After lunch, Wuyou Penglord personally accompanied Yang Zicang as they strolled through the trading area, a vast, partitioned square that had been the place where his fortune first began.
Seeing that Wuyou Penglord was personally touring with the Seventh-Rank Inheritor while they themselves merely trailed behind, several artisans, who had traveled far to auction their engines, felt a flicker of discontent.
–Just an ordinary well—no matter how fine the water it produces, isn’t it still just drinkable?–
One of them deliberately dropped a few steps back, muttering under his breath to the man beside him.
–You’ve misunderstood, Brother Zhang.–
The man ahead overheard him and took a step back, saying, –Wuyou Penglord values his other abilities.–
–Other abilities? What’s he gonna do—fly up to the sky?–
–Heh, you all only focus on peddling materials. You probably didn’t know what huge commotion happened outside yesterday. Those crocodiles were leaping out of the water like fish—it was terrifying to see.–
–That incident? Didn’t the guards clean it all up?–
Another spoke up, adding: –Rumor has it that someone else helped at the start, a Quad expert too. Single-handedly suppressed over a hundred crocodile monsters that could burrow through the ground.–
The man who had stepped back chuckled: –He’s not wrong. It really was that guy who dealt with those monsters. And that someone was none other than the one by Penguin Emperor’s side.–
–What?!–
The group of people nearby nearly exclaimed in surprise.
This person adjusted his glasses: –Now you know why so many Penglords try to schmooze up to him, huh? Think those medium-sized Peng Zone lords are rushing out orders just because they need the mineral water for a bath?–
–I knew it, goddamn it.–
–But I bet someone really is using it to bathe—you gotta admit that much.–
–Fuck off.–
Feeling the gazes behind him, Yang Zicang felt like needles were pricking his back all over.
Wuyou Penglord said: –Brother Yang, look. This is one of our local specialties—soap. Ordinary as it seems, the folks in the town just can’t do without it. And let me tell you, sales in the Shibin Wastes are even bigger.–
Staring at the soap bars with their plain wrappers, procuring each one would cost a good half a day’s worth of Chronos.
These were all goods imported from Hubville into the беспроблемный торговый district Wuyou.
–Brother, the monsters down in our digs here have been causing trouble for nearly a year now, but getting rid of every single one? Tough gig. If you hadn’t stepped in this time, I might be sleeping with one eye open.–
He picked up a bag of chips with plain white paper packaging, tore it open, and handed it to Yang Zicang to smell.
–Aromatic, aren’t they? And all those bottled waters stored in the warehouse—if those monsters get a hold of them, we’d face no telling how great a loss. So, I want to hire you to help me clear out those monsters underground.–
Yang Zicang felt the sincerity in Penglord’s eyes.
Yin Power-type, Quad—each of them stands at the pinnacle of this world when taken alone, let alone having these two converge together.
It was only then that Yang Zicang suddenly realized he had unwittingly grown into a formidable force.
Though it felt as if only a few days had passed, the true experiences spanned thousands of years.
He thought, what has this world come to?
Suddenly, his mind felt shrouded in a haze as he pondered: I was once a mere mortal, how did I end up here? Everything seems like a dream.
Noticing Wu You still staring at him while he himself had drifted off, Yang Zicang turned around and said, –Who attacked me just now?–
–What?–
–Wu You Penglord, someone just manipulated my emotions. Do you know who they are?–
A strange glint flashed through Wu You’s eyes as he raised his hand to his companion and said, –Let’s go back.–
–Thank you for telling me that.–
With a stern expression of gratitude, Wu You gathered a few men and quickly turned to leave.
Yang Zicang gave a puzzled glance at his retreating figure, and the woman in the group stepped forward, apologizing, –Master Jiazi, sorry, I apologize for your experience.–
It seemed to involve Wuyou’s secret as a Penglord, so Yang Zicang didn’t press further; his earlier question had been nothing more than a rash impulse.
The others finally seized the chance to surround him, introducing themselves in rapid succession.
Seeing he had single-handedly taken down so many crocodile monsters, they merely assumed Yang Zicang was an unlucky combat talent from an upper-tier team stranded here.
–Thank you all.– Yang Zicang felt both amused and exasperated.
He had chosen an alias precisely to avoid trouble, yet now he was even more famous as a result.
After collecting over thirty Shīniàn Moxels, he bumped into an agitated Shiu Siuchuan on the way back.
–Jiazi bro—I mean, Chief Jiazi—we’re in trouble!–
–What’s wrong?–
Yang Zicang froze for a moment; the guy was lugging around large and small bags of food, looking completely distracted.
Glancing around and noticing the crowd following them, a Moxel ring shimmered on the man’s chest, and a sharp beam shot toward him.
{Ning Yang Penglord has run into danger.}
[What kind of danger?]
{Remember the Cargo Crew from the Peng Zone who came a couple days ago? That Zhao Qi—the one who gave us samples. They’re part of the Waste Rovers Grand Cargo Crew.}
Zuo Feixian came bounding over from a distance with her signature light-footed grace.
–Hey, man. You heard what happened to Ning Yang, right?–
Yang Zicang nodded. Turning to the creators still browsing the roadside stalls, he said, –Folks, I’ll be heading back now. Let’s catch up again when we have the chance.–
–Sure thing, sure thing—Brother Jiazi, feel free to swing by our Youyuan Base anytime. I’m heading out this afternoon, hehe.–
Amid such farewells, the three of them returned to their room. Along the way, Shiu Siuchuan had already given him a comprehensive rundown on the Waste Rovers Grand Cargo Crew.
They were a loose-knit organization, originally formed among crews wandering the Shibin Wastes, later evolving into a mutual-aid faction.
So far, nothing unusual—but where there are people, there are selfish desires, plots, and political scheming.
Some who smelled the advantages of such an organization began to seize power with the abilities granted by Moxel, collecting protection fees and forming factions. This eventually evolved into a grey organization in the Shibin Wastes. Now, they engage in theft and robbery, human trafficking, and even commit genocidal massacres against certain Peng Zones to plunder resources.
This time, Ning Yang ran into them.
–For such small settlements, it’s no different from sheep catching the eye of a wolf pack.–
Zuo Feixian said as he closed the door.
–Sheep and wolf packs? What’s that about?–
Robin Lo, who was lying in bed reading a novel with his legs crossed and his feet up, sat up straight.
–That Penglord from the Peng Zone I stayed in a few days ago got lured out and then robbed.–
–Oh, so they didn’t kill him?–
Shiu Siuchuan shook his head: –But it’s probably only a matter of time. An operation like theirs usually goes unnoticed unless it’s exposed. All those Wasteland Freight Cargo Crew gangs gathering together like this? They plan to raid some nearby settlement. These locusts can smell anything good.–
Robin Lo cracked open a nut, sucked out the kernel inside, and chewed it as he spoke:
–This so-called ‘Cargo Crew’ seems to have quite a nasty reputation. Doesn’t anyone step up to deal with them?–
The two of them shook their heads vigorously, like flicking baby rattles in a side-to-side motion.
Zuo Feixian said, –Usually, you can’t tell if these people are part of the Wasteland Wagon Cargo Crew; most of the time, they’re just doing business honestly.–
–And trying to surround and wipe them out is a thankless task—who knows where they’re hiding? But those who organize the crackdown have their own Peng Zones to worry about. Even if they wipe them out—or not—they just end up covered in trouble, waiting for a backlash that could destroy their Peng Zone.–
–The Wasteland Wagon Cargo Crew generally targets small to mid-sized settlements, rarely going after mid-level ones. The major Peng Zones focus their energy on more notorious organizations, turning a blind eye to these small fries in a live-and-let-live arrangement.–
–I understand.–
Yang Zicang got it—the Wasteland Wagon Cargo Crew preyed on smaller Penglords like Ning Yang. These Peng Zones lacked the strength to crush them, while the bigger Peng Zones had the power to handle them but saw no need to bother. Instead, such threats only drove a steady stream of underdogs to seek protection by joining the big leagues.
Zuo Feixian and Shiu Siuchuan’s eyes glimmered as they darted a glance at Yang Zicang, then deliberately looked away with feigned nonchalance.
Yang Zicang grinned, –What, got an idea?–
Shiu Siuchuan was too embarrassed to say it, but Zuo Feixian immediately grinned wide: –Hehe, Boss Jia, if it were before yesterday, I definitely wouldn’t have had this idea. But now, I’m full of confidence—if Boss Jia makes a move, it’ll be the end of these beasts.–
Robin Lo shifted his butt to the edge of the bed, pretending to be shocked: –Yo, you guys trust him that much?–
–Of course.–
Shiu Siuchuan puffed out his chest. Ever since he saw Yang Zicang mow down those crocodile monsters like slicing vegetables, he’d been utterly awestruck.
As far as his memory served, no one else could rival Yang Zicang’s demonstrated strength, except for that one monster before.
After that day, he’d contacted several of his scumbag friends via Moxel, asking roughly about the information regarding Moon-Shadow rank monsters, and that’s when he realized what it really meant.
Zuo Feixian looked at Yang Zicang, his tone relaxed but dripping with deadly intent as he advised:
–Brother Jia, I know you guys were wronged by that bastard Ning Yang. But he’s just a fool who can’t recognize true talent. What we lack now is a massive amount of Moxel, and these wasteland convoy folks are gathered here—this is a golden opportunity for us.–
Yang Zicang’s eyelids drooped halfway as he pondered the feasibility in his mind.
–There’s a small settlement that sprang up just last year, right next to where they’re gathering. Brother Yang, either tonight or at the latest tomorrow, that settlement will likely be wiped off the face of the earth.–
–Son of a bitch, those butchers.– Robin Lo slammed his thigh hard.
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