Hyperdimensional Player

Chapter 172 Rebel Cultist Mechapriest
(Repaired.)
How harsh must one's life be to develop such a talent?
Duncan looked at the third human host's skin; it was truly pale, the kind of pallor that comes from never seeing the sun. He was also quite handsome, like a vampire. This body was rather thin, and one might suspect malnutrition. The life bar on the projection page was only a small segment, not even full, having lost about a third of its length. The stamina bar was even smaller, barely a fraction of its original size, and the host was suffering from both hunger and exhaustion.

"His physical condition is too poor."

The inscription ability implanted by Duncan has begun to take effect, but it needs sufficient time to integrate into the human host's bloodline, and during this period, it also requires a large amount of nutritional supplementation. This is because the first human host initially only had the physical attributes of an ordinary person, and it was only after the Holy Grail blood gradually took effect that he gained the sculpted muscle lines.

The abilities inscribed on the main body can be loaded or not loaded into the human host. If not loaded, the corresponding inscribed ability will not take effect. Not loading is generally for specific situations. If your human host is on Heavenly Mountain and you load a demon bloodline, you're practically committing suicide.

Another issue is that some engraved bloodlines may conflict. As you gain access to more bloodline sources later on, you will have to selectively load bloodlines. However, there are no problems with combat skills.

The third human host is different from the other human hosts.

Perhaps because he was younger, a unique mark appeared on the projected page when Duncan switched back to the God's-eye view of the dimensional space.

— "Appearance alteration".

(Note: The appearance of the human host can change slowly over time, determined by the activated bloodline abilities, or another human host can be chosen as the base appearance.)
Duncan had three human forms in total.

First, we ruled out Human Form No. 2, as it would be too troublesome to create the face ourselves. So we simply used Human Form No. 1 as the base template, and the final appearance was about 70% similar to Human Form No. 1.

However, the third human host is much thinner and doesn't have the same strong and resolute physique as the first human host.

Human beings who emerge from the battlefield will inevitably have some differences.

Although both are engraved with bloodlines, before the third human host fully matured, even with similar bloodline abilities, he did not have the same potential as the first human host.

"The power ceiling of this world must be extremely high."

"Let's figure out how to survive first."

Duncan is currently in a vast underground complex, situated in a collapsed ruin that was later excavated and rebuilt into a maze-like network of interconnected passages. The dimly lit, reinforced concrete jungle makes it easy to lose one's way if one is not careful.

Relying on his God-like perspective, he struggled to climb out and, after passing through a dark pipe, found himself in a crevice in an open area.

This should be close to a certain platform layer.

At this moment, the third human host was exhausted and thirsty. He felt that even if he didn't encounter any dangerous enemies, he would be trapped here and die if he couldn't get out.

How big is this place exactly?

"The future capital city?"

Duncan had already blocked most of the life markers, because the countless markers were so densely packed together that it was impossible to see anything clearly.

At this point, the memories began to gradually merge.

He followed his memory, climbing up a narrow, cramped, dark passage. He didn't know how long it took, but after passing through a dark pipe that stretched for hundreds of meters, he finally arrived near a platform above. Dim and cold lights began to appear overhead, like signal lights.

"This place is so oppressive, it's giving me claustrophobia."

As Duncan struggled to climb out from a spot near the sewers, he saw a road sign 'F46-E72-A3'.

— "Do not mark the three-dimensional layers, only mark the current layer."

Projected page.

After Duncan adjusted the God's-eye view, the life markers were finally displayed correctly. In the distance, a dense cluster of marker units was crammed together, spaced about three or four meters apart. Directly opposite were rows of dark, tall buildings with narrow passageways and staircases on either side. The steps were covered in rust. He followed the dim light up the stairs, relying on his memory to find the original owner's residence.

It must be midnight now, since there's not much activity around here.

However, there were patrol and guard markers in the distance.

—Guard Regiment.

Duncan took out his key and tried to open the door, but he couldn't turn it at all.

"Can't you open the door?"

creak.

Just then, the heavy iron door opposite opened, and a woman with a good figure and wine-red hair leaned against the door frame and glanced at him. Her gaze was scrutinizing. She was wearing a gray jacket over a tank top and dark blue old jeans. She had a full figure, and when she crossed her arms over her chest, the rounded contours of her breasts were revealed.

—Rebel Army (Two-star Silver Gray) (Neutral).

Duncan glanced at her but didn't reply, because in the memories he was processing, the original owner wasn't familiar with anyone and was quite aloof.

Moreover, the rebel marker is very bad, and the nearby marked units are also in a bad situation.

These people are all immigrants.

They were mostly migrants from another steel city, arriving in several batches, totaling about 300,000 people. The population of such a platform layer is estimated to be between 500,000 and 1 million, but unlikely to exceed 1 million, as the supply of necessities would be insufficient.

Duncan has been crawling through the underground ruins for a long time and now desperately needs rest to recover his strength.

At this moment, within Duncan's God's-eye view, most people were marked as 'civilians', but there were also some other marked units. The rebels were just one of them. About ten rooms away from him, there were also units marked as 'cultists'.

Further away, there are unit markers for scavengers, mechanical priests, wolf gang thugs, and more.

I have to say, this godforsaken place has a ton of talented people!
If Duncan didn't have God's perspective, he would have no idea how mixed the place was. Just from his casual glance, he estimated there were dozens of cult members in the entire building.

"Let me help you."

The woman returned to her room, retrieved a wire, inserted it, and with a few quick movements, pried open the door lock. She proudly brandished the wire, looked at the slightly surprised Duncan, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Just a little bit of craftsmanship."

"Just find someone to change the key tomorrow."

Duncan nodded slightly, thanked him softly, and was about to push open the door to enter the room.

"and many more!"

The woman suddenly pressed down on the door and pressed herself against it. She was about half a head taller than the third human host, probably close to 1.8 meters tall, like a big foreign woman. When she leaned in, her full breasts almost touched Duncan's face. A smell of engine oil mixed with perfume hit him, making him feel like he was being overwhelmed by hormones.

She is very agile.

Duncan instinctively reached out to stop her, but the other woman was stronger than the boy. His palm pressed directly onto the bulging spot, and he even felt the oily sweat. The woman didn't seem to care and moved even closer, lowering her voice to ask, "Did you go underground?"

"What did you find?"

After speaking, the woman with wine-red hair stared into Duncan's eyes, seemingly trying to observe his expression. She noticed that Duncan's clothes were covered in stains and oil, as if he had crawled out of an underground pipe.

She was fairly confident in testing and manipulating a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy, because she had noticed the change in his expression of admiration when he looked at her back a while ago.

To put it even more bluntly, the original owner was filled with hormonal turmoil when he looked at her figure, but he didn't have the courage to strike up a conversation.

This inexperienced young man, who was very interested in her, was easily tricked.

Unfortunately, she didn't see a trace of panic on Duncan's face at this moment. On the contrary, the handsome young man narrowed his eyes slightly, making her feel a little uneasy.

Duncan has seen it all.

He feigned surprise, lowered his hand from the other person's chest, and silently moved it to his waist. During the growth phase of his bloodline transformation, he needed the power of firearms to protect himself.

He looked puzzled and said, "I don't know what you're talking about?"

Upon hearing this, the woman leaned forward again, the pressure overwhelming her and directly suppressing the boy in front of her. She felt as if something was pressing against her waist, and a slight smile appeared on her pretty face. After all, he was only fifteen or sixteen years old, and he had already given himself away with such a gentle teasing. She clenched her fists downwards and said in a low voice, "Don't try to fool me."

“I saw you enter the underground passage.”

The woman reached down and gripped the object, her entire body instantly stiffening. She had indeed found a weakness, but it was a cold, hard gun barrel.

At that moment, Duncan's cold voice rang out: "What do you want to do?"

The woman swallowed nervously, her breathing slightly rapid. She wanted to back away, but the door creaked shut by Duncan, plunging the room into darkness.

Now she has become the prey.

She had been secretly observing this boy for some time.

The other party had always acted very naive and inexperienced, and didn't even realize he had been deceived. Today, he seized the opportunity to test him, but unexpectedly, the naive and inexperienced boy was gone, and this delicate young man acted like a seasoned and ruthless hunter.

Duncan pinned her against the wall, the muzzle of his gun pressed against her chest, right up to her heart, flattening her chest.

Two-star silver-gray.

This strength is nothing to the first human host; she's someone you could easily crush. But for the third human host you just took over, before her bloodline ability has completely transformed her body, she still poses a considerable threat.

In the medieval era, the two-star silver-gray warriors were all veterans who had trained for over twenty years, and they all possessed special combat skills and supernatural abilities.

The woman only panicked slightly.

Her hand groped along the wall for a while, and soon a dim light appeared. In this room, which was only about ten square meters in size, there was an incandescent light bulb on the wall. She looked down at the dark muzzle of the gun and said slowly, "If you shoot here..."

"It will immediately attract patrolling guards and mechanical priests, and then we will both die."

Duncan remained unmoved, his finger still on the trigger, and he even pressed the muzzle down slightly, causing the woman to feel a sharp pain in her ribs.

He said in a deep voice, "What do you want?"

The other party must have something in mind to initiate the conversation. Duncan hadn't fully processed his memories and only had a vague recollection of her.

She is a mechanic.

There are only a few people here with professional skills, which is why she smells of engine oil.

The woman stared at Duncan, her eyes flickering slightly, and slowly said, "You've been secretly excavating underground ruins, haven't you? I want to join you!"

Underground ruins?

No, that's just an underground lair for cultists; digging further down might reveal underground ruins.

The woman said to herself, "I also have a group of people under my command."

"How about it?"

“Let’s cooperate.” Just then, a flurry of footsteps sounded outside. From a god’s-eye view, a mechanical priest led a squad of heavily armed soldiers toward the direction he had returned from. Taking advantage of the moment, the woman silently opened the iron gate, backed away little by little, and whispered, “Think it over carefully.”

After saying that, she disappeared.

Duncan did not stop him. Firing at this point would definitely attract others, and if they fought back, the disparity in strength was too great, and they had no chance of winning.

He is currently completely clueless about this world, and his most important task is to process his memories and gather intelligence.

The room was very simply furnished, with a table and a metal bunk bed. There wasn't even a window or a toilet. It was more oppressive and suffocating than a prison.

Duncan listened to the sounds outside the door, sat down to recover his strength, and processed the remaining memories.

The third human host's physical condition is too poor.

After strenuous exercise, his whole body ached, his strength was no match for that of a woman, and his stamina bar recovered very slowly, which made Duncan, who was used to being the first human form, very uncomfortable.

I don’t know how long it took.

Duncan slowly opened his eyes, and some fragmented memories were pieced together.

At that moment, footsteps sounded outside. When he pushed open the door and went out, he could see a number of fully armed soldiers from the sixth floor. The dense crowd was heading west of this steel city. The originally dim light was now very bright, as if it were an artificial sun scattering light.

"This level of technology is quite advanced, isn't it?"

"How come our standard of living is so terrible?"

As Duncan went outside, he saw the woman from yesterday again. She casually leaned closer and whispered, "What were you doing?"

"The mechanical priests have sealed off all the entrances to the underground passages."

It seems that the Mechanical Church has become aware of what happened yesterday, but it remains to be seen whether their subsequent actions can be concealed. If they cannot, the human host will be in danger.

Because the Mechanical Church has always been ruthless in its killing of cult members.

The original owner of the third human host was an unlucky guy who was fooled by cultists. However, he was chosen as the human vessel for the evil god's descent, so he must have something special about him, which Duncan has not yet discovered.

A dense crowd approached a magnificent steel building.

Duncan was naturally in the crowd. To his right was a fierce-looking man with tattoos on his neck, whose unit was marked as Wolf Gang thugs. Under the watchful eyes of fully armed soldiers, he was as docile as a chick, only glaring angrily at the others nearby.

Rumble!
A heavy iron gate, over thirty meters high, opened, and in Duncan's sight appeared a magnificent building entirely cast in steel. It looked like an upright gear, with the diameter of the nearby bearings being about one hundred meters. Each gear surrounded the steps, and a church was built on top of the gear-shaped architectural structures of various sizes.

"This architectural style is way too industrial."

Standing before this magnificent steel complex, even a gathering of over 100,000 people seemed incredibly small. A unique religious atmosphere gradually spread, and before anyone knew it, everyone's expression turned solemn and they fell silent.

Today is Sunday, the Day of Redemption and the Day of Atonement.

The first batch of immigrants had basically gathered near the square. The crowd was like a long dragon, climbing up the gear-like steps and passing by a church that was nearly 100 meters high. Unlike the churches Duncan knew, its external metal structure was made up of levers, gears, pistons, etc., and at the top was a large bell that emitted a dull mechanical roar.

"Homage to the god of machinery!"

Waves spread in all directions.

From Duncan's position, one can see a magnificent angel statue nearly thirty meters tall. It wears a metal helmet, has burning flames in its eyes, is covered in heavy bronze armor, and has a pair of wings with a wingspan of tens of meters on its back, the feathers of which resemble sharp blades.

The angel statue kneels on one knee, holding a giant sword planted in the ground, its solemn expression gazing ahead.

This is one of the seven angels under the god of machinery.

—A steel-cast angel.

Duncan's expression was one of utter shock, not because of the nearby mechanical bishop marked as a five-star unit, but because of the steel-cast angel statue directly in front of him.

—Steel-cast Angel (Mechanical Construct) (Avatar) (Inactive) (Neutral) (Golden Skull Mark)!

This thing is alive.

hum.

Just then, above the magnificent church, a wall suddenly moved. Countless intricate gears and levers turned, and the steel relief on the wall changed. The outline of an angel gradually appeared, but it was not human-shaped. Instead, it was a mechanical angel with a gear structure embedded in a ring and countless engraved runes on the outside, which eventually formed an eye pattern.

—The Eye of Insight (Mechanical Assembly)!
The gear-shaped eye, which is more than ten meters in diameter, has a silver-white eyeball embedded inside. It rotated once, scanning all the more than 100,000 people present, and finally slowly merged into the wall to become a steel relief.

At that moment, Duncan even felt a sense of crisis.

Fortunately, it disappeared quickly.

At the same time, above the magnificent church, a mechanical bishop wearing a silver-gray robe withdrew his hand and slowly said, "The Eye of Insight has not found anyone possessed by the Void Demon."

"That snake-man must be the vessel through which the evil god descended."

As the hand retracted, the mechanical bishop's finger bones changed from a metallic color back to human skin. This was the divine grace of the mechanical god, an ability that only bishops could master: 'steel bones'.

The mechanical priest standing nearby asked respectfully, "Your Excellency, what should we do with the cultists who were lured out?"

The leading bishop, with an indifferent expression, slowly said, "Never forget the teachings of the steel-cast angels."

"Steel has no feelings."

"Kill them all!"

As soon as the order was given, a dozen or so heavily armored mechanical priests left.

Beneath the large bell at the very top of the church, the other Mechanicus monks quickly departed, while the bishop knelt on one knee before a statue, motionless. His skin had somehow turned the color of steel, and he was now only breathing faintly.

He has lived for over three hundred years and must rely on 'mechanical meditation' to maintain his life functions and extend his standby time as much as possible through 'hibernation'.

His soul could not enter the kingdom of the mechanical god until the new bishop arrived.

Below the square.

It was like a grand prayer ceremony that took about two or three hours to complete. As the dull tolling of the bells rang out, the others began to leave one after another under the guidance of the mechanical church deacons. Here, everyone seemed to be a tiny part, and they unconsciously formed a whole, leaving in an orderly manner according to the deacons' commands.

On the projected page.

An enhancement appeared—"Spell fluctuations detected from a mechanized mind!..."

Duncan unknowingly followed the crowd and left. As they passed through the magnificent steel gate, church personnel in gray robes distributed iron tokens to them. The tokens had a diagram of a gear lever on them, the emblem of the god of machinery. Each person could collect supplies in the corresponding area by using the tokens.

Of course, don't expect it to be anything special; it's just enough to keep you from starving.

Even if you do nothing all day and just lie in bed daydreaming, as long as you attend the weekly church prayer service diligently, the deacons of the Mechanical Church will give you this badge to ensure your most basic survival needs.

If it's the last week of each month, which is a day of redemption and hangover, you'll receive even more material benefits.

"Why are they still giving out cookies?"

"Isn't today Redemption Day?"

After leaving the church area, the crowd suddenly became noisy, as if the cohesive gears had collapsed. The man marked as a Wolf Gang thug rudely pushed aside others and cut in line to the front.

Duncan also received a set of supplies, three things that looked like compressed biscuits. They only had a faint salty taste and were barely edible.

Normally, you can get other food on this day, and sometimes you can even eat vegetables, unless there is a severe shortage of supplies in the gathering place.

The woman from last night was in the team next to Duncan.

She was also receiving supplies. In this underground steel jungle, many people would starve to death without the relief supplies distributed by the church.

The woman crunched loudly as she took a bite of the compressed biscuit, quietly walked to Duncan's side, and asked in a low voice, "What's your decision?"

"Want to take a gamble together?"

"How about we find a way to get to the upper levels and see what the sun looks like?"

Duncan looked somewhat helpless at this point.

If they were really excavating ruins, that would be one thing, but in reality, the cultists were just digging into an area and trying to avoid the eyes and ears of the Mechanical Church to summon the Void God.

Even so, they were still targeted.

He didn't know how well he had handled things, but fortunately, he should have passed today. The mechanical construct's Eye of Insight was probably meant to find the incarnation of the evil god.

Duncan said in a low voice, "Let's wait a little longer."

"The timing is not right now."

He only rested for one night, and his health and stamina bars increased a little, and he felt much stronger.

This proves that the engraved bloodline power is already in effect.

The longer the third human host survives, the stronger his physical abilities will become; now is not the time to take risks.

The woman glanced around and nodded slightly, saying, "Alright."

“Those mechanical priests won’t stay long. We’ll make our move after they retreat to other districts.”

The Mechanical Church will not station too many people in one district.

This is a newly established colony. Once everything is on track, the number of personnel stationed there will be reduced to one-third of what it is now. These immigrants were selected from other places. The original owner came from a region starting with the letter C. Because the population was nearing its limit, some of the people were relocated.

At this time, true order had not yet been formed.

After most of the mechanical priests and garrison soldiers have withdrawn, it will be time for all sorts of monsters and demons to fight for territory, as no one wants to eat this monstrous thing every day.

………………

(End of this chapter)