Starting Cultivation in Wasteland

Chapter 992 - 858: Dilemma

The main thing is that the elderly woman has lived long enough to know many old secrets that can’t be hidden from her.She casually mentioned Mu Yu, who’s a prodigy not much older than her.

However, she cryptically suggested that this woman has an unusual connection with the Paranoid.

But when Qu Jianlei asked further, she refused to say more, leaving people speechless.

This time, the Paranoid proactively stepped forward, which indeed reflected the situation.

Nonetheless, Qu Jianlei seized the opportunity to shed this burden; whether to kill or release, someone finally made the decision.

Qu Jianlei considers himself decisive in matters of life and death, but when it comes to those that could go either way, he’s truly at a loss.

He’s inclined to avoid wanton killing, but the Imperial places more emphasis on erring on the side of caution, so... better let others worry about it.

He’s just contemplating how he and the Paranoid could escape with minimum impact once the deed is done.

About ten minutes later, the Paranoid and the woman came out, "Let’s go, to the shopping mall."

Qu Jianlei rolled his eyes at the suggestion; just hearing the words, he knew what had happened.

However, he couldn’t be bothered to ask; despite the Paranoid’s many quirks, his reliability wasn’t in question.

Of course, definitely not as reliable as the elderly woman, but outsmarting him would be nearly impossible for most.

So he simply replied, "Think of how we’ll make our escape."

When arriving at the parking lot and dragging people into the restroom, it already seemed suspicious and couldn’t withstand investigation from the vigilant.

It’s crucial to have an escape plan in mind.

"Of course," replied the Paranoid without hesitation, "why else would I go into a mall?"

"Changing clothes, disguising, altering routes... I’ve arranged everything; trust me," he added.

Qu Jianlei cast him a suspicious glance; this guy seems... particularly methodical today.

The three meandered through the mall for over half an hour—each going their separate ways.

Nonetheless, Qu Jianlei observed the Paranoid purchasing some women’s clothes and accessories.

It must have cost quite a lot, but it hardly mattered since it was his own money.

At this thought, Qu Jianlei suddenly realized their financial situation seemed rather chaotic.

Previously, he hadn’t paid attention to this; everyone lived day-to-day, and all assets were communal.

Any public expenses were covered from a shared fund he managed, accessible to anyone in need.

If a larger expenditure was necessary, others approached him for funds—so far, this has happened just once with the Fourth Master.

Typically, he allocated the team’s Cultivation Resources well, leaving little financial strain, with members having some petty cash.

However, as the team grew, should he start considering formalizing their finances?

Yet, the next moment, he shook his head with self-deprecation.

Just a fugitive team barely scraping by, and now they want to operate like a corporation... Is that realistic?

After shopping, the three altered their appearances and left separately, the Paranoid taking the woman, meeting up at the hotel later.

Then, the Paranoid handed the woman over to Xiang Xue and went off to find the elderly woman.

Xiang Xue knew this woman was a junior from Chaoyang Academy and engaged her in conversation with interest.

At the moment, Celestial Sound’s feelings are quite complex.

She never dreamed that in wanting to snatch a purse, she’d run into a terrifying team of High Tier Awakened.

Never mind the two men; the woman before her, as well as the other woman watching coldly, were all A-level.

She came to Paradise Star seeking aid, as her aunt’s family faced dire troubles.

Unfortunately, no clear answer was given until recently when things turned completely sour, forcing her and her cousin to flee.

Now this A-level Water Attribute woman hails from Chaoyang too—theoretically a senior, but she dared not reveal everything.

Luckily, her senior’s attitude was decent and engaged her in idle chat.

Celestial Sound was aware the other was probing, but this exchange between senior and junior was not entirely unwelcome.

Initially, she maintained some caution, but as they discussed more familiar faces and events, their relationship rapidly closed in.

Until Celestial Sound’s stomach rumbled again, prompting Xiang Xue’s realization, "You haven’t eaten yet, right?"

The hotel’s dining service was convenient, and soon food was delivered; Celestial Sound feigned no pretense, diving into eating and drinking.

Flower Scorpion watched them chat with a cold eye; seeing the woman’s dining demeanor, she couldn’t help but shake her head.

—This woman, although terribly hungry, still maintained her elegance while eating, if a bit hurriedly.

Flower Scorpion came from such humble beginnings that she intensely envied such cultivated grace.

However, that was for others to ponder; she couldn’t be bothered with it.

Once Celestial Sound finished eating, Xiang Xue calmly spoke.

"Given your intent to conceal matters, I won’t probe further, but we face difficulties too; aiding your departure could be inconvenient."

"There are some things about my family... that I really can’t talk about," Tianyin hesitated in her response, "As long as I leave Paradise, I will repay you all."

Xiang Xue shook her head, "That kind of repayment is insignificant to us. Do you have a Light Attribute Cultivation Technique that goes straight to A-level?"

It was Qu Jianlei’s first time being so close to a Light Attribute Awakened, and he thought it wouldn’t be difficult to recruit this woman into their group.

But he understood the nature of his team, and he wasn’t interested in the brotherhood of Liang Mountain, so he couldn’t be bothered with the idea.

The only thing left was the temptation of the Light Attribute Cultivation Technique.

However, he didn’t make a clear statement, yet Xiang Xue understood that this was the only gap in the boss’s technique library.

"A Light Attribute Cultivation Technique... that reaches A-level?" A troubled expression appeared on Tianyin’s face.

"Senior sister, you know, with this Light Attribute, I signed a confidentiality agreement."

"Then there’s no way out," Xiang Xue spread her hands, "When they’re done talking business, if there’s nothing else, you can take some money and leave."

Even though they were senior and junior, each had their own difficulties and fears, and it was really hard to be explicit about it.

However, Tianyin had grabbed a lifeline with great difficulty, how could she be willing to let go?

She thought for a moment, then carefully asked, "You don’t seem to be very close with the Divine Text Association...?"

"We’re used to freedom, who would get close to those people?" Xiang Xue wasn’t afraid to speak the truth.

With a bit of disdain, she said, "Awakened ones should strive fiercely, not resort to plundering for gains."

In her view, although her group was burdened with various charges, they were still people of character.

Just look at the current Tianyin, who had secrets and was a rare Light Attribute.

When those powerful factions encountered her in distress, would they easily let her go?

The mildest outcome would be to drag her along, while the worst would be to extract secrets and then silence her, or at least capture her for leverage.

Only their group was willing to lend a helping hand appropriately, and without saying too much, offer some emergency cash.

Tianyin, hearing this, breathed a sigh of relief, as she had already guessed in her heart that they had a poor relationship with the Divine Text Association.

But it wasn’t until she heard it confirmed that she completely relaxed.

"This time I was in distress due to interference from members of the Divine Text Association... If you can help me leave, I am willing to offer shares in the gold mine as compensation."

"Shares in the gold mine?" Xiang Xue frowned upon hearing this, knowing that this was indeed a valuable offer.

She was aware that Qu Jianlei in the asteroid belt had rejected offers from multiple factions, uninterested in mineral shares.

However, a gold mine was different; this metal was inherently hard currency.

Some extracted minerals were priced far higher than gold, but the problem was they couldn’t directly enter circulation.

Xiang Xue wasn’t too sure if Panda would have any interest in a gold mine.

The boss wasn’t lacking in small change, but he was indeed short on big money, especially after that battle, where the boss ended up scavenging!

Hesitating, she still shook her head, "You met with plundering, huh... trying to drag us underwater, are you?"

These shares were truly not easy to take, as getting her off Paradise Star might not necessarily involve combat.

But to obtain these shares, they had to get involved in her battles; this junior was really calculating.

"I don’t want to," Tianyin answered helplessly, "But apart from the gold mine shares, I can’t offer anything more."

Xiang Xue puckered her lips, "You could clearly offer up a cultivation technique... After being plundered, what confidentiality agreement is there to talk about?"

This reflected a complete disappointment in the Imperial system—if one can’t even protect their own assets, what responsibility can be spoken of?

Her father wasn’t a rule-abiding person, and influenced by him, she naturally held no reverence for the government.

But Tianyin was different; she contemplated for a while before shaking her head, "Senior sister, please don’t make it difficult for me."

"Alright then," Xiang Xue wasn’t surprised by her reaction, having learned from a young age that people each have their own ambitions that cannot be forced.

At least this junior wasn’t lying to her, indicating she was sincere. She nodded, "I’ll go ask about it."

Xiang Xue got up and went next door, where the three Supremes were looking at a map of Paradise Star.

She went over, sat down, and explained the situation roughly, "...I think this gold mine could be a trouble."

The other two remained silent, while Qu Jianlei pondered a moment before asking, "How large is the gold mine’s reserve?"

After all, sitting around doing nothing wasn’t viable; finding some income was necessary.

"Didn’t ask," Xiang Xue shook her head decisively, "Shall I ask now?"

"Forget about not asking," Qu Jianlei waved his hand, then asked, "Do you think it’s necessary to help her?"

Xiang Xue spread her hands without responding, just looked over to the Paranoid—let the senior decide.

"Then let’s lend a hand," the Paranoid replied casually, "After all, she’s a junior from Chaoyang, but let’s settle our primary business first."

Xiang Xue knew how they should help, "Shouldn’t we wait until we can bring a starship, that would be more convenient?"

Paradise Star’s stringent security was a headache for anyone, making smuggling difficult.

The key was she didn’t want the other side to know they were also skilled in this.

The Paranoid simply nodded, "It’s just a matter of hiding for a while."