Embers Ad Infinitum

Han Wanghuo didn’t wait long. Five to six minutes later, a woman walked into the private brewery shop.

Yan Miao raised his right hand and gestured. “Over here.”

Han Wanghuo looked over and saw the person clearly.

She was very young and looked to be about 20 years old. She was relatively short and didn’t reach 1.6 meters tall. Her facial features weren’t beautiful or ugly, and she had the unique softness of an Ashlandic.

At first glance, Han Wanghuo noticed that the woman didn’t look too good. She was slender and thin, giving off the feeling that she was ill and unhealthy.

She had short hair, and her skin was tanned. She wore a black, short-sleeved T-shirt and a pair of blue pants with a thick, diagonally-patterned cloth around her legs. She also wore large brown shoes.

This set was clearly obtained from an Old World city ruin. It didn’t have any patches or cracks, but it was very old.

This woman walked to Yan Miao’s side—opposite Han Wanghuo—and slowly sat down.

From her gait, Han Wanghuo couldn’t tell that she had a terminal disease. At the same time, he realized that the woman’s waist was bulging.

She was likely hiding a pistol.

“I’ll do the introductions,” Yan Miao said with a smile. “Zeng Duo, an organ donor volunteer. Heh heh, I don’t know if it’s her real name, nor do I need to know. It’s just a code name.”

He then said to Zeng Duo, “Old Han—he only gave his surname and didn’t say his name. Stumped, I can only address him that way. We’re all Ashlandic, so there’s no need to be too reserved.”

“Hello.” Zeng Duo nodded at Han Wanghuo.

Han Wanghuo replied with the same action. “Hello.”

“Want something to drink? The private brew here is pretty good. The boss used to be a brewer at a certain aristocratic manor.” Yan Miao livened up the atmosphere as if he were really arranging a blind date. “Haha. Of course, it’s not my treat. Do I look like a generous person?”

“Forget it then.” Zeng Duo paused and said, “I don’t drink.”

“It’s my treat.” Han Wanghuo felt a little sympathetic when the thought that the girl opposite him didn’t have long to live came to mind. After all, he had been a sheriff at Redstone Collection’s smuggling node for so long. He had also saved up a lot of supplies, so he had plenty of money.

Zeng Duo shook her head again. “I don’t drink because I hate it. It’s a waste of food; many people in the Ashlands are starving.”

Yan Miao sighed. “Why bother? The food can’t get to them, so it’s better to comfort our stomachs. You’re saving money for Old Han.”

He ended the topic with a regretful expression and said to Han Wanghuo, “Zeng Duo is willing to donate her heart to you, but the payment she needs isn’t low.”

Zeng Duo nodded, indicating that Yan Miao was right. She then thought for a moment and added, “If you’re worried that I won’t fulfill the contract and secretly escape, I’ll stay by your side from now on and be under your watch.”

Han Wanghuo’s messy and fierce eyebrows twitched. “Aren’t you afraid that I’ll find a chance to knock you out and bring you to a clinic? That way, I don’t even need to pay.”

“Ha, you’re really a nice guy. You actually warned her.” Yan Miao laughed and shook his head, expecting better from him.

Zeng Duo calmly replied, “I have the necessary self-preservation abilities.”

Han Wanghuo took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He looked into her eyes and said, “Tell me, what’s your request?”

Zeng Duo frankly replied, “Save a town.”

…

In the aristocratic VIP room at Apex Gladiator Arena.

Upon seeing General Phocas lead a group of people in, Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao, and Long Yuehong only took a glance before retracting their gazes to avoid attracting the other party’s attention and being discovered.

Phocas ignored them and casually swept his gaze around before entering his room and sitting down.

Shang Jianyao looked over and said regretfully, “Ducas didn’t come.”

He was referring to the city guard major that was obsessed with muscles.

“Cassiel didn’t come either.” Jiang Baimian nodded. “They are city defense officers, not Phocas’s personal bodyguards. It’s impossible for them to follow him at all times.”

Long Yuehong wanted to ask Shang Jianyao why he was regretful that Ducas wasn’t here, but he forced himself to shut his mouth when he considered his identity as a servant.

Fortunately, Jiang Baimian ‘helped’ him ask, “What, do you want to use your current appearance to arm-wrestle with him?”

Shang Jianyao cast his gaze at the arena below and shook his head seriously. “No, I want him to arm-wrestle with the current you again. If he doesn’t recognize you, he would imagine that he has lost to women twice in a row. He would definitely suffer a huge blow and stop believing in muscles. That will stop him from looking down on women who don’t have exaggerated muscles.”

“How kind of you…” Jiang Baimian didn’t know if this was good or bad for Ducas. She then nodded indiscernibly and muttered to herself, “Without Ducas and Cassiel, General Phocas is still surrounded by guards and no bodyguards… This means that he’s very confident in his strength…”

As they spoke, nobles led their servants and bodyguards into the VIP room.

About ten minutes later, Long Yuehong’s eyes lit up when he saw one of the two targets for this First City trip: Oray’s grandson, Marcus!

He didn’t look too similar to his cousin Avia. His hair was more yellowish rather than gold, and his eyes were light blue. His nose was relatively sharp, and his lips were very thick. His face was slightly wide, and his overall appearance was very ordinary. The only thing to speak of was his 1.85-meter-tall height.

Marcus constantly wore a smile on his face as he walked, but there was no sincerity in his eyes. He didn’t look at others, and he even looked sinister.

Jiang Baimian tried her best to suppress her voice and evaluated softly, “It seems like he doesn’t have a good temper. Maybe the environment is too oppressive.”

Although Marcus and Avia received plenty of preferential treatment and strict protection as Oray’s descendants, they were also guarded against. They could neither enter the army nor become Elders. They had almost no say in First City’s matters, making them akin to caged pets.

Anyone who had some ambition and wanted to achieve something would find such an environment very oppressing.

Shang Jianyao immediately suggested, “We should arrange for him to get some Old World entertainment.”

“Not everyone will be obsessed with that. Some prefer to achieve something in reality.” Jiang Baimian retracted her gaze and stopped sizing up Marcus to prevent herself from being noticed by the powerhouse protecting this Oray descendant.

Of course, Shang Jianyao deliberately made eye contact with Marcus according to the plan. He also nodded slightly as a greeting.

This was mainly to make them familiar with each other.

Marcus returned with a polite nod as if he were facing another noble. He didn’t find it odd that he found Shang Jianyao unfamiliar. After all, after two to three generations of reproduction and through a steady stream of military contributions, there was no lack of people in First City’s upper-class society. Unless one was normally in the same circle or had prominent parents and high statuses, it was normal for nobles to find each other unfamiliar.

And this didn’t include the existence of many illegitimate children.

Of course, once they reported their family lineage, one would still know whose child it was.

After she stopped sizing up Marcus, Jiang Baimian secretly glanced at the four bodyguards he had brought with him.

They were tall and muscular, and they wore black. Their sunglasses made it impossible to tell where they were scrutinizing.

This behavior was too professional, making Jiang Baimian suspect that there were no Awakened, mutated humans, or modified people among them. They were only ordinary bodyguards used to make everything appear normal.

As for the hidden expert, she temporarily didn’t discover any traces of him.

Not long after Marcus sat down, the doors on both sides of the venue opened, revealing the situation behind the iron fence.

On the right side of the aristocratic VIP room was today’s gladiator. He was usually locked in the room behind the iron fence and existed solely for the fight.

He was of Red River ethnicity, standing at nearly 1.9 meters tall. He had short blond hair and wore leather armor. He held a shield in one hand and a spear in the other as if he came from the classical age.

This gladiator had a thick beard, and his eyes revealed obvious anger and grievance.

According to the promotional information before the match, Jiang Baimian knew that he was originally a citizen. He was brave in battle and had a bright future. Unfortunately, he violated a noble officer’s orders in an operation and caused the team to suffer losses. He was arrested, sentenced, and became a slave.

After that, he took the initiative to apply to be a gladiator, wanting to use his life to obtain freedom.

This time, his opponent was a mutated creature.

Even from afar, Long Yuehong felt the creature’s immense pressure.

This was a black tiger that was bigger than ordinary tigers. It had two heads growing from its neck, and it let out a threatening growl at the same time.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Most of the spectators in the colosseum thumped their specially made armrests, creating a drum-like commotion.

The atmosphere became lively.

Jiang Baimian noticed that Marcus was also thumping and acting very fanatical as if he was immersed in it.

At this moment, a noble picked up his cup and drank a mouthful of water.

He suddenly choked and coughed.