New Armor Production

Seeing the conflict about to erupt, Tom couldn't bear it any longer. He patted Li Qiang on the shoulder, signaling him not to get angry, and then spoke up, "This supermarket isn't your family's. You don't get to make decisions here."

Zheng Shiyi pounded his chest, "There's an order to things. We claimed this place first. Mr. Li paid us a lot of money to ensure his safety. You can't obstruct us from making money. Otherwise, we'll break your legs and throw you out to feed the rats!"

If the other party was easy to talk to, Tom might have had trouble being friendly, but since they came in acting tough, Tom was in his element.

He drew out his two-handed greatsword, activated the power of the emerald gem, and forcefully cleaved a pack of chewing gum that had fallen from the shelf in half. With a swift motion, the Green Arrow chewing gum was split in two along with its packaging.

Everyone had an idea of the extent of strength one had after shrinking. Seeing Tom cut the chewing gum into two without a word, they were all stunned.

The one least willing to see a conflict was Cheng Fuhua, the spa manager. He quickly intervened, "Mr. Li, Brother Qiang, we're all small now, and who knows what's outside. There's no need for internal strife, right? Zheng, come back, don't overstep your bounds."

Tom's action shocked them all. The so-called Li regretted immediately getting into conflict with Li Qiang and his group. Now that Cheng Fuhua was trying to smooth things over, he quickly sought a way out, "Hmph, Wah, I'll go with what you say. We'll stay here, and they can stay away."

Miss Zhao Yingying, being a technician, also had some insight. Knowing the conflict stemmed from her, and seeing her manager trying to mediate, she quickly added, "Lili, Xiaohui, and I encountered a big rat on the way. Then the rat chased us into an alley. Xiaohui... Xiaohui was bitten to death... and eaten by the rat."

Hearing this, not only Cheng Fuhua but also the so-called Mr. Li turned pale. Rats eating humans didn't seem so wrong now that they had all shrunk.

"And then?" Cheng Fuhua asked.

"It was these three gentlemen who killed the big rat and saved us."

Li Qiang immediately boasted to Zheng Shiyi, completely forgetting how scared he was when they killed the rat.

If Zhao Yingying had said earlier that they had killed a big rat, they wouldn't have believed it. But with Tom's silent action just now, cutting the chewing gum in half, Zheng Shiyi, who had been bragging just moments ago, dared not utter a word and treated Li Qiang's provocation as if he hadn't seen it.

Seeing the conflict resolved, Tom turned to Cheng Fuhua and said, "Mr. Cheng, can I ask you something?"

Cheng Fuhua least wanted a conflict to happen. Now that it was resolved, he was naturally happy. He approached, "What can I do for you, sir? Ask away, and I'll tell you everything."

Working as a manager in an entertainment club, his perspective wouldn't be too narrow. After seeing Li Qiang and his group come in, Tom remained silent but managed to stop both the fat guy Liu Lian and the thug Li Qiang with just a pat on the shoulder. He vaguely felt that Tom was the leader of this group.

"Call me... Tom. I just wanted to ask about something from your window guard. Did he notice anything, like rats outside?"

Cheng Fuhua looked at the others in the corner and whispered, "I won't hide it from you, Brother An. Xiaogao did see a big rat lurking outside the back door. I suspect it might have spotted us entering the supermarket early on... but I didn't want others to know, so I told Xiaogao not to say anything to avoid causing panic."

Tom nodded. Regardless of how fierce Zheng Shiyi and Li Qiang acted, they were both afraid of tough guys. If they had known that a rat was guarding them like prey, they might have had other thoughts.

Just as Tom had judged earlier, if there were small rats, there would naturally be larger ones nearby. If it had already set its sights on the survivors in the supermarket, it could slip in at any time.

Just sealing windows and doors might not necessarily prevent a rat from coming in, especially in these old buildings where pipe holes and open windows on the second floor could allow entry.

Thinking about it, if the rat had mutated after eating human flesh, it would be even more dangerous.

So, Tom, who originally wanted to keep a low profile and didn't want to expose his golden finger, had to reveal some of his abilities to deter the other party. He didn't want to waste time and energy in a pointless dispute. He needed to immediately consolidate resources to make his team more capable of survival and combat.

The so-called Mr. Li compromised and wanted to divide territories. Tom was happy not to get entangled with the other party. He bid farewell to Cheng Fuhua, pushed Li Qiang up to a second-floor shelf, and dropped down two vacuum-packed braised chicken legs.

Having eaten cake for lunch, it was time for some meat. These vacuum-packed meat snacks were also good for nutrition.

Because she was afraid of Mr. Li, Zhao Yingying didn't return to Cheng Fuhua's side, and Cheng Fuhua couldn't say anything either. So, Liu Lian happily took over and started shaving chicken leg meat for her with a big knife.

The two girls from Cheng Fuhua's side watched from a distance, their faces filled with envy.

The reason Zhao Yingying was willing to join the rescue team was partly because of the hundred thousand yuan promised by Mr. Li Zexin and partly because she wanted to escape this terrifying state.

While eating meat, Zhao Yingying revealed the truth, which matched Tom's earlier speculation.

After shrinking, they had hidden in the supermarket after a series of terrifying experiences. Ten men and four women, with no clothes to cover them, naturally had to find something to do when they had nothing else to do.

Originally, in the bath center, the scope of service for female technicians was limited to the realm of touch, and actual intercourse couldn't happen within the center. However, after they entered the supermarket and spent a night on edge, unable to go outside and confined to the supermarket, the men naturally thought of the most significant entertainment available. So, under the coercion of money and force, the four female technicians were compelled to provide a full range of services.

Zhao Yingying and the one named Lili couldn't bear to continue being harassed like this, so they chose to join the rescue team. After satisfying their hunger, Tom found a whetstone in a shelf on the first floor, cut open the packaging, and had Li Qiang fetch some water from bottled purified water. Tom began sharpening his large sword.

Speaking of which, this large sword, with a blade made from a penknife, had accompanied him from the third floor to the second, then from the second to the rooftop, and finally helped him escape the ant's nest. It was an old companion. Considering they might face giant rats, or even mutated ones, Tom had to sharpen it as much as possible.

After sharpening the sword, Tom wasted no time and took Li Qiang and Liu Lian to find children's toys. They searched from one end of the supermarket to the other and finally found the area with children's toys in the northeast corner.

Sure enough, there were electric cars and plenty of knock-off plastic toys, but most of them were poorly made, being cheap products. Many of them were quite small and unsuitable for making armor. However, fortunately, there were also some knock-off Transformers toys with a decent size.

Size didn't matter much; these knock-offs had slightly lower plastic hardness, making them easier to trim with a big knife. However, they lacked in terms of protection, but it was still better than nothing.

Tom instructed Liu Lian to find an electric soldering iron with Zhao Yingying, hoping to modify the remote control car's controller. Although he didn't hold much hope since such items might not be available for sale.

Li Qiang helped him trim the plastic parts, accelerating the process to make the armor before nightfall.

The clock hanging in the supermarket, directly facing the entrance, moved from 5:13 PM to 6:58 PM. The sunset arrived, and Tom barely managed to produce four sets of makeshift armor. Due to time constraints, the armor only focused on protecting elbows, shins, chest, and head, and compared to the set Tom had made in his dormitory, this one had much lower defensive capabilities.

Thinking back, when faced with mutated cockroaches, the armor on that occasion was chewed into powder after a few struggles; now, these sets would probably fare even worse. Still, at least it was better than nothing, providing an extra layer of protection and security.

Liu Lian couldn't find an electric soldering iron, and Tom didn't have suitable components to make one himself, so the plan to modify the remote-controlled car had to be temporarily shelved.

Seeing each of them with a set of armor, Mr. Li's eyes lit up, but due to face, he couldn't come forward himself. Instead, he sent Cheng Fuhua to negotiate. "Mr. Li said, he'll give you two sets of these on you, and he'll give you three hundred thousand."

Zhao Yingying's eyes sparkled at the offer. The four of them risked their lives outside, and each person was only offered one hundred thousand. Tom had only spent an hour and a half making the four sets of armor, which was already worth six hundred thousand. She immediately wanted to take it off.

Tom glanced at the other side, thinking that more strength meant more survival opportunities. However, for survivors who didn't share his beliefs, he wasn't sure if they would help when danger came.

"Please tell Mr. Li that unless you form an alliance with us for defense and offense and can coordinate our fights or evacuations in the face of danger, I won't help you make armor. Three hundred thousand? How many people do you think are in the city now, shrunk like us?"

No matter how good a wish is, money can't be spent without a means, and empty promises are just that. You say you'll give three hundred thousand, but can you really cough up three hundred thousand? Tom expressed his doubts.

Li Qiang added, "Huazai, have you seen that building on fire? We set it on fire, and there are thousands of mutated ants inside. The house burned for a day and night without anyone coming. Do you think there are still police stations and police now? Do you think Mr. Li will give you ten million, can you handle it?"

Cheng Fuhua was awakened by their words, his face turning pale. He hadn't considered the details of the burning building; he thought as long as he went to the police station and found the police, he would be safe. Now it seems that not only the police, but probably no one who hasn't shrunk is around.

"So...what should we do?"

Tom took a sip of water. "Forget about fantasies. Do you remember the movie 'Resident Evil'? The apocalypse has come, and the rules before April 6th have changed. Our top priority is to survive. Money? Even if you give me a hundred dollars, it's not as useful as a piece of cloth."

After bidding farewell to Cheng Fuhua, Tom gathered the remaining three people. "The family of the supermarket owner lives upstairs. They haven't come down yet, so they may not be here or may have encountered something unexpected. I've decided to go up and explore. Anyone want to come with me?"