Chapter 394: Enslaving Quess, the extraordinary talent [Impregnable Fortress], is this not the end of the story?

In a corner of the Angler Bar.

"So, what do you think? Do you believe Quis suspects us based on his actions today?"

"Hmph... hard to say! Knowing him, he doesn't trust anyone."

"Anyway, Old Ma sent word today. General Feiman is about to make his move. Tell the brothers to be ready. By the way... what about Xu Ke and his group?"

"Our original plan was to quietly force them out, then take control of them to prepare for taking over the mine later. It's been days since we've heard from the people tailing them."

The other man sighed.

"Damn it, it's like they've vanished into thin air! Yesterday, I finally found the guy sent to tail them. He was dead, bitten to death by something. Only some remains were left. We only confirmed his identity from the equipment scattered on the ground."

"He was probably attacked by some beast while tailing the two. At this point, it's hard to say if Xu Ke and the others are even still alive."

Hearing this, the two fell into silence.

"Keep looking! Having them gives us more leverage with General Feiman."

"Alright!"

The two cautiously observed their surroundings before leaving, failing to notice a shadow in the corner that shifted slightly.

[Ding... 'Rat Tail Whip' effect triggered, Follower +1]

Yu Yuan gasped for breath, twisting his neck.

He tossed the Rat Tail Whip into the air, and it transformed into the Stealth Rat, Zhi Zhi.

On the Virtual Light Screen, the words (Cooldown) appeared next to [Rat Tail Whip] once again.

"This was not easy! The trigger probability for this enslavement effect is way too low!"

Yu Yuan mentally grumbled.

Fortunately, it wasn't a wasted effort.

He took out healing items from the Rabbit Ring. First, he applied [Green-haired Seaweed Healing Slime] to Quis's wounds, then wrapped them with Rare-tier Bandages.

Under the effects of these two precious healing items, the bloody, mangled wounds on Quis's body healed rapidly.

This was despite Yu Yuan carefully controlling the force of each lash, fearing he might accidentally whip the man to death.

As his wounds healed, Quis quickly regained consciousness.

"Master!"

Quis quickly understood the situation. Although he knew he had been tricked, he felt no hostility towards the man before him, only obedience.

"Show me the back of your neck!"

Yu Yuan produced the [Commander Subordinate Chip] injector gun.

Serial Number: NO·20.

This was also the last subordinate chip he currently had.

As the chip activated, Quis's information appeared before Yu Yuan.

Yu Yuan directly looked at the [Talent Status] column.

—— Unshakable Fortress

Effects:

① When engaged in defensive warfare for a city, fortress, or fortified position, the sturdiness of our defensive fortifications increases by 80%, the firepower of defensive weapons increases by +5, and it becomes easier to identify the weak points of the attacking side.

② Upon entering a defensive battle, our defending soldiers automatically trigger the [Morale Soaring] effect; when the soldier casualty ratio exceeds 40%, the [Fight to the Death] effect is automatically triggered.

(Morale Soaring: Attack speed, reaction capability, and mental endurance all increase by 15%.)

(Fight to the Death: Morale is locked in, no surrender, no retreat, fight to the death, firepower +5)

Yu Yuan took a deep breath and suddenly looked up at Quis.

The pleasant surprise in his eyes was beyond words.

In truth, subduing Quis was a decision he made on the spot.

The reason was the Reyes Legion Quis had mentioned earlier.

He never expected there would be such an unexpected bonus.

Quis's talent was no worse than Jiu Feng's, also a dual-attribute talent.

Moreover, this was a powerful talent directly related to combat.

"No wonder Quis managed to develop to this extent with just Dead Mine Town, surrounded by numerous factions. With this defensive talent, other factions would need to launch a full-scale long-range bombardment or deploy air power to have any chance of taking this place."

"With Quis's talent, combined with the naturally advantageous, easily-defended-yet-hard-to-attack terrain of Dead Mine Town, this is undoubtedly the safest place in the entire Angler Wilderness Region."

"This is also the most suitable place to stabilize a teleportation channel."

Yu Yuan quickly made this decision.

Of course, there was another important reason: the rare earth mineral source.

Even Yu Yuan knew how crucial rare earth mineral veins were for the development of a civilization's power.

Because of this rare earth mineral source, the value of this world increased significantly in Yu Yuan's eyes.

Add in the other mineral resources from the mine, it was worth consuming a teleportation gate anchoring slot.

Perhaps extracting the various metallic elements from rare earths was extremely difficult for other factions, but for Yu Yuan, it presented no difficulty. He just needed to make some preliminary preparations.

Such a heaven-sent mine rightfully belonged to Yu Yuan.

At that moment, Alpha sent new information.

The Pioneering Group had already taken the second faction stronghold and was currently resting and preparing to head to the final stronghold—Marlin Camp.

Yu Yuan looked at Quis.

"Quis, what's your take on Marlin Camp?"

"Marlin Camp?"

Quis showed a thoughtful expression.

"That camp mainly survives by raiding supplies from Merry City. Every time they pass through, they leave 20% of their supplies as a toll."

"As for their leader... I don't have much of an impression. It's always the lower ranks who deal with them..."

"Raiding supplies from Merry City?"

Yu Yuan nodded slightly.

[Wolf Den · King: Alpha, capture the leader of Marlin Camp alive!]

[Alpha: Understood!]

Yu Yuan then asked Quis about the situation regarding the Dead Mine, the Angler Wilderness, and the other factions.

It was basically the same as what Yu Yuan had previously learned.

In the early days of the wasteland's arrival, Quis sensed something was wrong.

He immediately used force to take control of Angler Town and the mine shaft.

Simultaneously, he had people construct defensive fortifications and traps.

Sure enough, armed factions soon attacked the mine.

But their attacks were no match for Dead Mine Town, which was bolstered by Quis's talent.

After several battles, the weapons and equipment in Quis's hands grew in number and strength.

Finally, someone even deployed armored vehicles for a strong assault, but the weapons in Quis's hands were already far superior to before.

After days and nights of fighting and stalemate, the enemy retreated, leaving behind several damaged armored vehicles.

The surrounding regional factions gradually came to acknowledge Quis's presence.

This situation had persisted until now.

"So, that Reyes Legion was also one of the factions that attacked here back then?"

"Yes, Master. Actually, I've always known their thieving hearts haven't died, and they're not the only ones eyeing this place."

"That's why I've been continuously improving Dead Mine Town's defensive facilities and traps, while also strengthening intelligence gathering on the surrounding factions."

Yu Yuan now had a general understanding of the situation in the surrounding region.

"However, Master, there are traitors at home now. I haven't identified them yet, but I have a few suspects. If necessary, we can only..."

Hearing Quis's words, Yu Yuan gently waved his hand.

"I already know who the traitors are. They won't get away..."

"Ah? Alright..."

Although curious, Quis didn't press further.

With the main business concluded, the two left the Motel Main Guest Room.

Yu Yuan looked at the [Civilization Overview] page on the Virtual Light Screen, specifically the 88% control rate for [Dead Mine Brotherhood].

It seems there really are quite a few people betraying Quis!

But no rush.

Yu Yuan checked the time. It was only 11 PM.

The night was still long!