Chapter 216 | Chapter 217 | Chapter 218
Chapter 216: News, Du Chenyi!
Zhang Li began recounting some of the confidential information she had obtained.
“Shelter No. 5 may look peaceful and prosperous on the surface, but underneath, the internal power struggles are extremely fierce. Lately, the conflicts have even become completely open.”
“And the Ma Tong who was pestering me just now belongs to one of those factions. His older brother is Ma Feng, a close confidant of the current shelter leader, Gu Chengan. But although Ma Tong and Ma Feng are brothers, they’re not on the same side. Ma Feng follows Gu Chengan loyally and obeys him completely, while Ma Tong has secretly pledged allegiance to someone else.”
“That person is Ma Tong’s current boss, Du Chenyi!”
Zhang Li’s Mind-Reading Sticker only allowed her to read someone’s thoughts for three minutes, so naturally she had only managed to uncover fragments of information.
“Everyone already knows that Du Chenyi and Gu Chengan don’t get along. Although Gu Chengan is the official leader of Shelter No. 5, when it comes to methods and scheming, Du Chenyi is clearly the more capable one. Right now, the two of them are openly fighting each other.”
Listening to Zhang Li’s explanation, Su Ning frowned slightly.
“So what exactly does all this have to do with us?”
Zhang Li froze for a moment. Her thoughts had been entirely occupied by the struggles among the shelter’s upper ranks.
Su Ning’s question finally snapped her back to reality.
“I’m just worried… worried that the fighting above us will destroy the current stability of Shelter No. 5. I don’t want to wander outside struggling to survive anymore. I only want a stable home where I can live peacefully beneath these disasters.”
There was nothing wrong with Zhang Li’s way of thinking. In fact, most people probably felt the same.
“If that’s the case,” Su Ning said calmly, “then wouldn’t Ma Tong’s pursuit actually be a good opportunity? He’s part of the upper ranks and has some authority. You could completely use his power to live a better life.”
A flicker passed through Zhang Li’s eyes. It wasn’t as though she had never considered it.
But the information revealed through the Mind-Reading Sticker made it obvious that Ma Tong’s intentions were anything but good.
Zhang Li looked toward Zhao Fuqing beside her.
After several dungeon experiences, although Zhao Fuqing was still young, he had already become extremely dependable.
“Ma Tong’s real target isn’t me at all. Pursuing me is only secondary. From the very beginning, Xiao Qing was their main objective. They want his [Metal Control] ability.”
“Su Ning, Ma Tong isn’t a good person. The boss behind him is even worse. I can’t let them take Xiao Qing away.”
Zhao Fuqing nervously grabbed Zhang Li’s sleeve.
“Sis, I won’t go with them.”
Zhang Li gently rubbed his head before turning seriously toward Su Ning.
Then her gaze shifted slightly.
“Su Ning… after what happened just now, I think Ma Tong has set his sights on you too.”
Su Ning looked surprised.
How did this suddenly turn into him targeting me?
Wasn’t this escalation a little too fast?
Zhang Li shook her head.
“Of course they won’t let Xiao Qing go either. But after Ma Tong saw your face, he’ll definitely offer you up to his boss.”
…
Meanwhile, Ma Tong hurried over to Du Chenyi’s place as fast as he could.
At that moment, Du Chenyi’s face was filled with rage, like a volcano on the verge of erupting. He slammed his hand violently onto the table.
Bang!
The table in front of him shattered instantly into pieces.
Du Chenyi was a man in his forties, his entire appearance carrying a hard, steel-like toughness.
But the most eye-catching thing about him was his left arm.
It was completely mechanical, shining with a cold metallic gleam.
“Does Gu Chengan think he can rule the heavens now? He actually wants to push all of us out of power? Is he trying to monopolize everything himself?!”
Du Chenyi was furious.
Back when Shelter No. 5 had still been under Gu Chengan’s father’s control, Du Chenyi’s own influence had already been enormous.
Even Gu Chengan’s father had been wary of him.
After all, Du Chenyi was an old fox, cunning and calculating. No one could afford to lower their guard around him.
Standing beside him was a trembling subordinate who had just reported Gu Chengan’s latest series of orders.
The most important one was the decision to strip away part of Du Chenyi’s authority.
That alone had completely ignited Du Chenyi’s fury.
“Boss, according to the news from neighboring shelters, ever since Shelter No. 6 fell, many shelters no longer obey orders from Shelter No. 1. Everyone wants to build their own independent bases now. But our current shelter leader clearly wants to follow Shelter No. 1’s commands just like his father did.”
Du Chenyi snorted coldly.
“He’s ambitious enough, but he doesn’t have even half the courage his father had. All he knows is how to blindly follow the plans his father left behind before dying.”
“If I hadn’t provided the protective barrier, how could he possibly still be sitting comfortably in the leader’s seat right now? What a joke.”
The subordinate cautiously asked,
“Then what should we do now? Many shelters outside have already stopped obeying Shelter No. 1. Should we also…”
Du Chenyi smiled faintly.
“Power is a wonderful thing. Like a double-edged sword, it can bring you endless glory and wealth… or drag you into eternal ruin.”
After speaking, he looked at his subordinate again.
“Since Gu Chengan wants to reclaim all authority, it won’t just be me who’s unhappy. The others won’t be pleased either. At this rate, that kid may very well end up walking down the same road as his father.”
“Honestly, he’s still too young and too rigid. At a time like this, why insist on obeying someone else’s orders? Wouldn’t ruling for yourself be much better?”
Du Chenyi sighed regretfully.
Just then, Ma Tong rushed in energetically.
“Boss! I’m back!”
Seeing Ma Tong return looking so excited, Du Chenyi immediately remembered the task he had assigned him earlier—to recruit the young man with the Metal Control ability.
“Is it done?”
Ma Tong froze briefly.
His mind had been completely filled with thoughts of Su Ning, to the point that he had entirely forgotten the mission his boss assigned him.
“Not yet…”
“You failed the task, and you’re still this happy?”
Du Chenyi’s face instantly darkened.
His mood was already terrible to begin with.
Ma Tong immediately grinned flatteringly.
“But I’ve got good news! I found a woman even more beautiful than Yan Yuehua!”
Yan Yuehua had once been a household-name superstar before the disasters began.
Yet after the apocalypse arrived, she had become nothing more than a plaything for the shelter’s upper ranks.
And that was the truly horrifying part.
Why did so many people desperately crave power?
Du Chenyi, as the second most powerful figure in Shelter No. 5, might not have been the official leader, but his authority was still immense.
No wonder Gu Chengan wanted to reclaim his power.
Du Chenyi was highly capable, but he had one fatal weakness—
he lusted after beautiful women.
Before the apocalypse, he had been forced to restrain his desires.
But now, with civilization collapsed and no one left to restrain him, he had become increasingly indulgent.
Any beauty he fancied would eventually end up in his possession.
Even the once-famous superstar Yan Yuehua could only reluctantly submit herself to him.
The reason Ma Tong had become captain of the security force was partly because his half-brother was one of Gu Chengan’s trusted men, allowing him to gather information from that side.
But another reason was because he and Du Chenyi shared the exact same tastes.
That was why Du Chenyi had assigned him to search the shelter for beautiful women to bring back for his enjoyment.
Ma Tong chuckled awkwardly.
“That little brat Zhao Fuqing won’t escape your grasp anyway, boss, so letting him run around for another day won’t matter.”
“But a woman even more beautiful than Yan Yuehua? If someone else snatches her first, wouldn’t that be a huge loss?”
“Don’t you agree, boss?”
(End of Chapter)
Chapter 217: A Request! Setting Out to Explore
After hearing Zhang Li’s words, Su Ning’s heart trembled slightly.
“You mean… Ma Tong’s boss has absolutely no resistance toward beautiful women and will abduct them?”
Zhang Li nodded lightly.
“That’s right. Someone as outstanding as you—once Ma Tong notices you, he’ll definitely report it to his boss immediately. When that happens, the matters concerning Xiao Qing and me will be pushed aside first. They’ll definitely come after you before anything else.”
After hearing this, Su Ning fell into thought.
However, because she possessed the [Misfortune] talent herself, she wasn’t truly worried about anyone trying to harm her.
“You don’t need to worry about my safety. But hearing you say all this, this shelter really does have many problems. Looks like Shelter No. 5 isn’t some peaceful paradise after all.”
Su Ning sighed helplessly, while inwardly wondering whether she really was some kind of “disaster magnet,” causing major trouble no matter where she went.
Perhaps finding a chance to leave this place would be better.
Building a personal paradise of her own didn’t sound bad either.
At least then she wouldn’t need to worry about people constantly coming to cause her trouble.
With that thought, Su Ning left Zhang Li’s room.
However, the trouble from Ma Tong didn’t arrive immediately.
Instead, Lin Lele and the others came knocking first.
“Su Ning! It really is you! When Lele said she saw you at Shelter No. 5, I honestly couldn’t believe it.”
Gao Peng looked completely shocked.
Su Ning felt somewhat puzzled, unsure why this group had suddenly come looking for her.
As the captain of Lin Lele’s team, Huang Zhenggang quickly stepped forward.
“Actually… we came because we have a favor to ask.”
Su Ning grew curious.
“Oh? What is it?”
“Su Ning, I won’t beat around the bush. Right now the ice and snow outside the shelter are melting rapidly, and the flood disaster is about to arrive. I know of a winery in a town not far from Shelter No. 5. The original owner hid a huge amount of supplies beneath the winery.”
“If we cooperate and succeed, we’ll split the supplies evenly.”
Su Ning looked surprised.
“There are still undiscovered supplies left outside?”
Gao Peng answered in a low voice,
“During the extreme cold, nobody dared step outside. After the survival dungeons appeared, all players were struggling desperately inside those dungeons. Some players simply looked down on the small amount of resources left in reality.”
“And during the freezing disaster, many players were trapped inside dungeon worlds anyway. Besides, it’s not like nobody tried searching for supplies. The problem is that mutated animals outside have suddenly begun appearing in massive numbers.”
It had already been mentioned before that animals could also obtain player qualifications.
Some had even become more powerful than humans.
Compared to humans, their survival abilities were naturally far superior.
Near Shelter No. 10, there was reportedly a towering tree that had gained player qualifications. It had now become the greatest threat facing Shelter No. 10.
“The reason we invited you is because there’s a powerful creature near that winery. And among all of us… only you can deal with it.”
That was Huang Zhenggang’s explanation.
“Oh?”
Su Ning became interested.
What kind of monster could supposedly only she handle?
Thinking back to the creature they had previously observed, Lin Lele still felt chills run down her spine.
“Xiao Ning, those monsters are a group of snakes capable of releasing poisonous mist. They’ve basically turned the entire area around the winery into a toxic death zone. Any living thing that enters ends up poisoned to death.”
Su Ning immediately understood.
“So you invited me because you want me to neutralize the poison for you… and conveniently use my spatial ability to transport the supplies afterward?”
Huang Zhenggang looked somewhat embarrassed and nodded.
“But don’t worry. We only want a small portion of the supplies. Everything else can belong entirely to you.”
Su Ning wasn’t interested in the supplies themselves.
What she was curious about was why Huang Zhenggang and the others were suddenly working so desperately to gather resources.
Ever since Nan Sheng and Lin Lele completed Xie Linjia’s mission, they had been taking nonstop missions without giving themselves even the slightest chance to rest.
At first, it could perhaps be explained as them simply having nothing else to do.
But Su Ning could always sense something unusual hidden underneath.
Still, she didn’t ask directly.
If Huang Zhenggang didn’t want to say anything, she naturally couldn’t force him.
In the end, Su Ning agreed and prepared to head to the winery together with Huang Zhenggang’s group.
What she hadn’t expected was that besides Huang Zhenggang’s team, Xie Linjia—the newly restored player—was also joining them.
Xie Linjia smiled slightly toward Su Ning.
After Su Ning and Huang Zhenggang’s group left the shelter, the people Ma Tong had assigned to monitor Su Ning immediately reported the matter to Du Chenyi.
Although Du Chenyi lusted after beautiful women, between beauty and power, power was always his first priority.
Recently, Gu Chengan had been constantly trying to strip away portions of his authority, leaving Du Chenyi far too busy to concern himself with Su Ning.
At most, he simply ordered several subordinates to monitor her.
Although he had heard Su Ning possessed some ability, Du Chenyi’s deeply rooted male chauvinism caused him not to take her seriously at all.
Now that he heard Su Ning had left the shelter, he merely sent a few men to deal with her.
If they could capture her, they would bring her back.
Coincidentally, Liu Jun and Huang Juan were among those people.
“Captain Ma Tong, what exactly are we going out there for?”
Liu Jun was extremely curious.
They could’ve comfortably remained inside the shelter, so why bother going outside to suffer?
Ma Tong chuckled.
“Obviously for something good.”
Seeing Ma Tong unwilling to elaborate further, Liu Jun wisely chose not to ask anymore.
Recently, his mood had been terrible.
For some unknown reason, he could no longer find any trace of Xie Linjia.
The moment he thought about the Hundred Treasure Pouch in her possession, Liu Jun’s heart burned with greed.
“If I had that treasure, why would I remain some insignificant underling? Becoming the shelter leader wouldn’t even be impossible.”
Because of this, his hatred toward Xie Linjia only grew stronger.
Since she was no longer a player, why should she continue monopolizing such an item?
Only in his hands could it truly shine.
…
Su Ning gazed at the drizzle falling from the sky.
As the temperature gradually rose, the atmosphere had finally returned to normal.
Everyone understood clearly that when disasters alternated, there would always be a brief period of calm.
Although this period lacked major dangers, it was also the most chaotic time of all.
Huang Zhenggang drove the vehicle rapidly toward their destination while muttering to himself,
“Been too long since I last drove. I’m actually getting rusty.”
Gao Peng held binoculars in his hands, constantly scanning the surroundings for anything unusual.
Bao Song explained to Su Ning and Xie Linjia inside the vehicle,
“The outside world is extremely dangerous right now. It’s not just the dangerous creatures either. The real threat comes from those people who’ve never lived inside shelters.”
Lin Lele still looked shaken as she recalled a previous experience.
“Before this, we ran into a group of people wandering outside the shelters. Those guys were completely insane. Just for food, they’d do absolutely anything.”
“Nowadays, not only is the outside dangerous—even the shelters themselves aren’t peaceful anymore.”
Huang Zhenggang also joined in, talking about various recent incidents.
Bao Song sighed deeply.
“Sigh… all I want is to survive peacefully with enough food and warmth.”
Yet even such a simple wish had become difficult to achieve now.
Just as he was lamenting this, Gao Peng suddenly noticed something through his binoculars.
“Attention! Someone’s following us from behind!”
The moment everyone heard Gao Peng’s warning, they immediately became alert.
Clearly, nobody believed the people behind them were merely coincidentally traveling the same road.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter 218: Making a Move, Completely Unworried!
Through the binoculars, Gao Peng spotted two vehicles approaching from behind.
“There’s movement behind us!”
He calmly reported what he saw.
The others immediately became alert. Having weathered countless dangers before, they all understood very clearly that the people tailing them were definitely not doing so by coincidence.
Bao Song looked puzzled.
“The extreme cold has already passed, and we haven’t done anything excessive. Why are we being targeted?”
Nan Sheng and Lin Lele were equally confused.
Although Xie Linjia had regained her status as a player, this was her first time going out on an operation, so she inevitably felt somewhat nervous in this situation.
Still, everyone quickly entered a state of readiness.
Before long, the two vehicles behind them sped forward and directly blocked their path.
Left with no choice, Huang Zhenggang stopped the car, his gaze instantly turning sharp.
As he got out, he reminded everyone,
“They’re clearly here with bad intentions. Stay prepared!”
Huang Zhenggang was the first to step out of the vehicle, followed by Su Ning and the others.
At the same time, a group of armed men also emerged from the cars ahead.
The moment she clearly saw Ma Tong leading them, Su Ning couldn’t help sighing inwardly.
Looks like these people really had come for her.
Huang Zhenggang had originally intended to ask their purpose, but Liu Jun and Huang Juan beside him immediately spotted Xie Linjia.
“Xie Linjia? Why are you outside the shelter?!”
His surprise was quickly overtaken by anger, especially after noticing Gao Peng, Huang Zhenggang, and the other men standing beside her.
Even though he had thrown Xie Linjia out after the apocalypse began, even though he had caused the death of his own child, even though he had secretly cheated with her best friend, Liu Jun still believed he had done nothing wrong.
He had merely committed “the mistakes all men make.”
What he hated even more was seeing Xie Linjia standing beside other men.
In his heart, even if Xie Linjia died, she should still belong solely to him.
Grinding his teeth, Liu Jun snarled viciously,
“Xie Linjia, what are you doing here?!”
At the same time, he wondered whether the person Captain Ma Tong intended to capture was actually Xie Linjia.
When Xie Linjia saw Liu Jun and Huang Juan, an indescribable emotion surged within her.
“Where I go is none of your business!”
She desperately wanted to pull out her auto-targeting whip and lash his face to pieces.
Now that she was once again a player, it was finally time to avenge both her child and her former self.
However, after noticing the group of men standing beside Liu Jun, she remained cautious and refrained from acting rashly.
When Huang Zhenggang recognized that the leader was Ma Tong, he immediately understood the situation.
He was fairly familiar with the captain of Shelter No. 5’s security team.
“Captain Ma, why are you blocking our path?”
Ma Tong exclaimed in surprise,
“So it’s Zhenggang. I truly didn’t expect it to be you guys.”
At that moment, Ma Tong secretly rejoiced inwardly.
“Huang Zhenggang’s team is really troublesome. They belong to Gu Chengan’s faction. Good thing the people I brought are all fairly strong, otherwise dealing with them today might’ve been difficult.”
Ma Tong’s gaze swept toward the women within Huang Zhenggang’s group.
The first thing that caught his eye was Su Ning’s cold yet irresistibly captivating beauty.
But the other women also drew his attention—Lin Lele, still vibrant even amid the apocalypse; the refreshing short-haired Nan Sheng; and the now-confident, beautiful mature woman Xie Linjia.
“Tsk tsk… besides Su Ning, there are unexpected bonuses too.”
Ma Tong sneered.
“Huang Zhenggang, I advise you not to resist obediently. Hand over the beautiful women behind you. Otherwise, if my men lose control, I’m afraid your team’s lives won’t be guaranteed.”
Huang Zhenggang froze momentarily.
He hadn’t expected Su Ning to be Ma Tong’s target.
But the moment he recalled their experiences together in the [Endless Sea], he instantly remembered how terrifyingly untouchable Su Ning truly was.
Everyone who provoked her ended miserably.
Huang Zhenggang looked at Ma Tong with an extremely strange expression.
It was practically asking:
“Have you really thought this through?”
Even Gao Peng and Bao Song behind him wore expressions of “good luck, you poor fool.”
Their gazes made Ma Tong feel extremely uncomfortable.
What the hell was with those looks?!
It was as though they were pitying him.
Everyone in Huang Zhenggang’s team knew one thing clearly—Su Ning was the absolute last person anyone should provoke.
Only Xie Linjia, who had only recently joined them, still appeared somewhat nervous.
She thought to herself that since Ma Tong’s side held the numerical advantage and had more men, if a fight broke out later, she would rush straight at Liu Jun and Huang Juan.
Even dying together with them would be worth it.
Her nervousness was quickly sensed by Lin Lele beside her.
Lin Lele quietly comforted her.
“Don’t worry.”
Meanwhile, Su Ning lightly sighed and stepped forward.
Seeing this, Xie Linjia immediately cried out,
“Su Ning! Don’t do this! Even if I die, I’ll never let you go with these people!”
Su Ning turned back to glance at Xie Linjia and smiled faintly.
That single smile, though wordless, carried a gentle warmth like spring breeze itself, instantly easing Xie Linjia’s heart.
Then Nan Sheng and Lin Lele quickly walked over to Xie Linjia and softly reassured her.
“You entered a dungeon with us before. Don’t tell me you still don’t understand how strong Su Ning is?”
Nan Sheng added,
“I think the one you should worry about isn’t Su Ning. You should remind Su Ning not to kill that scumbag couple too quickly, otherwise you won’t get the chance to personally take your revenge!”
Their conversation immediately caught Gao Peng and Bao Song’s attention.
“What are you talking about? What dungeon together? What exactly did you two do behind our backs?”
With a single glance from Nan Sheng, Lin Lele hurriedly explained.
Then, with great enthusiasm, she recounted Xie Linjia’s tragic experiences as well as the protection mission they had completed together with Su Ning.
The way Gao Peng and Bao Song looked at Liu Jun and Huang Juan instantly filled with disgust, as though they were staring at two revolting insects.
Lowering his voice, Gao Peng said to Xie Linjia,
“I honestly think you should remind Su Ning. Otherwise she might really wipe all these people out, and then you won’t get to enjoy the satisfaction of revenge yourself.”
Xie Linjia still looked somewhat dazed.
She knew Su Ning was powerful, but wasn’t everyone trusting her a little too much?
The others collectively replied,
“That’s because you haven’t seen Su Ning’s true combat ability yet. It’s terrifying beyond imagination. No words can properly describe it.”
When Ma Tong saw Su Ning walk forward, surprise flashed across his face.
“I really didn’t expect you’d come out on your own. What, trying not to implicate the people behind you?”
“But unfortunately, even if you sacrifice yourself like this, we still won’t let these people go either. Hahahahaha!”
Suddenly, Ma Tong burst into laughter like a stereotypical villain.
Su Ning: …
Everyone else looked at Ma Tong as though he were an idiot.
Su Ning merely said calmly,
“Aren’t you afraid your mouth won’t close properly?”
The moment those words fell—
Crack!
Ma Tong’s pupils instantly contracted.
His jaw suddenly dislocated mid-laughter.
He literally could no longer close his mouth.
Huang Zhenggang’s group collectively sighed inwardly.
Here it comes again.
That bizarre ability.
Su Ning had no interest in wasting further words.
Suddenly, from within the shadows beneath her feet, a gigantic creature leapt forth.
It was the Phantom White Tiger, Youyou.
The moment Youyou let out a thunderous roar—
The ground violently trembled.
Massive earth spikes erupted explosively beneath Ma Tong and his group!
(End of Chapter)
