CHAPTER 68: CHAPTER 68: WHERE DID THESE POWERHOUSES COME FROM?

Flower Scorpion pulled the trigger in response to the bald man’s provocation.

A beam of light struck half a meter next to the sidecar, sending dirt flying.

She spoke coldly, "Think it’s easy to bully us because we’re few? How many of you plan to die?"

By normal reasoning, the two of them definitely couldn’t defeat the convoy opposite, but... are you willing to accept the losses?

She was really bold, daring to fire even when a vehicle-mounted machine gun was pointed at her from afar.

The bald man was taken aback, then laughed and gave a thumbs-up, "Good shot... Is that a machine gun on your back?"

Just two guns and a knife are quite hefty; since there’s a machine gun, there shouldn’t be too little ammunition, right?

The most remarkable thing is, the other party is a woman... What kind of physical endurance is that?

Moreover, the two sides are about a hundred meters away, and with just a casual shot, she hit that spot. It was clearly no accident.

"No need to suss me out," Flower Scorpion understood well how strangers in the apocalypse should interact.

"I don’t want to kill anyone, and you shouldn’t make mistakes. Let’s mind our own business."

The bald man paused, then smiled and pointed in one direction, "Go that way, it’s about twenty kilometers."

Flower Scorpion still looked at him coldly, "Take the two of us there, and I’ll give you two kilograms of C-level mutated meat."

No need to talk about silver coins and such, we can handle C-level Mutant Beasts anyway.

The bald man laughed again, swiveling his arm about ninety degrees, "Alright, I misspoke, it’s that direction."

"We’ll cross paths again," Flower Scorpion replied straightforwardly, "No need to pay for asking directions."

They wanted to trick them into taking a detour; it’s fair now.

As for whether the direction given later is real or not, it’s not important; we’ll find out as we go.

"Am I really short on that bit of money?" the bald man responded indifferently.

"C-level Mutated Beast Meat... we’ll buy it from you and take you to the supply station for free. How about that?"

Flower Scorpion replied, "Only two kilograms, consider it a gift."

Even though it was tense initially, the outcome wasn’t bad.

A truck was willing to take the two of them. Qu Jianlei lifted a feed trough as a step and jumped into the truck bed.

The machine gunner in the truck bed looked at him in surprise.

He felt the truck bed sink slightly, "How heavy is your backpack?"

Qu Jianlei drooped his eyelids without saying a word, while Flower Scorpion casually remarked, "Too much curiosity isn’t good."

The machine gunner shut up, but his gaze towards the two was not only wary but somewhat unfriendly.

After about an hour of travel, they arrived at a supply station, approximately thirty kilometers away.

Without the convoy, Qu Jianlei and the others might not have encountered anyone for days.

In this unfamiliar wilderness with low visibility, getting lost and starving to death was a possibility.

Upon reaching the supply station, Flower Scorpion took out a cloth bundle from her bag and handed it to the bald man.

The bald man opened the cloth bundle, exclaiming softly, "What Mutant Beast’s meat is this?"

"I told you it was C-level," Flower Scorpion did not elaborate, "Believe it or not."

Her tough attitude wasn’t just because she was nearly tricked, but because the initial attitude of the other party was highly probing.

If she hadn’t shown toughness, would they have turned into robbers... Is that even a question?

At that moment, a middle-aged man, part of the convoy and who had been sitting in the driver’s seat, approached.

He leaned over curiously for a look and also exclaimed, "Was this hunted in the Endless Mountain Range?"

Flower Scorpion didn’t even acknowledge him, turning to follow Qu Jianlei to the repair shop.

However, there was indeed someone knowledgeable in the convoy, as a slightly plump middle-aged man recognized the meat.

"Black-backed Golden Ape? Is this a mistake... This is a prized item."

He then hurried over to Flower Scorpion, "Please hold on, do you have any more Black-backed Golden Ape meat? I’ll pay a high price!"

"There’s no more," Flower Scorpion didn’t even look at him, directly refusing.

"Then can you at least tell me where you encountered the Golden Ape?" he forced a smile, "I’ll pay a high price for that information."

Flower Scorpion still ignored him. Buying such information at a high price... it was for more than just information.

Qu Jianlei, on the other hand, was asking the repair shop owner, "Got any sidecars... I want one, and I need it modified."

"Sidecar... and modification?" The owner looked at him, "That won’t be cheap; do you have enough money?"

Qu Jianlei pondered for a moment and then asked, "Do you accept Silver Notes here?"

"Of course, we accept Silver Notes," the owner eyed him up and down, "Are they Settlement Silver Notes or Energy Block Silver Notes?"

Can settlements print Silver Notes now? Qu Jianlei was slightly surprised; this wasn’t what he expected.

Flower Scorpion spoke up, "Energy Block Store Silver Notes, how do you exchange those here?"

"Energy Block Silver Notes are good," the owner instantly became enthusiastic, "Which Settlement are you two from?"

"No need for so many questions," Flower Scorpion bluntly stated, then took out a Silver Note to show, "Is this okay?"

It was a ten-unit Silver Note, and Qu Jianlei looked at her in surprise, thinking, you have this much wealth?

This wasn’t something she got from him.

"No problem, that’s it!" The shopkeeper confidently affirmed, "I guarantee you can exchange it for ten silver coins!"

"If you have Energy Blocks, one block for eleven silver coins!"

"One li Energy Block for eleven silver coins?" Flower Scorpion said more precisely, "Sorry, I still want to buy Energy Blocks."

"Alright," the shopkeeper didn’t insist, standing up, "there are two tricycles in the backyard... you two can choose."

Watching the three of them enter the backyard, the slightly chubby middle-aged man was stunned, "Where are these fierce people from?"

Qu Jianlei and his companion didn’t know that Energy Blocks were used much more frequently in the Zhou Settlement than in the Hong Character Residence Area.

Therefore, these truly were hard currency, and the Energy Block Store’s Silver Notes were quite steadfast in value.

Actually, the General Settlement of Zhou also issued Silver Notes, but there were some issues.

Now, the Settlement’s Silver Notes can only be exchanged for six to seven silver coins, so naturally, people preferred Energy Block Silver Notes.

The slightly chubby middle-aged man just assumed that the two were strong adventurers, not expecting them to be Settlement residents.

He raised his hand to summon the bald guy, "What did you just say?"

The bald guy had also noticed this scene.

Facing the big client, he swallowed and awkwardly replied, "I just assumed they were wanderers."

"Can you spare me some trouble, dammit?" The slightly chubby man was furious, "They’re Settlement residents!"

Who could have thought, the bald guy sighed in frustration, "Actually... I had good intentions."

"Keep your good intentions to yourself," the slightly chubby man retorted annoyed, "Don’t you know that you shouldn’t underestimate any adventurer?"

I’ve been very cautious, alright? The bald guy felt a bit helpless too. As for adventurers in the wilderness... aren’t they everywhere?

The caravan stopped at the supply point, needing to rest a bit after driving for six hours, besides refueling and getting water.

As they were resting, they saw a small courtyard and a light truck driving out...?

The driver was that woman, and everyone was a bit dumbfounded; weren’t they supposed to buy the tricycle?

But Qu Jianlei was quite satisfied with this light truck; he had taken a liking to it right in the backyard.

A quick look revealed that the engine had been modified, making it much more powerful, and it was fitted with armor.

The shopkeeper had originally intended to keep it for personal use, but alas... there were too many Silver Notes involved.

Flower Scorpion also preferred this light truck; after all, with a cabin to shield against the wind and rain, who wouldn’t?

After taking a spin in the light truck, Qu Jianlei jumped out and pulled the shopkeeper aside to whisper.

Then the two got to work together, each minding their own business.

The bald man couldn’t ignore the look from the slightly chubby guy any longer and finally approached, grinning sheepishly.

"Miss, I was just joking earlier, don’t take it seriously, I apologize here."

"No apology needed," Flower Scorpion waved her hand dismissively, "you got us here, so we’re even."

The bald man took a deep breath, "Miss, could you direct me to where the Black-backed Golden Ape is?"

"I’ll buy it at a high price!"

Flower Scorpion shot him a glance, "Do you think I care about that? Or... are you sure I would point to the right place?"

The latter part was key, as the bald guy had deliberately pointed the wrong way before.

Buying the location at a high price was not just about the address; the seller had to guide them, bringing a host of follow-up troubles.

The bald guy hadn’t expected that these residents from the Settlement knew so much about wilderness survival.

He paused, then smiled awkwardly, "I believe everything you’re saying... Can you just name a price?"

As long as a deal was struck, he could compel them to come along, even at an extra cost.

He hadn’t used force earlier because he felt it wasn’t worth it; he truly didn’t believe a caravan couldn’t handle two people.

Flower Scorpion gave him a strange look, "Do you dare to go if I dare to tell?"

She had been in the Endless Mountain Range for more than half a year, and even she didn’t want to retrace her steps now.

Even though most of the time, Black Heaven was controlling the Mecha to walk.

"Who are you looking down on?" The bald guy got annoyed upon hearing this, "As long as you dare to say, I’ll dare to go."

Flower Scorpion glanced at him again and couldn’t even be bothered to reply.

The bald guy still wanted to say something, but he saw the slightly chubby guy in the distance signaling him with eye contact, so he quickly understood and walked over.

The slightly chubby middle-aged man glanced at Qu Jianlei, who was busy, and muttered under his breath, "Look at what he’s doing?"

The bald man followed his line of sight, furrowed his brow, and observed for about ten seconds.

Ultimately, living in the wilderness for a living, he recognized it off the bat, "A cannon mount?"

"Don’t tangle with them anymore," the slightly chubby man’s lips barely moved, "these two... really aren’t to be trifled with."

"I was just a bit reckless at first," the bald guy still felt a bit defiant, "I haven’t done anything wrong later."

"Say no more," the slightly chubby man sighed, "Ask if they want a Zhou Two Settlement residency."

If they didn’t want to reveal their resident status, just get another one; after all, Settlement identities... can be duplicated.

Zhou Two Settlement status is quite presentable as it is.

(Updated to now, ranking in recommendations, and read data is important, everyone, stop waiting, it’s no fun if it’s ’dead’.)