Chapter 80

When Xiao Shengyun returned, it was already dark. The house was empty; the other owner had not returned.

He quickly packed his clothes and toiletries; there wasn't much stuff, he could just put it in any bag and take it with him.

Besides that, there's something else going on tonight.

Xiao Shengyun knocked on Fan Huacheng's door. Leaving this person here was ultimately a hidden danger; he might be found by the guards one day. The industrial area contained ordinary people and awakened individuals, making it an excellent hiding place.

The door was opened after a long while. Fan Huacheng was initially pleasantly surprised, but then a hint of panic flashed in his eyes.

His clothes and hair were neat and tidy, not like someone who had been staying at home for several days.

Xiao Shengyun squeezed through the door, and a dark figure quickly pounced from behind the door, attacking his back. However, the intruder's attack missed, because the latter's body bent at an incredible angle and then kicked out.

The attacker blocked the kick with his arm, took a few steps back, and pressed his back against the wall.

He was their neighbor, the dark-skinned man they met on their first day of check-in.

Neither of them had any special talents, and because the house was cramped, they couldn't even use their fists and feet properly. Xiao Shengyun had already fought with Yang Xin earlier that day, and now he had been attacked again, so he wasn't in a good mood.

He subdued the man in a few swift movements, then looked at Fan Huacheng with an unprecedentedly cold expression: "Explain yourself?"

Xiao Shengyun was furious. He paid the rent for this kid and bought him the nutrient solution, but then he turned around and colluded with others to betray him.

"Excuse me, this is my partner and also my contact."

"It was me who wanted to test you, it has nothing to do with Fan Huacheng."

The man struggled to his feet, dusting himself off. His name was Xie Yuan, also a member of the Xizhou Action Department. He and Fan Huacheng had recognized each other while investigating the residents of the building in private.

He felt grateful to Xiao Shengyun and the other person, but also harbored a hint of suspicion.

“Although you saved him, you have not revealed your identity. I had to test you, since the strength of our teammates and the success of the mission are closely linked here,” Jie Yuan explained.

“I’m from the Operations Department in S City, and the other person is from the headquarters research institute. We both came to this city inexplicably.” Xiao Shengyun’s expression was still not very good. Although he could sense that the other party had no ill intentions, he hadn’t even used his talent in the previous exchange.

“S City, that’s more than 2,000 kilometers away from this city.” Jie Yuanyuan expressed doubt. Even when carrying out missions across regions, they usually go to the nearest one. How could they possibly cross such a long distance?

Xiao Shengyun briefly explained how they arrived. During the journey, the space seemed to change, as if they had passed through a time tunnel and arrived here directly. The source of this power, which allows one to traverse thousands of miles in a short time, is unknown.

This city is separated from the human settlements of Xizhou by a large polluted area. To enter, one must first cross the polluted zone and evade the city gate guards' search. Therefore, Xizhou only sent twenty people this time, and less than ten actually succeeded in entering the city.

Xiao Shengyun: "..."

He thought he could just brute force his way through, but how could he possibly fight with less than ten people?

Just like their plan, Jie Yuan intended to enter the highest temple by winning in the fighting arena.

After Zhou Zhi returned, Xiao Shengyun briefly explained the current situation. The four then discussed the matter and decided that Zhou Zhi would split up. Fan Huacheng would enter the industrial zone to protect Yang Xin, while Xiao Shengyun would head to the aquaculture area.

"Do you think what they're saying is true?" Late at night, Xiao Shengyun lay in bed. He didn't trust these two people. Having an unstable element as a teammate was more dangerous than going it alone.

"Don't worry."

"Okay, then I hope I don't see you in the breeding area." He yawned, turned his head, and fell into a deep sleep.

Zhou Zhi turned to the side, his gaze sweeping over Xiao Shengyun's eyelashes, nose, and lips. He looked very well-behaved while sleeping, and you couldn't tell at all that he was not human.

He recalled the bloody kiss from not long ago, and his heart pounding in his chest.

When I arrived at the breeding area the next day, there was a huge crowd at the entrance. The manager from yesterday had made a big promise, and there seemed to be even more people than yesterday.

"The farm is divided into production, processing and transportation departments. This time, only the first two departments are hiring. Next, each person will receive a card. Red is for the production department and blue is for the processing department."

"The processing department mainly processes products, while the production department mainly raises these little guys."

Ji Wan led the newlyweds into a building. The building was very clean and tidy, and each room had a number and description written in front of it.

He casually opened a door, and what was inside made everyone's eyes widen and their faces turn pale.

—A three-headed dog is trapped in the room.

The dog almost filled half the room. Each of its enormous heads had a pair of dark eyes and exposed, protruding teeth. What was even more terrifying was the countless tiny snakes that slithered on its back, as if they were parasites on its body or growing out of its flesh.

A bloody and violent aura assaulted the senses. The corrupted creature appeared as insignificant as an ant before it, its sharp teeth capable of biting off half a body in one bite.

"These are the animals you're going to raise. Would you like to give them a try?"

A staff member pushed a cage over, inside which was a contaminated person missing an arm.

“You can feed it.” Ji Wan smiled, his tone as if asking a child if they wanted to feed the goldfish in the ornamental pond, but all the polluters felt a chill run down their spines.

They are not human, but they are the same kind of fish as the bait that is being fed to them.

Perhaps attracted by the smell of food, the three-headed dog suddenly rushed out of the door, its mouth full of sharp teeth rushing towards the group, and they could even smell the fishy stench emanating from its mouth.

"ah!"

"It's coming out!"

People scattered and fled. Ji Wan reached out and patted the three-headed dog's head, and the dog immediately quieted down.

The only way to leave the building was by swiping a card. After a while, seeing that the three-headed dog had calmed down, everyone carefully returned.

Their fearful gazes were not directed at the three-headed dog, but at Jiwan.

The talent to soothe pollutants is almost unheard of; if someone can control pollutants, their strength is immeasurable.

Ji Wan put the cage into the room and closed the door. The image appeared on the monitor at the door. The three-headed dog first approached the cage, then bit it hard, cutting the cage in half with its sharp teeth. The snake on the three-headed dog slowly swam to the corrupted person.

This time everyone saw clearly that the snakes really were growing on the three-headed dog's body.

"Isn't it simple? Just like a zookeeper, you only need to feed them twice a day."

No one believed Ji Wan's words. They didn't have the talent to soothe pollutants, yet they were raising them; they were probably feeding themselves to the monsters.

They walked through the long corridor, the rows of tightly closed doors sending a chill down everyone's spines, in case the contaminants broke through...

Xiao Shengyun found it strange. These metals could isolate pollution, but real high-level pollutants could not be trapped by these broken metal plates. The three-headed dog's eyes were lifeless at first, and its attack was just based on instinct.

Before Givan could calm the three-headed dog down, it had already been subdued.

There really are other living beings living in this city, possessing the talent to control pollutants.

This is troublesome.

The next area is the production zone, where contaminants are tied up, their different parts are dissected, and then they are made into different products.

For example, there was a huge barnacle with many rolling eyeballs inside. Dozens of pairs of clear black and white eyes stared at the visitors, making everyone feel nauseous.

The person at the workbench used tongs to remove the eyeballs one by one. At the base of the eyeballs were thin, blood-red filaments, somewhat like connected nerve tissue.

These eyeballs were sealed in boxes and neatly packed into cartons, just like ordinary commodities.

There were also giant monsters with tentacles, whose tentacles were cut off piece by piece and sealed in jars like octopus tentacles.

Strangely, these pollutants offered no resistance, allowing various tools to traverse their bodies.

Who would buy this?

Xiao Shengyun suddenly remembered the dishes served at the hotel; it seemed he had found the manufacturer.

However, when he saw those boxes, his first thought was whether the food provided by the hotel could be considered pre-cooked food.

After the pre-job training, the subsequent lottery process became particularly exciting. It was obvious that the production department was much more dangerous than the processing department, and everyone hoped to get a blue card.

Ji Wan handed out an envelope to everyone, and the color of the card could only be seen after tearing open the envelope.

This is more exciting than buying lottery tickets.

Those who drew red cards knelt down and wept, while those who drew blue cards shouted and screamed. Someone tried to take advantage of the situation to snatch the blue card, but was immediately shot dead by the staff next to Ji Wan.

The gunshot jolted everyone's eardrums, and silence fell like a chicken's.

"Can I get a different color?"

In the silence, a person held up a card and asked.

Where did this idiot come from? Didn't he see the still-warm corpse on the ground?

Everyone looked at the arrogant man, only to be startled by the blue card in his hand.

It was Xiao Shengyun.

The pollutants in the processing areas were barely alive; more clues could be found in the production area. He needed to understand how these pollutants were controlled.

Everyone else stared intently at the blue card, ready to swarm forward if Ji Wan agreed.

"Of course." Ji Wan also thought this person was crazy, but he wouldn't stop someone who wanted to die.