Starting Cultivation in Wasteland-Chapter 468 - 340: Human Nature

Zheng Ziyang’s eyes remained open in death, filled with more than just annoyance and regret—they were brimming with terror.

In his final moments, he genuinely regretted it; he had indeed provoked a madman!

He used the most humble tone to make the greatest concessions and promises in the shortest time possible.

However, it was futile. After the madman muttered to himself, he still executed him.

After Qu Jianlei killed and disposed of the body, he felt significantly better—this grievance had been pent up for twenty years.

Although there was only one audience member, the emotional release greatly improved his mental state.

Besides, he gained materially as well—Zheng Ziyang was carrying the Quantum Team’s Storage Talisman.

Captain Zheng had just returned from rotation, bringing back some gains during his report session.

Most of these gains were Zarif’s specialties, which didn’t catch Qu Jianlei’s eye much, such as Energy Blocks.

But what surprised him was the large number of Energy Block Silver Notes in the Storage Talisman, almost three million in total.

Zarif had already been liberated; prices would soon normalize, so why bring the Silver Notes back?

Then Qu Jianlei figured it out: This was likely not Quantum Team’s public property but Zheng Ziyang’s private stash!

After the Star Thieves took over Zarif, the Silver Notes devalued to thirty percent or even twenty percent of their original price.

And Zheng Ziyang, with control over the Quantum Team’s data allocation, could easily reap some benefits from it.

Perhaps some of these Silver Notes might even be from the Fat Fox team’s inventory.

Regardless, this profit made Qu Jianlei extremely pleased.

After assimilating into the current society, having a substantial financial backing meant he could continue Cultivation peacefully.

After destroying the remains of Zheng Ziyang and his rented off-road vehicle, Qu Jianlei drove on.

This time, he could take the highway straight to his destination.

The Star of Hope is indeed not small, even slightly larger than Blue Star.

Even with minimal rest stops, it took Qu Jianlei nearly twenty days to reach his destination, and he repaired his car twice on the way.

It was a city called Cyan Feather, on par with Bailan City, one of the two major spaceports on the Star of Hope.

However, Bailan City focuses more on arrivals, paying more attention to entry inspection and quarantine.

Cyan Feather, on the other hand, emphasizes departures, with a keen focus on the identity check of departing personnel.

Where there is demand, there is trade. An identity proof provided by Spirit Fox was crafted by the fake ID sellers here.

The car Qu Jianlei bought for over eight hundred was already quite dilapidated, having been driven hard for twenty days.

Before entering the city, he sold the car to a repair shop, pocketing eighty silver coins.

The value depreciated so much, one could haggle a bit, but Qu Jianlei wasn’t good at it and wasn’t particularly interested either.

Then he walked into Cyan Feather City, as expected, identity checks were relatively common here.

However, surveillance wasn’t abundant, so Qu Jianlei felt no pressure.

As for the patrol officers conducting random identity checks, to him, they were almost insignificant.

Unknowingly, night fell, and Qu Jianlei first found a restaurant to eat and drink heartily.

After filling his stomach, he wandered over to the "Night is Beautiful" bar.

This bar wasn’t small, as indicated by the façade, with not just a first floor but also a second and third floor.

Surprisingly, there was ticket selling at the entrance, with a ticket price of fifty silver coins, more than half of what Qu Jianlei got for the car.

What was especially interesting was a sign at the entrance clearly stating: Men must buy tickets, women enter free.

Qu Jianlei had no objections to this; the bar looked legitimate.

If it were a bar that "didn’t welcome women," he would indeed feel uncomfortable.

The key was, for a bar where entry could be bought, he felt no pressure at all.

After buying a ticket and entering, he found the place was indeed spacious, with over five thousand square meters in area.

After scanning the area, Qu Jianlei casually walked up to the second floor, selecting a dark corner to sit down.

Soon, a waiter came over, took his ticket stub, and served drinks—the expensive ticket was essentially a minimum spend.

All in all, everything wasn’t much different from Blue Star, though he rarely went to bars on Blue Star, he was somewhat aware of them.

The bar’s program had already started; a bald woman was singing, creating a slow, club-like atmosphere.

After drinking for a while, almost finishing the minimum spend, Qu Jianlei called over the waiter to order more drinks and snacks.

Not very knowledgeable about alcohol, he chose a mid-range option; after a couple of sips, the taste left... much to be desired. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Anyway, he tried to keep a low profile, and though there were flamboyantly dressed women around, none approached him.

However, some men did approach, flattering and chatting; some managed to stay, while others awkwardly left.

In short, this was a place of mutual selection; most of the time, men needed to take the initiative.

From a biological perspective, this aligns with the mainstream courtship approach in a father-son society.

It’s entirely normal for some obviously wealthy men to have women approach them proactively.

The mid-tier drink Qu Jianlei chose made him quite inconspicuous among the bar patrons, so it was normal that no one approached him.

After sitting for over an hour, he squinted his eyes: the person he had been waiting for finally appeared.

It was a short, chubby old man, with an unremarkable appearance, but his large, ruddy nose made him highly recognizable in the crowd.

The old man, holding a free, cheap drink from the bar, brazenly greeted one beautiful woman after another.

Some women outright ignored him, while others playfully cursed at him with a familiar air.

The old man nearly harassed all the women on the first floor before choosing a spot to sit and drink silently.

After about half an hour, many more women arrived, and the old man began his second round of flirting.

This time, his luck ran out as he bothered a woman who had a boyfriend.

The man had gone to the restroom, and when he returned to see his girlfriend being approached, he was enraged and almost resorted to violence.

Fortunately, the bar’s waiter, with a keen eye, stopped the man and whispered a few words, after which the man begrudgingly sat down.

Having encountered such an incident, the old man lost face and chose another place to sit.

Qu Jianlei waited another ten minutes, then took his glass and descended from the second floor.

He approached the old man and naturally sat down, "Ivan, long time no see."

The bar’s music was a bit loud, but the old man still heard.

He turned his head, squinted his drunken eyes, and looked the other up and down before thickly slurring, "I don’t know you."

"How could you not?" Qu Jianlei shook his head with a smile, "I’ve seen you when you were a kid playing in the mud."

This secret code... really was quite awkward! He secretly mocked to himself, it didn’t match their ages at all.

The old man rolled his eyes at him and turned to continue drinking. After taking two gulps, he spoke slowly, "Which year was it?"

Qu Jianlei toyed with his glass and casually replied, "It should have been an autumn, in the evening, but the weather was still very hot."

"You’re late," the old man bluntly said, a sharp glint flickering in his murky eyes, "You need to pay more!"

Qu Jianlei pulled out a silver coin and slowly clenched his fist, not visibly exerting any force.

When he opened his hand again, the silver coin had already formed into a silver lump.

He nonchalantly spoke, "I suggest you reorganize your words."

This trick wasn’t hard; any Modified Warrior could do it, but to do it so casually was quite challenging.

The old man didn’t mind, but he realized that the other party didn’t plan on paying more.

He burped, "Er~ Okay, buy me a drink, like the one you’re having."

"Nope," Qu Jianlei replied straightforwardly, "I’ve already paid you, and now I want the goods!"

The conversation that followed, Spirit Fox hadn’t mentioned; it purely reflected his own attitude—once the deal is done, what more do you want?

"Stingy," the old man muttered and snorted, "Not only are you late, but it should have been a woman coming."

"I haven’t heard," Qu Jianlei replied without thinking, as Spirit Fox hadn’t mentioned this part.

So he plainly stated, "I won’t let you earn even one more silver coin... you can try withholding the goods!"

Hearing this, the old man fell silent momentarily, then lifted his glass for another sip. "Why is everyone so stubborn these days?"

Seeing that Qu Jianlei still didn’t react, he sighed lightly, took out a keycard, and placed it on the table, "Get it yourself!"

This keycard was for the bar’s cloakroom, where there are lockers for storing items; different lockers require the corresponding keycard to open.

Qu Jianlei pocketed the keycard, took out a silver coin, and slapped it on the table, "Have a paid drink."

The drink in the old man’s hand was indeed free, whereas a silver coin could buy the second cheapest drink here.

The consumption here truly wasn’t low, and Qu Jianlei’s gesture was still considered basic courtesy.

A silver coin wasn’t really an insult, but indeed it showed he didn’t think much of the other.

Seeing him turn and leave, a sharp glint flashed in the old man’s eyes before returning to their drunken state.

He patted the table and began shouting thickly, "Waiter! A glass of wine, please!"

The waiter’s eyes flashed with a hint of displeasure, but he dared not say anything.

He knew that this little old man Ivan had a good relationship with the owner and could enter freely anytime, and the free drinks were also unlimited.

As for the reason... no one dared to ask, because anyone who could open such a large bar definitely wasn’t someone to be trifled with.

Meanwhile, Qu Jianlei arrived at the cloakroom and, with the keycard’s number, found the corresponding locker.

The keycard opened the locker via a sensor, without contact; there was someone else retrieving an item alongside, and with a wave from a distance, the locker opened.

Qu Jianlei didn’t just notice this; he also discovered a secret: there were actually miniature cameras here!

There were cameras in the cloakroom; indeed, this is what they call human nature.