Chapter Sixty-One: Gear City

Of course, Chu Cheng never truly intended to settle in Gear City—progress there was all but impossible. The information he had gathered before entering the instance made no mention of how to attain Revered reputation with Gear City. The data outlined methods for gaining reputation, but only up to Honored; beyond that, the path to Revered was nonexistent. It wasn’t a matter of incomplete information, but rather the limitations of the environment: an individual simply could not reach Revered status in Gear City.

Gear City was ruled by goblins, who excelled in the field of engineering. The entire city was a massive feat of engineering, and to make a name for oneself there, one had to study engineering—specifically, goblin engineering. Non-goblin engineering yielded negligible reputation gains for completing tasks, whereas those who mastered goblin engineering received a 50% reputation bonus.

Moreover, goblin engineering was extraordinarily expensive to learn; the tools and machinery required cost a fortune, making it unattainable for most. To reach Revered reputation within three months, one would need to spend vast sums of money, and only had one shot—after all, engineering could only be learned once.

Chu Cheng didn’t even have a single gold coin on him, and thus lacked the means to begin learning. His plan was to head toward Gear City, shake off Sun Yu’s team, and then circle back to pursue other opportunities.

He followed the Blackwater River downstream, focused solely on his journey, paying no mind to whether anyone trailed behind. From morning until afternoon, he ran without pause, snacking on dry rations when hungry, and pressed on even after nightfall.

The Golden Wasteland was a vast grassland, reminiscent of the African savannah—rich in vegetation, with water sources neither abundant nor scarce, and teeming with diverse wildlife. Along the way, he often encountered the beasts of the plains: ostrich-like landstriders, wild boar in small herds, hulking gray bears, packs of gray wolves, herds of antelope and zebra, horned cattle by the hundreds or thousands—prey for lions, raptors, and other predators, as well as for various non-human races.

The Blackwater River itself, over a thousand meters wide, ran deep and was home to countless crocodiles, snapping turtles, and ferocious fish. He saw no sign of murlocs, though the instance did include them—they simply dwelled near the coast by Gear City, rather than in the river.

It took Chu Cheng an entire day to cross the grasslands and enter the territory controlled by Gear City.

At the roadside stood a goblin checkpoint, its tall stone gate adorned with a sign reading “Keen Commercial Company.” That’s right, a company.

Within the Chaos Domain, the goblin race was split into two distinct groups. One was the common goblins, including earth goblins, little goblins, bear goblins, and other branches. These wild goblins usually existed as monsters or hostile non-humans. The other group was the engineering goblins, whose intelligence far surpassed their kin and who possessed advanced engineering skills. They specialized in trade, remained strictly neutral, and their commercial empire spanned most of the realms, making them extremely powerful.

The goblins in this instance were engineering goblins—also known as techno-goblins. Numerous engineering goblin companies gathered here to establish Gear City. Keen Commercial Company was among the largest.

Chu Cheng arrived at the company outpost, where all the goblins appeared as neutral yellow-named NPCs in his eyes.

Outside the gate squatted two exoskeleton suits, each about two and a half meters tall, powered by steam. Their chest compartments were open, and two goblin pilots lounged on their armored shoulders, chatting idly. When they spotted Chu Cheng approaching, the pilots swiftly slid into the cockpits, the hatches clamped shut, and with a rush of steam from the rear, the towering suits stood to attention, their gear-saws whirring menacingly. A sharp voice rang out:

“Human, state your business!”

Chu Cheng immediately raised his hands and replied, “I’ve heard Gear City is an engineering marvel. I’m very curious and wish to see it for myself.”

“You have excellent taste!” The shrill voice softened noticeably. “You may proceed, but you must abide by Gear City’s laws.”

He quickly responded, “Of course!”

Having received permission, Chu Cheng waved, passing between the two steam-powered suits. He couldn’t help but marvel at the machines, his awe entirely genuine. It wasn’t flattery—he truly was impressed by goblin technology.

Within the Chaos Domain, the rules restricted the development of high technology as it existed on Earth. Yet goblins, through their devotion to engineering, had developed a unique technological system of their own—one path driven by steam power, and another by magic runes. It was said that all techno-goblins across the Chaos Domain were united, divided by realms but always in contact.

For example, Gear City in the Golden Wasteland instance might be confined to this realm, but its information was in no way isolated. The goblins could communicate with their kin in other realms through their own technological means.

There were even rumors that the techno-goblins of Gear City had found ways to cross between realms, to communicate with, and perhaps even enter, other domains.

Normally, inter-realm travel was the privilege of legendary-class powerhouses—those who’d reached level seventy or above and ascended to legend, able to pierce the crystalline boundaries between realms by sheer might. Mages were the exception; upon reaching level fifty and ascending to the extraordinary rank, they too could achieve this feat.

Beyond the checkpoint, the road became much easier. The highway was wide and well-maintained, and there were even streetlights along the way. No longer were the roads flanked by wilderness, but by cultivated farmland. Every so often, a village appeared. The goblins who farmed these lands didn’t toil by hand; instead, they employed various engineering machines of astonishing sophistication. With only a handful of goblins and some machinery, vast fields could be tended—the efficiency was remarkable.

Not until the following afternoon did Chu Cheng arrive near Gear City. After passing through another checkpoint, he finally stood before the city itself and beheld its full, fantastical, technological splendor.

Gear City was built upon the flat sands of the seaside. Its towering walls bristled with all manner of war machines and weapons. To the south stretched the boundless blue sea, with ships faintly visible at the harbor.

Glancing back, Chu Cheng even waved on purpose before striding into the city. Though he saw nothing, he knew someone had been tailing him the entire way.

Since unlocking his golden-finger ability, his perception stat had increased by one per level, making it quite high. Normally, most people didn’t invest in perception, so their scores were average at best. His perception of thirty-nine was exceptional; after a day and a half, it was impossible for him not to notice someone dogging his steps.

“He’s spotted me.”

Not far from Gear City, by the roadside, Xu Zhiyuan waited until Sun Yu’s group caught up. His first words were simply, “He’s noticed me.”

But Sun Yu paid it no mind. Gazing up at the towering Gear City, he pondered for a moment before asking, “If I recall, there’s not much of value in Gear City, is there?”

Pan Yue nodded. “There are quite a few good things, but the reputation system in Gear City is incomplete. You can’t reach Revered status, so the best items are unattainable.”

Sun Yu laughed. “In that case, Chu Cheng can’t accomplish anything here, and there’s nothing for him to gain. He won’t stay long.

“Come, let’s keep following and see how long he lasts.”