Chapter 82 Mithril Cockroach (1/2)

”Ugh, Captain…” The scarred youth was about to say something when the captain put an index finger on his lips.

”Shh.”

Silence.

He saw the seemingly young man below them fumbling and looking around for something between the fallen tree trunks before putting something into his bags.

The captain narrowed his eyes and fixed his gaze on Gao Peng.

”Deng Sen, later you'll use your familiar to control that guy. Leave the big one to me,” the captain ordered.

Deng Sen was a tan, skinny youth. He nodded as he heard his boss's command. He then took his familiar and tiptoed to the side.

Deng Sen and Yao Huan both fought in black boxing, also known as underground boxing back in the day, and the captain was their agent.

After the cataclysm the black boxing industry basically collapsed. When humanity regained its stability after the initial panic, humans found that it was more exciting to watch monsters fight against each other in gladiatorial fights than to watch boxing matches.

That was why both of them lost their jobs. Later, they spent the last of their savings to purchase a familiar before joining the ”Gold Rush” army. After the initial chaos, life was more or less stable.

They headed to the Dark Ember Forest every other week, earned some money, trained and groomed their familiars, and spent any extra earnings on entertainment. Life was pretty good.

They never dared enter the deeper parts of the Dark Ember Forest. It was too dangerous inside, filled with unknown terrors. They only moved around the periphery of the forest, picking plants and catching low-level monsters. Sometimes they would get lucky and pick up some dead bodies, using that to get by.

They were content with their current lifestyles. Competing for the world's number one spot was too far-fetched for them to imagine.

There had to be something wrong with this fellow. He'd never believe a monster trainer would create such a big ruckus in the forest simply to measure the width of the tree trunks.

The captain pondered. If only he knew what kind of valuables were hidden inside the tree. After all, what did the forest have in abundance? Trees!

Wouldn't that mean he had hit the jackpot? At that thought, a fire lit up within his heart. Perhaps they wouldn't need to work hard ever again.

Dumby suddenly stopped moving and looked cautiously to the East. It stomped and a quiet growl came from its mouth. It punched its fists together, creating a short and crisp sound.

The sound startled Gao Peng, so he looked toward the direction of Dumby's gaze. Because he had not yet made a blood contract with Dumby, he could not communicate through soul perception. Even so, Dumby's aberrant behavior alerted him to the abnormality of his surroundings.

They'd been found out.

The captain was caught off-guard. He was prepared to mount a sneak attack, but definitely did not expect Dumby to be so perceptive. Dumby had noticed their existences through the Blood-Thread Heart, which resonated with other hearts. As soon as they approached, their restless heartbeats were like fireflies in the dead of night to Dumby, and extraordinarily eye-catching.

Gao Peng communicated with Da Zi through the soul contract. He told Da Zi not to move and remain hidden beneath the thick layer of dried leaves and await his instructions.

Silly, on the other hand, flew out casually and landed on Gao Peng's head with a light thud. It was as if he were wearing a rainbow-colored hat.

Deng Sen, who was hiding on the side, suddenly froze. Was this some new support-type familiar?

He suddenly remembered a movie he watched before. A character from the movie wore a helmet, and then became extremely dangerous.

”Hey there, pal.” A laugh was heard as the Captain walked out of the forest with a smile. A scarred youth and two familiars followed behind.