Kingdom of Corrosion
Chapter 323 - 185: The Statue

Chapter 323: Chapter 185: The Statue

Two hundred meters from the excavation center, buildings were densely packed, ranging from short clusters that were three to five stories tall to towering skyscrapers that reached into the clouds. Most of the buildings were dilapidated due to the nuclear blast, with some showing signs of partial collapse. Half of these structures had caved in, but not so severely that one couldn’t squeeze inside. The most eye-catching were two 70-story towers, one leaning to the left, the other to the right, propping each other up as if a mere sneeze could reduce both to dust.

These two towers had become the workplace for the three members of Shadow. It couldn’t be helped; all the counter-kill jobs had been snatched up, and a steady stream of player groups kept joining. Instead of getting caught up with the crowd, they chose to quietly screw in bolts. After all, ten parts could be exchanged for one point.

In the lobby of Building A, Lin Wu had pried apart a sofa for seven parts, so he settled into a ragged armchair nearby. Dust swirled up, enveloping him. Lin Wu waved away the dust, feeling somewhat defeated, and said, "There are more experts than I thought."

Maya commented, "It’s within my expectations. You can’t use North Town as a benchmark; North Town doesn’t have much land. On the contrary, look at the Wanderer in Right County’s North Down Town; they not only have a large population but plenty of experts too. The reason Shadow has developed is that they seized three key opportunities. The first was taking the hilltop church. The second was farming pistols at the Sentry Card. And the third was slaying the Fortress agents. Because they seized those three chances, Shadow is stronger than most bases in terms of composite strength."

Peanut added from the side, "But that is not necessarily the case after the dungeon." Soulless brother, Little Knife, Shana, and Emerald Feather may have died, signifying that the Shadow base lost five assault rifles.

Lin Wu said, "That’s not entirely a bad thing."

"Oh?" Peanut and Maya turned to look at Lin Wu together.

Lin Wu explained, "At the very least, it proves you were right, Maya. They’ll be more obedient from now on."

Maya countered, "Really?" Haven’t I explained this to you before? Realizing suddenly, Lin Wu wanted Peanut to understand, hoping to use him to help settle some matters.

Peanut pondered thoughtfully, "It could backfire. If you, Maya, turn out to be right, it could annoy them. Even if they admit they were wrong, there could still be hard feelings towards Maya. If Maya were wrong, they wouldn’t care about her misjudgment and would just consider her words a suggestion. How would we in Shadow handle such a situation?"

Lin Wu simply replied, "Stone."

"Stone?" Peanut said, "To be honest, I feel like Stone is dispensable in Shadow, lacking presence."

Lin Wu corrected him, "You’re wrong about that; he specializes in resolving these kinds of issues. Horse Soul and Snow Egg had a conflict before, and later, they had one with me, all handled by Stone."

Maya said, "More people, more problems. Lin Wu, you went to the sub-base quite early, so there are things you don’t know, not even the concerned parties. Like you, Peanut."

Peanut curiously asked, "Me?"

Maya inquired, "Weren’t you planning to teach Little Knife Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?"

"Yeah. But Stone said grappling is too slow, not practical against zombies, better to just stomp them dead. Little Knife thought it made sense, so I didn’t insist."

Maya elaborated, "Snow Egg and Little Knife like each other, a potential couple. Do you think Snow Egg wants to watch you hugging and handling Little Knife?"

"Oh." Peanut asked in surprise, "Is that the reason?"

Maya replied, "That’s exactly why. I questioned Stone about this issue once. Zombies attacking ground targets will crawl and bite, and a proficient grappler could counter-attack while on the ground. That’s when Stone shared the real reason with me. It started because Little Knife didn’t see herself being too close with you, but Snow Egg felt you two were overly intimate. After I left for the supermarket base, Shana arranged for Snow Egg to reinforce Little Knife’s archery training, for that reason, too."

Peanut was stunned for a few seconds, "So I’m a jerk... Why didn’t someone tell me directly?"

Maya shook her head, not sure. Lin Wu on the side answered, "Because of Little Knife. She’d ask you why you stopped teaching. Then she’d get mad at Snow Egg, who can’t get mad back at her, only resent you."

Maya doubted, "Is that so?"

"Yes."

Maya further questioned, "I don’t think you’re the type to make such subtle judgments about relationships."

Lin Wu snorted, "I’ve been in two serious relationships, spanning several years."

Maya retorted, "But that’s not what you show."

Lin Wu replied, "That’s what you think."

Maya asked, "Is Fire Dance your ex-girlfriend?"

"Yes."

Maya queried, "What do you think her relationship with Yellow Hair is?"

Lin Wu said, "Legally husband and wife, bound by the need for revival. She doesn’t like Yellow Hair, but he likes her a lot. Because of her kind nature and unassertive habits, she doesn’t want to hurt Yellow Hair’s feelings. Nevertheless, she’ll eventually cut him off, because she’s not one to settle."

Maya wondered, "If you knew that, why use Yellow Hair as an excuse to distance yourself from her as much as possible?"

Lin Wu, surprised, "How did you figure that out?"

Maya deadpanned, "I saw it with my own eyes."

"Oh." Lin Wu confessed, "Fire Dance still has lingering feelings for me, and I haven’t found a suitable woman to shield myself with, so I let the mistake continue. The best solution would be if I declared my love for her, confessing that I never stopped thinking about her over the years and hoped for us to get back together. She would then reject me, moving on from the relationship. But I can’t bring myself to say it, and I worry that if I’m wrong, I’d end up accidentally saddled with a girlfriend."

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