Ground Stars / 地上星 · Ch.110 第110章 暗野上的交易 -1
第110章 暗野上的交易 –1
Chapter 110: Deals on the Dark Frontier – 1
枢纽镇，刚从自己城市回来的逐银站在黄铜打字机前。
In Hubville, Ju Yin Chase, who had just returned from his own city, stood before a brass typewriter.
身旁椅子上，盯著几排突屏萤幕的雇员打著哈欠道：
A clerk in a chair nearby, staring at several rows of display screens, yawned and said:
「副镇，这次的月末你们城市没什么损失吧。」
“Futown, no major losses for your city this month-end, eh?”
逐银的手上拿著类似报纸的新闻纸，随意嗯了声，边看边回应道：
Ju Yin Chase held a paper akin to a newspaper in his hand, nonchalantly humming in acknowledgment, and replied while scanning the text:
「还好，新人都挺安顿的。」
“Not bad, the newcomers are settling in fairly well.”
纸张上纤细的字体记载著最近发生的想突发新闻，这已经是上礼拜的事情了。
The fine typewriting on the paper chronicled recent breaking news—this already being news from last week.
能够成为突发新闻的，只有在失频之地上偶然出现，或是影响力巨大的新闻，比如之前突然诞生数公里的幕景地，以及幕景地中的月影级怪物。
What qualifies as breaking news is either the rare events that occur on the Shibin Wastes or those with massive impact, such as the sudden appearance of a curtain of darkness stretching several kilometers kilometers, along with the moon-shadow-grade monster that emerged from it.
现在，他看的是已经通过心灵连结所知晓的事情。
Now, he was reading about an event already known through mental linkages.
——鹤园筑货队研制出新的元素型蛋米酥，一块就可以提供大人物们整日的热量消耗。
—The Cargo Crew of the Crane Garden Fort had developed a new element-based crispy egg-rice snack; just one piece could supply a big shot’s daily caloric expenditure.
「不错的东西，这种蛋米酥你们可以定购点。」
“Not bad stuff. You folks can place an order for that egg-rice snack.”
旁边的值班雇员点点头。
The clerk on duty nodded nearby.
逐银的目光从已经列印出来好几天的字迹上划过，落到最后那行两行字迹上。
Jy Yin Chase’s eyes traced the printed lines several days old before landing on the very last two rows.
——名盗时迁一夜间盗走十个大聚集地棚主们的内裤，意图不明。
—The notorious thief Shi Qian made off in a single night with the underpants of ten Penglords from the city-ruins, his motive unknown.
「哼，这家伙想要出名的企图也太明显了。」
“Hmph, this guy’s desperate attempt to make a name for himself is all too obvious.”
目光继续下移。
His gaze continued downward.
——玫瑰溪造出新的高效织布机，以后玫瑰溪的大人物们有更多漂漂衣服穿了。
——Rose Creek built a new high-efficiency loom; from now on, the bigwigs of Rose Creek will have plenty more fancy clothes to wear.
——佐罗在南部荒区，孤身一骑闯入当地著名土匪巢穴并剿灭，救下了几名被掳走的大人物。
——Zorro single-handedly rode into a notorious bandit stronghold in the Southern Wasteland, annihilated it, and rescued several kidnapped big shots.
——甲子间与新人洛宾覆灭荒车大货队超过半数有生力量，除首领及几位弱小众货队主外的237人被剿灭，逃生18人。
——Jiazi Term and newcomer Robin Lo destroyed over half of the combat strength of the Desert Wagon Big Cargo Crew; aside from the leader and a few weak core members, 237 were wiped out, and only 18 escaped.
看到这里，逐银的目光顿了下。
Seeing this, Ju Yin Chase paused for a moment.
「厉害。」 男人念叨了句。
“Impressive.” The man murmured.
荒车大货队被灭已是他已经第一时间就知晓的资讯。 但此刻见到这新闻纸上前几次的简短突发事件描述，依旧感觉到震撼。
The destruction of the Desert Wagon Big Cargo Crew was information he already knew firsthand. But seeing these brief, on-the-spot descriptions in the newsprint for the first time still struck him with a sense of awe.
那家伙才去失频之地多久，就覆灭了臭名昭著的荒车大货队。
How long has that guy been in Shibin Wastes? And yet he’s already wiped out the notorious Desert Wagon Big Cargo Crew.
要知道，平时那个货队都隐藏自己的身份分散各处。想要一举捣灭，不光要知晓对方具体人数分布，还要想办法将这些人给尽数钓出来，再准备能覆灭掉对方的强大力量。而那种覆灭两三百恶徒的人员调度，在失频之地上不可能瞒过拥有各种奇怪能力的人。
You see, normally that Cargo Crew would conceal their identities and scatter across various locations. To wipe them out in one fell swoop, one not only had to know the exact distribution of their members but also find a way to lure them all out, and then prepare a formidable force capable of destroying them. And such a deployment of manpower to annihilate two to three hundred thugs couldn’t possibly escape the notice of those with bizarre abilities on the Shibin Wastes.
这样的数百人的对决，走漏消息的后果就是可能带来更大的混战。因此失频之地上，即便有充满正义感的大棚主，他们想要做到这件事，也极不容易，可能自己一出去，老巢立马就被别的大棚给端了。
In a confrontation involving hundreds of people, a leak of information could lead to an even greater chaotic battle. Therefore, on the Shibin Wastes, even righteous Great Penglords found it extremely difficult to pull off such a feat. They might step out and immediately have their own strongholds raided by other greenhouses.
而杨子藏，仅仅在得到消息的数小时内就赶到了荒车大货队集结之地，以仅区区数人之力，剿灭了这游荡在失频之地上的毒瘤，不可谓不强。
Yet Yang Zicang—merely hours after receiving the intel, he arrived at the gathering place of the wild cargo “Cargo Crew.” With just a handful of people, he crushed this malignant tumor roaming the Shibin Wastes. One must admit, he was nothing short of formidable.
逐银沉思了下，真可惜这杨子藏不是自己城市的人，否则可以加入自己的队伍，到时不管是在城市还是在枢纽镇，都是一大助力。
Ju Yin Chase pondered for a moment, lamenting what a pity it was that this Yang Zicang wasn’t from his own city. Otherwise, he could join his team, and whether in the city or in Hubville, he’d be a tremendous asset.
「只希望你这家伙…算了，已经没戏了。」
“Just hope this guy… forget it, it’s already hopeless.”
他念叨了句后，正要放下报纸，黄铜打字机的按键忽地咔咔不断自动按下。键盘快速弹跳，纸张左右滑动往上冒出，一行新的字迹出现。
After muttering this, as he was about to set down the newspaper, the keys of the brass typewriter suddenly began clicking and pressing down on their own, one after another. The keyboard bounced rapidly, the paper slid left and right as it fed upward, and a new line of text emerged.
逐银转头看去，上方的字迹缓缓出现。
Ju Yin Chase turned to look, and above him, the text slowly emerged.
——震撼，鉴于上月诞生诸多突发事件，主编将派遣其代表前来失频之地，探访影响力不断爆发的活力来源。
—Shock. Given the multitude of unexpected events last month, the Chief Editor will dispatch a representative to the Shibin Wastes to investigate the source of vitality that has been continuously erupting in influence.
「主编？」逐银的眉头搅在一起。
“Chief Editor?” Ju Yin Chase’s brow furrowed tightly.
「副镇长，这主编是谁啊？」
“Futown Chief, who exactly is this Chief Editor?”
房间内注意到这行字的人看过来道。
One of the people in the room who noticed the line of text looked over and asked.
「是啊，从来没听说过，那些小家伙们还有主编吗。」
“Yeah, we’ve never heard of it. Do those little guys even have a chief editor?”
逐银沉迟疑：「我也不清楚。」
Ju Yin Chase hesitated: “I’m not sure either.”
一道折线射来。
A streak of light shot through the air.
｛逐银老大，求帮忙。｝
{Boss Ju Yin Chase, please help.}
没多久逐银直接出现在了这些找他的人所在的位置。
Before long, Ju Yin Chase appeared directly where those who had called for his help were staying.
瞧见突然出现在十几米外的副镇长身影，这四位正有些焦急的人先是一惊，随后想到些什么的他们赶紧迎了上去。
Seeing the Futown Chief suddenly appear dozens of meters away, the four somewhat anxious individuals were first startled. Then, recalling something, they hurriedly stepped forward.
「副镇你好，这么晚还麻烦您亲自前来，真是不好意思。」
“Hello, Futown. Sorry for troubling you to come in person so late at night; we feel bad about this.”
「没事，反正只要在镇子内，对我来说就是迈几步而已。好了，你们什么情况？」
“No problem. As long as it’s within town, it’s only a few steps for me. So, what’s going on with you all?”
身前几人属于排名二十左右的一个城市的队伍，此刻这他们脸上都露出些烦闷情绪。
The men before him belonged to an expedition from a city ranked around 20th. At that moment, all of their faces were tinged with annoyance and worry.
「之前我们有个队员被人请去稳定A级区域，地貌聚合发生之后，突然诞生的大片地形中出现了精神幻境，跟他们预想的与怪物战斗完全不同。反正，现在他们应该已经去到失频之地了，就是不知道还活着没有。」
“One of our members was previously hired to stabilize an A-class zone. After the terrain convergence occurred, a spiritual illusion emerged in the vast stretch of newly formed land—completely different from what they expected of fighting monsters. Anyway, they should have made it to the Shibin Wastes by now, though who knows if they’re still alive.”
「我们想请镇长帮忙，看能不能找到我们的队员。」废墟风暴团的副队长乔明说道。
“We’d like to ask for your help, Town Chief, to see if you can track down our member,” said Joe Ming, the deputy captain of the Ruins Storm Crew.
逐银鼻子里狠出了两道气，他抬起插在包里的手道：
Ju Yin Chase let out two harsh snorts through his nose, raising the hand tucked into his bag as he said:
「喂喂，几位兄弟，我想你们也应该知道的。一，哪怕我在失频之地里的那些朋友们真的找到那处失频的交错空间，二，哪怕你们的那位队员和那些请他帮忙的人都还活着…」
“Hey hey, brothers, I think you should already know this. One—even if my connections in the Shibin Wastes really do find that Crosspace where the frequency went dark. Two—even if your member and those who hired him for help are still alive…”
逐银举着两根手指：
Ju Yin Chase raised two fingers:
「…他们也难以回到你们的城市了，不是吗。」
“…they still can’t return to your city, can they?”
四人中的那名女孩道：
The girl among the four spoke up:
「只要还活着，至少我们在失频之地算是有个自己人了，以后万一凑够租铺面的时序，也有人给我们供货嘛，哈哈。」
“As long as they’re alive, at least we’ll have someone on the inside in the Shibin Wastes. If we ever scrape together enough Chronos to rent a shopfront, there’ll be someone to supply us, haha.”
瞧她笑得挺尬，逐银脸上露出个假笑。
Seeing how forced her laughter was, Ju Yin Chase plastered a fake smile on his face.
「事情不说透，我可没办法帮你们。」
“If you don’t lay it all out, I can’t help you.”
四人互相看了眼，前面那男士无奈的道：
The four exchanged glances, and the man in front spoke with resignation:
「那我们就实话实话了，首先我们将这个交错地的情报白送给逐银副镇长你，这次的失频之地内或许有念力相关的东西或者能力诞生。」
“Then we’ll be straightforward with you. First, we’ll give you this intelligence on the Crossroads for free, Chief Ju Yin ChaseFutown: there might be telepathy-related items or abilities emerging within the Shibin Wastes this time.”
当乔明提到精神系的攻击时，逐银已经有猜测了。
When Qiao Ming mentioned mental-based attacks, Ju Yin Chase had already suspected it.
只要有跟精神攻击、幻境相关的能力出现，那处交错空间要么有此能力的怪物或植物，要么有有相关物品。
Whenever abilities related to mental attacks or illusions appear, that Crosspace either harbors monsters or plants with such powers, or contains related items.
若是物品则有非常大的价值，其次是植物。
If it’s an item, it holds immense value, followed by plants.
最令人遗憾的情况是精神攻击能力来自于怪物——死去的怪物除了炼制异界魔阵与魔药，几乎没什么能用得上的地方，但大多数情况都是遇到怪物而已。
The most regrettable scenario is when the mental attack ability comes from a monster—deceased monsters, aside from refining otherworld matrices and potions, are almost useless for anything else. Yet in most cases, it’s merely encountering monsters.
至于炼制魔阵甚至魔药，这儿没人做得出来。
As for refining matrices or even potions, no one here can do that.
「是你们的队友带了什么好东西进去对吧？」
“Your teammates brought something valuable in there, didn’t they?”
「呃……」
“Uh…”
「没错，是把尖锥形的剑，唉，薛老二那家伙把一柄时序80N的战器带进去准备对付里面的变异生物，结果就是，嗯，那这了。」
“That’s right, it’s a sword shaped like a sharp cone. Alas, that guy Xue the Second brought a Chronos80N battle-grade weapon in to deal with the mutated creatures inside. The result is, well, it ended up there.”
逐银呵了声。
Ju Yin Chase let out a chuckle.
以为是怪物型的战斗幕景，在地貌聚合后出现了精神系攻击，的确够悲催的。
Expecting a monster-type battle scene, then a mental attack emerges after the landscape convergence—truly a painful twist of fate.
「OK，你们打算付出多大的代价来捞回那把武器？」逐银道。
“OK, how much are you willing to pay to retrieve that weapon?” Ju Yin Chase said.
乔明几人有些尴尬。
Qiao Ming and the others looked somewhat embarrassed.
「我们，我们没有那么多时序，所以，我们打算用三万时序外加三把四十年左右的时序战器换回那把武器。」
“We, we don’t have that many Chronos, so we plan to exchange three thousand Chronos plus three Chronos weapons, each about forty years old, for that weapon.”
逐银露出不怀好意的笑容道：「你觉得可能吗？」
Ju Yin Chase flashed a malicious smile and said, “Do you think that’s possible?”
「我们已经免费送上了关于念力的情报，这个本就价值不菲。」一人急道。
“We’ve already offered information about psychokinesis for free. That alone is worth a lot.” One person said anxiously.
「噢，我都忘了，哈哈，不好意思。那就这样吧，我尽力找找。但是！如果你们的队友还活着且不愿意交出武器的话，我也没办法。」
“Oh, I forgot, haha, my apologies. Well then, let me see, I’ll try my best to look into it. But! If your teammate is still alive and unwilling to hand over the weapon, there’s nothing I can do.”
……
阴云天色下，左非闲上下打量着抱着手臂昂然挺胸扬着下巴的矮子。
Under the gloomy clouds, Zuo Feixian looked up and down at the short fellow, who stood with his arms crossed, chest puffed out, and chin raised high.
他比划对方的身高后，将手横在胸前：
After gesturing to the other’s height, he held his hand flat across his chest:
「你才到我这儿，你真的是…高手？」
“You only come up to here… Are you really that… powerful?”
「当然，我是拥有绝技的大高手。」
“Of course, I’m a top-tier master with a unique skill.”
梁喜将脚一踢，插在地上的木棍嗡地旋转着飞起，被小少年一把抓在手上。
Liang Xi kicked the ground, and the wooden stick stuck in the dirt flew up with a buzzing spin before the young boy caught it firmly in his hand.
轰！
Boom!
木棍燃起火焰的红色，随后这火焰附带上了金光。
The wooden stick ignited with a red flame, and then the flame took on a golden glow.
「喝啊！」
“Hah!”
他将手中木棒舞得虎虎生威，火焰呼呼晃动，看得帐篷前几人瞪大双眼。
He swung the wooden stick with such ferocity and force that the flames whooshed and danced wildly, making the few people standing in front of the tent stare wide-eyed.
「我记得，这一招甲子哥也会。」
“I remember this move—Brother Jiazi knows it too.”
「你们都会吗？我们能不能学啊。」几人羡慕的看着少年。
“Can you all do it? Could we learn it too?” The few people watched the boy with envy in their eyes.
杨子藏从远方的林间与麦田边缘走来：
Yang Zicang approached from the edge of the distant woods and wheat fields:
「当然，让他过来就是教你们这些的，另外，梁喜，你也要学其它的秘技。」
“Of course, I’m having him come here to teach you all these things. Also, Liang Xi, you’ll need to learn other secret techniques too.”
梁喜一听就耷拉着脑袋。
Liang Xi’s head drooped upon hearing this.
「还有，你上中学几年级了，文化课也不能落下。」杨子藏道。
“And another thing, what grade are you in? You can’t neglect your cultural studies.” Yang Zicang said.
「什，什么？！」
“Wha… What?!”
这句话对梁喜来说犹如晴天霹雳。
These words struck Liang Xi like a bolt from the blue.
「嘿嘿嘿。」
“Hehehe.”
人群后方和人做着模具的陈老师听到这话，站起身推了推眼镜。
From behind the crowd, Professor Chen, who was making molds with others, stood up and pushed up his glasses upon hearing this.
「我老师可是教授级别的人物，杨子藏，这小鬼头以后就交给我们了。」
“My teacher is at the professorial level. Yang Zicang, this little rascal will be under our charge from now on.”
小刘暗喜，他没想到自己在这边混了这么久，还能多个师弟。
Xiao Liu secretly rejoiced, never expecting that after hanging around here so long, he’d gain a junior apprentice.
梁喜神色恐惧的抬起头：
Liang Xi looked up with a terrified expression:
「哥，我能回去吗？我不想待在这里了。」
“Bro, can I go back? I don’t want to stay here anymore.”
「不行！」
“No way!”
杨子藏对着左非闲招了招手，两人走入隔壁的帐篷。
Yang Zicang waved at Zuo Feixian, and the two walked into the neighboring tent.
「这两天这些帐篷没有变成恶魇的征兆吧。」
“There have been no signs of these tents turning into nightmare fiends these past two days, right?”
「没有，大家都有Moexl，造出的物品诞生恶魇的时间很长，几个月甚至一年才有征兆。」
“No, none. With Moxel, it takes a long time for items we create to spawn nightmare fiends—several months, or even a year, before there’s any sign.”
换了身休闲外套的青年坐到凳子上，将一份笔记拿出来。
The young man, now in a casual jacket, sat down on a stool and took out a notebook.
「那就好，这边的情况以后你多注意一下。」
“That’s a relief. Keep an eye on things here from now on.”
只要没有普通人，恶魇诞生的速度就会拉长很多，从出现征兆就开始应对，一般问题都不大，除非一直没察觉。
As long as there are no ordinary people around, the emergence of nightmares stretches out much longer; if we start responding as soon as signs appear, there’s usually no major problem—unless we fail to notice them altogether.
「放心好咯，在这边嘛，那些木棚好几个月甚至一年才会拆了重新修一遍，咱们这些棚子才立起来几天啊，老甲你不用担心。」
“Don’t worry, around here, those wooden sheds are only torn down and rebuilt every few months or even once a year. Our shed has only been standing for a few days, Old Jia—no need to sweat it.”
杨子藏一听到「老甲」两字就想到那几只李弥送来的小乌龟。
The moment Yang Zicang heard the word “Old Jia,” he thought of the little turtles sent by Li Mi.
他摇摇头，伸出手臂将几张纸放在木板拼成的桌面上。
He shook his head, stretched out his arm, and laid a few sheets of paper on the tabletop made of wooden planks.
「这是我这两天所绘制的地图，你问问它，看有纰漏吗。」
“This is the map I’ve drawn over the past two days. Ask it and see if there are any mistakes.”
左非闲已经知道了自己的那只手竟然给甲子间安排了收集自己身体部件的这样一件事，这让他很意外，也略感不妥。
Zuo Feixian had already found out that his very own hand had been assigned the task of gathering his body parts on behalf of Jiazi Term—a revelation that startled him and felt slightly unsettling.
但他也没办法去阻止，只能拐弯抹角的提醒杨子藏，怪物不能相信。
Yet he had no way to stop it, so he could only resort to roundabout tips, warning Yang Zicang not to trust monsters.
杨子藏当然知道这个道理，他目前也只是做个前期的准备工作而已。
Yang Zicang naturally understood this principle; what he was doing now was merely laying the groundwork.
「地图没错的话，我们… 我们筑货队也是时候开展业务了。」
“If the map’s correct, then we… it’s time for our Cargo Crew to start rolling.”
他努力了许久，也没有把「大甲方」这三个字说出口。
He struggled for quite a while, but still couldn’t bring himself to utter the phrase “The Great Benefactor.”
要是回到几天以前，杨子藏一定不会进行所谓的大家参与取名及匿名投票的事。 到现在他也不知道这「大甲方」三个字是谁取的，又是谁投出来的。
If it were a few days earlier, Yang Zicang would never have carried out the so-called collective name-choosing and anonymous voting. To this day, he still had no idea who came up with the three words “Great Party A” or who voted them in.