Chapter 12: Chapter 12: Liu Family Siblings, Invitation, Level 4 Magazine Pistol

Riding a tricycle, they returned to the minibus.

The innkeeper, Boss Huang, was on an A-frame ladder, cleaning the dusty solar panels on the roof.

Chen Shanshan found several ropes with hooks and securely tied the supplies on the vehicle, locking them to the side of the bus along with the tricycle.

Then she linked a broken cart to the tail of the tricycle, ready to follow Lin Feng’s suggestion by buying some burlap, to set up a shaded carriage roof, and get a two-square-meter soft pad so that they can rest well in the wild.

Lin Feng boarded the bus and entered the compartment, asking Ding Yi to go outside and take a breath, and also check out the new vehicle.

Meanwhile, he pulled out the fine revolver from his waist, integrated six ordinary fine steel wolf fangs, consuming a bit of life value,

and initiated the Level 4 upgrade of the revolver.

Suddenly, a commotion came from outside the room.

Chen Shanshan noticed someone tailing them and was already taking action to capture them.

Lin Feng locked the revolver’s safety, slipped it into his pocket, and quickly got up to head to the door.

He found Chen Shanshan wielding a titanium rod, forcing into the corner the same couple who had previously asked about the pricing.

He quickly stepped forward to inquire about the situation.

Chen Shanshan began to speak:

“They’ve been following us all the way here, I’ve noticed long ago, definitely up to no good!”

The man nervously responded:

“No, we mean no harm…”

“You’re that vendor, we’ve been to your stall!”

Chen Shanshan turned away, and Lin Feng explained that they had previously inquired about wolf fangs.

But this didn’t dispel the misunderstanding.

Chen Shanshan’s gaze remained cold:

“That proves nothing! All parts of the Desert Wolf have been sold, you have no reason to continue following us.”

The man, staring at the rod tip already pressed against his throat, glanced towards Boss Huang, the owner of the place by the bus nearby, watching with interest and showing no intention of intervening…

Swallowing hard, he then spoke:

“We… we want to invite you to join us, to hunt a…”

The man gradually lowered his voice:

“Rock-Horned Horse.”

Chen Shanshan furrowed her brow, clearly skeptical:

“Ordinary Rock-Horned Horses only have mid-stage enhancement strength, you’re both one mid-stage and one late-stage enhanced, why need to invite others?”

The man’s face flushed red, stammering:

“No, it’s not an ordinary Rock-Horned Horse, it’s a Level 9 late-stage Rock-Horned Horse, and…”

“It’s currently in a very weak state, the best time to hunt it.”

Chen Shanshan remained doubtful of this story:

“If true, how did you discover it? Why come to us for collaboration?”

Then, the woman who had been protected behind the man spoke softly to help explain:

“On our way here, we heard some faint cries, discovering a hidden cave containing a Female Rock-Horned Horse in difficult labor.”

“Unfortunately, it gave birth to a stillborn.”

“After consuming the stillborn, the Rock-Horned Horse cautiously left.”

Chen Shanshan squinted slightly:

“One side of the story, what’s the proof?”

At this moment, Lin Feng, standing behind her, had already realized what happened, looking towards the cloth bag the woman revealed.

A bloody scent wafted from it.

“This is part of the placenta left in the cave.”

“It’s less than two hours old, very fresh.”

Chen Shanshan leaned in for a closer look, indeed as the woman said, the fibrous and mucus-covered structure was very fresh.

Its appearance time wouldn’t exceed three hours.

Sufficient enough to prove the woman’s words weren’t false.

Yet, the experienced Chen Shanshan couldn’t easily dispel the doubts in her heart:

“Why choose us? You could handle the Rock-Horned Horse alone or share this information with any top-tier Deserters team for a reward.”

The woman then seriously replied:

“Because you’re strong, able to hunt Desert Wolves, most importantly, you don’t lack food and have fewer people…”

“Even a weakened Level 9 Rock-Horned Horse is not something we can kill, and collaborating with other strong Deserters teams only leaves us with leftovers and risks of being ambushed.”

“Collaborate and split half each, how about it?”

Finally, Chen Shanshan lowered the titanium gun, looking at the two:

“I’m Chen Shanshan, Captain, the vendor is Lin Feng, she’s Ding Yi, we are three people.”

The man breathed a sigh of relief, following suit with his self-introduction:

“I’m Liu Mingfei, Level 7 Enhanced Person.”

“She’s Liu Qian, Level 4 Enhanced Person.”

Chen Shanshan observed the two similar-looking individuals:

“Siblings?”

Liu Mingfei nodded and gave a wry smile:

“Correct, we were brought out together. I’m thirty years old, used to drive taxis, my sister is twenty-six, studied accounting, we’ve survived over a year in the wasteland.”

“Initially, having no particular skills, no one wanted us, eventually becoming Deserters.”

Then directly admitted:

“The previous team we joined disbanded, this time we stumbled upon this opportunity but lacked the strength, so we wandered around the market trying to find suitable cooperation partners.”

Survivors appear in underground ruins and are prioritized for initial selection by front-row villages after discovery, those with professional skills like repair technicians, doctors, nurses, or farmers with the ability to cultivate, are absorbed and taken away.

Teachers like Ding Yi, or drivers and accountants like the Liu family siblings, without any useful skills, would be ruthlessly abandoned, left to fend for themselves in the wasteland.

As for those who were previously late-stage enhanced people or evolvers, they would be taken away by the towns or large gathering places ahead.

It wouldn’t be the turn of Oasis Town at the end yet.

After a brief self-introduction between the groups, Chen Shanshan pulled Lin Feng and the two of them to the side for a private discussion.

The Liu family siblings stood under the sun, while Boss Huang beckoned them to sit by the bus, apparently showing interest in the rock-horned horse as well.

“Do you want to go?”

Chen Shanshan opened her mouth to speak.

Though it seemed like she was asking both of them, she was actually asking Lin Feng.

Since Ding Yi was a non-combat logistics and support personnel, her greatest role in going this time was to be a lookout and guard the vehicle.

Lin Feng didn’t express his opinion directly, instead he asked:

“What kind of animal is the rock-horned horse, a herbivore? I think I’ve heard you mention it before.”

Chen Shanshan pointed to the bow and arrow on the tricycle:

“The horn bow is made from the pair of horns of the rock-horned horse.”

“Rock-horned horses are herbivorous animals living in the area, with a body size over four meters, and adult horses are around Level 7, weighing nearly a ton.”

“And the rock-horned horse leader can evolve to the first stage, equivalent to a human Tier One Evolver, making it impossible for us to kill them now.”

“If what Liu Mingfei said is true, a weak Level 9 rock-horned horse could boost our overall strength further, giving us the confidence to fight even against the desert wolf pack.”

Lin Feng knew that the captain was a Level 8 Enhanced Person; if they could hunt a Level 9 rock-horned horse, upgrading to Level 9, combined with his own abilities…

Even with a squad of just three people, they could squeeze into the ranks of first-rate deserted village squads.

They would no longer need to fear the desert wolf pack trailing behind.

This was when Ding Yi started analyzing:

“The rock-horned horse’s body has a layer of rock-like outer armor over ten centimeters thick with very high defense, and ordinary firearms and bullets, or even arrows, can’t penetrate it.”

“Only the captain’s gun-rod can break through the defense.”

Chen Shanshan nodded:

“Even the horn bow optimized by Lin Feng works, and as long as we prepare well, the killing shouldn’t be a problem.”

Just then, a notification suddenly popped up in front of Lin Feng’s eyes.

The Level 3 Fine Revolver had completed its upgrade.

After briefly going over it, he immediately spoke:

“No problem, let’s do it then!”

Chen Shanshan and Ding Yi were somewhat surprised because Lin Feng’s tone was very assertive.

Moreover, Captain Chen was also somewhat eager, so the decision was made.

At this moment, Boss Huang was talking with the Liu family siblings.

Seeing Lin Feng and the others approach, he enthusiastically said:

“This cooperation is great, they don’t have teammates either, after killing the rock-horned horse, I can buy the extra meat directly; in return, I’ll take you to the next Holy Spring Day for free.”

Not at a large trading market like the Holy Spring Gathering, fresh meat jerky is hard to find buyers; selling it all at once to the official Hunting Wilderness Guild fetches a very low price.

Hence, the permanent residents of village convoy use their network connections to help sell at a price slightly higher than the official rate.

They earn a certain percentage as commission and also establish stable cooperation with capable deserted village squads.

Boss Huang’s mini-bus is long-term leased by two squads of less than ten people, at a favorable rate.

If Chen Shanshan discards the burdens in the team and only takes Qi Mountain’s mid-stage enhanced people for hunting and gathering, they could barely afford to live in the bus, avoiding the exhaustion of running in the wilderness.

Recently, however, a squad went out a few days ago and hasn’t returned, so Boss Huang hopes to find another strong deserted village squad soon to fill the gap.

That’s why he actively mediates the cooperation between Lin Feng and others and the Liu family siblings.

Chen Shanshan understood Old Huang’s intention.

Actually, she didn’t mind outsiders joining.

Now they have the hidden danger of Qi Mountain and are being followed by the wolf pack, taking only three people out is highly risky.

If the Liu family siblings are decent people, forming a new deserted village squad with them is completely feasible.

Huddling together for warmth has always been the survival strategy of the underclass deserted villagers.

It is also the only way for the deserted villagers to combat the harsh wasteland environment and continue surviving.

Under Boss Huang’s mediation, both sides decided to rest a bit more before setting off directly.

Lin Feng returned to the bus compartment and carefully examined the upgraded Level 4 pistol:

「 Level 4 Magazine Pistol, White Quality 」

「 Basic Attributes: Damage 15, Effective Range 200 meters, remaining ordinary ammo: 50, Wolf Fang Bullet: 6; upgraded to host level limit 」

「 Extra attributes: Bullet Recovery 1/1s 」

「 New extra attribute: Space Magazine 」

「 Space Magazine: Gain extra magazine space 」

「 Evaluation: Upgraded handgun, the magazine solves the revolver’s poor airtightness defect, improves trajectory stability and shooting accuracy, enhances lethality, appearance can be freely switched, but being stylish is a lifelong affair. 」

「 Note: Combined with six Wolf Fang Bullets, possessing great penetration power, increases damage by 5, ignoring white quality armor below Level 10; bullet head can be recovered. 」

After reading the introduction, Lin Feng gently stroked the magazine pistol, able to see the silver bullet head of the Wolf Fang Bullets shining coldly in the left-wheel drum preserved in its appearance.

This was also the reason he readily agreed.

Six Wolf Fang Bullets were Lin Feng’s confidence to dare challenge the Level 9 rock-horned horse!

And the space magazine effectively compensates for the ammo problem, providing firepower rivaling a rifle.

Soon, everyone was ready to depart.

Before leaving, Chen Shanshan only took ten pounds of wolf meat, leaving the remaining thirty pounds with Old Huang for safekeeping.

Then she gathered the other four people and rode the tricycle, departing from Fifth Village.

As they reached the outskirts of the camp, countless deserted villagers who had gathered here before started to depart.

Ding Yi looked at the distant iron giant beast and slowly spoke:

“Time’s up, the prayer ritual is about to begin…”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep