351: Chapter 351 The Rise of the Chen Family, A Bright Future

As the morning light first climbed the spires of the main city, the metal eaves glinted with a layer of pale green light.

The wind swept in from the northern slope, carrying a hint of sand and the scent of coolant, making the banners by the high platform flap loudly.

Chen Wuwang stood on the central platform, his Mechanical Prosthetic Eye scanning the operation logs of the entire city's defense array.

Data streams slid across the screen one after another, the green characters scrolling rapidly.

He stared at them for a long while, his fingers tapping three times on the edge of the console—the rhythm steady, neither rushed nor slow.

"System stable," he said in a low voice. "Alert Rank remains unchanged."

Last night's silent contest had passed, but a tension still hung in the air, like the stifling heat before a thunderstorm.

He knew the clansmen had things on their minds. Especially the younger disciples; many were distracted on the training grounds, a few of them squatting by the Martial Arts Arena, whispering as they wiped their swords.

"Do you think that alarm last night... means another fight is coming?"

"Shut up! The Family Head hasn't given the order, so stop with the nonsense!"

"But my dad said this is already the third time this month..."

Before the words could fully land, a cold light descended from the sky.

Chen Xiaodao landed soundlessly, his mechanical left arm resting lightly on his sword hilt. With one sweep of his gaze, the group immediately fell silent and stood straight.

"If you're scared, go weed the Medicinal Field," he said, his voice not loud, yet every word struck the ground with weight. "Don't embarrass yourselves here."

No one dared to talk back.

Just then, the doors of the Technology Workshop slammed open. Chen Tiezhu walked out carrying a steaming Psionic Drill, his metal arm twisting with a 'clack' to lock his shoulder armor as he roared at several old craftsmen:

"What are you dazed for? The new batch of Mecha Skeletons must be cast today! Whoever dawdles, I'll take away their livelihood!"

An elderly master craftsman muttered, "Living in fear every day, when will it ever end..."

Chen Tiezhu spun around abruptly, glaring at him. "End? When we crawled out of the ruins, we never planned on turning back! If you're tired of it, you can take off your uniform and leave right now; no one's stopping you."

He raised a hand and slapped his chest, his metal armguards letting out a clear, ringing sound. "These bones of mine were given by the Chen family, and so was my life! If the enemy wants us to stop, they'll have to trample this city flat first—and you? Are you afraid to die? If you are, then keep your sarcastic remarks to yourself!"

The surroundings fell silent for a moment.

Immediately, over a dozen craftsmen struck their workbenches in unison, their voices merging into one: "We are not afraid!"

Bai Ling drifted over from the direction of the Medicinal Field, her feet not touching the ground. In her palm, she cradled a cluster of emerald-green life light. With a gentle push, the light seeped into the rune array at the base of the city wall, causing the entire wall to vibrate slightly and glow with a soft green hue.

"My Tree Veins are also willing to defend our home together," she said softly, looking up at the high platform. "As long as you need me, I will be here."

Chen Wuwang watched this scene without speaking, only slowly raising his hand to press the communicator on his chest.

A second later, the city-wide broadcast rang out. The voice wasn't loud, yet it penetrated the entire main city:

"Last night's disturbance has been controlled; defenses have been upgraded. This is not the end, but the new normal—on the path we walk, there are bound to be those who do not wish to see us succeed."

The crowd grew quiet.

He stood at the edge of the platform, his silver hair whipped by the wind, the scar on his right cheek left by the Zerg clearly visible.

In the past, some felt that scar was hideous, but looking at it now, it seemed more like a carved medal of military merit.

"They fear our strength, they fear our change, and they fear us breaking the rules," he continued. "That's exactly right. Because we were never meant to live by other people's rules."

Below, people began to look up, their backs straightening.

"Be it technology or magic, mechas, sword arrays, or Psionic Assembly Lines... these things are not for show; they are for survival." He paused. "To live longer than anyone else, and to go further than anyone else."

The entire field was silent.

Suddenly, a roar erupted from the Martial Arts Arena: "Protect the family! Move forward!"

It was Chen Xiaodao.

He drew his sword three inches from its scabbard, the blade reflecting the morning sun with a flash of cold light.

Then, a second and a third voice followed in quick succession.

"Protect the family! Move forward!"

"Protect the family! Move forward!"

The waves of sound surged, breaking through the clouds and startling the birds in the distant mountain forests into flight.

Chen Tiezhu stood before the Technology Workshop, arms crossed, a trace of a smile spreading across his face. He raised his metal arm and tapped his chest twice, as if responding to a silent vow.

Bai Ling hovered above the Medicinal Field, her hands once again lifting a life light cluster. This time, she injected even more spiritual power into the protective array.

Green patterns spread along the earth veins, extending all the way to the four corners of the city wall.

Chen Wuwang stepped down from the high platform, walking step by step toward the Martial Arts Arena.

The clansmen spontaneously parted to make a path. No one spoke, and no one moved out of turn. They watched him approach, his steps steady and his back straight.

He came to a halt at the very front of the Ranks, turned, and faced everyone.

"We aren't just trying to win once," he said. "We are trying to stay alive forever. When people in the future speak of the Chen family, let them not speak of how many battles we fought, but say—this land was built by our own hands."

The wind suddenly grew stronger.

Banners snapped in the wind, green light and golden runes shimmered together on the city walls, the furnaces of the Technology Workshop hummed incessantly, the sword arrays in the Martial Arts Arena continued their drills, and children by the Medicinal Field ran past clutching wooden swords.

Everything was as usual, yet everything had changed.

Chen Xiaodao sheathed his sword and stood half a step behind and to the side of him, his gaze alertly scanning the horizon.

Deep within the distant clouds, there were still faint remnants of Spiritual Qi disturbances, like an unhealed scar stretched across the sky.

But no one retreated.

Chen Tiezhu shouldered his drill and headed toward the workshop, throwing a line back as he passed a group of young craftsmen: "Don't just stand there like idiots! If we don't finish replacing the drills on the 'earth dragon' today, don't even think about eating meat for dinner!"

Bai Ling tapped the ground with her fingertip, and a tender sprout broke through the soil, quickly growing into a vine that wrapped around a broken Energy-conducting Pipe, automatically repairing the interface.

"It feels pain too," she whispered. "But it is still willing to help us."

Standing in the center of the Martial Arts Arena, Chen Wuwang watched the entire city in operation, his right hand unconsciously touching the dagger at his waist.

He knew the crisis was still approaching.

But he knew even better that this time, they were no longer the side on the passive defense.

The indicator light on the city's eastern Signal Tower turned from red to yellow, then slowly to green.

In the underground pipe network, the psionic circuits were fully cleared and operational.

On the monitoring screens of the main control hall, all thirty key nodes lit up with stable points of light.

He raised his hand and spoke into the communicator: "All posts confirm status, maintain double-post rotations. Unless I issue a withdrawal order, the alert will not be lifted."

"Understood!"

"Received!"

"Technology Workshop normal!"

"Medicinal Field defense line stable!"

"Martial Arts Arena, all personnel on standby!"

Response after response came from all directions.

He stood there, unmoving, and said no more.

The sunlight shone on his face. That scar no longer looked gloomy; instead, it exuded a sense of ruthlessness, as if telling everyone:

"You can come."

"But we will not fall."