Starting Cultivation in Wasteland

Chapter 926 - 794: The Trap

Qu Jianlei self-reflected, if he wasn’t mistaken, the Qingfeng Merchants Association should have parted ways with the Shenwen Society.These two organizations never really got along.

One is a regional commercial organization, ruthless and violent, not even giving a thought to the government.

The other is a government agency, with vast power and astonishing influence, acting erratically domineering.

The two organizations could briefly cooperate because they had to jointly deal with Panda, which later led to heavy casualties, forcing a suspension.

Later, the Shenwen Society received strong reinforcements, but the Qingfeng Merchants Association chose to remain passive due to interest considerations.

Now, the news of slaughter on Star No. 2 has arrived, have these two joined forces again? Qu Jianlei was a bit puzzled.

But it doesn’t matter anymore, it always boils down to power or interest, taking things one step at a time is sufficient.

After disembarking from the starship, the group continued their play, except Granny Jia excusing herself after a brief greeting to leave.

The old lady was ultimately not quite accustomed to playing with them, while the rest didn’t mind.

For two days, during which time, Little Lake kept an eye on the Qingfeng Merchants Association’s people, constantly monitoring their wristbands.

The association’s original strategy was to remain huddled on the Star of Hope, barely maintaining business within the Star Realm.

The remaining supreme, called Cessna, took over from Amestina’s supremacy, being notably prudent.

Under normal circumstances, this person’s wristwatch would remain shielded, but in two days, Little Lake still gained considerable knowledge.

The Qingfeng Merchants Association was passively drawn into this, fully indicating Cessna did not want to be involved in this matter.

However, the Shenwen Society proactively reached out, claiming Panda’s threat was fierce, necessitating their alliance.

Orchestrating this was Hokkstan, the exceptionally aggressive supreme of the Shenwen Society, initially desiring to hunt down Panda.

He perceived their lack of interest, spoke some warning words, and applied pressure.

However, most crucially, he questioned Cessna confidently: Do you feel if the association doesn’t react, Panda will let you off?

Back then, it was you who proactively dealt with Panda, resulting in considerable losses.

Later, you indeed abandoned it, but... have you received Panda’s forgiveness?

You didn’t receive forgiveness and yet remain huddled in a corner, much like a coward hoping for a fluke, where is Blade people’s valiant courage?

Cessna is one of the rare cautious figures within the Qingfeng Merchants Association, otherwise, it wouldn’t have been him overseeing affairs in the Hope Star Realm.

However, Hokkstan’s words bore intense malice, he knew what was happening clearly, but the other Blade people couldn’t tolerate it after listening.

He had no choice but to feign compliance, outwardly engaging with the Shenwen Society’s act—chiefly because they couldn’t afford to offend the Shenwen Society.

But privately, he’s complained about Hokkstan’s conduct, not just once or twice, Little Lake at minimum heard twice.

Qu Jianlei suddenly understood: I was right, Qingfeng Merchants Association was just a commercial organization, how could it repeatedly seek destruction?

But it doesn’t matter; just another enemy, my account with the counterpart was never settled.

Another three days passed, and Qu Jianlei summarized a pattern, the four supremes consciously gathered together.

During daytime operations, two supremes would team up and go out, while the other two watched over the premises.

The selected location was a small estate on the city outskirts, with quite strict security.

In the yard stood a three-story building, and the estate’s four corners had semi-underground fortifications, originally part of a regional backup defense system.

This estate had been there for many years, in an idle state, yet the basic facilities remained quite decent.

After Qingfeng Merchants Association leased this site, they renovated, adding numerous weapon systems.

Their aim was to create a fortress, purely to meet defensive needs.

Days ago, Shenwen Society approached, using coercion to force the association into collaboration, later moving in their own personnel too.

Superficially, both had merged efforts, but Shenwen Society’s forced entry offended Qingfeng Merchants Association.

Simultaneously, they had somewhat involuntarily bound the association, preventing them from ceasing operations.

As for periodically, having two supremes go out together, it was a necessity; it’s unlikely all four would remain in the estate.

But when they went out, it was always broad daylight, exclusively choosing bustling routes, escorted by a convoy before and after.

Moreover, these individuals had extremely strong protective awareness, on one cloudy day with potential rain, the two supremes didn’t venture out.

If attacking the convoy when out, the difficulty wouldn’t be too high, but it would directly offend the Hope Star Government.

Evidently, now Shenwen Society’s bunch was still quite adept in utilizing varying kidnappings.

Qu Jianlei was quite disgusted by this: Do you feel mighty being protected by the Hope Star Government?

He was already not favorable towards the government of this Star Realm.

Whether it’s the existence of the Garbage Star or Hoyel’s murder, both indicate this system wasn’t straightforwardly dark.

However, whether to attack them and how exactly, he was still decided to wait until seeing Granny Jia to finalize.

After all, Paranoid this fellow was somewhat unreliable—to him, this man acted quite unrestrainedly.

Another day passed, and the old lady finally appeared; Qu Jianlei described the situation he observed.

However, Granny Jia straightforwardly stated, "What you’ve observed is merely the surface; this is a trap!"

In fact, not far from the manor, within a radius of five or six kilometers, in three different directions, three company-level warships were hidden.

These are standard military warships, and besides them, there are also two armed merchant ships—presumably starships of the Divine Text Association.

It’s unclear how they worked with the military, but crucially, all five starships have obtained unlimited firing authority from the government.

This authority is incredibly significant, as they no longer require government approval and can open fire whenever deemed necessary.

If anyone attacks the manor, or if an outbound convoy is ambushed, the five starships can immediately launch and attack the assailants.

The Divine Text Association paid a substantial price to obtain such authority.

Granny Jia seriously remarked, "The other side’s attitude is clear; at least two individuals must be captured alive."

This setup is formidable, but to say they want to annihilate the Panda Team is probably beyond their capability.

The Panda Team is not only tough and ruthless but, most crucially, mysterious. The Divine Text Association has never gathered more intelligence on them.

Thus, the minimum demand is to capture members of the opposing organization, to follow the trail to more.

Qu Jianlei pondered and asked, "The channel through which you obtained this information, will it potentially land you in trouble?"

"No," the old lady shook her head decisively, "The Divine Text Association is intimidating, but many are dissatisfied with them."

That’s good! Qu Jianlei nodded, "It seems we need to carefully formulate a plan."

"Be quick," the old lady firmly stated, "The Divine Text Association is furious about this, and they will send more Supremes, timing undetermined."

A glint of sharpness flashed in Qu Jianlei’s eyes, and finally, he nodded, "I only fear they wouldn’t come!"

In the afternoon, Granny Jia once again manipulated the rain clouds, and near midnight, it began to rain.

Taking advantage of this rainy night, Qu Jianlei and others set out to carefully investigate the situation of the five starships.

The three company-level military warships occupied three positions and were activated using underground catapult installations.

If it weren’t for the information Granny Jia procured, Qu Jianlei would really have been kept in the dark.

His spiritual perception is strong enough, but the opposition remained highly alert, so how could he possibly stir up any trouble unnoticed?

The two armed starships were located at a City Guard base, positioned on the surface catapults.

These two starships were slightly farther away, but highly deceptive, as the City Guard indeed had armed merchant ships in its ranks.

It resembles the Customs Enforcement Division’s non-staff personnel, yet there’s also a real need for it.

When the City Guard executes public security tasks, they inevitably encounter troublemakers, possibly requiring armed starship support.

However, sending out standard warships at every whim stirs tension, thus using armed merchant ships is more appropriate.

After all, they are not the military, not even considered frontline reserves, and if all their weapons matched the military’s, it would seem off.

That the Divine Text Association managed to stash their starships there is undeniably impressive; these guys truly excel at exploiting human weaknesses.

If not for the old lady’s quick information, Qu Jianlei would have genuinely been kept in the dark.

But now they have discovered the secret, the initiative is in Qu Jianlei’s hands.

All five starships are on standby, with the crew directly resting inside, with ammunition ready to load at any moment.

The opposing side understands the formidable nature of their opponents and dares not relax.

"Must they be so desperate?" Qu Jianlei shook his head in exasperation.

If he had ample time, he could potentially drag it out, keeping the other side constantly tense, and see how long they can endure.

However, the arrival of the Divine Text Association reinforcements is uncertain, and time is not on his side.

That night, they not only clarified the situation but also made corresponding arrangements.

In fact, for the Divine Text Association and Cyan Blade Commerce Association, this particular night was intensely tense because... it rained!

They were aware of the two battles on Star No. 2, and they knew that among the attackers, there was a Water Attribute Supreme.

If it were a less knowledgeable Supreme, they might consider it a coincidence, but the Divine Text Association... possessed too much related knowledge!

They strongly suspected that the widespread rain wasn’t a natural phenomenon, but the handiwork of a Water Attribute Supreme.

According to one Supreme, "The Divine Text Association also has Supremes capable of such feats."

Moreover, the weather data of Star No. 2 also proved that, that rain came... somewhat unexpectedly.

This evening’s rain was somewhat similar, where the official forecast showed high humidity levels, yet not enough to produce rainfall.

The entire night, everyone was on edge, ready to confront impending intruders at any moment.

Unnoticed, the sky grew lighter, and the drizzle ceased.

Even so, they remained vigilant—the moisture in the air was still high, providing a combat power advantage for the Water Attribute.

The fact is, the Divine Text Association also has a Water Attribute Supreme capable of harnessing water elements.

However, this person is well aware of their capabilities, and does not believe they can surpass the opposing Water Attribute Supreme, nor has the courage to battle one-on-one.