41: Let's not contact each other anymore...

Facing Lao Xu's request, Cheng Zhen, adhering to the principle of respecting everyone's unique preferences, firmly rejected him.

Are you kidding? NPCs have stats, do you?

Don't forget the two tribes were rivals before. Cheng Zhen only recruited him to achieve a special ending, he wasn't so naive as to trust the other party just like that.

Who knows if you'll be working for one side while secretly plotting for another, preparing to overthrow the current regime?

Cheng Zhen will lead him through the game as promised, but he will nip all potential dangers in the bud, preventing Lao Xu and the surrendered soldiers from having any contact or connection.

Want to work?

Dream on!

I'm going to make sure you can't do anything, just be a hanger-on who eats and waits to die!

Lao Xu, unaware that Cheng Zhen had 'cruelly' deprived him of his right to labor, thought he didn't even have the same treatment as an NPC and immediately became anxious.

After several days of eating grass and tree bark, his eyes were practically glowing green at the sight of beef noodles, like a wolf that hadn't eaten for days.

Like the internet-famous wolves of Kekexili, if you offer an egg yolk pie, what's wrong with abandoning your dignity?

So Lao Xu strongly expressed to Cheng Zhen his desire to be enslaved (crossed out) his desire to work.

Cheng Zhen: "..." Too perverted, stay away from him.

Lao Xu: Are you serious about taking half a step back? Such a small action causes so much harm.

The craving for food made his mind race. He had to maximize his value to exchange for food—

[Skill: Your Black Cleaver is with me]

[Effect Description: When someone says the line: 'Where's my Black Cleaver?', the skill can be activated immediately to obtain a black double-bladed axe.]

[Note: A certain shop owner, while dozing off, suddenly received a powerful piece of equipment. Perhaps it was a friendly gift from some strong individual...]

[Weapon: Black Double-Bladed Axe]

[Quality: Excellent]

[Effect Description: It has all the functions a double-bladed axe has, and the functions a double-bladed axe doesn't have... it doesn't have either!]

[Note: This item will automatically disappear if it moves more than 500 meters away from the skill caster 'Xu Qiang'.]

Cheng Zhen was actually quite curious about what kind of skill those weapons were. He didn't expect Lao Xu to be so proactive in confessing and even willing to update equipment for A Kun Duo and others.

Could this person truly love labor?

Although Cheng Zhen didn't know why Lao Xu was so eager to improve, it wasn't a bad thing.

Considering that the surrendered soldiers' stats would continuously drop after being starved, Cheng Zhen first gave them their initial portion of food.

Lao Xu (believed) that his sincerity had moved the other party, and he ate with tears in his eyes.

Finally, he was eating human food again!!!

Not unsalted dried roasted meat, not tooth-breaking black flatbread, not sour and astringent green grass and bitter tree bark...

Large, tender, and juicy chunks of beef, fresh, sweet, and hydrating tomatoes, and a glossy, rich, savory sauce...

Lao Xu, whose mouth had always been pampered by various delicacies from the foodie nation, felt reborn after enduring torment in the true 'food Desert'.

Lao Xu was so moved he wanted to cry, but then he heard someone crying even louder next to him.

The natives of the Giant Camel Tribe had never tasted such delicious food in their lives. Like A Kun Duo and his group's first meal, they almost wanted to chew and eat their bowls.

After they reluctantly licked their bowls clean, they suddenly realized—this delicious food, there's THREE meals a day?!

Three meals...

Three...

...

The surrendered soldiers looked at their bowls, then at Lao Xu next to them.

Let's not contact each other anymore, I'm afraid Leader Cheng Zhen will misunderstand.

Cheng Zhen, who was observing the stat changes, watched as the loyalty of these new NPCs suddenly exploded.

It was maxed out, truly maxed out. The numbers looked like they wanted to pierce through the panel.

Cheng Zhen looked at his subordinates, who were disloyal a second ago and now fiercely loyal, and gave a '6'.

To win a man's heart, you must first win his stomach. The ancients did not deceive me.

It seems this time, we really are going all the way to North America...

...

"Hoo... huff... cough cough!"

Under the scorching sun, a dozen figures stumbled forward.

"Leader, be careful!"

One person reached out and steadied Jin Yu, who almost fell.

"...Thank you."

Jin Yu steadied herself, pulled out her water skin, but it was already empty.

More than a day had passed since she escaped from Xiao Xi.

Even though the other party hadn't pursued her after being poisoned and injured, Jin Yu didn't dare to stop, because she knew Xiao Xi's skill was tracking-based. Although she didn't know the range of that guy's skill, it was always better to get as far away as possible.

"It makes me so angry, why didn't I just stab that scoundrel to death!"

Jin Yu gasped for breath, almost bruising her thigh from slapping it.

Her prepared self-defense trump card did cause effective damage and gave her a chance to kill Xiao Xi. Unfortunately, her strength was too low, and she was ultimately blocked by the opponent.

Although the Desert Golden Scorpion is called a killer scorpion, it is due to its fierce temperament and strong aggressiveness, actively attacking humans. Its own venom is not enough to kill an adult in a short time.

Moreover, Xiao Xi's body had been strengthened with intermediate potions, making him more resistant, so he probably wouldn't die from a sting.

However, the neurological poisoning reaction was still quite severe, and Xiao Xi's combat power was greatly affected, which allowed Jin Yu to escape.

But when she thought of most of her assets being lost in the Green Oasis, Jin Yu gritted her teeth in regret.

How could she have trusted that beast in human form!

At this point, regret was useless; she had to figure out what to do next.

Jin Yu also understood that in a confrontation, everyone was an opponent, and with only a dozen or so remnants like her, she was basically destined for an early exit.

But she didn't want to die so soon.

Although she had no map, weapons, or food, her skills could still be used. With the help of the Pencil-tailed Tree Mouse, she could find some roots to fill her stomach.

While Jin Yu sat down to rest, she pulled out the food-finding sand rat again, to see if it could find anything else.

A breeze swept by, and the Pencil-tailed Tree Mouse's nose twitched, then suddenly perked up.

'Food... over there...'

Jin Yu understood its meaning.

Although it was probably just roots and cacti, it was better than starving to death.

After determining the direction, Jin Yu led her people to search for food.

But after climbing over a sand dune, her face suddenly changed.

A Green Oasis, which should have been a place of hope for Desert travelers, was now a terrifying beast to Jin Yu.

Every strategist would try to occupy a Green Oasis by any means, and the one before her was certainly no exception.

Hunger and fatigue had already significantly lowered Jin Yu and her group's stats, and what's more, they only had about ten people. Wasn't this just walking into a trap?

"Go, go, let's go quickly!"

She turned her head and called out to the others, planning to leave, but when she turned back, her face instantly went pale.

From behind, two teams of patrolling people approached from left and right, completely blocking their escape route.

Jin Yu looked down and had a deep, soulful gaze with the rat's round, black eyes.

Big brother, I asked you to find food, not to order takeout for others!