Chapter 78: It's Time to Bring Uncle Wei and the Others Back
"Forget it. Let them go this time."
After speaking, Zhao San cast an intentional-unintentional glance at Wei Tiangong's group.
"Huh?"
"Tch. What a waste."
The others wore expressions of reluctant resignation.
Wei Tiangong and his companions finally exhaled in relief.
Had fighting truly broken out, they'd likely still have helped Chen Guodong's group. That would've completely alienated Zhao Family Fort's people - their families inside the fortress would never escape safely afterward.
"Just as I thought."
Zhao San's lips curled in a cold smirk.
No wonder Wei Tianyuan had reacted so vehemently earlier. These people were almost certainly from Chen Family Village.
Numbers meant nothing. The tide could turn instantly in real combat.
Even if they weren't from Chen's village, you couldn't count on their help during prey disputes.
Zhao San's gaze hardened.
Then what use were they? First-stage Tempered Body practitioners? The village had enough of those. Killing them would be wasteful though. Better to assign them hard labor like the others after returning.
The truck rumbled past without incident.
Chen Fan gradually relaxed his tense posture.
He'd caught most of the conversation from the other vehicle. So Zhao Family Fort's people were scum too?
Uncle Wei's group had helped them yet again.
As Zhao Family Fort's convoy vanished from sight, envy colored everyone's expressions.
How nice it would be to have their own vehicle - no more exhausting treks, no desperate fleeing when beasts attacked.
"Dad."
Chen Fan's voice broke the silence.
"Did you see Uncle Wei and the others?"
The group stiffened.
"I saw them."
Chen Guodong turned, eyes shadowed with grief. Liu Yong and others similarly drooped like frost-bitten crops.
"Dad, it's time to bring Uncle Wei's group home."
Chen Fan spoke solemnly.
Our village prospers daily, yet our greatest past contributors remain absent. This isn't right.
To his surprise, no immediate agreement came. The silence grew oppressive.
"Xiao Fan."
Liu Yong's voice dripped bitterness.
"We all want them back. But it's... not that simple."
"Exactly."
Gao Yang sighed beside him.
"Entering Zhao Fort's easy. Leaving? These past years, most who tried died inside. The few escapees... didn't last long."
"What?"
Chen Fan's eyes widened.
"You mean once you join, there's no leaving? Death's the only exit?"
"Essentially."
Liu Yong nodded grimly.
"I know about Zhao Fort too."
Gu Jianghai drew a deep breath.
"Pretty shell, rotten core. The Zhao brothers rape and pillage as they please. Resist? Death - whether you're civilian or martial artist."
Chen Fan inhaled sharply.
Local tyrants. Typical post-Collapse fare.
"But Uncle Wei's group..."
His palms grew clammy. What sort survived in that hellhole?
With their upright natures, assimilation was impossible. Their fate needed no imagination.
"Xiao Fan's right."
Chen Guodong's voice rasped.
"I'll ask Zhao San later how to retrieve Tiangong's group."
"Only way."
"Pray they agree."
Liu Yong's group murmured without conviction. The Zhao brothers devoured meat, not vegetables.
This fear had originally made Wei's group hesitate. Song Family Fort offered better conditions but stricter entry - martial artists plus fees. Competition proved too fierce, even for first-stage practitioners.
Zhao Fort's low threshold attracted many. Martial artists received good treatment - safer group hunts, generous meat shares.
Chen Fan clenched his fists. His gut said this wouldn't be easy.
The mood turned leaden until they neared Song Family Fort.
Chen Fan surveyed emerging signs of life - not villages, but solitary huts with low walls or gaping doorways.
"Refugees."
Gu Ze explained.
"No settlements take them. Song Fort won't let them approach. They beg there daily, returning before dark. You'll see soon."
Chen Fan nodded. The meter-high walls couldn't stop beasts. Nighttime bathroom trips risked becoming death sentences.
Approaching clusters showed better-built hamlets with three-meter walls and watchtowers.
"That's Lin Family Village."
Gu Ze followed his gaze.
"Larger than ours. Difficult to join."
"Because they're near Song Fort?"
"Right. Song Fort's packed with martial artists. Heard they've got cannons that repelled a high-level beast. Second choice for Anshan City rejects."
Chen Fan pondered.
"Song Fort's safe inside, but surroundings aren't?"
"Exactly."
Gu Ze nodded.
"More humans, stronger scent attracts beasts. While Song Fort's secure, periphery areas? Easy prey. High-level beasts strike there first."
"High-level... beasts."
Chen Fan inhaled sharply, glancing back at Lin Village. Consequences needed no elaboration.
"Same around cities - even megacities. Stronger guards, bigger crowds."
Gu Ze continued,
"Most can't enter proper. They pay to live in adjacent housing, getting 'city access eligibility.'"
"Eligibility? More requirements?"
"Take Anshan City. Commoners must labor years in nearby villages, then pay fees just to queue. Waitlist's eternal."
Gu Ze shrugged.
"People actually do this?"
Chen Fan frowned.
The system reeked of exploitation.
Weren't Anshan's overseers the same ones imprisoning Meng Yu's sister?
"Of course. Where else you think we heard this? Song Fort gossip."
"Song Fort ahead!"
Someone shouted excitedly.
Chen Fan looked up.
Three hundred meters away, a settlement ten times larger than theirs loomed - sudden monolith on the wasteland.
[Author's Note: Thanks to reader Drifting Wind for catching Gu Ze's characterization issues last chapter. Character development's tricky - authors may think they're trying hard, readers see trash. But we keep trying. Growth demands it.]
(End of Chapter)
