Huo Tao immediately reached out to shield Shen Guoguo.
Since the situation was unclear, Shen Guoguo didn’t want to get involved. She pushed Huo Tao’s wheelchair backward a few steps, away from the commotion.
The man who had burst in wasn’t tall—his face was wide and mean-looking, his whole demeanor radiating hostility. He looked like a short, thick radish, and he was clearly not someone easy to deal with.
“Yang Ming, hand over the goods! Otherwise, don’t blame us for being rude!”
“Don’t push your luck, Ma family!” Yang Ming’s voice was hard, though his expression was tense. “You know fighting is forbidden in Windsoil City!”
The bystanders near the entrance, who had stopped to watch the commotion, immediately began murmuring when they heard the name Ma family.
“The Ma family? You mean Captain Ma?”
“Who else could it be? Looks like they’ve got their eyes on this shop again—want to wreck the business and force the owner to transfer it to them.”
“Ugh, just because they’ve got one high-level warrior in their family, they act like they own the city!”
“You haven’t heard? They say Captain Ma’s son is about to marry into the Alliance Commander’s family.”
“Figures. Regular people like us have our marriages assigned by the system, but those big families—they get to choose now.”
“Shh, keep it down! Don’t let the patrol hear you…”
Shen Guoguo caught bits and pieces of the gossip.
Windsoil City’s hierarchy went like this: the City Lord at the top, followed by Commanders and Department Heads, then the high-ranking Captains with real authority, and beneath them, small independent squads led by self-organized team leaders.
Of course, much of the daily work was handled by robots.
Above even the City Lord was the Federation Commander.
And to marry into the Commander’s family—well, that meant the Ma family’s fortune had truly soared overnight.
The short, thick man smirked arrogantly. “Who said we’re here to fight? Windsoil City’s peace isn’t easy to maintain. Don’t go smearing our name, Boss Yang.”
“We’re just here to browse your store. That’s not against the rules, is it?”
Yang Ming fell silent, teeth grinding.
If he tried to kick them out, that would count as starting a fight. But if he didn’t, they’d loiter around all day scaring off customers.
Who would dare to shop here like this?
If it went on for even a week, his shop would be finished.
Yang Ming sighed and turned to Huo Tao. “Xiao Tao, you two should head home first.”
But before they could move, the short man stepped in front of them. “Not so fast! You haven’t paid yet, have you?”
“If you haven’t paid, then we should get to pick something too.”
“Hand it over!”
As he reached to snatch the goods from Shen Guoguo’s hands, Huo Tao’s face hardened, his dark eyes locking onto the man like twin blades.
Shen Guoguo calmly set the clothes on the counter. Her look clearly said, If you want it that badly, take it.
Her current image was that of a quiet, obedient girl—this wasn’t her place to act rashly.
Seeing the thugs cornering them, Yang Ming’s jaw clenched. Finally, with no choice, he turned and went into the storage room. When he came back, he was holding a small iron box.
He tossed it onto the counter with a sharp clang.
“Picking on my customers—this is all you’re capable of?”
The short man’s expression lit up with greed. He grabbed the box and opened it—then froze. His face changed instantly.
“What the hell? Why’s it dead?”
He slammed the iron box back onto the counter.
Shen Guoguo leaned in to look—and her eyes gleamed with surprise.
Inside the box lay a shriveled white worm.
A silkworm—but not the plump kind. This one was thin, dried out, lying motionless in the box.
Yang Ming gave a cold snort. “No one knows how to raise a Sky Silkworm properly. It’s normal that it died. What’s the fuss about?”
“Normal?!” the short man barked. “You killed something as precious as a Sky Silkworm! You’d better be ready for Captain Ma’s punishment!”
He rolled up his sleeves, about to throw a punch—but his companions grabbed him. “Don’t! Don’t start a fight!”
Sky Silkworm?
The surrounding crowd exchanged puzzled looks. This was the first they’d heard of such a creature.
“If the Ma family wants it, it must be valuable.”
“So what exactly is a Sky Silkworm?”
At the mention of Captain Ma, Yang Ming’s face darkened. He said nothing, only glared at the thugs.
“You’ve got what you came for. Take it—and go.”
The word “get out” hovered on his tongue, but he swallowed it.
He couldn’t afford to offend the Ma family.
The short man stuffed the iron box into his jacket and stormed off. The crowd instinctively stepped aside to let them pass.
Once the troublemakers were gone and the onlookers dispersed, Yang Ming sighed and shook his head. He pushed the pile of clothes toward Shen Guoguo.
“Guoguo, take these home. No need to pay.”
“I fought alongside Huo Tao’s father back in the day. We were brothers-in-arms. This is nothing.”
“Uncle Yang, that Sky Silkworm just now—did you catch it outside the city?” Shen Guoguo asked, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.
That innocent, eager look—no one could resist it.
Still brooding, Yang Ming decided to tell her everything.
“I found it by accident in the no-man’s zone. I wasn’t sure what it was, so I brought it back. When I checked the archives at the Command Center, I discovered it was called a Sky Silkworm.”
“I guess the Ma family found out when I looked up the data.”
“Now that it’s dead, it won’t do them any good anyway.”
Yang Ming wasn’t gifted—just a low-level warrior. Back then, he’d been in the same squad as Huo Tao’s father. But when the others rose rapidly through the ranks, he couldn’t keep up. That was when he realized—there really was an unbridgeable gap between talents.
So he’d settled down and opened this shop in Windsoil City, only occasionally venturing out to scavenge materials.
Shen Guoguo’s face was full of curiosity. “Uncle Yang, when you found the Sky Silkworm, were there any plants nearby?”
“Huh? Actually, yes. There was a small, dried-up tree with a few yellow leaves. It looked useless, so I left it.”
When he saw the disappointment flash across Shen Guoguo’s face, realization dawned. “Wait—are you saying that tree was related to the silkworm? But aren’t all mutant beasts carnivorous?”
“Uncle Yang, when you checked the archives, did they say what the Sky Silkworm was used for?” Shen Guoguo asked, now doubting the accuracy of the Command Center’s preserved data.
“The records only said it was used to make fabric. Didn’t say how.” Yang Ming’s beard trembled with frustration.
“Guoguo, you sound like you actually know more about this creature.”
Ah.
Huo Tao cleared his throat quietly. With the Sky Silkworm dead, if the Ma family learned that Shen Guoguo knew anything about it, she’d never have a peaceful day again.
He stepped forward and picked up the clothes from the counter. “Uncle Yang, maybe next time you find another Sky Silkworm, we’ll come back.”
“Alright,” Shen Guoguo sighed in disappointment, ready to leave.
“Wait!”
Yang Ming called them back.
He glanced toward the shop entrance to make sure no one was watching, signaled the clerk to keep an eye out front, then beckoned them into the back room.
“Come with me.”
The storage room was cluttered, filled with odds and ends.
After rummaging for a moment, Yang Ming pulled out another small iron box. Opening it, he revealed—another Sky Silkworm.
Also motionless. Also seemingly dead.
“I found two in total,” he said. “When the Ma family came earlier, I hid this one. I was going to keep it as a memento.”
“But since you recognize it, Guoguo—take a look for me, will you?”