The Max-Level Sacred Mountain Begs Me to Save the Interstellar [Apocalypse] - Chapter 6

Zhou Xiaofu peered through the rear windshield into the Ghost Mist.

The dense mist flowed like lake water, yet at a specific threshold, it seemed to split in two before merging back together. In the center of this clearing, a Cymbidium stood proudly. It appeared elegant and upright, naturally creating its own space of quiet serenity.

The live stream chat went completely wild.

[Holy crap! Am I dreaming?]

[It must be real. I just slapped my partner twice, and they said it hurt!]

[Why didn’t you slap yourself?]

[Are you stupid? Slapping yourself hurts.]

[People actually believe such an absurd stream? The orchid was definitely buried there in advance!]

[People’s bottom lines are getting lower and lower these days. They will think of any dirty trick to make money.]

[Fake flower, Photoshopped. Assessment complete.]

“How could this be a fake flower!” Zhou Xiaofu walked toward the orchid with stiff, robotic movements.

Despite his efforts to restrain himself, his fingernail left a small crescent-shaped mark on the emerald leaf. A bright green sap slowly seeped out.

[Brother, I beg you, go easy with the pinching!]

[Streamer, pinch me instead. I’m not afraid of pain.]

[I’ll offer 50,000 Star Credits. Please sell it to me, big brother.]

[The person above is dreaming. An orchid’s mist-dispersal range is at least one and a half meters. Streamer, look at me, I’ll give you 70,000!]

[I’ll give you 100,000!]

[At this price, you guys are basically committing robbery!]

“This sudden fortune has finally found its way to me!” Zhou Xiaofu used every ounce of self-control to remain composed so he wouldn’t faint on the spot.

Just as he was preparing to sell the orchid at a sky-high price, a “beep-beep-beep” notification pulled him back to reality. Shen Ye, who was watching the live stream, sent Zhou Xiaofu a private message.

AAA Plant Field Master: [Friendly tip: This Cymbidium has no genetic lock. You can save the seeds for propagation.]

?

Zhou Xiaofu’s eyes widened, his pupils constricting from the information overload.

“It can produce seeds for reproduction!”

Zhou Xiaofu went insane! What was the difference between this and waking up to find a mountain of cash dumped directly onto his bed?

[For real?]

[My brain isn’t working well; please don’t lie to me, streamer.]

[Let me buy it. Even if it’s crap, I’ll taste the saltiness for everyone.]

[Your abacus beads are clicking so loud I can hear them from Mercury…]

[Hello streamer, my father and I currently live in a village outside the base. I have sent you the specific coordinates and photo evidence via private message. We are trapped in a small village, and a Ten-Eyed Spider is watching us from outside. Please sell the Cymbidium to me! I’m begging you.]

[And here come the sob stories. Too fake.]

[Are the Agricultural Alliance’s plants not enough for you anymore?]

[No way! Reject the sob stories and sympathy bait.]

Zhou Xiaofu was about to contact his brother, Zhou Zheng, as saving seeds in adverse conditions required a professional. However, Zhang Hao’s messages were coming in fast and urgent. Zhou Xiaofu accidentally clicked into the chat page with Zhang Hao.

The image was a critical hit!

The ten eyes of the spider aberration were all open at once, resembling a gaze from a hellish rift. Through the Star Ring, it seemed to lock onto Zhou Xiaofu with a death stare. This instantly reminded him of his deceased parents, who had also been consumed by a similar spider aberration.

The finger Zhou Xiaofu intended to use to click “exit” froze in mid-air. He scrolled through the pictures one by one: Zhang Hao, Zhang Hao’s disabled father, the withering plants, and the terrifying monster.

It didn’t look fake.

Zhou Xiaofu stared at the elegant orchid and murmured to himself, “Humans are supposed to look out for one another, aren’t they?”

He then made a firm decision: “I don’t know what you’ve been through, but to the user ‘I am Zhang Hao,’ this orchid belongs to you. I will rent the most expensive drone from the base to deliver it to you. I hope you survive.”

[The streamer got scammed! Since he can connect to the internet, he should ask the base rescue team for help instead of randomly buying plants!]

[Scamming is shameful! Selling sob stories is shameful!]

[This act is so fake.]

The netizens who failed to buy the plant wailed in frustration, while those just watching for drama continued their mindless commentary.

[I am Zhang Hao] transferred 107,493.33 Star Credits to the streamer.

[This is all of my savings. If I don’t make it back to the base alive, please help me and my father set up a cenotaph. Goodbye, everyone.]

The live stream screen abruptly vanished, replaced by Shen Ye’s worried face reflected in the dark projection.

Shen Ye was busy doing the math. By selling the Cymbidium, he gained 75,000 Star Credits. However, because it was a half-price sale, he had also lost 75,000 Star Credits. No matter how he calculated it, he felt like he had put in a lot of effort only to earn nothing at all.

But soon, Shen Ye had no time to be emo. Xie Songnian sent a communication; the cleanup squad was heading out for another mission.

Shen Ye hurried to the meeting point and found that Xiao Liu was also part of this team.

“We are heading into the territory of a Calamity-level aberration, the Veiled Guest, this time,” Xiao Liu said enthusiastically as he approached. “According to incomplete statistics, it has eaten at least 150 people in a week.”

“Are you taking me along even to handle a Calamity-level aberration?” Shen Ye was very clear about his own lack of strength.

Xiao Liu replied, “Of course! Captain Xie specifically brought you! Besides, you only need to handle the monster corpses; you won’t be participating in the battle. What, you’re not up for it?”

“I’m up for it.”

No man in the world would admit he wasn’t up for it.

“Then let’s go. Oh, by the way, Captain Xie specifically requested that you sit in his car,” Xiao Liu added with a hint of envy in his voice.

Shen Ye really couldn’t get along with this kind of colleague! What was there to be envious of? Was that special treatment? That was clearly surveillance!

Shen Ye tried to squeeze into Xiao Liu’s armored vehicle, but unfortunately, the interior space was already packed full. Just then, Xie Songnian’s brusque voice came through: “Moving so slowly, are your glass slippers a bad fit?”

“?” Shen Ye looked up and glared at Xie Songnian. “No.”

Xie Songnian asked, “Then do you have any other problem?”

Shen Ye replied, “I need you to say, ‘Princess, please get in the car.'”

Xie Songnian: “Are you a princess?”

Shen Ye: “Then why do I have to wear glass slippers!”

Xie Songnian was momentarily speechless, but just a second later, the man’s face changed smoothly. He put on a warm, gentle smile as he opened the rear door for Shen Ye. “Alright, alright. Princess, please get in the car.”

Shen Ye plopped into the seat, grumbling inwardly: Face-changer! Thick-skinned! Scheming dog!

The two teammates in the front seat looked at the sky, the ground, and the ceiling—anywhere but at Shen Ye’s face. They were afraid they would burst out laughing.

[Scheming dog, scheming dog, schem… Ye-dog.]

Shen Ye thought: Thanks, Zhou Zhou, but if you can’t say it clearly, you don’t have to say it at all.

[Ye Ye, dog, dog! Ugh, hungry again.]

Shen Ye thought: Child, don’t worry. Papa is going to steal and rob right away; I’ll definitely find food for you!

[Mhm!]

The car engine emitted a low hum as Liang Changfeng, sitting in the passenger seat, began to report the latest situation regarding the Veiled Guest.

The Veiled Guest was a completely transparent aberration. It wasn’t powerful on its own; in terms of melee ability, it wouldn’t even rank as Elite-level. However, after devouring a human, it could perfectly replicate the target’s memories and appearance, and could even move outside the Ghost Mist for short periods. This led to many victims among Star Net base station engineers and private teams entering the mist.

Shen Ye: Understood! It’s like a mimic!

“Then how can we tell if a teammate has been parasitized?” Shen Ye followed up curiously.

Liang Changfeng explained to Shen Ye, “Based on the data collected so far, the parasitic state lasts at most six hours. Also, the Veiled Guest usually enters through the human brain, so a parasitized person will have a pearl-sized hole on the top of their head.”

As they spoke, Shen Ye noticed dark circles under Liang Changfeng’s eyes, as if he hadn’t rested well for a long time. It seemed that regardless of the era, workers could not escape the fate of being oppressed by capital.

Suddenly, Shen Ye had a flash of inspiration. “Pearl-sized, huh? Wouldn’t it be better to just shave everyone’s head bald?”

“Your hair is unlucky to be attached to you,” Xie Songnian glanced at Shen Ye. “Do not get out of the car until we finish the mission, understand? My future little monk.”

Shen Ye sometimes really wanted to punch him, but considering he couldn’t let his sister become a widow, he dropped the idea.

The long journey made Shen Ye drowsy, and he only woke up when the vehicle came to a steady stop. The team members, already well-trained, grabbed their weapons and opened the doors to disembark.

“Stay in the car. These defensive plants will protect you,” Xie Songnian reminded him repeatedly before leaving. “Absolutely do not get out of the car unless you receive an order.”

“Okay, I definitely won’t get out,” Shen Ye promised quite seriously.

“Good boy.”

[Good boy, good boy, Ye Ye is a good boy, hee hee.]

Shen Ye thought: Zhou Zhou, don’t interrupt.

He had just begun to feel a bit of the warmth of kinship. Shen Ye knew very well that every move Xie Songnian made was a test. Yet, the fortress of his logic was crumbling before a secret longing. He desperately wanted an elder like Xie Songnian—a perfect safe harbor where a weakling like Shen Ye could drop all pretenses and simply lie flat.

Shen Ye thought: Zhou Zhou, should I take a gamble and just trust Xie Songnian? If I win, everything will be fine from now on. If I lose, at worst, all of humanity goes down together.

[Zhou Zhou… don’t understand, waaaa.]

Indeed, everything has two opposing sides. Cute Zhou Zhou has no IQ; the Zhou Zhou with an IQ has no morals.

In a daze, time flew by as the shadows lengthened. Shen Ye aimlessly finished three episodes of a melodramatic drama, but his Star Ring remained as quiet as a mouse.

“Why is it taking so long this time!” He stretched and muttered to himself.

As if responding to Shen Ye’s complaint, the Star Ring suddenly began to beep. The sharp sound was like a blade, cutting into Shen Ye’s nerves one by one. He looked down; it was a message from the team member, Liang Changfeng. Shen Ye remembered him—the unlucky guy under capitalism.

[I’ve brought back the Veiled Guest’s corpse. Come out and clean it up immediately.]

[Get out of the car quickly. There are still some Servant-level aberrations around. I want to finish the cleanup before dark.]

[Hurry up!]

Looking through the car window, Shen Ye indeed saw a figure approaching from the distance with uneven steps. Thus, Shen Ye put on his protective suit, grabbed his backpack, and hurriedly got out of the car.

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