Industrial Cthulhu doesn't believe in the end times.

Chapter 219 Power Armor Production
The frontal armor of this individual power armor is quite thick; after removing the entire armor, a person crawls inside.

It is indeed difficult for anyone other than a superhuman to use it. Most of its weight needs to be borne by the superhuman inside it. The armor's own power system is more of an auxiliary system, while the built-in energy module is mainly used to charge the weapons attached to the armor.

After paying such a price, its main weapon is a large-caliber jet generator—basically no different from the vehicle-mounted version. Compared to the jet rifle powered by the superhuman himself, it is more powerful and has a more stable output, and it is also the main energy consumer on this suit of armor.

Within 500 meters, lower-ranking individuals are like loose cotton wool in its presence; as long as it hits its target, it can cause terrifying damage.

In addition, the engineers have prepared a number of auxiliary equipment for them. The modular design allows soldiers to choose different weapons when performing different tasks. Su Xun glanced at them briefly and saw that the research institute had prepared multi-barrel machine guns, grenade launchers, short-range rockets, etc.

Besides these familiar conventional weapons, there was even a chainsaw...

It was indeed a chainsaw, not a chainsaw. The technology of converting spiritual energy into electrical energy is currently the most mature. This weapon was probably just for show, but Su Xun still found it quite comical after putting it in his hand.

There are also some rather fantastical cold weapons, such as heavy hammers and alloy shields. These weapons are too heavy for ordinary people, but if worn with individual armor with auxiliary power systems, combined with the superhuman's own strength, they become quite suitable.

According to the engineer in charge of the project, these close-combat melee weapons are a kind of exploration and experiment, as well as a preparation for dealing with special battlefield environments. To be precise, these things should be considered as the bayonets of this suit of armor.

That's largely true regarding weaponry, and indeed, regarding propulsion, it's as the engineer described.

As a fifth-tier superhuman, wearing this armor does restrict his agility to some extent, and the power system's reaction speed cannot keep up with his own. However, relatively speaking, he feels that this limitation is still acceptable.

"In this way, we can make a version with the power system removed to supply higher-level superhumans, but some other details also need to be improved."

The engineer next to him nodded: "We have this idea, but the main problem is that we don't have more data on high-level superhumans. We hope that the legion can arrange some fourth- to fifth-level superhumans to do some testing."

“That’s no problem, I can handle it. In addition, there should be more newly promoted fourth and fifth tiers in the future, and I will have them cooperate with your research as much as possible.”

Wearing power armor, Su Xun moved around in the training grounds provided by the research institute, seemingly quite fond of them. There were also imprisoned Tier 3 zombies and mutated beasts there, which he could easily kill even without using his special abilities or ranged weapons.

In the past, Su Xun likened superhumans to tanks in the post-apocalyptic era, and this suit of armor now fully demonstrates that attribute. The combination of the superhuman's agility and the armor's protective capabilities, along with the powerful output of the jet weapons, makes it a deadly weapon for breaking into enemy lines and opening up new opportunities.

He reluctantly stepped out of the armor, knowing he no longer needed it, but still found it novel and interesting.

"Is the production difficult? Are there any technical difficulties?" "Not really." The person in charge of the specific production of this project reported to Su Xun: "This thing is essentially a set of armor. Compared to the production of armored vehicles, its technical difficulty is lower. If the auxiliary power system is removed, the difficulty is even lower. As for the most complex jet weapon, we have accumulated quite a lot of experience on the Duanlang tank destroyer and jet rifle."

The production difficulty of the high-tier version may be less than that of the low-tier version, which is somewhat counterintuitive, but actually quite normal. Rather, it is simply that the armor, which was originally only available to high-tier users, can be made available to low-tier users and even ordinary people by adding auxiliary power.

It must be said that superhumans are incredibly useful. Many difficult problems, such as armor that ordinary people can't support, weapons that ordinary people can't use, water that ordinary people can't go into, and dust that ordinary people can't fight, can all be solved by putting a superhuman in. As a result, it adds extra difficulty and cost to make the weapons that are suitable for them be downgraded and applied.

However, the person in charge did not mention the manufacturing cost of this suit of armor at all. As the artillery fire of the Daizong battlefield rang out, even though it was not yet possible to enter the secret realm for large-scale development, a large amount of spiritual energy crystals continued to flow from the front line to the rear, and were then transformed into new types of shells that fell back onto the aliens in the military factory in the rear.

Wars in the civilized era were expensive. To make money from war, one could only do so behind the scenes through methods such as arms trafficking. On the battlefield, it was often just pure attrition. But things are different now, especially in wars against alien species. As long as you control the rhythm of the battlefield, you may not make much money, but it is almost impossible to lose money. There are also different benefits to fighting against other beings.

This type of warfare has given many small civilian organizations the opportunity to participate and develop. As long as it involves fighting alien species or mutated beasts, Su Xun is happy to see it happen. For a long time to come, they can play a very positive role.

After all, such benefits are entirely derived from external sources, not from a zero-sum game in the internal market. Under such circumstances, the wars in which these people participate will ultimately become, directly or indirectly, nourishment for the progress of the entire civilization in various ways.

"The only problem right now is that we don't have a mature production line yet, so we can't start large-scale production."

"However, these difficulties can be temporarily overcome by skilled workers with certain extraordinary abilities. Once the production line is mature, these armors can be quickly deployed to the troops."

Yes, six months after the Great Cataclysm, many factories have accumulated a number of superhumans active on the production line. They are stronger, more energetic, and react faster. They are the darlings of each factory. Speaking of this, Su Xun hasn't been to the factory for a long time and doesn't know what the situation is like there now.

After a brief mental calculation, Su Xun said to the person in charge, "I'll take some time to visit the factory and try to produce this power armor as soon as possible."

"The sooner these supplies reach the front lines, the fewer casualties there will be. Just do your best, and the Corps will provide support without reservation."

"understand!"

With responsibility on their shoulders, the person in charge remained calm and determined, their fighting spirit evident. After all, the support of their superiors provided them with confidence, and their work had real significance, being needed by the organization and the people. What could be a greater motivation than that?

(End of this chapter)