The Talent-Rich Hub of My Settlement

"Boss, are you up yet?"

It was Chen Qiuren's voice, tinged with a bit of fatigue. Mike replied, "I'm awake. Come in."

Chen Qiuren pushed open the door, followed by Zhao Siqi, both carrying various types of breakfast. They placed the food on Mike's desk.

"Boss, the sun's already up! It's time to get up and eat!"

Chen Qiuren's voice was as carefree as ever, but today there was a hint of exhaustion in it.

Mike scanned the two of them. He noticed that not only did Chen Qiuren look drained, but he also had bloodstained wounds on his body. Zhao Siqi appeared unscathed, but her face bore a certain tiredness, her gaze occasionally drifting toward Chen Qiuren.

"You're hurt?"

Mike was surprised and quickly got out of bed to inspect Chen Qiuren's injuries.

With a grin, Chen Qiuren spun around in front of Mike. "Boss, see? I'm not dead yet. I can still be of use to you for a while."

"You're still trying to act tough, huh? Looks like your injuries aren't too serious."

Mike frowned, while Zhao Siqi softly explained, "He got injured in the Puzzle Gate. Last night, we tackled an A-tier Puzzle Gate together."

"The progress wasn't great. There was one puzzle I couldn't solve, and some strange creatures attacked us."

"Fortunately, Dr. Chen was prepared, and the soldiers fought bravely. We barely made it through."

Zhao Siqi glanced at Chen Qiuren as she spoke, a complicated look in her eyes.

Chen Qiuren, with a playful grin, looked at his ex-girlfriend. "So, what do you think? Was I your hero, saving the damsel in distress? Can't forget my heroic pose, can you?"

"Hmph."

Zhao Siqi sneered but didn't respond further.

"Don't worry, boss," Zhao Siqi said, "I've checked his injuries. It's just some superficial wounds, nothing serious."

She looked at Mike respectfully. "Squad Leader Wang told us to return early for rest. He'll take care of the remaining Puzzle Gates."

"Good. You two did well," Mike nodded, patting Chen Qiuren on the shoulder. The latter winced in pain and staggered toward Zhao Siqi.

"Quit acting!"

Zhao Siqi, clearly disgusted, shoved him onto the couch, unwilling to let him get too close.

Mike smiled as he watched the two of them, but his mind was elsewhere, thinking about how thankful he was that he hadn't sent Wang Shi to tackle the S-tier Puzzle Gate on the outskirts of the city.

Zhao Siqi was an A-tier, and with B-tier Chen Qiuren's help, along with dozens of elite soldiers, they still sustained injuries while tackling an A-tier Puzzle Gate. It was clear that the difficulty of the Puzzle Gates could easily kill talents of the same tier.

There was no way an S-tier Puzzle Gate would be conquered by S-tier talents so easily.

"Come on, sit and eat."

Mike invited them to join him, but Chen Qiuren shook his head, wincing in pain. "Dr. Zhao... you said you'd treat my wounds when we got back. Do you think I'll even live long enough to get the treatment?"

"When will you start?"

"Follow me."

Zhao Siqi shot him a cold glare and, with a polite nod to Mike, excused herself. "Boss, I'll take care of him first. The breakfast was brought by Miss Jiang's people. She made it herself, and I've checked it for any issues."

"Enjoy your meal, sir."

With that, Zhao Siqi escorted Chen Qiuren out of the room.

As soon as they stepped out the door, Mike could faintly hear Chen Qiuren's cheeky voice and Zhao Siqi's reprimanding tone. "Dr. Chen! Keep your distance! Don't get too close to me!"

Mike scooped up a spoonful of smooth porridge and thoughtfully stared at the door.

"A midlife crisis? Is this Chen Qiuren's romantic redemption arc?"

Mike grew increasingly curious about what had happened between the two of them. Looking at Chen Qiuren's current state, it was clear he still had feelings for Zhao Siqi!

If that's the case, why did they break up in the first place?

Could there be some hidden secret, or a dramatic love story behind it?

"Wait, why am I getting so nosy?"

Mike shook his head. "Never mind. Their past is none of my business. They're key players in the settlement. They're useful and obedient."

Thinking back to when he first recruited Chen Qiuren, the guy had been a restless troublemaker, always messing with poisons. He was a dangerous figure that Jiang Xiaoci kept a close eye on.

But after Zhao Siqi arrived, Chen Qiuren had completely turned over a new leaf. The sense of danger he gave off had drastically decreased.

It was those who came after, like Lu Nianxin and Chen Dafeng, that Jiang Xiaoci had begun to watch closely. Chen Qiuren, however, had become the model citizen of the settlement.

No, not just a model citizen — more like Zhao Siqi's personal assistant.

Wherever Zhao Siqi went, Chen Qiuren followed.

"Seems like my settlement really is full of talent," Mike mused as he placed a couple of fried dough sticks on the table. He thought to himself, "Cunning Queen Jiang Xiaoci, Killer Doctor Chen Qiuren, Reserved Zhao Siqi, Mechanical Ascension Squad Leader Wang Shi, Fanatical Lu Nianxin, Bloodthirsty Chen Dafeng…"

"Whew! What a lineup!"

Mike scratched his head. "Damn it, with characters like these, only Lin Yue and Li Ya seem like normal people!"

Ever since recruiting Chen Qiuren, the talents Mike had recruited seemed to get more and more eccentric.

"I wonder what kind of oddball I'll recruit next time."

After finishing his breakfast, a new set of notifications appeared before Mike.

[Your talent "Wang Shi" has conquered an A-tier Puzzle Gate. The related rewards will be brought back to the shelter.]

[Your talent "Lin Yue" has conquered a B-tier Puzzle Gate. The related rewards will be brought back to the shelter.]

These two notifications appeared almost simultaneously, signaling the completion of the city's conquest of all 112 Puzzle Gates.

"I've practically bagged the second batch of refreshed Puzzle Gates. It'll probably be a while before the next refresh."

"I hope the resources from this are enough to upgrade to a level 4 shelter."

Mike took a deep breath, patiently waiting for Wang Shi to return with the resources.

Two hours later, at 10 AM, Wang Shi returned to the community with his team.

He headed straight for Mike's bedroom, eager to report on the results of the conquest.

"Sir, my team has completed the mission perfectly! We've returned on time!"

Wang Shi stood tall in front of Mike, speaking with a solemn voice. "During last night's mission, we had 82 injured, but there were no critical injuries or deaths. We lost 12 firearms and 21 boxes of ammunition."

"All the injured have been taken care of by the medical department, and all the conquest resources have been fully brought back to the shelter!"

Wang Shi's report was detailed. He only spoke this much when addressing Mike. Normally, Wang Shi was all business.

"Where are the resources?"

Mike asked, looking at Wang Shi and then at the empty-handed man. "I remember the last time you returned with a sack full of stuff. This time should have been even more, right?"

"It's too much to carry, so it's downstairs," Wang Shi responded.

Mike nodded in understanding and gestured for Wang Shi to lead him downstairs to check the resources.

Following Wang Shi, Mike arrived at an empty lot behind the community. Lin Yue was there, overseeing a large truck parked nearby.

"Sir, the resources are in the truck."

Wang Shi pointed to the vehicle. Mike raised an eyebrow in surprise. The resources from this conquest were so plentiful that they needed a truck to transport them?

When Lin Yue saw Mike approach, she signaled for the soldiers to uncover the green tarp on the truck.

With a loud rustle, the soldiers pulled the cover off, revealing the truck brimming with resources.

It was packed with upgrade materials: wood, large amounts of money, and electronic components, nearly filling the entire truck. Mixed in were shining talent cards.

"Whoa!"

Even though Mike had been mentally prepared, the sight still took him by surprise.

"This is a jackpot!"

"This should definitely be enough to upgrade the shelter!"

4o mini