Apocalypse: Master of Soul Beasts

"Right, tell me about the situation in Mudanjiang City."

Although he had spent his previous life in Mudanjiang City, the Wen Yu of that time hadn't cared about such things as the state of affairs. Those concerns were useless to cannon fodder!

In the midst of the fun and laughter earlier, Zheng Ye hadn't shared anything useful. Moreover, Wen Yu speculated that a child likely couldn't provide much of the intelligence he needed. It would be better to take advantage of this quiet moment to ask Zhang Xiao.

Hearing Wen Yu's words, Zhang Xiao fell silent for a moment, then looked at Wen Yu with a slightly bitter smile.

"Situation? What do you mean by situation?"

This could have been self-mockery, or simply a pointless vent of frustration.

Wen Yu naturally understood this. He remained silent for a moment, said nothing, and simply added another piece of firewood to the bonfire.

Zhang Xiao immediately realized his tone had been somewhat improper. Fortunately, Wen Yu didn't take issue with his pessimistic sentiment.

Letting out a deep breath, Zhang Xiao spoke up once again.

"The current situation in Mudanjiang City isn't good. At least for me and these children, it's terrible."

Wen Yu nodded slowly at Zhang Xiao's words.

Considering Zhang Xiao's and the children's strength, the overall environment of the apocalypse was bound to be harsh—necessarily so!

"Go on."

"After the apocalypse began, Mudanjiang City lost its government, along with moral and legal constraints. When survivors first discovered the function of the Exchange Stone Pillar, the first to suffer were the zombies throughout Mudanjiang City."

"Large numbers of zombies were slaughtered by even more, and stronger, professionists. Then, when the zombie population dwindled, the next to bear the brunt were the mutant beasts within Mudanjiang City!"

"Under the influence of points-based strengthening, individual power levels began to diverge!"

"When individual power levels diverged, it signaled a reorganization of the class order. Moreover, this process didn't take very long."

"This reorganization of order could also be described as a relatively small-scale revolution! Revolution means bloodshed, so humans themselves were the third to suffer."

"At that time, fights between humans and mutant beasts, between groups, and between individuals were commonplace."

"Fights were everywhere. Killings were everywhere. The ugliness of human nature was everywhere."

"Rivers of blood flowed!"

"The victors were but a small fraction of humanity; for most, there was only despair and suffering!"

After saying this, Zhang Xiao fell silent once more, perhaps lost in his memories.

Clearly, this process of reorganizing the class order must have involved countless unpleasant stories. And Zhang Xiao himself had very likely been a victim.

"By the way, what did you do before? The way you speak is quite interesting!" Wen Yu smiled, interrupting Zhang Xiao's reminiscence.

"Ah? Oh."

"I used to be a teacher, a history teacher. That profession was one of the most useful ones before the apocalypse, but after the apocalypse, it's one of the least useful."

Wen Yu nodded.

"It wasn't until about half a month ago that Mudanjiang City regained some semblance of peace," Zhang Xiao continued in a low voice. "At least, a partial peace."

"The former police chief, Wang Zhigang, allied with a portion of the military garrison stationed around Mudanjiang City. Using absolute power, they took control of the entire city and established Central City."

Central City, huh? Wen Yu thought. Hearing the words 'Central City,' he felt a surge of emotion. In his previous life, Central City had been the sanctuary Wen Yu yearned for! However...

"Entry into Central City requires a fee. And ultimately, Central City isn't a government; it doesn't provide free food to survivors."

"There are plenty of vacant rooms in Central City, provided you can pay the exorbitant entrance fee."

"That's not all. When professionists leave for hunting and return, they have to pay an entrance fee again!"

"Just from the entrance fees, Wang Zhigang and his group are raking it in!"

Zhang Xiao's words carried a hint of resentment. This was the hatred of the oppressed for their rulers. But it was useless!

Wen Yu subsequently fell silent.

Wen Yu knew Central City well, especially its entrance fee regulations. It was truly an outrageous rip-off! There was no such thing as a residency permit; if you wanted to enter, you had to pay. The city's security was well-guaranteed, but that fee... It's no exaggeration to say that if the fees had been affordable, Wen Yu wouldn't recall seeing so many factions, large and small, in Mudanjiang City during his previous life!

"Right, you mentioned Wang Zhigang allied with the army?"

Zhang Xiao first nodded at Wen Yu's question, then shook his head.

"Some time ago, the garrison stationed at Tieling River passed through Mudanjiang City. They left some personnel here, and the main contingent supposedly headed to Yanjing City to rendezvous with the military headquarters."

This wasn't surprising. As the military, they were unparalleled on land when the apocalypse began, before the Demon Realm invaded. Humans had ruled this planet for so long; it was unlikely they would cede dominance to mutant creatures after just a couple of months!

"Actually, the group that stayed behind is nominally cooperating with Wang Zhigang, but their real purpose is to supervise. In Central City, Wang Zhigang doesn't call the shots. The ones who truly have say are the soldiers—or rather, directives from the military."

Upon hearing Zhang Xiao's words, Wen Yu's eyes suddenly lit up.

Right, if the military left personnel here, they would naturally have means of communication with military headquarters. Wen Yu would never forget the promise he'd made to Sun Ruixing back in Chaihe Town. Wen Yu's original plan had been to return to Mudanjiang City for a look, then immediately head to Yanjing City. But now, it seemed... there was an even better channel.

Wen Yu didn't pay too much attention to what Zhang Xiao said afterward. It was mostly about the distribution of factions in Mudanjiang City—which ones were stronger and which were weaker.

None of this mattered! At least to Wen Yu, it was all completely useless.

Zhang Xiao likely noticed Wen Yu was somewhat distracted. After speaking for a while longer, he didn't continue.

After a long pause, Wen Yu spoke again.

"What's the deal with these kids?"

"Just a group of poor children who've lost their parents and are homeless."

"Doesn't the military intervene?"

Zhang Xiao shook his head.

"Those bigwigs? As if they have time to care about whether ordinary people live or die!"

Wen Yu nodded and didn't say anything more.

"By the way, accompany me to Central City tomorrow and bring these kids along."

Zhang Xiao raised an eyebrow at Wen Yu. He could understand needing a guide, but bringing these children along was something he couldn't comprehend.

"Returning to Mudanjiang, you were the first people I met. I'll help you however I can."

"At the very least, getting all of you permanent residency in Central City isn't difficult for me."

Zhang Xiao was silent for a while.

"Thank you."

"It's just a small effort."