Chapter 22: Vulture's Fangs and Data Fragments

The air seemed to solidify. Scarred burly man—the leader of the Vulture Caravan—narrowed his eyes, sizing up Chen Mo on the rooftop. The other's steady, mountain‑like aura, yet hiding a sharp edge, made him discard his last trace of contempt. In this lawless land, anyone who survives and does well is no simpleton.

"Hahaha! Good! You've got guts!" Scar suddenly burst out laughing, the scar on his face twisting, making him look even more ferocious. "Fine! Back off fifty meters!"

He waved his hand, and the well‑trained unit behind him smoothly retreated the iron‑armored lizards, their heavy footsteps leaving deep impressions in the ground. Scar then brought along his two most capable guards, nimbly dismounting, tossing his machete and a modified rifle onto the ground, and approached the small building empty‑handed.

Chen Mo signaled Han Qing and Zhang Yang to standby downstairs, then he took Su Yu down from the rooftop to meet in the relatively intact hall on the first floor.

"I'm Ba Dun, and the brothers give me face, calling me 'Scar'." Ba Dun got straight to the point, his gaze sweeping over Chen Mo and Su Yu, especially flashing when he sensed the faint special fluctuation on Su Yu. "You folks look unfamiliar—did you just come out of the newly opened 'Nursery Area'?"

"Nursery Area?" Chen Mo caught that unfamiliar term.

"It's that place you just left, covered by a net." Ba Dun grinned, showing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "That little trick the system pulls—old‑timers all know it. They carve out a spot, raise a batch of newcomers, screen them, and when they're about ready, release them to replenish this damned world. Judging by your looks, you've been doing pretty well in the Nursery Area."

His words carried undisguised superiority and a hint of barely concealed greed. Clearly, he saw Chen Mo and the others as fat sheep fresh from the beginner's village, lugging around a "rich inheritance."

"Asking for directions, or doing business?" Chen Mo didn't take his bait, asking directly.

Ba Dun didn't beat around the bush: "Two things. First, I'm inquiring about a person—or rather, a group. They passed through here about half a month ago, wearing uniform gray clothes, well‑equipped, mysterious, calling themselves the 'Cleansers.' Have you seen them?"

"Cleansers!" Chen Mo's heart stirred, his expression unchanged: "I haven't seen them."

Ba Dun carefully observed Chen Mo's expression, found nothing unusual, and spat: "Damn, you guys ran fast. Second, doing business. I see you've just come out and lack a lot of stuff, right? Maps, intel, higher‑grade weapon schematics, even 'credit points' from other zones… our Vulture Caravan can get them. Of course, the price…"

He rubbed his fingers together, the meaning obvious.

"What do we have that you'd want?" Chen Mo countered.

"Heh heh." Ba Dun chuckled, his eyes flicking to Su Yu again. "Lots of things. Magic cores, rare materials, certain specialties from the Nursery Area… or some special talents and information." His intention was barely concealed.

Su Yu felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze, instinctively stepping closer to Chen Mo.

Chen Mo's eyes turned slightly cold: "We have no need to trade for now."

"Don't be so quick to refuse." Ba Dun stepped forward, a faint LV13 pressure emanating from him. "In this world, more friends mean more paths. Our Vulture Caravan still has some reputation around here. Partner with us, and we'll guarantee you find your footing faster. Otherwise…" He shifted tone, threatening: "Out here, it's nothing like your warm 'Nursery Area'—dropping a few people is no different from squashing ants."

A naked threat!

As the tension rose again, Su Yu suddenly tugged at Chen Mo's sleeve, whispering rapidly: "He's lying… he knows those 'Cleansers,' he's looking for them, but not for revenge… he bears the same kind of subtle traces of being probed as in the lab…"

Chen Mo's pupils contracted. Su Yu's perception was indeed sharper! This Ba Dun not only knows the Cleansers, he's likely tied to the Purification Society! His supposed caravan identity is probably a front!

"Cooperation is possible." Chen Mo suddenly spoke, cutting off Ba Dun's brewing threat, "But we need to see sincerity. Do you have detailed maps and force distribution intel for the surrounding areas? Show them; if they're valuable enough, we can trade magic cores for them."

Ba Dun blinked, not expecting Chen Mo to relent so quickly, then smiled: "If you'd said that earlier, it'd be settled! We have the maps!"

He signaled a guard to pull out a yellowed, specially made leather map from his pocket and spread it on a broken table. The map was far more detailed than the one Zhang Zhen provided, marking settlements, danger zones, and known monster nests within a few hundred li, plus some brief notes.

Chen Mo's eyes swept the map quickly, committing key details to memory—especially the northwest, where the "Ark" coordinate point lay, marked on the map as a crimson skull with the words "Death Rift Valley" beside it.

"Not bad." Chen Mo nodded, casually pulling several LV7‑LV8 magic cores from his storage space and placing them on the table. "These, in exchange for a copy of the map and all you know about the Death Rift Valley."

Ba Dun looked at the glowing magic cores, a flicker of greed in his eyes, but then shook his head: "That's not enough. I can copy the map for you, but the intel on the Death Rift Valley… will cost extra, or…" He glanced again at Su Yu.

Chen Mo's eyes turned completely cold: "Looks like you're not sincere about doing business."

The smile vanished from Ba Dun's face, replaced by a murderous glare: "Kid, I gave you a chance. Since you don't know when to quit, don't blame me for going rough! Hand over that woman and all your valuables, and I might consider leaving you with a whole corpse!"

Before his words even finished, his aura exploded outward, the LV13 pressure crushing down like a tangible weight! The two guards behind him simultaneously drew their hidden daggers, eyes fierce!

"Attack!" Chen Mo barked, his pre‑charged Shadow Step activating instantly—his form vanished like a ghost.

Almost simultaneously, Han Qing and Zhang Yang upstairs heard the signal and fiercely dumped the prepared barrels of discarded chemical reagents they'd brought from the factory out the window, dousing the dozen or so wastelanders waiting below.

"Sizzle—!"

A pungent smoke and corrosive hiss erupted instantly, sparking chaos and curses!

Meanwhile inside the hall, Chen Mo had already appeared at Ba Dun's side‑rear, his fine tactical axe flashing with cold killing intent as he chopped straight at the heart!

Ba Dun reacted instantly, roaring as his muscles bulged, an earth‑yellow energy halo flaring over his body—like a Bone Armor technique! He backhanded a punch at the axe blade, the wind fierce!

"Clang!"

Fist and axe collided, emitting a dull boom! Chen Mo's arm went numb and he stepped back half a pace, while Ba Dun's fist bore a deep, bone‑visible gash, the yellow halo violently fluctuating!

"What strong power!" Ba Dun thought, shocked that his opponent, though lower‑ranked, possessed such terrifying strength!

He dared not hold back, bellowing as he unleashed the skill—his fists like hammers, trailing afterimages as they smashed toward Chen Mo! The wind howled, flinging nearby furniture shards into the air!

Chen Mo's eyes stayed calm; Energy Shot instantly compressed into the axe blade, not seeking range but using it as a melee burst to clash head‑on with Ba Dun! At the same time, he quietly activated the Metal Control passive he'd just copied and never used before.

The effect was extremely weak, almost negligible. Yet in a critical hard clash, Chen Mo focused, trying to influence the force on a metal buckle on Ba Dun's belt.

"Crack!"

A faint, almost inaudible snap—the rusted metal linking Ba Dun's belt buckle, under Chen Mo's feeble interference and his own violent force, actually… snapped!

Ba Dun's assault stalled, and he instinctively reached to grab the loosened belt!

Now!

Chen Mo's eyes flashed cold light, Shadow Step activating a second time—his form melted into shadow and reappeared in the chest opening exposed by Ba Dun's contorted movement!

On the tactical axe, the eerie glow of Corrosive Venom Saliva intertwined with the intensely compressed white light of Energy Shot to the extreme!

"Die!"

One axe, through the heart!

【Successfully killed LV. 13 wastelander (Scar), gained 1500 experience points!】

【Death Echo triggered! Successfully copied skill: Rock Skin (LV. 2)!】

【Rock Skin (LV. 2): Active skill. Consumes energy to generate a rock‑hard armor layer on the body, greatly boosting physical defense, lasting 45 seconds, cooldown 3 minutes.】

Ba Dun's savage grin froze; he stared in disbelief at the axe blade piercing his chest, the murderous light in his eyes fading fast as his massive body toppled over.

Almost simultaneously, the outside battle wound down. The wastelanders ambushed by the chemical reagents and deprived of their leader's command were quickly cut down by Han Qing, Zhang Yang, and others' fierce counterattacks, guided by Su Yu's precise weak‑point calls.

The battle ended, the hall left in disarray.

Chen Mo leaned on his axe, breathing slightly. Killing a higher‑level LV13 foe and copying a powerful defensive skill was a huge haul. He walked to Ba Dun's corpse and began looting.

Besides some ordinary supplies and a small pouch of assorted‑pattern metal "credit points," Chen Mo found in Ba Dun's inner pocket a black crystal, nail‑cap sized, sealed in special metal.

This crystal's material was utterly different from the silver‑white one he'd found before, exuding a cold, dead aura.

"Su Yu, take a look at this."

Su Yu took the crystal core, sensed it carefully, and her expression changed slightly: "This… doesn't feel like what Mom left behind… it's very cold, inside… it seems to record some fragmented coordinates and… fragments of instructions? Pointing… in many different directions, one of them… seems not far from the Ark's coordinates…"

Chen Mo's eyes narrowed. Purification Society crystal core?

He put away the crystal core and picked up that leather map.

"Death Rift Valley…" he muttered, his gaze once again turning toward the northwest.

The vulture's fang had been broken, but the clues it left led them toward a more dangerous direction—one that might also hold the answer.

The world beyond the barrier—first contact ended in blood and gain. And the road ahead remains shrouded in mist.