Chapter 26: Scolded, How Refreshing

A raider is simple. He just needs to be stabbed to death.

Xu Wang, however, has much more to consider. How should he stab? With how much force? From what angle? These are all things Xu Wang must weigh to ensure the raider dies instantly.

He bypassed the raider's leather armor, hooked a claw into his shoulder, and drove his other sharp claw straight through the man's neck!

"Squelch!"

As the claw retracted, the raider’s head lost all support and flopped backward, held to his body by only a thin strip of skin. A massive spray of blood erupted, instantly dyeing half of Xu Wang’s body red. The floor and the elevator were soon drenched in the raider’s gore.

"Ugh, how disgusting." Xu Wang looked at his blood-soaked self with disdain, then cast his gaze toward Tie Zhu.

Tie Zhu realized immediately that something was wrong! It crouched low, tucked its tail, and began to shuffle backward.

Xu Wang didn't care about that. He grabbed Tie Zhu and wiped the blood from his own body onto the dog. Before long, Tie Zhu, now serving as a living towel, was covered in blood as well. This left the dog feeling quite aggrieved.

"Don't give me that look. When the enemy attacked earlier, you didn't come to help; you just hid in the back. What use are you?" Xu Wang scolded the dog while stepping into the elevator and pressing the button for the lower level.

During the descent, Xu Wang crouched beside the corpse to give Tie Zhu a crash course.

"See this? This is the weak point for most humanoid creatures, regardless of gender. With your height and build, attacking here is very convenient, and it’s hard for them to defend."

"From now on, you listen to my orders. Whenever you face an enemy, charge straight in and bite them here! Do you understand?" Xu Wang pointed to the raider's crotch, lecturing with solemn righteousness.

Tie Zhu looked at Xu Wang, then at the corpse, and nodded thoughtfully. It seemed to truly understand.

"Very good. Use this enthusiastic friend to practice. Trust me, Tie Zhu, this is my true reinforcement for you. Once you master this move, you'll be practically invincible!"

Xu Wang expertly looted the corpse, stripping away everything the raider carried, then tossed the body to Tie Zhu for practice. Tie Zhu had understood Xu Wang’s words perfectly. Its eyes lit up, its muzzle split open to reveal a row of sharp canine teeth, and with a low growl, it lunged and bit down! It shook its head violently, tearing at the corpse until the body swung back and forth.

Seeing this, Xu Wang nodded in satisfaction and finally had time to check his loot. First were some small trinkets: about a dozen gear-shaped black coins, each about the size of a thumb and engraved with intricate, unique patterns. Though he didn't know their purpose, as a qualified scavenger, Xu Wang tucked them into his pocket without a second thought. If they were useless, he could just discard them later.

Besides the gear coins, there was some ammunition and a pipe pistol with a very distinct wasteland aesthetic. The weapon was crafted from metal and wood; the metal parts were rusted to a deep, iron-red, and the wood was no better, showing signs of mold. To ensure the frame wouldn't fall apart, the wastelanders had tightly bound the body with several layers of steel wire. Overall, it was clunky, crude, and brutish—but regardless, it could fire, and it could kill. Crude as it was, it was still a gun.

Men have no resistance to firearms, and Xu Wang was no exception. Holding the pipe pistol, he studied it for a moment and quickly figured out how to operate it. It made sense; being a wasteland creation, if it were too complex, even the users wouldn't be able to handle it. The gun used .38 caliber rounds. He removed the magazine and found it could hold a maximum of five bullets. He tucked the gun and ammo away for now.

The elevator reached the bottom. Xu Wang shifted his focus. As the doors opened, he saw the clean, orderly corridor of the vault. The environment inside was worlds apart from the wasteland outside; it was no wonder so many people were constantly eyeing the vaults.

Walking through the corridor, Xu Wang noticed it was strangely quiet. It didn't look at all like it was occupied by a pack of raiders—they certainly weren't known for being well-mannered.

Just as Xu Wang was wondering, Tie Zhu suddenly let out a sharp "Woof!" and bolted forward like an arrow released from a bow. It vanished around a corner. Xu Wang hurried to follow. No sooner had he rounded the bend than he saw Tie Zhu mid-leap, tackling a figure in the hallway to the ground!

The training in the elevator had clearly been effective. Tie Zhu had latched onto the enemy’s vital point and was completely restricting his movement.

"Tie Zhu! Great job!" Xu Wang wouldn't let his dog fight alone. He rushed forward, launched a flying kick, and sent the man, who was struggling to rise, crashing back to the floor!

"Hiyah!" Xu Wang kicked the man down, grabbed a nearby folding chair, and swung it with all his might against him! "How dare you ruin my marriage! How dare you lose my wife! How dare you be a raider! Why couldn't you just be a doctor or a lawyer instead?!" Xu Wang yelled as he struck.

"Stop! Stop! I'm not a raider!" the man beneath him cried out, sobbing. He shielded his head with his hands, screaming and begging for mercy.

"You're not a raider?" Xu Wang paused, stopping his assault. Looking closely, he saw the man was wearing a blue vault jumpsuit and carrying a Personal Terminal. Personal Terminals were bound to a vault resident's identity; others couldn't access them. This meant the guy being pummeled by him and his dog was actually a resident of the vault.

"Tie Zhu! Let go! That's not a sausage! Honestly, how did I raise you?! If you want a treat, you have to be polite!" Xu Wang scolded Tie Zhu, attempting to distance himself from the situation. He then quickly helped the resident up, turning his face to inspect him.

"You! Are you going to hit me again?!" The resident’s face was swollen, his eyes squinted into slits as he looked at Xu Wang with difficulty.

"Me? I didn't hit you," Xu Wang said, blinking his innocent eyes, his voice tinged with grievance.

"Then why are you holding that chair?" The resident didn't believe him. There was no one else here but the two of them. If it wasn't Xu Wang, who could it have been?

Xu Wang remained unruffled. "I brought this chair specifically for you to sit on." He set the folding chair down and helped the resident into it, then decisively changed the subject. "You look familiar. What's your name?"

The resident rubbed his bruised, swollen face. "I'm Teddy."

Xu Wang knew Teddy. He was the Overseer of Vault 92, the one who had said those words: "Old Xu, do you want a wife?"

Xu Wang: "..."

He fell silent for a moment. He hadn't expected that the first thing he’d do upon returning to the vault was beat up the Overseer.

Three seconds later, Teddy opened his mouth, about to ask Xu Wang for an explanation, but Xu Wang suddenly erupted!

With a shout of "Hiyah!", he slammed a fist into the Overseer's face! The blow was heavy, sending a stream of blood from Teddy's nose. No matter how good-natured Teddy was, being hit repeatedly eventually sparked his temper.

"You—!" Teddy began, but before he could finish, Xu Wang punched him in the face again!

"Shut up! Overseer Teddy is handsome, dashing, noble, and refined! There is no way a hideous, disgusting pig-head like you could ever impersonate him! Speak! Where did you hide the real Overseer Teddy?!"

Teddy had been on the verge of fury, but hearing that string of compliments, his brain went numb. Wait... he was being beaten and cursed at, so why did he feel a strange sense of satisfaction?