The Ring's Merit

"Half-Day Flower, a poisonous flower found on the outskirts of Seven Colors Valley, has a mild toxin that's difficult to detect and acts slowly. It causes continuous damage to the human body, gradually draining the victim's strength and impairing various bodily functions. After half a day, they become a puppet to be toyed with."

"However, the Half-Day Flower's toxicity disappears after half a day, and those poisoned will recover completely within a day. So, our move will be in 12 hours when he's at his weakest. If he figures it out sooner, we'll act then."

"When that kid went out with his stuff earlier, I heard the clinking of heavy iron coins inside. At least 200 of them."

"If this job goes through, we'll be able to eat some proper meat too."

Two men with sharp faces and monkey-like cheeks hid behind a tree, their eyes narrowed as they watched Cheng Shaofeng's tent.

In the Wasteland, there was never a shortage of opportunists.

They were like cockroaches, impossible to exterminate.

Zhang San and Luo Wu were exactly that kind of person. They were scavengers too, but they didn't have the same luck as Cheng Shaofeng and Wu Jie.

They hadn't scavenged anything of value for three days.

All the meager savings they had were gone, spent on food.

Zhang San recalled a time he was poisoned. It was on the outskirts of the human forbidden zone, Seven Colors Valley. After inhaling the scent of this flower, he felt like he was dying half a day later. He lay there for a day, then miraculously recovered, completely unharmed.

These experiences were all things he had tested on himself.

Yesterday, at their wit's end, the two became wicked. Covering their mouths and noses with a damp cloth, they picked a Half-Day Flower, intending to target a fat sheep in Salt Well Town.

The hunters were too vigilant; they weren't their targets.

They had their eyes on Cheng Shaofeng, who was carrying a bag to buy things at the store. They heard the sound of iron coins in his bag.

The two conferred and directly placed the flower inside Cheng Shaofeng's dwelling.

Then, they waited for their fish to belly-flop.

Zhang San, hiding behind the tree, chuckled sinisterly: "This poisonous flower has no effect on creatures as robust as Raiders, but it's more than enough for ordinary people. If this job goes smoothly, we can use this poisonous flower more often, hehehe~"

Luo Wu: "But won't we be in serious trouble if the town mayor finds out?"

"That old geezer is past his prime, that thing doesn't work well anymore. His newly married wife can only get pleasure by tormenting her. Haven't you noticed the patrols have been less frequent lately? We just need to be careful not to be discovered. In the Wasteland, it's too normal for a scavenger to get poisoned and die."

"Oh, right, Brother is still the best!"

"Who do you think I am! Heh heh heh~"

The two scavengers, hidden in the shadows, were ready to prey on Cheng Shaofeng.

Following the gaze of the two men, a wisp of white smoke faintly curled up from Cheng Shaofeng's tent.

"Burp~"

After eating a full 2 catties of boiled beans, Cheng Shaofeng let out a satisfied burp.

The taste was average, but it was filling.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be the common staple food in the Colossus City region.

He drank more than half of the bean soup, then poured the rest into a container and extinguished the fire.

Cheng Shaofeng checked the time; it was only 9 AM. It was still early for the hunters to return, so he could rest for a bit.

"Salt Well Town is a three-hour journey from my place. If I go back and forth solely on foot, I can transport too little and too slowly. No, I need to get a means of transport."

Sitting up from the bed, Cheng Shaofeng walked to the tent again, preparing to find a two-wheeled wooden cart.

At that moment, his vision suddenly flashed, and a green damage number popped up in front of him.

[Received toxin damage, HP -1, Duration: Very Long]

Before Cheng Shaofeng could panic, the ring on his finger flashed, and his HP was full again.

He could see his base HP in the base was 500 points.

"Huh? Why did I... get poisoned?"

Cheng Shaofeng was slightly puzzled. He had inexplicably taken poison damage, just 1 point.

"But... this damage is less than my HP regeneration rate, almost like I'm not poisoned?"

"Could the beans be expired? Or is this place too humid... with excessive microorganisms? Judging by the duration, it's probably..."

He shook his head, planning to finish his business and head back soon.

Outside, Zhang San and Luo Wu watched Cheng Shaofeng drag his bag out again and quietly followed him.

They saw Cheng Shaofeng go to the store and buy a two-wheeled wooden cart, then load his belongings onto it.

Then he stayed in his tent for three hours. Hearing the sound of hunters returning, he dragged the cart out.

He bought a freshly killed Mutated Dog from one hunter, a Two-Headed Deer from another, and finally, a Mutated Blood Deer from Hunter King Qian.

He loaded the three prey onto the cart and left Salt Well Town.

He moved with surprising speed.

Zhang San and Luo Wu exchanged glances.

(〃°ー°)(°ー°〃)

Zhang San: "Why is he acting like nothing happened?"

Luo Wu: "It seems he's feeling better, like he just ate a full meal."

Zhang San's face turned gloomy.

"He's definitely faking it. He realized he was poisoned and wants to escape. Let's chase after him, find a secluded spot, and kill him. All these spoils will be ours!"

"Let's go!"

The two quickly pursued.

Cheng Shaofeng's scavenger partner, Wu Jie, wasn't with him. Outside Salt Well Town, they could just go for a direct confrontation.

20 minutes later.

At a bend in a mountain path.

Cheng Shaofeng, pulling a small cart of prey, wiped the sweat from his brow and took a sip from his water bottle.

"Pulling over 300 pounds of stuff up a mountain path is really damn tiring."

If it weren't for the cart he bought with two heavily worn tires, he figured he would have died of exhaustion on the road.

Suddenly!

Rustling sounds came from behind him, and two people wielding crowbars rushed forward.

Zhang San and Luo Wu.

Cheng Shaofeng took a step back cautiously, standing behind the cart, and picked up a rusty mace from it.

"Zhang San, Luo Wu, why are you following me?"

Zhang San grinned: "What are we doing? Don't you know? This cart full of supplies is ours now."

Luo Wu: "Be smart and leave everything on the cart, then scram. We'll spare your life since we're both scavengers."

Cheng Shaofeng's eyebrows twitched slightly.

"What if I say no?"

Zhang San slowly approached, brandishing his crowbar: "Then we'll leave both you and the supplies behind. I've heard that in some settlements, human flesh is also a circulating commodity."

Luo Wu approached from the other direction, forming a pincer movement with Zhang San.

However, both of them moved cautiously, their eyes fixed on Cheng Shaofeng's mace.

Luo Wu shouted: "I advise you not to court death. You can find more loot if you lose this, but you only have one life."

Zhang San: "If I'm not mistaken, your limbs can't exert much force right now, can they? You still have a chance to live before the poison fully takes effect, otherwise... hehe~"

Cheng Shaofeng's eyes sharpened.

"You poisoned me? No wonder..."

He glanced at the two men closing in and asked, "If I put the stuff down, will you really let me go?"

Zhang San and Luo Wu exchanged a look, a hint of joy appearing on their faces.

Zhang San: "That's right. Everyone in Salt Well Town knows, we two brothers are very trustworthy. Put your mace on the cart, then get lost!"

Cheng Shaofeng nodded: "Understood..."

He slowly placed the mace on the cart.

"Attack!"

The two pounced like demons baring their fangs, gripping their crowbars.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Two gunshots rang out from the forest.