Chapter 282, The Neighbors are Moving In

Chapter 282, The Neighbors are Moving In

Although the battlefield was shrouded in dust, obscuring the exact situation.

Judging by the destructive power, the horde must have suffered heavy casualties.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be such a massive increase in experience points.

It seems that this new weapon design was even more successful than the previous "Iron Wolf Harrow" and "Zombie Generator."

Simple, brutal, and easy to produce.

"Damn, this is crazy!"

"It's a mass attack!"

"Awesome...!"

Qiangzi and the other two who were loading the ammo racks onto the skeleton dragon exclaimed.

The effectiveness in front of them exceeded their expectations.

"Boss, Sister Hong, what did I tell you? I knew this would work," Qiangzi said, walking over.

"It's pretty good," Wu Heng admitted.

"You've got a win," Li Yanhong nodded in agreement.

"See? I told you, if I studied properly, I'd get into 122, 985 or something," Qiangzi boasted.

The young guy with glasses behind him interrupted, "Qiangzi, you mean 211, right? 122 is the traffic police!"

Roar~!

Qiangzi was about to retort when a louder roar from a distance cut him off.

In the distance, another massive horde of zombies approached.

They were surging toward them.

"The noise was too loud, it attracted all the nearby zombies," Li Yanhong said.

Wu Heng nodded, "Qiangzi, you guys fall back. If anything happens, we won't be able to take care of you."

"Got it!"

The group retreated in their vehicles.

Wu Heng's gaze fell on the approaching horde.

He ordered, "Archers, fire."

Whoosh~!

Arrows whistled out, landing in the approaching horde.

Followed by iron spears, crossbow bolts, and Wu Heng's own [Grease Spell] and [Fireball].

Soon, the horde crashed into the skeleton lines.

A brutal battle ensued.

Wu Heng kept commanding the skeletons, diverting some forces to intercept zombies coming in from the sides.

The sounds of roars and slashing filled the air.

"Giant One, you guys go help, don't get trapped in the horde."

The mutated skeletons leapt off car roofs and into the zombie crowd.

They charged back and forth.

Scattering the horde.

...…

Gradually, the number of zombies began to dwindle.

The remaining undead were no longer a threat.

The mutated skeletons rushed in and smashed the rest of the zombies into pulp.

After confirming all the zombies were killed.

"Clean up the battlefield!"

This time, the corpses piled at least two or three layers thick on the ground.

Wu Heng walked through the battlefield, holding his spine staff, releasing [Battlefield of the Dead].

Corpses along his path were turned into skeletons, shakily standing up and joining the ranks.

The skeletons at the back began retrieving arrows and spears from beneath the bodies.

Reaching the area where the "Solid Iron Bullets" had landed, Wu Heng examined closely.

The throwing accuracy of the dragon was still significantly off.

Likely due to inertia or wind, some bullets had landed on the rooftops of nearby buildings, with the rest hitting the horde.

The dropped area was also much farther back than initially planned.

It hit the rear of the zombie horde.

The iron bullets embedded in the asphalt road left craters the size of bowls.

They effectively turned the solid metal bullets into disposable munitions.

The power of these things was no joke.

After the battlefield was cleaned, Wu Heng instructed Qiangzi and the others to continue producing more "Lazy Dog Bombs" and led the skeleton army forward.

There was still time to clear more zombies.

...…

Near dusk.

Wu Heng completed the final horde clearing.

After continuous advancement, they had reached the central area between the county and the city.

This pace was actually quite fast.

The scavenger team's speed couldn't keep up with Wu Heng's progress.

After cleaning up, Wu Heng boarded the bus to return.

Li Yanhong said, "Qi Hancai and her people are coming tomorrow. I plan to have her join the convoy, while the rest will join the scavenger and patrol teams."

"That's fine. Assign more to scavenging, speed up the process."

"Alright!"

The convoy returned to the bus station.

Wu Heng discussed the Lazy Dog Bomb with Qiangzi, then returned to his room, opened the dimensional gate, and headed back to Golden-Silver Island.

...…

After dinner.

Wu Heng took the two women to the courtyard for training.

Minnie had planted quite a few flowers, but she had also left space for training.

Wu Heng pulled out the [Instructor's Sword].

The three of them went to the courtyard for training. Wu Heng put on the [Endurance Belt] and began swordsmanship practice.

Practicing swordsmanship had become a daily necessity.

His muscles had fully adapted to the movements and intensity, no longer experiencing the piercing pain.

His moves were increasingly precise.

Even without considering combat, his training moves alone showed he was proficient in swordsmanship.

After about an hour.

A system notification appeared by his ear.

[Swordsmanship Proficiency upgraded to (Basic).]

Wu Heng raised an eyebrow and sheathed his sword.

Previously, his proficiency was at the beginner level, but after this long, it finally upgraded to basic.

Thankfully, he had this sword.

It was like having a coach teach him hands-on.

He sat down, and Andviel brought a towel over to wipe his sweat. "Rest a bit, don't overdo it."

Minnie also paused her training, dressed in yoga clothes, and leaned over. "Sis Viel, wipe me too."

"Wipe yourself, don't you have hands?" Andviel tossed the towel over.

"Fine, if that's how it is, tonight I'm going to punish the fox!" Minnie said as she wiped her sweat.

Andviel rolled her eyes at her.

Wu Heng smiled, hugging the two girls close, but his gaze was drawn to the glowing "light stone" in the window of the neighboring house.

That place used to be empty.

"Someone moved in next door?" Wu Heng turned to look at the house.

The area resembled modern townhouses, with adjoining garden walls.

The two women also glanced over, and Minnie said, "Yeah, there was a renovation crew here. I heard the owner plans to move back."

"Oh!" Wu Heng nodded and continued, "I'll assign more skeletons. Minnie, if anything happens while you're home alone, don't confront anyone. Wait until I get back."

Golden-Silver Island isn't exactly a peaceful place.

Even though it's unlikely, as he's an Association Deputy Steward, trouble should be rare.

But it's best to stay cautious.

"Don't worry! If there's a problem, I'll run to the Association and find Sis Viel. I'll use the Association to keep them in check." Minnie patted her chest confidently.

Andviel sneered, "You just threatened to punish me tonight, but now you're running to me when you're in danger?"

Minnie froze for a moment, then said defiantly, "Sis Viel, you always pretend! Aren't you the one who enjoys it most?"

"Stop talking nonsense."

Andviel stood up and chased after her, while Minnie swiftly jumped up, laughing as she ran ahead.

She would occasionally stop to provoke Andviel.

Andviel chased behind, playfully smacking at her.

Wu Heng watched the two play-fight and glanced at the ongoing construction next door.

He stood up and called out, "Let's go, time for a bath and bed."

"Punishing the bad fox!"

Minnie quickly ran over and clung to his arm.

Andviel followed, grabbing his other arm.

...…

The next day.

Wu Heng went to the Association early, sat at his desk, and poured himself some tea.

"Andviel, go take a new picture of the wanted list at the front desk." Wu Heng handed her the tablet.

"Alright, Master."

Andviel left and returned shortly with the tablet.

Wu Heng began browsing the updated wanted list.

There were three pirate gangs on the wanted list that had dragons.

[Iron Barrel Pirate Gang], [White Skull Pirate Gang], and [Demon's Hand Pirate Gang].

Yesterday's experiment proved the power of dragon-carried "Lazy Dog Bombs."

Besides producing more solid iron bullets, Wu Heng also considered increasing the number of dragons.

He wanted to keep an eye on pirate activity.

If the opportunity arose, he could acquire more dragons to bombard from the sky in shifts.

This would also speed up battle efficiency.

Andviel rested her chin on his shoulder from behind, whispering, "Master, are you going after pirates?"

"No leads yet, just browsing."

He wanted to, but there were no leads in the area.

He was reminded of Wen Mansa; back in Rentam City, this gang boss lady had provided valuable intel.

Her help had played a big part in him becoming Deputy Steward.

Here in Golden-Silver Island, he felt like a stranger with no way to gather information.

"Take it slow; we haven't been here long." Andviel comforted him.

"Yeah," Wu Heng nodded.

Knock knock knock~!

The door knocked.

Andviel straightened and sat in her assistant's chair.

Wu Heng called out, "Come in!"

The door opened, and the dwarf Orlin peeked inside, then entered.

"Deputy Steward Wu Heng, Miss Andviel!" Orlin greeted respectfully.

"What's up?" Wu Heng asked.

"Deputy Steward, the cargo ship that held the captive girl has been approved. According to the distribution of spoils, it's yours. I brought the ship's certificate for you." The dwarf explained.

From the last mission.

Wu Heng led the third squad in action, but the entire battle was handled by Wu Heng alone.

The third squad arrived just to clean up and file reports.

They effectively got a share of the rewards and reputation for free.

After a few successful missions, they gained quite a bit of merit and rewards.

Many squads were envious.

Naturally, they centered themselves around Wu Heng.

The moment news about the ship came in, the dwarf rushed over to deliver it.

Hearing the dwarf's words, Wu Heng was delighted.

A ship isn't like a cart or some other transport.

Ships are expensive, costing dozens, if not hundreds, of gold coins.

Of course, this refers to freighters, not small rowboats or fishing boats.

Wu Heng glanced at the certificate handed over and asked, "How do you use this?"

"Just fill in your name and reprint the account number on the hull," the dwarf explained.

It wasn't difficult.

Wu Heng thought for a moment and asked, "If there's a new ship, how would I register it?"

"Depends on which country or faction you're registering under. Golden-Silver Island's regulations are lax; a bit of money should suffice. If you want to register under the Association, that's even simpler; just fill out a form, and it's considered registered once on file."

Wu Heng nodded, understanding his explanation.

Basically, as long as the ship has a valid identity, it can dock.

Nobody really checks if the location is genuine.

Wu Heng kept the certificate and told Andviel, "Give them some tea money."

Andviel took out a heavy pouch of coins and handed it to Orlin.

"I can't accept this; you handled the whole battle, and the ship rightfully belongs to you," the dwarf insisted.

"Take it; consider it a celebration for getting my first ship."

The dwarf hesitated but eventually took the pouch.

"Thank you, Deputy Steward. If you need anything, just let us know."

Wu Heng nodded.

"I won't disturb you any longer."

The dwarf bowed and left.

...…

"Master, congratulations on getting your own ship," Andviel smiled.

Wu Heng stood up, "Come on, let's go see our ship."