When Mu Ying walked into the room filled with accumulated water, Shen Feng and others followed, observing their surroundings as they moved.
The small building was very rudimentary; water was even dripping from the ceiling inside, failing to provide even the basic function of shelter from wind and rain.
Inside the small building were many women, all in tattered clothes. The exposed skin was pale and bore numerous scars, indicating they had suffered greatly. The women in the room averted their gazes, not daring to look directly at the newcomers.
Seeing this, Shen Feng couldn't help but ask, "Since the room is filled with water, why don't you go upstairs to escape the rain?"
Shen Feng, being a medical student, knew that living in an environment with waterlogged floors could lead to death from exposure alone. Even in summer, if people were submerged in water, their body heat would constantly dissipate, and they could freeze to death.
Therefore, Shen Feng hoped these people could move upstairs, at least to avoid the trouble caused by the accumulated water.
Mu Ying said slowly, "It's easier said than done. Go upstairs and see for yourself, and you'll understand everything."
Shen Feng, not understanding, went upstairs and discovered that women resided in all the rooms of the small building. These women were covered in injuries, with some lying on beds, unable to move, their bodies wrapped in thick bandages. In the three-story building, there were at least a hundred people, all crammed together.
It seemed that the women on the first floor were not unwilling to live upstairs, but rather that the upstairs rooms were already full.
Suddenly, a haggard woman walked down from upstairs. Her clothes were much tidier. She approached Mu Ying and asked, "Sister, you're back? How is it, did you find an opportunity for revenge?"
Mu Ying did not answer. Instead, she pointed to Shen Feng and Ke Yi Ming, saying, "These two are the helpers I found. Get acquainted. They are Shen Feng and Ke Yi Ming. Also, this is my capable assistant and an ability user, Zheng Xiqing. From now on, if you need to find the Dragon King, you will need her help."
Shen Feng extended his hand and said to the haggard woman, "Hello, I am Shen Feng."
"Lord Fengshen, is it? I've heard of you!" Zheng Xiqing shook hands with Shen Feng and then introduced herself to Ke Yi Ming. As for the other two, there was no need for introductions.
This made Lu Kaiwen and Old Li feel a bit dejected. Did only ability users need introductions? Was this too much favoritism?
Mu Ying took out two grass carp from her person, threaded through their gills with grass stems, and handed them to Zheng Xiqing, saying, "Go fry these two fish. Let the sisters with more severe injuries eat them first to replenish some energy."
Zheng Xiqing shook her head and honestly replied, "There's no oil."
"Then stew them. Drinking fish soup is also a pleasure."
"There's no pot."
"Roast the fish. Even if it doesn't taste good, as long as it's edible."
"There's no firewood."
Ke Yi Ming couldn't help but interject at this point, "Then why not eat the fish raw? You must have knives, right?"
"We do have knives, but the fish also have parasites. Eating them raw is risky," Zheng Xiqing said honestly.
Zheng Xiqing's words were not false. Since the schistosomiasis had mutated, its hosts had also expanded. Even fish and shrimp could easily carry cercariae or eggs. If consumed raw, they would immediately be targeted by schistosomiasis. Once the liver was almost completely consumed, the schistosomiasis would break through the abdomen and emerge.
For a moment, no one present knew what to do with the two fish.
Shen Feng nudged Ke Yi Ming and said, "Now is your chance to shine. Isn't your ability fire?"
Ke Yi Ming shook his head helplessly and said, "It's too demeaning to use my ability to roast fish. I'll use the solid fuel in my bag. It should be enough for roasting fish."
Afterward, Ke Yi Ming found the solid fuel in his bag and handed it to Zheng Xiqing. With the fuel, they could finally roast the fish. Shen Feng calculated that with over a hundred people in the building, two fish were far from enough. He also contributed the compressed biscuits from his bag.
"Distribute these compressed biscuits as well. It'll at least give them something to eat," Shen Feng said to Zheng Xiqing.
Zheng Xiqing nodded and took the compressed biscuits. Lu Kaiwen couldn't just stand by, so he also took out his compressed biscuits.
There was no place to sit in the room, and the upstairs was already overcrowded. In the end, the group sat in the stairwell.
Ke Yi Ming asked, "Why is it so miserable here? You're an ability user, you should be able to provide them with a better life. If this continues, someone will eventually die in such harsh conditions. It will be too late to regret it then!"
"Is that so? Too late to regret it?" Mu Ying shook her head helplessly and said with emotion, "This matter shouldn't have been my responsibility, nor should I be the one regretting it. I was just fleeing here for refuge when I was being pursued, and coincidentally, I became their hope. The one who caused all this is the lord of this small city!"
"Did the lord of this small city refuse to help?" Shen Feng asked.
Mu Ying immediately sneered and said, "If it were just a refusal to help, that would be great. Perhaps these women wouldn't be so miserable."
Then, Mu Ying revealed the truth of the small city. After the doomsday descended, many ambitious individuals appeared. There were powerful figures like Shen Feng who occupied a region, and small bases struggling with a group of civilians. People of all kinds existed.
As for the lord of Linwu City, he was much simpler. He was subservient to the strong and abused the weak. He was particularly greedy; whatever he saw in the small city, he would find a way to obtain it—gold and jewelry, food, and even beautiful women, he wanted to get his hands on.
Living in such a city was extremely tragic. The lord took whatever he pleased, and the people below could only endure silently.
This lord was not foolish. He gathered the strong men in the city and led them to commit evil deeds, while the remaining people had no ability to resist and were eventually squeezed to death.
Speaking of which, Mu Ying pointed to the upstairs and said lightly, "Look, this is the consequence of that scumbag's actions. The women tortured by him and his subordinates are here. These are the ones who persevered. Those who died were already thrown outside the city and eaten by wild dogs and cats."
Upon hearing this, Ke Yi Ming became furious. He stood up and said directly, "Since that's the case, there's no time to delay. Let's act on behalf of heaven immediately. We'll rush to that scumbag's house and burn him to ashes. That would be a form of revenge for the deceased."
Mu Ying shook her head and said, "If it were that simple, I would have killed him long ago. But he has a backer! And a backer from the Heavenly Chosen Bureau!"
Ke Yi Ming frowned, surprised that the lord of this small city had a backer. Had he deceived someone in the Heavenly Chosen Bureau?
Shen Feng also asked at the same time, "What exactly is going on? How can the lord of a small city be involved with an ability user from the Heavenly Chosen Bureau?"
Mu Ying said slowly, "Actually, ever since the entire country was ravaged by zombies, the military has been continuously reclaiming cities. However, these reclaimed cities were only the large ones. For smaller places, the army couldn't reach them immediately. For these places—small cities, towns, or villages—they needed to save themselves. Once self-rescue was complete, they would try to be incorporated and appoint a city lord. In this way, the city would be considered reclaimed in name!"
Shen Feng nodded. He knew this. Although he wasn't the earliest to reclaim Luzhou, he was the first leader to reclaim the city using cold weapons. Later, he also received a letter of appointment, and his side was considered incorporated, while maintaining independence.
"You all know about those people from the Heavenly Chosen Bureau. They are all favored by heaven. To ensure they could prosper even in the doomsday, someone paved the way for them!" Mu Ying said lightly. "They incorporated promising bases and then provided them with weapons, letting these bases reclaim cities. The credit was then attributed to the Heavenly Chosen Bureau! It was incredibly easy to accumulate merit, and once these people had enough merit, the laboratory developed ability serums, which were also prioritized for them!"
Hearing this, Ke Yi Ming gritted his teeth and punched the wall fiercely. A crack immediately appeared on the wall, and more water dripped down from above.
"These parasites, they don't have much ability, but they have plenty of tricks!" Ke Yi Ming gritted out.
Mu Ying glanced at Ke Yi Ming. She didn't have any issues with the people from the Ability Management Bureau because she knew that the people from the Ability Management Bureau were recruited after being discovered among the populace, similar to her own background. In fact, the Ability Management Bureau was not as free as she was now.
"So, this base is protected by an ability user!" Shen Feng said, frowning.
Mu Ying nodded and said seriously, "The lord of this small city is only a second-tier evolver. He might be powerful to ordinary people, but to us, killing him would be as easy as lifting a finger. However, this ability user resides in the city, and we cannot expose ourselves, especially you, Ke Yi Ming. If you don't want to be targeted, you absolutely cannot show yourself."
Mu Ying had stated the difficulty. It wasn't that killing was hard, but killing discreetly was the most challenging part! The scumbag's residence had many confidants, all armed with guns. Once anyone saw the true faces of the ability users, it would lead to endless trouble.
Ke Yi Ming couldn't help but say, "They shouldn't come after me, should they? There are many ability users who wield fire in the world, and besides, I am responsible for guarding the Three Gorges. General Chen will protect me."
Mu Ying shrugged, not answering.
Shen Feng, however, nodded and said seriously, "If we can avoid exposure, let's do so. That's the most important thing. I also don't want to stir up trouble. Let's first discuss a good plan, including what to do after the killing."
After Zheng Xiqing roasted the fish, she brought the fish meat to the mouths of the injured. She found a dirty jar from under the bed and then boiled the compressed biscuits into a paste, giving a few mouthfuls to each of the women in the room. Everyone in the small building had somewhat recovered some vitality, but a somber atmosphere still permeated the air.
For the women in the small building, since the doomsday descended, they had fallen into hell. Every day they endured endless torment. They had originally hoped for someone to save them, but in the end, they heard that the scumbag who had tormented them for so long had become the city lord and would continue his inhumane rule.
Instantly, many women went mad. Living in this tragic hell, they saw no hope at all.
This kind of life only changed after Mu Ying appeared. It was on a rainy night a few days ago that Mu Ying, in a disheveled state, entered the house, evading Gong Changfa's pursuit. Zheng Xiqing had also taken care of the heavily injured Mu Ying, so Mu Ying decided to lead these women who had lost hope to seek revenge and then find a place where they could live undisturbed.
Mu Ying disguised herself as a beggar and gathered information everywhere. She finally waited for Gong Changfa to leave. Perhaps he thought Mu Ying had already escaped, so he chose to leave with his men.
However, a new ability user from the Heavenly Chosen Bureau arrived. This was an ability user responsible for recruitment, and they were very powerful. The heavily injured Mu Ying was not confident in dealing with him, so Mu Ying chose to find helpers. By chance, she heard that Shen Feng and Ke Yi Ming were pursuing the Yangtze River Dragon King, so she found a way to locate these two.