Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

Upon seeing Zhang Renfeng, the woman's cries grew even more intense. If Alana and Xiaomei hadn't stopped her, she probably would have crawled over immediately.

Zhang Renfeng could probably guess what had happened that could cause someone to be so panicked and anxious.

"What's wrong with your child?" he asked in a deep voice.

"..." The woman was taken aback at first, then her expression turned from awe to fear. She immediately prostrated herself on the ground and knelt down. "Please, please! I'm willing to give anything, just please save my daughter!"

Chapter 281: The Red Center Gang? Yorozuya!

The woman was probably around thirty years old, with disheveled hair and rumpled clothes, looking as if she had rolled around in a mud pit.

But her tone was unusually excited, and Zhang Renfeng immediately realized that this unusual excitement meant she hadn't slept for at least a day and a night. To deceive the brain, the body secretes a large amount of hormones, making the brain more excited than usual and creating the illusion that it has rested.

At this moment, this woman, who looked haggard from head to toe, was barely holding on as she recounted her experiences of the past few days to the awakened members of the Red Center Gang.

In short, her seven-year-old daughter went missing while traveling.

Judging from her clothing, one can tell that the woman comes from a fairly well-off family and should be considered a lady who is well-off and has no worries about food and clothing.

If one's family is of average means, they probably can't afford such a luxury as traveling to other places. Despite the existence of railways and trains, most people in this era still don't leave their own little world.

“Roglinburg?” Calaway, who had just come to his senses, raised an eyebrow when he heard about their chosen destination. “Isn’t that a mining area? What’s so touristy about it?”

“No, Lu, have you forgotten?” Mike stood up, rummaged through the carriage, took out a map, and slowly spread it out in front of everyone, pointing to one of the places, “On the side near the Adam Mountains, around this area, there is a huge volcanic hot spring, which is very famous.”

"Are you here to see this?"

“Yes, yes, yes, that’s it, God curses it…” The woman’s mental state was already somewhat off. She downed the coffee Igo had given her in one gulp, seemingly oblivious to the heat, but lowered her voice, hysterically, “This place is called ‘Paradise Pool,’ and there are over fifty hot springs of all sizes connected together! In the very center of one of the hot springs, there’s a heart-shaped ‘Our Lady Rock.’ Touching it will bring you divine blessings. Good heavens! I can’t believe it! This is clearly a fabricated story by an unscrupulous newspaper, specifically designed to attract tourists from out of town. Thomas and I actually fell for it!”

"Roglinburg is a very large place. We'll stay at Windhaven Trade War Port first. To be honest, the environment there isn't very good; there's only one inn. The stream is polluted, and it's often foggy. I heard that deep in the dense forest of the mountains, there's a witch family living..."

While she was rambling on, Zhang Renfeng also carefully examined the map and discovered that Fengxi Port, which she mentioned, did indeed exist. However, Mike's map was quite old; perhaps when it was created, it was just a small port, but now it had become a large-scale trading post.

"Did you call the police?" Xiaomei asked. "Shouldn't you call the police immediately if your child goes missing?"

If the woman hadn't mentioned calling the police, things would have been fine, but the mere mention of this thing only made her more agitated.

“You think I didn’t try? It was completely useless!” Her voice was full of despair as she cried out, “Forget the sheriff, there isn’t even a police station in that place! I searched for ages, but I couldn’t even find out who to ask. The whole town was like a dead man, just watching us make a fool of ourselves. Oh… may God curse them!”

"Thomas, the child's father, is still in Windhaven, entangled with them. He's probably getting nowhere... I rushed back overnight by post carriage to the police station in White Torch Town for help, but... but... Waaaaah—!"

The woman cried out in despair. Without her saying a word, Zhang Renfeng could guess that she must have been kicked out.

Each town has its own police station and police officers, some with many and some with few.

Unless there's a major incident, like capturing a fugitive with a large bounty, different towns generally adhere to the principle of non-interference. The incident happened in Windhaven Harbor; White Torch Town had just completed the handover between the old and new mayors and had a ton of work to do, so how could they possibly go on a field mission so far away?

As for Fengxi Port, there was even less hope: it wasn't even a town, just a large trading post. It only gradually became inhabited after the railway was built and it developed. After the child went missing, they searched for ages but couldn't find anyone responsible.

For ordinary people, this is the true nature of this era—either you're careful and never run into trouble in your life, or if you do, you're just out of luck.

……

Zhang Renfeng looked at the weeping woman in front of him and fell silent.

It was clear she had come to them because she was desperate. At this moment, they were her last hope. It was hard to imagine what path someone who had lost all hope would ultimately take.

"What's your daughter's name?"

“…Penny…Penny Lagris! Sir, would you be willing to help me?”

Suddenly ascending from hell to heaven, the woman was overwhelmed with joy, an unnatural blush rising on her face. "I have money! We'll give you all our savings, all of it! I don't have much cash on me, but you wait here, I'll go home and get some. If we add it all together and sell the house, we should be able to raise $1000 without any problem!"

"We'll talk about the reward after I find her," Zhang Renfeng said calmly. "I can't guarantee your daughter is still alive. Whatever the final outcome, I hope you can accept it."

"..." Her expression froze instantly.

Rather than saying she had never considered this possibility, it's more accurate to say that she instinctively refused to think about it.

Even if you suffer some hardship and pain while you're alive, there's always a sliver of hope.

If you die, just dump it in some desolate wilderness, and after a week it will rot and stink. After two weeks, vultures and ants will have eaten it up to the bones.

“There’s no use in you staying here. Go back and wait for news.” Zhang Renfeng turned around, indicating that he wanted to see him out. “Fengxi Port is at least two or three days’ journey from here. Even if you want to go, you’ll have to plan it out carefully.”

To see a single spider's thread, a symbol of hope, in the depths of despair is already incredibly fortunate. The woman thanked him profusely and staggered down the mountain.

"You...you're not serious, are you?" Calaway stared in disbelief, his eyes wide with surprise. "Are you a gang leader or a goddess? How come you're meddling in this kind of thing?"

“That’s the kind of place the Red Center Gang is. It’s less of a gang and more of a place where they’ll do anything for money… It’s kind of like a shrine.” Mike was used to it, adjusting the brim of his hat. “Besides, to be fair, $1000 isn’t a small amount of money, so it’s worth the effort.”

“That lady must have been driven to desperation to come to us. She had nowhere else to turn for help besides us.” Seeing her plight, Xiaomei immediately felt a pang of sympathy for her past self. “Mr. Hongzhong…”

……

"Has anyone been to Fengxi Port?" Zhang Renfeng pondered for a moment before asking, "Who's in charge there now?"

Chapter 282: A Sunny and Cheerful Young Man (Part 15)

“Windhaven Harbor?” Koby tapped the table twice with his fingers, staring at Zhang Renfeng with a half-smile. “Interesting. Are you going there again this time to play the savior?”

"Stop teasing me, just tell me." Zhang Renfeng waved his hand. "Do you know, or don't you know?"

This was his first time in the black market. Despite the name, it looked like an ordinary general store.

However, he opened his shop in a place far from the city center, almost among residential houses. You had to walk into alleys and turn several times before you could see a rather old green wooden door. Pushing the door open, a beam of sunlight shone through the window frame and through the bookshelves onto the rustic, old floor, creating a Dali Garden effect. Even the dust floating in the air seemed so light.

The bookshelves were crammed with all sorts of classic books, all showing signs of having been read many times, and they didn't seem to be just for show.

The room was filled with boxes, each containing various items neatly categorized: platinum belt buckles, pocket watches, necklaces, rings, guns, and belts.

These are all spoils of war that can be found everywhere in the western wilderness. Unless you find something particularly good, they usually end up on the black market and are sold for money.

He also saw a set of cigarette cards, a rare find that completes a series; it's hard to imagine that such things would circulate on the black market.

To welcome Zhang Renfeng, Kebiyin hung a "No Business" sign at the door and brought out his best Red Apple cigarettes and the finest Pirate Rum. This assassin from the Xunshan Hermitage was a man of both cigarettes and alcohol in private. On the table was a plate of braised beef ribs with chickpeas, its aroma filling the air, and a book lay halfway through its pages.

Don't live too comfortably.

Upon entering and seeing this scene, Zhang Renfeng immediately decided that after retiring, he would go to some city and create a place like this.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to just read books every day and enjoy life?

“Heh…” Koby closed the book and chuckled softly, “Don’t underestimate the Secret Order. There are our people everywhere in Red Center, and the same goes for that port. We have a habit of exchanging intelligence regularly.”

"regular?"

"Once a year."

"You motherfucker..." Zhang Renfeng couldn't help but swear, but he quickly calmed down. "What's the use of this now? A year ago, I was still feeding horses in the wind and sand!"

“It’s rare to see someone like you who can undergo such a dramatic transformation in such a short time. You’re like a restless bomb; the slightest external impact could set it on fire. Deep down, you crave this kind of instability and excitement. This madness has attracted many people who are similar to you, and now they’ve all gathered in your team.”

After a long analysis, Koby finally got down to business: "About a year ago, according to the intelligence I have, that port fell into the 'spider's' web."

"Spider?" Zhang Renfeng was puzzled.

"The Spider, Mr. Castor, is employed by a merchant group. He is the agent for the entire Windhaven, responsible for the on-site management and coordination of the two major industries there—mining and logging. There are also other scattered businesses under his control. You could say that, except when he needs to act subservient to the people who employ him, most of the time, he is the local tyrant."

"Another local tyrant?" Zhang Renfeng frowned. "I just took one down in Saint Quintak. I'm really having a lot of free time."

“Then you’d better be careful,” Koby said with a half-smile. “It’s said that he’s a very difficult person to deal with. Although he’s called ‘Spider,’ he has no venom, no claws, only endless spider silk.”

"He would wrap himself around his prey in circles until he completely surrounded it and swallowed it whole. He was a man who would eat people without spitting out the bones."

Anyone else would have shuddered upon hearing such a comment. But Zhang Renfeng remained calm and retorted, "What? If I stab him, can he come back to life?"

“No, not at all.” Koby picked up his glass and took a small sip of aged rum. “But are you sure it’s a good idea?”

……

Zhang Renfeng calmed down.

Indeed, the world of martial arts isn't all about fighting and killing; interpersonal relationships are equally important. Since the purpose is to find someone, dealing with locals is inevitable.

If you start by killing indiscriminately, people will definitely think you're crazy. Even if they have intelligence, they won't dare to get involved with you, which is very detrimental to their goals.

"Okay, I understand, thank you."

Just as Zhang Renfeng was about to take out his wallet to pay for the drinks, Kebi shook his head, "It's such a small amount of money, don't bother, I'll treat you."

"……And one more thing."

Zhang Renfeng stopped and turned around.

“A year ago, there was a notorious gang that frequented the area around Fort Roglin and committed many horrific crimes. They had a hefty bounty on their heads back then, but somehow, the bounty was quietly withdrawn this year. My accomplice suspects that they have someone backing them up within the government.”

“The place where this group committed the crime is a bit far from Windhaven Harbor, and a year has passed. I’m not sure what the situation is now,” Koby said in a deep voice. “Since you’re going, you’d better be careful.”

“Shocking?” Zhang Renfeng immediately grasped the key point. “Tell me more about it.”

“No less than the Australian shrike.” Koby’s face was grave. “These bastards are known to the world as…”

----

"Ah—! Ah—!!!"

The screams woke the man from his sleep. He straightened his clothes, jumped off the rock, and slowly walked to the X-shaped wooden frame.

“Welcome to the Rams Gang, sir. I… am Rams Hisham.” Rams was dressed in a very steamy style, with a scarf around his neck, curly hair, and melancholic sky-blue eyes. His smile was distinctive, giving off a sunny, boyish vibe mixed with a touch of naivety.

But when he took a knife from the tray his subordinate handed him, the man tied to the diagonal cross certainly didn't think so.

"I don't know, I don't know! I've never seen Red Center, I really don't know!"

“Well… sir, my good sir, it’s not that time yet. Calm down, let’s follow the steps, okay?” Rams said in an inhumanly calm tone, first pressing a knife against his chest, then slowly sliding his clothes open to reveal his chest.

"Wow——!"

A bucket of cold water was poured over him, making him feel even more chilled to the bone. He trembled all over and subconsciously began to breathe through his mouth.

"I often say a sentence, which is a bit tedious, but it is the truth. The truth... should be something that can be repeated over and over again."

“Naked people rarely have secrets.”

“Those who are ‘skinned’ have no secrets.”

"What kind of person do you aspire to be, sir?"

"I...please, I...I really don't know anything...I've never seen him, why did you capture me..."

"You were there when he caused all that trouble in the sandstorm, weren't you?" Rams pressed the cold metal against his heart. "Appearance, skin, weapons, height, anything."

"Think about it carefully."

He licked his lips and gave a warm smile. "Think about it carefully again."

Chapter 283: No rush, let's play around with him! (Part 16)

"...In short, it's hard to say whose fault it was. The tree didn't fall in the intended direction and crushed the young man underneath. It was the son of the old Damon family."

"He was trapped under the tree for three or four hours. I went to see the scene; his internal organs and flesh were scattered all over the ground. It took the workers working together to lift the tree and rescue his body. They insisted on giving him a proper funeral, so..."

“Eulok.” Castor didn’t stop what he was doing. While listening to his report, the smiling man naturally finished writing the letter, sealed it in an envelope, and asked, “How much do you earn a month?”

“$200.” Orlock licked his lips.

"Are you satisfied with this salary?" Caster asked, folding the envelope carefully.

"I am very satisfied. Thank you for your guidance. This is my..."

Before he could finish his fawning, Castor raised his hand to stop him. The corners of his mouth were still smiling, but his eyes darkened. "Do you know why bosses hire people like you and me to manage them?"

“If a team consists of only one or two people, they can still achieve something through personal charisma. I have seen such masters. The ‘White Mararo’ of the Zolael family, even if he were to have his confidant commit suicide the next moment, they would not have the slightest suspicion.”

Castor said unhurriedly, "But this approach won't work if there are more than five people. Because with more people, there will be the issue of dividing the pie. The pie is only so big; if you get a little more, I'll get a little less. No matter how charismatic you are, you can't please everyone."

"What about fifty people? What about a hundred people?"

“Miners, loggers, and everyone at this trading post—a total of 239 people—all have their own needs. A little delay here, a little delay there, and by the time it reaches the boss, it might mean earning one less piece of wood or digging ten fewer grams of gold!”

"Anyone can be a nice guy; just say a few nice words and turn a blind eye. But the boss doesn't hire us to be nice guys; he hires us to set the rules. To them, you or I can be replaced at any time. They only hired you because you were notorious for being bad in Windhaven, nothing more."

"If you don't want to play the bad guy anymore, you can just say so."

Although there wasn't a single harsh rebuke, his words still made Orlock break out in a cold sweat and his heart pound wildly.

Yes.

Earning $200 a month, that's $2400 a year – almost enough to cover the rest of my life's savings. Where else can you find an opportunity like that?

How did he rise from a street thug despised by everyone to a manager in a large corporation? Wasn't it simply because he was tough and ruthless enough with those guys? Why did he back down at the most crucial moment?