The speaker was a young man in his mid-twenties, with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, possessing handsome features. He was a fresh and tender piece of meat, fitting the description perfectly before the apocalypse. He exaggeratedly inhaled the scent in the air, a look of nostalgia on his face. "It's this taste, so nostalgic!"
"Da Fei."
A voice that was overly calm sounded, and Wen Qing followed the direction from which the voice came. The person who arrived had a strong presence, with a tall and upright figure and tightly pursed lips, giving off an unapproachable vibe. The most striking feature was a scar at the corner of his eye, slanting into his hairline, looking somewhat terrifying. This person was the original male lead from the novel, Ye Qiong.
Ye Qiong cast a cold and ruthless glance at Yu Fei. Yu Fei immediately restrained his nonchalant expression, straightened his body a bit more, and turned to Wen Qing, asking, "Hello, do you sell these dishes?"
Yu Fei had smelled the aroma of ham and shrimp fried rice from the car, which was why he strongly insisted on getting off. He had already been tormented by the food at the Hope Base to the point of almost forgetting what pre-apocalyptic food tasted like!
Wen Qing didn't speak, her gaze staying on Ye Qiong the whole time. Ye Qiong seemed to sense something and looked up at her, nodding slightly as a greeting.
Wen Qing withdrew her gaze and smiled at Yu Fei. "Not for sale."
Yu Fei's face immediately fell. Just as he was about to leave in disappointment, he heard Wen Qing say, "There's only one bowl of rice left. If you want to eat, just take it."
So, it was given away for free! Yu Fei's face immediately brightened. "Miss, you're truly a good person! Beautiful and kind-hearted, any man who marries you must have accumulated eight generations of blessings..." While Yu Fei spoke, he quickly scooped the remaining rice into a bowl, leaving the pot spotlessly clean without a single grain of rice. At this moment, Fatty also squeezed out of the crowd and looked at him with a deeply resentful expression. "Is it delicious?"
"It's delicious! I've never eaten such delicious fried rice before!" Yu Fei answered as he quickly shoveled rice into his mouth.
Liao Tao had originally been very resentful of his act of stealing his food, but upon hearing his words, he immediately wore a proud expression. "Of course, my boss's culinary skills are not to be underestimated!"
"Yeah, yeah, good cooking and good looks!"
"That's right, absolutely!"
…
A bowl of rice bought someone's loyalty. The survivors who were originally gathered around Liao Tao witnessed this scene, along with the large group of people on Ye Qiong's side. They realized that it wouldn't end well if they tried to provoke them, so they quietly dispersed. While food was precious, one needed to be alive to enjoy it.
Wen Qing didn't pursue the matter either. She still maintained her posture, leaning against the car with her arms crossed, and smiled at Ye Qiong. "Mr. Ye, how about finding a place to talk?"
From the beginning to the end, Ye Qiong and his group never introduced themselves, but with a single word, Wen Qing called out his name. However, Ye Qiong's calm face showed no signs of wavering.
"What do you want to talk about?"
"Let's talk about... the Survival System," Wen Qing lowered her voice.
Ye Qiong's expression changed, and he took a step towards Wen Qing. "How do you know?" There was a flash of killing intent in his eyes.
Wen Qing remained unfazed. "Are you sure you want to talk about it here?"
Ye Qiong suppressed his doubts and restored a calm expression on his face. He nonchalantly replied, "You're also heading to the Hope Base, right? Let's go."
Wen Qing nodded and motioned for Liao Tao to get in the car. They were preparing to follow Ye Qiong's convoy.
Seeing her readily agree, Ye Qiong felt a slight relief in his heart. Since she was willingly going to his base alone, she should not have any malicious intentions. The reality of the system was too unimaginable; he had to be cautious.
After over an hour of driving, the gate of the Hope Base came into view. The entrance was heavily guarded, and every person who entered had to undergo strict inspections and disinfection. Those with injuries would even be quarantined for 24 hours to prevent any possibility of the zombie virus spreading.
After passing the inspection, Wen Qing and her group entered the base. Ye Qiong instructed Yu Fei and the others, "Da Fei, you follow and store this batch of supplies. Grizzly, you are responsible for tallying the casualties and reporting the information, as well as handling their compensation matters..."
They had gone out to search for supplies this time, and the gains were not insignificant, but the casualties were also significant. In the apocalypse, casualties among personnel had become the norm. However, when Ye Qiong spoke about it, his mood was still heavy.
Once everything was arranged, Ye Qiong said to Wen Qing, "Follow me."
Wen Qing nodded, then turned to Liao Tao and said, "Wait for me outside."
Liao Tao didn't ask any questions and simply nodded in agreement.
Wen Qing walked into the room with Ye Qiong. The room was spacious and tidy, with various materials neatly arranged, indicating that Ye Qiong was an extremely disciplined person.
"Now, can we talk?"
Ye Qiong's gaze was piercing as he stared at her. Wen Qing smiled slightly, "Of course, I came here to talk to you about this matter."
Interstellar, Alliance Government.
Along the long conference table, military high-ranking officials in blue uniforms sat on one side, while government officials in black uniforms sat on the other, forming distinct factions.
After two hours of intense discussions, the participants finally reached a unanimous consensus.
"The proposal to change the policy towards Blue Star has received unanimous agreement. Therefore, I announce that Blue Star will officially be included in the interstellar territory. A fleet will be dispatched to Blue Star to establish friendly cooperation between the two parties..."
The head of the government, sitting in the seat of honor and wearing a black uniform, read out the final resolution of the meeting. After he finished reading, the commander-in-chief of the Alliance military, sitting opposite him, smiled and said, "This matter has been settled. Let's discuss the next one."
Upon hearing this, the military side remained calm and unsurprised. However, the government officials were taken aback, clearly unaware of the upcoming topic of discussion.
"What is it?"
"It's about the survival game involving the seven individuals: Albalo, Seinstein, and others, as proposed by BlackRock. I think we should discuss what kind of punishment should be given to them."
"Oh, this matter?"
"I did hear that these children did something ridiculous, but warning them to stop should be enough. There's no need for punishment, right?"
The commander-in-chief continued to smile and said, "If it were just a game among children, it would be fine. However, BlackRock originally intended to incite the Blue Star people to fight each other. Although it hasn't reached that point yet, he had the inclination. According to Alliance law, this can be considered an attempted crime."
"Therefore, in order to show the Blue Star people our sincerity in accepting them, these individuals must be punished! Especially BlackRock!"
The government hesitated a bit because four out of the seven individuals belonged to their faction, including the initiator, BlackRock. Handling all of them at once according to the military's request made them somewhat reluctant.
"Some people already know about this among the Blue Star people!"
"Is it Lin Wenqing?"
"Yes, she is one of the seven chosen individuals. She has already gone to contact the other six. Instead of letting her handle it on her own, we should deal with it first."
"Well... alright."
...
In the end, the two sides reached a consensus and decided to establish a special investigation case against BlackRock and the others, determining their punishment.
After Wen Qing informed Ye Qiong about the survival game orchestrated by the Survival System, Ye Qiong fell into silence. After a long pause, he regained his senses and asked, "What are you planning to do?"
"If you're willing, I will help you remove the system," Wen Qing replied.
"Willing? Why wouldn't I be willing? I yearn to break free from its control," Ye Qiong said without hesitation.
"Alright then, I will help you remove it."
Wen Qing enveloped it with her spiritual energy and extracted the "Survival System" from Ye Qiong's head. There was no resistance, which surprised her. She thought BlackRock, the "system manager" behind Ye Qiong, would resist, considering it was he who proposed the game in the original and then firmly encouraged Ye Qiong and the others to fight each other.
Ye Qiong stared at the system resting in Wen Qing's palm, his expression somewhat dazed. "So, this is the system. I once dreamt of being suppressed by it, killing countless in the apocalypse until I was the last person left in this world..."
Wen Qing didn't expect that he had dreamt of his own fate. However, that fate had been shattered now, so she could only comfort him by saying, "Dreams are always the opposite."
"Perhaps. Thank you for helping me break free from its shackles," Ye Qiong expressed his gratitude earnestly.
Wen Qing waved her hand casually. "No need to thank me. As fellow humans, we should help and support each other, unite and build a better world..."
Ye Qiong: "..."
In the evening, to show his gratitude to Wen Qing, Ye Qiong specially prepared a sumptuous feast - a roasted whole lamb.
During their expedition to search for supplies, they encountered a group of mutant sheep. Thanks to Wen Qing's abilities, the knowledge that mutant beasts were edible had become widely known.
The entire lamb was coated with seasonings and honey, then placed on the fire to roast. The tender and juicy meat sizzled and dripped oil, which fell into the fire, creating sparks that carried the aroma to the extreme, filling the air...
[I can't control my salivation anymore. Host, love me once again!]
[It reminds me of the cumin mutton the host made last time. It was incredibly delicious!]
[So it's not just the host, but everyone on Blue Star can cook such amazing food!]
[Is this a racial talent?]
[I, I, I want to marry and move to Blue Star!]
[I want to marry a Blue Star girl who is gentle, beautiful, and cooks like the host!]