Dark Ruins Dawn

Chapter 79 Moving
Zhuang Fan stepped aside, clearing the only path leading out of the cave.

Santa was stunned.

It had anticipated threats, even massacres, but it hadn't expected the other party to let it pass so easily.

The human in front of me was as calm as if he were shooing away a few insignificant flies.

This contempt sent a chill down its spine more than any direct threat.

Fortunately, the Black Ratman's fear of the strategist was far less than the soul-deep terror he felt towards the Demon General.

Now that the Demon General is gone, the weight of a mere human doesn't seem so significant anymore.

Santa forced himself to maintain his composure and bowed slightly to Zhuang Fan: "My lord, farewell."

Then, it suddenly puffed out its chest, turned around, strode towards the cave entrance, and roared with all its might:

"Chirp! Let's go! Chief Tataji is magnanimous; going back is better than waiting to die here! Those who want to live, follow me!"

Its voice echoed in the empty cave, carrying a hint of incitement.

One, two... one after another, several black ratmen stepped forward with their heads down, silently following behind Santa.

Old Fukang stood there, watching its departing companions, then looking at the remaining members of its clan, and finally sighed deeply before silently retreating behind Jetta.

In the end, a total of seven adult black ratmen followed Santa away.

Jetta's shoulders slumped.

The team's core workforce suddenly dwindled by eight.

He counted the members and found that, including himself and Fukang, there were seventeen team members left.

After removing the old, weak, and young, there are only twelve adult rat-men who can actually work.

Their strength has been greatly diminished, and their future is uncertain.

Jetta turned around to face Zhuang Fan, her little head drooping limply, filled with remorse.

A sense of despondency enveloped it.

"My strategist... I have failed the Demon General's trust."

Its voice was somber: "The homeland was saved, and the people and goods have all returned, but I couldn't keep them."

Zhuang Fan looked at Jetta, his voice softening:
"Everyone has their own ambitions, there's no need to force things. Sometimes, leaving some people is actually a good thing."

He paused, then added, "Because those who remain are truly willing to weather the storm together, and such a team will only have stronger cohesion."

"is that so."

Jetta's mouse ears perked up as it pondered the weight of those words, a glimmer of light gradually appearing in its eyes.

"And I have more good news."

Zhuang Fan continued, "The Demon General has already reached an agreement with Tataji. He won't dare to come and cause trouble again, so you can rest assured."

These words were like a reassurance; the remaining black ratmen looked at each other, no longer so fearful.

Zhuang Fan took out a thick wad of gold notes from his pocket, amounting to 20,000, and handed it to Jetta.

"This is the payment for the last batch of goods. Work hard, and I'll increase your share of the profits later."

Jetta accepted the gold coins with gratitude.

"Besides, it's not very safe here."

Zhuang Fan glanced around:
"You need to relocate as a whole. I've already found a new underground secret room right next to the recycling station."

"At that time, a man named Watson will be there to meet you."

"Thank you, strategist!"

Jetta nodded emphatically, swallowing all its questions. All it could do now was to trust and obey unconditionally.

As for this batch of scrap...

Zhuang Fan pointed to the mountain of goods piled up in the corner, "Move them all into that big truck outside."

"As ordered."

There was no mobilization or urging.

Under Jetta's command, the remaining twelve adult ratmen displayed astonishing efficiency.

They had a clear division of labor and worked efficiently, loading three times the usual amount of goods into large trucks in just half a day.

Jetta himself took the driver's seat, the engine roared, and carrying all the belongings of the Black Ratman clan, he drove towards the recycling station.

The new location was an abandoned underground station less than 200 meters from the recycling center.

Next to the recycling station, right next to a newly built warehouse, was hastily constructed by Gage and his team.

Zhuang Fan needs a completely confidential warehouse space to conceal his ability to remove the lingering fog.

He trusted the Watson siblings and Gage, but not the new members of the team. After all, with so many people, there would be too many gossips, and it would be troublesome if the information leaked out.

The warehouse was constructed of thick concrete, with an outer wall reinforced with an alloy steel plate, and had no extra windows.

The walls will take some time to fully stabilize, but they are already usable as a warehouse.

From now on, all the waste from any scavenging team will be stored here.

The base's original basement was used only to store essential supplies and weapons.

Xiong Er sat atop a nearby abandoned clock tower, carrying the enormous sniper rifle.

His task was simple: to keep any unauthorized personnel away from the new warehouse.

Jetta slowly drove the large truck into the warehouse, then quickly unloaded the goods, and then led the tribesmen to the new settlement.

Inside the warehouse, fog lights were constantly working, driving away the eerie fog while also suppressing the corrosive effects of the decaying fog.

After entering the warehouse, Zhuang Fan closed the door.

He suppressed his physical discomfort, stretched out his hand, and an invisible suction force emanated from his palm.

The dark brown, decaying mist that lingered on the surface of the waste quickly left the object and dissipated into the air.

In the past, removing the decaying mist wasn't too difficult, but today it had taken a huge toll on his energy. As the last wisp of decaying mist was extracted, the waste regained its original luster.

"call"

Zhuang Fan was almost completely exhausted, his face was as pale as paper, and fine beads of cold sweat seeped from his forehead.

The two imprisoned "demon generals" in his mind began to stir again, howling and trying to seize control of his body.

"Get back!"

Zhuang Fan let out a cold shout in his mind, forcibly suppressing them with his will.

When Mao Shanwang arrived, he noticed that Zhuang Fan looked unwell and said with a serious expression, "To be honest, you don't look well. You should get some rest."

Zhuang Fan leaned against the wall and rested for a while before saying, "It's nothing, just an old ailment."

Mao Shanwang didn't ask any more questions. It scurried into the warehouse, its gaze falling on the brand-new scraps. It waved its paw and said, "Time to get to work!"

Several masked cat-men entered and began selecting and inspecting the animals.

Mao Shan Wang held the panel, his fat claws rapidly recording on the screen.

In the end, the total price reached 180,000 gold coins.

Zhuang Fan frowned slightly.

Tataji promised to compensate three times the value of the goods, which should theoretically be worth more than 240,000.

That cunning big rat must have mixed in a lot of inferior products.

After finishing his inventory, Mao Shanwang contentedly fanned himself with a palm-leaf fan, very satisfied with the quantity of goods.

"The same old rule applies. I'll come every three days from now on."

"Row."

After Mao Shanwang left, Hua Sheng wrote down the last account on the data board.

He looked up at Zhuang Fan with a hint of worry on his face: "With this money, the team has 490,000 gold coins. It sounds like a lot, but it could be gone if we spend it carelessly."

"That's why we need you to manage the money."

Zhuang Fan let out a weary breath. "You need to control costs and expenses, but remember, you absolutely cannot skimp on food, lodging, and medical care. That's the bottom line."

"I see."

Looking at Zhuang Fan's bloodless face, Hua Sheng couldn't help but say, "Brother, you really need to rest more."

"Okay, I'll definitely go to bed early tonight."

Half an hour later, Zhuang Fan called Jetta over.

Without wasting any words, he handed over 60,000 gold coins and a brand-new "Wasteland Traveler".

"We have extra warehouse trucks here, you can borrow them for now. Just transport the scrap you collect each day to the new warehouse, and Watson and the others will arrange the unloading."

“I will settle the payment with you every three days. If you need to purchase any supplies, you can contact Mao Shanwang directly and mention my name. The price will be cheaper.”

“Contact me via the panel if anything happens.”

Jetta took the item, his eyes filled with excitement: "Strategist, I'll remember this!"

Zhuang Fan continued to emphasize:

"In addition to continuing to scaveng, your team should also try to build an intelligence network to find out news around Linhai City. If there is any disturbance, notify me immediately."

"Yes!"

"Also, we need to work on expanding the team."

Zhuang Fan added, "It's not just the black rat race; rat people of other colors can also be included."

“My lord, actually, there are only brown rats around here, and they are quite xenophobic.”

Jetta looked slightly embarrassed: "The flower rat tribe is quite friendly, but they live deep in the mountains and forests and rarely come out."

"So your Black Rat Clan lives entirely in the south? You rarely come here?"

Jetta nodded and explained briefly:
"Yes, it's not just the Black Rat Clan. There are many mutant groups in the south, but because the South City blocks the vital passage, they can't get through, and we can't go back either."

"South City."

Zhuang Fan heard about this city again.

Jetta returned to the underground station and distributed some of the gold coins, causing the entire team to erupt in cheers.

Although the abandoned station was dilapidated, it was hidden and safe, and Watson brought them a lot of food and water, which moved them deeply.

The old Fukang quietly pulled the Jetta aside.

"Jetta... how much did all these goods sell for in total? I bet it's far more than 60,000, right?"

"Whatever the strategist gives, that's all."

Old Fukang stroked his rat whiskers: "I feel like I got ripped off."

“Old Fukang, those unscrupulous merchants are driving down prices too hard. If we really try to sell them ourselves, we probably won’t even get ten thousand gold coins. Who would want a pile of junk full of rotten fog?”

"Yes, that's true."

Jetta's rat-like face turned serious: "Let's not talk about these things behind each other's backs, let's just do our own thing."

"Don't worry, I'm old enough to know what I'm doing, and I won't let my team gossip."

"Oh, there's one more thing."

Jetta asked the question that had been bothering him: "Why did you agree to let Santa go back?"

"this."

Old Fukang stopped stroking his whiskers, thought for a long time, and then slowly spoke:
There's an old saying that goes, "Don't put all your eggs in one cage." I'm genuinely worried about that, so I have to be careful.

Jetta was silent for a moment: "I'm sure they made a mistake by going back. I know Tataji too well."

Old Fukang sighed softly, "Sigh, I wonder what's going on with Santana and the others."

(End of this chapter)