33: Blackwater Gang's surveillance

Night fell once more.

Lu Yuan spread out the map, his finger slowly tracing across it.

The Black Water Gang definitely had more than one outpost.

His gaze finally landed on a winding, thin blue line on the western side of the map.

This was an abandoned riverbed.

It had been dry for many years, with an exposed riverbed and overgrown with weeds.

This path was remote and difficult, but precisely because of this, the defensive forces would surely be the weakest.

I'll go this way!

Leaving Luoshi Town was smooth; the chaotic environment itself was the best cover.

He quickly found the abandoned riverbed.

The riverbed was wider than expected, with steep earthen slopes on both sides covered in dense bushes.

The night wind blew, and the rustling of grass leaves sounded.

Lu Yuan summoned the Wind Bamboo Worm, letting it hover at a low altitude to scout ahead.

He, meanwhile, suppressed his aura and quickly moved stealthily along the edge of the riverbed.

The sand and gravel under his feet were soft, occasionally stepping on dry branches, making faint cracking sounds.

Lu Yuan's mind was highly focused, his Source Power perception raised to its limit, wary of any potential danger.

The wilderness at night was not peaceful.

Occasionally, the roars of demonic beasts could be heard in the distance, and close by, unknown insects chirped.

He even sensed several faint energy fluctuations, seemingly from other Card Masters moving at night.

In any case, Lu Yuan avoided them from a distance, making no contact with anyone.

His goal was only one—Jiangcheng!

Time passed in stealth.

The sky gradually changed from deep black to a hazy gray.

The morning star shone in the east.

On the distant horizon, the towering outline of Jiangcheng's city walls and scattered lights could vaguely be seen.

Closer!

But it also meant that danger was closer.

The closer he got to Jiangcheng, the tighter the Black Water Gang's control would be.

The Wind Bamboo Worm sent back a blurry vision.

About a kilometer ahead, at a bend in the riverbed, there was a faint firelight.

There were also a few blurry figures.

An outpost!

Lu Yuan immediately stopped, crouching behind a cluster of waist-high bushes.

He observed carefully.

It was a temporarily set up outpost, with a few tents and a bonfire.

There were about five or six Black Water Gang members, wearing uniform black jackets, lazily leaning on wooden stakes, smoking and chatting.

Their vigilance seemed to be low.

But Lu Yuan dared not be careless.

Rushing directly would surely lead to discovery.

He had to find a way to distract them.

Lu Yuan took out the Mimicry Technique card.

Source Power slowly flowed in.

He recalled the wolf howls he had heard in Gray Wolf Hills.

He concentrated, controlling the output of his Source Power.

"Awooo—!"

A slightly hoarse but wild wolf howl abruptly sounded from the dense forest to the left rear of the outpost.

The Black Water Gang members by the bonfire instantly became alert.

"What was that sound?"

"It sounds like a wolf howl?"

The few men looked at each other, all a little nervous.

Wolves are pack animals and extremely cunning. A single wolf howl is a feint, often followed by a pack of companions!

"Damn it, why are there still wolves in this godforsaken place?"

"Go check it out! Don't let those beasts sneak up on us!"

The leader growled, drawing the card from his waist.

"Third Brother, Fourth Brother, follow me!"

"The rest of you stay here and keep watch!"

The three immediately activated their respective summon cards and cautiously moved towards the direction from which the wolf howl came.

The outpost's defensive strength was instantly halved.

Now!

Lu Yuan moved, simultaneously activating the Shadow Mantis.

A faint ripple spread, and the Shadow Mantis silently appeared beside him, its body quickly becoming transparent and merging into the shadows.

Shadow Stealth!

Lu Yuan simultaneously suppressed his own Source Power fluctuations to the lowest, lowering his body, and darted out of the bushes like a civet cat.

His speed was extremely fast, his steps light, making almost no sound.

The Shadow Mantis followed closely, its stealth effect covering both of them.

The other three gang members remaining at the outpost mostly had their attention drawn to the dense forest in the distance, occasionally looking nervously at their boss.

No one noticed a blurry shadow, using the darkness and the cover of the bushes along the riverbank, like a ghost, swiftly passing through the outpost's surveillance range.

Fifty meters!

Thirty meters!

Ten meters!

Success!

Lu Yuan held his breath, rushing several hundred meters in one go, until he confirmed he had completely left the outpost's line of sight, then suddenly stopped, leaning against a rock, panting heavily.

Looking back, the firelight from the outpost had become extremely tiny.

He had successfully broken through the Black Water Gang's first blockade outside the city!

Jiangcheng was right before his eyes.

Lu Yuan continued to sneak... It seemed he had overestimated the Black Water Gang, or perhaps Jiangcheng was simply too big, as Lu Yuan somehow managed to slip into the city after all the twists and turns.

Not only did he not even use the escape cards he had prepared in advance, he even snuck past the alloy gate of the safe zone.

Could it be that he had found a secret smuggling route?

This was outrageous... Four in the morning.

Lu Yuan, riding a shared electric scooter, finally snuck back to his old residential area.

He took out the key and opened the door.

The house was empty.

His parents were probably working overtime at their units again; this was already the norm.

He locked the door from the inside, and a wave of exhaustion washed over him.

He took off his dust and grass-stained jacket, took a hot shower, washing away all the fatigue and the smell of blood.

The young man in the mirror, though his face was still tender, already had a certain composure and resilience different from his peers.

The experiences of the past few days were far more thrilling than all his previous years combined.

His stomach rumbled.

Lu Yuan rummaged through the cupboard for a pack of instant noodles, boiled water, cooked the noodles, and added an egg.

He sat at his desk and opened his old computer.

He logged into the Alliance card Trading Platform.

He sorted by descending order and selected the first two-star white card of the flying type.

He wasn't short on money now; if he was going to choose, he would choose the best.

000001 —

Thunderbird

Quality: White

Star Rating: Two-star

Type: beast taming card

Skill 1: Electric Arc (Condenses a small amount of lightning power to unleash a short-range, low-power electric arc attack, with a weak paralyzing effect)

Skill 2: Glide (Spreads wings to perform short to medium-range, low-altitude rapid gliding, while also capable of prolonged hovering)

Skill 3: Eagle Eye (Passive, enhances visual acuity, possesses basic aerial reconnaissance capabilities)

Status: Good

Market Price: 7999 star coins

Remarks: A rare low-altitude lightning-element beast, irritable, difficult to control, with extremely high potential.

This Thunderbird was the only two-star flying beast taming card that came with three skills, and all of them were very practical.

Electric Arc could make up for his short-range attack deficiency, and the accompanying paralyzing effect might have a miraculous effect at critical moments.

Glide could carry him to escape.

Eagle Eye was a Wind Bamboo Worm plus version.

Of course, the price was also the highest, comparable to a two-star green card; in the past, Lu Yuan wouldn't even dare to dream of it.

But now... it was a small matter.

Lu Yuan placed the order directly, choosing expedited delivery, estimated to arrive by the weekend.

It cost 7999 star coins.

Star Coin Balance: 5649

After doing all this, he felt his eyelids heavy.

He collapsed onto the bed, almost instantly falling into a deep sleep...