Honkai: You're telling me this difficulty is from Honkai Impact 3?!

Whether the sudden shout startled anyone else, Shu didn't know, but it definitely startled him.

His hand instantly went to the gun tucked at his waist. Only after seeing several burly men rushing towards them did Shu finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Damn it, ouch, my poor heart…

Shu felt that if he got scared like this a few more times, he'd really suffer from heart failure.

"Ms. Yun! Director Liu! We finally found you!" The muscular man who had run over from a distance looked extremely excited to see them both mostly unharmed.

Shu stood silently behind them, his hand still on his waist, watching the group of large men approach Liu Zhuohua.

"Director Liu! Are you alright?!" The towering man, easily over six feet tall, seemed surprisingly restrained as he asked.

Shu's brow furrowed immediately, ready to shield Kiana and the others.

But looking at Kiana and her companions, the tallest, Mei, only reached Shu's forehead, Kiana was half a head shorter, and Bronya was even…

Forget it, I'll do this when we have some big guys on our side too.

At least Otto needs to be here!

Yeah, this is Otto's most reliable episode.

Shu sighed and moved closer to Kiana and the others, positioning himself in front of them.

Liu Zhuohua stared blankly at the familiar faces for a moment. When the man hesitantly called out again, a sudden wave of emotion washed over Liu Zhuohua, her heart aching with relief.

Though her eyes welled up, she didn't outwardly express much, simply nodding with composure.

"Your arrival is timely." Liu Zhuohua said in a calm tone. In that moment, Shu actually saw a glimpse of the strong businesswoman she was supposed to be.

If only he could completely ignore her earlier hysterical outburst.

But, Director Liu?

Director?!

Huh?

This woman is a director-level executive?! Isn't she Yun Mengxi's manager?

Shu was speechless. He felt that sometimes, the world was just too malicious towards him.

"Mengxi, come here." Liu Zhuohua let out a mental sigh of relief, beckoning Yun Mengxi over. Then, looking at Shu standing in front of the girls, his hand on his waist, she spoke calmly.

"We've found our people. According to our agreement, we can leave now."

Shu had a headache. How could he have predicted they'd actually find them…? In a city this big, they actually found them just like that.

Then why couldn't he find Mei and Bronya in such a small area back then?

"Alright then…" But it was indeed an agreement, something Shu had promised.

Although he wasn't exactly a man of his word…

Okay, fine. The truth was, Shu felt a little intimidated by this wall of a man.

Even though they all had guns, Shu couldn't bring himself to point a gun at other humans just yet, especially when it wasn't a big deal, just giving directions…

…If this wasn't a big deal, what was?

Shu's grip on the gun at his waist tightened suddenly. The look in his eyes towards the large men shifted slightly.

At this distance, even he couldn't…

"Just point us in the right direction for the rest of the way, then you can leave." Shu said in a low voice.

Liu Zhuohua was taken aback. The sudden change in Shu's demeanor confused her.

Why was he so insistent on going to that place? Even after she had clearly stated her reluctance, he had pressed her for the route to the city center.

But it was just pointing out a road, it wouldn't cost her anything.

She had tried to dissuade him. If he insisted on going, there was nothing she could do to stop him.

"The city center area is already quite close from here, you can…" Liu Zhuohua paused, considering her words.

Just then, the burly man beside Liu Zhuohua leaned down and whispered something in her ear.

Shu couldn't hear the hushed words, but he caught the flash of surprise on Liu Zhuohua's face.

A change of plans?

"Cough, alright, if you want to go to the city center, you can come with us." Liu Zhuohua cleared her throat, her gaze subtly flicking towards Shu's hand on his waist.

"Go with you?" Shu looked at the man who had just whispered to Liu Zhuohua, noticing the slight nervousness in his expression. "Is this a suggestion, or a demand?"

They probably saw the gun at my waist…

"Just a suggestion. The place we're going is also within the city center. We're just going the same way." Liu Zhuohua replied.

After learning from the burly man that Shu was carrying a gun, Liu Zhuohua recalled her earlier screaming and yelling in front of him, and a shiver went down her spine.

Judging by Shu's pale complexion and the way he kept his hand on his waist, she had initially thought he was some kind of debauched, weak-kneed man!

She had even looked down on him a little. Now, her assumptions were completely overturned.

Shu's image in Liu Zhuohua's mind had transformed from a lecherous playboy to a cold, calculating individual with hidden depths.

A difficult person to deal with.

While Liu Zhuohua was reassessing Shu, Shu was also reassessing this "Director Liu."

After a long moment, Shu removed his hand from his waist. "Alright, we'll go with you, but we'll only be going with you."

"Phew…" Liu Zhuohua and the other men breathed a sigh of relief. Shu taking his hand away was a sign that he was extending an olive branch.

"It's an honor to… cooperate with you." Liu Zhuohua extended her hand to Shu. With this shift in perspective, even simple conversation felt strained.

"Shu, what's going on? Are they here to help us find Captain and the others?" After shaking Liu Zhuohua's hand briefly, Kiana poked Shu's back, confused.

Shu choked. "Sort of…"

He could roughly guess where these people were headed: to find Yun Mengxi's brother, and to their current base.

It was already late in the day. They had cleared the zombies around the station in the morning, set out at noon, found weapons in the afternoon, and now it was almost dusk. Soon, they would need to find a place to rest.

It would be better to enter the city center now and find a ready-made shelter for the night. They could also ask some locals about the location of Fu Hua's family's martial arts school.

Ideally, he could try to cooperate with this "Brother Yun" to see if they could get anything from their group.

Either weapons for information, or information for weapons.

It all depended on what "Brother Yun" had at his disposal.

At the back of the group, Yun Mengxi lowered her head, her fingers twisting together, lost in thought.