My Dating Sim Just Got an Update - Chapter 74

After changing their jackets, Ren Chenxi and Mu Ning carefully checked each other for any abnormalities. Once they confirmed everything looked normal, they walked together toward the small car Mu Ning had parked on the outer edge of the beach.

Now that both of Mu Ning’s hands were injured, Ren Chenxi wasn’t heartless enough to make her drive all the way back. She took the driver’s seat instead. However, upon starting the car, Ren Chenxi noticed a major problem—the remaining fuel wasn’t nearly enough to get them back to the base.

Naturally, Mu Ning had also spotted the pitifully low fuel gauge. she explained sheepishly that she had borrowed the car in a hurry. One of Qi Sheng’s subordinates had warned her the fuel was low, but at the time, she was so focused on rushing to the coast to check the situation that she didn’t realize exactly how “low” he meant.

As it turned out, the fuel wasn’t even enough for a single round trip from the base to the beach!

Well, at least it had managed to get her there. She had heard Qi Sheng complaining about fuel shortages often enough when they bought the crystal nucleus engines. Now that they had those engines, they cared even less about whether a car’s tank was full. In fact, even if they did care, there was probably nowhere left to get gas anyway.

Qi Sheng might have no place to refuel, but Ren Chenxi had plenty of gasoline. Even if she didn’t have any on her right now, couldn’t she just use a “Greasy Card” to kill a few monsters and get some?

And so…

“Um… how many of those ‘Greasy Cards’ do you have left?”

Ren Chenxi looked at Mu Ning with a half-smile. “143 cards.”

“Ah, that’s a lot.” It was much more than Mu Ning had imagined. “Then… would it be possible to…”

“Fine!”

What else could she do? She couldn’t exactly expect the remaining drops of fuel to carry them back. Nor could she just abandon Mu Ning and drive her own SUV back alone. Glancing at the white bandages on Mu Ning’s hands, Ren Chenxi decided she wasn’t quite cold-blooded enough for that. Besides, she had plenty of cards to spare.

Ren Chenxi drove the fuel-starved car into the large woods outside the beach. She hunted down twelve wandering zombies and used twelve “Greasy Cards” to obtain twelve bottles of universal gasoline. After pouring five bottles into the tank of the car Mu Ning had borrowed, she kept the rest as spares. According to Mu Ning, the bus was also running low; these seven bottles, combined with the eight she got from the crabs earlier, would be perfect for the bus later.

By the time they reached the base, Zhang Tongqi, Chen Gu, and the others were pacing anxiously by the main gate. When they saw Ren Chenxi driving the car, Chen Gu and the boys didn’t react immediately, but Jian Dan and her two friends froze before rushing forward in excitement. From their angle, they could clearly see Ren Chenxi in the driver’s seat.

Seeing the three girls run toward the car, Chen Gu and his group followed suit. Once they spotted Mu Ning in the passenger seat, they felt as if they’d found their backbone and swarmed forward with excited shouts.

Mu Ning had expected them to be worried since she was late, but she hadn’t expected them to be crowding the base entrance. Before Zhang Tongqi and the others could even ask about the bandages on her hands, Mu Ning barked at them coldly.

“Who told you all to block the gate like this? Are you trying to make sure everyone knows I wasn’t with you and didn’t come back with the group?”

Mu Ning was mainly worried about the Fan family and Qi Sheng. Since Ren Chenxi had harvested an Level 8 crystal nucleus, Mu Ning was even more anxious than Ren Chenxi that their trip to the beach might be discovered by those with ulterior motives.

“S-sorry, Boss…”

Admonished by Mu Ning, the group realized their behavior was indeed drawing eyes. Although they didn’t know where the two women had gone, it was obvious they wanted to keep it a secret.

“But don’t worry, Boss. Someone asked what we were waiting for, and we just said we encountered a Level 6 wild boar during the hunt but it got away. We claimed you thought the bus was too slow and clunky, so you went back to the base to borrow a car to chase it down alone. We told them we were worried since you hadn’t returned yet.”

This Chen Gu was actually quite sharp. Ren Chenxi gave him an appreciative glance. Mu Ning, seemingly used to his quick thinking, continued to ask coldly, “Who asked you? Qi Sheng’s people? Or the Fans?”

“Neither. Just some regular survivors. While we were chatting, they mentioned that Qi Sheng took a large group out before dawn. They probably wanted to use their new crystal nucleus engine to scavenge for supplies further away. As for the Fan family, they haven’t made a move today. They’re probably all huddled around the engine Chenxi sold them, studying it. Hehe~”

Mentioning the sabotaged engine Fan Juntian had bought, Chen Gu couldn’t help but grin mischievously.

“Wipe that look off your face! Do you want Fan Juntian to come looking for us the moment that engine fails?” Seeing Chen Gu’s smug expression, Mu Ning’s face grew even colder. “Listen up. For the next few days, do not go sniffing around the Fan family, especially regarding that engine! And keep your expressions in check!”

Warned by Mu Ning, the other boys quickly stifled their smirks.

“Remember my words! Don’t expose anything these next few days. Understood?”

“Understood!”

All the subordinates responded in unison with serious faces.

Watching from the side, Ren Chenxi thought that Mu Ning really did look like a triad boss lecturing her crew.

In contrast to Mu Ning’s stern leadership, things on Ren Chenxi’s side were much warmer—just a group of sisters showing genuine concern.

“Sister Xi, I thought you had a stomach ache? Why did you go outside the base?”

“Are you okay? Did you. go hunting with the Boss again?”

Since they were still outside, there were some things that couldn’t be asked openly. Ren Chenxi was touched by their thoughtfulness. However, amidst the care, there was one voice that seemed to be focused on a very different kind of gossip.

“Sister Xi~~ you and Sister Ning both changed your clothes~ Did you… change together in the car? Sister Ning’s hands look hurt~ Did you help her get dressed?”

 Tang Ying, you brat! Could your voice sound any more suggestive?!

Mu Ning, who had been lecturing her boys with a cold face, turned around upon hearing Tang Ying. Her tone softened significantly as she explained, “Yes, she helped me put them on~”

 I used a Dressing Card to change your clothes! Don’t make it sound so ambiguous! Do you want me to tell your subordinates that you wore a maid outfit?! Ren Chenxi screamed internally.

Enduring the increasingly gossipy stares, Ren Chenxi couldn’t reveal her “card skills,” so she could only force a change of subject. “Let’s head back first. I have some good news for everyone.”

“Good news?” Hearing this, Chen Gu and the others immediately got excited. Over the past few days, any “good news” from Ren Chenxi had turned out to be life-changing. Naturally, they were full of anticipation.

“Chen Gu, take this car back to Qi Sheng’s place first.” Mu Ning sent her subordinate off to run the errand, then walked over to Ren Chenxi. She leaned in and whispered softly in her ear, “Don’t mention the octopus was Level 8.”

Ren Chenxi immediately understood. Even with their combined strength, taking down a Level 7 mutant octopus was already incredible. If people knew it had evolved to Level 8, they would lose their minds. Moreover, her own true strength would be called into question. Even though these were her allies, Ren Chenxi wasn’t ready to let more people in this game world know about her unexplainable “abilities.”

Despite the slight discomfort from Mu Ning’s warm breath against her ear, Ren Chenxi nodded in agreement. “I know.”

While Chen Gu went to return the car, Ren Chenxi, Mu Ning, and the rest of the group headed back to the villa area in a grand procession. On the way, a survivor called out to Zhang Tongqi’s group, “Hey! Little Zhang, did your boss catch that mutant boar?”

“Ha! Don’t even ask!” Zhang Tongqi quickly caught Mu Ning’s eye and shouted back, “That boar was way too strong! It’s a good thing the Boss didn’t let us go. Not only did she miss it, but she even got both her hands injured!”

A few nearby survivors immediately looked at Mu Ning’s hands. Sure enough, her palms were wrapped in thick bandages. Hiss— if a powerful Level 5 ability user like Mu Ning could get hurt, just how strong was that boar? They needed to warn their friends right away; there might be a dangerous Level 6 boar roaming the outskirts. They had to be extra careful when hunting.

Since these survivors were all lower-ranked than Mu Ning, they didn’t realize she had already broken through to Level 6. In fact, even Zhang Tongqi and the others, who were closest to her, hadn’t noticed. They also didn’t realize that Ren Chenxi had quietly leveled up as well.

Because there was good news to be announced, the boys weren’t in a hurry to go back to their own building. Instead, they crowded into the lobby of the girls’ villa to join the excitement. The moment Ren Chenxi stepped through the door, Tantan’s clingy meows rang out in succession. The cat began circling her ankles, rubbing against her and purring loudly.

Wasn’t Tantan upstairs? Why was he down here?

As Ren Chenxi wondered, Sun Jia’s voice chimed in, “Thank goodness, Boss, Sister Xi, you’re finally back.”

Ah, so Tantan had followed Sun Jia down to wait for her. Seeing Sun Jia, Ren Chenxi felt a bit guilty about the excuses she had made before leaving. Mu Ning, meanwhile, glanced at Ren Chenxi and nodded to Sun Jia. “It was nothing serious. I don’t know why they all ran to the gate. You should have stopped them.”

The faint scent of food wafted from the kitchen. They had clearly finished cooking lunch and then rushed out to wait.

“Boss, you know how they are. I couldn’t have stopped them if I tried! Besides, if nothing happened. Wait? Boss, why are you injured? You and Sister Xi. what exactly did you do?” Sun Jia asked, looking worriedly at Mu Ning’s bandaged hands.

Just then, Chen Gu finished returning the car and stepped through the front door.

“Close the door. We have something to tell you.”

What was this mysterious “good news”? Chen Gu immediately shut the door and even cautiously engaged the lock. The group stood in a tight circle, staring intently at Mu Ning and Ren Chenxi with bated breath.

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