Cut off my way home? You'll sacrifice the entire other world in return!

The car stopped.

This is a Gobi Desert.

The wind was strong, carrying sand and gravel that pelted against the car windows.

"My lord... we've arrived."

The burly man in the driver's seat, who had lost an arm, spoke in a trembling voice. He used to be the fearsome captain of the hyena squad that struck terror into the hearts of everyone in this wasteland, but now he was Li Fan's driver.

Li Fan opened his eyes.

He saw a city through the cracked windshield.

A giant steel city.

The city wall, which is hundreds of meters high, is entirely made of thick metal plates.

Rivets are densely distributed on the wall like scars.

Countless thick sewage pipes extended from the walls toward the moat outside the city, discharging green industrial wastewater.

Oil and garbage, resembling dead fish, floated on the river surface.

The two purple moons still hung in the sky above the city, casting an eerie glow over this steel city.

"Iron Fortress".

Li Fan read the name aloud.

It wasn't grand or spectacular.

Only suppression.

It looks like an iron coffin.

"get off."

Li Fan opened the car door.

Stepping onto the hard Gobi Desert.

Old Hei scrambled down, using his remaining left hand to cover the severed wound on his right arm.

The wound there had scabbed over, but he still felt pain.

It was phantom pain, but also fear of the man beside her.

"Sir, the South Gate is just ahead. I... I'll leave you here?" Old Hei shrank his neck, not daring to look Li Fan in the eye.

"You think you can run away?"

Li Fan didn't turn around; he simply straightened his somewhat tattered collar.

"No... I wouldn't dare!" Old Black knelt on the ground with a thud. "I'm not qualified to enter the city! I'm a vagrant; without an identification chip, I'll be riddled with bullets if I approach the city gates!"

Li Fan glanced at him.

"Identity chip?"

"Yes... you need that thing to enter Iron Fortress. It's a good citizen's certificate and also an electronic dog tag," Old Hei explained. "People like us who make a living by scavenging don't even deserve to have a second-hand chip installed."

Li Fan seemed to be deep in thought.

There are quite a few rules in this place.

"Then get lost."

Li Fan waved his hand.

Old Hei felt as if he had been granted a pardon and ran wildly into the depths of the wasteland without looking back, abandoning even the wrecked car.

Li Fan walked alone towards the city gate.

There were more and more people on the road a kilometer away from the city gate.

Most of them were ragged scavengers or laborers dragging ore.

Everyone bears traces of mechanical modification to some extent.

Some people's legs are like rusty iron pipes.

Some people have half of their face covered in copper.

Some people even carry a battery on their back and have two tubes inserted into their chest to keep their heart beating.

They hung their heads, their expressions blank, like a group of walking cogs in a machine.

Li Fan stood out from the crowd.

He is so complete.

Although his limbs were intact and his skin was a bit dirty, there wasn't a single patch or exposed wire.

People around them cast strange glances at them.

There was greed and jealousy, but more than anything, there was a look in their eyes as if they were looking at a dead person.

In this world, not having a prosthetic body means being weak.

Weakness is a sin.

Li Fan ignored the stares and walked straight to the city gate.

The city gate is 30 meters high and consists of two hydraulic gates.

There was a checkpoint at the entrance.

Two teams of guards wearing exoskeleton armor stood there, holding large-caliber electromagnetic rifles.

Their helmets were equipped with electronic eyes that scanned everyone entering the city.

"Beep, identity confirmed, lower-class citizen allowed to pass."

"Beep, identity confirmed, miner number 9527 is allowed to pass."

"Warning! No signal response! Unauthorized intrusion!"

A child who wanted to sneak into the city was stopped.

Before he could even beg for mercy.

boom!

One of the guards pulled the trigger.

The child's head exploded.

The body was kicked into the moat next to the city like trash.

The crowd stirred briefly, but quickly returned to deathly silence.

No one dared to speak.

That's the rule in Iron Fortress.

It was Li Fan's turn.

He stood in front of the testing gate.

The guard captain was bald, with the right half of his head completely metallic, and an electronic eye rotating in its socket, emitting a buzzing electrical sound.

He looked Li Fan up and down.

Their gaze lingered on Li Fan's hands, which showed no signs of modification.

"Oh, what a rare guest!"

The bald captain grinned, revealing a set of black metal teeth.

"You can actually see living purebred humans in the wasteland?"

The surrounding guards burst into laughter.

"This kid has pretty soft skin. Is he some kind of pet that escaped from an underground shelter?"

"They probably got lost. They don't know that in this world, the human body is the least valuable thing."

The bald captain walked up to Li Fan.

He was a head taller than Li Fan.

The heavy exoskeleton on his body hummed as it operated.

A strong smell of engine oil wafted over.

"Hey kid, give me your hand."

The bald captain poked Li Fan in the chest with the barrel of his gun.

"Show your IC chip when you go through security."

Li Fan looked down at the gun barrel stuck in his chest.

He didn't move.

"I don't have a chip."

Li Fan spoke the truth.

"No?"

The bald captain's electronic eye flashed red.

"Without chips, you're just a vagrant. And vagrants want to get into the Iron Fortress?"

"However..."

The bald captain's gaze turned lewd as he swept his eyes over Li Fan.

"Your body parts are quite complete. Although they're not as strong as mechanical ones, there are quite a few important people who like to collect these natural corneas, kidneys, and hearts on the black market."

"How about this?"

The bald captain stretched out a mechanical hand in front of Li Fan.

That was his right hand.

The robotic arm, made entirely of industrial-grade alloy, has five sharp hydraulic claws for fingers and a miniature jet nozzle in its palm.

This arm is a military-grade prosthetic body that he earned with his life on the battlefield, and it's also something he boasts about.

"Since there's no entrance fee, let's just cut off our legs to pay off the debt."

The bald captain grinned maliciously.

"Don't worry, I'll put two rusty iron bars in there so you can climb in and beg for food."

The surrounding crowd immediately dispersed, afraid of getting splattered with blood.

They knew that this bald captain's favorite method was to torture and kill these homeless people with no background.

Li Fan looked at the mechanical hand that was being extended in front of him.

The metal appeared exceptionally cold under the purple moon.

"You want my legs?"

Li Fan asked a question.

"Nonsense! Don't want to give it? Then leave your life behind!"

The bald captain grew impatient and slammed the mechanical claws shut, grabbing at Li Fan's shoulder.

He wanted to crush this wimp's collarbone directly.

"I didn't originally intend to be so high-profile."

Li Fan sighed.

"But your rules are too troublesome."

Just as the mechanical claw was about to touch Li Fan's shoulder...

Li Fan raised his hand.

It's not a block.

It's a handshake.

His hands looked fair and slender, a stark contrast to the rough and menacing mechanical claw.

It was like a baby's hand grasping a monster's claw.

Snapped.

Li Fan grasped the bald captain's two mechanical fingers.

The bald captain was stunned for a moment.

"court death?"

He sneered and controlled the prosthetic body to increase its output power.

This arm has a maximum grip strength of three tons, enough to knead steel bars into noodles.

But he found he couldn't squeeze it.

That seemingly fragile human hand was like an unshakeable mountain.

Not moving.

"Um?"

The bald captain's electronic eye flashed wildly, displaying data on his retina.

[WARNING! Prosthetic overload! Extreme drag!]

[Output power 100%... 120%...]

"Nice arm."

Li Fan's voice was very calm.

He examined the robotic arm closely, his eyes even showing a hint of appreciation.

That's the look in someone's eyes when choosing pork.

"The titanium steel alloy frame and hydraulic transmission also include an energy loop."

"It has a high gold content."

"Since there's an entrance fee..."

Li Fan looked up and gave the bald captain a bright smile.

"Then let's use it."

"What?" The bald captain hadn't reacted yet.

Click!

Li Fan flicked his wrist slightly.

There are no fancy techniques involved.

Pure violence.

The bald captain's prized military-grade robotic arm was snapped off at the elbow.

Sparks flew everywhere.

Several hydraulic hoses ruptured, spraying black engine oil all over the bald man's face.

"ah?!"

The bald captain stared blankly at his severed arm; the pain receptors hadn't even had time to transmit signals to his brain.

Li Fan did not stop.

He grabbed the severed arm and pulled it out like a radish.

Sizzle!!

It was accompanied by a piercing metallic tearing sound and the snapping of wires.

The entire mechanical right arm, along with the metal base of half a scapula, was completely torn off the bald captain's body by Li Fan.

Fresh blood mixed with engine oil gushed out like a fountain.

"Aaaaaaah!!!"

A heart-wrenching scream finally echoed through the city gate.

The bald captain clutched his sparking shoulder, staggered backward, and finally collapsed to the ground, convulsing from the excruciating pain.

The surrounding guards were all dumbfounded.

The homeless people queuing up were dumbfounded.

What happened?

A purebred human tore apart an exoskeleton armor with his bare hands?

Is this even human?

"Enemy attack!!!"

One of the deputy captains reacted and raised his gun, aiming it at Li Fan.

"Put down your weapons! Surrender immediately!"

Splash!

More than a dozen electromagnetic rifles were simultaneously aimed at Li Fan.

The red laser sights were densely packed on his body.

Li Fan, carrying the still-dripping mechanical arm, didn't even glance at the gun barrels.

He walked to the security screening machine next to him.

That was a metal funnel specifically designed for recycling and testing metal items.

"Isn't verification of funds required?"

Li Fan casually tossed the heavy robotic arm into the funnel.

Clang!

A heavy metallic clanging sound.

The security scanner's display screen lit up.

The scanning beam swept across the severed arm.

【drop--】

[Inspection item: Military-grade Type III assault robotic arm]

[Main components: high-purity titanium steel, rare shape memory metals, and trace amounts of residual energy]

[Estimated Value: 8000 Credits]

[Classification: High-value goods]

Immediately afterwards, the security screening machine emitted a pleasant musical sound.

The gate, which was originally flashing red, turned green.

A gentle, synthesized female voice began to play:

"Dear guest, your proof of assets has been approved."

"VIP access is now open."

"Welcome to Iron Fortress, may the god of machinery bless you."

The gate slowly opened.

A private passageway covered with a red carpet was revealed.

Li Fan patted the oil off his hands.

He turned to look at the guards who were still holding their guns, seemingly at a loss.

"Are you still going to stop me?"

Li Fan pointed to the bald captain who was still screaming in pain.

"I wouldn't mind having a few more tickets."

…………