Chapter 630 Are there still rules?

When Zhu Zhi came to his senses, he found himself sitting in a closed hut.

His hands and feet were tied up with ropes and his back was against the wall.

There was a bonfire in the middle of the dark hut, which was the only source of light here.

Zhu Zhi followed the firelight and confirmed the six people in the room.

These are the Yao people who came to travel to the Mystic Kingdom.

Originally, led by Zhu Zhi, they were going to go to the Brotherhood Manor first, where they would eat local sugar-roasted wheat, play tub rafting games in the river, and then rush to the Tree House Village.

The Tree House Village is the territory of the Green Forest, where visitors can watch the local girls perform a ritual to worship the Salt Lady. They dance and sing non-stop, and unlike the Green Forest Dance Troupe on the stage, this dance is wilder and more unrestrained, like snakes, birds, and joyful deer.

According to Zhu Zhi's personal experience, most tourists like this place. The forest girls are always full of energy and are likable. If you are lucky, you can even make friends with them.

After leaving Tree House Village, we will head to our final destination, Longqi Island.

Visitors can worship the God Yao and the Dragon Ancestor in the Sihai Temple on Longqi Island, stay in a beachside cottage to watch the sea and listen to the tide, and eat local seafood, especially the local specialties such as isinglass, scallops, black pearls and dried seaweed, which are much cheaper than those in stores and of better quality.

Many Yao people come here just to buy these specialties to take back.

Zhu Zhi is the guide on this trip and he has been doing this for five years.

"What is this place? What's going on?"

The fishman sitting opposite asked.

As soon as he spoke, everyone else looked at Zhu Zhi.

"Mr. Yu Liu, I think we were attacked. They must have used magic or potions to knock us out and then captured us here."

Zhu Zhi said calmly: "But I don't think we need to worry too much. They are probably looking for money, otherwise they wouldn't have gone to so much trouble to capture us."

"Robbery? Seeking money!"

The fish-mermaid Liu gritted his teeth and said, "Didn't you say this road is absolutely safe?"

"That's right. You should have asked around. We took the main road, which is indeed the safest route. I don't know what happened."

Zhu Zhi smiled bitterly.

The fisherman in front of him lived in Saniluo City and ran a fish pond. He went on this long journey to seek pleasure.

The fish pond owner asked Zhu Zhi privately.

"How's that woman over there?"

"pretty."

"Are you good to hook up?"

"If it's at the fraternity farm, the girls are very warm and open, and they are even willing to elope if they like each other. There is precedent for this."

Zhu Zhi introduced him: "The girls in the Green Forest believe in the goddess Salt. They are innocent and simple, but because of their faith, if an outsider falls in love with them, they will be kept by them. But they are usually the most beautiful and wild girls."

"The last one is Dragon Flag Island. The men and women on the beach are all free and easy when facing the sea. Most of the Dragonborn girls have great figures and dare to love and hate. Many of them have their own businesses and ships and are very wealthy."

The fishman suddenly realized: "In other words, it is best to choose the farm and Dragon Flag Island and not provoke the Green Forest?"

“You can understand it that way.”

"I went! How much?"

…

Yu Liu now looked distressed: "I have finally managed to raise fish to save some money. Is it easy for me? I haven't found a wife yet, so I have to pay for it this time. Damn, this damn place, the Mystic Kingdom, is so backward and barbaric!"

"Damn it! Give me back! Give me back!"

Zhu Zhi comforted him with a few words.

Another person nearby said, "We should first find a way to untie the rope and free our hands and feet, so that we can have a chance to escape."

"right."

The people talking were a young couple.

The man's name is Shang Sheng and the woman's name is Yan Le.

Zhu Zhi had inquired and confirmed that Shang Sheng's family owned an iron mine in the southern continent, and Yan Le was a musician at the Ale Theater, who could play the katana box, bamboo flute, and small drum. The two had just gotten married, and this time they came to enjoy their post-wedding trip.

When working in this field, you must keep your eyes open and it is very important that the clients you come into contact with are not dangerous.

Zhu Zhi also agreed: "Then everyone should help each other."

Shang Sheng and Yan Le used their teeth to untie the knots on each other's hands and were the first to free themselves. With their help, everyone else was freed from the ropes.

Then they groped around the walls and the ground, but the house was completely sealed with stones and reinforced with magic, so no sound could get out.

Everyone gathered around the campfire and fell silent.

It was Zhu Zhi who took the initiative to speak: "See if you are missing anything?"

Following this reminder, the six people began to search their pockets.

"All my potions are gone." Yu Liu looked depressed.

Shang Sheng also said: "My mechanical pocket watch was also taken away, and my wallet containing seashells and city bonds was also gone."

Yanle grabbed her husband's arm nervously, with a worried look on her face.

"I'm missing some jewelry and some money I had with me. It looks like I was kidnapped."

The speaker was an older woman.

She was wearing a light blue cotton long-sleeved shirt and a white robe. She had some light wrinkles between her eyebrows and eyes, and looked to be in her thirties. She held the hand of the little boy beside her and comforted him softly, showing the calmness of a mature woman and the strength of a mother.

"I think so too." Zhu Zhi nodded.

The mother's name is Hua Wanrong, a businessman in the flower business. She has been in contact with the Valley of Gods in the East Continent for many years, and is particularly focused on the rose field. The silly child next to her, who is about five or six years old, is her son, named Hua Zheng.

Many people in the East Continent knew Hua Wanrong. It was said that her husband was a flying boat pilot who died in an accident during a circular flight, and then she raised the child alone.

Zhu Zhi shifted his gaze from the mother and son to the last person here.

He was an old man in a black robe, with a shriveled body and a bald head. He looked a little drowsy and kept dozing off. He hunched over, as if he was a little cold, and was very close to the fire.

Initially, Zhu Zhi didn’t want to serve elderly customers.

The elderly have many problems, poor memory, many have diseases of varying degrees, and many are stingy. If they suddenly become unwell or have an accident during the trip, it will be troublesome.

But who can blame the old man for giving so much? He has some kind of obsession and must take a tour of the country of mystic arts.

Zhuzhi asked someone to find out and learned that the old man named Sharipa was a senior monk. He now lives in Yancheng and works in Baibao.

Sharipa had a good reputation among people. They said he was a little old man who did not cause trouble to others and was generous, but his health was not very good. As a monk, he was used to practicing asceticism in the past, and his health was damaged.

That's why Zhu Zhi made an exception and took him along.

"Mr. Sharipa? Are you okay?" Zhu Zhi asked him politely.

"It's okay, it's okay." Shalipa said with a smile.

Then he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Under everyone's astonished gaze, Sharipa wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and grinned, revealing blood on his gums and teeth: "I have a slight cough. Maybe I caught a cold recently."

“…”

Zhu Zhi felt his feet were a little shaky.

You shouldn't have been greedy for that little tip from the old man!

You still think this is fine? Zhu Zhi took a deep breath and sat down next to the old man: "What happened to you?"

"Just a little cough."

The old man muttered, "I'll be fine after a good night's sleep."

"to be honest."

Zhu Zhi clenched his fists.

"...I'm sick." Old Sharipa said a little embarrassedly, "But don't worry, I won't die. I still have to go back to Sifang Kingdom and continue practicing under the guardian statue of the temple. We should be able to go back within ten days, right? Mr. Zhuzhi?"

Ten days?

Zhu Zhi looked unhappy.

With the amount of blood the old man vomited, I don’t know if he can survive a day.

I want money, not the dead! In any business, the dead are taboo and troublesome.

Zhu Zhi only wanted to squeeze some money out of these passengers, plunder all their belongings, and then try to get them to write back home for ransom. Regardless of whether he could get the ransom or not, he would release the people and go through the intimidation process.

There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!

Kidnapping and robbery are minor matters. After all, the Mystic Kingdom is already in chaos, with all kinds of organizations mixed together, new and old gangs rampant, and various powers of the old gods lurking in the dark.

It's normal for something to happen.

But if someone dies... then it will lead to the [Detective Bureau] behind it.

This organization led by Apostle Huni will come all the way here like a jackal smelling blood. Even in the country of esoteric arts, no one wants to face this kind of organization that can arrest even gods and apostles and put them in jail.

Please, don't die, old man, hold on for me...

Zhu Zhi prayed silently in his heart.

He was doing two businesses. One was a travel guide, and the other was a collaboration with the Red and White Society.

The Red and White Society was founded in the Yao clan world and was originally formed by a group of immigrants from the outside world.

In this name, the red refers to the sour raspberries in the orchard, and the white refers to the cotton growing in the fields.

When immigrants came to Yao Country, all they could do was pick raspberries in the orchard and make jam, or plant and pick cotton in the fields.

It’s not that immigrants are prohibited from doing other jobs, but those positions have very high requirements.

Either you need knowledge of mathematics, engineering, archaeology, biology, theology, trade, etc., or you need one or two years of experience in smelting, navigation, mining, breeding, planting, textile, cooking, etc., and all of these will be verified.

It is very difficult for immigrants to compete with locals. Yao people have basically received three to five years of basic school education, which gives them a much higher starting point. And due to their living environment, they usually know at least two or three languages.

In an environment with high thresholds and high competition, immigrants can only do hard and tiring work.

So they banded together, shared what they had, and avoided being bullied.

As it continued to develop, the direction of the Red and White Society gradually shifted.

Because there is one thing that cannot be avoided: rather than competing with the Yao people who are too powerful, it is better to do something unconventional, which can make money much faster. Those immigrants who have successfully broken through have already entered the local circle and no longer need to stay in the Red and White Society.

As a result, the Red and White Society actually transformed into an underground gang, engaging in stealing and deceiving. However, they were soon severely cracked down by the police, and the leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The remaining members of the Red and White Society also moved to the Mystic Kingdom and regrouped in this world full of gangs.

Zhu Zhi's hometown is a mountain area outside the Huanshan City of Zhulu Kingdom. He went to Sand City very early, and then entered the world of the Yao clan, and later connected with the Red and White Society.

He is not a member of the Red and White Society, but has a cooperative relationship with it.

Zhu Zhi has a clear view of himself.

He was not as hardworking as other bamboo people, nor was he smart, but he wanted to make money, so what should he do? He took an unconventional approach.

But Zhu Zhi also has his own principles.

Make money, try not to hurt anyone, and never kill anyone.

This way, even if you are caught, there will always be a day when you can get out.

Just like this plan, Zhu Zhi carefully selected the candidates for kidnapping: they must have some money, but not too rich, to avoid having too much influence, and these people must be willing to pay to avoid disaster, they cannot be people with sensitive identities, and they cannot be powerful supernatural beings.

After this screening, these six passengers were selected.

It can be said that Zhu Zhi worked hard all year to ensure the safety of passengers, just to pave the way for this huge windfall.

In order to make it look real enough, he asked the Red and White Society to treat him and other passengers the same way, without any special treatment. This was also to better hide himself, so that he could act as an insider, observe and guide these hostages to pay.

So far, everything seems to be going as planned.

Except for the old man Shalipa next to him who was coughing up blood again.

"Do you smell any smoke?" the fishman suddenly said.

Everyone looked around.

Zhu Zhi also discovered that wisps of smoke began to appear in the hut. The smoke became thicker and thicker and continued to pour into the closed house.

“They’re going to burn us!”

"It's over! We have to run away!"

Everyone slapped and bumped around in panic, trying to find a way out.

Zhu Zhi, however, looked confused.

That's not right.

It’s different from what we agreed.

Is it to give them a warning first and then ask them to write letters one by one for ransom?

Soon, Zhu Zhi realized that this was definitely not the case.

Because the temperature in the whole house was getting higher and higher, the scorching heat outside was getting worse.

Zhu Zhi was extremely angry.

Are there still rules in this world? Is there still trust? What is the Red and White Party doing?

A bunch of lunatics!

Suddenly, there was a strange chanting and singing coming from outside.

Old Sharipa suddenly perked up: "Kali, Kali... Kali, Kali... This is a ritual to worship the old gods."

"They worship the [Avatar of Extinction]. I've heard people talk about this kind of prayer. Offering a living sacrifice to the ancient and powerful God of Destruction, repeating His name and spell, and carrying out the entire ceremony, one can obtain His blessing..."

Zhu Zhi interrupted him: "Speak to the point!"

"Oh. They built this black altar and performed sacrificial ceremonies to awaken the monsters in the darkness. Then they let them eat us and gave them to the gods to vent their righteous anger."

Zhu Zhi felt a chill in his heart.

Isn't this fucking nonsense? For justice, there must be a victim? "Is there any way?"

"Yes, just go out."

“…”

Just when Zhu Zhi wanted to punch the old monk twice, the monk said, "Don't worry, this smoke is a kind of spice. We won't die here. The monsters in the dark have fully awakened, but they won't attack us immediately. They will be very upset when they are disturbed and awakened... So don't worry, take a rest."

The fish-merman Yu Liu scratched his head and said, "Why are you not in a hurry? Why are you not in a hurry? Tell me how to get out?!"

"wait."

Shalipa said softly, "I will talk to those monsters after they wake up. It is said that they like to make people struggle and beg for mercy so that they can get the perfect killing experience. I will try to slow down their attack."

Everyone looked suspicious.

Zhu Zhi finally calmed down at this time: "Let's do as Mr. Shalipa said. Let's take a rest first. We can't lose our composure."

(End of this chapter)