The Divine Armor of the Old Century（Book 1）

Chapter 96

Countless shackles bound the broken body, much like a saint nailed to the stage. Accompanying the mechanical cutting, a nearby injector released cleansing fluid, keeping the incision on the holy silver clean and clear.

Maxwell pulled out the data from his previous examination and began explaining it to Nicola, bit by bit.

"Stronger muscles, sturdier bones—it seems all related to that mysterious ichor... You could say they are an optimized version of regular humans."

"Like some damned super-soldier biological experiment?"

There was no so-called divinity; Nicola used terms he could understand to explain the power of the demon hunters. Maxwell pondered for a moment, then nodded affirmatively.

"You're not wrong. Based on our current intel, we know the ichor is extracted by demons through a process called alchemy. Comparatively, the ichor is like some sort of super-soldier serum."

"But clearly, this stuff is far more powerful than any super-soldier serum we know of."

Nicola gently caressed the surface of the holy silver. After Ed surpassed his critical threshold, the binding silver bolt within him had completely melted, scorching his organs with molten holy silver, which ultimately formed a silver coffin that sealed the ichor within his body.

"Where did this holy silver come from?"

Nicola noticed the metal extended directly from Ed's body, as if someone had poured liquid holy silver into him through his mouth.

"From within him."

"Within him?"

"Yes, according to the Scavengers' report, when they retrieved the demon hunter's body, the holy silver was in a liquid state, continuously flowing out of his flesh."

Maxwell placed the Scavengers' report aside as he spoke.

"The holy silver coexisted with the ichor in the same body. We roughly speculate this is a restraint device. Like our ancient sacred armor, demon hunters also have the potential to go berserk. Once they do, this restraint activates, destroying them from the inside."

Maxwell gazed at the now unrecognizable corpse, already envisioning the horrific manner of the demon hunter's death. Molten holy silver released from within, burning everything inside, while the powerful vitality from the ichor kept him alive for a time, unable to live or die, dying slowly in excruciating pain.

Nicola hadn't expected such a result. He initially thought this demon hunter was killed by a weapon forged of holy silver, not by his own body.

"Did you extract the ichor?"

"The holy silver has solidified his organs into silver blocks. The blood within is likely mixed with the metal."

Maxwell shared his hypothesis.

"This seems to be a confidentiality measure of the demon hunter organization. The molten holy silver destroys the demon hunter from the inside. Even if the ichor survives, it's mixed with the metal. They must have a special extraction technique to separate it, which we don't know."

"Is that so?"

Nicola felt a headache coming on. The Purification Agency had long tried to replicate the ichor technology, but failed. Now, with a demon hunter's body in their hands, they lacked the key to unlock this treasure.

The cutter began to descend, its rapidly spinning blade slicing through the solid holy silver. The dark gap widened, like opening an ominous door, with a strange power seeping out.

"Report the Geiger index."

Nicola watched the cutting process, needing to extract a part to try refining and separating it, attempting to replicate the ichor.

"Geiger index stable."

The control room responded to Nicola's query. In a sense, they were dissecting a demon, an extremely dangerous one.

The entire piece of holy silver was cut away, revealing a cross-section seemingly gnawed by some insect, with black viscous liquid slowly dripping from the tiny holes. It wasn't human blood, exuding an eerie sensation that merely looking at it evoked an indescribable revulsion. Suddenly, the surrounding indicator lights turned crimson, and a piercing alarm sounded within the protective suits.

"Geiger index fluctuating, rising, everyone evacuate the test area!"

The urgent voice from the control room prompted those around the operating table to set down their instruments and begin an orderly retreat. But Nicola remained unmoved, watching the dripping liquid, suppressing the bizarre fear, and attempted to catch it with a nearby test tube, only to be stopped by Maxwell.

"Evacuate, Nicola, this damned thing is contaminated!"

Before he finished speaking, low-temperature gas surged from the pipes, and the soldiers outside the glass walls were fully prepared, raising their firearms.

Nicola said nothing more, casting a deep glance at Ed's body before evacuating with Maxwell. Subsequently, the entire Test Site No. 3 was sealed. Time passed slowly, but Ed's body showed no change.

"Looks like we solved another problem."

Maxwell removed his heavy helmet, his gaze cold as he looked at the operating table covered in freezing gas.

"What do you mean?"

Nicola asked, knowing Maxwell's research focused more on demons than his own.

"I've been wondering why the Geiger counter couldn't detect the presence of demon hunters. They have ichor flowing within them, which should trigger the Geiger counter upon contact. But from what we saw with that demon hunter Lloyd, it didn't."

Maxwell explained to Nicola.

"I suspect demon hunters have something to block the ichor's contamination, keeping it confined within them. That substance seems to be holy silver. Before we cut the holy silver, the Geiger index was stable. Once cut, that eerie stuff emerged, and the index rose."

"Holy silver isolates contamination." Nicola stated the conclusion.

"That appears to be the case, but we need more experiments." Maxwell observed the Geiger index stabilizing. Once completely stable, they could continue the experiment, though this time everyone was truly exposed to contamination.

"In fact, I think our experiment progress could be faster."

After a while, the silent Maxwell suddenly spoke.

"What do you mean?"

Nicola didn't understand. The demon hunter's body was a rare sample worth celebrating. But then Nicola seemed to think of something surprising and said:

"I don't think Arthur would agree. The Purification Agency has been negotiating with that demon hunter for some time."

"But with sufficient benefits, I believe that demon hunter would help us."

Maxwell was extremely confident in this regard.

"Moreover, we need the help of that demon hunter for the development of the ancient sacred armor. In the past half-month, six test drivers have been sent to the neural rehabilitation center."

Maxwell smiled.

They needed ichor technology, various strange knowledge, and even a pilot capable of enduring the erosion. These problems could essentially be solved by one person. There was no need to fixate on this demon hunter's body. After all, somewhere in Old Dunling, there was a lively demon hunter.

Lloyd stretched as he woke up, looking at the ceiling plastered with posters. He decided to try the dish from the restaurant poster he saw first thing this morning.

Stargazy pie? What on earth?

Lloyd sneezed, looking at the frost-covered window. Winter had arrived.