CHAPTER 461: CHAPTER 459: ARENA BATTLE

The meal was nearly finished, and Su Mo stood up to gather the dishes, smiling as she said, "You all need to go out and practice to level up. Having Rong Bai’s soldiers take turns guarding here is enough. Plus, with his current reputation as the person in charge of the refugee camp, no one dares to mess around."

Her words were true, and Zhao Changsheng didn’t argue.

Full from the meal, Feng Yao also chimed in, "We can take turns helping out in the shop two people at a time each week. There shouldn’t be any major issues."

They were all considering Su Mo’s safety, and Lu Chen was happy to see his woman protected by so many.

Having had their fill of food and drink, everyone was stuffed and decided to head out for a walk to digest.

On the commercial street, a dozen or so shops had opened up, most of them contracted by teams of superpower users. The trading methods varied, and Rong Bai had no specific requirements—just that crystal stones be submitted periodically, with his rates being quite low: fifty Level 2 Crystal Stones for a month’s rent.

Rong Bai mentioned that most of the shops were already leased, just not officially open yet.

One could imagine, this street would soon become the most luxurious one around.

"Let’s go check out the fields. To ensure the soil’s safety and prevent it from being damaged, I’ve installed many lighting systems there," Rong Bai said with enthusiasm about the cultivation aspects.

Su Mo was quite interested too, so the group left the commercial street and headed to the cultivated land nearby.

On the vast open space, many warriors were standing, and they all saluted upon seeing them.

The enclosed area was extensive, with dozens of tall greenhouses, each lit by a small lamp and guarded. Rong Bai had put significant effort into preventing this new soil from being damaged a second time.

Beyond being astonished, Su Mo also spotted a large pond enclosed in the area, and she walked forward a few steps, "Such a big pond!"

Lu Chen patted her head and said, "You can throw a batch of fish and shrimp in there, let them grow, and then sell them for a good amount of crystal stones."

Su Mo could already envision herself counting crystal stones until her hands went weak, and she excitedly said, "Tomorrow, I’ll have Aunt Jiang fill it up, and then I’ll put some fry in there."

Following behind, holding Jiang Zhuoyang and accompanying Ling Ye, Jiang Yulian laughed and agreed, "No problem, but I’ll need to find a few helpers. This big pond, it’ll take me several days to fill by myself."

She had always been with Su Mo, hardly practicing her superpower, resulting in her Water Element remaining at Level 2, far from enough to fill the entire pond.

Rong Bai immediately said, "I’ve already thought about that; tomorrow, I’ll call some Water Element superpower users to come over as well."

"Then, I’ll just be responsible for stocking the pond with fish," Su Mo said, patting the pond wall, and then entered a plastic-covered, tightly secured greenhouse.

Inside, delightful yellow-black soil stretched out, with rows of green sprouts just about to break through the surface.

"Are these... potato sprouts?" Su Mo identified them after a while.

There was also an older man standing in the greenhouse, his face anxious as he explained, "Yes, potato sprouts. These grow quickly. Over there in a few plots are sweet potatoes, all easy-to-grow, filling crops."

Rong Bai continued, "But it will still take some time before they mature. Before the first batch of food is harvested, the refugee camp will still face a severe shortage of food."

Su Mo added, "No worries, we’ll go out and look for places where we can hunt wild beasts, and post more tasks to get more superpower users involved."

Li Qian timely interjected from the side, "We’ve also built an arena here. Want to take a look?"

"A fighting ring? What fighting ring?" Su Mo was indeed intrigued.

"Life in the refugee camp is a bit too dull, so Rong Bai set up a big fighting ring that’s open 24 hours, for free combat without the use of superpowers. Each match can be bet on with Crystal Stones, as a form of entertainment," he said.

"Cool, let’s check it out," Su Mo tugged at Lu Chen’s hand, her face full of anticipation.

"Let’s go have a look then," the man said, pulling her out of the vegetable shed.

Ling Ye had gone back early with Jiang Yulian because of training in the morning.

Rong Bai was rubbing his hands eagerly next to Lu Chen, looking excited, "How about a round between us? I’ve been wanting to fight you! Just never got the chance."

"Whenever you want," Lu Chen slightly lifted his chin, glanced at him, and said indifferently, "But you’ve never won against me over the years."

Rong Bai’s hair nearly stood on end with irritation, his bright mockery making Su Mo burst out laughing.

"I won’t go, this blind man wouldn’t see anything anyway," Zhao Changsheng glanced sideways at Li Qian who was still clinging to her wrist.

Su Mo turned her head to look at her, raised her eyebrows—the concern for Li Qian must be why she laughed and nodded. "Then you should take him back to rest early. When he’s recovered, we’ll go on a mission together."

"Okay," Zhao Changsheng blew her a kiss, then whispered threateningly into Li Qian’s ear, "You won’t get better before we go hunting Mutant Beasts, and I’ll just leave you behind."

Li Qian kept a gentle smile on his face, innocently said, "You can’t just abandon me because Su Mo is back."

The two bantered as they walked away.

Now, it was just Feng Yao and Jianxiong’s little squad that remained.

At that moment, Lu Chen lowered his head and murmured, "His eyes are already healed."

Su Mo looked up, an expression of understanding on her face, "I thought so, just a brain injury, how could his eyes take so long to heal, he’s still as sly as ever, but let them be."

"We’re almost there," Jianxiong said gruffly.

After a casual chat, they arrived at the established fighting ring.

It was set up by the river, once a temporary tent for treating casualties; now transformed, with a tall platform inside around which many people gathered.

Both men and women had expressions tinged with a bit of fervor.

As Su Mo and her group entered, the bustling scene quieted down.

The two fighters on stage had to let go of each other, stood aside gasping for air, drenched in sweat as they greeted them; one was a soldier who blushed seeing Rong Bai.

As the one holding power in the refugee camp, even superpower users needed to give him some respect, but Rong Bai’s next move pushed the atmosphere back to its peak.

"Liu San? Good lad, I’m placing my bet," he said, pulling a handful of Crystal Stones from his pocket and stacked them all on the soldier’s betting plate.

"Mission accepted!" The soldier on stage saluted excitedly and threw another punch at his opponent—once again, the fight was too close to call.