Chapter 21: Decisive and Ruthless

The man who had been inquiring sluggishly was stunned outright. “Who did this?”

Zheng Chengping’s expression remained unchanged as he calmly replied, “We don’t know. The three of us had just arrived when Shao Qin was already a corpse.”

Hearing this, the two men in black behind him also stood motionless.

“Tsk tsk tsk, a representative figure of the younger generation in Youdu, dead before the great era. If the elders of Youdu find out, they’ll probably faint in their wheelchairs.”

“Sir.”

Zheng Chengping’s tone grew firmer, as if displeased by the man’s constant attempts to change the subject.

The long-haired man paused his chatter momentarily, flexed his fingers, and a strong gust of wind obediently gathered in his palm like a playful fish.

“Uncle Chengping, you know me—I always want to spar with experts. Jiangning’s situation suits me perfectly…”

Zheng Chengping didn’t respond, helplessly caught in his own dilemma.

Of course, he knew the true reason the Yan family heir remained in Jiangning.

After all, everyone in Haicheng knew the Yan family patriarch was willing to stake even his own son, Yan Fenghua’s life, for his research project.

Now, despite Hong Wu’s opposition, he insisted on Yan Fenghua’s return to Haicheng, clearly indicating the experiment had reached a critical stage.

As his uncle, Zheng Chengping felt caught between two fires, with no side to favor.

...

The third day of the apocalypse.

“Yezi, how did you do it? Did you sneak out in the middle of the night to kill them while we were asleep?”

At the warehouse entrance, Suo Hao’s legs trembled as he leaned against the doorframe, barely suppressing the urge to vomit.

Li Ye finished his final punch stance, exhaled to complete the motion, and smiled at Suo Hao.

“How is it outside?”

At the question, Suo Hao shuddered violently and managed to whisper through clenched teeth, “They’re... all dead.”

“I’m still alive.”

A hoarse voice sounded from behind Suo Hao, startling him into jumping aside and revealing the figure behind him.

It was the young man Uncle Chen called “Xiao Qi.”

“You’re the one who killed all those people?!” Suo Hao stared intently at the half of a pair of scissors in his hand, its blades already congealed with dried blood.

“Mm.”

The young man replied lightly, then turned to Li Ye and began recounting on his own:

“They kept arguing endlessly until almost midnight, unable to decide whether to kill or not—a bunch of hypocrites pretending to be righteous, all just wanting to survive. At a time like this, they talk about morality and justice?”

“So I stayed awake all night, waiting and waiting. About two hours before dawn, the books say that’s when the body is in deep sleep and consciousness is heavily suppressed—best time to act.”

Seeing Li Ye’s calm expression, the young man grinned, revealing sharp, chilling teeth.

“I covered their mouths and noses with my hands, then slashed their necks hard, like cutting the handle of a plastic bag.”

“You seen that before? You should have. That look of confusion and terror in their eyes.”

The eerie voice echoed in Suo Hao’s ears, sending chills down his spine.

What he had thought was just a phrase—‘decisive and ruthless’—was exactly how this young man was.

“No choice. They don’t deserve to eat, but I have to survive. Brother Shen, didn’t you tell Uncle Chen this is the apocalypse?”

Li Ye nodded, “Starting today, you’ll hunt with us.”

“Yezi…”

Suo Hao squinted and raised his eyebrows at Li Ye, silently asking how he felt about teaming up with such a killer.

‘This kid’s got promise. In a few days, try him out with blood crystal marrow to see if he has potential as a chosen one.’

Ignoring the weak-kneed Suo Hao, Li Ye called over the Lu family mother and daughter inside the warehouse.

Today’s hunting mission was to explore all of the eastern suburbs.

Over the course of days three and four, Li Ye expanded their hunting territory from the eastern suburbs to the eastern city district.

With Li Ye secretly watching their backs, their hunting results were gratifying.

Thanks also to Xiao Qi’s candid sharing of his past, Suo Hao’s attitude towards him softened from initial resistance to acceptance.

No one is born inherently evil—environment and treatment shape a person’s character.

Finally, day five arrived.

“Get up quickly. Today I’m taking you to the military district.”

Barely ten breaths passed before all four sat upright, even the usually lethargic Suo Hao.

Lu Xue’ning had found her long hair too bothersome while hunting, so she cut it to shoulder length herself. Paired with her sharp, pretty face, she exuded a competent aura.

“You promised last night you were only sending us to the military district for training temporarily. Don’t just leave us there forever.”

Outside the factory gate, Lu Xue’ning softly warned Li Ye by his ear.

“I know. Don’t worry.”

Li Ye gently stroked Xue’ning’s smooth short hair.

...

Approaching the military district, the number of detectable mutants had noticeably decreased.

Where the wild grasses elsewhere reached half a person’s height, near the military district they barely brushed the ankles—a clear sign soldiers regularly trimmed and maintained the area.

“Entering the military district, please present identification. Unregistered individuals must remove all clothing and stand outside for inspection!”

“Repeating…”

As Li Ye’s group approached the iron gate, a loudspeaker interrupted.

“What’s this? Commander Shen Zhihong no longer willing to cooperate?”

Li Ye ignored it and used his ability to send his voice directly into the guard’s ear.

The heavy gate soon opened, but instead of the coarse-clothed Shen advisor, a slender old man appeared, followed by a large formation of soldiers.

Li Ye’s brief relief vanished instantly, replaced by alertness.

“Commander Chen?”

Li Ye cautiously inquired.

“Hmph.”

The old man snorted lightly, showing no intention of engaging in conversation.

“Where’s Advisor Shen?”

Li Ye’s headache worsened. Compared to dealing with a famous brash brute in his past life, he much preferred negotiating with intelligent people.

“He’s off disciplining someone. What’s the matter? Can’t you talk to me? Am I not qualified as commander?”

“Cut the nonsense. Since you want command, it’s yours. You can use this old bone however you like.”

Chen Xianyun glared at Li Ye, clearly displeased that Li Ye cared more about the cunning old fox Shen.

Li Ye awkwardly nodded, “Of course. Let’s go then.”

“Before that, Commander, please issue orders: once in the city center, form combat squads of six, each group in a circle, all starting from one point. This will maximize each person’s field of vision and surrounding monitoring.”

Chen Xianyun nodded thoughtfully and gave the order.

Turning away, Li Ye’s expression grew calm again, free of previous awkwardness.

When communicating with different personalities, he used the most effective approach to improve efficiency.

Had he used the shrewdness he showed with Shen Zhihong on Chen Xianyun, the old man would not have cooperated.

‘About a thousand troops’ firepower, huh? Tsk, I’ve never fought such a well-equipped battle before.’

Li Ye curled his lips into a rare, broad smile.