Chapter 232: Xiao Ci, This Flower Bites
"I'm outta here!"
The man tried to calm them, shuffling his feet and backing away from Xiao Ci and the eagle.
"Howl!"
"Bark! Bark! Bark!"
The man had only taken one step when both Xiao Ci and the eagle barked simultaneously.
"Don't be impulsive, don't be impulsive!"
The man feared the wolf and the dog would pounce on him, so he quickly stopped, his eyes darting around to assess the situation.
For now, the best plan seemed to be exiting through the wall where he had jumped in.
He reached into his pocket, found a roll of wire used for prying doors, and tossed it to the left, hoping to distract the wolf and the dog while he made a run for the right.
"Howl!"
The man had only run two steps when he felt something on his tail. He didn't dare stop, sprinting for his life, terrified that if he slowed down, Xiao Ci and the eagle would tear him apart.
But the man had only taken one step when Xiao Ci leaped forward, giving him no time to dodge before he was knocked to the ground.
"Howl!"
Xiao Ci nipped at the man's neck, just hard enough to leave a few marks but not to hurt him. It was a warning to keep quiet.
Unaware of Xiao Ci's intention, the man screamed in terror.
"Help! Help!"
"Please, big brothers, have mercy! I'll never do it again."
"I'm gone, I'm leaving now!"
Terrified, the man began to babble nonsense.
Xiao Ci, annoyed by the man's noise, released the man's neck and pressed a paw over his mouth.
"Howl!"
Shut up!
The man got the message and clamped his mouth shut, not daring to make a sound.
Xiao Ci, seeing the man's compliance, removed his paw from the man's mouth.
The man, wincing in pain, clamped a hand over his neck.
"I'll be quiet, I won't make a sound!"
"Please, big brothers, spare me!"
The man continued to babble, "Please, please, big brothers! I'm sorry, I'll never do it again! Just let me go, I beg you!"
But Jianzi and Eagle didn't know what else to say once they were satisfied; they just noticed his voice had softened and let it go.
Jianzi crouched down, pressing the man beneath him.
Eagle circled the man, baring his teeth and flashing his fangs.
Too terrified to move or plead for mercy, the man could only hope the two would either fall asleep or lose interest, giving him a chance to escape.
However, the man's hopes were dashed. Jianzi remained on top of him, his eyes locked on him, showing no signs of sleep.
Meanwhile, Meng Ci and Shen Que, unaware of what was happening, walked toward the center of the base.
Since cutting down mutated plants earned points, many people had come to sign up and wait for their turn.
These mutated plants were dangerous, so only trained personnel could handle them.
Consequently, a registration table had already been set up in front of the government building near the exchange point.
All the residents had to do was place their points cards on the card reader to check what missions they had been on before and then assign them accordingly.
While waiting in line, Meng Ci and Shen Que suddenly noticed a few familiar faces in the crowd.
"Shen Que."
Meng Ci nudged Shen Que and gestured with his eyes to look ahead to the left.
"Do you know them?"
Shen Que looked carefully and nodded slightly, saying in a low voice, "Yes, I know them."
"The tallest guy was the leader of a small team in his previous life. I only dealt with him a few times; he's very skilled."
"And his team is the top-ranked team in the entire base. Many people want to join his team."
"However, I've heard that his team doesn't take on new members."
Meng Ci wasn't surprised by this; after all, they were the male leads in the novel. The author would naturally give them formidable skills.
Indeed, the two people Meng Ci saw were the male leads of the novel, Si Chen and Wen Siang.
The reason the novel mostly described the West Mountain Wilderness Base was because the two male leads had always stayed there.
Now, because Shen Que had been reborn and the government was prepared, it wasn't surprising that the male lead Si Chen had come to the better-developed M City Base.
Meng Ci and Shen Que had no intention of greeting them, so they quickly looked away, wary of being noticed.
When it was Meng Ci and Shen Que's turn to register, they saw that the person registering them was Xiang Jia.
"What a coincidence." Xiang Jia was also surprised.
Xiang Jia did clerical work, basically helping out wherever there was a shortage of people.
"Indeed, a coincidence." Meng Ci replied.
Because Xiang Jia saw Meng Ci and Shen Que's records, knowing they had hunted fierce beasts before, he approved them for this ordinary task of cutting down mutated plants.
"If you want to form a team, you can join them."
"They are around the same age as the two of you and don't mind working with new people."
Xiang Jia pointed at a few young people and suggested.
Meng Ci looked over and met the gazes of Si Chen and a few others.
"No need."
"We haven't done this kind of mission before, so we need to get used to it first."
Meng Ci didn't want to get involved with the male leads, so he declined Xiang Jia's kind suggestion.
Xiang Jia didn't think much of it and just nodded, telling the two to pay attention to their safety.
After getting their points cards, Meng Ci and Shen Que stood on the side where they were allowed to do missions.
After waiting for more than half an hour, the officials announced that there were enough people for the mission and they set off on foot.
After leaving the base, Meng Ci and Shen Que walked for almost an hour before they saw a forest that stretched as far as the eye could see.
Moreover, from the forest, the calls of wild beasts could be heard from time to time.
Meng Ci and Shen Que each had a backpack but didn't dare to take out their water easily, afraid of attracting jealousy.
If they were thirsty on the road, they would pretend to take a break and drink a few sips of water.
Leading the group was a team of soldiers, who repeatedly instructed everyone to slowly clear out the mutated plants from the outside of the forest, and not to go deep inside alone.
Then the group made their way along the forest's perimeter.
Each person held a stick in one hand and a knife in the other, prodding the plants and grass they passed. They cut down anything that moved or was suspected of moving.
Meng Ci and Shen Que didn't plan to follow the group's actions. After working for a while, they pretended to take a break and slipped away from the main group when no one was paying attention.
These people had to cut ten jin to exchange for just five points.
However, the grass was fresh, so they could gather quite a lot in one day.
Meng Ci and Shen Que went straight into the depths of the forest, looking around.
Along the way, whether it was that the mutated plants sensed someone coming to eliminate them or for some other reason, the forest was unnervingly silent.
"Xiao Ci, this kind of flower, in its later stage, can melt a person's face within seconds once it bites."
"That vine, when it wraps around someone, will quickly secrete ooze."
...
Shen Que introduced many plants along the way, explaining how they had attacked humans during the zombie period.
Meng Ci found it fascinating and reached out to touch one of the flowers Shen Que had described.