Starting Cultivation in Wasteland

"Two billion..." The Flower Scorpion smiled dismissively, she didn’t even need to consult the boss for this amount.

"This kind of money, just casually assassinating a Supreme can earn that."

That wasn’t boasting. After they killed Lund, they also raided his Secret Vault, indeed gaining that much.

However, since Lund practiced Ghost Cultivator’s Cultivation Technique, it was quite a struggle for them to kill him, a detail she chose to overlook.

"Casually assassinate a Supreme..." The Genetic Vine reacted, twitching the corner of his mouth, what misunderstanding do you have about a Supreme’s estate?

Anyway, he certainly didn’t have that kind of wealth; even adding all his assets wouldn’t reach that—not considering the stock shares.

Patrice felt refreshed hearing that money could solve the problem, she truly wasn’t short of money.

Yet thinking even two billion isn’t enough, her heart sank again, "So how much is needed?"

This question, the Flower Scorpion couldn’t answer, she could only turn to look at her boss.

Qu Jianlei frowned slightly, "Money... if that’s all, we can consider helping you deal with the pursuers."

Rusna’s spirits lifted at these words, "That sounds good, those guys are surely nearby, haven’t gone far."

She was originally aggrieved about being pursued—what Supreme would tolerate such affront?

Moreover, since Patrice was willing to pay for it, the three of them lending a hand should net them some profit after all.

Is it two billion? Patrice skeptically eyed the boss opposite, but he had already lowered his eyelids.

"Alright, it’s settled at two billion," the Flower Scorpion spoke up; she understood her boss’s mindset too well.

Then she pointed at the three of Palamera, "Consider the cost for these three as well... if they participate."

After pausing a bit, she added, "Use Nameless Silver Notes... no credit."

"Nameless Silver Notes," Patrice touched her forehead, feeling quite conflicted, how should she pay this?

She truly wasn’t lacking in money, knowing the confusing situation in the Maiden Star Realm, she intentionally brought a lot of Nameless Silver Notes this time.

—After all, it was a desperate gamble, and if things went wrong, the money would be useless anyway.

The Silver Notes she carried only procured some goods, hired two A-levels who valued money over life, most of it hadn’t been used.

But add it all up, and there were only ten billion in Silver Notes.

She expressed her difficulty, "The Silver Notes aren’t quite enough, but I have a family fund, if a transfer is acceptable, I can pay more."

Suddenly, Palamera spoke up, "How much is lacking? We can help you cover it."

Patrice was stunned for a moment before replying, "I’m asking you to act on my behalf, and still need to pay you."

"That’s not a problem, we’ll do it for free," Palamera casually replied.

Hearing this, Rusna’s expression darkened, "Old Pam, are you making decisions on your own, have you asked us?"

Thankfully, the Genetic Vine was emotionally intelligent enough and knew her personality well, quickly grabbing her hand and writing a line.

"We need to check these people’s strength, don’t say a word!"

Rusna was momentarily startled, then realized, indeed, just listening to these people’s boasting, after all, we need to see their capabilities.

In fact, she was generally aware of Palamera’s plan.

This time, everyone was helping Patrice for the coordinates of the Divine Text Treasure, not planning to meddle in Marquis Manor’s internal affairs.

However, as things developed, they suffered unwarranted misfortunes, naturally harboring hatred towards the mastermind.

They had discussed while on the run, if conditions allowed, they would definitely make trouble for Marquis Manor.

If by chance Patrice can ascend to the title, having a bond risking life and death with a Marquis is not bad either.

In fact, even if she truly takes the position, it’s impossible to immediately suppress all opposing voices within the family, definitely needing external assistance.

By that time, they would have a role to play again.

Most Supremes are relatively aloof, not meddling in others’ family affairs—they rarely care about matters even in their own homes.

Everyone cares more about cultivation; those trivial matters aren’t troublesome enough.

Nonetheless, encountering something that causes dissatisfaction, they wouldn’t mind erupting.

In short, they were prepared to continue supporting Patrice.

Once successful, the girl not only would bring substantial benefits, the key is... her potential advancement to Supreme is also great.

Indeed, Patrice proved worthy of being from a Marquis Clan; she could pick up and put down things easily.

"Then I’ll transfer 1.3 billion to you, besides 1 billion for the team of this gentleman, another 300 million, may I trouble you to put in some effort?"

"No problem," Palamera wouldn’t refuse the windfall.

However, immediately he added sheepishly, "I need to check first to see if the three of us can gather this amount."

In reality, he was overthinking; when Rusna and the Genetic Vine came out, they had brought not only a lot of combat supplies but also a substantial amount of cash.

Everyone had the same thought; the Maiden Star Realm has opportunities but also risks, bringing more cash allows for adaptability.

Once they perish, who knows who would benefit from this money?

The three easily gathered 1 billion, plus Patrice’s 1 billion, and handed it over to the Flower Scorpion.

The transfer wasn’t urgent, once there was a signal, they would discuss it later; the Supremes weren’t worried Patrice would dare default on the debt.

After completing these negotiations, the four guests roughly toured the interior of the starship.

Rusna noticed a small detail. She pointed to a round object in the control room and asked in surprise.

"Isn’t this an anti-smuggling terminal? Why is it connected here?"

Qu Jianlei casually replied, "The starship’s computing power is too weak. With this device’s help, it is more effective in combat."

In fact, he did not want to change the underlying logic of the starship’s main control.

After all, the starship was borrowed and had to be returned after the mission. Restoring its underlying logic is less convenient than simply adding a terminal for insurance.

The four guests heard this and fell silent. They had seen the world; an anti-smuggling terminal was nothing to fuss about.

Big Head Butterfly circled around, sighing, "In the past, getting a terminal meant you didn’t dare show it to others... things have changed."

"People strive upwards," Qu Jianlei replied unconcernedly, "It will be even more different in the future."

Big Head Butterfly circled again, "Another 2 billion earned, our computer team shouldn’t be too...(implicating an incomplete statement)

"Stop there," Qu Jianlei felt a headache coming on, "Adding one more set of machinery means the consumption will double!"

After the visit, the three Supremes didn’t hesitate and directly found rooms to replenish their Qi.

Before that, they had also brought on board the injured Supreme.

This person was named Cartier, who had lost an arm, and his Inner Breath was also significantly depleted.

The broken arm had been reattached, but it was best not to engage in combat for a month, or ideally rest for three months for safety’s sake.

In the following five days, the rescuers were all recovering their energy, preparing for the final escape.

Even though the rescuers had said they could directly board the lifeboats, what if it came to a fight?

Before everyone had fully recovered, Qu Jianlei found Palamera, "Prepare, we’re leaving."

Palamera was a bit startled upon hearing this, "So soon?"

It was already considered slow, Qu Jianlei knew. If not for aligning with the 3344 ship’s positioning, the time would have been even shorter.

Palamera’s side had prepared enough lifeboats, so Qu Jianlei and the others didn’t need to provide any.

There were fourteen people in total, split into two teleportations. During the first, Qu Jianlei stayed behind on the 3344 ship.

He needed to keep an eye on the Supremes and Patrice, and if they had any duplicity, they shouldn’t blame him for being ruthless.

Fortunately, these individuals managed to restrain themselves.

The second teleportation was smooth, with Qinghu and Granny Jia bringing over seven lifeboats.

Next, they just had to wait for Flower Scorpion and Bentley to arrive with the mining starship for the rendezvous.

However, this time they waited a full three and a half days before Flower Scorpion and Bentley arrived.

In response, Flower Scorpion was also a bit helpless, as they encountered a military inspection again upon their departure.

Due to prior unpleasant encounters, the military had a poor attitude towards them, questioning why their exploration time was so short in the first place.

Switching to another team to explore, it typically takes three to six months, if not a year and a half.

Flower Scorpion had prepared an explanation, stating that they were just making initial arrangements, with the main exploration team coming later.

But the military pestered them with questions until Flower Scorpion threatened to file a complaint for interference in civil matters before they backed off.

Then there were the two groups of people they had rescued, with the military wanting to investigate their situation and not allowing them to leave.

Fortunately, these two groups also had individuals of high status—ordinary people couldn’t afford to partake in the "interstellar adventuring" game.

In the end, the military even wanted the mining starship to send these people home.

Flower Scorpion flatly refused—what a joke, neither of these groups came from Purple Pool, and it wasn’t on the way!

The rescued people also said they could wait for a starship going their way, not wanting to trouble these kind folks further.

All in all, these minor issues delayed Flower Scorpion and Bentley for over a day.

While chatting, everyone loaded the lifeboats back onto the mining starship and let 3344 leave, thus concluding the matter.

When the lifeboats opened, Palamera first covered himself with a layer of Rock Armor, "Is it over?"

You have to admit, he truly had patience, not finding it strange to stay in a lifeboat for so long.

Rusna’s temperament was a bit different; upon emerging, she immediately remarked, "It felt like an eternity, being cooped up in that lifeboat."

In the following half day, everyone was acclimating to the environment; many were uncomfortable with such an easy breakthrough.

Qu Jianlei then found Palamera, "Do you have a way to pinpoint the other party’s location?"

"We truly don’t," Palamera shook his head, "We only know the other side has three starships, two of which look a lot like warships!"

They look like warships... Qu Jianlei felt like making a quip, so I’m not the only one who likes to play this way?

"Are you sure they’re not actual warships? Otherwise, that could be troublesome."

Palamera shook his head, "We can’t confirm, but we are sure they’re not warships on a mission."

Qu Jianlei pondered for a moment to respond, but then a strange look surfaced on his face, "Forget it, they’re already here."

(Updated to, summoning monthly tickets, subscriptions, and recommendation votes.)