Lords of the Heavens

Chapter 298 Lying in Wait
When Li Wei walked about fifty miles further, he could clearly feel that the power of the radiation storm had diminished. The concentration of radiation toxins could only be maintained at a level that barely infected a level two blood plague, and the number of mutated creatures also decreased accordingly.

Based on this estimate, if Li Wei's camp can generate one level 4 universal gold card every day, then other side quests might only generate one every two or three days.

Of course, it should be at the bottom of the radiation storm at this moment, which is why it continues to weaken.

After nightfall, Ah-Dai flew back and shared its reconnaissance findings.

After a moment of contemplation, Li Wei decisively left the highway and entered the desolate wilderness that now resembled a maze.

His plan was simple: with the help of Ah Dai's reconnaissance abilities and his own, he would begin a full-map advance from this moment on.

Specifically, it means not caring about efficiency, but leaving no blind spots.

Relying on that highway, we will advance across the entire map, covering 100 kilometers to the left and 100 kilometers to the right.

During this process, he also tried his best not to leave any trace, restrained and adjusted his aura, and reduced his life radiation field.

This is a talent unique to Night Rangers.

Of course, this method is bizarre and seems to be mostly a waste of effort, but Li Wei is very clear that he is carrying out a great and dangerous hunt. Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang are like two big fish, or two extremely dangerous beasts. He needs to be more patient, more careful, and more calm.

Perhaps Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang didn't expect him to come, but in reality, the hunt had already begun.

"Ah-Dai, remember this location, and also the scent of that level 5 mutated creature inside."

At this moment, Li Wei was standing outside a ruined town. He had already traveled 400 li. According to the few words revealed by Zhao Guozhu and others, Scarface Glen's camp should be in the southwest, about 200 li away.

That's right, Li Wei didn't go straight ahead, but instead kept moving in arcs, scouting the surrounding area and recording the ruined towns and resource points that contained level 5 mutated creatures.

These ruined towns all exude extremely strong life force fluctuations, which are undoubtedly mutated creatures lurking here, or powerful magical zombies.

Li Wei did not alert the enemy, nor did he sweep through their ranks.

Since saying goodbye to Liang Yuzhi, he hasn't even triggered a single battle along the way.

Even when mutated creatures pass by him from dozens of meters away, they have a hard time spotting him.

Because the passive talent of the Tier 1 Night Ranger has taken effect.

The same is true at this moment.

Li Wei entered an abandoned house on the edge of the town, found a corner and sat down silently. He first took out a scout cloak to cover himself, and then took out some food and chewed it silently.

Replenishing food is very important; otherwise, even with super long stamina, one will eventually run out of energy.

In addition, he is still more than 200 miles away from Scarface's camp, and he may encounter Chu Wushuang at any time, so it is better to be cautious.

Yes, Li Wei didn't believe that during the low point of the radiation storm, Scarface and Chu Wushuang would still be idly playing cards or mahjong in their camp fortress.

Wouldn't it be better to get some two-star blood resistance potions and hunt down magical zombies everywhere?

It's not impossible that they might even be preparing for next month's hunt.

After resting for a night, Li Wei resumed his journey once he was fully recovered. However, every six hours, he would release Ah Dai and order it to patrol the route it had previously taken.

The key is to scout those ruined towns and resource points, look for the presence of those level 5 mutated creatures, and confirm whether they are dead.

In this way, it can be basically confirmed whether Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang went out hunting to develop.

However, so far, no clues have been found.

Another day passed. Ah Dai flew out twice, and Li Wei continued to travel 300 miles, exploring and discovering seven ruined villages and resource points. He also found many mutated creatures that were restless and about to lose control.

The chaotic magical particles brought by the radiation storm are like a poisonous tonic to these mutated creatures, allowing them to level up from level 2 to level 3, level 3 to level 4, and so on.

The stronger they are, the more easily they lose their reason.

In the lead-up to the radiation storm, these level 5 mutated creatures and magical zombies would try to dig holes and burrows, instinctively trying to avoid the radiation storm. This is also a major reason why level 5 magical zombies and mutated creatures were rarely seen in the first half of the month.

At this point, they are even difficult to find.

However, around the middle or end of the month, some level 5 mutated creatures, the magical zombies, will be unable to hold on any longer. They will go berserk and search for possible antidotes, such as natural humans.

Li Wei still came quietly and rested quietly, as quiet as a ghost in the wilderness.

Ah-Dai, on the other hand, was the ghost among ghosts. Since entering the wilderness, it had not uttered a single sound, and its entire body was shrouded in a layer of cold mist.

This time, thanks to it, otherwise it would have been too difficult for Li Wei to quickly locate Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang on his own.

No, it's almost impossible.

For the next two days, Li Wei continued to conduct reconnaissance around Scarface Glen's camp, constantly narrowing his lines and maneuvering until he had completely circled the area.

Traveling this entire route, especially if you have to investigate each ruined town and each resource point, would take 1,500 li.

Ah Dai would fly around every day to check if Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang had come out to farm and develop their resources.

Those ruined towns and resource points are like foot soldiers in the wilderness.

It has to be said that this method is very clumsy and stupid, but it is basically foolproof.

So far, Li Wei has not come within 100 miles of Scarface Glen's camp, and there must be no more level 5 mutated creatures within that range.

Now it all depends on whether Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang are willing to come out and farm in the jungle.
At this moment, Li Wei was hiding in an ordinary mountain forest 120 miles away from Scarface Glen's camp. He dug a cave for hiding, and he no longer needed to scout. The rest could be left to Ah Dai, who could patrol the area once a day to confirm the other party's whereabouts.

It is now the fourteenth day of the month, and he has spent more than six days just to complete this large-scale reconnaissance.

However, there has been no indication yet that Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang have gone out to hunt in the wild.

Would they give up such an opportunity?

Li Wei pondered for a moment, then casually upgraded his one-star rare scout card to two stars, bringing his total to 4+4+3+2.

Over the past six days of reconnaissance, he has gained another 300 reconnaissance experience points.

Then of course it needs to be upgraded.

He immediately invested all five of his newly acquired free attribute points into Agility, bringing it to 39. This was the attribute that best suited his profession and destiny, and it was the kind that wouldn't have any side effects as long as he didn't over-allocate points.

Otherwise, if he adds 5 points to his defense, Li Wei will need at least three days to recover.

"Pullingleng!"

The soft sound of wings flapping came from afar, and Li Wei immediately pictured Ah Dai gliding down with a very graceful posture, having completed its reconnaissance for the day.

Did we end up with nothing?

It's already the fifteenth day.

Li Wei pondered, looking at the drizzling rain outside the cave and the cold mist that filled the valley.

It's already October, so it seems like planting winter wheat is out of the question. With the radiation storm coming, it won't matter what you plant.

Daytime temperatures have dropped to around 10 degrees Celsius, while nighttime temperatures are approaching zero.

A new wave of radiation storms seems to be brewing.

Because the concentration of radiation toxins was fluctuating wildly, mutated creatures in the wilderness were also running around blindly.

Walking in the wilderness right now without a level 3 Blood Plague immunity is a recipe for disaster.

"Could it be that Scarface Glen and Chu Wushuang are waiting for the radiation to increase? Does Scarface Glen have my Rat Exterminator title? Do the other people who are exploring side quests have it?"

Li Wei pondered, and concluded that it was highly unlikely, because titles were not easy to obtain and had very strict acquisition conditions.

It seems that other seeded players with Trail Blazer cards haven't experienced what he has.

Even his headquarters seems unable to accurately ascertain his background attributes?
Li Wei recalled the scene when he swiped his card at that mysterious machine in the Ministry of the Interior after his first mission ended.

That's the way to read all of his attributes, right?

"Boom!"

The faint rumble of thunder echoed from the distant horizon, and the chaotic magical particles in the air continued to increase.

From a ruined town dozens of miles away, a deafening roar came, followed by more howls, continuous and endless.

Li Wei didn't need to look to know that one of the level 5 mutated creatures had finally given in and emerged from the depths of the ground. It would then frantically search for the antidote from the natural humans, which would trigger a siege.

"Sigh, it seems all my efforts these past few days have been in vain."

Li Wei thought helplessly that since a siege was likely to occur soon, it would be even less likely that Scarface Ge Lan and Chu Wu Shuang would be able to come out and farm in the jungle.

They are really reliable.

Since that's the case—well, let's wait another day. At worst, we can launch a sneak attack and pick off some enemies when the monster siege event breaks out.

The rain stopped early the next morning, but the cold fog almost completely enveloped the world, even connecting with the clouds in the sky. Judging from this, the area for hundreds of miles around was probably like this, because there were no tall mountains here, just flat plains.

"Hey, you idiot, watch out!"

Li Wei gave some instructions and released Ah Dai again. The dense fog had a significant impact on Ah Dai, but it didn't need to see the details of the ground. It only needed to remember whether there were any changes in the aura of those level 5 mutated creatures.

Yes, it can be sensed from hundreds of meters away.

The mutated creatures at this time of year are like light bulbs, impossible to hide.

This time, Li Wei waited until noon when he suddenly noticed that Ah Dai was returning quickly. There was movement going on.

He quickly confirmed it through a blurry image sent back by Ah-Dai.

Scarface Glen's men really did come out to farm and develop their resources. Although we couldn't see any figures, we could hear the roars of mutated creatures. Most importantly, the fluctuations of the universal gold card were definitely true.

Since the universal gold card exists, it means that Scarface Glenn is also present, carrying the Pioneer Card.

So, was Chu Wushuang also by his side?

Or should he remain in his camp?
"No, Chu Wushuang shouldn't be here!" Li Wei quickly made a judgment. It was the early stage of the radiation storm about to erupt again. The concentration of radiation toxins was enough to quickly infect people with level 3 blood plague. The level 5 mutated creatures were restless. Scarface Glen alone probably wouldn't be able to stabilize the situation.

Especially considering how composed they've been these past few days, it's highly likely they're aiming for a quick victory this time, to develop their strength rapidly, and then return by evening without spending the night outside.

Given this, it's even more likely that Chu Wushuang will stay by Scarface Ge Lan's side.

(End of this chapter)