Chapter 436: Serious Injury
After explaining, Antonio glanced around to make sure no one else was near, then asked quietly, “What do you want this time?”
Eric had just cracked a smile when Antonio cut in seriously, “Be serious.”
Since the base couldn’t act directly in some recent events, Antonio had recommended Eric and his team. They’d left Oil Island late, had relatively weak abilities, and although they’d improved through battles outside, they still lagged behind others in overall strength.
Eric, in particular, had a psychic-type ability that required a large number of crystal cores to level up. Antonio, still looking out for him, thought having access to the base’s purified cores would make things easier and safer.
Lu Weiyi had helped him form a roving ability-user team with generous resources. Their cooperation had gone smoothly so far, so Eric’s sudden visit was unexpected.
“I want to increase the exchange quota for ability crystal cores,” Eric said, lighting a hand-rolled cigarette. As he saw Dong Hongyuan carrying Dong Bao Bao away, looking every bit the doting dad, Eric chuckled.
“What was the previous rate?” Antonio, trying to avoid conflict of interest, had only made introductions and never gotten involved in the actual dealings.
“Five thousand a month, two-to-one exchange rate.”
For an A-rank ability user, the daily absorption limit of purified crystal cores was between 20 to 40. That amount was enough for a few people, but impossible for growing a team. Antonio didn’t say whether it was acceptable, just commented, “That ratio is extremely low.”
“There simply aren’t enough cores,” Eric said bluntly.
“Is that all?”
“I also wanted to ask about weapons trading.”
“That’s not likely. Our base only had such trades with Capital Base. If your group starts showing up with crystal-core weapons, it’ll be a clear signal to all other bases that you’re connected to us.” In other words, they’d basically be admitting that their side was behind those targeted assassinations.
“You think they don’t already know?”
Antonio spread his hands. “There’s a difference between having proof and just suspecting something.”
“You’ve been around them too long. You’ve picked up some… traits of this country,” Eric remarked.
Antonio laughed heartily. “Maybe it’s like they say—you lie with dogs, you get fleas.” He glanced toward the yard where Dean was walking around with a bamboo basket and a little stick, tapping the ground to look for mutant creatures, and added, “I quite like it.”
The two went quiet for a while before Antonio suggested, “You could talk to Zhuang first. If he agrees, the captain probably won’t have any objections.”
Eric was still considering it when Antonio’s phone rang. It was Base Leader Zhuang Mingxu.
“Antonio, a few teams from Pingjin Base just arrived. They said they’re here to thank us for the help in the city center. Everyone else is out, and Wu Yue won’t be back for about an hour. I’m tied up right now—can you entertain them and share a meal?”
Teams of ability users representing their base or faction had to be received by either Zhuang Mingxu himself or someone of comparable rank, or else they might take it as a slight in this strength-based world.
Antonio turned to Eric, who gave a gesture meaning “let’s go together.”
“Sure, I’m on my way.”
This time, Pingjin Base had sent Tang Bai, Zhou Xue, and Lin Ya—three people who had previously cooperated with Half Moon Bay and had since built their own successful forces.
Their purpose was simple: to deliver crystal cores.
Back in the city center, Tang Bai and Zhou Xue had received help from Half Moon Bay Base. Though they’d suffered injuries due to a misunderstanding, Lu Weiyi had told them afterward that no repayment was needed—he considered it compensation for their impulsive members.
Although Tang Bai and Zhou Xue had felt somewhat bitter, they were weak at the time and still needed help returning to their base, so they didn’t argue. Once home, they consolidated their power and quelled the unrest. They had originally intended to let the matter go.
But not long after, their base was hit by a massacre.
Then came word of similar incidents at surrounding bases. When Capital Base gave an indirect rejection to inquiries, Tang Bai instantly understood: Half Moon Bay was settling scores after the fact.
Lu Weiyi and Lu Xiao made no effort to hide their relationship. With the support of their base’s weapons and purified crystal cores, the Blazing Flame Team had risen from being suppressed on all sides to the point where even the military and police forces had to show them some respect.
Capital Base had long wanted to act as the big brother among all the bases. Ever since communication was reestablished, they had taken a keen interest in the affairs of the other bases. Their current indifferent attitude could only mean one thing—they knew who was behind the killings but had no intention of intervening.
Of course, it might also be that they couldn’t intervene.
Once Tang Bai and Zhou Xue noticed the situation, they quickly prepared a large number of crystal cores, under the pretense of repaying a favor, and returned to reestablish ties.
As for Lin Ya, she was a bit unlucky. Back then, she had directly taken over several teams under Meng Hu. With no clear leadership at the time, she took the initiative and gained temporary compliance. But as time went on, disloyalty inevitably crept in—and some of the participants in the recent killings had come from her own teams.
It was unclear who dealt with the threats in other factions, but in Lin Ya’s case, she handled it herself. The attacker had presented her with a controller and demanded she prove she was still in a “friendly” partnership with Half Moon Bay Base.
Even though she didn’t feel the relationship was particularly friendly, she did indeed have something installed in her chest. Aside from the moment it was implanted—when it made its presence known—it had since been silent, but that brief experience had left a lasting impression.
Lin Ya had already planned to purge some people from her ranks. This gave her the perfect excuse—she disguised herself as one of the attackers and killed two birds with one stone.
Her visit this time was partly to clear her name, and partly to ask about advancing her abilities.
Both parties had snuck away from their bases under the guise of collecting supplies. When they ran into each other at the Half Moon Bay Base gates, it was a bit awkward, especially considering how they’d each previously pretended to be heading in different directions.
When Antonio and Eric entered the reception room, the three guests were already having tea. Though each had their own motives, they still kept up polite small talk.
As the two men entered, the three stood up with polite smiles—until Lin Ya suddenly started coughing violently, drawing everyone’s attention.
“My lady, are you alright?” Eric asked gallantly.
“I’m fine, thank you for your concern,” Lin Ya quickly replied, subtly stepping back a little.
She remembered him all too well. He had once mysteriously appeared in her bedroom. Even though she hadn’t seen his face, his build and that dangerous aura wrapped in a gentleman’s demeanor had left a deep impression.
She had used his name to clean out her own ranks afterward and had been living in fear of retaliation ever since—thinking through plans for how she might deal with it. And now, here he was, in front of her in broad daylight.
The others exchanged glances but said nothing. It was around dinner time anyway, so after a bit more polite conversation, Antonio took everyone to a restaurant.
Only after handing them off to Wu Yue—who was in charge of hosting guests—did Antonio and Eric head back to the central island. On the way, they talked about Lin Ya.
Eric gave a brief explanation. Antonio gave him a sideways glance and said, “I saw her flirt with you earlier.”
“I’m charming,” Eric didn’t deny it.
“Aren’t you with Qin Yu?”
“We’re… partners.”
Partners in every sense of the word.
From Eric’s expression, Antonio could guess his meaning. He’d lived that kind of life before too, so he didn’t comment further.
*
That afternoon, Lu Weiyi returned with his squad from an outing. The cargo ship’s railings were bent and twisted, the hull itself heavily deformed like it had been gripped by something massive. Containers on the deck were smashed into pieces.
Xu Yi and Dean had already arrived at the dock after receiving word in advance. As soon as the ship docked, they boarded immediately.
Lu Weiyi was sitting on the deck, his wet clothes clinging to his body, hair half-dry. In front of him lay Ning Yuan, mumbling something indistinct. Lu’s eyes were dull, and the spot he clutched on his chest had sunken in disturbingly—looking like it might collapse entirely.
Xu Sa was shirtless, his skin covered in patches where it looked like something had stripped layers off him. In some spots, muscle had been gouged away, exposing bloody, torn fibers. One of his hands was gripping the unconscious Liu Rui, and the other held a severed arm—clearly torn off by brute force.
As for Liu Rui himself—he was missing an arm, his clothes scorched black at the edges, his whole body red as if suffering from a severe burn.
Nearby, Gu Qingji lay sprawled on the ground. Her naturally slender body now appeared oddly twisted, bones sticking out at strange angles—she seemed physically narrower than before.
The other crew members weren’t as badly hurt, but all looked terrified—like they’d seen something beyond comprehension.
“What the hell happened?” Antonio asked as he climbed aboard. Dean and Xu Yi had already rushed over to the most injured.
“We were attacked,” Lu Weiyi croaked, turning his head. His face was pale, and sweat beaded on his forehead.
Antonio looked closer and realized Lu wasn’t just sitting on the ground—his legs were twisted into a grotesque tangle below the thigh, like two soggy noodles.
Seeing the horror show before him, Antonio immediately understood how serious it was. Lu Weiyi was an SS-rank ability user—he’d fought top-tier zombies and hadn’t looked this bad. Not daring to waste a second, he ordered the crew to take the other sailors down for questioning and told the healers, “Save lives first.”
“Understood. Notify orthopedics. Prepare for surgery,” Xu Yi said, disregarding the chaos. He took out a scalpel and sliced open Ning Yuan’s abdomen without hesitation. A mixture of blood, feces, and shredded tissue spilled out at once.
“Urgh… uhh…” Ning Yuan didn’t even have the strength to scream.
Everyone who saw his shattered organs, ruptured intestines, and bones embedded into flesh forgot all about the stench in the air.
It was impossible to fully restore his internal organs in a short time. Xu Yi swiftly cut away the damaged portions, repaired the severed tissue, and began putting things back in place. He used his hands to guide several meters of intestines, calling out to a nearby water-ability user to help rinse them before stuffing them back inside. The scene left everyone stunned.
