Chapter 169: 8 Jin

Shi Yuebai’s protective array stretched from the edge of the ditch all the way to the outside of the second wall.

And this was just the tip of the iceberg of the massive array.

She held a long staff, poking at the ground, seemingly doodling lightly on the earth.

But in reality, every stroke weighed a thousand pounds.

She could feel the fat in her body slowly melting away.

683.8 jin.

Exhausted from drawing, Shi Yuebai plopped down onto a large white stone, gazing up at the pitch-black sky.

The weather in the wasteland hadn’t been good lately.

It had been a long time since she’d seen the sun.

Although the lack of sunlight meant less radiation in the area,

It didn’t mean there was none at all.

Zhang Xueyao, freshly dressed, had wiped her face over and over with wet wipes, finally revealing a yellow, deeply wrinkled face.

She stepped onto the stone and walked over, grinning at Shi Yuebai.

“Well, look at you! You can actually stand up now.”

The sarcasm in her tone was obvious.

Shi Yuebai, with her big, pale, bun-like face, stared at Zhang Xueyao expressionlessly.

Zhang Xueyao rarely came up to Shi Yuebai.

To outsiders, Shi Yuebai was the lowest of the low—a total good-for-nothing.

She was rarely seen outside.

In fact, ever since the construction of the second wall sped up, no matter how much Zhang Xueyao and the other women tried to peek,

They couldn’t spot a single person.

“I heard those old folks living on the riverbed got kidnapped by bandits recently.”

Zhang Xueyao walked over with a cheerful smile, looking down at Shi Yuebai.

Don’t be fooled by her smile—there was clear disgust in her eyes.

If she hadn’t happened to see Shi Yuebai outside the second wall today, waving a staff around and scribbling on the ground like a lunatic,

Zhang Xueyao wouldn’t have bothered talking to this fat pig.

Shi Yuebai lifted her eyes slightly, narrowing them.

She said nothing.

Zhang Xueyao didn’t notice Shi Yuebai’s impatience at all.

She still had no idea how dangerous Shi Yuebai could be.

“Do you know where those people went?”

Zhang Xueyao’s tone hardened.

“Doesn’t your Shi family have a good relationship with the mercenaries?”

“There are cannibals here now—aren’t the mercenaries going to do something about it?”

This whole affair had left the women living across the river feeling terrified.

“Captain Qiao used to seem decent—why is he eating people now?”

Zhang Xueyao tried to egg Shi Yuebai on.

“You people should get the mercenaries to keep order. Otherwise, what’s the point of the city spending all those points every month to feed them if they don’t do their job?”

Cannibal gangs were a test of humanity’s darkest depths.

Everyone knew they existed, but no one could accept cannibals living right next door.

Zhang Xueyao thought Shi Yuebai was easy to manipulate.

Seeing Shi Yuebai remain silent, she threatened,

“If you don’t get the mercenaries to do something, you’ll be the next one eaten.”

Shi Yuebai tapped her staff on the stone, again and again.

With each tap, the air around them seemed to ripple ever so slightly.

It was barely noticeable.

“Are you deaf? Did you hear me?” Zhang Xueyao reached out to push Shi Yuebai.

In the next instant, Shi Yuebai’s staff pressed against her waist and stomach.

Zhang Xueyao looked down—before her hand even touched Shi Yuebai, her whole body was sent flying backward.

She landed hard on a stone, feeling as if every bone in her body had shattered.

“Ah!”

Zhang Xueyao finally screamed in pain.

She still didn’t know what had happened, but she was plunged into a world of agony.

Shi Yuebai leaned on her staff, slowly hunching over as she walked over.

Her big, bun-like face loomed into Zhang Xueyao’s field of vision.

Zhang Xueyao was in so much pain she could barely speak. “You! Ah!”

“If you can’t speak properly, then don’t speak at all.”

Shi Yuebai lowered her head, letting Zhang Xueyao see the icy look in her eyes.

That gaze was downright chilling.

“If you’d just asked me nicely, and I was in a good mood, I wouldn’t have hit you. But your attitude stinks.”

Who was Shi Yuebai?

If a stray dog barked at her, she’d pluck it bald.

Let alone someone like Zhang Xueyao, who thought she could push Shi Yuebai around.

“If you think it’s not safe here, then move somewhere safer. No one’s forcing you to stay.”

“And by the way, the ones paying the mercenaries are the city authorities, not you. If they weren’t out there clearing the front lines, you wouldn’t even have time to pitch your tent and turn tricks.”

“And finally, even if someone gets eaten, it won’t be me. I’m not stupid—I just can’t be bothered with you.”

Shi Yuebai tapped Zhang Xueyao’s face with her staff.

“Ugly as hell. Go home and wait to die.”

Zhang Xueyao didn’t have long to live.

She wasn’t actually that old, but she’d been used up so badly that her face was covered in wrinkles.

She stank, probably riddled with diseases.

For Shi Yuebai, killing someone like her wasn’t even a challenge.

She called two people over to carry Zhang Xueyao back to her own tent.

The women who hung around Zhang Xueyao all knew she’d gone to the other side today.

When they suddenly saw her being carried back, howling in pain,

They were shocked and furious.

One woman, braver than the rest, glared at Cao Lingyun and snapped,

“Our Xueyao was perfectly fine—why did she come back like this after going to your side?”

“You’re just going to leave like this? Aren’t you going to compensate us?”

Blocked by the crowd, Cao Lingyun puffed out her cheeks and shouted,

“Who told Zhang Xueyao to mess with someone she shouldn’t have?”

“If you want to leave, then go. Don’t come running over here whining—like we don’t know what you’re up to.”

Weren’t they just trying to use the mercenaries to minimize their own risk?

These women thought the Shi family were fools—where did they get that confidence?

The women were stunned by Cao Lingyun’s outburst.

Once she left, they all started cursing in outrage.

“What’s so great about the Shi family? They just latched onto the mercenaries, that’s all!”

“So infuriating—Cao Lingyun’s just a freeloader, and yet she dares yell at us like that. Did you see how she talked to us?”

“They think we don’t have anyone backing us?”

The only reason they could settle here was because they had a team supporting them.

Rumor had it the team was semi-combat capable and active on the front lines.

Thanks to that team, more and more women had gathered here.

Zhang Xueyao was in so much pain she couldn’t speak.

She listened to the women around her chattering, demanding that the team deal with the Shi family and Captain Qiao.

She groaned a few times, but it was unclear what she wanted to say.

A couple of days later, people from that team arrived.

They planned to rest here for the night before heading back to their group.

Zhang Xueyao hadn’t planned to take any clients.

But remembering the humiliation she’d suffered at Shi Yuebai’s hands, she forced herself to get up.

She wanted to use this team to deal with Shi Yuebai.

But before her plan could even take shape, Zhang Xueyao felt like she was dying.

She was tormented to within an inch of her life.

It’s so cold today."