The Unreturning Path of the Wage Slave

Star Archipelago, Dragon Scale Island.

The night was deep.

A group of players was stealthily making their way along the beach toward the territory of the White Ape tribe.

The night scenery on Dragon Scale Island was beautiful.

The plants near the beach emitted a hazy glow. As the wind blew, scattered specks of light drifted through the air, and the waves constantly lapping at the shore were filled with countless bioluminescent algae, creating a breathtaking, magical scene that looked exactly like an alien planet from the old movie Avatar.

However, the players chose not to stop and admire the otherworldly night view, instead pressing forward with tense expressions.

As they drew closer to their destination, the glowing fruits swaying in the breeze within the distant orchard became clearly visible under the moonlight.

Greed instantly appeared on the players' faces.

At this moment, Wang Qi, who was leading the group, turned his head and spoke:

"Everyone, get ready. When I shout 'charge,' you rush in and grab as much as you can."

After a pause, as if remembering something, Wang Qi added:

"Remember, do not engage the White Apes in combat. Our goal is the fruit. If you get targeted, run, and try to buy time for the others. We'll split the loot equally when we're done!"

Seeing everyone nod, Wang Qi immediately signaled for the group to slow their pace.

The closer they got to their destination, the more nervous everyone became.

When they were less than a hundred meters from the orchard, Wang Qi shouted into the team voice channel:

"Charge!"

Suddenly, all the players sprinted forward like madmen.

The Divine Realm was deployed at this moment, and figure after figure emerged from the unfolding domain.

The team of less than a hundred instantly transformed into a force of thousands.

To ambush the orchard, Wang Qi and his team had spent half a day studying the map of Dragon Scale Island, selecting a route that would allow them to sneak behind the orchard, and they had specifically chosen to strike in the dead of night.

Their goal was to pull off a big score.

If they succeeded, the profit would definitely be worth more than several days of hard grinding.

The orchard was within reach. Just as Wang Qi and his team were about to rush inside, a White Ape leaped from within the orchard and slammed heavily into the charging crowd.

"Keep charging, ignore it!" Wang Qi cursed inwardly when he saw the White Ape appear.

He hadn't expected the White Ape tribe's defense of the orchard to be so tight.

Fortunately, there was only one White Ape guarding the rear of the orchard, so the pressure wasn't too great. Several players immediately rushed into the orchard and began climbing and picking.

The White Ape, currently slaughtering players, turned to see this scene. Its eyes split with rage, and it tilted its head to let out a roar, beginning to summon its companions.

Hearing the White Ape's roar, the players immediately accelerated their movements.

They knew exactly what they were about to face.

Just as the players had anticipated, a moment later, the White Ape King led a large number of White Apes from the other side of the orchard, drawn by the sound.

In a short time, they killed all the players Wang Qi had brought.

However, even after wiping out the intruders, the White Ape King's expression remained grim.

This was because the Spirit Fruit picked by this group of outsiders had vanished into thin air, just like the outsiders themselves after they died, leaving no trace behind.

Moreover, this wasn't the first night raid by outsiders tonight.

They had encountered seventeen night raids in total this evening.

This kept their nerves constantly on edge, and they dared not sleep for fear that the orchard would be raided again.

But even with their tight defenses, there were still lapses.

The invading outsiders used all sorts of methods to steal the Spirit Fruit.

The most outrageous instance was when a group of invaders had actually dug a tunnel from a hundred meters away that led directly into the orchard.

That raid had cost them nearly a hundred Spirit Fruits—a heavy loss.

"Roar!" The White Ape King let out an angry growl, its bloodshot eyes filled with resentment.

Such frequent harassment was incredibly annoying, yet aside from continuing to defend, it could find no way to deal with these outsiders.

The previous purge had clearly had no effect on these invading outsiders.

It had even discovered that the number of invaders, rather than decreasing after that purge, had actually increased.

Therefore, in the White Ape King's view, the war was meaningless and might even result in the loss of its own kin.

After a moment of silence, the White Ape King turned around in frustration and returned to the orchard.

Facing these invading outsiders who clung to them like a stubborn plaster, the White Ape King was completely at its wit's end.

It decided to try and negotiate with these invading outsiders tomorrow.

If they couldn't reach an agreement, then no matter the cost, it would wipe these invading outsiders out to the last one.

The night was deep.

The White Ape King felt no sleepiness at all.

While contemplating how to negotiate with this group of foreign invaders, an idea gradually took shape in its mind.

The next morning.

Another group of players snuck toward the White Ape clan's orchard.

However, since it was already bright out, they were discovered by the White Ape clan before they could even get close to the orchard.

Accompanied by a roar from the White Ape King, the players were instantly surrounded by white apes.

"It's over, it's over. The plan backfired, see you in three hours."

"Hey, I told you the same trick wouldn't work twice. The White Ape clan was definitely on guard. We're in trouble now."

"Whatever, let's just die. We made a killing yesterday, so it's not a loss!"

The surrounded players voiced their "last words" in the voice channel.

However, the massacre they imagined did not occur. After the towering White Ape King slowly approached, it suddenly stepped aside, revealing bundles of timber and stone behind it.

Under the players' confused gazes, the White Ape King pointed at the stone and timber, then pointed at them.

"What does that mean?" a player immediately asked, looking bewildered.

"I think I get it. Is it trying to negotiate with us, signaling us to stop coming here while letting us take the stone and timber instead?"

"For real?"

The players discussed it fervently in the voice channel.

Seeing that the players were unresponsive, the White Ape King pointed at the timber and stone again, then mimed the action of picking them up and walking away.

At this moment, the players finally understood.

Filled with doubt, the players stepped forward one by one to pick up the timber and stone.

Seeing this, a smile appeared on the White Ape King's face, and with a wave of its hand, its clansmen cleared a path.

In a state of utter confusion, the players carried the timber and stone out of the encirclement, looking back every few steps, yet the White Ape clan never made any aggressive moves.

They simply watched them leave, all the white apes wearing warm smiles on their faces.

From then on, whenever players arrived, the White Ape King would present a batch of supplies and watch the bewildered players depart.

This was the idea the White Ape King had come up with after thinking all night.

Observations from a while ago made it realize that these foreign invaders seemed to have a strange fondness for odd things, such as stone and timber.

Therefore, it decided to use these common items as gifts to establish a friendly relationship with the invaders.

This tactic proved remarkably effective.

Those invaders who would rather die than stop stealing fruit chose to leave tactfully after receiving the gifts.

The White Ape King felt sincere admiration for its own intelligence.

But soon, the White Ape King could no longer stay happy.

After the news of the White Ape King giving away materials spread across the Omnipotent God discussion forums, a massive number of players swarmed in.

Although the players could not understand the White Ape King's actions, they naturally craved resources they could obtain without having to mine stone or chop wood themselves.

Thus, the White Ape King soon discovered that it didn't have enough "gifts" to go around.

Although these items seemed worthless to it, the constant demand was becoming truly unsustainable.

Yet, in order to consolidate the friendship, the White Ape King struggled with its thoughts before tearfully leading its clansmen down the path of no return: chopping wood and mining stone.