22: Chapter 22: Testing the Waters, Gaining Four Great Generals

In the evening, Qi Yin drove down the mountain, arriving once again at the villa area on the hillside, and parked in front of Xiao Sinian's mansion.

This time, she didn't enter the password, but rang the doorbell instead.

The door opened quickly; it was Lu Yanxiu again.

Xiao Sinian was still sitting on the sofa looking at his phone with a blanket over his legs, while Mu Feng, whom she had seen during the day, sat on the single sofa opposite him.

The black, gold-stamped mask was firmly welded to his face, and he didn't seem at all surprised by her arrival.

Qi Yin unceremoniously walked over and sat down next to Xiao Sinian. Looking at his calm, ordinary expression, a mischievous idea flashed through her mind.

"Hum!"

With a flick of her hand, the dragon-patterned tang saber gifted by Xiao Sinian appeared before him with a hum, heading straight for the mask on his face.

Seeing this, Mu Feng immediately chambered a round and aimed at Qi Yin.

Xiao Sinian didn't even move, nor did his eyes flicker; it was as if he didn't fear death, only throwing a warning glance at Mu Feng.

"Put the gun away."

Mu Feng resentfully put away his gun, glaring fiercely at Qi Yin, his eyes full of vigilance.

If Qi Yin made another move, his gun would not be so easy to talk to.

Seeing that Xiao Sinian's expression hadn't changed at all, Qi Yin suddenly felt bored, and the dragon-patterned tang saber disappeared from her hand once more.

"Why didn't you dodge?" she asked.

Xiao Sinian put down his phone, his voice coming through the mask, sounding somewhat deep.

"If you want to look, then look. It's just an old injury from being poisoned a few years ago. It's not very pleasant to look at, and I was afraid it would scare you."

His gaze fell on Qi Yin's face with a nearly frank calmness, as if her dangerous action just now was merely a harmless joke between them.

Qi Yin met his gaze for a moment, nodded, and did not pursue the matter further, ending this silent probe.

In fact, she didn't really want to see Xiao Sinian's face that much anyway.

"Thanks. This saber is very useful and handles well," Qi Yin said.

A glint flashed in Xiao Sinian's eyes as he said indifferently, "As long as it fits your hand."

"By the way, Wenwen is coming back tomorrow, and I've almost finished tidying up my place. I plan to have hotpot tonight to welcome her. Brother Yan Xiu, remember to come."

Qi Yin stood up, her gaze falling on Xiao Sinian: "If you have time, come with Brother Yan Xiu."

Her tone in issuing the invitation was very natural.

Xiao Sinian looked at her, a subtle ripple seemingly flashing in his eyes, before he nodded: "Okay."

"Then I'll be heading back."

After saying this, Qi Yin turned and walked toward her car with clean, efficient movements.

Not until her car disappeared around the corner of the mountain road did Xiao Sinian withdraw his gaze.

The bright moon gradually lost its luster under the pressure of the rising sun, and a pleasant alarm clock ringtone woke Qi Yin from her sleep.

Having just sparred with Chen Quan yesterday, and since both had used their full strength, she was still feeling sore.

However, if it doesn't hurt now, it will hurt even more when the Apocalypse comes.

Therefore, the moment her eyes opened, she started training. Qi Yin dove into the training room within her space, where a group of conjured zombies surrounded her from all directions...

By the time she finished training, it was already nine in the morning.

After eating a delicious breakfast, Qi Yin called back the people from the other two shelters.

On the screen in the hall, several people looked at the nearly perfect three shelters on the surveillance footage and finally let out a long sigh of relief.

After rushing for twenty days, they had finally completed the renovation of their shelters before the Apocalypse.

Qi Yin clapped her hands; this speed was three days faster than she had anticipated.

Looking at the few people in front of her who were extremely nervous, Qi Yin found it somewhat amusing. Was she that terrifying?

"Why are you all so nervous? I'm not going to eat you!"

Recalling how every time Qi Yin visited the shelter during this period, many things would suddenly appear inside, the group couldn't help but mutter to themselves.

Except for Chen Quan, the remaining four looked at one another, already lacking the composure a special forces soldier should have.

You don't eat people, but you're even scarier than someone who does.

Chen Quan stepped forward and jokingly punched each of them: "Don't just stand there. From now on, we're grasshoppers on the same rope. As long as you are loyal enough, Yin Yin won't make things difficult for you."

Qi Yin told them all to sit down and took out her phone to fiddle with it.

A minute later, the sound of funds arriving came from their phones.

"This is your salary for this period. Thank you all for your help. As for whether you stay or leave later, that's up to you to decide."

Xu Yongning and the other three widened their eyes as they looked at the fifty million that had appeared on their phones.

"Miss—no, Yin Yin—did you send the wrong amount?"

At first, Chen Quan only said to ask them for a favor and that there would be a salary after it was finished. After retiring, they had only been doing some side jobs, which were very boring, so they agreed without a second thought.

Who would have known that the salary Qi Yin gave would be so high?

Qi Yin smiled, and four white pills appeared in her hand at some point.

"I didn't send the wrong amount; it's for you. Presumably, Chen Quan has also revealed a lot of information to you during this time. As for whether you believe it or not, that's entirely up to you."

"If you decide to stay, eat this pill. If you decide to leave, I won't stop you."

The group looked at Qi Yin, then glanced at Chen Quan, who appeared to be completely at Qi Yin's disposal.

A moment later, Xu Yongning was the first to nod heavily: "Okay, I'll stay!"

Saying this, he ate the white pill without hesitation.

Wang Tianyu, Wen Yang, and Jiang Yao followed suit.

Qi Yin nodded in satisfaction: "Very good. From now on, everyone is a core member of the team."

"I will only emphasize one point: in the future, I can provide you with any resources, but I, Qi Yin, do not accept betrayal. Otherwise, the poison you just ate will cause your intestines to rot and you will die."

Her eyes were fixed on the group, and the cold murderous intent in her gaze was evident.

Xu Yongning and the others chuckled, as if they hadn't heard that they had eaten poison.

"Loyalty and obedience to orders are a soldier's duty. You don't need to worry about that, Yin Yin. Even if someone really does turn traitor, you can just kill us."

Qi Yin turned her back to them and subconsciously scratched her head.

She was still not very good at lying; what she gave them to eat were just pills made from mixed spiritual spring water and vitamins.

Fortunately, she had successfully won these four people over.

She had some impression of these people, but it was very vague; she only remembered that two of them should awaken Supernatural Abilities.

In the Apocalypse, Ability Users are the greatest asset and absolutely cannot be let go.

"Very good. I'll give you two days to settle your family members. We have other tasks to complete," Qi Yin said to them.

However, the people who had just been standing tall were now like chickens drenched in water, their heads drooping.

Qi Yin: "I didn't, say anything wrong."

Chen Quan twitched the corner of his mouth: "Yin Yin, their family members are no longer here."

Qi Yin: "Sorry, then let's skip this part and start directly."

Hearing this, their drooping heads lifted up again excitedly.

The content on the foldable computer connected directly to the big screen, and malls, supermarkets, and markets of all sizes in Kyoto and several nearby cities appeared on it.

What surprised them was that what they were seeing now was actually the internal surveillance of various malls, supermarkets, and markets.

The shelves were filled with an array of goods, and the crowds were slightly congested.

Qi Yin's voice was calm and clear: "This is the final check for omissions."