Chapter 340 - 312: Advance Information
After hearing the relayed answer from Pura, Qin Ziwen was about to ask why they couldn’t cooperate with a Tuiyuan and have them periodically clear out the Thousand-Eyed Snakes.
But then he remembered that when a "Gated Community"—in other words, a Tuiyuan—existed on the current map, no other Tuiyuan could enter.
And the Thousand-Eyed Snakes, as it happened, only appeared when a Tuiyuan descended.
This formed a vicious cycle.
Even if they reached an agreement, it would be useless.
Thinking of this, Qin Ziwen sighed inwardly. ’No wonder he wanted to entrust the Little Fishman to me.’
If it stayed in the tribe, perhaps one day it too would become one of those "Slimes."
The Fishman Leader looked at the silent Mogu beside him.
Seemingly guessing his identity, he stepped forward and extended his arm. This was a friendly gesture among male Fishmen.
Mogu’s eyelids drooped. He sized up the Fishman Leader, then slowly extended his own arm and nonchalantly tapped it.
The Fishman Leader asked something.
Mogu’s expression suddenly darkened, and he shoved with his arm.
"BAM!"
The Fishman Leader was sent flying backward, landing heavily in the mud and sand.
The surrounding Fishmen immediately scrambled to their feet and closed in.
"ROAR!" The Fishman Leader let out a long cry, stopping the other Fishmen.
He gave Mogu a somewhat regretful look, then turned and left.
Qin Ziwen looked at Pura. "What were they just saying?"
Pura snuck a glance at Mogu, who was staring straight ahead with a blank expression.
Then Pura whispered, "Master, the Fishman Leader just asked Lord Mogu to sow some seeds in the Fishman Tribe."
"’Sow...?’"
An image appeared in Qin Ziwen’s mind.
It could have been other words, like "leave," "spread," or even "pass down."
But he had specifically used "sow."
He thought of the way fish mate.
The previously expressionless Mogu shivered and took a few steps forward. "Master, I noticed his swimming form is incorrect. I’ll go give him some pointers."
With that, he grabbed the nearby Cao Biansheng and, amidst Cao Biansheng’s startled cries, hauled him into the distance.
...
Not long after the Thousand-Eyed Snake’s death.
The sea, a reef island.
In the Gated Community perched on the reef, cheers rose and fell.
"I just saw that the Level 3 Task was completed!"
"Awesome!"
"This pretty much secures it! Our score should guarantee victory now, right? Even if the opposing Gated Community completes the other Level 3 Task, they can’t surpass us in points."
"Definitely. Besides this task, the Qin Alliance’s Hunting Teams have completed almost all the other tasks during this period. We have a massive lead in points."
Within the Qin Alliance, some residents who had come from the Urban Village to "work" lowered their heads, their expressions bleak.
Many of them had already silently accepted the fact that they might be stuck on this island forever.
One year, two years, ten years... a lifetime.
Not far away, Jia Liangcai lightly stroked his long beard. Seeing the expressions on their faces, he smiled faintly.
’Things that come too easily are rarely cherished.’
’Only after they experience despair will they be receptive when the Lord steps forward to win their hearts.’
’The method may be old, but it works.’
’Human hearts have always been this way.’
’And this is a good opportunity to see some people’s true colors and weed out the impurities.’
"Teacher Luo, this is coconut tea made from coconut meat. The coconut fragrance is really strong, and it tastes kind of like milk tea. You should try some." On the third floor of the school building outside the Gated Community, Zhou Xiaqing knocked, pushed open the ajar wooden door, and gently placed a pottery jar on the table.
Luo Gang picked up the pottery jar and examined it closely. The jar’s shape was simple and unadorned, its body slightly lopsided, but its texture was exceptionally fine and the glaze was excellent. The surface had even been pinched to look like a little pig’s snout, giving it a whimsical, childlike feel.
"This jar looks pretty new. Where did it come from?"
A smile bloomed on Zhou Xiaqing’s face. "One of our classmates is selling them. He got a Clay Mine Card after joining the Qin Alliance, then had his girlfriend quit her job at the Armor Workshop and partnered with someone else to start a pottery workshop. The price wasn’t high, so I wanted to support a fellow student."
"It’s nice," Luo Gang said with a sigh. "It’s good that people have things to do. A hundred flowers blooming makes the spring."
After a pause, Luo Gang asked curiously, "Isn’t Chairman Qin making pottery?"
"No, His Lordship the Chairman mainly focuses on things related to Advanced Buildings. He’s basically contracted out or delegated everything else," Zhou Xiaqing said, shaking her head.
In reality, the largest "workshop" in the Gated Community right now is the Yanwu Military Equipment Supervisor.
The second largest is the Ghost Ship Dock.
These two major structures provide work for over a thousand people. If you count the related upstream and downstream industries, you could say that nearly every household is working for Chairman Qin.
If you also factor in the Martial Arts Arena, the Celestial Star Arrow Gallery, and the recently popular Hundred Schools Book Tower, the Qin Alliance has become completely inseparable from its Chairman.
After getting this answer from Zhou Xiaqing, Luo Gang thought for a moment and was surprised to find that he wasn’t surprised at all.
After handing the Student Union over to Qin Ziwen, Luo Gang had mostly stayed in his room to avoid any appearance of impropriety. He spent his days sunbathing, reading, and never stepping out.
He wasn’t lacking for food either; after all, he was once the Student Union’s greatest Lord of the Homeland.
Just by relying on the buildings in his Home and collecting processing or service fees, he had enough for his daily food and drink.
"Sigh, the sun on this Island is just a bit too harsh. My arms are all tanned. I wonder what the next map will be."
...
[Esteemed Level 4 Authority Resident, you have obtained partial information about the next stage map]
[Next Stage Map: Underground Caves]
[Next Stage Duration: 90 days]
[Next Stage Reinforcements: 702 people]
[Next Stage Type: Survival/Cooperation]
Qin Ziwen, who was in the Fishman Tribe, received a notification from his Home.
First, the next map is a series of underground caves.
’It sounds like a map where sunlight might not be able to reach.’
’It might be dark around the clock.’
’But collecting some extra wood to use as fuel for light should be no problem.’
Second, the next map will continue to add newcomers to the Gated Community.
’This is troublesome. Honestly, I’d rather they be like the people from the Urban Village—conquered and then subjugated—instead of being integrated directly into the Gated Community.’
’If we run into a relatively innocent group like the school students, that would be fine.’
’But if we run into disgusting deviants like those teammates from Hongding Mansion...’
’...I’ll have to go through the effort of another major purge.’
’A waste of energy.’
Third, the next stage’s type is not just survival, but also cooperation.
’Given that the newcomers will most likely be integrated directly into our Gated Community, the ’cooperation’ part doesn’t refer to them.’
Qin Ziwen suspected that besides the new reinforcements, there would be other Gated Communities on the next map.
Judging from the mode, it seemed both sides would need to cooperate to survive.
’Therefore, the difficulty might be quite high. I just don’t know the specific background of the map.’
’I hope it’s a little simpler.’
Just as Qin Ziwen was thinking, the Fishmen not far away began to move. They worked together to lift the corpse of the Thousand-Eyed Snake and then stuffed it, bit by bit, into the mouth of the Snake Puppet.
...
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