Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Wang Zheng gradually came to his senses and smelled a stench that combined sweat and smoke, among other unpleasant things. Even if this was not the worst that Wang Zheng had ever smelled, it was close.
The light was dim. From the way it felt, he was in the cabin of a shuttle. There were many people around, in roughly the same state. Some were thronging about the leftovers.
There must have been about 50 or 60 people in the room. Each stood in their place. This had to be a warehouse… What kind of hellish place was this?
Wang Zheng regulated his body and let himself become alert.
He was wearing a suit that was a little stained. His Skylink was gone, replaced by a strange, black bracelet.
“Punk, you’re up? You’re real good at sleeping. We’ll be at Heaven in a day.” From nearby, a middle-aged guy carefully opened a box. After hesitating for a while, he handed Wang Zheng a stick.
Wang Zheng took it, and the middle-aged man lit his own, and then Wang Zheng’s. Wang Zheng did not smoke, and the man laughed. “A cautious one, aren’t you lad? Go on. It’s a waste of money to poison you. Poison’s more expensive than smokes nowadays.”
Wang Zheng did not react. “Where are we?”
Wang Zheng’s brain was responding quickly. Looked like the military had delivered him to his destination, although this method of entry was a little harsh. He did not particularly mind their ways, but they could have at least let him know. Why did they have to do it that way?
But such notions flashed by him. Once the mission begun, he would have to discard all notions of pride.
The unfortunates were divided into two extremes. Some were ranting, and some were brooding. This middle-aged guy belonged to the former. He did not have to get the other guy started. He was once a very successful manager, but a moment of greed had caused him to fail a shipment and incur a huge debt. Such luxury goods were not so easily paid back, and in the end he had decided to come to give Maklou a try.
Maklou produced rare minerals like high-magnetism ores. Even with protective gear, it would cause great harm to the body. There were two types of mining on Maklou. One type used slave labor. That’s right. Slave labor. They came to Maklou with all kinds of reasons – no freedom, crimes, or debts they could not clear etc. This middle-aged uncle was rather fortunate. He had mostly settled his debt already. The other type were the desperates, either here to gamble, or to seek asylum. If one did not have enough money, mining was undoubtedly a good choice.
Free men could dig for diamonds. Although they could not take them away, they would receive ample compensation. One could make a fortune overnight. The important thing was that in this period, those outside could not bother you.
The middle-aged guy was still bragging about his past glory. If it were not for that error, he would be among the upper class.
He did not even care about how Wang Zheng came to be here. He just wanted to find a listener on this lonely journey.
Wang Zheng sorted out his thoughts. He was quite lucky not to be sold as a slave. Which meant that he would enter Maklou with the status of a poor miner.
Go with the flow. Wang Zheng did not have much of a plan either. More accurately, given his current situation, he could devise little. He could only take each step as it came.
The thing on his hand was a regulation bracelet. It was clipped to his wrist, and was rumored to be able to inhibit Ability X. Any newcomer to Maklou had to wear one, whether one was rich or poor. It was said to prevent the Alliance’s special forces or other forces from entering.
Wang Zheng could feel that this toy pierced the skin. Whether it had any concrete use, Wang Zheng was not sure yet. But he was not willing to risk it. This mission was really something. It didn’t leave him much room.
It was meal time. The cabin door opened, and a person entered bearing a huge cauldron. It was 1,000 coins for a spoonful. Wang Zheng took a look. It was swill, but it was also the only option.
Wang Zheng searched his whole body, but he had no money. He could only starve. The middle-aged man looked at the bowl in his own hand. After some indecision, he did not share it with Wang Zheng.
Wang Zheng sat back down in his corner, closing his eyes slightly, as though disinterested in his surroundings.
On the monitors in the cockpit, there were tens of these rooms.
“All quiet?”
“Tch, what could happen? A bunch of trash. Besides, even if there really was someone, with the manacles on, they could do nothing but slave their lives away in the mines. I’m hoping for some decent ones myself; at least they’ll be good at their work. Haha.”
“Boss is very concerned about this lately. We better watch more carefully.”
“Got it. Not many problems with this batch. But then again, if there are issues, it ain’t our turn to check. But some are of really bad quality. When the time comes, let’s just get rid of them. They won’t be able to work on the surface anyway.”
“We took special care when we got this lot. They’re all quite healthy. We’ll lose 10% at most. Boss should be pleased.”
“Two more days to wring these guys out.”
“Relax. Old rules.”
The two laughed. Regardless of their intentions in coming, everyone, save the plutocrats, would be pawed free of their wealth, whether they were those seeking asylum or free men. As for those whose bodies were in a poor state, or had no money, unless they had hearty constitutions, they would not make it to the surface.
Wang Zheng bided his time quietly, conserving energy. He had no food, but the circumstances were not that bad. He had been in much worse situations before. Jiang Feng had warned them, and Wang Zheng had been mentally prepared. In just a little more than an hour, Wang Zheng was already completely adjusted to his surroundings. All that was left to do was to wait for arrival.
After five or six hours, the cabin door opened. Everyone watched, eyes wide in fear. A bunch of armed men entered, hauling away a sickly guy. That person struggled weakly, but was knocked out by a rap from the gun. The cabin door shut again.
“Was he a slave?” Wang Zheng suddenly asked.
“Slave? That guy had no money, and is not as fit as a youngster like you. Even if you sent him down, he can’t do the work. You think Fallen Paradise is a charity?” The middle-aged man smirked.
Eyeing Wang Zheng, the middle-aged man smiled. “Punk, you must have come from a decent background, from the looks of you. How did you come here?”
Wang Zheng did not say anything. Sunday Zhao? Arson and prison break? Wang Zheng thought it was all too childish. He wondered if they had even thought thoroughly about it.
The middle-aged man looked past it. “Youngster, Maklou is a dangerous place. It’s not so easy to survive. You and me got some fate. What do you say we work together? When dinner comes in a while, I’ll share it with ya!”
Wang Zheng eyed the man, and slightly shook his head. The middle-aged man did not press.
He retreated to his corner again, but at this moment, two people stood up and headed for the middle-aged man. And then two more people stood up.
