Someone Inside the Hotel

On the way out of Linjiang University, Jiang Yang made no effort to hide his strength, the Black Gold Ancient Blade swinging freely in his hand as he mowed down every zombie that charged at him like chopping vegetables.

Qiu Chan was panting heavily, her stamina nearly spent, but she seemed unwilling to let Jiang Yang outshine her in the kill count.

Her steps were light as lotus blossoms, each one reaping a zombie that drew too close.

Jiang Yang, however, had plenty of room to spare. He pulled out a metal shield with no paint on it, almost identical to Captain America's shield—the only difference being that this one had no coating and no star emblem.

But what Jiang Yang cared about most was the shield's material.

Name: Vibranium Round Shield.

Category: Armor.

Grade: B.

Description: Same model as Captain America's shield, forged from Vibranium, the strongest metal in the Marvel universe.

B-grade?

Jiang Yang was a bit surprised. He glanced at his Black Gold Ancient Blade, and its attribute info now showed a grade too—except it was listed as unknown.

Then he looked at Qiu Chan's Tang Saber, which displayed a grade of B+.

"System, why couldn't I see the grades on these items before?"

Jiang Yang remembered that when he'd used Plunderer's Insight on his Black Gold Ancient Blade and Qiu Chan's blade earlier, there were no grades shown.

In the original setting, weapons and items all had grades, ranging from D at the lowest to S at the highest, though a few items exceeded that cap—like the Black Gold Ancient Blade.

Plunderer's Insight improves with the host's usage frequency and proficiency, allowing it to perceive finer details.

Nice. Wonder if it can see through things.

Jiang Yang turned his gaze to Qiu Chan. Her kendo uniform had lost both sleeves during the fight, and there were a few torn holes in other places.

Looked like she was only wearing underwear underneath?

The School Beauty really had an amazing figure!

Jiang Yang stared without blinking until Qiu Chan's pretty face flushed slightly, a hint of displeasure in her eyes. Only then did he stop.

Normally, Qiu Chan wouldn't have gotten shy over something like this.

Guess it depends on the person now.

Jiang Yang hummed a little tune, mentally planning how he'd conquer Qiu Chan fair and square. Just then, a crisp, anxious female voice rang out not far away.

"Brother Jiang!"

It was Ye Qingwei and Xiao Wan, both being chased by a few zombies.

Without a word, Jiang Yang struck down the zombies instantly. Ye Qingwei, disregarding everything, threw herself into his arms.

"Wah... Brother Jiang, Brother Wu Lei got left behind by those people!"

"Don't cry first. Tell me what happened."

Jiang Yang quickly comforted Ye Qingwei, then looked at Xiao Wan, who was also panting heavily. Seeing them like this really stung his heart.

"It's all my fault... I shouldn't have let those people in..."

Ye Qingwei was wracked with grief and guilt, sobbing uncontrollably. Jiang Yang's heart jolted—he'd almost forgotten. In the original story, Ye Qingwei was a bit of a saint!

Damn.

How did I forget that?

He could already guess what happened next. He'd reinforced the top floors of the hotel, and the people from the lower floors must have come up to his section.

Begging for shelter with every excuse they could think of.

Ye Qingwei must have agreed, and then those people turned the tables on them.

And that was exactly what happened. Ye Qingwei, still crying, explained the whole situation.

"Wu Lei held them off so we could escape, or we'd all have been caught!"

Xiao Wan punched the air fiercely, while Ye Qingwei just hung her head, looking like a little girl who'd messed up.

"How many of them are there?"

Jiang Yang felt a bit helpless. This was a plot point from the original story—Ye Qingwei, out of kindness, let some people into Ye Fan's small base, and they ended up taking over.

But now wasn't the time to lecture Ye Qingwei. The priority was rescuing Wu Lei.

"How many people do they have?"

"Over forty, more than half are men." Compared to the tearful Ye Qingwei, Xiao Wan was still relatively calm, her words and actions sharp and decisive.

"They have a lot of crossbows—all ours. I got hit by an arrow on the way here."

Xiao Wan lifted her arm. There wasn't a single scar, but there was a trace of blood.

She had indeed been shot while escaping, but Ye Qingwei had healed her with her ability.

"Alright, let's go."

After getting a quick rundown, Jiang Yang headed toward the hotel.

Ye Qingwei and Xiao Wan were taken aback. "Brother Jiang, they outnumber us. Should we think this through?"

"I've already figured out a plan."

Jiang Yang spread his hands. Forty-some ordinary people posed no real threat to him now. Even if they had crossbows, he could dodge them easily—just charge in head-on.

In the original story, Ye Fan only faced this situation after acquiring the Dragon Totem, and the base's occupiers were professionals. So he spent time planning before acting.

But Jiang Yang didn't need that. Just forty-some ordinary people.

His plan was brute-force domination!

Ye Qingwei and Xiao Wan exchanged glances, about to follow, when a handsome figure slipped past them—Qiu Chan.

"Need my help?"

Qiu Chan held a single blade, asking calmly.

Li Shun and Zhang Yao also stepped forward.

"No need. You all just watch from the side. It might get a bit bloody, so steel yourselves. In the apocalypse, when dealing with enemies, it's kill or be killed."

Jiang Yang shook his head. He'd take their stuff, sure, but if they came for his? He'd scatter their ashes to the wind.

Inside the high-end hotel, the aroma of hotpot filled the air as a group gathered around a table.

"Pair of threes."

"Little Joker!"

"Little Joker on a pair of threes?"

They ate hotpot and played poker, living a life of ease.

Wu Lei was tied to a load-bearing pillar, drenched in blood.

"Who was that who just ran out?"

A young man in gold-rimmed glasses crouched before Wu Lei, fiddling with a crossbow bolt.

"You've got all this gear ready—did you know the apocalypse was coming?"

"That guy who killed the big lizard earlier—he's your boss, right? What's his name?"

The young man fired off several questions, but Wu Lei only shook his head, glaring fiercely. "You bunch of animals! Biting the hand that feeds you!"

"We never should have let you in!"

The young man adjusted his glasses. Two others stepped forward to beat Wu Lei.

Just then, someone spoke up.

"Young Master Yu, isn't this a bit much?" It was a middle-aged woman, followed by a few others.

"Yeah, Young Master Yu. They let us in, and we not only took their place but drove them out. What kind of behavior is that?"

"Right, don't hit that brother anymore. When the owner comes back, we can clear up the misunderstanding, can't we?"

"Misunderstanding?" Yu Chang adjusted his glasses, pointing at the hotpot and poker cards on the table. "The food you're eating, the stuff you're playing with—all taken from them. You think he'll just agree?"

"You've seen what's outside. Rescue might not come anytime soon, and if it gets worse, there might be no rescue at all!"

"From today, everyone's food will be rationed equally!"

"And everyone must contribute to this group, or get out!"