Kingdom of Corrosion
Chapter 676 - 320 Cloud Dream Tribe_3

Chapter 676: Chapter 320 Cloud Dream Tribe_3

Maya said, "Express delivery can only send goods within the same city. Does the Cloud Dream tribe count as being within the range of Left County?"

Shui nodded. "It does."

Lin Wu: "Then it’s settled."

Shui was very happy. "Okay."

...

The night passed without incident—not the worst accommodation conditions, but certainly not the best. After eating a breakfast of white porridge with fried eggs, Shui and Little Fire escorted the two to the riverbank. Passing through the area where the villagers gathered, Lin Ma clearly felt their gazes and discussions about her. When the villagers saw Shui and Little Fire, they would greet them and also nod and smile at Lin Ma.

This atmosphere was very rare for Lin Ma. Lin Wu lived in a city and hardly interacted with neighbors, not caring about each other’s affairs. Of course, he had his own social circle, but he wasn’t accustomed to neighbors showing concern for him, whether well-intentioned or malicious.

After saying goodbye by the Shuihuo River, Lin Ma and another person rode horses across the river. The water wasn’t deep, and though swift, it was far from being strong enough to shake anything of considerable weight.

Lin Wu asked Maya, "Can such a tribe really form in reality?"

"Almost impossible," Maya replied. "The reason a tribe like this can form in the game is that everyone starts at the same level, and there’s a limit to how much they can develop. Suppose someone is responsible for trading, and only they travel back and forth to the town; gradually, their role becomes unique. Moreover, once the population increases, factions and class hierarchies emerge. Little Fire and their group of four are part of a faction, possibly not well-regarded by others."

Lin Wu was puzzled. "Not well-regarded?" His words were laden with derogatory connotations. Maya wouldn’t normally be so categorical in her judgment about a person or group.

Maya answered, "It’s just speculation. I don’t like what he said: ’To suffer tremendously is to stand above others.’ Deep down he feels inferior and hopes to become superior through effort. In his mind, he categorizes most people as either superior or inferior, with very few being equal. Personally, my views are opposite to his; I think most people are equals."

Lin Wu: "But you respect his viewpoint."

"Yes," Maya didn’t argue or dispute, "When I took a walk with Shui in the tribe yesterday, I found out that none of the people in Cloud Dream tribe are purely interested in a self-sufficient lifestyle. In fact, most are quite unhappy with this gaming experience. Their sole reason for enduring is points; their conversations are mostly about how many points they can earn and how they will live on Earth in the future."

Lin Wu refrained from judging right and wrong, "There’s a famous saying among the ancient Social Animals: The purpose of working hard now is to have money to treat illnesses in the future."

Maya explained, "I’m not saying that their way of thinking is wrong. Take Dashuang, for instance. Her initial reason for joining Shadow was also just for points. The difference is that she could adapt to Shadow and accept it."

"But Dashuang doesn’t have a concept of people being different."

"Yes," Maya didn’t elaborate to Lin Wu that she overheard the villagers’ fantasies about their future life. The futures they depicted sounded nice, but the fundamental message was invariably the same: After becoming rich people on Earth, they could compensate for their current suffering by oppressing the poor—a core idea that helped motivate themselves to persist in Cloud Dream tribe. This was also why Maya had been bothered by what Little Fire had said.

Dould Ma came out of the water onto the shore, and the two reduced their conversations. Galloping while communicating via headset felt somewhat stiff.

North Town was bleak, with zombies having become its masters. After not seeing them for several days, Lin Wu found their presence somewhat comforting. Phantom leapt up and kicked the head off a zombie blocking the way, prompting Lin Wu to chide from horseback, "Too violent, you know, a girl should be more restrained." It’s like spanking children on a rainy day—nothing better to do.