"Fuck! I've had it with you people!"
Before Xiao Han could speak, a young man shot to his feet, drawing a two-meter greatsword in one fluid motion. Yang Bin's words had clearly pushed him past his limit.
Everyone else who came here seeking refuge showed gratitude. But these guys? They waltzed in and demanded the villa outright. There was only so much a man could swallow.
Xiao Han moved to block him immediately.
"A-Zhe! Did you forget what I told you? Anyone who comes here is a brother. Stop pulling steel at the first sign of trouble!"
"Captain, we're treating them like brothers and they're treating us like suckers!"
"......"
"Sit. Down." Xiao Han's voice went hard.
Seeing his captain genuinely angry, A-Zhe dropped back into his seat-reluctantly. His glare toward Yang Bin could've cut glass.
The others wore the same expression. The room's patience with Yang Bin's group had officially run out.
"Sorry about that, brother. He's young and hot-headed. But we really can't hand this place over. How about this-you stay in the temporary housing for now. If you prove yourselves later, I'll arrange villa rooms for you. Sound fair?"
"No. I want this one." Yang Bin didn't blink.
"......"
"Are you fucking serious right now? You want me to split you in half!?" A-Zhe's barely-contained fury erupted all over again.
"A-Zhe!"
Xiao Han snapped at him, then paused to think. He turned back to Yang Bin. "Alright. This villa's big enough. We'll squeeze together and free up four rooms for your group. How's that?"
"Captain!"
A-Zhe opened his mouth to protest, but a single look from Xiao Han shut him down.
Yang Bin studied Xiao Han with mild surprise. After everything he'd pulled, this man still kept his composure. Solid temperament. No wonder his people followed him with that kind of loyalty.
"You're not bad. Ever thought about joining our squad?"
"???"
Xiao Han stared at him blankly. They'd been arguing about living arrangements, and now-what? The conversational whiplash nearly gave him vertigo.
"Who the hell do you think you are!? Asking our captain to join your garbage squad-where do you get the nerve!?" A-Zhe was on his feet again, past the point of restraint.
But the moment the words left his mouth, a figure blurred forward. A boot swung straight at his chest.
A-Zhe was no amateur. He clenched his fist and drove it toward the incoming kick.
Fist met foot with a heavy thud.
Chen Hao didn't move an inch. A-Zhe flew back four or five meters.
"I've been holding back too." Chen Hao's tone was flat, almost bored. "If your captain wasn't a decent guy, you'd already be a corpse."
"Tier-5 peak!?"
Everyone in the room surged to their feet, eyes wide on Chen Hao.
A-Zhe was already Tier-5. To send him flying like that with a single kick-it could only mean peak Tier-5.
But peak Tier-5... even their captain hadn't reached that level. How?
Xiao Han stared at Chen Hao in surprise, then let displeasure creep into his voice. "Gentlemen. I've shown you nothing but courtesy since you arrived. Striking my people-don't you think that's out of line?"
He wasn't afraid. He hadn't reached peak Tier-5 himself, but he was a Lightning-Type Ability user. His combat power far exceeded an ordinary Tier-5 Evolver's.
"Hey, I didn't want to." Chen Hao spread his hands. "But this guy's mouth runs faster than his brain. Consider it a free lesson."
"My people. If they need discipline, I handle it. Not you." The warmth had drained entirely from Xiao Han's voice. "You owe him an apology."
"Oh? Protective of your own, huh." Yang Bin's lips curved slightly. "I'm the same way. My people don't take orders from you."
"Captain Yang. Are you looking to make enemies here?"
"Enemies?" Yang Bin tilted his head, almost amused. "Nah. You've got some strength, but not enough to qualify as our enemy."
"......"
"Then I'd like to see exactly what Captain Yang is made of."
Xiao Han shifted into a combat stance.
Yang Bin shook his head.
His figure blurred-and vanished.
A dull impact echoed through the room. Xiao Han's body launched backward, slamming into the far wall.
"Captain!"
"That was a cheap shot!"
The others whipped around, fury blazing in their eyes.
Xiao Han coughed. Blood spattered the floor.
He looked up at Yang Bin, shock carved into every line of his face.
"Tier-6...!?"
Only he knew how much force that kick carried. Yang Bin had clearly held back-and it still dwarfed anything a Tier-5 could produce. There was only one explanation.
Tier-6 Evolver.
"How is that possible!?"
Hearing their captain's stunned whisper, the others gaped at Yang Bin in disbelief.
A Tier-6 Evolver. Now. At this stage of the apocalypse.
Xiao Han dragged himself upright, swaying slightly. Then he cupped his fists and bowed.
"Thank you, Captain Yang, for showing mercy."
He understood perfectly. If that kick had landed at full power, he'd be meeting his ancestors right now.
Against this man, he didn't even have the capacity to fight back.
He hadn't used his Lightning ability-but he knew it wouldn't matter. His lightning couldn't touch someone that fast.
"Hmm." Yang Bin watched him, something shifting behind his eyes. "With that personality of yours... I'm starting to wonder if you'd actually fit in with us."
It wasn't that Xiao Han's character was bad. It was that he was too upright. Too clean. It didn't match the squad's... temperament.
Originally, when Yang Bin heard there was a Lightning-Type Ability user here, his first thought had been cold and practical: kill him, harvest the ability for Old Hei.
But after actually meeting the man, he'd found Xiao Han genuinely decent. So the plan shifted-recruit him instead.
Now, though? This guy got kicked across a room and his first response was to thank his attacker for not killing him. Yang Bin wasn't sure if bringing someone this principled into their crew would be an asset or a headache.
They operated in gray areas. If Xiao Han couldn't stomach that, he'd become a liability.
Xiao Han caught the continued recruitment pitch and felt helpless-but less irritated than before.
A Tier-6 Evolver had the right to make that kind of offer.
Still, he had no intention of joining another team. He'd built something here. Why abandon it?
The rest of Xiao Han's squad had gone silent. Tier-6. That single fact crushed every ounce of defiance out of the room.
At Tier-5, you could feel it instinctively-Tier-6 was an entirely different realm. The gap in power wasn't incremental. It was a chasm.
Their captain couldn't survive a single exchange. What could any of them possibly say?
"I appreciate the offer, Captain Yang." Xiao Han kept his voice steady, quiet. "I'm doing well here. I have no plans to join another squad."
"Here, huh?" Yang Bin glanced around the villa. "Honestly? Developing this place is pointless. The military's expanding outward fast. When they reach this area, you've got two options: get absorbed into their system, or eat artillery shells. Either way, everything you've built ends up serving someone else."
"!!!"
"Don't look at me like that. I'm telling you what's coming. We nearly got shelled on our way here."
"......"
"Anyway." Yang Bin straightened. "Pack your things and move to one of the other villas. We're requisitioning this one for a few days. You'll get it back when we leave."
"Why should-"
A-Zhe started to speak, but someone clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Understood. We'll move now."
Xiao Han made the call without hesitation. Once a Tier-6 Evolver entered the equation, every obstacle stopped being an obstacle.
Within minutes, the group gathered their belongings and filed out of the villa.