Chapter 6: The Deal Is Struck

The color drained instantly from Chen Jiahe’s cheeks, leaving her deathly pale. She ceased her struggling, closing her eyes as her body trembled slightly. Mu Chen carried her straight into the bedroom.

"Click."

The door swung shut. Every muscle in Chen Jiahe’s body tightened.

"Put me down," she said, her voice dry and raspy, her head turned away.

Mu Chen set her gently on the bed without further action. He stood at the edge of the mattress, looking down at her huddled form.

"Trying to figure out why I chose you?" There was an inscrutable quality to his voice.

Chen Jiahe instinctively clutched the edge of her bath towel, her words dripping with wariness and disgust: "Because I fit those... sickening standards of yours?"

"Your value." Mu Chen sat on the edge of the bed, unhurried. "The campus belle of Jinhai University, Chen Jiahe, an honors student, the student council president. A sharp mind and capable."

Chen Jiahe’s body stiffened. "You... investigated me?"

"I did my homework on the very first day the apocalypse began." A cryptic arc curled on Mu Chen’s lips. "I checked the backgrounds of every woman in this residential complex who met the age criteria. You were just one of them."

"You are a total lunatic!" Chen Jiahe scooted backward, putting some distance between them. "What exactly are you plotting?!"

Mu Chen did not answer her directly. With a flick of his hand, a translucent, ghostly blue screen shimmered into existence, hovering silently between them.

"What... what is this?" Chen Jiahe’s voice cracked; she had never seen such a thing.

"My system interface," Mu Chen said coolly, as if discussing something as trivial as eating or drinking. "Through it, I can view everyone’s basic attributes: loyalty, affinity, and various skill levels. Everything is laid out clearly."

On the blue screen, a 3D image of Chen Jiahe slowly rotated. Beside it, lines of data were clearly listed:

[Name: Chen Jiahe]
[Age: 20]
[Loyalty: 13/100]
[Affinity: 27/100]
[Special Skills: Organizational Coordination (Grade A), Emergency Response (Grade B)]

Her own figure, her own data, was displayed there in such raw, naked detail.

"No... this is absolutely impossible!" Chen Jiahe’s face lost all its color, her voice trembling uncontrollably. "What... what kind of trick is this? A hologram?"

"It appeared the moment the apocalypse began." Mu Chen waved his hand, and the screen vanished. "It is the capital I use to survive in this end-time, and the foundation upon which I can lead others to stay alive."

"So, all those conditions you mentioned before... the fair skin, the beauty, the long legs—they were all just a front?"

Chen Jiahe’s voice turned sharp with agitation. "You were picking survivors like choosing produce at a market?"

Her body shook uncontrollably. Mu Chen suddenly burst into a laugh that echoed through the bedroom.

"Fair skin? Beautiful? Long legs?" He shook his head. "Those were just smoke screens. Did you really think I’d be stupid enough to choose people based solely on their looks? What I need are useful people—people who can fight to survive in this godforsaken apocalypse!"

Chen Jiahe furrowed her brow, her confusion deepening. "Then why did you have to..."

"Why act like a complete piece of trash, right?" Mu Chen cut her off, his tone turning icy. "Because only by using the most extreme methods can you tear away the mask of peace and see what people are made of at their core. Desperate situations are the best way to test human nature and screen for truly valuable companions."

Chen Jiahe’s head was buzzing. For a long time, those words struggled to settle into her chaotic thoughts. It was a complete, total subversion of everything she had believed.

She slowly lifted her head to look at him. "You mean... I passed your 'test'?" Her voice was dry, laced with uncertainty.

"Mm." Mu Chen gave a careless shrug. "You’re not stupid; you know how to bow your head in the apocalypse to stay alive. At your core, you aren’t completely rotten yet. That knife was the best proof. You dared to strike at me, but you also knew to protect yourself first. These are the fundamentals of survival. Lacking any one of them means death."

As she listened, that suffocating pressure in her chest seemed to dissipate just a little. The weight pressing down on her heart felt slightly lighter.

"So... everything you said before... you actually..." The words died on her lips. Her gaze involuntarily swept over the large bed. Her cheeks burned, turning searingly hot.

"I want partners who can carve out a path of blood together, not dolls for display." Mu Chen stood up, towering over her. His silhouette blocked the light, making him seem all the more oppressive. "This bedroom is yours. I’ll sleep in the living room."

Chen Jiahe was stunned. But no sooner had he finished speaking than his tone shifted, a weight of undeniable authority pressing down on her.

"However, I’ll say this upfront—" Mu Chen leaned down abruptly. His face was inches from hers. His warm breath hit her face, carrying an undeniable aggression. Chen Jiahe subconsciously held her breath.

"Here, I, Mu Chen, am the law! The only law!" Each word hammered into her heart. "Listen, and you live. Don't listen, and get out at any time. Understand?"

The last two words were light, yet they fell like a ten-thousand-ton boulder. Chen Jiahe’s chest tightened, and a sense of suffocation gripped her. Her heart hammered against her ribs as if it might break through. She dug her fingernails deep into her palms. The sharp pain helped her find a moment of clarity amidst the chaos of her thoughts.

Mu Chen’s sudden pressure, this blatant declaration of control, was harder for her to bear than any torture. One moment he was explaining, trying to make her understand; the next, he was a cold commander, brook no argument.

This man... her mind was a jumbled mess of buzzing static. What kind of person was he? The gentleness from before, the tyranny now—which was the real him? Or were they both?

Chen Jiahe bit her lower lip hard until the metallic taste of blood bloomed on her tongue. Humiliation, resentment, and fear churned violently within her, threatening to swallow her whole.

Yet, reality was cold and unyielding. She had no room to negotiate. In this apocalypse, strength was everything, and Mu Chen was the one who held the power of life and death over her. The thought of resistance flickered for a second before she ruthlessly crushed it. She couldn’t die. At least, not yet.

Her throat constricted as she swallowed hard. That one word, heavy as a mountain, was finally forced out through gritted teeth:

"Understood."

That single word seemed to drain every ounce of strength from her body.