Zhu Xiong's news caught Su Han by surprise, he asked, "What happened?"
"Nanwang Lake is still not safe. Today I went to block the remaining passages and found a group of survivors who had just come over, not from Ruan Chao's camp."
Nanwang Lake is vast in area, and there are actually quite a few survivors' camps that depend on such a water source to survive. It's just that within the fog, one might not know of the others' existence.
What Zhu Xiong was talking about was another group of survivors.
"How many people ran over?"
"13, all injured."
As they walked toward Villa No. 9, they kept talking, "Their camp wasn't big, just over 40 people at its best, but they were recently attacked."
"Attacked?"
Su Han's gaze turned serious, and Zhu Xiong nodded, "Yes, attacked. Suddenly a group of people appeared out of nowhere and raided their camp, taking away many women and supplies, and capturing some of the men."
"How did they escape?"
Su Han immediately spotted the loophole; the entire camp couldn't defeat the attackers, yet so many managed to escape.
"They were part of a search party," Zhu Xiong answered, "I checked, and they all had supplies on them. All Contractors, and their Angel Envoys had clear roles for scouting and combat."
Their statements were only one factor. Zhu Xiong, an experienced guy, would cross-check their stories from different angles when listening to the survivors' descriptions.
There is a distinct difference between the configuration of a refugees' squad and that of a search party.
Moreover, when Zhu Xiong met the survivors, he would intentionally separate one or two of them and let people casually broach subjects with them.
Although not mandatory, the direction of these casual conversations were relatively consistent. It was all about seeing if their answers would corroborate each other.
"They weren't all injured by that group, but by the Giant Crocodile Monster grouping in Nanwang Lake."
Zhu Xiong detailed the information he had gathered to Su Han, "When they returned with supplies, they found their camp had been breached, and some people had been turned into bait for killing the monsters."
"When they tried to stealthily rescue people they were discovered by the attackers. There was a clash, and they were no match. If it hadn't been for the creatures from Nanwang Lake suddenly attacking and causing chaos, it's likely they wouldn't have escaped."
Zhu Xiong paused briefly, then said solemnly, "Moreover, according to their intelligence, among the group that attacked them, the leader should be Second Order."
Su Han's eyebrows raised, "Second Order, seems like the Talent is not bad. Tomorrow I'll join you. Let's get the metal door up first then head over to Nanwang Lake."
-----------------
Nanwang Lake, Nanwang Guild Hall.
Gao Song came out of the third-floor room holding his trousers, only half-dressed, his bare upper body and trousers not properly fastened.
He buttoned up his shirt as he walked, and through the ajar door, one could vaguely see two women on the disheveled bed.
"Brother Song!"
The moment he appeared, the other men outside immediately greeted him.
He patted their shoulders with a smile and asked, "Where's my big brother?"
"Brother Bin is downstairs, setting up today's hunt. We're a bit short on bait, and he's not too happy about it."
Gao Song frowned, waved his hand, and gestured for his men to leave, "I'll go down and find him."
Gao Bin's composure remained unshaken as he spoke slowly.
Hunting had become their habit.
They would use bait to lure monsters into traps, then surround and kill the monsters, controlling Angel Envoys to Devour the corpses of the monsters, thereby inducing mutations in the Envoys.
This method helped them to rapidly strengthen their own Angel Envoys, thereby increasing their power and swaying hearts.
"I heard we're running low on bait."
Gao Song looked puzzled and asked his brother, "Why don't we use those women as bait now? We've had our fun anyway."
There were quite a few people in their group, around a hundred, but women were scarce. To control the women's ability to resist, except for a few core members whose women were Contractors, the rest were considered expendable.
When needed, they were everyone's toys.
When not needed, they were bait.
When Gao Song stated this, there was not a hint of pity in his calm demeanor, sending shivers down one's spine.
Gao Bin shook his head, "We're not far from Shanhu Villa District. Once we set up camp there, we need to keep some women around, otherwise, the guys underneath won't have an outlet for their urges. Constant moving isn't a solution."
"Who knows if there are any survivors in the Shanhu Villa District. If the place is really that convenient, there are probably quite a number of them."
Gao Song's brow furrowed slightly, sensing potential risks.
"If we're stronger, we'll rob them," Gao Bin had clearly considered this, "If not, we'll hole up in a subway station like those rats from the Subway Gang, building up strength."
"Like those rats from the Subway Gang?"
The subway stations, with their excellent closure, had only a few entrances and exits aside from the tracks where the trains moved through.
Once the entrances were sealed, a subway station could accommodate hundreds or even more than a thousand people.
The concrete-built subway stations were a hard bone for monsters to chew on, offering great security, though not so convenient for water supply. But it was bearable.
Such places, therefore, became camps for some survivors, the 'rats' as Gao Song referred to them.
"Being 'rats' is better than being dead, and they're not weak."
Clearly, there had been conflicts between the two groups, and Gao Bin had suffered minor losses.
"Get ready for the hunt today," Gao Bin's fingers rhythmically tapped his crossed leg, speaking slowly, "We will stay around Nanwang Lake for a while, seizing resources and people. That is how we will secure our footing and expand our influence. Just over a hundred people isn't enough."
To become even more powerful, it wasn't enough to have individual strength; production had to recover, resources had to be gathered, all of which required manpower.
He was no longer satisfied with this hyena-like hunting method and desperately wanted a stronghold, a stable base, not one they'd be chased out of.
Gao Song nodded, understanding his brother's thinking, "I got it, Brother Bin."
"Good you understand," Gao Bin said, "Nanwang Lake is home to creatures like the Giant Crocodile Monster and Armored Crocodile. Devouring them should yield better effects than consuming flesh. There are also some fish that haven't turned into monsters, eating them can enhance the body's strength.
So we need to stay here for a while, to build up our power, especially you, if we are to take down the Shanhu Villa District."
Gao Bin had plans in mind. Nanwang Lake had to be thoroughly scavenged, and it had to be done quickly.
Not too far from Shanhu Villa District, if they didn't clean up this place thoroughly, there was no telling when someone else might swoop in for the spoils.
Strike first to gain the upper hand, that was Gao Bin's rule of thumb.
"Alright, let's prepare for the hunt. Take the remaining ten people out, bleed them by the lake, let them loose alive."