Chapter Fifty-Five: Fang, the Yellow Sparrow, and Tang

Cave 101.

The contestant, Fang Tang, carried the Daxia Dragonfinch as he approached the corpse-hound. Though the creature lacked any intelligence, it still shrank back in fear under the imposing aura emanating from Fang Tang.

“If it weren’t for that elemental stone, only a fool would bother fighting monsters like this. There aren’t even any pearls to collect,” Fang Tang grumbled, reluctantly decapitating the mongrel, then claiming the swiftly drifting Gale Stone that lingered in the air.

“Once this batch of pickaxes is finished, and the electromagnetic rifles are on the shelves, I’ll be able to rake in a fortune with elemental stones. Even Liuxu’s AKM should be retired by then,” Fang Tang mused, his gaze drifting over the surrounding walls.

[Guess what we just encountered? Both sides are wounded and exhausted. Should we swoop in and reap the spoils?]

“Not interested. I have no time for paupers,” Fang Tang replied, shaking his head.

He had already searched over a hundred caves, yet found very few advanced blueprints. Most of his weapon diagrams had been scavenged or bought from others. Other than Little Ouhuang, he hadn’t seen anyone acquire high-level weapon blueprints.

So, a fight with both sides battered and spent hardly piqued his interest.

[Did I say they were newcomers like you?]

“Hmm?” Fang Tang stopped in his tracks. “What do you mean?” he asked.

The Eye gave no answer, and Fang Tang clicked his tongue impatiently.

“Where are they?”

[Up ahead.]

With his pickaxe in hand, Fang Tang made his way to Cave 102.

Stepping through the black mist, he found himself before a steel villa, tall as a two-story building. Not far from it, at opposite corners, lay two figures.

Each leaned against the wall, clutching their weapons, faces pale as they glared at one another. When Fang Tang entered, both turned their heads slowly, their expressions growing even grimmer.

“Brother, that woman is an intruder. Help me finish her off and everything she owns is yours,” the man on the right called out, one hand clutching his stomach, the other pointing at the woman.

The woman on the left, her face bloodless, returned his cold look in silence.

Fang Tang said nothing, only blinked and strode toward the villa.

[A Level Six residence—I love this house. Fang Tang, as the top dog in this region, shouldn’t you rise to the occasion? Move in here as soon as possible and savor the good life, doesn’t that sound tempting?]

“...Shut up,” Fang Tang snapped at the Eye, though his own gaze was glued to the villa.

Compared to his own shabby wooden hut, this place was sheer luxury—wall-to-wall carpeting, European-style sofas, a fireplace, wine cabinets, bar counters—every detail exuded comfort and ease.

After thoroughly searching every room, Fang Tang emerged, drew his Explosive Bow, notched an arrow, and took aim at the man.

“What are you doing, brother? This is my house! She’s the intruder!” Panic flashed across the man’s face—he clearly recognized the weapon.

A flicker of viciousness shot through his eyes before he raised both hands as high as he could, feigning innocence.

Fang Tang grinned. “A grown man, and you’re using sanitary pads?”

The man spat, “Whore! Damn whore! You two must be in league... definitely in league... filthy scum! Damn you both—”

His words dissolved in curses, rage twisting his features. Fang Tang wasted no more breath, released the string, and the arrow whistled through the air, piercing the man’s chest.

Electric arcs exploded, and the man’s tirade ended abruptly.

Fang Tang tossed a roll of bandages to the woman. “Remember to give it back.”

She gave him a frosty stare, picked up the bandages without ceremony, lifted her shirt, and wrapped the blood-soaked wound on her abdomen.

Pain didn’t elicit the slightest reaction from her—not even a twitch of her brow, as if the body belonged to someone else entirely.

The sight made Fang Tang wince.

What a beast.

If it were him, he could never have endured so stoically.

He turned away from the woman and approached the man’s corpse.

The standard supplies: residence, newspaper, pickaxe.

But the man’s “residence” was an iron box—same size as a wooden one, strapped to his waist.

What Fang Tang really wanted to see was what was inside the newspaper.

He flipped straight to the second page and blinked at the long list. Of more than sixty blueprints, only six were advanced weapon diagrams—elemental weapons.

That made Fang Tang’s heart race.

Nothing brought richer rewards than elemental weapons.

He was about to hit the jackpot!

Third page.

A trove of supplies filled it as well.

Over a dozen elemental stones and a mountain of basic resources—enough for Fang Tang to craft another mechanical claw arm.

Tap, tap.

Footsteps approached; Fang Tang turned to see the woman aiming a gun at him.

“I just saved your life,” Fang Tang said.

The woman didn’t speak. Her eyes flickered with struggle, her lips pale and pressed tight, but she didn’t lower her weapon.

Fang Tang slowly stood up, staring at her without expression. “Repaying kindness with betrayal? Is that really what you want to do?”

He rested his hand on the Daxia Dragonfinch, its blade sliding half an inch from the sheath with a cold metallic ring.

The woman remained mute, but the conflict in her eyes deepened.

Fang Tang let out a soft chuckle. “I’ll bet your gun is out of bullets.”

Her finger trembled at his words. The gun clattered to the floor.

Then her body swayed; she slumped to the ground, falling unconscious.

“That’s all it took?” Fang Tang clicked his tongue. Clearly, this woman had never watched one of those anti-Japanese war epics.

“What a headache,” he muttered, scratching his head. He’d wanted to get some information out of her, but it looked like he’d have to wait until she woke up.

Using his mechanical claw arm, he hoisted the woman up, grabbed the man’s newspaper, and headed into the villa.

Time to enjoy the villa life.

He tossed the woman onto the sofa and made his way to the kitchen, where he found a refrigerator.

The fridge was well-stocked: cola, vegetables, even all the condiments he could want. After a hearty lunch, Fang Tang unfolded the man’s newspaper and began to plan.

Among the six elemental weapon blueprints, all were on par with the Explosive Bow—no third-tier designs like the mechanical claw arm.

Strangely, in the man’s storage, there wasn’t a single elemental weapon—just two rifles, which puzzled Fang Tang.

He pondered a moment, then pulled out his own newspaper and started working.

First, he sent a private message to Liuxu: “Squeeze every last bit of value out of the AKM as soon as you can. I’ve just acquired some advanced weapons. Once they hit the market, the AKM will be worthless.”

Liuxu replied, “Got it... Can you tell me what these advanced weapons are? I’d like to upgrade my gear too.”

Fang Tang: “Elemental weapons—Gale Boltcross, Current Rifle, Flamethrower, Heavy Water Gun, Windfire Blade, and Agility Ring.”

Liuxu: “That many elemental weapons? How did you get them?”

Fang Tang: “Just picked them up.”

Liuxu: “Can you make me a Gale Boltcross and an Agility Ring?”

Fang Tang: “Gale Boltcross: 10 iron ingots, 1 Gale Stone. Bolts: 10 iron ingots. Agility Ring: 2 silver ingots, 1 Gale Stone.”

Liuxu: “Here’s the link to the materials... thanks!”

Receiving Liuxu’s materials, Fang Tang set to work.

Meanwhile, Liuxu began squeezing the last bits of value from the AKM on the public channel, following Fang Tang’s example by driving the price down to thirty silver ingots.

Once again, the two great arms dealers began exploiting the wealth of others through their under-the-table dealings.