Chapter 277: The Open Conspiracy |
"What do we get?" Yang Long asked the biggest question. "Guild Leader Qin, we are just two ships passing in the night. After a little over a month, we will never meet again."
"Who says we won't meet again?" Qin Ziwen replied with a half-smile.
Yang Long's pupils contracted.
His expression became extremely animated.
Qin Ziwen's words contained too many implications.
"We... can we really have a chance to meet again?"
"Yes," Qin Ziwen answered succinctly, giving a definitive answer.
Yang Long suddenly thought of something. "Like Liu Ze's ability to set Anchor Points? A Function Card?!"
Qin Ziwen didn't explain.
Yang Long was stunned. After you all leave, you can still come back frequently?
That's just too much of a bully!
I thought we'd be suppressed by you freaks for at most a little over a month, but now you're telling me you plan to drop by often in the future, ready to suppress us for a lifetime?
Thinking of this, Yang Long felt completely numb.
Qin Ziwen patiently guided him. "Think of it from another angle. At least you won't be trapped here forever. We can still sell you some goods, like food, tools, to help improve your lives."
The corner of Yang Long's mouth twitched. Not only suppress us, but also treat us as a dumping ground for your goods.
This is basically a colony!
However, the Island environment is resource-poor. Although seafood is abundant, there are Sea Colossi in the surrounding sea, making it dangerous to venture out.
He didn't believe such a vast ocean contained only a few Sea Beasts.
If Qin Ziwen and his people could return, it might not be entirely a bad thing.
Yang Long said, "Guild Leader Qin, if we agree to be absorbed, you won't make us launch a head-on assault on the Red Cauldron Tower, right? I've seen the inside of their tower. The environment is complex, easy to defend and hard to attack. With just the few people from our urban village, even if we all died, we absolutely couldn't take it down."
"Don't worry," Qin Ziwen waved his hand.
"I'm recruiting you because you haven't eaten people," Qin Ziwen stared into Yang Long's eyes. "Would you be willing to cooperate with those who have eaten people?"
"... To be honest, Guild Leader Qin."
Yang Long was silent for a long time before speaking again. "When I first heard about what happened in that building, I was indeed shocked. At first, I thought, with so many people, there must be a few who were forced, even some good ones."
He paused, looking towards the distant Red Cauldron Tower.
"After more contact, I realized I was naive."
"In that hellscape of widespread starvation, the first thing devoured is one's conscience. The first time might be forced, the second time not necessarily."
"I want to cooperate with you, but I'm more afraid that after you leave, we will have to face over two thousand people from the Red Cauldron Tower. When they settle accounts with us, we won't be able to resist," Yang Long said honestly. "This is our biggest concern. Even if you can return here, you can't be watching us every day, right?"
"Guild Leader Yang, to be honest, do you think you can win this Competition?"
Yang Long remained silent.
"Since you can't win, then you being left on this map is an established fact. Have you considered how your urban village will deal with the Red Cauldron Tower after we leave? Can this Island support your over three thousand people? If food becomes insufficient on the island in the future, might you become meat rations for the Red Cauldron Tower? They do have that custom."
Yang Long shuddered, considering this possibility.
No, it was highly likely.
Qin Ziwen chuckled lightly. "For me, I don't care. We can just leave. But what about you? You can't leave. I'm kind-hearted, I can't bear to see good people get bullied. Guild Leader Yang, if you're unwilling, we'll leave immediately."
"Guild Leader Qin, I'm willing to cooperate," Yang Long no longer resisted and quickly agreed.
"Haha, then let's take advantage of us being here now and finish them off in one go!" Qin Ziwen tempted him. "They are also human. When hungry, they have to come out to find food. I don't believe they have enough food inside that building."
"Not necessarily..." Yang Long said cautiously.
Qin Ziwen laughed. "That suits me just fine. If they dare to continue 'self-sufficiency,' the first thing to collapse will be their internal morale. Right now, Blood Script is leaderless internally, a bunch of Floor Heads each with their own schemes. Who eats whom? If it really comes to that, they'll first have a big fight amongst themselves. As long as they aren't a solid block, defeating them becomes very easy."
"What we need to do is dig trenches and build wooden walls around their tower, sealing them inside."
"Wait at ease for the exhausted enemy, sit and watch the tigers fight," Yang Long understood Qin Ziwen's idea.
Yang Long was filled with admiration. He only felt that Qin Ziwen and his people were both strong and cautious.
Clearly so far ahead of them, yet still using such a careful method.
Little did he know, Qin Ziwen just didn't want too many of his own people to die.
Qin Ziwen said, "Now that we are cooperating, the work of digging trenches and building wooden walls will be left to you, Guild Leader Yang. We will be responsible for security, and incidentally provide you with food. I believe both you and the Red Cauldron Tower don't have much food left, right?"
Yang Long didn't deny it. The food inside the urban village was indeed running low.
As for the Red Cauldron Tower, from what he knew, their remaining food supply shouldn't be much either.
After all, over two thousand people, their daily consumption is a huge number.
"Alright, Guild Leader Qin, then happy cooperation."
"Happy cooperation."
Qin Ziwen smiled slightly. As for the idea of taking away a portion of the civilians from the urban village, he did not voice it.
If he said it, today's cooperation might not have been achieved.
Afterwards, Yang Long returned to the urban village. Shortly after, they began to move.
Simultaneously, on the deck, a portion of people disembarked, equipped with weapons and gear, and entered the Forest on the island.
A large number of personnel emerging from the urban village moved towards the Red Cauldron Tower.
They formed a circle, clearing away a layer of vegetation near the tower.
"What are they doing?" Upstairs, Li Zecheng gnashed his teeth. "Just now, the ship seemed to have communicated with the people from the urban village. Could it be those bastards have turned traitor?"
"Boss! They seem to be trying to start a fire, burning the nearby Forest!" Someone inside the building shouted loudly.
Li Zecheng hurried to the window. First, he cautiously glanced towards the seaside, confirming the large ship wasn't firing arrows, then he felt at ease observing the scene below.
He saw columns of smoke rising from the Forest surrounding the tower.
From time to time, he could see Jianghu Society members holding torches, setting fires in the Forest.
"Do they want to smoke us out?" Not just Li Zecheng, many people inside the Red Cauldron Tower had the same doubt.
Downstairs, several Jianghu Society members ran over. "Brother Long, we've lit fires all around. Is that enough?"
"No, keep burning, keep setting fires! Ensure there isn't a single tree within five hundred meters of the Red Cauldron Tower!"
Yang Long's eyes were ruthless. Since he had decided to cut ties with the Red Cauldron Tower, he had to finish them off completely! If you beat a snake but don't kill it, you'll suffer its bite later! Rather than wait for their future revenge, it's better to be absolutely thorough now.
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