Chapter 112: The Nameless Source of Power

"Are you traveling alone, little brother?"

"Yes, I'm used to being on my own."

Facing the question from the driver—"Energy Provider A"—Zhou Shu did not hesitate for a second, feeding them exactly what they wanted to hear. After all, he already knew what they were, and he was eager for them to take him to some secluded corner so he could...

Hehehe.

Then he would have his source energy.

Sure enough, hearing Zhou Shu say this, "Energy Provider A" and "Energy Provider B" exchanged a subtle, greedy glance. They saw the hunger in each other's eyes. This was prime prey—not too young to lack energy, and not too old to be deficient; a young man around twenty was at his most delicious.

A feigned surprise, "Whoa, that’s quite free-spirited! We’re envious; we couldn’t be that carefree back in our day."

"Exactly. We’ve lived half our lives, but it feels like it was all for nothing," B chimed in. "I really envy you. You guys caught a good era; life will only get better from here."

Good grief, these two really considered themselves human? They were actually trying to make conversation? What "good era"? What "wasted middle-aged life"? It was all clichéd, sentimental nonsense. However, since it was hard to do anything on a speeding car, Zhou Shu decided to play along, hoping to fish for some useful information.

They chatted for a long time before they finally asked where Zhou Shu was headed. He had a few destinations in mind, but he changed his plan on the spot. "I’m here looking for magnificent scenery, but places with few people. Otherwise, it’s just crowds everywhere, and I can’t tell if I’m looking at people or the view. Since you two are locals, do you have any good recommendations?"

Hearing this, A and B were secretly overjoyed, feeling like they were in for a real feast today. And an effortless one at that.

They kept their composure, though. A, who was driving, laughed and said, "Haha, you’ve asked the right people. We drive this road all the time and often pick up tourists for free. They’ve asked us the same thing. As locals, we hate to let visitors down, so we looked around, and we really do know a great spot."

B hurried to add, "That’s right, the scenery is absolutely top-notch. It’s completely undeveloped beauty. We don't tell just anyone; we’re afraid they’d ruin it."

"That’s wonderful! Are you two free?" Zhou Shu started off sounding happy, then hesitated. "...Never mind, just tell me where it is. I shouldn't take up your time."

"How could that be? We’ve got nothing going on today anyway, we’ll just take you there," A said quickly.

"I’d hate to impose."

"It’s nothing, really, it’s no trouble at all!"

"Exactly, exactly! Hahaha, we haven't been there in a while ourselves. It’s a good excuse to go back and see the view again."

"Oh, well, thank you then."

"Don't mention it. We can consider it a trip down memory lane..."

***

The two parties, each harboring their own secret agenda, chatted and laughed along the way. To an outsider, they certainly looked like they were getting along famously.

And, as it happened, there were outsiders watching. Those three young women.

"Hey, hey, hey! Is that the handsome guy we ran into earlier sitting in that car?"

"Let me see, let me see... I have an eye for handsome guys... Oh, it really is him!"

"Wow, you’ve got to be kidding me. Why is he getting into the car with those two greasy middle-aged men? Are we not appealing enough?"

"Who knows... uh, he doesn't have some sort of weird fetish, does he? He’s so good-looking, too."

"Ew, it’s always the handsome ones who have weird kinks. I’m starting to feel sick."

"No, I can't stand it. I have to catch up and see what’s going on!"

"No way, Pigeon. Are you serious?"

"I am!"

"Fine, then we’ll be crazy with you this once. Stop driving so slowly! Hit the gas, catch up!"

"Go!!"

The three women were fired up over something absurd. They slammed their feet on the gas. The car Zhou Shu was riding in was already speeding—otherwise, it wouldn't have overtaken them—and on this empty highway, it was easy to push the speed even higher.

Before long, the two mutants drove their car off the main road. The three women behind them hesitated for a moment and slowed down. They wanted to follow and see what was happening, but while it was easy to tail them on the highway, following them off-road was far too obvious.

Fortunately, the lead car quickly rounded a small dirt hill and disappeared from sight. Only then did the women step on the gas again, following them off the road.

When they reached the dirt hill, they didn't dare drive straight in. Instead, they carefully got out of their car and crept toward the edge of the hill to peek over.

They didn't see the car.

But that was fine. They breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like no one had been here in a long time; the tire tracks were very clear. They could just follow those to find them.

"Go, go, go! Let’s see what they’re up to!"

"Expose the truth!"

"The truth!!"

On the other side, the two mutants quickly arrived at their destination. After weaving through a few more dirt mounds, the view in front of Zhou Shu suddenly opened up.

It was a massive cliff.

The scenery was indeed magnificent, and because of its location, it was truly deserted.

A perfect spot.

"Little brother, we're here. Get out."

They didn't want to get blood in the car; that would be a hassle, and the Elder would lecture them if he saw it.

"Yeah, we’re here. Time to get out."

A perfect spot indeed. Taking out these two "monsters" in such a magnificent place could be considered a favor to them.

Zhou Shu got out of the car with his backpack, walked to the front, and looked out over the sprawling landscape. He decided it was time.

His attributes were starving, craving the nourishment of energy. He turned back to face the two mutants who had just stepped out. He brought his backpack to his front, pulled the zipper, and started rummaging inside while saying, "Hey guys, I’ve got some tasty treats here. Do you want a taste?"

The two mutants dropped their act. They had been restraining themselves the whole way, and their eyes were bloodshot. They bared their fangs and sneered, "Of course we want a taste. We’ve been salivating the whole trip."

"Heh, perfect. Then taste some bullets!"

Zhou Shu smiled and raised a large-caliber handgun.

Seeing the pistol, the sneering mutants' expressions changed. They recognized that type of firearm; it was a high-power handgun, far more lethal than an ordinary one. Although they didn't know what was happening, it didn't stop them from transforming for self-preservation.

*Riiip—*

Their clothes were shredded by their expanding bodies. Within two seconds, they shifted from normal humans into grey-skinned monsters. These creatures were different from the ones Zhou Shu had seen before; they actually had "armor" similar to a crocodile's hide.

Seeing this, Zhou Shu, who had been waiting for them to transform anyway, didn't hold back. He relied on his physical stats to fire. He had used his scan plenty of times before and didn't want to waste mental energy now. Besides, these two... after only a few minutes of restraint, they had turned into this; even transformed, they weren't even Level 2.

Things below Level 2 didn't deserve him using "slow-motion" perception.

*Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Two shots per mutant—one to the head, one to the chest.

"Ah! I’m going to kill you!!"

The monster shrieked in agony.

Not dead?

Zhou Shu didn't panic. He had suspected as much when he saw the "armor." As his backpack dropped to the ground, his other hand produced an identical handgun.

Just as the monster was writhing in pain and frenzy, and the other monster paused in shock at the sudden appearance of a second gun, Zhou Shu prepared to pull the trigger. But suddenly, he saw a familiar-looking head pop up from behind the dirt hill.

Hadn't he seen this young woman somewhere before?

Because he hadn't activated "bullet time," the moment passed in a flash. Seeing the scene before her, the woman shrieked in terror.

"Ah!"