Mecha Star Wars.

Chapter 1477 Noble Arrogance

The mechs moved quickly, splitting into two sides to make way.

Several elegantly dressed figures strode in.

The leader was an elderly man with white hair and beard and a dignified face. Behind him, half of the people looked familiar; they were the same people sitting in the auction hall.

Those people were also shocked when they saw Lin Fan and his two companions, and immediately whispered something to the old man.

The old man's face was stern, his gaze having already slid from the dilapidated ground below, over the body of the Burning Beast, and onto the lifelike Thousand Years Old above.

He raised his hand: "You may all step back."

“Your Grace!! They…” several mechs exclaimed.

"I said, step back!" The Duke's tone remained unchanged, but it inexplicably increased the pressure on people.

The beast-spirit mechs hesitated, glancing at each other. From the remains inside the water sphere, they saw the solemn-faced Duke, and finally replied "yes" and left.

Once the mechs had all disappeared from the hall, the Duke straightened his clothes and approached slowly with a smile.

"Distinguished guests, we meet again."

"Who are you?" Antonio, who was annoyed by this kind of drawn-out socializing, shouted without any politeness, "We've never met, don't try to make up connections."

"Although we've never met, I've long admired you." The old man pushed up his small round glasses clipped to the bridge of his nose.

The reflection from the lenses was made crimson by the red light emanating from the Thousand-Year Barrier, obscuring his eyes but casting an evil shadow over his upright face.

"Let me introduce myself first," the old man said with a smile, looking at Lin Fan and Antonio with a very friendly expression. "My name is Valerius, and I am temporarily in charge of all affairs in Crystal City."

“Temporarily? Temporarily for whom?” Antonio immediately launched into a sarcastic tone, only to be stopped by Lin Fan.

"The highest authority, right? We understand." Lin Fan withdrew his hand and looked at the old man indifferently. "What brings you here?"

"It seems that our honored guest has misunderstood me. By the God of Beasts..." The old man showed no anger and adopted an extremely humble posture.

"Misunderstanding?" Antonio pointed behind him and shouted, "You call this a misunderstanding? Your Beast God is right here! You're not trying to turn the tables and say we killed it, are you?"

“Look,” Valerius bowed slightly, smiling helplessly, “this is exactly what I wanted to clarify. I had no intention of slandering you all. The Beast God has indeed been gone for a long time, and this is not a secret among the nobles. It’s just that not many people know this in order to keep the people’s hearts at ease. After all, the Annemo worship the Beast God, and if they knew that the Beast God was dead, what would become of the people’s spiritual faith… That’s why the Beast Soul Legion offended you just now, and I believe you can understand.”

“We don’t need to understand.” Lin Fan interrupted the good guy image he was trying to create. “Whether you choose to conceal it or make it public is your freedom as the Annie Demons, and it has nothing to do with us.”

"What a generous and magnanimous guest..." Valerius hadn't finished praising him when Lin Fan raised his hand to interrupt him.

“But I don’t believe you either,” she said. “No matter how this beast god died, I don’t believe it would want its body to be used and consumed by you in this way.”

“Exactly!” Antonio chimed in. “When they’re alive, you’re all eager to curry favor with them, but once they’re dead, all respect is gone, and you want to skin them alive and use them to the bone… With your methods, who knows how much of what you say is true!”

“No…” “Don’t tell us it’s a misunderstanding.” Lin Fan interrupted Valerius’s explanation. “Divine beasts are proud creatures; they would never agree to their remains being left in the world without any dignity. Especially since your civilization is not low, you are not in a desperate situation with no other options. Everything you have done is purely for your own benefit, and has nothing to do with the Beast God, the people, or the Annie Demons. I don’t need to ask to know where the energy in the pipes is flowing. The glory of Crystal City and the civilization of the Annie Demons were all built by consuming the corpses of the dead Beast Gods. You are truly pathetic.”

“Pitiful?” Valerius sneered, straightening up, his arrogance finally becoming clear. “What’s pitiful about it? I only see a prosperous and affluent life. Everything in this golden age is as we wished… Of course, if there is any shortcoming, it is the lack of a living divine beast.”

His gaze shifted upwards, looking at Qian Sui, his greed and fear in his eyes undisguised.

"What's the point of a beast like you following such insignificant humans? When trouble comes, they'll need you to protect them. You'd be better off staying with us, the Annie Demons, and receiving our highest level of sustenance..."

"And then you treat me like this after I die?" Qian Sui didn't have the patience to wait for him to finish, and angrily slapped her paw to interrupt him, "What are you Annie Demons! If you want me to stay, you have to hand over the planet before I'll even consider it."

"Ah..." Valerius laughed instead of getting angry, "What energetic World-Burning Beasts, full of rebellion and power. I know that your journey here was not pleasant, and what you saw, heard, and came into contact with was not good either. Oh, don't rush to make a decision. Let's give each other some time to get to know each other, and experience the real orc life in our Crystal City before we talk about it."

"The real life of orcs?" Antonio scoffed. "According to you, the orcs of Crystal City are the real orcs. I won't even mention the Yellow Earth District, but what about the orcs of Graystone Settlement and Silvermoon City?"

When Valerius heard these place names, it was as if he had heard something foul. His brows furrowed almost imperceptibly, then relaxed, and a cruel smile curved his lips.

"Them? Foundation, fuel, whatever you think they are. Life forms that don't contribute are a waste of resources. Letting them live peacefully is already an act of mercy from the Beast God."

"Ha!" Lin Fan laughed angrily. "Is the Beast God merciful, or are you merciful? Or perhaps, the Beast God you speak of is actually yourself?"

Vallejo neither admitted nor denied it, straightened his collar, and spoke in a nonchalant tone.

"No matter what, you have to admit that resources are limited. If Anemoma wants to shine and stand out in the world of civilization, there will be a price to pay. Only the best genes and the strongest abilities are worthy of enjoying this prosperity."

"Those who lack ability... Ha, why don't they look for the reasons within themselves? Their abilities haven't improved over the years, is it because they haven't worked hard enough?"

Antonio wanted to give that annoying face two big slaps.

Genes are largely determined by natural processes and cannot be easily changed through effort later in life.

The consequence of resource concentration is that the rich remain rich and the poor remain poor.

No one wants their resources to be diluted by others, so that invisible wall will only grow higher and higher.

Even though Crystal City's medical level is now capable of improving genetic defects and raising the beastmen's soul level, the prerequisite is still serving the residents of Crystal City themselves.

Orcs like Bonnie who want to change their genetic defects and improve themselves can only enjoy this benefit by going to great lengths to become residents of Crystal City.

But can Bonnie really become a resident of Crystal City?
She paid a price for leaving Greystone Settlement for Silvermoon City; what she seems to have sacrificed—freedom and conscience—is unknown. The unseen sacrifices, however, were unlikely to be pleasant exchanges.

For a low-level orc like her, who couldn't even easily integrate into Silvermoon City, to think she could enter Crystal City and achieve a level leap through her own efforts and struggles was simply a pipe dream.

Orcs like Bonnie, who yearn for Crystal City, have no idea that their lifelong struggles may ultimately leave them without ever seeing the Crystal City suspended high in the sky...

(End of this chapter)