A vicious female is trapped in a beastly hell.

Chapter 34 Hatred and Betrayal
Xue Yinzhou scrutinized her. "You've changed a lot these past few days. You're like a different person."

Shen Tang appeared calm on the surface, but inside she was panicking. Xue Yinzhou had been by the original owner's side for so many years and knew her character thoroughly. Could it be that he had noticed something?

Shen Tang was about to find an excuse to back down when the man turned away from her and looked calmly ahead, saying, "We've arrived."

Shen Tang stepped forward and realized that there was a cliff in front of her.

Below the cliff lies a dense and vast jungle. In the distance, the outline of the factory stands out starkly against the gray sky. Half of the chimney is broken, with exposed steel bars, resembling broken bones. Many gray-green vines entwine the copper and iron walls, like a dying beast coiled in the forest, obscuring the entrance.

"It's so high, how am I supposed to get down?" Shen Tang muttered to herself, then turned her head and was suddenly met with the man's cold and enigmatic face.

Against the moonlight, Xue Yinzhou's face was hidden in shadow, his silver-purple eyes fixed on the inanimate object with a playful indifference, and a strange smile slowly curled at the corner of his lips.
The system in my mind suddenly emitted a sharp, explosive sound.

[Warning! Warning! The male lead, Xue Yinzhou's, favorability rating has plummeted, and he has now entered a dark phase!]

Shen Tang's pupils shrank suddenly, and she was so frightened that she turned and ran. The thick, long snake tail instantly trapped her in a circle, wrapped around her body, and brought her to the edge of the cliff.

Below the cliff, the wind howls fiercely, and the black soil buries countless bones.

Xue Yinzhou looked down at Shen Tang's ugly, fat face with a cold gaze, feeling utterly disgusted.

A litany of lies, hypocritical and ugly.

No matter who she is.

None of that matters anymore.

That's the end of it.

"Shen Tang, go to hell," he whispered.

The moment the snake's tail loosened, Shen Tang fell off the cliff.

[Beep! Host in mortal danger detected, protection system activated!]

A faint green light instantly enveloped Shen Tang, converging into a semi-transparent barrier that surrounded her. She drifted down like a feather and landed safely at the bottom of the cliff.

The moment the green light dissipated, Shen Tang suddenly lost her strength and collapsed to the ground, her face deathly pale and her pupils unfocused. It took her a long time to recover from this near-death experience.

That serpentine beast attacked her with deadly intent!

Shen Tang trembled all over, filled with rage. "This man wants to kill me, how am I supposed to win him over? Fine, I'm not doing this conquest mission anymore. Either you find a different host, or you find a different target!"

The system's voice was slow to respond.

Shen Tang called out anxiously several more times, but there was still no response.

Could the system be broken?
A rustling sound came from all around, and swarms of insects emerged from the soil. Shen Tang's face turned pale, and goosebumps rose all over her body.

Fortunately, her system backpack was still usable, so she quickly took out the insecticide from it and sprayed it wildly!
A large number of the insects that were sprayed died instantly.

The nearby insects were terrified of the spray and scattered, disappearing without a trace.

After some mutated insectoid beasts died, gray crystal cores appeared on the ground.

The system's voice sounded again: [Slaying mutated creatures has a certain chance of yielding crystal cores. The host is lucky; these crystal cores can be exchanged for corresponding redemption points after being brought back to the shelter. The host can also use them themselves; the crystal cores can quickly replenish the orc's supernatural energy.]

Shen Tang exclaimed in surprise, "You're still alive! That's wonderful! I called you just now and there was no response. I thought the system was gone."

[The system is now bound to the host's soul. Death is not an option; it has simply run out of energy and entered a low-energy state. Please complete the tasks diligently so the system has more energy to serve you.]

Once Shen Tang calmed down a bit, she asked the system to help her put the crystal cores into her system backpack, and she continued on her way to the abandoned factory.

It was only a few hundred meters away. Fortunately, she didn't encounter any large mutants; the mutated insects were wiped out by her insecticide.

The system backpack contains more than 300 crystal cores.

Shen Tang crossed the fence and walked to the factory gate. The iron gate was covered with vines, and the warning sign not far away had long faded and the words were no longer legible. There were many dead bodies with pollutants outside the gate, and the wind carried a pungent, putrid smell. The factory was quiet inside, as if no one had been there for a long time.

Shen Tang's heart skipped a beat, wondering if Lu Xiao and the others were still alive, and whether there were any mutated creatures hiding in the factory.

She first had the system check the factory's interior to confirm there was no danger. Then, she picked up a heavy iron rod and started banging on the factory's rusty gate.

"Hey, is anyone there?"

The echo was hollow.

The factory was deathly silent. The beastmen, dressed in tattered clothes and covered in blood, lay motionless in the corners or on the ground. If it weren't for the faint breathing sounds in the air, one might mistake it for a giant morgue.

Some people faintly heard the sound, got up from the ground, and dragged their swaying, thin bodies to look out the window.

Suddenly, a glint of light flashed in his gloomy eyes, and he exclaimed with delight,
"Brothers, look outside! Someone's knocking on the door..."

"The outside is already surrounded by pollutants, there's no way anyone could come. Are you hallucinating from hunger?"

"It really is a person, a living person! I'm not seeing things, come and see!"

"I...I heard the sound too."

Several thin orcs emerged from the shadows, wiping the dust off the windows with their hands. They saw a plump female knocking on the door with a stick.

How could a female end up here?
Was she here seeking asylum?

The hope that had just risen in everyone's hearts was shattered once again. Unfortunately, they had been trapped here for half a month, running out of ammunition and food, and were barely surviving themselves, so how could they help others?

However, females cannot be left outside unattended; they will become food for contaminated species within a single night.

After knocking for a long time, the thick iron door finally opened from the inside.

"come on in!"

Someone grabbed her and pulled her into the factory, quickly closed the iron gate, and locked it with three locks.

"You're still alive, that's wonderful! I've been looking for you." Shen Tang breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the missing team was still alive.

"Are you an orc sent by the shelter to provide support?" The orc sized her up.

But why is it a female?
The expressions on everyone's faces varied, and their gazes toward Shen Tang all held a certain expectation. At least the shelter still cared about them and was still looking for them; they had not been abandoned!
"The reinforcements are on their way, aren't they? You're here to warn us!"

"Great! I can finally get away from this awful place!"

"The shelter has not forgotten us!"

Seeing the excited and expectant looks in the beastmen's eyes, Shen Tang cleared his throat and decided to tell the truth, "No, you have been abandoned. The troops sent by the shelter to provide support were attacked and have returned the way they came. I ended up here by accident."

Everyone was stunned, their faces filled with confusion and emptiness.

Shen Tang then said, "I want to see your captain."

"Want to see the captain? What's your relationship with him?" The orcs instantly became alert.

Shen Tang replied, "I am his partner."

(End of this chapter)