Wandering America: My kill threshold is far ahead

To put it bluntly, you've been reduced to collecting scraps, what work skills do you still have?

Even if you have the ability, you can't recapture that nine-to-five lifestyle. If you stay too comfortable for too long, you will naturally become useless.

Of course, ability is only one aspect. More important than ability is loyalty. No matter how many people are in the camp, no more than three can truly be trusted.

"Alright, stop standing there and quickly distribute the money to everyone."

Ma Jie took a sip of iced cola and urged Jimmy to get to work.

"OK, those whose names are called, come and collect your money, one by one."

"Holmes, Lily, Ethan..."

Jimmy quickly got into manager mode. His method was very efficient. He organized people into more than a dozen scavenging groups, with the group leader collecting money and then distributing it to the group members, which greatly reduced the workload.

Ma Jieke stood by and watched. After the black guy who had tried to instigate conflict finished, he said without any politeness, "Friend, starting tomorrow, you are no longer a member of this camp."

"Why?" the other person asked, quite surprised.

"Didn't you understand?" Ma Jieke shrugged. "You've been fired."

"Why should I?!" This infuriated him. "This is the Blue Hair Squad, not Jack's Gang. You don't get to decide this!"

"Then who decides?" Ma Jieke chuckled. "Max? I just don't understand, how do you manage to be protected by a woman and still feel so at ease?"

"I'm not going to waste my breath on you." Niko glared at MaJack and walked toward the somewhat bewildered Max, wanting her to step forward and uphold justice.

The latter hesitated for a few seconds before speaking: "Buddy, if I remember correctly, you've been in the camp for nine months. Even if we weren't friends, we're already quite familiar with each other. But I really can't do anything about this. Jack helped us take over the territory. Those who made contributions deserve to have a say."

"So you're kicking me out too?"

When Max politely declined, he turned his gaze to his partners who swept the streets with him every day, but they all kept their heads down and refused to meet his eyes.

Whether it's respect or fear, anyone who isn't a fool knows which choice to make.

"Fine, fine, I see now. They're all hypocrites, all faking it."

"I wouldn't even want to stay in this lousy place!"

"Fuck Max! Fuck Jimmy! Fuck Jack! You'll regret this!"

This guy raised two middle fingers, his movements and expressions were extremely exaggerated, and he was cursing while backing away.

The last sentence sounds more like a threat.

"Boss, should we have someone follow him?" Sandy whispered a reminder, seeing his exasperated look. "I'm afraid he'll report you to the immigration authorities."

"No need, let him do as he pleases." Ma Jieke said with a disdainful look. Report me? Does he think I'm an illegal immigrant? It's good that the immigration bureau is here, let's test the value of my new status.

Once the payment was made, the camp members all started to put on their cheerful faces, each one beaming with joy.

Although each person only received about $30, it was a world of difference compared to the old days.

Before the recapture of lost territory, even a master jungler like Jimmy could only earn less than 10 yuan a day. Now, with this money, plus relief funds, almost everyone is on the path to a comfortable life.

Back in the tent, Ma Jie checked his personal savings, which totaled $6875.

If you say it's a small amount, it's definitely not a small amount. American players don't have the habit of saving money, so to be able to pull out more than 5000 in cash in one go, what kind of family must they be from?

But if you say it's too much, it's a bit against your conscience; it's not even enough to buy a used car from a popular brand.

Stuff your savings into your pillow and sleep with it underneath; it's a precaution, at least.

Deposit it in a bank? That's incredibly foolish; it's like giving money to the IRS.

Don't think that department has all the power and influence. If you use cash for all your transactions, how can they possibly investigate?

Unless it's one-on-one surveillance, the cost is much higher than taxes.

Needless to say, I woke up naturally the next day.

After opening my eyes, I habitually opened the task panel.

There was a big red X above it, and only then did I realize that the negative status of the [Demon Contract] would last for another 5 days.

Since there were no tasks to do, I decided to give myself a break. I lay there for a while, feeling quite content, and then stretched my shoulders before stepping out of the tent.

The camp was quiet; everyone had probably gone to the wilderness to farm monsters. After all, there were no monsters to fight before, but now that there are, who would just lie at home doing nothing?

I used the stored bottled water to do a quick facial cleanse, then picked up a scooter from the roadside and rode towards the poorest street.

The newly conquered empire is not yet firmly established, and there's no guarantee that some remnants of the previous dynasty won't emerge. Today, let's treat this as an incognito visit.

While moving, I opened the map, but after waiting for ages, not a single question mark appeared.

There was nothing I could do; that's how it is in the beginner wilderness—the drop rate is pitifully low. It wasn't until I entered the seventh district, which is closest to the camp, that I saw a blue question mark.

Set up your navigation and get to the marker as soon as possible.

The alley was guarded by two black women of similar age, one with dreadlocks and the other with smoky makeup. They dressed in a street style and looked quite slovenly.

Upon seeing their leader arrive at the front line, the two greeted him warmly and even tried to steer the conversation towards vulgar topics in an attempt to gain favor.

Ma Jie replied politely, his eyes sweeping over the three treasure chest brothers.

Sure enough, the green treasure chest only contained trash, the blue treasure chest only contained bottles and jars, and the black treasure chest was still the only one that could actually drop treasure.

After rummaging around, I pulled out a heavy box of alphabet cookies. When I opened it, it was full of penny coins, ranging from one cent to one dollar.

"Wow, you're so lucky, boss."

The black woman with the dreadlocks was so shocked that her pupils dilated. She had been standing there dumbfounded for so long, never expecting that the treasure was so close at hand, and it looked to be at least 50 US dollars.

"That's not luck, that's hard work," Ma Jieke corrected her with a smile. "Less chatting, more opening boxes. Opportunities don't come by waiting, understand?"

"Understood, understood." The two were utterly impressed by his amazing skill. Did he have X-ray vision?

After stuffing the cookie box into his backpack, Ma Jie hopped on his scooter and sped away.

To boost everyone's enthusiasm for unboxing, we used a filter to highlight the silver question marks and then provided on-site guidance at various resource points.

Whether it's electronic waste or scrap metal, as long as it can be exchanged for money, it's all good for the homeless to pick up and put in their baskets.

The more the members earn, the more they receive in commission; this is a combination of a core base and long-term returns.

Before long, they arrived at the center of the poor street and saw Jimmy standing there gesturing and demonstrating a jungle tutorial to the newbies.

Ma Jieke sneaked over and saw him lying on top of the trash can, using specially made long pliers to grab the bottles and jars at the bottom of the can.

The can was crushed and flattened the moment it was picked up, crossed the plastic bottle on both sides, and after arcing through the air, it landed precisely in the open woven bag behind it used for sorting.

The whole process was so fast it was like a circus act; they didn't even bother to look back.

"You've learned it, right? Come on, show me."

As Jimmy spoke, he handed the tools to the dumbfounded newcomer beside him.

The latter person is numb, am I supposed to perform a ritual? (This is a nonsensical string of characters and doesn't translate directly.)