Chapter 76: Southeast Electronic and Mechanical Waste Sorting and Distribution Center

Chapter 76: Chapter 76: Southeast Electronic and Mechanical Waste Sorting and Distribution Center

Xiang Yi stood on a small earthen mound near the sewer, observing the junkyard right next to it from afar.

In fact, Xiang Yi would make a point to glance at the junkyard every day on his way back to the sewer.

The junkyard’s location was marked on the map he had obtained. The words "Electronics and Machinery Garbage Collection and Sorting Center" were clearly written on it.

After undergoing initial sorting here, the trash would be transported to different parts of the city for more thorough processing.

The phrase "electronics and machinery garbage" held a profound appeal for Xiang Yi.

However, out of concern for his safety, he hadn’t gone near it for the first few days after his arrival, opting only to observe from a distance.

Inside the recycling station’s fence, the height of the small mountains of electronic and mechanical junk, and the types of garbage they were composed of, changed daily.

Although he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, transport ships must have been coming regularly to haul away the trash. The transport ship he had taken before was probably supposed to land here as well.

But for the past two days, it seemed no more cargo had arrived. The number of ships occasionally passing over the city had also noticeably decreased.

Xiang Yi had been wondering why.

After talking with the robot, he more or less understood.

All ships had to be inspected at the orbital station’s Space Port, so the volume and efficiency of incoming traffic were definitely not as high as before.

That was why the height of the garbage mountain in the junkyard today couldn’t compare to the past few days.

Even so, it was very likely to contain things he urgently needed right now.

In his days of observation, Xiang Yi had basically seen no people at the recycling station.

The most he ever saw were various robots bustling about, both inside and out.

The thing Xiang Yi feared least right now was robots. If he were to actually go over, the danger level probably wouldn’t be too high.

The idea of maybe stealing a few things flashed through his mind.

’A junkyard this big, run entirely by robots... stealing from it probably wouldn’t be too hard.’

But the robot’s previous warning not to get any funny ideas, combined with the limits of his own moral compass, made him decisively abandon the thought.

’If things got truly desperate, he wouldn’t care about laws or morals. Survival is what matters most.’

But things were still far from that point.

Besides, he had just earned some money from the robot. He could just conduct a normal transaction.

’If I earn money and still resort to stealing, then what was the point of earning it in the first place?’

’Should be fine, right?’

’The robot warned me, but it’s pretty normal for an ordinary person to go to a recycling station to buy some junk. Even if the owner refuses to sell, it’s not like he’d call the police.’

Having seen enough of the junkyard, Xiang Yi turned, ready to head back to the sewer to rest.

But he suddenly turned his head back again, looking toward the junkyard once more.

Something felt wrong.

Usually, a few trucks would have come by around this time to haul away some of the processed and sorted garbage.

The trucks were quick in and quick out; they never stayed long.

But today, the trucks hadn’t entered the junkyard. Instead, they were stopped at the entrance.

Furthermore, a faint clamor was coming from the direction of the junkyard’s main gate, as if a large group of people had gathered there and were arguing.

The robot’s warning flashed through Xiang Yi’s mind again.

He barely managed to suppress the urge to get closer and see what the commotion was about.

Instead, he took a detour around the area, circling to a small, weed-covered hill on the side of the junkyard closer to the city wall.

The distance from here was about the same as his previous observation spot, but the view was better, and it was much safer.

At the junkyard’s main gate, seven or eight men armed with iron pipes and machetes were surrounding the trucks. They occasionally banged their weapons against the truck doors, blocking them from entering.

’They look like thugs from who-knows-where. They’re dressed a bit better than the people in the city slums. Maybe they’re a gang from the Southeast City District?’

’I wonder what they’re causing trouble about.’

Xiang Yi had been watching for less than thirty seconds when a tracked robot emerged from the junkyard, a shotgun held in one of its mechanical arms.

The thugs were still arguing with the truck drivers, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

The robot from the junkyard raised its gun.

But it didn’t aim the barrel directly at the men. Instead, it pointed it toward the sky.

BANG—

A deafening gunshot rang out.

The thugs instinctively dropped to the ground, covering their heads. All their previous arrogance vanished in an instant.

After spotting the shotgun-wielding robot from the junkyard, the group scattered in fright, fleeing toward the city district and disappearing from sight in a blink.

"?"

Xiang Yi didn’t get it.

’What were those thugs even here for? That’s not how you rob a place. Were they trying to collect protection money?’

Xiang Yi shook his head. He really couldn’t figure out what was going on. Now that they were gone, there was nothing interesting to see.

’Time to go, I guess. I’ll come back tomorrow.’

He stood up, getting ready to leave.

But at that moment, from a spot no more than three meters away, a hoarse, middle-aged man’s voice spoke up. "Staring at our junkyard... What do you want?"

Xiang Yi instantly felt the hair on his body stand on end.

’Someone actually managed to get this close to me without me noticing at all.’

Ever since his Spiritual Energy had awakened, his perceptive abilities had been constantly growing. Back in the southwest, he could easily sense if someone was watching or following him from any corner.

But here, someone had managed to sneak up this close to him without him sensing a thing.

The sudden contrast put Xiang Yi completely on edge.

In an instant, he used his Spiritual Power to accelerate his thoughts, turning his head toward the source of the voice.

A man stood there. A middle-aged man.

He looked to be in his fifties, dressed in a plain tank top and trousers, and wearing a pair of sturdy-looking military boots. The strong, streamlined muscles of his exposed arms were clearly visible.

If Shi Tie’s muscles were a product of pure strength, exaggerated to the point of being misshapen, then the middle-aged man before him was a product of combined strength and agility.

One of his eyes was a mechanical prosthesis, and it was fixed intently on Xiang Yi.

The mechanical pupil continuously dilated and contracted, as if it were recording something.

’This person must be the owner of the recycling station, or a bodyguard.’

’I absolutely cannot get into a conflict, especially with someone who likely owns property here.’

Xiang Yi quickly took a large step to the side, putting distance between himself and the man as he replied, "I was just passing by..."

Before he could finish his sentence, in the same instant Xiang Yi moved, the middle-aged man suddenly closed the distance between them.

The explosive burst of speed made Xiang Yi feel an extreme sense of danger.

It was even more dangerous than what he had faced at the hospital entrance.

At the hospital entrance, there had been a gap of several dozen meters and the cover of the hospital rooms to protect him.

But now, he was on a small hill with nothing but weeds, and the man was less than three meters away.