119: Chapter 119: A Meeting of All Districts 069?

Outside the cabin, the sound of Shen Wanbing's sharp intake of breath came through the communicator.

She was listening to the conversation from the vehicle.

"Third point."

The proprietress leaned in two inches closer, the tip of her fox tail curling upward.

"After the cross-district barriers disappear, you'll receive a system pop-up. The content of that pop-up is—"

"The ranking mechanism for the second map will no longer be based on individual combat power."

"Then what is it based on?"

"Comprehensive Faction Value. This includes population, territory size, number of vehicles, resource reserves, and... the average level of core members."

The proprietress's vertical pupils stared fixedly at Chen Chen.

"Your individual combat power is invincible in District 069. But in the next map, no matter how strong a person is, they are still just one person. The number one ranking goes to the faction leader who possesses the most population and the most territory."

Chen Chen leaned against the bar, his thumb giving the silver-grade storage ring a half-turn.

Comprehensive Faction Value, population, territory.

The people under him who could be considered a 'faction'—the six women in the vehicle, plus Seven Blades and his group.

That was it?

"Wine." He tapped the bar counter.

The proprietress paused for a moment, then pulled out that bottle of fine purple wine and poured him a glass.

Chen Chen downed it in one go.

Shen Wanxing timidly approached from the side, holding up the two commission vouchers in her hands.

"Um... Big Sister Proprietress, the confirmation of receipt for the core components—"

The proprietress was stunned for a beat by being called 'Big Sister Proprietress,' then she saw Shen Wanxing's face clearly.

A top-tier celebrity.

Light amber pupils, waist-length hair, and a silver evening gown hanging off shoulders so white they were almost translucent. Her light pink high heels made her look three parts exquisite and five parts delicate.

"..."

The proprietress pulled a receipt book from under the bar and slapped it down in front of Shen Wanxing.

"Sign it, sign it quickly. Once you're done, leave."

Shen Wanxing signed hurriedly.

The proprietress stamped the confirmation voucher and activated the physical delivery process for the refinery.

While waiting for the stamp, Chen Chen turned his gaze toward the shelves behind the bar.

"Do you have any mid-tier vehicle cores for sale here?"

"I do, but your balance is zero. It was swiped clean last time by all those clothes, shoes, and socks for your women."

"I'll trade with physical goods."

Chen Chen took a pile of overflow materials out of his silver-grade storage ring—materials Shen Wanxing had produced through critical hits: extra Mana-Conducting Copper, High-Carbon Steel Ingots, and damping alloy parts from Mechanical Hounds.

The proprietress flipped through a few pieces of material, and the light in her vertical pupils brightened again.

"The purity of these damping alloy parts is two grades higher than my supply channels. Where did you get these?"

"Picked them up underground."

"...Fine then." The proprietress counted on her fingers.

"If I take them all, I can trade them for seventeen mid-tier vehicle cores."

"Deal."

Seventeen dark blue cores were placed on the bar. Chen Chen swept them into his silver-grade storage ring.

His spare cores went from seventeen to thirty-four.

"Anything else?" The proprietress leaned against the wine rack with her arms crossed.

Chen Chen thought for two seconds.

"Ammunition. Do you have 30mm armor-piercing incendiary rounds?"

"I'm a wandering merchant, not an arms dealer."

"Never mind then."

Chen Chen stood up from the stool and pushed the empty glass back.

The proprietress stared at his back, her fox ears twitching twice.

"Wait a moment."

Chen Chen turned around.

The proprietress pulled a palm-sized black metal box from the bottom shelf of the bar and placed it on the counter.

"This isn't for sale. It's a gift for you."

"What is it?"

Chen Chen opened the box.

Inside was embedded a chip the size of a fingernail, its edges glowing with a faint orange-red light.

"A communication chip of the Red Fox Tribe."

The tip of the proprietress's tail curled slightly. "After implanting it into your terminal device, you can contact my tavern from any distance. It works across maps."

Chen Chen held it for two seconds.

"Free?"

"Think of it as after-sales service."

The proprietress's ears flattened slightly. "You helped me get back the refinery and the core components, so my supply mission won't be wiped out by the system. This life... is worth a chip."

Chen Chen put the chip into his ring.

"I'm leaving."

He turned and pushed the door open.

Shen Wanxing followed in her high heels. She almost tripped when passing Blood Rose but was caught by Jiang Yanxue.

Su Xiaoqi was the last one out the door.

At the doorway, she turned back and waved at the proprietress.

"Goodbye, Big Sister Proprietress! Your tail feels so good to pet!"

The proprietress's tail puffed up again.

The wooden door closed.

The proprietress leaned back on the bar, her fox ears drooping to the sides, staring at the empty glass in a daze for a long time.

The faint light coming through the crack in the door was reflected in her amber vertical pupils.

Her left hand unconsciously touched the base of her ear as she muttered to herself.

"...Feels good to pet? What part of it feels good?"

—

The Ghost Fortress took to the skies once again.

Chen Chen sat in the brand-new cockpit on the fourth floor. The 360-degree panoramic observation windows took in the entire pre-dawn wasteland.

Shen Wanbing's voice came through the communicator.

"Regarding the Comprehensive Faction Value the proprietress mentioned—"

"I heard it."

"The ranking logic for the second map has changed. Our current population and territory are almost zero. Seven Blades and his group only have less than thirty people; it's not enough to make an impact."

Chen Chen pushed the control lever two degrees to the left, slightly adjusting the vehicle's heading.

"How much time until the black mist?"

"Forty-six hours."

"That's enough."

Shen Wanbing was quiet for two seconds on the other end of the communicator.

"What do you plan to do?"

Chen Chen pulled the engine power to seventy percent.

The Ghost Fortress accelerated across the wasteland, the chassis arcs plowing two trails of light into the gravel ground.

He pulled up the unread message Jiang Jiuyou had sent earlier.

A line of coordinate numbers.

The entrance to the next map.

Chen Chen closed the message.

Then he opened the regional public channel.

The cross-district broadcast from the Bishop of Ashes of District 048 was still pinned at the top of the channel.

"Everyone in District 069... Mr. Chen Chen, I'll see you in forty-two hours."

Chen Chen's thumb circled the control lever.

A very faint creak came from the communicator.

Shen Wanxing had climbed up to the fourth-floor cockpit at some point. She crawled into the co-pilot's seat and curled up in the chair.

The silver evening gown wrapped around her knees, and her long hair draped over the back of the chair.

"Why did you come up?"

"Jiang Yanxue is snoring down there..."

Shen Wanxing's voice was muffled, and her light amber pupils glinted in the moonlight coming through the panoramic window.

She tilted her head and looked at Chen Chen for two seconds.

"Are you thinking about that Ash whatever-he-is?"

"Yeah."

Shen Wanxing rested her chin on her knees and said with a heavy nasal tone:

"He even said something about an appetizer—you could beat a hundred of him by yourself and it still wouldn't be enough."

Chen Chen was amused.

"Go to sleep. We have things to do tomorrow."

Shen Wanxing gave an 'mm' in response, leaned against the co-pilot's chair, and closed her eyes.

Three minutes later, her breathing became steady.

Outside the panoramic window, on the horizon of the wasteland, a very thin purple-black line was spreading from the northwest.

The death black mist.

Forty-six hours.

Chen Chen's hand was on the control lever, and the engine power didn't drop.

A new system prompt suddenly popped up on the communicator.

[Detected that the cross-district communication barrier is decaying.]

[Estimated that in 37 hours, all war zone communication channels will be fully connected.]

He closed the prompt.

Then, the communicator rang again.

A real-time message from the regional public channel.

Sender—Iron Wall.

"You all heard the cross-district broadcast from the Bishop of Ashes of District 068. As one of the military representatives, I have decided to form the District 069 United Defense Line before the black mist arrives. I invite the top ten on the combat power rankings to participate in an all-district strategic meeting in three hours. The coordinates are as follows. Mr. Chen Chen, are you coming?"

Chen Chen stared at the message for three seconds.

Then, a second message popped up.

Sender—Jiang Jiuyou.

Only four words.

"You going? I'm going."