Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 383 - 376: Azita

Chapter 383: Chapter 376: Azita

Before long, the middle-aged man hurriedly came in and respectfully said to Luo’er as soon as he saw him, "Our boss invites you."

Upon hearing his words, Luo’er and Hu Daoke exchanged a glance. Then Luo’er turned his head and said, "Lead the way!"

After saying that, he flicked a gold coin resting on the bar counter forward, then picked up the money bag on the table. The bartender gratefully took the coin, thanking him profusely.

Indeed, the reason Luo’er was able to handle things so smoothly was that he concealed his half-elf identity. Otherwise, no matter what he did upon entering, these people wouldn’t give him a second glance.

For them, their prejudice against half-elves was deeply ingrained.

As the two of them left the pub, several members of the Hound Gang were already waiting outside, firearms wrapped in cloth strips in their hands. They cleverly concealed all their firearms with cloth, only leaving the trigger guard and ejection port exposed. This way, even if the guns were completely wrapped, they could still be fired.

On Earth, only firearms that needed to be disguised and protected required wrapping in camouflage cloth. In the Otherworld, this method took advantage of legal loopholes.

Nevertheless, they still wouldn’t dare to openly carry such guns down the street. The patrol officers didn’t care about the law, as long as they saw such weapons, they recognized the chance to make easy money. Unless the Hound Gang bribed them beforehand, they would not fare better if caught than if they hadn’t cloaked their firearms.

Luo’er surveyed his surroundings, the situation was still under his control. The rest of the Advance Team was hidden nearby, and these people were nothing in comparison. Let alone Cheng Ziang and the others who were observing the situation from a distance.

Furthermore, they were not defenseless either. Their firearms were wrapped up too, but they were also ready to be fired immediately. When it came to exploiting loopholes, the Advance Team was no less clever than the Hound Gang.

It must be admitted that firearms from Earth transformed the nature of conflict in the Otherworld, making their situation even more dangerous. If the people facing him were wielding swords instead, Luo’er alone, along with Cheng Ziang and Yalunte, could handle them easily.

"This way..." The bearded man stretched out his hand, neither humble nor prideful, guiding the two.

Luo’er nodded, subtly signaling with a string of seemingly meaningless gestures. These gestures might be meaningless to the Hound Gang, but to Murong, they were very significant signals for him to reposition his troops.

Allowing Luo’er and Hu Daoke to go to the Hound Gang’s base alone was dangerous, so Murong had to constantly ensure the deployment of his team so they could assist them rapidly if something unexpected happened.

Murong did not particularly agree with Luo’er’s strategy of infiltrating alone. He was more inclined towards a conservative plan rather than anything risky.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that Murong’s commanding style is more conservative than Luo’er’s. Overall, Murong’s command style is actually more aggressive. However, in the face of the unknown Otherworld, he tends to be more cautious, not as carefree as Luo’er.

As Luo’er and Hu Daoke were headed towards the headquarters of the Hound Gang under their escort, Murong was directing the rest of the team to closely follow. This was a risky move because he had no idea how many members of the Hound Gang they could encounter along the way, so he warned his team to be extra careful.

Cheng Ziang and Yalunte followed far behind because their identities were special and could easily provoke the Hound Gang’s suspicion, so they couldn’t stay too close to Luo’er.

They walked along the riverbank, over neatly paved cobblestone roads, onto exotic-graveled roads, and through deserted alleys. Eventually, they reached the headquarters of the Hound Gang.

Although Luo’er was led off the direct path intentionally, he had memorized the map well in secret and knew this man was deliberately making them go in circles.

"The boss is waiting for you inside," the bearded man said with a hard attitude, "Hand over your weapons!"

"Are you kidding, we..." Hu Daoke was about to object, but was stopped by Luo’er. He thought for a moment and decided to comply with their request, handing the weapon slung over his shoulder to the bearded man.

Simultaneously, Hu Daoke took off his cloak full of hand grenades and handed it to the bearded man. He noticed that as soon as he handed the cloak to the man, he instinctively flinched. So he warned, "Be careful and don’t mess with these, If they explode, I won’t be responsible!"

Once they were disarmed, they finally got to enter the Hound Gang’s headquarters. There were many people inside, most of them armed with firearms. Unlike the outsiders, their weapons were fully exposed, not wrapped.

After a few brief glances, Luo’er noticed that most of their firearms’ safeties were disengaged, but it was uncertain if the bullets were chambered. Regardless, these people certainly knew how to use guns, so assuming they were just bluffing would be naive.

Guided by the Hound Gang, the two entered the sprawling building, following a long corridor till they reached a room deep inside. The further they went, the more uneasy Luo’er felt, his only consolation being the handgun tucked into his waistband.

Upon opening the room’s door, they found a forty-something-year-old man with a Mohawk hairstyle, casually seated inside. He had three lines shaved at his temples mimicking a trend on Earth, making him less conspicuous.

The man had a wickedly handsome face, with sculpted yet twisted features; his elongated eyes slightly squinted, distinguished hawk nose, and sharp chin. Luo’er couldn’t help thinking that if the man were an animal, he’d be a goat.

Gauging his appearance, almost no one would mistake him for a good guy. From the first moment Luo’er saw him, a chill ran down his spine. His instinct told him that this man was not so easily fooled.

"Are you the ones looking for Fu’en?" Seeing the two walk in, the man straightened his lazy posture, and with narrowing long eyes, he asked.

"Yes!" Luo’er nodded cautiously.

"What name shall I use?" The man motioned the two to sit down and then put his hands on the table and asked.

"Luo’er, you just need to know I’m called Luo’er. His name doesn’t matter!" Luo’er said indifferently.

"Alright!" The man nodded, then said, "Let me introduce myself, my name is Azita. I’m the boss of the Hound Gang!"

"Nice to meet you!" Luo’er nodded slightly to show respect.

"Why are you hunting Fu’en?" Azita asked directly.

"I think a clever man like you doesn’t need to ask such a question, right?" Luo’er didn’t directly answer his question; he ducked his head slightly and said.

"Are you Earthlings?" Azita asked.

"Yes!" Luo’er answered without any hesitation.

"Shani people?" Azita continued to ask.

Luo’er didn’t say anything, but his non-committal look already showed the answer.

"I can’t believe Fu’en would get into trouble with you guys. Although I suppose it’s no surprise." Azita shook his head and said.

"Tell me where he is, what do you want for it?" Luo’er asked.

"What can you offer me?" Azita asked in a leisurely way.

"A lot..." Luo’er thought for a while and then gave a vague answer.

"We want firearms, because we need weapons to arm ourselves. We need tobacco and alcohol because they’re valuable. We want silk, tea and industrial goods, because the nobles like them. However..." Azita said, his voice trailing off. He then looked at him and said, "We can get all of these things; I don’t think you can offer me anything I can’t get myself!"

Luo’er stared at him intently, then after a while he asked in some hesitation, "Are you co-operating with the CIA? With the Maniken?"

If Azita can easily get these things, that means he has contacts on Earth. Currently, there are not many countries on Earth that can export these products, and the most vigorous exporters are just a few. If it’s not them, then it should be the Americans.

Azita didn’t answer his question, but his attitude betrayed him. Although Luo’er was skeptical, he was more inclined to believe that Azita intentionally shielded Fu’en.

If Fu’en could transmit bioweapons to the mainland through the Otherworld Gate, it would mean that he has some kind of connection with a military superpower on Earth. And since Azita was willing to cover for him, it implied he might also have connections with this superpower. Combining this with what he just said, Luo’er was basically convinced that both Azita and Fu’en were serving the CIA.

"What price do we have to pay to make you hand Fu’en over?" Luo’er asked.

His words had two implications: Apart from the surface meaning, the deeper connotation of his question was what it would take for Azita to be willing to abandon his collaboration with the CIA and choose to work with the headquarters instead.

Upon hearing his words, Azita stared at him, his face bearing a somewhat eerie smile. He shook his head, saying, "Although we aren’t necessarily the good guys, we do have a minimal professional ethic."

"Ethics? You people, for the sake of making money, there’s nothing you wouldn’t do. Talk about ethics, you just don’t trust us." Luo’er coldly exposed Azita’s true intentions.

"You know, the profits that haven’t been grasped are just like meat that hasn’t been eaten; so, I never trust in so-called promises." Azita spread out his hands and answered.

"So there’s nothing to discuss?" Luo’er asked.

"From what I can see, that’s indeed the case." Azita shrugged his shoulders, his face wearing a look of innocence.

"In that case, we will take our leave!" Luo’er said, signaling Hu Daoke to leave.

"You’re leaving just like that, Mr. Luo’er?" Just as he turned to leave, Azita’s leisurely voice called out from behind.