âReally?â The youth feigned surprise, his mouth agape, then chuckled, âWell, weâll find out soon enough.â
Trouble was brewing.
Though the conversation between the two was cryptic, the hint of gunpowder in the air was unmistakable to all.
Even Li Ya Lin turned her head to whisper to Ye Lian, âShould we make a move on this human?â She wiggled her fingers as she spoke, adding, âEven if we canât eat the flesh, a little tear wouldnât hurt⦠Thereâs a human saying about âdrawing cakes to fill the belly.â I think itâs quite fitting for usâ¦â
Ye Lian glanced at the Senior Sister, then silently shook her head.
âCanât act now? Or we can act once Ling Mo does?â pondered Li Ya Lin, curious.
âMmm⦠Mmmâ¦â Ye Lian nodded twice, seriously, then looked at the youth, âThereâs⦠a problemâ¦â
Ye Lian wasnât the only one sensing something off about the youth; Xu Shuhan didnât shoot rashly either.
In fact, her reaction was much stronger than Ye Lianâs; her finger rested on the trigger, her forehead breaking out in a light sweat, yet she couldnât bring herself to pull it.
Though the youth merely stood there, he exerted immense pressure on her, as if the slightest move would trigger a terrifying event the next second.
It felt like facing a predator poised to pounce, quietly waiting for its prey to reveal a vulnerability.
While the two female zombies murmured to each other, Mu Chen and Xu Shuhan exchanged glances, both looking rather pale.
As the site of the Niepan Branch and an experimental ground, Dongming City was not a place where survivors outside of Niepan were expected. Even if there were any, theyâd unlikely appear here at this time.
So, although the youth had an unfamiliar face, they all realized he must be from Niepan.
At that moment, the youth also took an interest in them, his gaze sweeping over each face in the group before locking onto Mu Chen.
âFrom the look on your face, you know me?â the youth asked.
As Mu Chen was about to speak, the youth clapped his hands together, âGot it, got it. You donât know me, but you know what I represent, right? Allow me to introduce myself, Iâm Shen Le. So that meansâ¦â He scanned the group again, âwhich one of you is Mu Chen?â
Mu Chen glanced at Ling Mo, saw no objection from him, and nodded, âI am Mu Chen,â then pointed at Xu Shuhan, âand this is my team member.â
Seeing the youthâs gaze turn to her, Xu Shuhan bit her lip and slowly lowered her gun.
âIs that so? Then, is this the person you were out here looking for?â The youth shifted his attention back to Ling Mo. His mind was quick; since Mu Chen didnât continue with introductions, it was clear the rest were not Niepan members. And if they werenât from Niepan, then the most likely scenario was that Ling Mo was the target of Mu Chenâs mission.
Mu Chen looked at Ling Mo again, then confirmed, âYes, this is Ling Mo. We have already reached a cooperation agreementâ¦â
He spoke rapidly, even with a hint of nervousness. Despite being set up by Xia Zhi, meeting a Niepan comrade ahead of time might not be a bad thing. This was an opportunity to turn things around before Xia Zhi could act.
If Shen Le had found them already injured or in a bad state, there wouldnât be much to discuss. But as things stood, it looked like Ling Mo had the upper hand. According to Niepanâs way of doing things, they would likely consider continuing negotiations with Ling Moâ¦
Xia Zhiâs meticulous plans had stumbled from the start. Xu Shuhan didnât act, Ling Mo was prepared, so now they were all unharmed.
âHeh heh,â Shen Le chuckled just as Mu Chen was getting into his explanation, suddenly breaking into laughter.
Mu Chen looked at him in astonishment, while Shen Le had already adopted an indifferent expression, even shifting his weight from one foot to the other, casually rocking on the spot, âHmm⦠Iâm not interested in what youâre saying. When I set out, I only received one order.â
Hearing this, Mu Chenâs heart leapt into his throat.
âSo, you have a multiple-choice question here. Option A, you listen to me, go back, and you might get a promotion. Option B, you listen to him, and thenâ¦â He spread his arms with a smile and said, âIâll kill all of you.â
âBang!â
The moment his words ended, Ye Lian pulled the trigger like lightning. The Thor gun flashed at the muzzle, and the streetlight flickered simultaneously with a crisp sound.
âDonât be so hasty, I havenât even made a move yet.â Shen Le had already appeared somewhere else, but as soon as he began speaking, Ye Lianâs gun was already pointed in his direction.
She missed again, but this time Ling Mo saw it clearly.
âItâs a phantom, not his real body,â Ling Mo said, stopping Ye Lian.
This Psychic ability was very similar to one Ling Mo had encountered before, but the level was worlds apart.
Ling Mo could detect the previous phantoms with mental detection, but this time he had no awareness at all. This could only mean that these werenât simple phantoms, and this young man was far from ordinary.
Sure enough, another figure flashed into a different position, looking exactly like the previous one, and through mental detection, one could indeed see his Mental Sphereâ¦
Ling Mo observed for a while but couldnât find any issues.
This young man dared to speak so boldly, and indeed, he had some tricks up his sleeve.
âBrothers and sisters, donât be so fierce,â Shen Le said with a smile on his face, âBut why stop shooting? Maybe this time itâs the real body.â
âBang!â
The figure disappeared in an instant again, but this time it wasnât Ye Lian who fired. On the ground, however, there was a small hole.
This time, it was Ling Mo who made the move, materializing his mental Tentacles and choosing to attack the body part of Shen Le.
What puzzled him, though, was that he neither touched a solid form nor encountered any mental energy.
âBrother Ling Mo is quite ruthlessâ¦â Shen Le, who appeared again, shook his head regrettably, and once more addressed Xu Shuhan and Mu Chen, âAre you just going to stand there and watch me get shot?â
Hearing this, Ling Mo also looked at them but said nothing.
Neither Xu Shuhan nor Mu Chen spoke up. Clearly, they were also conflicted.
âOr is it that you both want to play the role of the opportunist?â Shen Le said with a chuckle, but his words sent a chill down Xu Shuhan and Mu Chenâs spines.
Playing the opportunist? Not only did Shen Le not seem the type to wait for the fishermanâs benefit from the quarrel of the snipe and the clam, but given Ling Moâs nature, it was absolutely impossible as well.
As for taking action⦠Ling Moâs strength had already completely subdued them, but Shen Le didnât seem like an easy opponent either, and this was, after all, Niepanâs territoryâ¦
Choosing to oppose either side meant there was no turning back once the decision was made.
Which side should they take?
âIâ¦â Xu Shuhan suddenly stepped back.
âWhat are you doing?â Mu Chen asked, utterly shocked.
She glanced at Mu Chen, then looked deeply at Ling Mo and said, âI choose⦠to leave.â
In that instant, her gaze seemed meaningful to Ling Mo, yet he didnât know how to respond.
She looked very tired at this moment, perhaps never wanting to remember the events of the night.
âWhat is thisâ¦â Mu Chen was also somewhat speechless.
Xu Shuhanâs words meant not only that she was leaving Niepan but also that she was choosing to seek survival on her own.
And the difficulty of this decision was something he didnât even dare to contemplate.
The choice surprised Ling Mo. Was this the same girl who trembled with fear in the mall?
Considering what she had at Niepan today, whether it was a temporary safe haven, clean food, or good living conditions, all these were things other survivors could only dream of. And she had earned these through risky missions.
To give them up so easily?
âYouâ¦â Mu Chenâs brows furrowed deeply, how was he supposed to choose now?
In Mu Chenâs view, there was only one reason for Xu Shuhanâs action: she didnât want to confront Ling Mo.
âBut I donât even like Ling Mo!â Mu Chen thought in exasperation. He didnât want to give up his place to Xia Zhi, nor did he want to start living an unlucky life, but he also didnât want to get taken out todayâ¦
However, upon further thought, Xu Shuhanâs words were actually quite perfect.
She chose to leave, but she didnât choose to help Ling Mo. This way, she wasnât forcing Mu Chen to make a decision.
Even if he chose to stay in Niepan, he wouldnât have to face the situation of fighting against his companionâ¦