The master had an heir!

The next morning, the first rays of sunlight appeared.

Yang Zheng walked along a dilapidated highway with a bulging backpack on his back. This highway ran through a desolate stretch of the Wilderness Zone, where monsters were extremely scarce.

The Wilderness Zone was the collective term for all land outside humanity's Base Cities, including ruined cities, suburbs, mountains, forests, lakes, and more.

The vast majority of monsters lived in abandoned cities, in areas packed with buildings. County towns and urban districts were the truly dangerous places.

Only in these areas could monsters evade humanity's long-range weapons. As a result, cities filled with buildings had become havens where monsters gathered.

"Roar~~"

"Awooo~~"

Occasional monster cries rose from the fields and ruined villages on either side of the highway.

Even when he spotted quite a few monsters, Yang Zheng paid them no attention and hurried toward the Warrior Supply Base.

The road beneath his feet had long since fallen into disrepair. Several cracks split the pavement, and weeds sprouted through gaps in the asphalt. Crystal-clear dewdrops clung to their leaves, glittering in the sunlight.

Squinting into the sunlight, he could just make out a tower in the distance.

Several hundred kilometers west of Northwest Base City stood a military encampment. A special section inside it had been set aside as a Warrior Supply Base, where warriors could rest and replenish their supplies.

That afternoon, Yang Zheng finally reached the Supply Base and entered a room in a small building to take a short rest.

"Boss Tang, the goods are here!"

After eating his fill and taking a hot shower, Yang Zheng contacted the man in charge of the Limit Martial Hall's purchasing office at this Supply Base. There was no need to haul the large bag of monster materials from his hunt back to the Base City to sell.

"Boss Yang, you're the one keeping me in business! Still in room G403? Wait for me. I'll be right over!" The man gave a few instructions, then hurriedly ended the call.

A few minutes later.

A middle-aged man in military uniform entered Yang Zheng's room with practiced ease, accompanied by a young man who also wore a military uniform and carried an elaborate combination-lock case.

Although many people at the Supply Base wore military uniforms, they were actually support staff from various other organizations.

Organizations such as the Limit Martial Hall, the Thunder Dojo, the government military, and the HR Alliance had staff here who both provided services and bought valuable monster materials from warriors.

"Well, Boss Yang, let me see how good this batch is!"

The middle-aged man, Tang He, opened the case and carefully activated the precision instruments inside. A beam of red light immediately emerged from the top of the device.

"Beep, beep, beep, beep~~~"

As the device scanned each monster material, its quality, name, and price appeared directly on the screen.

A short while later, Tang He gave his final valuation.

"This batch contains materials from six Intermediate Beast General Level monsters and seventeen Junior Beast General-level monsters. All the key materials are fully intact. The total comes to 410 million, plus 205,000 contribution points."

Tang He was inwardly stunned. This batch of materials Yang Zheng had brought out was worth far more than either of his previous two batches. Despite his shock, however, he was not foolish enough to pry.

"All right, then. Transfer the money!"

Yang Zheng did not haggle. He simply nodded and told Tang He to transfer the money to his account.

In fact, these monster materials would have fetched more if sold to the HR Alliance. The Limit General Hall paid only two-thirds of what the HR Alliance offered.

Although the HR Alliance paid more, it did not offer Limit Martial Hall contribution points.

Selling to the Limit Martial Hall meant accepting a lower price, but contribution points were very useful to Yang Zheng. Besides letting him buy technique manuals at half price,

they were also required to access some of the martial hall's extremely expensive, highly advanced training rooms.

"By the way, Boss Yang, should I count these six Intermediate Beast General Level monsters toward your combat record?" Tang He suddenly asked.

"Count them!" Yang Zheng nodded. A warrior's rank was determined by his record of monster kills.

To be recognized as an "Intermediate War General-level Warrior," one had to have a record of killing two Intermediate Beast General monsters, even though such records were not necessarily completely reliable.

Still, anyone who dared falsify a combat record generally met a terrible end once exposed.

After all, warrior rank titles were not particularly useful within the global warrior community.

A person's position had to match his strength. Without enough strength, being humiliated after a challenge was the least of his worries. In serious cases, he could die on the spot.

That afternoon, Yang Zheng boarded a train back to the Base City with a large group of warriors.

Inside the fully enclosed carriage, the warriors sat in orderly rows. Some rested with their eyes closed, while others watched the large screen.

"Good afternoon, viewers. This is Evening Glow News. Our latest report: at approximately 11:40 this morning, an Advanced Lord Level monster, a Rift Valley Azure Eagle, attacked Northwest Base City. Fortunately, Inspector Zheng Cangli of the Limit Martial Hall intervened and killed it..."

"September 24, 2058. According to information leaked by an employee of the Huaxia Industrial and Commercial Bank, this corporation, valued at nearly ten trillion, will soon welcome a new eighth-largest shareholder. The identity of this mysterious tycoon remains unknown..."

"Commemorative events marking the twenty-seventh anniversary of the death of Qishan's hero, Zhao Yan, are now underway. Major martial halls across the country have presented wreaths. Zhao Yan, the hero of Qishan, was born on May 12, 2000, into an ordinary family in the old era..."

"..."

News reports and advertisements played one after another on the carriage's large screen. About an hour later, the train finally arrived at Northwest Base City's terminal station.

"The train will shortly arrive at the station. Passengers disembarking, please have your belongings ready." The conductor's recorded voice echoed through the carriage. With a swish, the doors opened.

The warriors poured out.

Compared with the desolate, ruined Wilderness Zone, the Base City was a place fit for human life. Here, there was no need to remain constantly vigilant or worry about being torn apart before waking the next morning.

"I'm back!"

As soon as Yang Zheng stepped out of the station, he saw the crowds of passengers waiting nearby to board trains, and his mood lifted.

The Base Cities were the last strongholds of human civilization. In the end, they were different from the monster-infested Wilderness Zone.

"Young master, hop in!"

Suddenly, an off-road vehicle stopped beside Yang Zheng. The window rolled down, and a tough-looking man with a fleshy face teased him.

"What young master

? Stop teasing me, Old Ma. Just focus on your driving!"

Yang Zheng tossed his backpack, weapons, and equipment onto the back seat, settled into the front passenger seat, and closed his eyes to rest.

"Tsk..."

"Looks like the chairman has an heir!"

Old Ma rolled the window back up and gently pressed the accelerator. The off-road vehicle slowly pulled away from the station and headed toward the Limit General Hall.