Qi Yuan left with the 500 energy cores after both parties had agreed on a time to settle the payment.
He had gotten a total of 500 Class 1 energy cores from the Black Gold Trading Firm for free. In addition to the 800 energy cores that he had borrowed from Arc Light, he had gathered more than half of the 2,000 energy cores that the Blazing Angel needed in just two days.
As for the remaining 700 points, whether it was using star energy stones or hunting insectoids to make up for it, there was a possibility that he could make up for it.
Compared to Qi Yuan's satisfaction, Nightingale was obviously in a gloomy mood. No one would be happy to have 800 Class 1 energy cores snatched from their pockets by a dead man.
After confirming that Qi Yuan had left, Nightingale walked to the hidden elevator in the corner and took the elevator to the lowest floor.
The room was dimly lit. Other than a few candles, there was no other light source. A black-clothed man covered in a black robe silently sat in the middle of the room.
After seeing the man in the black robe, Ye Xiao's expression instantly became respectful. He walked out of the elevator and walked behind the man in the black robe. He lowered his head and recounted the entire process of his negotiation with Qi Yuan in detail without missing a single word.
The man in the black robe did not say anything after Nightingale was done. The atmosphere in the room slowly became oppressive. After a while, Nightingale's face turned pale and his eyes were filled with fear. Just when he could clearly feel his heart pounding and could barely maintain his original posture, the man in the black robe suddenly broke the silence in the room.
"He'll die in Red Copper Valley. Clean up the aftermath. Don't let this foothold be implicated!"
"Yes!" Nightingale quickly replied.
The room fell into silence again. Nightingale let out a long sigh of relief. He turned around and left softly as if he was worried that his footsteps would disturb the man in black. It was only when the elevator door closed that he realized that his back was drenched in cold sweat.
After returning to the surface, Nightingale called Blind over and ordered in a deep voice, "Qi Yuan will go to Red Copper Valley tomorrow. Get someone to send the news over. Do it secretly. Remember, don't leave anyone alive!"
Blind nodded, and a mechanical red light flashed across his single eye.
"Don't worry, none of the people who went there came back alive."
After leaving the Black Gold Trading Firm, Qi Yuan noticed a small tail following behind him. Although the other party's movements were very stealthy, under the observation of Area Detection, nothing could escape his eyes.
Qi Yuan ignored Little Tail and returned to Qu Shi's laboratory with these energy cores. He easily got rid of Little Tail.
In the laboratory, although Qu Shi didn't say it explicitly, the lab dogs had already tacitly agreed that Qi Yuan's status was second only to Qu Shi's. Qi Yuan easily called a few experimenters to move all the energy cores to the laboratory.
"Where did you get so many energy cores?!"
Qu Shi was shocked by these energy cores.
Qi Yuan chuckled.
"A gift from the Black Gold Merchant Guild!"
"Black Gold Merchant Association?"
Qu Shi pondered for a while and realized from Qi Yuan's laughter that the Black Gold Merchant Guild had been scammed by Qi Yuan.
Thinking of Qi Yuan's ability to cause trouble, Qu Shi had a headache. He could only remind him, "Be careful.
The Black Gold Merchant Guild is also a merchant guild with a certain foundation in the Black Steel Shelter. Although their background isn't very strong, their president, Yu Ren, is a Tier 4 Mechanic. He still has some power in his hands. Don't offend them too much! "
"Don't worry, the Black Gold Merchant Guild won't be able to survive for long," Qi Yuan said.
With the Xu family's current situation, coupled with the incident in the old city, even if they hid in the Black Steel Shelter, there was no place for them to stay.
"What?
Is there a problem with the Black Gold Merchant Guild? "Qu Shi asked in surprise.
Qi Yuan sneered.
"Yu Ren!
If you take these two words apart, isn't it 'a knife of the Xu family'?!
This Black Gold Merchant Guild is really arrogant, daring to use such a name. However, since the Black Gold Merchant Guild dared to attack me, this knife should be broken! "
The Xu family!
The Black Gold Merchant Guild is a stronghold of the Xu family?
Qu Shi frowned slightly. Although the Xu family's base was in the Quicksand Shelter, the storm when the Xu family fell had also affected several gathering points in the Black Steel Shelter. If the Black Gold Merchant Guild was really related to the Xu family, the headquarters of the Chamber of Commerce in the Black Steel Shelter would be fine. However, this branch of the Iron Chariots would not be so easy to deal with. If they were not careful, the entire Iron Chariots would be destroyed.
Under the influence of Bloodline Vengeance, the people of the Xu family had a crazy self-destructive tendency. Once they fell into a desperate situation, their first reaction was definitely not to surrender, but to destroy everything!
"If the Black Gold Merchant Guild is really related to the Xu family, it's best to let Ling You handle it. Don't underestimate the hidden strength of the Xu family. Once they go crazy, it will be very dangerous!" Qu Shi said.
"Don't worry, I'm just taking some energy cores. I won't participate in the rest."
Qi Yuan was also very clear about the strength and danger of the Xu family. If it wasn't for Ling You's strength, he might not have dared to take these five hundred energy cores.
Now that he had the five hundred energy cores in his hands, although he still did not know what kind of trap was hidden behind the bait of the Black Gold Merchant Guild, since he was already prepared, it would not be so easy to trick him.
Speaking of which, how much strength could the Blazing Angel recover with these five hundred Tier 1 energy cores? Could she reach the threshold of Tier 4?
After chatting with Qu Shi for a while, Qi Yuan once again locked himself in the room, then summoned the Blazing Angel, who was lying down and rolling around in the energy heart.
The Blazing Angel looked at the mountain of energy cores in front of her, her eyes clearly a little dazed.
She rubbed her somewhat round belly and said with grievance, "I can't eat anymore!"
Qi Yuan condensed a strand of Asterite energy in his hand and said expressionlessly:
"I was going to add an extra dish for you, but since you can't eat it, then forget it!"
Hualala!
Saliva instantly flowed down from the corner of the Blazing Angel's mouth. Although there was a lot of Asterite energy in the energy heart, before she received permission, she could only look at it and not eat it. The longer she stayed inside, the hungrier she became.
Seeing that Qi Yuan was about to withdraw this strand of Asterite energy into her body, the Blazing Angel immediately had an idea. She picked up a piece of energy and began to absorb it. While absorbing, she stared at the Asterite energy in Qi Yuan's hand eagerly.
She was like a child holding a bowl of white rice and looking at a piece of meat in a pot!
Qi Yuan flicked his finger, and the Asterite energy in his hand instantly entered the Blazing Angel's body, making her feel so good that she could not help but hum twice.
"Once you've absorbed all of this energy, you'll be able to take another bite!" Qi Yuan said patiently.
The Blazing Angel hugged the energy core, nodded vigorously, and began to absorb it quickly.
Qi Yuan looked at the Blazing Angel who was working hard to absorb the energy cores and rubbed his eyebrows with a headache.
What exactly was this fellow's Tier 4 ability? If it only became more able to eat, then this investment would not be recouped!
While the Blazing Angel was absorbing the energy cores, Qi Yuan took out a hand-drawn map he had obtained from the Fangs.
Although the Hunter's Guild had a holographic map of the Iron Chariots' surroundings, they did not update it in time. It was not as accurate as the hand-drawn maps of these hunters.
Qi Yuan spread the map on the table, then picked up a marker and stared at the map.
There were still six checkpoints that he could sense!
According to the location of the checkpoints he sensed in his consciousness, Qi Yuan drew six marks on the map.
The six checkpoints were all in the blue area. Although they did not go too deep, the blue area meant danger. Even if one stepped into it with the strength of a peak Tier 3, they might die inside.
However, there were not many choices for him. In a place like the Black Steel Shelter, with every bit of strength, his safety would be guaranteed. It was imperative to complete the checkpoints before entering the shelter. Although there was some danger in doing so, danger was common to every checkpoint. Moreover, the danger of the checkpoints was never a sure-death situation. He definitely had the strength to complete the checkpoints.
If the Blazing Angel could recover to Tier 4, this danger would be minimized!
Ignoring the special checkpoints that were guided, these six checkpoints were just enough to raise the remaining six Tier 1 energies to Tier 2.
If I can sign in at all six checkpoints, will I be able to advance to Tier 3?
As Qi Yuan pondered, his gaze moved back and forth between the six checkpoints. Under one of the checkpoints, he unexpectedly found three small words — Red Copper Valley.
Red Copper Valley!
Qi Yuan frowned. Wasn't this the place that the Black Gold Merchant Guild had dug for him!
What a coincidence!
So, I still have to take this trip to the Black Gold Merchant Guild's trap?
Now that he had obtained the five hundred energy cores for free, Qi Yuan did not want to have a direct confrontation with the Black Gold Merchant Guild.
However, the sudden appearance of a checkpoint forced him to refocus his attention on the Red Copper Valley, a place that was very likely to be hiding a trap.
Since the checkpoint had appeared in the Red Copper Valley, it meant that although it was dangerous inside, it was definitely not a sure-death situation for him.
Qi Yuan glanced at the Blazing Angel, who was still absorbing energy. With his strength, the Berserker, and this guy, wouldn't they be able to crush a Tier 2 checkpoint?
With the enticement of Asterite's energy, the Blazing Angel absorbed the energy cores faster than before. In less than an hour, it had finished absorbing all five hundred energy cores. It then rubbed its round belly and looked at Qi Yuan expectantly.
I've already finished eating. Where are my snacks?
Qi Yuan flicked a strand of Asterite and said helplessly, "Don't eat until your stomach explodes!"
Slurp!
The Blazing Angel happily swallowed the last mouthful of Asterite's energy, then burped in satisfaction!
Qi Yuan looked at the satisfied Blazing Angel, suddenly feeling somewhat expectant. With 1,300 energy cores in its stomach, just how strong was it now?
Through Mechanical Command, Qi Yuan could vaguely sense the general situation. Although the Blazing Angel's Energy Rank was slightly weaker than Ling You's, it had already surpassed his own by an entire level. It was definitely not Tier 3. As for whether it had stabilized at Tier 4, because there was no comparison, Qi Yuan did not know.
"What kind of abilities do you have now?" Qi Yuan asked expectantly.
After giving it some thought, the Blazing Angel said seriously, "I can eat even more!"
The corner of Qi Yuan's mouth twitched. You don't need to tell me that; I already know that.
"Aside from eating, what other abilities do you have?"
The Blazing Angel bit her finger, falling into deep thought once more. After some time, she shook her head in embarrassment.
What do you mean by shaking your head?
Have you forgotten that you just ate 26 million of my energy cores?!
Can't self-destruct!
Can't self-destruct!
Can't self-destruct!
Qi Yuan took a deep breath and repeated it three times in his heart. Only then did he calm down the urge to make the Blazing Angel self-destruct on the spot!
"Can you control other creatures now?"
The Blazing Angel nodded, and only then did Qi Yuan let out a sigh of relief.
"Can I control Tier 4 Insectoids?"
The Blazing Angel thought about it and nodded. Before Qi Yuan could be happy, she immediately shook her head.
Can I or can I not?
This was a decision question, not a multiple choice question!
Qi Yuan, who was forcefully holding back his anger, felt that his blood pressure should have broken through 200!
The Blazing Angel seemed to have felt the burning anger in Qi Yuan's heart. Under the strong desire to live, her intelligence finally came online, and she explained in a low voice.
"I can only control Tier 4 Insectoids that have no resistance, and only one at that!"
Tier 4 Insectoids that have no resistance?
And only one at that?
Qi Yuan shook his head. This ability was not completely useless, but it was too weak. If someone helped to subdue a Tier 4 Insectoid, this ability could be very useful.
Unfortunately, in the entire Iron Chariots, only Ling You had the ability to defeat a Tier 4 Insectoid. She had a cold personality, so she would definitely not help him in this kind of matter. Moreover, Qi Yuan did not want to expose the Blazing Angel's existence so early.
"If I absorb another 700 Tier 1 energy cores, can I control Tier 4 Insectoids by force?" Qi Yuan asked.
The Blazing Angel nodded, then shook her head again.
Qi Yuan was speechless.
Under Qi Yuan's death glare, the Blazing Angel lowered her head and explained,
"I can only control the weaker Tier 4 Insectoids, not the stronger ones."
This time, Qi Yuan's face finally revealed a smile.
Even the weaker Tier 4 Insectoids were still Tier 4 Insectoids, and their strength could definitely suppress Tier 3 Insectoids.
Although 700 energy cores was a lot, it was not impossible to solve it. Going to the wilderness to kill Insectoids could make up for this gap. If the situation was critical, letting the Blazing Angel absorb all the Asterite energy stored in her body would be enough to make up for this gap.
After investing 26 million on the Blazing Angel, a total of 1,300 Tier 1 energy cores, he finally reaped the rewards he had been waiting for.
After putting the Blazing Angel back into the energy heart and smelting all the energy cores into metal ingots, Qi Yuan's gaze once again fell on the map marked with a marker.
Of the six checkpoints, other than Red Copper Valley, only one was deeper. The other four were closer to the edge, and their locations were far less dangerous than the old cities.
According to the usual pattern of checkpoints, one could determine the danger level of a checkpoint from its location. The checkpoint deeper than Red Copper Valley should be the most dangerous one.
However, there were traps set up by the Black Gold Chamber of Commerce in Red Copper Valley. Qi Yuan could not determine which of these two checkpoints was more dangerous.
After pondering for a moment, Qi Yuan's eyes flashed with a faint light. With the Blazing Angel in hand, he no longer needed to personally take the risk to test the danger level of these checkpoints!
After leaving Qu Shi's laboratory, Qi Yuan went to Zhui's residence, then rode away on his motorcycle under the watchful eyes of Little Tail.