Chapter Twenty-Six: Choosing Equipment

Institution Comprehensive Building, in Gong Kui’s office.

Gong Kui and Tao Lu sat together, both looking grim.

“Xia Yan, are you out of your mind?” Tao Lu was the first to speak. “Are you sure about this? A duel to the death? If you lose, you can’t surrender—there’s no way out but death, and no one has the right to intervene.”

“It’s far too reckless,” Gong Kui agreed, nodding. “Xia Yan, do you even know the strength of the ‘Institution Management’? They’re at least stronger than you are right now.”

“I don’t have much of a choice,” Xia Yan replied with a wry smile. “Gu Yue’er has been kidnapped. I have no option but to grit my teeth and go through with it.”

“This isn’t something you can just tough out,” Tao Lu said impatiently. “If you lose, you die, and once you’re dead, you can’t do anything. Did you even think ahead about this?”

“Well, I’ve already issued the challenge, there’s no taking it back now,” Xia Yan conceded, unable to resist Tao Lu’s concern, and could only force a bitter smile.

“Forget it, let’s pick your weapons first.” Gong Kui sighed, equally helpless. “Xia Yan, as your reward this time, you can choose one C-rank weapon and receive fifty contribution points. Why not use all 133 of your contribution points to exchange for a practical defensive suit?”

“That won’t do. I need to sell the contribution points for money to save Ding Li,” Xia Yan refused quickly. Who knew if the defensive suit was even worth that much—secondhand equipment is never very valuable, especially a defensive suit.

The two women glared at him, suddenly speaking in unison, “Let me—”

The words hung awkwardly in the air. Gong Kui’s tone was businesslike, but Tao Lu’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

Tao Lu cleared her throat. “My family… well, we run a company. We’re not exactly poor, so a little money isn’t… a problem…”

Although she’d made it clear when they first met that she came from an ordinary family, it was obvious from her stash of D-rank weapons that her background was anything but average.

No matter what, she couldn’t escape the air of privilege.

Gong Kui found this amusing and explained, “I represent humanity’s side—I’d be using public funds to help, unlike Miss Tao Lu here, who’s willing to use her own ‘private money’.”

Tao Lu was annoyed, wanting to explain but unable to find the words.

And so, half against his will, Xia Yan was forced to choose weapons and armor. Without proper equipment, there was no way to survive and prevail against a member of the ‘Institution Management.’

…

Ability Training Institute, Exchange Tower.

Each floor of the tower was lined with samples of various types of equipment, complete with introductions and statistics, all available in exchange for contribution points.

The towering building, floor after floor, offered everything imaginable—from the second floor to the very top.

All equipment was graded, from the ordinary E-rank to the highest S-rank and beyond.

But anything B-rank and above was exorbitantly expensive, the kind of rare treasure that couldn’t be mass-produced. Even A-rank items made the great powers of every race covet them and scheme for their acquisition.

As for S-rank, those were practically legendary artifacts. For those at the bottom, it was uncertain if such things even existed.

Xia Yan was advised to choose a defensive suit for good reason. A good one could block many attacks—bullets, energy abilities, and so on.

Even E-rank firearms couldn’t penetrate most market-available defensive suits; only D-rank weapons could. But a C-rank defensive suit could withstand even D-rank weapons with little damage.

A good defensive suit was as precious as a second life.

He also had the right, as the champion of the tournament, to select a C-rank weapon.

Xia Yan’s initial plan was simple: pick the most expensive C-rank weapon, sell it, and use the money to rescue Ding Li.

But with the imminent battle and Gong Kui willing to help, he didn’t mind picking a weapon that suited him.

In fact, Xia Yan preferred firearms, being much more skilled with them, but Tao Lu offered to lend him her C102 Frenzy.

It felt a bit like being a kept man, but Xia Yan didn’t refuse. After all, having another C-rank weapon meant a better chance of survival.

So, to further increase his odds in the duel, Xia Yan needed to pick a melee weapon—one that was exceptionally sharp.

The sheer variety of weapon types overwhelmed him as he pondered what to choose.

For close combat, weapons that were too short were impractical; something of moderate length was better. Odd weapons like staves or whips were out of the question…

“I’ll choose a blade,” Xia Yan decided after some thought, settling on a longsword.

He arrived at the twenty-seventh floor, where most weapons displayed were swords. Heading to the C-rank section, he began inspecting each one carefully.

Though these were only samples, their appearance matched the real thing, and each had a detailed introduction.

Bloodshadow Longsword: 110 contribution points, developed by the civilian conglomerate Qiankun Enterprises, the sharpest weapon they had ever produced—razor sharp, capable of slicing a strand of hair in two…

Shatterdisk Sword: 115 points, developed by Sanhe Group, a light and agile melee weapon with high sharpness…

Frenzied Dragon Katana: 120 points, developed by Earth Federation Headquarters, a long and exceptionally sharp blade, ideal for battling large mutant creatures.

Crescentless Scimitar: 120 points, also from Earth Federation Headquarters, with a curved blade, suited for unique swordsmanship.

Xia Yan examined them all. Only the top civilian conglomerates could make such C-rank weapons, but the military’s technology was obviously superior. Their C-rank swords came in many varieties.

There were all sorts: long, short, light, heavy, designed to combat mutants, demons, humans, or other races…

Xia Yan found his head aching—he wasn’t some inheritor of ancient martial arts, just a convict who’d survived countless ordeals.

To him, a weapon was just a tool; what really mattered was the extent to which he could develop his body.

“Pick the most expensive one,” Xia Yan muttered to himself. After all, it was a reward, so he might as well go for value.

He looked at the priciest C-rank sword.

Hmm… 270 points, but it was a twin-blade set.

Xia Yan frowned. Since he specialized in ranged combat, he’d never use two melee weapons; switching between them and a gun would be too cumbersome. He immediately ruled it out.

On to the next!

Windfury Broadsword, 250 points, forged from a special ‘Wind Phoenix Ore,’ light and agile despite its massive size.

It was over two meters long and extremely wide, almost a greatsword, though Xia Yan couldn’t tell if it was really a sword or just a blunt instrument meant for smashing, not slicing.

Wind Phoenix Ore was a rare, incredibly hard but light mineral. Weapons made from it were naturally lightweight.

Xia Yan shook his head—this weapon was simply too large. He moved on.

Purple Moon Blade, 240 points…

A deep violet, seductive weapon that could confuse opponents’ vision, its attacks trailed with afterimages—very powerful…

Xia Yan lingered for a moment, considering it, but kept looking.

Polymorph Blade, 240 points, crafted from ‘universal metal,’ it had self-repairing properties. As long as the damage wasn’t too severe, it would restore itself quickly. This trait allowed it to withstand most energy-based attacks from ability users.

Xia Yan’s eyes sparkled. The so-called energy surely included all sorts of externalized abilities—his own fire element, the demon race’s dark energy, or bloodline powers.

Usually, energy abilities couldn’t be added to weapons; even the best would deteriorate under repeated use and eventually break. Repairs were difficult, and over time, the weapon would be ruined.

But the Polymorph Blade, thanks to its universal metal, would heal itself, allowing him to channel his fire element into it indefinitely.

Xia Yan read the detailed description, confirmed everything, and nodded. This blade was perfect for him.

“This one,” Xia Yan decided, signalling a humanoid robot sales assistant to process the exchange. C-rank weapons weren’t particularly rare, so the Exchange Tower had them in stock.

He waited only twenty minutes on the first floor before the staff delivered his Polymorph Blade.

Examining it, Xia Yan found it unremarkable in appearance—plain steel, of average length, with nothing out of the ordinary.

He infused it with his fire element, and the blade burst into brilliant flames.

“Not bad. A fine weapon.” Xia Yan stowed it away.

Next, he still had 133 contribution points—enough for a defensive suit.

He went up to the thirty-third floor to browse C-rank defensive suits.

Swallow Defensive Suit, 88 points, very light, average defense, the best made by Swallow Enterprises.

Dragon-Loop Defensive Suit, 95 points, moderate weight, excellent defense, the top product of Longcheng Group.

As usual, large civilian conglomerates made the cheapest defensive suits. The best they could manufacture were C-rank. These were less practical than military models but much more affordable. In fact, the C102 Frenzy handgun Tao Lu had chosen earlier was also a civilian C-rank weapon, on the low end of the price range.

Xia Yan didn’t want a suit with a deployable shield; his main concern was lightness and mobility.

A twenty-pound suit, even with his advanced physical capabilities, would still hinder his movement…

It was best to keep the weight under five pounds, or ideally, under three.

Blueshade Lightweight, 120 points, extremely light, excellent defense, a military-made C-rank suit. There’s a switch on the right arm to deploy a small shield—ten centimeters in diameter, capable of blocking D-rank bullets and some abilities…

Xia Yan nodded to himself. Many suits could deploy shields, some large enough to cover the whole body. But those were heavy and consumed enormous energy. Relying on shields alone to win a battle was a fantasy—they were only useful in critical moments.

He’d faced opponents in the institutional ranking tournament who used defensive suits, but they weren’t very effective—once in close quarters, a few strikes would shatter the shield.

“I’ll take the Blueshade Lightweight,” Xia Yan decided. The price was reasonable, the weight minimal, and it suited his fighting style.

After redeeming the Blueshade Lightweight, Xia Yan had only thirteen contribution points left. He could still exchange these for a few things—potent forbidden serums, specialized ammunition for laser weapons, small energy cells, and so on.

But he didn’t need any of those for now. The Blueshade Lightweight defensive suit came with a complimentary energy cell, which was more than enough for the shield’s consumption over a long period.

“I’ll just keep the extra thirteen points for now,” Xia Yan thought, narrowing his eyes. With his choice of weapon and armor settled, the day’s preparations were complete.