Rushing Out of the Playground

After this battle, Xu Hua and Xiao Zhe let go of their grudge against Yang Xiao. Unity was strength; in the apocalypse, who knew what danger they might encounter in the next second? Yang Xiao's team now had more than ten mutants, the team with the second most mutations after Xiao Zhe's team. In the future, there might be a crisis that required Yang Xiao's help, just like this time when they were hunting the hornets.

"Hehe, you guys are tycoons. We can't compare to you. Chen Fei, take ten girls and follow behind them to pick up the roasted hornets," Xiao Zhe said. 

Chen Fei, who was standing to the side, immediately gathered over ten girls and began picking up the hornet corpses from the ground.

Yang Xiao thought for a moment and said, "Pick up half and leave the other half for others."

Xiao Zhe and Xu Hua glanced at Yang Xiao and said, "Yang Xiao, you're truly benevolent." 

"It's not that I'm being benevolent, but we're at the end of the world now. There aren't many humans left. If we continue killing each other, humankind will go extinct. In the future, when your abilities increase, you can throw the extra mutated creatures you kill to others for food. It will be doing a good deed," Yang Xiao explained.

Xiao Zhe and Xu Hua nodded in agreement with Yang Xiao's rationale. 

Ten minutes later, Huang Wen and the others gathered the genetic fragments they had picked up. There were 52 in total. They split them evenly, with 26 each. 

Xiao Zhe had borrowed 5 crystal coins from Yang Xiao for Xu Hua's armor yesterday and now returned them.

Dai Yun and Yang Xiao took on the dangerous task of igniting the fire, each receiving 5 crystal coins. With the remaining 16 crystal coins, last night Chen Fei, Chen Lu, and Chubby participated in the task of moving the gasoline tanks, each getting 2 crystal coins, leaving 10 crystal coins. Yang Xiao distributed these to the people who helped collect hornet corpses and crystal coins at the scene, with each person receiving one.

Yang Xiao had always insisted that in a team, those who contributed more should earn more. This was the only way to motivate everyone.

Xu Hua was very happy because participating in the most dangerous hornet-luring mission had earned him a set of armor.

With the hornet crisis resolved, everyone was elated. They streamed out, ready to search for weaker mutated creatures. At least they could eat their fill and boost their mutations. 

The hornet corpses that Yang Xiao had asked Chen Fei and the others to deliberately leave on the track were immediately snatched up by hundreds of starving people. Some were so famished they shoved the charred hornet corpses right into their mouths.

Yang Xiao had Chen Fei, Chen Lu, Dai Yun, and Chubby each eat a few roasted hornets. "Eat up and rest a bit. We'll head out again immediately. We have an urgent mission," he said.

Chen Fei and the others looked at Yang Xiao in confusion. "Boss, what's so urgent?"

Yang Xiao looked around and whispered, "Didn't you notice something missing?" 

Chen Fei and the others were even more baffled. What could still be missing?

"Are you stupid? Shouldn't hornets have a queen?" 

Ah! Chen Fei and the others' mouths fell open as they looked at Yang Xiao in surprise. 

Yang Xiao made a shushing gesture and whispered, "We burned most of the hornets to death. If we find the Queen now, we should be able to take her down. As the Queen Bee, the genetic fragments she drops should be special, right? We killed most of the ants yesterday too, but what about their queen? I didn't see her either."

After Yang Xiao's reminder, Chubby and the others couldn't help but grow excited. They hurriedly ate a few roasted hornets, then once the electric currents in their bodies subsided, Yang Xiao led the four girls out again.

Before leaving, Yang Xiao borrowed 5 crystal coins from each member, adding his own 5 to buy a set of armor from the Gene Store. 

The basic armor was like a piece of cloth, except the material was very special, neither cotton nor silk. It felt more comfortable to wear. 

This armor provided +2 defense. 

Yang Xiao also had Dai Yun borrow 3 crystal coins. With her own 7 crystal coins, he sent her to buy armor too. 

Dai Yun's werewolf form specialized in close combat. The extra defense could increase her resistance.

With Yang Xiao and Dai Yun as meat shields up front, Chen Fei, Chen Lu, and Chubby could keep attacking from behind.

In the tent, after eating the mutated hornets, more and more of Huang Wen's group had begun rapidly mutating.

Yang Xiao and the others first searched around the playground but found no trace of a Hornet Queen or Ant Queen, not even any stray ants or hornets. 

Meanwhile, the playground was filled with people. Someone had discovered a mutated dung beetle. Dozens attacked together and finally managed to kill the fist-sized bug.

"Boss, the Hornet Queen has probably already flown off. The playground is right next to Jade Cloud Mountain. So she may have flown into the forest," Chen Fei speculated. 

"And those mutated ants likely ran down from Jade Cloud Mountain. We've seen tons of them on the mountain before. If you want to hunt these mutated creatures, just head up Jade Cloud Mountain," Chen Lu added.

Everyone looked to Yang Xiao, waiting for his decision. 

The thick fog around the playground had been forced back by the crowd. Now, to kill mutants and gather genetic fragments, they had to leave the playground and enter the fog.

"Up the mountain?" Yang Xiao hesitated. The current Jade Cloud Mountain was a dead zone, crawling with all kinds of mutated creatures, small ants, spiders, mosquitoes; larger lizards, snakes, weasels, rabbits; and possibly even more powerful mutated beasts like wild boars.

Accidentally getting surrounded would mean certain death. Even being swarmed by ants was dangerous. 

Yet for obtaining genetic fragments, and food, and boosting their genetic power, Jade Cloud Mountain was a treasure trove. The hordes of mutants were a source of genetic fragments.

Yang Xiao was caught in a dilemma.

"Hehe, Yang Xiao, what are you guys standing around here for?" came Xiao Zhe's voice from behind.

Yang Xiao turned to see Xiao Zhe and Xu Hua approaching with around 20 companions.

Xu Hua looked at Yang Xiao and said, "Want to head up the mountain but don't dare?"

Xiao Zhe and Xu Hua decided the only quick way to gain genetic fragments and power was the mountain hunt. So they'd gathered over 20 mutated members to venture up together.

Yang Xiao nodded. "I've only got these few. I don't dare go up alone."

"Hehe, simple. We're heading up anyway, so just join us. But we'll each rely on our own skills for hunting mutants. There will be no more splitting," Xiao Zhe said. 

He was now very confident in his team. 

Xiao Zhe had also bought armor. His werewolf transformation had mutated his hands and feet fully. He was close to the final breakthrough, much stronger now.

With Xu Hua's high-defense bronze skin as partner and over 20 mutants, he felt ready to hunt up the mountain.

Chen Fei and the girls looked uneasily at Yang Xiao. Deep down, they hated Xiao Zhe and didn't want to team up.

"Alright, I'll just follow behind you guys and scavenge leftovers." Yang Xiao shrugged.