Chapter 200 - 129: Exposing Problems (2)
’Although we won’t get food from the Master of the Undead, at least the Undead won’t steal ours. Worst case, we’ll just have to find more. Having a place to sleep without worry is so much better than living in constant fear, never knowing when we might die.’
"Alright, if there’s nothing else, you can go." Li Ziyu waved his hand, shooing them away.
Zhang Peng patted Liu Xingxing and the Catwoman Sisters, gesturing for them to leave. ’The great battle is over, and Li Ziyu definitely has some loose ends to tie up, like the spoils of war. It’s best if we aren’t around for that. It would be awkward.’
’The Catwoman Sisters weren’t familiar with the Undead, but they knew it was right to follow Zhang Peng. He looked half-asleep, but his actions were methodical. They wouldn’t lose out by sticking with him.’
The group left the hall, and the main building’s doors slowly closed behind them. The Catwoman Sisters glanced back one last time before Meng Ni turned to Zhang Peng. "City Lord Zhang Peng," she asked, "my sister and I have just arrived. We were hoping you could help us out a little."
Zhang Peng’s eyelids were drooping slightly. He said listlessly, "I can lend you some resources, whether it’s materials for building a house or food. But I’ll need interest."
Meng Ni hesitated for a moment, then shook her head slightly. "City Lord Zhang Peng, my sister and I are dirt poor. If we borrow resources from you, we don’t know when we’ll be able to pay you back. Could you please advise us on how we can acquire more resources?"
"Just go scavenge for them. Mumu and the others gather everything from the outside," Liu Xingxing chimed in, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Zhang Peng nodded from the side and added slowly, "This place isn’t that different from when you were living in your Tribe. You need resources, you go gather them. You need food, you go find it. All this place does is provide a safe residence."
Meng Ni looked troubled. They were just two weak Cat Girls. If they had to go out and gather resources just like before, wouldn’t they still have to endure hunger and cold? They wanted to improve their lives. Timidly, she asked, "Is there no other way?"
Zhang Peng looked up, stared at the Catwoman Sisters for a moment, and then suddenly grinned. "Actually, there is."
Meng Ni quickly pressed, "What is it?"
Zhang Peng glanced toward the main building, chuckled, and said, "You could consider offering yourselves as Maids to the boss. He might take you. I can’t guarantee anything else, but food and housing should be no problem. But, you’ll have to clean yourselves up. He definitely won’t like you being so filthy."
The Catwoman Sisters exchanged a glance, their eyes lighting up. ’That could work,’ they thought. ’As long as we get food and a place to live, that’s all that matters.’
"Will that work? The Minotaurs have been living on the platform for a while now, and I haven’t seen the boss take any Maids," Liu Xingxing muttered from the side.
Zhang Peng shot him an irritated glare and snapped, "Are you an idiot? Look at those Minotaurs. Could they be Maids? They wouldn’t even qualify to be kitchen staff—they can’t even cook meat right! The Tabu Minotaurs see brawn as beauty. What, is your taste that heavy? You really want a couple of Maids with arms thicker than your legs and legs thicker than your waist?"
Liu Xingxing scratched his head and imagined a Minotaur as a Maid: rippling muscles, a booming voice... if she could grow a beard, she’d practically be Black Whirlwind Li Kui. ’Is that a Maid?’
’That’s bullshit! That’s obviously a damn bodyguard!’
He gave an embarrassed laugh and nodded. "You’re right. They really aren’t suitable."
"The boss doesn’t have anyone around him now. You saw those four Ghosts, they’re all radiating a cold aura." Zhang Peng then pointed at the Catwoman Sisters. "Now look at these two. At least they’re girls. Bringing him a glass of water, delivering a meal—no problem."
’Uh... That actually makes a lot of sense. When it comes to sucking up, you’re still the best, Zhang Peng!’
After explaining, Zhang Peng turned back to the Catwoman Sisters. "Go take a bath, get your clothes clean, and comb your hair," he said. "Then go find the boss."
Having received their instructions, the two Cat Girls quickly thanked him and scurried off. Zhang Peng and Liu Xingxing headed back toward their own fortress, chatting and bickering along the way.
...
In the battle against the Jackal Wolfmen, the Skeleton Undead had suffered nearly 40,000 casualties. The Skeleton Warriors were almost completely wiped out; all the Low Level and Intermediate Skeleton Warriors had been killed in action, leaving only about twenty High Level Skeleton Warriors. However, the ten Skeleton Ox Demons and the Skeleton Longbowmen, who had been positioned behind the Light Armor Shields, suffered no losses. This was some small comfort to Li Ziyu.
These were the greatest losses Li Ziyu had ever suffered. It also made him truly understand what it meant to be a Transmigrator City Lord. Compared to the Natives, they were harder to deal with, had more tricks up their sleeves, and possessed greater combat Power. Even though he had launched a surprise attack first, he had still suffered such heavy losses. And that was with the enemy not even committing their full strength.
At the very least, he hadn’t seen the Ogres and Giant Demons mentioned in his intelligence reports. If the enemy had deployed all their combat units, including their Priests, and summoned hordes of Ogres and Giant Demons to fight alongside their Jackal Wolfmen, Kobolds, and Earth Wolves, it was hard to say who would have won in the end.
Li Ziyu had also played almost all his trump cards this time, stopping just short of unleashing the Soul Coffin’s Meteor Soul. He had used up every other trick he had.
You could say that both sides had held back their final trump cards, avoiding an ultimate battle to the death. Otherwise, one side would have been completely annihilated, and the survivor would have suffered grievous wounds that would have taken a long time to heal.
Fortunately, in the end, it was the Jackal Wolfman City Lord who lost his nerve and retreated.
’Hmph. He ended up worse off than I did. He never expected me to have reinforcements at the end. He had to practically tear his own fortress apart to escape, and he didn’t even manage to plunder any of my resources. It was a classic case of suffering a double loss.’