The crowd's voices were loud.
Qin Ziwen caught some key phrases.
Like "altar," "cards," "selfish," and similar terms.
Soon, the two groups began arguing, some pushing and shoving, others shouting curses, descending into complete chaos.
When someone pulled out a club and smashed it against another person's head, the conflict escalated into a full-blown brawl.
The surrounding onlookers quickly backed away.
Watching for entertainment was fine, but getting accidentally dragged into the fight would be terrible.
A young man got hit on the arm with a club, let out an enraged roar, and pulled a folding knife from his pocket.
He closed the distance, stabbed the blade into his opponent's heart, pulled it out, then delivered another vicious stab to the throat.
"Come on! Come on! I'll fucking kill you!" the young man in white roared.
The man across from him clutched his neck, eyes filled with disbelief, then slumped to the ground and soon fell silent.
Seeing someone collapse, both sides in the melee instantly calmed down.
"Wang Mingchao! You killed Brother Qian!" a man in black clothes exclaimed, eyes wide.
Wang Mingchao roared back, "I fucking meant to kill him! What kind of bullshit is this? You like kissing his ass, but I won't do it! I've had enough! Usually, I call him Brother Qian a few times, and he really thinks he's the big boss, huh? A few days ago when we were dividing the hunting meat, it was the same—the best cuts went to you few close buddies first. Does he think this is his company? Trying to pull this crap on us. That altar was discovered by me and him together in the first place. He used his position as team leader to take one card. Fine, for the so-called team spirit and big picture, I endured it. When the second card appeared later, why should it go to you? Just because you, Zhang Bo, know how to suck up?"
Zhang Bo angrily retorted, "What sucking up? And Brother Qian said tomorrow's card would go to you. You just had to blow things up. Now everyone knows. Are you satisfied?"
Wang Mingchao sneered, "Hah, think I'm a three-year-old? I want the card in your hand right now. If you won't give it, then I'll flip the table—nobody gets to play!"
After saying this, Wang Mingchao raised both hands high and scanned the crowd. "Neighbors! Today I'm telling you a huge secret! Besides getting cards from killing beasts, there's also something called an altar that refreshes cards! And the cards refreshed on the altar aren't one-time use! They refresh one every day! Remember, the one who told you this news is me, Wang Mingchao! If I die someday, it'll definitely be Zhang Bo's doing."
Hearing this, Zhang Bo's face turned green with rage. He shouted angrily, "What do you mean if something happens to you it's my fault? Are you being shameless?"
The crowd wasn't interested in the latter part, but they were very interested in Wang Mingchao's first statement.
From the crowd, someone loudly asked, "The cards you mentioned—are they the same kind that appeared after they killed the crocodile?"
Wang Mingchao said frankly, "Yeah, that's the one. By the way, the card Qian Zhide got was a building card called Level 1 Tailor Shop. And this Zhang Bo got a resource card called Level 1 Salt Mine. Yes, exactly the salt mine you're thinking of."
Hearing this, many people in the crowd held their breath, looking at Wang Mingchao and Zhang Bo with disbelief.
Judging by Zhang Bo's gloomy expression, it seemed what he said was true.
Someone beside Zhang Bo said, "Wang Mingchao, you leaked the information. With so many people in the entire residential complex, do you think you'll still be able to get cards in the future?"
Wang Mingchao shrugged, looking completely indifferent, and mocked, "Better than you guys secretly getting them all. Let me tell you, I'm happy to do this, I'm pleased, I'll do whatever I want. We're all living for the first time—why should I give way to you?"
Then he looked down at Qian Zhide's corpse on the ground, squatted down right there, and began searching the body.
Zhang Bo's group quickly surrounded him. "Brother Qian has a wife and children! You killed him so brutally, and now you want to desecrate his body? We absolutely won't allow it!"
Wang Mingchao curled his lips, gripped his folding knife, and waved it. "Hah, I'm just checking if he'll drop cards after dying, like that killed crocodile did. Do you think the cards on someone who obtained them will drop like equipment after they die?"
After these words fell, many people's gazes toward Zhang Bo underwent subtle changes.
Some also stared intently at Qian Zhide's corpse and the young man searching it.
Zhang Bo's expression changed, and a rare trace of regret rose in his heart.
If he'd known this guy would be so troublesome, he wouldn't have let him join the team back then.
After searching for a while, Wang Mingchao pulled something from Qian Zhide's pocket, quickly stuffed it into his own pocket, then stood up and looked around. "Those who want the altar location can come find me privately. I'll tell them for free."
After saying this, Wang Mingchao turned and left, loudly announcing, "I live in Building 9, Unit 1, Apartment 101. Anyone who wants to know the altar location can come find me."
Wang Mingchao left, but the impact he caused was just beginning.
...
Returning home, Qin Ziwen placed the bucket on the floor and opened the window.
The Crowned Eagle, which had been waiting on a branch outside for a long time, quickly flew into the room.
He took the wild kiwis from his backpack and placed them on the table, soon covering the entire coffee table.
Carrying the bucket, he placed the field mouse and hedgehog into separate areas of the Beast Cage.
"Brother." Qin Ziwu stood behind him.
"What's up?"
Qin Ziwu said, "If what Wang Mingchao said is true, and the altar refreshes one card every day, then if we found an altar, wouldn't we get one card daily? That's more valuable than a gold mine."
"The altar is indeed a good thing." Qin Ziwen agreed. He could only obtain 1-2 cards per day himself. If he could get the location of an altar unknown to others, it would be almost equivalent to a weakened version of the daily settlement function.
Qin Ziwu continued, "Wang Yun's team seems to have found an altar too. They have quite a few people in their team."
"I know."
Qin Ziwu said, "Big brother, to keep this secret, do you think Wang Yun will come looking for us?"
Qin Ziwen looked out the window, details from his interactions with Wang Yun surfacing in his mind. "He probably won't come."
...
"No need to go find him. I trust him."
In the living room, Wang Yun looked at his team members, expression calm. "I trust my judgment. Qin Ziwen isn't the type to gossip. If he had any ideas, he would definitely come to us directly, not spread the information publicly."
"But these are cards! He has a younger brother, right? Even if he's not tempted, wouldn't his brother be? Captain, I think we should still go talk to him, at least make things clear. If he's unwilling..."
"Bang."
Wang Yun slammed the table, looking around at everyone. "Everyone, listen to me. There are five families here. That you can trust me and are willing to unite with me makes me both relieved and grateful. Many of you are old friends who frequently went mountain climbing and had picnics with me before we crossed over. The reason I've been able to build this team to this point is because of your trust and fairness. After discovering cards at the altar, I've delivered on everything I promised. Each family takes turns getting one card per day. Besides me taking one on the first day, the subsequent ones have been determined by drawing lots."
The first person on the left said, "Brother Wang, I trust you. You handle things fairly, and we're willing to work with you. Since you've said so, Brother Wang, let's skip this topic and discuss how to use this building instead."