Night of Despair

"I'm the one who posted the task. You can just call me Yu Hong." Yu Hong nodded friendly toward Xu Fan.

"What's the task reward?" Xu Fan asked directly.

"I need to check first, then determine your needs, and finally finalize the required materials for the repair. This is the standard procedure. Is that okay?" Yu Hong replied.

With the Black Mark present, he wasn't worried about whether he could repair it, only concerned about the repair time.

"No problem with that." Xu Fan nodded, "But I can only stay here for half a month. Can it be repaired in half a month?"

"First, the inspection." Yu Hong emphasized.

Xu Fan glanced at Li Rushan, who nodded at him, choosing to trust Old Li's reputation immediately.

Old Li might be shady, but his reputation was impeccable.

Without hesitation, Xu Fan grabbed one of his gloves and started taking off his suit piece by piece.

In no time, a burly, two-meter-tall bald giant appeared in front of them.

The giant's face was covered in grease paint, with a fresh cut on the nose, clearly a recent injury.

"The main areas needing repair are the helmet's faceplate. If possible, I'd like that part reinforced. There's also damage to the lower back, caused by an armor-piercing bullet, and a dent on the left knee from fighting a troublesome foe."

"Bronze Statue Chris?" Li Rushan asked casually.

"Yeah, that guy had strength similar to mine, and his suit was comprehensive as well. It took us over three hours to determine a winner," Xu Fan nodded.

"Understood. I need tools for a proper assessment. I'll take the suit back with me and let you know in about an hour. Is that okay?" Yu Hong folded the suit components together.

"That's fine." Xu Fan nodded, showing no sign of his reputed violent temper. Perhaps that violence only emerged under specific circumstances.

"You know where I live, come by my place in an hour," said Yu Hong succinctly.

"Alright."

Soon, Yu Hong separated from the group and carried the equipment back to the mountain cave safehouse.

During the walk, he silently reviewed in his mind how long the Black Mark would need for reinforcement.

The Black Mark couldn't repair items it hadn't reinforced, but Yu Hong could cleverly execute a minor reinforcement on an object. This would then allow the use of the enhanced automatic repair function to achieve the goal.

The next time a repair was needed, he could use the Black Mark for restoration directly.

This ability was an important support in his strategy for securing a foothold in the world.

By having the ability to repair advanced equipment, he could easily trade for a rich variety of resource information.

And the only thing he lacked next was... as Li Rushan said, the power to protect himself.

Bringing the Blue Whale suit back to the cave, Yu Hong laid it flat on the ground, then went outside and sifted through a pile of loot in the courtyard, extracting a forearm-length metal machete.

Carrying the machete back inside, he placed it alongside the Blue Whale suit, intending to use the machete's materials for reinforcement of the suit.

On his way back, he had already tested that to repair and reinforce the Blue Whale suit, if just slightly, choosing the minimum and weakest reinforcement took slightly over an hour.

Now with additional materials, he reinforced the faceplate as per Xu Fan's request.

He pressed his hand on the Blue Whale suit again.

"Reinforce Blue Whale suit, direction: minimum reinforcement of faceplate strength."

Shortly, a black line flashed, and a feedback sound rang.

"Reinforce Blue Whale suit?"

Yu Hong saw a countdown appear on the suit's surface: 2 hours and 12 minutes.

He nodded, finding it acceptable.

"*The time is short, but I can't show it so simply to Xu Fan and the others. I need them to know that my repair process was laborious, complex, and troublesome. This way, when the repair results are good, they would perceive it as worth the price.*"

*Yu Hong knew well that when people saw an outcome achieved effortlessly, they naturally harbored distrust and felt like they got a raw deal.*

"*Since you made it look so easy, why are you charging me such a high fee? Are you ripping me off?!*"

*He worried that Xu Fan and others would think this.*

*It has to be reasonable, logical.*

*That was Yu Hong's main pursuit.*

Soon, an hour passed.

Xu Fan and Anna arrived at the small stone courtyard in front of the mountain cave safehouse together.

A fire burned not far away, showing no signs of dying down soon.

The two stood outside the courtyard, observing the lush, strange grass inside.

"*This place... seems off...*" Anna whispered. "*Why does the Red Value data seem like that of a luminous stone mine?*"

*Her expression revealed suspicion and uncertainty as she continually scanned the courtyard's every corner.*

Yet no matter how she looked, she couldn't find anything unusual here.

It was just grass and more grass, with no other arrangements visible.

Xu Fan noticed too. From his past experiences with high-concentration luminous stone radiation, he developed a peculiar sensitivity to Red Value. Whenever there was a significant change in the surrounding Red Value radiation, his skin would react accordingly.

For instance, standing outside the courtyard, he felt all his body hair standing on end, accompanied by a cold shiver.

"*It should be laid with luminous stone patterns, similar to the structures on Hope City's outer walls.*" he speculated.

"I don't see any similar patterns." Anna shook her head, "It seems this task's employer is quite adept... such arrangements can effectively avoid the Blood Tide shadow's day and night harassment, achieving a relatively stable living environment."

"Yu Hong... I've never heard of this name before. If he can successfully repair it this time, we might have to engage with him regularly in the future," Xu Fan remarked. After all, repairs of this caliber weren't something just anyone could manage.

"Mm," Anna nodded.

The two waited a few more minutes, and soon the wooden door of the cave opened.

A burly figure emerged, wearing the same heavy suit as earlier, but now the subtle dents and bullet marks on the suit were gone.

This reassured Xu Fan, reinforcing his belief that the person could indeed repair the Blue Whale suit.

The trio met outside the courtyard, where the Red Value had climbed over a hundred. With luminous stone grass everywhere, it wasn't a suitable place for conversation.

"You've waited long enough, I've estimated the repair time on my end. It should take about a week. I have some materials, though not the original type, but the repair's effectiveness won't differ much. Can you accept that?" Yu Hong spoke earnestly.

"A week?!" Xu Fan was taken aback, looking down at the equally surprised Anna.

"Really, just a week?" he repeated.

"Of course. A week guaranteed repair!" Yu Hong declared with confidence.

"...As long as it's repaired and the result is nearly the same, I have no issue!" Xu Fan agreed decisively, albeit with some disbelief.

He had inquired at many armories, and apart from Aurora City and Silver Tower, which required two weeks, the rest needed at least three months.

If it weren't for the damaged faceplate compromising combat, he would've put up with it much longer most times.

"The shorter time is because I don't have any bureaucratic processes here. I'm fully focused on repairing it for you, hence the speed," Yu Hong observed their reactions and quickly explained upon realizing he had stated too short a timeframe.

"Makes sense," Anna responded, "Alright, we'll come back in a week to pick it up. It'll align with the end of this task, and we can give ourselves a few days off."

"That'll work." Yu Hong nodded, "By the way, have you considered settling in a place?"

He felt the pair had strong combat skills, offering a sense of security, so he tried testing the waters.

According to Li Rushan, they were currently mercenaries moving from place to place, traveling continuously in a vehicle.

"We've thought about it, but these days, while more people means temporary safety, it also attracts Blood Tide and shadow more. Too much hassle." Anna said helplessly, eyeing Yu Hong. Suddenly, she smiled.

"Here's a suggestion: If you want to hire a long-term bodyguard, make sure you can provide a stable water supply, food, and resting environment first. With those basic conditions assured, people will naturally be willing to stay longer with you."

It was clear she discerned Yu Hong's intentions.

"Good suggestion." Yu Hong nodded, taking her advice.

Indeed, without a stable water source, why would someone skilled choose to leave Hope City, where everything was available, to live with him?

In the city, they'd have food, drink, safety, and leisure, enjoying occasional beverages and special services much more than they ever could in the wilderness—where even taking a bath wasn't feasible.

Soon, they agreed on a time and place, and Yu Hong handed them a leaf of luminous stone grass as a token. If he couldn't come personally, they could use it to send someone in his place.

Luminous stone grass wasn't available elsewhere. Once picked, it lost its vitality quickly and its luminous radiation, making it Yu Hong's unique token.

Xu Fan and Anna quickly left.

Yu Hong made another visit to Li Rushan.

"Thanks for your assistance this time," said the two, sitting on the new wooden bench in the courtyard.

"I don't mind helping with more such tasks in the future when paid. I don't mind," Li Rushan maintained his usual smiling demeanor.

"Alright, I brought your payment," Yu Hong handed over some silver dollars he had scavenged from his loot, as well as a stack of talisman arrays he had made, giving it all to Li Rushan.

Even though he was merely an intermediary, offering benefits ensured future cooperation. Yu Hong valued Li Rushan's mercenary channels and postal supplies greatly.

"You're too courteous, way too courteous." Li Rushan quickly accepted the items, took them inside, and came out again with a softer expression.

"The task is complete, but to prevent similar incidents from occurring, I've contemplated hiring skilled individuals for long-term protection," Yu Hong said simply. "However, our location's conditions are well-known to old Li. We first need to solve the water, electricity, and food issues to attract permanent residents. Otherwise, they'd undoubtedly choose the more favorable conditions of Hope City. Isn't that so?"

"That's right." Li Rushan nodded, thinking Yu Hong had evolved from someone who knew nothing about common knowledge to now showing some promise.

"So, I want to ask, is there any method for water supply from the postal service? I planned to dig a well, but after reaching a certain depth, it was full of black insects..." Yu Hong sighed.

"Groundwater definitely won't work," Li Rushan smiled and shook his head, gesturing behind him, where a small hand quickly passed him a cigarette and lit it.

He then retrieved his hand, placing the cigarette in his mouth and taking a deep, satisfying drag.

"Many in Hope City rely on rivers and oceans. Your only option is to move to a place by a river, making water collection easier. But remember, streams and rivers aren't safe havens either. With the Blood Tide Black Insects above ground, the river harbors equally or even more perilous creatures...."

"...." Yu Hong silently nodded.

Rainwater was toxic, requiring multiple levels of filtration and boiling before use, yet it remained unstable.

So, rivers and streams seemed the only hope. Yet, abandoning the mountain cave safehouse, which he had reinforced extensively, left him highly reluctant.