Steampunk Era: Mad Abield
Chapter 1025: Section 657: Love from the Past (Part 4)_2

Chapter 1025: Section 657: Love from the Past (Part 4)_2

Jason followed him toward the trench, then turned back and raised an eyebrow at Malin — compared to Sostak No.3’s cautious attitude toward biochemical humans, Jason seemed to have a natural fondness for Konen, as if an elder toward a younger generation.

Meanwhile, Mr. Meng walked up to Malin: "This child... A child born of humans and biochemical humans, has a natural curiosity about firearms. Unlike his predecessors, he doesn’t seem bad at handling firearms."

"Are you worried the biochemical humans might start mastering firearms?" Malin asked.

"Yes, their physiques are already naturally stronger than humans. If they gain mastery of our technology, perhaps the era of biochemical humans will truly arrive."

"They can’t even forge an axe without bending the blade, and yet you’re worrying about such distant possibilities. Yes, this child is a half-blood, but think about it, Mr. Meng — how many humans would truly fall in love with them? In this world, people mostly follow their ’five senses’ when it comes to the ’three views’ of humanity. That’s still the mainstream, isn’t it?" Malin was not entirely dismissive, and his words made Mr. Meng reluctantly acknowledge some truth in them.

"You’re right..." Mr. Meng replied, then looked up alongside Malin, as both of them heard the sound of gunfire.

Jason’s reprimanding voice rang out at the same time: "I told you to aim along three points in alignment, and you did that — but how did you manage to shoot the ground beneath your feet on such a short distance? Fire another shot."

Malin watched the child raise the firearm and fire another round.

Very steady, with no trembling due to recoil.

"...Mr. Malin, can you come over for a moment?" Jason stared at the trench silently for a while, then turned his head to look at Malin.

Malin, taking Mr. Meng along, walked over to see the buffaloes lying at the trench bottom — most of them had broken their legs. The earlier gunfire had triggered their genetically inherited fear of humans, causing them to instinctively try to flee. However, with broken legs, they could only collapse helplessly on the ground.

"Kid, what’s going on?"

"I... When I fire the gun, my hands shake uncontrollably." The child turned to Malin, answering with some embarrassment.

Malin instructed him to fire another shot and, sure enough, witnessed the phenomenon clearly this time from his side — the gun barrel shifted unnaturally as he pulled the trigger.

"It’s genetic-level behavior. Though this kid is mixed-blood, this particular trait has been passed down — an involuntary hand tremor during aiming and firing. Must be a European thing," Jason muttered to Malin.

No wonder biochemical humans mostly stick to melee weapons.

Malin sighed, then swapped the child’s gun for a double-barreled shotgun with the stock and barrel sawed off: "No need to aim. Point at the target and pull the trigger, try it."

"You’re a genius." Jason clapped his hands.

This time, Konen didn’t tremble — the pellets from the shotgun accurately hit the buffalo in the trench.

"This gun is yours now, kid." Malin patted the exhilarated Konen’s head, then turned to Mr. Meng: "Tonight, we’re having beef. Get your soldiers over to start moving them."

Mr. Meng watched as each buffalo, wrapped in Malin’s spiritual energy, levitated out of the trench. He quickly called out to the soldiers behind him pushing carts, who naturally swarmed forward — though buffalo meat was tough, they were difficult to hunt, and the sheer number today meant the soldiers could savor the taste of meat for the days to come.

"The ship fleet will rest here for the next week. We’ll stockpile enough food and continue along the coastline, rounding the southern tip of India until we reach Jidaport. This region is dangerous. There’ll be Indian rafts, Chaos fleets, and those undead pirate ships appearing along this stretch of the voyage."

"Undead pirate ships still?" Malin asked curiously.

"Yes. No one knows where these undead came from, but their ships look incredibly ancient. The trouble with them is that you can’t eliminate them completely — even if you destroy their ships with cannon fire, you might still see that same ship leaping out of the sea again someday." Mr. Meng lamented. "We’ve always tried to establish a northwest overland route, but factors like the mountainous terrain of Central Asia, the omnipresent Chaos, and the crazed Spirits and different kinds are our frontier group’s greatest foes. Despite the enemies at sea, it’s comparatively safer."

"Relatively safe," Malin chuckled.

"Indeed, relatively safe." Mr. Meng and the fleet members laughed out loud.

......

That evening, everyone enjoyed dinner heartily. Malin used spiritual energy as a knife to slice thin pieces of beef and added seasonings, allowing everyone to relish the joys of barbecue. Although the meat was tough, Malin used his spiritual energy to break down the tendons and fibers, making the beef effortlessly tender — truly melt-in-your-mouth.

After dinner, Malin walked alone to the top of Deyar Port’s lighthouse.

The subtropical climate made the night air warm. Sitting at the top, Malin gazed at the night sky, where the galaxy shone brightly.

"You seem to really enjoy stargazing." Meng Quyi peeked her head out from the lighthouse stairwell, resembling a groundhog poking its head adorably from its burrow.

She climbed up and stood beside Malin, looking at the stars.

Soon, she grew bored. The girl turned her attention to Malin instead.