Mecha Star Wars.

Chapter 1463 Gray Stone Encounters
Greystone settlement is not a suitable place for sightseeing.

The dilapidated public facilities and backward overall environment made Lin Fan feel as if he had returned to a third-tier city in Lanxing twenty years ago.

"Can your Greystone settlement really enjoy the benefits of a Level 1 civilization?" she asked Gar.

The old, fuel-powered buses were so rusty that even scraping off a piece could weigh several pounds. The asphalt road was riddled with potholes, patches upon patches, stretching to the horizon with hardly a smooth spot...

Compared to the Loess Plateau, it is indeed much better. But in the post-apocalyptic world, any populated area on Tiandu Star is better than this.

"To say whether it exists or not, of course it does," Gar said dismissively. "But having it doesn't mean it's widespread. High technology is all about burning through money. Do we look like we're wealthy here?"

“Of course there are!” Antonio retorted. “Aren’t there plenty of people who have so much money they can afford to hire servants? Besides, the castle we’re staying in is worth a lot, isn’t it?”

"Hey!" Garr held the cigarette between two fingers, flicked off the ash, and said, "That's all money from my own pocket. I'll spend as much as I need, and I'll save as much as I need."

"Aren't there any wealthy people willing to spend money to repair public facilities and gain a good reputation?" Lan Bingru asked.

"Here? What good is a good reputation?" Gar laughed loudly. "Power, status, and money are all crucial competitive resources, but reputation is worthless in Graystone Settlement."

People at the bottom of society will do anything to survive.

Morality and honor are empty luxuries here, utterly useless.

Lin Fan looked at the patches on the road, some new and some old: "Who did the maintenance?"

“Most of the money comes from Silvermoon City,” Gar replied. “But they don’t have much money. They can only cover a portion each time, and before the next allocation can be made, other places break down.”

"Later, those quacks in the government affairs office realized that they could never finish repairing everything, so they simply pocketed the money, keeping only a penny or two as a token gesture. Anyway, things are bound to break eventually, so it's better to improve their actual living conditions."

"They're also embezzling?!" Lan Bingru accused. "Since you all know, why don't you report them?"

"Report what? Report to whom?" Gar scoffed. "Silvermoon City? They don't care about our dirty business here. Even if they did, what good would reporting it do us? The money doesn't go into my pocket, so who cares about such things?"

"On the contrary, after they have money, the chances of them making a deal increase. I wish they would bring more money and come to my business more often."

“You…” Lan Bingru was speechless.

“So,” Garr said, puffing on his cigarette, “if you’re asking if Greystone has any high-tech products, of course it does. But those are things only the rich can afford. Ordinary people might live their whole lives and never see them in person. You can ask her if you don’t believe me.”

Bonnie nodded repeatedly when she saw Lin Fan's gaze sweep over her.

"That's right. I went to Silvermoon City because I couldn't stand living such a hopeless life where I could see the end from the beginning."

"So going to Silvermoon City will end our despair?" Garr raised an eyebrow. "Why are you still thinking of climbing towards Crystal City?"

Bonnie couldn't muster any anger. After witnessing Lin Fan's methods, Gar, whom she had previously feared, had become her last resort.

She curled her lip and said, "Who wouldn't want to go to Crystal City? If you had the chance, wouldn't you go?"

“I’m not going,” Garr said firmly. “I only know that everything comes at a price. No matter how big a star you support, you have to pay for everything. Crystal City is not a place I can go.”

"Tch!" Bonnie thought he was being pretentious. "You make it sound so nice, but you just don't have the chance. When your boss takes you, see if you'll go or not."

Garr didn't stand on ceremony with Bonnie and slapped her on the head.

"You take advantage of my kindness. You've really grown bolder with me, huh? What are you going to Crystal City for? Status? Power? The treatment of the elite?" Bonnie nodded, holding her head.

"I have everything here, I'm familiar with the environment, and there's no risk in doing things here, so why should I squeeze into a completely unfamiliar place and become someone else's stepping stone?"

Adrian hadn't explained exactly what Garr did. But based on his observations over the past two days, Lin Fan guessed that even if Garr wasn't the second-in-command, his status was definitely not low.

He had unimpeded access to the Greystone settlement, was on good terms with all the rich and powerful people, and his boss was often away... In a way, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he was all-powerful.

Looking at Adrian's residence and where he came from, the items of hospitality in their room were all exquisite...

They say it's better to be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond. There's really no need for Gal to squeeze into Crystal City.

"...How can that be the same?" Bonnie stubbornly insisted. "Once we're in Crystal City, everyone will have to bow down to me."

“So that’s what you were thinking.” Garr glanced at her, then turned to look straight ahead, focusing on driving, and said nothing more.

"But if you go to Crystal City, won't there be plenty of high-ranking orcs who will have to bow down to you?" Lan Bingru asked.

"It's different! It's just different!" Bonnie stomped her foot angrily, turned to look out the window, and stopped talking.

Lan Bingru looked at Lin Fan, puzzled.

“Her hard work must be valued,” Lin Fan said, getting straight to the point. “If she doesn’t deny it, it’s as if all her previous efforts were in vain. So no matter what the truth is, it’s different for her.”

"You're just fooling yourself!" Antonio grinned. "What are you looking at? Look again and I'll gouge your eyes out!"

Bonnie, who had been glaring angrily at him, suddenly turned away after hearing his words and glancing at Lin Fan, who was leisurely grooming Chisui.

No! These people are too troublesome. If they stay, there's no chance of getting close to the Burning Beast.

We still need to find a way to get rid of them.

Gard diligently acted as a guide, even though he was unfamiliar with the area, repeatedly praising the unremarkable street scenes with a limited vocabulary. He even took them for a stroll through Greystone's affluent neighborhood.

Unfortunately, neither Lin Fan and his two companions, nor Qian Sui, showed any interest in these things.

Garr remembered their interest in selling people, and considering the source of the goods and the transaction site, he thought it best to show them the people who had been sold.

Visiting the homes of wealthy people to see their servants is not very convenient. But visiting factories and mines to see their slaves is a piece of cake.

So, after witnessing for two consecutive days the appalling situation of human slaves, who were even worse off than the lowest-ranking orcs, Antonio felt that their speculation about Adrian's identity might have been too idealistic.

"If he were truly a relative, how could he just stand by and watch so many people work like cattle, day and night, non-stop?" Antonio said indignantly. "I even think that the real cattle and horses on our planet Lanxing don't work that hard. Okay! They probably really are treating them like animals! Damn it!"

“I told you not to jump to conclusions.” Lin Fan was more composed than him. “Perhaps in Adrian’s eyes, the orcs, the humans, and even us here are all his tools. After all, he’s the kind of person who would even lay a finger on a thousand-year-old.”

"How dare he!" Antonio was furious, but had nowhere to vent his anger, so he could only pace back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back.

“Getting angry now won’t help,” Lin Fan reassured him. “If all else fails, just wait for Adrian to show up and then beat him up.”

Antonio is sharpening his sword.

Unfortunately, two days later, Adrian still hadn't returned, and Bonnie, the leader of Silvermoon City, arrived.