Steam Tyrant, Hunting Gods

Roya didn't understand the revolutionary army.

But at least, he disliked empires that forced conscription.

Considering Colonel Rogge and Giles's status as revolutionaries, and the fact that even when the colonel's soul was controlled, he did not harm Giles and Eamon, Rogge decided to do everything in his power to save them.

As the saying goes, having more friends means having more options!

He took an oxygen tank and a bucket of spare fuel and crawled into the half-human excavator located next to the tunnel entrance.

Inject phlogiston and pull the rusted control lever.

With a loud bang!

The steam engine roared, the sharp drill bit at the front of the excavator began to spin, the ear-piercing sound of tearing rock echoed in the cave, and rubble rained down.

Luo Ya manipulated the drill bit and giant shovel, digging from below the entrance blocked by the boulder, and forcefully carved out a gap.

Then, the excavator used all its strength to push the boulder, the gears and hydraulic rods screeching under the heavy pressure.

at last!

The ten-meter-high boulder lost its balance, rolled down the cliff, and disappeared into the thick fog below, filled with spores and mycelium.

The sunlight wasn't bright, but it pierced the darkness like a sharp sword, instantly illuminating the cave.

A sudden gust of wind carrying the rich scent of spores and mycelium rushed in, injecting a powerful boost into the deathly silent cave.

call……

Luo Ya jumped off the excavator, breathed a long sigh of relief, and felt a sense of relief wash over him.

Deep inside the cave, in a corner of the stone wall.

The light stung Colonel Rogge's eyes.

He gasped sharply, as if a drowning person had finally surfaced, and knelt on one knee on the ashes.

He clutched his bleeding scalp with his left hand, the intense headache feeling like countless red-hot iron needles churning inside his skull.

The fragmented memories could not be pieced together into a coherent whole.

"Who am I...where am I...?"

His hoarse whispers were filled with confusion and pain.

Not far away.

The Red Widow armor, inside the wrecked cockpit.

Giles and Eamon struggled to wake up one after the other.

Giles struggled to move his eyes, quickly adjusting to reality, a dry cough escaped his throat, and he muttered to himself:

"We...we're still alive?"

Eamon, as if waking from a nightmare, uttered an unconscious mutter:

"Natasha...don't leave me!"

Looking around, they saw a devastated battlefield and Roya, safe and sound, spotless.

The disorientation of waking from a dream, the relief of surviving a disaster, and the shock of seeing Roya unharmed intertwined in their eyes.

"Mr. Roya, you..."

Emmon used a respectful title from the very first word!

Luo Ya had to explain everything that was happening to everyone.

He spoke at a steady pace and in a clear and organized manner, explaining how to eliminate the mushroom threat and how to save everyone from harm.

However, the secrets about his abilities and the existence of the horsehair worms are cleverly concealed in his calm narration.

"The difference engine is fixed, all the mushrooms are dead, and everyone is alive... It's a standard happy ending."

Giles was very ashamed.

As the top student in the armored vehicle department of the Naval Academy, he lost his armor on his first mission and even nearly lost his life.

"We originally only wanted Mr. Royal's help to salvage the sunken ship and at most repair the difference engine. We never expected that you and Miss Wendell would save all of our lives."

Colonel Rogge felt more self-blame and confusion.

But the deeper pain came from the constant, sharp throbbing pain from his damaged nerve endings. The reality that he could no longer perfectly integrate with the machine was like a dull knife repeatedly cutting into his soul, causing him unbearable agony.

"Damn it... I almost killed everyone."

"Then you're still quite far from it."

Luo Ya offered words of comfort.

But deep down, he had to admit that Colonel Rogge's strength far exceeded his previous estimates.

He may not be a psychic, but his formidable physical strength and masterful control of steam-powered machinery indicate that he is at least a physical or mechanical superhuman.

The steam-powered blade, its surface gleaming with a ghostly blue metallic sheen, was gripped tightly in his hand. Its material was so finely crafted that only the Imperial Headquarters could forge it, capable of slicing through iron like butter.

Blue flame burns steel.

Unfortunately, Colonel Rogge ran into Wendell.

The self-reproach vanished in an instant. Colonel Rogge, enduring the excruciating pain, exerted his strength and leaped onto the gondola.

He staggered to the differential machine and aligned the translucent rubber hose with the data interface on the side of his brain.

His movements were almost pious!

However, the wire that had once been etched into my mind was gone...

It can only connect to a printer via a copper wire interface, mechanically calculating the most basic mathematical logic, statistics, and judgments.

He stared at the cold, unfamiliar difference engine before him, his gaze complex, which finally turned into a barely audible sigh:

"You obeyed... but lost your soul."

His voice was low and filled with endless loneliness, as if he were telling a tragic story that could not be undone.

For a moment, Roja couldn't tell whether Colonel Rogge was referring to the difference engine or himself.

The colonel's obsession ran too deep.

So deep that in this age of steam and gears, he contracted a disease called "cyber madness" beforehand, which is why he was easily controlled by horsehair worms and mushrooms.

Generally speaking, extraordinary individuals with exceptional talent or abilities involving the soul are prone to losing control and becoming possessed by demons if they have too deep an obsession.

"Your obsession runs too deep; you're easily susceptible to demonic possession."

Luo Ya couldn't help but remind him.

"Becoming a demon...?"

Colonel Rogge gave a wry smile and suddenly turned to look at Wendell, who was fast asleep in the co-pilot's seat of the Blue Dragonfly.

"You should stay away from that woman, Roya!"

In my opinion, she's already possessed by a demon; the more she tries to restrain herself now, the more violently she'll erupt in the future.

"She's different."

So said Roya.

He thought to himself, if I deal with the other Wendell after he becomes possessed in advance, do I still need to worry?

Colonel Rogge stood up from his typewriter.

"Do you know how I got this body? Those who submit to the Empire will eventually fall into demonic possession!"

Join the Revolutionary Army! Roya, here you will be able to fully and freely display your talents, without being overshadowed by any power or shadow, and without losing control and turning into a monster.

Roya knew that before awakening his extraordinary abilities, Wendell's superior strength was his greatest guarantee of safety.

"I understand the logic. If you beat Wendell today, I'll be a revolutionary now."

Colonel Rogge's eyes turned icy cold instantly, and his hunched, broken body suddenly straightened.

He gripped the steam knife tightly in his right hand.

Scorching steam emanated from his body, accompanied by a hissing sound like metal rubbing together.

That was a sign that the scalding blood in his body was being forcibly transformed into wisps of steam!

"Perhaps, I can defeat her while she is asleep."

His voice was deep and dangerous as he fixed his gaze on Wendell in the Blue Dragonfly cockpit.

You have the nerve...

Roya regretted provoking Colonel Rogge.

He underestimated Colonel Rogge's physical strength and willpower.

He could only force himself to remain calm and coldly sneered:

"Since you say she has become a demon, do you intend to kill everyone present?"

The colonel did not respond.

Only the steam knife in his hand creaked and groaned.

The cave was instantly filled with a suffocating atmosphere of tension, like a bowstring stretched to its limit.

Giles, sensing the danger, quickly stepped forward and smoothed things over, saying:

"The Revolutionary Army will not take it by force. As per the previous agreement, we will take the Difference Engine, and the airship now belongs to Mr. Roya."

Before anyone could respond, he quickly gave an order to Eamon, who was still somewhat dazed beside him:

"Notify Alison that the mission is complete. Have her land along the safe route we have marked."

"Yes, Giles!"

Emmon deliberately raised his voice and acted obediently, treating Giles's words as gospel.

Seeing this, Colonel Rogge had no choice but to give up.

His tense body suddenly relaxed, and he regained his hunched posture and exhaustion.

The scorching steam dissipated, leaving only a faint smell of sulfur in the air.

He sighed and shook his head helplessly:

"It's such a pity... We should have been a match made in heaven, but we can't fight side by side in the revolutionary army and soar through the skies."

Luo Ya breathed a sigh of relief and softened his tone:

"There may be opportunities for cooperation in the future."

……

After half an hour.

As the roar of the steam boiler gradually subsided, Allison's shuttle airship hovered steadily on the mountaintop like an elegant black eagle.

The anchor, dropped from the sky, instantly burrowed ten meters into the ground, firmly locking the ship to the mountainside.

Alison hummed a little tune as she walked down the suspended stairs.

Suddenly, I saw the two sections of the Red Widow aircraft that had been recovered and the corroded and decaying black ornithopter.

"Good heavens, I thought it would be an easy mission, and we actually lost Red Widow and an ornithopter!"

Giles and Eamon were deeply ashamed.

Luo Ya smiled and comforted him.

"At least the people and the difference engine are still alive."

Fortunately, the Blue Dragonfly and the Steam Armor were intact.

Roya immediately piloted the Blue Dragonfly armor and lifted the moss-covered Cube Difference Engine, the two sections of Red Widow armor, and the severely corroded black ornithopter onto the shuttle airship.

He also found some common parts and spare ammunition on the shuttle airship, and scavenged the remaining phlogiston from the Red Widow armor and the black ornithopter, and sent them all to his Cameron airship.

Giles didn't say much, and let out a long sigh of relief:

"The mission was difficult, but it was ultimately completed!"

The mission was not completed satisfactorily. Realizing it was time to part, Roya suddenly feigned sadness and sighed:

"Unfortunately, my airship is damaged in several places and needs half a day for cleaning and repair. Could you all do me a favor?"

"What kind of help?"

"Could you help me find the nest of the multi-winged queen beetle? The queen beetle is dead, so we should be able to get a lot of insect juice corrosive liquid. This stuff can be used as an emergency weapon if we encounter trouble on the way back."

Let's evacuate together before dark!

On the one hand, Roya wanted to temporarily send the group away so that his secret of using horsehair worms to repair the ship would not be discovered.

On the other hand, Wendell was still asleep, and for safety reasons, he felt it would be safer to evacuate with his formidable companions.

Giles looked at Colonel Rogge, seeking his opinion.

Despite his mangled and bloodied body, the colonel's eyes remained resolute. He nodded, his voice hoarse yet exceptionally strong:

"You deserve it."

The four-man revolutionary squad boarded the shuttle airship.

Search the vicinity for the nest of the multiwinged queen beetle.

After watching the shuttle airship depart, Roya immediately returned to the cave and began cleaning and repairing the Cameron airship.

Piloting the Blue Dragonfly armor, he worked tirelessly like a cleaner, using shovels, brushes, and even his bare hands to remove the moss and mycelium covering the buoyancy tanks, gondolas, and cabins, as well as the dust and cobwebs inside the cabins...

Two hours later.

Roya finally finished the cleanup.

Cameron's airship has been completely renovated, revealing its original appearance.

The 50-meter-long blue-gray buoy has a streamlined shape resembling that of a giant whale.

The rope, made of twelve strands of ghost wolf spider silk alloy, combines strength and flexibility.

The wooden gondola is 32 meters long, 8 meters wide, and 6.6 meters high, with a classic three-story design.

The ground floor houses the cockpit, fuel tank, and engine room.

The middle level contains the captain's cabin, conference room, crew living quarters, and a small storage room.

The top floor features a deck, a lookout tower, and a mini garden.

The hull also has various mounting points for mounting light armor, flying armor, ornithopters, and various heavy weapons.

"Great, the classic model is still the most durable and reliable!"

Although the Cameron Whale airship has basic configurations and its appearance has remained unchanged for decades, it is durable and has great potential for modification.

At Blackshell Town's market price, the lowest-spec new Cameron Whale airship costs over three hundred gold dolphins!

Even though the hull of the refurbished second-hand shipwreck in front of Roya is obviously damaged and the ship is over ten years old, the price after renovation will not be less than 150 gold coins.

"The slower technological development, the more valuable this type of ship!"

Luo Ya examined the airship and found that the only damaged part was the stern of the gantry.

The lower side of the stern appears to have been struck by a sharp object, leaving a large hole. The internal exhaust pipes are partially bent and have cracks in several places.

The impact on steam output and aerodynamic layout necessitates repairs before the ship can be put into operation.

Apart from that, they are all minor issues:

The mechanical difference engine has stalled due to previous logic errors and needs to be recalibrated.

Some of the aging rubber hoses resemble dried-up blood vessels and urgently need to be replaced.

Gears and crankshafts lacking lubricant are prone to making a dry, grinding noise.

The phlogiston and ammunition compartments were empty, and even showed signs of rust.

Fortunately, no critical components were found to be missing or that the damage was irreparable.

Roya removed the horsehair worm from the Blue Dragonfly armor and officially began the repair work.

With the aid of the horsehair worm carcass, it's equivalent to having an extra kilometer of tentacles.

It can also be operated in a multi-branch configuration, allowing for quick repairs without disassembling the casing.

Unblocking clogged steam valves, calibrating jammed differential gears, tightening loose rivets, replacing small damaged parts, patching cracks, cleaning rust, lubricating gears, etc.

It can be said that in the steam age, no man-made mechanical structure could achieve this level of precision in operation.

It was as easy as using an arm, as powerful as adding wings to a tiger.

In just over four hours, Luo Ya had basically completed the overhaul of the entire submarine.

In the past, this would have taken at least a whole day!

It still needs to be inspected on a large workbench...

Before Luo Ya could even drink water or wipe his sweat, he eagerly filled the phlogiston tank with the dozen or so barrels of spare phlogiston he had scavenged.

Then, standing confidently on the deck, without even needing to go into the cockpit, he waved his hand—

"Light the furnace and start the boiler!"

With a loud bang!

The billowing steam quickly filled the cave like a thick fog.

The buoyancy capsule slowly rose to the surface.

The twelve ropes quickly taut, emitting a creaking sound.

The airship trembled, shaking off the mud from its hull, and slowly floated up in the thick fog.

"It's a success!"

Roya was as excited as a child when he owned an airship for the first time.

Waving his arms, it was as if he were swimming and galloping through the clouds.

At this moment, on the deck, Wendell, who had been sleeping soundly in the co-pilot's seat of the Blue Dragonfly, finally opened his eyes with his long, silvery-white eyelashes fluttering slightly.

Consciousness rises as if from the deep sea, carrying with it the usual heaviness and the confusion of hazy or even missing memories.

For some reason, she vaguely sensed a trace of Ishtar's lingering, inexplicable anger.

Looking up, thick, murky steam came into view.

After being cleaned and repaired, the dormant airship took to the skies.

The mushroom grove was completely burned, and the hallucinogenic gas dissipated.

The horsehair worm became Roya's all-purpose tool.

She subconsciously moved her right hand.

The arm, encased in the iron armor, felt a slight discomfort from the tight stitching.

The shattered dragon scales were actually sewn back on!

In fact, each time she fell into a coma, she left behind a considerable mess.

But when she opened her eyes, Roya always had everything in perfect order.

This silent reliability at least saved her the trouble of asking questions.

She no longer has the energy to care about everything.

The hatch opened on its own.

Wendell moved nimbly and leaped onto the deck of the gondola.

"How long did I sleep?"

Her voice was a little hoarse, with a languid quality from just waking up.

At this moment, Roya's mind was entirely on the airship, not on the woman, and he casually replied:

"It took more than seven hours, a little longer than last time."

Wendell unconsciously licked his chapped lips.

The swelling has disappeared...

But for some reason, there were still scabs of blood on my lips.

She tilted her head slightly to look at Luo Ya, her nostrils flaring as she caught a whiff of a familiar scent.

"...Your scent?"

There was no questioning in her tone, only inexplicable worry.

Roya waved to steer the airship forward slowly through the cave, nodded, and added a casual remark—

"That's right, I kissed you. Remember to take responsibility for me."

Wendell's silver brows furrowed slightly, and a barely perceptible trace of guilt flickered deep within his molten gold pupils.

Only then did she realize how much danger her loss of control had brought to Luo Ya, and she lowered her eyes slightly:

"I'm sorry to have put you in such a dangerous situation... I'm not a reliable teammate. You need to wake up to this soon."

Roya thought to himself that if he could get along well with another Wendell, then Wendell would be considered reliable.

"Don't apologize, trying to clear your name will only make you look weaker."

……

evening.

The sunlight filtering through the clouds dimmed, taking on a hazy yellow hue.

The revolutionary army squad's shuttle airship has finally returned!

On the deck of the gondola were four large barrels made of some kind of tough animal hide and vines, each filled with hundreds of basketball-sized, swollen, soft vesicles.

This is the venom sac inside the abdomen of the multiwinged mother beetle.

The opening of the vesicle was tightly sealed by the strong, wire-like arthropod legs of the centipede.

The quantity was less than Roya had expected.

However, Roya saw Giles's clothes burned by the corrosive liquid and the red, swollen, and ulcerated skin on his arms.

Given Colonel Rogge's nearly collapsed body and still upright spine, it was difficult to criticize them further.

"Thank you for your hard work... May I take three of the buckets?"

Upon hearing this, Colonel Rogge let out a cold snort, tinged with pain and disdain.

"Only the weak need this kind of thing; you can take it all."

Luo Ya was not annoyed at all; on the contrary, he accepted it gladly.

"I like the term 'weak'."

Without hesitation, he carried all four heavy barrels of corrosive liquid to the deck of Cameron's airship, which was still inside the cave.

And carefully secure it to the corner of the deck.

Out of curiosity.

It's also a test.

Roya's thoughts, like invisible fingertips, precisely manipulated the remains of a horsehair worm, extending it extremely slowly into the cyst.

There was no violent reaction as expected.

There was no hissing sound of surface dissolution.

There wasn't even the slightest change in luster.

The iron wire simply immersed itself quietly in the corrosive liquid, like a metal wire immersed in clear water, with only a few viscous dark green bubbles on the surface, while its internal structure remained completely still.

"It seems the horsehair worm is just as powerful as the multi-winged mother worm; this means the iron wires have even more uses!"

Suppressing his excitement, Luo Ya immediately took control of the half-human excavator and dug the opening to a safe size.

"You can leave now."

Cameron's airship, like a giant whale just awakened, glided out of the dark cave very slowly, with the caution of a newborn calf.

Finally, it was completely freed from the constraints of the mountain.

Like a giant bird breaking free from its cocoon, it was bathed for the first time in the dim, yellowish light of dusk, hovering in the air filled with a thick fog of purple spores.

For the first time, Roya smelled the scent of freedom.

But it might smell musty.

He piloted the Blue Dragonfly armor and, with the assistance of the Wendell steam armor, carried the heavy excavator onto the deck.

They also collected a large number of purple mushrooms that emitted a faint glow on the mountain, to keep for future use, so that they could extract the pigment to compensate for the pigment defects in the micro differential machine.

Two very different airships slowly took off.

The steam boiler engine began to roar louder, its deep rumble echoing through the valley, startling the flying creatures that inhabited the strange bacteria.

The Revolutionary Army's shuttle airship has sharp lines, like a black sword drawn from its sheath, hovering a hundred meters away, exuding the coldness and efficiency of standard military equipment.

Roya's Cameron Whale-style airship, like a weathered but robust blue-gray whale, floats steadily with the ruggedness and practicality characteristic of hunters.

The huge buoyancy capsule swayed slightly in the wind.

On the deck of the shuttle airship, Colonel Rogge, his spine taut as if it might crumble at any moment, lit a cigar and shouted to Roya on the opposite deck:

"A man's first airship has a very important name. What do you plan to name it?"

Luo Ya suddenly remembered his country's first aircraft carrier from his previous life and slowly said:

"Wide Area Silence".

Colonel Rogge gave a hoarse laugh, his face, covered in blood and exhaustion, yet his eyes were unusually sharp, piercing through the dim light as he looked at Roya:

"Believe me, you can't stay still... This sky will be set ablaze for you."

However, before he could finish speaking—

On the lookout tower of the shuttle airship, Eamon abruptly raised the long brass telescope in his hand and hurriedly adjusted the focus.

His gaze was fixed on a rapidly enlarging black dot on the western horizon, and he exclaimed in horror:

"Damn it, that's the Ranger, a ship from the First Mechanized Regiment of Mevin County!"

The silhouette of the black-sailed airship, like an ominous gathering of dark clouds, was rapidly tearing through the twilight.

Luo Ya glanced at it and felt like he had seen this ship somewhere before.

"Who are they here to arrest?"

"Whoever runs the slowest gets caught! See you on the Panlong Route!"

Colonel Rogge turned and ordered Allison to launch the airships, which then took off first, splitting up with the Wide-Range Silent.

A deafening roar!

The shuttle airship soared into the sky and disappeared into the clouds.