Chapter 501, The Unstable Rentam City
On the train.
Wu Heng sat on a long bench on one side, accompanied by two skeleton attendants.
His mind involuntarily began to think about future developments.
With most of his senses fading, he felt more focused.
Rentam City was being managed quite well and definitely needed further development. It could provide a source of funds and also serve as a backup retreat.
If something were to happen to Gold-Silver Island, retreating to Rentam City to be a local king wasn't a bad choice.
This time, he planned to help Wen Mansa deal with some potential dangers.
Regarding Gold-Silver Island, the key point was to maintain a low profile. While the guild had given him status and power, it also acted as a shackle.
There couldn't be any negative repercussions, especially since his profession came with certain biases.
The second priority was ensuring smooth trade routes and good island security to attract more wealthy merchants, which would boost trade and bring him more resources and benefits.
The last priority was construction on the island.
It might be worthwhile to replicate Rentam City by building establishments like the Golden Cat's entertainment venues.
After all, the Golden Cat's market acceptance had already been proven in Rentam City.
As for the Zombie World,
the development direction remained unchanged: upgrading, collecting gold, and recruiting relevant talents.
Restoring power plants and some modern equipment gradually.
This would facilitate the development of both worlds.
Killing Boss Huang this time also showed that the abilities of survivors in the Zombie World were still quite low.
Even with those who had abilities, they were no match for him as a continuously leveling-up Professional.
As long as modern weapons weren't specifically aimed at him, no one could be his opponent.
Moreover, the northern cities and outposts, as well as the various shelters, depended on him for food exchanges.
Anyone targeting him would face widespread condemnation.
He quickly ran through these thoughts in his mind.
Taking out the "Mansion Spell" skill book he had prepared in advance, he began flipping through it.
On the train, he could still see things clearly.
He took the opportunity to carefully review the book once again.
Not unlocking the skill so far still left him feeling a bit unwilling.
After all, he had spent a lot of money on it.
...…
Seven days later.
The Ghost Train emerged from the void and stopped in a clearing within a forest.
Winter had arrived in the area; the trees were withered, and the snow-covered ground bore animal tracks and traces of blood.
Wu Heng disembarked with two skeleton attendants.
Taking a deep breath,
the Ghost Train vanished, leaving him feeling hunger, thirst, and a strong bloated sensation.
Finding a tree, he relieved himself.
Then he took out some food he had prepared beforehand and ate a couple of bites.
Even though the Ghost Train was fast, keeping track of time was important. Otherwise, someone could easily starve to death aboard without realizing it.
After finishing everything, Wu Heng looked around.
The area was dense with trees, making it impossible to determine the direction or locate Rentam City.
With a thought, two ghostly spirits flew out.
One floated to the left and the other to the right.
"Uncle, are we there yet?" Xiaoxiao asked.
Glenda also looked over curiously.
"We should be, but I'm not sure where exactly. Can you fly up and check for Rentam City's direction and any nearby roads?" Wu Heng instructed.
The two ghosts nodded and immediately flew into the sky.
Shortly after, Xiaoxiao returned first, shouting, "Rentam City is that way! It's grown so much—several times larger than when we left!"
"Really?"
"Uh-huh. Uncle, since you left, the city has gotten way better."
"What's that supposed to mean? Like I was holding the city back?"
Xiaoxiao giggled mischievously. "I didn't say that."
Glenda returned a bit later, saying, "There's a caravan heading that way. The highest level among them is 10. You can take a carriage with them and learn about the situation along the way."
Caravans in this area mostly used carriages for transportation.
A caravan guarded by Level 10 Professionals was already considered a decent-sized group.
They posed no significant threat to Wu Heng.
Glenda had even arranged everything for him.
How thoughtful.
"Which way?"
"That way. Wait by the roadside for a while."
Wu Heng nodded and walked to the roadside with his skeleton attendants, while the two ghosts followed, concealing themselves.
Before long, a caravan slowly came into view.
...…
The caravan spotted the three figures standing by the roadside from a distance.
The guards became alert, drawing swords and cocking crossbows.
"You there! What are you doing?"
A few Professionals in cotton armor approached quickly, stopping five meters away. "Who are you?"
Wu Heng replied, "We're heading to Rentam City. The road's tough. Can we hitch a ride? We'll pay."
"How did you end up here?" one of them asked.
"We're from the Necro Kingdom, headed to Rentam City for a visit. We ran into some trouble along the way, and now it's just the three of us," Wu Heng explained.
Two of the group immediately split off, running back to the caravan.
At the same time, trained beasts took flight from the caravan, circling the forest to check for ambushes.
After confirming no ambushes in the forest,
the caravan moved slowly across the snowy ground.
A well-dressed man stepped forward, sizing Wu Heng up and glancing at the heavily cloaked figures behind him.
"Alright, you can ride on one of the carriages. We're almost at Rentam City," the man said.
"Thank you." Wu Heng climbed into a carriage, while the skeletons walked alongside.
After traveling for a while, he casually struck up a conversation.
"They say business is good in the city, and the security is great. Is that true?"
The merchant glanced at him. "You're in business too?"
Wu Heng, wearing a cloak and cotton clothing, looked more like a young master unaccustomed to hardship—especially with skeletons handling all the heavy lifting for him.
"Yeah! Can you really make a fortune there?" Wu Heng joked.
"Haha~! What line of business?" the man laughed, drawing smiles from the guards.
"Entertainment, like taverns and opera houses."
The man thought for a moment and said, "Security was decent before, and the city was developing quickly, but things have changed recently. Rumors have been spreading, and fewer nobles and wealthy merchants are coming for leisure."
"What rumors?"
The man hesitated before explaining softly, "There's talk that the true owner of this city isn't Lady Wen Mansa but a former guild captain who was reassigned. Rumor has it that this captain offended an 18th-level Professional who now plans to destroy the city.
"Some also say the city is a necromancer's experiment lab, and when experiments require live subjects, people are abducted."
Wu Heng's brow furrowed slightly.
How did the matter with the 18th-level Professional reach this place?
"Is it true?"
"Who knows? But recently, there have been more gangs causing trouble than before."
"Then why are you still doing business here?" Wu Heng asked.
The man chuckled. "I know what Rentam City used to be like. It's already much better now—far better than when it was under Elno's rule."
Elno was the name of the former city lord.
Wu Heng nodded but didn't press further.
From the man's words, it seemed he only knew rumors with low credibility.
However, the story about the 18th-level Professional was likely spread intentionally.
After entering the city, he'd need to ask Wen Mansa about it.
As the caravan approached,
a city grander and more expansive than he remembered came into view.
Upon closer inspection, he could still distinguish between the inner city, outer city, and outskirts.
However, the outskirts had expanded several times over their original size.
The buildings were well-arranged, and the streets twisted and turned.
Pedestrians and carriages moved along the roads, while merchants set up stalls on either side.
In the outer and inner cities, tall arrow towers and spires were visible, adorned with flags fluttering in the wind.
"Magnificent, isn't it?" The merchant smiled and continued, "The outskirts are bustling, but the outer and inner cities are the real highlights. Their roads are paved with bluestone, and magic illumination stones light up the streets, making them brighter at night than during the day. There are plenty of excellent shops there that stay open late."
Wu Heng looked at the city and nodded.
...…
City Lord's Mansion.
Wen Mansa sat on the city lord's throne.
To her left stood a skeletal mage clad in a mage's robe; to her right was a skeletal Warrior in heavy armor with a longsword.
A bespectacled female steward in a black formal suit approached softly and said, "Madam, two more officials from City Hall have submitted their resignations."
Wen Mansa hesitated before saying, "Settle their pay and escort them out of the city."
"Yes, Madam."
Tap, tap, tap~!
As they spoke, footsteps sounded, and three figures entered from outside.
One walked ahead, followed by two skeletons carrying a corpse.
Wen Mansa and the steward turned their gazes to the body on the ground.
"Big Sis!" one of the subordinates called out, glancing briefly at the steward.
The City Lord's Mansion staff were divided into two groups.
One consisted of former "Spikes Gang" members or personnel arranged by Wu Heng before he left.
This included Andviel's kin and some cooperative armor and weapon shop owners.
These were relatively trustworthy.
The rest were individuals recruited after Wen Mansa became city lord.
This included City Hall administrators and patrol guards.
They were a mixed group, essentially hired employees.
Wen Mansa followed his gaze and said, "It's fine. Speak."
The subordinate nodded and said, "A spy placed in the outer city was killed while heading toward the inner city."
The Spikes Gang had started as an intelligence-selling organization.
Even now, they trained spies and stationed them in the outer city and outskirts.
Wen Mansa glanced sideways and said, "Dead Bone, go interrogate the corpse."
The skeletal necromancer beside her walked out and cast [Speak with the Dead] on the body.
The stiff corpse on the ground slowly sat up.
Shards of broken ice fell from its clothing.
Wen Mansa looked at the corpse and asked, "Who killed you?"
The corpse replied slowly, "A thief. I couldn't see their appearance clearly."
"Did you have any information to report to us?"
The corpse answered, "The Windfire Gang is organizing other gangs to attack the inner city tonight."
At these words, everyone's expressions changed.
"Do they even deserve to?" a subordinate said coldly.
The City Lord's Mansion had two skeletons above Level 15 and firearms capable of firing bullets.
Several waves of gangs had tried to cause trouble, only to be annihilated.
Yet these gangs still dared to act.
Wen Mansa continued questioning the corpse, "Do you know anything else about the gangs?"
The corpse replied stiffly, "The gangs have several high-level Professionals. They're not afraid of the City Lord's Mansion skeletons or even the Tier 4 skeletons."
Wen Mansa narrowed her eyes slightly.
The subordinate and the steward both turned solemn.
They weren't afraid of Tier 4 skeletons.
That meant the gangs had high-level Professionals of their own.