92 Puppet Jade
The two of them nestled together and peacefully fell asleep. Cong Xia drifted off into dreamland, feeling content, while Cheng Tianbi also slept soundly.
However, in the middle of the night, they were awakened by a series of knocks on the door.
As soon as the door was knocked, Cheng Tianbi immediately sat up alertly and sternly asked, "Who is it?"
Cong Xia also woke up and asked, "What's going on?"
"Guests, please come out."
Cheng Tianbi reached for his gun and cautiously approached the door. He suddenly swung it open, pointing the gun at the person outside.
The hotel owner stood at the door with a few people, calmly looking at them.
Cheng Tianbi coldly asked, "What's the meaning of this?"
The owner replied, "Guests, we are doing business and surviving in the end times. It's not easy for anyone. I'm sorry, but we can't accommodate you anymore."
Cong Xia furrowed his brow and questioned, "Boss, what's going on?"
The owner maintained a calm expression, exuding the composed aura of a soldier in the face of danger. He cautiously explained, "You came from Hanzhong, right? You wiped out the Eagle Corps and Liu Laoda's gang. It was you, wasn't it?"
Cheng Tianbi's face turned grim.
The owner continued, "Your deeds have spread to the surrounding cities. I don't know which one of you is a natural force-evolved individual, and we can't afford to provoke you. There are powerful forces in Xi'an that want to meet with you. We don't want any trouble. My daughter made a thoughtless mistake by bringing you in. As they say, inviting gods is easy, but sending them away is difficult. I've prepared five liters of gasoline as a gesture of goodwill. I hope you will give me face and leave now."
The two of them exchanged glances, and Cong Xia solemnly said, "Alright, we won't cause any trouble for you, we'll leave."
The owner nodded. "Thank you."
Zhuang Yao and the others also came out of their rooms. Seeing the situation, they felt helpless and could only return to their rooms to get dressed and pack their belongings.
Ten minutes later, they descended the stairs.
Ai Jia looked at them with sadness. She must have been scolded by her father, her eyes slightly red and an expression of grievance on her face.
Cong Xia smiled at Ai Jia and said, "Ai Jia, thank you. We are already very satisfied to be able to take a hot shower. Sorry for causing you trouble."
Ai Jia pouted and didn't say anything.
They went to the parking lot to find Abu and retrieve their car.
Abu was curled up in his warm nest, sound asleep, and it felt wrong to disturb him.
However, as they approached, Abu woke up.
Zhuang Yao gently touched Abu's face. "Let's go, let's find another place."
Abu obediently crawled out.
Ai Jia walked up and handed them a map. "Follow this street. The location marked with a red heart on the map is an abandoned hotel. It was still operational half a month ago, but they gave up on it. If you go there now, the environment should still be decent."
"Ai Jia, thank you."
Being kicked out of a cozy bed while sleeping deeply was not a pleasant feeling, but fortunately, they had all grown accustomed to a life of constant movement. With the map provided by Ai Jia, they headed towards the abandoned hotel.
On the way, Zhuang Yao spoke in a low voice. "It seems that our movements have been noticed. There must be people who escaped that day."
Cong Xia sighed. "With so many birds that day, it's not surprising that some slipped through the cracks. Our journey ahead will be more challenging, especially now that it's known that we have natural force-evolved individuals among us."
Liu Fengyu patted Abu. "Our features are too distinctive. Just based on Abu, others can easily recognize us."
Zhuang Yao said, "The road ahead may become even more difficult. Everyone, prepare yourselves mentally."
They quickly found the hotel. As Ai Jia had described, it had only been abandoned recently, and the environment was still decent. The bedding had gathered some dust but was still clean.
They found several rooms and went inside to sleep. The rooms were particularly cold compared to the heated hotel Ai Jia stayed in, so they didn't dare to take off their clothes and simply lay down wearing thick down jackets.
Cheng Tianbi and Cong Xia cuddled closely together. With the person they loved by their side, they didn't feel the cold.
The next morning, they woke up early. Cong Xia planned to go downstairs to make breakfast for everyone. But as he reached the ground floor, he felt a wave of energy from the group. He looked out through the window and saw over a dozen people outside the hotel, fully wrapped up.
Cheng Tianbi followed him downstairs. "Are there people?"
"Well, they're all mutants."
The others also came downstairs one by one. They walked out of the door, and those mutants were standing outside the hotel's entrance, as if they had been waiting for a long time.
Cheng Tianbi looked at them and said coldly, "What does this mean? Who are you people?"
The leader of the group made a slight move and politely said, "Please don't worry, we have no ill intentions. We just wanted to see for ourselves who defeated the Eagle Corps and Liu Laoda."
Zhuang Yao spoke loudly, "Come in and have a seat. It's really cold outside."
The leader brought two people inside, and they sat on the sofa, cautiously sizing each other up.
The person said, "Let me introduce myself. I'm Meng Fei, and these are my brothers. We are all locals from Xi'an. We haven't left here since the apocalypse."
Cong Xia asked, "How did you hear about our news?"
"We are not far from Hanzhong and Chengdu. There are many avian mutants over in Chengdu, and they spread information very quickly. We often buy news from them. However, they took the initiative to inform us about you."
"So, what is the purpose of you coming to find us?"
Meng Fei smiled and said, "No other intentions. We just wanted to meet you. We admire the strong, especially a powerful team like yours."
Cheng Tianbi coldly replied, "Just get to the point."
Meng Fei seemed a little embarrassed. "Alright, I'll be direct. Everyone, you all know about the Puppet Jade, right?"
The faces of the group slightly changed.
Meng Fei lowered his voice. "I want to cooperate with you to obtain the two pieces of Puppet Jade. Once we get them, you can take the larger fragment, and we'll take the smaller one. How about it?"
"Where did you get the information about the Puppet Jade?"
"It's not a secret. Everyone in Xi'an knows who has it. Xi'an is not peaceful right now, conflicts are everywhere, all for this damn Puppet Jade. If we don't get one piece, we're also in danger of being wiped out. So, we want to cooperate with you."
Zhuang Yao narrowed his eyes, observing them without speaking.
Cheng Tianbi also appeared to be deep in thought.
If they can obtain the Puppet Jade here, they wouldn't need to go to Luoyang, saving them a long journey.
But can these people be trusted?
Meng Fei seemed to see through their thoughts and hurriedly said, "If you don't trust me, I can take you to my hideout to see. Don't worry, I know the difference in our strengths, and I don't have the guts to play any tricks. Everyone, the Puppet Jade is a super treasure. I don't believe that you're not tempted."
Cheng Tianbi said, "We need to consider."
Meng Fei nodded, "We understand. I have prepared breakfast for you, it's outside the door. Have something to eat, freshen up, and we're not in a rush for your answer. We just hope that you understand our sincerity."
Author's note: Got a bit drunk, but fortunately managed to update before midnight.
92 Puppet Jade
The two of them nestled together and peacefully fell asleep. Cong Xia drifted off into dreamland, feeling content, while Cheng Tianbi also slept soundly.
However, in the middle of the night, they were awakened by a series of knocks on the door.
As soon as the door was knocked, Cheng Tianbi immediately sat up alertly and sternly asked, "Who is it?"
Cong Xia also woke up and asked, "What's going on?"
"Guests, please come out."
Cheng Tianbi reached for his gun and cautiously approached the door. He suddenly swung it open, pointing the gun at the person outside.
The hotel owner stood at the door with a few people, calmly looking at them.
Cheng Tianbi coldly asked, "What's the meaning of this?"
The owner replied, "Guests, we are doing business and surviving in the end times. It's not easy for anyone. I'm sorry, but we can't accommodate you anymore."
Cong Xia furrowed his brow and questioned, "Boss, what's going on?"
The owner maintained a calm expression, exuding the composed aura of a soldier in the face of danger. He cautiously explained, "You came from Hanzhong, right? You wiped out the Eagle Corps and Liu Laoda's gang. It was you, wasn't it?"
Cheng Tianbi's face turned grim.
The owner continued, "Your deeds have spread to the surrounding cities. I don't know which one of you is a natural force-evolved individual, and we can't afford to provoke you. There are powerful forces in Xi'an that want to meet with you. We don't want any trouble. My daughter made a thoughtless mistake by bringing you in. As they say, inviting gods is easy, but sending them away is difficult. I've prepared five liters of gasoline as a gesture of goodwill. I hope you will give me face and leave now."
The two of them exchanged glances, and Cong Xia solemnly said, "Alright, we won't cause any trouble for you, we'll leave."
The owner nodded. "Thank you."
Zhuang Yao and the others also came out of their rooms. Seeing the situation, they felt helpless and could only return to their rooms to get dressed and pack their belongings.
Ten minutes later, they descended the stairs.
Ai Jia looked at them with sadness. She must have been scolded by her father, her eyes slightly red and an expression of grievance on her face.
Cong Xia smiled at Ai Jia and said, "Ai Jia, thank you. We are already very satisfied to be able to take a hot shower. Sorry for causing you trouble."
Ai Jia pouted and didn't say anything.
They went to the parking lot to find Abu and retrieve their car.
Abu was curled up in his warm nest, sound asleep, and it felt wrong to disturb him.
However, as they approached, Abu woke up.
Zhuang Yao gently touched Abu's face. "Let's go, let's find another place."
Abu obediently crawled out.
Ai Jia walked up and handed them a map. "Follow this street. The location marked with a red heart on the map is an abandoned hotel. It was still operational half a month ago, but they gave up on it. If you go there now, the environment should still be decent."
"Ai Jia, thank you."
Being kicked out of a cozy bed while sleeping deeply was not a pleasant feeling, but fortunately, they had all grown accustomed to a life of constant movement. With the map provided by Ai Jia, they headed towards the abandoned hotel.
On the way, Zhuang Yao spoke in a low voice. "It seems that our movements have been noticed. There must be people who escaped that day."
Cong Xia sighed. "With so many birds that day, it's not surprising that some slipped through the cracks. Our journey ahead will be more challenging, especially now that it's known that we have natural force-evolved individuals among us."
Liu Fengyu patted Abu. "Our features are too distinctive. Just based on Abu, others can easily recognize us."
Zhuang Yao said, "The road ahead may become even more difficult. Everyone, prepare yourselves mentally."
They quickly found the hotel. As Ai Jia had described, it had only been abandoned recently, and the environment was still decent. The bedding had gathered some dust but was still clean.
They found several rooms and went inside to sleep. The rooms were particularly cold compared to the heated hotel Ai Jia stayed in, so they didn't dare to take off their clothes and simply lay down wearing thick down jackets.
Cheng Tianbi and Cong Xia cuddled closely together. With the person they loved by their side, they didn't feel the cold.
The next morning, they woke up early. Cong Xia planned to go downstairs to make breakfast for everyone. But as he reached the ground floor, he felt a wave of energy from the group. He looked out through the window and saw over a dozen people outside the hotel, fully wrapped up.
Cheng Tianbi followed him downstairs. "Are there people?"
"Well, they're all mutants."
The others also came downstairs one by one. They walked out of the door, and those mutants were standing outside the hotel's entrance, as if they had been waiting for a long time.
Cheng Tianbi looked at them and said coldly, "What does this mean? Who are you people?"
The leader of the group made a slight move and politely said, "Please don't worry, we have no ill intentions. We just wanted to see for ourselves who defeated the Eagle Corps and Liu Laoda."
Zhuang Yao spoke loudly, "Come in and have a seat. It's really cold outside."
The leader brought two people inside, and they sat on the sofa, cautiously sizing each other up.
The person said, "Let me introduce myself. I'm Meng Fei, and these are my brothers. We are all locals from Xi'an. We haven't left here since the apocalypse."
Cong Xia asked, "How did you hear about our news?"
"We are not far from Hanzhong and Chengdu. There are many avian mutants over in Chengdu, and they spread information very quickly. We often buy news from them. However, they took the initiative to inform us about you."
"So, what is the purpose of you coming to find us?"
Meng Fei smiled and said, "No other intentions. We just wanted to meet you. We admire the strong, especially a powerful team like yours."
Cheng Tianbi coldly replied, "Just get to the point."
Meng Fei seemed a little embarrassed. "Alright, I'll be direct. Everyone, you all know about the Puppet Jade, right?"
The faces of the group slightly changed.
Meng Fei lowered his voice. "I want to cooperate with you to obtain the two pieces of Puppet Jade. Once we get them, you can take the larger fragment, and we'll take the smaller one. How about it?"
"Where did you get the information about the Puppet Jade?"
"It's not a secret. Everyone in Xi'an knows who has it. Xi'an is not peaceful right now, conflicts are everywhere, all for this damn Puppet Jade. If we don't get one piece, we're also in danger of being wiped out. So, we want to cooperate with you."
Zhuang Yao narrowed his eyes, observing them without speaking.
Cheng Tianbi also appeared to be deep in thought.
If they can obtain the Puppet Jade here, they wouldn't need to go to Luoyang, saving them a long journey.
But can these people be trusted?
Meng Fei seemed to see through their thoughts and hurriedly said, "If you don't trust me, I can take you to my hideout to see. Don't worry, I know the difference in our strengths, and I don't have the guts to play any tricks. Everyone, the Puppet Jade is a super treasure. I don't believe that you're not tempted."
Cheng Tianbi said, "We need to consider."
Meng Fei nodded, "We understand. I have prepared breakfast for you, it's outside the door. Have something to eat, freshen up, and we're not in a rush for your answer. We just hope that you understand our sincerity."
Author's note: Got a bit drunk, but fortunately managed to update before midnight.
