Thump!
The orc's burly, imposing corpse fell heavily to the ground, raising clouds of dust. The sound seemed to possess Magic Power, sending a chill down the spines of all the onlookers.
Many people shivered and quickly put away their bad thoughts. The originally chaotic queue instantly became orderly, and the noise disappeared. Only the wind howled and the leaves rustled as they passed by.
"And you?" Ricar shifted his gaze to the Golden Lion- man.
The latter gave a comical smile, quickly took out all his Western Capital, even took off his armor and threw it on the ground, raising his hands above his head, looking incredibly obedient.
With a flick of Ricar wrist, ten thousand-yuan bills, blue with a crystalline texture, flew up from the pile of debris on the ground and landed in his palm.
"If we say 10,000 Ta Pound, then we mean 10,000 Ta Pound. We, the Steam Church, keep our word. Now, take your supplies and head to the mines to work."
"Really?" the Golden Lion- man exclaimed in surprise.
"Get out of here. If you dawdle any longer, you're not leaving at all," Ricar said impatiently, waving his hand.
The Golden Lion- man dared not say another word, quickly picked up the items on the ground, and followed a warrior to the Steam Church's mine.
"The rest of you, enter the gathering place in an orderly manner. Each person must pay 10 Ta Pound. No fighting in public is allowed. Anyone who violates this rule will be punished, and this orc will be the example for them," Ricar said coldly.
"Tch, the same old trick of making an example of someone to scare others." Gustavo scoffed, but his body language betrayed him, and he obediently stood in line.
This guard captain is much stronger than that Earth Flame Python; his combat power is estimated to be at least 950 Dale.
The range of combat power levels at the Tier Nine is extremely large.
Those with Dale between 700 and 999 belong to the Tier Nine combat power.
The difference between Peak Tier Nine combat power and initial Tier Nine combat power is no less than the difference between ordinary Tier Nine and Seventh-Tier Transcendent.
The guard captain had clearly reached the peak of the Tier Nine, which was why he was able to kill Tier Seven orc in one strike.
Of course, the orcs were caught off guard as well; they probably never expected that just for saying something defiant would send them to Hell.
And that warrior who just captured the orc and the Golden Lion, his combat strength has also reached around the Tier Nine.
Gustavo guessed that this guy was definitely not an ordinary soldier, but probably a vice-captain or something similar, otherwise the strength of the Steam Church would be too exaggerated and simply unrealistic.
In fact, Gustavo was right.
The Steam Church warrior named Amir was the vice-captain of this guard squad. His combat strength ranked third in the entire squad, second only to Captain Ricar and another vice-captain.
Ricar's decision to appoint him was also intended to quickly resolve the battle and establish his authority.
In this eerie silence, the line ahead gradually shortened, and soon it was the Black Spider Squad's turn.
Ricar glanced at them and said casually, "First time here, huh? The entrance fee for the settlement is 40 Ta Pound for the four of you, or 4 low-grade magic crystals. Pure energy blocks and soul liquid are also acceptable."
Gustavo took out four thumb-sized magic crystals and handed them to Ricar. After taking them, Ricard weighed them briefly, nodded slightly, and then threw out four diamond-shaped metal plates.
"This is a pass, valid for one month. After one month, you need to renew it for another 10 Ta Pound to enter the settlement," Ricar explained simply.
Gustavo, controlling the Fairy Puppet, nodded slightly, and then the group officially entered the Jilong Highlands.
A jumble of buildings came into view, including log cabins, stone structures, and of course, all sorts of tents.
The residents here are mostly covered in dust and dirt, but their eyes are sharp and piercing like those of hawks. They are wary, their hands are always on the hilts of their weapons, and even their walking movements are quite strange, as if they are ready to fight at any moment.
One can know the whole leopard from a single spot.
Judging from the behavior of these residents, the security situation in Jilong Highlands is definitely not good.
Controlling the Fairy Puppet perched on Elia's puppet's shoulder, its legs swinging, Gustavo surveyed his surroundings and quickly found a suitable target.
A thin, frail human boy.
With a flap of his wings, Gustavo stood in front of the boy.
Like a startled kitten, the latter instinctively took a step back, a dagger with a notch appearing in his hand. He glared fiercely at Gustavo, "What are you doing? The East District is the territory of the Steam Church; fighting in public is prohibited."
"I mean no harm, I just want to ask you something," Gustavo said, tossing out a magic crystal.
The boy took a step back, and the magic crystal fell to the ground. He took out a tattered strip of cloth, wrapped it around the magic crystal, and picked it up.
After a moment of careful observation, the boy's brows relaxed, but the wariness in his eyes remained undiminished.
What do you want to ask?
"The distribution of power in the Jilong Highlands, some common observations—you must be a resident here, right? You must be very familiar with this information."
How did you know I'm a permanent resident?
"Heh, to survive in the Jilong Highlands, you either have to be a local bigwig with powerful backers, or you have to be strong enough to deter others from making any rash moves. Which one do you think you are?" Gustavo crossed his arms and looked at the boy with a leisurely air.
The latter was taken aback, but didn't say anything more. After carefully putting away the magic crystal, he left with the words "Follow me" and walked towards a passageway on the left.
The Black Spider Squad followed closely behind.
As the boy walked, he introduced himself, "My name is Parker. My father is a member of the Steam Church. You've seen those guards at the gate, right? My father is friends with them. The Steam Church is very united."
These words were clearly Parker's way of warning Gustavo not to have any ulterior motives.
Gustavo remained silent; he only believed half of what the boy said.
The latter's ability to survive in the Jilong Highlands suggests he has powerful backers; as he stated, his father is most likely a member of the Steam Church.
However, Gustavo did not believe that his father was friends with the guards.
This can be seen from the boy's clothing and his thin, bony physique.
Despite the fact that the High-Rank Transcendent orc was killed on the spot, High-Rank Transcendent Lifeform are actually considered upper-middle class in the Jilong Highlands.
Those guards were mostly at the Tier Six or Tier Seven. If they had protected him, Parker would never have fallen to this state.
However, Gustavo didn't expose Parker's deception.
The two were just passing through; he was simply asking one of them about the situation in Jilong Highlands.