Chapter 94: Chapter 84: Interest Demands
“If you get more good stuff, remember to come to me first.”
After spending half a day, Tao Yu’s goods were also successfully handed over.
Actually, the main task was filling oil drums, and although the military base had plenty of those large cylindrical oil drums, filling them was still somewhat troublesome.
“Sure thing, it’s been a pleasure working together.”
Tao Yu and Panda shook hands.
“Pleasure’s mine.”
As Panda shook hands, he also cast another glance at Jack standing beside Tao Yu, his estimation of Tao Yu’s importance rising once again!
Jack’s identity hadn’t been made public, but as one of the few Inner City Pioneers present, Panda had received special instructions.
This was about a ‘Chosen One’ extremely important to the settlement; judging by how the other party interacted with this person, perhaps the ‘Chosen One’ had been found by Tao Yu.
Considering the magnanimity of the Suns, the reward was likely to be substantial.
Having both a Grade A talent and such a hefty reward, plus being under the wing of the Sun siblings, it’s no wonder he had the confidence to face off against me, different from the other outer city bumpkins.
With one last look at Tao Yu and Jack, Panda turned and left.
Having taken in all these goods, it was time to translate them into greater benefits and to perfect his own team…
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…
“Kid, you’ve gotten your hands on quite a haul, nice work. With such a reward, you should treat me.”
Jack waggled his eyebrows at Tao Yu.
Seeing Tao Yu arrive at the base made Jack feel a lot more relaxed.
Although the Sun siblings who flew over directly had been kind to him and even given him some protective gear, Jack still felt more at ease in Tao Yu’s company.
“Sure, I’ll treat you to a can of beef.”
Tao Yu tossed over a can he had on him.
“Forget it, I’m sick of it already.”
Jack made a long face, making the scar on his large nose even more prominent.
“You seem to be a lot more relaxed, what, you dropped the burden?”
Seeing Jack refuse the can, Tao Yu didn’t hesitate to rip it open and started munching away.
“I said I’d bring them here to end things on a good note, what happens next is up to your company.”
Jack then turned his head toward several piles of zombie corpses, where at this moment, many of Jack’s former team members were bustling about.
Both the weak and the women were no exception!
If you don’t work, there’s no food to eat, and that’s literally no food; in this regard, the company was truly impartial.
“Now it’s just Tommy and Senke who are still with me, and your two Pioneer big shots are definitely strong. They arrived before I even managed to lure the zombies away…”
When Jack said this, his face showed his amazement; he couldn’t believe these were fellow humans.
The slaughter of zombies was as simple as mowing grass!
“Big shots from the Floating City should be strong, yes. Do you know where they are now? I have something to discuss with them.”
Tao Yu casually inquired.
He mainly wanted to discuss some issues related to Las Vegas, and also bring up his own ‘little request.’ After all, the stronger these two were, the better for him.
“They went out for a bit, probably planning to have a look around nearby, said they’d be back in a couple of days.”
Jack said offhandedly.
“Eh? You seem to be quite informed.”
“They asked me to temporarily manage the base, so of course I’m informed.”
Jack gave Tao Yu a look, which actually took Tao Yu by surprise.
But he soon understood.
‘Chosen Ones’ were critical after all; special treatment was the norm.
Moreover, given the ‘Chosen One’s’ relatively positive character and reputation, they indeed were more likely to be trusted and given responsibilities.
Besides, the indigenous people themselves did not have strong exploration capabilities, but entrusting them with logistics and construction was far more cost-effective than using Pioneers.
Plus, even ‘Chosen Ones’ couldn’t secretly absorb Yuan Force items or fill their own pockets with them.
“You’re the manager and still letting your former people do these tasks? They don’t have complaints?”
Tao Yu raised his eyebrows in curiosity.
“I’m just acting as the manager, the supplies aren’t mine. The survivors at the barracks have exchanged food and shelter at the barracks for some clerical work.”
Jack spoke calmly, then continued,
“The tasks that need to be done are laid out here, and the number of supplies distributed for completion is limited. If they don’t do it, others will have to help, or else everyone goes hungry, so there’s no choice.”
Ultimately, Jack was ex-CIA and not some blind idealist; he’d taken the risk to bring everyone here merely to fulfill the duty he had as their leader. With his responsibility now shifted, he’d focus only on his current role.
He had his principles of conduct, but he wasn’t one to make unnecessary concessions.
“When are you going to teach me the Fist Technique? I think my Stance Skill is about there, they crippled a bunch of zombies for me to set fire to a lot of them.”
Jack then turned back to Tao Yu with an inquiry.
As a ‘Chosen One,’ he could strengthen himself through Yuan Force, and by killing Yuan Force creatures, he could gather Yuan Force more efficiently without the need to dig up Yuan Force items.
However, the downside was that he couldn’t actively absorb Yuan Force items or skills, nor could he selectively enhance anything; it was a general improvement across the board.
“Sure, if there’s time we can learn now. I could do with some practice myself. They won’t be back for a while, so I’ll go and haul a load of cargo. When the time comes, lend me Tommy, he knows how to drive a truck, right?”
Tao Yu was unfazed and simply agreed, after all, he had promised to do so.
He then remembered Tommy who knew how to drive trucks.
“I’ll talk to him, but not today, I need to go give a hand; otherwise, they really won’t have anything to eat.”
Jack waved his hand to indicate he didn’t have time that day, and then walked toward the corpse-burning team composed of the frail and the sick.
Tao Yu was startled momentarily, then revealed a hint of a smile.
This guy, although he was harsh and merciless, and certainly stuck to his principles, was indeed willing to help within his capabilities in his own way.
Everyone had to work to earn their food and had to complete tasks to receive their corresponding shares. He wouldn’t unfairly reduce anyone’s workload, but he would take the initiative to help out and do whatever he could.
“However, it’s a pity, I don’t know if he’ll appreciate your kindness.”
Tao Yu shook his head but didn’t mind it, as it seemed that Jack’s personality didn’t really care about these things either.
Just like Tao Yu himself had launched an overnight raid on the Alien hive without expecting anyone’s gratitude. He simply wanted to do it, his thoughts were clear.
I save you, what’s it to you…
…
“Boss Tao, Boss Jack asked us to follow you on the job.”
Tommy and Senke, having changed into a set of base’s individual combat gear, greeted Tao Yu with big grins on their faces.
They had considerable respect for Tao Yu’s abilities and considered him one of the most familiar Pioneers.
“We’re transporting cargo to Las Vegas, but we won’t stay overnight in the city.”
Tao Yu smiled when he saw the two of them.
With the situation in Las Vegas still unresolved, Tao Yu wouldn’t stay overnight there—who knew if he would hit the jackpot?
However, with the control provided by the Corpse Refining Technique, Tao Yu could determine that even if the Zombies could withstand sunlight, they would definitely despise it and wouldn’t come out during the daytime.
The drawbacks of the ordinary Corpse Refining Technique were quite obvious; only after his own Deification had he erased this defect.
Now, just casually hauling some cargo around the outskirts without wasting time waiting was reasonable.
The two truckloads of cargo last time netted twenty thousand Yuan Force!
Although the quality of the goods and the Motorbike Gang selling in bulk played a part, now with three trucks, wouldn’t it be easy to mix in and make seven or eight thousand at once?
Just loading up some supermarket supplies should be enough!
With hardly anyone scavenging for goods right now, one could just load them up indiscriminately—no time should be wasted…
…
Beep beep~
Tao Yu’s two cargo trucks, along with the one Tommy had initially driven over, left the base one after the other, attracting quite a bit of attention.
Panda, who was in the midst of training the Motorbike Gang he wanted to recruit, also eyed the three departing trucks with envy.
“Three trucks now, good lord, cargo’s everywhere, and each run’s a bloody fortune.”
After grumbling, he turned his fierce gaze back to the gang,
“You bunch of good-for-nothings, are you even worse than a woman? Can’t you even drive a damn truck?”
Panda had initially thought there would be plenty of drivers for such trucks, but to his surprise, not one of these Motorbike Gang members knew how to drive them. Some could drive standard cars, yes.
But an ordinary driver managing to handle a truck under complex road conditions wasn’t something that could be achieved in a day or two.
Now, he could only watch longingly as Tao Yu cheerfully drove off with three trucks loaded with cargo.
“Boss Panda, he’s just a bumpkin from the Outer City, just got lucky with a little reward. You think he’s really caught the eyes of the big shots from the Inner City?”
At this moment, one of Panda’s subordinates, a burly man who stood around six-foot-tall, hurried over and spoke in a hushed tone.
The prior transaction of the two truckloads of cargo had cost Boss Panda two thousand Yuan Force, and this guy, watching enviously, wished he could just rob them and take it all for himself.
The Development Zone was way too lucrative!
But now, without trucks and relying solely on manpower, even if they drafted all the Motorbike Gang members from the Outer City, it wouldn’t match up to what one truckload could bring. And Panda had let such a deal go, which was beyond this man’s comprehension.
Panda gave the man a mockingly amused look,
“Heh, idiot, stop following me from now on, you’re an annoyance.”
This remark instantly paused the strong man’s expression, his face then flushing red in no time.
But seeing Panda’s hulking figure dwarfing his own, he didn’t dare to speak out.
He continually apologized while bowing his head, then hastily left.
“Look sharp, and if you can’t grasp the current situation, get lost right now! Don’t stay here causing me trouble,” Panda used the man as an example to assert his authority, dousing the other underlings with his scolding.
As one of the few Inner City Pioneers that had arrived at the base, just by putting out the call, he could recruit a bunch of Outer City underlings. However, it could also lead to a mixed bag of recruits, and this was a good time to purge and reorganize…
…
Meanwhile, the man who was kicked out couldn’t help but curse under his breath,
“Damn it, just lucked out being born in the Inner City, a freaking moron. Leaves the meat right before his eyes uneaten—what a timid softie, what a waste of that big frame! Fuck!”
Thinking of his own bootlicking over the past while only to end up with this outcome, Peng Xiong’s face turned a dark shade of green. At a height of six-foot-tall and coming from a not-too-bad family in the Outer City, he couldn’t take being slighted like this.
“Hmph, he’s not the only big shot from the Inner City, he just had a head start, that’s all.”
Peng Xiong pondered with a calculating gaze.
But why look to the big shots of the Inner City for a larger slice of the pie?
The kid was alone, at most with a few native locals—how much of a threat could he possibly be?
“So what if he’s got a Grade A talent? How long has it been, and how many Skills could he have absorbed the Yuan Force for? Even if he’s lucky and gets a reward from a mission, in such a short period, how much could he really improve…”
A calculating flicker passed through Peng Xiong’s eyes—if he let this chance slip, there would be no other opportunity.
If he let that kid digest the rewards he had received, he really might become hard to handle!
“If you won’t do it, I will. Three trucks, hey, if he can haul, why can’t I?”
Having thought this, Peng Xiong glanced at the sky and quickly started to rally his brothers from the gang.
“Bring him down!”