Chapter 251: The Phoenix Man Who Soared Before the Apocalypse (57)

The four of them exchanged glances, then obediently got out of the vehicle.

The man continued, “Men go to the left for inspection, women to the right. If you want to enter, it’s ten Core Crystals per person, or twenty jin of supplies. If you don’t have either, well, your vehicle looks pretty good. Hand it over and we’ll call it even.”

“We’ll pay in Core Crystals,” Shen Xiuyan said crisply, flipping through the car and pulling out forty Core Crystals to hand over.

“Alright then, go ahead and get checked.”

Greed flashed in the man’s eyes.

He knew it—these people were a fat catch. He had to notify the boss right away.

Following instructions, the group entered the inspection room. Once it was confirmed they had no injuries, they were allowed to enter the base without issue.

As soon as they were inside, the gatekeeper eagerly ran off to report to his boss, hoping to claim credit.

He couldn’t afford to miss out on such a juicy target.

Meanwhile, Shen Xiuyan and his group were quickly surrounded inside the gate.

But it wasn’t a robbery. The people crowding around were all wearing eager smiles, trying to drum up business.

“New here? Need a guide?”

“I know everything about this base. If you’ve got questions, just ask me. I’m cheap—only one loaf of bread.”

“Sir, looking for a place to stay? I can take you to a good one. Just one Core Crystal for the referral.”

Shen Xiuyan was getting a headache from the noise. He pointed at one of them. “You, come here. We don’t need the rest.”

The chosen man walked over excitedly, while the others dispersed in disappointment, off to find their next target.

The man patted his chest and said, “Name’s Wang Jidong. I’m the go-to guy for all the gossip in this base. Whatever you want to know, I can find out. But if you want more than the basics, it’s gonna cost more than a loaf of bread. For one loaf, I’ll only give you the general info.”

Shen Xiuyan turned and grabbed a few bags of instant noodles from the car, tossing them over. “That’s negotiable. Get in the car and talk with us first.”

Wang Jidong’s eyes lit up at the sight of the noodles. It had been a long time since he’d met such a generous boss.

“Ask away, I’ll tell you everything I know.”

Once they were inside the vehicle, Shen Xiuyan asked, “What’s the deal with this base? The system here seems a mess. Charging ten Core Crystals just to get in? That’s outrageous.”

Wang Jidong gasped. “What? Ten Core Crystals? Don’t tell me you actually paid that…”

Shen Xiuyan nodded. “Of course we did. Otherwise, how would we get in? Is there something wrong with that?”

Wang Jidong hesitated, then looked at the noodles in his hands and gritted his teeth. “This is bad. You need to move your vehicle to a more secluded spot. Don’t stay somewhere this conspicuous.”

Shen Xiuyan didn’t ask why. With a glance, he signaled A Cai to drive.

The vehicle slowly pulled away from the crowded gate. Only then did Wang Jidong breathe a sigh of relief.

“You’re probably new here, so you don’t know. Normally, regular folks only need to pay one Core Crystal or one kilogram of food to get in. The reason they charged you so much is because you showed off your wealth…”

Shen Xiuyan narrowed his eyes slightly. There was something more to Wang Jidong’s words.

He turned and placed a few more bags of bread into Wang Jidong’s hands. “Keep talking.”

Wang Jidong looked at the food, licked his lips, and spilled everything he knew.

“This base isn’t actually that safe. You’re right to think the system’s a mess. If it weren’t, how would the people in charge profit? From what I know, anyone who looks like a fat sheep when they come in has already been…”

He didn’t finish the sentence, but made a slicing gesture across his neck.

You’d have to be a fool not to understand.

Shen Xiuyan frowned, his handsome brows drawing together. “And no one does anything about it?”

Wang Jidong let out a mocking laugh. “Do something? Who’s going to do anything? Everyone’s just trying to survive. I’ve passed through a few small bases, and compared to them, this one’s actually decent. At least here they only go after people who look wealthy. Some bases don’t even treat people like human beings—worse than livestock…”

Shen Xiuyan asked, “What about the three major bases? Things can’t be like this there, right? Why don’t you go to one of them?”

Wang Jidong shook his head. “I don’t know the details about those places. They’re too far from here. We’re just ordinary people—it’s not easy to get there.”

“Got it. That’s all I needed to know.”

“What do you mean ‘got it’?!” Wang Jidong was getting anxious. Judging by the supplies in their vehicle, they had a lot. They should be fleeing right now.

With a car and supplies, they wouldn’t starve no matter where they went.

“If you’ll take my advice, you should run. The moment you handed over forty Core Crystals, they definitely marked you.”

Shen Xiuyan curled his lips into a smile. “Run? If they really dare come for us, I’d actually like to see what they’ve got.”

Wang Jidong shook his head helplessly. “Why are you so stubborn? I’m telling you, they’ve got a team of over thirty Supernatural Ability users. Catching a few people like you would be a piece of cake.”

“Oh? That many?” Shen Xiuyan laughed wildly. “I just wonder if any of them can actually fight.”

Wang Jidong was speechless. Was this guy insane?

He turned to look at the others, hoping they’d be more reasonable.

After all, they’d given him quite a bit of food. He felt responsible to at least warn them.

But the others didn’t react at all. Su Mingyue even asked curiously, “Are their abilities all at Level Two or Level Three?”

Now it was Wang Jidong’s turn to be confused. “How could they all be Level Two… Most of them are Level One. Only their leader and his deputy are Level Two, I think.”

Oh. A bunch of weaklings.

Su Mingyue instantly lost interest in asking further questions.

She leaned back in her seat with a dismissive pout. She’d thought they were something impressive, with all that swagger. Their abilities should’ve been higher.

But this? Seriously?

In their own base, the lowest-ranked Supernatural Ability users were already Level Two. Not to mention the administrators, who had already reached Level Three after Shen Xiuyan gave them some Core Crystals.

As for her dear husband, he was probably already at Level Five or Six. But since their base didn’t have any measuring equipment, the exact number wasn’t clear.

They could only estimate based on his performance in battle…

Yep, it was that casual.

Maybe this was just how the strong operated—fearless and unrestrained.

Su Mingyue felt quite pleased with herself.

Wang Jidong was nearly driven mad by the group. What the hell? You hear they’ve got two Level Twos, and you’re all disappointed?

He lowered his voice and said, “Look, even the three major bases only have a few Level Three Supernatural Ability users right now. For a small base like ours to have two Level Twos is already amazing, okay? If it weren’t for them holding down the fort, there wouldn’t be so many people here!”