CHAPTER 85: CHAPTER 84: DELAY! THE DIVIDED NATURALIST SECT

The silence outside stretched on for a long moment. Eventually, the man could no longer bear the stalemate. With an external enemy present, he had no choice but to relent first, his voice dropping to a low, placating tone. "Alright, my Natural Archbishop, there’s no need for us to fight. Let’s just say I was wrong. Honestly, we both know what the other is like. There’s no need to keep up this charade. You don’t really believe your ’god’ will actually return, do you?"

The man had expected his compromise to be met with concession, but his words only seemed to drive the woman into a deeper frenzy.

"Markel, if it weren’t for God’s arrival, you’d still be a rat in the gutter, eating disgusting trash and living a life worse than a dog’s! You have what you have today because of him, yet you show no gratitude.

"Your heart is no longer devout, and God will abandon you. As for me, God once told me that when He reactivates His battle armor, it will signal His imminent return."

Markel looked at Monica’s pious expression, the fire in his own heart flaring beyond his control. He stared at the woman who was once his beloved, the memory searing him: to survive, he had abased himself, offering her to that man while she watched in disbelief. Whenever he recalled that moment, his heart twisted as if stabbed by a knife.

"Enough! Don’t say another word!" Markel snapped. "I’m telling you, it’s been three years. Your ’god’ is not coming back. You should be thinking about yourself. The Mechanical Legion is coming. If you don’t evacuate now, you will die here. When that happens, your title as Archbishop of the Naturalist Sect won’t mean a thing to those hunks of metal."

The cruel reality of their situation finally began to sober Monica. Though she remained God’s faithful servant—so faithful she would offer her own body—she knew she must preserve this humble vessel to await His arrival.

"Then tell me," she said, her voice steady now, "why can’t I take God’s battle armor with me?"

Markel had no idea how to deal with this foolish woman. If it weren’t absolutely necessary, he wouldn’t have bothered engaging with her at all. His patience was wearing thin. If not for her usefulness in placating the faithful, he wouldn’t be wasting his breath. For some reason, even though he was the leader of the radical faction in the Natural Church, the combatants still held a deep-seated reverence for this ’god’. As a non-believer, he found it completely baffling.

"We can’t take it. If we could, I wouldn’t be wasting my time trying to convince you," Markel said, his voice strained. "Our scouts report the Mechanical Legion is less than a hundred kilometers away. That means we have less than three hours to evacuate, and you want me to bring along that useless lump of metal?"

"That is God’s battle armor," Monica interrupted solemnly.

"Fine, God’s battle armor!" Markel shot back. "But in three years, no one has been able to pilot it. Not a single person! It’s just a dead thing, completely useless. And you know how much it weighs. The shielding device that man left behind is active, which means neither we nor the Mechanical Legion can use any heavy machinery. It’s slowed their advance, but it also cripples our own operations.

"The only things we can use are primitive, non-AI gasoline vehicles. Our transport trucks don’t have nearly enough tonnage to carry it. Even if they did, without cranes or lifts, do you have any idea how long it would take to move it with manpower alone? You’re asking me to take it now, but that would require days of prep time we simply don’t have.

"So, here’s the deal. Either you come with us and keep your flock in line, or you stay here and die with your precious metal."

After speaking his piece, Markel turned and left without waiting for a reply. Monica stood frozen for a long time before letting out a soft sigh, her shoulders slumping in defeat.

Once the corridor fell completely silent, Chen Pingchuan tiptoed out. A quick scan of the area revealed no one in sight.

"Whew!" He let out a long breath, silently congratulating himself on his wise decision. My methods are always the most reliable. Why rush in when you can just lie low? Hide until the end of time, hide until you can escape with ease. he thought, pleased. Besides, that conversation was packed with information. Is everyone here involved in such twisted drama?

Chen Pingchuan mulled it over. If I understood correctly, the man and woman were lovers. Then some guy calling himself ’god’ appeared. For some reason, the man offered his own girlfriend to this god. I don’t know if he was forced or bribed, but either way, the man let himself get cuckolded. Then, the ’god’ disappeared, and they took over the Natural Church. She handles the believers’ ideology, and he handles security. Years went by, the man figured the ’god’ wasn’t coming back and got some new ideas, but he never expected the woman’s heart would change.

A woman’s heart is a needle at the bottom of the sea. What a tangled mess. This is better than a soap opera!

Chen Pingchuan felt a flicker of schadenfreude at the man’s predicament. In his eyes, aside from that naive, cute little nurse, there probably wasn’t a single good person in this place. He also wondered what this ’Mechanical Legion’ was. The name sounded so familiar. Seeing that the coast was clear, he began to inch forward cautiously. A new worry surfaced in his mind: Would this so-called Mechanical Legion just kill everyone indiscriminately, regardless of faction?

Suddenly, a flurry of hurried footsteps echoed from the stairwell again.

It never ends, was Chen Pingchuan’s first thought. His immediate instinct was to dive into the nearest room for cover, but a flash of a familiar figure in his peripheral vision stopped him short.

He sighed in exasperation. "Why are you back? Everyone’s gone, and you’re running back here. Aren’t you afraid of being left behind?"

It was Vivian. Her hair was a mess, and her usual calm demeanor was completely gone. She grabbed his arm without explanation, her voice trembling as she complained, "Why didn’t you leave? Do you have any idea how worried I was when I didn’t see you with the evacuation team?"

Hearing the quiver of tears in her voice, Chen Pingchuan dropped his flippant act. He realized that even though this was a simulation, not reality, the people here were flesh and blood, each with their own feelings, joys, and sorrows. The concern in the young woman’s eyes, for example, was genuine. For her to brave the danger and come back for him at a time like this... honestly, he was touched. Still, his mouth had a mind of its own.

"Why so worried about me? You trying to make babies with me?"

Vivian shot him a mock-annoyed glance, not slowing her pace as she retorted, "Hmph! Who’s worried about you? You’re my patient, and it’s my duty to look after you."

"Is it really just about duty?" Chen Pingchuan asked. He pulled his arm free from her grasp and, to her utter surprise, swept her up into a princess carry. "You’re heavier than you look, little girl," he teased. "And you’re too slow. At this rate, the main group will be long gone by the time you make it all the way downstairs."

Vivian stared up at Chen Pingchuan’s handsome face, momentarily captivated by his potent, masculine presence. Her face flushed a deep crimson. She let out a soft "Mm," and buried her face in his chest.

Chen Pingchuan glanced down and caught a glimpse of the magnificent view through the gap in her shirt. What a lucky woman, he thought. A bit of a lovesick fool, but whoever marries her is going to be one fortunate man.

Then, with a surge of power in his legs, they were off. The wind whistled past their ears as they descended to the first floor in seconds. He gently set Vivian down, but her legs were like jelly. With no other choice, he slipped an arm around her back, half-carrying her as they sprinted toward the building’s exit.

Just as they were about to burst out of the base, a terrifying shockwave erupted, sending them flying in different directions.

BANG!

Chen Pingchuan slammed directly into the exoskeletal armor standing in the hall, its dark metal glinting under the lights.

PFFT!

A spray of blood burst from his lips, the impact finally allowing him to draw a breath. Several droplets of his blood spattered across the metallic surface of the armor.