Ye Zheng

Chapter 36: Ye Zheng

The news from Jiangkou City exploded across the internet.

The scale of the underground cavern shocked countless people, sparking massive discussion among netizens.

For instance, a pit this enormous must have taken a long time to dig—why did no one notice the excavation process?

Another question: where did all the excavated earth go? Did the sand and stone simply vanish into thin air?

The residential buildings above the cavern were clearly unfit for continued habitation. No one could be sure the ground wouldn't collapse. How would so many residents be relocated? And how would the local government handle future safety risks?

The internet buzzed with noise and chaos, but the Xenomorph Supervision Bureau remained silent.

Yunhai City Xenomorph Supervision Branch—

A young woman in a white blouse and black slim-fit trousers hurried down the corridor, stopped before an office, and raised her hand to knock.

Bang bang bang!

She knocked urgently, then forced the door open without waiting for a reply.

"Chief! I'm requesting a transfer back to Qingjiang City!"

Slap!

Ye Zheng slapped her application onto the desk.

Behind the desk sat a middle-aged woman in a beige skirt suit. Seeing Ye Zheng barge in, she calmly removed her glasses and said, "Every inspector's transfer order comes from the head office. Even I can't change that."

Ye Zheng's stubborn energy deflated instantly. A hint of pleading crept onto her face. "Sister Mei, just help me out. If you sign my application, the head office might consider sending me back!"

Mei Junyu picked up the application, glanced at it, then set it down gently.

"Is this about the sinkhole news from Jiangkou City?" Mei Junyu asked.

Ye Zheng closed her eyes and nodded. "The number of Xenomorph cases in Qingjiang City has been growing too fast lately. Jiangkou is so close to Qingjiang—Zhou Diao can't handle it alone!"

"Maybe you should learn to trust your partner. From what I can see, he completed this mission quite well," Mei Junyu said calmly. "The Contaminant was successfully eliminated, and six cards were recovered."

"That's just temporary luck! Besides, Zhou Diao was injured—that means the mission didn't go smoothly!" Ye Zheng said anxiously. "I've been transferred to Yunhai City for so long, and I haven't handled a single Xenomorph case! They don't need me here. I should go back to Qingjiang!"

Mei Junyu remained composed. "I understand how you feel, but you need to understand: where you're needed isn't for you to judge subjectively. That's for your superiors to decide."

"Sister Mei!"

Ye Zheng wanted to argue further, but Mei Junyu opened a drawer and pulled out a file, placing it on the desk.

"Take a look at this," Mei Junyu said.

Frowning, Ye Zheng picked it up. After reading for a moment, her expression turned serious. "This is... information on the Maze?"

"Correct." Mei Junyu nodded. "This is the Maze data just sent over by the Research Institute. The Maze's contamination is spreading. That one sinkhole in Jiangkou City has you shouting from the rooftops, but you don't realize that crises dozens or even hundreds of times more severe are right beside us. Ye Zheng, you need to broaden your horizons."

Ye Zheng fell silent, then asked, "When's the operation?"

"This operation is extremely dangerous. The higher-ups are still considering candidates." Mei Junyu looked up at Ye Zheng. "But I can tell you this clearly: you're on the shortlist, and you're one of the primary assault members."

Ye Zheng inhaled sharply and bit her lip. "Sister Mei, I withdraw my application. But I want to take one day off before the operation to go back to Qingjiang City."

Mei Junyu gazed at her deeply.

After a moment, she nodded. "Alright, approved."

Qingjiang City.

After returning home, Feng Ling had crashed into a deep sleep, sleeping straight through until noon the next day. Her biological clock was completely thrown off.

If not for the unbearable hunger, Feng Ling felt she could have kept sleeping.

She left her comfortable bed and habitually headed for the kitchen to find food. The moment she stepped out of her bedroom door, she saw Huangfu Miaomiao's face—full of misery, grievance, anxiety, helplessness, and confusion.

Feng Ling couldn't help but laugh.

The moment she laughed, Huangfu Miaomiao on the couch immediately looked over, her expression even more despairing!

"This is a disaster!" Huangfu Miaomiao stared at her in collapse.

"What disaster?" Feng Ling walked over and asked.

Huangfu Miaomiao pointed at the virtual screen that Feng Ling couldn't see, on the verge of tears. "After your advancement was announced on the system bulletin, a ton of people on the forum are discussing how to kill you."

"So how are they planning to kill me?" Feng Ling asked, very interested.

"Stop laughing! This is no joke!" Huangfu Miaomiao opened the most popular thread. "The Hive's traits and skills have all been exposed, and they're analyzing your weaknesses. Wuwuwu..."

Feng Ling picked up the tablet nearby and handed it to Huangfu Miaomiao. "Copy the content down for me so I can see your forum too. Oh, and what do you want to eat? I'm ordering takeout."

Huangfu Miaomiao took the tablet with a mournful face. "I'll eat anything..."

"Then I'll order a bit of everything." Feng Ling opened the food delivery app and began studying it seriously.

Huangfu Miaomiao looked at Feng Ling helplessly, thinking: How does she do it? How can she be both interested in people wanting to kill her and seem to not care at all?

Feng Ling was completely absorbed in ordering food.

Her Nest Building ability was extremely unique. First, she had to construct a foundation using cards, then accumulate a massive amount of energy within the nest, and finally select the right bones and flesh. Not a single step could go wrong before new life could be conceived.

So after building the nest twice in a row, the energy inside Feng Ling's body was rapidly absorbed by the nest, nearly draining her to the point of death.

Even after absorbing all her energy, the nest still hadn't fully developed, showing just how difficult it was to nurture new life.

Feng Ling decided she wouldn't go anywhere for the next few days. She'd just stay home and keep eating.

She'd keep eating until her nest was complete.

She ordered grilled meat, pizza, burgers, sushi, pasta with meat sauce, lamb skewers, crawfish, braised duck necks, sweet zongzi, Spicy Hot Pot, bread, cake, milk tea, various fruits, and a pile of chocolate bars.

She couldn't imagine how happy she'd be when all that food arrived.

"Crap!" Huangfu Miaomiao suddenly yelped.

Feng Ling looked up and asked, "What's wrong?"

Huangfu Miaomiao replied, panic written all over her face, "Someone on the forum exposed your location!"

"Exposed my location?" Feng Ling looked confused.

"Yeah! I was recording these replies when suddenly one popped up saying the Hidden Boss is in Qingjiang City!" Huangfu Miaomiao asked urgently, "What do we do now? There's definitely going to be a ton of players coming to Qingjiang City to find you!"

Feng Ling was stunned for a moment too.

Who would know she was in Qingjiang? Could there be a Xenomorph spy inside the Supervision Bureau?

...No, if there were a spy inside the Supervision Bureau, they wouldn't just expose that the Hidden Boss was in Qingjiang. They'd provide more detailed information, like her recent involvement in the Jiangkou City operation.

So, who only knew she was in Qingjiang but didn't know she'd taken part in the Jiangkou City operation?

Feng Ling actually thought of one person.

That woman who controlled the Blood Worms.

The rest will be updated tonight~ Remember to vote, everyone! Hehe~