Chapter 93: Shock!
Xu Zhi had already sent Zhen ahead to deliver a message to Zhong Lingfan and Shen Jinwen, informing them that she was about to return to the old residential area. She told them that if they had anything to discuss, they’d better do it quickly—because she would be heading out again soon.
In her reply, Zhong Lingfan told her that she had reassigned her a new room. She had reorganized the residential area so that people lived in different zones based on their roles. For instance, administrative personnel now resided near the center, while powerful Transcendents lived in the surrounding areas. With just housing locations, an invisible hierarchy was already established.
Xu Zhi was curious about the reason for this arrangement. Zhong Lingfan’s explanation: “This structure promotes more stable societal development in present-day Cloud City.”
Xu Zhi didn’t really understand it and chose not to get involved.
The house assigned to her was a standalone unit in the very center. Xu Zhi was quite satisfied—so long as she didn’t have to live with anyone else, it was all good.
As the vehicle approached the old residential area, she immediately noticed changes compared to when she’d left.
One obvious difference: now and then, you could see groups of Transcendents heading out on hunts. When they saw a vehicle approaching, they weren’t overly alert—just watched from a distance.
“Looks like Zhong Lingfan’s doing a decent job managing things?”
Xu Zhi had intended to drive straight into the residential area, but to her surprise, there were now guards at the entrance.
Shocking!
Was this still the same old residential area?!
Upon seeing Xu Zhi’s license plate, the guards let her through without issue. She rolled down the window and saw two unfamiliar faces. She asked, “I’ve been away for a while. What exactly do you guys do here?”
Gatekeepers?
Seeing she was unaware, one of them kindly explained, “Pretty similar to security work back in the day. Our main job is to keep track of who goes out and whether they return. If only a few make it back, we need to figure out what happened.”
Xu Zhi asked again, “Then why didn’t you track me?”
The guard grinned obsequiously, “Come on, ma’am, don’t joke. The administrator told us your license plate gets automatic clearance.”
Shocking! Such attention to detail!
Why does she never run into any of those typical “face-slapping” TV drama scenarios?
After asking what she wanted to know, Xu Zhi didn’t linger and drove toward the central area Zhong Lingfan mentioned. According to the letter, the building set aside for her was easy to recognize—it looked like the most expensive one, newly renovated. Despite the word “old” in “old residential area,” this house had been rebuilt by a once-affluent family who had sentimental ties to the area.
Fully equipped, the four-story mini-villa had an indoor elevator, a rooftop garden, and a swing.
Of course, with Cloud City’s current climate, growing anything in the garden was unlikely.
Still, this place ended up falling right into Xu Zhi’s lap.
Even the electricity problem had been solved using modified generators powered by energy cores. It wasn’t due to any high-level knowledge of energy conversion either—the [Forge]-attribute artisans who built it couldn’t even explain how it worked. The ideas just popped into their heads, and they went with it.
Xu Zhi chalked all of this up to the power of great occultism!
The letter also came with a key, though Zhong Lingfan suggested she register her fingerprint to avoid forgetting it one day.
For once, Xu Zhi felt like she was returning from an apocalypse to a peaceful era.
As her car entered the “central zone,” Xu Zhi noticed a few curious glances cast her way.
Probably because her car had never been seen here before.
But when she stopped in front of the most conspicuous villa, those glances shifted in tone.
Xu Zhi didn’t care. After getting out, she had Gouzi bring out the still-unconscious Yu Shenwei. Then, with some curiosity, she used the key to open the door and stepped inside.
It was clearly cleaned recently—no way it would be this spotless after three months of vacancy without dustproofing.
Xu Zhi once again marveled at Zhong Lingfan’s meticulousness. After tossing Yu Shenwei onto the couch, she went to take a bath.
When she came back out, someone was sitting on the couch—it was Professor Zhong.
Xu Zhi hadn’t dried her hair yet. She casually grabbed a towel that looked unused. There were also a few brand-new pieces of clothing in the bathroom, tags still on, and in her size.
She was genuinely touched—how could anyone be this thoughtful?!
So, she had no objections to Zhong Lingfan entering her home uninvited. In fact, she was even starting to find her quite pleasant.
Zhong Lingfan was the first to explain, “I left a key with the person who helped clean your place. When I heard you were back, I came over to see if you still needed someone to handle these little chores for you. If so, I’ll let her keep the key. If not, I’ll give it back to you.”
“Let her keep it.” Xu Zhi responded decisively.
“There’s something else I need to discuss with you,” Zhong Lingfan continued.
“Perfect, me too.” Xu Zhi suddenly remembered something, dropped the towel from her hand, and let it hang around her neck. Water dripped from her hair onto her shoulders and collarbone.
Zhong Lingfan nodded and motioned for her to go first.
“I’ve collected a lot of Aberration beast eggs,” Xu Zhi began. “I’m planning to create a hunting park where residents can go hunt them. You get what I mean?”
Zhong Lingfan nodded—it was easy to understand.
“How do you plan to charge for it?” she asked directly.
“No idea,” Xu Zhi answered bluntly.
“You decide.” After a pause, she added, “My goal is to earn cores, so don’t make it too fair. A little exploitation is fine.”
Zhong Lingfan stayed composed, probably already used to Xu Zhi’s personality.
A bit of exploitation? No big deal. She nodded. “Got it. I’ll handle it.”
Xu Zhi then asked, “It’ll probably need a big space. Do you know of any suitable locations?”
She had completely given up on thinking—dumping the entire project on Zhong Lingfan.
Zhong Lingfan thought for a bit. “There is a place, but it won’t be easy.”
Xu Zhi understood. “Just tell me if you need help.”
As she spoke, she noticed Zhong Lingfan’s gaze occasionally drifting to the wet tips of her hair.
After a four-to-five-second pause, Zhong Lingfan finally couldn’t hold back any longer and frowned slightly.
“First of all—”
“Can you please dry your hair?”
Xu Zhi: Huh? I mean… not totally unreasonable, I guess?
