Chapter 91 – Humanity Has Always Teetered on the Edge of Extinction!

Night had long since fallen, but the City Lord's Manor remained brightly lit.

When Su Bai arrived at the manor gates, the guards stationed there immediately recognized him.

"Oh hey, it's Boss Su!"

Su Bai had only briefly appeared during the Death beast siege…

…but plenty of people had witnessed him saving the old Principal with their own eyes.

And with City Lord Zhu Jianyuan taking time out of his packed schedule to attend the Pokémon Center's ribbon-cutting ceremony earlier that day, Su Bai's name had spread like wildfire.

Lately, everyone in the City Lord's Manor had been talking about him—this mysterious young man who brought Pokémon to their world and possessed incredible strength.

"The City Lord gave orders—you can head straight in."

The guards stepped aside with respectful enthusiasm, all casting curious glances his way.

Just how gifted must he be to send an S-Class Death beast flying?

Wasn't he even more impressive than Pei Jingguo from Haicheng No. 1 High?

Su Bai nodded calmly and walked inside the manor.

All the way through, he was met with excited, admiring stares.

"Looks like I've really become some kind of celebrity now…"

He shook his head with a wry smile.

Truth be told, it didn't feel as good as he'd imagined.

It felt more like he'd become a rare animal on display.

Still, as the owner of the Pokémon Center, having a bit of fame could only help its development.

Besides, there were many future matters that would require collaboration with the City Lord's Manor.

This slight discomfort? He'd endure it.

Inside the City Lord's Office.

Su Bai pushed open the door and was immediately greeted by the sight of Zhu Jianyuan working at his desk.

New stacks of documents were being brought in constantly and piled on top of one another.

Considering all that, the fact that Zhu had still managed to attend the Pokémon Center's opening and arrange for reporters to cover it... well, that had been no small show of respect.

"You're here. Have a seat—I just need a moment to finish this," Zhu said without even lifting his head.

As an S-Class powerhouse, he could sense Su Bai's arrival without looking.

With practiced speed, he finished signing a file and waved a hand.

Everyone in the office immediately took the hint and exited quietly. The last one out even closed the door behind them.

"You came at just the right time. I needed a breather anyway."

Zhu leaned back, stretching his arms with a tired groan.

"The aftermath of the Death beast siege… it's going to take at least a couple weeks to clean up."

Su Bai nodded in understanding.

"You've been working hard, City Lord."

This wasn't just polite lip service—it was sincere.

The siege had caused widespread disruption.

Resource allocation, casualty management, the collection and handling of Death beast corpses and magic cores—these were all demanding tasks.

On top of that, they'd have to tally the kills and distribute rewards.

Not one of these things was easy.

Zhu Jianyuan probably hadn't been this busy since he'd taken office.

"Hah! If we got results like this every time a Death beast siege happened, I'd beg for them to attack daily!" Zhu joked.

"Of course, only if you're around."

Thanks to Su Bai, the city hadn't suffered major losses during the siege.

Sure, there had been some casualties…

But in this world, where life and death were everyday matters, that was already considered light.

Among awakened individuals, there was a saying:

"Few who walk this path live long."

If people couldn't even handle a few deaths, humanity would've collapsed long ago.

As for the Death beasts Su Bai had slain—including the one taken down by Groudon—those corpses were now in the City Lord's possession.

Death beast bodies were incredibly valuable. Though they were composed of corrupted and negative energies, the magic cores and other remains could be used to forge equipment or generate energy.

That was the only "charming" thing about Death beasts.

In the awakened circles, there was a popular saying:

"The only good Death beast… is a dead one."

"Let's not hope for them to come daily," Su Bai said, shaking his head.

Zhou Xiaofei's innocent face flashed through his mind.

Too many people had already died to the Death beasts. Even if the sieges brought benefits to the Pokémon Center, he honestly didn't want to face them constantly.

Children like Zhou Xiaofei should have less exposure to such things, not more.

And who knew if the system would even issue a task next time?

"You came just in time," Zhu said suddenly, turning to him with a grin.

"There's something I need to confirm with you."

And the moment he said that—

Su Bai's eyes widened in disbelief as a fist suddenly filled his vision!

Zhu Jianyuan had thrown a punch without warning?!

Su Bai was stunned. But his body reacted instinctively.

He raised his hand and caught the punch cleanly.

Bang!

A sharp shockwave cracked through the air as fist met palm.

The pressure scattered the documents in the room, sending them flying in every direction!

"City Lord Zhu, what are you doing?"

Su Bai released Zhu's fist, visibly confused.

But the culprit just sighed and bent down to pick up the mess on the floor.

"…You really are S-Class, huh."

"Don't take it the wrong way. I just needed to confirm you had the strength to protect yourself."

"You know how tight manpower is these days…"

Su Bai's expression turned serious.

He immediately picked up on the implication in Zhu's words.

There hadn't been any killing intent in that punch—if there had, Meloetta would never have stood by doing nothing.

Pokémon were far more sensitive to intent than humans.

"The ability to protect yourself?"

What did he mean?

Was someone planning to harm him…?

Even though he was just the owner of a Pokémon Center?

Zhu, however, simply sighed again and said nothing more. He kept gathering up the scattered documents.

That really ticked Su Bai off.

Throwing a punch out of nowhere and then acting all mysterious afterward?

This old geezer…!

"Meloetta, give the City Lord a hand."

He pointed at the floor.

Meloetta gave a cheerful salute in the air, as if saying "Leave it to me!"

With a flash of psychic energy, all the scattered documents floated back into the air and stacked themselves neatly on Zhu's desk.

"There, all done. No need to be so dramatic," Su Bai muttered.

Zhu placed the final files back on the desk, then stood silent for a moment in thought.

Finally, he said,

"To be honest… there are some things you weren't supposed to know."

"But since it's come to this, and considering your strength—"

"I'll tell you."

He pulled open a drawer and took out a large map.

A vast swath of deep red spread across the landscape—surrounding an entire region.

He beckoned Su Bai over and pointed at the map.

"This red area… is territory already overtaken by the Death beasts."

"And what's trapped inside…"

"…is the last remaining land of humanity."

"The textbooks lied."

"In truth, humanity has always been… standing on the brink of extinction."