Chapter 90: Lingering Fish That Escaped the Anti-Black Sweep?

The group arrived at the Capital train station.

As the capital of the Dragon Kingdom, it was naturally a transportation hub, with train schedules to destinations across the country running at an extremely dense frequency.

A few hours later.

Accompanied by the broadcast announcing the train's arrival, Lin Mo and his group reached Tianbei City.

……

Unlike the bustling Capital.

The moment they stepped out of the station, the first impression Tianbei City gave was one of backwardness.

The station hall didn't even have air conditioning—only a few old-fashioned fans whirring away overhead.

The walls were plastered with all sorts of psoriasis advertisements.

"High-price purchase of magical beast corpses."

"Urgent recruitment of suicide squad, daily settlement."

"Black market trade, integrity first."

Most of the passing pedestrians wore hurried expressions.

Quite a few of them still had undried bloodstains on their clothes.

"Cough, cough…"

Han Mengqing's face was full of disgust:

"Wow… is this really a city of our Dragon Kingdom? Why does it feel like we've gone back to a city from the Great Catastrophe era?"

Xu Wenchang said coolly:

"Let's go, rent a car first. The Temple Team Fuben's coordinates are in the Suburban Boulder Wastes, still several dozen kilometers from here."

Lin Mo nodded, and the group headed toward the station exit.

By now, the five-clawed golden dragon badges of the Dragon Sequence Class on their chests had already been removed.

The reason was none other than that they drew too much attention.

Wherever they went on this trip, they would become the center of attention.

They were here to grind the Team Fuben, not to be gawked at like giant pandas.

……

Outside the station,

a shop with a sign reading "Honest Car Rental."

The boss was a one-eyed man, legs crossed, smoking at the door.

Seeing Lin Mo's group—especially the three girls with extraordinary bearing—a glint flashed in his single eye.

These were obviously fat sheep.

"Folks, renting a car?"

The boss blew out a smoke ring and pointed at a battered, mud-caked old pickup in the corner.

"Bad luck, all the cars are rented out lately, only that one's left. Rent is 3,000 a day, deposit 100,000. No haggling."

Xu Wenchang's brow furrowed slightly.

He stepped forward and looked it over, seeing at a glance that the vehicle was in terrible condition.

"Boss, this car heading to the suburban boulder area probably won't make it back, will it? Got anything else?"

"Nope."

The boss replied offhandedly, a hint of impatience in his tone.

In his heart, the abacus was clicking away.

Within five kilometers around here, his was the only car rental.

These young masters and young ladies feared trouble the most—they'd definitely rent.

Once this wreck drove out, it was sure not to come back, and when that happened… the 100,000 deposit would all be his.

Just then,

a slightly boyish voice rang out from the garage:

"Don't rent it! This car's brake pads are worn down to nothing, the chassis is cracked too—within five kilometers, this car is guaranteed to break down!"

Everyone looked toward the sound.

A young fellow in oil-stained work clothes crawled out.

He still held a wrench in his hand, his face smeared with black ash, but his eyes were clear and stubborn.

The boss's face changed, and he glared fiercely at the young fellow:

"Ajie! What nonsense are you spouting? Don't want this job anymore?"

Ajie snorted coldly, yanked off his work clothes in one motion, and slammed the wrench heavily onto the table:

"I've long been sick of this crappy job!"

"Our sign says Honest Car Rental—what you're doing is clearly scamming people!"

The boss was so angry his face twitched:

"How dare you! Get out! Get out right now! Don't even think about getting a single cent of this month's wages!"

Ajie didn't waste any words either, sticking his neck out stubbornly:

"Fine, don't pay me! Keep it to buy yourself a coffin!"

With that, he turned and walked out of the shop, not even glancing at the furious boss.

The boss was still cursing behind him.

Xu Wenchang couldn't be bothered with this kind of swindling merchant and swept a cold glance at him.

"Let's go."

The group walked out of the shop, and Han Mengqing said with a gloomy face:

"Teacher Xu, that place is dozens of kilometers away. How are we going to get there? Besides, there doesn't seem to be any other car rental agency nearby. We can't possibly walk there, can we?"

Lin Mo's gaze turned toward the roadside.

Just now, that young man named A Jie, carrying a tattered bag, had gotten into an old-style off-road vehicle parked by the road.

The car looked a bit aged, but it was still clear that the owner had kept it very clean.

Lin Mo thought for a moment, walked over quickly, and tapped on the car window.

The window rolled down. A Jie saw it was Lin Mo and froze for a moment.

"Brother, thanks for earlier."

Lin Mo said with a smile, "If you hadn't reminded us, we probably would have been ripped off by that black-hearted boss today."

A Jie scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly and smiled sheepishly:

"It's nothing, it's nothing. I didn't really help much; I just couldn't stand him ripping people off."

"So, are you okay?"

Lin Mo asked, "You lost your job, and your wages haven't been settled yet..."

A Jie waved his hand, looking completely indifferent:

"Hey, it's fine! Anyway, I didn't want to work there for a long time! Earning money that goes against one's conscience doesn't make one feel at ease."

Speaking, A Jie's face wore an expression of disdain:

"Besides, the reason I worked for him was to save up money to buy a Team Fuben scroll. That Team Fuben will drop materials to save my sister."

"Now I've saved enough money, and I've already bought the Team Fuben scroll. I'm not doing this rotten job anymore."

Lin Mo immediately asked:

"Running Team Fubens? We're going to run a Team Fuben too. Where are you going to run it?"

"Wasteland of Chaotic Stones."

Hearing A Jie's answer, Lin Mo's eyes lit up:

"That's a coincidence; we're going there too."

"Since we're heading the same way, how about... you give us a ride? Don't worry, we won't let you do it for free; we'll pay the fare."

Hearing this, A Jie looked somewhat troubled, glancing at his car and then at the four people behind Lin Mo.

"This... it's not that I don't want to give you a ride."

A Jie said with a bitter smile:

"Although this car is modified by myself and its performance is decent, I still have to go pick up my three childhood friends. We agreed to run a Team Fuben together."

"And this car... really can't fit that many people."

Lin Mo felt somewhat regretful.

At this moment, A Jie thought for a moment.

"How about this? I'll rent this car to you. Anyway, my friend has a car over there too. Although it's a three-wheeler, we can squeeze in if we try."

"You can just give me some money for gas. How about that?"

Lin Mo froze for a moment, then smiled.

This young man was indeed honestly adorable.

He lost his job to prevent strangers from being ripped off, and now, to help them, he was willing to give up his car and squeeze onto a three-wheeler.

"Alright, then it's settled."

Without a second word, Lin Mo took out his phone and scanned the code. "Five thousand, is that enough?"

"Ah? Five thousand? That's too much, too much!"

A Jie was startled and waved his hands repeatedly. "Just give me some money for gas and..."

"Take it."

Lin Mo transferred the money directly. "Consider it thanks for earlier, plus an advance for car repairs, in case we bump or scratch it."

Receiving the money, A Jie's face turned red with excitement.

After shoving the car keys into Lin Mo's hand, he picked up his bag and ran toward the intersection.

"Thanks, brother. I'll go hitch a ride on my friend's car. This car's only flaws are that the air conditioning isn't very cool and the suspension is a bit stiff; otherwise, it's absolutely perfect! The power is solid!"

Watching A Jie's back disappear around the corner, Han Mengqing couldn't help but sigh:

"Tsk tsk tsk, this young man is truly honest."

Chu Lingxuan also nodded and said softly:

"He's a good brother. I hope he can successfully run the Team Fuben and get the materials to cure his sister."

Xu Wenchang smiled:

"Let's go. Let's not waste his kindness. Set off, Wasteland of Chaotic Stones!"

The off-road vehicle drove out of the urban area, and the surrounding scenery quickly became desolate.

Wasteland of Chaotic Stones, truly living up to its name.

Everywhere were exposed brown rocks and withered yellow weeds. Occasionally, a few low-level monsters could be seen wandering in the distance.

The car drove for a full three hours.

However, this journey, originally only dozens of kilometers, took Xu Wenchang nearly three hours to drive.

"Teacher Xu..."

Han Mengqing, sitting in the back row, had been shaken so badly he felt dizzy and disoriented, with a look of utter despair on his face:

"Did we get lost? It's been so long; we should have arrived by now, right?"

A hint of embarrassment flashed across Xu Wenchang's face as he said cheerfully:

"Ahem... How could we be lost? When I was carrying out missions in this area back in the day, I could walk with my eyes closed."

"It's just that the main road is blocked, so I'm taking you on a shortcut. You know what a shortcut is, right?"

"Don't worry; we're almost there, aren't we?"

Saying this, Xu Wenchang stole another glance at the navigation system, then suddenly jerked the steering wheel.

After a violent jolt, the car finally came to a stop.

Ahead lay an extremely complex and steep pile of boulders; the car was completely unable to proceed any further.

"Ahem, ahem, it seems we can only walk from here."

Xu Wenchang pulled out the car key and smiled awkwardly.

Everyone got out of the car helplessly and trudged forward, stumbling with every step.

After walking for about ten minutes and climbing over a small hill, the view suddenly opened up.

A large crowd had gathered in the clearing ahead.

And on the outskirts of that area, a long chain-link fence had been erected, forcibly enclosing a vast stretch of land.

"What's going on?"

Lin Mo frowned slightly.

Outdoor leveling zones and Team Fuben entry points are usually public resources; on what grounds have they put up a chain-link fence?

Suddenly,

Han Mengqing, with her sharp eyes, let out an exclamation:

"Hey? Isn't that A-Jie?"

Lin Mo looked closely.

Sure enough, on the muddy ground at the entrance of the chain-link fence, A-Jie and his three friends were lying on the ground in a wretched state.

"What happened? Who did this?"

Han Mengqing's eyes widened.

A young onlooker nearby sighed and spoke in a lowered voice:

"Miss, who else could it be? The people from the Mad Shark Guild, of course."

"The Mad Shark Guild?"

Lin Mo asked in confusion.

The young man nodded and said bitterly:

"As you know, although Team Fuben scrolls can activate a Team Fuben, they must be activated within a specific coordinate area."

A flash of resentment passed through the young man's eyes:

"This bunch of scum from the Mad Shark Guild simply seized the coordinate area where the Team Fuben is activated and even set up rules."

"Anyone who wants to activate a Team Fuben here, whether solo or in a group, is forced to hire members of their guild to carry them through."

"The hiring fee starts at one hundred thousand! No money? Then don't even think about entering!"

The young man pointed at A-Jie and the others in the distance and shook his head:

"Those young men insisted on forcing their way in, saying they didn't need them to carry them through and asking why they should pay, and this is what happened to them."

"That's too shameless, isn't it?"

Han Mengqing's face turned red with anger. "Isn't this forced buying and selling? Is there any law left?"

Just then,

a bald, burly man with a face full of flesh roared arrogantly at the surrounding crowd:

"What are you looking at! Listen up, all of you!"

"Here, the Mad Shark Guild is heaven!"

"If you're a dragon, you must coil up for me! If you're a tiger, you must lie down for me!"

"If you have no money, don't block our view; this is the result!"

The bald brute roared while glaring viciously at A-Jie on the ground, scaring many of the surrounding Professionals into retreating step by step—angry but not daring to speak out.

The bald man roared while glaring viciously at A-Jie on the ground, causing many practitioners nearby to step back in fear, daring to be angry but not to speak.

【166】 Seeing this, Lin Mo's eyes grew cold.

The cheerful smile on Xu Wenchang's face vanished.

"The state has been vigorously cracking down on organized crime and evil forces these years; I never expected to find such a fish that slipped through the net in a place like this..."