Chapter 682: You're Even Darker Than Us
I'm busy taking down a Platinum Tier 3, and in that time you guys just wiped out their entire fleet?
Can't you be a little slower or something?!
At least leave me a chance to show off, damn it!
Qin Shou jumped onto the ship: "I took down a Platinum Tier 3 underwater while only being at Gold Tier 8!"
"Aren't you guys even a little bit impressed?"
Qi Yu and Ye Xinghe clapped weakly with zero enthusiasm!
"Wow~ you're so amazing!"
"I'm so impressed! I want to have your babies!"
Qin Shou: (̿▀̿Ĺ̯▀̿̿̿)̄
The way you guys are acting really kills my sense of achievement here!
But honestly, you can't really blame those two.
After everyone just watched Jiang Nan launch himself over there, blowing up five speedboats in a row, and coming back with a perfect five-kill no-damage run...
There's no way they can get excited about Qin Shou taking down a Platinum Tier 3 after all that!
Right now, Renault was lying on the boat with a bitter expression, coughing up blood nonstop.
The moment he saw Jiang Nan, he finally understood who these people were!
People from Huaxia? He just had to run into them?
Could his luck be any worse?!
So it was true that Dandelion had gotten in touch with Jiang the Devil...
Jiang Nan crouched down and patted Renault's cheek: "Black Claw's not much, huh? This is all you've got for a hijacking? Not even a Diamond-tier? You're not just some small fry, are you?"
[From Renault Blake: Resentment +1000!]
There's no way you can insult someone like this!
Are you complaining that we didn't bring enough people for you to fight?
"I'm not some small fry, I'm—"
Jiang Nan curled his lip: "I don't care who you are. I'm only interested in how much your boss is willing to pay to get you back!"
Renault's eyes lit up at this. Money? Money was good!
That meant he had a chance to survive, right?
"Th... thirty million USD?"
Jiang Nan was stunned. So he really wasn't just some small fry!
Black Claw's boss was willing to pay thirty million to get back a lousy Platinum-tier guy?
Jiang Nan: (ꐦ°᷄Д°᷅) Huh?
"That's it? You think I'm a joke? Forget it, forget it! Just kill him!"
With that, he grabbed his halberd and swung it at Renault's neck!
Gu Xiaowei panicked—thirty million wasn't enough anymore?
Boss, you've gotten too big for your boots!
Renault was terrified: "Wait! Don't! Don't kill me! Fifty million! Black Claw's boss is my uncle, I'm his nephew! If you kill me, Dandelion's business deal won't go through either!"
"Let me call my uncle, he can definitely get fifty million! Black Claw has plenty of money!"
Jiang Nan turned to look at Gu Xiaowei. She nodded.
Renault finally breathed a sigh of relief.
But Jiang Nan got even angrier. He swung the halberd down at Renault again: "Black Claw has plenty of money, and you're only offering me fifty million? You really do look down on me!"
Renault:!!!
So you're just determined to kill me today, huh?!
"One hundred million! One hundred million! If that's not enough, just kill me! Otherwise, if I go back alive, my uncle will kill me anyway!"
Jiang Nan stopped the halberd mid-swing, turned around, and said: "There! A hundred million ransom for you. Do whatever you want with him later—trade him for cash or negotiate terms, it's up to you."
[From Renault Blake: Resentment +1000!]
[From...]
You're absolutely ruthless!
Even Black Claw isn't as dark as you! Can you guys please not discuss this right in front of me?!
Are you messing with me? Just you wait!
Gu Xiaowei swallowed hard. Boss really knows how to make money fast!
Mila tilted her head: "Why do I feel like Jiangnan-gege is acting like the villain?"
Wu Liang: "Mila, take out the 'feel like' part."
Xiao Zhen covered his face. Now he kind of believed that the ship and the island were both things Jiang Nan had stolen.
His little side business was way too smooth!
With this small incident settled, the hovercraft continued on toward Dandelion Island.
Jiang Nan went over to find Gu Xiaowei.
"What's the deal with Black Claw? Is it hard to handle?"
Gu Xiaowei sighed: "They're an old organization. They were already big players in the international black market before the Spiritual Energy Revival era."
"As soon as our 'Starlight Plan' launched, everyone benefited. A lot of Black Claw's former partners brought their underground channels over to our side."
"Black Claw was getting less, so of course they weren't happy, and now they're throwing up obstacles everywhere."
Jiang Nan frowned: "Why not just bring Black Claw in directly? If the Starlight Plan succeeds, Black Claw would get even more."
Gu Xiaowei gave a bitter smile: "Sister Hong tried to negotiate that before. They were even close to a cooperation agreement. But when the Abyss Mutation happened, everyone's emotions got affected, and the deal fell through."
"Black Claw's boss wanted the biggest cut, but Sister Hong wouldn't accept that—it would have left Dandelion completely sidelined."
"After that, there were a few small conflicts. It's already a miracle we haven't had a full war yet."
Jiang Nan's eyes narrowed: "He wants the biggest cut? That's like taking money right out of my pocket! He's dreaming way too big!"
Gu Xiaowei said worriedly: "Recently, Black Claw has been pushing even harder. They've even started making moves on Dandelion Island."
"Our server headquarters are on the island. But now that we've captured Renault, the forces Black Claw has in the Abyss Outer Sea should quiet down for a while, right?"
Jiang Nan grinned: "I'll deal with this after I get to Nightless City."
Gu Xiaowei said gravely: "Boss, you need to be careful. Black Claw and the Scarlet Queen have a good personal relationship, and neither side is backing down right now."
"In Nightless City, the Scarlet Queen is the absolute authority."
Jiang Nan nodded. He'd have to see the actual situation once he got into the city.
By the time the ship reached Dandelion Island, it was already noon.
The island was even bigger than Pekus Island by quite a bit.
There were all kinds of buildings and entertainment facilities everywhere, but the most eye-catching thing was a sailboat hotel in the center of the island.
You could see quite a few mercenaries and Dandelion members moving around.
All the trainees were stunned. This wasn't just an island—it was practically a resort!
How much money did it take to build an island like this?
So Jiang Nan had been quietly building up this huge operation abroad without anyone knowing?
Even Jiang Nan himself was a bit surprised. That Magician guy was seriously loaded.
And this island was just something he'd built for fun?
As a Starlight-tier spatial-type, he must've raked in a ton of cash over the years!
Gu Xiaowei smiled: "We took over Dandelion Island without much trouble. We've already converted the sailboat hotel in the center into the Starlight server center."
Jiang Nan grinned: "We set out for the Abyss at six in the evening. Once we get to Nightless City, there won't be any time to relax."
"Everyone should take this chance to have some fun on the island."
The team members' faces lit up with excitement as they rushed straight for the water park.
Jiang Nan turned to Xiao Zhen: "Contact Ling Feng ahead of time. We don't know the situation in Nightless City yet, so it's best if he can meet us there to coordinate."
Xiao Zhen nodded and immediately went to make arrangements.
Meanwhile, Jiang Nan saw Zhong Yingxue and Xia Yao still waiting for him on the beach.
He couldn't help but smile: "Why aren't you two going to play?"
Xia Yao stepped forward: "Xiao Nan, is there anything we can help with? I'm a bit worried about your state."
Zhong Yingxue nodded: "Don't put too much pressure on yourself. You still have us."
She could clearly sense that Jiang Nan's mind had been tense ever since they got on the plane, all the way until now.
He'd been arranging everything with absolute precision.
Just now, when he was exchanging fire with Black Claw's people, charging in alone without knowing the enemy's full deployment was extremely dangerous.
Normally, Jiang Nan would never do something like that—he'd use their own firepower advantage to crush the enemy completely.
But this time, he'd rushed in impatiently, trying to eliminate the opponent as fast as possible, not even letting anyone escape to send word.
Jiang Nan rubbed his nose: "Don't worry. Give me a few days, and I'll adjust."
This time, Jiang Nan was truly serious.
Everyone here was from the same academy—he knew every single person.
The Abyss Operation wasn't a game or a joke. Jiang Nan didn't want a single person to die here.
He wanted to bring everyone home safe.
Zhong Yingxue and Xia Yao looked at Jiang Nan, their eyes full of tenderness.
Zhong Yingxue smiled warmly: "Alright, don't you have important things to take care of?"
Amid Xia Yao's startled scream, Jiang Nan scooped up the Big Wolf Girl and threw her over his shoulder, grinning mischievously.
"There are indeed important things to do. Come inside with me quick—time is tight!"
Zhong Yingxue blushed, fidgeting with her fingers. There were still six hours before they left for Nightless City. Go inside?
Was Xiao Nan... about to take care of those important things?
But Xia Yao's heart was like an ancient well.
If Xiao Nan's "important things" matched what Xuexue was thinking, she, Big Wolf Girl, would chug an entire bottle of Big Power 2.0!
...
Inside the room, Jiang Nan pulled out a pile of outdoor backpacks.
And a mountain of system prizes. Just these alone had cost Jiang Nan over 1.2 million resentment points.
Jiang Nan said: "Put 30 Small Ginseng, three bottles of Big Power 2.0, one can of Durian Pulp, one bottle of Big Green Club, and half a catty of Small Soybeans in each backpack."
"Make a first-aid kit for everyone. Better to be prepared."
Zhong Yingxue: (ﾉ)﹏(ヾ) umm~
Xia Yao: (￢～￢.) See? I told you so.