Ark Journey

W wasn't picky about food, so he took the plate and started eating: "Anything is fine."

While eating the classic Sarkaz breakfast, she asked, "What time is it now?"

A light screen appeared in front of Xue Zhi's eyes, and then disappeared: "It's exactly 10 o'clock, not too late."

"Well, let's pack up and go back to the base. I smell like you all over me now."

After getting the specific time, W nodded, then rolled her eyes at Xue Zhi. Although she was also very happy, ordinary people could not compare with Superman. Until now, the tingling feeling spreading from her bones was still vague.

Xue Zhi, who knew that she was a bit too rough last night, smiled embarrassedly: "Haha, we'll leave in a while, but we have to buy something. Do you know the store that sells medical supplies here? I need to measure the Originium content in your blood to observe the effect of the potion.

There is one more thing, you need a staff. From what I have seen, your current condition is no different from that of a normal person except for the amount of Originium in your blood, so you cannot use Originium skills with your bare hands. "

W half-believedly freed one hand and tried to activate the Originium Technique to create an explosive out of thin air like in the past. However, nothing appeared in her hand: "Is your medicine so effective? It can cure me to the point where I can't even use the Originium Technique in an instant?"

"Of course."

After a brief exchange, W finished his meal, tidied himself in the bathroom, and checked out with Xue Zhi.

When she got downstairs, she saw the Sarkaz girl who received Xue Zhi's tip last night, but she was no longer the same.

Inside the Scar Mall, W led Xue Zhi to a clean and spacious building with few people. Xue Zhi could tell from the big asterisk on it that this was indeed a place similar to a hospital or clinic.

"Let's go. First of all, the things here are not cheap."

"Don't worry, I'm a single researcher after all, and I still have a lot of savings."

The two of them pushed the door open and entered the store. They didn't buy much. Xue Zhi went straight to the clerk and asked him about the angiography monitoring equipment. Then she generously bought 30 of the highest-end models and paid with pure gold.

These things were just cut from gold bars by him, and the edges were very sharp. The price of gold was seen at the door of a shop similar to a money house they passed by just now. One gram of pure gold could be exchanged for 1 Longmen coins, and one device was around 500 Longmen coins, which was indeed expensive.

Xue Zhi secretly marveled at the versatility of Longmen Coin, which was almost as versatile as the sword coins on Earth.

After the clerk checked the authenticity of the red gold, he sold the equipment to Xue Zhi.

Putting away the extra equipment, Xue Zhi handed a neck-worn device to W: "Put it on."

W smacked his lips, but still wore the device around his neck obediently: "Tsk, I see you really don't hide your bad taste."

Excluding the ominous connotations represented by this device, it is still a good accessory simply as a neck ring.

After waiting for a while, the reading was displayed.

Xue Zhi lowered her head to observe the readings on the device while recalling her memory of the setting of the mineral sickness: "0.19? It's very low, but it's not what a normal person should have. At least 0.12 is normal."

The warm breath sprayed on her neck, making W shudder all over. She suddenly remembered that the situation got out of control when Xue Zhi kissed her neck that night. She pushed his head away, then raised the collar of her clothes with a red face: "Don't look at me. I am very satisfied with my current state. As long as I don't leave Kazdel, I will get the mineral disease again."

Xue Zhi didn't demand too much, after all, W was right, but after seeing her slightly red cheeks, he still approached her with a smirk: "What? Are you shy?"

"'Sarkaz foul language'!"

5 minutes after teasing W, the two moved again and came to a weapon store with a little more people. However, despite the large number of people, the sales area of the spell-casting unit was completely deserted.

Selling caster units in a place like Kazdel where 99% of the population is infected is like selling underwear in the harbor. The high price of these things makes sales even worse.

"Pick one you like."

"Ah."

After going around in circles, W spent a lot of time looking for a staff that suited her taste, and finally she chose a pair of arm guard styles.

Xue Zhi, who was following her, had already taken a lot of things and even pushed a cart to carry these various types of magic units. Although he couldn't use them, it would be nice to take out these exquisite and handsome things and play with them that day. He was always so greedy.

After cutting off about 800 grams of gold and placing it on the counter, Xue Zhi waited for the clerk to pay him. During this time, greedy eyes kept looking at him from all directions.

Perhaps it was Xue Zhi's appearance and temperament that made these mercenaries think he was a fat sheep, but W, who knew the truth, was already thinking about what good things he could plunder from these people.

After leaving the weapon shop, W looked at her new matte black equipment facing the sun. Then she suddenly thought of something and asked, "How much did I cost you now?"

Xue Zhi, who had no concept of money, was stunned for a moment, then laughed: "How much? I don't know. I have worked for so long and saved so much money that ordinary wealth has no meaning to me."

W had foreseen this a little, so she could only nod and then think of a way to repay him later.

Chapter 22: Return to W's "Hometown"

After purchasing the angiography equipment and the operating unit, the two planned to leave the Scar Mall.

On the way to the door, Xue Zhi saw a very shocking scene: a group of Sarkaz like prisoners wearing tattered clothes, handcuffs and shackles, and were dirty all over. Even the Originium exposed on their bodies was covered by dirt.

They were strung together in a row by iron chains, their eyes dull and they walked forward numbly.

Seeing Xue Zhi watching, W acted as a commentator: "You haven't seen them? These people were soldiers or mercenaries before, they came from all kinds of backgrounds, but after being captured, they will be turned into slaves and sold to merchants from all over the place. After they are cleaned, they will be bought and sold. Most of them will be sold to mines to die. Oh, most of the buyers are from Ursus, their nobles or government will directly state their identities without any hesitation."

Listening to W's explanation, Xue Zhi closed her eyes and rubbed her brows: "I beg you, even if you try a little capitalism, it's too low to have such feudal ideas and behaviors."

He really didn't expect to see such a scene here.

The further the team moved forward, the thinner the tied Sarkaz became. Xue Zhi even saw a group of skinny and short children at the end of the team, who were obviously not very old.

Xue Zhi frowned at this moment: "No? How come there is still a child?"

W's reaction to this kind of thing was quite normal: "It's normal, Xue Zhi, you have to understand, this is Kazdel. People of their age have to fight hard to stay alive. If they succeed, they live; if they fail, no one knows the outcome."

She had had this difficult experience in the past, and even took risks just to get a bite to eat.

Xue Zhi opened her mouth and wanted to say something, but finally closed it.

After the slave traders' team left, Xue Zhi and W also walked out of the Scar Mall, followed closely by many sneaky shadows.

Compared to the dense forest near the Military Commission, the land of the Tower of Babel is undoubtedly much more barren. The further you go, the sparser the forest becomes, and it is replaced by wasteland with shallow grass.

Not far away, W, who had already noticed someone following them, raised her lips slightly. She was sure Xue Zhi already knew those people were following them, but she didn't know why she didn't kill them. However, this didn't stop her from killing them in her own way.

After walking for a while, W, whose sleeves and arm guards kept dropping explosives, suddenly reached out and pulled Xue Zhi to the shade of a hill, and threw away his camouflage uniform a few seconds later.

Xue Zhi didn't understand what she meant: "What's the matter?"

W, who was only wearing a physical fitness suit, huddled in Xue Zhi's arms. While listening to his strong heartbeat, he said, "Those people have bad intentions. Don't you want to kill them? I know you know they are behind us."

Xue Zhi hugged W's slender waist and seemed not to care: "I do know them, but as long as they don't jump in front of me, it doesn't matter."

The warmth from her waist made W blush. She squeezed herself into Xue Zhi's arms again and said, "That's because they didn't find the opportunity. These people are very patient. When we rest at noon or tonight, they will definitely cause trouble. We might as well deal with them now."

Stroking W's smooth short hair and back, feeling the complex vibrations coming from the ground, Xue Zhi, who was inexplicably a little excited, bent down and whispered in her ear: "And then you acted like we were having a wild battle? I didn't expect you to play it so big. But will those people be fooled? It's so obvious."

W was afraid that Xue Zhi would turn the fake play into reality now (she usually wanted to try it too), but she had no way to resist, so she could only rub his chest and say, "Just give it a try, if it doesn't work, I'll use force. As for what I want to do, don't take it seriously for now, we'll have plenty of opportunities in the future."

The vibration was getting closer, and W's hands on Xue Zhi's back suddenly clenched. Suddenly, a huge explosion sounded behind the hill.

The endless wind in the wilderness blew away the flying dust. The two men walked out of the shadow of the hill. On the road they came from were several unlucky guys with their legs blown off and bleeding profusely.

Looking at the figure running in the distance, Xue Zhi sneered, "Oh, you run so fast, but you don't even dare to fight?"

As soon as he finished speaking, several ice cones suddenly rose up, ending the suffering of those unfortunate people who were wailing.

【+1209】

Six people only gave such a small number of points. Xue Zhi couldn't help but blurt out: "So weak?"

W, who was picking up his camouflage uniform, agreed, "Normal. If these people had a bit of strength or confidence, they wouldn't have followed so far without taking action."

After tearing off their dog tags and valuables from their bodies, the two of them set out again. They were not far from the base of the Hedley Mercenaries.

In the afternoon, after a day's journey, the two finally approached the mercenary group's base. It was an oasis in the wilderness. The lush trees made Xue Zhi feel like she was back in the time when she was dealing with the Military Commission.

Looking around, he even spotted a number of secret sentries: "Do we need to be so vigilant even in the heart of the Tower of Babel?"

W nodded. "Once, a defeated army of the Military Committee suddenly came to our side. We didn't react at the time and many people died after the sudden attack before we dealt with them. Since then, Hedley has required us to keep sentry posts no matter where we are."

Xue Zhi nodded in understanding: "Every failure makes one wiser."

The mercenary who was on guard appeared from the shadows after seeing W. He was very familiar with W, but Xue Zhi next to her was a complete stranger and did not look like a Sarkaz.

The sentry who came forward put one hand on the weapon at his waist and said to W: "Captain W, you are back. Who is this person?"

Facing the sentinel's caution, W waved his hand and said, "You can trust me. Take me to find Hedley."

The sentry nodded, turned and walked into the oasis, but his hand did not move away from the weapon at his waist.

Xue Zhi, who was at the end, followed the two people in front and walked slowly. Along the way, many mercenaries who were either resting or practicing cast interested glances at him.

"I thought you were dead out there."

"Oh, I won't die even if you die."

A slightly harsh voice sounded, Xue Zhi looked in the direction of the voice, and the first thing that caught her eye was a pair of white legs. It was strange, how could a mercenary dress like that?

Just as W was about to walk over with a smirk and say some trash talk, Xue Zhi, who was lagging behind, suddenly thought of Ines's Originium skill that could peek into other people's hearts. So what would happen if Ines peeked into her?

A purely mental attack would result in one's own subconscious mental counterattack, but what about simple peeping?

Just as Xue Zhi was about to open her mouth to remind her, Inès groaned in pain and fell to her knees.

W and Hedley who was walking not far away were both stunned, and then focused their eyes on Xue Zhi.

Chapter 23: Meeting the "Parents"

The sounds of swords being unsheathed and bows being strung continued to ring out, and more and more people gathered around.

Xue Zhi, who was in the center of the encirclement, did not react at all. He just stood there calmly, waiting for W or Ines to come up and explain. After all, adults would not care about the threats from rubber knives and sponge arrows in children's hands.

W yelled at the people who were gathering around him, "Get out of here!"

She was now really glad that Xue Zhi's emotions were relatively stable and that she was not the type of person who liked to kill innocent people. Otherwise, the offensive actions of those people just now would be enough for Xue Zhi to impale them on icicles.

The mercenaries who were yelled at stood there looking at each other. Inès was still kneeling on the ground in pain, but W wouldn't let them get close. They were now in a dilemma.

Finally, Hedley came over and helped Inès up, then waved to the mercenaries, "Alright, go away, don't stand here, go do what you need to do, it's no big deal."

After receiving Hedley's order, the mercenaries that surrounded them finally dispersed.

W was relieved to see this. This group of people survived. Perhaps Xue Zhi would show some mercy for her sake, but that didn't happen. Who knows the outcome?

The four of them came to a tent. Hedley put Ines on a chair, checked her to make sure she was okay, then turned around and asked, "Welcome back, W. And this... friend? Can you introduce me?"

Not a Sarkaz, young, sharp, but full of flaws and not looking like a combatant, this was Hedley's first impression of Xue Zhi.

"Xue Zhi, a researcher from Yan Country, was teleported here because of a major research accident. On the way, she met W and was invited by her to stay in your mercenary group for a while." After repeating her identity, Xue Zhi turned her gaze to the still listless Ines: "As for her, she must have used mental Originium skills on me, and then was counterattacked by the defense measures set up by the Heavenly Master for us researchers."

Hearing Xue Zhi's self-introduction, Hedley frowned. He really didn't like this kind of information that couldn't be verified. But his frowning and suspicious action had no effect on Xue Zhi. After all, there was no purpose at all, so it was much easier to deceive people.

W stood up at this moment: "He can be trusted, Hedley."

Hedley stroked his stubbled chin and looked at the two people wearing the same camouflage uniforms, who were a little close to each other, and smiled imperceptibly: "Really?"

After all these years, he has come to know W a little bit, and she probably wouldn't lie about something like this.

Inès, who had recovered a little, now interrupted the conversation: "I hope what you said is true, W. You may not know who you have brought back."

After saying that, she looked at Xue Zhi with a little awe. She didn't want to experience that invisible and intangible spiritual world where death and life coexisted for the second time.

W retorted, "Ha, of course I know. I told you not to abuse your special Originium skills, but now you've hit a wall."

Although the tone was sarcastic, Xue Zhi, who was watching from the side, could hear the concern. He had just noticed the way Ines looked at him and wanted to ask her what she saw, but her frightened expression at the moment made Xue Zhi give up the idea. It was too inhumane to let people recall the painful experience, and he would explore it himself later anyway.

Seeing that there was nothing to say, Hedley nodded: "Okay, welcome to join us, Xue Zhi. Do you want a new tent or go and pick a group to join?"

Before Xue Zhi could say anything, W said, "No, he lives with me."

Hedley gave Xue Zhi a meaningful look, which made Xue Zhi feel like she was facing an old father whose cabbages were eaten by pigs: "Okay, be careful."

"You don't need to remind me, come here, Xue Zhi."

After leaving these words, W took Xue Zhi to the other side.

After walking a few steps, I saw a gray-green tent with some daily necessities around it. The tent was not small, more than enough for two people to sleep, but I didn't know how soundproof it was.

Sitting on a low stool next to the tent, W let out a long sigh and relaxed all over: "Huh~ We are finally home, we will live here for a while. This is for you, sit down first."

Xue Zhi took the stool handed to her by W and sat next to her.

After a short rest, W lifted the curtain of the tent. There was no dust inside. It seemed that someone was cleaning it even when she was not there.

Seeing this, W laughed and said, "They still have some conscience."

Xue Zhi noticed the only special thing besides the simple equipment in the tent: an M4 assault rifle.

Seeing Xue Zhi looking at her treasure, W reached out and took it out: "Take a look? If you like it, keep it. Although this thing is quite expensive in the Scar Mall, it is not worth the money you spent on me."

"A gentleman does not take away what others like. I just need to take a look." Xue Zhi took the assault rifle and looked at it for a few seconds. Sure enough, the four letters "CQBW" were engraved somewhere on the gun: "M4A1-CQBW...Lunicia..."

Hearing Xue Zhi muttering an unfamiliar name, W immediately became alert: "What? That's your previous lover?"

"Of course not, I just suddenly thought of it." Xue Zhi smiled and returned the gun to W: "Maybe your father wants to call you that."