Chapter 150: Bees and Butterflies
Zhu Huange gripped the dagger, rising gracefully to her feet. Tilting her head at He Mingliang, she smiled, sweet as a summer sundae.
“My name is Zhu Huange.”
This woman was no simple character!
He Mingliang clenched his fire axe. “Bitch—looking for death!”
Zhu Huange, with a pained expression, tossed an item at him.
[Loyalty Talisman: One-time consumable. When it hits the target, the target will remain 100% loyal to you for the duration of a single dungeon.]
He Mingliang was not the best target for the talisman. Nor was Luo Guanghe.
Zhu Huange knew her limits. Surviving alone for five days on Baihua Island would be almost impossible. Her original plan was to keep acting like a harmless little flower, relying on others’ protection to get through.
The expensive talisman she’d bought—her only one—was something to be saved if at all possible.
But plans never keep up with change.
Luo Guanghe had set his lecherous eyes on her. If she had stayed calm, she might have used the talisman on him. But she had been too disgusted, panicked, wanting only to kill him, and completely forgot the item.
Now, struck by the talisman, He Mingliang’s fear of her vanished. He dropped his axe and even smiled at her.
His abrupt change caught Pu Tianqing’s attention.
Zhu Huange’s eyes paused briefly on Zhou Yuanfen. “He Mingliang, have a few people throw these two corpses out.”
“Yes. You, you, and you—come here.”
The others walked over in confusion. Just a moment ago, He Mingliang had been ferocious. Why the sudden change?
Zhu Huange didn’t care. No matter how much the NPCs racked their brains, they’d never guess the existence of such an item.
Once the corpses were gone, she continued, “Take them and get back the food we lost. The brothers have worked hard today—later, cook them a good meal!”
He Mingliang answered again.
His fire axe was the sharpest weapon among them. No one dared resist. And with the thought of food soon in their hands, they didn’t want to argue too much.
After two meals without a drop to drink or eat, the lure of food was irresistible.
“Big sis, it’s too dangerous for you to stay here alone. Let me stay with you.” Feng Lixuan bowed and scraped.
Zhu Huange’s face went cold. “No need. He Mingliang!”
He Mingliang waved the axe threateningly.
Feng Lixuan had no choice but to follow the others out.
As soon as they were gone, the people inside shut the door tight.
“Brother Liang, we’re all out here. What if that woman won’t open the door for us later?” Feng Lixuan asked anxiously.
Others turned to knock, but He Mingliang stopped them.
“Do you want to lure the mutants here?”
“But—”
Pu Tianqing, impatient, snapped, “The food inside is already cleared out. If she doesn’t open up, does she want to starve herself?”
True enough.
Everyone calmed down, not knowing Zhu Huange was pulling a “lure the tiger from the mountain” trick.
Even if He Mingliang was on her side, she had no confidence he could control the rest. In the end, they might still turn on her.
But the presidential suite was bulletproof, and with enough steamed buns and water in her game inventory, she could spend the five days in safety all by herself.
Outside, He Mingliang and the others knocked on Xiao Yuntian’s door.
Xiao Yuntian and his two bodyguards weren’t asleep, but didn’t want to return to their rooms either. They were playing chess. Mu Lantu and Xu Huazhang were reading magazines.
Midnight visitors—clearly with bad intentions.
None of them planned to respond.
He Mingliang’s group didn’t dare make too much noise, only knocking softly.
“Listen up! If you don’t open the door, we’ll set the place on fire!”
Xiao Yuntian’s face sank. “Madness.”
Mu Lantu opened the door and glared coldly. “Looking to die?”
He Mingliang barked, “You’re the ones looking to die! Hand over the food!”
Mu Lantu said slowly, “We’ve already let you have that suite. You should be satisfied.” Otherwise, when he and Xu Huazhang had left, they could have simply locked the door and left these people outside to feed the mutants.
But He Mingliang was exhausted and starving—his patience gone. “Cut the crap!”
Mu Lantu sneered. Then—skillet attack!
BANG BANG BANG!
“Will you get lost?”
“Yes, yes! We’ll leave!”
He Mingliang’s group fled in terror.
Damn, where had this fiend come from? The skillet felt like being hit with a hammer, stars bursting before their eyes, heads ringing!
Mu Lantu leaned lazily against the doorframe, watching them scramble back to Suite 6.
Xu Huazhang sighed and came over.
“Think the people inside will let them back in?” Mu Lantu wrapped an arm around his waist, leaning all his weight against him.
Xu Huazhang adjusted his stance to make him more comfortable, also watching the show.
“Probably not. More mouths means less food for each.”
Indeed. They hadn’t completely cleaned out the presidential suite—half the snacks were left behind.
Xu Huazhang hadn’t named the reason, but he guessed the outcome right.
The door never opened. Feng Lixuan and Pu Tianqing began panicking.
“Open up! Hurry!”
“Stupid bitch, open the damn door!”
Inside, there was no movement. The people within clearly had no intention of opening.
He Mingliang glanced toward Mu Lantu and Xu Huazhang. The amusement on their faces made him flush with shame. His loyalty to Zhu Huange remained, but being abandoned still hurt.
Pu Tianqing’s mind raced. Boldly, he approached Mu Lantu and Xu Huazhang.
“You have a room card, don’t you?”
“We do. But why should I give it to you?” Mu Lantu smiled slyly.
Xu Huazhang handed him the skillet he’d just set down.
Mu Lantu wiped it clean on Pu Tianqing’s clothes.
Pu Tianqing swallowed his anger. “I can pay. Just lend me the card.”
“I’m not short on money,” Mu Lantu drawled, tone mocking.
Pu Tianqing tried again. “What if I said that woman inside put us up to this raid? Wouldn’t that bother you at all?”
Inside the suite, Zhu Huange sneezed. She turned up the AC two degrees warmer.
Fresh from a shower, in a soft camisole nightdress, she stood on the balcony nibbling jerky and chips she’d found, gazing smugly at the night view.
Were any other players living as comfortably as she was right now?
Just then, she felt an odd draft blow from behind. She shivered and turned instinctively—
To see Feng Lixuan and the others at the door, faces murderous.
Zhu Huange’s expression paled in horror. She screamed, “Ah—He Mingliang, save me!”
“This bitch was hiding food!” Pu Tianqing roared.
At those words, all calm was lost.
That night, the heavy fragrance of flowers grew stronger, masking the smell of blood.
Mu Lantu was woken by the cloying scent.
Xu Huazhang, already awake, sat at the bedside reading.
“When a scent is too strong, it stinks,” Mu Lantu murmured.
Xu Huazhang set down his book. “Baby, wash up first. There’s new trouble outside.”
Mu Lantu jumped up.
Ten minutes later, he stood frozen on the balcony.
What filled the air like clouds? Bees? Butterflies?
Were there really bees and butterflies larger than a man’s hand?
BANG!
A loud crash came from Madam Xiao’s room. Today’s noise was far worse than yesterday’s.
By rights, without consuming energy, her body should have grown weaker day by day. But the opposite was happening.
Wang Long and Zhao Hu stared nervously at the lock, afraid it would break under her assault.
Xiao Yuntian’s eyes were bloodshot, like he hadn’t slept all night.
“Boss…” Wang Long hesitated. If Madam Xiao kept evolving, even five grown men might not be able to restrain her.
“I can’t do it… We’ve been married over twenty years! We have a son and a daughter! When we get back, how can I face them?” Xiao Yuntian buried his face in his hands.
Even now, he refused to abandon his wife. Irrational as it was, Mu Lantu admired that loyalty.
“There’s a way. We’ll move into the suite across the hall, leave Madam Xiao here.”
With their “universal key,” they could take any presidential suite they liked.
Xiao Yuntian stood. “Move!”
It was the perfect compromise.
There wasn’t much to pack—just food, toiletries, and a change of clothes. The suites all had binoculars, but they took one anyway.
Mu Lantu and Xu Huazhang, of course, had no changes of clothes. They simply washed what they wore at night and put it back on in the morning. Outwardly at least—truth was, they had many identical outfits. They could swap unnoticed.
Xu Huazhang opened the door, then quickly shut it.
“There are butterflies and bees in the hallway.”
“There’s bug spray. I’ll grab it,” Zhao Hu said.
Mu Lantu pulled out a few masks from a cabinet, handing one to each person.
Standard hotel stock. They’d found them yesterday while searching other suites for food.
He and Xu Huazhang told Xiao Yuntian’s group to stay put. Then the two of them went out, spraying the bees and butterflies.
The giant insects were stubborn, only collapsing after seven or eight sprays.
Once they’d cleared the hall and opened the suite across the way, Mu Lantu called the others over.
The new suite was spotless.
They hadn’t rifled through it when scouting yesterday.
“Boss, shall I make breakfast?” Wang Long asked.
Xiao Yuntian straightened. “Do it. Make plenty—let everyone eat their fill. Things outside are worsening. We need our strength. If food runs short later, we’ll find a way.”
“Got it!”
On the balcony, Mu Lantu and Xu Huazhang each took a pair of binoculars.
Zhao Hu, idle, asked Xiao Yuntian’s leave to help in the kitchen.
Mu Lantu said, “Those mutants are moving more flexibly now. Their speed’s increasing.”
Xu Huazhang nodded. “Their bodies reek of fragrance, yet the bees and butterflies ignore them. It’s like they’re searching only for survivors.”
