Bai Ye ate his fill, the delivered food tasting even more delicious than imagined.
Then...
Bai Ye sliced open the lizard's head and dug out a fist-sized chunk of brain marrow.
This was the main currency of the City of Ruins. All mutated creatures produced a peculiar solid brain marrow during their mutation process, which was the most valuable thing within them.
This solid brain marrow possessed very high nutritional value; both humans and androids needed it to survive.
At the same time, this substance could be exchanged for God Stone fragments in the City of Ruins.
Of course, the demand was quite high. Bai Ye would likely need to hunt about a hundred giant lizards like this one to exchange for a single God Stone fragment.
Bai Ye carefully stored the brain marrow, wiped his hands, and prepared to leave. Just then, the sound of a motorcycle suddenly echoed from behind him.
Bai Ye turned around and saw the motorcycle parked on the side of the street. Three men dismounted.
These must be the Chosen Ones, he thought.
The Chosen Ones were often recognizable by their attire.
Among the three, one wore a motorcycle jacket, but had an ancient Chinese sword on his back and a Chinese Tang dao at his waist.
Another was dressed in hunting gear, carrying a submachine gun on his shoulder and holding a wooden magic staff in his left hand.
Such an outfit did not look like that of a native inhabitant.
"Hey!" the man with the Tang dao called out to Bai Ye. "Who gave you permission to hunt here?"
"Hmm?" Bai Ye blinked, then chuckled. "Does hunting require permission?"
The three men exchanged glances. The first man said, "Newcomer?"
Bai Ye thought for a moment. "Yes, I'm new."
The other pointed to the ground. "Zones A1 to A12 are our territory, Ghost Fire's. All the mutated creatures here belong to us. To hunt here, you need our consent."
Ghost Fire?
Bai Ye tilted his head. Had he heard of such a faction in his past life?
No, he didn't think so.
It seemed they weren't any significant players. However, any Chosen One who could survive in the City of Ruins at this stage must have some strength, right?
After all, this was considered a futuristic technological zone.
"Hey, I'm talking to you," the man stepped forward, pushing Bai Ye. "Did you hear me?"
Bai Ye snapped back to attention and casually held up the giant lizard's brain marrow. "My apologies, here's the item. I won't hunt further; I plan to head into the city."
"Wise choice," the man with the Tang dao took the brain marrow and said, "Pay the toll."
Bai Ye asked, "Toll?"
The other replied, "Are you not required to pay a toll to pass through our territory?"
Bai Ye couldn't help but laugh. He looked at the man and said, "Since you've given me a way out, I think we'll call it a day."
The three men paused, then burst into laughter, followed by...
*Clang!*
The man in front of Bai Ye drew his Tang dao and placed it against Bai Ye's neck. "You're giving me a way out? Should I thank you?"
Bai Ye glanced at the Tang dao on his shoulder, then sighed. "You don't have a way out."
*Puff!*
A bloody hole suddenly appeared on the man's forehead, and he toppled backward, landing on the ground with a thud.
His two companions, still laughing, were suddenly splattered with blood.
Their laughter abruptly ceased.
The two quickly regained their senses. One of them grabbed Bai Ye's collar and roared, "Do you know..."
*Puff!*
Bai Ye had no intention of listening.
Electricity suddenly surged through his body, and the sound of tearing flesh echoed again.
The man looked at his wrist in disbelief. His hand was gone. The shock was so great that he momentarily didn't feel the pain.
Bai Ye grabbed the severed hand from his collar and tossed it aside, then raised his hand...
*Puff!*
Bai Ye formed his palm into a blade and casually swung it. A sound of surging electricity followed.
A blood line appeared on the man's neck. His head lolled and fell from his shoulders, landing with a *snap* in the dry grass.
Only one remained. Bai Ye looked at him.
Fear flickered in the man's eyes. He instinctively tried to beg, "I..."
But in the very next instant...
Large arcs of electricity appeared around the man's body, zipping past him, and then...
*Puff!*
The sound of flesh tearing abruptly rang out. Large wounds tore open on the man's body, and the spraying blood formed a mist around him.
Bai Ye watched him fall, then stepped over his corpse.
"So, when I offer you a way out, you should take it!"
Bai Ye approached the three men's motorcycles, casually picked one, mounted it, and rode forward along the street.
The City of Ruins was vast, incredibly vast.
However, as its name suggested, most areas of the City of Ruins had become ruins and were uninhabited.
But mutated creatures still appeared here.
Therefore, the City of Ruins was roughly divided into three zones.
First, the outer perimeter, also known as the hunting grounds. This area was teeming with mutated creatures, serving as everyone's hunting field.
Not only the Chosen Ones, but also native inhabitants appeared here to hunt. This was also why the City of Ruins was called the Border City. These areas, inhabited by a large number of mutated creatures, were referred to as the border zones.
Beyond the border zones was the slum district.
Two types of people lived here.
The first were humans without power or influence, born into disadvantaged circumstances. They had no android servants and had to rely on themselves, living in the slums and surviving by hunting mutated creatures.
The second were runaway androids. Decades ago, the war between humans and androids ended in the androids' defeat. These androids then hid in the slum district, posing as humans to live.
Above the slum district was the affluent district, also known as the Castle District.
The humans residing in the Castle District were mostly associated with the Rhine Company, the tech company that first proposed the android project and was now the true power in the City of Ruins.
To live in the affluent district, one either had to be someone from the Rhine Company or have close ties to it. Since the Rhine Company controlled a vast number of android soldiers, they also possessed absolute military might.
Bai Ye's target was the slum district. Of course, even if Bai Ye wanted to go to the affluent district now, he couldn't. The guards there would turn him away unless he used force to enter.
This was a crucial point. Although the City of Ruins appeared to be a neutral zone, in reality, there were no neutral zones here, nor were there any safe places.
...