Apocalypse: The Primordial Pearl Recognizes Its Master, Starting with Infinite Space

Lin Chen understood immediately; this man was probably Yang Na's husband.

He's barely thirty, yet look at his greasy demeanor. In this life-or-death situation, instead of thinking about organizing rescue efforts and comforting his colleagues, he only cares about fawning over his beautiful female colleague and putting on a show of "deep affection." He's clearly a playboy who lives off connections. He spends all his time scheming and pursuing women. It's disgusting that he's still like this in the apocalypse.

"You haven't answered my question yet." Shen Xiyuan ignored Li Zhiyuan and fixed her gaze on Lin Chen again, her vigilance undiminished. However, perhaps because the patient had finally left, her voice betrayed a hint of undisguised weariness. "Who are you? What is your purpose?"

Lin Chen didn't answer directly. Instead, he turned his gaze to Li Zhiyuan, whose expression had just returned to normal. A seemingly amiable but actually cold smile appeared on his face. At the same time, he calmly took out his phone from his pocket and, under the puzzled gazes of the crowd, asked Li Zhiyuan in a flat tone:

"Li Zhiyuan, right? Do you know... Yang Na?"

"Yang Na?" Li Zhiyuan was taken aback at first, then his eyes lit up, his face instantly filled with surprise, as if he had grasped a lifeline. "I know her! Of course I know her! She's my wife! You...you know her? How is she? Did she send you to find me?!"

He had no doubt that the "mysterious powerhouse" who appeared out of nowhere had some deep relationship with his "ordinary" pharmacist wife, but at this moment, any connection with the outside world and with the possibility of survival was enough to make him ecstatic.

"I know her. She's safe for now." Lin Chen's tone remained calm, revealing no emotion. "She asked me to come here if possible... to take you out. And also to help her colleagues who are 'of high moral character and excellent skills'."

"Really?! That's great!!" Li Zhiyuan was so excited he almost jumped up, his face beaming with the joy of surviving a disaster, and with a sense of pride that said, "See, my wife still cares about me after all."

He automatically filled in many blanks in his mind—this powerful person must be someone Yang Na somehow managed to get close to, perhaps she paid some kind of price to obtain the rescue promise! This further proved his importance as Li Zhiyuan.

His mind immediately started working – this was the perfect opportunity to manipulate everyone present, especially Shen Xiyuan!

Perhaps this can even help establish prestige and gain the respect of this powerful figure!

He immediately turned to face the remaining eleven medical staff members, each with a different expression, straightened his back, cleared his throat, and raised his voice in a deliberately elevated tone, tinged with official jargon and a sense of superiority:

"Did everyone hear that?! This Mr. Lin... he was entrusted by my family to come and rescue me! He has the ability to get us out of this hellhole!"

He paused deliberately, his gaze sweeping over Shen Xiyuan's cold face, then around at everyone, emphasizing his words:

"However! Mr. Lin also said that saving lives is possible, but there's a condition—the patient must have high medical ethics, excellent skills, and... know how to respect leaders and obey orders!"

He deliberately emphasized the words "respected leader," his gaze sweeping meaningfully over several doctors who were usually not very respectful to him, before finally forcing what he thought was a friendly yet suggestive smile at Lin Chen: "Mr. Lin, right? May I ask your full name?"

"Lin Chen." Lin Chen gave his name, his face still expressionless, but inwardly he was sneering.

"Alright! Everyone heard that! Mr. Lin Chen said it himself!" Li Zhiyuan, as if granted a royal decree, became even more smug. He put his hands on his hips, looked around at everyone, and spoke with a tone of both condescension and pressure, "The conditions are right here! Whether you can leave or not depends entirely on your performance! You... know what to do, right?"

Before he finished speaking, two people swarmed around Li Zhiyuan like flies drawn to blood.

One of them was the kind-looking middle-aged male doctor who had previously advised Shen Xiyuan to give up. Now, his face was full of fawning smiles: "Section Chief Li! It's me, Lao Wang! I've always been loyal to you. I follow your ward rounds closely and learn from you. I always carry out your instructions without fail!"

The other was a charming female doctor in her forties, who also swayed her hips and leaned closer, her voice coquettish: "Yes, yes, Section Chief Li, you must take me with you! Every time you come to the office, I make tea and wipe the table clean beforehand! I'm the most 'respectful to the leader'!"

The remaining nine people looked at each other, their expressions complicated.

Some eyes showed struggle, some flashed resentment, and some were completely numb.

But in the end, no one else took a step forward. Shen Xiyuan and the old doctor remained motionless, their eyes cold, and a hint of mockery even playing on their lips.

Lin Chen's sneer inwardly deepened. In this apocalyptic world, where life and death hang by a thread, a mere empty phrase like "respect the leader" could buy survival. Yet, out of a total of eleven people, nine would rather stand still than bow down to such a despicable person.

This clearly shows how unpopular this Deputy Section Chief Li is.

Lin Chen noticed as soon as he entered that, apart from Li Zhiyuan, Lao Wang, and Sister Zhang, the other nine people all looked exhausted, had bloodshot eyes, and were covered in blood, clearly the main force in the recent efforts to rescue the wounded. In contrast, Li Zhiyuan and the other two were clean and tidy, almost like an anomaly.

Lin Chen was too lazy to cooperate with this ugly performance any longer.

He moved.

There was no earth-shattering fanfare, just a simple step forward.

"Smack—!!!"

A resounding slap echoed like a thunderclap!

Li Zhiyuan didn't even see the movement clearly. He only felt a huge force slap his face. Stars flashed before his eyes, and his ears rang. He screamed and flew backward, crashing heavily onto the equipment cart behind him with a loud bang, scattering metal equipment all over the ground.

Before he could struggle to his feet, Lin Chen appeared beside him like a ghost, raised his foot, and stomped heavily on his chest!

"Ugh—!" Li Zhiyuan felt as if a huge rock was pressing on his chest, his ribs groaning. The intense pain and suffocation made his face turn purple and swollen. He tried to scratch at Lin Chen's military boots with his hands, but could not budge them at all.

This sudden turn of events left Old Wang and Sister Zhang dumbfounded. They stood frozen in place, their fawning smiles turning into extreme fear and bewilderment.

"Mr. Lin... Mr. Lin? You... you are...?" Old Wang stammered.

Sister Zhang's legs went weak, and she almost collapsed.

Lin Chen slowly turned his head, his gaze sweeping indifferently over them, past the nine astonished medical staff, and finally landing on Li Zhiyuan's face, who lay like a dead dog at his feet. His voice was calm and unwavering:

"What I meant was, 'High medical ethics and excellent skills'."

He paused, his tone laced with undisguised sarcasm: "When did I ever say 'respect for leaders'? Especially... this kind of 'leader'?"

Old Wang and Sister Zhang were struck dumb, their faces turning ashen.

Lin Chen ignored them and turned to the nine medical staff who had remained steadfast throughout. His tone returned to its usual calm, yet carried an undeniable resolve:

"I can take you away to a place that is safe for the time being."

The nine people were stunned for a moment, then their faces lit up with unbelievable joy! They had escaped from a desperate situation!

"However," Lin Chen's voice turned cold, like a biting winter wind, "there are conditions. First, you must serve the shelter I establish. Second, and most importantly—loyalty. No betrayal, no double-dealing. Otherwise..."

He didn't finish speaking, but the fleeting, icy killing intent in his eyes said it all.