Chapter 23 – Stirring the Masses

Chapter 23 – Stirring the Masses

Not everyone in the crowd trusted Cheng Yang. Some believed his words were nothing more than a ploy to deceive them. Since they hadn’t been chosen, they decided to wait and see. As long as they weren’t expelled from Luofeng Village, they wouldn’t consider it a loss.

Cheng Yang ignored these skeptics and led the ten selected individuals to the profession statues. Following the familiar procedure, he initiated their class transitions.

The talent attributes of these ten individuals pleased Cheng Yang immensely. Except for three people, everyone possessed A-grade talents. Among the remaining three, two had B-grade talents, and one surprisingly had a powerful S-grade talent. This exceptional individual was Zhao Chuan, the first person Cheng Yang had rescued from Huimin Town.

It seemed that the class transitions in Luofeng Village were still at the forefront globally, given the remarkable talents displayed.

Cheng Yang was astounded by Zhao Chuan’s attributes. He hadn’t expected Zhao Chuan to possess a special talent. While ordinary talents enhance a combatant’s attributes, special talents provide benefits unrelated to the individual’s inherent attributes. In this regard, administrative talents are also considered special. However, administrative talents differ because special talents are often class-specific. For instance, Zhao Chuan’s talent would be useless if he had transitioned into any other class. In this world, there’s no option to reset and reallocate talents.

Currently, Zhao Chuan’s attributes might not seem overwhelmingly powerful, as most monsters’ attack and defense stats are still in single digits. A 10% reduction doesn’t make much difference now. However, in the future, when attack and defense stats reach hundreds or thousands, a 10% reduction could mean a decrease of dozens or even hundreds of points. In large-scale battles, this would be a nightmare for the enemy.

Next, Cheng Yang selected five more individuals from the earlier transitions to join his team, solidifying his squad’s formation.

However, since Luofeng Village was still at level one, there were no facilities to establish a formal military unit, nor could they assign official positions within the team. Thus, their current management structure remained quite loose.

While Yu Kai and others were busy with their own class transitions, Cheng Yang had the earlier transitions educate the newcomers on basic combat techniques.

After Zhao Chuan and the others successfully transitioned, the psychological gap for those not chosen widened. They noticed that Zhao Chuan and his peers now wielded weapons similar to Cheng Yang’s, suggesting they had attained comparable combat prowess.

“Cheng Yang, why won’t you let us transition? You’re creating class divisions!” a voice erupted from the crowd, filled with frustration.

Cheng Yang turned to see Hu Jun, the man who had challenged him earlier, and calmly replied, “I’ve said it before—this settlement is mine, and I decide who transitions. If you have a problem with that, you’re free to leave Luofeng Village.”

Hu Jun arrogantly retorted, “Why should I leave? I’m the mayor of Huimin Town. This area belongs to Huimin Town. You’re the one who should leave!”

Cheng Yang looked at Hu Jun as if he were a fool, a sentiment shared by Yu Kai and Li Wanshan.

Niu Bing angrily interjected, “You shameless scoundrel! Who rescued you from the ruins this morning? Who brought your family back from Huimin Town this afternoon? Just because you’re a mayor, you think you’re special? If you’re so great, why did you need saving? Idiot!”

Hu Jun pointed at Niu Bing and said, “Don’t think your little tricks will last. When the national army arrives, your methods will be exposed. Just wait and see.”

Niu Bing and the others turned cold. Li Wanshan spoke up, “I don’t know what will happen when the army arrives, but if I throw you out now, you won’t last ten minutes before being reduced to bones.”

Hu Jun’s face paled. “This is murder! This is a crime!” he shouted. “Everyone, are you going to let these people deceive you? Even if they have some abilities, there are only thirty or forty of them. If we unite, we can take control of this settlement and transition ourselves. Why should we bow to them?”

Li Wanshan turned to Cheng Yang. “Village Chief Cheng, say the word, and I’ll deal with him.”

Cheng Yang nodded inwardly. Li Wanshan was indeed a capable individual, adept at reading the situation. He knew his relationship with Cheng Yang wasn’t deep, and his appointment as a squad leader was due to a lack of alternatives. To gain Cheng Yang’s trust, he needed to prove his loyalty. Eliminating Hu Jun, the mayor of Huimin Town, would be a perfect way to do so.

However, Cheng Yang had no intention of killing Hu Jun. “Old Li, let it go. Killing someone like him would only dirty your hands. With the apocalypse upon us, enough people have died. We shouldn’t turn on each other.”

Li Wanshan was momentarily puzzled but didn’t argue with Cheng Yang’s decision.

Cheng Yang addressed the crowd, “Hu Jun, it seems your proposal hasn’t gained much support. Everyone understands that you’re trying to incite them against us to take control of Luofeng Village. In these critical times, we shouldn’t be selfish. I’ve promised that once more transition opportunities arise, I’ll arrange for the rest to transition. The reason only fifty were chosen now is that the settlement can only accommodate fifty transitions at this stage.”

He paused before continuing, “This matter is settled. While I despise your actions, Hu Jun, I don’t believe in total annihilation. You can continue living in Luofeng Village. But if you want to survive, you’ll need to contribute to the village’s development. Otherwise, you’ll starve to death.”

Hu Jun’s emotions were mixed. He realized he had overestimated his influence. As the mayor of Huimin Town, he had once commanded respect, but now, faced with survival, his title meant nothing.

Hu Jun didn’t feel remorse; he only resented Cheng Yang’s refusal to cooperate. Despite Cheng Yang’s offer to let him stay, Hu Jun felt no gratitude, only growing anger.

However, he knew he was powerless for now. He decided to bide his time, believing that when the army arrived, Cheng Yang and his group would be destroyed. Then, he would reclaim his position as mayor, perhaps even earning a promotion.

After Cheng Yang finished speaking, Hu Jun snorted and retreated to the side. Throughout the confrontation, his brother, Hu Yang, remained silent, leaving everyone puzzled.

Cheng Yang was equally unsure of Hu Yang’s intentions but wasn’t concerned. As long as these individuals remained at the apprentice level, he had absolute control over them. With a single thought, he could expel them from the settlement, reverting them to their pre-transition state. The only difference would be their retained combatant status, which limited their future class options.

Cheng Yang then dismissed the crowd, instructing Yu Kai and the others to take their teams to the walls to kill the respawned demonic beasts, giving the newcomers some practice. He also sent his own team of over ten members to familiarize themselves with their skills.

Alone, Cheng Yang returned to the altar and constructed ten more houses. With so many transitions today, adequate housing was necessary to ensure their cultivation efficiency.

Looking at the empty space around the altar, Cheng Yang felt a pang of frustration. Tomorrow, he would need to venture into the ruins to gather wood. Success wasn’t guaranteed, and even if he found some, transporting it back would be a challenge.

A distance of over a kilometer would have been trivial before the apocalypse, taking only a couple of minutes by car. But now, with all electrical devices rendered useless, even gasoline-powered vehicles were immobilized without electricity.

PS: Yesterday’s collection increase didn’t meet the target! Was my goal too high? Today, I’ll aim for 100 new collections. If achieved, I’ll add an extra chapter tomorrow. Everyone, please support me!