Chapter 221: Cooperation

Upon hearing the Bounty Hunter Guild compromise, someone immediately shouted over the public channel: “We take 60%, you take 40%.”

Yang Bo felt like a transparent person, simply listening to both sides haggling.

Yang Bo’s presence was naturally low. The others were all wearing armor, while Yang Bo wore only heavy-duty protective gear, meaning he didn’t even own a suit of armor.

It was clear he was a newbie, the type fresh on a mission.

Yang Bo’s behavior matched this as well. In this setting, he randomly fired his gun, even blowing up the Energy Stone.

For missions like this, you’d usually start with a fight, so both sides could figure out each other’s limits, and then negotiate.

Unless it’s a life-or-death situation, there’s no point going that far. People do missions for money, so there’s little reason to get into deadly conflicts unless you have deep grudges.

The reason negotiating doesn’t happen first is simple: without a fight, no one knows who’s stronger. Only after that fight can you set terms. This is the result of countless missions.

“Who was the original owner of this mine?” Yang Bo was thinking about the complex situation surrounding this mine.

The mine’s value wasn’t low. The behavior of the mine’s owner seemed a bit strange.

A high-value mine like this should have private security or stronger protective measures. If something unexpected happened, they would surely take firm action to defend their interests.

Sending someone else to the mine was something Yang Bo didn’t understand, unless it was just an average mine.

While Yang Bo was acting as a bystander in the underground mine, suddenly, from the Void above the planet, beams of lasers began firing.

This sudden event startled those in the warplanes on the ground and also alarmed the modified spaceship in Space.

The spaceship was over 800 meters long, 150 meters wide, and 90 meters tall.

It looked like a small transport ship modified. These ships are often called armed transport ships. They have some combat capabilities but are not as powerful as warships, though they surpass ordinary transport ships in firepower.

Ordinary transport ships are mainly for transport, while armed transport ships balance transport and combat.

Warships are solely for combat. However, this small, modified armed transport ship was relatively advanced. Now, an urgent alarm sounded inside the ship.

“Who is it? How did we not detect them?” The commander watched the alarm and then looked at the distant lasers, as the ship hurriedly began to maneuver.

“It’s the Ghost Fleet, Commander! It’s the Ghost Fleet!” someone reported urgently.

The commander stared at the radar, displaying a pitch-black warship. It was strange. The warship resembled a flat sword, 3,000 meters long, 500 meters wide, and 200 meters tall. Laser cannons were already emerging from it.

“Send word to the ground. We’re leaving. Why is the anti-government Ghost Fleet here?” The commander’s face soured as he prepared the armed transport ship to flee.

But just then, more lasers began firing from another side of the Void.

“Commander?” Everyone onboard the armed transport ship was dumbstruck.

“Damn it,” The commander’s face went pale. Over a hundred warplanes had appeared on the other side, clearly prepared.

Most warships don’t fear warplanes because they have Energy Shields, but armed transport ships don’t have them.

Communication beacons launched from the transport ship, and the ship began descending toward the planet.

The commander was also informing people on the ground of the situation.

Those in the warplanes on the ground were stunned to witness the barrage of lasers streaking through the Void.

The Fat Boss too was dumbfounded by what he saw. The President of the Bounty Hunter Guild was equally surprised, as the high-powered lasers visible in the Void were clearly from a warship’s laser cannons.

“The Ghost Fleet of the Anti-Government Fighters is here.” As the Fat Boss and the President of the Bounty Hunter Guild looked on with puzzled expressions, they heard a rushed voice over the public channel.

“I’ve already sent out 36 distress beacons. You’d better hope the Alliance fleet receives our message quickly,” someone else on the public channel said.

“We’ve been tricked!” The Fat Boss instantly realized they had been duped.

“Those bastards at headquarters, I swear if I make it back, I’ll kill them.” The Fat Boss gritted his teeth. The mission had been passed down from headquarters. The Fat Boss had accepted it because it was nearby, the pay was good, and the task seemed simple. But he hadn’t expected such a big problem.

When the President of the Bounty Hunter Guild heard this, he ordered his underlings, “Release the captives. Everyone, save yourselves.”

“Abandon the warplanes?” asked the Fat Boss, confused.

“Leave them. These warplanes are useless. Didn’t you notice anything odd? Especially with such a valuable mine, yet there’s no security.” The President of the Bounty Hunter Guild asked.

“Seems normal to me. A mine this rich would want to avoid attention. Security can be both good and bad. Too many people knowing increases the risk of leaks.” The Fat Boss explained.

“And the fact that they’ve mined so much and only now attracted attention proves the previous owner’s approach was correct,” the Fat Boss added.

The President of the Bounty Hunter Guild snapped back, “Fine, but when something went wrong, they had to hire you to investigate. Doesn’t that seem unreasonable?”

“What does that suggest? First, it means the mine owner’s identity isn’t simple. They don’t want to risk exposure. Second, maybe the owner is far away and needed someone to come check out the situation.”

“Didn’t your guild also fall into a trap?” The Fat Boss shot back.

“It’s not a trap. The mission said the situation here was unclear. Our job was to investigate. The Bounty Hunter Guild has seen worse…”

“Don’t tell me you’d dare face the Ghost Fleet head-on. Let’s be honest, your mission here was a failure.” The Fat Boss interrupted.

“I admit there were major oversights on this mission. So now, the only thing we can do is hide in the mine and hope the Alliance fleet gets here soon,” the President of the Bounty Hunter Guild admitted.

“It looks like this mine either belongs to the Anti-Government Fighters or has caught their attention,” The Fat Boss speculated.

“In my opinion, they’re here to steal the mine. If the original owners were anti-government, they wouldn’t be in such a rush. They’d wait until the next owner developed it and then take it.” The President of the Bounty Hunter Guild explained.

“If the Alliance fleet arrives, your Bounty Hunter Guild is an illegal organization and will face punishment. If you’re willing to pay, I can get you legitimate status.” The Fat Boss replied with a casual tone.

The Fat Boss’s company had official documentation for all its missions and tasks. He had nothing to fear if the Alliance fleet arrived. But the Bounty Hunter Guild, being illegal, couldn’t say the same.

The President of the Bounty Hunter Guild was silent for a moment. “Fatty, don’t celebrate just yet. Let’s survive first. You’d better pray the Anti-Government Fighters don’t destroy the entire planet in their rage.”

The Fat Boss had planned to extort the guild, but they didn’t bite. The President of the Bounty Hunter Guild even tried to sell him supplies: “We’ve got plenty of provisions left on the warplanes. They’re reasonably priced!”

At that moment, the armed transport ship landed. Before it even touched down, the ship’s doors opened, and dozens of figures burst out, releasing bursts of energy as they fled.

These people were wearing Energy Suits, glowing as they ran. In the next moment, the massive armed transport ship exploded as its engines and energy system were destroyed.

“Damn!” The Fat Boss gritted his teeth as he watched.

Dozens of people who had escaped the armed transport ship took cover in the Canyon.

In fact, if the armed transport ship hadn’t landed, it wouldn’t have been so easily targeted. Landing and slowing down made it easier to hit.

The Ghost Fleet was still too far away to lock onto those wearing Energy Suits. Those people flashed and disappeared into the Canyon.

The Fat Boss, dressed in a Camouflage Cloak, carrying a large backpack and a laser gun, led his team of thhree other people toward the mine, accompanied by those from the warplanes.

Now the only place to hide on this planet was the mine. It was clear the Anti-Government Fighters were here for the mine.

Hiding outside the mine would be too risky. Just a few drone fighters could block a large area.

The Fat Boss was furious. The Camouflage Cloak he bought was now five times the original price, but he had no choice.

Additionally, the supplies were costly, especially the spare batteries for the laser gun and some medical trreatments.

“Yang Bo? It’s a relief you’re okay. I’ve been worried sick. This is all my fault. If I hadn’t brought you here, this wouldn’t have happened.” The Fat Boss entered the mine and was stunned to find Yang Bo completely unharmed. He hurriedly checked Yang Bo’s heavy-duty protective gear from head to toe.

“Boss…” Yang Bo didn’t know what to say. Every time, the Fat Boss left him behind, and every time he followed along, trouble followed. The Fat Boss was bad luck.

Then the Fat Boss was called away by two others to discuss their next steps.

Yang Bo estimated there were around fifty or sixty people present. The Fat Boss, the President of the Bounty Hunter Guild, and another leader were discussing their plans in a corner.

Yang Bo had learned about the Anti-Government Fighters and found the situation more intriguing. There must be more to this mine’s story than it seemed.

Yang Bo didn’t know much about the Anti-Government Fighters, but he thought stealing a Transport Ship would be easier than taking a mine.

Meanwhile, the three leaders seemed to be having a heated argument.

“Yang Bo, how is it you’re unharmed in all this?” Wu Bing was surprised to see Yang Bo in such good shape since the Fat Boss was clearly the weakest here.

“Brother Wu, what happened to you guys? Where’s your mecha?” Yang Bo asked, puzzled by Wu Bing’s words.

“Don’t ask. When we went up, we were swarmed by a horde of mutated insects, and both our mechas were surrounded and gnawed to bits. We had no choice but to abandon them.” Wu Bing said, a little frustrated.

“We’ve been tricked. If we’d known, we wouldn’t have come for the easy money.”

“The mission details made me prepare for the worst, but this is way worse than I imagined.”

“We’re really in over our heads here.” The other three members of the team discussed the situation in their squad’s private channel.

“Something’s definitely off about this.” Not only Yang Bo, but his entire squad also felt something was wrong.

The Fat Boss and the other two leaders parted ways. When the Fat Boss returned, he said over the communicator: “We’ve reached a unanimous agreement to work together against the external threat.”

Hank asked over the communication channel: “Boss, who are they?”

“They didn’t reveal their identities, but my guess is they’re from a mining company, and a big one at that. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have armed transport ships and a few warplanes, not to mention mechas.”

“But how did this mining company catch wind of it? My guess is the information has been sold several times.” The Fat Boss felt a little better now, especially after seeing Yang Bo. He was much more relaxed.

No matter how big the loss, as long as Yang Bo was safe, earning money afterward wouldn’t be an issue.

“We should’ve left earlier, but it’s too late now. The mine has three exits – one where our Spaceship landed, another leads through a rock crevice to the surface, and the last is the emergency evacuation tunnel.”

“Our three groups will guard the three exits. We’ll take responsibility for the emergency evacuation tunnel.” The Fat Boss explained the outcome of their three-party decision.

“Yang Bo, you stay here. Just wait it out.” The Fat Boss finished speaking and told Yang Bo to stay put.

“Boss, I at least have a laser gun. I really don’t wannt to stick around with those other two groups.” Yang Bo protested, holding up his laser gun to make a point..

Hearing that, the Fat Boss remembered how dangerous it would be to leave Yang Bo alone. The other two groups were untrustworthy, especially since the Bounty Hunter Guild was an illegal organization.

“Alright, let’s go check the entrance.” The Fat Boss nodded.

Second update at noon.