“Such a big commotion... What exactly did that group do?” Toller, another companion of Selma, asked in surprise.
They had stayed in First City for so many years and rarely saw the Hands of Order make such a big fuss to hunt down a target.
Although the other party didn't say it too detailedly, the description of a storm sweeping the city still allowed Selma and the others to intuitively glimpse a rough picture.
Shang Jianyao, who was poking at the bonfire, answered instead of Jiang Baimian:
“Plotting a major conspiracy against First City.”
“What?” Sandro and Dennis, who were responsible for guarding, blurted out in unison.
Saying it so simply, they might have just taken it as a joke, but coupled with the Hands of Order's reaction, this matter seemed quite serious.
Shang Jianyao kindly explained:
“This is the content on the mission description, and belongs to the Hands of Order's one-sided accusation, which may not be true.”
This sounds a bit strange... Selma thought for a few seconds and said:
“Did the Hands of Order issue a mission at the guild? What's the reward?”
He felt that to judge the severity and urgency of a matter, one shouldn't rely on subjective descriptions. In comparison, the reward amount might be more indicative of the problem.
“Catching one member of the target group will earn you 10,000 Ore.” Jiang Baimian said with a smile, “Of course, this was the price before we left the city. It's unclear if it has changed now.”
“10,000 Ore for each target?” Selma, Toller, and the others instantly felt a bit of a toothache.
This level of reward made them shrink back, not believing that they had any hope of completing it, and the corresponding risks must be too great to bear.
I can only see if there's a chance to get some clues and exchange them for money... This thought flashed through their minds simultaneously.
“I think it's too low.” Shang Jianyao responded to the relic hunters' question with a sincere face.
“It's not low, it's not low.” Selma shook his head repeatedly, “There aren't many such missions in a year.”
Jiang Baimian didn't continue this topic and frankly asked:
“This wasteland has been explored for decades. There shouldn't be any valuable gains, right?”
The members of the Old Task Force were all Ashlanders and were unfamiliar with the Red River North Shore wasteland, which was normal and didn't need to be concealed.
Hearing this sentence, Selma immediately made a judgment:
This is a team of relic hunters venturing into the surrounding area for the first time.
The other party's appearance and goodwill, the simplicity and ordinariness of the questions, made him not hide anything, and he smiled and said:
“It's not what you think.
“Many places here are heavily polluted. It wasn't until the last few years that they recovered to the minimum level and could be explored. Uh, there are also some areas that are not recommended to enter now, unless you can wear hazmat suits and radiation suits throughout the entire process.
“Besides exploring ruins, hunting mutated creatures is also a way. They have high research value. First City officials are buying them, and some private researchers will offer prices that will make your heart flutter, or directly post bounty missions.”
Those private researchers are at least two-thirds white gloves, black gloves, and intelligence officers of various forces, specializing in collecting biological materials for organizations... Jiang Baimian muttered in her heart and deliberately asked:
“Are there any city ruins in the North Anheford area that you came from that have only been accessible in recent years?”
“Of course.” Selma nodded. “It's not a secret.”
During the exchange between the two sides, the beef stew with potatoes was already heated, and Shang Jianyao and the others took out their oatmeal bread and ate it with the stew.
Selma, Sandro, and the others watched with envy, but could only swallow their saliva, take out the nearly soggy biscuits, dip them in the soup, and fill their stomachs.
Even so, the rich aroma and the taste echoing in their mouths still moved them quite a bit.
After taking turns having a good dinner, Selma proposed to leave.
Although this team of Ashlanders seemed very friendly and had no malicious intentions, they still felt that they should maintain a sufficient distance.
That way, the person on night watch wouldn't be under too much pressure.
And after displaying their muscles, Selma felt that if there were no serious conflicts of interest, the other party shouldn't risk attacking them.
With Sandro, Dennis, and Toller on high alert, Selma drove slowly towards another higher ground.
The heavy rain was like a curtain, quickly covering their tracks.
Jiang Baimian withdrew her gaze and yawned, covering her mouth:
“Let's hurry up and rest. We still have to travel later.”
After arriving at the north shore of the Red River, the Old Task Force and Han Wanghuo and Zeng Duo chose to travel at night against convention to avoid the drones of First City.
Although compared to other teams, they had Genava, an intelligent being whose "vision" range was not greatly affected by the dark environment, and didn't need to worry about some hidden dangers, they still didn't dare to drive too fast and focused on stability.
During the day, taking advantage of the gloomy weather today and poor visibility, they continued on their way, finally breaking free from the search range of First City's drones before the heavy rain arrived—First City had several outposts and observation points on the north shore wasteland, and also had drones and other equipment.
As soon as Jiang Baimian finished speaking, Genava had already walked down from the second floor of the main building.
He asked with a red light flickering in his eyes:
“Why did you make me stay up there longer?”
Jiang Baimian rolled her eyes slightly and replied with a smile:
“I couldn't scare the guests…”
…………
The heavy rain subsided in the middle of the night, and Selma and the others waited until dawn before embarking on their return journey.
They had a smooth journey and arrived at the bank of the Red River, returning to First City through the bridge.
Because they had several missions on their backs, they didn't rest and went straight to the Hunter Guild.
While waiting for his companions to hand over the missions, Dennis habitually looked at the big screen, looking for missions that could be accepted later.
“Selma, look, the Hands of Order mission.” Suddenly, her eyes lit up and she patted the team leader's shoulder.
Selma followed the sound and looked over, and sure enough, he found the content described by the Ashlander team earlier.
“Plotting a major conspiracy against First City... The reward amount, per person, is 20,000 Ore? It's increasing so quickly. What exactly did they do?” The more Selma looked, the more frightened he became.
The reward amount doubled in just a few days, which inevitably made people suspect that the severity of the matter was still increasing!
And for Selma and the others, the stability of First City was the foundation of everything.
They didn't want to go through dangers in the north shore wasteland, and after their bodies and spirits were exhausted, they still couldn't relax a little when they returned to First City.
Sandro and the others also looked at this mission, and soon, the names and photos of the pursued objects came into their eyes.
“Xue Shiyue… Zhang Qubing…” Selma's gaze suddenly froze.
His companions were no exception, and their expressions were all sluggish.
They had seen this group!
It was the team of Ashlanders who described this mission to them!
After recovering, Selma and the others didn't care about the shock, and were filled with fear and gratitude.
They had actually communicated face-to-face with such a dangerous team, each of whom was worth 20,000 Ore, for nearly half an hour, and even mopped up the soup from their canned food!
If we had said a word or two wrong at the time, we might not have seen today's sun... Selma couldn't help but raise his hand and wipe the cold sweat from his forehead.
Who would have thought that the relic hunter team they randomly encountered in the wild was such a dangerous existence!
And the other party could talk about the mission they were being hunted for so easily.
After a long time, Dennis broke the silence and asked his teammates:
“Selma, should we turn in the information? I see the reward is not small.”
The highest level is 300 Ore, and the lowest is 50.
Selma weighed it for several seconds and said:
“Report it, the possibility of encountering them again is very low, there's no need to worry too much.
“As relic hunters, how can we let go of such an opportunity?”
…………
Red Wolf District, 19 Rosta Street, Hands of Order headquarters.
“Xue Shiyue's team encountered a relic hunter team and mainly inquired about the situation in the North Anheford area…” Theodore entered the conference room, picked up the materials on the table, and read them in a low voice.
They had learned from some informants that the target had escaped from First City through a certain channel and ran to the north shore wasteland.
This was also the main reason they increased the reward amount. The Hands of Order was responsible for the security of the city and the suburban manor, and rarely sent people directly into the wasteland to arrest targets. Next, they mainly had to rely on the military and relic hunters.
“I thought they would return directly to their affiliated forces.” Wal was a little puzzled by the movements of Xue Shiyue's team.
After getting important information, why are they still staying in the north shore wasteland?
At this time, his superior, Red Wolf District Order Officer Travis, knocked on the table:
“No matter what, release this information and let the relic hunters and the military pay more attention to that area.”
…………
In an abandoned old-world town that had been abandoned for many years, the ground was littered with various white bones and feces.
Jiang Baimian and the others parked the car in a hidden place and used binoculars on the top of a building to observe the black wasteland outside the town.
“Many relic hunters have passed by.” Han Wanghuo said, stating his observations.
Jiang Baimian chuckled softly:
“It seems that the information we actively passed back is still effective.
“Next, let these relic hunters help us explore the strength of the regular army of First City in the North Anheford area. Rescuing people cannot be done recklessly, and rescuing the town is even more so.”
Zeng Duo, who was next to her, was stunned and didn't expect that the "invitation" after the chance encounter with the relic hunter team had hidden such a purpose.
Clap clap clap, Shang Jianyao applauded.