The convoy heading to D city was very long, almost stretching as far as the eye could see.
This time, apart from Ye Muli becoming the co-pilot, the rest of the crew remains the same.
Ye Muli chattered away in the front row, trying to get close to the archer, but to little avail. The archer simply answered a few questions politely and then fell silent.
Liu Nian maintains a cool and aloof persona and doesn't take the initiative to communicate with others.
After failing to reach an agreement with Ye Muli, he turned to Liu Nian for a chat.
Seeing Ye Muli turn his head to look at him, Liu Nian immediately closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.
It wasn't that he didn't like chatting, it was just that Ye Muli was too talkative and could talk about anything, which he couldn't keep up with.
Seeing Liu Nian sleeping, and looking at Pastor Tang Tongbi next to him, Ye Muli blushed and didn't dare to go up and talk to her. He could only keep stealing glances at her.
During a short break, Du Mingna, determined to retain the new members, gritted her teeth and pulled out a Tier 1 resource card from her pocket to reward everyone.
When everyone saw the materialized meat, their eyes lit up instantly, like ravenous wolves.
Are the levels of satiety provided by meat and vegetarian food at level one different?
Liu Nian couldn't pretend to be like them, and it wasn't convenient for her to ask why they were all like this.
During the rest period, Liu Nian's doubts were answered, and it has to be said that the answer was quite scientific.
While it's true that you should eat the same amount of food, the human body needs a variety of nutrients, and meat provides a wider range of nutrients.
Looking at the space filled with all kinds of meat, well, forgive my lack of knowledge!
The cook was Pastor Tang Tongbi, and I must say her cooking skills are quite good.
A simple campfire was set up with an iron pot, and soon after seasonings were added, the aroma of meat filled the air.
The group sat in a circle around the campfire, watching eagerly as the slices of meat in the pot tumbled and sizzled.
As a newcomer, Liu Nian took on the responsibility of patrolling.
Originally, Ye Mu was supposed to leave, but seeing him drooling over the iron pot, Liu Nian volunteered to take on the guard duty.
Although it's called a patrol, there's really nothing to do. The convoy is well-equipped and strong, and apart from mindless infected individuals, no other creatures will bother them.
The meal was ready quickly—a stew of meat and vegetables.
Everyone lined up to be assigned food, and thankfully the pastor didn't have a habit of shaking her hands, so Liu Nian got a lunchbox full of sliced meat.
Seeing everyone around him wolfing down their food, Ye Muli wished he could lick the bowl clean.
Liu Nian replied, "I really can't do it."
He ate his food slowly and deliberately, looking out of place among the people around him.
They were barely six-tenths full after eating, but judging from their relaxed expressions, they seemed quite used to it.
What he didn't know was that if it weren't for the new recruits, their food would mainly consist of dry rations. Although they were all first-tier ingredients, there were still differences in quality!
Meal times are always short; after eating, we continue on our way.
Before nightfall, the group arrived at a deserted village along the road.
Seeing the vehicles ahead stop, Liu Nian knew that this was their campsite for the night.
As expected, after getting off the bus, Du Mingna told everyone to spend the night there.
Liu Nian and his group arrived early and were in the middle of the group. Du Mingna found a well-ventilated two-story building.
After the group of eleven parked the car, she began to lead everyone in tidying up the house.
The house is generally clean, and it's a place with a lot of people coming and going. Once the garbage left by the previous residents is disposed of, it's ready to live in.
The two-story building has six rooms and a large hall, which is more than enough for living arrangements.
The task of keeping watch naturally fell to Liu Nian and Ye Muli. Perhaps feeling it was not very friendly to the newcomers, Du Mingna assigned the thief He Zeyu and the archer Yang Li, who were originally in charge of keeping watch, to each take one person with them.
Ultimately, it was decided that Yang Li and Ye Muli would be assigned to the first half of the night, while Liu Nian and He Zeyu would be assigned to the second half.
For Liu Nian, it was no big deal; she could sleep anywhere, wherever she lay down.
However, the first day was destined to be anything but peaceful, and trouble soon came knocking.
A man with a split hair kept knocking on the door, followed by several gruff-looking henchmen.
"Listen up, you people who hate parting forever! Get out here right now! This house was first spotted by our Crocodile Gang!" the gang leader shouted arrogantly.
"Eternal Regret and Parting" is the name of the mercenary group, but judging from the resentful expressions on everyone's faces, they already knew the people outside the door.
Liu Nian remained silent, watching to see how Du Mingna would handle the situation.
Du Mingna took a deep breath, wiped the resentment off her face, and quickly put on a smile.
The newcomers were from the Crocodile Gang. The Crocodile Gang's leader had connections with the Axe Gang's boss, and it was rumored that he had been recruited by the Axe Gang.
The Axe Gang is a well-known Tier 3 guild in City C, and there are rumors that the city lord is backing them up.
Although both are top-tier mercenary groups, our side only has eight people, including the newcomers, while their side has a full complement of thirty. The difference in strength is huge, and we can't afford to offend them, so we can only avoid them.
Circumstances dictate that you have no choice but to yield.
After communicating with the businessmen, although they were dissatisfied, they were able to understand.
If the Crocodile Gang hadn't been asking for such a high price, they would have chosen the Crocodile Gang first.
Earning so little, they could only find small mercenary groups. Although everyone was dissatisfied, they had no choice but to vacate the rooms.
Seeing everyone reluctantly vacating the room, Liu Nian naturally joined in the tidying up.
At the door, Du Mingna was smiling obsequiously and talking to a man with a middle parting, but Liu Nian couldn't hear her clearly because she was too far away.
A good first lesson in reality.
As for Liu Nian's fight his way out, what will happen to this mercenary group after he returns to D City and leaves?
Retaliation is inevitable. It would be incredibly easy for a level three mercenary group to retaliate against them; it would be as easy as crushing an ant.
Should he support them? Liu Nian hadn't decided whether to form a team yet; he was just here to learn from experience.
Du Mingna skillfully dodged the man's groping, but she still couldn't avoid being touched inappropriately.
The busy men dared not speak out in anger, which only fueled the arrogance of the man with the middle parting and his underlings.
They made sarcastic remarks from the sidelines and urged Liu Nian and the others to move quickly.
As the priest and the ice mage passed by the door, the group of men touched them, and their gasps made the men laugh.
Seeing the two women surrounded at the door, Liu Nian's eyes also turned somewhat unfriendly.
Don't go too far; my patience has its limits.
Compared to Liu Nian and the others' restraint, Ye Muli, who was in his early twenties, was clearly more impulsive.
He dropped what he was holding and walked toward the group of men.
The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground made the group turn around. Someone looked at Ye Muli and said to the person next to him, "This level 18 warrior seems a bit angry. What do you guys think we should do?"
Unlike the middle-parted man who was the leader of the Crocodile Gang, Du Mingna was alarmed when she saw things getting out of control and signaled to Wang Gang to stop them.
If a fight really breaks out, this matter will not be resolved peacefully.
Upon receiving the signal, Shield Guard King hurriedly dropped what he was doing and went forward to grab Ye Muli's arm.
"Don't cause trouble," Wang Gang whispered in Ye Muli's ear.
Ye Muli still had an angry expression on her face, looking at Wang Gang with confusion: "Why..."
Before he could finish speaking, someone slashed his arm with a knife.
Wang Gang noticed Ye Muli's pained expression, pulled him behind him, and then raised his shield to block the next attack.
"If you don't have the strength, don't act tough. You coward, come out and play with grandpa some more." The one who did the slashing was a level 21 warrior under the leader's command, whose equipment was much better than Ye Muli's.
They're quick to resort to violence at the slightest provocation; that's how arrogant they are in City C. The Axe Gang is their source of confidence.
"That's right, come on, let's fight!" The people around cheered.
Du Mingna let the man with the middle parting grope her, and said with a forced smile, "The new recruits are a bit immature, and you've already reprimanded them. How about you be magnanimous and not hold it against them?"
The man with the middle parting pinched Du Mingna again and casually said to his subordinates, "Alright, get ready, it's getting dark."
The boss gave the order, and his men became much more obedient, letting the two women go and starting to move things into the house.
The group, who were packing their belongings, remained silent and quickly made room to leave.
The atmosphere inside the car was terribly oppressive. Apart from Ye Muli grimacing in pain, everyone else remained silent.
Pastor Tang Tongbi was bandaging him, trying to ease his pain. The knife was deep in his flesh, and healing spells could only restore his health, not the injury itself.
Liu Nian glanced back at the house again, something seeming to flicker in her eyes.
"The night is still long, be careful tonight!" His voice was low, as if he were talking to himself.
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