Chapter 41: An Outrageous Demand

Mu Chen stared at his phone screen, almost laughing out of sheer indignation at the string of numbers.

Fifty bags of rice, twenty boxes of instant noodles, and ten cases of mineral water.

This wasn't just a lion's share; it was daylight robbery. She was trying to gut half of Mu Chen's entire stockpile!

"Is she insane?" Chen Si leaned in to take a look, her brows knitting together. "This is clearly extortion!"

Chen Jiahe, standing nearby, had also caught a glimpse of the message. She clenched her fists tightly, struggling to suppress the complex surge of emotions in her chest, and forced her voice to remain calm. "If she dares to ask for a price like this, she either has absolute certainty about the value of this fruit, or she is testing our bottom line."

Mu Chen remained noncommittal to Chen Jiahe's analysis.

He didn't reply immediately. With a light tap of his finger on the screen, the phone went dark.

He closed his eyes.

The newly acquired psychic detection ability, like an invisible giant net, radiated from him as the center and instantly enveloped the entire building.

A moment later, he "saw" the woman named Li Yanke.

She was indeed inside the top-floor duplex of Building 18.

From her, Mu Chen sensed an extremely intense "self-confidence" and an undisguised "calculating nature," but he detected not a shred of killing intent or malice.

It seemed she was just a sharp-witted businessperson.

Mu Chen swiped the screen back to life and tapped out a message without haste: "Your appetite is even bigger than that fellow Pan Guang's ambition."

Hardly had the message been sent when the other party replied almost instantly. This time, it was a short video, barely a dozen seconds long.

In the video, a fair, slender hand was cradling that golden fruit. As the wrist turned slightly, faint electric arcs danced across the surface of the fruit, emitting a soft, crackling sound.

A line of text accompanied the video: "You get what you pay for. Mr. Mu Chen, mine is a Thunder Fruit capable of awakening an offensive ability."

An offensive ability!

Mu Chen's heart skipped a beat.

The psychic fruit he had obtained and the emotional manipulation Chen Si awakened were both more inclined toward support-type abilities.

In this damned apocalypse, the most practical assets were those combat-oriented powers that could fight and kill.

The value of this fruit was indeed extraordinary.

"Half the price," Mu Chen replied, his response concise and to the point. "Also, the trade will take place in the lobby on the ground floor of the property management building."

"Agreed," the other party replied just as crisply. "However, I have one condition."

"Speak."

"I want you, Mr. Mu Chen, to come personally to trade with me."

Chen Jiahe’s heart tightened; the woman was clearly trying to lure Mu Chen out!

"Fine," Mu Chen agreed even faster. "See you in the lobby in half an hour."

Putting away his phone, Mu Chen stood up.

"I'm going down."

"I'm going with you!" Chen Si was the first to stand up. "That woman doesn't look like she's to be trifled with. I'm worried she might try to pull something!"

Chen Jiahe followed suit, her voice firmer than usual. "I'll go too. Having an extra person will help, and I can help you move the supplies."

Mu Chen’s gaze lingered on the two of them for a moment before finally settling on Chen Jiahe.

"Jiahe will come with me."

"What about me?" Chen Si sounded impatient.

"You stay and watch the house," Mu Chen said, his tone brook no argument. "Your ability has only just awakened, and your emotions are still unstable; you’re easily influenced by external factors. This is our base; someone must guard it."

Chen Si opened her mouth, wanting to retort, but could find no valid reason to argue.

Mu Chen’s arrangement was indeed the most prudent.

Yet, her heart felt inexplicably tight and uncomfortable.

A flash of subtle, imperceptible light passed through Chen Jiahe’s eyes, and she nodded firmly. "Alright!"

Mu Chen said no more. With a thought, a small mountain of rice bags and instant noodle boxes appeared out of thin air on the living room floor.

Twenty-five bags of rice, ten boxes of noodles, five cases of water.

Not a bit more, not a bit less.

Looking at the mountain of supplies, Chen Jiahe took a deep breath and immediately began to move them.

She was not particularly strong, and lifting a bag of rice weighing several dozen pounds was quite a struggle. Her face turned bright red, but she gritted her teeth, remaining silent, making trip after trip to the cart by the door.

Sweat trickled down her temples, soaking her hair, but she seemed to feel no fatigue at all.

Mu Chen watched quietly from the side, making no move to help.

Some paths must eventually be walked alone. Some growth must be nurtured and baptized by sweat.

Soon, the cart was piled high with heavy supplies.

"Let’s go."

Mu Chen pushed the cart and stepped out the door first.

Chen Jiahe followed closely behind. As she brushed past Chen Si, she hesitated for a split second, and in a voice only the two of them could hear, she said very softly:

"Thank you, Sisi."

Chen Si stiffened, and before she could respond, Chen Jiahe had already hurried to catch up with Mu Chen.

The door slowly closed, shutting out all the noise and chaos.

Chen Si stood alone, her heart in turmoil, feeling a complex mix of emotions she couldn't name.

In the first-floor lobby of the management building, a crowd had already gathered.

They were all tenants who had caught wind of the news and come to watch the spectacle.

They whispered to one another, their gazes darting toward the center of the lobby, where a slender, alluring figure leaned lazily against the service desk, becoming the absolute focus of the room.

The woman wore a form-fitting, fire-red dress that highlighted her nearly perfect curves without reservation. Her long, wavy hair fell loosely behind her shoulders, and she wore a pair of sunglasses that covered most of her face. Her lips were as red as fire, and she exuded an aura that was both powerful and mysterious.

It was the internet celebrity, Li Yanke.

"It’s been nearly half an hour. Why hasn't that guy, Mu Chen, shown up yet? Is he just playing with us?"

"I doubt it. If he really had that many supplies, would he still be hiding like this?"

"Exactly, he's probably just bluffing!"

Voices of doubt and speculation rose and fell among the crowd.

Li Yanke ignored the chatter, merely looking down to tend to her new manicure with deliberate, patient grace.

Just then, the lobby's glass door was pushed open from the outside.

*Creeeeak—*

A harsh scraping sound rang out, causing the crowd's chatter to cease abruptly.

Everyone turned in unison.

They saw a tall, upright young man pushing a cart piled high with supplies, walking in without haste.

Behind him followed a young girl with a delicate face.

It was Mu Chen and Chen Jiahe.

The entire hall fell into a dead silence.

Every eye was fixed as if nailed to the cart, and Adam's apples bobbed uncontrollably.

Rice! Instant noodles! Mineral water!

These items, which were worth a hundred times more than gold in the apocalypse, were right there before them, completely exposed and laid bare!

Greed, jealousy, yearning... a complex mix of intense emotions fermented and spread rapidly through the crowd.

Ignoring the glares that seemed ready to devour him, Mu Chen pushed the cart straight to Li Yanke.

"I’ve brought the goods," he said, his voice flat. "Where is yours?"

Li Yanke slowly looked up and took off her sunglasses, revealing a face of striking, aggressive beauty.

Her eyes arched slightly, filled with scrutiny and a touch of mockery.

"Mr. Mu Chen, you truly are a man of your word."

She extended a slender, jade-like hand, and the golden fruit, glimmering with faint electrical sparks, rested quietly in her palm.