk up to the puppet and asked respectfully.

"Your Excellency, Affairs Officer, I remember that I was supposed to send someone to serve a few days ago. Why are you here again today?"

The leader of the mechanical puppet said hoarsely: "Death service... is not qualified."

"The prince...needs...live labor."

It has an odd tone and is very slow.

Compared with mechanical puppets like Jack, who are not much different from living people, they are more like dull machines controlled by programs.

Just hearing the word "live labor", the blue light in Jack's eyes dimmed instantly, and his voice became a little difficult.

"Can you please accommodate me for a few days so that I can choose a candidate for active labor..."

"no."

The clerk replied decisively: "Today... right now."

"Or...let me choose?"

Its gaze swept across the people in the bar, and every puppet it saw couldn't help but lower its head, and its body trembled slightly with fear.

Finally, the steward looked at a petite puppet painted in pink.

"The young soul... is very suitable to become the firewood of the [Snake of the Midgard]."

"Anna..."

The blue light in Jack's eyes began to flicker on and off, and the roar of the steam core in his body was faintly visible.

But at the same time, the four puppets around the steward looked at him, and a dangerous red light lit up under their helmets.

"Are you going to go against the will of the great king?"

"Dad, don't..."

There was pleading in Anna's eyes.

She knew very well what would happen if she became an enemy of [Lord of Rust].

Not just her and her dad, but everyone in the bar will not be spared!

Rather than doing this, it would be better to sacrifice her alone...

The eyes of everyone in the bar also fell on Jack, waiting for him to make the final decision.

Seeing that the sound of steam rushing inside Jack's body gradually subsided, they were slightly relieved, but they felt a little sad.

This time it’s Anna, next time, who will it be?

"a wise decision."

The affairs officer nodded with satisfaction and was about to wave his hand and take Anna away.

boom!

Two blasts of air sounded almost at the same time.

A dark figure was holding a big sword, and his figure appeared like a ghost.

The sword seemed to be made of blood, and the dark lines on it were constantly squirming and roaring, exuding malice to choose and devour others.

The bloody sword fell, and the violent wind even made people in close quarters stand unsteady.

The bodies of the four mechanical puppets gathered together were split into two from the waist.

He actually killed them instantly!

On the other side, Jack waved his rusty iron fist and struck straight into the clerk's heart!

clang!

The shock wave visible to the naked eye spread, causing the affairs officer to take several steps back.

"Those who disobey orders...kill!"

"Outsiders...kill!"

Buzz——

The clerk's eyes flashed red, and he punched Jack away from him.

Immediately, the sludge on its surface gradually squirmed.

The four fallen mechanical puppets clung to his body in disorder, as if attracted by some kind of attraction, and quickly integrated into one.

Like a mechanically stitched monster!

But the next moment!

A bloody giant sword has penetrated its back!

The clerk let out a beast-like roar, turned his head abruptly, stared at Xia En, and said arrogantly.

"Outsiders...you can't kill me!"

"My power comes from the Lord of Rust!"

Xia En's face was expressionless: "Really?"

He clenched the hilt of the sword, tensed his muscles, and suddenly raised the entire sword upwards.

With a tooth-piercing friction sound, the sword cut through the metal and gears inside the steward's body, cutting a straight wound through his body from the back of his heart to his neck.

Those sludge-like substances tried their best to prevent the blood sword from moving, but they seemed extremely weak in front of Xia En's terrifying power.

When the sword is close to the head.

There was finally a flash of panic in the red light in the affairs officer's eyes.

But it still roared: "You will pay the price for your actions! The Lord of Rust will punish you!"

Before he finished speaking, some of the sticky mud on its body surged into Xia En's body.

This seems to be some kind of mark or a curse!

only……

The moment the mud touched Xia En's body surface, he shrank back faster!

A layer of black fire even ignited on the outermost layer of sludge, and quickly spread throughout the affairs officer's body.

At this moment, the affairs officer felt a fear stronger than ever before——

It feels that the connection between itself and the Rusty Lord is constantly weakening!

As the sludge burned, the power and activity bestowed by the Maharaja melted as quickly as ice and snow!

At this time, a voice trembling with fear finally came out from under the metal shell of the affairs officer: "You... you are not an ordinary outsider..."

"You're not even human...what the hell are you..."

Unfortunately, its question cannot be answered after all.

Because before that happened, this mingled metal puppet suddenly disintegrated and turned into a piece of soundless scrap metal.

Everyone in the bar stared at this scene blankly, speechless for a moment.

That terrible affairs officer actually died in the hands of this outsider?

at the same time.

[It has been detected that "Secret Sea Crystal" (special) is present in the corpse. Should it be absorbed? 】

"special?"

Xia En's eyes lit up.

According to his experience, [Secret Sea Crystal] with this suffix can bring quite a surprise.

[Ship Soul Level: LV3 (18%)! 】

[Unlock talent: Necromantic Psionics]

[Quality: Poor]

[Description: The dead corpses contain profound energy. 】

[Those who master this psionic energy can awaken corpses, communicate with the dead, or open the profound door to death. 】

[The skeletons of dead mechanical creatures are probably also controlled by this power, right? 】

[The corpse is talking...]

"Um?"

Xia En frowned and suddenly realized that something was wrong.

What he killed was a mechanical puppet, not an undead creature. How could he develop such a talent?

But after seeing the penultimate sentence of the description, Xia En suddenly woke up.

This clerk under [Lord of Rust] is actually a necromantic machine? !

No, it's not just one.

The same goes for other mechanical puppets.

No wonder Xia En couldn't feel any power from the steam core from them. That weird black mud might also be a manifestation of the ghostly energy of the dead.

So, is the essence of this [Lord of Rust]... a necromancer?

Xia En was startled by his guess, but after thinking about it, it seemed that there was some possibility.

If the [Rust Lord] can transform mechanical skeletons into undead creatures, then the discarded steel in this city will undoubtedly be an inexhaustible material!

But guesses are just guesses after all, and nothing is conclusive until confirmed.

…

…

at this time.

Jack in the crowd was the first to react and said in surprise.

"Brother, your skills...are really extraordinary."

Xia En suppressed the distracting thoughts in his heart and smiled lightly: "Boss Jack, as long as you don't mind me meddling in other people's business."

"how come?"

Jack said frankly: "I had planned to fight with them, but I couldn't allow them to take away my most beloved Anna."

"But...if you hadn't taken action, brother, I'm afraid it would have been much worse."

Xia En couldn't help but asked curiously: "Do I still need to serve in this [Rusted Waste City] to live?"

"What do living labor and death labor mean?"

Jack sighed: "Brother, come with me. When you see this, you will understand."

Soon, Old Jack took Shane to a small room on the side of the bar.

laugh--

As soon as I walked into the room, I was greeted by a smell of white turbid steam with a strange smell.

After seeing the scene in the room clearly, even Xia En couldn't help but hold his breath.

In this small room, one after another highly rusted mechanical puppets were displayed like corpses.

Pipes extend from them, connecting to the thick pipes on the walls.

The turbid steam is produced from the steam core in the puppets' bodies and injected into the pipes to become usable energy.

"……This is?"

Jack said quietly: "In fact, before the great flood came, the city lord had hesitated whether to embark on this irreversible path."

"One of the important difficulties is that no matter how advanced a traditional steam engine is, it still needs combustion to operate."

"But under this sea water, how can there be so much oxygen for burning?"

"However, the [Heart of Steam] invented by that genius made everything turn around."

"This extraordinary steam creation has achieved a transformation at a more microscopic level. Just input materials, and the heart of the machine can continuously produce abundant steam."

“What an epoch-making and incredible invention this is!”

"It's only natural that it will become popular throughout the city and become an indispensable core of various steam installations."

"only……"

Jack paused and let out a heavy sigh: "That genius had good intentions, but he ignored one thing."

"After being transformed into machines, humans with [Steam Heart] themselves have become a tool, a resource, a... consumable."

"The so-called 'service' is nothing more than using us as tools to create steam for that [Rust King]!"

Jack looked at the people lying in the room again.

"Dead warriors, just like these people, their consciousness has entered a dormant state and cannot sense external objects. Only the [Steam Heart] still maintains weak vitality."

"As for forced labor, people are imprisoned in place, watching helplessly as their steam is produced and squeezed out."

"Beyond that, nothing can be done."

"Day after day, year after year, until... the day it breaks."

After hearing these words, Xia En was horrified.

Compared with the vampires' direct blood-drinking and massacre, this kind of alienation of people reveals a stronger sense of terror.

"Then they..."

"Everyone here is hibernating voluntarily."

Jack looked at those familiar faces and said sadly: "For them, there is no point in continuing to live. The long life is a kind of torture."

"So I chose this way of self-liberation."

"If it weren't for Anna, maybe... I would have become one of them."

The two fell silent in unison.

After a moment, Jack seemed to have thought for a long time and said, "Actually, I have another unwelcome request."

"I want to ask you... to rescue someone on the [Snake of the Atrium]."