Wasteland: My items are infinitely upgraded.

Chapter 297 The Beast Plague Strikes, Reactions from All Sides, Advance Payments and Guarantees

As the leader of the Wasteland Wolf Clan, Wolf Ao, who had evolved to level twenty-nine, ascended the mountaintop, he unleashed a wolf howl that shook the entire wasteland…

The next moment, having received the command and signal, tens of thousands of evolved wild wolves of the entire wasteland wolf clan also raised their heads and howled together.

The sounds rose and fell, stretching endlessly from the mountain peaks in front of Oasis Town to the edge of the wasteland horizon on both sides of Oasis Avenue.

The howling and wailing were incessant, like a lament and a fury, making the listener feel uneasy, as if a great calamity would befall them at any moment.

At this moment, not only the arena in front of Oasis Town, where everyone heard the howling of wolves, but also many of the more perceptive second-tier or late-stage first-tier evolvers within Oasis Town vaguely heard the howling of wolves coming from more than ten kilometers away.

Because of the great distance, the oasis could only hear the penetrating roars of the second-tier wild wolf behemoths, but the intimidating effect of these roars could awaken the instinctive unease etched into human genes.

An ominous sense of crisis immediately rose in everyone's hearts, a premonition of an impending threat.

In particular, among the local families in Oasis Town, the remaining two early-stage second-tier evolvers are not only the leaders of Dawn Village and Motorbike Village, but also powerful Rock Horse Warriors.

But at this moment, a strange fear surged in their hearts, as if they were facing a raging storm that was about to engulf them, and the muscles of their rock horned horses trembled involuntarily.

At this moment, they knew better than anyone else just how terrifying the danger hidden within the faint roars coming from ahead was.

The only thing that could instill fear in a Rock Horse Warrior at the early stage of Tier 2 is the intimidation emanating from a natural enemy at the mid or even late stage of Tier 2—the Wild Wolf Giant.

The roars included several wolf howls coming from the front and sides, indicating that several giant wild wolves were surrounding the oasis, forming a pincer movement to completely seal off the town.

Only now did they recall a rumor that had been circulating among the villagers of Oasis Town, especially among the permanent residents of the Fifth Village, over the past two days.

Just last month, a small pack of desert wolves roamed near Oasis Town, hunting and slaughtering the surrounding low-lying desert. They were known as the Grey Reapers.

Because of his numerous evil deeds, he was eventually wiped out by a joint effort of several hunting teams.

But this matter did not end there. In retaliation for Oasis Town's counterattack, a large pack of Wasteland Wolves will soon come to seek revenge.

Among them, there may even be a large number of evolved wild wolves, leading wolf packs to directly attack various villages and hunt down the permanent residents for food.

Rumors spread like wildfire, causing panic among the townspeople. Even many of the deserters who received the news rushed to the slave caravan at the end of Oasis Town to seek some refuge.

Initially, the two second-tier leaders naturally dismissed these rumors, even scoffing at them, believing that the Oasis Church was deliberately spreading them to divert attention.

Furthermore, even if some evolved wild wolves come, they will at most be leader-level giant wolves at the late stage of the first tier. Ordinary evolved beings may find it difficult to contend with them, but as second-tier powerhouses, they are still not to be feared even by the wild wolf clan, their natural enemy.

After all, the difference between the first and second order is enough to shatter any advantage.

But it wasn't until they heard the howling of wolves coming from afar that the two realized the rumors might be true, and that it was the roar of a second-tier wild wolf behemoth.

Although the second-tier rock horse warriors are powerful, they have absolutely no chance of winning against a second-tier wild wolf behemoth of the same level.

After all, even a second-tier rock horse behemoth of the same level could be hunted down by a wild wolf behemoth. In a one-on-one fight, it would be difficult to escape from the wild wolf behemoth's steel fangs.

While the Rockhorn Warriors follow the Rockhorn path and inherit the bloodline abilities of the Rockhorn race, they are at best just smaller versions of Rockhorns.

Even a second-tier rock horse warrior only possesses less than one-fifth the strength of a patriarch-level rock horse behemoth.

Even with the upgrade from the Rock Horse Armor, it can at most match the Rock Horse Beast of the same level, with only one-third of its combat power.

Neither of them are in the same league in terms of physique or endurance.

Therefore, the wolf behemoths that can hunt down rock horse behemoths are simply natural enemies of rock horse warriors, making them the nemesis of rock horse warriors.

Even three fully armed Rock Horse warriors would find it difficult to gain the upper hand against a second-tier Wild Wolf behemoth unless they had a significant difference in evolution level; otherwise, it would be a one-sided battle.

Now, several second-tier wild wolf behemoths have arrived. Not to mention the two second-tier rock horse warriors, even if we add Li Hao, the leader, the mid-stage second-tier level 26 rock horse warrior, and the other second-tier evolvers in Oasis Town...

It is also difficult to deal with these predatory second-tier behemoths.

Their offensive tactics, honed over years of conflict with the Rockhorse tribe, have evolved into terrifying armor-piercing capabilities.

Neither the heavily armored chariots nor the oasis warships with their meter-thick alloy hulls could withstand the bites of the second-tier wild wolf behemoths.

Once someone gets close, they are destined to die.

Therefore, the only thing the tens of thousands of residents of Oasis Town can rely on right now is the sense of security brought by the fruits of human technology, namely guns and gunpowder.

Only by launching a fierce artillery offensive to suppress the large-scale invasion of the Wilderness Wolves can we find a glimmer of hope in this crisis.

Thinking of this, the two leaders quickly recalled the batch of 35mm standard howitzers that their subordinates had recently purchased from the newly emerging second-tier evolver.

While these small grenades are unlikely to harm second-tier clan chief level behemoths, they can still be quite lethal to first-tier evolved beings, even late-stage first-tier leader-level beings.

The fact that the other party was willing to sell these rare and prohibited small cannons indicates that they must also possess powerful heavy weapon shells.

Currently, within Oasis Town, the Hunting Guild of the Fifth Village, supported by the Holy City branch, is able to obtain large-caliber weapons, while the Oasis Church can rely on warships for defense and counterattack. Even the leading Li family and Farm Village, due to their close ties with many forces in the Holy City, have accumulated a certain amount of resources.

Only Shuguang Village and Jiche Village are weak in strength and lack sufficient foundation.

Once the town-level beast plague breaks out and the wasteland wolf clan attacks, everyone in Oasis Town will be in danger and fight for themselves. No one will give away their life-saving shells to help others for free.

They might even be thinking of using others as scapegoats to draw the wolf pack's firepower, thus escaping the encirclement.

So the two second-tier leaders left their respective villages and came to the caravan under the command of the newly promoted second-tier leader.

They were greeted by a high priest who had completed the transformation of the Wild Wolf Source Essence and become a second-tier early-stage Wild Wolf warrior.

The aura released by the High Priest, an evolver of the Steppenwolf pathway, also has the ability to suppress Rockhorse Warriors.

Their fully armed appearance was enough to intimidate the two leaders who came.

At the same time, after receiving the news, Ding Yi immediately instructed A Lian and Ma Chenfeng, who were already prepared, to put on power armor, take up grenade launchers, and lead their combat squad to confront the attacking Tier 2 Rock Horse Warriors.

Upon seeing this display of force, the two leaders immediately abandoned their plan to launch a raid and plunder.

After all, the intimidating presence of the high priest and the oppressive feeling of the dozens of dark cannons in front of them were enough to deal a serious blow to both of them.

In a lose-lose situation, it's necessary to reassess the strategy and methods of contact. So the two immediately stopped, exchanged a glance, and then spoke:

“We have no ill intentions. We are only seeking to purchase ammunition. We urgently need a batch of standard 35mm howitzers, or even more powerful shells.”

"Price is negotiable; as long as you can afford it, we'll agree without hesitation."

The two of them now understood perfectly well that whether it was the initial aggressive sales of howitzers, the later dissemination of rumors about an attack by the Wasteland Wolves, or the pre-emptive warning of firing cannons...

Everything suggests that Lin Feng's convoy and the Oasis Church already knew about the Wilderness Wolf Clan's attack!
This leads us to infer that Li Hao, who was engaged in a martial arts contest five kilometers away in the wasteland, is likely in grave danger.

After all, with the arrival of the second-tier wild wolf behemoth, even though he had already advanced to the mid-second tier for many years and was still the strongest level 26 among the rock horse warriors, he could not withstand the hunting from the mid-second-tier wild wolf behemoth.

It is very likely that this scheme was deliberately set up by the Oasis Church to thwart the Li family's rebellion and power grab.

Since capturing Oasis Town was hopeless, it was wise to be pragmatic and choose to admit defeat.

The most urgent task at present is to cooperate with other oasis forces that are already prepared to ensure that their own villages and settlements can survive.

Ding Yi nodded, took half a step forward, and said:

"The price of the 35mm standard grenade is twice as high as before. As for more powerful shells, we do have them, but the situation is tense right now. I'm sure the two leaders have heard the wolf howls coming from afar."

"To be honest, we only discovered and confirmed this news by accident 24 hours ago."

"At this moment, tens of thousands of evolved wild wolves, led by four second-tier clan chieftain-level wild wolf behemoths, are surrounding Oasis Town, intending to slaughter the oasis and turn it into nourishment for their expansion."

"Therefore, I hope that everyone can put aside past prejudices, treat each other sincerely, work together, and join hands to resist the attack of the wasteland wolf clan."

"Therefore, we are willing to provide you with more powerful shells, but you must pay the corresponding minimum compensation."

As she spoke, Ding Yi took out two warm standard grenades from her bosom and tossed them to the two second-tier leaders a few dozen meters away.

They each reached out and took the shell.

The moment you touch it, you can feel that the temperature on the surface of the shell is unusual.

Because whether the outer shell is made of copper or steel, the temperature is more than ten degrees lower than the outside temperature; this is determined by the thermal conductivity of metallic materials.

But the seemingly ordinary standard-issue grenade in my hand has a temperature that is even higher than 40 degrees Celsius on the ground, and it can even burn your hands.

Therefore, the two could clearly feel that the energy contained inside the shell far exceeded that of an ordinary grenade.

This is enough to show that it is more lethal.

At this moment, Ding Yi also spoke up to introduce:

"These are our specially made empowered shells. One shot can directly eliminate a mid-stage second-tier evolved being, and two shots can kill a leader-level behemoth on the spot. Even a second-tier patriarch-level being can pose a certain threat."

"Especially when aiming at the weak points on the target's body surface, such as the unarmored mouth of a wolf in the wasteland, a single shot can directly shatter its throat and jaw."

"Equipping it can be a decisive move in close combat!"

Upon seeing this, the two leaders' eyes flashed with a hint of joy, but their expressions immediately turned serious. They knew very well that the other party was willing to offer such heavy artillery in exchange for something that was definitely not evolution meat or points.

The leader of Dawn Village was the first to speak:

"Just tell us what you want, as long as it doesn't harm our interests, and we can afford it."

"Of course, there is absolutely no way we would take the initiative to attack, act as bait, or retreat as the rearguard."

Ding Yi sneered. Sure enough, the selfishness of those in power is ingrained in their genes. Especially in the current crisis, they would rather sacrifice the villages with thousands of people under their command than take any risks themselves.

However, this is exactly what Lin Feng was planning.

Taking advantage of the arrival of the Wilderness Wolf Clan, they completely drained the last remaining human resources from the three major villages.

So Ding Yi replied directly:
"I know that the two leaders don't have much wealth, and the reserves of evolution meat in their villages are almost gone..."

"Therefore, in order to understand everyone's difficulties and to help everyone unite to fight the enemy, our Chief Lin has decided to advance the payment to everyone, and use the results of defeating the Wilderness Wolf Clan to pay for the expenses later."

"The last two of you used the cannons we provided to kill the evolved wolves, and you need to give us half of the wolf carcasses you collected to complete the transaction."

Upon hearing Ding Yi's request, the two leaders exchanged glances, clearly somewhat surprised.

After all, this is real help, and if they ultimately fail to win, the grenade donations would be a complete waste.

Moreover, they would be paid with half of the spoils of war. This means that the people from both villages would take half of the spoils of war after using the weapons provided by Lin Feng and others to kill the enemy.

It's a sure-fire way to make money.

After all, with the same level of weaponry, the quality and number of personnel in the three major villages are definitely stronger than any other force in Oasis Town.

Even the Oasis Church doesn't have many combat personnel available for the battlefield, while the enemy's hastily recruited team not only has fewer than a hundred people, but also can't even muster fifty combat personnel.

Perhaps in the end they will be wiped out by the Wasteland Wolves, and the Oasis Cult will also suffer heavy losses. The spoils of war, with wolf corpses scattered all over the ground, will be happily accepted by the three surviving villages.

With that in mind, the two nodded in agreement.

But at this moment, Ding Yi made an additional request:

"However, in order to ensure the effective implementation of the agreement, you also need to provide a guarantee in advance so that we can have full confidence in you two."

As she spoke, Ding Yi smiled:
"With the current reserves of the two villages, it is probably impossible to cover the high cost of artillery shells, so let's use our assets as collateral!"

"Next, please have the two leaders escort the industrial machinery, vehicles, and technical personnel from their respective villages to the outskirts of Shengquan Village."

"We will temporarily keep it in custody!"

"The remaining guards and combat personnel will continue to be under the command of the two leaders to surround the other positions around Oasis Town."

(End of this chapter)