Chapter 185: What Did the Bullhead Do to You?

"Oh, damn it, stop, don't come again! Sob sob..."

His eyes vacant, lying on the soft carpet, Agus let out a low wail, his face full of hopelessness.

First encounter with humans.

"What? You say you're Pioneers from the west, but isn't that place a wasteland?"

Second encounter with humans.

"Soul Spirit Throne, Four Great Guardians, Beastman Demon Wolf, and over a thousand Pioneers preparing to enter the Underground Plains? Hiss..."

Ultimate encounter with humans.

"Friend, why do you always seem to be trying hard not to laugh when I introduce myself as a bullhead?"

Ah!

"Damn, what is NTR? The male members of the Iron Hoof Tribe aren't interested in other people's wives and are absolutely loyal to their own!"

He sprang up, Agus raging, wishing he could chop these human scoundrels who tarnish his reputation into minced meat right now.

But the wisdom of a chief told him that quarrelling with the human Pioneers over this would be a terrible move.

He could only rally his spirit, continue the Bullhead clan's tradition of warm hospitality, and receive every human who comes to the Tribe.

But expecting rookie players to be reliable is impossible; as long as they don't outright cheat in front of him, it's fine.

Thus, after listening to several rambling stories, Agus steadied his rising blood pressure.

"Forget it, forget it, ordinary humans are declined; just let a guild representative come!"

Unfortunately, although the visitors have indeed decreased, this is already the fifth batch today.

After a silent sigh, he began his opening speech as if reciting a textbook.

"Hello, I'm Bullhead Chief Agus, brown is my natural color, the nose ring symbolizes strength, my surname is Iron Hoof not Wang, I love my wife..."

But when he finished rambling, what greeted him was.

"My god, this arm size... is enough to rip a human apart!"

"Terrifying indeed, maybe it can actually charge forward wielding a heavy machine gun."

"I've recorded it, let the intelligence department colleagues calculate and analyze it later."

The three muttered for a moment, then one man suddenly asked.

"Chief Agus, may I ask how many jin a single punch can deliver?"

"... ah?"

Twenty points of charisma already give a good impression, let alone Ji Ming who has reached twenty‑five.

So after a hesitation, Agus said in a deep voice.

"I don't know how to test a fist's strength, but I became chief back then because I lifted the totem pillar and walked a circle with it."

Perhaps due to an ancient custom, the Iron Hoof Tribe's central tree bears a standing pillar.

It is engraved with beautiful patterns and murals; though the style is somewhat abstract, one can see scenes of bullhead ancestors' warfare and daily production.

Recalling the size, Fei Ying lowered his voice.

"That thing... such a sacred object is entirely stone, roughly at least ten meters tall, and likely weighs no less than twenty tons!"

"The pillar that forms the Iron Hoof totem isn't ordinary stone but rare Spirit‑Radiance Stone, so the figure should at least double."

Agus heard this, shook his head, then smiled.

"I was truly mighty back then, but now I'm older, my condition has declined a lot, not like the old days..."

???

Can this even be said?

No wonder, so far only Death God has died outside the city; turns out Niugo is such a good guy, he really speaks his mind...

Feeling a bit of sympathy, Ji Ming quietly transcribed the conversation into text and posted it on the public screen.

【SweatySoybean】 You each go up to the NPC and spout nonsense, beware they might punch with forty tons and turn you into mochi.

Unfortunately, the internal test suddenly added over a thousand players, making the public screen environment inevitably worse than the closed test.

Just like any highly active thousand‑person crowd, his warning was quickly scattered among the noisy chatter.

Only a handful responded relevantly, and most were trash talk.

【No way, I just ate Chaozhou beef hotpot at noon, can I still spit it out now?】

【Alright, alright, Doghead bro, keep talking, we love to hear it】

【Bro, think about it again】

Fine, these bastards deserve to die.

Compared with other players, the special squad is already the polite kind, and with Ji Ming's super‑ability of charisma, they left a good first impression on Agus.

Seizing the chance, they intended to chat with the chief a bit longer to gather more intel, but then footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door.

"Chief, an important outsider is here to visit..."

A frail bullhead, even weaker than Agus but still far beyond human limits, entered and whispered a few words into his ear.

"The gun‑blade person has arrived?"

The players are probing, and Agus is no different.

After several exchanges, he learned that among the players there are numerous groups called "Guilds".

"... then let them in."

The curtain was pulled aside, and two people entered under the guard's lead.

One of them was naturally Fu Le, and the other bore the ID "Gui Shen Bu Ce" and was Fan Taozhu.

Spending money doesn't necessarily make one smart, but eight out of ten who can earn money are shrewd.

During the closed‑beta phase, being able to splash a huge sum of money to win people's hearts, Fan Taozhu naturally wouldn't be a fool.

"Ah, Wai Shu, you're here too."

Those who didn't know might think old friends were meeting; his face beamed with a warm smile, he greeted everyone, then bowed.

"I am unworthy, now the president of the Gunblade Guild, I will spare no effort to serve everyone!"

Fu Le's focus ultimately lies in reality, Zhao Jun isn't power‑hungry either, so he simply gave the position to the busy Fan Taozhu, who also shelled out a large sum to keep his promise.

When Agus heard that this person was the president of the primary Gunblade Guild, his nose ring quivered slightly, and his tone grew a bit solemn.

"Ah, so you are the president of Gunblade, it's an utmost honor to meet you today!"

"There's no need for formalities, Chief, we came here today mainly to convey our goodwill…"

The players' level is too low to see the Bullhead Chief's exact rank, but precisely because they can't see it, they sense his might.

Although Agus could sense that everyone present were Cai Ji, somehow they could conjure so many people from underground…

Behind them must be a powerful force, not to be provoked!

Thus, as both sides sat down, there was a rather serious atmosphere to the talks, even Cang Lang, who wanted to watch the show, straightened his back.

They were all shrewd! The subsequent idle chat naturally turned into grandiose probing and mutual concealment of information.

They must have done their homework in advance, knowing the difference between order and chaos; the two guilds coincidentally concealed the race of the Four Great Guardians and expanded the players' assistance to Dog Village during the closed beta.

Although Agus still felt a bit uneasy, his complexion gradually cleared.

"I see, seems I misunderstood."

Since they had already disclosed everything, he couldn't stay silent, so he pulled a rough map from under a desk.

"Since you human friends come with goodwill to explore, I must warn you: the Underground Plain is unstable; not every tribe can be as friendly as we are…"

The Iron Hoof Tribe's map may not be as refined as the players' map overall, but since they're locals, they marked many dangerous zones and special resource points.

Delighted with the treasure, the few of them snapped screenshots with a clatter, yet none posted them on the public screen.

Indeed, closed‑beta players, having endured several joint crises, cultivated unity and tacit understanding; internal‑test players still lack that, at least for now.

It still requires long polishing and interaction to regain the previous passion and fighting spirit.

In other words…

Ji Ming began to devise in his mind; looks like it's time to crank up the difficulty for the players!

Upon a careful glance at the map, a dashed box north of the Iron Hoof Tribe caught everyone's attention.

Among the five players present, two and a half were merchants, instantly sensing a shortcut to rapid development.

Without hesitation, Fu Le asked immediately.

"Respected Chief Agus, could you elaborate on this market for us?"

"Certainly."

After the Bullhead Chief explained in detail, everyone finally understood.

The so‑called market on the Underground Plain has a fixed location, but merchants don't stay permanently; it's more like a real‑world fair.

Every fifteen days, people from each tribe bring assorted resources here for barter, then depart.

"Nobody manages it; is it all based on self‑discipline?"

"Exactly, so occasional chaos erupts."

Agus seemed to recall something unpleasant, paused briefly, and shook his head.

"It's not that no old tribe has considered governing here, but the Underground Plain's resources are limited, each tribe's population is limited; splitting forces would easily create a weak‑both‑sides situation, and someone has suffered losses because of that before…"

"Mm?"

"Is it an illusion? Why do I feel their eyes are all flashing?"

Agus was puzzled, while the players harbored a few scheming thoughts.

The major tribes fear wasting resources, fear population decline, fear becoming a target… but the players aren't afraid!

On the contrary, because there are lakes, land, and manpower, the rear is extremely peaceful, so in the future a surplus of resources is bound to appear.

"So this market…"

After a couple more words, the two from Gunblade hurriedly took their leave.

Watching their hurried backs, Ji Ming could already imagine what would unfold in the dungeon over the coming period.

The Special Squad, without further delay, exchanged brief greetings and left the Iron Hoof Tribe.

Ji Ming, holding the map, had intended to take the two to the Mole Nest, but suddenly realized that neither the player map nor the tribe map marked that tribe.

These tunnel‑digging rats are good at hiding; they seemed to know exactly where to dig, only the system map's precise directions led us to them.

"Hold on."

The environment's terrain is complex and ever‑changing; the main race is gentle and good‑looking, and the final boss possesses strength and a certain level of evil…

Perfect, we can use it to crank up the difficulty for the players, sparing them from daily frivolity.

Ji Ming temporarily set aside the Mole Tribe, led the two eastward, and soon reached the source of the Southern Stream.

Fei Ying crouched, reaching to scoop up the underground water gushing from the spring.

"Whoa, so cool! The atmosphere here… feels like a bone‑chilling cold creek!"

Cang Lang drew a dagger, glancing at the grass on both sides.

"Does that mean if we take two more steps we'll encounter zombies?"

"You guys are picking up the thread so fast…"

When Ji Ming first came here, he only skimmed the sights; he knew the highest‑level creature here wouldn't exceed level ten, but beyond that he was unsure.

He could only shrug.

"Based on my earlier survey, although this place is desolate, there are only a few scattered small tribes; it shouldn't be that dangerous, right."

It was as if to confirm his suspicion, a sudden scream came from not far away.

Damn, it's real!

Probably out of professional habit, Cang Lang kept watching the surroundings for spots suitable for defense, attack, or ambush.

Upon hearing the strange noise, he immediately led the two of them up to a nearby high ground.

The noisy rustling grew nearer, and the first to burst out from within were several players.

And when they saw the trio on the high ground, they immediately spread their arms and began shouting.

"Run fast, there's a big turtle here!"

Four legs on the ground, a teal backplate.

Following them, charging out, was a Turtleback Beast three heads tall, as high as a person.

Although its level was only seven, as a demon‑beast species its stats and talents were high; its HP had easily surpassed thirty, so it's no wonder it could chase down players with an average level under three and kill them.

But for this special squad, such a monster wasn't worth retreating from.

After a hard night of drills in the combat training camp, Cang Lang not only felt no fatigue, but was eager to try.

He moved his arms a bit.

"So, how about it, any confidence?"

Fei Ying took a wooden weapon from his backpack, which turned out to be the Zhuge Repeating Crossbow that foreign game developers love to add to games.

He pulled the loading lever to chamber it.

"I talked with a few players from the Challenger Guild, cobbled together a crossbow from parts, perfect for a real‑combat test!"

Then the two turned their gaze toward Ji Ming, who had been silent all along.

He recalled his own fighting style.

"What are you looking at? I'm an intelligence gatherer, I'm not going to fight!"

"Hey, it's just a game, it's not real life, no need to fear death—charge down and hit them!"

Having said that, Cang Lang rode ahead, raised his fist and barreled toward the fastest‑running Turtleback Beast.

"Ah???"

Seeing the players on the high ground not retreat but charge back, the few youngsters who were trying to run were scared into incoherence and could only dodge, giving him a way through.

The Turtleback Beast's tiny eyes were filled with great confusion, and it tilted its head.

—Is this human crazy, raising a fist to clash with it?

Yet just as they were about to meet, Cang Lang changed his stance, and a Two‑Handed Hammer materialized in his hand out of thin air.

This was actually the combat technique Death God used when ambushing the Mad King, and it was unexpected that in less than a day it let him yank it over.

The Turtleback Beast's generation is honest; who would think such a rogue could exist?

"Whoa?"

Even the turtle… its head didn't have time to retract before a hammer struck its skull.

"Is it that energetic?"

Amidst some player's muttering, the massive Turtleback Beast was knocked out, and with a "pop" it fell to the ground.