Jiangnan Base City, one of the six great base cities of China, was immensely prosperous. Within its main urban area stood a towering skyscraper, eighty-eight stories high, bearing the dazzling English letters ‘HR’ emblazoned across its façade. Surrounding the base of this monolith was a beautiful plaza featuring the largest fountain in all of Jiangnan Base City. The square was patrolled by over a thousand soldiers, armed with live ammunition, strictly forbidding any outsider from setting foot inside.
Passersby, walking past, would stare up at the skyscraper with curiosity and envy.
The vast majority of Jiangnan’s inhabitants would never set foot inside throughout their entire lives.
“Beep!”
An electronic voice sounded.
The sentries and patrolling soldiers immediately parted ways. A military SUV, marked with the ‘HR’ insignia on its body, drove in and stopped before the entrance to the skyscraper’s lobby. With a soft whoosh, the doors opened, revealing three fully armed Martial Artists: one carrying an iron spear on his back, another bearing a combat saber and shield, and the third lugging two large iron crates.
“Sir, please come in,” the doorman at the entrance of the skyscraper lobby greeted them with a respectful bow.
The three Martial Artists walked directly into the skyscraper.
“Let’s go, Luo Feng, we’ll grab a seat at the bar over there while we wait for the Captain and the others to arrive,” Chen Gu said with a smile.
“I haven’t met the Captain yet; I wonder what he’s like,” Luo Feng replied with a grin, while simultaneously observing the HR Alliance Mall around him. This was the headquarters in Jiangnan Base City for the underground alliance formed by the world’s super-families and financial consortiums. The entire building was the epitome of extravagance.
The lobby floor shone so brightly it was mirror-like, and even the simple decorative pieces were clearly extraordinary.
The service staff in the lobby—the men handsome, the women gracefully alluring—all wore smiles that felt like a spring breeze washing over you.
Luo Feng, Chen Gu, and the other team member, ‘Zhang Ke,’ settled onto the sofas.
“Gentlemen, what may I get for you to drink?” The server bowed slightly and asked with a pleasant smile.
“Tieguanyin!”
“Pu-erh tea, with a hint of jasmine flavor, please!”
‘Cannon’ Chen Gu and Zhang Ke, both seasoned Martial Artists, stated their preferences directly. Luo Feng was somewhat surprised; he remembered them drinking alcohol frequently back at the Limit Field Center. Zhang Ke, whose arms looked incredibly thick and powerful, resembling those of a long-armed ape, laughed: “Luo Feng, you can’t be careless once you enter the Wilderness Zone. No drinking allowed.”
Luo Feng suddenly understood. Right, in the Wilderness Zone, one must remain vigilant at all times. How could he possibly drink now?
“For me too, a cup of Pu-erh, please,” Luo Feng requested with a smile.
The lobby was filled with the sound of tranquil music, a piece played on a flute. As for the specific melody, Luo Feng knew his own taste wasn't refined enough to recognize it. However, the flute notes swelled and soothed at times, then turned quick and ethereal at others, refreshing his entire spirit.
“Luo Feng, this first floor is the reception and resting area. Floors two and up are where the (Mall) sells items,” Chen Gu explained with a smile. “The prices for goods at this underground alliance mall are generally a bit lower than the full price on the ‘Limit Home’ online store. Of course, they are higher than our half-price rates.”
Luo Feng nodded. Half-price was the special rate reserved for personnel within the Limit Martial Arts Center.
“The biggest advantage of the underground alliance mall is… that we can sell them some of the materials from the monster bodies we hunt at a higher price,” Chen Gu elaborated. “If we sell the materials from the monsters we hunt to the Martial Arts Center, the price is lower, but they give us contribution points. If we sell to this underground alliance mall, the price is high, but there are no contribution points. How to choose, well, that’s naturally up to us.”
Luo Feng smiled. He had already learned about this from various posts on the Martial Artist forums.
Selling to the Martial Arts Center yielded both contribution points and money.
Selling to the underground alliance yielded only money, but at a significantly higher rate.
“Brother Wang, you’ve been up half the night, you should rest. Leave this to me,” a clear, gentle voice sounded. Luo Feng, who had been holding his teacup, felt a jolt as if struck by electricity, and he whipped his head around.
Behind the bar, a young woman dressed in a white shirt and black suit trousers was exchanging shifts with another manager.
The bar area employed twelve servers and one manager, operating 24 hours a day with shifts rotating every eight hours.
“Xu Xin?” Luo Feng looked at the female manager behind the counter in disbelief. She carried herself like a professional woman, every gesture imbued with an innate nobility. To hold the manager position in the bar of the HR Alliance’s reception hall meant she was absolutely not an ordinary person—this place was specifically designed to entertain Martial Artists! Even a regular server likely needed a degree from a prestigious university and extensive training in etiquette and protocol, let alone a bar manager.
“How did Xu Xin…”
How had the plain high school girl he remembered transformed into someone with such a completely different aura?
“Brother Chen, Brother Zhang, I’ll step away for a moment,” Luo Feng said, leaving his backpack, shield, and saber on the sofa, and then rising with a smile to walk toward the bar.
Behind the counter.
Xu Xin was leaning over, checking the bar’s stock of liquors and supplies, when suddenly—
“Xu Xin.” A familiar voice called out.
“Hm?” Xu Xin was startled. In this first-floor hall, those who knew her real name usually addressed her as ‘Manager Xu.’ Most Martial Artists wouldn't know her name at all. How could someone call her ‘Xu Xin,’ and why was the voice so familiar? Xu Xin looked up—
Luo Feng was leaning over the bar from the outside, looking in, while Xu Xin, who was half-crouching to check the liquor, looked up simultaneously.
Their gazes locked.
In that moment, both Luo Feng and Xu Xin felt a sudden sensation, a flicker of emotion stirring in their hearts.
“Luo Feng, what are you doing here?” Xu Xin reacted, quickly standing up and smiling.
“If even Xu Xin is managing here, why shouldn’t I be here?” Luo Feng laughed, looking at the young woman before him. He couldn’t help but recall the days in high school, sitting in the back of the classroom, repeatedly watching the back of Xu Xin’s head… He had held a crush for a long time, but never found the right moment to confess.
He had assumed he would rarely see Xu Xin again, but unexpectedly, here she was, at the HR Alliance Mall. And he encountered her just before his first trip into the Wilderness Zone.
“Ah, Luo Feng, you’re a Martial Artist now?” Xu Xin asked with surprise, noticing his gear.
“Yes, heading into the Wilderness Zone soon,” Luo Feng replied cheerfully.
“The Wilderness Zone?” Xu Xin’s expression shifted slightly.
On the entire landmass, the area outside the Base Cities was collectively known as the Wilderness Zone. To the humans living within the Base Cities, the Wilderness Zone was synonymous with a death trap, teeming with all manner of monsters—some insidious and bizarre, others powerful and savage, and many creatures nearly invincible.
That was a domain only the strongest humans, the ‘Martial Artists,’ could venture into, battling the monsters.
Xu Xin hadn't expected… Luo Feng to actually be a Martial Artist, and one about to enter the Wilderness Zone at that.
To be honest, Xu Xin knew Luo Feng had some feelings for her… Such things were impossible to hide. She had often caught him stealing glances at her during class, and occasionally when she turned around, she naturally saw him watching her. Consequently, Xu Xin understood the depth of Luo Feng’s feelings.
It was just that neither of them ever explicitly acknowledged it.
“Luo Feng, the Captain is here, come over,” Chen Gu called out.
“I’m coming,” Luo Feng said to Xu Xin.
“Okay,” Xu Xin nodded.
Luo Feng walked back to his original spot. At this moment, three more people arrived. Two of them looked strikingly similar, clearly twins. Both carried shields and a single curved saber strapped to their backs. The third man was incredibly robust and massive; he carried two large black hammers with faint silver markings on his back.
“Luo Feng, these two are the famous ‘Twin Moon Saber’ Wei brothers, Wei Tie and Wei Qing,” Chen Gu introduced.
The Wei brothers nodded at Luo Feng and unstrapped their shields and sabers before sitting down.
“Brother Tie, Brother Qing,” Luo Feng greeted them with a smile.
Everyone else in the Fire Hammer Squad was significantly older than Luo Feng, by at least a decade. Compared to the other five, Luo Feng was indeed the youngest member.
“And this is the Captain of our Fire Hammer Squad, ‘Twin Wind Hammer’ Gao Feng,” Chen Gu announced. Luo Feng took a closer look at Captain Gao Feng. Gao Feng wasn't particularly tall, just over six feet. What was most striking was his physique; he was so immensely muscular it seemed as if he were forged from steel.
Gao Feng grinned, his facial muscles bunching slightly like shifting rock. “Luo Feng, you use a saber too. When we enter the Wilderness Zone, learn as much as you can from Wei Tie and Wei Qing. You have good talent; I believe you’ll quickly become a full member of our squad.”
“Understood,” Luo Feng nodded.
No matter what, his primary goal now was not to become a burden to this elite Warlord-level squad.
“Rest for a bit, we set off immediately,” Gao Feng declared.
“Yes, Captain.”
All five, including Luo Feng, responded affirmatively.
Just twenty minutes later, Gao Feng and the others finished their tea and stood up. “Let’s go, depart for the Wilderness Zone.” Luo Feng immediately hoisted his Blood Shadow Saber, shield, and other gear onto his back.
“Luo Feng.” A voice called out.
Luo Feng turned to look.
Xu Xin’s chest was rising and falling slightly. For some reason, the thought of Luo Feng immediately entering the perilous Wilderness Zone made her heart flutter. Perhaps for the boy who had a secret crush on her during high school, Xu Xin now felt a unique kind of connection.
“Yes?” Luo Feng looked at Xu Xin.
“I start school again in a few days, but during the university semester, I’ll be here managing on Saturday and Sunday afternoons,” Xu Xin called out. “You must come by then.” As she said this, Xu Xin’s face flushed slightly.
“I will, I absolutely will,” Luo Feng replied with a gentle smile.
“Hooked up already? Impressive!” Chen Gu slapped Luo Feng on the shoulder nearby, laughing heartily.
“That’s the advantage of being young; beauties practically throw themselves at you,” Gao Feng chuckled nearby. Now that they had decided to let Luo Feng join the Fire Hammer Squad, they naturally treated him as a brother.
Luo Feng just smiled.
“Let’s go!”
“Get in the car!”
The six members of the Fire Hammer Squad boarded the HR Alliance transport vehicle, heading directly to the train station to leave the Base City and travel toward the Wilderness Zone by rail.
End of Episode Two!
Episode Three is about to begin; Luo Feng’s true journey of life-or-death trials officially commences! Please cast your recommendation votes for support, and don't forget to bookmark this story.
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