Chapter 210: You Can’t Just Make Big Promises, You Also Have to Offer a Little Sweetener

Kemp was relieved that he had arrived before the situation grew serious.

"You’ve already gotten your hands on the technology?" Kemp asked upon entering the camp, his eyes landing on a mutant wearing combat armor.

Although its appearance had been altered to fit the mutant’s deformed body, he could still spot the difference at a glance.

Hearing this, Cummings shook his head. "Not yet. This is just part of a deal with Jack."

"We help him acquire resources, and in return, he modifies combat armor so we can use it."

Hearing this, Kemp’s eyes grew even wider.

"You mean he can modify pureblood combat armor for mutants to use?"

’The cost of researching, manufacturing, and producing it themselves would be substantial.’

Qi Suian’s method of simply repurposing enemy equipment was much more suitable for the Steel Brotherhood’s current situation.

To fight the pureblood Sanctuaries, while they weren’t exactly destitute, they were still short on all kinds of resources.

"Yes, but it takes ten suits of combat armor to make just one."

"Based on my probing these past few days, it’s likely one of the technologies possessed by his Steel Armor."

"Give it a little more time, and we might be able to get him to hand over the modification technique first," Cummings said.

As for getting the Steel Armor technology directly? That wasn’t realistic.

Kemp didn’t complain about the slow progress. ’They’re trying to steal his technology and even get him to work for free. Of course it wouldn’t be easy.’

’If it were that easy, the world would be full of idiots.’

"It’s fine. Don’t be impatient, or you might scare him off."

"But first, you need to take me to see him. I brought the level-two fire seed he needs from the Steel Brotherhood."

"Perhaps we can use it to get closer to him and see if we can get our hands on that modification technology today." Though Kemp paid lip service to being patient, his actions suggested otherwise.

Cummings nodded. "Of course, no problem."

"But let me warn you: don’t act too eager. You don’t want Jack to get a bad impression of the Steel Brotherhood."

"It took me a lot of effort to get him to admire the Steel Brotherhood."

Kemp wanted the technology so badly that it was inevitable he might slip up.

"Don’t worry, I’ll control myself. Jack is a fellow mutant, not one of the purebloods," Kemp answered.

"Good. I hope you remember what you just said. If you say or do anything out of line during our conversation, I will stop you immediately," Cummings said coldly.

He knew that Kemp desperately wanted to get the technology for the Steel Brotherhood.

But he was protecting Jack for the sake of the Steel Brotherhood as well.

’This isn’t a battlefield. There’s no need for killing.’

’So that gung-ho approach won’t work here.’

"You... Fine. I understand. If I make any move that’s out of line, you can stop me." Kemp had wanted to argue, but then he considered that if he messed this up, he might destroy all of Cummings’ hard work.

With Kemp’s assurance, Cummings finally led him to Jack.

The Steel Brotherhood was not a monolith. Even though Kemp was loyal to their leader and Cummings was the leader’s confidant, the two of them didn’t get along particularly well.

"Jack, are you busy?" Cummings grabbed Kemp, who was about to barge into Qi Suian’s tent, and shot him a glare.

"Come in. I’m busy." Only after Qi Suian’s reply came from within did Cummings lead Kemp inside.

"Optimizing and perfecting the Steel Armor again? You’re so diligent," Cummings said with a compliment. "The support from the Steel Brotherhood has arrived."

"And they brought the level-two fire seed you needed."

"This is Kemp, the Sixth Elder of the Steel Brotherhood. He’s the one in charge of this support mission."

As he spoke, Cummings winked at Kemp, signaling him to present the level-two fire seed.

Kemp, however, was clearly unhappy about this. He had planned on using the level-two fire seed as a bargaining chip, not just hand it over as a gift.

So, after some hemming and hawing, he said, "I’m Kemp. You must be Jack. I’ve heard about you from Cummings. You’re a good lad."

Qi Suian broke into a smile. "Is that so? But it seems to me that Elder Kemp doesn’t think very highly of me."

"Cummings told me before that the reward for saving his team was a level-two fire seed. It’s just that Elder Kemp doesn’t seem to have any intention of giving it to me."

"Is it because now that you’ve arrived, Elder Kemp, you’ve taken over from Cummings as the camp’s administrator?" Qi Suian’s words were a blatant attempt to drive a wedge between them.

The atmosphere in the tent instantly froze.

’I heard their whole conversation through my reconnaissance network. Compared to Cummings, who’s practically a sycophant, this Kemp fellow is much more clear-headed and has a more direct, aggressive nature.’

"I have a very good impression of the Steel Brotherhood. With Cummings’ help, I was even considering joining."

"But you, Elder Kemp, have shown me another side of the Steel Brotherhood—a greed just like that of the purebloods."

"So, if Elder Kemp is to be the new administrator of this camp, then I will have to reconsider staying," Qi Suian said with a pleasant smile.

This made Kemp falter. He hadn’t expected Qi Suian to be so blunt.

’He had indeed thought that. As the Sixth Elder of the Steel Brotherhood, he outranked Cummings in both position and military authority.’

’So it was only natural for him to take charge upon his arrival.’

Even Cummings thought so, which is why he had brought Kemp to see Qi Suian in the first place, and why he’d warned him to be on his best behavior.

But he didn’t expect Qi Suian’s reaction to be so strong.

And to so bluntly call Kemp as greedy as a pureblood.

"Jack, you’ve misunderstood," Cummings stepped forward to say. "This is just a normal handover. I’ll still be your point of contact for any deals with the camp. And Kemp holds no ill will toward you."

As he spoke, he motioned for Kemp to hurry up and take out the level-two fire seed, not to keep holding onto it.

Seeing this, Kemp’s expression shifted several times before he decided to swallow his pride. He forced a slightly fawning smile. "That’s right. Jack, don’t you worry. Nothing is going to change."

"You don’t need to worry about any changes in the camp."

As he finished speaking, he pulled out the sealed level-two fire seed and handed it to Qi Suian, beginning his introduction. "This level-two fire seed came from the Thorn Forbidden Army Sanctuary. They..."

Qi Suian listened to the explanation as he accepted the fire seed. ’Take what’s offered, hear them out, but don’t feel obligated to do a thing.’

"I’m a straightforward person. Even though you’ve apologized, my impression of you is still poor. I hope you can manage the camp well."

"I’ve poured my heart and soul into the development of this camp," Qi Suian said effortlessly, putting on an air of someone who felt a deep sense of belonging.

His attitude had softened, but only because he now had the level-two fire seed in hand.

Hearing this, Kemp inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. ’I almost blew it.’

’Humiliation? To put it bluntly, if Qi Suian were willing to hand over the Steel Armor technology right now, Kemp would have gladly knelt down and let the man curse him while stepping on his head.’

’This little incident was nothing compared to that.’

’The loss of one level-two fire seed was no big deal. The Steel Brotherhood had more, and besides, he hadn’t just brought one with him.’

’Left in a warehouse, they were little more than trophies. As mutants, they had no way to use them anyway.’

"I know you’ve always wanted my Steel Armor technology," Qi Suian said suddenly.

This made both Cummings and Kemp tense up, wondering why Qi Suian would bring this up so abruptly.

"I can’t give it to you yet. The Steel Brotherhood hasn’t passed my evaluation."

"However, I can give you a portion of the modification technology for retrofitting combat armor, including some of the core components," Qi Suian continued.

’I understand one thing: you can’t just keep making empty promises. You have to give them a little taste.’

’The modification technique was actually simple? No problem. First, I’ll make it look more complex, then modularize it, and then just give them one of the modules.’

’That would not only make it look more impressive, but also seem incredibly difficult to replicate.’

"As for the complete modification technology... that will depend on Elder Kemp’s performance," Qi Suian said, manipulating him on the spot.

After that silky-smooth combo, they would definitely continue to obediently work for Qi Suian, earning him more fire seeds.

"With your help, I should be able to modify two more combat armors a day."

"Only when I’m certain that the Steel Brotherhood is truly fighting for the sake of all mutants will I hand over the complete modification technology," Qi Suian continued, dangling the carrot.

At the same time, he offered them a small taste of what was to come.

He handed Kemp a thick manual filled with complex diagrams and text.

"I won’t disappoint you!" Kemp declared as he took the manual. Though he couldn’t understand a word of it, he knew it contained the modification technology they so desperately needed.

Seeing this, Cummings also let out a sigh of relief. The situation hadn’t spiraled out of control, and they had even managed to acquire a piece of the technology.

Things had almost gone sideways, but thankfully, Kemp had proven he could restrain himself when it mattered.

"You shouldn’t be saying that to me, but to the mutants in the north enslaved by the purebloods."

"Before, I was just one man. I could only kill a few purebloods here and there. Now that you’re here, it’s all up to you," Qi Suian added, manipulating them with appeals to a greater cause.

’He had used the same rhetoric on Cummings before. He had to admit, these people really fell for this kind of talk.’

’He didn’t know if the Steel Brotherhood was good or evil, but as long as it helped him achieve his goals, he was willing to put on an act.’

The reason he had suddenly mellowed out was because Cummings was astonishingly efficient; the man delivered, and he delivered a lot.

It had only been a short while, and he hadn’t even used up all the fire seeds Cummings had provided, yet the Tai Sui God was already on the verge of evolving again.

On top of that, Cummings had provided a wealth of resources and scavenged knowledge. It was practically passive income.

For this very reason, Qi Suian’s attitude toward Cummings and the other mutants grew better by the day.

’All I have to do is be nice to them and the benefits keep rolling in? Why would I ever say no to a deal like that?’

Now, he had even evolved into someone who spouted righteousness and morality. It was as if the sugar coating on the "sugar-coated bullets" they offered was so thick that it made Qi Suian’s own words turn sweet.

’As for the actual cannonball underneath all that sugar? That was a problem for another day. It wasn’t like it could blow up in his face anyway.’

If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.