Chapter 138: Inheriting the Estate: Betrayal for the Sake of Betrayal, Cold-Bloodedness for the Sake of Madness

The survival model of a professional team was remarkably brutal and straightforward.

After signing a contract with a corporation, the team would be provided with a small amount of routine equipment maintenance service, along with a modest stipend intended for purchasing ammunition, medical supplies, and energy.

However, compared to the daily consumption of Tier-4 professionals, these services and stipends were merely a drop in the bucket—little more than for show.

The true "preferential" treatment wielded by professional teams was that under a Tier-1 contract, when selling their hunting yields, they only had to bear a fixed 8% commission. This was 2% lower than the 10% required by a Tier-2 contract, and vastly superior to the affiliated semi-professional teams and freelance scavengers.

Of course, having gradually begun to comprehend the economic system of this era, Ren Zhong woke up to the realization that this so-called preferential treatment was a complete joke.

A Tier-4 feral beast chip and carcass worth ten thousand credits could be taken away by them for two or three thousand, meaning the company's procurement price cheated him out of seventy or eighty percent. What significance was there in a mere commission reduction from 20% to 8%?

The resource recycling company's pricing standards for feral beasts seemed simple, but they were actually deeply calculated. It operated on the exact same logic as the 0.1 credit earned daily by wastelanders wearing rental wristbands while sleeping, alongside the meal money meant to maintain a bare minimum standard of living.

It would never let you starve to death; it would always allow you to exchange your labor for barely enough remuneration to survive.

Yet, it would most certainly never allow you to get rich through labor.

As for how much profit the company could extract through your labor output, well, I am sorry, but that had nothing to do with you.

Unless you could achieve a class transition, become stronger, advance to a higher-tier professional, or master the qualifications for capital operation where money begat money.

Every single step upward merely meant that the shackles binding you were upgraded from ordinary iron fetters to finer silver or golden shackles.

This was the inevitable result of a society constructed by the Nine Mega-Corporations, operating under absolute capitalist monopoly and control.

Moreover, from the perspective of a transactional relationship, the professional team was the supplier, and the recycling company was the purchaser.

I produced the raw materials, you purchased them, and you paid the money—end of story.

There was no logical reason why a supplier selling goods to a purchaser at a loss should also have to pay the purchaser a commission ranging from a minimum of 8% to a maximum of 30%.

Of course, one could also interpret this commission in reverse: the professional team was a more advanced supplier, and the same goods could fetch a higher offer from the purchaser. Viewed that way, it felt much easier to accept.

In short, corresponding to the so-called "welfare," professional teams also shouldered a staggering fixed quota of hunting resources they were obligated to deliver.

The exact size of this quota was determined by the person in charge of each resource recycling company.

The figure set by Yang Bingzhong was undoubtedly on the high side. Even someone as formidable as Lin Wang would find himself at his wit's end and flying into a rage if his harvest proved unsatisfactory over just a few short days.

For a professional team to fulfill its quota solely through its own efforts was indeed difficult. This was why developing affiliated teams was necessary—considered a form of privilege on some level.

In this way, the professional team could exploit others, savoring a tiny fraction of the thrill of being an oppressor, while appropriately easing its own pressure.

Unfortunately, Yang Bingzhong had now restricted the number and scale of affiliated teams as well.

According to Chen Hanyu, her parents had once owned a total of nearly thirty affiliated semi-professional teams under their name, comprising nearly two hundred people in total. The average professional level of all affiliated teams had even reached Tier 1.7.

Lin Wang had acted even more extremely on top of Yang Bingzhong's restrictions. Plagued by excessive paranoia, not only did he fail to cultivate affiliated squads, but he actually suppressed them instead. This further led to Lin Wang running himself ragged at the slightest disturbance—which served him right.

Assuming Lin Wang had six affiliated teams containing Tier-3 professionals under his command, how could he possibly have had to handle everything personally?

Of course, this was merely an ideal scenario, and one still had to factor in the limitations of the resource output around Spark Town.

Spark Town simply could not support that many high-tier professionals.

Ren Zhong had also considered the possibility of forming unofficial external squads based on procurement relationships outside the affiliation system.

Yet, after a brief calculation, he rejected the scheme.

Private transfers required a 10% tax. Who was going to pay that?

If the professional team footed the bill, the profit margin after conversion would be virtually nonexistent, and it would also draw the scrutiny of Yang Bingzhong, who would suspect you of harboring ambitions.

If others were made to bear the taxes and fees themselves, the professional team could earn slightly more, but Ren Zhong would still have to shoulder the risks. Furthermore, others might not even be willing; after going through so much trouble, taking risks for meager earnings, it would be much more comfortable to simply sell to the company directly through an independent freelancer account.

Therefore, Lin Wang chose to rob them directly like a mad dog, incurring neither costs nor risks.

Tang Shuying and Jiang Kai were slightly less unsightly in their greed, but they too had their own varying methods of exploitation, some gradual and others fierce.

...

Ren Zhong had a brief chat with the leaders of the five affiliated teams.

He was well aware of the strength of these five teams; they were roughly on par with Zheng Tian's team prior to his joining.

Every single team had anywhere from a few members to nearly all of them on the verge of reaching Tier 2.

Ren Zhong broadly stated his stance: starting from today, the commission rate for the affiliated teams under his name would be lowered to 15%, putting him on par with Tang Shuying and Jiang Kai.

This could be considered his initial sweeping reforms upon taking office.

Upon hearing this, the five individuals were instantly overflowing with gratitude.

Seeing that Ren Zhong was indeed as easy to talk to as the rumors suggested, one of them tentatively asked whether he could participate in the Tier-2 professional title examination.

He did not even dare to mention the entire team.

Ren Zhong patted the man's shoulder, looked at the others, and said earnestly, "Lin Wang is Lin Wang, and I am I. Of course you can participate in the Tier-2 examination. I even hope you can grow stronger faster. Let me emphasize once more: I am not like Lin Wang."

Wen Lei and Zheng Tian, standing nearby, also chimed in to endorse Ren Zhong's reputation.

Although Zheng Tian and these team leaders had harbored minor grievances and frictions in the past, they had also cooperated on numerous occasions to hunt Tier-3 feral beasts.

They were simultaneously competitors and fellow sufferers sharing the same wretched fate; their relationship was exceedingly complex.

Now, she was soaring high by clinging to Brother Ren's golden thighs, yet influenced by Ren Zhong, Zheng Tian subconsciously hoped these old comrades could live just a little bit better.

Even if the income lost after Ren Zhong lowered the commission rates for the others meant sacrificing the gear for herself and a few others in her squad, it did not matter.

After all, Brother Ren never treated his own people unfairly.

Having experienced the kindness Ren Zhong showed her, Zheng Tian also began striving to learn how to be a good person, just like Ren Zhong.

Upon hearing this, the five team leaders were wild with joy.

Regardless of whether they harbored lingering doubts in their hearts, at least on the surface, they were genuinely happy.

The man who had spoken earlier mustered his courage and asked directly what exactly had happened to Team Leader Lin and the others.

Ren Zhong smiled faintly and replied simply, "They died."

The atmosphere in the courtyard momentarily froze.

The corners of these men's mouths twitched slightly, wanting to burst into hearty laughter, yet lacking the daring, forcing them to hold it in.

Ren Zhong rubbed his face as well. "Alright, that's all for today. If you have nothing else, you may head back first."

Only then did the several team leaders feel a sense of release.

...

Not long after those individuals walked out, a deafening cheer erupted from outside the courtyard.

Long-absent excitement boiled over within the small town, beginning with the first bubble rising from Zheng Tian's small courtyard.

Gradually, the cheers spread further and further, rippling across the entire town like waves, until even the clouds in the sky seemed to brighten.

Ren Zhong wore a beaming smile.

He recalled a certain timeline, where a doodle of a rising sun had been pasted onto the wall of his prefabricated shack by some mischievous child whose identity remained unknown.

Although it was afternoon, the sky looked just as beautiful.

Zheng Tian, seated beside him, handed Ren Zhong a cup of warm tea with a straw inserted into it while saying, "Everyone seems to have seen hope for changing their lives. It's wonderful."

Ou Youning chuckled foolishly, "Yeah, totally!"

Chen Hanyu had retreated to her room; no one knew what she was doing inside.

Ou Youning had previously gone to eavesdrop at the wall, reporting that there were sounds of weeping from within.

Wen Lei made a precise judgment: "It is the change that Mr. Ren has brought to the town."

Yu Jin hadn't come over this time; he seemed to have returned home to help his mother with her sewing.

Nowadays, Yu Jin wasn't quite as strapped for cash, yet his mother still refused to stop her small tailoring stall.

Ever since Ren Zhong praised his sewing skills for improving his marksmanship, Yu Jin no longer carried any psychological burden; instead, the moment he had free time, he transformed into a little tailor.

All the clothing repairs for the squad members and Ren Zhong were entirely taken care of by him.

Zheng Tian continued, "People outside actually understood Lin Wang's ruthlessness and tyranny all along, but I... sigh. Thinking back on my past self, I was truly naive. Whenever I recall how, a little over a month ago, I actually intended to lead everyone to participate in the Tier-2 title examination together, I feel so ridiculous. I didn't even understand the world as well as the freelance scavengers outside; I almost got everyone killed."

Ren Zhong smiled slightly and said nothing.

Zheng Tian went on, speaking to herself, "Actually, Brother Ren, the first time you gave me a warning and told me to be wary of Lin Wang and their group, I took it somewhat lightly in my heart. Because back then, I felt that Tier-4 professionals were gods in the heavens; even just a few grains of sand falling from between their fingers would be enough for us to build a wall. Of course, reality has now proven your correctness and my foolishness."

Ren Zhong turned his head to look at Zheng Tian.

His gaze seemed to pierce through Zheng Tian's past and present lives.

Without a doubt, Bei Lihui's attitude toward Zheng Tian's team differed somewhat from his attitude toward ordinary affiliated teams.

Otherwise, Zheng Tian and Chen Hanyu would not have escaped venomous clutches until this very day.

Bei Lihui had actually been able to endure Zheng Tian and Chen Hanyu's rejections.

This was the fundamental reason that caused Zheng Tian's misjudgment of the situation.

Assuming Ren Zhong had never appeared, then Lin Wang might truly have allowed her to lead the squad members to become Tier-2 professionals, and then Zheng Tian, at the very least, would have been taken to bed by Bei Lihui, only to be discarded in the end.

As for Chen Hanyu, she might have died, or she might have been violated, but in the end, she certainly would have died all the same.

"Brother Ren, what's wrong?"

Meeting Ren Zhong's unblinking stare, Zheng Tian's face flushed slightly as she asked.

Ren Zhong smiled. "Your previous decision-making error wasn't entirely your fault."

"Huh? But I'm the team leader, I should have..."

"You aren't foolish; on the contrary, you possess plenty of petty cleverness. But petty cleverness does not equal wisdom. Every single decision made by anyone is, in a sense, the product of external circumstances combined with their own judgment. The environment you faced in the past misled you, preventing someone with petty cleverness but a lack of grand wisdom from seeing through phenomena to grasp the essence."

Zheng Tian pondered for a long time. "Was it because I hadn't mastered deductive and inductive reasoning at the time?"

"Perhaps. Tell me, what do you think of the cheers outside?"

After a long silence, Zheng Tian spoke with a desolate expression, "It's somewhat pathetic. Clearly, everyone only has five days of peace left, at most a month of life. This kind of happiness has no meaning."

"Yes. Therefore, listening to these people's laughter, those of us who know the inside story are not infected by their joy. Sometimes, the more you know, the less happy you are. Alright, I need to sleep for a bit. Go busy yourselves for now."

Roughly three hours later, with Wen Lei's assistance, Ren Zhong donned his exoskeleton armor and walked out the door.

He had still not emerged from his period of fatigue, but he could now activate the armor's low-power autopilot mode. Without needing any neural linkage or exerting any physical effort of his own, the exoskeleton carried him forward, making him feel as though he were riding in a vehicle.

Twenty-and-odd minutes later, Ren Zhong arrived at the Sleepless Night Bar and met Wang Zhaofu in a private room.
Wang Zhaofu, in exceptionally high spirits, first congratulated Ren Zhong on defying the heavens and changing his fate within a mere two months—climbing from a bottom-tier desperado back to the position of a town-level resource company's professional team leader—before eagerly bragging about his newly founded company.

Ren Zhong was genuinely happy for him.

Given the life-and-death bond they now shared, the more successful the other party became, the better off Ren Zhong would be.

Once the idle chatter drew to a close, the two men transitioned to the main business.

Ren Zhong lowered his voice. "I've rented a separate enclosed garage at the parking lot, and there's a Breeze heavy truck parked inside. When Brother Wang heads back later, remember to go check and transfer the cargo."

Wang Zhaofu smiled until his eyes narrowed into slits. "Little brother, you've got to tell me what specific cargo is in there so I can quote a price."

"One hundred and thirty Tier-4 feral beast chips. Ninety of them have been stored for quite a while, so they're depreciated. The other forty were freshly procured this morning and are still brand new. It's inconvenient for me to unload these chips through Spark Resources, so I must trouble big brother to do me a favor. Don't stand on ceremony with me either—what you ought to earn, don't leave behind. In addition, there's half a set of Tier-3 miniature military units; they're damaged, but some parts are still usable."

Wang Zhaofu: "Hoo! Now those are good things."

"In a few days, before Spark Resources relocates, big brother will have to make another trip to Spark Town. By then, I'll provide you with a batch of Tier-4 mecha exoskeleton parts that are seventy to eighty percent new."

Wang Zhaofu became even happier, continuing to wait for Ren Zhong's next sentence.

After waiting a moment, a puzzled Fat Man Wang asked, "Uh... what about the Tier-4 heavy sniper rifles and gunmaster bio-combat suits and all that?"

Ren Zhong sighed and said regretfully, "Didn't manage to salvage them in time; by now they've most likely been chewed up by feral beasts."

Fat Man Wang slapped his thigh in anguish. "Sigh, what a pity."

Ren Zhong: "Indeed. However, I can't really say how much this batch of goods is precisely worth today either. I'll have to rely on big brother to help me evaluate them and just transfer the funds to me directly when the time comes."

"Easily done. Well, time is pressing... should big brother get going now?"

"Mn, the keyless startup password for the heavy truck is..."

As soon as Fat Man Wang departed, the female manager of the Sleepless Night Bar—the mama-san with whom Ren Zhong had crossed paths many times—walked in.

The shareholding structure of this Sleepless Night Bar was relatively complex; Xing Ming and Bei Lihui were both minority shareholders, while individuals from Tang Shuying's and Jiang Kai's teams also held stakes, alongside several other citizens.

Following Xing Ming's death, his shares were transferred entirely to Bei Lihui.

Now, only Ren Zhong remained of Lin Wang's team, leaving the professional team existing in name only.

According to convention, the other shareholders would directly partition the shares formerly belonging to Xing Ming and Bei Lihui in proportion to their respective holdings.

However, circumstances had changed this time.

Tang Shuying and Jiang Kai's team members, as well as those citizen shareholders, all acted as though they cared nothing for these shares, showing not the slightest inclination to profit off the dead.

Consequently, Ren Zhong had the right to inherit the shares.

Following a few simple procedures, the daily dividend rights of Sleepless Night Bar were transferred into Ren Zhong's private account.

As soon as the mama-san of Sleepless Night Bar stepped out, seven or eight other people arrived—all proprietors of various large and small shops in the town.

Yet again, through a round of procedures, Ren Zhong casually accepted all of Lin Wang's team's numerous properties scattered throughout the town.

The scale appeared quite substantial, covering a diverse range of categories.

One large bar, two small bars, three second-hand electrical appliance sales and repair shops, two second-hand clothing stores, and over a dozen miscellaneous shack stalls in the flea market.

Seeing that Ren Zhong was infinitely more agreeable to deal with than Lin Wang, every single one of these proprietors walked out with their faces glowing with the radiant joy of impending happiness.

Only after everyone had left did Ren Zhong operate his armor to pick up a cup of fruit wine and take a fierce gulp.

Through these individuals, Ren Zhong perceived the meaning of Lin Wang's death to the town on a deeper level.

Everyone felt as though they had achieved a minor sense of liberation.

On his way to Sleepless Night Bar earlier, Ren Zhong had also observed the changes among the freelance scavengers.

Many freelance scavengers whom he had previously fleeced with money cast gazes of gratitude and expectation toward him.

These people all knew that Captain Ren was a truly good man, a kind man.

Even if Captain Ren could not change the other two team leaders, at least one of the three great mountains weighing down upon everyone's heads had been removed, and their quality of life would improve by at least half.

Quite a few scavengers had even brought out their concealed equipment, hidden away and never dared to be used during ordinary times.

Tier-2 individual component items began to appear more frequently on the streets.

Though whether the ultimate outcome of these people's slightly inflated ambitions would prove good or bad remained to be seen, a change leading toward the unknown was always better than a straight path leading to rot.

This lifeless little town seemed to regain a sliver of vitality with the total annihilation of a cancerous professional team.

Witnessing this change, Ren Zhong was very satisfied.

To hell with the long road ahead for the moment—at least this time, killing Lin Wang was the right call.

Ren Zhong liked the smiles blooming faintly on these people's faces, much like how he enjoyed gazing at the lingering embers of a bonfire in his childhood; by poking them, he could witness sparks suddenly flashing within the dead ashes.

If Spark Town were given another ten years...

If all the professional team leaders in Spark Town were like him...

If Yang Bingzhong could also be like him...

Spark Town ten years from now...

How wonderful that would be!

It was a pity that the higher one stood, the farther one saw, and the more one knew.

Just as he had told Zheng Tian, the more one knew, the less happy one became.

All this transient happiness and liberation of theirs was nothing more than an illusory dream destined to shatter.

The happier they smiled now, the more despairingly they would wail a month from now.

Every single one of them had already been sentenced to death.

Including those mama-sans and shop managers who were already considered upper-class among the wastelanders—every last one of them had long since transformed into "living corpses" destined to become commodities.

They were still alive, but they were nearly dead.

Or perhaps, after being purchased in batches as lab rats by the Mengdu Corporation, they would find that being alive was even worse than dying.

Having already learned of the existence of the Cold-blooded Butcher, Ren Zhong held not even a shred of certainty in his heart.

Yang Bingzhong, Zijing Mining, and the Mengdu Corporation had already woven an inescapable net of heaven and earth, and everyone had become fish in a barrel.

Presently, he could not see a single glimmer of hope to alter the census outcome—it was just as despairing as when he had looked up at Lin Wang from Tier 1.

Ren Zhong turned his gaze once more toward the towering steeple in the center of the town, his emotions surging.

His gaze flickered as he muttered inwardly in his heart.

I'm sorry, Comrade Lao Ma, Teacher Ma.

This time I'm going to let you down.

I am going to betray you.

I do not beg for your forgiveness, but my conscience is clear.

One day you will understand my bitter pains.

Ah well, truth be told, by then you may not understand at all.

Yet one day, you will be able to taste the joy of victory alongside me.

His emotions made him wish to live and die with Spark Town.

Yet his rationality told him that as the sole solitary revolutionary left on Source Star, he had to make every single death of his more valuable.

To turn the new impossibilities into inevitabilities, this time, he had to leave.

He had to go see the world outside, to find a way to become stronger, to find the giant hammer capable of shattering the cage of despair hanging over the entire town.

No matter how many times he had to die, or how long it took, he would carry out the promise in his heart; he would freeze his time right before the judgment descended.

One day, he would return.

He would surely snatch Spark Town back from the cracks of time and grip it tightly within his palm!

This was a betrayal for the sake of betrayal, born from a cold-bloodedness driven by madness.

[Recommendation Tickets] [Monthly Tickets]
7017k