Chapter 1505: Unconditional Cooperation
At dusk, off-road vehicles drove out from Central City, forming a long convoy speeding across the barren plains at a considerable pace.
The two or three vehicles leading the way were the city guard led by Ji Minzhang. These people were the main combat force of Central City. While their level and strength might not be the highest, their combat experience was absolutely rich.
Zone 026 was as barren as a fish about to die of thirst. No grass grew on the ground, nor did any insects breed, so there were no snakes, rodents, or wild beasts to encounter nearby. Their primary duty was to guard against other cities.
Zone 026 itself lacked a mature supply chain, and obtaining resources from outside zones was both dangerous and expensive. Therefore, sometimes certain cities would send players to rob exploration teams or transport convoys dispatched by other cities.
Of course, today Central City had sent out a total of twenty vehicles, each packed with people, so there was no risk of being robbed... besides, the people who might have come to rob them were already sitting in the cars.
Da Jiang and Kang Miao, along with the thirty-plus people they had brought, except for about a dozen who had left early using props, were all squeezed in with the Central City players. For safety reasons, they were scattered across different vehicles. Although Central City had sent people ahead to explain their intentions, they still couldn't believe things would go so smoothly. And because they were separated into different cars, they remained highly alert throughout the journey.
Central City wasn't much better off either. They had the numbers, but they were the ones being coerced.
Earlier, the move Xu Huo had shown in the conference room had shattered the confidence of all the core elites of Central City, including Shaka and Ji Minzhang. Especially after experiencing that rapid death, Xu Huo had said:
"Everything just now was fake. But if we can't reach an agreement this time, it can also become real."
What was real or fake? What agreement or no agreement? This was holding a knife to their throats and asking questions. In the face of true strength, any words were meaningless. They didn't even have the qualifications to bargain.
Fortunately, his demands weren't excessive—he only needed Central City to compromise and back down.
Still, this didn't make the people of Central City submit willingly. They were the ones being forced.
Of course, Xu Huo didn't care what they thought, as long as things proceeded according to his requirements.
The experiment in the conference room had exceeded his expectations. He had originally thought it impossible to simultaneously interfere with so many people at an equal intensity. Probably because the overall strength of the players in Zone 026 wasn't high, it lowered the difficulty of the operation. Additionally, their prolonged gathering together had created favorable conditions for him.
So far, he had basically achieved the two goals of this spiritual power training session.
First, expanding the coverage range of the spiritual realm. This range could be precisely controlled to about seven to eight hundred meters, and could extend outward by another one to two hundred meters, though the power distribution would be weaker there.
Second, learning to perform absolute spiritual realm range control—that is, simultaneously interfering with people within the spiritual realm using equal spiritual power, with a range of only fifty meters.
However, he had also gained an unexpected bonus: the birth of the confusion barrier. Whether used at the edge or inside the spiritual realm, it served as a layer of protection close to a second space for him. Although it couldn't reach the intensity of creating a new space within the spiritual realm, this wall truly existed and was enough to influence many things.
"Mr. Xu, the convoy needs to stop and rest after crossing the canyon ahead," said Bian Zhicheng, another player with an affable demeanor who had taken over Shaka's communication duties. He was in the same car as Xu Huo, sitting in the front passenger seat. "The vehicles in Zone 026 all need manual coating maintenance, otherwise the parts will have problems after prolonged exposure to acid rain."
Xu Huo opened his eyes. "Handle it as you see fit. It would be best if we can reach the slums by dawn tomorrow."
Bian Zhicheng nodded and notified the other vehicles via walkie-talkie. After it was completely dark, the convoy stopped on the other side of the canyon.
Umbrellas were installed outside the vehicles, which would be briefly opened during the application of the maintenance fluid. However, the smell of the fluid was unpleasant, so no one stayed in the cars. The people from Central City had set up rain shelters in advance. Xu Huo stayed under the shelter with the other players to avoid the rain and also took care of dinner.
Da Jiang and Kang Miao, who had been holding back the whole way, finally found a chance to get close to Xu Huo. They wanted to ask what had happened in Central City, but with so many Central City people around, they had to tactfully inquire about the next steps after reaching the slums.
"The think tank of Central City has already made arrangements for this matter," Xu Huo said, looking at Bian Zhicheng.
Bian Zhicheng greeted Da Jiang and the other two and briefly explained the situation.
Xu Huo's demands were: first, that the slums should cease to exist; second, that other cities, including Central City, had to take in some of the slum residents; and third, that in the future, abandoning the old, weak, sick, and disabled would not be allowed. These three things could all be accomplished through water control, and Central City would cooperate unconditionally.
Other players outside the city might not know the details, but Da Jiang and Kang Miao understood that there had been no fighting in Central City. They also couldn't figure out what had happened in between to make Ji Minzhang and the others, who had initially been so arrogant and condescending, now meekly staying in the convoy.
It was truly an eye-opener!
"At the root of it, everyone has a conscience," Xu Huo said with a smile. "Besides, Shaka and I have some history together from other instances."
Shaka, who was sitting nearby drinking water, subconsciously touched his chest. The spot where he had been pierced in the spiritual realm seemed to ache faintly.
After resting for half an hour, they set off again.
At the same time, nearby cities also began to stir.
The news had been released from Central City: they would discuss increasing the water supply in Rain City. Any city interested would surely travel day and night to get there, as opportunities like this were rare.
And Rain City, at the center of the storm, received the feedback from its own players and couldn't believe things had gone so smoothly. They had achieved their goal without losing a single person—something that had never happened in their difficult struggle for survival.
So Rain City convened an emergency meeting of all players overnight. The discussion mainly revolved around how much additional water supply would be appropriate. Too much, and they feared Central City wouldn't agree; too little, and they feared losing out. Moreover, this matter wasn't without variables. Central City's concession was likely due to that outsider player. After he left, the situation might revert to how it was. So they also extended "goodwill" to the surrounding cities, striving to solidify the matter through joint action, to prevent Central City from reneging later.
Compared to the cities bustling with activity all night in the 01 gathering area, the slums on the fringes, after Xu Huo's departure, had returned to their former deathly silence. The underground palace had fled, but the people from the water shop and the casino had also discovered that Xu Huo was no longer in the small inn. After two rounds of probing, they confirmed he had truly left. The water shop then regained control of the street, drove away the gathered children, and tried to redraw the boundaries of influence with the casino.
(Chapter End)