Qi Maojin's father was able to remain in the position of eleventh leader for so many years, naturally he had his own unique set of survival rules.

If it were any other man, upon learning that his concubine had already conceived a child with another man before she came with him, he would probably be furious and erupt in a rage. But he was different. He endured it all, and even shamelessly tried to use Qi Maojin's connection to climb the social ladder and establish a relationship with the First Leader.

At that time, Qi Maojin had the lowest status among his brothers and sisters. He didn't even have his own name and had always been called "little bastard." It wasn't until his "background" was revealed that he was finally given a proper name, and he even took the surname of his half-sister.

His desire to curry favor was practically written all over his face; even a blind man could see it. How could the First Leader not understand? However, she didn't care about these small details. Having one more or one less brother made no difference to her, especially since she had already investigated. Qi Maojin had grown up unloved by his parents, like a weed. Although he resembled his father and looked shrewd and unapproachable, he was actually an empty-headed, all-knowing person who posed no threat to her.

All it takes is to outwardly accept this younger brother and give him a little benefit, and you can gain a reputation for being kind and benevolent. You can also take the opportunity to win over the eleventh leader and expand your sphere of influence. Why not?

Thus, Qi Maojin transformed from a lowly, unpopular half-demon into the younger brother personally acknowledged by the first leader, and countless people came to curry favor with him.

However, while Qi Maojin appeared glamorous on the surface, his every move was actually controlled by the First Leader. She gave him endless wealth and an enviable status, but she didn't grant him any power. He couldn't integrate into the real elite circles, and he wasn't qualified to even glance at anything related to secrets. Even the bodyguards following him were essentially there to monitor him.

Everyone knew perfectly well that he was merely a tool used by the First Leader to demonstrate his benevolence, but they all tacitly kept quiet about it and "respectfully" addressed him as Young Master Qi.

However, Nan Xian was unaware of all this at the moment.

Based on her years of experience in the entertainment industry, she saw through him and realized he was nothing but a paper tiger, all bark and no bite. So she had already made a plan. After gaining his trust by feigning flattery, she asked Qi Maojin to show her some sights.

Qi Maojin wanted to show off in front of Nan Xian, so he naturally agreed to the suggestion. He winked at the short snake-clan youth beside him, who immediately understood and suggested, "I heard that Shixi Tower has just received a batch of good goods. Why don't we go take a look?"

Qi Maojin nodded, "Alright, let's go to Shixi Tower!"

After saying that, he raised his hand and beckoned. Several dark figures who were squatting in the corner by the roadside immediately popped out and rushed over in a hurry.

Illuminated by the neon lights, Nan Xian finally saw their faces clearly and was immediately startled—

They were all strangely shaped, and this was not an exaggeration, but a fact. For example, the fastest one was huge, looking like a moving mountain at first glance. He had a pair of long, sharp brown horns on his head, and his back and arm muscles were bulging high, as if he could kill three big men with one punch. But a long, fluffy tail like a leopard suddenly grew from his back.

The one behind him was even stranger. His face was no different from that of an ordinary human, but his head was bald without a single hair. He also had a thin neck and limbs like a chimpanzee, which made Nan Xian unconsciously think of the "Slender Man" from horror stories.

They stopped in front of the group, opened the bundles slung across their chests, and a cloud of black mist automatically emerged from the bundles, condensing on their backs into a shape resembling a sedan chair.

They immediately got down on all fours, adopting a crawling posture like animals.

Nan Xian was immediately stunned.

Seeing the shock on her face, Qi Maojin glanced at the group with disdain and said, "Their parents are not of the same race. They were forced to marry, so they gave birth to this monster, who is only fit to be our mounts—" He paused, turned to look at Nan Xian, and suddenly lowered his voice, "However, they are not the lowest of the low in the Dark Zone."

Nan Xian followed up on his question by asking, "Then what is the most despicable?"

Qi Maojin gave a meaningful smile, but did not answer. Instead, he stepped on the horned monster's head and put his back on it, sitting steadily in the sedan chair. Then he raised his chin to Nan Xian, gesturing for her to get on as well.

Nan Xian frowned almost imperceptibly. The education she received from childhood and the values ​​she was influenced by made it impossible for her to accept such an absurd situation.

She had only ever seen such a scenario—stepping on a "person" and using them as a means of transportation—in history books and TV dramas.

Especially considering how similar the Dark Zone had been to the human world as she walked along, with its zebra crossings, traffic lights, and transportation systems resembling subways and buses, and even the presence of numerous well-known car brands on the roads, it was clear that the Dark Zone's technological development was quite advanced. Yet, this bizarre scene had suddenly appeared...

There are perfectly normal modes of transportation, yet they insist on doing such humiliating things. This immediately reminded her of some cruel historical facts: In ancient Western times, a kind of extremely bloody and brutal "game" was prevalent among nobles—they would throw their strong slaves into the arena to fight each other, or even fight against wild beasts that had been starved for days and nights. The slaves who survived by fighting their way out usually did not receive any substantial benefits, while their noble masters gained a great sense of satisfaction from it.

How is this any different from those "games" that treat human life as worthless and trample on and insult it at will?

She felt a strong aversion and intended to refuse, but she had only taken half a step back when the short snake-like boy standing diagonally behind her suddenly stepped forward and blocked her path as a warning, his pair of eerie green snake eyes coldly staring at her.

Nan Xian's heart skipped a beat. She then glanced at the bodyguards who were eyeing her menacingly. She gritted her teeth, bent down, and whispered "sorry" to the horned monster. Then, she tried to walk as quietly as possible, quickly climbed onto his back, and settled into the sedan chair.

Qi Maojin glanced at her, a slight, mocking smile playing on his lips, and then gave her a location.

Hearing the sound, the monsters slowly raised their bodies. Nan Xian subconsciously gripped the handrail of the sedan chair, but to her surprise, the monsters ran quite steadily, and she did not feel any discomfort caused by the bumps.

A group of more than ten monsters weaved through the road, a truly astonishing sight. Vehicles that were originally driving normally in front of them automatically made way, which made Qi Maojin even more smug, his chin practically reaching to the sky.

Just then, Nan Xian suddenly noticed a side street next to the intersection. The lights there were dimmer than the others, and the whole street was covered in a dusty red and purple hue. The words on the signs were distorted shapes she had never seen before, and under those signs, groups of young men and women stood in twos and threes.

The monsters slowed down slightly, allowing her to see the men and women clearly, which stunned her.