Chapter 96 Sanctuary 10

Chapter 96: Shelter 10

"Trouble—the outer ring refugees are rioting!"

The entrance guards first fired warning shots into the air, attempting to scare off the outer ring residents. But it didn’t work—there were at least five or six hundred of them (players and NPCs alike), their eyes bloodshot and breaths ragged, seemingly beyond control.

Realizing things were going south, the guards swiftly retreated tactically while shouting at the top of their lungs to alert the inner ring residents to prepare for battle.

"Charge! Follow me!" Led by a few troublemakers, the crowd surged toward the trading post.

Zhong Rui tugged his buddy closer and whispered, "I asked the fat manager earlier and found out the stockpile isn’t kept at the trading post—it’s hidden somewhere else."

At the same time, Su Han paused and lowered her voice, "If they’re aiming for a big score, they must’ve done their research. Didn’t you notice a few people slipping away from the group unnoticed? If we follow them, we’ll probably find the warehouse."

They were instantly on the same page and quietly tailed them.

Ten minutes later, the group arrived in front of a wooden cabin, their faces breaking into smiles.

One of them pulled out a silenced pistol and fired at the lock. Soon, the lock fell off.

The three quickly entered the room. Just as the last one was about to close the door, it was suddenly blocked.

Su Han kicked her way inside with brute force.

After scanning the surroundings, she snorted, "So the stockpile is stored in an ordinary resident’s cabin. Impressive that you managed to find it."

"You followed us alone? Bold," someone sneered.

All three drew their guns at once, ready to take aim and fire.

Su Han remained composed. There were only three of them—she could wipe the floor with them solo. And besides...

"Are you really sure you want to fight? I don’t wanna waste bullets on you. Setting off the Timed Explosives by accident would be even more troublesome." Zhong Rui appeared before them, holding a rocket launcher, his tone laced with threat.

The trio froze.

They had guns, but this guy had a rocket launcher? How is this even fair?!

Su Han added, "No time for a shootout. There’s enough for all of us. Let’s call a truce."

The three exchanged glances. Their leader promptly holstered his gun and said coolly, "You’ve got the chops to join. Fine by me if you want a piece of the pie."

Truce accepted. Everyone won.

The five quickly abandoned combat mode and instead flipped open the crates, dumping supplies into their Portable Storages like mad.

At this point, their differing priorities became clear.

The trio focused on food and daily necessities, clearly starving for basics.

Zhong Rui went straight for the soap, evidently lacking hygiene products.

Meanwhile, Su Han, whose profession provided both food and daily necessities, was entirely self-sufficient. Thus, she went all-in on bullets, medicine, Timed Explosives, and grenades.

Three minutes later, the room was picked clean of bullets, Timed Explosives, and grenades.

As she continued loading up on medicine, Su Han muttered in disbelief, "How’s a trading post this big so damn broke?"

"They’ve gotta have more stashes," Zhong Rui speculated casually, still grabbing stuff nonstop.

Complaining about poverty in a room full of supplies... The trio nearby had their lips twitch upon hearing this.

One of them thought to himself, *There’s too much stuff to carry, so we specifically picked a remote warehouse with plenty of daily necessities. Who knew two maniacs would inexplicably show up and muscle in on our haul?*

Outside, gunfire continued, growing closer.

Inside, the five of them tensed. Everyone knew—the guards were closing in.

Su Han glanced at her Portable Storage, now stuffed full again, and stopped. Just then, she spotted five car keys on the wooden table.

It clicked—*"The five off-road vehicles parked outside earlier!"* She bolted from the room.

*What’s she doing with the car keys? Does she think the tanks magically came pre-filled?* The trio, suppressed in strength, could only vent their frustration internally.

Another minute passed, and shouts rang out, *"Follow me! There might be someone over here!"*

At the same time, a woman’s urgent voice called from outside, *"Move it!"*

Zhong Rui didn’t hesitate—he turned and left.

The trio ignored it, hell-bent on hoarding more.

Outside, Su Han sat in the driver’s seat of a military-green off-roader. Everything was ready—she just needed her companion to get in.

The moment Zhong Rui sat down, she slammed the accelerator without hesitation.

The trio had just stepped out when they ate a faceful of exhaust.

They froze. *Did those cars have gas?!*

Quickly picking up the keys, they checked the vehicles—only to find every tank empty.

*Son of a—!* one finally realized. *That woman must have diesel in her Portable Storage!*

But they had wasted too much time. A ten-man security team arrived and immediately opened fire.

The trio scrambled for cover, returning shots.

All hell broke loose.

Meanwhile, Su Han gunned it, laying low outside, pushing the accelerator hard.

**

Zhong Rui made a swift decision. *"Leave the shelter. This place is about to go to shit."*

*"I know. That’s why I grabbed a car—we’ll be laying low outside for the next ten-plus days,"* Su Han replied, sharply turning the wheel.

*"Missed a detail!"* Zhong Rui looked frustrated. *"793 players left, 1,134 NPCs. One side is packing heat, the other has nearly half as non-combatants. Yet the weaker side holds all the supplies, while the stronger side is starving—no shit they’d fight!"*

*"Thinking back, stirring up the outer ring on Day 8… Those troublemakers probably feared being beaten to the punch and getting scraps."*

*"By organizing their own forces and striking first, they could at least secure a share."*

Worse, Su Han reminded coldly.

*If the zombies are trapped in some hidden corner and players can’t find and eliminate them all, we’ll have to last the full 20 days to clear the game!*

*Food, daily necessities, medicine—it all burns fast. If inventory runs dry, game over.*

"So the merchant caravan became a hot commodity, and everyone wanted to take a bite out of it."

"Having treasure invites thieves. With mediocre strength yet abundant supplies, and the external threat (zombies) significantly weakened, players had every reason to act," Zhong Rui analyzed calmly.

As they spoke, the off-road vehicle was nearing the exit.

Along the way, players and NPCs were engaged in combat. Spotting the military-green behemoth barreling through, both sides froze momentarily.

Once they regained their senses, a player immediately raised their gun, aiming at the tires, and pulled the trigger. Their thought was clear—while everyone else was fighting, who the hell do you think you are, stealing an off-road vehicle and fleeing? Dream on!

Su Han noticed the gunfire and swiftly jerked the steering wheel, barely dodging the bullets.

Aligned with the outer residents and battling the guards, it was obvious they were players.

"Players are far more troublesome than NPCs, always screwing things up," Zhong Rui sighed as he pulled out a rocket launcher, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and fired without hesitation.

"Kaboom!" A massive crater appeared on the ground, sending everyone nearby flying from the blast.

Behind them, a guard team gave chase in vehicles.

"Let’s go," Zhong Rui told his buddy while reloading, aiming, and firing again.

"Boom!" The shot hit the fuel tank directly, causing the pursuing car to explode instantly.

Su Han sped away. This time, no one was stupid enough to block their path.

**

The battlefield erupted in chaos, countless casualties piling up until nightfall when the fighting gradually subsided.

With no other choice, Boss Huang led his men and Gao Chen into the underground research institute to lay low.

Old Jiang diligently continued his research, completely unaware that all hell had broken loose above ground.

"So, any progress?" Boss Huang took a deep breath, struggling to remain composed. He kept telling himself that protecting Gao Chen was the right decision. Though his operation had taken a hit, as long as the miracle cure succeeded, he would eventually reclaim everything.

Bags the size of suitcases under Old Jiang’s eyes betrayed his exhaustion. Regretfully, he shook his head. "The potion you provided is... peculiar. Even with instruments, we can’t identify its exact components. It’s almost as if..."

He trailed off.

"Go on," Boss Huang said, his face going stone cold.

"As if it’s extraterrestrial in origin," Old Jiang murmured, his voice growing quieter.

Boss Huang’s face turned grimmer. After a pause, he pressed, "Can you replicate it?"

Old Jiang shook his head again, looking downright defeated. "It's impossible with our current tech."

*Snap!* Boss Huang crushed a glass goblet in his hand.

**

In the lounge, Gao Chen was sprawled out on the sofa.

Though the situation had once seemed dire, his bet had hit the jackpot. Boss Huang had an ace up his sleeve—the underground institute was safe, and he could hide here until the 20th day.

In return, he only needed to trade over a Vitality Potion every few days in exchange for supplies.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open.

Gao Chen frowned, springing to his feet. "The hell is this?" he demanded coldly.

Boss Huang stormed in, seething with anger, and snapped, "Tear this place apart!"

Immediately, several guards began turning the place upside down.

Gao Chen watched coldly and said indifferently, "If you're looking for the all-purpose remedy, save your breath. I've hidden the potions."

Boss Huang glared at him. "Speak! Where are the potions hidden?"

"Not telling," Gao Chen replied coldly. He wasn’t stupid—without the Vitality Potion, he’d be worthless to them. Why would they still treat him like a VIP?

A moment later, the guards reported, "Nothing here, boss."

Had he already run out of potions, or was this man just good at hiding them? Boss Huang ran through the possibilities.

He wasn’t worried about offending Gao Chen. Qin Mo had made it clear—this guy had just gotten lucky and come across a batch of potions. If he had actually made them, Boss Huang would have treated him with respect. But since they were just found, there was no need.

"Like I said, you won’t find them," Gao Chen smirked. "Instead of wasting time, you should focus on gathering supplies. Like I said—the all-purpose remedy doesn't come cheap."

"When’s the trade? And what’s the price?" Boss Huang pressed.

Without hesitation, Gao Chen replied, "Six days from now." Then, he reeled off a list of items, asking for an arm and a leg.

He had calculated carefully—today was the eighth day of the game. By trading every six days, he’d only need to spend two more Vitality Potions to make it through the game.

After all, the potions were too useful—he had to save some for himself. Besides, he didn’t have much to begin with, so he could only sell in small quantities.

Boss Huang’s eyes lit up, and he immediately countered, "Start trading today, every three days."

Gao Chen frowned and stated firmly, "We can trade today, but not every three days. Every six days—that's as far as I'll go."

"Fine. How do we trade?" Boss Huang relented, giving in just enough.

After a long deliberation, Gao Chen said, "Get me to ground level. Let me stay alone in the wooden cabin at the northwest corner of the inner ring, with everyone else guarding outside. In half an hour, I’ll return with the all-purpose remedy."

"Deal," Boss Huang smiled faintly, then shot his men a look.

The next second, all the guards drew their guns and fired in unison.

Caught completely off guard, Gao Chen took the full brunt!

"You—"

Before he could speak, Boss Huang cut him off coldly. "Now that we know the stuff is hidden in the cabin, we don’t need you anymore. You’ve served your purpose—time to die!"

Gao Chen, "..."

That's how the real world worked—once deemed worthless, one could be discarded without hesitation.

At the same time, a hail of gunfire came at him. He dodged frantically but couldn’t avoid them all.

The guards struck too fiercely, making quick work of him. Gao Chen only had time to shout one last sentence, "Idiots! The potions aren’t hidden in the cabin—I make them there on the spot!" Then, he dissolved into white light and was eliminated from the game.

Boss Huang, "..."

His face darkened instantly, pissed as hell.

His subordinates lowered their heads, not daring to meet his gaze, afraid of triggering his short fuse.

"Who knows if Gao Chen was just talking shit with his last breath?" Boss Huang fumed inwardly but forced himself to act unbothered. "You lot, head to ground level and turn those cabins inside out!"

"Yes, sir!" The men obeyed and left.

Author’s Note: Qin Mo (proudly): When you think about it, you were basically screwed over by me.