69: Chapter 69 The Enemy Places an Order

"One million?! And no discount?!"

From the other end of the communicator came Director Zhao Yongfu's shocked and furious roar; even through the device, one could imagine the pained and distorted expression on his fat face.

"Supervisor Su! Your price is way too exorbitant! Just for transporting a batch of medical supplies and parts that aren't even that heavy, you want one million nether talismans? That's enough for everyone in my base to live frugally for over half a year!" Director Zhao Yongfu's voice carried uncontrollable anger and a hint of imperceptible panic. His Steel Fortress Base had indeed encountered a major problem recently; an important scouting team had run into a powerful Bizarre Monster and suffered heavy losses. The wounded desperately needed medicine, and the damaged defensive weapons required key parts for repair, otherwise, the base's defenses would have a massive hole. He had originally thought that based on his "understanding" of Lin Chen from his past life (though he didn't know Lin Chen was a reincarnator) and a "sincerity" of five hundred thousand nether talismans, he should be able to settle it. He hadn't expected the other party to open their mouth and double the price!

Following Lin Chen's prior instructions, Su Qingyu's tone was calm and steady, carrying a business-like indifference. "Mr. Zhao, please mind your words. 'Netherworld Express' provides a safe and fast transportation service that is unique in the apocalypse, and its value far exceeds that of ordinary materials. The price is determined through a comprehensive assessment based on the value of the goods, transportation distance, and potential risks, with fair prices for all. If you cannot accept it, you may cancel the order."

Her voice came through the communicator with an unquestionable authority, making Director Zhao Yongfu's heart tremble. Only then did he truly realize that the person on the other end was not some small fry he could easily manipulate, but the spokesperson for Lin Chen—the man rumored to possess an army of Yin Soldiers and control a mysterious Fortress!

Cancel the order? Did he dare? The wailing wounded in the base and the crumbling fortifications couldn't wait! Other survivor bases were either too far away or struggling to save themselves, making it impossible for them to offer help. Lin Chen was currently his only life-saving straw!

Director Zhao Yongfu took several deep breaths, forcibly suppressing the anger and grievance in his heart. He squeezed out a smile that looked worse than crying and softened his tone. "Su... Supervisor Su, don't misunderstand, I didn't mean that. It's just... one million is indeed not a small amount. Could you... could you show some flexibility? Eighty thousand? No, how about eighty-five thousand? Just consider it making a friend..."

In the command room, Lin Chen listened to Director Zhao Yongfu's humble bargaining tone through the speaker, the cold sneer at the corner of his mouth becoming more apparent. In his past life, when this guy had swindled away his parents' relics, he had been extremely arrogant.

He shook his head slightly at Su Qingyu.

Su Qingyu understood and her tone remained cold. "I'm sorry, Mr. Zhao. One million, fixed price. No haggling. I'll give you three minutes to consider; after that, the order will automatically be canceled."

The other end of the communicator fell into a deathly silence, with only Director Zhao Yongfu's heavy and unwilling panting audible.

Every second felt like torture.

Finally, after what felt like a century, Director Zhao Yongfu's voice came through, filled with extreme pain and a hint of gritted teeth.

"...Fine! One million! One million it is! I... I'll pay!"

"Deal," Su Qingyu responded decisively. "Please deliver the goods to the designated handover point and pay a fifty percent deposit in advance. The balance will be paid once the goods arrive safely."

"Understood!" Director Zhao Yongfu spat out those words, almost through gritted teeth.

The communication ended.

Su Qingyu looked at Lin Chen. "He agreed."

Lin Chen sneered. "As expected. People like him cherish their lives above all else. Prepare to receive the goods."

...

Half an hour later, the first handover was completed at a relatively safe abandoned town square about twenty li away from the Underworld Fortress.

Director Zhao Yongfu personally brought a team of elite guards, escorting several sealed metal boxes. When he saw that those responsible for receiving the goods were not humans, but a squad of twenty Yin Soldier Centurions with solid soul fires, excellent equipment, and a chilling baleful aura, his eyelids twitched violently, and his wariness of Lin Chen deepened.

Especially the leading Yin Soldier Centurion; the soul fire in its eye sockets seemed deeper than the others. It silently inspected the goods, and after confirming everything was correct, it directly handed over a specially made nether talisman receiver.

Looking at the receiver, Director Zhao Yongfu's heart bled, but he didn't dare to be negligent and honestly transferred the five hundred thousand nether talismans.

"The goods will be delivered within four hours. Please check and receive them." The Yin Soldier Centurion transmitted the cold message through its soul fire. Then, it and its subordinates, along with the metal boxes, quickly vanished into the ruins of the abandoned town as if merging into the shadows, clearly heading for the rendezvous point with the soul ferry boat.

Looking at the empty square and feeling his "wallet" which was now nearly half empty, Director Zhao Yongfu's face was so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.

"Lin Chen... just you wait! Once I get through this crisis..." he cursed under his breath, a flash of malice in his eyes. He didn't think Lin Chen knew about the events of his past life and only treated this as a case of taking advantage of someone's misfortune.

...

Carrying the goods and the escorting Yin Soldiers, the soul ferry boat shuttled through the gray mist and arrived near Director Zhao Yongfu's "Steel Fortress" base in less than three hours.

When that eerie vessel emitting a faint netherworld aura, along with the Yin Soldiers who descended from it and terrified the base's defenders, delivered the undamaged goods, the entire Steel Fortress Base was in an uproar!

It actually arrived! And so fast! Those terrifying Bizarre Monsters and dangerous areas along the way seemed as if they didn't even exist!

After verifying the goods were correct, Director Zhao Yongfu's expression shifted repeatedly, but he ultimately endured the heart-wrenching pain and paid the remaining five hundred thousand balance.

Netherworld Express, the first order was a success! One million nether talismans earned!

The news spread like wildfire among the survivor bases in the surrounding areas. All suspicion and sense of absurdity were completely shattered in the face of the ironclad facts!

Immediately after, like an avalanche, orders came flooding in!

"Is this Netherworld Express? We want to order a batch of grain! Transport it from 'Bountiful Farm' to our 'City of Hope', price is negotiable!"

"We need weapons! A large number of standard weapons! nether talismans are not an issue!"

"Help! Our base is besieged by powerful Bizarre Monsters and we need urgent support! We can pay a high amount of nether talismans and treasured ancient relics!"

The communication lines were nearly overwhelmed! Su Qingyu, leading the temporarily formed "customer service team" (mainly composed of some quick-witted survivors and low-level Yin Soldier clerks), was extremely busy.

Zhang Hao was even more excited, his face flushed red as he led the expanded "Express Legion" and the soul ferry boat, frequently traveling back and forth between various bases. Every time he returned, he brought back massive amounts of nether talismans and various rare materials!

The Fortress's nether talisman reserves skyrocketed at an unprecedented speed!

Two million!

Five million!

Ten million!

Thirty million!

In just three days, relying on the monopolistic "Netherworld Express" business, Lin Chen had almost tapped into the inventory of all surrounding survivor bases, accumulating as much as fifty million nether talismans! This didn't even include the gains from rare materials, intelligence, and ancient relics used to offset shipping costs!

This speed of wealth accumulation was terrifying!

Morale within the Fortress also soared, and everyone saw hope. It turned out that making money... no, earning nether talismans, could be this easy!

In the command room, Lin Chen looked at the long string of numbers on the system interface with a calm gaze. Fifty million was still a long way from the goal of one billion. But at least, the direction was right.

However, just as the Netherworld Express business was in full swing and Lin Chen was preparing to further expand the scale of operations, an accident occurred.

Zhang Hao led an express squad, escorting a batch of extremely expensive energy cores to a base called "Crucible Fortress." According to the plan, they should have returned six hours ago.

But even now, there was still no word from them.

The Yin Soldier clerk responsible for communications reported to Lin Chen, "My Lord, the nether talisman communication with Zhang Hao's squad is suffering from strong interference and cannot be connected. The last time we received intermittent positioning information, it showed that they... deviated from the planned route and entered the edge of a high-risk Ghost Domain marked as 'Silent Ridge'."

Silent Ridge?

Lin Chen's eyes narrowed. That was a well-known ominous place in the surrounding area. It was said that among the living beings that entered, very few could come out alive; even Bizarre Monsters would take a detour.

Although Zhang Hao was slippery, he was fairly reliable in his work and would never deviate from the route without reason.

Something had happened.

Was it an accident, or... was someone playing tricks?

Lin Chen stood up, the aura around him instantly turning cold.

"Prepare the soul ferry boat."

"I will personally handle this order."