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At dawn, the first rays of sunlight pierced through the clouds and shone on the newly erected alloy gate of the Ningyuan shelter.

Zhuang Hanyan rubbed her sore eyes and injected the last dose of nutrient solution into the little girl's arm.

The child's wrists were as thin as withered branches, and the blood vessels under the skin were clearly visible.

"Alright, Little Deer," she said softly, her fingers brushing over the needle mark, and the special healing gel immediately sealed the wound. "I guarantee there won't be a scar."

The girl named Xiaolu timidly touched her smooth wrist, then suddenly threw herself into Zhuang Hanyan's arms: "Sister, Mom said she slept so warmly last night..."

Sobbing sounds came from all over the ward.

More than twenty rescued women were crammed into this makeshift medical station. They still bore whip marks and burns from electronic collars, but their eyes had already regained their light.

The rhythmic sound of machinery could be heard from outside the door.

Through the glass, you can see three agricultural robots tilling the land, their metal arms precisely planting seeds...

Of course, the land in this wasteland world has long been polluted, and can only be improved by obtaining the Breath Soil from treasure chests.

In addition, Suning also retrieved fast-growing crops from the space world, and the first batch of fresh vegetables can be harvested in three days.

"Han Yan!" Hu Yue rushed in, holding a data board in her hand. "Three more migration groups have arrived, this time with more than seventy people!"

Zhuang Hanyan pulled up a holographic map, and the points of light representing the migrants surged toward area C-127 from all directions.

The closest ones have arrived at the outer outpost, where AI guards led by Chai Jing are verifying identities.

"What did the master say?"

Hu Yue, standing to the side, excitedly waved her arms and explained, "Suning said they'll take it all! And they won't charge any 'blood tax'!"

She lowered her voice, "You should see the expressions on those people's faces. Some of them fainted from crying on the spot."

Indeed, in the wasteland world, this is simply a fantasy.

Zhuang Hanyan recalled the scene when Su Ning rescued her from the "When the Geese Return" instance...

That man was the same, offering protection without asking for anything in return.

Despite being called a demon, his actions were those of an angel on earth.

“I’ll go prepare more medical pods.” She stood up, but was suddenly pulled back by Hu Yue.

“Wait a minute…” Hu Yue hesitated for a moment, “There are a few suspicious ones among the migrants who have been probing the shelter’s defenses. Chai Jing said they have electronic tattoos of the Merchant Alliance on their bodies.”

Zhuang Hanyan's gold-rimmed glasses flashed with a cold light: "Should we report to the master?"

“No need.” Hu Yue smiled slyly. “Su Ning already knew. He said… fishing requires bait.”

"what……"

“Suning is also planning to launch live streaming next; they want to undermine the foundation of the business alliance.”

The two smiled at each other.

Suddenly, soft music filled the entire shelter...

This is the wake-up call at six in the morning.

As the machinery hummed, the simulated skylight on the ceiling gradually lit up, revealing a clear blue "sky" and "sunlight".

"Oh my god..." The fawn's mother covered her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes, "It's exactly the same as before the natural disaster..."

……

Meanwhile, at an observation point three kilometers outside the shelter, a man wearing a tattered cloak was monitoring everything through a high-powered telescope.

When he saw the artificial blue sky rising above the Ningyuan refugee camp, his fingers trembled uncontrollably.

“Reporting to headquarters…” He pressed the communicator in his ear, his voice dry, “The target does indeed possess the pinnacle of old-world technology, including confirmed spatial folding technology and an ecological simulation system. Furthermore…”

Through the telescope, several children were chasing and playing by the edge of a newly cultivated field, holding fresh fruit in their hands...

In the wasteland, this is a luxury item comparable to gold.

“The target is establishing…some kind of utopian community.” He swallowed hard. “Immediate action is recommended, or more survivors will defect.”

After a long silence on the other end of the communicator, a cold reply came through: "Continue to lie in wait and obtain space technology samples. Settlement B-47 can be used as bait if necessary."

The man shuddered.

There were over three hundred civilians on board B-47, most of whom were children...

"Yes, sir," he finally replied, a hint of reluctance flashing in his eyes, but quickly replaced by numbness.

In the wasteland, mercy is a deadly luxury.

……

At noon, the central square of Ningyuan Refuge was bustling with people.

More than 300 new migrants lined up to receive their identity chips and living supplies.

Chen Xiaojun stood on high ground, with the Azure Frost Sword hovering beside her. The invisible pressure made the scene orderly.

“All chips have been entered into the protection system,” she whispered to Su Ning beside her. “I will immediately sense if anyone leaves the safe zone.”

Su Ning nodded, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.

His spatial awareness allowed him to clearly distinguish three people carrying concealed devices...

Two had listening devices implanted under the skin of their left arms, and one had a poison sac hidden in its molar.

"Let them send the message back," Su Ning chuckled. "It saves us the trouble of spreading the word."

As soon as he finished speaking, the square suddenly erupted in commotion.

A convoy of ten armored vehicles was driving toward the gate, their bodies painted with a scarlet wolf head emblem.

"Blood Wolf Gang!" someone shouted in terror, and the group instantly fell into chaos.

Chen Xiaojun pointed her sword at the sky, and a sword aura shot into the sky, exploding into a dazzling blue firework a hundred meters in the air.

This is a warning signal for Ningyuan, meaning "stay calm."

The convoy stopped in front of the gate.

The roof of the lead armored vehicle opened, and a burly, bald man stood up, raising his hands to indicate that he was harmless.

He wore a black eyepatch over his right eye and had a gruesome scar on his left cheek.

"The Blood Wolf Clan's Grand Commander, codenamed 'Blood Moon,'" the man's voice boomed, "has come to offer his sincerity to Lord Ningyuan!"

There was an uproar.

The Blood Wolves are one of the most ruthless raider organizations in the wasteland, and they are the ones who have always been subservient to others.

Su Ning flashed and instantly appeared in front of Blood Moon.

This spatial teleportation caused the Blood Wolf Clan warriors to collectively take a half-step back, with only Blood Moon barely managing to remain calm.

"What sincerity?" Su Ning asked casually.

Blood Moon made a gesture, and his men immediately carried five metal boxes out of the car.

The lid was opened, revealing twenty crystals emitting blue light arranged neatly inside.

“Twenty Level 5 Vault Cores.” Blood Moon’s voice trembled with suppressed emotion. “And… this too.”

He personally presented the last brocade box, inside which was a broken bronze key, its surface engraved with ancient runes.

"A pass to the S-class ruins 'Kunlun'." Blood Moon knelt on one knee, holding the box high above his head. "I beg you, my lord, to accept the Blood Wolf Clan's allegiance!"

The onlookers were dumbfounded.

They never imagined that the infamous Blood Wolf Gang would submit in such a humble manner.

Suning took the bronze key, raising an eyebrow slightly.

He recognized the runes on the key...

Those were ancient, immortal characters, bearing the words "Gui Xu" (Return to the Ruins).

In the cultivation world, Guixu is a spatial node connecting all realms...

"Why?" he suddenly asked.

Blood Moon raised his head, a complex light flashing in his single eye: "Three days ago, my daughter contracted radiation sickness at settlement B-47."

He clenched his fists. "The price offered by the Business Alliance is... to make her an experimental subject for 'Ark'."

There was dead silence in the square.

Everyone knew what being sent to the Ark Labs meant...

Those "volunteers" will eventually turn into monsters that are neither human nor ghost.

"I've heard that Ningyuan has the technology to cure radiation sickness..." Blood Moon's voice was hoarse, "Please, sir, save her!"

Su Ning stared at the former tyrant, who now appeared as nothing more than a desperate father.

Spatial perception swept across the armored vehicle, confirming that there was indeed a girl lying inside, barely alive, about thirteen or fourteen years old, whose skin had begun to ulcerate.

"Bring her in." Su Ning turned and walked towards the medical area. "The rest of you stay outside."

Overjoyed, Blood Moon wept and immediately ordered his men to bring out a stretcher.

The onlookers automatically parted to make way, many with tears in their eyes…

In the wasteland, such mercy is nothing short of a miracle.

Chen Xiaojun caught up with Su Ning and whispered, "Could it be a trap? That girl might be..."

“It’s true.” Su Ning interrupted her. “I saw the brand on the back of her neck. It’s the mark of the Ark Labs.”

A cold glint flashed in his eyes. "It seems the Merchant Alliance is even more corrupt than we imagined."

As Blood Moon's daughter was transferred to the medical pod and the pure spiritual liquid began to flush out the radiation toxins from her body, the monitoring system surrounding Ningyuan Shelter detected an abnormal signal...

A spy lurking among the migrants is secretly sending encrypted messages to the Merchant Alliance headquarters:

[Target confirmed to have received the Blood Wolf Gang. Immediate execution of the "Purification" plan is recommended.]

Further north, inside a massive, pure white building, Dr. Lin Xiao watched Ning Yuan's live feed on a holographic screen, his fingers gently tracing the glass of the incubation chamber.

Floating inside the cabin was a boy who bore a striking resemblance to Lin Xiao...

"Soon, my dear brother," he murmured to himself. "You'll be home soon."

The boy in the incubation chamber suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils flashing with a strange, bloodthirsty starlight.

……

While Chai Jing was fighting monsters and collecting treasure chests alone, he encountered a group of dog-headed, human-bodied orcs. Among them were mages who could use magic and warriors with incredible strength, seemingly searching for something nearby.

Amidst the continuous acid rain.

Chai Jing's arrow pierced through the rain and precisely pierced the eye socket of the last kobold warrior.

The creature let out a shrill howl, its rusty machete clattering to the ground before its massive body crashed to the ground.

“The seventh one,” she counted softly, leaping out from behind the broken wall where she was hiding.

Rain dripped down her red cloak, splashing tiny droplets on the scorched earth.

This patrol shouldn't have attracted her attention...

If it weren't for the strange blue light that flashed from the kobold mage's fingertips when he cast a fireball spell...

That was no ordinary magic. Chai Jing's biochemical sensor detected a familiar energy fluctuation: nitroglycerin.

“Come out! I know you’re still alive.” She kicked aside the kobold warrior’s corpse, her longbow pointing at a pile of rubble.

There was no movement.

Chai Jing sighed, took a small bottle from his waist, and shook it gently.

"Do you recognize this?" She uncorked the bottle, and a pungent odor immediately filled the air. "Concentrated mustard gas, just one drop..."

"Stop! I surrender!" The pile of rubble suddenly exploded, and a kobold wearing tattered robes raised his hands.

It was much smaller than its kind, with a prominent snout covered in scars, but its amber eyes shone with intelligence.

Chai Jing's bowstring remained unmoved: "A wise choice. Now, tell me what you're looking for?"

The kobold mage's pupils contracted sharply: "It's just... ordinary mineral exploration..."

"You're lying." The tip of Chai Jing's arrow glowed with a ghostly blue light. "My detector recorded the chemical residue from when you cast the spell. Saltpeter and sulfur, huh?"

She suddenly uttered two obscure words in dog-headed language.

The mage trembled: "You...how do you know the sacred recipe?!"

Chai Jing did not answer.

She had naturally heard Su Ning describe how the technologically advanced world was full of mad scientists, and the fanaticism in the eyes of this creature was all too familiar...

That was the spark that would ignite a revolution.

Chai Jing immediately pressed the communicator to contact Su Ning, "My master is very interested in you."

"..."

……

In the underground laboratory of Ningyuan Refuge, the kobold mage was strapped to a specially made interrogation chair.

Zhuang Hanyan's device was connected to her temple, and her brainwaves formed a wildly fluctuating curve on the screen.

“Its physiological structure is 87% similar to that of humans.” She pushed up her glasses. “But it has a special area in the frontal lobe of its brain, which should be the magic center.”

Su Ning observed from behind the one-way glass that Chen Xiaojun's Azure Frost Sword hovered three inches above the mage's head...

It can both intimidate and instantly kill.

“Let’s begin,” he ordered.

Chai Jing picked up a syringe filled with a clear liquid: "This is a nerve enhancer, which will make you... more honest."

The kobold mage screamed the moment the needle pierced his carotid artery.

Its pupils were dilated to their limit, and it was foaming at the mouth, but its consciousness remained unusually clear.

"How many tribes do you have?" Chai Jing asked in kobold language.

"Ten...twelve clans...collectively known as the 'Ash Alliance'..."

Why search for nitrate deposits?

The mage's mouth opened uncontrollably: "For...for the sake of the holy flame...we must destroy humanity with human weapons..."

Zhuang Hanyan's equipment suddenly emitted a sharp alarm: "It's lying! The EEG shows—"

Too late.

The kobold mage's chest suddenly swelled up, and an eerie red light emanated from beneath his skin.

Chen Xiaojun reacted extremely quickly, and the Frost Sword instantly severed its head, but the headless body was still swelling!

"Back off!" Suning deployed a spatial barrier.

"boom--"

The violent explosion shook the entire laboratory.

When the smoke cleared, the interrogation chair had become a twisted metal wreck, and the walls were splattered with fluorescent green blood.

“A self-destruct mechanism.” Chai Jing examined the residue. “It had some kind of biological bomb implanted inside its body.”

Hu Yue rushed over, holding the newly deciphered data in her hand: "Found it in its robes!"

She projected a map with more than a dozen red dots on it. "These are... the locations of mineral veins?"

Suning's eyes sharpened.

The nearest marker on the map is only 20 kilometers away from Ningyuan, and next to it is a strange symbol: a burning human skull.

"They're actually preparing for war." Chen Xiaojun gripped the hilt of her sword tightly.

Zhuang Hanyan suddenly gasped: "Master, the analysis results are in... those fluorescent bloodstains contain gunpowder components. These kobolds... they're using their bodies to make gunpowder!"

The laboratory fell into dead silence.

This discovery means that the kobolds have integrated biotechnology and gunpowder manufacturing to a terrifying degree.

"Convene an operational meeting immediately." Su Ning's spatial perception swept across the map. "Blood Moon, send your best scouts to this position."

He pointed to the nearest mineral vein marker.

The Blood Wolf leader bowed and accepted the order, a fierce glint in his single eye: "Should we capture them alive?"

“No need.” The phantom of the Void Blade appeared at Su Ning’s fingertips. “This time I want to see for myself just how many ‘divine formulas’ these kobolds have mastered.”

Hu Yue was operating the control panel when she suddenly exclaimed, "The world channel has just updated! The kobolds have attacked the Merchant Alliance's third outpost, and they're using... artillery!"

The scene on the screen was chilling: dozens of crude but effective bronze cannons were lined up on the hills, but instead of ordinary cannonballs, they spewed out huddled dog-headed men...

They spontaneously combusted during flight, transforming into humanoid torches upon landing and turning the entire outpost into a sea of ​​fire.

“Suicide bombardment…” Chai Jing’s voice was hoarse. “They used their own people as incendiary bombs.”

Chen Xiaojun shattered the control panel with a single sword strike: "These beasts must be stopped!"

"Wait." Su Ning pressed her shoulder. "Watch the last few seconds of the footage."

At the end of the video, a tall kobold wearing a platinum robe appears on the battlefield.

Holding a staff inlaid with skulls, it gently waved it, and all the flames converged towards it, forming a crown of fire above its head.

"The Lord of Ashes..." Blood Moon's voice was filled with fear, "Legend has it that it can control all fire, even absorb plasma weapons..."

A strange light flashed in Su Ning's eyes.

Because he clearly saw a familiar mark on the back of the kobold king's neck when it turned around...

The triangular emblem of Ark Labs.

"The plan has changed," he said in a deep voice. "We're preparing to contact the Business Alliance."

Everyone stared at him in shock.

"You mean...we're going to cooperate with those bastards who experiment on people?" Blood Moon asked incredulously.

Suning's spatial awareness system pinpointed the furthest red dot on the map...

Instead of a mineral vein, there was a strange symbol: an open cage.

“Because some enemies…” he said softly, “are far more dangerous than kobolds.”

Just then, the alarm suddenly blared throughout the shelter.

Zhuang Hanyan's surveillance screen showed a strange group approaching from outside the east wall...

Ten kobolds were escorting hundreds of human prisoners, all wearing explosive collars around their necks.

The lead kobold held up a white flag, and the captive beside it was...

The third member of the Business Alliance!
"A negotiator?" Hu Yue's eyes widened.

Chai Jing's biochemical detectors flashed wildly: "No... there's a high-energy reaction in those prisoners! This is... a mobile bomb!"

Suning's spatial barrier instantly enveloped the entire shelter.

He finally understood the kobold's true plan...

Sending suicide bombers into human settlements under the guise of "peace talks"!
"Blood Moon, take your men and circle around through the underground passage." He ordered coldly, "Chai Jing, prepare nerve agent rounds. Xiao Jun..."

Chen Xiaojun was already standing by the window, her Azure Frost Sword emitting a three-zhang-long sword light: "Don't worry! I know what to do."

As the shelter doors slowly opened, no one noticed that Su Ning's left hand was quietly forming a complex hand seal...

That was the starting stance of the Immortal Emperor-level spell "Spatial Stripping".

What he wanted was not to repel the attack, but to thoroughly understand the connection between the kobolds and the Ark Labs.

Therefore, we must capture the messenger who raised the white flag alive...

Even if you pay the price.

On the distant horizon, more kobold troops are gathering.

Their bizarre bronze cannons gleamed coldly in the sunlight, and instead of cannonballs, they were filled with smiling dog-headed children...

These brainwashed little ones believe that sacrificing oneself for the "sacred flame" is the highest honor.

A new storm is about to break in the wasteland.

Looking at the increasingly complex wasteland world before him, Su Ning suddenly realized that he had entered the War of the Myriad Realms.

In the future, I may encounter more powerful figures in the world, and I will also face all sorts of new problems and enemies.

...(End of chapter)