"Though... many of our sisters died because of you," Ella's face was filled with complex emotions. The biting cold wind tousled her hair, accompanied by occasional snowflakes, and her desolate tone, painting the scene with tragic hues.
"But you also allowed the others to survive."
Staring at the delicate features of the Eastern young man before her, the white female leader of the Women Guard could hardly believe that in the roulette wheel where he had nearly annihilated them, he had secured the greatest reward with minimal losses.
The Mountain King Crown!
That was the Mountain King Crownâone of Earth's supreme artifacts! A solid seven-colored-grade equipment!
And there were other rewards too. Though she didnât know what they were, judging by what she had received, they must be extraordinary.
"What do you want to say?" Ye Zhongming frowned, unsure why this woman had sought him out after leaving the space.
Over there, the Mechanical Genius hadnât moved either.
True, in the final rounds, the four factions had allied to eliminate Gyanendraâtechnically cooperating. But ultimately, they were still competitors. In the earlier rounds, they had fought tooth and nail.
Now that they were out, he could just KO them outright. Who would dare stop him? Loot them all, damn it!
"I have no ulterior motive. I just wanted to thank youâwhether you believe it or not, no matter... how conflicted our feelings are."
Many surviving Women Guard warriors lowered their heads.
Indeed, who could understand their turmoil? Earlier, Ye Zhongming had brought them to the brink of annihilation, aging them in an instant. Even now, many white-haired comrades stood shivering in the icy wilderness, their strength gone, weaker than ordinary people, unsure if they could even survive this frozen wasteland.
Yet in the end, it was also Ye Zhongming who spared them, paying the toll that allowed them to survive. That was a debt of gratitude.
Even if it felt like charity. Even if others might dismiss it as nothing.
"I obtained two items. As thanks, take them both."
Ella extended the items toward Ye Zhongming.
The King of Cloud Peak smirked coldly and accepted them.
He examined themâone was a piece of equipment, the other a tool.
The equipment was a gold-grade armor with five abilities, dual-element (earth and wood).
Gold-grade gear might be treasures in others' eyes, but to Ye Zhongming, they were nothing special. After checking its attributes, his expert craftsmanship instantly rendered his verdict:
Mediocre.
The kind thatâs too bland to enjoy, yet too wasteful to discard.
The abilities were passable, but it lacked top-tier offensive or defensive powerâjust half-baked. Two passives, like increased stamina recovery in forested terrain, offered negligible boosts.
Honestly, its overall stats were only slightly better than some of the blue-grade equipment Ye Zhongming had crafted. Forget core membersâeven among the Female Guard, at least a hundred pieces surpassed this gold-grade armor in practicality.
The other item, however, caught Ye Zhongmingâs eye.
A cooking pot.
Not like Cloud Peakâs Fire and Water Stew Pot, but somewhat similar. The former was used to create dishes that enhanced various abilities, while this one repaired weapons and equipment.
By filling it with special energy-rich liquidsâblood, bodily fluids, plant sap, etc.âthen boiling them, damaged weapons could be submerged and restored over time.
A fantastic item, even priceless. Since evolved were constantly fighting, weapon damage was commonplace. Most couldnât repair their gearâeither lacking the means or unwilling to pay the exorbitant fees.
For a faction, this could save untold resources.
But for Cloud Peak? Useless.
As a top-tier craftsman, Ye Zhongmingâs subordinates simply upgraded their gear when it broke. Worn-out equipment was fed to the Treasure Nurturing Gourd to empower other items.
Even Ye Zhongming himself had repair skills far more efficient than boiling weapons in a pot.
His gaze swept over the Women Guard before he nodded. "Iâll take them."
Ella and Gianna remained composed, but the other Women Guard warriors lowered their heads, their reluctance evident.
Sighing inwardly, Ye Zhongming turned to Xiao Minâstill pale from her ordealâand murmured an order. Soon, Female Guard warriors approached, retrieving piles of equipment from their spatial rings.
Within moments, a small mountain of mostly green-grade female gear had formedâeasily over a hundred pieces.
"These..."
Ella and Gianna were dumbstruck, gaping wordlessly.
But Ye Zhongming ignored them, striding toward the Mechanical Genius.
"Little Ye, are we killing him? Grandpa Dragonâs been itching to! This guyâs mouth is even fouler than mineâunforgivable!"
Yangos, reveling in his pettiness, flapped his wings, smoke billowing from his nostrils and flames licking between his teethâclearly spoiling for a fight.
Though spoken in Chinese, the Mechanical Geniusâs side erupted into chaos, his remaining war puppets instantly forming defensive formations.
"Shut up!"
Ye Zhongming snapped, though inwardly he approved. Having this troublemaker around was useful sometimes.
For someone like the Mechanical Genius, only absolute domination worked. If not through force, then through fear.
Would he fight? Donât joke. There was no benefit nowâjust pointless casualties. Ye Zhongming wasnât that reckless.
Of course, if the Mechanical Genius reneged, he wouldnât hesitate to wipe them out.
"Whereâs what you promised?"
Faced with Ye Zhongmingâs demand, the Mechanical Genius fumed silently before finally relenting. Five mechanical war puppets stepped forward.
"How I made theseâI wonât tell you. Even if I did, you couldnât replicate it. Itâs my job."
Seeing Ye Zhongmingâs displeasure, he hastily added, "Iâm being honest. Donât try to force it out of me. At worst, Iâll fight to the deathâand take dozens of your women with me!"
Ye Zhongming believed him. He hadnât planned to resort to violence anyway.
"How do I control them?"
"Pour your blood into the small holes on their heads. You canât upgrade them, but you can command them in battle. Also, without me nearby, they canât self-repair. Use them sparingly. Treat them well."
Ye Zhongming circled the five puppets before asking, "You didnât leave a backdoor, did you? Recall them once Iâm gone?"
Silence. Then, through gritted teeth:
"I may be insane... but I have my pride!"