The Creators: From Night City

"It could just be a coincidence," Laura tried to argue.

Jiang Bing naturally would not argue with him. He left after saying, "You will believe it."

Chapter 42: Secrets of the Storm Warrior

Through the forest and across the mountains.

In just a few hours, Jiang Bing, fully armed, rushed from the military fortress on the east side of the island all the way to the northwest side of the island.

Standing on a mountain top, Jiang Bing easily found the fortress at the foot of the mountain.

The fort has a strange appearance.

The main structure of the entire fortress is brick and stone, which should have been made by the Yamatai people, but there are traces of reinforcement with steel bars and cement everywhere, which shows that the Japanese or American troops were also stationed here during World War II and reinforced it twice.

But there are still a lot of iron and wooden strips, which are like patches all over the exterior of the fortress.

Needless to say, these repairs came from the Brotherhood of the Sun, and the rough craftsmanship gave the fortress a very post-apocalyptic wasteland style.

Of course, this is the surface situation.

According to the Russians' description, under the fortress is actually a very large and magnificent underground tomb, which is interconnected and has many exits.

The Holy Lord Matthias would hold a general meeting with all church members in a large tomb directly below the fortress, and when he held a small meeting with these senior management, he would choose a random location.

Things are not so peaceful inside the Brotherhood of the Sun either. For safety reasons, Matthias will not stay in one place for long.

In addition, the layout and structure of the entire fortress were indeed consistent with the information Jiang Bing learned from the X cultists.

After confirming the accuracy of the information, Jiang Bing turned west.

The westernmost part of Yamatai is a thousand-meter-high mountain. On the east side of the mountain is a steep vertical cliff. If you want to go up the mountain, you can only start climbing from the foot of the mountain on the west side of the mountain.

The capital of the Yamatai Kingdom was located on this peak, built against the mountain.

From a distance, Jiang Bing could see the storm that had been raging on the mountaintop for years, making the entire mountain look majestic and inviolable.

A large number of wooden and stone structures are lined up from the foot of the mountain to the top. Their huge scale silently tells of the prosperity of the Yamatai Kingdom in the past.

However, desolation has become the main color of this city, and everywhere you look, you can see desolation.

The might of nature has eroded the edge of the lost ancient city, and the green of the forest has spread into the ancient city.

The decaying relics of civilization are entangled with the lush new vegetation, and the impact it brings is beyond words.

It has to be said that when human beings have endowed civilization on the years and the treasures called history condensed from the years are vividly displayed before you, you have to sigh at this unique creation of heaven and earth.

Jiang Bing squatted on the edge of the ancient city, peeping into the city like a paparazzi, trying every means to obtain all kinds of privacy of Himiko.

This city is not far from the Brotherhood of the Sun and is located inland on the island, making it relatively peaceful. However, strangely, there are not many signs of modern human activity.

This is not surprising. Anyone who has seen the ancient Japanese warriors who lived here would be unwilling to set foot in this lost city filled with gloomy and ghostly aura.

Some brave individuals will also be taught a lesson by these murderous storm soldiers.

Jiang Bing did not rush into the ancient city. He waited for a while and saw a team of patrolling ancient Japanese warriors outside the ancient city.

From the outside, these cursed warriors are no different from normal people, except that they have an extra set of ancient armor.

But all the warriors, very abnormally, covered their faces tightly, leaving only two black eyes.

They moved with the solemnity peculiar to an ancient army. Each of them looked extremely lifeless, and there was a distinct sense of dullness in their every move.

After this trip, Jiang Bing planned to bring back some "specialties". After all, as a "craftsman" with a strong scientific research spirit, he was naturally very curious about the famous "Storm Warrior".

'Warriors of the Storm, Undead Legion', it sounds very impressive.

So Jiang Bing sneaked up.

The five senses of these warriors were much duller than those of normal people. Jiang Bing was almost touching the butt of the soldier at the end of the team, but no one reacted.

So, when the patrol team turned a corner according to the patrol route engraved in their bones, the knife-wielding warrior at the end of the team suddenly disappeared.

…………

Inside the military fortress.

Kate is changing Ross's dressing according to Jiang Bing's doctor's instructions.

The female yachtsman was quite knowledgeable, but she was still not as good as Conrad Ross, an old adventurer who had traveled half the world and spent most of his life wandering and adventuring.

When Jiang Bing came back carrying a large package, the old adventurer was already chatting happily with Kate.

Looking around, he couldn't find Laura, so he asked Ross, who was leaning on a Y-shaped tree branch as a crutch, "Did Laura go to the radio tower?"

The old adventurer raised his hands in a gesture, "Seeing is believing."

Jiang Bing was not surprised that the two did not believe him.

"Boom!"

He dropped the package he had been carrying on his shoulders onto the table beside him, unwrapped the layers of old wrappings, and revealed the body of the Storm Warrior inside.

"Seeing is believing." Jiang Bing repeated what the old explorer had just said.

"Merlin's beard!"

The old explorer was naturally knowledgeable and had seen a lot of things before, so he immediately guessed what this thing was.

"Is this the Storm Warrior under Himiya's command?"

After getting Jiang Bing's affirmation, the old adventurer almost dropped his crutches and ran over. He stepped forward and carefully looked at this thing that should only exist in history.

First of all, there was the leather armor on the corpse, which was also full of Japanese petty style.

As the lowest-ranking Ashigaru, he only had a simple piece of leather armor.

The leather armor, which can only cover the main areas of the body, is mixed with a small amount of metal pieces to strengthen the defense of vital parts.

The simple craftsmanship and shape indicate its antique status.

Ross was naturally an expert in identifying goods. Although he couldn't accurately determine the age of the armor, he could at least tell whether it was real or fake.

Although the armor was simple, it was very practical, with leather covering the chest, shoulders and back, leaving only the limbs exposed.

What's strange is that the flesh and blood of this storm warrior has not dried up and shrunk. Apart from the rough skin, he looks no different from a normal person.

The most eye-catching thing is the face of the corpse. The cloth that originally covered the face of the corpse has been removed, exposing the face to the air.

"Walter?"

Ross and Kate asked at the same time.

This storm warrior actually has a very typical European and American face.

"These are the Storm Warriors under Himiko's command. Could they be those X-cultists pretending to be them?" Kate asked first.

Ross touched the leather armor on the corpse, his mind still half convinced. "But this leather armor is indeed of ancient Japanese style, and judging by the wear and tear, it must have been worn for a long time."

Ross and Kate continued to discuss their doubts, but Jiang Bing had already understood everything in his heart and remained silent.

This is the truth behind the 600-year survival of this group of 'Storm Warriors'.

Although no one knows what means they use, they are constantly taking over other people's bodies and changing their bodies just like Himiko.

The moment Jiang Bing came into contact with the Storm Warrior, he keenly felt a strong sense of disharmony coming from the target.

From the perspective of the 'craftsman', the brain area of ​​the corpse exudes a strong stench of decay.

Apparently, this is the price of replacing your body.

Based on the observed behavior, Jiang Bing deduced that this method of 'taking over' would at least result in personality disorder, memory loss, mental impairment, and disharmony between soul and body.

This also explains why the Brotherhood of the Sun regularly performs living sacrifices on this group of "Storm Warriors", and the sacrifices are all middle-aged men.

This also explains why most of these storm warriors wear masks, and those without masks cover their faces in various ways.

I'm afraid that the faces of most of the people in the entire Storm Warrior Legion have turned into blond-haired, blue-eyed white faces.

It is the Tiangang that is reversed again.

This also explains why Himiko was so obsessed with choosing a descendant who was related to her by blood as a body. It was highly likely that this was to avoid the backlash brought about by the "body possession" ritual.

This is also normal.

The two souls mixed together are like adding a bucket of white paint into another bucket of black paint. As the number of times increases, other yellow, green, and blue paints are added. In the end, what you get is only a bucket of turbid paint whose original color cannot be seen.

But if both buckets contain white paint, even if the color numbers are slightly different, the final result can at least be guaranteed to be white.

"I should find a way to learn some knowledge of the occult," Jiang Bing thought to himself.

However, there is no relevant knowledge at all in the system's creator database.

Although it is called a database, there are only two pieces of knowledge that can be exchanged. Apart from the "door" device knowledge that has been exchanged, there is only another piece of knowledge called [Ether Essence Furnace Class IV Terminal] production specifications, and the price is also 100 craftsman badges.

He had no other knowledge or principles related to magic and technology. He didn't know if it was because his level was not high enough or because the level of this knowledge was not high enough.

Jiang Bing then dissected the body and confirmed that it was no different from a normal person. He then wrapped the body again with the flag he had obtained from the ancient city and threw it into the sea to destroy the evidence.

To be honest, Jiang Bing was a little disappointed. The opponent he had expected was really bad.

"Warriors of the Storm, Legion of the Undead."

Ah.

Jiang Bing just wanted to say: "CNM, give me back my money!"

After dealing with the body, Jiang Bing interrupted Ross and Kate's discussion.

"Captain Ross, there's something I want to confirm with you. You came here on an ocean exploration ship, right?"

After getting Ross's definite answer, Jiang Bing continued to ask.

"Is there any equipment related to seabed salvage on board?"

Ross was naturally familiar with the equipment on his ship and answered Jiang Bing's questions with great familiarity.

"Of course, the Endurance is equipped with a full set of seabed salvage equipment, including submersibles, underwater sonar, grabs and salvage nets."

"However, they should have sunk to the bottom of the sea along with the Endurance."

Ross couldn't help but feel a little sad when he thought of his beloved boat.

“Where are these devices mainly installed on ships?”

Jiang Bing's question was a bit strange, but Ross still gave a reply.

"It's all on the forward deck."

After getting the news he wanted, Jiang Bing finally felt happy.

"I don't think it's all sunk, Captain Ross. I saw your Endurance not long ago on the west coast of Yamatai, though only the front half."

"Do you have something to salvage?" Ross asked.

Jiang Bing nodded slightly.

"Well, I brought some gifts that I was going to give to the owner of this place."

A customer named Jiang, who was deceived by false advertising from an unscrupulous vendor and became angry and embarrassed, was ready to resort to violence to defend his rights.

"It's not good to go empty-handed."

Chapter 43 Seeking cooperation

Four days later.

Laura supported Ross, who had almost no problem walking, and when they arrived at the ship graveyard, they saw a bustling construction site.

There is also a simple dock.

Because of the special geographical structure of this place, most of the ships that wrecked near Yamatai were pushed here by the waves.

Over hundreds of years, these ships have accumulated layer upon layer in this bay, so that when you look around, it seems as if there is a piece of land filled with the wreckage of various ships.

From the coast to the open sea, the shapes of the shipwrecks are very old.

The innermost part is made up of ancient wooden sailing ships and small fishing boats, which are the most decayed. The middle part is made up of modern steel-clad steamships, and the outer part is made up of modern composite cargo ships, yachts, and fishing boats.

The wreckage of the "Endurance" is piled up in the outermost sea area.

However, the expedition ship, which was already badly damaged by the storm, had now been dismantled into pieces, revealing its internal hot-rolled galvanized steel keel.

Kate came down from the watchtower, received the two people, and led them to find Jiang Bing who was busy in his temporary workshop.