Gun of Ashes

Like a grand ritual, the bright sky light poured down from the deep well, illuminating this steel altar with a glow, casting twisted shadows through the edges of the ferocious armor, shrouding everyone underneath.

It was like a deceased king, exuding majesty and solemnity.

”The Armor of Original Sin originates from the technology of Jiuxia in the Far East. Back then, a general named Left Garrison took the steam technology but secretly left the armor technology for us, along with a prototype.”

Tesla casually picked up a steel pipe and pointed at the Armor of Original Sin called ”New Hope,” although due to its size, there were many places he couldn’t reach.

New Hope was unlike the Armor of Original Sin Lorenzo had seen; its size was overly massive, nearly three meters tall. Due to the time it was constructed, most of the equipment wasn’t streamlined; you could even see the clusters of copper conduits.

”New Hope was built on the foundation of that prototype. After all, our foundational technology differs from Jiuxia’s. We combined it with steam technology and ended up with this. Its combat performance is quite good; it can smash a Demon into pulp with just a punch. But it’s still too cumbersome, so we spent years developing it further, finally creating the first true generation of the Armor of Original Sin.”

With Tesla’s words, the researchers inserted cables of various colors into the tail end of the Armor of Original Sin, seemingly to enable external control.

”Although several iterations have been made, the core structure of the Armor of Original Sin has never changed. We refer to it as the central framework.”

Electric currents surged along the cables, causing the entire Armor of Original Sin to tremble slightly for an instant, as if a dust-covered door was being opened. Now, the monster within was about to emerge, crashing against the door, as dust and iron filings fell. Then everyone heard the steam engine gradually roar to life.

Not only that, as if awakened, Lorenzo clearly saw dark red flesh slowly growing in the gaps of the steel, tightly binding the metal plate armor of the armor like muscles between bones.

”Should we continue?”

The researchers to the side asked, controlling the awakening’s extent.

”Continue, let our test drivers get a good look at what kind of beast they’re about to ride, right? Moreover... Mr. Holmes is still here.”

Tesla said to Lorenzo with a meaningful look.

Just like some people like comparing their children with others, Tesla was also curious about who would win when the Armor of Original Sin encountered the Demon Hunter. The crystallization of new era technology? Or the believer of the ignorant old era?

But he temporarily didn’t have the chance to witness all this. Conventional weaponry was one thing, but when it involved Demons, it became bizarrely dangerous.

Essentially, experimenting with such things is about controlling danger as much as possible. But with Demons, there’s never control, only temporary control and inevitable loss of control.

Lorenzo ignored Tesla’s gaze and just watched the armor gradually come to life.

The plate armor slightly opened, revealing dark red tissue slowly wriggling inside, sparks jumping in mechanical gaps, followed by hot steam spilling from exhaust vents.

A faint white mist covered it, and under the gray silhouette, it looked like a Death Knight from the Nether River.

”Look, this is the central framework.”

It seemed that this armor had been ready for adjustment from the start, with the concealing plate armor lifting one by one, revealing the core silver skeleton underneath. The entire chest opened like a monster’s gaping maw, with brass metal lining inside and messy cables hanging down.

”You can think of the central framework as the bones of the armor, one of the cores that drive the armor.”

Tesla pointed to the silver skeleton, while the flesh of the Demon climbed along it, firmly grasping it with other metal structures.

”Armor technology is quite wondrous... Essentially, it uses a Demon’s power to fill in what humans can’t achieve, such as the entire armor’s cushioning and stability. Regardless of the alloy type, it would break after repeated intense movement, and the freedom of movement would significantly reduce.”

”You utilized the Demon’s... flesh.”

Lorenzo, though not understanding mechanics, gradually found the Armor of Original Sin overlapping with a dissected human body in his mind.

”Like a cruel transplant surgery.”

Tesla clapped his hands and then said.

”You could see it that way.”

The remaining parts of the plate armor all lifted, bringing a surge of steam.

Beneath the sturdy armor was a disturbing scene, where silvery-white bones and Demonic flesh intertwined, with the gaps in the metal completely filled by the flesh.

”The central framework is the bones, the Demon’s flesh is the muscle that drives everything, and the external plate armor is its armor.”

Tesla couldn’t stop praising it.

”It’s hard to imagine under what circumstances those Jiuxia people discovered this technology. In mechanics, we lacked a material that is both highly resilient and can withstand huge temperature disparities... The flesh of the Demon perfectly solved this issue. Not only that, its powerful vitality allows it to slowly self-heal.”

All loose structures were tightly held together by the Demon’s flesh, a perfect fusion of biology and machinery.

”So, you put armor on a Demon?”