Dark Ruins Dawn

Chapter 55 Gage
Zhuang Fan looked at him and knew that the fat cat was lying.

The price must have been driven down to an extremely low level, otherwise Old Cat wouldn't have gone to such lengths to haggle.

He didn't expose him, and readily took out 20,000 gold coins.

Mao Shanwang took the money, counted it, and his smile became even brighter.

“I’m currently making purchases outside the city, so your goods need to be delivered here. Once I’m done with my work, I’ll come to your recycling station to collect them myself, every three days.”

"it is good."

After seeing Mao Shanwang off, the three of them went into the recycling station.

Hua Xin suddenly stopped, covered her right palm, and looked uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" Watson noticed her unusual behavior.

"My palms feel a bit tingly and hot."

Zhuang Fan glanced at it and knew what was going on: "The nano-skin has side effects."

He had previously tried to cover Hua Xin with nano-memory skin, but worried that the physical differences between mutants and humans were too great, so he started by testing it on her palms.

Clearly, after the nanobots entered her body, her recognition system became confused, resulting in a strong rejection reaction.

There was no other way but to give up.

Zhuang Fan opened the briefcase, took back the nanofluid from her hand, and said softly, "For safety's sake, you'll still have to wear a mask to cover your whole body from now on."

Hua Xin nodded obediently.

Watson sighed, wondering how long these days of anxiety would last.

"It won't be long. Once we have a foothold and strong firepower, we'll show our real names and faces and see who dares to provoke us."

After Zhuang Fan offered some encouragement, the two of them felt better.

The three of them began cleaning up the recycling bin.

Hua Sheng was in charge of cleaning up the clutter and trash, while Hua Xin wiped away the dust with a rag.

Zhuang Fan inspected all the power systems and defense facilities to ensure the safety of every corner.

He also mounted a surveillance rifle at one of the firing ports, providing initial fire support, with the plan to upgrade to more powerful weapons once he made more money.

Then, he walked up to the two androids, reached out, and slowly drew away the decaying mist from their bodies.

The lingering mist dissipated, revealing the matte color of the outer shell.

He opened the access panel and found that the core components inside were damaged. Although there were professional tools nearby, they were still beyond his capabilities.

Just then, a loud shout came from outside.

"Hey, return this! Get the hell out here right now!"

A bald, burly man stood outside the door with six bodyguards, looking menacing.

Behind the bald, muscular man was a thin, middle-aged man wearing a slave collar around his neck.

"what's up?"

"You're the new station owner? Old Tony's already run away?" The bald man sized up Zhuang Fan.

"Ah."

"I don't care if you're my ex or my current partner, I bought this from here, and I demand a refund!"

He roughly tore open the male slave's shirt, exposing his back:
"This beast is infected with spider fungus; his back is covered in it. No buyer wants him, so you have to give me a refund!"

Zhuang Fan's gaze fell on the back of the male slave.

On his entire back, a large patch of dark green spiderweb-like markings bulged up, slowly wriggling like a living thing, creating a strong visual impact.

Zhuang Fan was slightly puzzled.

He noticed that this symptom was different from the spider fungus on Grey Goose's face; Grey Goose's was significantly milder, and the markings on her face did not move.

Why are the symptoms so different?

"I wasn't involved in the previous transactions," Zhuang Fan said calmly.

"Pah! I don't care if you understand or not! Be smart and give me your money back!"

The bald man brandished his chainsaw, saying, "I forgot to tell you, I have 'One-Armed Johnson' backing me up."

I don't know the one-armed Qiao Sen.

But Zhuang Fan immediately connected it to the giant arm pattern; the group that attacked Hua Xin did indeed have a "severed arm" symbol on their clothes.

Having just arrived, Zhuang Fan decided not to cause trouble for the time being.

"You can get a refund, but remember, there won't be a next time."

The bald man ignored his cold threat: "It's not over yet. Your goods have damaged my reputation. According to industry practice, you must refund me and compensate me three times the amount. For these five thousand worth of goods, you should compensate me fifteen thousand."

Zhuang Fan sneered: "Think it over before you speak. If it's really extortion, it won't be as simple as just returning the goods."

Seeing that he was tough and didn't seem like a pushover, the bald man toned down his arrogance slightly.
"You've got quite the nerve. Tell me, who's protecting you? Let me hear which big shot it is."

Zhuang Fan immediately thought of Mao Shanwang.

Anyway, this guy recommended the recycling center, and I even made a hefty transfer fee from him, so I'll just consider it protection money.

"King Mao, my protector."

Upon hearing this name, the bald man's expression instantly changed. This was someone even the boss wouldn't dare to mess with. A clear look of fear flashed in his eyes, and after a moment's hesitation, his attitude softened slightly.

"Fine, I guess I'm just unlucky. I'll give you a full refund."

Zhuang Fan seized the opportunity to press his advantage:

"You're overthinking it. We can only refund 3,000 yuan because you can't prove that the spider fungus infection didn't originate from your location."

"you"

The bald man's expression shifted between anger and uncertainty. After thinking for a moment, he finally gave in.

Zhuang Fan returned three thousand gold coins, and the other party transferred the slave ownership agreement to his "Wasteland Traveler".

With this agreement, male slaves would be tightly controlled by the collar around their necks, with no possibility of ever being freed.

Zhuang Fan watched their departing figures, lost in thought.

It seems that Mao Shanwang's deterrent power is greater than expected. He even considered whether he should just start using Mao Shanwang's branch as a front.

The male slave kept his head down the whole time. He looked to be in his forties or fifties, with long hair and a tangled beard, and a numb look in his eyes.

Zhuang Fan told him to get dressed and asked him what he did at the recycling station before.

"Moving goods, repairing."

He seemed dull and dazed.

"repair?"

Zhuang Fan's heart skipped a beat: "You can repair androids?"

The man immediately looked up and gave an affirmative answer: "Master, I've always been the one fixing it."

"Then come here and give it a try."

"Yes Master."

Zhuang Fan watched as he walked up to the two androids, skillfully opened the toolbox, and took out several repair tools.

Disassembling, inspecting, replacing parts, reconnecting the wiring... his movements were fluid and efficient, without the slightest hesitation.

In a few moments, the electronic eyes of the two broken androids regained a faint blue light.

Zhuang Fan secretly memorized the repair steps, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. This person is an expert.

After the repairs were completed, the man returned to his numb state.

"What's your name?"

“Gage,” he replied sullenly.

What did you do before?

After hearing this, Gage fell into deep thought and slowly spoke after a long while.

"In the beginning, I was an engineer in bionic intelligence, working in the maintenance department."

His voice was slightly hoarse: "Later, I went to the nuclear group and was in charge of designing and building shelters."

Zhuang Fan was suspicious; this guy's resume was impressive.

"Then how did you become a slave?"

"The project was halted a few years ago, and I was laid off."

Gage's eyes dimmed: "On the way back, we encountered bandits again and were enslaved for several years."

It doesn't sound like a lie.

Zhuang Fan rummaged through the old man's memory bank, asking a few questions about the power supply of the Nuclear Group's "Sentinel" armor and the life support system model of the XR series shelters.

Upon hearing these professional questions, Gage's initial dejection vanished instantly, and his eyes lit up completely.

His answers were precise and detailed, without any hesitation, and he even pointed out several design flaws that were not even recorded in the internal manual.

Through his senses, Zhuang Fan confirmed that everything he said was true.

This man was a genuine engineer and had led the construction of several shelters.

Unfortunately, he was honest and dull, and having been infected with spider fungus for several years, he ended up in such a miserable state in the wasteland.

Gage, a genius at building houses.
Zhuang Fan took out the Wasteland Traveler and pulled up the slave ownership agreement he had just received.

He tapped the screen a few times, found the option to terminate the contract, and pressed it.

"Click."

With a soft click, the collar around Gage's neck popped open and fell to the ground.

Gage's body stiffened.

He subconsciously raised his hand, touched his neck, and stared at the metal collar on the ground.

As if waking from a long nightmare, he suddenly looked at Zhuang Fan.

"host"

“Gage, from now on you can just call me Wuya.”

(End of this chapter)