Translator: AnubisTL
A flicker of fear flashed in the girl's eyes.
After a brief hesitation, she spoke in a trembling voice.
"My innate ability is Dandelion!"
"Basically, I can plant a dandelion seed on another player without them noticing."
"Within a ten-kilometer radius, I can track their every move, eavesdrop on their conversations, and learn their name and innate ability."
"I planted a seed on you."
The girl looked up at Scar Dog, her gaze slightly uneasy. "I know your innate ability and your name. Your name is Scar Dog."
"I heard that name yesterday."
"You're the first human player to activate the human race faction."
"And I overheard you talking about using 5,000 semi-scrapped items to upgrade the turrets, making them capable of withstanding City 18."
"Since we're both human players, I thought we should help each other. So... I followed you."
"Although..."
The girl glanced weakly at Chen Jiang. "Although I don't know your name, I'm guessing your innate ability is enhancement-related. You must be the one using the semi-scrapped items to upgrade the turrets."
Scar Dog listened expressionlessly, his finger resting motionless on the trigger. He tilted his head toward Brother Jiang, who sat beside him, awaiting his command.
We've been exposed.
Chen Jiang remained seated calmly, pulling a pack of cigarettes from Scar Dog's pocket. He lit one and placed it in his mouth, but didn't inhale, simply waiting for the ash to fall.
The exposed information included Scar Dog's name and innate ability, the content of their conversation, and their ability to enhance the turret using semi-scrapped items.
While this information wasn't critical in itself, its significance depended on who overheard it.
Despite their utmost caution, they had still been followed.
Their pursuers relied on innate abilities, something they couldn't easily defend against.
At this moment, Chen Jiang felt a strange sense of relief that Ma Zi's group lacked any particularly powerful innate abilities. Otherwise, facing over a dozen opponents, even with the turret's support, the outcome would have been far less certain.
"Besides you, who else knows about this?"
Chen Jiang casually tossed the half-smoked cigarette aside, grinding it out with his foot. He casually raised the muzzle of his gun, aiming at the girl standing just a few steps away.
"There's also..."
The girl hesitated for a moment before speaking. "The human survivor base knows too."
"I'm a member of the human survivor base. We're all human players who were brought to this world, and we've been helping each other survive."
"Our boss found out you can use semi-scrapped items to upgrade turrets."
"He sent me to make a deal with you."
"We hope you'll join the human survivor base. After all, we're all humans in this strange world, so we should naturally help each other."
"We'd also trust each other more."
"Secondly, we want to ask if this wasteland is safe. Our current base is in an abandoned mine, which isn't very secure."
"We often see footprints of the mechanical race near the entrance."
"So we've been looking for a safer place."
"If you agree, we'll be family from now on."
Scar Dog couldn't help but laugh in fury. "I get it. You're here to negotiate our surrender, and then you want to take over the old house we worked so hard to get?"
"Do you even realize what you're doing?"
"Your actions are like getting caught cheating and then demanding the husband hand over his wife and transfer the house deed to you."
"How can you say that?"
The girl spoke with a hint of urgency, "The fact that our boss sent only me here is the greatest sign of sincerity. After all, I pose no real threat to you."
"Our human survivor base values peace and unity."
"If we truly wanted to seize your territory, why wouldn't we have sent a dozen people to catch you off guard?"
"Our boss is primarily interested in your ability to enhance turrets using semi-scrapped items."
"He believes this capability has immense potential for growth and development, which is why he wants to recruit you."
"Hmm."
Chen Jiang nodded slightly. "Alright, you don't need to say any more. I understand."
He then turned to examine his turret's interface.
[Item Name]: Steel Sword Autonomous Rotating Turret
[Item Tier]: Two-star item.
[Item Effects]: Ammunition capacity: 1,000 rounds. Rate of fire: 1,000 rounds per minute. Effective range: 500 meters. Recoil: 50 kilograms. 270-degree rotation design. After activating the turret and inputting a whitelist, any non-whitelisted individuals entering its effective range will be indiscriminately targeted.
[Item Description]: This little beauty ensures you can sleep soundly in the wasteland.
[Modifiable Attributes]: Caliber, ammunition capacity, rate of fire, barrel length, and recoil.
[Current Enhancements]: Ammunition capacity enhancement +4, increasing capacity to 5,000 rounds.
The Steel Sword Autonomous Turret now resided in Chen Jiang's spatial wristband, ready to be deployed and activated at any moment. Unlike before, he no longer needed Scar Dog to carry it on his shoulder wherever he went.
As for this "human survivor base"...
Chen Jiang slowly rose, his expression calm, and picked up his rifle. He walked toward the girl standing before him. "I understand perfectly now," he said.
"Tell me about your human survivor base. Where is it? I'd like to have a chat with your boss."
"Just outside the wasteland," she replied.
A flicker of triumph flashed in the girl's eyes as she tugged on Chen Jiang's arm. "I knew you'd agree," she said. "Come on, our boss is waiting just outside the wasteland. You'll meet him soon."
Of course, she was lying to the two men.
Her innate ability wasn't "dandelion" at all; that belonged to her boss.
Her true ability was "heterosexual affinity."
[Heterosexual Affinity]
[All male players, regardless of race, will subconsciously lower their guard around you, feel an instinctive fondness, and even trust you implicitly, leading to intense pursuit.]
As the girl turned to lead the way out, a smug satisfaction flickered through her mind. She had used this ability to recruit countless talent users for her boss.
So what if they're powerful? They all end up bowing at my feet.
As for whether my methods are underhanded—who cares? In this world, survival is the only truth!
Though they couldn't understand why the girl was so openly flaunting her smug, scheming expression, Chen Jiang and Scar Dog remained silent, scanning their surroundings. Only after confirming they hadn't attracted the wasteland's attention did they follow her outside.
Safeties off, chambers loaded.
Now that the cards were on the table, it was time to act.
(End of the Chapter)
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