Chapter 58: Stir-Fried Beef Tripe with Sour Radish

In the villa cluster of the North District, Wan Pengfei strode into one of the villas, arriving just in time for the occupants' lunch.

Familiar with everyone, he squeezed his way to the dining table and said enthusiastically, "I just heard something hilarious."

The others made space for him with obliging smiles, and Lin Weiran considerately scooped a bowl of porridge for him. "What is it?"

"A few ability users are spreading rumors that a fire-breathing snake has appeared in the South District!" Wan Pengfei burst into loud laughter. "That rumor is simply absurd! If something like that happened in the North District, I'd go see it with my own eyes. But in the South District? Those low-class people have probably already been eaten by that snake!"

His laughter triggered a round of hearty chuckles from the people present. Amidst the looks of disdain, however, four individuals did not laugh along; instead, they exchanged uneasy glances.

Seemingly sensing that something was amiss, Wan Pengfei gradually stopped laughing and looked questioningly at Lin Weiran and Si Zhe. "Si Zhe, Weiran, why aren't you laughing?"

Lin Weiran barely managed to twitch the corners of her mouth. "Tell us about this in detail."

Wan Pengfei had no choice but to explain further: "The rumor started this morning. Supposedly, three Tier-2 ability users went to the South District and came back, spending a fortune to beg a healing ability user for help. When people asked how they got injured in the South District, they claimed there was a snake that breathed fire, and it almost burned their arms to charcoal."

"And what else?"

"What else?" Wan Pengfei carefully rummaged through the news he had just heard. "Oh right! At the time, he even cursed—'That bitch looks so hot, but her heart is freaking ruthless!'"

"Those were his exact words."

Hearing this, Lin Weiran and Si Zhe exchanged glances, both instantly forming suspicions.

Su Su, who had parted ways with them, had now also arrived at the Southern Base.

It seemed that the figure she had caught a glimpse of outside the city gates that day was no mistake.

Lin Weiran pursed her lips. "Why is she living in the South District? Could it be that she doesn't want to see us?"

"She's definitely scared," their original companion sneered. "We arrived at the Southern Base two months ahead of time, and our reputation has long been established. If she makes even the slightest inquiry, she'll know that both Si Zhe and you, Weiran, have become Tier-4 ability users, and the rest of us have also reached Tier 3."

Another companion chimed in, "Even if she's also a Tier-4 ability user, her power only works on zombies. Any random Tier-2 ability user could take her life. At best, factoring in that python, I could go a few rounds with it myself now. Of course she's scared!"

As for the girl who raised venomous bugs and the ice-wielding kid, two months had passed, and their abilities at most would have reached Tier 2 or 3. No one took them seriously.

This sounded quite logical.

Lin Weiran breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as she knows to be afraid. If she really came to the North District and we had to face each other every day..."

For some reason, she increasingly loathed the idea of seeing Su Su.

It was as if ever since they stepped off the highway, Su Su's existence represented a kind of instability. The moment she arrived, her own steadily upward-moving life would be shattered.

Lin Weiran exhaled slowly. "I'm going out for some fresh air."

Not long after she stood up, Si Zhe also rose and followed her retreating figure into the quiet back garden.

Lin Weiran stood before the pond, lost in thought.

Seemingly hearing footsteps, she turned her head and forced a smile. "You're here."

"You smile too ugly." Si Zhe walked up behind her and gently wrapped his arms around his lover's waist. "Are you in a bad mood? Because of what you heard just now?"

Lin Weiran remained silent for a long moment before finally admitting with a helpless sigh, "Mmm."

She buried her face in Si Zhe's chest. He raised a hand to cradle the back of her head, every movement reeking of intimacy.

"Si Zhe, my mindset seems to be messed up."

"I clearly knew all along that Su Su's destination was also the Southern Base, but the peace of these past two months made me selectively forget about it."

"It sounds a bit shameful... but I really am afraid of her coming, afraid that the life we've worked so hard to build will be shattered all over again."

From the small town all the way to City G, every single difficulty they encountered seemed to carry Su Su's shadow.

Even in the Hot Spring Village, despite not running into Su Su, they had still encountered a giant python extremely similar to the one she raised—it was just one bad omen after another.

Fortunately, on the day she broke her leg, Si Zhe had forcefully overridden the opposition within the team and, braving the danger of traveling on a snowy day, arrived at the Southern Base early to treat her leg. That was how they had seized so many advantages this time.

Si Zhe hugged her tightly. "Weiran, don't think too much. Everything we've achieved today relies on our own strength. She's a Tier-4 ability user, and you and I are too. In the future, we'll go even higher than Tier 4. What is there to worry about?"

His pacification failed to give Lin Weiran a complete sense of security.

Perhaps it was a woman's intuition, but she always harbored a vague, looming panic regarding Su Su's arrival.

"I'm sorry."

A faint dampness seeped into the fabric of his chest. Lin Weiran hugged Si Zhe tightly, taking a long time to finally adjust her mindset.

"Si Zhe, I was just being too weak."

Si Zhe caught the fleeting, reddened corners of his lover's eyes. His embrace remained gentle, but a cold flash crossed the depths of his gaze.

"Don't worry, I won't let anyone destroy the stability you want."

If Su Su's arrival would cause Weiran to worry to this extent, he would do everything in his power... to make her leave, or make her stop appearing altogether.

A tender and affectionate kiss landed on top of Lin Weiran's head.

The latter quickly perked up. "Let's go, we still have a mission to clear zombies outside the city today!"

"Alright."

...

Su Su took a one-hour shuttle bus before finally arriving at the North District's Ability User Mission Hall.

"A hunter squad going out to scavenge supplies is missing one long-range combat companion. Hurry up and register, leaving immediately!"

"A twelve-person squad is preparing to venture deep into the eastern zombie horde to hunt a Tier-4 zombie! Are there any Tier-2 or higher ability users who want to join?"

"Desperately lacking gasoline! Is anyone trading gasoline?!"

This bustling scene gave Su Su a sense of déjà vu, reminding her of the high-speed rail station before the apocalypse.

She squeezed her way through the crowd with some effort and finally saw the notice board up front.

The Ability User Mission Hall was divided into two main areas. The official zone posted high-difficulty, high-demand missions with generous rewards. The free zone was extremely casual; for the cost of a single Tier-1 crystal, anyone could post a mission to cycle on the LED big screen. If they didn't want to waste a crystal, they could simply hold up a sign in the free zone and shout at the top of their lungs.

Dressed in a black tactical windbreaker and wearing a black face mask, Su Su blended into the crowd without drawing any attention, quickly making a full circle around the mission hall.

To be honest, only the mission to hunt the Tier-4 zombie managed to catch her eye.

Tens of millions of zombies in the horde were blocked off to the east. Such a dense concentration acted like an incubator, constantly spawning large batches of high-tier zombie kings. The higher their level, the stronger their consciousness to attack humans, periodically causing minor zombie sieges.

The authorities encouraged ability users to eliminate these ringleaders, which was also a fast track for the Southern Base's ability users to increase their strength.

If she could kill a few more Tier-4 zombies, Cancan and Lerui could level up...

Amidst her contemplation, her shoulder was suddenly heavily patted.

"Su Su?" Qu Wen stepped out from behind her, her gaze locked squarely on Su Su's only exposed eyebrows and eyes. "It really is you!"

Having parted ways just the day before, only to bump into each other again today at the Ability User Mission Hall, Qu Wen was happy for two seconds before suddenly realizing something was wrong.

"Why are you here?"

Su Su smiled. "I'm here to take on a mission."

"You're here to take on a mission?" Qu Wen's gaze froze for a moment as a realization flooded her mind. "You're an ability user too?"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to lie to you."

Qu Wen's expression was so solemn that just as Su Su thought she was going to get angry, the former abruptly clapped her hands together. "No wonder you dared to stop a car all by yourself! And dared to enter the city alone!"

After entering the city the day before, while she was worrying about Su Su's survival, Ji Junzhi had simply dropped a calm remark: "She's not as fragile as you think."

Truly fragile people could not possibly maintain such a calm attitude throughout the journey.

All the overlooked details flashed through her mind one by one, and Qu Wen finally understood—she had been blinded by beauty and made the preemptive assumption that Su Su was a discarded, pitiful little beauty.

Having figured it out, she asked with a relieved expression, "What's your ability?"

By this point, Su Su saw no reason to hide it. "Controlling zombies."

As long as she took on missions, her ability would be exposed sooner or later; hiding it made no sense.

"Damn, what a badass ability!" Qu Wen subconsciously reached out to grab Su Su's little hand. "Why don't the two of us team up?"

"Hiss!!!"

A ferocious python head poked out from the backpack, baring its fangs and hissing in a menacing display that successfully startled Qu Wen into taking several steps back.

"Xiao Hei!"

At the female's reprimand, the black snake reluctantly shrank back into the backpack.

Yet the terror it brought lingered on. The victim of the intimidation was still patting her chest, looking over with a mixture of shock and suspicion.

"You raise a snake? And a giant python at that?"

Judging by Qu Wen's reaction, she didn't seem like someone who could accept such cold-blooded creatures. Without forcing the issue, Su Su tactfully said, "If you're scared, you can look for other suitable teammates."

Look for what suitable teammates!

The fragile, need-of-protection little beauty had just transformed on the spot into a venomous beauty who raised snakes.

Such a contrast! Such charm!

Fading away from the initial shock, Qu Wen's gaze toward Su Su suddenly radiated an eerie brilliance. "No need to look for anyone else. We've spent several days together anyway; aren't we more trustworthy than other strangers?"

"Tell me, what mission do you want to take? I'll follow you anywhere!"

The sudden enthusiasm caught Su Su off guard.

Pondering for a few seconds, putting aside Qu Wen's fluid orientation and bizarre gaze, she really was the most suitable temporary teammate at the moment.

"I'm planning to go outside the city to hunt Tier-4 zombies." Su Su pointed at the twelve-person squad not far away. "That team has eight Tier-3 ability users and four Tier-2 ability users. They know the situation of the eastern zombie horde inside out, so the chances of success are quite high."

Qu Wen decisively stated, "Then I'm going too. I just happen to lack a Tier-4 crystal to level up."

Reaching a consensus, the two of them walked over together to find the leader of the twelve-person squad.

"You two want to join?"

The middle-aged man took a puff of his cigarette, sizing up the two women without any extra emotion.

Brand new clothes, fair skin, and rosy complexions—clearly, they were living quite comfortably.

"What are your abilities? Show me a trick so I can see."