A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 1377: The Northern and Southern War (IX)

The Steam Guard series was a line of war machines developed by the Steam Evangelical Sect. It came in multiple models, with the Type-4 Steam Guard being the highest individual unit, also known as the Steam Consul.

Following Robert’s command, a horizontal dimensional gate appeared in the sky above the battlefield, its exit aimed directly at the ground below.

Rahu rose from beneath the earth, while the Steam Consul descended from the heavens.

A massive metal container dropped from the dimensional gate, crashing down like a meteor and smashing a crater over 5 kilometers in diameter.

The four sides of the container burst open and slammed onto the ground, releasing a dazzling white light. Inside, one could faintly see a slightly smaller metallic cube, its surface engraved with patterns resembling metal circuitry, inlaid with unknown gems.

The massive cube suddenly split into countless smaller cubes, hovering midair before rearranging and twisting into new forms, ultimately assembling into a towering steel giant.

It was the Steam Consul.

In a sense, the Steam Consul resembled a Martial Arts Practitioner. Critical points throughout its body were fitted with Steam Power Cores, much like how a Martial Arts Practitioner uses acupoints and body spirits to control the entire body.

The Steam Consul was equipped with 12 Steam Power Cores, located at the head, heart, lower abdomen, hips, shoulders, elbows, knees, and feet, granting it a perfectly balanced structure where each part could act independently. In other words, to completely disable it, all 12 cores would have to be destroyed.

Almost at the same time, Rahu, who had just summoned the meteor firestorm, noticed the steel behemoth.

With a furious roar, Rahu charged straight toward the Steam Consul, shattering the ground and obliterating buildings along its path.

The Steam Consul did not yield, colliding head-on with Rahu.

Rahu had four arms. Two were locked against the Steam Consul’s arms, while the other two hammered the steel giant relentlessly.

The Steam Consul retaliated as well. Its eyes flared, firing two blazing solar beams straight into Rahu’s face, engulfing Rahu entirely.

Rahu immediately used its extra arms to seize the Steam Consul’s head, tilting it upward so that the solar beams shot into the sky instead.

The two colossal beings grappled in a completely unrefined manner, like village brawlers locking onto each other and rolling across the ground. The earth thundered, dust billowed, and countless structures were crushed beneath them.

The Steam Consul’s 12 Steam Power Cores roared into overdrive, venting torrents of steam and generating immense force. It shoved Rahu away, its left arm retracting as its wrist transformed into a dark hole. Countless points of light gathered, forming a light blade that came crashing down toward Rahu’s head.

Rahu dodged its vital points, but the strike tore a massive wound across its chest, from which corpse qi poured out in waves. At the same time, all four of its arms lashed out, ripping a large chunk of metal from the Steam Consul with sheer brute force.

Of course, the steel giant did not bleed. Instead, thick plumes of steam burst from its wounds.

Corpse qi and steam seemed fundamentally incompatible. They clashed violently and canceled each other out.

The Steam Consul raised its light blade and thrust forward, but Rahu seized its wrist with both hands, halting the strike completely.

At the same time, Rahu’s dragon tail lashed fiercely at the Steam Consul’s lower body, knocking it off balance.

The two became tangled once more, clawing and wrestling like beasts. There was no elegance or refined technique because their overwhelming power rendered all finesse meaningless. Each roll shook the earth like an earthquake, flattening everything in their wake.

Both behemoths were in a horrific state. Rahu was drenched in blood, its flesh torn and mangled. It even lost an arm, where corpse qi surged wildly. The Steam Consul had its chest cavity torn open, exposing its overheating and glowing-red Steam Power Core.

......

The general in charge of the puppet legion muttered with frustration. “It’s a pity we didn’t bring the rest of the Steam Guard series.”

The Steam Guard series consisted of four models. The Type-4 Steam Consul was the rarest, so only one existed. There were three Type-3 Steam Guards, known as the Steam Veterans. Below them were the Type-2 Steam Generals and Type-2 Steam Soldiers, which were mass-produced and formed the backbone of the steam legion.

The Steam Consul could be temporarily elevated into the Steam King if it activated the Steam Guard Succession Protocol with the support of three Steam Veterans and numerous Steam Generals and Soldiers.

This was somewhat similar to the Daoist Order’s method of combining the Three Yin Beings.

In this large-scale campaign, the Holy Court had not brought its full steam legion due to logistical constraints. One of the Steam Veterans had also been damaged by Qi Xuansu and was still under repair. As a result, only the Steam Consul and some Steam Generals and Soldiers were present, which was insufficient to activate the protocol to elevate the Steam Consul to the Steam King.

That was why the puppet legion’s general felt such regret. If they could activate the protocol and summon the Steam King, then before the Western Daoist Order could complete the Mara, the Steam King could have swept aside all opposition.

At this point, both sides fell into a stalemate. Neither could overpower the other. Corpse qi and steam intermingled, while flames, beams, and arcs of electricity flew wildly. The ground trembled and cracked, and dust filled the air.

Even Robert could not clearly observe every detail of the battlefield.

He had no choice but to activate one of his prosthetic eyes, known as the Eye of Truth. It was not a product of arcane alchemy or steam technology, but a traditional divine art of the Holy Court crafted from a pure gemstone and blessed. It was capable of piercing illusions and revealing the truth, hence its name.

Robert’s expression turned grave.

He suddenly realized something. Under fair conditions, it would be difficult to determine whether the Steam Consul or Rahu would win. But on this battlefield, massive casualties had generated immense corpse qi, and Rahu was devouring it in great gulps to restore itself. The wounds inflicted by the light blade had already mostly healed, and even its severed arm showed signs of regeneration. However, the Steam Consul did not draw power from such sources. If the battle dragged on, the Steam Consul would likely fall behind.

Gong Fu had long stated that while the Holy Court’s steam legions were formidable, without favorable terrain, they were hard to counter head-on. They also had a critical weakness, which was their extreme dependence on logistics. If they failed to achieve a swift victory and became bogged down in prolonged warfare, all their shortcomings would be exposed.

If the Steam Consul were defeated, the frontline would collapse into a one-sided rout, marking the failure of this entire offensive.

Failing to take Monclova would mean total defeat for the Holy Court.

What they feared most came to pass.

Rahu suddenly thrust its hand into the Steam Consul’s exposed chest and yanked out a Steam Power Core, tearing apart metal conduits before holding the core in its palm.

After a brief hesitation, Rahu actually swallowed the Steam Power Core whole.

In an instant, streams of white vapor gushed out from Rahu’s nostrils, ears, and mouth, while a reddish hue spread across its skin.

Seeing this, Huangfu Ji frowned. “What’s going on?”

A Western Daoist Sage replied gravely, “Our control over Rahu is weakening. It has absorbed vast amounts of unrefined corpse qi with lingering remnants of the Three Corpses, fragmented souls, and spirits. These residual consciousnesses are causing Rahu’s self-awareness to awaken, and it is beginning to resist us.”

Huangfu Ji asked, “Why don’t the Daoist Order’s Three Yin Beings have this issue?”

The Sage flashed a wry smile. “Because the Daoist Order’s Three Yin Beings have already developed complete consciousness. Rather than being controlled, they chose to serve the Daoist Order of their own free will. That’s the fundamental difference. While there are contractual restraints, the Three Yin Beings have full control over when they merge into one. In fact, the Three Yin Beings are unwilling to lose their individuality, so they accept those constraints.”

He paused, then continued, “The Sakka is merely a shell with no self-awareness, requiring external control, so it has no such risk, much like the Holy Court’s steam puppets. Rahu is somewhere in between these extremes. It has developed some awareness, but only instinct, lacking true reasoning.”

Huangfu Ji felt a headache coming on.

He had intended to seize this rare opportunity to destroy the Steam Consul. But now it seemed that if Rahu were allowed to continue destroying and devouring more Steam Power Cores, it would spiral completely out of control. That would be far worse.

After a moment’s hesitation, Huangfu Ji ordered, “Strengthen control over Rahu. Prioritize stability. If necessary, abandon pursuit of the target.”

Almost simultaneously, Robert issued his command. “This offensive has failed. Prepare to withdraw. Our priority is to ensure the safe retreat of the Type-4 Steam Guard.”