Love and passion, cutting up the wasteland

Stone rat group, advance to the camp.

In this operation, the Stone Rat Group almost came out in full force.

Big Al gave an order, not only the men stationed in Stone Rat Town, but also the leaders dispatched from abroad rushed back from all over the swamp, each with a gang ranging from dozens to hundreds of people. More labor.

This process continues, allowing the Stone Rat Regiment's troops to continue to expand since their departure. Now there are thousands of people, and it seems that they are far from stopping the expansion.

In the past, people only knew that the Stone Rats were the largest faction in the swamp.

But I have never had an idea of ​​how big they are, let alone exact statistics.

Now, as Big Al steps out of his ascetic hut, as if pulling out a sword that has been honed for many years, the Stone Rat Group begins to show its impressive strength.

Even if he is not as good as the King of Sand who stretches across the border areas outside, this big leader of the swamp still has an army.

Originally, some people were still ready to take advantage of the Stone Rat Group's opportunity to mobilize manpower from various places to infiltrate the village stronghold where they controlled the emptiness... but now they have given up their thoughts.

After witnessing such power, anyone who wants to do something small has to worry about whether he will suffer double retaliation afterwards.

Everyone is watching.

Currently, Big Al's excuse for revolting is to put down the betrayal in Huangshui Village and to teach the ninjas who try to invade the swamp.

No one doubted that the Stone Rats would easily accomplish their first goal.

It's as simple as a chariot crushing an ant.

But for the latter, thoughtful people have already seen the clues.

I'm afraid Big Al's target is not just as simple as the swamp ninjas.

As dusk approached, a wooden suspended platform was erected in the center of the camp. From time to time, helpers came forward to add grease to the four corner braziers.

The flames burned as high as a person and continued day and night, driving away all the darkness and moisture in the swamp.

Gary stood on the high platform, overlooking the people below who were as busy as a pack of rats.

The captive slaves in Shishu Town and the laborers recruited from the villages are working tirelessly to cut down the trees in the rainforest. The thick logs cut down are processed into antlers, fences or barracks by craftsmen on the spot.

The dense rain forest was bulldozed into a clearing.

It didn't look like a march, but like opening up a new town.

In fact, Gary was really in no hurry.

Their main force would not have pushed all the way to Huangshui Village. A small swamp village was completely plundered and the ground was dug up, but the profit it brought was not enough to feed people like me for three days.

If the vanguard cannot take it, just wait for the leader named Yes to send someone to reply, and then allocate a group of people to support from here.

The ecological terrain of the swamp is not suitable for large-scale marches.

The actions of the Stone Rat Group this time can be said to be unprecedented.

What they really want to do...

Gary held two pieces of letterhead in his hand, still from the Hound Gang and the Skinner.

The man did not open it, but sneered with a little pride.

The two leaders fighting for Shark Village have become increasingly aware of their importance after the Stone Rat Group's strength was demonstrated.

The letters were sent more and more frequently, and the tone of the letters became softer and softer. From urging and ordering at the beginning, they gradually turned to winning over and making promises.

Da'er had hidden his edge for ten years, but once it was revealed, it was indeed like a sharp blade coming out of its sheath.

If they participate in the swamp faction alliance in Shark Village with their current momentum, they will surely gain unprecedented respect and their words will have more weight.

But this is not enough.

Gary still remembers Big Al's plan.

It is said that in the southern wetlands, the Red Sword Regiment has declared war on the Water Tribe, but has not yet launched a general attack;

The location where the Stone Rats camped this time was also very particular: they were stuck between the center of the swamp and the southern wetland, guarding the chokepoint and blocking the way for the swamp ninjas to return to aid the Water Tribe, or the Water Tribe to support them in turn. Swamp Ninja Path.

Since the camp was set up, the Stone Rats have actually captured many swamp ninjas who came back for reinforcements.

——Unfortunately, under severe interrogation, these swamp ninjas did not confess.

All kinds of tortures were carried out one by one, but they would rather be tortured to the point of yelling and having a mental breakdown than to tell them which group of swamp ninjas occupied Huangshui Village, let alone tell the whole story about the Ishui tribe's century-old plan to invade the swamp.

This impressed Gary quite a bit.

All I can say is... they are indeed a special force trained by the Shadow Man. They are really tight-lipped and aloof from death.

If the members of the Stone Rats were arrested, they could even sell the color of Big Al's underwear.

Gary had no shame.

I'm afraid it's hard to find dead warriors like these swamp ninjas on the entire continent.

And to be able to make his men so devoted to him, this mysterious shadow man must have unimaginable charisma.

Of course, it's also possible that the swamp ninjas don't want to tell them, but they simply don't know these secrets.

——This shows that their teams are not subordinate to each other and only communicate with the shadow man through a single line.

This further illustrates the shadow man's deep thoughts and outstanding skills: he sat alone in the far southern wetlands, directing the actions of the ninjas like a remote control, and still managed to make no mistakes.

To a certain extent, this is more difficult and incredible than training a dead soldier.

At least Gary could imagine the former, but he didn't even know how to do the latter.

Gary feels that it is better not to deify the opponent too much...

At least for now, it seems that the shadow man who planned everything has not figured out how to solve the dead situation of the Water Tribe being attacked from both sides by the Stone Rat Group and the Red Sword Group.

‘He’s not invincible, he must be very exhausted now. ’

On his side, he only needs to sit firmly in the camp, as if he has set up a big net to catch the swamp ninjas that bump into him.

After realizing that torturing them was futile, Gary stopped trying any more.

He put all these captured 'dead soldiers' into mud cells, preparing to use them as bargaining chips to negotiate the division of interests after the war.

Thinking of this, Gary couldn't help but feel the excitement of a master playing chess.

As for the shadow man sitting opposite, a drop of sweat was already shed on his face that had never been shown to the world.

Gary turned around and looked around. Apart from himself, there was only one tent left on the high platform.

Big Al is sitting comfortably in it.

The big leader still left the trivial matters of marching and camping to his second-in-command, Gary; while he sat cross-legged in the tent and meditated, pursuing the next realm that he said he could never perfectly grasp.

Fighting against Shadow Man is not something Big Al needs to consider.

He seeks a greater purpose.

For this reason, he not only needs a big victory to drive out the swamp ninjas alone, but also needs to take a step forward in strength.

Only in this way can he be qualified to compete with Da Gelin of the Hound Gang for the king of the swamp.

And this step, according to Big Al, is not far away.

Maybe even in the near future.

That's why the Stone Rat Group gathered their gang members regardless of the cost, not only to show off their muscles to everyone, but also to prepare for the celebration in advance for their big leader.

A whirlpool is about to rise in the swamp. In comparison, the changes in Huangshui Village are just a bunch of small waves.

The only thing it is proud of is that it can serve as a precursor to the turbulent waves, kick off the prelude, and then disappear in the air.

Thinking of this, Gary's heart surged.

The fire was blazing. He stood on the high platform and directed the slave workers to work harder.

…

Beyond the shouts and curses, deep in the jungle, there were two figures.

One person hid behind a tree trunk, glanced at the edge of the Stone Rat group's camp, and spat: "I bumped into them again..."

She followed up with a few more swear words, not deliberately, but as if she was used to it.

But listening to this voice, it sounded crisp and young, as if it was somewhere between a young girl and a girl.

The other person was holding a scabbard in his arms and was leaning on the roots of a knotted tree to rest his mind. When he heard her words, his eyebrows jumped.

"...Maybe I shouldn't take you to Mud Town." The man said with a helpless tone.

"Why, Hamut?" the girl turned around and asked curiously, "The bar there is quite fun - the teacher didn't let me go there before, saying she was afraid of people being imitated... But actually it doesn't matter if I go there. .”

Against the dim light, you can see that the girl's skin is purple, her bones and corners are white, and her cheeks still have a trace of childishness. She is actually a Shaq.

She was carrying a segmented ax that was two meters long even with the handle. Compared to her immature figure, one even doubted whether the girl could lift it.

The man holding the scabbard in his arms wears a wool felt hat, has a wrinkle at the corner of his eyes, has blond hair and a messy beard. He is Hamut, the drifter who once lived in the shipwreck.

Hamut chose to leave the shipwreck because he refused the request of a Holy Nation missionary.

At the same time, because he heard rumors about an organization, he decided to cross the swamp and head east. During the process, he met this little Shaq girl who had run away from home.

When asked about her name, the Shaq girl used a very swampy name and said her name was 'Ase'.

According to her own words, she has participated in the coming-of-age ceremony... Of course, judging from Hamut's experience of living in the Kingdom of Shake, no matter how young this eldest daughter looks, her actual age is not more than fifteen.

"Your teacher is right." Hamut responded casually, thinking that you are now a complete bad student.

If that teacher saw him, he would probably have a heart attack on the spot.

Of course, that might be her nature.

Mud Town is the hometown of black converts. Their bar is different from bars elsewhere. It is a large casino disguised as a bar, and the accompanying tobacco addiction is in short supply.

Hamut himself wanted to assassinate a merchant who was cooperating with the black converter. During this period, he happened to meet this little girl who wanted to go to Mud Town but didn't know the way, so the two went together.

Ase was very excited when he first entered the casino, so he took out his money and gambled as soon as possible.

As a beginner, and in a casino where the black converter is the banker, I didn’t even have to think about it, and I naturally lost in the end.

"Well...it must be a bad luck, yes, a bad luck." Ase was not discouraged.

This little Shaq girl with an unknown origin is actually very rich, and she seems to have endless coins on her body.

As a result, it was this boldness that got her targeted by the black converter.

Those bees began to place bets in turn. When Ase wanted to give up, they deliberately let the other party win a small win, and consciously seduced her to push up the chips. Until if you lose, the debt incurred will be enough for a person to be unable to repay in his lifetime.

Just when the bee croupier was about to draw the lottery, Ase grabbed his thin hand and said with a stern look, "You are a cheater."

"No, we..." The dealer was stunned.

Bee Heart said, we don't need thousands to deal with you little girl - this is an insult to the black converts!

But then, Ase overturned the gambling table.

When Hamut came back from assassinating his target, before he had time to change his bloody clothes and deal with the funeral affairs, he saw a scene in the bar.

A little Shaq girl was jumping up and down inside, fighting.

"Hamt!"

Seeing him, Ase's eyes lit up and he ran out while shouting: "Let's leave quickly - these people said I was robbing!"

At that moment, Hamut wanted to pretend that he didn't know the other person.

However, he himself was not a good citizen. He had just assassinated his partner with the black converter and was looking for a chance to escape, so he had to kill him with Ase.

They actually succeeded.

Afterwards, Hamut found out that Ase was already a wanted criminal of the Stone Rat Group.

She couldn't stay in a normal swamp town, even if she wanted to buy some food.

This time, they focused on the Mud Town Bar, and they also wanted to replenish some supplies - meaning they grabbed the owner's backpack and ran away.

As a result, not only did he make back the money he lost, but he also looted some food and drinks.

Hamut was speechless on the spot: A little girl in her early teens could be so wild, which is rare even in the Shaq Kingdom.

This made him doubt the other party's family education.

But then, the two of them had a hearty meal.

Hamut then inspected it, threw away all the ordinary drinks that were inconvenient to carry, picked out the bloody rum mixed with black extract, and went out on his own to replace them all with dry food and medicine on the black market.

As a wandering drifter, Hamut has far more experience in this regard than Ase.

As for how they escaped from Mud Town, even attacked their leader Big Black Eyebrow, and then were heavily surrounded and hunted by the black converters...that's a story for another day.

"Not everything he said is right..."

Hearing that the other party took out the teacher to press him down, Ase paused for a moment and said sarcastically: "If I hadn't gone to Mud Town, I wouldn't have met you and Yin Ying..."

Hamt nodded. There was nothing to argue with.

Silver Shadow is a hive prince, and seems to be a high-ranking black convert. If he hadn't leaked the information, the two of them wouldn't have been able to escape from the wanted hunt so easily, and the other party was already considered their friend.

"However, if your injury is not treated by a serious doctor, the consequences will be no joke."

Hamut lowered his eyes, his words seemed emotionless.

Ase glanced at his waist and waved his hand calmly: "It's okay, he's not dead yet."

But her tone was not as relaxed as her tone. The bandage around the Shaq girl's waist was already leaking blood and pus. There was a faint rotten smell in the air, and even the muddy smell in the swamp couldn't cover it up.

At this time, if you look closely at the girl's face, you can see that her skin color is much lighter than that of a normal Shaq, and there are fine beads of sweat under her scales. It is obvious that she is suffering from pain all the time.

It’s hard to imagine how a little girl of her age could endure it and even talk and laugh with others.

Although medicine was available, the treatment methods used by both of them were very crude. They could only bandage the wound and simply apply medicine and disinfect it.

With this kind of treatment, if you want to survive the hot and humid environment of the swamp, you can only rely on luck.

Hamut actually suffered a lot of injuries, but they were not as serious and urgent as his opponent.

Realizing that her words were unfounded, the girl gritted her teeth and said helplessly: "That worker bee is so cruel!"

Thanks to book friend Roger Otalifus and book friend 20231009010810256 for their reward support——