I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

Feng Yu continued, looking at Leopard warily. Although she knew that Leopard was just an avatar and not the real Leopard who liked to play pranks, her relationship with Lu Ban made her wary.

Is this the fundamental reason why utopia refuses to be explored?

Lu Ban roughly understood.

The reason why people can maintain a relatively relaxed attitude towards life in daily life is that even if someone makes a mistake, they will not be punished severely; making mistakes is allowed.

In Utopia, violating the rules can result in anything from expulsion to death.

That's too strict.

Even without any intentional violation, I'm still afraid that I might accidentally make a mistake someday.

Such a society is far too strict.

Of course, the residents of Utopia have lived in this environment since childhood and are more or less used to it.

However, outsiders like Ke Cheng find it difficult to integrate.

How much do you know about the Yellow Sand Brotherhood?

Lu Ban then asked, "As a player, Ke Cheng has been in Utopia for the past two weeks. He must have some perspectives different from the locals, and he might be able to discover some problems."

"The Yellow Sand Brotherhood? They're pretty nice people. They often distribute food, and although it doesn't taste very good, at least it's free."

Ke Cheng said.

"As for other things, I heard that they have a good relationship with those traveling merchants and can often buy some strange and unusual things. Almost all the rich people in Utopia are members of the Yellow Sand Brotherhood."

It sounds like what Lu Ban knows is pretty much the same.

"Has anything unusual happened to them recently, such as new hires or any noteworthy actions?"

Lu Ban asked again.

"I'm not too sure about that... I only know they shouldn't be too dangerous."

Ke Cheng answered.

Lu Ban thought for a moment and then told Ke Cheng to close his eyes.

The next moment, a silver fountain pen materialized in his right hand, displaying his last words, and countless pages appeared above Ke Cheng's head.

“He may have seen many things, but his brain didn’t understand or process them, so he couldn’t form a memory. It’s still more convenient to just look them up.”

Lu Ban offered an explanation, then began to examine Ke Cheng's memories after arriving in the wasteland.

To Lu Ban's surprise, Ke Cheng didn't seem to have any ulterior motives towards Leopard.

I don't know if it's because he's already died once and has become indifferent to these things, or if he's simply not interested in women and they only affect his speed in completing his missions.

Lu Ban continued flipping through the pages, and soon he found a scene hidden in Ke Cheng's memories.

The scene was only a fleeting moment, and Ke Cheng himself was completely unaware of it; therefore, he had no related recollection in his memory.

That was a scene of members of the Yellow Sand Brotherhood distributing food as usual.

And around those people, there was a misty fog.

The mist formed the shape of a human face.

Chapter 866 A sense of peace of mind

The faces in the mist were grotesque and eerie, but to Lu Ban, they brought a sense of security.

An old friend.

Unlike his colleague, Four-Eyes, whose entire world was occupied and destroyed by Outer Gods, the Fog City people were able to travel to various corners of the alien world and complete their missions.

The faces were distorted, surrounding the members of the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sands like guardian spirits.

For ordinary people, the smoke is so thin that they would not be able to detect it or notice it. Without knowledge of the corresponding alien world or experience of direct contact with the people of Fog City, they would never imagine that it is actually a person.

"It seems that the people of Fog City support the Brotherhood of the Sands. They want to deprive this place of its motivation to be explored and let other city-states gradually dismantle this city."

Lu Ban closed the illusory book and muttered to himself.

Ke Cheng came to his senses, listening to Lu Ban's words, completely unaware of what had happened.

"Hmm? If the people of Chongqing are behind this, then why haven't the rules of Utopia been able to detect it?"

Lu Ban thought of this again.

The people of Fog City are clearly not in the same camp as the Wasteland, or rather, the gods behind them and Silence are not the same kind of gods. The people of Fog City certainly won't get anything to make Utopia great again, or to lead the hardworking and brave people of Utopia to common prosperity.

His mission, nine times out of ten, is to lead utopia to destruction.

So, why wasn't the Yellow Sand Brotherhood punished when the Fog City people intervened?

Are these people from Chongqing really that patient?

Thinking about this, Lu Ban felt it was necessary to check on the situation of the Yellow Sand Brotherhood.

However, according to the rules of Utopia, spying on others is definitely illegal, and if one tries to sneak into the Sand Brotherhood's residence to investigate the behavior of the Fog City people, one will inevitably be punished.

After a moment's thought, Lu Ban quickly came up with a solution.

What are you planning to do?

Feng Yu glanced at Leopard, then looked at Lu Ban.

"Just go and ask them."

Lu Ban immediately replied.

"?"

Feng Yu didn't quite understand.

……

next day

The headquarters of the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sands is located in northern Utopia.

This is the headquarters of the Chamber of Commerce. All traveling merchants certified by the Yellow Sand Brotherhood can be entertained here, receive introductions, and obtain some business assistance.

In the original rules of Utopia, everyone's private property was sacred and inviolable, but similarly, individuals could not possess the means of production, etc. However, as the city developed, various imbalances inevitably arose.

Powerful superhumans can reap greater rewards in exploration and production, while weak ordinary people can only pick up scraps. If these rewards are forced to be equal, it will only weaken the desire of the strong to explore, and ultimately lead to stagnation in development.

Therefore, as utopia continued to develop, a special group of merchants gradually emerged.

They accumulated initial wealth through their initial exploration of ruins, and then used their intelligence or a bit of luck to amass a great fortune. However, they were temporarily unable to use their existing wealth to continuously generate more wealth, as this was not permitted by the rules of utopia.

In reality, they did not have the right to hire others to carry out production. In Utopia, farmers who raised insects and produced food relied on the saints of Utopia, while products of the old civilization needed to be produced by the explorers of the academy. As for daily necessities, the impoverished life had almost no demand for them. The vast majority of products were agricultural products, which were derivatives of insects, and had not yet developed to the point of handicrafts.

Therefore, although merchants possessed enormous wealth, their lives did not undergo a dramatic change. It wasn't that they no longer needed to work; they simply didn't have to work in the fields. Basic barter and transaction settlement still required a significant amount of time, and some merchants even needed to travel to other city-states to conduct trade.

Of course, throughout history, some merchants have chosen to take their wealth and flee Utopia to other city-states. However, the journey was long, and these merchants were not protected by Utopian laws in other city-states. Some were lucky enough to find a relatively peaceful city-state to settle down in, while others were unlucky. Some lost their way in sandstorms and became treasures buried in the desert, while others encountered bandits on the way and lost both their wealth and their lives. Some, after going through all sorts of hardships, were captured by the people of the city-state when they finally arrived at their destination, and all their wealth went into other people's pockets.

This is why the merchants of the Yellow Sand Brotherhood want to obtain the position of saint and become the ruler of Utopia, in order to further consolidate their wealth and status by interpreting the rules.

Inside the headquarters of the Yellow Sand Brotherhood's Chamber of Commerce, sat a woman.

She looked to be in her thirties, yet she still possessed a captivating charm and exuded allure.

In the wilderness where the average lifespan is only twenty-odd years, such women are extremely rare.

This is not because he looks old, but because some extraordinary power is demonstrating its strength.

Upon closer inspection, one can see that her clothes expose large areas of skin, and there are no crystals present in that alluring figure.

This is a saint.

The de facto leader of the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sands was Cleopatra, a woman who inherited the name of Cleopatra.

The woman held a clear glass filled with a light red liquid. This was not wine made from honeyworms, but rather a wine brewed using techniques from an ancient civilization. Of course, the raw materials were still insects and some plants, but the taste was unforgettable. When chilled, it was even more intoxicating and was Cleopatra's favorite drink.

Beside her, a wisp of smoke swirled in the air. At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary scene, but in the desert, smoke itself was extremely rare.

"I know what you want, don't try to play those tricks on me."

Cleopatra said, looking at the cloud of smoke, her words laced with mockery.

"Yet you still accepted our help."

The cloud of smoke responded, speaking a language that was not the native language of the wasteland, yet its meaning was transmitted to Cleopatra's mind through some inexplicable supernatural power.

“You should know that our ultimate goal is to destroy this city, but you don’t seem to care about that.”

"Utopia will not be destroyed because of this; your purpose was futile from the beginning."

Cleopatra said, putting down her glass and looking at the cloud of smoke.

"Thanks to Utopia, we are able to have these open and honest exchanges. You have your purpose, and I have mine. As long as I can inherit this city, I don't mind cooperating with you."

She had barely finished speaking when she heard a voice from outside.

"Sir, someone wants to see you. He says he is a representative sent by the academy."

Chapter 867 Cleopatra

"Academy?"

Cleopatra frowned slightly.

In this election, some people from the academy also participated, but compared to the other camps, the academy was the least competitive force.

Utopia has been exploring the external ruins for a long time. The ancient civilization ruins within a month's journey have all been cleared away. Going further out would require many times more resources and supplies, and the loyalty of the explorers could not be guaranteed. Therefore, Utopia, whether it is the upper class or the general public, is becoming more and more conservative.

In the early days of Utopia, most people lived with the idea of ​​returning to the past and resuming that brilliant and magnificent old era. People were more proactive then, and even in the face of death, they would explore tirelessly generation after generation.

But over the years, the initial ambitions have been worn away by repeated sandstorms. After dozens of generations, apart from those sages who were fortunate enough to experience those days, most of the remaining people just want to live their current lives and are unwilling to spend extra effort to explore those unattainable things. The academy's support rate is evident.

What are the college's plans in contacting me now?

She thought for a moment and then let the other person in.

At the same time, the plume of smoke gradually thinned out, as if it had blended into the environment.

Cleopatra soon met the visitors.

He was a handsome young man, and even by Cleopatra's standards, he was quite dashing. Especially in a wasteland where everyone was only a teenager and full of youthful innocence, his mature yet youthful appearance was enough to steal the heart of any young girl.