CHAPTER 157: CHAPTER 157: MEETING

Silas paused for a moment, then said, "Good. Then come to the military office. They’ll be waiting for you there."

"Alright," Ivy answered quickly. She hung up and hurried toward the exit.

But halfway there, she froze. Her eyes widened as a terrible thought struck her.

’Wait... the base. Without me here, it’s not safe. My power is what protects this place. If I leave, the people inside will be exposed.’

She clenched her fists tightly.

’I can’t leave them unprotected. What do I do? What if zombies attack while I’m gone?’

Her mind raced. Suddenly, she remembered the hidden feature she hadn’t checked yet. Quickly, she opened her temporal storage and entered the interface.

The moment she saw the new feature, her jaw dropped. Her heart leaped with excitement.

"Unbelievable!" she gasped. "It... it’s exactly what I need right now!"

The feature description was clear. She could extend her safe zone superpower to cover items and structures that were inside her temporal storage.

’So that means... I can protect the apartments, even if I’m not here?’

Her hands trembled as she tried it. Closing her eyes, she thought of the apartment where Paul and Linda were staying.

In an instant, a thin layer of light appeared around the building. It was soft and glowing pink but invisible to the naked eye. Only Ivy could see it.

Her heart filled with joy. "It worked!"

Then another interface appeared. It explained that she could use KB to power the safe zone barrier.

"Ten KB... for one apartment... for one whole day."

Her eyes widened again. "It’s expensive. But... I have more than enough KB now. This is perfect!"

She laughed softly,

’I can finally leave without worrying. With this, they’ll be safe. Even if zombies come, they won’t be able to break through.’

Ivy walked quickly through the streets until she reached the tall building where the military office was. Soldiers stood outside with serious faces, but when they saw her, they let her in right away.

Her heart beat faster as she stepped into the wide hall.

There, sitting on one side of the room, were Daniel and Talia.

Silas stood beside Daniel, arms crossed, his expression calm. But the moment his eyes landed on Ivy, his face softened like melting ice.

He gave her a warm smile that made her chest feel hot.

Daniel and Talia both noticed the sudden change and exchanged a look.

’So it is true,’ Daniel thought with a sigh. ’This boy was sulking before, saying how busy Ivy is and how hard she works, blaming us for not caring. But now she is here, and suddenly he looks like a gentle puppy. What a fool in love.’

Talia’s lips twitched, but she kept silent.

Ivy walked toward them and saw an empty chair beside Talia. Without hesitation, she sat down.

Talia looked at her straight. "Ivy, I was planning to tell you something. I want to go out and meet my fiancé."

Ivy froze. Her hand tightened on her knee. She bit her lip before speaking. "Did you forget your promise?"

Talia flinched. "It is not like that. This time... it is urgent. If I do not go, he will break off the engagement."

Ivy’s face darkened. Her voice was sharp. "Then it is better. You should leave that scumbag."

Daniel raised his eyebrows in surprise at her tone.

Talia stared at Ivy, stunned. She whispered, "You... you sound like you hate him. Why? Did he... did he ever do something to you?"

Her eyes narrowed with suspicion. For a moment, her body tensed like she was ready to fight. "If he ever tried to harm you, Ivy, I swear I will kill him myself."

She could still ignore her fiancé if he had dared to betray her, but if he dared to have any design on Ivy, then... she would castrate him!

’Ivy is my brother’s love as well as a girl. I can never let a girl suffer because of my ignorance.’

Ivy looked at her in silence. She could see Talia’s emotions clearly. Even though Talia disliked her, she still had a soft heart for girls who might be hurt.

’I pity her,’ Ivy thought sadly. ’She wants to protect other girls, but she herself became prey. A hunter’s target. She does not even know it yet.’

Ivy’s eyes turned serious. She said firmly,

"Talia, listen to me. Once you leave the base and go to the meeting place, your fiancé will call you. He will say he is late by ten minutes. You will wait. But in those ten minutes, something will happen. You will suddenly feel weak, like fainting. When you wake up, you will be surrounded by Black Vultures. They will capture you and do... unspeakable things."

Talia’s face turned pale. She trembled. "W-what... are you saying?"

Ivy gritted her teeth.

"After that, your fiancé will appear to rescue you. But the damage will already be done. The trauma will never leave you. Because of it, you will not be able to keep cultivating. One day, you will die early because of that memory."

The room grew silent. Daniel clenched his fists. Silas’s jaw tightened.

Talia stared at Ivy with wide eyes. Then her voice shook. "What... what did my fiancé do after that?"

Ivy’s hands curled tightly. Her voice was bitter.

"At first, he stayed with you. He killed a few Black Vultures for you. He even defended your family when they were accused. But later, he met another girl. An innocent one in his team. He slowly gave up on you. He said he already did his best to get justice for you. And then... he left you for her."

Talia’s lips trembled. She looked down at her hands, unable to speak.

’Ivy... how do you know this?’ she thought in shock. ’Why does it feel... so real?’

She took a shaky breath.

"Ivy... I... I do not know why, but your words feel close to me. You know... I hate dirt. I cannot stand it. If my body is touched wrongly, I feel like I will break apart. I have this cleanliness problem. I always thought I should be cured, but I never knew how. If what you said really happened, then I... I could not survive it."