Chapter Nine: Arrival in City A

In the end, they all accepted the crystal sources. If things truly turned out as Jiang Yu had predicted, they would be fools not to take them.

Returning to their original location, Xiao He led them out to scavenge for food.

"This is so little! It’s not nearly enough."

The food they had gathered was nowhere near enough to satisfy these people. Even if they rationed it, it would only last a month, but these people wanted more.

"How is this not enough? Do you expect us to find you enough food to last a lifetime?"

Lin Shen looked at them with irritation. They had already wasted enough time here looking for supplies for these people. What more did they want?

"It’s just not enough. Aren't you rescue team members supposed to serve the people? We’re in trouble now, so naturally, we have to look to you."

"Exactly. Do you want us to starve to death? How many days is this tiny bit of food supposed to last?"

"If you don't find us enough food, don't even think about leaving."

The group chimed in one after another, refusing to let Xiao He and his team depart.

"The surrounding area is clear of mutants; you can search for food yourselves. You don’t need our help for everything. If we hadn’t happened to pass through here today, would you have just sat at home waiting to starve?"

"Is that any way to talk?"

Jiang Yu stood to the side, watching this scene and beginning to wonder if agreeing to join them had been a mistake. They clearly had more important matters to attend to, yet they were being dragged into a squabble with these people.

"Ah!"

"Jiang Yu, what are you doing?"

Before anyone could react, Jiang Yu lunged forward, pinning the ringleader of the group against a wall. She pressed her dagger firmly against his throat—a single, slight movement forward would have drawn blood.

"W-what are you doing?"

The man, held at knifepoint, swallowed hard. He kept his eyes lowered, shrinking his neck back as far as he could, terrified that his life might end in the next second.

"You lot are too dawdling. I’m just helping you solve your problem."

"Don't do anything stupid! Murder is against the law!"

Jiang Yu had no intention of actually killing him; she merely wanted to use him to intimidate the rest of the group.

"Right, right, let me go! If you hurt me, you won’t have a good end either."

The man was still afraid, but he reasoned that since she was with the rescue team, if she really killed him, her teammates wouldn't let her get away with it. Surely, she wouldn't do something so self-destructive.

Jiang Yu smiled. "It’s the apocalypse now. Do you even know what that means? Do you honestly believe that if I killed you right now, there would be consequences?"

"No, don't..."

The man felt a sharp sting at his throat and, thinking Jiang Yu was about to strike, panicked. The surrounding onlookers were equally terrified, their hearts in their throats. They wondered if she was truly capable of murder, and if they might be next. It was clear that, combined, they stood no chance against her.

They looked toward the other rescue team members, only to find they had no intention of intervening. Did this mean they tacitly approved of her actions?

"So, do you still want us to help you find food?"

"No... no, it's fine." Although Jiang Yu was still smiling, he could sense the lethal danger radiating from her.

Jiang Yu released him and calmly sheathed her dagger. The man slumped to the ground, touching the stinging spot on his neck and finding a trace of blood.

"Blood... I'm bleeding. You..."

He pointed at Jiang Yu, wanting to say more, but as he met her gaze, he swallowed his words.

"Captain, let’s leave now. We’ve wasted enough time."

Xiao He glanced at Jiang Yu, then turned to the others. "Let us take you back first."

"No, no! We can make it back ourselves."

"That's right, don't trouble yourselves. Don't you have important business? Go on, your mission is the priority."

The group had suddenly become quite reasonable, all fearing that Jiang Yu might use them as practice for her blade. Xiao He didn't insist. He and his team got back into their vehicle and headed toward City A.

Inside the car, Jiang Yu looked at Lin Shen. "Is he angry?"

He hadn't looked at her once the entire time, and he seemed quite steamed.

"Of course he is! Jiang Yu, you were way too impulsive back there. The Captain can't stand it when we bully civilians. Besides, our duty is to protect them. After that display, who knows what they think of us now?"

Despite his words, Lin Shen didn't look truly angry.

"But then again, your tactic worked. Otherwise, we’d still be there helping them look for food. I’ve been wanting to leave for ages. The mutants are cleared out, they can find their own food—insisting we help was just a pure waste of our time."

Shi Lei, sitting in the passenger seat, added, "Exactly. Don't worry about it. It was a bit impulsive, but it was effective. As for the Captain, that’s just how he is. He’ll get over it."

"His threshold for anger is awfully low."

"Huh?"

"Nothing."

Jiang Yu figured that with Xiao He’s personality, he would have plenty more to be angry about in the future.

Along the way, they encountered similar situations, but they were resolved quickly. By delivering the killing blows to the mutants, Jiang Yu accumulated more points. The first wave of invaders hadn't been large, so even at her best, Jiang Yu could only kill about a hundred a day.

When they arrived at their destination, someone was already waiting.

"You finally made it."

"Yu Zhou, how is the situation here?"

"Sigh, let’s go inside first."

They followed Yu Zhou into the building. He explained that when the mutants first invaded, they had been able to handle it. But after one night, for some unknown reason, the mutants had suddenly become much stronger—a phenomenon not seen in other cities. Faced with these empowered creatures, they were struggling and had been forced to request reinforcements.

"So, you suspect there’s something here that’s enhancing their power?"