This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 574: Busted?

Chapter 574: Chapter 574: Busted?

In the center of the Pinecone Wood Farm estate stood a magnificent mansion.

Standing in the study of the estate, the farm owner, Zhao Tiangan, held a telescope in his hand, intently staring out the window. His gaze passed over densely packed houses and landed on the trade station by the enclosing wall.

Six trucks were parked there, surrounded by the guards and mercenaries of the team, alongside a circle of fully armed soldiers.

Wu Wen Zhou, who had just alighted from a truck, was conversing with an interrogating officer. Soon, several soldiers carrying LD-47 assault rifles stepped forward and dragged several wooden crates off the truck.

One soldier advanced, prying open those boxes one by one, revealing gleaming bullets and neatly stacked rifles inside.

That was exactly what he needed.

Seeing this, a bright smile finally appeared on Zhao Tiangan’s face as he placed the telescope on the table beside him.

Almost simultaneously, there was a knock on the door from behind him.

In a good mood, Zhao Tiangan said casually,

"Please, come in."

The door opened.

His butler walked in.

"Mr. Yang He’s commercial team has returned. Per your instructions, he exchanged the silver coins earned for weapons..."

Ma Zhongxian respectfully reported, his gaze involuntarily falling on the table beside his master and the open window.

He understood.

Before he had reported, the master had already seen.

A proud smile was on Zhao Tiangan’s face as he spoke deliberately.

"I knew it. Mr. Yang is a clever man. He was just delayed on the road for a bit. We nearly wronged a good man."

Ma Zhongxian gave a slight nod.

"There is another matter regarding Mr. Zhang Zhengyang, the Apostle."

Zhao Tiangan immediately asked,

"Is there news?"

Ma Zhongxian nodded silently, then continued.

"After your instructions, I had the security team send a few scouts to Dusty Town to investigate. The result...the place has been destroyed."

"Destroyed?!" Zhao Tiangan’s eyes widened as he anxiously asked, "And... the Apostle?"

A bitter expression crossed Ma Zhongxian’s face as he shook his head.

"I don’t know. The entire town was scorched clean, but no bodies were seen. Our men searched around the town but found no trace of Apostle Zhang. However, they did find a pile of bodies in a grave to the north... Our militiamen sent to assist Mr. Zhang were also among them."

Zhao Tiangan clenched his fists.

He was not so much grieved over the 41 militiamen; the farm had plenty of serfs and never lacked for people or livestock.

What made him anxious was the disappearance of Zhang Zhengyang.

If before he could afford to disregard the Torch Church, not caring about offending those fanatics, now he dared not.

Ever since "curing" his chronic lung issue through Nago, he had become reliant on the "blessings" of the Saint Heir.

"Was Apostle Zhang’s body there?"

Ma Zhongxian said respectfully,

"Our men searched carefully, it’s not in that grave."

Zhao Tiangan breathed a sigh of relief, muttering to himself,

"At least he is still alive."

Watching his master, Ma Zhongxian hesitated for a moment, then continued,

"Afterward, our people continued to explore nearby, trying to trace the Apostle... But as they moved about ten kilometers south, they discovered traces of mutant activity."

At this statement, a look of astonishment crossed Zhao Tiangan’s face.

"...Mutants?"

"Yes, master, and at least a hundred of them," Ma Zhongxian nodded, his voice grave, "There are signs of a battle nearby, all indicating... it was those mutants who destroyed Dusty Town."

"And after that, they went to Town of Hope!"

Zhao Tiangan looked blankly out the window.

He could understand going to Dusty Town; the Qi Tribe in the city area was an ally of the Torch Church, and it was natural to help an ally in trouble.

But why go to Town of Hope?

Wasn’t that a district of the Torch Church?

He remembered that the Apostle had personally promised him, as long as they embraced the strange faith of the torch, they would be spared from mutant harassment.

And this was one of the reasons he had converted.

Intuition told him that something he did not understand was happening on this land, and it was very possible that he had already been drawn into it...

After pondering for a long time, he gritted his teeth and said,

"Let the pastor come see me."

He must speak with the Bishop!

Ma Zhongxian nodded slightly.

"As you command."

While Zhao Tiangan paced back and forth in his study, a group of players stood at the entrance of the Pinecone Wood Farm, curiously observing their surroundings.

Although it was called a farm, its appearance was more akin to a classical city, with granite walls enclosing brick and wood buildings, and orchards and farmlands outside.

If one disregarded the trees covered in pustules and the farmlands covered with green fungal patches, the area almost resembled a bucolic pastoral scene.

Xiaoyu looked around uneasily.

Noticing Xiaoyu’s reaction, Falling Feather softly asked over the communication channel.

"What’s wrong? Do you feel uncomfortable?"

Xiaoyu whispered back.

"Eey...um..."

There was an offensive odor here.

Something filthy was nearby.

This feeling was like standing next to excrement; although the trash posed no threat to it, its spores instinctively felt displeased.

"Just bear with it a little longer, we’ll soon leave," hearing the discomfort in that "Eey...um," Falling Feather whispered reassurances through the communication channel.

Xiaoyu murmured understandingly.

"Eey...um..."

Meanwhile, standing beside the leading truck, Wu Wen Zhou offered a cigarette to the pot-bellied middle-aged military officer.

The officer skillfully accepted it, moved closer to his lighter to light the cigarette, and spoke while puffing clouds of smoke.

"That Mr. Yang, how come he didn’t return this time?"

Wu Wen Zhou respectfully replied,

"Mr. Yang He is dealing with some business matters..."

The middle-aged officer grinned and said,

"Doesn’t he want to spend time with his beloved daughter?"

"Being busy is just temporary; he’ll reunite with his family afterwards," Wu Wen Zhou smiled and glanced around, "Speaking of which, there have been significant changes here."

"That’s for sure," the officer chuckled, then continued expansively, "Ever since the Old Master introduced some new crops from the south, life has gradually improved."

"The new crops are..."

"Emerald trees, those ones over there."

The officer extended his cigarette-holding hand, pointing towards the orchard outside the wall. He smiled mysteriously and continued,

"Not only do they fetch a good price, but they also have other uses... isn’t that great?"

"That’s... really wonderful," Wu Wen Zhou smiled, but internally he sighed softly.

He had read about "Nago" in the Survivor’s Daily and had seen the analysis results from the Alliance Biological Research Institute about this special crop.

According to the Alliance Biological Research Institute, this special crop was actually a type of fungus similar to mushrooms; any animal or person who consumed it eventually became its bait.

Introducing that thing here.

This settlement was basically doomed.

"If only we could sell this stuff to the north," the officer continued dreaming, squinting towards the north.

"That might be difficult; the survivors up north... may not accept such unconventional things."

"Solutions are made by people," looking back from the distance, the officer patted Wu Wen Zhou’s shoulder, grinned, and said, "Just let them get a taste, and they’ll never leave us."

As long as the factory owners in the north got addicted to Nago, the position of Brocade River Province would become important again.

Watching the daydreamer, Wu Wen Zhou obligingly smiled.

Unleavable, indeed...

If that day ever came, with the Alliance’s style, they would likely come physically eliminate the problem.

While the soldiers at the farm inspected the cargo on the trucks, Night Ten quietly sized up the people.

"Goodness... The soldiers here use LD-47?"

Just looking at the weapons in these guys’ hands gave him a sense of returning home.

Fang Chang glanced at the soldiers’ rifles and said.

"They seem to be using the export version."

Night Ten looked at him curiously and asked,

"Is there a difference?"

"In simple terms, both the power and the recoil have been substantially reduced. The 7mm full-power cartridge has been replaced with an intermediate-power cartridge, and theoretically, it shouldn’t be able to penetrate the frontal armor of the K-10 ’Iron Wall’ and the Type 6 ’Heavy Cavalry’ exoskeleton at a distance of a hundred meters."

As he spoke, Fang Chang surveyed the surroundings, gauging the armed strength of the area while noting the distribution of several firepower points at the entrance.

Like most farm-style settlements in the Brocade River Province, Pinecone Wood Farm virtually lacked independent industrial capacity, with most weapons coming from Giant Stone City or the Army factories of the Alliance.

The most common here were weapons phased out by the Alliance.

Machine guns mainly included the Maxim I type, rifles were primarily LD-47s and "Hornet" assault rifles, exoskeletons were mostly KV series with a few ’Miner’ retrofit versions, and there were some 20mm quadruple anti-aircraft guns among other support weapons.

Furthermore, he also saw some RPGs and recoilless guns, carried by the most elite soldiers or mounted on fixed stands behind sandbag walls.

This place was essentially an enhanced version of an African plantation, filled with serfs and private soldiers drafted from those serfs, starkly different from the predominantly free residents of Town of Hope.

From an equipment perspective, this settlement was hardly worth mentioning, but what was noteworthy was indeed the abundance of soldiers.

A settlement of fifty thousand people actually maintained three thousand teams!

According to an NPC named Wu Wen Zhou, a farm owner named Zhao Tiangan had long intended to embark on a venture, aiming to consolidate all the farms around Brocade River City. Hence, he had never scrimped on military expenditures.

Besides these visible light weapons, it was said that they’d bought some odd and ancient devices from even farther places.

However, Fang Chang still didn’t take it to heart.

What a joke.

The group beside him had even cut through Falcon City, why would he fear this bunch of neophytes whose equipment was all hodgepodge acquisitions?

At this moment, Wu Wen Zhou, who had just completed the goods handover, approached them and lowered his voice,

"I’ve spoken with the commanders of these guards. I’ve told them that you are from the Flame Mercenary Corps, famous around West State City... They’ve never been to such remote places, don’t even know where West State City is, but that doesn’t stop them from wanting to curry favor with you."

Fang Chang raised his eyebrows.

"What do you mean?"

"They’d like to invite you to dinner, likely hoping to woo you and discuss your opinions... The venue is at the Xinglong Hotel on the farm."

Night Ten was surprised.

"There’s a hotel here?"

If he remembered correctly, wasn’t Pinecone Wood Farm not open to the public?

Moreover, the survivors here were primarily serfs, basically the landlord’s private property – let alone no wages, this place probably didn’t even have its own currency.

A hotel just for show?

Noticing his puzzled look, Wu Wen Zhou coughed lightly and explained,

"Of course, there is one. Although Pinecone Wood Farm isn’t open to the public, its officers and administrators are salaried, generally paid in dinars. They can’t just spend dinars on meals; they need entertainment as well, can’t always go to the neighboring town for spending. Moreover, this place occasionally needs to host some distinguished guests... Overall, the environment at that restaurant is quite nice. The chefs there and those at Old Master Zhao’s estate are from the same batch."

Not particularly concerned with those trivial details, Fang Chang directly asked,

"How far is that place from the farm owner’s mansion?"

Wu Wen Zhou thought for a moment and said,

"Just across a street... about six or seven hundred meters."

"Six hundred meters, huh..." Fang Chang stroked his chin and nodded, "No problem."

Through another person named Kong Lingkai, he had somewhat understood the suspicious and fearful nature of the farm owners here. He expected that they would place them at or even outside the enclosing wall and also have them closely followed.

And this would probably be their only chance to get close to the central mansion of the settlement.

After all, they were mercenaries who were officially here to work for money; no one could guarantee that they’d just take on one job.

From the soldiers around, it was not hard to see that the farm owner didn’t really trust his subordinate who was always outside handling transactions for him.

This invitation to dinner probably had an exploratory motive, and those fellows might even attempt to bribe them during the event.

Watching the flickering eyes of Fang Chang, Wu Wen Zhou quietly asked,

"What are you planning to do?"

During the journey here, he had been probing for information, trying to extract any details from these people, but they had been unwilling to disclose anything.

Personally, he was more inclined toward these people using the previously seen flamethrower-equipped plane to burst in and directly abduct the targets.

However, upon seeing those quadruple anti-aircraft guns on the wall, he reasoned it might not be easy for the plane to fly in.

While gazing at the cautious Mr. Wu, Fang Chang smiled lightly.

"It’s not something that can be explained in just a few words."

His smile was inscrutable.

Wu Wen Zhou couldn’t help feeling uneasy.

"My family..."

"Don’t worry, just have them stay at home. Leave the rest to us."

Fang Chang patted his shoulder and gave him a reassuring look.

However, seeing the pleasant smile on this man’s face, Wu Wen Zhou couldn’t feel reassured at all, his heart pounding incessantly.

But now, it seemed too late to get off this pirate ship.

He could only stick to this path until the end.

Seeing that the officer was continuously looking this way, Wu Wen Zhou swallowed and nodded.

"Okay."

After saying that, he turned around and walked back, conveying the message that they agreed to attend the banquet to the officer. A pleasant smile appeared on the officer’s face as he turned to report to his superior.

Watching the man leave, Fang Chang pressed on his headset.

"The opportunity has come... Old White, the support matter is up to you."

After the noisy static, Old White’s voice came through the communication channel.

"No problem! We are already prepared!"

...

Weapons were not allowed at the Pine Cone Wood Farm.

Besides Falling Feather and Xiaoyu, who stayed at the entrance, all players from the Burning Corps left their equipment at the entrance of the residential area.

"Please take good care of the equipment."

Taking the rifle from Fang Chang’s hands, Falling Feather hesitated and said,

"Is it really okay for you to go in like this?"

"No problem," Fang Chang smiled and replied, "After all, whatever we need, Old White and the others will bring it to us."

Falling Feather nodded earnestly.

"Take it easy... Don’t mess up my mission."

"Don’t worry, that’s absolutely impossible!" Fang Chang laughed heartily, waved his hand, and followed the man leading them to the banquet.

The Xinglong Hotel was located in the core area of the Pine Cone Wood Farm.

This was probably the cleanest and most prosperous street in the entire residential area.

Most shops on the street were industries operated by the farm owner himself, including stores, restaurants, and some establishments that were not obviously by their exteriors.

Whether it was one type of shop or another, the facades were all quite luxurious and tasteful.

Walking here felt completely different from the outside; it hardly seemed like a plantation, but more like a commercial street typical in any residential area.

However, incongruously, these shops were all deserted, without any customers, rather like landscape plants on the roadside.

The person accompanying the players to the hotel was the chief guard of the North Gate, named Liu Lei, a very chatty middle-aged man.

Under his lead, the ten players from the Burning Corps effortlessly passed through the multiple defenses of the farm and arrived at the street closest to the central farm.

All the way there, the NPC kept busy talking, introducing them to the staple industry of Pine Cone Wood Farm, Nago.

It was as if they weren’t mercenaries but merchants here for an inspection.

Fang Chang feigned interest, occasionally giving responses, though internally he was dismissive.

He knew what the scheme of the man behind this NPC was.

It was nothing but an attempt to market this location’s "specialty" to the Alliance through his "capable mercenary group."

However, this NPC could probably never imagine just what kind of person he was describing his master’s business plans to.

Finally, they reached their destination, where a formally dressed, high-ranking officer who seemed to hold an eminent position was already waiting for them.

Seeing the approaching group, the officer’s eyes brightened, and with a radiant smile, he stepped forward, extending his right hand.

"Welcome! Friends from afar! I am Luo Feihui, the chief here, and the old master asked me specifically to thank you for helping us transport this valuable cache of arms from the north!"

Fang Chang was surprised to find that the dinner companion was the chief; he made a face of delighted surprise, shook hands with him, and said with a laugh,

"It’s nothing! We are just mercenaries working for money."

The chief named Luo Feihui laughed and said,

"You don’t seem like mercenaries."

Fang Chang maintained his smile and asked,

"Why do you say that?"

Luo Feihui withdrew his hand, continuing with a smile,

"I’ve dealt with quite a few mercenaries; most of them are rough in speech and ill-mannered, rarely disciplined. But you’re different, not only courteous but with not a single callus on your hands... Forgive my bluntness, but you hardly seem like a weather-beaten Wasteland Wanderer, instead, you resemble—"

He intentionally paused mid-sentence.

"More like a resident of a shelter."

At that moment, apart from Fang Chang, who stood in front of him, the other players involuntarily twitched their eyebrows, a hint of surprise flashing in their eyes.

Good lord.

Had they been exposed?

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