Chapter 180: The 3,577 Abyss Cities Alliance
Chapter 180: The 3,577 Abyss Cities Alliance
Gao Jing experienced the giant city of Qinghe for the first time yesterday.
Today, he was also seeing an Abyss Dweller underground city for the first time.
His knowledge of both cities was quite limited.
Yet Gao Jing was very clear about two rules in the Great Desolation World.
The first rule was the strong rule supreme!
Strength determined a person’s status and standing in this world. A Great Totem Warrior was higher than a Totem Warrior, and a Grand Shaman stood above a Great Totem Warrior.
Building upon the first rule came the second rule: Pointlessly offending one’s superior meant death!
Earlier in the tavern, when Shan Tai manifested his Beast Spirit to reveal his power, the Scar-Faced Giant was scared into chopping off his own palm in apology on the spot, even leaving with a look of relief.
Because the Scar-Faced Giant understood perfectly well.
Given the malicious offense toward this Great Totem Warrior, escaping with his life was sheer luck.
Had Shan Tai killed him right then, no one would have cried injustice!
Therefore, based on these two rules, Gao Jing fiercely struck, killing the burly man and the lanky youth.
Their malice toward him and Ling Ling was completely blatant!
A pity they lacked eyesight.
The archer girl had genuinely been terrified.
She had just witnessed how Gao Jing split the burly man open and beheaded the lanky youth.
Such a bloody scene undoubtedly became a lingering nightmare in her mind.
But Gao Jing felt this was good for her.
It would truly make this naive girl understand the harshness of reality.
Either she adapted and matured, or she left and returned home if she couldn’t accept it. Both were far better than falling into an irredeemable situation due to naive ignorance.
Passing through a long, chaotic, and filthy neighborhood, a river over ten meters wide appeared ahead.
The water was black.
Gao Jing could see the churning black water wasn’t natural; it seemed more like the result of some kind of pollution.
It emitted a faint smell of rust.
The source of this black river was a large cave a kilometer away.
“That’s the Blackiron Mine Cave.”
Ling Ling, who had been pulled along by Gao Jing, regained some color in her face and whispered: “The black water in the river comes from miners washing ore, which is why this place is called Blackwater City.”
Mining was undoubtedly Blackwater City’s main industry, with most Abyss Dwellers in the city relying on this mine for their livelihood.
The Blackiron ore mined by Abyss Dweller miners was all traded to Qinghe City in exchange for essentials like grain and Salt Stone.
“Ahead is the Middle District.”
Ling Ling lifted her spirits: “I live there.”
Gao Jing glanced at her and asked: “You alright now?”
Gao Jing had a rather favorable impression of this archer girl.
But if she couldn’t accept his previous act of self-defense, then they could only part ways.
The hardest teammate to carry in the world isn’t a hapless fool, but a self-righteous goody-two-shoes fool!
“I’m fine.”
Ling Ling sniffled and said: “You didn’t do wrong. If the Enforcement Guard investigates, I’ll be your witness!”
Gao Jing was curious: “Enforcement Guard?”
The Enforcement Guard was an armed force belonging to the Steward Hall, comprising three hundred elite warriors, including Totem Warriors.
Patrol squads of the Enforcement Guard were responsible for maintaining order in Blackwater City.
However, most of the time, the Enforcement Guard patrolled only the Upper District and Middle District.
Unless a major incident occurred,
they were rarely seen in the Lower District.
Now that Gao Jing had killed two gang thugs in the Lower District, it was hard to say how the Enforcement Guard would react.
Gao Jing smiled: “Thank you.”
With his current strength plus the modern weapons in his Storage Space, he truly wasn’t afraid of the Enforcement Guard investigating.
Having fought Giants, fighting fellow Abyss Dwellers was incomparably easier.
Besides, Gao Jing had the Talisman of Protection gifted by the Old Shaman Shan Yan!
What truly pleased him was the girl’s attitude.
Ling Ling flashed Gao Jing a smile: “No need to thank me.”
She was a little naive, but not stupid, and could tell right from wrong.
Walking shoulder to shoulder across the wooden bridge over the Blackwater River, Ling Ling pointed towards the buildings on the left: “My home is over here. That tallest building is where our Alliance members meet.”
The Middle District, separated by the river, looked much cleaner and tidier than the Lower District.
Like the difference between an ordinary residential area and a slum. Most buildings here were made of stone and wood, the ground paved with flagstones, its streets neatly laid out.
Following the direction Ling Ling pointed, Gao Jing saw a five-story building over ten meters tall.
Among the surrounding two- or three-story houses, it was absolutely like a crane standing among chickens!
Gao Jing asked: “Your alliance?”
“The 3,577 Abyss Cities Alliance.”
Ling Ling puffed out her chest. Though no effort could push it past A+, it made the badge hanging there more prominent: “I’m a member of the Three-Five-Seven-Seven Alliance!”
3,577 Abyss Cities Alliance…
Gao Jing was momentarily bewildered.
No one knew exactly how many tribes of Ancient Descendants existed in the Abyss, or how many Abyss Cities the dwellers had built.
But if this alliance covered 3,577 Abyss Cities, that was astounding.
He couldn’t help asking: “How many members do you have in your alliance?”
“No idea about the whole alliance.”
Ling Ling shook her head: “But our Blackwater City Alliance Branch has over five hundred members.”
She blinked and asked: “Gao Jing, do you want to join our Three-Five-Seven-Seven Alliance? There are lots of benefits.”
To Gao Jing, her look at that moment was like those young women on the street pulling customers: “Hey handsome! Interested in swimming or fitness? We’ve got great deals!”
He couldn’t help but laugh and ask: “What are the benefits?”
Actually, the so-called 3,577 Abyss Cities Alliance, abbreviated as the Three-Five-Seven-Seven Alliance (or Three Alliance), wasn’t some overwhelmingly powerful Abyss Dweller force.
It was more like a broad-based association.
Alliance members
could exchange information, trade goods and equipment, accept and post various tasks, and more.
The alliance had little binding force over members. As long as members didn’t break the rules, they were free.
But not every Abyss Dweller could join the Three Alliance; members needed a certain level of strength or ability.
An Advanced-rank Totem Warrior like Gao Jing would not only have no problem getting in,
but be welcomed!
Ling Ling explained: “If you join, you start as a third-tier member.”
Different tier members enjoyed different levels of access and authority within the alliance system.
“Sounds decent.”
Gao Jing said: “Then let’s head to your branch and take a look.”
The Great Wilderness had no television, newspapers, or certainly the internet. His knowledge of this world mostly came from conversations with Old Shaman Shan Yan, Shan Tai, Zhiqi, and others.
According to Ling Ling’s description, the Three Alliance was undoubtedly an excellent channel to understand the world.
This was precisely what Gao Jing needed most.
Trading goods and equipment was also good; taking and posting tasks didn’t matter much.
Of course, he also had to check first if there were any catches.
But Gao Jing and Ling Ling had only taken a few steps before he stopped again.
After crossing the bridge to the Middle District, he saw numerous stalls set up along the long riverside, crowded with Abyss Dwellers trading.
Animal hides, bones, dried meat, tendons, herbs, plants, weapons, tools, everyday items, and various strange curios filled these stalls.
Among them, a black-brown statue at one stall caught Gao Jing’s attention!
The statue was under half a meter tall, shaped like a fierce, clawing demon god, carved in a very bold, crude style.
It reminded Gao Jing of the Sacrificial Altar wood carving he had once acquired in a Goblin camp.
It looked extremely similar to what he saw now.
“Wait here.”
He walked straight over and squatted down in front of that stall, pointing at the statue: “How much for this?”
The stall owner was a scrawny middle-aged Abyss Dweller.
Seeing Gao Jing’s interest, his eyes darted around, then he grinned, showing blackened teeth,
and held up three fingers towards Gao Jing.
What did that mean?
Gao Jing turned to look at Ling Ling who had followed – he had no clue about Blackwater City’s prices or currency.
“Three coppers?”
The archer girl widened her eyes: “Isn’t that too expensive?”
“Thirty coppers!”
The middle-aged Abyss Dweller got flustered: “Three is impossible!”
“You belong to Zhiqi’s family, right?”
Ling Ling tugged Gao Jing away: “Thirty coppers? Your family heirloom it will be!”
Gao Jing chuckled and let her lead him away compliantly.
Though he felt thirty coppers seemed cheap, trusting the girl was the right move now.
“Ten coppers!”
Seeing the sale slipping away, the middle-aged seller hurriedly called out: “It’s the cheapest possible now!”
It proved it could be even cheaper.
In the end, Gao Jing got the wood carving for five coppers.
He had to borrow the Copper Coins from Ling Ling.