He Mu was thinking of countermeasures as he ate and before he knew it, he had finished his meal, despite feeling only half full.
This had never happened before, not to mention the fact that the size of lunch today was more than usual.
Could it be that my body changes so drastically after becoming a Red Mist Fighter?
"How's the food, Brother Mu? Are you full yet?"
Seated next to him, Zhou Yue saw He Mu finish his food and broke into a smile.
Upon hearing Zhou Yue's tone which sounded as though he was taking credit, He Mu pulled out a tissue and wiped his mouth, saying: "Uh, I'm a little full but Yue, you don't have to bring me food in the future anymore."
"Huh? Why?"
Zhou Yue was confused.
He Mu raised his hands: "Look, I have fully recovered. I want to live life like a normal person. Thanks for your effort all these years."
Upon hearing his words, Zhou Yue suddenly took out a phone from his pocket and muttered: "Then I'll return the money to you. Let me do the calculation… Big Brother Feng always pays me once per year, and there are still more than four months left in this year… 20 yuan a day adds up to a total of about… Hmm…"
He Mu quickly stopped him, saying: "You don't have to calculate it. I will go directly to your store if I need help in the future."
"That works too, I guess. But Big Brother Mu, I won't charge you anything like a chat fee and whatnot if you visit my store. When the time comes, I'll prepare more dishes for you and make sure that you're treated well!"
Zhou Yue put away the phone, and said with no pretense.
He Mu nodded with a smile. But deep down, he knew that he wouldn't have lots of chances to visit the store for the rest of his life.
Currently, he was a little short of money, and the shortage wasn't just one or two thousand yuan.
One had to know that even the most ordinary Red Mist Fighters needed to spend a thousand yuan for a meal.
And one or two thousand yuan equaled one or two meals.
And Zhou Yue had perseverance. Be it rain or shine, he delivered He Mu's lunch with commitment and accompanied him for a chat.
This wasn't just as simple as a monetary transaction.
He had finally become a Red Mist Fighter, so it shouldn't be difficult to make money.
"Yawn…" Zhou Yue spoke and let out a yawn. At that moment, he packed up the lunch box and stood up.
"All right, I'm heading off now, Big Brother Mu. If you're going to my store to eat, let me know in advance. I will prepare more food for you…"
"Sure, be careful on your way back."
…
After Zhou Yue left, He Mu took out a card from the cabinet that had 100,000 yuan stored in it, which was all his family's savings.
The reason he retrieved this card was because he was going to make a trip to the Red Mist Alliance.
The Red Mist Alliance was the only place in the entire city where one could buy the resources needed for Red Mist Fighters.
As the many Red Mist Fighters in society gathered there, the place was filled with all kinds of information that couldn't be found on the internet.
Whether one wanted to buy resources, make money, or inquire about the way to Lingzhou City, going to the Red Mist Alliance was the best choice.
…
The Red Mist Alliance was far from the military district, and He Mu had to take a car to reach the place.
In fact, not only Nancheng, but other cities the military districts were also located far from the Red Mist Alliance due to the layout of the city.
Within a city, the Guardian's residence, Special Operations Unit's encampment, and Red Mist Alliance were set up in the points of a triangle, while the middle was the city center.
Important scientific institutions and other places that weren't accessible to ordinary people were located next to the Guardian's residence.
Buildings like hospitals and schools were close to the Special Operations Unit.
Apart from these important buildings, there were a variety of neighborhoods toward the periphery.
The neighborhoods less than five kilometers away from the Guardian's residence were called "Guardian district houses", and most of these houses were inhabited by wealthy Red Mist Fighters.
These people weren't afraid of ordinary monsters, but feared powerful ones.
Less than two kilometers from the Special Operations Unit, the neighborhood was named the "military district houses", inhabited by some rich ordinary people.
The Red Mist Alliance was surrounded by the industrial areas. There was no residential community, but there were a large number of dormitories. Their safety was the direct responsibility of the factories.
In short, under normal circumstances, the closer the houses in the city was to these three points, the more expensive the prices.
Among them, the Guardian district houses were the most expensive, followed by the military district houses…
But in addition to commercial neighborhoods, there was a special kind of neighborhood.
It was the military district where He Mu lived today.
The military district was within the range of the Guardian district houses and the military was also stationed there all year round. Be it security or property, all of them were managed by the military.
In general, the military district was the safest community in a city.
Those who generally lived in it were families of meritorious military personnel or important scientific researchers.
However, they only had the right of residence and not to the property.
…
He Mu went out of the military district, arrived at the station outside the district, and waited for about five minutes for a bus.
The price of the bus ticket was very cheap at only one to two yuan.
However, He Mu had a military card, so his rides were free.
After swiping the military card and getting on the bus, a gentle prompt sounded in the voice announcement.
"Dear passengers, thank you for your family's contribution to the country and to humanity."
Once this voice sounded, the bus driver and the vast majority of passengers inside the bus subconsciously looked toward He Mu with very kind eyes.
He Mu's big brother had brought him along and ridden the bus in the past, but it was only for a few times, after all. To suddenly experience such a situation, his cheeks couldn't help but turn red, and a surge of warmth rushed in his heart.
But soon, this warmth turned into thoughts and sorrows.
…
The world gave preferential treatment to military personnel and to their families. Be it materially or spiritually, they were treated with uncompromising care.
In the end, it was because the death rate of soldiers in this world was too high.
Especially for the soldiers who guarded near the nests: 30 percent of ordinary soldiers died within three years of service, and even the death rate of Red Mist Fighters was close to 15 percent.
If not for these people, the city would have been washed away by the raging tide of monsters even with six layers of defense, not to mention just a triple protection.
As for why they didn't use unconventional weapons to destroy those nests…
It was said that the monsters also had unusual warfare power, and over time, a certain tacit understanding had been formed between both sides.
…
The bus moved forward, and He Mu found an empty seat and sat down.
Some people in the carriage were talking about his big brother. Compared to the internet, the reaction of locals in Nancheng was much milder. More people felt that there was something wrong with that video.
There were many different opinions on what exactly was wrong.
He Mu looked out the window. He knew that the reason why people in Nancheng thought so wasn't because of objective rationality, but because of their bias toward the "supposedly next Guardian".
If he didn't have anything to do with his big brother and didn't know him very well, perhaps he would think the same way as the majority of people on the internet after watching that video.
And because of this, he had to find out the truth.
…
After an hour's drive, the bus stopped by the Red Mist Alliance's platform.
He Mu got off the bus and looked at the Red Mist Alliance on the side of the wide road.
Although he had seen several videos and pictures on the internet, it was still hard to hide the feeling of novelty in his heart upon seeing the real Red Mist Alliance before him.
As an important part of the defensive system, the main body of the Red Mist Alliance was, in fact, a huge commercial complex like a commercial plaza.
This commercial complex sold special items, and the supermarket sold unique food and supplies for Red Mist Fighters, including a variety of highly-durable clothing and so on.
The prices were very high.
And the gym was also rather unusual. The weight unit of fitness equipment was in "tons".
The games in the game room were basically realistic simulations against various monsters.
The pharmacy, on the other hand, was stocked with a variety of genetic potions, the price of which was basically in the millions.
In here, one could hit a Red Mist Fighter just by throwing a stone.
However, the Red Mist Fighters belonging to the Red Mist Alliance were basically below 50 in combat power.
Most of these Red Mist Fighters were over 20 years old. They became Red Mist Fighters due to a variety of coincidences or special methods, so their potential was very limited. The resources that they could obtain were also lackluster.
The true elites had gone to college or the army long before the age of 20.
He Mu came here and took a look at the older men and women. A person as young as him and also looked so weak was really of a different breed.