6: Split the bill, a lavish meal

After selling the prey, the next step was naturally dividing the money.

The few of them stood beside the pickup truck parked in the warehouse backyard, laughing and gathering in a circle.

"Come, Xiao Yang, this share is yours."

Looking at the two thousand martial coins credited to his watch, Ye Yang was shocked and quickly refused: "Uncle Liu, this won't do, it's too much. Besides, you paid for my bow and arrow and armor."

"How about this: I'll take one thousand, and the rest goes back to you to slowly pay off the cost of the armor and the bow and arrow."

"Get lost!"

Uncle Liu laughed and cursed, stopping Ye Yang who was trying to transfer the money: "It's not easy for you and your sister. You take the money for now. We can talk about the armor and bow and arrow money later."

"Uncle Liu isn't short of this little bit."

"Exactly, Xiao Yang, take it without worry." Liu Wu hugged Ye Yang and laughed: "We'll be eating from the same pot from now on, are we afraid you'll run away? Take it first, we'll discuss the rest later."

Ye Yang, who was being hugged, couldn't struggle. He looked around and saw everyone in the Hunting Group smiling at him, and his heart was filled with warmth.

In this Hunting Group, he clearly felt a familial warmth. No wonder he remembered his parents always telling him that Uncle Liu and the others were trustworthy when they were still alive.

Even Red Rhombus and the two later additions seemed reliable in character now.

"In that case, Uncle Liu, Brother Wu, thank you."

"What are you thanking me for? This is all what you deserve; I didn't give you an extra cent," Uncle Liu chuckled again.

Indeed, he hadn't been given extra.

Most of Ye Yang's two thousand martial coins share came from the three Iron Tooth Rabbits. Because their fur was perfect, the warehouse owner paid a high price; otherwise, he wouldn't have received so much.

After all, the most valuable Thorn Pig had little to do with him, and since he was a newcomer, he only received three hundred martial coins from it.

After dividing the money, the group left the market.

The vehicles were stored here and wouldn't be lost. Parking inside the city was inconvenient. Only the Inner City had parking lots; the Outer City did not have such a luxury configuration.

After all, cars were pitifully scarce throughout the Outer City.

Uncle Liu's family also lived in the Outer City.

The Inner City wasn't a place where you could live just by having money; you also needed strength and status.

However, compared to Ye Yang's two-bedroom apartment, Uncle Liu's house was a detached courtyard near the Inner City wall. The monthly rent for this place was several times that of a two-bedroom apartment.

Even so, countless people wanted to rent this kind of house.

Because the closer one was to the Inner City, the safer it was!

The Base City was not absolutely safe. For instance, the Outer City wall had been breached quite a few times before, but the Inner City had never been breached so far.

And once the Outer City wall was breached, those closer to the wall naturally died faster.

Therefore, as long as conditions allowed, everyone tried their best to move closer to the Inner City wall, or even find ways to enter the Inner City. Only by entering the Inner City could one be truly safe.

And life could become better.

But all of this required one prerequisite: martial coins, enough martial coins.

Arriving downstairs and separating from the others, Ye Yang, dressed in leather armor, carrying a black quiver, and holding a compound bow, stepped into the stairwell. The neighbors he met on the way, upon seeing his attire, all showed reverence, and their attitude was countless times better than before.

A Hunting Group member, even if only a member of the lowest-level small Hunting Group, still represented a status.

In this Outer City, this status surpassed countless people, aside from the City Guard, Public Security Team, and others. Furthermore, joining a Hunting Group meant having backing, and even the Public Security Team would view him highly and wouldn't recklessly offend him.

Ye Yang still wore a brilliant smile, responding to the neighbors he knew, but his feet kept moving.

He quickly reached the third floor, knocked on the door and called out, then took out his key and opened the door.

"Brother!" This time, Ye Xinxin ran faster and more urgently.

When she reached the doorway and saw that her brother seemed unharmed, she slowed her pace. After closing the door and entering the room, putting down his bow and arrow, and taking off his leather armor, kneepads, and leg guards, Ye Yang stood still, accepting his sister's inspection, before finally smiling:

"Alright, alright, Brother is fine, truly fine."

"Oh right, Xin Xin, come and sit down quickly, I have good news for you."

Ye Xinxin walked over and obediently sat down beside Ye Yang.

Opening his communication watch and pulling up the transfer record, Ye Yang said happily: "Xin Xin, look quickly, Brother earned two thousand martial coins in just one day today, which is more than what I used to earn in a month."

"Come on, change your clothes. Brother will take you out to buy delicious food, and we'll have a feast tonight..."

*Plop*, Ye Yang, who was speaking excitedly, suddenly felt a coolness on the back of his hand. He looked up and realized his sister's tears were falling rapidly.

Suddenly, he was at a loss.

"Xin Xin, what's wrong? Don't cry. Did someone bully you? Tell Brother, and Brother will deal with him. Even if Brother can't handle it, we have my Hunting Group companions."

"Waaah!"

Ye Xinxin burst into tears and threw herself into Ye Yang's arms.

This loud cry made Ye Yang's heart thump heavily, and he panicked, afraid that someone had bullied his sister. Instantly, killing intent surged in his heart.

"Xin Xin, be good, tell Brother who bullied you."

"No, no one bullied me. It's just, just Brother, can we not go out of the city anymore? Xin Xin is scared, scared that one day you might also..."

Looking at his sister's tear-streaked face, Ye Yang felt a sense of relief, but at the same time, his heart was severely wrenched.

He knew his sister was afraid, afraid that he, like their parents, would go out and never return. But... in this damned world, if he didn't fight, where would their future come from?

Furthermore, now that he had a rare golden finger, it was impossible for him to give up.

Reaching out to wipe the tears from his sister's small face, Ye Yang smiled and said: "Silly girl, Brother knows. Do you see the bow and arrow by the door? Brother follows behind, and Uncle Liu and the others are blocking in front."

"And Uncle Liu is very cautious. We only operate on the periphery, so there's no danger at all. Even if there is danger, Brother is far away and can run fast."

"Don't cry anymore, go wash your face quickly, and we'll go out to buy groceries."

"Rea- really?"

Glancing at the bow and arrow by the door, the little girl was somewhat convinced.

"I swear, if I'm lying, I'll turn into an Iron Tooth Rabbit."

Seeing Ye Yang swear seriously, Ye Xinxin believed him. Her brother had never lied to her since childhood, and he certainly wouldn't this time.

The trust built between the siblings over the years played a crucial role at this moment.

Of course, the bow and arrow also helped. Otherwise, if he had brought back a knife, the result would definitely have been different.

After washing up and changing clothes, the siblings went downstairs hand-in-hand and bought a lot of meat and vegetables, and, of course, snacks, at the nearby market.

Snacks were definitely a luxury for children in the Outer City.

Ye Xinxin was naturally no exception.

The money they had before was barely enough for the two of them to live on, so where would they get money to buy things like snacks? But now it was different. With a wave of his hand, Ye Yang bought four bags of candy and preserved fruit for twenty martial coins.

Back home, with the candy Brother bought in her mouth, Ye Xinxin, who was not yet twelve years old, hummed the tune "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and went into the kitchen to cook.

Ye Yang naturally taught her this tune. Over the years, whenever the siblings rested, Ye Yang would sing. He had sung many such songs, and Ye Xinxin had learned some of them.

Dinner was very rich.

There were a full four pounds of Evolved Beast meat alone, plus two kinds of vegetables.

The beast meat was naturally low-grade Iron Tooth Rabbit meat, twenty-five martial coins per pound, totaling one hundred martial coins. The two types of vegetables, just over a pound each, also cost more than twenty martial coins.

Vegetables were also expensive in this world.

However, some of the energy contained within them could neutralize the effects of the beast meat, which was quite miraculous.

Moreover, they tasted better and had a special aroma.

In the Outer City, fewer people could afford to eat vegetables with every meal than those who ate beast meat. After all, besides satisfying one's appetite, vegetables had no effect on cultivation.

As for ordinary people, they shouldn't even think about Evolved Beast meat, as one meal could consume several days' worth of food expenses; it was good enough if they could eat some ordinary poultry or livestock meat.

Therefore, this meal was definitely a luxury for the people of the Outer City.

Even when their parents were alive, spending over one hundred martial coins on one meal, plus over twenty martial coins for snacks, totaling more than one hundred and fifty martial coins, was something they would only afford during the New Year or festivals.