The middle-aged man, called Wilson by Billy, had a centipede-like scar on his right cheekbone, which looked quite old.
His greying hair was occasionally interspersed with streaks of black. His sharp eyes flickered past Billy, landing on Tang Sui, who looked like an utterly harmless young lady. He watched as she extended her open palm towards them, a flicker of suspicion in his eyes.
He saw no calluses, nor did she look like a mercenary who frequently handled weapons.
Tang Sui blinked, allowing him to scrutinize her. Her fair and delicate features were striking in the dim light, even giving the illusion that she was glowing.
After a brief assessment, Wilson turned and exchanged a glance with the tall man in a jacket behind him. The latter nodded at Wilson, and the next moment, both of them lowered their guns simultaneously.
“Sorry, these are special times. We don’t want a repeat of last time,” Wilson said with a hearty laugh, extending a thick palm to Billy, who was still on the ground.
Billy took the offered hand and stood up. Being astute, he didn’t inquire about the “last time” Wilson mentioned.
The man in the jacket walked to the side and switched on the indoor lights. A dim yellow light illuminated the room, revealing his deep and cold face, exuding a lethal and capable aura. He was clearly the quiet, intimidating type.
“Billy, and who is this beautiful young lady?” Wilson asked, looking at Tang Sui.
Billy, who didn’t know Tang Sui’s name, looked at her expectantly. Tang Sui took the initiative to introduce herself, “You can call me Tang, I’m from Huaxia.”
Wilson nodded and briefly introduced himself and the quiet man beside him.
Wilson, the owner of the retired soldiers’ weapon shop, and Conner, the mercenary. Their other companion, Bella, was in front of the surveillance monitor.
The actual mercenaries were them.
Billy wasn’t foolish; he understood why they were so vigilant. Something very unpleasant must have happened before.
After Tang Sui and Billy entered the iron gate, the woman monitoring from the basement also emerged.
With a high ponytail of light brown hair and dressed in a black leather jacket, the woman had a cold and beautiful appearance, the kind that exuded arrogance.
As soon as she appeared, she took charge, asking Tang Sui directly, “He said outside the surveillance that you could get all of us into the base for settlement, is that true?”
Tang Sui glanced at Conner, who had silently moved behind Bella with his gun, and at Wilson, who seemed to tacitly agree. She roughly understood the hierarchy of this group.
Billy watched Tang Sui nervously, his hands unconsciously clenching into fists, afraid that his earlier words had caused more trouble for her.
“If the higher-ups aren't stupid, they’ll agree to my reasonably fair demands.”
To Billy’s surprise, Tang Sui picked up his previous statement and continued.
This made Billy’s eyes light up with both guilt and excitement.
Bella looked at the slender young girl before her, who clearly had been pampered in a greenhouse. Yet, she remained unfazed in front of them, which made Bella’s opinion of Tang Sui change slightly.
As for Tang Sui's vague answer, she only half-believed it.
She was almost forty years old, and to her, Tang Sui, a young girl so fair and tender, was naturally just a child.
Although they were both women, girls Tang Sui’s age usually couldn't maintain such composure in front of her, showing no fear. This indicated that Tang Sui’s family background was extraordinary, and she possessed a calmness that her peers lacked.
“What do you want to do? Go directly to the military base?” Bella posed the question to Tang Sui.
Just as Tang Sui had seen that Bella was the leader of this trio, Bella had also keenly discerned who held the greater influence between Billy and Tang Sui.
“Travel light. If there’s still water and food, bring a little. Not too much,” Tang Sui said, estimating the journey.
Bella frowned and said, “But according to my previous intelligence, the nearest military base to B City is over 160 kilometers from the town. With just one vehicle, without enough engine oil, even if the journey is smooth, it will take at least two days. With so little, can you guarantee you won’t encounter other accidents along the way?”
Over 160 kilometers?
Tang Sui was slightly stunned. The masks also “yipped,” chattering about the town’s map expanding.
She quickly regained her composure and said, “When I stood at the entrance, I saw it. You three must have fought a giant spider-like creature before, right? Although we might encounter similar monsters blocking our way on the road ahead, and I don’t know how far this white mist has expanded, I can assure you that as long as it’s not an outrageously powerful monster, we won’t be in a desperate fight.”
Conner, who had been a silent background presence, chimed in, “How outrageous is ‘too outrageous’?”
Tang Sui smiled slightly, “Naturally, a giant monster that five people focusing their fire on cannot penetrate with blades or bullets.”
The others: “……”
If it's impenetrable, what's the point of fighting? Encountering it would surely mean a desperate struggle, at best. Survival itself would be uncertain.
Billy, suddenly remembering the lobster-like monster outside the convenience store that had nearly taken his life, turned pale and stammered, “Monsters like that… they won’t appear again, right?”
Conner’s eyes flashed, and he asked directly, “You encountered one?”
Wilson looked Billy up and down, covered in blood, and then at the clean and neat Tang Sui, falling into silence.
Billy had clearly gone through something, but he couldn’t tell if this girl had encountered anything.
Tang Sui nodded calmly and then steered the conversation back, “If we do encounter one, please run as far as you can. Save yourselves, and don’t worry about Mr. Billy and me.”
This statement clearly laid out her stance.
If Tang Sui’s earlier statement about “five people focusing their fire” indicated that she could also be a combatant, then this last sentence, implying they could run if they couldn’t fight, showed that Tang Sui was very laid-back about forming a team.
Even without them, she and Billy would have embarked on the journey to the military base.
The pressure immediately shifted to Bella.
She exchanged glances with her two teammates and then looked at Wilson, the experienced elder and her former teacher, deferring the decision to him, “Teacher, what do you think?”
Despite having over a decade of experience, the wisdom of the older generation was always invaluable.
Wilson pondered for a few seconds and then agreed.
Although he didn’t know what item the higher-ups were interested in that she possessed, this young girl dared to say such things, and it concerned whether he would be shot upon arrival if she lied. Tang Sui had no reason to lie.
Besides, he agreed with Bella’s assessment: it didn’t matter if teammates lacked combat power; what was important was that they were calm and wouldn’t do irrational things. Having them along was enough.
“Thank you.”
Tang Sui offered a sincere smile.
Now that everyone’s objective and stance were aligned, things would be much easier.
Wilson retrieved a national map he had kept in a display cabinet in his shop years ago.
The moment Tang Sui saw the map, she realized how vast the territory of her world was.
But why, when she stood at the edge of the town earlier, did she only see ashes stretching as far as the eye could see?
While discussing the optimal route with everyone, Tang Sui’s mind was elsewhere, constantly analyzing the information she had gathered.
With the arrival of the mist, the entire landscape had changed. Led by Billy, she had finally managed to escape the parking lot she had circled for a day without finding her way out.
In the eyes of the local inhabitants, the “world” was intact, but in her eyes, it was a fractured one.
Perhaps being an outsider was only one factor. More likely, she hadn’t received the world’s recognition itself. Just like in the Douluo world, lacking the “proof” from the natives, the “world” didn’t open up to her.
Thinking in terms of conspiracy, it meant the will of this world was active.
It was confining her to this town, judging her potential harm or benefit to this world, and then deciding whether the world would open up to her.
So, was her test in this world to gain its recognition? Or to save this world invaded by another dimension?
Tang Sui’s head began to ache.
An hour later, Billy, now fully equipped in a new spare t-shirt from Wilson, a large black backpack slung over his shoulders, stood on the first floor with his three other fully equipped new teammates.
Tang Sui, who was out of place, traveled light. Although she also carried a backpack, it only contained two spare handguns besides the one in her hand and corresponding ammunition.
She had neither water nor food.
However, no one blamed Tang Sui for not bringing adequate gear.
To them, tall and muscular men, Tang Sui, with her delicate arms and legs, was already doing well if she could shoot and not be a burden.
If she had been bundled up like a mummy on the battlefield, she would have been a liability.
Wilson turned to survey the weapon shop he had owned for five years, took a deep breath, and placed his hand on the handle of the second layer of anti-theft steel shutters. As he prepared to lift it, he turned back to his new teammates.
“Are you ready? I’m opening the door!”
Everyone nodded.
The next second, Wilson pulled open the steel shutters. Tang Sui and the others quickly emerged from inside, their gun muzzles pointed outwards, each responsible for a direction.
Wilson released the shutters, thought for a moment, and then pulled them down again, locking them.
Just in case, there might be a day they would return.
He couldn't help but hold onto this sliver of hope.
Tang Sui and the others saw this but didn’t criticize him for being redundant. After all, everyone had their own thoughts and made their own decisions. They would be responsible for their actions.
The driver changed from Billy to Wilson.
Billy moved to the passenger seat, while Bella, Tang Sui, and Conner sat in the back seat in that order.
Before starting the car, Wilson glanced at the remaining fuel in the sedan and whistled, “Good luck, this car still has about 100 kilometers of fuel.”
As for after 100 kilometers, they would find other vehicles.
“Let’s go,” Bella said concisely, her gaze fixed on the window, constantly vigilant.
Wilson nodded, his eyes looking straight ahead, about to start the vehicle. Suddenly, his gaze fixed, his pupils trembled violently, and he let out a hoarse cry, alerting his teammates:
“Ahead…”
— — Author’s Notes — —
This chapter has more content than usual!
The extra is a special addition for the birthday of our lovely “Qiu Qing Lan Feng”!
The bonus chapter is late but here, muah!
See you tomorrow!