Soon, with Azhdaha's help, Zhu Yuan, Qingyi, and the Adepti gathered all the Bangboo together.
Zhu Yuan did a quick count—there were over three hundred of them, in all shapes and sizes. They'd need at least six or seven transport trucks to carry them all.
Then, to her surprise, Zhu Yuan noticed Azhdaha using Geo energy to "treat" the Bangboo's injuries.
"Mr. Azhdaha," Zhu Yuan quickly reminded him, "once we reach the city, there will be plenty of Bangboo parts available. We can replace everything with new ones—"
Azhdaha didn't respond, silently channeling Geo to heal his little brothers instead.
The group waited among the ruins of Bangboo Town for more than an hour.
Suddenly, Qingyi said, "There's a truck coming this way. It looks old—and kind of familiar. I don't think it's one of the Public Security's vehicles."
Zhu Yuan followed Qingyi's gaze and saw a battered truck speeding toward them.
When it came close, she finally recognized it—it was one of the Sons of Calydon's trucks. No wonder it looked familiar.
The truck screeched to a halt, and Caesar, Piper, Lucy, Lighter, and several others jumped out.
Caesar stared in astonishment. "Mr. Sam Li? Officer Zhu Yuan? Officer Qingyi? What are you all doing here?"
They already knew each other from a previous incident, so Zhu Yuan briefly explained what had happened—how an SS-class Hollow disaster had erupted in Bangboo Town, and how Azhdaha and the Adepti had fought a Destruction-class Ethereal.
Caesar was stunned. "An SS-class Hollow? A Destruction-class Ethereal?"
Lucy frowned slightly, thoughtful. "That explains it... Even back in Calydon Town, we detected abnormal Ether energy fluctuations."
As she spoke, she glanced around at what was left of Bangboo Town. It was nothing but ruins now. The marks of battle were everywhere—proof of the intensity of the fight that had taken place here.
Zhu Yuan then asked, "And you? Why are you here?"
Piper, still half-asleep, yawned and said lazily, "Boss Caesar somehow got her hands on a secondhand observation set. It suddenly picked up major Ether fluctuations here—she said a new Hollow disaster had erupted, so she dragged us all over..."
And that was how they had run into each other.
At that point, Caesar asked seriously, "So what are you planning to do next?"
Zhu Yuan replied firmly, "We're going to take all these Bangboo back to New Eridu for repairs."
Lucy sighed softly. "If you hadn't dumped them into the Outer Ring back then—and just repaired them instead—the Outer Ring wouldn't be crawling with so many stray Bangboo."
Zhu Yuan couldn't refute it.
Lucy was right. These Bangboo had all been thrown away by the city's corporations.
For those conglomerates, repairing an old Bangboo cost more than manufacturing a new one. Dumping them in the Outer Ring saved them money on disposal fees, too...
Of course, that sort of practice was strictly prohibited under New Eridu's laws. But despite repeated bans, some Bangboo recycling companies still did it anyway.
After a brief silence, Zhu Yuan said solemnly, "We'll crack down on these violations from now on."
Qingyi quickly shifted the topic. "By the way, the Public Security's transport vehicles should be arriving any moment now."
No sooner had she spoken than she spotted several trucks on the distant horizon, heading their way at high speed.
Before long, the New Eridu Public Security transport fleet arrived in Bangboo Town.
Under the coordination of Zhu Yuan, Qingyi, the Adepti, and the Sons of Calydon, the Bangboo were loaded one after another onto the trucks.
However, after filling five trucks, more than thirty Bangboo still remained.
Zhu Yuan frowned. "I told them to send extra vehicles..."
Qingyi sighed quietly. She was used to this sort of thing.
After a moment's thought, she smiled and looked at the Sons of Calydon. "Miss Caesar, may we temporarily borrow one of your trucks?"
"Borrow our truck?" Caesar blinked.
Technically, it was possible—but it still felt strange. After all, a gang from the Outer Ring lending one of its main transport trucks to New Eridu's Public Security? That wasn't something you saw every day.
Lucy, however, answered seriously, "Of course you can. It's just a question of rental fees."
Qingyi smiled. "Name your price. We'll have it reimbursed through our superior."
Lucy agreed immediately. "Deal."
Caesar blinked. "Hey—wait a minute, Lucy, I'm the boss here!"
Lucy crossed her arms. "And by the time you realize that, our chance to make big money will be gone."
Calydon Town was still being rebuilt and desperately needed dennies.
The mention of "big money" caught Caesar's attention at once. "How much are we talking about?"
Lucy tilted her head, thinking. "They said name any price... hmm..."
Caesar's eyes lit up. "At least a hundred thousand dennies! That could buy tons of building materials!"
A hundred thousand? Caesar was being far too kind.
Lucy turned toward Qingyi, calmly raising five fingers.
Caesar gawked. "Five hundred thousand? They'll never agree to that!"
In Caesar's mind, one hundred thousand was fair; five hundred thousand was highway robbery.
But Lucy shook her head. "Not five hundred thousand. Five million."
Qingyi didn't even blink. "Deal. Now hurry up and help us load the remaining Bangboo."
With that, Qingyi, Zhu Yuan, and Lucy got to work moving the Bangboo, while Caesar stood frozen in place.
"Five million? Five million dennies? We just made five million that easily?"
By the time Caesar snapped out of it, everyone had already finished loading the truck.
Soon after, led by Sam Li, the Adepti, Zhu Yuan, and Qingyi, the group set off for New Eridu in a grand convoy.
They had come with one truck. They returned with five or six.
Fortunately, they encountered no bandits on the way.
Two hours later, they arrived safely back in the New Eridu Metropolitan Area and delivered all the Bangboo to the New Eridu Public Security Bureau.
Zhu Yuan, Qingyi, and the Sons of Calydon helped unload them, filling the entire courtyard of the Janus District Branch.
When the Chief of Public Security came out to see what the commotion was about and found the courtyard overflowing with old, broken Bangboo, he was completely dumbfounded.
He hurriedly pulled Zhu Yuan aside. "What's going on? Where did all these busted Bangboo come from?"
Zhu Yuan explained, "They're all residents of Bangboo Town—and subordinates of Mr. Azhdaha. They were caught in a Hollow disaster not long ago."
Then, she recounted their entire trip to the Outer Ring—the Hollow disaster in Bangboo Town, Azhdaha's battle against the Destruction-class Ethereal, and the creature's defeat.
Of course, she kept her word and did not reveal Sam Li's true identity as the Geo Archon.
When she finished, the Chief of Public Security looked toward the courtyard, where a small, round Bangboo stood proudly beside the others.
"You mean to tell me... that little guy is the mighty Azhdaha Bangboo King? The one whose true form is over a hundred meters tall?"
...