Wei Yan not only refused to release Zou Gaoming but also violently beat Shunzi and all the villagers who had imprisoned the outsider women on the spot.
A Tier 3 ability user losing his temper—no one dared to stop him.
Several culprits were beaten half to death and were temporarily tied up and locked in the backyard. The other rescued women were first settled in an empty house for the time being, with further arrangements yet to be discussed.
—
Wei Yan, Guan Zixuan, and Zheng Wenxiu sat silently across from each other.
In the end, it was Zheng Wenxiu who broke the silence. “Brother Wei, what do you plan to do?”
What to do?
Wei Yan’s mind was in turmoil. When such an incident occurred in the village he managed, his first reaction was to throw Zou Gaoming and the others out, leaving them to fend for themselves, lest they continue being a blight on the community.
But… what if the “community” fully supported the “blight” and even vaguely regarded them as leaders?
No—Wei Yan absolutely could not allow Hot Spring Village to become what Zou Gaoming envisioned!
After a long, heavy silence, he finally severed all the sorrow in his heart, forcing himself to forget the accusations of those people.
“Since the utopian path is no longer feasible, from today onward, the village will begin accepting all outsiders and gradually expand into a base.”
All this time, he had been busy going out to scavenge for supplies, helping ability users in the village grow stronger, and directing people to build greenhouses and cultivate crops to achieve self-sufficiency. Yet, he had overlooked something more obvious—once the villagers’ basic survival needs were met, they developed greater desires.
And when those desires went unfulfilled, chaos ensued.
Wei Yan let out a deep breath.
“Once more people arrive, all resources will be distributed based on labor. There will be no distinction between villagers and outsiders—everyone must work to earn their allotted rewards! Since they have chosen this path, no one will be allowed to break the rules!”
“Tomorrow, this will be announced to everyone!”
Opening up Hot Spring Village would inevitably attract many ill-intentioned people, but it would also allow the village to grow rapidly.
Zou Gaoming’s actions were despicable, but he had one point right—now that the apocalypse had arrived, society’s rules had to change.
Then let it change into a more regulated base.
Wei Yan had invested too much effort into this village. There was no way he would slink away in defeat just because of a few heart-wrenching words from Shunzi, leaving the village to them.
After he finished laying out his plan, Guan Zixuan and Zheng Wenxiu clapped in unison.
“I agree!”
“Brother Wei, you should have done this a long time ago!”
Seeing their attitudes, Wei Yan let out a bitter laugh.
Sure enough, the biggest fool here was himself.
“What about Zou Gaoming, Shunzi, and the others?” Guan Zixuan gestured toward the backyard with his chin. “If we keep them here, they’re bound to cause big trouble again.”
People who committed such disgusting acts didn’t deserve to live in this world.
Wei Yan was silent for a few seconds before finally saying, “Abolish their abilities and expel them from the village.”
As long as their abilities were drained and their dantian severely damaged, they would essentially be crippled and no longer pose a threat.
“Alright.” Guan Zixuan stood up. “I’ll take care of it.”
Most of the ability users in the village had sided with Zou Gaoming, but Guan Zixuan was also a Tier 3 ability user, making him the perfect choice to deal with them.
As for Wei Yan… the one he needed to handle was Zou Gaoming, who was also a Tier 3 ability user.
Zou Gaoming was locked in the confinement room for now, with no one to warn him.
Wei Yan remained seated for a few minutes, his mind uncontrollably replaying scenes from the past.
Zou Gaoming, Shunzi, Da Zhuang… Before the apocalypse, every one of them had wholeheartedly worked to develop the tourism village. After the apocalypse, they had stood together to defend the village, gradually shaping it into what it was today.
How had it come to this?
Zheng Wenxiu called out worriedly, “Brother Wei?”
“I’m fine.” Wei Yan opened his eyes. “I’m going to find Zou Gaoming—”
“No need to look. I’m already here.”
Someone leaped over the courtyard wall, their familiar features now shrouded in darkness.
“Wei Yan, your heart is truly ruthless!”
Zheng Wenxiu stood up in shock. “Zou Gaoming? How did you get out?!”
“If I hadn’t gotten out, I wouldn’t have heard your plans.” Zou Gaoming gritted his teeth. “Abolish my abilities and throw me out of the village? You really want us dead!”
Since he had already overheard them, there was no need for Wei Yan to say anything else.
He stared at Zou Gaoming calmly. “As long as I’m here, I will never allow you to wreak havoc in this village. So, I can only invite you to leave.”
He deliberately emphasized the word invite.
“Heh.”
A contemptuous sneer.
“Fine. Then let’s see who ends up leaving!” Zou Gaoming raised his right hand, bringing his thumb and index finger together to let out a sharp whistle.
“ROAR!!!”
A figure that should never have appeared in the village came staggering in from the back entrance. In the blink of an eye, it was already in front of them.
Wei Yan and Zheng Wenxiu finally got a clear look at it—a Tier 4 zombie!
“How is this possible?! How could a zombie be in the village?!”
Zheng Wenxiu scrambled to dodge. She had a spatial ability, which provided no offensive capabilities whatsoever.
Fortunately, Wei Yan reacted in time.
The air around them instantly condensed into an invisible barrier, firmly keeping the Tier 4 zombie a meter away.
“Fweeeet—” Zou Gaoming sharply blew his whistle again.
The Tier 4 zombie was exceptionally sensitive to the whistle. The moment it heard the sound, it frantically raised its arms, its sharp claws forcibly tearing through the invisible air barrier!
“ROAR!!!”
The Tier 4 zombie lunged forward, and Wei Yan narrowly dodged. Since the protective shield was useless, he immediately mobilized his ability again.
The air surrounding the zombie suddenly accelerated, forming invisible “clamps” on both sides, pressing ruthlessly against its head—
However, when the air “clamps” made direct contact with the zombie’s head, they could no longer advance even a fraction!
“ROAR!!!”
The Tier 4 zombie violently shook its head, the sheer brute force completely shattering the air pressure that had been attempting to crush its skull!
Impossible! Even a Tier 4 zombie shouldn’t be entirely immune to Brother Wei’s ability. At the very least, it should be affected to some extent, not like this—where he could only struggle to maneuver, unable to inflict even the slightest damage!
Zheng Wenxiu quietly edged toward the door—she needed to get out and bring Guan Zixuan back.
“Stop.”
Countless sharp metal blades floated in the air, aiming directly at her without hesitation—
“Wenxiu!”
Wei Yan, who was still evading the zombie’s attacks, saw this scene and roared with bloodshot eyes. He desperately diverted some of his energy to form a dense protective barrier around Zheng Wenxiu.
Zou Gaoming didn’t insist on killing her immediately. Instead, he stood at a distance, enjoying the spectacle in front of him.
“Wei Yan, I bet you’re wondering where this zombie came from, aren’t you?”
“I found it when it was still a Tier 1. Its ability is full-body hardening, with both defensive and offensive power far surpassing zombies and ability users of the same tier—perfect for countering your protective shield.”
“I raised it in the back mountain, feeding it with the flesh and blood of passing survivors. It took me five months to tame it, and just recently, it advanced to Tier 4.”
“I thought I’d never get to use it in my lifetime, but who would’ve thought I’d need it so soon! Hahahahaha!”
Zou Gaoming’s ambition hadn’t developed overnight.
By the second month of the apocalypse, he had already realized that this was his chance to rise.
And he had been quietly making preparations ever since.
Wei Yan rolled across the ground, just barely dodging the zombie’s sharp claws. The deadly talons landed a mere two centimeters from his ear, embedding themselves directly into the concrete!
Laughter echoed beside him—Zou Gaoming’s gleeful, unrestrained laughter. Furious and anxious, Wei Yan shouted, “Zou Gaoming! Aren’t you afraid of it turning against you?!”
Zou Gaoming’s laughter abruptly ceased. “Once it kills you, I’ll take the Grade 4 crystal stone you’ve been hoarding. Once I become a Tier 4 ability user, I’ll deal with it then—no rush.”
“Fweeeet—”
The whistle’s pitch became even sharper, and the floating metal blades surrounding Zheng Wenxiu concentrated on a single point, repeatedly assaulting the air barrier.
He truly intended to kill both Wei Yan and Zheng Wenxiu at the same time!
Once they were dead, Guan Zixuan would be isolated and powerless—he could be slowly worn down and eliminated!
“ROAR!!”
The Tier 4 zombie pinned Wei Yan to the ground.
The air barrier in front of him struggled futilely, being chipped away inch by inch as the zombie pressed closer.
Wei Yan desperately held onto the zombie’s head, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t snap its neck—he couldn’t even leave a scratch!
Ignoring the fact that the thing pressing down on him was a zombie, the scene itself appeared disturbingly intimate and ambiguous.
But only the ones involved knew how close the danger truly was.
None of Wei Yan’s abilities worked against this Tier 4 zombie. If this stalemate continued, he would either have his throat torn open first or exhaust his strength, allowing Zou Gaoming to finish him off.
All of this happened within mere minutes.
Zou Gaoming’s eyes were filled with unconcealed anticipation. He was so excited that he was practically gasping for breath.
“Kill him! Kill him now!”
Bang!
Wei Yan used the last of his strength to throw the Tier 4 zombie off him. There was no time to hesitate—two sentences abruptly flashed through his mind.
—”You’re already a Tier 3 ability user. Try to consume fewer low-grade or same-grade crystal stones.”
—”Along the way, I’ve seen several ability users explode and die from consuming too many crystal stones. Before they died, their temples swelled into blue-purple lumps, and their foreheads bulged with veins.”
This was no longer something he had the luxury of choosing.
Wei Yan let out a bitter smile, quickly pulling out the Grade 4 crystal stone from his pocket and swallowing it without hesitation.
Seeing this, a gleam of triumph flashed in Zou Gaoming’s eyes.
From the very start, he had never expected to steal the Grade 4 crystal stone from Wei Yan’s hands.
If the zombie could kill Wei Yan, that would be ideal. If it couldn’t, then he had to force Wei Yan into swallowing the Grade 4 crystal stone himself…
There had already been cases in the village where ability users, driven by greed, consumed too many crystal stones and exploded. Zou Gaoming was well aware that crystal stones were both beneficial and dangerous.
Wei Yan had already consumed as many crystal stones as the ability user who died. If he took another one, he was bound to explode!
Even if he somehow managed to kill the zombie, he wouldn’t last long. When he died, Zou Gaoming could just pick up another fresh Grade 4 crystal stone for himself!
Zou Gaoming fixed his gaze firmly on the scene before him.
“ROAR!!!”
The moment the crystal stone entered Wei Yan’s body, a torrent of energy surged through his system. In an instant, his ability forcibly broke through to Tier 4.
But it didn’t stop there! The excess impurities flooded his organs, violently attacking his internal body!
Wei Yan couldn’t suppress the surge—he spat out a mouthful of blood.
But he didn’t waste any time.
A powerful burst of compressed air once again clamped down on the Tier 4 zombie’s head.
Bang!
The lunging zombie suddenly froze, its body stiffening in place.
The next second, its head exploded on the spot, its remains splattering all over Wei Yan.
“Brother Wei!”
Zheng Wenxiu’s joy lasted for only half a second—before turning into terror.
The reason was simple.
At the very moment the Tier 4 zombie died, Wei Yan collapsed onto the ground.
Blood gushed endlessly from the corners of his mouth.
Bulging, blue-purple veins stretched across his temples, forming grotesque, egg-sized swellings.
His eyes widened further and further, but the words he wanted to say were blocked by the blood surging in his throat—unable to escape past his lips.
“Brother Wei, what’s wrong?!”
Zheng Wenxiu, panic-stricken, lunged forward. Just as she lifted Wei Yan’s body, a sharp metal blade came slicing toward the back of her head.
Pfft!
—
The temperature plummeted, and a thin layer of ice formed on the roadside. Pang Cancan nearly slipped.
Fortunately, Le Rui caught her just in time. “Sister Cancan, be careful.”
They had returned much later than Wei Yan and the others and had only just approached the inn.
Su Su was still in shock from everything that had happened earlier, unable to recover for a long time.
If she had searched a few more cellars in her past life, perhaps she would have discovered Hot Spring Village’s dark secrets sooner. But back then, she had already arrived too late.
Wei Yan and his group had vanished without a trace, and the over one thousand villagers in the village had also disappeared.
What would happen in the next two days?
Now that they had arrived ahead of time in this life, would they be able to survive the snow disaster safely?
As she was lost in thought, a desperate scream suddenly echoed from the distant courtyard.
“Brother Wei!”
Su Su’s head snapped up.
Something had happened?!