Humanity's Hymn Is a Hymn to Making Machines Work in Its Place!

Screams, screams, roars.

The Autobots' superhuman, electronic-sounding voices, combined with the terrified screams and shouts of humans, make this scene, taken alone, believable as a horror movie.

They will also admire the acting skills of human actors.

Kang De held the dashcam, looked at the images, listened to the sounds, and nodded repeatedly.

His son clearly has a talent for intimidating others.

The humans in the video were clearly terrified, completely scared out of their wits. After all, human courage has its limits, especially when the enemy is a ferocious steel giant that has never been seen before and has super combat power, and keeps shouting that it wants to eat people and chew them up... Anyone would tremble in that situation.

He put the recorder aside.

In a panic, the other party confessed everything in rapid succession.

Although the Autobots couldn't understand the otherworldly language, the dashcam faithfully recorded everything.

They were henchmen of Prince Alex's henchmen.

After all, a prince of the empire wouldn't care too much about a nobody like him. But the beauty of being in a position of power is that you don't have to personally intervene. You only need to say a word or even frown, and countless people will guess your thoughts and treat this trivial matter as a top priority.

Having discovered the Joker who destroyed Glittering Sand and put the Crown Prince in his current predicament, he will surely rush to hunt him down and present him to the Emperor for a smile.

"But your attitude is a bit strange... Logically speaking, even if you want to capture someone alive, you don't need to be so hesitant. You even said you would guarantee my safety as long as I surrender..."

Kang De said gently, "Why are you so insistent on capturing me alive and intact?"

The captured knight's defenses had crumbled; having already confessed, he didn't mind revealing more.

He spoke rapidly, "A nobody like me only needs to follow orders and doesn't need to know the reasons, but I overheard the mage Lisake casually mention that Princess Tina has been causing the empire a lot of trouble these days, and the Crown Prince is currently in a very passive and difficult position. The situation is quite thorny. And the fact that we discovered your whereabouts by chance, and that you are still alive, is good news. After all, you are Princess Tina's husband..."

Kang De's voice rose an octave. "--What?"

The man said weakly, "Husband... don't you know? Princess Tina said that you were already engaged, and although you have passed away, the marriage is valid forever..."

Holy crap--

Not only is she a father, but she's also a husband—double happiness!

His mind conjured up Tina's beautiful face and alluring figure. After all, every man who heard fairy tales as a child has a princess complex to some extent. He was quite fond of Tina, and she was an absolute beauty. The thought of such a beauty openly declaring herself his wife...

Kang De instinctively smiled at the man.

But the next moment, he became indignant.

Damn it, what kind of wife is this? I've never even touched her breasts or kissed her. What kind of wife is this?

No, I need to find Tina right away and have a serious talk with her.

You have to take responsibility for publicly proclaiming things that are based on mere rumors!

He pulled a poorly made, poorly accurate map he'd bought in the city from his bag and said, "The last thing you heard was, where is Her Highness the Princess?"

The man cautiously pointed to the map. "Gaoluin, the City of Pearls, is near the border between the Empire and Goth. The last news I heard was that Princess Tina is leading her followers toward here. Further ahead, leaving the Imperial border and entering Goth territory, we will... face the Elven army head-on."

Kang De felt a slight tremor in his heart.

War.

He had never experienced war, but he would never underestimate it.

This was no small-scale skirmish; it was a battle involving tens of thousands of people, countless drops of blood and deaths. Life was as insignificant as dust, filled with fear, pain, filth, and bloodshed, playing a brutal melody.

And that pure and beautiful girl is about to take the initiative to fight the most terrifying monster in the world.

"One last question..."

He said slowly, "The Vidal Family, have you heard of them? Are they involved in this matter?"

The captured knight clenched his fist almost imperceptibly. He looked at Kang De before him, recalling the man's previous achievements and reputation, and then said, "... It's related; it was the intelligence they sent out."

Kang De said, "Oh."

He gazed silently at the person before him.

Until beads of sweat trickled down the other person's cheeks.

I have something to tell you.

Kang De said earnestly, "Besides you, I've also captured someone else. Next, I'll ask him the same questions, and if his answer is different from yours..."

The man's expression suddenly twisted in terror, and he shrieked, "No, no, no, I misspoke. It has nothing to do with the Vidal Family, I..."

Kang De drew his pistol and pressed it against his forehead.

"Pity."

He said.

The prisoner recognized the weapon; he had seen Kang De fire and kill. Moreover, the sight of that cold object pressed against his forehead filled him with extreme fear... for guns were born to kill.

He pleaded, "Spare me, please spare me, I... I didn't lie on purpose, I..."

Kang De sighed.

"I have something else to tell you, it might make you feel a little better..."

He said, "Whether you're lying or not, the only outcome is death. I'm terrified of death, I have no sense of security, and I don't want to die in this messed-up world. So, I have to instill fear in my enemies and make all potential enemies realize the consequences of opposing me. Since you've chosen to attack me, you must be prepared to bear the consequences... It's that simple."

He smiled and said, "Look on the bright side. Your death will deter a bunch of fools who don't know what's good for them, making them give up the idea of attacking me, thus indirectly saving some lives. That's a good deed for you, a good thing. You didn't die without any value, did you?"

The man's eyes widened, and he still wanted to continue begging.

"Bang."

The bullet had pierced his head.

"No pain whatsoever, caught completely off guard, I've been very humane."

Kang De placed his hand on his head, thought for a moment, and then withdrew it.

"Since their whereabouts have already been exposed, there's no need to destroy the evidence."

He closed the deceased's eyes. "Rest in peace, and pray that someone will come to collect your body and take you back to your hometown. If your spirit is watching over you, remember to tell your family not to seek revenge on me."

Kang De stood up, took his gun, and walked toward another unconscious prisoner.

"Bang."

Two gunshots rang out, and the Autobots sitting nearby eating only glanced up.

"Don't you feel anything?"

Kang De walked over. "Regarding my killing them..."

The Autobots thought for a moment and said seriously, "First of all, they should have died in the previous battle. Secondly, Father did not torture or humiliate them. Thirdly, Father did not promise to let them go. Therefore, I have no feelings for them; they are simply paying the price for their actions."

Kang De paused for a moment, then nodded and smiled, "You're right, I'm in the right."

Ultimately, this whole affair stems from Glittering Sand's betrayal. The eldest prince instigated the Good Family to turn against Goth and commit such a heinous act against the delegation. No matter how you look at it, the reason lies with Kang De.

"The eldest prince... hah."

He chuckled to himself.

The Autobots looked at him and said in a deep voice, "Father, although I can't understand your conversation, I guess you already have a next plan."

Kang De nodded, then looked at the Autobots.

The Autobots were sitting on a giant rock, chugging oil from a barrel, taking a few sips, then tearing off pieces of their armor and weapons and crunching them down.

It's kind of cute.

He couldn't help but laugh—do ship girls eat like this too?

Just now, Kang De brought back supplies for his adopted son from the White Mist World.

Gasoline is everywhere; you can just pump it from the car. He had prepared in advance and stockpiled a lot of gasoline for driving and combat use. Metals, needless to say, were even more plentiful than gasoline.

As for ammunition, he carried two boxes of.22mm long-range ammunition from the shooting range.

The shooting club was quite large, frequently held competitions, and stockpiled a large quantity of ammunition. However, being an indoor shooting range, it had a fatal flaw due to safety concerns and the limitations of the venue.

--There were no large-caliber rifle bullets, nor were there any high-powered firearms.

There are only two main types of ammunition:.22 caliber moving long cartridges and 9mm bullets.

Kang De had always felt that the owner of this shooting range must have some really powerful treasures in his private collection. After all, to be able to run a place like this in the city, one must not only have a lot of money, but also some really powerful connections.

The extent to which the other party abided by the law was beyond my expectations.

He turned the gun room and office upside down, but found nothing of value, and was greatly discouraged.

As a result, the gains were not as great as expected—although.22 caliber firearms are not unusable in combat, their single-shot power is very low. To unleash military-grade power, one would need to use a gun with an extremely high rate of fire for continuous firing, and the rifles in the shooting range are all semi-automatic.

The biggest gain was acquiring three 9mm foreign military pistols and a large quantity of bullets that could be used for water spraying... Putting everything else aside, the ammunition stockpile was absolutely enormous.

But that's all.

During his previous battle with Lost, he realized the shortcomings of police firearms and small-caliber firearms in terms of power and firepower. He had hoped to find more powerful firearms at the shooting range, but the result was disappointing—but it wasn't all for naught; at least he had an almost inexhaustible supply of bullets for a short period of time.

Instead of firing one shot at a time, counting on your fingers as before.

There's no need to use nail guns to make up the numbers.

Since he couldn't find a more powerful weapon for the time being, he had to start with his existing equipment and consider enhancing its power through enchantments. Inscribing enchantments on the bullets was a good option, but of course, he also had better ideas, such as disassembling the weapon and enchanting each part individually...

Those.22 caliber pistols and short guns that are too weak to be of much use are the best test subjects. There's no need to worry about accidentally breaking the gun—if it breaks, it breaks.

However, there is still a technical issue.

For example, Kang De could enchant bullets with flame enhancement, giving them magical fire power and dealing both physical and magical damage. However, enchanting each bullet would be too tedious. Ideally, the enchantment would be applied directly to parts like the barrel, allowing the player to fire ordinary bullets with Flame damage.

But this raises a problem.

Kang De did not understand the relevant enchantments.

Although he learned the Flame Enchantment Enhancement from the Crimson Blood Flame Edge Short Sword, it didn't mean that this enchantment could be directly applied to gun barrels—of course, it could be used, and a gun barrel could be enchanted with Flame Enhancement, but that would only result in a gun barrel that could shoot fire when stabbed.

In other words, if you want a gun to automatically enhance the Flame of its bullets, the enchantment needed is not "enhancement" but "blessing"—he hasn't found a similar equipment to copy yet.

In other words, to maintain firepower, he still has to painstakingly enchant each bullet one by one.

It's incredibly tiring. Randomly enchanting is one thing—just dump all the Element in—but that doesn't maximize Element utilization. But seriously and meticulously enchanting requires even more patience than embroidery...

--However, that was in the past.

Kang De gazed lovingly at the Autobots were feasting.

The.22 caliber bullet was practically useless to him, but his son was delighted when he saw it. The principle behind bullet construction was the same; the difference in power lay only in the amount of propellant. While the.22 bullet had low power, it could be disassembled and reassembled to create more powerful large-caliber bullets.

This is clearly a delicate task.

Enchanting bullets is also a delicate task...

And humanity! Humanity's anthem is an anthem of having machines do its work!

Anyway, enchanting is just about using Element to draw intricate and complex patterns, much like laser engraving. When Kang De returned to the White Mist World, he also absorbed the mixed Element from the White Mist and successfully transferred them to the Autobots. In other words, the Autobots can absorb Element, at least the Element transferred from Kang De.

There is also a high probability that these Element can be utilized...

In other words, if I'm responsible for Extraction the Flame Element and transferring it to it, along with sending it the CAD-drawn Roar of the Crimson Flame enchantment array diagram, then it can produce Flame bullets for me, right?

Just then, the Autobots suddenly felt a chill.

God knows why a mechanical life form, which wasn't splattered with liquid nitrogen, would feel cold.

It nervously raised its head and saw its old father's kind gaze.

"... Father," the Autobots hesitated, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Kang De said gently, "It's alright. Seeing you eat so well makes me happy. Eat more, eat as much as you want, there's plenty. You need to be well-fed to have the energy for 996... I mean, to work hard."

The Autobots grew increasingly uneasy.

Although it has just been born, ignorant and naive, it still has a keen intuition—as a life form whose intelligence was awakened by its father, it has a full understanding of its creator... For example, now, when its father shows it extremely deliberate kindness, it can basically be interpreted as having ill intentions.

There was no malice involved, but the intention was definitely malicious.

--Is it because they think I'm eating too much?

The Autobots, feeling uneasy, put down the half-empty can of gasoline and said, "Father, I will prove my worth with my actions and will not let you raise me for nothing."

Upon hearing this, Kang De's smile widened even more.

My good son...

He smiled and said, "We're all family, don't be so petty and make such clear distinctions. Family is about mutual help, right?"

"..."

The Autobots, unaware of the trap, secretly regretted their overthinking and realized how wrong they had been to doubt their own father. Deeply moved, they said, "Yes, Father is right. Family members should help each other."

Kang De laughed even harder, and said, "My child..."

"I am here."

The kind and gentle old father asked, "What do you think of the name Kongming?"

"..."

"Or perhaps, Doctor?"

"..."

"I think, how about you stop calling me father and we become brothers instead?"

"... Father, please don't be like this," the Autobots stammered. "I'm a little... a little scared."

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. You call me father, would I ever harm you? Even if I do something you can't understand right now, remember, I did it all for your own good..."

Kang De said earnestly, "Because you are young and too naive, you need to improve your skills, study more, work harder, exercise more, and do more physical labor..."

The Autobots, indeed dressed as clothes, were speechless, unsure how to respond, and could only nod awkwardly.

Kang De then changed the subject. "You said earlier that you can only do some simple processing now and need more blueprints and knowledge to upgrade, right?"

The Autobots nodded blankly. "... Yes, yes."

Kang De stroked his chin, his expression serious and earnest, truly resembling a father considering buying tutoring books and enrolling his child in extracurricular classes. He pondered, "The things you need, at least some of them, can be found online. I can get them by going back to Earth sometime."

The problem is, how do I give it to you? Do I need to print it out for you to see?

The Autobots laughed upon hearing this, "Father, my predecessor was a modern creation, so I also have certain data storage and processing capabilities..."

He held out his hand, palm open, revealing a USB interface. "A USB flash drive will do."

Kang De looked surprised and delighted, and clapped his hands, exclaiming, "Wow, that's amazing!"

The Autobots was newly born, and sometimes too young to understand the word "hypocrisy," nor did he know that there was such a thing as polite praise. He said sheepishly, "It's nothing."

Without a word, Kang De took out his laptop from his backpack, turned it on, and then pulled out a USB drive from his bag. "Although I don't have any blueprints or data on my computer, I do have another set of relatively simple blueprints and assignments. Would you like to give it a try and practice?"

The Autobots, completely unaware of its impending fate, nodded and said, "Okay."

"Here, I'll transfer it to you on a USB drive, and then I'll show you how to do it..."

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PS1: This is a 5,000-word long chapter, so it's a two-in-one post. Goodnight everyone... Ah, I'm so tired.