Chapter Forty-One: Dire Circumstances

"Who goes there!" Wang Bing called out in a low voice.

The others held their breath, muscles tensed, ready for battle.

Qin Yu emerged from the darkness, smiling as she said, "It's me!" Yet inwardly she was surprised. She knew Wang Bing's abilities well; in theory, he shouldn't have been able to notice her presence. Could it be he'd had some kind of fortuitous encounter?

When Wang Bing saw it was Qin Yu, he let out a slight sigh of relief. "Boss Qin, what are you doing here?"

The others all looked toward Qin Yu as well.

She walked to Wang Bing's side, studied him for a moment, and then said slowly, "I was on a mission in the nearby town. Mmm... I'm actually hurrying back now to turn in the task. The reward this time is quite generous, you know~"

Wang Bing's eyes lit up. If Boss Qin said the reward was generous, it must indeed be so! But on the flip side, that meant the mission must have been exceedingly dangerous as well. Boss Qin truly lived up to her reputation! So impressive!

At this point, Wang Bing was falling deeper and deeper into the path of being a mindless fan...

Qin Yu glanced at his worshipful expression, feeling somewhat speechless. Where had the composed and steady leader from before gone? She really had nothing left to say.

Still, despite these thoughts, she asked aloud, "Wang Bing, how did you notice my presence?"

Only then did the others react. That's right—how had their leader detected Boss Qin's arrival?

Wang Bing frowned in thought for a while before replying, "I remember we had just finished off some zombies and were preparing to return to base, but suddenly I felt weak all over, and my mind started to go blurry. In that haze, I felt something crashing into me, and I began to lose my willpower. At that moment, I thought of Boss Qin, and a surge of strength welled up within me. Then I saw a wisp of green mist, and after that, I swallowed it. When I woke up, I felt completely at ease, my senses sharp and clear..."

"Green mist?" Qin Yu asked.

"Yes, a green mist—though just a tiny wisp, but extremely aggressive. I was almost swallowed up by it!" Wang Bing said, still a bit shaken.

Qin Yu now recalled that after she left the space, the green mist hadn't followed its usual pattern but instead had dispersed wildly and chaotically. Could some of the mist have escaped the town?

She felt a sense of foreboding. Judging by Wang Bing's reaction, the power of that green mist was clear. Fortunately, Wang Bing possessed a strong will—had it been someone weaker, who knows what would have happened! She needed to hurry back at once!

Noticing Qin Yu's changing expression, Wang Bing asked cautiously, "Boss Qin, is something wrong?"

Qin Yu addressed Wang Bing and the others with gravity. "That green mist is actually related to my mission. I was tasked with investigating what's going on at Kaiyuan Town—the green mist is precisely the source of the strangeness there. It should have stayed in the town, but for some reason, it's begun to drift out. We need to get back as soon as possible, or something terrible could happen!"

Everyone was startled. They all knew about the mission at Kaiyuan Town, but hadn't expected Boss Qin to have completed it. Their admiration for her deepened even further.

But the thought of the green mist spreading out made all their faces turn grim. The base in S City was now the largest; countless people lived within. If something went wrong, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Without delay, the group packed up and prepared to hurry back overnight, while there was still time to make things right.

Qin Yu and Wang Bing, along with the others, raced along the road...

But what of the situation at the base itself?

In a villa at the center of S City Base, several men sat together, discussing matters.

Xue Qi turned to the man on the sofa and complained, "Boss! Those old geezers at Central are insufferable! It's bad enough they won't let you issue a bounty to search for our sister-in-law, but now they've even detained our people! Do they take us for cats with no claws? Damn it! I can't swallow this!"

Qing Li looked up at Xue Qi, then lowered his head again, speaking slowly, "We must remember this debt. But now is not the time. Remember, I will repay every one of them, in full. I'll go negotiate with those people myself. Your top priority right now is to find Yu'er. I can feel it—she's very, very close..."

Hearing this, Xue Qi's curiosity grew. "Boss, what makes sister-in-law so special?"

A faint smile appeared on Qing Li's face. "Special? Hmm... perhaps especially foolish."

Xue Qi felt his worldview shatter. Especially... foolish?

Fortunately, Qin Yu wasn't there to hear Qing Li's assessment, or his pursuit of her would be an even longer journey.

Beside them, Feng Ji—the mysterious man from Chapter Six—chuckled and said, "Actually, our sister-in-law is very clever."

Xue Qi shot Feng Ji a glare. "How would you know? Have you met her?"

Feng Ji's smile widened. "Of course! I had the pleasure of meeting her—unlike some people here..."

Qing Li, hearing this, asked with a hint of urgency, "You've seen her? Where? Is she well? Was she alone, or with others?"

The others watched their boss and truly believed that, in the future, he would be utterly henpecked—completely under his wife's thumb.

Feng Ji smiled slyly. "In B City. Sister-in-law was at the casino, performing miracles—she won several hundred million, which drew the attention of the local bosses. She then requested a shipment of arms. As for the money—she didn't take a single cent. Isn't that smart? She seemed well. She came alone. I only saw her by chance that day."

"Arms? Why would Yu'er want weapons?" Qing Li frowned. Had something happened?

Xue Qi, on the other hand, was dazzled. Winning hundreds of millions! Amazing—her gambling skills must be incredible. He absolutely had to learn from her and then clean out the tables himself!

Feng Ke, seeing Xue Qi's silly grin, could guess exactly what he was thinking. He thumped him hard on the head, then signaled with his eyes toward Qing Li.

Qing Li's expression had darkened. Watching Xue Qi's giddy face, a strange light flickered in his eyes...

Under that gaze, Xue Qi immediately put on a woeful face. "Boss! I was wrong!"

This time, Qing Li didn't even ask what the mistake was, but said directly, "I'll leave the matter of retrieving our people from those old men to you. Within a day, I want to hear that they're safe and sound."

Without waiting for Xue Qi's response, he headed straight upstairs, his hand tightly gripping half of a jade pendant...

The others watched the stunned Xue Qi and all shook their heads in sympathy. Truly a child in need of discipline!

It was a wonder he'd made it this far in life.

Outside S City Base, some people, unable to make it back in time, had camped not far from the base. Wisps of green mist, invisible in the darkness, slipped into their bodies through wounds—some unbandaged, others not yet healed.

With dawn would come a new challenge...