"How are you feeling now?"

After adapting to the intense light, Lord Sha Hai's vision gradually returned to normal.

He found himself lying on a cold bed, covered with a white sheet, facing a very close lampshade. Inside, each bulb was glowing, and the light was visibly softening quickly.

Lord Sha Hai felt slightly dizzy.

Where was this?

"I am your Chief Physician, Doctor Da Vinci."

A mechanical voice sounded from the large lampshade, "I'm glad you've woken up naturally. Your vital signs have stabilized. The Guangna Organ in your abdominal wound has been sutured, and the fractured bones have been surgically fixed. Your resilience and will to survive are strong, which has helped you wake up much faster than I had anticipated."

"However, to fully recover, you'll need at least three more months."

"During this time, please pay attention to resting, drinking more water, maintaining moderate activity, and consuming a stable diet. Your diet should be light, and you should avoid putting weight on bones that haven't fully healed, minimizing high workload use of the Guangna Organ."

Lord Sha Hai was still somewhat groggy and uttered an acknowledgment.

As his mind gradually began to function, he remembered.

He had been severely injured and brought to a place called Maria Hospital.

Then, he had been in a dazed state, with only Zhou Yi able to enter his mind and hold several conversations with him.

Lord Sha Hai slowly rose from the bed, touching the bandaged wound, which still ached faintly.

"Doctor, how long have I been here since I arrived?"

"From emergency admission to today, it has been a total of 32 days."

Only a month?

Lord Sha Hai was relieved.

The Chairman of the Wasteland Development Company, Zhou Yi, had accepted his deal and would station the Alien Jade City in Sand Port City.

Duke Baili wouldn't dare to forcefully attack the local region in the short term.

Facing combat-ready aliens, everyone would have to weigh their options.

Among the sea lords, few possessed Dead Sea Aliens, let alone the ability to command them in battle.

Lord Sha Hai had already formulated a hypothesis about Zhou Yi's identity.

This individual, previously without any records—a human or humanoid life form—had arrived in Mao Valley Town guarded by samurai crabs, and unapologetically struck back fiercely against both Star Core Elector Ji Zhang and the Seventh Fleet. He had also revived and taken control of the slumbering Jade City.

Maria Hospital was also an alien; stranger yet, it was powered by hundreds of Sheng Snakes propelling the Floating Island, which was then offered to Zhou Yi.

Not long before his own accident, the sea alien "Moon Teeth," which the Seventh Fleet had been closely monitoring, was also taken away by Zhou Yi right before them. Ultimately, the Seventh Fleet announced some rhetoric about a joint cooperation to reduce maritime transportation risks as a face-saving measure.

Zhou Yi had a strong penchant for collecting alien weapons.

Including the Hunter, many high-level Guangna Species were under his command.

This man also came from the Dead Sea...

His affiliation was becoming clear.

Lord Sha Hai was almost certain.

Zhou Yi came from the "Warlord," an entity akin to "Black Emperor" of the Heavenly Kingdom and "Old King" of the Star Axis.

The Warlord faction, unlike the previous two major forces, purely focused on collecting various weapons, showing particular interest in Divine Era Weapons, earning the moniker Weapon Hunters.

However, this faction had very few members, acted extremely discreetly, but their power was formidable. Lord Sha Hai knew a strong figure who had been killed on the spot by a Weapon Hunter during a dispute over a weapon.

Characteristics of Weapon Hunters included: never discussing their past, remarkable strength, acting alone, and specializing in collecting certain types of weapons.

Zhou Yi's mission appeared to be collecting aliens.

So the bait Lord Sha Hai had last thrown was the knowledge of a Dead Sea Alien, promising to lead him there if he would help stabilize the situation.

This was indeed true.

Tempted by the alien, Zhou Yi agreed.

However, the current situation outside still needed to be assessed firsthand.

...

Lord Sha Hai, leaning against the wall with his round body, slowly walked out of the hospital room. There were already people waiting outside.

"Lord."

It was Chen Jiadong.

His face lit up with joy as he hurriedly came over to assist: "Hearing from Doctor Da Vinci that you might wake up soon, I've been waiting here nonstop. How are you feeling now?"

"Not too bad."

Lord Sha Hai moved his claws, "What's the situation in Sand Port now?"

"Lord, everything is running smoothly, the mood among the citizens is stable, and the fish fry continue to grow. It's just that with the rainy season of spring, there are more mosquitoes, causing many human residents to suffer from swelling and itching. Luckily, the abundance of papyrus has mitigated the issue somewhat."

It seemed Zhou Yi had kept his promise.

Lord Sha Hai felt a weight lift off his chest, "Has Duke Baili made any recent moves?"

"Lord, Duke Baili is dead."

What?

Lord Sha Hai was startled, "Dead? How did it happen?"

"The Wasteland Development Company killed Duke Baili and made an announcement throughout Shell City."

Chen Jiadong continued, "Our insider there sent the message, and it is indeed true. Initially, Duke Baili fled into the Dead Sea after being ambushed at sea by Jade City and other aliens near Shell City. After being pursued, he completely vanished... Duke Baili's two deputies are now negotiating the division of his estate."

"If Duke Baili were alive, he would never allow such a situation to occur; at the least, he would have taken his soldiers with him. Most of the sea warriors surviving the battle have left."

Lord Sha Hai found it hard to believe.

The imposing Duke Baili, just like that, was dead?

"Explain in detail exactly what happened."

"Yes, Lord."

Chen Jiadong said, "After you fell unconscious, I came over to check on the situation, and then..."

After hearing the entire story, Lord Sha Hai was still somewhat bewildered.

Duke Baili's raiding troops had entered the depths of the Wasteland Development Company's territory and were then counterattacked and decapitated by Zhou Yi in a swift operation.

Everything happened too fast.

From the incident unfolding to confirming Duke Baili's death, it took just two days, mostly spent in naval pursuits.

Duke Baili had never realized the proximity of the threat of death and paid the ultimate price for his miscalculation.

This further confirmed Lord Sha Hai's suspicion.

He was the Weapon Hunter!

When he breached Shell City, Zhou Yi did not occupy it but withdrew without hesitation, showing no interest in the city of nearly 50,000 people.

His target was only Duke Baili.

That's how the Weapon Hunter operated, striking and then disengaging once the objective was met.

It seemed that the opponent did not want Jade City to stand at Sand Port City, so he chose a simpler and quicker method for him—eliminating Duke Baili.

The situation had cleared up like the sky after rain.

A wave of satisfaction washed over Lord Sha Hai, and he couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Ah, fate is so unpredictable.

A month ago, he was still struggling under the intense pressure imposed by Duke Baili.

Who would have thought?

A month later, it was Duke Baili who would die?

This injury was truly worth it for himself—once he woke up, the problem was solved.

Lord Sha Hai quickly composed himself.

"First, go see Chairman Zhou."

...

Through Doctor Da Vinci, Lord Sha Hai learned that at this time, Zhou Yi was on a sea breeding platform outside the Mushroom Forest, about tens of kilometers away, not a short distance.

Chen Jiadong had been brought all the way by the Red-eyed Vulture, which obviously couldn't support Lord Sha Hai's weight.

But he decided to grit his teeth and swim across the Dead Sea.

After learning this, Doctor Da Vinci suggested, "If you insist, you can go to the Guangtai Dam's platform where you can wait for the company's shuttle bus that goes directly to the platform."

"There are two shuttles that go back and forth, and it only takes 20 minutes from Jade City to the breeding platform."

Lord Sha Hai draped a large cloak over his sizable body and then walked out of the Maria Hospital.

The sun outside was fierce.

They made their way onto the sun-bleached dam.

Chen Jiadong asked two workers and, supporting Lord Sha Hai, walked a bit further until they finally reached the so-called platform.

It was actually a large shed with a square, wide metal roof that could shelter from wind and rain, with many workers sitting under it on silver benches.

Their attire varied widely, some dressed in Dead Sea attire, others in hemp coats. What was common was that they all adapted to traveling by day and relaxed as they chatted.

The arrival of the towering Lord Sha Hai and Chen Jiadong drew curious glances from many.

One tall, thin young man in baggy clothes suddenly approached, "You're the mayor of Sand Port City, right? I've seen your speeches. My name is Ah Wei; I used to spend some time in Sand Port City but was expelled because I had no money."

Chen Jiadong could only nod reluctantly.

"Then this person beside you, are they—"

His words, stopped midway, drew everyone's attention.

Lord Sha Hai cursed inwardly, this guy was asking for trouble.

But his reaction was quick; he simply opened his cloak, revealed his face, and put on a kindly smile, speaking fluently in human language, "Hello, I am Lord Sha Hai."

The people present immediately gasped in surprise.

"Sea lord!"

"To actually see the sea lord!"

"It really is Lord Sha Hai!"

At that moment, a vehicle approached from afar and slowly stopped beside the platform.

People were still somewhat fearful, all hesitant to board, waiting for Lord Sha Hai to board first.

The bus looked somewhat crude, with a small car at the front and a shabby farm trailer attached at the back with some seats—this seemed to be a makeshift carriage.

Lord Sha Hai and Chen Jiadong boarded first.

As Lord Sha Hai's heavy body got on, the entire carriage shook slightly.

The others still dared not move, seemingly waiting for the next bus.

The bus driver shouted outward, "Get on, get on, what are you waiting for, it's leaving!"

Lord Sha Hai also waved to them, trying to appear approachable, "Come on, everyone get on, squeeze in."

With permission granted, people slowly boarded one by one. Ah Wei, the young man, climbed up first and sat next to Lord Sha Hai, whispering excitedly, "Lord Sha Hai, actually... I really admire you."

Lord Sha Hai was somewhat surprised and said with a smile, "Really?"

"Really, guaranteed genuine."

Ah Wei nodded, "I remember clearly, you were inspecting the streets of Sand Port City, and I was picking up droppings at the roadside. Then a mud and tile craftsman fell from a building, and you swiftly saved him."

"Two winters ago, a friend of mine almost froze to death, but you ordered free distribution of mushroom soup, and he survived because of that."

Lord Sha Hai humbly replied, "I haven't been able to keep everyone from starving; there are still many shortcomings in my work. You have suffered a lot; it's my fault."

"Not at all, not at all! Now we are all well-fed and living well, following the Chairman!" the other laughed.

Other sea lords were mostly aloof and unapproachable. Lord Sha Hai, however, did the opposite, cultivating an approachable image, thus attracting many skilled humans to his side. After tasting success, he worked harder to perfect his benevolent characteristics, throwing the responsibility for mishaps onto the mayor.

If a person died, it would be a loss of his usable labor force, and Lord Sha Hai couldn't bear that.

The bus drove towards the dam.

This embankment was much longer than Lord Sha Hai had thought; it nearly covered the entire shoreline of the Dead Sea.

On the way, Lord Sha Hai took the opportunity to explain the Wasteland Development Company's situation to Ah Wei and the others.

The more he knew, the more startled he became.

Farms, mushrooms, Light Soot Sand, now also shellfish breeding... All industries were planning their layouts.

It seemed Zhou Yi was planning to stay here for the long haul.

However, on the bright side,

such a uniquely strong neighbor meant a natural protective umbrella.

As long as he could get information related to the Dead Sea Alien, Zhou Yi would be a reliable and powerful ally.

Lord Sha Hai made up his mind.

He must tightly grasp this opportunity.

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