World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 258 The Poison of the Red Poppy

Lin An frowned slightly upon seeing this.

The Kuba River has a rapid current, and the ship is very old. If it were hit by mortar fire, at least several hundred lives would be lost.

He spun the Philosopher's Stone, and the metal transformed. The mortar ammunition instantly turned into heavy scrap metal, falling with a thud far from the ship, splashing high into the air.

The unusual sight drew the attention of the entire Mazuz market, and the artillerymen on the opposite bank of the river were dumbfounded, exchanging bewildered glances.

It failed to fire?
They thought there was something wrong with the mortar, so they quickly squatted down to check it.

Just as Lin An was about to cross the river to check the situation, a voice came from behind him. The herbalist with two AKs on his back called out to him.

"What are you doing here! Didn't you see someone aiming at the ship?" The herbalist said casually, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth. "Don't risk your life for a little money."

He originally thought that Lin An, like other businessmen, wanted to do business with the passengers of the ship.

In fact, when the ship arrived, this herbalist was one of the few merchants who didn't care about it.

Lin An saw that the artillerymen on the opposite bank were still scratching their heads, while the ship captain realized something was wrong and quickly turned to approach the Mazuz market.

Just as the herbalist had said, a group of merchants rushed forward in their small boats as if they hadn't seen the cannonballs.

"Witch doctor, what's going on?" Lin An asked, seizing the opportunity.

"Come closer, I have something to tell you." The herbalist looked around furtively and beckoned to Lin An. "Do you know the [Red Poppy Merchant Guild]?"

"Have heard a little bit."

“After Bantu gained independence, they cooperated with warlords to mine and cut down trees. They built many factories and warehouses in Kinsasha and Bantu, and discharged sewage and smoke indiscriminately. Everyone relied on their work and dared not say anything.”

"As for the government, we have a saying, 'The red envelopes are already in circulation!' This is a dynamic phrase. Here, if you want to bribe members of parliament to evade audits, you have to ensure that every member can receive a red envelope and that it is personally delivered to their door."

"In short, they lived a carefree life for decades until recently when an accidental fire ignited one of their uranium storage facilities in Kinshasa—do you know what uranium is?"

Lin An was surprised by the herbalist's erudition and nodded: "Materials for making atomic bombs."

"Atomic bomb?"

"A giant mushroom cloud barbecue party."

"Oh, I see."

The herbalist had intended to show off, but Lin An used a word he didn't understand, so he quickly changed the subject.

"In order to minimize losses, the Red Poppy Merchants Association discharged some of the unusable waste from the burning into the Kuba River."

Lin An's eyebrows twitched.

Dumping radioactive material into the world's fourth largest river...

Are you really Titans?

It feels like you guys are harming your own home planet.

According to the herbalist, the radioactivity of these wastes is not strong, but the Kuba River is the lifeblood of the Bantu people, with nearly 1 million people and hundreds of millions of wild animals drinking its water every day. The health and pollution problems caused by uranium are incalculable.

No wonder Zai told the various tribes in the rainforest not to drink the water from the south.

However, the crimes of the Red Poppy Chamber of Commerce are difficult to prosecute. The outside world is in chaos because of "Commerx", coupled with the collusion between officials and businessmen in Bantu, and the fact that the public does not even have internet access, so how can the news get out?

By the time the chaos subsided, the uranium water had long been metabolized by the Kuba River, which has a very large flow rate. This little-known history of the Red Poppy Merchant Guild was destined to be forgotten and ignored.

"However, the Red Poppy Merchants Association has run into a tough opponent this time."

The herbalist said with a hint of pride.

“A fearless reporter sneaked into the warehouse, took photos as evidence, and then escaped with the help of the workers. Although the Chamber of Commerce quickly killed those workers, the news still spread.”

"A reporter? Is he on this ship?" Lin An kept a close eye on the situation on the other side of the river.

"Yes."

The herbalist's expression was somewhat dazed, and his tone was complicated.

"Unfortunately, he can't escape. That woman arrived in Mbanbuka before him, and upon hearing the news, she immediately tracked down his whereabouts. Look, they are preparing to launch the next offensive."

“By killing journalists and destroying relevant electronic or paper evidence, it will be very difficult for the Bantu people to prove the actions of the Red Poppy Chamber of Commerce,” Lin An said.

“Hahaha, you really aren’t a local.” The herbalist suddenly laughed. “The Bantu people have no idea what uranium is. Besides, they get sick, deformed, and die for so many reasons. Others just look at the corpses, wipe their noses, and leave.”

His words suddenly reminded Lin An of the hyena people.

“Rather than being someone who basks in the light of knowledge but is powerless against reality, it’s better to continue being an illiterate, a fool, and a madman,” he once argued with Misuru.

However, in the final moments of his life, he tearfully accused Lin An.

"God, you're late!"

He also wanted to be saved.

Who would want to spend their whole life wallowing in the mud?
Because ignorance, like hemp, is nothing but weak and helpless self-deception.

"So, do you want the reporter to live?" Lin An suddenly asked.

"Me?" The herbalist was taken aback, his smile twisting even more. "I have many things I wish for! Who are you? Do you think you'd grant my wishes if I told you?"

"Just tell me if you want to or not."

"Of course I want to! I dream about it!"

The herbalist patted his stall, causing the pills to vibrate and pile up in a colorful array.

"Otherwise, why would I have traveled all this way to set up a stall here? I just wanted to tell more people about the uranium water. It's a pity my medicine is fake, and my talisman is fake too! Otherwise, I would have used one to heal the sick and the other to kill those Flanders!"

"Yes, a friend of mine used to do that too..."

Lin An pinched a lucky charm that was floating in the wind, and the air currents swirled around him as he suddenly rose into the air.

"He is no longer here; but I have heard your wish."

The herbalist's eyes widened in disbelief as Lin An floated up into the air, crossing the rushing Kuba River and heading towards the ship on the opposite bank, which was clumsily reloading and aiming its cannons. Not only the herbalist, but everyone was stunned.

The merchants and passengers in the middle of the transaction stopped what they were doing and stared intently at the young man, who seemed like an unreal reflection.

"Who is that?"

"Black hair, black eyes... I've heard of him! He's the Forest Ranger!"

"Great Kalenga Mpongu, the link between the underworld and the mortal realm, the dividing line of Dawa, the guardian of the rainforest. Ah, he is the ancestral spirit of the Lion Clan!"

"I never imagined our ancestral legends would come true. But even a wizard, facing guns and cannons—"

Before the questioning words had even finished, Lin An pointed a finger, and the [Cleft Lip Patient] of [Moon Cleft Cleft Lip] activated.

The energy tore open bloody wounds on the soldiers' upper lips, spreading all the way to their noses, making them dizzy and instantly incapacitated.

The reason he didn't kill them was twofold: firstly, Lin An disliked harming ordinary people, and secondly, he needed these soldiers to teach the rainforest tribe how to use modern weapons before they died.

Thanks to the Red Poppy Chamber of Commerce for sending three mortars and readily available military instructors.

We'll have Misuru and the others come by boat to retrieve it later.

On the other side, everyone was in an uproar.

The onlookers were completely bewildered; the one-sided situation left them speechless with their mouths agape.

The herbalist, in particular, jumped three feet high, almost unable to speak properly.

"The souls of our ancestors have returned!"

Lin An smiled as he heard the bustling Mazuz market suddenly fall silent.

After today, his sampling value will increase significantly.

This was certainly one of his objectives, but his main reason was that he felt the Red Poppy Merchants Association was really doing inhumane things.

Letting them kill reporters... is definitely not the outcome Lin An wants to see.

Is this what human empathy and compassion are?

Was it with this mindset that the captain protected me, the "weak" one time and time again?
Unlike me, who was trying to improve the measurement values, he never sought anything in return, nor did he have any ulterior motives.

Lin Jing paused for a moment, her complex emotions shifting into clarity, before finally settling into unwavering resolve.

He was determined to rescue the reporter.

A premonition came from "God's One Eye." Lin An scanned the market and noticed that the expressions of several people were completely different from those around them. They nervously licked their lips and turned to leave.

Were they informants for the Red Poppy Merchants Association?

If Lin An wanted to obtain sampling values, he was destined not to hide. Sooner or later, he would be discovered by the Red Poppy Merchant Guild, which had close ties with the rainforest. Even without these informants, the Countess had other channels for obtaining intelligence.

For journalists, this place is no longer safe.

Less than a second after Lin An landed on the ship, a person rushed out from the crowd.

He was disheveled, tears streaming down his face, and almost grabbed Lin An's shoulder.

"Fellow villager, you have to save me!"

…………

"Forest ranger?"

In Mbanbuka, a few dozen kilometers from the rainforest, a middle-aged woman nearing fifty sat in a flannel office chair, listening to a report from her informant.

At first, she was not interested, until her informant mentioned the mysterious person.

The woman removed her diamond-encrusted leopard-print glasses, revealing well-maintained skin. Her warm, brown eyes gazed at the artilleryman giving his report, and she interrupted him with a kind tone.

"My dear, did you see Zay Stani... something...?"

“No, Countess.” Eyeliner nervously wiped away his sweat. “His eyes are perfectly fine, he’s not blind, he looks very young, has fair skin, and smooth, fine black hair. He doesn’t even look like a Bantu.”

“I’ve never heard of such an uninvited guest.” The Countess picked up a glass of green beverage from the table and tapped it with her fingernail. “Anyway—”

"Should we turn our attention to him? He's a powerful Bantu mystic who's never been documented before!"

"Be patient and listen to what I have to say."

The countess raised her hand without changing her expression, stopping the soldier from speaking.

"No matter what, your mission has failed. I need to find someone else to kill that meddlesome reporter; we can't let him spread what he has."

“But, Countess, there’s a mysterious person on the other side…” The spies’ expressions changed abruptly.

“I heard you the first time you said it,” the countess said, taking a sip of her avocado juice and looking embarrassed. “I was just informing you to thank you for your contributions to our company.”

"Countess, please don't send me away!" the spy pleaded desperately. "I don't want to go back to those days of poverty and hopelessness! I want to stay here! I want to go back to the Kingdom of Flanders with you!"

"Who said I was going to fire you?"

The countess put down the bright green beverage, straightened her posture, and gave a dignified and elegant smile.

The man with the eyeliner thought things were turning around, and a glint of light appeared in his eyes, but then he heard her continue speaking.

"I was clearly going to kill you."

A flash of red light appeared, revealing a six-pointed star and a skull pattern; his light instantly transformed into endless darkness.

The countess's drink turned from bright green to scarlet. She bit down on the straw and greedily drank it down until the bottom of the bottle made an unpleasant "slurp" sound. She let out a satisfied burp, resumed her languid sitting posture, and leaned back on the chaise lounge.

The countess smacked her lips, still savoring the moment, and murmured to herself.

"Forest rangers... They actually chose to oppose our [Red Poppy Merchant Guild]... Hmph, ungrateful little natives."

(End of this chapter)