Dark Ruins Dawn

Chapter 53 Qiao Sen
In fact, the moment Zhuang Fan spoke, Watson already had the answer in his heart.

In his view, Guangtu was taciturn but never cowardly, and always ready to step up when something happened.

He had witnessed the other party's forbearance, a feigned submission for the sake of retaliation;

I've also witnessed the other side backing down, which was actually preparing to unleash their final "trump card".

He is patient, cunning, and resourceful; he shows no mercy to his enemies, yet he is sincere to his friends.

Watson was certain that in this chaotic wasteland, only by following such a powerful figure could one go further.

After confirming their thoughts, Zhuang Fan nodded:
"We can call each other whatever we want in private, but for safety reasons, we need to use a code name when we're outside."

He pointed to himself: "I am Wuya."

Watson thought for a moment, then grinned and said, "Then I have no regrets. I won't regret what I've done."

Hua Xin scratched her cat ears: "My name is Wuxia?"

Now they're three nobodys.

"Fine, whatever you want."

……

South City, located at the southern end of World Island, about 600 kilometers from Coastal City, is a medium-sized city without jurisdiction.

It guards the only passage to the Southern Continent, and its advantageous geographical location makes it impossible for any power to ignore.

Inside the city lord's palace.

Karl sat in the large chair, still wearing the close-fitting black nanotech combat suit, the surface of which had a silvery sheen.

In front of him, a holographic screen projected a real-time map of Nancheng.

An intelligence officer is bowing as he reports.

"...My Lord, the mutant groups in the south have recently become restless again. Several newly emerging organizations are inciting antagonism."

"Win some over, suppress others."

Karl's voice was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger. "Let them fight amongst themselves."

"Yes, my lord."

The intelligence officer paused for a moment, then continued:
“Recently, people from the Nuclear Group have been active in the southern part of the city. They have applied for a wider range of search permissions under the pretext of tracking down wanted criminals.”

"In addition, the Swift Dragon Mercenary Group and the Sharp Edge Mercenary Group have also submitted entry permits to us, also for the purpose of searching for targets."

Karl frowned slightly: "Reject both groups."

His voice turned cold: "This is the South City, not their backyard."

"Yes!"

The intelligence officer bowed and withdrew.

The strategist standing next to Karl slowly spoke up: "That wanted criminal is probably more cunning than we thought."

"Oh, please continue."

Carl had considerable respect for this strategist.

"Nuclear Group, Xunlong, Fengmang, and the border guards... So many forces are targeting one person at the same time, which means that what he has is of immeasurable value."

"He is deliberately revealing his whereabouts to lure the nuclear people to Nancheng. It is very likely just a diversion. I guess he himself is still in Linhai City."

Karl grunted, a hint of impatience flashing across his face: "But these useless men under my command have been investigating for so long and haven't made any progress at all."

The strategist bowed slightly.

"My lord, I will go to Linhai City myself."

“Okay.” Karl replied without hesitation.

……

Linhai City, the Sharp Edge Mercenary Group branch.

A barbecue feast was held at the camp.

Dozens of scavenger team leaders sat together, eating meat and drinking wine in a lively atmosphere.

Harry sat in the head seat, raised his glass, and wore a warm smile.

"Brothers, let's keep in touch! I hope to establish a comprehensive intelligence network in Linhai City. As long as you have good news sources or discover any treasures or ruins, I, Harry, promise you a generous reward!"

Everyone raised their glasses in response.

As an S-class mercenary group, Sharp Edge has a membership of 1,500.

Harry is currently the vice-captain, and he will be able to take over the captaincy once the current captain, Qiu Shan, retires.

At that time, he will directly command an elite combat team of over a hundred people, leading six squad leaders, one of whom is Grey Goose.

Power and wealth are readily available.

Just then, one of his subordinates quickly walked up to him and whispered a few words of report.

Harry's face darkened.

In the southern part of the city, their search warrant was rejected.

The atmosphere of the barbecue feast cooled down, and everyone tactfully got up to say goodbye.

A scavenger leader named Johnson, somewhat drunk, staggered out of the camp.

His deputy immediately approached, his face grave. "Brother Sen, something's happened to Tie Dan's gang."

"Ok?"

“Yesterday they went to the battlefield graveyard, saying they had found a good warehouse there, but they were attacked by a cat-man, and only Tie Dan managed to get back.”

Johnson stopped in his tracks.

"Is the pattern showing?"

“It’s been revealed. When the brothers go out to scavenge, they all spray-paint arm bone patterns on their backs.”

The drunkenness on his face had vanished without a trace, replaced by a ferocious grin.
"That means they're not giving me, 'One-Armed Johnson,' any face. Very well, very well!"

His nickname was "One-Armed Johnson," not because he had lost his own arm, but because he liked to cut off other people's arms and dry them into cured meat as collectibles.

Instead of returning to the base, he led his men directly to the cemetery.

An elderly catwoman was chained up beside him.

The catwoman was covered in black fur, but much of it had fallen off, revealing grayish-white skin, and her eyes were dull and strange.

As she approached the charred underground warehouse, the old Catwoman stopped and straightened her body.

She opened her mouth, laboriously curled her upper lip, and made an instinctive movement typical of felines, inhaling the complex scents in the air into her vomeronasal organ to distinguish pheromones from those of her kind.

After a moment, she let out a hoarse voice.

"Female cat, very young, very fresh... but she can't be tracked down, she's been cut off by the eerie mist..."

The old catwoman sniffed again, a hint of certainty in her eyes.

"She's near Linhai City... Give me time, I can find her, I definitely can."

"very good."

Johnson sneered, "Then I'll spare your cat's life."

He actually disliked this old catwoman; she smelled bad, was riddled with illnesses, and even the most undemanding customer would find her repulsive.

If we kill it, the meat will definitely be tough and dry, and it probably won't taste very good even if we make it into dried bacon.

Then let's make the most of the last bit of tracking.

……

Mao Shanwang's gaze lingered for a moment on Hua Xin, who was completely covered in black cloth.

He sighed.

"Girl, your life is going to be hard."

With a hint of sympathy, he said, “Remember, conceal your features and learn to conceal your scent. Mutants are very sensitive to the scent of their own kind and can easily be detected.”

He turned around, took out three bottles of floral water from the crab shell, and handed them over.

"Here's one bottle for you, and three bottles for a total of 500 gold coins."

"You're not going to let any business opportunity slip by."

Mao Shanwang ignored Zhuang Fan's complaints and continued to stare at Hua Xin:

"Although we cat people are pitiful, there are quite a few bad ones among us, and many of them are accomplices to evil. You should be careful and not be deceived."

Hua Xin nodded slightly through the black cloth.

"Thank you, Uncle Cat."

"Just call me Brother Mao, I'm still young."

Mao Shanwang's gaze then turned to Zhuang Fan.

"I bet you've done something big. Where's the hovercar I gave you?"

"Yeah, that's all."

"I knew it, where's the final payment?"

Zhuang Fan took out a stack of gold notes and handed them over.

Mao Shanwang took the money, counted it carefully, and a smile appeared on his face.

"readily!"

Zhuang Fan calculated that he still had 30,000 gold coins left.

"Old Cat, I have a question for you."

"Go ahead."

"I want to take over an underground recycling station."

Zhuang Fan stated his specific requirements: "It must be far away from Linhai City, the warehouse must be large enough, and the safer the location, the better."

Mao Shanwang patted his round belly and pondered for a moment.

"Hmm... I do know of one, it's in a garbage dump in the wilderness, it's really well hidden."

"The manager of that recycling station is also my regular supplier; he's a fairly reliable person."

"Coincidentally, he's planning to move to Zhongdu because he doesn't want to do this anymore, but the transfer price... isn't cheap."

(End of this chapter)