Camp

After leaving Lungmen, Zhuang Xiaolin and the others drove east.

The savage roar of the off-road vehicles' engines echoed across the wilderness.

The vehicles' speed kicked up clouds of sand and dust that danced through the air, while the afterglow of the setting sun fell over the shadows on the horizon.

"Is this really reliable?"

Watching Lungmen shrink farther and farther away until it was only a tiny black dot, Zhuang Xiaolin felt somewhat uneasy.

"Rest easy. The wilderness is usually a place where opportunities and threats coexist. Though threats make up the vast majority, that small handful of opportunities is practically within reach for an elite combat squad like yours, isn't it?"

The system customer service representative's voice sounded somewhat lazy. Zhuang Xiaolin did not know his name. He had asked before, but the answer had always been the same—"Just call me Customer Service."

"You know me. Those two extremes, war-torn lands and civilized lands, have really put me through hell."

"Who could say otherwise? Back then, the Westward Expansion turned the western United States from a chaotic, lawless land into a civilized one. Even the capitalists' exploitation became civilized. But all we can do is adapt. We cannot resist gravity. Before you have enough power, adapting to this environment is the only thing you can do."

The two off-road vehicles could hold eight people, and their rear compartments were packed full of supplies and weapons.

The two vehicles drove from dusk until deep into the night. Tachanka and Montagne took turns driving, while the others would take over when the two of them rested.

Zhuang Xiaolin lay bored in his seat. Pebbles and yellow sand swept up from the roadside flew over his head, while the dazzling starlight in the night sky seemed so unreal.

"What a beautiful sky. It looks like a painting. I'm guessing it definitely wasn't naturally formed, right?"

Zhuang Xiaolin looked at the orderly arranged stars in the sky and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"You guessed right, but I can't reveal any more."

The system customer service representative answered Zhuang Xiaolin bluntly, without pulling any of the irritating nonsense that some system customer service representatives did.

"How did you become like this?"

The more Zhuang Xiaolin spoke with the system customer service representative, the more curious he became about his origins.

"..."

The system customer service representative did not answer, and Zhuang Xiaolin tactfully shut his mouth.

Night descended upon the earth, draping a curtain of darkness over the land that had once been covered in yellow sand. The dim moonlight illuminated the ground like a beach by the sea. From afar, it was as beautiful as a painting.

"Commander, my Pests found something ahead."

Mozzie swiped across the panel on his arm and adjusted the display to the best angle for Zhuang Xiaolin to see.

"A camp? That's no big deal, is it? In a place like the wilderness, plenty of people camp outside in this kind of environment. One camp doesn't mean much."

Tachanka sat beside Zhuang Xiaolin, so he had also seen the image displayed on the panel.

"No. Judging by their insignia and clothing, they're remnants of that mafia group."

Zhuang Xiaolin studied them for a long time before identifying who they were.

After recognizing them, Zhuang Xiaolin lowered his head and began thinking about what to do.

For hunters like them who had gone out in search of prey, the more prey, the better. Although treating people as prey felt somewhat strange, they had been born in a different era. If Zhuang Xiaolin had been born in the United States during the eighteenth or nineteenth century, he probably would not have found this strange.

After all, bounty hunters there had been rather famous.

"Let's go! We can't pass up a chance to play the hero. These guys might be plotting something again."

After thinking it over, Zhuang Xiaolin made up his mind. If he himself could wipe out a group of mafia members, why should he spare these small-scale mafia remnants?

Of course, Zhuang Xiaolin was not someone who slaughtered innocents indiscriminately. He would first find out their purpose and plans before taking action. After all, if they were merely mafia members who had not done anything bad, and his people killed them anyway, it would be morally unforgivable.

As the two off-road vehicles continued eastward, they gradually slowed down. Once they reached a small hill, the vehicles stopped. Zhuang Xiaolin and the others got out, leaving Doc and Rook behind to guard the cars.

"Their defenses are loose. There are five people patrolling outside, nine tents, two off-road vehicles, and a truck nearby."

Mozzie reported what he had learned while sending several images discovered by the Pests to Zhuang Xiaolin's communicator.

"Mm, looks like they're preparing to head back."

After looking over the information, Tachanka spoke to Zhuang Xiaolin.

"How did you determine that?"

Zhuang Xiaolin was curious how Tachanka had reached that conclusion.

"Look at their tire tracks. They should have come from the direction of Lungmen. The campfires on the ground should have been lit less than four hours ago. And judging from their guard force, most of them seem quite exhausted. That means they must have either traveled a long distance or gone through some kind of battle to end up like this. In their current state, they don't look like they're heading toward Lungmen. It looks more like they're fleeing or on their way back."

Zhuang Xiaolin observed as he listened and found that it was indeed as Tachanka had said. The camp was in disarray. Upon closer inspection, there were no daily necessities to be seen, at least not anywhere outside the camp. Even the patrolmen wore exhausted expressions.

"Commander, I think you'll want to know this."

Glaz silently came up behind Zhuang Xiaolin.

"What is it?"

"There are about twenty-one people in total, including those in the tents and those patrolling outside. But from what I can see, some of them are moving strangely."

The OTs-03 semi-automatic long-range rifle could precisely reveal the outlines of enemies through its scope. After its ability had been enhanced, its detection capability became even stronger. As long as a tent still let light through, the rifle could see the people inside through it.

"Two people have their hands tied behind their backs and are hanging from ropes. There are also nine people guarding the area around them."

Hearing that, Zhuang Xiaolin became interested. After ordering Mozzie to gather intelligence, he prepared to wait for an opportunity to act.

They still needed to set traps, but placing them too close to the camp would make them easy to spot. Therefore, after careful consideration and deduction, Zhuang Xiaolin had Frost place animal traps throughout an area the enemy could not cover, while Glaz stood guard nearby.

Tachanka would provide fire support from the small hill. Aside from the two guarding the vehicles, the remaining five would launch a swift and fierce assault the moment the battle began.

"Commander, it looks like we've run into some acquaintances."

Mozzie looked at the panel in his hand, and his expression turned strange.

Zhuang Xiaolin leaned closer to look, and his expression also changed.

On the screen, a burgundy-haired Sankta had her hands tied behind her back, bound tightly with rope and suspended inside a tent, her feet dangling in the air. Her clothes were torn in several places, with blood seeping out from some of the tears.

On the other side was a black-haired Lupo. This Lupo was likewise hanging inside the tent, her clothes damaged all over, with blood still flowing from her lower abdomen.