"Fair winds, and if fate allows, we shall meet again."
Tao Yu smiled and waved to the team as they carried the alien tail away into the night.
"They turned out to be quite decent, helping me clear out my stock."
Looking at the empty wooden shelf before him, Tao Yu took another bite of roasted capybara.
Selling all his earnings for ten thousand was a steal for them, but in exchange, he got a locator that revealed the position of the nearby Alien Queen''s nest.
His demeanor had made it clear that he was not interested in teaming up with them; Huang Jian and Nuosen, the Inner City Pioneers, were clever as ghosts.
No matter how Tao Yu ''and hispanion'' had managed it, the fact that they''d dealt with so many Aliens spoke for itself. That was a representation of strength, and they definitely didn''t want any conflict to arise.
Now that both sides stood to gain, it was a win-win situation, really.
Once they had the goods, they didn''t want to test Tao Yu''s ''character''; it was clear that thebined strength of Tao Yu and hispanion was at least not weaker than the sum of their ten-plus person team!
If they stayed together long-term, the more powerful individual or party could ensnare them in a surprise attack, leading to an instant copse.
Being self-aware, Huang Jian and Nuosen naturally remained alert while taking what they got and leaving once the going was good.
Tao Yu was of course happy with this arrangement as well.
As for them knowing that he was not to be underestimated, that didn''t bother him at all.
Wasn''t this convenience obtained by showing off his ''remarkable strength''?
Such a level of disy waspletely within Tao Yu''s eptable range.
"If we truly teamed up to explore the nest, it could have been troublesome."
Exploring the nest could have led to any number of problems, possibly exposing much more than just the ''general'' knowledge they had now.
"The Empress, huh? I didn''t expect to find her location on my first strike out."
Tao Yu thought of the previous Queen he had sessfully dealt with.
Back then, he was too weak to physically overpower the Queen, let alone apply any Taming Technique.
Now, what was lost must be regained...
...
"Brother Lin, you must inform us ahead of time if there''s any danger."
Huang Jian, moving quickly through the woods, reminded Lin Chao.
"I will, but I don''t think Brother Tao would."
"Er, I was worrying about other kinds of danger."
Huang Jian smiled awkwardly, well aware that Lin Chao was a rather principled fellow, which was reassuring to have in a teammate.
"How is an Outsider so strong?"
Nuosen pondered this question without finding an answer.
Even with a Grade A Dynamic Vision Skill, how was it possible?
His own talents might be slightlycking, but how could otherspete with his advantages from umtions and imnts?
"I did a quick scan of the Alien bodies earlier; most of them had gunshot wounds. His shooting skills are exceptionally good.
Combined with armor-piercing bullets, and the cooperation of their other abilities, as well as the cannon fodder of more Aliens, it''s not impossible."
Huang Jian hypothesized as well.
There''s only one Alien left now, but that doesn''t mean there was only one during the fight.
"''The Chosen One'' in the base must have been his discovery, probably earning a significant reward."
That''s when Zhang Wei shared another piece of information.
At that moment, his expression became distant, as if he were in a dream.
The two Inner City Pioneers he had been fawning over had actually been outdone in the presence of Tao Yu?
What had he done?
He had been the first to meet him in the Abyss!
He had had such a good opportunity!
Now, Zhang Wei was somewhat dazed, recalling the first time he met the other, the time he was almost swallowed by snakes before being rescued.
They had actually cooperated well on the way, and he''d even been willing to teach him the Basic Breathing Technique.
It had all gone wrong when he first met Inner City Pioneers because of that dead jerk''s attitude, leading to his misjudgement.
What exactly had he missed out on!
Zhang Wei''s face turned pale as he sniffed and unconsciously touched his nose, trembling as he tried to pull something out of his chest, but ended up forcibly stuffing it back in.
After all, the Inner City Pioneers were no good!
Scoundrels!
But now it was toote; he had no choice but to see this path to the end.
He hoped to exchange this information for favor with the bigwigs of the Inner City.
In terms of depth, the Inner City Pioneers definitely had a stronger foundation!
Luck like finding ''The Chosen One'' couldn''t always be relied upon; ultimately, it was all about the foundation.
And thinking of this made him taste bitterness.
His group had also encountered Jack and his team before, but s, they had had no idea of ''The Chosen One'' nor that such boundless riches were right before their eyes.
It was only after the fact that he realized the other must have made his start with said fortune.
"The Chosen One? No wonder, that exins it all. Perhaps the two nobles also bestowed Skills upon him. Wino must have offered him some benefits too; remember how he wanted us to wait longer? He was probably allowing him time to assimte."
Slowly piecing together the puzzle with different fragments of information, they arrived at a reasonable exnation.
But even so, it didn''t diminish the strength of those two!
Identity, background, and patronage certainly hold significant sway, but in the Abyss, might is always the most important!
Avoiding their sharpness was the right thing to do.
"They''re just a bit too arrogant, showing no friendliness towards us."
Nuosen muttered, recalling the initial encounter with Tao Yu and Cao Shaolin, and the preconceived notions he''d had about dominating the situation. He couldn''t help but feel a bit abashed.