Apocalypse Escape: Day One of Survival

Actually, she had heard the commotion downstairs while she was collecting things in the small warehouse.

She had originally planned to finish grabbing her supplies and make a quiet exit, staying out of the conflict. But now, it seemed their ”generous invitation” was hard to refuse.

There was nothing Ningning could do.

’What can I do?’

’Guess I’ll have to reluctantly go down and grab a bit more.’

’These days, you have people complaining that you’re not taking *enough* of their stuff. I’ve seen it all now.’

Xie Ning followed Boss Pi down the stairs, where she saw Chen Chong and his daughter, along with Xu Yu, the vice-principal, and a mother-daughter pair, all tied up and sitting off to one side.

Xie Ning’s gaze lingered on Li Shasha and her mother for a moment, and a chill of revulsion went through her.

Shen Wei, the dean of Su City Second Middle School, was nowhere to be seen. He must have been quick on his feet, ditching his pack of useless teammates to make a run for it.

”Mmph, mmph!” Chen Jiajia’s face flushed red as she glared at Xie Ning upon seeing her.

Xie Ning pretended not to see her, tilting her head toward the fruit shelves. ”So, I’ll just help myself?”

”Please.” Boss Pi extended a hand in a gentlemanly gesture, flashing a smile he considered exceptionally suave.

”Mmph, mmphh, MMPH!” Xu Yu, her mouth gagged, glared with pure fury at Xie Ning as she walked past.

’Looks like she really wants to pounce on Ningning and take a bite out of her neck.’

’It’s pretty weird. I wasn’t the one who beat them up or tied them down. Why are they screaming at me, an innocent bystander?’

’Impotent rage?’

Xie Ning turned a deaf ear, walking straight to the shelves. She picked through the produce, stuffing a perfect-looking durian into her cloth bag. She then chose two fresh, small melons and scooped up a huge pile of cherries...

She really wasn’t holding back at all!

”This should be enough.” She hefted two heavy cloth bags, then turned around with a beaming, utterly innocent smile and nodded at Boss Pi. ”I can’t carry any more than this.”

Boss Pi narrowed his eyes. ”That’s a real shame.”

He gave Xie Ning a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. ”I was hoping the little lady would take a bit more.”

”Oh, you really don’t have to be so generous.” Xie Ning nodded with a smile. She moved effortlessly toward the door, despite the two heavy bags in her hands. ”Thanks! I’ve got other things to do, so I’ll be going. Don’t let me keep you, Boss Pi.”

At the entrance stood four or five burly, barrel-chested men. Seeing her approach, they all looked to Boss Pi in unison.

The corner of Boss Pi’s mouth twitched. ”Move aside. I’ll see the little lady out myself.”

”Mmph, MMPHH!!! MMPH.” Xu Yu, Chen Jiajia, and the others truly hated Xie Ning’s guts. In their minds, they were cursing her to hell and back.

’She clearly saw them, yet she remained completely indifferent?’

’This cold-blooded woman. She’s completely heartless.’

’She just stood by and watched them fall into Boss Pi’s hands, unwilling to lift a finger to help.’

’A cold-blooded monster! A snake!’

Xie Ning walked past the muffled shrieks of Chen Jiajia without even a sideways glance.

The burly men stepped aside. Boss Pi made another ”please” gesture, chuckling as he escorted Xie Ning out the door.

”If you don’t have a car, little lady, I can have one of my men give you a ride.”

”Hm?” Xie Ning blinked. ”It’s fine, my car is in the back parking lot. No need to see me out, Boss Pi. You should get back to your business.”

”Oh?” Boss Pi said with a smile. ”May I ask the little lady’s name?”

”We’re just strangers who happened to cross paths. No need for names, right?” Xie Ning’s polite refusal was as sharp as a blade, giving him no opening.

”Haha, you have a point.” Boss Pi’s smile widened. ”I can see you’re a straightforward person, so I’ll be direct. If you’re willing, you can join our Iron Wolf Squad.”

”Rest assured, we can discuss the benefits and compensation in detail. We would never treat you poorly, miss.” Boss Pi stuck to Xie Ning like a shadow as they walked toward the back parking lot.

Seeing that he was stuck to her like a piece of flypaper, Xie Ning finally stopped at the edge of the lot. ”Sigh. Boss Pi, this is all a bit sudden. How about you let me go home and think it over?”

”Ha,” Boss Pi chuckled. ”Of course. In that case, I’ll have someone go with you. They can help you carry those heavy things, too.”

Xie Ning stood her ground, tilted her head, and smiled at him.

”Does Boss Pi really want to recruit me that badly?” Xie Ning lifted her two heavy bags of fruit. ”An ordinary person like me is truly flattered.”

A glint flashed in Boss Pi’s eyes, and his smile became even more amicable. ”As long as you’re willing, miss, you can name your price. Our squad isn’t short on food or water.”

Xie Ning furrowed her brow as if in thought, hummed softly, and nodded slowly.

Boss Pi was smiling at the young woman when, in the blink of an eye, the two heavy bags of fruit in her hands vanished into thin air.

Xie Ning tilted her head, a faint smile playing on her lips. ”Oh dear. It seems you’ve discovered my little secret.”

Boss Pi’s pupils constricted. His brain screamed at him: DANGER.

His body reacted instantly, and he took a huge leap backward.

At the same time, a long, sharp metal spike was stopped with a sharp CLANG by an arcing barrier that appeared in front of him.

Boss Pi’s face drained of color as he blurted out, ”A Dual Ability User!”

”A Spiritual Ability User?” A hint of a smile touched Xie Ning’s eyes.

’His instincts had been right after all. He knew this young woman was no ordinary person.’

’How could a normal person still be so clean days into the apocalypse?’

’A rare Dual Ability User, no less.’ A flash of envy crossed Boss Pi’s eyes.

’So geniuses really do exist in this world. He had thought himself lucky, awakening a powerful Spiritual Ability so soon after the apocalypse began and even advancing to the First Rank by a stroke of good fortune.’

’He had thought he was one of the lucky few, a chosen son of this new, apocalyptic world.’

’But reality had just proven him wrong.’

Under the relentless pressure of the spider-leg-like metal spike, his Spirit Barrier began to shrink and contract.

’Why?’

’Can’t it even hold for one minute?’

Cold sweat beaded on Boss Pi’s forehead.

Xie Ning watched him with a nonchalant smile. ”I wasn’t planning on killing anyone. But you just had to stick to me like glue. What am I to do? It’s so annoying.”

”You!” Boss Pi’s pupils constricted as he stared at the increasingly thin and brittle barrier before him.

”Let me teach you a rule for surviving the apocalypse.” Xie Ning took a step forward as four or five long metal spikes suddenly pierced through his arcing barrier. ”Don’t go snooping into other people’s secrets. Prying into the affairs of the wrong person will get you killed.”

The moment the barrier shattered, Boss Pi turned to run. But a row of sharp metal spikes erupted from the ground beneath him, impaling his feet. He howled in agony and collapsed, rolling in his own blood.

”Pathetic.” Xie Ning watched him with emotionless eyes, a cold sneer on her lips. ”Didn’t anyone ever tell you that First Rank and Second Order Spiritual Ability Users should run and hide the moment they meet a Strong Attack Ability User?”

”Too bad for you, you’re not Fourth Rank or Fifth Rank.”

SHINK! SHINK! Four or five sharp metal spikes shot forward, plunging into Boss Pi’s neck and chest.

The man struggled for less than three seconds on the spike-covered concrete before breathing his last...