24: Queen's submission

"Bang!" A gunshot rang out.

In the enclosed corridor, the sound was deafening, as if someone had struck a gong right beside one's ear.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Ye Hongyu's eyes widened.

She saw the Licker that had been pouncing on her suddenly freeze in its tracks.

Its bloody maw was less than a centimeter from the tip of her nose, and she could even smell the nauseating stench of decay from within.

Immediately after.

"Splorch—"

It was as if a ripe watermelon had been smashed by a hammer.

The Licker's head exploded instantly.

Red blood, white brain matter, and shattered bone fragments sprayed onto Ye Hongyu's face like raindrops.

It was warm.

Viscous.

And carried a suffocating, bloody stench.

"Thud."

The headless corpse lost its support and slammed heavily onto Ye Hongyu, pinning her down so hard she nearly lost her breath.

Dead?

Just like that... dead?

Ye Hongyu's mind went blank.

The terrifying monster that had just tossed her aside like a toy, leaving her completely helpless, had been headshot by a single bullet?

She struggled to push the corpse off her and lifted her head.

Through her blood-blurred vision, she saw the man.

Gu Pingsheng.

He was still maintaining his one-handed shooting stance.

The muzzle of that purple desert eagle was still emitting wisps of blue smoke.

His expression was calm.

So calm that it was as if he had just casually swatted a fly.

No tension, no fear; not even his breathing had faltered.

"Roar—!"

The remaining two Lickers were enraged by their companion's death.

They let out shrill screeches, their limbs clawing at the ground, and lunged at Gu Pingsheng from both left and right like two bolts of black lightning.

Their speed was even faster than before!

"Watch out!"

Lin Qinghan exclaimed from the distance.

But Gu Pingsheng didn't even raise an eyelid.

Deep within his pupils, a strange blue light suddenly flashed.

【Talent Derived Ability: Bullet Time】

【Description: In a very short period, drastically increase neural reaction speed, causing the movement trajectories of surrounding objects to slow down in the eyes.】

The world changed.

In Gu Pingsheng's field of vision, the two lightning-fast Lickers now appeared as if they were being replayed in slow motion.

He could clearly see every contraction of their muscles, the airflow created by their sharp claws slicing through the air, and even the saliva dripping from their mouths.

Too slow.

It was practically like watching snails crawl.

A cold smirk curled onto Gu Pingsheng's lips.

He moved.

With a flip of his left hand, another desert eagle appeared out of thin air.

With dual guns in hand.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The gunshots merged into one continuous sound.

Gu Pingsheng's body performed a few extremely subtle dodging movements in place.

Every dodge perfectly avoided the Lickers' sharp claws and long tongues.

At the same time, the dual guns in his hands spat tongues of fire.

Every bullet seemed to have eyes, precisely drilling into the Lickers' weak points.

Joints, heart, spine.

And finally—the head.

"Splorch! Splorch!"

Two flowers of blood bloomed in the air.

The two Lickers, still in mid-air, suddenly stiffened, then fell powerlessly like kites with broken strings.

"Plop."

The corpses hit the ground.

They twitched twice, then went still.

The entire process took less than three seconds.

Dead silence.

The corridor returned to a dead silence once more.

Only the muzzles of the guns in Gu Pingsheng's hands were still steaming.

And the corpses and blood covering the floor proved that everything that just happened wasn't an illusion.

"This..."

Su Ruan clutched her rabbit doll, her mouth forming an 'O' shape.

Although she knew Gu Pingsheng was strong, she hadn't expected him to be strong to this extent.

Those were Tier 3 elite monsters!

Monsters that could insta-kill someone like Ye Hongyu with her A-Rank Talent couldn't even last a single exchange in front of Gu Pingsheng?

Lin Qinghan's hand gripping her blade trembled slightly.

She looked at Gu Pingsheng's back, the awe in her eyes deepening.

Is this the gap?

She had originally thought that by awakening an S-Rank Talent, she could already be considered a powerhouse.

But compared to this man, she was practically just a child who had just learned to walk.

And the one most shocked was Ye Hongyu.

She was still sitting on the ground, her face covered in blood and grime, looking as if she had been stunned silly.

That scene from just now was deeply etched into her mind.

That man.

Walking leisurely amidst a hail of bullets.

That composure, that elegance, that absolute control over life.

Too strong.

So strong it was despair-inducing.

And also so strong... it was mesmerizing.

Gu Pingsheng put away his guns.

He stepped over the corpses on the ground and walked up to Ye Hongyu.

His leather boots stepped into the viscous blood, making a "squelch" sound.

He stopped in front of Ye Hongyu.

He looked down at her from above.

His gaze was cold, carrying a hint of undisguised mockery.

"Is this all your strength amounts to?"

Gu Pingsheng's voice was very soft, but to Ye Hongyu, it felt like a loud slap, striking her face hard.

"A-Rank Talent? Pain Domination?"

"Heh."

Gu Pingsheng chuckled softly.

"If you can't even handle a few animals, who else do you intend to dominate?"

"Too weak."

"So weak it's like a joke."

Every word was like a sharp knife, stabbing fiercely into Ye Hongyu's heart.

It tore her pathetic self-esteem to shreds.

Ye Hongyu bit her lip.

She bit until it bled.

She wanted to retort, wanted to curse back, wanted to jump up and prove herself.

But... looking at this man before her, she realized she didn't even have the strength to stand up.

Fear.

It was the biological instinct of fear towards an apex predator.

And shame.

She had just been knocked away like a clown and had to rely on him to save her.

This huge disparity made her want to crawl into a crack in the ground.

"I..."

Ye Hongyu opened her mouth, her voice extremely hoarse.

"Unconvinced?"

Gu Pingsheng crouched down.

His face leaned close to Ye Hongyu.

Those deep eyes stared fixedly at her.

"Being unconvinced is useless."

"In this world, the weak have no say."

"Do you think you're a queen just because you awakened a talent?"

"In my eyes, you're no different from those trash who can only scream."

"Perhaps even stupider."

Gu Pingsheng reached out.

That hand, which had just gripped a gun and killed monsters, carried a scent of gunpowder and blood.

He pinched Ye Hongyu's chin.

He lifted it forcefully, forcing her to look directly into his eyes.

"Look at me."

Ye Hongyu was forced to lift her head.

Her body was trembling.

Not because of the cold, but because of an unprecedented sense of oppression.

This man's gaze was too terrifying.

It was like a black hole, threatening to suck her soul in.

But strangely.

Amidst the extreme fear and shame, deep within her heart, a strange feeling of trembling actually welled up.

Was that... excitement?

She had always been proud, always looked down on men.

Thinking those men were all weaklings who only deserved to kneel at her feet.

But now.

Facing this man.

That worship for the strong, that desire for power, transformed at this moment into a twisted desire to submit.

Only a man like this was worthy of conquering her.

"Do you want to become stronger?"

Gu Pingsheng asked suddenly.

His fingers caressed Ye Hongyu's chin, the rough touch of his fingertips making her entire body shiver.

Ye Hongyu's pupils contracted sharply.

Become stronger.

Of course she did.

She wanted it in her dreams.

That feeling of powerlessness from just now, that despair of facing death—she never wanted to experience it a second time in her life.

"I do..."

She struggled to spit out the word.

"Then be mine."

Gu Pingsheng released her hand and stood up.

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the blood off his hands, and then tossed it onto Ye Hongyu's face.

That white handkerchief covered her blood-stained face.

"Wipe your face clean."

"I don't like dirty things."

"From today on, your life is mine."

"Your talent is mine."

"Everything you are is mine."

"Can you do that?"

Gu Pingsheng's voice echoed in the corridor.

It carried an unquestionable dominance.

Ye Hongyu grabbed the handkerchief off her face.

She looked at that man standing high above.

That back, like a great mountain, pressed down on her until she couldn't catch her breath.

But it was also like a lighthouse, guiding the direction for her to survive.

Submit.

Or die.

This wasn't a multiple-choice question at all.

Ye Hongyu took a deep breath.

She slowly crawled up from the ground.

Although her legs were still weak, and her whole body ached, she still struggled to stand up straight.

Then.

She lowered that once-exceedingly arrogant head.

She knelt on one knee.

Just like a knight swearing allegiance to her king.

"Yes."

"Master."

Although her voice was hoarse, it was exceptionally firm.

At that moment.

That arrogant and domineering Ye Hongyu died.

Replacing her was a new blade in Gu Pingsheng's hand.

A sharper, crazier blade.

"Very good."

Gu Pingsheng didn't turn back.

But the smile at the corners of his lips deepened.

Another one conquered.

This feeling of breaking in a queen was indeed quite nice.

"Get up."

"Don't kneel there, it's a waste of time."

"There are still good things waiting for us ahead."

Gu Pingsheng strode forward, continuing to walk deeper into the corridor.

Lin Qinghan and Su Ruan exchanged a glance and hurriedly followed.

When passing by Ye Hongyu, Su Ruan made a face at her.

"Blehh, the bad woman has become a good little doggy."

Ye Hongyu didn't get angry.

She just silently stood up, wiped the blood off her face, and then followed closely behind Gu Pingsheng.

Her eyes had changed.

No longer the previous unruliness, nor the fear and despair from just moments ago.

It was a fanaticism.

A nearly pathological worship.

She looked at that man's back as if she were looking at her god.

As long as she followed him.

As long as she listened to his words.

She could become stronger.

She could trample everyone who looked down on her under her feet.

...

The team continued forward.

The further in they went, the more bizarre the style of the biochemical laboratory became.

Strange fleshy growths began to appear on the walls, squirming as if they were alive.

The sweet, bloody scent in the air also grew thicker.

"Drip."

"Drip."

That was the sound of water droplets falling.

But in this dead silent environment, it was enough to make one's heart jump.

"We're here."

Gu Pingsheng suddenly stopped.

Ahead.

At the end of the corridor.

A massive metal door blocked their way.

This door was a full five meters high, forged entirely from an unknown black alloy, and engraved with complex patterns.

Through the cracks in the door, a heart-palpitating red light faintly leaked out.

Even through the thick metal, one could feel the terrifying aura coming from within.

That was...

An existence countless times stronger than a Licker.

"What is this?"

Tang Xiaoxiao swallowed, her voice trembling slightly.

"The Boss room."

Gu Pingsheng said indifferently.

He walked forward and reached out to press the control panel by the door.

"Are you ready?"

He looked back at the four women behind him.

Lin Qinghan gripped her blade tightly.

Su Ruan hugged her rabbit tighter.

Ye Hongyu flicked her whip, her eyes flashing with bloodthirsty light.

Even the most cowardly Tang Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth and raised the wrench in her hand.

"Very good."