Our neighborhood has been transported again.

Chapter 288 Certificate of Surrender

"How did these merfolk perform?" Qin Ziwen sat in the room, with Cao Biansheng standing opposite him.

"President, these fishmen have stronger individual qualities, but their combat power is lacking." Cao Biansheng shook his head. "They feel like an enhanced version of these people from the urban village."

"Don't you know how to cooperate?"

Cao Biansheng said, "That's right, they don't know how to fight in formations. From what I've observed, their fighting style is mostly based on thrusting, stabbing, and diving, and their movements are somewhat stiff, which wouldn't work on land."

Qin Ziwen pondered, "What you're saying sounds a bit like a battle fought on water."

“My lord is right, this is the way of fighting in water.” Yan Da, standing behind him, said, “In water combat, slashing and chopping are not practical, only thrusting is the most suitable. These fishmen should be good at water combat.”

Qin Ziwen nodded slowly, "They are aquatic creatures, so it's only natural that they are good at naval warfare."

He changed the subject, "How many mermen died?"

"Five."

"What was the reaction? Did they cause trouble?"

"Very honest, with no particular attitude."

Qin Ziwen thought of religious armies or slave armies.

He tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his gaze drifting to the window. "So honest, either they're swayed by their beliefs or they're brainwashed from childhood due to a rigid class system."

"How are those three big oafs recovering from their injuries?" Qin Ziwen then looked at Cao Biansheng.

Upon hearing this, Cao Biansheng said incredulously, "My lord, those big fat fish have thick skin and flesh. I feel that they have a low pain threshold. When the doctor scraped the flesh from the wound, they didn't react much. They just whimpered and continued eating."

"The fact that they can hum means they actually have feelings." Qin Ziwen thought of something and got up. "I'll go take a look."

The dimly lit, gloomy little room was filled with the smell of herbs.

The Muddy Fishman lay on its side on the damp floor, its webbed forearms holding a wet piece of seaweed, which it was munching on with relish.

It made a humming sound in its throat, a bit like a baby crying, or a child whining.

Suddenly, it heard something, and the sound stopped abruptly.

She turned around and secretly observed Qin Ziwen with her small eyes.

Its abdominal wound was filled with herbs. The wound had healed somewhat, but there were still some minor signs of inflammation and suppuration around it.

Qin Ziwen stepped forward, placed his hand on the wound on the abdomen of the Zhuozu fishman, and pressed down with his five fingers.

The murky fishman lowered his head, looked at him, and remained silent.

"Ask it if it hurts." Qin Ziwen looked directly at the turbid fish-man.

Pula relayed this after Qin Ziwen's death.

The murky fish-man held the seaweed in his hands, his expression blank.

Qin Ziwen pressed down hard with his five fingers.

He could feel the body of the turbid fishman beneath him trembling.

Ask it again, does it hurt?

As Qin Ziwen continued to exert force, the Zhuozu fishman slowly put down the seaweed in his hand.

He made a humming or squeaking sound in his throat.

"Master," Pra said, "it says it hurts a little."

"It seems its pain tolerance is quite high. It can just endure hardship." Qin Ziwen withdrew his finger. "Have someone fetch a few strips of seaweed soaked in the Healing Spring for it later."

Qin Ziwen turned around, preparing to leave, when the turbid fishman behind him cried out.

Pula whispered, "Master, it says it's in pain, but it doesn't dare to cry out loud. If the sound of its pain is heard, it will attract the Thousand-Eyed Death God, who will devour the cowardly fishman." "...This sounds like a story for children," Qin Ziwen said speechlessly.

Pula had never heard of such a thing before. "The Zhuo tribe is naturally less intelligent and easily satisfied. This is probably to make them obedient."

Qin Ziwen looked away. "Tell it that it won't hurt anymore once the wound heals."

The torrential rain that had lasted for a day and a night gradually subsided.

Fish are not well adapted to the terrestrial environment. When the rain becomes sparse, they either lie in the mud pits they have dug or run to the shallow sea near the beach to hide.

"How's the situation inside the building?"

"It was very noisy last night, but it's quiet now. Around midnight, three people sneaked out of the building, and the doors were locked."

"What's the situation inside the building?"

"The fighting was fierce last night; several floor masters died."

A knowing glint flashed in Qin Ziwen's eyes. There weren't actually that many levels in the blood-letter text. Apart from the leader, there were the various level masters below.

Each level's leader governs anywhere from a few dozen to several hundred people.

Without a leader, their first reaction to external conflicts is to unite against the enemy. However, when they find that their opponents are difficult to deal with and are even defeated time and time again, they begin to choose other directions.

Deng Guang strode over: "Chairman, a floor owner in the building wants to contact us and has sent a messenger out."

"Which level is it? Could it be the second level master?"

"How did you know, Chairman?" Deng Guang asked, somewhat surprised.

“That’s normal, because the second floor is the lowest level. If you’re a floor master from a higher level, it’s hard to avoid being seen by the second floor’s spies.” Qin Ziwen smiled knowingly.

This is very interesting.

The second floor is the gateway to the Hongding Building. If he betrays us, we can launch a night raid and perhaps achieve a great victory.

"Let's go take a look," Qin Ziwen said.

On the other side, Yang Long also received news that someone had come to surrender. His face was gloomy. If a list were made of people who were unwilling to surrender, he would definitely be at the top of it.

What would he do if Hongding Building surrendered?
From any perspective, whether it's the skyscraper or the urban village, he was a traitor.

Yang Long quickly stood up; he needed to find out Qin Ziwen's attitude.

"President Qin."

Upon arriving at the lobby on the first floor, Yang Long paused. In the living room, a man sat opposite Qin Ziwen.

When the man saw Yang Long, a flash of disgust crossed his eyes, but he quickly concealed it.

But Yang Long still keenly caught that fleeting emotion. His heart sank.

He knew that his betrayal was probably already on everyone's mind in the Red Ding Building, and if the other side recovered, he would be in big trouble.

"These are envoys sent by the building across the street to surrender. I think what they said makes a lot of sense. They agreed to cooperate with us to open the door, assist in poisoning, and unconditionally submit to us. It sounds very tempting, but considering that I have already cooperated with you, Brother Yang Long, I have decided to listen to your opinion." Qin Ziwen smiled faintly.

Yang Long was silent for a moment, then suddenly clasped his hands in a fist and said in a deep voice, "President Qin, this is not to be believed! What if it is a trap? Now that we have secured victory, we just need to proceed steadily."

At this point, Yang Long became even more impassioned, "We have fought to this point with the enemy, and now there is no room for maneuver. There is only one way to go, and that is to eliminate them completely."

"Yang Long, I'll curse your mother!" The envoy's face changed drastically, and he shouted angrily.

"You're courting death!" Yang Long's eyes turned cold. He stepped forward, drew the dagger from his waist, stabbed it into the messenger's chest, and then cut off his head.

"I am willing to be the vanguard! To slaughter all the enemies!"

(End of this chapter)