Even just idling across the street from the hotel, that armed convoy had put the hotel's security on high alert. Yet as Chen Chuan walked toward them, his expression was calm and natural.
Instead, as he approached, the people in the convoy felt an instinctive unease. Those who had been chatting and laughing fell silent, their expressions turning rigid. Fingers tightened around weapons, and some even aimed their barrels in his direction.
This was not because they had consciously sensed anything; rather, long lives teetering on the edge of survival had honed in them an acute perception of danger.
Chen Chuan had not let even a sliver of his biological field leak outward. Yet the stride and rhythm of his gait, the sheer natural ease and relaxation he displayed while facing so many armed men, brought them a distinct sense of oppression—one that made them exceedingly uncomfortable.
Baomi noticed this immediately. Raising a hand, he made a downward-pressing motion toward the crew and said, "Easy, boys. This is our employer. He's the one we're escorting today."
Hearing this, the men exchanged glances, and their tense postures relaxed slightly.
Baomi turned and nodded to Moli. She stepped forward holding out a hooded smock. "Sir, we prepared this for you. Don't worry, it's been washed beforehand. It's completely clean."
Chen Chuan thanked her, took it, and slipped it on, concealing his figure. Dressed similarly to most people here, he would not stand out so conspicuously.
Even so, merely by standing there, he gave off an aura completely distinct from anyone around him.
Baomi called out to invite him into his own vehicle. Then, leaning out, he shouted toward the front. The lead vehicle started up and rolled out, and the following trucks trailed behind one by one.
Baomi pulled his head back inside and offered an apologetic grin. "Sir, our squad is full of roughnecks who never use their heads. Please don't take what just happened to heart."
Chen Chuan replied, "Captain Baomi, I understand."
For people who constantly risked their lives on the line, self-preservation came first. It was not something they could consciously control.
Baomi chuckled. "That's why you're an officer, sir! Truly broad-minded."
Chen Chuan glanced into the side mirror. The crew members in the rear vehicles remained silent, with none of them whispering or muttering to one another. Their discipline was clearly quite high. He asked, "Are all these people from your outfit?"
"Only about twenty are directly in our squad. The other thirty-some hands were recruited from two other teams. Rest assured, sir—they work with us regularly and are completely trustworthy.
"It might look like a lot of men, but outside the city isn't safe. The Confluence creatures are one thing, but what we really need to watch out for is our peers. Especially this time of year, another mercenary outfit might easily try to ambush us on the road to pick our pockets."
Chen Chuan said, "Earlier you mentioned you took a delivery job heading over there. What is it?"
Baomi glanced back toward one of the transport trucks behind them. "People."
Pausing for a moment, he explained, "There are vast plantations and bio-breeding farms near that town, requiring a lot of labor. We're responsible for delivering a batch.
"Don't worry, sir, none of them are Great Shun folk. They're all prisoners from the former imperial house's military. Those captives are their favorite—they live long, adapt well to the environment, and there's no need to worry about activation."
Chen Chuan made no comment. Things forbidden in the outside world were perhaps commonplace here. Furthermore, compared to ordinary humans, soldiers of the former imperial house were practically another species altogether. As far as he knew, most of them were put to hard labor on the army's front lines anyway.
The convoy rolled steadily out of the city. Once outside, one could see that the indigenous creatures of the Confluence had mostly been purged. Little vegetation could be seen, leaving only stretches of blackish-red soil along both sides of the road.
By the roadside, figures clad in face-covering smocks and bearing dark-slatted baskets wandered about, using hooked claws to overturn the ground. Occasionally, a plump, many-legged worm would be turned up from beneath the dirt, clamped up, and stuffed into the basket on their backs.
Every so often, the vehicles in the convoy rotated positions. Chen Chuan noted that their movements were methodical and well-organized, their equipment comprehensive. Practically all the vehicles carried vehicle-mounted radios, and someone was specifically assigned to monitor and report the activation index.
Perhaps from living in this environment for so long and possessing specialized implants, these people had strong resistance to activation. Not only were their activation indices low, but the readings also fluctuated within a narrow range.
They did encounter other armed outfits along the way, but whether because of the mercenary corps' reputation or because of their evident vigilance, no one attacked them.
After traveling for a while, the buildings along the road dwindled, and the vegetation thickened from sparse patches into dense growth. Confluence creatures grew more frequent; some even ran alongside the convoy. At such times, the crew fired a few shots outward now and then, clearly to deter them.
Baomi said, "Sir, if we don't hit any snags on the road, it'll take about half a day to get there. That means we definitely won't make it back today, so we'll have to spend the night there." He added in a lower voice, "If you need us to do anything, sir, just say the word."
Chen Chuan replied, "Captain Baomi, you're a responsible leader. Before I make a move, I will let you know."
"Heh heh, then I thank you for looking out for us, sir."
They had departed at eight in the morning. Nearing noon, they spotted the town in the distance. It was situated atop an elevated plateau, surrounded by numerous checkpoints.
Chen Chuan noticed several creatures crouched in the grass. They resembled winged beetles roughly waist-high to a human, with lustrous pitch-black carapaces. As the convoy drove past, their long front antennae swayed and quivered.
Baomi said, "Those black beetles are bred by the natives of the town. Their shells are thick enough that ordinary firearms can't penetrate them, and they're pretty fast and numerous. It's thanks to these things that they've managed to hold their ground here."
Chen Chuan gave an affirmative sound. Without such defenses, the place likely would have been overrun long ago by raiding parties of the former imperial house, and the town never would have survived until now. One could reasonably deduce that besides these creatures, third limit fighters definitely resided here.
After bumping over a rough stretch of road, the convoy arrived at the main entrance into the town. Barbed-wire barricades lined both sides, and ditches bristling with barbs were dug all around.
As armed guards at the checkpoint signaled with flags, the prepared mercenaries gradually brought their vehicles to a stop. Right behind them, fully armed personnel emerged from the checkpoint and demanded that everyone dismount for inspection.
Baomi was ready. Casting a glance backward, he signaled Moli, who stepped out of the vehicle and swayed her hips as she walked toward the officer in charge of the checkpoint. She engaged him in conversation and slipped something into his hand.
Having received the bribe, the checkpoint officer's demeanor visibly softened. He no longer insisted that everyone get out, heading to the back instead to inspect the "cargo" they were transporting.
Then, leading his men, he walked up to each vehicle to inspect everyone individually, demanding that they state their names.
Baomi frowned slightly. It had never been this strict before. While they could offer more perks, they couldn't give too much, or the man would suspect something was amiss. Fortunately, as a seasoned outfit, they were well prepared for this as well.
The checkpoint officer now approached their vehicle. He clearly recognized Baomi. Looking at Chen Chuan, whose head and face were concealed by the hood, he asked warily, "Who's this?"
Baomi grinned broadly. "Our outfit's employer. Came out here this time to sample some novel entertainment." He gave the man a knowing look.
The checkpoint officer was evidently not so easily fooled. He pressed suspiciously, "What employer? State his name and identity."
Baomi gestured with his hand like a telephone. "Not convenient for me to say. You can check with Boss Seven. I gave him a heads-up beforehand."
The officer looked at him, instructed his men to keep watch, and ran back to make a call. After a moment, he set down the receiver and waved to his armed guards to let them through.
Baomi breathed a sigh of relief. "All set."
Chen Chuan nodded slightly.
The convoy cleared the checkpoint without incident and drove up the slope onto the plateau. Once they reached the top, Chen Chuan looked out. Unexpectedly, the interior of the town was not the backward backwater one might have imagined from the outside; what lay before his eyes was a bustling settlement.
The first thing that caught his eye was a towering field screen erected in a plaza. Displayed on it was a combat match, except that the opponents were a fighter and a Confluence creature. Before long, the fighter staggered, was pinned beneath the creature, and had his head bitten off in an instant.
At that sight, some of the spectators gathered around erupted into cheers and hollers, while others spat foul curses and hurled whatever they were holding to the ground.
Baomi spoke from the side: "The local bigwigs here set this up in imitation of Shengu City. But they only bring trusted clients to the actual arena; folks like us have to stick to designated areas. Sir, why don't we find a place to stay first, and then contact our informant to verify the situation?"
Chen Chuan looked toward a certain direction and said, "There's no need to contact the informant. Move some distance away, and prepare for battle."
"Huh?"
Baomi's expression tightened. Without asking what Chen Chuan intended to do, he nodded and said decisively, "Understood!"
Chen Chuan pushed the door open, stepped out of the vehicle, and walked toward that direction.
Upon arriving here, Hongfu had relayed a message to him: the True Form Tree was indeed here, but not on the surface—it was beneath this plateau!
Hongfu's assessment was unlikely to be wrong. When Assistant Ling opened the Confluence channel last time, Hongfu had recorded the tree's field signature, so she detected it as soon as they drew near.
Since that was the case, his subsequent actions would not violate the pact, and there was no longer any need to conceal his moves.
Guided by Hongfu, he paid no heed to the men on the surrounding watchtowers. He went directly to a spot, planted his feet, and fixed his gaze on the ground. Then, he raised his fist, which began to shimmer with a faint luminescence.
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Chapter 875