Useless

Because Third Master saw things that way, he had little respect for Scarface Woman.

Hunters were indeed badass, but trading their lives for money meant living with blood on the blade.

But did they know that in the scavenger trade, people could often be killed without a drop of blood being spilled?

Deep down, the upper ranks of the scavengers regarded Hunters... as nothing more than a bunch of desperadoes.

Faced with Third Master's questioning, Mr. Sai actually laughed and asked with interest, "You're dissatisfied?"

"I was merely asking," Third Master replied blandly.

He believed that after witnessing the Survivor's self-destruct, the other side would at least give some thought to their actions.

Unfortunately, the Gloomy Young Man seemed to send some sort of signal. The next moment, another gunshot rang out.

Third Master's head exploded with a bang, red and white matter spraying everywhere.

His body jolted violently. His prosthetic limbs could no longer support his headless body, and he slowly collapsed to the ground.

"Heh." The Gloomy Young Man chuckled. "A few lousy scavengers, and you think you're somebody?"

"Hunters dare to risk their lives... do you?"

Qu Jianlei understood what he meant. Scavengers also dared to risk their lives, but risking one's life was not all the same.

Third Master had been killed because he had failed to think things through—when no profit was involved, scavengers generally would not risk their lives.

Sure enough, no one reacted at all.

Mr. Sai also paused for a moment, clearly waiting to see whether anyone would fight back.

Meanwhile, the Patrol Members beside the Weapon Platform had already gone on high alert, their fingers resting on the buttons.

Then Mr. Sai laughed. "Heh, that's why I say you're just lowly scavengers. What makes you worthy of being compared to Hunters?"

Qu Jianlei let his eyelids droop. Is this damage control? Did he realize the need to divide the camps?

However, those words finally enraged a scavenger named Tie Tou.

The man lived up to his name. He had once suffered a severe skull injury, and the front of his forehead had been replaced with an alloy skull.

He raised his head and spoke coldly. "If you kill all the scavengers, will you get your information?"

"I'm curious... are you here to get things done, or to ruin them?"

Mr. Sai froze for a moment. A strange expression appeared on his gloomy face. "You're not afraid of death?"

"Who isn't afraid of death?" Tie Tou replied calmly. "But after you finish questioning us... will we really be allowed to live?"

Why would you say something so brutally honest? Qu Jianlei lowered his head, but his body still trembled slightly.

There was indeed a chance the other side would silence them after the questioning, but it was not certain.

But after saying that, even for the sake of face, they would have to find a way to silence them. Otherwise, how embarrassing would that be?

Yet the other side's reaction truly caught him by surprise.

The next moment, another gunshot rang out, and Tie Tou slowly toppled to the ground.

Mr. Sai sneered. "Silence you? You're overthinking it... such a trivial matter isn't worth silencing anyone over."

Although another person had been killed, the Survivors were not panicked this time. Instead, they secretly breathed sighs of relief.

Since the other side did not mind failing to complete their mission, didn't that mean they would not be silenced either?

However, Qu Jianlei was not so optimistic. He understood perfectly well.

Unless these people did not pursue the Survivors who had escaped, he refused to believe they would not silence everyone.

He lived pragmatically. He never cared about promises and preferred trusting his own judgment.

The next moment, Mr. Sai's words made his heart sink to the bottom.

Expressionlessly, the man said, "Those who are hiding, come out obediently. Otherwise, I don't mind killing all of you!"

"The dignity of Hong Character Main Settlement is not something ants like you can provoke!"

However, how many people capable of seizing the chance to escape could possibly be fools?

After about a minute passed with no response, a trace of cold severity appeared on Mr. Sai's gloomy face.

"Find those who escaped and kill them. The reward will be the same as for killing a C-level Mutated Beast!"

More than twenty Patrol Members answered in unison, leaped onto their motorcycles, and set off in four squads.

Only four people had escaped in total, and their information had already been verified.

This was dangerous... Qu Jianlei could not help narrowing his eyes.

Twenty-two scavengers remained at the scene, and Mr. Sai began questioning them one by one.

Qu Jianlei's turn came quickly. He stated that he was only responsible for hauling trash and was one of those who had been rescued this time.

His involvement in this matter had truly been an accident.

Mr. Sai pondered for a while before asking expressionlessly, "So you're useless now?"

There was killing intent hidden in his words, but Qu Jianlei answered solemnly, "I've always been useless. I can't even get enough to eat."

Mr. Sai was slightly puzzled. After glancing at him, he moved directly to the next person.

The questioning did not take long. There were more than twenty people, yet it took less than an hour in total.

In fact, mechas were almost never seen at the mines. At best, one might find fragments; even decent parts were nowhere to be found.

And now someone was actually asking whether they had seen a Pink Mecha. The question itself was rather ridiculous.

But four Survivors had already died, so everyone else naturally answered honestly.

Unsurprisingly, the questioning produced no results.

Mr. Sai swept his gaze around and cleared his throat. "You really have disappointed me!"

Everyone's expressions changed slightly at those words. Was he planning to go back on his word?

Of the four who had fled, three had already been captured and turned into corpses.

At that moment, everyone hoped that the fourth person would never be caught.

Only if that person remained alive would they... have a chance of surviving.

"Are you afraid I'll silence you?" Seeing the dead silence, Mr. Sai burst into loud laughter, laughing until tears came to his eyes.

Strangely enough, although he was clearly delighted, the gloomy aura around him did not lessen at all.

After laughing for a while, he took out a handkerchief and wiped the corners of his eyes. "All right, no more jokes. Naturally, I stand by my promises!"

"However, you have no information at all, and that makes me very unhappy."

"How about this? After you return, keep an eye out for relevant information for me... any problem with that?"

"No problem," everyone answered one after another. That request was perfectly normal.

So normal that... compared to the slaughter earlier, this was a classic case of raising the stick high and bringing it down lightly.

"But," unfortunately, Mr. Sai uttered a turning word.

"But although this matter is not a big one, you cannot go spreading it around. And I'm not sure whether you'll truly work diligently..."

"What if you still resent me for killing people? Then that would be troublesome. You might learn something and refuse to tell me..."

"So, how likely do you think that is?"

Hearing this, everyone looked at Mr. Sai's mocking expression and changed color once more.

After a period of silence, a young scavenger finally spoke. His expression was fairly calm.

"Even if we say it's unlikely, I'm afraid Mr. Sai won't believe us. Why don't you tell us... what you want us to do?"

"I have an injection," Mr. Sai stated bluntly. "After receiving it, you'll need to obtain an antidote regularly."

Everyone fell silent again. In the end, he still wanted to control them!

Mr. Sai waited for quite some time. Finally, his expression turned cold. "Those who take the injection live. Those who refuse... die!"

The young scavenger sighed softly. "The information might also be leaked by the Hunters. Will they receive the injection too?"

The Gloomy Young Man's expression changed dramatically at once. He raised his leg and kicked the other man to the ground!

"Tiny ant, you think you're worthy of sowing discord? Hunters... of course I trust them!"

Then he glanced at the Hunters in the distance and muttered softly, "Still, there's no problem with registering your information, right?"

What could the Hunters say? Registration... then they would register.

In fact, while most Hunters were ruthless, their backgrounds were relatively clean. Otherwise, how could they take Hunter reward missions?

As for whether they were truly clean in private, nobody cared.

As long as no one saw it, killing a few people was no big deal. Lives on the Wasteland had never been worth much.

Still, they understood that the registration was naturally meant as a warning—if the information leaked, they would not escape responsibility either.

No matter what, though, this treatment was still better than what the scavengers received.

The Hunters registered in one area, while the scavengers went to another to prepare for the injections.

Qu Jianlei remained squatting on the ground, obediently holding his head.

Long Blade Patrol noticed him again, walked over, and kicked him in the rear. "Why aren't you lining up for the injection?"

"Sir, I'm not a scavenger," Qu Jianlei replied in a muffled voice. He had no desire to take this inexplicable injection.

But he had to be careful with how he said it. "I've always wanted to enter the mine, but I can't get in."

"I don't care whether you can get in or not!" Long Blade Patrol glared. "You hang around the mine anyway!"

"I only transport things outside the mine," Qu Jianlei raised his head and answered seriously.

"This injection must be expensive, right?"

"You..." Long Blade Patrol was left speechless by him. "You really are an idiot. Why do you care whether it's expensive?"

Qu Jianlei looked completely serious. "If it's expensive, and I can't produce results, I can't afford to compensate for it!"

"Who asked you to compensate for it?" Long Blade Patrol was getting impatient. If anyone else had pestered him like this, he would have already chopped them down with a single stroke.

But this guy was an idiot. Bullying an idiot... he really could not bring himself to lose face like that.

However, Qu Jianlei had to argue the point—if he did not want the injection, he could only argue.

"That injection belongs to Mr. Sai. Sir, should I ask him?"

He had already grasped some of Mr. Sai's character: arrogant, conceited, sharp-minded, adaptable...

Most importantly, that man probably disliked others making decisions for him.

While the two were talking, Mr. Sai had noticed the scene as well. The One-eyed Petty Boss was quietly explaining things to him.

When Mr. Sai heard that this person was a fool, he lost most of his interest.

However, Silly Qu's words had remained proper and showed no intent to sow discord, so he listened quietly.

Then a strange gleam flashed in his eyes. "A mine porter... he might make a useful chess piece."

It was like taxi Drivers on Blue Star. They usually had access to a wider variety of information.

Qu Jianlei had not expected that his defense would instead make the other side think of using him.

(During the new book period, please give all kinds of support.)