Damn it! Let’s smash the darkness together!
Chapter 553 - 147: Cao Gang Men in Snake Team, Qiansui Buried in Heroic Society - Part 2 (Requesting Monthly Tickets)_3

Chapter 553: Chapter 147: Cao Gang Men in Snake Team, Qiansui Buried in Heroic Society - Part 2 (Requesting Monthly Tickets)_3

The seventh floor was the top floor.

Xu Shu reached the stairwell and discovered that at the other end of the corridor, by the window, there were two brawny men armed to the teeth, standing guard.

One was lighting a cigarette, the other was scratching an itch, both were yawning in turns.

It was almost 2 a.m., the time when most people would feel the sleepiest in their day, and these guards, who had been vigilant until this moment, were looking for something stimulating to keep themselves awake.

Xu Shu fell silent for a moment, then peeled a ceramic tile off the wall, breaking it into two fist-sized pieces.

He took aim and, with a whoosh-whooosh, hurled the stones through the air. Despite the distance of sixty to seventy meters, they hit the two brawny men squarely in the forehead, piercing their skulls.

Without uttering a cry, they died effortlessly, collapsing lifelessly to the ground.

"It seems they’re not Transcendents."

Xu Shu nodded, his face expressionless, as if the creatures he had just killed were not two humans but two chickens.

He lowered his steps and moved forward. Halfway there, he heard voices coming from behind a door and promptly pressed his ear against it to listen.

It was a bit noisy inside, with occasional cries, but it didn’t prevent eavesdropping.

---

"Boss Cha, we had a clear contract agreed upon before, thirty thousand per head! Our brothers went through a lot of trouble, using both brawn and brain, too tired to even sleep, hastening day and night to deliver these goods on time. Now you open your golden mouth, and the price drops just like that, that’s not proper, is it?" A charming voice resonated with a mood of deadly seriousness.

Xu Shu remembered this voice, it belonged to the receptionist who had wanted him to explore her cave, Little Mudan.

Another man’s voice answered, clangy and hollow:

"Sister Mudan, you know the rules, we all do. However, the Wasteland has become so unstable recently, with so many troops dispatched from the city. You can’t have failed to notice, right?"

Yet another man spoke: "The Wasteland being unstable makes business even harder; the prices should go up! Why would you lower them?"

"Brother Wu, you’re not seeing the big picture. I know your Snake Team’s business is tough, but it’s not just you, our distribution channels are struggling too! Go ask around; besides our Cao Gang, which other factions are still buying live goods? It’s a loss."

"Even so, one hundred thousand a piece is too heartless!"

"Sigh, the main issue is the quality of your goods. Look at these kids, all pale and skinny; you can tell their internal organs are no good. Look, look—tsk tsk—this blood is rotten, no use at all. You’re not trying to pad your numbers with those sick lambs from the Wasteland, are you?"

"This one is on the house. But among the others, there are those who’ve just left the city; look at these few, smooth-skinned and tender. They could be star attractions in the rouge house! No matter what you say, this price is not possible!"

"Let’s meet halfway, one hundred and fifty thousand."

"The lowest I’ll go is two hundred and fifty thousand!"

"Well, how about this: let the elders from the Heroic Society appraise them. Those of high quality, we’ll pay twenty-five thousand, ordinary quality, just fifteen. How’s that..."

The people inside continued to bicker endlessly over the price.

But Xu Shu had roughly understood.

This was a discussion of a major business.

Human trafficking.

The Cao Gang, Xu Shu was aware of it.

It was the biggest commercial guild in the safe district; he had once considered working there before graduating. The managers there, taking issue with his lack of experience, suggested he start as a Scavenger for a couple of years.

The Snake Team, he knew them too, having been caught by them before.

The Snake Team couldn’t be considered a formal gang, just a bunch of scattered groups involved in human trafficking.

It had been those "Snake Team" fellows who had trapped Xu Shu and then fallen with him into Black Widow’s cave.

Only today he’d found out that the Cao Gang conducted business with these human traffickers.

Wait a minute.

Fuck, no wonder the Cao Gang’s suggestion for him was to go scavenging.

They had set their sights on his body!

However, back then, at least the Snake Team had waited to make their move until they were hundreds of kilometers away from the safe district, in secluded areas.

But now, here they were, just about twenty kilometers from the safe zone, daring to kidnap for organs and sell people off.

And they had caught so many?

Must be seventy or eighty, perhaps?

Was there no law left?

No more legal system?

A flicker of rage instantly passed through Xu Shu’s eyes.

As for the so-called Heroic Society that they mentioned, Xu Shu had never even heard of it.

But that was normal.

He hadn’t been a Transcendent for long, nor had he ever mingled with these underground forces in the safe zone; it was perfectly natural for him not to be familiar with these so-called evil organizations, the likes of demons and monsters.

From what he gathered, it sounded like the Heroic Society was somehow superior to the Cao Gang?

Xu Shu’s eyes darted back and forth as he grappled with the decision to storm in or to avoid the fray for the time being.

This bunch had significant clout, and their true strength was unknown.

But what he could be certain of was that there were Transcendents involved, and not just one.

This was the answer given by his ’Spiritual Perception.’

However, as for their specific capabilities, Spiritual Perception could not reveal that much; judging by the chilling sensation he felt, their power was likely not to be underestimated.

These were the most troublesome "human traffickers" he had ever encountered!

The safest course of action would be to find a place to wait for a little while, wait for daylight, for the Tai Chu Scroll to reset, then set off on his journey to probe the depths of their strength.

But what if they chose to slice open and gut their "merchandise" to take away right now?

Should he intervene then?

Xu Shu frowned deeply.

He was inclined to rescue people, to do a good deed in the name of Exorcism, but he didn’t want to risk himself in the process.

He had family and friends; he couldn’t afford to die here.

While he hesitated, he heard Little Mudan’s voice coming from inside again.

"I’ve talked till I’m blue in the face, so let the scribe from the Heroic Society inspect the goods before we discuss further!"

"Hehe, then I’ll begin."

This was the voice of an elderly man.

Soon afterward, Xu Shu heard rustling noises from inside.

Apart from the muffled cries for help of "mmm" from the gagged captives, there arose a series of rhythmic chanting.

"Hmm?"

What were they chanting?

Xu Shu was momentarily startled.

He was curious, but the door had no cracks, and he couldn’t see inside.

After a moment of contemplation, Xu Shu finally chose the approach he was most skilled in.

He ran to the window outside, climbed to the rooftop, then wrapped spiderweb around his feet and began to scale down the wall upside down.

Before long, he revealed a pair of eyes in the corner, stealthily peering in.

The room was spacious.

A group of people dressed in black,

Many people.

They were distinctly divided into four groups.

The first group was captives, all tightly bound and immobilized on the ground with something that looked like smelly socks stuffed in their mouths. There were many of them, more than Xu Shu had initially estimated; counting them now, there were over a hundred.

The second group was led by Little Mudan’s Snake Team; they numbered about twenty people, with Little Mudan dressed quite provocatively, like a sly vixen.

The third group was presumably the Cao Gang, who, unlike the burly appearance he had imagined, were a group dressed in very respectable suits and leather shoes, proper scoundrels in gentleman’s clothing.

And the last group was, naturally, the scribe from the "Heroic Society."

An old man with white hair and beard, he was sitting cross-legged on the ground, surrounding a huge Array, leading a group of people in white in a frenzied dance, shaking their hands and feet in a bizarre manner.

Xu Shu’s gaze immediately sharpened.

Huh?

This was different from the usual human trafficking he had imagined.

Could it be a Cult’s ritualistic ceremony happening here?

Xu Shu rubbed his hands together, feeling somewhat incredulous.

He hadn’t expected that in this world, there weren’t only heroes in multitudes.

There was also the practice of Esoteric Buddhism and Cult rituals!