Eternal Night Descends, Time to Get to Work!

"Understood."

The bronze-skinned man said thoughtfully, "Stationmaster, do you mean Chen Fan's mother may have left something behind for him?"

"That makes sense. After all, she was a level 4 Builder. She wouldn't have lacked resources."

"Exactly."

Wang Kui nodded. By the time they spoke, they had reached their own station. He lowered his voice and instructed, "That's why we should form a good bond. I've worked for the Wang Family for so long; five Eerie Stones are nothing to me."

"Even if we lose them, it won't matter."

"But if it pays off, then for the sake of this goodwill, he'll definitely repay us."

"And even if he doesn't, it doesn't matter."

"When you're away from home, make more friends and fewer enemies. That can never be a bad thing."

"Oh, right—"

"When you go deliver the supplies later, watch your tone. Don't make it seem like charity. Let goodwill forge a good bond."

"Don't worry, Stationmaster. Leave it to me!"

"Young Master."

Jiangbei Chen Family Station No. 37.

Crippled Monkey tucked the knife back into his chest, watching Wang Kui and the other man depart. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Those two probably think we'll steal their business someday. They may have come with ill intentions. Should we strike first?"

"No need."

Chen Fan shook his head without saying much. He merely took the hemp rope from Crippled Monkey, tied it to the "Beast Trap," and waited for nightfall.

His plan was simple.

Once Eternal Night descended, the moment he sensed movement from the "Beast Trap," he would immediately pull it into the Safety Zone, kill the Strange Entity with the knife, then send the Beast Trap back into the darkness.

That way, the Beast Trap could be used repeatedly.

Low-level Strange Entities could be killed with an ordinary knife like this.

But against Strange Entities with even slightly higher levels, an ordinary knife like this could not inflict any damage at all.

And any Strange Entity that could be trapped by the "Beast Trap" would be very low-level, so there was no danger of backlash.

After testing it out, Chen Fan went back inside to catch up on sleep, leaving Crippled Monkey alone outside to stand watch. They planned to take turns resting before working tonight.

"Young Master, Young Master."

Chen Fan, awakened by the call, walked outside and saw an extremely burly man with rough bronze-colored skin standing beyond the camp, dragging a cart and grinning as he waved at him.

This was the subordinate who had followed Wang Kui earlier.

Before Chen Fan could speak,

the burly man explained first, "Stationmaster Chen, before your station was abandoned, Stationmaster Wang borrowed some food and water from your camp. After the Chen Family withdrew from this camp, there was never a chance to return it."

"Now that the Chen Family has restarted this station, he immediately sent me here without stopping to return it."

"Well..."

"I won't stay any longer. There's still work to do back at the station."

After the burly man left,

Crippled Monkey approached the cart with a wary expression. Two large jars were filled to the brim—one with clean drinking water, the other with food: dozens of dry cakes, rice, all kinds of vegetables, and... two roast ducks still steaming hot.

"Gulp."

Crippled Monkey's throat bobbed uncontrollably before he said with absolute certainty, "Young Master, there's definitely poison in it!"

"There won't be any poison."

Chen Fan shook his head. "The moment he revealed my identity, he knew I wouldn't live much longer. There's no need for him to poison us and invite trouble for himself."

"No poison?"

Crippled Monkey frowned deeply, unable to believe it. "Could it really be repayment for what they borrowed? Is Wang Kui really so faithful to his word?"

"Of course not."

Chen Fan picked up five Eerie Stones from the bottom of the jar, weighed them in his hand, then suddenly smiled. "It's an investment. He thinks I might not die, so he's betting on my future."

"You mean these are gifts for us?" "Yes."

"Then... then why did he say that?"

"He was afraid of hurting my pride. Quite thoughtful of him."

"But if that's the case, isn't he worried that we won't remember this favor in the future? After all, he said he was returning what he borrowed."

"..."

Chen Fan patted Crippled Monkey on the head. "Go inside and catch up on sleep. I'll stand watch from here."

"Yes!"

After Crippled Monkey went inside,

Chen Fan began taking stock of the camp's current assets. This angel investment had come at exactly the right time. At least for the short term, he no longer needed to worry about food, and those five Eerie Stones would help him greatly as well.

There were still two Eerie Stones in the "Eerie Fire," enough to keep it burning for two days.

Those two Eerie Stones could not be touched. He had to leave himself at least one day of room for error; he could not cut things too close.

Adding these five Eerie Stones, he had six Eerie Stones in total.

Six Eerie Stones.

He looked toward the five basic buildings included with the Endless Night Lord Panel.

-

"Currently, 5 types of basic buildings can be constructed."

"Level 1 City Wall": Can withstand the impact of low-level Strange Entities. Constructing one meter costs 10 Eerie Stones.

"Level 1 Farmland": Can greatly shorten the maturation cycle of crops. Constructing one plot costs 2 Eerie Stones.

"Level 1 Arrow Tower": Can inflict a certain amount of damage on low-level Ghost Beings. Construction costs 10 Eerie Stones.

"Level 1 Wooden Hut": Provides decent protection against cold and wind. Construction costs 2 Eerie Stones.

"Level 1 Sacrificial Tower": Can obtain special resources. Construction costs 20 Eerie Stones.

-

City Wall.

Fucking expensive.

One meter cost ten Eerie Stones. His current Eerie Fire safety range was ten meters, meaning he needed a thirty-two-meter City Wall. That would cost three hundred and twenty Eerie Stones. There was no way he could afford that for now.

If a Strange Tide truly struck the Eerie Fire, then so be it.

He would just have to accept that his luck was rotten.

After thinking for a moment,

he used his only six Eerie Stones to make three more "Level 1 Beast Traps."

At this point—

he had four Beast Traps, at the cost of emptying his pockets completely. Not a single Eerie Stone remained.

Next,

all he had to do was wait for Eternal Night to descend and prepare to get to work!

"Hah."

Chen Fan patted his round belly and looked toward the dense darkness racing in from the horizon, letting out a long breath.

He was full.

The roast duck had been delicious, rich and greasy.

Four steel Level 1 Beast Traps, each tied to a hemp rope, lay on the wilderness outside the ring of light.

The next moment!

Dense darkness completely engulfed the area. The light emitted by the Eerie Fire covered the two of them like an eggshell, while that rustling sound once again filled their ears. Countless Strange Entities had descended alongside Eternal Night!

"Crippled Monkey."

Chen Fan said in a low voice, slightly tense, "I'll pull the ropes. You deliver the killing blow. Be careful!"

"Understood."

Crippled Monkey was nervous as well. This was his first time attempting to kill a Strange Entity head-on. He would be lying if he said he was not nervous.

Finally,

after half an hour had passed, one of the hemp ropes suddenly trembled. The movement was slight, but Chen Fan noticed the difference immediately. He took a deep breath, gripped the rope with both hands, and slowly pulled back the Beast Trap placed in the darkness.

The moment the Beast Trap was pulled into the ring of light,

a monkey-like Strange Entity with one calf caught in the trap was dragged into the light.

It was a Monkey-Head Ghost.

(End of Chapter)