I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

He thought he was incredibly smart.

Anyway, their mission is to find the treasure, and it wasn't said that they necessarily had to rely on themselves. Wouldn't it be simpler to just go and ask for help?

Moreover, Lu Ban had come into contact with the remains of a saint, so the treasure here might be guarded by that simple-minded guy, who has a lot of leverage.

He exchanged a few words with the three locals, telling them to hide and leave immediately if anything went wrong. Then, he walked straight into the city square.

In an instant, several crossbows were aimed at them. Lu Ban saw a man whose arms were covered in crystals standing at the entrance of the cave. He was obviously the person in charge here.

Lu Ban did not stop, but continued forward toward the man with the crystallized arm.

Iron Fist, feeling somewhat curious, waved his hand, signaling the wary crossbowmen to lower their weapons.

"who are you?"

Iron Fist looked the man up and down. Apart from the crowbar on his back, there seemed to be nothing special about him.

"You can call me the clown."

Lu Ban said generously.

"I'm here to discuss a business deal with you."

"Business?"

Iron Fist found it amusing and chuckled.

The man next to him, whose face was half-crystallized, was somewhat annoyed.

"You're definitely not alone. Where are your companions?"

"No need to rush, Faceless."

Iron Fist stopped his men and turned to look at Lu Ban.

"What do you think I need? I have far more information about this place than you do. Don't you find it a bit ridiculous that you come to talk business with me empty-handed? Aren't you afraid I'll just kill you and dump your body in the desert to be eaten by insects?"

He was telling the truth. Iron Fist felt that no one understood these ruins and these civilizations better than him. After all, his city-state considered itself a descendant of this civilization, and the map in his hand was passed down from his ancestors, plus what he had collected in the wasteland.

But now this man is talking about business.

Before seeing the chips, Iron Fist thought the person in front of him really looked like a clown, a jester from the old days who used comical actions and performances to please others.

"How about I perform a magic trick for you first?"

Lu Ban casually pulled a small survival knife out of his backpack.

"I will make this knife disappear from your sight..."

"what are you up to?"

The half of the face of the man known as the Faceless suddenly changed color, and Lu Ban could feel the surrounding air turn cold.

The next moment, he plunged the knife into his left hand, the blade sinking into flesh, and the bone was faintly visible.

Iron Fist was a little confused. Why did this guy start stabbing himself without saying a word?

But when Lu Ban pulled the knife out of his hand, Tie Quan saw that Lu Ban's wound was healing at a speed visible to the naked eye. At the same time, grass was growing in the bloody, deep wound that exposed bone.

"Alright, can we start talking now?"

He smiled.

Iron Fist remained silent for a moment. He had seen some similar healing and recovery abilities, but he had never seen one as outrageous as Lu Ban's.

In the blink of an eye, the wound had completely disappeared.

He could certainly kill Lu Ban as he had said before, but Iron Fist didn't want to test just how powerful the forces behind someone with such extraordinary regenerative abilities were.

"Tell me about your business."

"It's simple. We'll team up, and when we find the treasure, we'll split it 50/50."

Lu Ban said in a deep voice.

“But I think we can find the treasure without you, unless you have any new information.”

Iron Fist spread his hands, showing off his team.

Did you know that the remains of a saint exist in these ruins?

Lu Ban asked a question.

Iron Fist disagreed; this was information he already knew.

"Go on, I'm listening."

"Do you know that the remains of a saint are standing right beside you right now?"

Lu Ban asked another question.

"!"

Iron Fist tensed up immediately. He turned around and looked around, but there was nothing there except his own men.

"You fool me?"

"No, it really is standing next to you."

Lu Ban pointed to the air next to Iron Fist.

There, the guy in the white shirt was mimicking Iron Fist's movements, looking around like a mischievous brat.

Iron Fist looked in the direction Lu Ban was pointing, but still found nothing.

He glanced at Faceless beside him, who also looked bewildered.

"You had better prove what you're saying."

Iron Fist clenched his fist, which was made of crystal.

"Pure white clothes, long black hair, barefoot, looking like both a man and a woman, with completely black eyes..."

Before Lu Ban could finish speaking, Iron Fist took a step closer.

"Is it really here?"

Iron Fist lowered his voice and asked a question.

"I'm here."

Lu Ban glanced at the guy next to Iron Fist, who also moved closer, his head just inches away from Iron Fist's.

"Boss?"

Wumian was somewhat confused.

After a brief moment of thought, Iron Fist quickly reached out his hand towards Lu Ban.

"Pleasant to work with."

"From today onwards, we are comrades!"

Lu Ban gripped the iron fist—the hand that was still flesh and blood—and swung it forcefully.

Chapter 184 Do you have any food here?

"Oh, by the way, I have a companion here. You don't mind, do you?"

Seeing that the cooperation had been agreed upon, Lu Ban spoke again.

"do not mind."

Iron Fist responded, seemingly having anticipated this.

On the wasteland, although everyone else could be an enemy, very few people actually act completely alone. If you are all alone, you might die from minor troubles or injuries because you can't get help. Therefore, most wasteland hunters travel in pairs.

In a post-apocalyptic world where humanity has been extinguished, trust has become people's strongest weapon.

Wasteland hunters like Ironfist, whose core is a city-state, have taken group warfare to the extreme. Unless they encounter some particularly powerful monsters, such teams can roam the wasteland with impunity.

Lu Ban called out, and Xi Ya, who had been hiding in the shadows, also came out.

Clearly, women are rare in the wilderness, let alone a clean and tidy young girl like her.

Someone whistled, but quickly stopped under Iron Fist's gaze.

Under the current circumstances, it would be best for him and Xia to follow this group into the underground exploration of the ruins. However, Lu Ban did not think these people were truly trustworthy, because they had a deeper understanding of the ruins and seemed to be actively seeking them out. In this case, these people might be followers of some evil god with ulterior motives.

“This is my companion; you can call her the mage.”

Lu Ban gave an introduction, and then continued.

"There's one more thing, which is very important."

Upon hearing Lu Ban's words, Iron Fist's expression turned serious.

"Please speak."

Since they could see the remains of a saint, it meant that this person was no ordinary person, and Iron Fist's tone became more respectful.

Perhaps Lu Ban saw some kind of monster that ordinary people couldn't detect, or perhaps he had some information about this underground ruin.

"My companion and I haven't eaten in a long time. Do you have any food here?"

Lu Ban grinned.

"...Prepare food for the two of you."

Iron Fist quietly clenched his fist.

……

Lu Ban originally thought that everyone in this wasteland lived by eating insects. Depending on the type of insect, there might be different ways to prepare them, such as insect soup, roasted insects, fried insects, steamed insects, etc. He wondered if every household kept several of those jumping insects in an enclosure, and there might even be insect protection associations calling on people to stop harming insects and to live in harmony with them.

However, Lu Ban realized that he was very wrong.

The giants eat insects, probably because they are poor and lack resources, so they can only eat insects.

But there are other creatures in this world.

For example, the soup that Lu Ban was holding had chunks of meat and vegetables floating in it, and smelled so delicious that it was a delicacy that was many times better than insects.

The faceless man watching from the side couldn't help but swallow hard.

"This is the same food as our boss, don't be ungrateful."