Wasteland: My items are infinitely upgraded.

Chapter 276 The Value of the Upper Class, the Collar, the Chokepoint of Death

Lin Feng was not surprised by Rong Yan's early greeting.

After all, the other party is the person in charge of the canteen in the upper-class district, who controls the daily meals of nearly two thousand upper-class citizens and monks in the church district.

Don't underestimate this seemingly insignificant department.

It can be considered the most lucrative place in the entire Oasis Town. Even if you are only in charge of the supply chain, you can still make a lot of money just by handling it.

Otherwise, how could the other party have the ability to ask Li Mingquan to act as an intermediary, while also offering Lin Feng ten kilograms of level 20 Rockhorse evolution meat as a gift to ask Lin Feng to intervene?

In reality, Rong Yan herself is also very capable.

At level nineteen, he is second only to the governor on the Oasis warship, and belongs to the upper echelons of the entire Oasis Town, not just an ordinary administrator who has just been promoted to the late stage of the first tier.

If it weren't for the church's strict control and restriction of evolutionary resources over the members of the Upper District, Rong Yan's accumulated resources and wealth would have enabled her son, Rong Xuan, to break through to the mid-stage of the first tier, become a late-stage evolver, and escape the fate of being sacrificed after the age of one hundred.

The church has established a strict procedure for tracing and investigating how the upper-class citizens advanced to the late stage of the first rank. Once it is discovered that someone has been secretly sending resources...

Even if Rong Xuan advances to the late stage of the first rank, he will still be sacrificed in the next Sacred Spring Day Moonlit Ritual because he violated the rules.

This was also the key reason why His Excellency established the Upper District to suppress the expansion of local family power.

The main personnel in the Upper District have gradually been replaced by talented descendants of various families, replacing the original pioneers.

Among them are many who possess the potential for second-tier advancement.

Especially for a family like the Li family, the patriarch Li Hao is a powerful evolver with a mid-stage second-tier upper limit and a level 26 rank. He was also among the top 50 on the Heavenly Ranking back then.

In terms of evolutionary talent, although it has not reached the potential of a third-tier king, it can easily reach the late stage of the second tier.

However, due to the limitations of the Rockhorn's evolutionary path, it has been stuck at the mid-second stage for hundreds of years.

Therefore, in theory, if he wanted to establish a family and continue his bloodline, there should be at least several second-tier talent descendants among his descendants.

Especially the first generation of direct descendants.

But over the years, the Li family has only produced one new early-stage second-tier evolver, who is from Li Hao's grandson's generation, with an age difference of three or four hundred years.

Li Hao's first-generation direct descendants, those family members with a bit of talent, were basically granted upper-class citizen status by the Oasis Supreme Council before the age of fifty, and then came to the upper-class citizen district at the top of the warship to enjoy the rest of their lives.

In fact, even in the very early stages, many family members hoped to go to the Oasis warship and become a well-off citizen with no worries about food and clothing.

Just like how Oasis Town promotes its message to the underprivileged.

Unfortunately, even though Li Hao and other high-ranking officials saw through the extremely insidious and vicious scheme behind the bishop's actions, they could not overcome the inherent human weakness of being lazy and unwilling to work.

Even Li Mingquan was secretly nurtured by Li Hao for seventy or eighty years before finally becoming the second second-tier evolver in the family.

The addition of Li Mingquan has also made the Li family and the other two major families no longer as passive in terms of their voice in the Oasis Supreme Council as before.

Even so, the Li family has already lost its most talented first-generation member. Even if they were to cultivate Li Mingquan by chance, his potential would hardly surpass that of the family's ancestor, Li Hao.

This is one of the reasons why Li Hao does not regard him as his successor.

Even if Li Mingquan hadn't died, and had come to succeed Li Hao as the new head of the family hundreds of years later, it would have been a slow death, and the entire family would still have been unable to escape the fate of decline.

While Li Mingquan's birth changed the balance of power between local families and the Oasis Church, it also led the bishop to intensify his oppression of the various families.

For example, in the last hundred years, the subsidies provided by the Holy City have been decreasing, and various families have even had to pool their money to purchase the necessary basic production materials, such as fresh water.

Meanwhile, the Oasis warships continue to absorb new citizens or encourage them to have more children to help newborns advance to the early stage of Tier 1.

This means that even though the Holy Spring Day, which takes place every two weeks, requires the sacrifice of one Upper Citizen, and twenty-four Upper Citizens will inevitably die within a year, the number of Upper Citizens will still steadily increase.

Supporting such a large group of people who have taken off their jobs is a heavy burden for the entire Oasis Town.

As the number of members continues to grow, the increasing consumption in the Upper District is also constantly squeezing the potential of the three major villages, making it difficult for them to accumulate more resources.

To this day, it has maintained a large membership of over two thousand people.

This is also the limit that Oasis Town can support.

The various families have exhausted all their development potential in order to feed these pigs.

This also means that even if they obtain a level 20 Rockhorse Source Essence, they dare not easily allow a member of their family with special talents to directly absorb and evolve it.

Even a Tier 2 Evolver, at the lowest level of 20, needs to consume a large amount of late-stage Tier 1 Rockhorse meat just to maintain the minimum daily requirements of Tier 2 cells in their body.

What was originally a benefit for the first settlers of the oasis gradually became a monster weighing down on the entire town of Oasis, making it hard for anyone to breathe.

At the same time, it is also a covert means used by the Oasis Church to suppress local forces, plunder their development potential, and obtain evolutionary resources.

In this process, a large number of vested interests will emerge, which will also prevent any force from undermining the existing system and situation.

However, this is contingent on Oasis Town remaining permanently safe, operating under the banner of the Holy See, and thus immune to invasion by external forces...

However, once they encounter a tough opponent and forcibly plunder or even attack Oasis Town, the problems arising from this model will be fully exposed.

Right now, the five villages of Oasis Town, including the Oasis Church itself, are unable to muster more than two thousand combat-ready evolved beings.

However, this situation also presents an opportunity for Lin Feng; otherwise, how could he carve out a large piece of meat from the hands of the vested interests in front of him?

Seeing Rong Yan come to greet him, Lin Feng quietly slipped the remote control from Rong Xuan's collar into his clothes and then stepped forward.

Today, Rong Yan, as the cafeteria manager, did not dress as elegantly and stunningly as last time. She wore a simple white shirt and a pair of slim-fitting trousers, which subtly outlined her figure.

However, after understanding that the young man in front of her didn't have much interest in that area, Rong Yan also knew that she couldn't use herself to gain more benefits.

So I simply gave up on that idea and instead became more business-oriented, focusing on the facts.

Upon seeing her son Rongxuan return safely, she still showed a hint of joy and breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, with his signature professional smile on his face, he warmly opened the door for Lin Feng and said:

"Thank you, Governor Lin, for saving my son!"

Lin Feng returned a polite smile, then looked up, gesturing for the other person to come inside and talk. Rong Yan immediately understood, turning slightly to the side and leaning forward a little.
"A banquet has been arranged for you tonight, with the same dishes as last time. Please follow me."

Lin Feng nodded, then turned to Rong Xuan behind him and said:

"Go wash up and rest. Remember not to damage the thing around your neck, otherwise there is a risk of it triggering automatically."

Upon hearing Lin Feng's order, Rong Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, but the next two sentences made him tense again, and his face turned pale.

Rong Yan, who was greeting Lin Feng, was also stunned for a moment. She quickly looked at her son behind her and then noticed that there was a silver collar and several indicators flashing red and green lights hidden in his raised collar.

It looks like some kind of high-tech gadget that can control the wearer.

Just as Rong Yan speculated, this electronic collar contained more than fifty grams of TNT explosives. The explosive force was enough to destroy a 20-centimeter-thick reinforced concrete utility pole, let alone an unprotected flesh and blood neck.

Even powerful second-tier evolved beings dare not act rashly after being fitted with an electronic collar, lest they activate the detonator inside and detonate the high-energy explosives with the power of a hand grenade...

Even in the extremely vulnerable and fatal area of ​​the neck, there is a very high probability of instant death, and even with a protective plate, the injury will still be severe.

Although second-tier evolved beings possess powerful vitality and their wounds heal at a speed that is almost visible to the naked eye, they still cannot regenerate from severed heads.

Unless one enters the third stage and becomes an existence far beyond the scope of ordinary life forms, it is possible to continue to control and drive away the severed head using radiation energy and reconnect the fallen head.

Therefore, this electronic collar, which is specifically used to control evolved individuals, is also known as the Death Grip, like an invisible hand tightly gripping a person's neck, leaving them unable to resist.

Many high-ranking slave owners or leaders of settlements used this method to control their restless evolved humans or high-ranking hostile captives, using them as slaves.

As for Oasis Town, apart from the wealth of Shangmin District, no other entity is qualified to use such high-end luxury goods.

After all, the cost of an electronic collar is several hundred points, and the selling price is no less than a thousand points, so only evolved beings are worthy of using it.

Seeing his son, Rong Yan, carrying such an extremely dangerous item, his face also turned pale, and his smile instantly froze.

If this electronic collar were to explode right now, at such close range, even she would be affected, riddled with shrapnel.

Seeing the two of them stunned, Lin Feng turned around and glanced at Rong Xuan, who was being watched. Rong Xuan immediately shuddered and quickly got up and left.

I followed my mother's subordinates, the cafeteria staff, to the dormitory area behind the kitchen to do the cleaning.

Before leaving, he forced a smile and pleaded with Rong Yan, signaling her to rescue him.

Once Rong Yan snapped out of her daze, she immediately followed half a step behind Lin Feng. When she glanced at the young man, her mind was already racing with thoughts...

In fact, if Lin Feng hadn't spoken up and reminded her, Rong Yan would never have expected that her son would be put on such a thing.

After all, the only thing she had asked Lin Feng to do before was to get her son Rongxuan out of the prison where the church was holding prisoners.

Rong Xuan did not directly participate in the operation that night; he merely joined their so-called resistance organization. Although he was a member, his crime did not warrant death.

After all, none of the plans have been put into action yet. As long as we use a little bit of power, it shouldn't be a problem to get people out of prison.

At that time, the only person who was willing to help Rong Yan and had the ability to do so was a newly promoted second-tier powerhouse who had been recruited by the church and valued by the church's higher-ups, and who was also the new governor of the Oasis.

Although he was only an agent, his status and position as a priest were far higher than those of Rong Yan and other late-stage first-level managers. He could speak with considerable influence in the strict and unyielding church.

That's why, with Li Mingquan's introduction, Rong Yan went to great lengths to host a banquet for Lin Feng, pleading with him to help save her son.

The current problem is that although the people have been rescued, it seems that they haven't been completely rescued.

Because Rongxuan was also wearing an extremely dangerous collar.

This indicates that he has not regained his status as a commoner.

Instead, they became Lin Feng's subordinates.

In other words, while being stripped of their status as upper-class citizens by the Oasis Church, they were also given to Lin Feng, becoming the private property of the young man before them.

Rong Yan, being a self-made businessman, quickly understood the difference.

After thinking it through, her worries and fears vanished instantly, replaced by excitement.

Because this newly appointed honorary governor is clearly easier to talk to than the Oasis Church.

As long as the price is high enough, releasing someone will definitely not be as troublesome as before.

After all, simply leaving the prison and restoring Rongxuan's original status as an upper-class citizen would only temporarily spare him from death.

Because the residents of Oasis Town still face an unpredictable future.

The struggle between the local powerful clans represented by the Li family and the Oasis Church continues, and with the news of Li Mingquan's death in the arena spreading widely throughout the Oasis...

Everyone knew that even if the church did not want a direct and fierce struggle, the situation had escalated with Li Mingquan's death.

In the upcoming arena battle, both sides will fight with all their might to win, even resorting to unscrupulous means.

This will directly affect the future fate of more than 2,000 residents of Shangmin District.

For Rong Yan, she naturally hoped to continue maintaining the Shangmin District so that she could intercept large amounts of meat resources through the canteen.

But now, as the situation escalates, she has sensed danger.

If she stays, she will likely be drawn into this struggle as well. Even Li Mingquan died a very tragic death. A late-stage evolved being like her, who has no combat experience, could easily perish if she is not careful.

So what she wanted was to avoid trouble and leave Oasis Town, which had become the center of the vortex.

With his accumulated wealth and his only two relatives, he fled this place and went to the holy city to make a living.

However, due to her status as an upper-class resident, Rong Yan was bound by the ironclad rule that she could not leave the upper-class district, and she had been waiting for an opportunity.

He took his son and daughter with him.

The opportunity is right in front of you!

But she knew very well that Lin Feng wouldn't give in easily.

She showed enough sincerity to move the other party!
(End of this chapter)