The two advanced deep toward the west, the air slightly hot and filled with coal dust. The sound of power hammers striking steel anvils rang out piercingly. At the entrance of Forge District No. 7, a gang of about seven or eight thugs stood surrounding a small, dilapidated smithy.
"Lame old man, don't refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit! Our Big Brother needs this great broadsword before tonight; if it's not finished, I'll burn this scrap forge of yours!" The leader, a large man sporting a crude mechanical arm, roared as he kicked over a tool rack.
The old blacksmith sat by the hearth, remaining silent, his cold gaze fixed on the glowing coal furnace, not deigning to spare the group a single glance. That attitude only drove the thugs madder; they began swinging their weapons to smash the place.
Thuong Sinh stopped a few meters away. He had no interest in getting involved in this, but the only path forward into the depths of the forging district was completely blocked by this group, letting no one through.
"Clear the way," Thuong Sinh spoke neutrally.
His voice wasn't loud, but it pierced through everyone's ears like a cold wind. The thugs froze, simultaneously turning their heads toward the two newcomers.
"What brat is this? Are you blind?" The man with the mechanical arm glared; seeing that Thuong Sinh was just a kid accompanied by a girl of similar age, he sneered. "Get to another road, can't you see we're working?"
Thuong Sinh didn't say a second word; his profound eyes looked at them as if they were corpses. He gently let go of Lam Thanh Moc's hand, then strolled forward. Seeing the opponent not only unfazed but approaching, the man with the mechanical arm grew enraged; his mechanical arm hissed with the sound of a pneumatic engine as he swung a punch of over a hundred kilograms directly at Thuong Sinh's chest.
Thump!
A sound echoed, but the following scene made the thugs stare in horror. Thuong Sinh hadn't dodged at all; he simply reached out his hand, calmly catching the large man's steel punch in its entirety.
"What...?" The large man stammered, trying to rev the engine of his mechanical arm, but the steel fist was stuck as if caught in something, rendering him unable to move.
Thuong Sinh's eyes were deep and cold as he looked at the man, his hand tightening. The sound of twisting metal let out a piercing screech. Using only pure muscular strength combined with reinforced internal power, he crushed the alloy plating of the mechanical arm, causing oil within the arm to splatter.
He swung his arm with force; the man weighing over a hundred kilograms was tossed away like a sack of trash, slamming into the steel wall of the neighboring workshop and fainting on the spot.
Seeing their boss easily defeated, the henchmen frantically charged, some holding iron bars, others meat cleavers. Thuong Sinh didn't bother drawing his sword; he simply spun and slipped past the swinging weapons—every time his hand struck or his foot kicked, it was accompanied by the sound of breaking bones.
He didn't use any ultimate techniques, using pure speed and absolute strength to overwhelm them. In less than a minute, seven or eight thugs lay scattered on the ground, some with broken arms, others with crushed ribs; not one could stand firm.
Thuong Sinh nonchalantly walked through the groaning crowd, heading straight for the old blacksmith sitting by the hearth. He unfastened the fabric-wrapped sword at his hip, placing it on the anvil with a heavy clang.
The old blacksmith, who had been silent until now, finally raised his murky eyes to look at Thuong Sinh, then down at the sword. He spoke hoarsely: "Your muscular strength is decent, but your sword... it is crying. It can no longer withstand the bizarre energy within your body."
Thuong Sinh narrowed his eyes, not beating around the bush: "I need to reforge it. Can you do it?"
The old man snorted coldly, taking the sword and turning it over to observe the purple-black cracks hidden beneath the wrapping. "Reforging is possible, but in Iron City, ordinary metal does not serve people of your kind. Do you have anything valuable to offer in exchange?"
Before Thuong Sinh could answer, a teenager about thirteen years old, wearing a faded uniform printed with the White Owl of North Heaven University, ran out frantically from behind the forge: "Master! They've come to the Coal Kiln district to take people again! All the upperclassmen have been taken away!"
Hearing that, Thuong Sinh's pupils contracted. He turned sharply, grabbing the teenager's shoulder, his voice bone-chilling: "What did you just say? Where are the people from North Heaven University?"
Thuong Sinh's hand gripping the boy's shoulder trembled slightly; the cold killing intent radiating made the boy's face turn pale, his legs shaking so much he couldn't stand.
"Thuong Sinh! Calm down!" Lam Thanh Moc hurried forward, her warm hand resting on the back of his hand where green veins were bulging. Her warmth was like a refreshing stream, soothing the rage waiting to explode in his veins. Thuong Sinh took a deep breath, his purple-black eyes gradually retracting, and he slowly let go.
He turned to the old blacksmith, his somber gaze fixed on the man: "I will go settle the trouble at the Coal Kiln district for you. In exchange, you must reforge this sword using the materials you have."
"Additionally..." He glanced at Lam Thanh Moc. "While I am away, she will stay here. If she loses a single hair, I will make this forge and that Coal Kiln district vanish from the face of the earth."
The old blacksmith snorted: "Fine. Leave the girl here."
Thuong Sinh looked down at his old, crack-filled sword, then at the crude weapons around. He said in a deep voice: "My sword is no longer usable. Lend me another."
The old man glanced into the dark corner of the workshop and turned back: "Kid, go in and bring out the 'Black Iron Sword'."
The teenager ran inside tremblingly, bringing out a large, deep-black sword with no patterns, yet looking very sleek. Thuong Sinh reached out to take it; the moment he touched the hilt, he was surprised. This sword was lighter than he expected.
"Let's go."
The old blacksmith looked at him and snorted. Thuong Sinh placed the sword at his hip, nodded once to Lam Thanh Moc, then signaled the boy to lead the way.
The two quickly left the forge district, crossing alleys tangled with cables to head down to the Coal Kiln District, located at the lowest level of Iron City. The deeper they went, the more the temperature rose; the smell of sulfur and thick coal smoke made visibility clearly limited.
"We... we've arrived." The teenager hid behind a rock, pointing tremblingly ahead.
Before Thuong Sinh's eyes was a massive mining pit. Dozens of people wearing tattered pale blue outfits—the uniform of North Heaven University students—were shackled to each other, picks and shovels in hand, mining coal blocks as hard as steel. In the middle of the crowd, a burly overseer wearing a gas mask swung a long, winding electric whip, lashing it hard against the back of a skinny youth.
"Work faster! Do you bookworms only have this much strength?"
At this moment, Thuong Sinh slowly stepped out from the shadow of the rock. He didn't rush, his footsteps light and making not a single sound on the coal-dust-covered ground. The overseer suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, even though it was as hot as a furnace here. He spun around, intending to raise the gas gun at his hip, but it was too late.
"Phantom Steps"
Thuong Sinh's figure vanished in the hot smoke. A second later, he appeared right before the overseer. His hand reached out, choking the man's throat, lifting the burly body off the ground like a child.
Gack... gack... The overseer struggled, the gas mask distorting under the terrifying strength of Thuong Sinh's hand.
Thuong Sinh didn't look at the dying overseer; he glanced at the nearest youth, his voice cold but carrying an undeniable pressure: "Among the people here, is there anyone named Thuong Vu?"
The skinny youth looked at Thuong Sinh with vacant eyes, then shook his head. The surrounding students also looked at each other; in their eyes was only fear and exhaustion, with not a spark of recognition upon hearing that name.
"Thuong Vu... there is no one named Thuong Vu here," the youth said hoarsely. "In this Coal Kiln district, there are only those from the mechanical engineering department. Those with higher expertise or from key departments were taken elsewhere from the very first day we entered the city."
Thuong Sinh narrowed his eyes, his hand unconsciously tightening further, making the overseer's eyes begin to roll back, his legs kicking wildly in the air. "Taken where?"
"I... I don't know exactly. But I heard the guards saying the 'brains' of North Heaven University were all taken to the Top Floor. They need people to operate systems and research weapons."
Thuong Sinh snorted. He had no intention of lingering with these people. His hand suddenly exerted force; a dry crack echoed through the mine. The burly overseer was choked into unconsciousness instantly; he tossed the man onto the coal pile like a piece of trash.
The students recoiled tremblingly, looking at him as if at a monster just emerged from the abyss. Thuong Sinh ignored those gazes; he turned back, signaling the teenager hiding behind the rock. "Go."
He stepped out of the Coal Kiln district, leaving the chaos behind. On the way back to the upper level, Thuong Sinh remained terrifyingly silent. The guide boy looked at Thuong Sinh's back and mustered the courage to ask: "Big Brother... are we going back to the master's forge now?"
"Go back there first," Thuong Sinh replied calmly. "My sword needs to be completed, and I need a detailed map of the Top Floor."
When Thuong Sinh returned to the forge, he froze at the head of the alley, his deep black eyes suddenly contracting. The atmosphere around the forge no longer held the familiar sound of the power hammer; instead, there was the smell of gunpowder and the sweat of armored soldiers.
He moved closer, his gaze fixed on withered leaves lying unnaturally on the gray stone floor right before the shop door. That was Lam Thanh Moc's sign—an emergency signal that also contained a direction.
"Halt! This area has been cordoned off by order of the Parliament!" A guard wearing lead-gray armor, rifle in hand, shouted as he saw Thuong Sinh approaching.
Thuong Sinh did not stop, nor did he say a word. He felt the blood power within him begin to seethe, not because of poison, but from the absolute coldness of killing intent. Lam Thanh Moc was the only one who had come here with him, the "reverse scale" he had sworn to let no one touch.
"I say it for the last time, stand—"
Slash—!
The Black Iron Sword was drawn; Thuong Sinh didn't use any fancy sword techniques, he simply took a gliding step forward, the heavy blade slashing across the guard's gun barrel.
Clang—!
The thick steel of the rifle was split in two like a piece of tofu. Thuong Sinh didn't stop his hand; the sword hilt slammed straight into the soldier's chest, causing the steel armor to cave in, hurlng the man against the stone wall.
"Speak. Where are the people inside?" Thuong Sinh stepped on the chest of the blood-spitting soldier, the deep black sword tip pointing straight at his throat.
The guard trembled, eyes filled with horror as he watched the black smoke rising from Thuong Sinh's blade: "They... they were taken to the Top Floor... The old man was accused of possessing banned materials... and that girl... the battalion commander said she was a rare specimen..."
Hearing the word "specimen," the internal power in Thuong Sinh's body exploded, causing the ground beneath his feet to fracture. He needed to hear no more; the blade severed the man's head.
He leaned down, picking up the withered leaves. His keen sense of smell helped him recognize a very faint scent of green grass lingering there—the scent of Lam Thanh Moc's ability. The scent stretched into a thin thread leading toward the massive elevator connecting to the Top Floor.
Thuong Sinh glanced at the boy behind him. "Find a place to hide."
He walked straight to the center; the closer he got to the central area, the more fortified the architecture became. Rusted steel plates were replaced by shiny alloy blocks and tangled cables. Right at the elevator lobby, a piercing alarm rang out.
Click! Click! Click!
A squad of combat robots consisting of six heavy mechanical entities slid out from wall niches. They weren't clumsy machines but high-tech products with electroplated anti-corrosion armor, their right hands integrated with chainsaws and their left hands with high-voltage stun guns.
"Target identified. Threat level: High. Annihilation mode: Activated!" The mechanical voice rang out emotionlessly.
Thuong Sinh didn't slow down. He gripped the hilt of the Black Iron Sword, sensing its weight transmitting through his palm.
"Phantom Steps"
His figure suddenly blurred amidst the electric rounds streaking through the air. The high-voltage currents only managed to pierce through his afterimages before hitting the steel wall behind, creating loud explosions. One robot swung a diving chainsaw strike; he simply spun once to gain momentum, reinforcing his muscles with internal power to the maximum, and swung the Black Iron Sword in a horizontal slash.
Boom—!
The sound of metal being smashed by absolute power. The deep black sword slammed straight into the robot's armor. The robot was sent flying like a piece of scrap iron, pinning into the wall as the internal electronics exploded in sparks.
Thuong Sinh glided between the gaps of the mechanical pack. Every time the Black Iron Sword swung, a dull thud echoed; robot legs were severed, robot heads were smashed. In less than two minutes, the elevator lobby had become a mechanical junkyard. Thuong Sinh stood amidst the ruins, his breathing still steady. He approached the elevator system control panel—a complex block of equipment with countless gears and gas pipes.
He didn't know the code, nor did he care to find out.
Crack—!
Thuong Sinh thrust the sword tip hard into the central core of the control panel, then channeled his toxic internal power directly inside. This time, the poison wasn't used to kill but to corrode the entire microcircuit system and overload the steam pressure.
Hiss—!
The gas pipes began to vibrate violently then exploded, the mist obscuring vision. The entire Lower Floor elevator area was completely paralyzed, preventing any retreat or reinforcement from below. He stepped into the only elevator car still functioning via the emergency system, pressing the button toward the Top Floor.
The steel doors closed. The elevator car began to vibrate, carrying the god of slaughter named Thuong Sinh straight into the lair of Iron City's rulers.
He lightly stroked the deep black blade, his purple-black eyes staring fixedly at the floor numbers skipping incessantly: "Thanh Moc... wait for me."