Reincarnation Paradise

Chapter 5: Gunfire

Mia nodded, then immediately shook her head.

At the scrap yard, the most scarce thing was food. The scavengers who only lived by picking through the waste were mostly on the brink of starvation.

Su Xiao took out a few compressed biscuits from his pack, emergency rations he always carried.

He had observed that there was a forest in the distance, and with a g*n in hand, he wasn't worried about food.

Mia hesitated but took a compressed biscuit, having never seen such food before.

Under Su Xiao’s guidance, Mia carefully unwrapped the biscuit and took a cautious bite.

“It’s delicious~.”

Starving for an entire day, the young girl ate quickly, devouring the biscuit.

“You’re Mia, right? Take me out of here, these biscuits are yours.”

Having finished the biscuit, Mia stared at the remaining pieces in Su Xiao’s hand, swallowing nervously.

“Okay, but you can’t hurt me.”

Su Xiao didn’t respond, instead searching through a dilapidated house, Mia following closely behind.

“Where are you going? Aren’t you a resident of the scrap yard?”

Su Xiao suddenly stopped, his eyes cold. He threw a compressed biscuit on the ground and crushed it underfoot.

“Take me out of here, don’t ask anything else.”

If Mia showed any signs of hostility, Su Xiao’s hand, tightly gripping the g*n, would point directly at her forehead.

Mia flinched at Su Xiao’s actions, stepping back a few paces.

“Alright~... fine.”

Mia no longer dared to speak and quickly moved ahead.

“Take me to the entrance of the 'Goya Kingdom.'”

Su Xiao was alert, scanning the area. Occasionally, he caught sight of scavengers eyeing him with hostility. Once they noticed the g*n in his hand, their greedy expressions quickly faded.

Recalling the information from the anime, Su Xiao began thinking about his next move.

The so-called "scrap yard" was actually a massive garbage dump, caused by the Goya Kingdom dumping large amounts of household waste outside the city.

The scavengers, with fierce looks in their eyes, had once been residents of the Goya Kingdom. These people had either committed serious crimes or offended the nobility, leading to their exile here.

The decaying trash emitted toxic fumes, constantly spreading through the scrap yard, eroding the lives of the scavengers.

The most immediate effect: Su Xiao’s health had dropped from 100% to 98%.

In the scrap yard, there were no doctors, no food, and crime and disease spread freely. It was a lawless place where strength was the only measure of power.

Following Mia’s lead, Su Xiao quickly left the scrap yard and arrived at a tall wall.

The black stone wall stood imposingly, and a small city gate came into Su Xiao’s view.

“We can only go this far. The Goya Kingdom has laws. Scavengers aren’t allowed in the city. If they’re caught, they’re executed.”

Though Mia spoke to Su Xiao, her eyes were fixed on the compressed biscuits in his hand.

Su Xiao tossed the biscuits to Mia and ignored her. Mia, clearly more interested in the food, ran off. Her guiding him was solely because of the temptation of the biscuits, not for any other reason.

The Goya Kingdom’s city gate stood open, guarded by a few soldiers.

This was a side gate, used for dumping trash.

Although the guards appeared lazy, their eyes would occasionally flash with cold light, suggesting they were accustomed to killing those trying to enter the city.

Su Xiao hid nearby, not rushing to enter the city. He was waiting for the right opportunity.

Engaging the guards directly was impossible. The residents of the pirate world were extremely strong. Mia, after being severely injured by him, had recovered in a short time, which made Su Xiao cautious.

He suspected the guards’ stats were at least ten or higher, possibly even more.

An hour passed, then two. By the time it was noon, the temperature was rising, and the air became hot. The opportunity Su Xiao had been waiting for finally appeared.

A cart full of trash emerged from the city, a strong stench of rot wafting out. The guards didn’t pay any attention to the cart but instinctively stepped back a few paces.

“Gentlemen, would you like a routine inspection?”

The driver of the cart stopped, looking nervously at the guards.

“Just get going, it stinks.”

The guards waved him off, showing no interest in inspecting the cart.

Su Xiao, seeing this, raised an eyebrow and quickly followed the cart.

The cart entered the trash heap and found a vacant spot to dump its contents. The previously docile driver suddenly pulled out a dagger from his waist. The law of the scrap yard was survival of the fittest.

Lighting a cigarette to mask the foul smell, the driver began cleaning the cart, which was covered in filth.

As the driver worked up a sweat, Su Xiao silently approached from behind, ready to knock him out. However, just as he prepared to strike, his foot landed on a half-broken glass bottle.

The crisp sound of glass breaking rang out, causing the driver to twitch.

Su Xiao was also startled. In the trash-filled scrap yard, the ground was soft, and he hadn’t noticed anything underfoot.

But now, with no other choice, Su Xiao moved quickly.

The driver wasn’t a kind person either. He turned around and pulled out his dagger, charging at Su Xiao.

The driver’s vicious expression made Su Xiao realize that the man wanted him dead.

Su Xiao’s expression turned cold. In this world of missions, it was either kill or be killed. Showing mercy to enemies was cruelty to oneself.

He raised his flintlock g*n and pointed it at the driver’s head.

Anyone else would have stopped or backed off if a g*n was pointed at them, but not this driver. He charged even faster.

Su Xiao emotionlessly pulled the trigger. The hammer of the flintlock g*n struck the flint, sparks flew, and the gunpowder in the chamber ignited, creating a powerful blast of energy. The bullet shot out in a burst of flame and smoke.

“Bang.”

Thick smoke rose, and the pungent smell of gunpowder filled the air. A lead bullet pierced the driver’s skull, his body jerking back two meters before he fell to the ground, twitching twice before dying.

[Tip: You killed a black market merchant.]

[Your talent 'Soul Eater' activated, permanently increasing your mana by 5 points. Your current mana is 65 points.]

[You received a chest (white).]

[This is your first kill. Storage space has been unlocked (2 cubic meters). When you return to the Reincarnation Paradise, you can upgrade the storage space using Paradise Coins.]

The Reincarnation Paradise system message let Su Xiao know that this wasn’t just a cart driver, but a black market merchant using the driver’s identity to conduct some form of transaction in the scrap yard.

Above the black market merchant’s corpse, a small wooden chest floated. It was white and palm-sized.

Su Xiao attempted to pick up the chest floating in the air. Though small, it felt heavy.

[White Chest, open? Yes/No]

Su Xiao didn’t open the chest. Instead, he stored the chest and the "Old Flintlock g*n" into his storage space.

With a thought, the "Old Flintlock g*n" appeared in his hand. Su Xiao was pleased with the newly unlocked storage space. It was a very useful feature. If he made good use of it, it would greatly help him complete his missions.

Since this place wasn’t safe, Su Xiao chose not to open the chest. If it were to burst open with blinding light, it could put him in danger. The priority now was to enter the capital of the Goya Kingdom.

Su Xiao took off his jacket and changed into the black market merchant’s clothes.

After hesitating for a moment, he threw himself onto the filthy ground, soaking his clothes and face with dirty water, making it impossible to distinguish his features.

Sitting in front of the cart, Su Xiao awkwardly took the reins and started moving the horses toward the city.

He now held the merchant’s dagger in his hand, but it was different from what he had imagined.