Guding exited the virtual arena, his spiritual power exhausted to the extreme. Thankfully, his winning streak was maintained. After doing those two things to him, that terrifying woman admitted defeat.
The mental fatigue made Guding's head spin as he exited the arena. Without even taking off his clothes, he dove into the covers and fell into a deep sleep within seconds.
When he woke up, Guding felt completely refreshed. "How long did I sleep?"
"You slept for 25 hours. During your sleep, some things happened." Sea Emperor's voice paused, as if contemplating how to summarize.
"From your tone, it doesn't seem like good news, does it?" Guding frowned slightly.
"There are two pieces of good news," Sea Emperor began, "First, your spiritual power increased from 9.8 to 11 due to the arena's consumption. Second, someone sent you something in the arena. I've already received it for you. It's a Black Iron-grade armor, and it should be delivered soon."
"Black Iron-grade armor?!" Guding was a bit surprised. "It must have been sent by that mysterious woman."
Armor is a late product of the ancient mech civilization, mainly made from the bones of Genetic Beasts and a kind of Liquid Memory Alloy that can fuse into blood. Unlike the bulky mecha, the armor is more flexible. Except for some special armors, full-body armor usually fits like clothing, without hindering a martial artist's performance.
Black Iron-grade armor is the lowest grade. Even so, on today's market, such an item would cost at least a billion Star Coins. Plus, it is invaluable, and there's nowhere to buy it even if you wanted to.
The armor has three main selling points: First, it hides inside the user and can be summoned at any time; second, it can upgrade with the host's genetic strength; third, it can automatically repair after damage. These features are why buyers flock to it.
Just as the subject of armor was mentioned, the doorbell rang.
"Hello, your package has arrived, please accept it!" A delivery robot with a metallic sheen stood at the door, a white box strapped to its back.
Guding pressed his fingerprint on the receipt page, and the robot handed him the box, bowed slightly, "Have a pleasant day, goodbye!"
After locking the door, Guding turned around and opened the box to take out the item.
It was a transparent glass injection container, with a black liquid inside that had a metallic sheen, and a graphic code printed on the outside.
Guding scanned the code using Sea Emperor's screen, and the product information quickly appeared.
[Item: Full-body Armor]
[Rank: Black Iron Grade]
[Usage Instructions: Inject intravenously into the body, and after being nurtured by red blood cells for about 72 hours, it can condense and form externally.]
"Black Iron-grade armor can double the user's attack and defense power. Adding the amplification of Extreme Body Technique makes it quite impressive. Moreover, the armor is upgradeable; Black Iron doubles, Bronze increases fivefold, Silver-level increases tenfold, Golden-level increases fiftyfold. The sooner you inject, the sooner you can use it." Sea Emperor reminded.
Guding nodded, injected the needle of the container into the vein on the back of his hand, and as the armor automatically injected, he felt a cool liquid slowly enter his bloodstream, traveling up his arm. Within seconds, the injection was complete with almost no unusual sensation, indicating that Guding's body adapted well to the armor. In fact, about 50% of people experience some degree of rejection when first injecting armor, and about 15% cannot naturally fuse with the armor, leading it to be expelled from the body.
"Your fusion rate is high, it might not even take 10 hours for the armor to condense externally." Sea Emperor was very familiar with Guding's physical condition.
"Isn't it supposed to be 72 hours?" Guding asked in surprise. Since armor isn't something an ordinary person can afford, information on civilian networks was limited. Guding only saw that the instructions stated 72 hours and assumed everyone needed that long to nurture it.
"72 hours is the normal average fusion time. Some have special physiques that are slower, and some faster." Sea Emperor explained, "Your genes have a high fusion rate with armor. At the current rate, 10 hours should suffice."
"You can just tell me my physique is impressive." Guding grinned proudly. "You mentioned two pieces of good news; there should be bad news too?"
"Madame 'Meat Floss' sent you a message while you were asleep, saying that Rose Tavern is temporarily closed, so you don't need to go these days. She'll pay your salary as if you worked." Sea Emperor fell silent after saying this.
"That's not exactly bad news, right?" Guding pondered for a moment, "Did she say why or when it will reopen?"
"She didn't mention that." Sea Emperor's tone was heavy, "After sending the message, the network at Rose Tavern was closed. I felt something unusual, so I tapped into the tavern's internal network and learned some bad news through the cameras."
"You know about the Federation Government's recent Red Light District cleanup." Sea Emperor continued, "Because of that, many interstellar pirates were caught, including a guy named Cain."
"Uncle Cain?!" Guding recognized the name right away. Cain was an interstellar pirate with a bounty exceeding three hundred million Star Coins. It was said he was once part of Madame 'Meat Floss's crew. After 'Meat Floss' retired, he formed his own pirate group but would visit the Rose Tavern to catch up every two or three years. "Uncle Cain is very formidable; how was he captured?"
"Someone threatened Cain using Madame 'Meat Floss' and the others, saying they would be re-wanted, and the Rose Tavern would be shut down if he resisted or refused arrest," Sea Emperor finally revealed. "That's why Cain let them put on the Star Core Collar and take him away."
"The Star Core Collar?!" Guding was stunned.
The Star Core Collar is a powerful electromagnetic restraint device. Once clasped around the neck, it emits electromagnetic waves that completely sever communication between the brain's nerves and the body. Those wearing the Star Core Collar can only feel their head, with no sensation or control below the neck. In essence, once it's worn, one is at the mercy of others.
"Following standard procedures, after Cain was captured, he should be detained at the Tianhe Prison Blue Branch or Tianhe Prison Headquarters, for a commensurate prison sentence. However, there's a Deputy Prison Director named Preston at the headquarters with a past grudge against Cain, and he leveraged this theft incident to request a death sentence for Cain, intending to watch the execution himself," Sea Emperor continued. "The person who secretly threatened Cain is this Preston."
"What a despicable man! I can't believe there's such underhanded people in the Federation Government!" Guding couldn't help but curse. Though Uncle Cain didn't meet him often, he always brought gifts and treated him like a member of the Rose Pirate Group during visits to Rose Tavern.
"Cain's upcoming execution was announced yesterday. After getting the news, Madame 'Meat Floss' and the others have been preparing for a rescue. They plan to save Cain and leave Sea Blue Star, possibly even departing Tianhe Star Domain. The Rose Tavern will definitely not reopen." Sea Emperor finally finished recounting the events, which indeed was unprecedentedly bad news for Guding.
Guding clenched and unclenched his fists several times before finally speaking, "Sea Emperor, do you know where the other members of Uncle Cain's pirate group are?"
"Before his capture, Cain requested the safety of his pirate group's other members, which was granted. Now, all of them are free and gathered at the interstellar port to discuss a strategy."
"Sea Emperor, can the Universal Key now unlock the prison cells and Star Core Collars at Tianhe Prison?" Guding pondered for a moment, seeming to have come up with a plan.
"Tianhe Prison Headquarters is only a Two-star prison. For me, three-star and below are Basic Authority, so cracking them poses no difficulty." Sea Emperor seemed to guess Guding's thought. "However, to avoid catching the attention of Heavenly Net, it would be best if you could give me access to a prison network port."
"I understand. I have a feeling I'll soon have a Federation Government bounty on my head." Guding grinned.