Dark Ruins Dawn

Chapter 101 Tracking
The next day at noon, outside Linhai City.

Six scrap metal trucks drove out of the city gate, kicking up a cloud of yellow dust, and stopped at a desolate handover point.

Across from the convoy, Mao Shanwang sat on a crab-shaped stool, fanning himself with a palm leaf fan, seemingly having been waiting for a long time.

The owner of the landfill was a one-eyed man named Old Cui.

He spat out the cigarette butt from his mouth and glanced at Mao Shanwang:

"Old Cat, have you really changed your ways? You even want this kind of old, despised trash?"

Mao Shanwang put down his palm-leaf fan, sighed heavily, and his voice was full of weariness from being crushed by life.

"Old Cui, we're already so familiar with each other, so I won't hide anything from you. I haven't been having a good time lately. The Black Gold Trading Company has changed their rules again, and you should know something about it."

"Anyway... our mutant caravan's performance targets have already doubled. If we don't meet them, I'll be fired next quarter."

Old Cui's one eye flickered; he knew that what Mao Shanwang said was true. The internal struggle within the Black Gold Trading Company had long been public knowledge.

Old Cui and Mao Shanwang have had a long-standing trading relationship, and he doesn't want to lose this partner easily.

"It seems you are indeed in trouble."

Mao Shanwang rubbed his eyes, a hint of bitterness in his voice:
"Look at my physique, I have elderly parents to support and young children to raise, and dozens of cat-man brothers under my command waiting to be fed. I really have no choice but to think of some crooked ways."

He pretended to open the car door, but actually quickly glanced at the scrap metal. The scrap metal was in pretty good condition, and he thought to himself that Old Cui was a reliable person.

"So, what do you want from these goods...?"

Mao Shanwang lowered his voice, "I'll take this batch of goods back and find a cheap baking and processing workshop to see if we can remove some of this damned rotten fog. We'll sell as much as we can, just to earn a little money through hard work."

Old Cui frowned: "Are you sure you won't lose money? These are dark brown rotten mists. Don't come looking for a refund later, that wouldn't be a good look."

Everyone knows about the wasteland; if it's a light brown, decaying fog, you could try baking it.
However, the cost of processing the dark brown decay mist has skyrocketed, far exceeding the value of the original item, so it would be easier to just throw it away.

Old Cui was certain that if this batch of goods had even the slightest value, he wouldn't have put it in the truck and transported it as garbage.

"I know, let's try it first. As long as there are no visible marks on the surface, it'll be fine. Those mutants are pretty easy to talk to."

Old Cui didn't try to persuade him any further, fearing that King Maoshan really wouldn't accept it.

He stepped forward and patted Mao Shanwang on the shoulder with a dull thud.

“You’ve had it tough too. These things aren’t worth much, and they’re just taking up space. You can just give me some money for gas and labor.”

After some mental calculations, Lao Cui figured that a price of 30,000 would be reasonable, considering the city exit permit, checkpoint inspections, fuel consumption, and labor costs.

Before he could even speak, King Mao was already moved to tears, his face contorted with grief, and said:

"Old Cui, you're truly a loyal friend, no wonder you've known me for so many years! For these few truckloads of goods, I'll give you a price: 15,000 gold coins. From now on, you can bring six truckloads every day, rain or shine, I'll accept them all!"

Upon hearing the price, Old Cui's one eye widened in surprise: "Old Cat, 15,000? I'm not a charity."

"Brother Cui! Just do me a favor!"

Mao Shanwang almost hugged his leg, "Once I recover from this, I'll treat you to the best wine! Look at how plump I am, I can't really starve myself to thinness!"

Seeing the 300-pound fat cat acting pitiful in front of him, even shedding tears, Old Cui was truly speechless.

"Alright, alright! It's only 15,000, hurry up and take it away, it's annoying to look at!"

"Brother Cui, you're like a second parent to me! If it weren't for your help, all those dozens of mouths under my command would be starving today!"

"Damn it, wipe your snot."

"Okay!"

Mao Shanwang stood up with a bright smile and directed his men to start moving the goods.

Soon, all the scrap from the six trucks was transferred to Mao Shanwang's convoy, and the trucks were packed full.

Looking at the empty carriage, Old Cui weighed the money bag in his hand and thought that earning a labor fee seemed worthwhile.

The convoy started moving, and Mao Shanwang hummed a little tune as he drove away.

Just then, the communicator on my wrist vibrated; it was an encrypted message from my colleague:

[People from Morisaka are looking for you. Did you get into trouble?]

Mao Shanwang's cat ears twitched. He wondered what he had done wrong and when he had offended Mori-Saka Network.

Doing business in the wasteland is always a mix of good and bad, and getting approached by large corporations is usually not a good thing.

He muttered to himself, "There must be some mistake, I haven't touched their goods lately..."

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly remembered that a few days ago, he had bought a second-hand AF model virtual pod from Zhuang Fan, which was a product of Senban Networks.

At the time, Zhuang Fan repeatedly instructed that the matter be handled cleanly, leaving no trace, but he did not explain the specific reason.

Mao Shanwang even guaranteed that he was the best at handling these smuggled goods and that there would be no problems.

In the end, he lowered the purchase price from 120,000 gold coins to 100,000, and was quite pleased with himself.

Now, Mao Shanwang's cheeks were a little hot.

He growled into the communicator, "Stop the car!"

The convoy stopped immediately.

He pulled a roll of black canvas from the crab shell and had his men cover all the truck beds to block signal tracking.

Immediately afterwards, he took out the detector from the hidden compartment, went into the cargo compartment to check, and walked around each truck to check the undercarriage and tire gaps.

The trackers in the wasteland are not based on satellite positioning, but on a sensor network that spans major cities and human settlements.

Once the tracking signal gets close, an alarm will be immediately triggered and the exact location of the tracker will be confirmed.

Mao Shanwang held the detector, and the screen always displayed a steady green waveform.

There is no tracker.

He breathed a slight sigh of relief, rummaged through the dilapidated Wasteland Traveler, quickly sent Zhuang Fan a brief warning, and then threw the device into the acid tank.

"Get back to the trading company's branch, quick!"

In any case, seeking the protection of a trading company is the safest option.

The nearest branch of the Black Gold Trading Company is more than 20 kilometers away from Linhai City.

When the investigation team from Morisaka Networks arrived at the branch, they found Maoshan Wang leisurely drinking tea.

"Maoshanwang, right? We are the headquarters investigation department of Morisaka Networks."

The team leader showed his credentials and said in a cold voice, "You handled an item that is related to our company's confidential information. Please come with us."

Mao Shanwang put down his teacup, but his obese body sank even deeper, without moving an inch.

"Gentlemen, you're joking. I'm a second-tier supplier for Black Gold Trading Company, not some random roadside cat. Aren't you Morisaka's hands getting a little too far?"

At the same time, the branch manager received an urgent distress call from Mao Shanwang, saying that Morihan Networks was going to cause trouble.

Morisaka Networks?
The person in charge didn't dare to delay for a moment and rushed over with a team of fully armed security personnel.

The person in charge glanced at the head of the investigation team, then at Mao Shanwang, still confused about what had happened.

The person in charge said to the team leader, "This is a branch of Black Gold Trading Company. How can we help you?"

He then introduced Mao Shanwang: "This is Mao Shanwang, a second-tier supplier of the trading company."

"Um……"

The team leader clearly didn't want to escalate the situation, so he toned down his aggressive tone and softened his manner:

"We only want to ask Mr. Mao Shanwang a few questions, and have no other intentions."

The person in charge relaxed and turned to glare at Mao Shanwang:
"Old Cat, cooperate with me."

"Okay, as long as you don't take me with you, everything is fine."

Mao Shanwang then slowly stood up.

The others tactfully withdrew, leaving only the group leader and Mao Shanwang present.

The team leader cut to the chase: "On June 13th, did you receive an AF model virtual pod?"

"July 6th..."

Mao Shanwang squinted and tried hard to recall, "...Yes, that's right. A few people came to sell this machine that day. I thought it was a counterfeit product, so I wasn't too keen on buying it at first."

"But you still accepted it."

Mao Shanwang shrugged: "I cut the price in half, and the other party agreed. I thought the profit was good, so I bought it and then resold it to a middleman... You guys aren't really going to investigate me, are you?"

The team leader shook his head: "Who is the seller?"

"I don't know you, you're a stranger."

"Please be serious, my patience is limited."

Mao Shanwang chuckled and said, "I handle so many customers every day, I really can't remember their faces."

This fatso is still being stubborn. Could he be an accomplice?

The team leader was somewhat angry.

Black Gold Trading Company's backer is Chocobo, one of the top ten conglomerates. He didn't dare to cause trouble, otherwise he would have razed this branch to the ground long ago.

Mao Shanwang coughed lightly.

The team leader didn't react immediately, "What?"

Mao Shanwang coughed several more times, even giving a knowing look and rubbing his fingers together.

"..."

The team leader finally realized that the fat man was demanding kickbacks, and his disgust grew even stronger.

He tossed a small piece of gold onto the table, and Mao Shanwang's eyes lit up. "Thank you for your patronage!"

"I'm giving you one last chance to tell me everything."

Mao Shanwang's attitude immediately improved. "Sir, I just remembered, their accent sounds a lot like Zhongdu's."

"Specific characteristics".

Mao Shanwang pretended to be trying hard to remember, and every subtle expression was perfectly captured.

"They came as a group of five men, but they were wearing gray masks so you couldn't see their faces. They had flat eyes, deep-set brow bones, and high nose bridges, um... something like that."

Mao Shanwang even thoughtfully drew it out and handed it to the group leader.

"But what impressed me most was their identical walking posture. The angle at which each person raised their arms and the distance of their steps were like they were made from the same mold! I thought I had seen a ghost at the time!"

The team leader glared angrily: "Now you've remembered everything again?"

"Hehe, I have amnesia."

Mao Shanwang, fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan, continued to add details:
"I also took a peek and noticed that each of them had a small black spot on the back of their head. It didn't look like a tattoo, but more like some kind of code, which was rather blurry."

The team leader's expression turned serious.

He asked several more questions about the details of the transaction, to which Mao Shanwang answered fluently and without any flaws.

"In the next few days, we hope Mr. Mao Shanwang will not stray too far from Linhai City. We may need to contact you at any time to verify the situation."

"Okay, I'm launching a paid consultation service here, charged by the minute. You're welcome to come often."

The team leader left, fuming.

A team member standing beside him whispered, "Team leader, is this Mao Shanwang trustworthy?"

"I've seen far too many unscrupulous businessmen who are only interested in money; they can't keep any secrets."

The team member nodded and continued, "Those sellers had codes on the back of their necks... they look a lot like the Jack tribe."

"If the fat guy isn't lying, they must be those domestic clones who escaped from Zhongdu."

As the team leader spoke, his expression grew increasingly grim.

He had thought he had only one target, but now it had become a huge group with identical appearances and characteristics.

This is a bit troublesome.

The investigation team had just stepped out of the Black Gold Trading Company's gate when a commotion broke out nearby.

Scarface and his ruthless henchmen surrounded Mao Shanwang's convoy.

The two sides were on the verge of exchanging blows, but neither fired a shot.

"I'm saying this one last time, open it for me! I want to see what kind of treasure this fat cat is up to!"

Scarface kicked Catman over, and then several of his men rushed up and violently broke the lock with crowbars.

The car door opened, and a thick, musty smell rushed out, revealing a car full of corroded junk.

Scarface was stunned.

His men behind him were also stunned.

"Why is it all junk?"

Scarface, refusing to believe it, jumped inside and searched the place thoroughly, finding nothing but piles of scrap metal. Metal parts, discarded prosthetics, and unrecognizable electronic components were all corroded by the dark brown, decaying mist.

It's definitely a smoke bomb!

Scarface, refusing to believe it, pried open the other carriages, only to find they were all unwanted junk.

"What's wrong with this fatso..."

He scratched his head, not understanding what it meant.

Mao Shanwang seized the opportunity and walked out of the trading company, his large-caliber shotgun already loaded.

"boom--!"

A muffled gunshot rang out, exploding into a shower of sparks at Scarface's feet, startling him so much that he stumbled and nearly fell.

"Touch my goods again, and I'll smash your head in."

Seeing that he didn't dare to actually fire, Scarface became bolder again: "Mao Shan Wang! Are you fucking desperate for money that you'd even take this kind of trash?"

His men burst into laughter.

Mao Shanwang said expressionlessly, "I'm happy to."

"That's all you've got. Just wait to be demoted, and then I'll turn all that fat of yours into ham!"

Scarface uttered a harsh threat and led his men away.

The head of the investigation team watched the entire process with great interest.

He walked over to Mao Shanwang and pointed to the scrap metal in the carriage. "With all this rotten stuff, you think you can make money?"

Mao Shanwang put on a worried expression:

"Money is hard to earn, and shit is hard to swallow. I'm going to take it back and roast it at high temperatures for a while to see if I can fool those blind mutants."

A look of disdain flashed in the team leader's eyes; he looked down on these swindlers and cheaters.

But because of this, Mao Shanwang's greedy nature made the interrogation seem more credible.

The team leader didn't say anything more and turned to leave.

Morisaka Networks headquarters, chairman's office.

After listening to the report, Mori Saka Ryu's expression remained calm as he glanced at the holographic panel.

"You mean, the Jack tribe?"

"Yes, Chairman."

Standing before him was the head of the investigation department.

"Our intelligence indicates that the Jack tribe has ended its internal strife and elected a new leader."

"It is said that the leader stole a Baron mech, modified it extensively, installed it on himself, and even gave himself the name 'Big Jack'."

Mori Saka Ryu tapped his knuckles lightly on the table and spoke slowly:
“Every clone of the Jack tribe has the exact same brain structure, which perfectly meets the stability requirements of the human brain matrix and minimizes rejection reactions.”

The minister immediately realized what was happening. "Chairman, do you think the Jack tribe created the human brain matrix themselves and then hacked into our servers?"

"Very likely."

Mori Saka Ryu pulled up a few documents on the holographic screen and casually asked, "How many people are there?"

"Chairman, according to the latest estimates, the Jack tribe has a population of several hundred thousand, making it a large and powerful force. Moreover, it is hidden deep in the mountains, which makes it very difficult to investigate."

"Keep checking."

Mori Saka's eyes turned slightly cold. "Also, let the investigation team in the south continue. I need to verify the information from multiple sources to ensure its reliability."

"Yes, Chairman."

Meanwhile, an abandoned industrial town.

Hua Xin and Ke Er led their scavenging team to begin their operation here.

At Cole's suggestion, the scavenging group was divided into ten teams, each consisting of one human and one cat-person.

Cat-like beings possess the best danger warning system, thanks to their keen hearing, sense of smell, and night vision.

Four members of the Fireline, clad in power armor, formed a security and firepower defense line on the outer perimeter.

Hua Xin's order was relayed to everyone.

"Attention everyone! In case of an emergency, immediately issue a communication alert, retreat to the nearest armored unit, and then return to the truck!"

Everyone nodded and agreed to carry it out diligently.

Six heavy trucks formed a circular camp, inside which there was an armored soldier and four androids, holding rifles and keeping watch.

Cole stayed at the camp to coordinate supplies and assign specific quotas to members.

Hua Xin led one of the teams to search for possible hidden shelters in the ruins.

But after searching for a long time, they found nothing.

Later, the three of them walked through a group of collapsed buildings and arrived at an abandoned factory.

Hua Xin suddenly stopped.

She sniffed, and a strong smell of blood and stench filled her nostrils.

She looked up and saw a simple fence made of wooden stakes not far away, with some dried meat scraps hanging on it, like some kind of sacrificial ritual.

Her heart sank, and she gestured with her hand.

The two people behind them silently retreated together.

"Attention, there's an emergency here. All teams, stay alert and don't approach."

After turning off the communication panel, Hua Xin quietly climbed to the top of the tallest building next to him.

When she looked down from above, she gasped.

They're green-skinned!

In the valley, countless green saplings crowded the entire valley, stretching as far as the eye could see.

They have dark green skin, stout bodies, and wield simple stone axes and wooden clubs, making "waga" sounds.

She roughly estimated that there were at least five thousand.

These green-skinned workers are carving roads through mountains and transporting truckloads of gravel and logs out, I wonder what kind of conspiracy they're plotting.

She lowered her head, a hint of disappointment flashing in her eyes.

It was thought that this ruined town could become a base for the future, but now it seems that it is not possible to rely on it in the short term.

"Attention everyone, a large-scale Greenskin tribe has been discovered approximately 500 meters from the camp at the 2 o'clock position. Do not approach or make any unusual noises. Wait for a replanning of the scavenging route."

After Hua Xin finished speaking, she recorded a video as proof, then nimbly jumped down and quickly returned to the base with two team members.

Cole realized the seriousness of the problem and, after discussing it with Hua Xin, decided to evacuate the entire group.

In the short term, this town is too dangerous.

That night, the darkness was as black as ink.

Mao Shanwang's convoy sped through the wilderness and arrived at a pre-arranged abandoned building.

Zhuang Fan, along with Hua Xin, Xiong Er, and six members of the Fireline organization wearing power armor, were already waiting there.

Mao Shanwang's convoy brought four powered armored vehicles and twelve heavy trucks, six of which were loaded with rotten fog scrap.

On Zhuang Fan's side, six large trucks arrived, filled with high-value secondhand goods.

"Old Cat, is everything going well?"

"It's alright. I've led those naive idiots in the investigation team astray. At least for the time being, they shouldn't be able to trace it back to you."

Zhuang Fan patted his shoulder: "I didn't mean to hide it last time, but I'm really sorry."

"I understand, I understand. After all, we weren't exactly best allies back then. Now that we're allies... how about I get a discount?"

"Row……"

Mao Shanwang sighed with admiration: "But you're really something, kid. You offended the Nuclear One and then you pissed off Mori Saka, and you're still alive and kicking. There aren't many people in the wasteland with your guts."

"Okay, that's enough."

Zhuang Fan was a little annoyed after hearing this. He walked towards the six trucks, opened the cargo doors, and went inside.

The spell has begun... King Mao glanced over there, then ordered his men to take inventory of the remaining goods.

The lingering fog inside the carriage was continuously drawn away by Zhuang Fan and quickly dissipated into the air.

An hour later, all the scraps regained their original luster.

Zhuang Fan made a net profit of 700,000 gold coins from this transaction, but only received 600,000 in the end.

The extra 100,000 gold coins he paid were "hush money," instructing Mao Shanwang to find a way to block the investigation by the Mori-Ban Network, as long as it didn't reach the Xin Huo base.

The four power armors cost one million gold coins, and Zhuang Fan still had two hundred thousand in his hand after paying.

In response to the potential threat posed by the Morisaka network, he purchased a new batch of equipment and ammunition, and also provided high-temperature protective suits for the scavenging group.

In the end, he had less than 50,000 gold coins left.

“Old Cat, now that your trade volume is increasing, you also need to strengthen your escort capabilities.”

"We're recruiting, but we can't rush it. They have to be reliable and trustworthy."

Mao Shanwang looked at him and said, "However, in that case, I won't be able to bring any people to your side for the time being."

"Yes, we have enough manpower at the moment."

The transaction was completed, and both parties left.

The group returned to the Firewood Base.

Ten powered armored vehicles were lined up in a row, their metal shells gleaming coldly under the lights, signifying that all members of the Spark Core had become armored soldiers.

Cole had been waiting for this for a long time, and tonight he finally put on his own armored vehicle, feeling quite excited.

But after the initial excitement came the pressure, and he approached Zhuang Fan with a hint of unease on his face.

"Boss, there's something I have to tell you."

His voice was a little hoarse, "I may not be qualified to be the captain of the armored squad."

Zhuang Fan was a little surprised. "What's the reason?"

Cole recounted a simulated confrontation that took place in a virtual network a few days prior.

During that confrontation, his several command errors led to "heavy casualties" for the entire squad, which dealt him a heavy blow.

"Boss... Although this is just a virtual network, I've thought about it for a long time. If you let me manage logistics, calculate every bullet, and manage everyone's food, clothing, and daily necessities, I have no problem with it."

"But I can't lead them to win a real war. I'm afraid of laymen leading experts, which is irresponsible to the life of the team."

"Cole, you've done a good job."

"But……"

"Okay, you can start doing this."

Zhuang Fan pondered for a moment, "When a suitable candidate comes along, you can step down. Don't feel burdened."

"OK then."

After Cole left, Zhuang Fan turned his attention back to the screen and continued studying the Green Skin Tribe video recorded by Hua Xin.

The green-skinned camp in the video is well-structured and orderly, clearly indicating that it has been occupied for some time.

Have the Greenskins joined forces with the Apocalypse Cult?

Zhuang Fan thought about it more and more and it seemed more and more likely.

At that moment, Watson walked over, his face filled with worry.

"Boss, let's talk in private."

"it is good."

Zhuang Fan and he went into the room.

Watson pulled down his shirt and showed Zhuang Fan his shoulder.

A small patch of the nano-memory skin on his shoulder peeled off, revealing the real skin underneath.

"Boss, what's going on?"

Zhuang Fan searched the old man's memory for a moment and said slowly, "It may have exceeded the maintenance cycle."

Watson was a little nervous: "Then...then it's past the maintenance period, does that mean it can't be repaired?"

"Yes... the nanobots' self-repair capabilities have reached their limit, and they are about to die."

(End of this chapter)