Old Pang had prepared for this. These people were obviously local ringleaders of some sort. One could find people like them almost everywhere. They must thought him to be someone worth wringing, and wanted to take a shot. He meaningfully looked to Ka Sang, and Ka Sang grinned in return, understanding him.
Old Pang planned to see what the gang was going to do next, but the chance never came.
He did not expect Ye Chong, standing beside him, to have such a huge disparity with others in understanding the ways of combat!
While he did not know the other party’s goal, it was still obvious from their formation and attitude that they were not looking to have a round of tea with them!
Ye Chong’s eyes shone brightly. He was not used to waiting for the other party to declare their intentions. The dangerous territory coupled with days of continuous battles had awakened his undiminished wild nature! It was as if he had returned to a world like the trash planet, where power reigned supreme!
These gang members were probably just like the mutants on the trash planet to Ye Chong. As he saw it, these unfriendly people were just like mutants unsheathing their claws and baring their teeth at him!
Why should he wait for the mutants to attack him first before retaliating?
Ye Chong was not so foolish!
After confirming their hostility, Ye Chong went straight at them.
He leaped, a shadow crossing the space and into the midst of the gang.
He greeted the leader with a kick, his swift leg solidly connecting against the leader’s face! *Crack*, the chilling sound of bones broken, and a pit formed on the person’s bloody face, as if pounded by a large hammer. He was flung backwards like a sandbag, tens of meters away, as his death was a certainty!
Everyone stared in shock!
Old Pang and Ka Sang stood in stupefaction!
Who … Just who was this ruffian?
Ye Chong was like a tiger amongst sheep, his power unchallenged. He moved quickly, a blur of a figure moving amongst the gang, and his path was marked with howls of pain and bodies succumbing to death!
When Old Pang and Ka Sang recovered, the battle was already over! This was the first time the two of them saw Ye Chong’s ruthless methods, and they were shocked! The weather was simmering hot, but cold sweat trickled uncontrollably down their temples!
Ye Chong did not mind them, but began to search the bodies of the gang members. Gathering spoils was the best part for every hunter, and Ye Chong was not an exception to this!
Old Pang and Ka Sang gathered their thoughts and rushed forward to help Ye Chong with the searching.
Whenever there were new arrivals, Haleyson’s local gangs would send their lackeys ahead to scout for promising members or invite capable men and women onboard. As it was, the streets were lined with people with their own intentions. Ye Chong’s performance was witnessed by many of them.
However, none of them dared to approach Ye Chong, but fled to their own respective bases to report their findings.
Soon, almost every influential gang knew the arrival of a certain killer in Hoth!
Old Pang felt terror creeping slowly into him. From his first move against the gang, up until now, he had not found even one survivor! All of them died from just a single move! Seeing Ye Chong’s indifferent expression only made him feel frigid inside!
"Is this guy a butcher?"
Without asking for their intentions, or excuses, and without even knowing their background or offering a chance of conversation, the guy had murdered them all! "The b*stard’s crazy!" thought Old Pang, raising his guard against Ye Chong!
A man like him was too dangerous! Who knew if he would suddenly attack him or Ka Sang?
After gathering their spoils, the three did not care for further exploration and returned to their place.
Back at home, a thorough inspection revealed that the spoils were quite valuable. There were at least fifteen identity cards, and 3 of them were for a stay exceeding 3 months. Old Pang was rejoiced to find them, since it means that they could now afford to request for a transfer from the Mentalist Sanctuary. After all, Haleyson was a place too complicated !
Of course, Ye Chong understood their concerns, and handed a card each to the two of them.
Old Pang did not expect Ye Chong’s generosity and was, for the moment, stunned. Ka Sang was more straightforward, and did not think much of it as he gleefully accepted the identity card from Ye Chong.
With the card in hand, Old Pang declared anxiously, "Best if we all apply for a transfer now. I think the force behind that gang would definitely not leave us be. We should leave as soon as possible!"
Ka Sang nodded profusely on the side, in agreement with his big brother.
Ye Chong replied lightly, "You guys go ahead, I’d like to stay here for a while longer!"
Ye Chong’s words were a surprise for Old Pang and Ka Sang. The latter asked frankly in his horror, "Why? This place is obviously damned, what’s there to stay for?"
Ye Chong did not reply!
Old Pang pondered, silent for a long moment before speaking solemnly, "If you do not wish to leave, then we bid you farewell. Should we meet again some day, please don’t hesitate to let us know if you’re in trouble, I and Ka Sang will be most willing to help!"
Ka Sang’s expression was one of uncertainty, but he managed to nod and announce loudly, "That’s right! I, Ka Sang, will help you, even if it costs me my life!"
Old Pang could not help but glared a little at Ka Sang, and the man swiftly lowered his head!
"Then we’re off. You take care, I hope we’ll meet again!" Old Pang grabbed Ka Sang with him and left hastily amidst Ye Chong’s silence.
Ye Chong watched the two of them left without a word!
In truth, Ye Chong had considered it before. Ever since he stepped into the outside world, he knew exactly how different he was from everyone else. It was only natural for others to not understand his methods. Ye Chong had tried to change his ways, but his habits were already an integral part of him, and whenever a situation arose, he often unconsciously resorted to his usual methods to handle the crisis.
Habits were not developed overnight. Similarly, habits developed from more than ten years could not be changed overnight.
Besides, he still did not know when he would have another episode of his odd condition. Ye Chong did not trust the two men the way he would trust Mu and Shang.
He withdrew Shang. The mech was excited from finally coming out. "Heh, the weather’s wonderful, the composition is very suitable for human breathing! Ye, you should’ve let me out sooner. Don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe and sound! Mm, while I’m slightly worse off than that crazy Mu, but compared to you I’m still very capable! Besides, with me by your side, hehe, you’re going to enjoy life to the fullest! I, for one, am not as dull as that old hat …"
Ye Chong ignored Shang’s blabbering and continued with checking out the spoils.
He found nothing similar to any form of currency. "How could these people be so poor?" Ye Chong was baffled.
Shang laughed teasingly at him. "Ye, you can be a real fool sometimes. There’s a 90 percent probability that the money is in the identity cards. See the number on the lower left corner of the cards? That should be the money digits!"
Ye Chong checked out the lower left corner of the cards as Shang suggested, and found the numbers. Each of the cards had a different number on them.
Shang’s bionic eyes flashed wildly, obviously scanning the card.
"Hmm, Ye, see the slot at the bottom of the card? Fit the slots of 2 cards together. Yes, just like that, then configure one of the card’s digits, and you can now transfer money from this card to the other! Tsk tsk, such crude technology. There’s no identity restriction or authentication steps, this is really blood money!" Shang lamented!
For a mech to express such lamentations was more than a little odd.
Ye Chong, however, was used to it. Besides, Shang was right. There were no safeguards in place, a constant temptation for people. It was most likely that blood was spilt and lives lost in the course of the money’s passage from owner to owner!
Ye Chong transferred all the money to a single card, and the total came up to 6446. Ye Chong had no idea how much that was worth. "But, this came from more than a dozen identity cards, so it should a good sum," Ye Chong muttered to himself.
"Huh?" Shang exclaimed out of the blue.
"What?" Not many things could surprise Shang, and Ye Chong was now curious. Shang may enjoy making a big fuss out of nothing, but Ye Chong had never seen him truly surprised by anything! In this respect, Shang and Mu were very much alike.
Shang’s tone was serious, and Ye Chong, used to the mech’s usual attitude could not help but thought it comical.
"Their technology is very advanced, the card’s central design is reasonable, the encryption is also cutting-edge. WIthout entering the root of their system, I can’t modify anything!" Shang explained solemnly.
Ye Chong asked, curious, "Why would you want to modify it?"
Shang’s seriousness immediately turned to a light jeer, "Hmm, I’m just trying to see how much the money’s worth! This money we have, what’s it good for? It might not even be enough for a hot sexy battle, I’ve always wanted the real thing! Ye, we should discuss this, let’s buy the latest hot sexy battle …"
Ye Chong immediately broke into a sweat!
"Sidetracked, sidetracked!" Shang asked, embarrassed, "Hmm, where were we?"
Ye Chong was not sure if he should laugh or cry. "You said you couldn’t modify the card!"
"Ah! Right!" Shang’s tone as he remembered what he was talking about made Ye Chong felt very weird. Was it even possible for a PSI [1] to forget?
"Ye, have you ever wondered, if not even I can modify it, then their technology must be very advanced! But this advanced technology was not used to provide any authentication or safeguard for these identity cards! Isn’t it curious?"
"You have a point!" Ye Chong agreed after a moment’s thought.
"Moreover, how can the card’s designer not think of this problem? It’s impossible! That would mean that this lax security is deliberate! It also means that the local governing quarters intentionally allowed activities like stealing and robbing. If that’s the case, then we have to think really carefully about the things going on around here!" Shang was now speaking like a wise person.
"You have a point! But, er, what does this have to do with us?" Ye Chong was confused.
Shang’s wise demeanor immediately wilted. "I’d expected you to say something like that. Heavens, Ye, are you not the least bit excited? Don’t you think there’s a huge conspiracy in this place? Have you never thought of becoming a hero? …"
Abruptly, Shang stood up straight, and said lowly, "Ye, we have a situation!"