The sky bridge was silent, save for the frantic scratching of the winged creatures against the newly formed barricade. Elias leaned against the cool marble wall, his mind racing. He had 35 SE left. He needed to replenish his stock, and fast.
"Kevin," Elias said, his voice cutting through the tension. "Your System is for fighting. My System is for building. Right now, we need to build. That means we need materials."
Kevin, still breathing heavily, nodded eagerly. "Just tell me what to hit, Vance. I can smash anything."
Elias pulled up his System screen and accessed the [Resource Management] tab. He needed to understand the material conversion rate.
[Material Conversion Rate (Tier 1)]
• Reinforced Concrete: 1 unit of raw concrete = 1 unit of Reinforced Concrete (Grade 4).
• Structural Steel: 1 unit of raw steel = 1 unit of Structural Steel (I-Beam).
• Office Furniture (Mixed): 1 unit of raw furniture = 1 unit of Office Furniture (Mixed).
• Glass (Double-Pane): 1 unit of raw glass = 1 unit of Glass (Double-Pane).
• System Energy (SE): 1 unit of raw material requires 0.1 SE to convert.
"We're in a sky bridge, Kevin. Lots of glass, lots of steel, and lots of decorative marble. We need the steel and the concrete. The glass is too fragile for a main structure."
Elias pointed to a heavy, decorative steel railing that ran along the edge of the walkway. "That railing. It's structural steel. Smash it into manageable pieces. The System will absorb the raw material."
Kevin grinned, his energy blade flaring to life. He swung the blade, and the steel railing shrieked as it was cleanly sliced into three large sections.
[Raw Material Detected: Structural Steel (Raw). Quantity: 15 units.]
Convert to System Material? (Y/N)
"Convert," Elias commanded.
The raw steel didn't disappear. Instead, a faint blue glow enveloped the pieces, and they shrunk slightly, becoming denser and more uniform. The System deducted 1.5 SE (15 units * 0.1 SE) and added the material to his inventory.
[Structural Steel (I-Beam): 160 units]
System Energy (SE): 33.5/100
"Good. Now the marble planters. They're concrete," Elias instructed, pointing to a row of large, heavy planters.
Kevin attacked the planters with gusto, his blade shattering the marble and concrete into chunks.
[Raw Material Detected: Reinforced Concrete (Raw). Quantity: 40 units.]
Convert to System Material? (Y/N)
"Convert."
[Reinforced Concrete (Grade 4): 525 units]
System Energy (SE): 29.5/100
Elias felt a surge of satisfaction. This was his strength. While others were focused on killing, he was focused on **resource management**. He was turning the debris of the old world into the building blocks of his new one.
"We need to move, Kevin. The barricade won't hold forever, and we've made too much noise," Elias said, checking the floor plan. "We're going to the adjacent tower. We need to find a secure location, a place where we can rest and let my System Energy regenerate."
He led Kevin to the far end of the sky bridge, where a heavy, fire-rated door led into the new tower.
"This door is too thick for your blade, Kevin. But not for my Blueprint."
Elias placed his hand on the door. He didn't want to reinforce it; he wanted to *open* it.
"System, Blueprint Generation. Structure Type: Door Bypass."
[Blueprint Generated: Mechanical Bypass (Tier 1)]
Required Materials:
• Structural Steel: 1 unit
• Office Furniture (Mixed): 5 units
• System Energy (SE): 10
Function: Creates a temporary structural weakness in the locking mechanism, allowing manual override.
He executed the Blueprint. The System Energy flowed into the door, not hardening it, but subtly weakening the internal locking pins. With a sharp, metallic *click*, the heavy door unlocked.
"After you, Kevin. And be quiet. We're entering a new territory."
Elias followed Kevin into the dark, silent tower. He had successfully harvested materials, replenished his stock, and secured a path forward. The Architect was moving from survival to strategy.