"There are still things in the pharmacy," Zhu Yan shouted. "Go to the pharmacy!"
A thick fog rushed towards them. Yang Zhanbai gritted his teeth and waved his hand, and it quickly split into several pieces, churning and dissipating.
The two rushed into the foul-smelling pharmacy, charging straight to the very back of the shop in one breath.
"There's excrement." Yang Zhanbai's voice sounded strange, as if he was about to throw up at any moment. "Were there any living people here when you came?... Why aren't you with the others?"
He covered his nose and mouth, panting heavily. Zhu Yan pulled out the third bottle of [Universal Potion] from his pocket.
"Pour it on yourself to heal." Zhu Yan bit off the cap and handed it to him. "Before Mr. Wolf announced the time, I was worried the clock wouldn't respond like last time, so I went to find you."
"But it got dark so fast. I got tangled up with the monsters, and by the time I finished them off, I found the surroundings had already turned into a complete mess."
Yang Zhanbai took the bottle of potion and followed Zhu Yan deeper into the shelves.
He wanted to pour the potion directly over his head, but his gaze accidentally fell on the palm of his right hand!
On his originally clean palm, a strange pattern seemed to have grown out.
Yang Zhanbai's heart skipped a beat.
He glanced at Zhu Yan's back, neatly switched the potion to his left hand, and steadily poured it over his head.
Warmth seeped into his skin, bringing a few traces of clarity.
After his body's strength recovered a little more, Yang Zhanbai lowered his eyes, examining his palm by the dim light.
Zhu Yan bent over to rummage through the shelves, catching Yang Zhanbai's movements out of the corner of his eye.
Good, he noticed it.
Let's see how this guy reacts when the time comes, take it one step at a time.
"...I wasn't sure where you were, I looked everywhere." Zhu Yan continued to explain calmly. "Many people died, but there are some survivors in the candy store."
"It's somewhat of a gain, at least I found some healing items."
He rested his right hand on the shelf, and with his left hand, took out the three bottles of [Universal Potion] he had just put away, shoving them into Yang Zhanbai's hand.
"Take them, I have more here."
"Where did you go? Why did you suddenly appear inside the flower shop?"
Yang Zhanbai took the potions but said nothing.
He couldn't describe how he felt.
The player in front of him, named Zhu Zeyu, had saved him from the brink of death time and time again. They could be considered brothers who had gone through life and death together.
But, how to explain?
Say that he went underground, met the BOSS, falsely claimed to be the [Hunter], and ended up really becoming the [Hunter]?
Yang Zhanbai warily glanced at his palm.
This was too absurd.
And no matter what the process was, the outcome was already a foregone conclusion.
He would end up dying anyway, right?
"I—"
"Oh." Zhu Yan turned around at the right moment, signaling Yang Zhanbai to follow him out.
"Let's go, back to the candy store first."
He didn't want to chop off Yang Zhanbai's right hand, because this was a good person. His current psychological state couldn't bring him to be so ruthless to a good person.
The [Copy Ointment] could be used twice. Zhu Yan could find another, less righteous person to be the scapegoat.
But he needed a partner.
A companion who could help him subvert the Alpha Wolf's rules, a companion who could help him jointly transfer the blame of the [Hunter]!
With the [Hunter] mark on Yang Zhanbai's palm, Zhu Yan had a handle he could grasp.
An alliance built on mutual interests might break, but if there was a shared sin, the alliance would be much stronger.
Going back to the candy store was just a phrasing to make Yang Zhanbai voluntarily expose his handle.
Yang Zhanbai followed Zhu Yan, walking out with a restless mind.
"There are quite a few survivors at the candy store."
Zhu Yan pondered, not mentioning the fact that they would check for the [Hunter] mark, and changed the subject.
"Most of the monsters outside are level three. We can handle them."
"My thought is, hiding is just hiding. Might as well ask if there are any players with stronger functional abilities, and take advantage of the dark to push forward."
This was a bold proposal.
Zhu Yan drew his dagger and dispersed two patches of thick fog, arriving once again at the door of the messily ruined candy store.
"There are no human shops on this street anyway."
He turned to Yang Zhanbai with a calm tone.
"Walking further back, we might discover something. Oh right, you can also tell everyone about your discoveries first."
"Where have you been all this time?"
Yang Zhanbai's face was tightly drawn, seemingly drained of color.
Just a little bit more.
Zhu Yan calculated nervously and shouted inside.
"We're back," he said. "Brother Yang is back too."
"Alright," Qi Yinming replied. "Are you injured? The usual rule, let us check your right hand before you come in."
"Wh—" Yang Zhanbai lost his composure.
In the dim light, he pursed his lips with a great lack of security.
Fuck.
Check the right hand!
"What's wrong?" Zhu Yan asked with feigned concern.
He also had a mark on his right hand, but Yang Zhanbai didn't know, which meant he didn't have one as far as Yang was concerned.
"Let's go." Zhu Yan reached out to grab Yang Zhanbai.
He looked around nervously to ensure that apart from those students, not too many terrifying creatures were approaching here.
Now is the time.
Push him a little more!
"Don't just stand there." Zhu Yan applied a bit more force, trying to drag the petrified Yang Zhanbai away from his spot. "Hurry up, it's dangerous outside—"
As expected, Yang Zhanbai broke free.
"I can't go in right now," he said, closing his eyes in despair.
Zhu Yan looked at him calmly.
In front of the terrifying creatures, Yang Zhanbai's attitude was that you can kill me right now.
This man was not afraid of death, and facing his companions, it was probably the same.
Sure enough, the next second, Yang Zhanbai opened his right palm to him.
"I am the [Hunter]."
He said resignedly, his face devoid of expression and color.
"There's no need for me to go in."
Yang Zhanbai took a deep breath, his bright black eyes staring at the young man in the dim light.
In his eyes, the other party was already thoroughly shocked, one eyebrow slightly raised, looking at him with a hint of inquiry.
Yang Zhanbai felt a wave of relief in his heart.
He had no intention of becoming the public enemy of humanity.
Speaking out this secret brought a thrill of confessing a shameful sin; at least he didn't have to carry a mountain on his back anymore.
"Kill me," Yang Zhanbai requested resolutely. "...Take those 48 hours. This is your only path to survival."
"Shut up," Zhu Yan shouted to stop him.
This was just right, Yang Zhanbai didn't need to say anything more.
It was time to take a step further!
Yang Zhanbai said no more.
A few seconds later, he said, "There is no way to survive this instance. Unless you kill me—"
"I think you've been deceived."
Zhu Yan coldly interrupted him again and quite forcefully dragged Yang Zhanbai into the candy store.
"Let us in, or we can just communicate outside."
He said loudly towards the direction of the shelves.
"Yang Zhanbai is back. I think he's encountered a conspiracy related to the [Hunter]."
"Hey!" Yang Zhanbai protested quietly. "Do you have to make my death look so ugly?"
Hearing the word [Hunter], the people behind the shelves fell silent.
"What does that have to do with it?" a male voice asked urgently. "Did you find the Hunter?"
Zhu Yan did not answer immediately, and a murmur of whispers could be heard from behind the shelves.
About two minutes later, Qi Yinming finally replied to the two of them, his decision final.
"Just speak from out there."
He paused, his voice holding a deliberately maintained steadiness.
"No matter what it is, no one is to make a move while we discuss this."

s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."

his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…

to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”

transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”