Chapter 392 193: Assigned to You

Next to the phalanx of Black Knights stood the phalanx of Skeleton Knights. Li Ziyu had been pouring all his energy into developing Mechanical Technology lately and hadn't had time to research mounts, so the Skeleton Knights were also on foot.

The Skeleton Knights stood nearly three meters tall and were also clad in Armor, though it didn't completely encase their bodies like that of the Black Knights. Their Knight's Heavy Armor consisted of helmets, pauldrons, breastplates, skirt armor, greaves, and war boots. They each wore a long cape, had a two-handed Broadsword slung across their back, and a Knight's Lance standing upright at their side.

Liu Xingxing and Zhang Peng could still accept the Black Knights and the Skeleton Knights. Influenced by the media from their past lives, these two types of units still fell within the realm of what they considered Undead. They had seen similar concepts in anime, movies, and TV shows.

But when their eyes fell on the Skeleton Shooter-1 Type phalanx, their jaws dropped.

'What is this?'

'What the hell is this?'

'Steampunk Undead?'

'The Mechanical Undead from 40k? Necrons?'

"Boss, this can't be real, can it?" Liu Xingxing couldn't believe his eyes. He rubbed them, swallowed hard, and asked with difficulty.

"Let me introduce them. The phalanx on the far left is the Black Knights, the one in the middle is the Skeleton Knights, and the one on the far right is the masterpiece from my long seclusion—the Skeleton Shooter-1 Type phalanx!" Li Ziyu said, pointing to each phalanx as he introduced them to the two, his voice filled with pride.

In the Undead Combat Sequence, the Black Knights and Skeleton Knights were core units with terrifying combat strength. As for the Skeleton Shooter-1 Type, its Weapon was extremely powerful, but its true combat effectiveness had yet to be tested. Still, its appearance alone was incredibly intimidating.

Liu Xingxing and Zhang Peng exchanged a glance, each seeing the same disbelief in the other's eyes. 'No wonder the boss went into seclusion. So this is what he was up to.'

Smacking his lips, Liu Xingxing suddenly found something to poke fun at. He looked back at the Skeleton Knight phalanx in the center, glancing left and right. He even craned his neck to peer behind their formation before finally turning his gaze to Li Ziyu.

"What is it?" Li Ziyu asked.

"Boss, these are Skeleton Knights, right?" Liu Xingxing asked, pointing at their phalanx.

"That's right." Li Ziyu glanced over and nodded.

"Shouldn't Knights have horses? So where are they?" Liu Xingxing said. "Boss, you can't pull a fast one on me. This is clearly just a bunch of infantry."

'It's because I haven't bloody researched mounts yet!'

Li Ziyu thought to himself, scratching his head in embarrassment. He waved a dismissive hand. "They're Skeleton Knights. Don't get so hung up on the details."

'A "detail"?'

'What kind of combat power can a Knight possibly have without a horse? He's totally trying to pull a fast one!'

'Just because you think I'm ignorant doesn't mean you can be this shameless about it!'

Seeing that Li Ziyu was growing angry from the embarrassment of being exposed by Liu Xingxing, Zhang Peng quickly stepped in to smooth things over and change the subject. "These Warriors all look very powerful, Boss. You didn't call us back just to show them off, did you? What's this all about?"

Zhang Peng's words immediately shifted both Liu Xingxing's and Li Ziyu's attention. Liu Xingxing quickly chimed in, "Yeah, Boss! What did you really call us back for?"

Li Ziyu grinned slyly. "Of course I called you back for something good! I've been focused on climbing the tech tree lately and haven't had time to go out, so I was hoping you could do me a favor!"

"Whoa, since when is 'doing a favor' considered a good thing? Boss, you're sounding more and more like a capitalist!" Liu Xingxing cried out.

Zhang Peng smacked Liu Xingxing on the back of his head. The guy really didn't know when to shut up. Every word out of his mouth was designed to get a rise out of someone. He'd gone to all that trouble to change the subject, and it was like Liu Xingxing wouldn't be happy until he'd truly angered Li Ziyu.

"But it's true," Liu Xingxing muttered under his breath, rubbing his head.

"Ahem." Li Ziyu pretended not to have heard Liu Xingxing, clearing his throat twice before continuing, "I'd like you to help me test their combat capabilities."

"Huh?!" Liu Xingxing and Zhang Peng exclaimed in unison, staring at Li Ziyu.

"No need to look so surprised, I'm serious," Li Ziyu said with a shrug. "I need to keep climbing the tech tree and really don't have time to go out and get into trouble. That's why the task of testing their capabilities has to be left to you."

"Oh, that's great! No problem, leave it to me!" Liu Xingxing cried out, rubbing his hands together as his eyes lit up.

He had just been eyeing the three phalanxes with envy. Although his greatest hobby was treasure hunting, after spending so much time in this Otherworld and experiencing so much, he understood the importance of military might. Without a powerful force for protection, even treasure hunting was a terrifying ordeal.

An astute glint flashed in Zhang Peng's eyes. He had been worrying about how to deal with the increasingly active robbers and bandits, but now it seemed he wouldn't have to. He could use this opportunity to test the units' combat power to wipe out those very same robbers and bandits. Not only would that eliminate a potential threat, but he could also score a nice pile of resources in the process.

'A man can't get rich without a windfall, just as a horse can't get fat without extra fodder. A business with no upfront costs is the most profitable kind!'

Seeing their excited expressions, Li Ziyu got straight to the point. "Fifty Skeleton Shooter-1 Types for each of you, and twenty Black Knights each to act as guards. I'll grant you temporary command authority, so don't worry."

The numbers were a bit small, but free stuff was always welcome.

"Boss, what about the Skeleton Knights?" Liu Xingxing asked quickly, seeing that the Black Knights and Skeleton Shooter-1 Types had been allocated.

"We won't be testing the Skeleton Knights for now," Li Ziyu said, waving his hand dismissively. "Testing the Skeleton Shooters and Black Knights will be enough."