Chapter Forty-Nine: An Encounter

"Sir, may I ask what business you’re here to handle?"
A sweet-looking young woman approached with a keen gaze—any man who could walk in accompanied by two stunning beauties was certainly someone of status.

"I want to apply for a group charter," Fang Xia said, getting straight to the point.

"That depends on the size of your team. If you have fewer than a hundred members, you only need to pay ten Upgrade Crystals. For teams between one hundred and five hundred, it's thirty crystals; for five hundred to a thousand, it's fifty. Groups larger than a thousand are not permitted for now."

Dawn City had only just been founded; establishing a group of over a thousand was out of the question. If any trouble arose, how would they handle it?

"I’ll go with a five-hundred-member group."
On the way here, Fang Xia had killed quite a few zombies and now had 174 first-tier Upgrade Crystals in hand.

He tossed thirty crystals onto the counter. The young woman’s smile widened; she even straightened her chest, letting her scant clothing reveal a little more.

If not for the two breathtaking beauties at Fang Xia’s side, she would have already tried to cozy up to him.

"Sir, please come this way to register your information and the group’s name. The certificate will be ready shortly."

Fang Xia didn’t go himself—he sent Liu Rui instead. He had no intention of writing “Fang Xia’s Harem” in big letters himself.

A few minutes later, Liu Rui returned with a jade plaque in hand.

"Is there any chance this could be forged?" Fang Xia asked casually, toying with the piece of jade.

"Rest assured, Captain Fang. This bears the seal of Dawn City—nobody would dare forge it."

Fang Xia neither agreed nor disagreed.

"Take me to see the available territories."

The young woman’s smile nearly overflowed; the look in her eyes seemed almost predatory. That five-hundred-member group charter had already earned her a commission of two Upgrade Crystals; if he bought a territory as well, today would be a windfall.

She led Fang Xia to the land purchase office, which was so deserted the staff looked ready to fall asleep at their desks.

"We’ve got a customer! Bring out the territory maps!"

At her call, a staff member jolted awake from his nap and groggily handed over the maps.

"Captain, these are the areas Dawn City has divided into territories," the young woman explained. "If you purchase any of them, you’ll become the owner of that land. Whether you want to build houses or do anything else, Dawn City won’t interfere."

Fang Xia nodded and studied the map seriously.

The largest plot spanned a hundred thousand square meters, with a staggering price of ten thousand Upgrade Crystals. At a rate of one crystal per ten square meters, the price was fair—after all, it was early days, and many people could barely scrape together ten crystals, let alone ten thousand.

He skipped those plots and looked straight to the outermost section, where he found another delimited territory.

Twenty thousand square meters, for only five hundred first-tier Upgrade Crystals.

"Why is this one so cheap?" Fang Xia asked, pointing to the area.

"Captain, that’s already in the suburbs. A little farther and you’re outside the city walls."
"The zombies outside the city are far more numerous than inside. Although Dawn City has cleared a ten-kilometer radius and built thick walls, it still gets frightening at night."

Her explanation made Fang Xia’s eyes light up—this was practically tailor-made for him.

"I’ll take this one."

The young woman wanted to say more, but Fang Xia had made up his mind and wouldn’t be swayed.

"I don’t have enough first-tier Upgrade Crystals. What’s your exchange rate for second-tier crystals?"

Although he was reluctant to use his second-tier crystals, Fang Xia only wanted to grow stronger for now—he had no wish to make an enemy of Dawn City, so the payment had to be made.

Hearing “second-tier Upgrade Crystals,” the young woman, who had been a little disappointed, instantly perked up. Dawn City’s exchange rate was one to eighty, and she’d earn a commission of five first-tier crystals for every second-tier crystal exchanged. No wonder she was so excited.

"Captain, with second-tier crystals, you only need to pay six."

Six second-tier crystals equaled 480 first-tier crystals, but that wasn’t an issue—the territory’s price had room for negotiation, and anything above 450 was a good deal.

Paying with second-tier crystals meant a hefty commission for her—dozens of first-tier crystals. This was real fortune. Dawn City had been open two or three days, but she hadn’t earned anything so far; who’d have thought her first customer would be such a big spender?

The staff handling the territory snapped awake, afraid Fang Xia would change his mind, and hurried to complete the paperwork.

In just three minutes, Fang Xia had his territory certificate in hand.

"Let’s go—to the territory."

Leaving the service hall, Fang Xia led his three hundred plus young women in a grand procession toward his new domain.

But they hadn’t gone far before another large group appeared up ahead, also heading toward the service hall.

The road wasn’t narrow, but there was no way hundreds could pass at once.

Neither side yielded; they were on a collision course when Fang Xia’s group suddenly halted.

Their opponents laughed boisterously. What, a bunch of women thought they could be tough? If they didn’t stop, they’d just push through—and maybe cop a feel or two along the way.

But the laughter died quickly.

At Liu Rui’s signal, the front row of young women drew their swords in unison, ready to fight at the slightest provocation.

With only ten meters between the groups, the other side stopped as well.

Bystanders scattered, eager to avoid trouble.

A burly man, wielding two swords, strode out and glared at Fang Xia’s group with hostility.

A bunch of women wanted him to give way? If word got out, how could he show his face in Dawn City?

Fang Xia narrowed his eyes as well. In the post-apocalypse, the first rule was never to back down. If you showed weakness even once, everyone would think you were easy to bully.

Especially in his case—his followers were all young beauties.

"Fang, do you see those people? Aren’t they the same ones who rested near us last time?" Liu Rui whispered in Fang Xia’s ear, pointing discreetly.

Fang Xia followed her gaze and recognized them—they did look familiar.

Last time, he’d been set up; if he hadn’t happened to be on patrol that day, who knew what might have happened. He’d never forgotten, but in a city as big as White City, full of zombies, finding someone based on a vague memory was like searching for a needle in a haystack. He’d set it aside—never expecting to encounter them here.

"Hand those people over to me, and I’ll let you pass."