CHAPTER 23: CHAPTER 23: ALL IN

Morrison spoke up, but Collins couldn’t be bothered to respond, merely giving him a cold glance—who are you to speak here?

The dirty woman also glanced at him, speaking impatiently, "Do you think we let you transport goods because we fancy your tricycle?"

Then she turned to Qu Jianlei, "Xiaoqu, we have to plan carefully, how can we avoid deaths?"

"I’m not familiar with them either," Qu Jianlei answered helplessly, "everyone might die, that’s the wasteland."

"They all admire you," a middle-aged man spoke up, the one who had told him the secret of the injection.

"If you could organize, fewer of us might die."

They didn’t think Sha Qu could completely stop the slaughter, but even if he could stop a little, it would be good!

Wasteland survivors rarely consider the absolute survival rate; that’s unrealistic.

What’s more important is the probability of survival—if it’s a little higher, there’s a bit more hope for survival.

"Can’t organize," Qu Jianlei replied bluntly, then pointed at Morrison.

"Anyone who wants to organize a self-rescue, they can find him, he’s much more eloquent than I am."

"Eloquent ones... we’ve seen plenty," Collins spoke menacingly, "people admire your foolishness."

Me foolish... have I eaten your rice? Qu Jianlei couldn’t be bothered to argue with him; it wasn’t worth it. "You could be a bit foolish too."

Those words weren’t something a normal person could say! Collins was rendered speechless.

Finally, he asked sulkily, "Do you think... this time you’ll definitely be okay?"

Qu Jianlei tilted his head thoughtfully, then replied, "Back then, I wasn’t eaten by the Fallen, surviving to now is a gain!"

"There’s no talking to fools like you!" Collins lost his temper completely.

However, many survivors indeed have this mentality: in the wasteland, living another day is a gain.

Early the next morning, we arrived at the Hongsi Residence Area.

Unfortunately, after waiting all morning, we received news: Captain Tuzov wasn’t there, he went out on business.

We were about to ask what to do about the antidote when the Guard who brought the medicine last time arrived.

He brought enough medicine packs, distributed them one-on-one, then said,

"With the Captain not here, I can’t kill anyone, but since you have no information, the Captain instructed..."

"Next time, if there’s still no information, he plans to distribute only fifteen packages!"

Back then, there were twenty scavengers injected with the potion, plus Qu Jianlei as an auxiliary worker, a total of twenty-one.

One was killed last time, so now twenty people are receiving the antidote.

The dirty woman was taken aback when she heard this, "Next time... you want to kill five?"

"Without information, that’s how it is," the Guard answered expressionlessly.

He paused for a moment, then added, "It doesn’t necessarily mean five must die... some might be severely injured, and the Captain’s marksmanship is average."

This grim joke wasn’t something anyone could laugh at.

Collins couldn’t help but mutter, "Even if it’s a light injury... without the antidote, death is eventual."

Hearing this, Qu Jianlei looked at him calmly, thinking to himself that he was also worried about being silenced in the end.

However, Collins, with his strong perception ability, sensed someone looking at him and turned his head to glance at Qu Jianlei lightly.

There was no expression on his face, but that didn’t mean anything; many survivors were masters at managing expressions.

This time, everyone took the antidote on the spot again.

However, Qu Jianlei played a trick, directly replacing this time’s paper pack with last time’s.

So the antidote he poured into his mouth was just a trace.

But... no one should have been able to see, right?

This time he brought more supplies, directly trading three Gauss Guns and a Long Blade for a shabby motorcycle.

In the wasteland, motorcycles are much more valuable than Gauss Guns—although a weapon, a motorcycle is considered a "large item"!

In normal trades, it’s about a one-to-three ratio, but the gun he used for trading was very old.

So he added an extra Long Blade.

And the motorcycle they provided wasn’t ordinary either; although second-hand, it looked bad but was durable and reliable.

Qu Jianlei had some knowledge of mechanics, so checking a second-hand motorcycle wasn’t an issue for him.

Once he got the motorcycle, he revved the engine and sped away.

What he didn’t know was that at least five groups were quietly watching him from behind.

Collins turned his head, looking at the dirty woman with no expression on his face, "With things like this, you still tolerate him being foolish?"

"I don’t really understand that," the woman answered casually, "Can he really sway those lunatics?"

Collins let out a cold laugh, "One more person, one more chance of living."

"You think he will definitely die?" A slight smile appeared at the woman’s lips, "Then the one to die must be you."

"Is that so?" A sharp glint flashed in Collins’s eyes.

Not far away, the owner of a grocery store watched Qu Jianlei leave, "Just a fool... no skill?"

"Who can really tell about strength?" Beside him was the sturdy Old Fifth, "Second Brother, if you want to deal with him, just go for it."

"The Secret Silver Token..." the shopkeeper sighed lightly, "I’m really curious about what exactly is hidden inside the Token."

The Secret Silver Token isn’t that big; by the weight of silver, it’s about the size of half a silver coin, worth about five silver coins.

However, the Token has patterns on it, turning it into a piece of art, especially with such exquisite patterns, making it a fine piece of craftsmanship.

Qu Jianlei originally wanted five silver coins for it, considering the value of the craftsmanship,

otherwise, why would he sell it? It’s not like he’s in urgent need of money.

But the shopkeeper knew well that the Secret Silver Token is more than just silver and craftsmanship; its true function is as a key...

Not far from him, there was a group that was obviously a Hunter combination, also watching Qu Jianlei.

A short man let out a light laugh, "We really underestimated him; I didn’t expect this guy... to actually have a bit of wealth."

Anyone daring to ride a motorbike alone into the wild must have more than just a bit of wealth; they’ve got to have some guts too!

Among Hunters, those who have motorbikes, only two or three out of ten.

But those who dare to ride a motorbike alone into the wild, only two or three out of a hundred.

It’s more than just a matter of courage; Hunters are cleaner than Scavengers, but there are indeed quite a few desperados among them.

Their own lives are a small matter; if the bike gets damaged outside, it would be "adding insult to injury" for an already struggling family.

Those who are truly wealthy live in the Gathering Area. Even if they come out, they drive off-road vehicles; who would play with motorbikes...

In the trio, another masked person spoke, "I advise not to provoke this person."

The man who knew Sister Na was taken aback; although he acted impulsively, he greatly respected this teammate’s judgment.

As for other gazes, some came from Scavengers, others from different people...

Qu Jianlei rode his motorbike for over three hours, arriving at a transit camp more than a hundred kilometers away.

There weren’t many people at the transit camp, but there were plenty of goods, mainly selling supplies to survivors.

Qu Jianlei filled up his tank, bought a large plastic jug of fuel, and then purchased another batch of outdoor supplies before getting back on his bike to leave.

In this round of shopping, he bought a lot, practically emptying his savings.

His spending even drew some attention, and the stares were not kind.

Fortunately, he came quickly and left just as fast. Those eyeing him didn’t have time to act before he was already gone.

Qu Jianlei took advantage of the night, arriving at the Chaotic Stone Camp, took what materials he could use, and quietly left again.

This time, he brought all his belongings, planning to take a bold risk.

He had two Gauss Guns, one Shotgun, and one Laser Gun, two Long Blades and two Short Knives, and various ammunition.

As for living supplies, he had more than forty Nutrient Injections, three water pouches, and related outdoor gear.

His own safety couldn’t rely on someone else’s finger on the trigger.

He had been lucky enough to escape twice, and he knew better than to think of himself as some chosen one with Celestial Destiny.

The Wasteland outside had no truly safe places, but he had to take a gamble.

Riding his motorbike, he reached seventy kilometers away, exactly where the Fallen had detained him last time.

It was an abandoned small town, where anything useful had been emptied a long time ago.

Everywhere was ruins of walls, and only a few rooms could barely shelter from wind and rain.

After eliminating the Fallen last time, the Hunters even burned the bodies and blew up several rooms, making it more dilapidated.

Qu Jianlei carefully examined the place for a long time, ensuring there were no people or beasts, before unloading the things from his motorbike.

The motorbike was then hidden at the corner of a wall, covered with earth-colored ragged cloth, topped with some broken bricks—perfect!

But that wasn’t all; he chose an unremarkable broken wall to hide himself, then took out some items and started setting traps.

Qu Jianlei had a strong ability to set traps; only before he didn’t have the resources, he could only make some alarm devices at the places he stayed.

This time was different. He even had some explosive materials among the supplies he brought, not running short of steel balls.

His requirements weren’t high. As long as it could serve as a moderate warning and slightly impede the opponent’s advance, it was enough.

As for deadly traps, he set up two; not much material was used, but they could certainly take down two people in stealth.

He just hoped that whoever might come would have some sense and wouldn’t relentlessly force him into using them.

Having prepared everything, it was noon, and Qu Jianlei was already a bit mentally exhausted, deciding to take a nap first.

Towards the evening, he was jolted awake by severe pain all over his body.

So...had the side effects of the Transformation Potion arrived?

Gritting his teeth, he cross-legged in meditation, trying to see if he could endure without taking the Antidote this time.

However, the pain intensified, and eventually, he couldn’t even focus his spirit to guard his Dantian.

He slowly opened his eyes, sighed, and took out a small paper packet, consuming about one-third of its contents.

Once the Antidote was ingested, the effects were almost immediate, as if his whole body was enveloped by a warm current.

Feeling the warm current rapidly repairing his body, Qu Jianlei hesitated, looking at the half-piece of Mutated Beast Crystal.