CHAPTER 61: CHAPTER 18 INVESTIGATION_1

"Oh? I’m not sure what Brother Wen Yu means. I have always treated Sun Ruixing with courtesy on your account." Li Quan’an felt some uneasiness, fearing that issues with Sun Ruixing might cause Wen Yu to turn on him. After all, everyone knew Wen Yu and Sun Ruixing had a bond.

After some contemplation, Wen Yu responded, "What I mean is, could Sun Ruixing’s temperament and attitude disrupt our plans for tomorrow?"

Upon realizing Wen Yu wasn’t accusing him, Li Quan’an heaved a sigh of relief and responded directly, "No, that won’t happen. I took it upon myself yesterday to issue an order. Those who don’t leave tomorrow, I’ll kill them all in front of everyone. I don’t think Sun Ruixing will dare to say anything."

"But..." Li Quan’an said, still unsure of Wen Yu’s stance, "I might need Brother Wen Yu’s support in enforcing this order."

"Mm." Wen Yu nodded. "Your order is fine; it at least prevents idle gossip. I’ll kill those who don’t leave tomorrow. Mayor Li, don’t worry about taking the blame."

Li Quan’an responded with a big grin and a nod.

"By the way, assign some people to keep an eye on Sun Ruixing. If he says anything inappropriate, eliminate him. I don’t want any complications during tomorrow’s operation. I imagine you don’t want any unexpected events either," Wen Yu warned Li Quan’an seriously.

"That won’t be a problem. But Brother Wen Yu, don’t you have a good relationship with Sun Ruixing? Why now...?"

Seeing the puzzled look on Li Quan’an’s face, Wen Yu gave a cold laugh, turned around, and walked out of the room. However, his parting words left Li Quan’an with a chill down his spine.

"Friendship? What’s that worth? Right now, I need people to share the pressure. If Sun Ruixing disrupts our plans, he’s blocking my path. Anyone who blocks my path is trying to kill me. Anyone trying to kill me is my enemy. When dealing with an enemy, what does friendship matter? Still, I do have a certain appreciation for Sun Ruixing as a person. I just hope he doesn’t choose to become my enemy. So, keep a close eye on him. If Sun Ruixing makes any suspicious moves, kill him. If you can’t, call me."

Li Quan’an opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Watching Wen Yu turn and leave, he felt the cold sweat on his back soak through his clothes.

The murderous intent in Wen Yu’s words had made his skin prickle.

...

After leaving Li Quan’an’s room, Wen Yu and Cyclops left the camp directly.

The day was still young, and Wen Yu went out to further investigate Hualin Town’s situation.

The air in Hualin Town was tense. Wen Yu even noticed some mutant vines twitching on some walls.

They had begun to spread towards Hualin Town.

Wen Yu drew his steel saber and chopped harshly at one of the mutant vines. It twitched violently and spewed some pale-green juice before swiftly burrowing back into the ground.

He touched the green liquid on the ground. It felt cold and slightly slimy. He tasted it; it wasn’t bitter, but instead had a faint, fresh aroma. There were no signs of poisoning, nor any noticeable positive effects.

After a plant mutates, its nature changes. In his past life, some people researched the properties of various mutant plants and developed all sorts of peculiar medicines.

Unfortunately, Wen Yu didn’t possess such abilities.

He threw the half-severed mutant vine into his space ring and, with Cyclops, made another wide sweep of the area. The mutant vines hadn’t grown much over the day, but Hualin Town was being squeezed smaller. The mutant vines’ blockade line had already contracted by at least several hundred meters. Not to mention, an occasional few had even sprouted near the town center.

If they didn’t leave, as the town’s mutant beasts and zombies died off, the speed at which the vines were shrinking would greatly accelerate. Within a week, aside from creatures capable of flight, there would be no survivors left in Hualin Town.

Right, I could do this...

Just as Wen Yu was contemplating the remaining zombies and mutant beasts in Hualin Town, an idea popped into his head.

Instead of letting the mutant creatures become nourishment for the mutant vines, I’ll kill them myself.

Wen Yu immediately returned to the camp, planning to ask Li Quan’an about items for attracting mutant creatures.

...

An all-camp meeting had just concluded.

This was the lie carefully crafted by Li Quan’an. Of course, the few professionists and their families in the camp knew the real situation.

Li Quan’an silently watched the ordinary people in the camp joyfully packing up, eager to return to civilized society. A flicker of regret passed through his eyes.

Only a small part of that regret was for the hundreds of lives; most of it was because the power he had personally built was about to be destroyed.

"What? Having second thoughts?"

The teasing voice came from behind him. Li Quan’an identified it as Wen Yu, the real instigator behind this plan.

"I’m alright. You’re right. Power... it can truly be intoxicating," Li Quan’an sighed as he spoke.

"Nobody saw this coming. It’s not a man-made disaster; it’s a natural one. Honestly, in this apocalypse, no creature is absolutely safe, and no faction can stand invincible. The loss in manpower is minimal. Once we break free, give it a few days, and your faction will definitely be stronger than it is now."

After a few brief encounters, Wen Yu had a high opinion of Li Quan’an’s abilities. This was a man with ambition, means, and capability.

Regrettably, Wen Yu had him firmly under control simply because Li Quan’an lacked strength.

Upon hearing Wen Yu’s words, Li Quan’an offered a perfunctory smile. He knew that building and developing a faction required too many conditions and was fraught with too many potential accidents; he held no blind expectations for the future.

"How’s Sun Ruixing doing? He hasn’t done anything stupid, has he?"

"That hasn’t happened. I assigned Lin Hu and five professionists to monitor Sun Ruixing round the clock. I absolutely guarantee he won’t run his mouth."

Li Quan’an’s surveillance arrangements for Sun Ruixing were top-tier.

"Good." Wen Yu nodded in satisfaction, then asked, "Do you still have those items that attracted mutant creatures, the ones you used to trick Sun Ruixing?"

Seeing Li Quan’an’s surprised face, Wen Yu smiled mysteriously, "I know much more than you think..."