Chapter 53: Storm Brewing

【Tomorrow: I recently had a skirmish with members of the Tarot Alliance and managed to escape.】 【Moonshadow: Good thing you're alright. That place is too dangerous. You'd better hurry over to the Giant Forest and meet up with me.】 【Tomorrow: I'll try my best.】 During this time, Li Ye learned that the Vanguard Alliance had previously clashed with the Tarot Alliance multiple times, though they had only been small-scale encounters. The Vanguard raised a concern. Every time he and his members went out on a mission, the Tarot Alliance would always “coincidentally” find them and launch an attack. Everyone suspected that the Tarot Alliance might possess a level 2 item capable of detecting mobile cities. Li Ye couldn't help but shake his head when he heard this. If that were true, then Tomorrow wandering alone in the wild was extremely dangerous. It would be safer to stay within the Vanguard Alliance. As if remembering something, he took out the City Structure Blueprint from his coat. Surely Tomorrow wasn't the only one trying to upgrade to level 2. There had to be other mobile cities doing the same. There were definitely Predatory Cities preparing within the Tarot Alliance, and possibly even within their own alliance. “A man’s wealth is his own ruin by attracting envy.” That was exactly what Li Ye was thinking at this moment. Tomorrow had City Camouflage, level 2 vehicles, two level 1 cannons, and this City Structure Blueprint. Out in the wild, that was more than enough to make others green with envy. For safety’s sake, Tomorrow had to stay hidden and avoid detection at all costs. At this moment, members in the A4 communication channel were still exchanging intel. 【Vanguard: Everyone, attention. I have two very important pieces of information to share.】 【Bronze Wanderer: Yes, everyone please listen carefully. Boss, go ahead.】 【Vanguard: A few hours ago, Bronze Wanderer and I stumbled upon a heavily damaged mobile city. It had just escaped from the Giant Forest. After paying 300 units of iron ore and 150 units of fuel, we got two pieces of intel from it.】 【Vanguard: First, there's a level 2 mobile city in the Giant Forest, also a Predatory City, that specifically hunts level 1 mobile cities like ours. Second, the Tarot Alliance is also roaming the Giant Forest—two of their members arrived recently.】 【Moonshadow: There's a level 2 mobile city in that forest?】 【Echo: The Tarot Alliance? Are they all heading to the Giant Forest?】 【Vanguard: The Giant Forest is part of the central region, just like the City Ruins. It's normal for many mobile cities to pass through, and for the Tarot Alliance to gather and hunt there.】 【Tomorrow: Perhaps this Predatory City alliance also intends to head toward the Serene Lake.】 【Vanguard: That’s possible. I recommend everyone prepare for the worst. We might end up at war with the Tarot Alliance.】 Li Ye furrowed his brow. The first intel didn't surprise him much, as the Intelligence System had previously mentioned that the Wasteland Zone contained three level 2 mobile cities. So one appearing in the Giant Forest wasn’t unusual. What concerned him more was... whether or not there were level 2 mobile cities near the Serene Lake. Compared to level 1 cities, level 2 ones were like big fish eating small fish. Their combat power far surpassed the former. In fact, you could recognize a level 2 mobile city at a glance in the wild. Its size alone was far greater than that of a level 1 city. The second piece of intel was more troubling. Although he had previously learned through the Intelligence System that five members of the Tarot Alliance were in the Giant Forest, from the movements of these two members, it was obvious the Predatory Alliance intended to start hunting there. “Once they've hunted enough in the forest, they'll probably move on to Serene Lake,” he mused. If things went badly, the two city alliances might erupt into a massive battle in the Giant Forest. And Tomorrow, as a member, would be dragged into the conflict. Thinking this, Li Ye couldn't help but sigh. “A storm truly is brewing...” ... A few days later. Looking back at the gradually receding City Ruins, Li Ye let out a breath of relief. “Finally made it out.” These past days, Tomorrow had been fairly lucky and hadn’t run into any Tarot Alliance members. However, the sounds of gunfire and explosions in the City Ruins had never ceased. Li Ye soon made his way to the mid-tier fields. The Morning Wheat in the fields had already matured and been harvested—there were as many as 2,312 units. After shelling and drying, it would be ground into flour to make steamed buns, instant noodles, whole-wheat biscuits, and regular pasta. For lunch today, Li Ye had several steamed buns and a portion of stir-fried potato slices. The oil and salt for cooking had been purchased earlier from a town. Li Ye ate slowly. These days, he hardly had the appetite to eat, with all his attention focused on commanding Tomorrow. Along the way, he passed many resource points, including even an industrial zone. But considering that lingering too long in the City Ruins was increasingly dangerous, he didn’t bother collecting resources and ordered Tomorrow to traverse the ruins at full speed. Only now did he finally feel relaxed. Everyone else felt the same. At this moment, Tomorrow was traveling across a vast plain, where waves of green rolled with vitality. It wasn’t traveling alone—several bounty hunters, convoys, and even mobile cities were accompanying it. After crossing the City Ruins, it wouldn’t be long before reaching the Giant Forest, followed closely by Serene Lake. Everyone tacitly maintained a distance as they advanced together. This plain was far from peaceful. It was filled with roaming monsters, their outposts, and fortresses. Two mobile cities had already stopped to hunt. Li Ye stood on the Watchtower, scanning the surrounding landscape through binoculars. Then, he turned to look at the Intelligence Panel in front of him. The panel’s cooldown had already reset two days ago. 【Next intelligence refresh in: 7 days, 13 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds】 【Number of reports: 7】 “This time, it’ll take a full 10 days to refresh, so the intel must be really valuable,” Li Ye nodded. “Seven entries... maybe there’s even Legendary Intelligence.” He then frowned. To upgrade to level 2, Tomorrow had only gathered the City Structure Blueprint and over 100 level 1 city alloys so far. As for the remaining iron ore, coal, fuel, over 800 alloys, and the city crystals, he would have to collect them around Serene Lake. Otherwise, Tomorrow would have to venture into the Eternal Night Zone as a level 1 mobile city. To that, Li Ye quietly reassured himself not to panic. After all, the Serene Lake covered one-fifth of the Wasteland Zone—it had to be rich in resources. But what troubled him was that he’d barely collected any level 1 waterborne city components. Tomorrow might have to build a bunch of basic boat parts just to cross the lake. A soft yawn reached his ears. Li Ye turned his head and saw Lin Xia dozing off. He came back to his senses and felt a pang of guilt. These past few days, to maintain vigilance, Lin Xia had practically stayed on the Watchtower 24/7, only resting in brief naps when absolutely exhausted. Li Ye had advised her to rest, but the young girl had insisted on staying at her post. “I need to find another lookout to rotate shifts with Lin Xia,” he thought. “Otherwise, it’s just too much for her.” After some careful selection, Li Ye chose a young girl from the regular residents and assigned her to Lin Xia for training as the new lookout, so they could take turns. Then, he began pondering a new issue. As time went on, Tomorrow would definitely evolve into a higher-level mobile city. By then, it would need its own waterborne and airborne armed units. And piloting those vehicles would require skilled operators. “We can’t wait until we have vehicles to start looking for drivers,” he thought. “Might as well start training them now.”