Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

Chapter 574: The tree desires stillness, but the wind never ceases.

The burial is tomorrow, and Zhang Renfeng began to consider whether to put the captain's personal belongings into the coffin as well.

Besides a pair of glasses, an old-fashioned flintlock pirate pistol, and a telescope, all Ishtar carried with him was his wooden cane. Over the years, he had been using this cane, and the patterns and colors on it had faded from countless touches, leaving only a faint outline of a cicada.

The cicada symbolizes forbearance, and he named his forces the "Cicada Gang." Zhang Renfeng believed that he held a special meaning for this symbol.

A series of whirlwinds rose in the mourning hall.

"Don't worry, I know you can't bear to part with it." Zhang Renfeng stroked his walking stick and murmured, "Tomorrow I'll put it in the coffin, and you can take it with you. Old things are more comforting, and you'll have something to rely on when you go mountain climbing or something."

……

"Whoosh—!!"

In an instant, a cold wind arose, and a wisp of paper ash floated out of the brazier, landing precisely on the wooden cicada staff.

Zhang Renfeng dared not delay and immediately picked up the wooden staff again, examining it carefully from top to bottom. Sure enough, he found that the tip of the staff, the part carved with the shivering inscription, seemed odd; the weight didn't quite match. Even so, he dared not use too much force, fearing that a sudden burst of strength would damage one of Istavo's few remaining relics. After studying it by candlelight for most of the day, he finally managed to pull the head of the staff out.

This small wooden stick actually holds a hidden secret!

From a space of about two fingers, a roll of paper was poured out. It was clearly old, and the paper had changed. A line of words was clearly written on it.

Ashes to ashes, and dust to dust.

Below this line of text was a densely packed series of coded messages, formatted as follows: "A—79, 8, 6", "B—103, 12, 56"... The entire set was written in great detail. Although Zhang Renfeng didn't quite understand its true meaning, he could roughly tell that it was a series of codes.

At that final dinner, Istavo didn't mention this secret to himself, or perhaps he had too many things to consider at the time and ultimately overlooked it. In any case, what he kept hidden in his walking stick must have been no ordinary secret.

And now, by a twist of fate, this secret has ended up in his hands again.

Upon receiving this scroll of paper, the strange wind in the mourning hall immediately subsided, and the candlelight ceased to flicker.

Zhang Renfeng preferred to believe that it was the spirit of his old friend who was still alive and protecting him in the afterlife.

“I understand, Istavo.” Zhang Renfeng carefully put it into his pocket and muttered to himself, “I understand.”

----

It is now common knowledge that Istavo White Ulysses is buried in the Waglet family cemetery in the First State. To conceal everything Istavo has painstakingly created, there is no tombstone on his coffin, only a cross covered with flowers, without any inscription.

For Zhang Renfeng, it was no longer necessary.

With a clear sky and drifting clouds, the view of the mountains and rivers below is the best testament to this.

As the last shovelful of soil was shoveled on, Zhang Renfeng leaned on the shovel with both hands, looked down, and sighed inexplicably.

"What's wrong, Mr. Hongzhong?" Xiaomei noticed his unusual expression but assumed it was due to excessive grief. She tugged at his sleeve and comforted him, "You've been busy for so long, and now that everything is over, you should take a rest. If you keep going like this day after day, your body won't be able to take it."

“…Don’t use that name anymore, Xiaomei.” Zhang Renfeng sighed, looked at the cross covered with flowers not far away, and said in a deep voice, “Istavo risked his life to win this opportunity for me, so let [Red Center] become a thing of the past.”

“There’s a saying in my hometown: ‘The tree may wish to be still, but the wind will not cease.’ If you follow me, the wind will probably only get stronger and fiercer…”

"I'm letting you know here that if anyone wants to leave, please let me know at any time."

The expressions on everyone's faces changed slightly, as if they hadn't expected him to say such blunt words at his friend's grave.

Istavo's death truly changed this fearless man a lot.

“When I first started the Red Center Gang, I didn’t think too much about it. I was just idling around here every day, and all I wanted to do was make money. Originally, I wanted to make a fortune off Ryan Childer, but somehow it ended up like this… Now, our next opponent is out in the open, and it’s probably this country itself.”

“We’ve made enough money. Every step forward is a life-or-death situation. The risks we take and the rewards we get will gradually become disproportionate. If it’s not Istavo, the next ones to step in might be the mounted police, the state police, and then the military.”

As he spoke, his gaze swept over everyone, and everyone's attention remained focused on him, without the slightest distraction.

This made him very happy. In any case, this time was different from the last time. He was no longer alone, facing an incredibly powerful opponent.

"I am not a stock photo agency. My gang is open to all. Whether it's today or in the future, if you have any intention to leave, just let me know and you can leave at any time."

……

“I don’t know about others, but I’m definitely not leaving. Where else can I go?” Seeing that the atmosphere was getting a bit serious, Igor once again used his best icebreaker, using a dwarf joke to lighten the mood. “If I leave this gang, the only place that would probably be willing to take me in is the circus.”

Alana immediately burst out laughing. Xiaomei probably felt it was too impolite, so she tried to suppress her laughter, though her shoulders trembled slightly.

Their situation was essentially similar to Igor's; they had no other place to belong besides the gang. In their subconscious, the Red Center Gang was their second family.

The two girls smiled, and the atmosphere immediately eased considerably. Mike, the most senior member, waved his hand and said, "Alright, Lao Zhang, to be honest with you, I'm getting old. In the days I have left, I won't find a better leader than you, so I'm sticking with you."

"Just tell us what you want us to do next."

……

"Alright." Zhang Renfeng let out a deep breath. The gazes of the crowd seemed to weigh heavily on his shoulders, like mountains. This meant that so many people, out of trust rather than orders, had entrusted their lives to him, Zhang Renfeng.

Knowing full well that the road ahead would be difficult, he was still chosen with unwavering resolve, which made him feel both gratified and nervous.

He pointed to the opposite mountain peak, to the luxurious three-story wooden house standing in the mountains, and said in a deep voice, "Let's go home and talk about it slowly."

……

The group left along the mountain path, and the mountaintop returned to its original silence and tranquility.

The sky remained a pristine, clear blue, and the birdsong, carried by the wind, traveled far and wide, reaching even the mountaintop. The bright sunlight streamed down from the heavens, falling precisely on the cross and gilding the garlands of flowers hanging upon it with a golden sheen.

A lithe white-tailed deer with glossy fur slowly emerged from the mountain path, wagging its tail as it walked over.

It looked around, then lay down in front of the cross and fell into a deep sleep.

Chapter 575: Even after death, there are still assists!

“Interesting, very interesting.” Even though Zhuo Gen was half-squatting down, he still looked a size bigger than Anna. But at this moment, his fierce face, which looked like a beast, was full of curiosity as he stared at Anna’s mechanical metal right arm. “I’ve been to quite a few places and seen many interesting things, but this is the first time I’ve seen one like this.”

Anna had been living in this house these days. Tao would occasionally come over to help her change parts of her prosthetic body and apply some lubricant. Zhang Renfeng left her some money, and during the day he would wander around town like a curious little squirrel, cautiously exploring everything. Sometimes she would go to Tao's laboratory and spend a whole day watching them enthusiastically assemble parts and sheet metal into a metal frame.

Tao came to Baiju Town as Zhang Renfeng's specially invited partner, and Dunn wouldn't dare to neglect him even if he had a hundred lives. His food, lodging, daily necessities, and transportation were all top-notch; adding another little girl wouldn't have been a problem. However, Anna herself refused. Subconsciously, she wasn't willing to "borrow" someone else's home; she wanted a home of her own.

Although this "home" is temporarily empty.

This place is unlike any other; this is White Torch Town, the town with the strongest faith in the Red Center.

Anna's distinctive metal arm was a powerful declaration, and the news spread quickly. Everyone knew that this girl was from the Red Center. Unless they had the guts of a bear or a leopard, no one dared to set their sights on her.

Now, in addition to the Red Center Gang members, several crew members who witnessed the captain's last moments have also come to this mansion.

Anna wasn't afraid of the tall Zhuo Gen at all. Instead, she showed a smug expression, hummed twice, and then used her metal prosthetic arm to grab a cup and perform for him.

"It can actually pick things up." Zhuo Gen had never seen such an ingenious mechanical structure before, and he couldn't help but exclaim in amazement. "I originally thought that using a hook would be more practical."

"Hmm... Ah..." Anna still couldn't say anything, but she pointed to Zhuo Gen's bandaged right arm with her hand gesture.

"This? This was interrupted." Zhuo Gen said casually, tilting his head to the side. "I exchanged a punch with that guy."

----

Apart from Angel Eyes, everyone else sat around the table, and the focus of their discussion was a small roll of paper.

“I found this in my cane in Istavo, and I think you should know about it,” Zhang Renfeng said in a deep voice. “Did he mention this to you?”

"..."

Ren picked up the note and looked at it over and over, but his literacy level was about the same as Zhang Renfeng's. He could speak fluently, but he couldn't recognize many words.

“No, not while he was alive.” After a moment of silence, he gently placed the note back on the table. “He rarely talked to us about the Illuminati. Apart from a few of us, most of the crew didn’t even know that he was a member of the Illuminati. They only vaguely knew that the captain must have a wide network of connections.”

“Even we know nothing about his specific position or relationships within that organization.”

It's a code word.

The sentence at the very top of the note was something Zhang Renfeng cared about deeply.

"Ashes to ashes, and dust to dust..."

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.”

"What does that mean? What did he bury in the ground?" Carlowey explained the riddle in the most intuitive way. "And then, that long string of letters and numbers below are coordinates? Is this a miniature treasure map?"

“Where would you find coordinates that long?” Mike shook his head, denying it. “The most important thing about burying treasure in the ground and making records is that it’s intuitive. Marking a point on the map is much more useful than these fancy recording methods.”

"This phrase should be some kind of hint... dust to dust, ashes to ashes..."

"Dust to dust..."

"Wait a minute, this sentence..."

A glint flashed in Igor's eyes, "The Bible!"

"What the hell?" Zhang Renfeng frowned. He knew what the Bible was, but the contents of this book were completely outside his knowledge.

"Who? Who has the Bible?" Ego seemed to suddenly realize something, and jumped up, searching the room frantically. "Help me find it! The riddle is in there!"

At a command, everyone got to work, and eventually, they found an unopened hardcover Bible in the bookshelf on the second floor of the mansion.

When this house was being built, Dunn personally handled much of the furniture, even the stuffing inside, which explains why there's this book on the bookshelf. These days, the Bible is practically a household name; even the poorest towns have a church.

Even if you don't read it, it's still very useful to put it on the bookshelf as a decoration.

With a "snap," Igor ripped open the book's packaging, spread it out, slammed it onto the table, and quickly flipped through it, a uniquely excited smile on his face as he solved a mystery.

"Dust to dust, ashes to ashes," is a quote from the Bible. This phrase doesn't have any real meaning; it might just be a reminder that all passwords are confined to this book… Indeed, that makes sense. This book is extremely popular, all versions are the same, and it's available everywhere!

"And these are the methods for deciphering the code, take a look!"

He pointed with his finger to the first line on the slip of paper—A—79, 8, 6.

"That means the letter A actually corresponds to the content on page 79, line 8, sixth letter."

"By the same token, we can decipher all 26 letters from A to Z and all 10 numbers from 0 to 9. The final result will be a completely different message. What I want to express can be expressed using a completely unbelievable combination of letters and numbers. If we don't master this decoding method, even if the information falls into the hands of outsiders, it will be impossible to decipher it."

"In other words, this Bible is the key to unlocking its secrets, and this is how the Illuminati exchanged information. We..."

……

……

……

At this point, Igor suddenly froze. His expression froze for a moment, then he suddenly realized something, as if he had finally pieced together the broken pieces of the puzzle in his mind.

Without even having time to explain, he sprang into action like a wound-up toy, rushing towards the bedroom.

"What's wrong this time?" Calaway asked in surprise. "At least crack this code first."

"No, no, no, no...!!"

Igor's voice trembled with excitement, "Where are the ledgers?"

"What ledger?"

"The ledgers! The ledgers! The seven ledgers we stored in the safe along with those bearer bonds when we robbed the train, those ledgers that are like celestial scripture!"

Chapter 576: The First Drive in the New Era

"Long time no see, Aurora~~"

Zhang Renfeng sized up the flaxen-haired girl. She had changed into a maid's outfit and was holding a large pair of shears, trimming the bushes in the courtyard. Her flaxen hair was tied back, and she looked much more energetic than when she was in Dover Hill.

A brand new, fulfilling life can quickly pull a person out of the shadows of the past.

"Mr. Zhang!" Upon seeing him, the girl tossed the scissors aside and called out sweetly.

After the events in Dovercho, the mother and daughter followed Tao and left that chaotic place, settling down in White Torch Town as companions.

Some distance from town, Dunn granted Tao a vacant mansion with many empty rooms.

Aurora, who came along, naturally became a long-term employee of the laboratory. She was responsible for taking care of the laboratory members' daily needs, which relieved some of Tito's workload. With her in charge, at least the worst situation of the place becoming a complete mess could be avoided.

"Mr. Tao and the others are behind the house. Please be careful when you go," the girl specifically reminded them. "They have a really big iron horse that they're driving around in the backyard!"

Iron horse?

Upon hearing the term, Zhang Renfeng immediately thought of Lan Che from Numa Town, whose previous nickname was this thing. But with his imagination, he couldn't fathom what this so-called Iron Horse was actually made of, so he could only mutter to himself as he walked inside.

Despite Aurora's help in preparing him mentally, Zhang Renfeng was still utterly astonished when he actually saw it.

----

"boom---!!"

Judging from its construction, this thing that is running wildly in the open area should have been transformed from a horse-drawn carriage, and its structure is somewhat similar to that of a horse-drawn carriage.

The steel heart that Tao had invented earlier was embedded in the body of the carriage, and most of the carriage's structure was replaced with metal steel.

Not only that, it replaced the seat originally reserved for the driver with a more comfortable leather seat, and added two electric lights to the front. The two front wheels were smaller than the rear ones. But when it turned, it was much faster than a horse-drawn carriage. This barren land, which had barely grown any grass to begin with, was now being plowed up by the wheels, kicking up clouds of dust.