Liang Chuyin is missing?!
Ye Zhongming’s heart sank.
He realized that Cloud Peak had been too smooth sailing recently, and the surroundings of Ying City had been too peaceful, which had caused many people to lose their reverence for the apocalypse.
This wasn’t to say that he blamed his woman for going missing, but in that moment, he recognized a problem that had been overlooked.
Even he had fallen into this mindset.
He had mistakenly believed that Cloud Peak was now on the strategic offensive, subconsciously thinking there were no fatal threats around.
Even after receiving news that surrounding forces had been infiltrated, he thought that the territorial plan would be enough to resolve the issue, and all Cloud Peak needed to do was step in to help when necessary.
But everyone had forgotten that Cloud Peak’s enemies hadn’t disappeared—they had just gone into hiding temporarily. Given the chance, they would bite a chunk out of Cloud Peak.
This time, Cloud Peak’s aggressive cleanup operation might have been exploited by others, turning it into an attack on a specific target within Cloud Peak.
But weakening Cloud Peak was possible… for example, by killing a core member.
If this was their plan, Liang Chuyin might have been chosen as the target.
Core member, a woman of Cloud Peak’s king, one of Cloud Peak’s founders, not particularly strong in personal combat, separated from her team… there seemed to be no better target than Liang Chuyin. Killing her would disrupt Cloud Peak’s management and strike a blow at Ye Zhongming.
Even if it wasn’t certain that Liang Chuyin was being targeted, the situation was indeed suspicious.
The influencer had a bad temper, but that didn’t mean she didn’t know what was important. On the contrary, she was one of the most disciplined among all the core members. If she was going to reunite with her team, she wouldn’t stop to do anything else along the way.
“How many teams do we have left at home?” Ye Zhongming asked.
“Seven, but Shengyuan’s team can’t be moved. The security of the two labs relies on him. Sister Rong’s team also can’t be moved, as she’s responsible for the villa’s defense. That leaves only five teams available.”
Guang Yao answered immediately. During this period, Mo Ye and he had been in charge of coordinating the teams.
“Young Master Yun, Tang Tian, Ah Yang, Mo Ye, and Sister Lei’s teams.”
Ye Zhongming nodded, but his brow furrowed.
If this was a trap set by someone, the timing was impeccable.
With multiple territories in crisis, five or six Cloud Peak teams had been dispatched to assist, and with teams already out hunting in other areas, the number of available teams at Cloud Peak was limited.
“Send Ah Yang and Young Master Yun. They are main combat teams, and the two teams combined should be enough to handle any sudden situations. This way, the defensive strength within Cloud Peak will still be sufficient, and we won’t leave any gaps for others to exploit.”
Xia Lei thought for a moment and suggested.
She was afraid this was a series of traps. Attacking Liang Chuyin might just be a diversion, with the real target being Cloud Peak, the two labs, or even Ye Zhongming himself.
Ye Zhongming thought momentarily, sensing Yangos and Yellow Ball’s locations. The two restless creatures had already followed the teams out and were now quite far away. It would take them a lot of time to return, and traveling alone would also be risky.
“Alright, Red Hair will go with them,” Ye Zhongming quickly decided. “Send someone to Puxing Town to gather the Posthumous People people and the Saint Light Hall forces. Order them to take over the security of the trading market temporarily. Young Master Yun and Ah Yang’s teams will take the Nether Bone Demon Platform with them, maintaining a certain distance between them and using the communication range of the Battle Contribution Badge to stay in contact. If they encounter any situation, they must immediately send someone to notify the villa. I will head over if needed.”
“Send a message to the teams assisting in other territories, telling them to be cautious and guard against sneak attacks. If necessary, Bai Feng and Zhao Xingmei can temporarily halt their attacks and adopt a defensive stance, waiting until things settle here before resuming.”
“Raise the villa’s defense level to wartime status. Notify Sister Hong and Master Le to stay underground and not come out. If I leave later, Xia Bai will be responsible for their personal protection.”
“Activate the defense formation.”
Ye Zhongming issued orders one by one, plunging Cloud Peak into a tense atmosphere.
Guang Yao and Mo Ye had already instructed people on what to do, while Xia Lei stayed behind, her face filled with worry.
As fellow women of Ye Zhongming, Xia Lei, Liang Chuyin, and Miya had a good relationship. Such a situation would have been unimaginable in peacetime, but it was quite normal in the apocalypse. The pressure of survival had completely changed people’s mindsets and perspectives. It was no longer shocking for one man to have several women or one woman to have several men.
Thus, for those who still retained human emotions, the concept of family had expanded.
Ye Zhongming, Xia Lei, Liang Chuyin, and Miya—or the relationships among the three women—increasingly transformed into familial bonds. For Xia Lei, Liang Chuyin wasn’t just her man’s woman; she was also her sister. She was deeply worried.
Seeing Xia Lei’s expression, Ye Zhongming put an arm around her shoulders. “Don’t worry, Chuyin will be fine. If these people planned to kill her to strike at me and Cloud Peak, then they’re going to be disappointed this time.”
Xia Lei looked at Ye Zhongming in confusion, not understanding what her man meant.
“Heh, you’ll know when the results come out.”
………………………………………………
Liang Chuyin laid down the body of her second companion, her eyes sharpening.
She had been followed shortly after leaving Cloud Peak. At first, Liang Chuyin didn’t pay much attention. It was wartime, and almost all the forces in Ying City were busy mobilizing their troops to their respective territories. It wasn’t unusual if someone saw her leaving the city and followed her for safety or out of curiosity. After all, she was a well-known figure in Ying City, and this had happened before.
But soon, Liang Chuyin sensed something was wrong. The person following her had never lost track.
Although Liang Chuyin had to accommodate her two six-star subordinates and wasn’t moving at full speed, they were certainly not slow. Anyone who could keep up with them must be quite strong. In these times, when every force was fighting for their future, it was unlikely that such a skilled person would be lingering here, let alone following her in such a sneaky manner.
To confirm her suspicions, Liang Chuyin discussed with her two subordinates, and they split up at a certain point to see how the followers would react.
This was the decision Liang Chuyin regretted the most, as it directly led to the deaths of her two subordinates. When the three of them separated, the followers continued to chase Liang Chuyin, but just two minutes later, she saw signal flares from her subordinates in different directions—a sign that they were under attack and outmatched.
She quickly chose a direction and arrived to find her subordinate’s still-warm body. When she gritted her teeth and rushed to where the second subordinate had sent the signal, she found another body stripped of its equipment waiting for her.
Two six-star evolved, Liang Chuyin’s personal guards, fully equipped with green-grade gear, had been killed in such a short time. Clearly, the attackers were highly skilled, at least at the seven-star level, and among the top-tier of seven-star evolved. Moreover, the attacks had happened simultaneously, meaning there were at least two such experts.
At least two.
“So this is Liang Chuyin? Ye Zhongming’s woman? A core member of Cloud Peak? Seems a bit dumb,” a voice chuckled, sounding eerie in the desolate wilderness.