Chapter 206 of 9o1o: The Tragic 5,000
"How come Guo Dong didn't encounter those monsters when he returned to the campfire?" Zhang Guolin was standing in front of the campfire when Wang Chengzhou kindly gave him a bottle of drink and a chicken leg, but his purpose was to find out how Zhang Guodong was unharmed.
The chicken drumsticks were in sealed packaging and could be eaten immediately after a quick grilling. Given the monster-infested forest, having this cooked food was a real luxury.
Having just experienced a bloody battle, most people lost their appetite at the sight of meat.
Zhang Guodong, however, was much better off taking over the barbecue, but he always felt something was missing. Then he realized it was alcohol, so he pulled a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor) out of his backpack.
A strong aroma of alcohol was sprinkled on the chicken leg, rising up as it was grilled over the flames.
"We encountered them. How could we not? But these monsters seem to be afraid of fire. I ran out of lighters. Luckily, I moved quickly, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to hold on any longer." Zhang Guodong said somewhat exaggeratedly, his facial expression quite convincing, and the light from the fire was insufficient. It was relatively easy to get by.
"A lighter?" Wang Chengzhou received an answer that made him want to vomit blood. A flash of anger crossed his face. Clearly, he didn't believe it at all. A pile of firewood could keep these tyrants from approaching, yet a lighter had such a significant effect?
If that's the case, then all those who died just now died for nothing? Everyone carries two or three lighters; that's more than enough to keep going until the fire starts.
However, Zhang Guodong insisted on this statement, which made Wang Chengzhou somewhat doubtful whether these monsters were really that afraid of fire.
If that's the case, then that would be even better!
Everyone has already fired off quite a few bullets, and we've only reached the first stop; the crucial moment is still far off. What will we do then? If there truly is an alternative way to deal with this terrifying monster, Wang Chengzhou would naturally be willing.
Seeing that he couldn't get any other useful information out of Zhang Guodong, Wang Chengzhou simply gave up. He was just a nobody; how much could he possibly know? He was already incredibly lucky to have survived this time. Was he being too sensitive?
Zhang Guodong felt a bit bored after staying in his own camp for a while, so he simply got up and walked towards the explorers.
"Second Uncle, Zhang Guodong is actually colluding with these people?" Li Lizheng found Zhang Guodong utterly disagreeable. Seeing him walk towards them, he suddenly harbored ill intentions and said with a hint of jealousy, "Didn't you already have connections with these people before you even left?"
Wang Chengzhou glanced at Zhang Guodong and snorted, but his brows were furrowed.
"Second Uncle, I have a suggestion, I don't know if you'd like to hear it?" Li Lizheng said, his eyes suddenly lighting up when he saw Wang Chengzhou's gloomy face.
"Oh? Tell me about it!" Wang Chengzhou looked at him with surprise.
To be honest, only Li Lizheng, Captain Tang, and myself are truly qualified to participate in the discussion. Although Zhang Guodong isn't a member of the guard team, he's not included either; many important matters and decisions are none of Zhang Guodong's concern.
"Second Uncle, aren't you worried about the explorers' intentions? I have a good idea you can try! Those four explorers should have some of those brain beads. We can buy them at a high price. If they sell, everything is fine. If they don't sell, then we'll talk about these..." Li Lizheng made a throat-slitting gesture with a ferocious expression, making Wang Chengzhou's heart skip a beat. This adopted son of his third brother was also ruthless.
ah.
However, this method seems to be good.
"The brain bead is definitely a treasure. Wang Chengzhou has some predictions about whether it is related to that mysterious area or the fifty-year agreement between the old man and the others. It's hard to say at the moment, but there are already signs of it."
This "brain pearl ridge needs to be collected in large quantities!"
Money? It's nothing to the Li family. Given this, even a high price wouldn't be a big deal for the brain beads they've collected.
Just as they were discussing who should go and complete the mission, Zhang Guodong plopped down next to the explorers' campfire, ignoring the dark muzzles of their guns.
“Gentlemen, I have no ill intentions and I’m not carrying any weapons. Are you all so afraid of me? This is not how you treat guests,” Zhang Guodong said with a smile.
The dark-faced captain stared at Zhang Guodong. He was the only one who wasn't holding a gun, which made Zhang Guodong think more highly of him.
"What brings you here?" the dark-faced captain asked stiffly, his brow furrowed.
"My name is Zhang Guodong. Let me clarify first that I'm not with them," Zhang Guodong chuckled. "You can probably see how hostile those people are towards me, so if you're uncomfortable sitting there, why not come over and have a drink with me!"
"You think we'd believe your nonsense? Get lost or I'll get rough with you!" Sanzi said fiercely. His eyes were wide open; if the captain hadn't been there, Sanzi probably would have pointed a gun at Zhang Guodong.
"Hmph!" Old Han also snorted coldly, showing extreme vigilance and hostility towards Zhang Guodong's arrival.
The dark-faced captain said impatiently, "If that's all there is to it, then please leave. You are not welcome here!"
Zhang Guodong laughed heartily, completely unconcerned, and said, "Alright, then I'll say it: I'm interested in the bead you obtained."
The men's expressions changed. A murderous intent locked onto Zhang Guodong, and even the dark-faced captain's face flashed with anger.
“You should know that the team over there is actually stronger than you, and they are also collecting these beads. You are collecting them too, but they won't give up what you have, so no matter what, you can't keep them. Of the eight of you, only four are left and one is wounded. You can say that you have lost most of your fighting strength. Hmph, to put it bluntly, it's hard to say whether you can even leave this forest alive.” Zhang Guodong's voice gradually turned cold as he spoke.
"But if you give me a small piece of An, I can guarantee you'll leave alive." "You son of a bitch! You're all just trying to steal our treasure! Dream on!" Sanzi couldn't hold back any longer and jumped up, ready to teach Zhang Guodong a lesson.
Old Han's face flushed with anger as Zhang Guodong hit the nail on the head. Now that he couldn't fight, he was a burden, effectively holding back the other four as well.
"Are you dreaming? It's not about who shouts the loudest that makes you right. You're the captain, you should know how credible my words are. Tell me, when have you ever seen a wild beast produce beads in its head? When have you ever seen all the wild beasts go berserk and attack humans?" Zhang Guodong sneered.
The dark-faced captain's anger subsided immediately.
As the captain of this group of proud and arrogant men, composure was paramount. Zhang Guodong, with his deep-seated cunning, clearly sensed the gravity of the situation. "Third Brother, seeing that the captain seemed somewhat swayed, immediately became anxious," the dark-faced captain said to Zhang Guodong, ignoring Third Brother. He had given the order to leave, but his insistence on discussing things with his brothers earned him Zhang Guodong's respect.
"Alright, you guys discuss it. Two hundred thousand for a large bead and ten thousand for a small bead, even if you just keep them as collectibles." Zhang Guodong stood up and swayed as he returned to this side.
He knew he wouldn't get any of the beads, but he'd achieved his goal: to enrage! Yes, to enrage!
"Captain, we can't give up something we've worked so hard for!" As soon as Zhang Guodong left, the three boys anxiously voiced their opinions, their faces flushed.
The dark-faced captain looked at his other brothers thoughtfully and asked, "What do you think?"
Old Han exclaimed excitedly, "I disagree too! I'd rather risk my life!"
"I disagree too!" Old Qiu said.
In the blink of an eye, it was three against two, but the stern-faced captain still looked at Lao Liu, because Lao Liu's analysis was more accurate. So he wanted to hear it.
The sixth brother gave a bitter smile and said, "Actually, I don't want to give up either, but if we don't, we'll probably have a hard time getting out of this forest. Now I'm thinking about why there are so many teams in the town? They're obviously elites from the military. Now I'm thinking there might be some big secret in this forest that they won't let us know, so our situation is very bad. 'At worst, we'll fight them!' the third brother said. 'Let's see if my double-barreled gun is stronger or that little toy is stronger!'"
But upon hearing Lao Liu's words, Lao Qiu couldn't help but glance at Lao Han and sigh inwardly. How could they possibly fight them now? If all eight of them were present, they would be a force to be reckoned with, but currently only four were truly capable of fighting. Moreover, could they afford to give up on Lao Fu in his current state?
Old Han was a little silent at this moment.
The dark-faced captain seemed to realize something, and his expression hardened: "I also agree that we shouldn't give up! We're all on the brink of life and death. Our family has already made arrangements. If we can find an opportunity this time, it will be worth it!"
The sixth brother stared at the captain in surprise, momentarily stunned, before realizing what had happened.
There are many explorers with the same goal as them. Within a radius of thousands of miles, there are now nearly two thousand expedition teams of all sizes, which is five or six times more than usual.
This was something Wang Chengzhou and his team hadn't expected.
The large number of teams from the five organizations entering the forest was enough to tempt anyone with ulterior motives, which led to an increase in the number of people entering the forest.
But no one expected that they would be attacked so fiercely after only venturing a few miles into the forest. The casualties were heavy, especially among those who had come in hoping to escape with their lives.
They were among the first to be eliminated!
Two hundred people died! More than one hundred were injured! The rest were more professional explorers whose survival skills were much stronger than those of ordinary people.
By nightfall, almost none of the wounded survived; severed limbs and skeletons were commonplace in the forest. Some monsters roamed in packs, feeding on flesh and blood; after a few bites, only bloody skeletons remained.
Just like the mutated giant rat Zhang Guodong saw, its teeth were incredibly sharp, it could gnaw at extremely fast speeds, and it had a huge appetite. If an ordinary person were surrounded, it would be a certain death.
"Oh my god... what kind of monster is this?" Many people screamed in agony before they died. Some regretted coming here. The monsters appeared more frequently at night, making defense even more difficult.
Zhang Guodong and his group are currently unaware that the number of dead in the entire forest is not just a few, but hundreds. After all, the Shennongjia forest is simply too vast; its size is even more apparent to those traversing it on foot. Walking is extremely difficult.
"Guodong is back? Perfect timing, I have a task for you!" Wang Chengzhou was wondering who to send to negotiate with the other party when he saw Zhang Guodong return so quickly, and his eyes lit up.
Zhang Guodong feigned a confused expression and asked, "Mission?"
The Li family and the explorers were dozens of meters apart by their campfire, but Li could sense their conversation and felt disdain. "You want their pearl? Even if I could, I wouldn't give it to you. Do you really think I'm stupid? Besides, they're not going to agree now, hehe!"
Zhang Guodong could sense the black-faced captain's decision as well; nothing within a 200-meter radius could escape his perception!
This is exactly what Zhang Guodong wanted.
Speaking of beads, he naturally wanted them, but he wasn't in such an urgent position. After all, he had already collected quite a few during his rounds, probably no less than either side.
Wang Chengzhou's expression turned serious. He solemnly said, "I will mention your contribution to the old man once the mission is completed!"
"Damn it! That bastard! He keeps bringing this up!" Zhang Guodong was disgusted by these words. His anger was seething inside him.
"What mission?" Zhang Guodong asked, feigning interest.
Li Lizheng looked at Zhang Guodong with disdain and sneered.
“If you buy all the beads from the other party at a high price, of course the money is on me!” Wang Chengzhou said with a smile. “The larger beads are 100,000 each, and the smaller ones are 5,000 each. It depends on your skills. I have high hopes for you!”
Zhang Guodong was stunned, almost cursing aloud. He had told the other party that the large ones were 200,000 and the small ones were 10,000, but this Wang guy cut it in half! He's definitely got the business sense. So ruthless!
"I'm afraid that won't work," Zhang Guodong said regretfully, his face quickly turning "gloomy."
"What?" Wang Chengzhou asked, displeased. "You don't want to?"
“They won’t sell. I just went over and tested them. They offered 200,000 for a big one and 10,000 for a small one, but they weren’t interested. I can tell they won’t sell. They seem to know something, so they’re absolutely unwilling to,” Zhang Guodong said with a wry smile, observing Wang Chengzhou.
"Not for sale?"
This was something no one had expected. Such a high price and they still wouldn't sell? But upon hearing Zhang Guodong's lowered voice and the next sentence, Wang Chengzhou was immediately startled, and then a murderous intent rose within him.
What did they find out?!
Impossible! What could they possibly know?
Wang Chengzhou looked at Zhang Guodong with a sharp and suspicious gaze: "Did they really say that?"
Zhang Guodong nodded and said, "That's right. The dead tiger was put away without even letting Captain Tang take a look, and the fact that it fought us for the bead just now proves the point."
“No way!” Li Lizheng said at this moment.
"Shut up!" Wang Chengzhou suddenly shouted, interrupting Zhang Guodong. Zhang Guodong looked at Li Lizheng with some regret, having only managed to extract a little information. He'd only managed to get the beginning out of him. "We'll talk about it when Captain Tang gets back!"
Seeing that he had nothing more to do, Zhang Guodong simply opened his tent and prepared to rest. Even though he was incredibly fit, he felt that sleeping was the best thing to do during the boring night.
Half an hour later, Captain Tang and his team returned, bringing back the remaining five men. However, all of them were injured and their clothes were badly torn, clearly indicating that they had been in a battle.
When Zhang Guodong woke up that night, everyone else was already awake and eating their dry rations. It seemed that Captain Tang, Wang Chengzhou, and Li Lizheng had discussed something the previous night. But Zhang Guodong had no interest in going back to sleep.
When I woke up in the morning, I found that the tension between the two sides was brewing even more.
"Since you're up, let's go!" Wang Chengzhou winked at Captain Tang and said.
Captain Tang nodded and divided the team, taking the lead.
Zhang Guodong knew what kind of conspiracy these people had plotted—to devour these explorers, right? He could tell just by looking at the hostility and murderous intent between the two sides.
"Where are we going today? How much time do we have left to talk?" Zhang Guodong asked, biting into a piece of bread while holding a small wine flask that emitted a strong aroma of wine.
But no one answered him. The group seemed very strange.
"Captain and these guys are starting to have bad intentions. Should we..." Zhang Guodong heard the three men's words and a slight smile appeared on his lips. The real show was about to begin, wasn't it?
The more people die here, the better!
The two teams quickly separated, but to everyone's surprise, they hadn't gone half a mile when they smelled blood. They encountered their first dead body there; it had only recently died, and flesh and blood were still hanging from it. Judging from the torn clothes, it must have been another explorer.
"It seems quite a few people have entered this forest; some have even gotten ahead of us," Zhang Guodong remarked with a click of his tongue.
He quickly lost interest. Nobody paid him any attention!
"Captain Tang," Wang Chengzhou suddenly called out to Captain Tang.
"Let's wait and see," Captain Tang said, glancing at the dead man.
Wang Chengzhou had to respect his suggestion and could only reluctantly agree to wait.
Then the group continued walking for less than half a mile when they encountered more than a dozen corpses and dismembered bodies scattered everywhere. There were also many bullet holes in the trees, and some of them had even been shot to death! There were also some monster corpses around them.
It's clear that the battle here is far more brutal than the one they encountered last night—more people versus monsters versus people? And they haven't encountered any monster attacks yet!
“Second Uncle, we can’t keep going like this. The distance is too far, and those people will escape. Their existence is always a great threat to us!” Li Lizheng couldn’t help but say at this moment.
The original plan was to surround the five people, including one wounded individual who was incapacitated, which would significantly hinder their movement. The unexpected encounter with so many corpses delayed the plan and increased the distance between them.
"Bang!" A gunshot rang out from a distance behind us, followed by a series of bangs.
Wang Chengzhou nodded with a start and said, "Now is the opportunity! Captain Tang, let's move!"
Captain Tang nodded, a hint of helplessness on his face quickly replaced by determination: "You guys come with me!"
He selected four team members and quickly left. This was a surprise attack, so not many people were needed. Wang Chengzhou had great faith in Captain Tang's abilities.
However, the guard force here has been reduced by half.
"Stay put and wait for Captain Tang and the others to return!" Wang Chengzhou waved his hand, and the group scattered to maintain vigilance. Fortunately, it was daytime, so there were far fewer monsters appearing. There was no need to worry about not seeing them.
Defense: Five thousand today. Sigh.
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