CHAPTER 52: CHAPTER 52: PREY

The Crack rode a motorbike, covering over a hundred kilometers, and dropped Qu Jianlei at the foot of the mountain.

He even asked Fugui when he would return, saying he would ride out to pick him up at that time.

Qu Jianlei waved his hand, indicating that if he wanted to return, he could hitch a ride temporarily.

This time, he was fully armed to enter the mountains: a laser gun and a Gauss rifle, complete with short and long blades, plus various supplies.

Fortunately, he had improved his backpack; otherwise, it would have been hard to fit in so many things.

After Hongyi arrived, Xiao Jing bought some new clothes, and the three of them changed into them, finally not looking so shabby.

However, Qu Jianlei cut his well-preserved clothes, adding many pockets and straps.

He even made major modifications to his backpack, making it fit snugly.

He didn’t understand ergonomics, but just with a little effort, Xiao Hu proposed a modification plan.

The plan was rough, definitely with much room for improvement.

But Qu Jianlei thought it was enough; given his current financial strength, he couldn’t afford to pursue perfection.

Even the Crack was impressed by the modifications, thinking the three of them could open a store selling backpacks and clothes.

Qu Jianlei didn’t think this was a good idea; this kind of thing was easy to copy without any bottlenecks!

Besides, in the Wasteland, there’s no such thing as a "patent."

Most importantly, he was just temporarily staying in Hongyi, not planning to make it his base of operations.

Qu Jianlei stepping into the mountains naturally attracted the attention of nearby survivors.

He had no intention of dealing with these people, so he quickened his pace and soon went far away.

In the edge areas of the mountains, many places were owned, especially arable land.

Before coming, Qu Jianlei had already asked the Crack to help buy a map of the Endless Mountain Range—of the outer areas.

The map wasn’t expensive, as many adventurers had one, mainly to avoid trespassing onto others’ territories.

Qu Jianlei’s purpose was also to avoid these troubles and directly enter the mountain depths.

He moved quickly, but his fully armed appearance still caught the attention of many, "Hey, a lone wolf has arrived!"

A lone wolf referred to a solitary Hunter, usually someone with some skills, not everyone could earn this title.

Sure enough, someone showed discontent, "What lone wolf, looks quite unfamiliar, probably another naive dreamer."

Then, someone chimed in, "That’s right, carrying so much stuff... looking to get robbed?"

Hongyi’s order was relatively better, but robbery was something that couldn’t be completely eradicated.

Especially here, in the Endless Mountain Range, unexpected incidents were quite normal.

However, the first speaker sneered, "Robbery? Ha, who thinks they can rob that guy?"

"If anyone doesn’t believe it, I’ll bet with them... whatever you earn from robbing him, I’ll pay that amount!"

"If the robbery fails, just pay me a hundred silver coins, anyone up for the bet?"

Indeed, Hongyi’s order was stronger; someone actually used this as a gamble.

A hundred silver coins was quite a big bet; some raised objections.

But this guy insisted that just the two guns were worth at least fifty silver coins, right?

Grabbing just a bit of the other supplies would surely amount to more than fifty silver coins.

Finally, someone stood up, "If it’s a compensation of thirty silver coins, I’ll bet!"

Hongyi’s order was good not just because of thriving commerce, but also because many experts were willing to take a gamble.

Some bet Qu Jianlei was an expert, while others didn’t believe it, so... the wager was made.

Yet two hours later, the one who chased Qu Jianlei returned, "Uh... I admit defeat, compensate me half, is that right?"

This guy truly didn’t believe it at first, but in the end, he couldn’t help but believe!

The reason was simple; he couldn’t even match the other’s pace, drifting farther and farther away.

How much stuff did he bring, and how much did the other guy bring?

So he decisively turned back, declaring the end of this bet.

The betting person was dissatisfied, "Why admit defeat and settle for half... who knows what you did?"

This guy was annoyed by the remark, "If I wasn’t worried the word would get to that guy’s ear, I would have just given up, what can you do to me?"

In the end, he genuinely recognized Qu Jianlei as a strong person...

Qu Jianlei only emerged from the mountains seven days later, still calm and collected, but with two slabs of meat on his back.

"That’s Golden Patterned Bear!" someone recognized one piece of meat.

"That’s a Three-tailed Lynx!" someone exclaimed, "A mutant lynx, must be B-level, right?"

Then the crowd surrounded him, "Buddy... are you selling this meat?"

"What the heck are you guys thinking?" Qu Jianlei drooped his eyelids, "Please make some room."

"Five silver coins," someone offered, "to buy a piece of intelligence from you... where did you hunt them?"

Five silver coins... money is money, so Qu Jianlei took the coins and pointed in a direction.

"A hundred and ten kilometers out... I’m talking about a straight-line distance."

Thirty kilometers into the mountains is the safe zone, like the current location.

An additional thirty kilometers inwards is relatively safe, while beyond a hundred kilometers... is the Extremely Dangerous Zone.

"How did you go so far?" this guy didn’t believe it, "You’re just alone!"

"You buy the information, I sell," Qu Jianlei replied coldly, "if you don’t believe it, why bother finding me to buy it?"

He was clearly angry, and the others dared not provoke him further.

The wrath of the strong is not something just anyone can handle.

Some were quite shrewd, "It’s not that we don’t trust you, just wanted to ask, did you really take down the Golden Patterned Bear and the Three-tailed Lynx?"

Qu Jianlei’s eye twitched, "I was lucky... I picked them up... they fought each other to death, so I got the easy bargain."

Damn, fought each other to death! Most people were left speechless.

The Golden Patterned Bear and the Lynx, they don’t even search for food in the same areas, right?

Golden Patterned Bears can be considered top-tier beasts, though the Lynx is also a carnivore, it wouldn’t dare provoke such a beast.

The Three-tailed Lynx must be a Mutant Beast, but it might not be able to defeat the Golden Patterned Bear.

The key issue is, the Golden Patterned Bear is bad-tempered, but the Lynx is smart.

If it can’t win, the Lynx would run! How could it be so foolish to battle to mutual destruction?

It really seemed too unbelievable.

Qu Jianlei didn’t care about their reactions, he was quite pleased inside.

This venture into the mountains was truly rewarding, both the Golden Patterned Bear and the Three-tailed Lynx were killed by him.

The Golden Patterned Bear was understandable, though tough-skinned and thick-fleshed, it finally died under the Gauss Gun.

The Three-tailed Lynx was extremely agile; it was really hard to aim with a gun, and finally died under the Tai Chi Thirteen Sabers.

If not for the lynx trying to counter-kill him, he would have just watched it leave.

Even so, his left shoulder was bloodied and shredded by the lynx’s claws, the shoulder blade probably fractured.

However, he found that such battles greatly benefit his growth!

He had only been truly confronting beasts and Mutant Beasts for three days, not even four.

But only in such life-and-death struggles could he truly feel the internal stirring and desire from deep within.

So in these few short days, his stagnant cultivation level showed vague signs of progress.

Even his appetite increased significantly as a result.

He only brought back half of the Golden Patterned Bear and half of the Three-tailed Lynx, because the other parts he had already eaten.

In a few days, he consumed more than a hundred kilograms of meat, even he was startled.

But he had to eat; hunger persisted, and progress in cultivation undoubtedly requires a substantial material foundation.

Otherwise, energy wouldn’t be conserved.

He bypassed these few blocking his path, but as he neared the foot of the mountain, he was stopped by someone again.

Only one person stopped him, but there was a side-car motorcycle parked nearby with two people sitting on it.

The cargo bed of the tricycle housed a mounted machine gun.

The person blocking the road held a Gauss Rifle, with a Short Dagger and Laser Pistol on his belt.

He used an authoritative tone, "Put down the lynx and let me see."

Qu Jianlei was stunned for a moment, lowered his gaze, and silently put down the two pieces of meat from his shoulder onto the ground, taking two steps back.

Whether intentionally or not, he already assumed a bow and arrow stance.

The two guns on his back were inconvenient to use at this range, the Long Blade was more suitable.

Just like when he encountered the Three-tailed Lynx, he could only use the blade.

He didn’t know who this person was, but anyone daring to block the path at the foot of the mountain could not be ordinary.

And with his left shoulder still injured, the outcome of a real fight was unpredictable.

He just hoped the other party respected Hongyi’s rules, and wouldn’t complicate matters beyond resolution.

Having struggled to reach Hongyi, finally with a cultivation plan, he truly wished for a few days of peace.

The person blocking the road stepped forward, poked the half of the lynx with the Gauss Gun, then squatted down.

He drew the Short Dagger from his waist and cut a small piece of meat from the lynx’s belly, examining it in his hand.

He then pinched it, shook his head, and remarked regrettably, "Tsk, it’s close to forming a crystal... What a pity!"

Qu Jianlei lowered his eyes without making a sound, thinking, so what if it’s close to forming a crystal, I can’t just not resist, right?

Yet the fact that the person could differentiate the crystal-formation process of a Mutant Beast intrigued him.

Then the person spoke without looking up, "Ten silver coins, I’ll take the lynx."

Qu Jianlei lowered his gaze and murmured softly, "Not for sale."

"Hmm," the person finally lifted his head, stared at him for a few seconds, "Twelve silver coins... no more."

Qu Jianlei still kept his eyelids down, "I want to keep it to eat myself."

The person stared at Qu Jianlei for a long while, without blinking.

Qu Jianlei stood there with his hands lowered, unmoving.

He watched Qu Jianlei for about twenty seconds, then snorted softly, "If you sell it elsewhere..."

He didn’t finish the sentence, but the threat was clear as day.

Turns out they were meat monopolizers! Qu Jianlei finally understood who they were.

He replied blandly, "Even I don’t have enough to eat."

"So, you’re a rich guy, huh?" the person chuckled, with a hint of mockery in his eyes.

Who among the truly wealthy would hunt Mutant Beasts alone?

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