Command Tent – Loot Count
Alperen dumped everything onto the table.
5,000 gold coins. Gleaming. The stench of blood had soaked into them.
20 swords. Old. Rusty. But usable.
10 suits of armor. Riddled with holes. Still, metal is metal.
And… three books.
Alperen picked up the books and opened one.
"Iron Arm Technique" – Intermediate Level. Arm-strengthening techniques. Qi circulation. Bone hardening.
Second book: "Shadow Step" – Advanced Level. Speed techniques. The art of movement.
Third book: "Bloody Claw" – Intermediate Level. Kara Murat's technique. Purely offensive. Savage.
"Good," Alperen said. "Three more manuals. Distribute them to the men. Have them learn."
"System, can the 5,000 gold be converted into energy?"
[YES. CONVERSION RATE: 10 GOLD = 1 ENERGY] [5,000 GOLD = 500 ENERGY]
"Convert everything."
DING!
[5,000 GOLD → 500 ENERGY CONVERTED] [TOTAL ENERGY: 811 + 500 = 1,311]
Alperen smiled. "1,311 energy."
He thought. He calculated.
'Iron Bridge City. 100 million souls. Powerful clans. There are even Level 3 cultivators.'
'I'm still only Level 1. Weak.'
"System, upgrade me to Level 2. Bronze Bone stage."
[APPROVED] [COST: –50 ENERGY] [REMAINING: 1,261]
[WARNING: THE PROCESS WILL BE EXTREMELY PAINFUL. DURATION: 6 HOURS]
"Begin."
Alperen's Transformation – Six Hours of Hell
DING!
[LEVEL 2 BRONZE BONE TRANSFORMATION INITIATED]
Alperen's body ignited.
Unbearable pain. It felt as if his bones were shattering, molecule by molecule.
"AAAAAHHHH!"
He screamed. He thrashed. Collapsed to the ground. Writhed in agony.
His bones were changing. From ordinary bone to Bronze Bone.
1 hour passed. He was still screaming. Blood poured from his mouth.
2 hours passed. His voice turned hoarse. Only groans remained.
3 hours passed. Consciousness flickered. Nightmares. Corpses. Rivers of blood.
4 hours passed. Silence. His body trembled uncontrollably.
5 hours passed. The bones felt different—heavier, denser. Like bronze.
6 hours passed.
DING!
[TRANSFORMATION COMPLETE] [CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE REACHED LEVEL 2 BRONZE BONE STAGE!] [PHYSICAL STRENGTH: ×5] [ENDURANCE: ×10] [QI CAPACITY: ×3]
Alperen stood. His body felt alien. He punched a nearby boulder.
CRACK!
The stone split.
"Finally… I am strong."
Army Expansion – Mixed Forces
"System. Summon new soldiers."
Martial Artists • 3 × Level 2 Bronze Bone: –150 • 10 × Level 1 Late Stage: –300
Modern Soldiers • 10 × Heavy Armored Cavalry: –50 • 30 × Basic Infantry (Rifles): –450 • 3 × Snipers: –180
[TOTAL COST: –1,130 ENERGY] [REMAINING: 131]
"Summon."
Blue lights flashed. 59 new units materialized.
[ELITE CHECK…]
Martial artists: All normal. Cavalry: UNIT 7 → ★★★ ELITE MAMMOTH CAVALRY!
The earth shook. The third mammoth appeared!
Modern troops: 30 riflemen, 3 snipers with scoped rifles.
Alperen touched a rifle. "Can this kill a Level 2?"
[YES. IF IT HITS A WEAK POINT.]
Current Military Strength
Martial Artists • 16 × Level 2 Bronze Bone • 39 × Level 1
Modern Forces • 33 × Cavalry • 30 × Rifle Infantry • 3 × Snipers • 3 × Mammoths
Others • 3 Spies, 10 Scientists, 1 Commander
TOTAL: 138 soldiers
'I'm strong. But is it enough? No. I need far more.'
"First… I need information."
Spies' Report – Iron Bridge City
Everyone gathered inside the command tent.
"Speak," Alperen ordered. "Iron Bridge City. Everything."
Shadow stepped forward, voice grave.
"My Lord… we spent eleven days inside Iron Bridge City. We saw everything."
He paused. His eyes were hollow.
"That city… is not hell. Hell would be more merciful."
The Heart of Darkness
"Iron Bridge City. 100 million people. Yet they no longer resemble humans."
"At first glance—massive walls, towering spires, opulent mansions. Impressive."
"But the closer we got, the stench hit us."
"Rotting flesh. Urine. Disease."
"And the sounds… not voices. Constant, low moaning."
"We passed the gates. And we saw."
"People filled the streets, but they were not people anymore."
"Walking skeletons. Skin stretched over bone. You could count every rib. Arms like sticks."
"Their eyes… empty. No hope. No fear. Only void."
"One man sat motionless in a corner. I thought he was dead. He was breathing. Barely."
"I asked, 'Are you hungry?' No answer."
"I gave him bread. He took it. Ate mechanically. No gratitude. No expression. Just the body's reflex."
"His soul had died long ago."
Alperen listened in silence. "Go on."
"The children… my Lord… the children…"
Shadow's voice cracked.
"We saw a little girl, maybe seven. Sitting in the street."
"She cradled a baby in her arms. The baby had been dead for days."
"She rocked it. Tried to sing a lullaby, but no sound came—her voice had died days ago."
"We told her, 'The baby is dead.' She didn't even look up. Just kept rocking."
"We took the corpse away. She did nothing. Didn't cry. Didn't scream. Just sat there… staring into nothing."
Fox added:
"I saw a mother standing in front of her house."
"Her child—three or four years old—lay motionless. She only stared."
"'Is he sick?' No reply."
"I approached. The child had been dead two days."
"Her eyes were dry. She had no tears left."
"'Why haven't you buried him?'"
She turned, voice barely a whisper:
"Because… he is my last child. If I bury him… I will have nothing left."
She turned back and kept staring at the corpse.
Snake continued:
"I saw a father. Young—thirty at most."
"But his face looked sixty. Deep lines. Wrinkles carved by despair."
"He stood at the edge of the bridge, staring into the river."
"'What are you doing?'"
"He looked at me with dead eyes."
"'Why am I still alive?'"
"'What?'"
"'My children are dead. My wife is dead. I have no money, no food, no home. Why… am I still breathing?'"
"I had no answer."
"He didn't jump. He just walked away. I don't know where."
"No sadness on his face. No anger. Only emptiness."
For the first time, something stirred inside Alperen.
'One hundred million people… already dead while still breathing.'
"Why? Why is it this bad?"
The Truth
"Because, my Lord… the city is a prison."
"The Hua Clan rules. They bleed the people dry."
"Taxes on everything. Tax on bread. Tax on water. Tax on the air you breathe—yes, they even tax breathing."
"If you cannot pay, you become a slave. Worked to death."
"The Hua Clan is filthy rich. The people starve in the streets."
"And the worst part… the people have stopped hoping."
"They know one truth:"
"Nothing will ever change. No one will ever be saved. Even fate has abandoned this city."
Silence.
Alperen's mind raced.
'One hundred million broken souls. Helpless. Hopeless.'
'The Hua Clan feeds on them.'
A spark ignited within him.
'If I give these people hope… If I annihilate the Hua Clan… These one hundred million will become mine.'
A cold, predatory smile spread across his face.
"Continue," he said. "Tell me everything about the Hua Clan."
[CHAPTER 9 – TO BE CONTINUED…]