Game: Civilization Paradise

Inside a dim room.

Cloud Fish secretly poked her head out the window, searching everywhere for any sign of Long Ming, Xiaoqi, and the others.

But after searching for a long time, she still couldn’t see them.

Cloud Fish hesitated for a moment before finally turning and leaving the room.

Soon, she slipped out of a dilapidated building and cautiously made her way down the street, calling out in a low voice.

"Long Ming, Sister Qi! Where are you?"

The entire city was silent; there was no response at all.

Cloud Fish’s nerves grew tighter, and a chill crept down her spine. But she still mustered her courage. After all, this opportunity was incredibly precious, and she couldn’t just give up.

CLANG~

Just then, a sudden noise came from behind her.

A look of joy instantly appeared on Cloud Fish’s face. She turned her head and shouted.

"Long Ming, is that you?"

Just then, a three-meter-long electronic mechanical dog—its body constructed from gray metal, embedded with red electronic eyes and sharp metal claws—emerged from a street-facing shop. Its red electronic eyes stared fixedly at Cloud Fish.

"A mechanical dog!"

The smile on Cloud Fish’s face vanished instantly. She turned in terror and ran.

The mechanical dog gave chase.

The distance between them rapidly closed.

Hearing the sound getting closer and closer, Cloud Fish glanced back in panic.

She immediately saw that the mechanical dog was right upon her.

"Ah!"

Terrified, Cloud Fish drew her Light Beam Gun and fired at the mechanical dog.

PEW PEW~

Beams of light shot out one after another.

The mechanical dog swiftly dodged the shots and lunged forward, tackling Cloud Fish to the ground.

"Help me!"

Cloud Fish cried out in terror.

But at that very moment, a figure shot forward, pierced the mechanical dog’s body with a spear, and lifted it into the air.

Stunned, Cloud Fish lifted her head and saw Oritta, piloting the Shadow, appear before her.

Oritta casually flung the impaled mechanical dog aside, extended a hand to the fallen Cloud Fish, and asked with concern.

"Are you all right?"

"I’m fine."

Cloud Fish subconsciously reached out her hand.

Oritta pulled Cloud Fish to her feet.

Just then, the rest of Oritta’s squad arrived. They were also surprised to see Cloud Fish.

"Isn’t this one of Mr. Long Ming’s team members?"

"Yes, my name is Cloud Fish."

Cloud Fish quickly replied.

"Miss Cloud Fish, did you get separated from your team?"

Oritta asked with a smile.

"Yes."

"How about this: you can stick with our team for now. Once we run into Mr. Long Ming’s squad, you can rejoin them."

"Thank you."

Seeing that Oritta and his team were willing to take her in, Cloud Fish thanked them profusely.

"Don’t mention it. We practically formed a semi-alliance when we came in. It’s not safe here; let’s get moving."

Oritta said calmly, glancing at the deactivated mechanical dog.

"Okay!"

Cloud Fish quickly nodded and followed Oritta and the others away.

Just then, a mechanical crawler emerged from a sewer drain, its electronic eyes fixed on the retreating backs of Oritta, Cloud Fish, and the others.

「Kamoto Machine City · Central Control Room」

Thousands of black optical cables, each as thick as an arm, extended from the surrounding metal walls, plugging into a massive mechanical sphere at the center.

Virtual projection screens floated on the surface of the mechanical sphere.

ZZZT~

An electronic sound of grinding machinery echoed.

A series of red alerts appeared.

"Warning: Unidentified intruders detected!"

"Alert: Number of targets: 6!"

"Alert: Calculating threat level..."

"Alert: Threat Level C!"

"Alert: Intruders are to be eliminated without mercy. Eradicate all unstable presences!"

"Generating response protocol!"

"Deploying Mechanical Guardians..."

...

「Dune Street」

Cloud Fish followed Oritta and his team forward.

She watched Oritta’s group with some curiosity. They only glanced at the items displayed in the transparent shop windows as they passed, showing no intention of stopping to search.

"Aren’t you going to search?"

Cloud Fish asked, confused.

"There’s not much worth searching for in the shops around here. At most, you’ll find some blue-grade items. If you’re really lucky, you might find a purple-grade one, but that’s the best you can hope for."

Oritta explained to Cloud Fish.

"Oh."

Hearing this, Cloud Fish didn’t know what to say.

"Miss Cloud Fish, you’re a member of the Rat Group, aren’t you?"

Sang Rui, piloting the Wrecker, asked curiously.

"Ah, how did you know?"

Cloud Fish asked in surprise.

"You’re wearing second-generation mechanical armor, yet you still let a mechanical dog get close to you."

Sang Rui couldn’t help but laugh as he finished his sentence.

"Sang Rui."

Oritta coughed, cutting Sang Rui off.

Sang Rui immediately took the hint and shut his mouth.

CLANG! CLANG!

Suddenly, heavy footsteps echoed from the street up ahead.

"Enemies!"

Oritta immediately alerted Sang Rui and the others.

Just then, three humanoid robots with long, rectangular heads and infrared sensors mounted in the center walked toward them.

Sang Rui and the others immediately raised their firearms and opened fire.

BANG BANG~

In an instant, the three humanoid guardians were blown apart and collapsed.

’So strong.’

Cloud Fish was amazed at how quickly they dispatched the guardians.

Just then, mechanical dogs began pouring out from the surrounding buildings and alleyways.

They charged from all directions.

Sang Rui and the others immediately turned their guns and fired.

The attacking mechanical dogs were blown up one after another, but some still managed to break through the barrage of gunfire.

Oritta swung his long spear in a wide arc, sweeping away the mechanical dogs that broke through.

WHIRRRR! RATTLE!

At that moment, the sound of something sliding on a track came from above.

Cloud Fish nervously looked up.

She saw mechanical metal boxes sliding along the bottom of the elevated track up ahead.

KLAK KLAK!

All the mechanical metal boxes opened.

A three-meter-tall Mechanical Samurai—with a humanoid metal body, a circular energy device embedded in its chest, a 20mm autocannon on its left shoulder, and a mechanical blade at its waist—leapt down, followed by a squad of humanoid guardians.

BOOM BOOM~

The moment they landed, they opened fire fiercely on Oritta’s group.

Oritta and the others quickly ducked behind nearby buildings.

"Boss, enemy reinforcements are here!"

Sang Rui said to Oritta.

"I’ll cover you! Retreat!"

After speaking, Oritta aimed his shoulder-mounted cannon and fired a shot at the Mechanical Samurai and the other enemies.

BOOM!

A huge explosion swept through the area.

Sang Rui and the others immediately turned and fled.

Meanwhile, in the underground express tunnels beneath the street, humanoid guardians were hanging from high-speed gliding cables, moving in rapidly.

As Oritta and his group were running, the street in front of them suddenly split open.

’Crap!’

The expressions on the faces of Oritta and his team changed slightly.

Just then, squads of guardians emerged and opened fire on them.

BANG BANG!

Oritta and his team quickly took cover inside the surrounding houses.

...

「Meanwhile.」

Long Ming was leading Xiaoqi and the others on a search through a pen-holder-shaped metal building.

"Whoa, a blue-grade leather pouch!"

"A blue-grade cleaning robot!"

"This chair may be white-grade, but it’s still worth a lot."

...

Xiaoqi and the others excitedly picked up items.