Tang Yu reclined on the soft sofa, stretching lazily, as if he were about to sink into it.
"What a decadent life..."
The urgent gap in Source Crystal supply had been solved, and Tang Yu felt much more at ease.
Making money by hunting beasts was becoming less effective, as every hunt for Demonized Beasts required a lot of time for searching.
It was quite embarrassing.
While others were eager to stay away from Demonized Beasts, Tang Yu was single-mindedly looking to encounter them.
He now somewhat understood why this place was called distant from the Abyssal Rift.
Apart from the unexpected Demon Tide, the number of Demonized Beasts here was indeed not many.
The focus of work had shifted to resource search in the wild, and Tang Yu held no expectations for Demonized Beasts anymore.
In his mind, Luo Zhe contacted him through the Contract, sending a message.
Chen Haiping was looking for him.
He paused, then remembered he had just asked Chen Haiping to tally the firearms and ammunition left by Han Jing's group, and the recent bounty had made him forget all about it.
"So..." Tang Yu considered for two seconds, "bring him over to the castle."
"To Villa No. 1?" Chen Haiping was a bit surprised.
Villa No. 1 was always a forbidden place, only Director Tang and his few teammates had the privilege to enter. He knew he was far from matching those experts, yet to say he wasn't envious was impossible.
Now, did he also qualify?
Once in the Sanctuary, he was excluded for not being one of Wang Tai's direct line subordinates, but now, in just a few days, he had gained Director Tang's trust.
Chen Haiping was touched.
He was also curious about what Villa No. 1 contained to make it a restricted zone.
Following in Luo Zhe's footsteps, Chen Haiping walked past Villa No. 3, Villa No. 2...
"The surrounding environment doesn't seem different, apart from being cleaner..." Chen Haiping contemplated, suddenly his thoughts stuck, stalled.
"Could it be my eyes playing tricks?"
Not far away, where Villa No. 1 originally stood, a castle towered instead.
The castle wasn't large, only occupying slightly more land than the original standalone villa, yet all the villas here shared a style, and this sudden change to a castle made Chen Haiping believe he couldn't be mistaken.
This absolutely wasn't here before!
Getting closer, the castle appeared even clearer, with silvery white walls and a deep blue spire roof, everything looked so unreal.
Chen Haiping hesitated for a moment, finally reaching out to knock on the outer wall.
Quite solid, a solid structure...
The castle gates were open.
He followed Luo Zhe, stepping inside.
As soon as he crossed the threshold, it was as if he had entered another world.
Outside, it was the height of a hot summer, with a breeze carrying an oppressive heat, stirring up a desire to unleash destructive impulses.
Once he stepped into the castle, crossing what seemed like a boundary between two worlds, everything felt different!
All the heat dissipated, replaced by an extremely comfortable temperature, akin to soaking in a stream, with a cool breeze brushing his cheeks.
Even the air was filled with a comforting fragrance.
Chen Haiping felt his pores open, and days of fatigue diminished significantly.
He knew it was an illusion, but the environment was just too comfortable.
"Is there air conditioning here? But an air conditioner wouldn't make it this comfortable..."
He thought, noting that the sensation of his feet against the floor felt odd.
The floor was covered with a red carpet, fragrant wooden furniture, and wall lamps like embedded crystals...
Chen Haiping doubted his own senses.
"Director, the tally of confiscated firearms and ammunition is complete. In total, there are twenty-three various pistols, fifteen types of automatic rifles, one portable rocket launcher with five remaining rockets, and several grenades, along with over a thousand rounds of ammunition."
Speaking of these weapons, Chen Haiping smiled, "With so many firearms, it will be much easier to rebuild the defenses of the Sanctuary."
"That's true, and there's more. I also have two light machine guns, several automatic rifles, and found something interesting..."
"Something interesting?" Chen Haiping asked in confusion, then saw Tang Yu retrieve a long object from under the table, "This is... a sniper rifle! M99 semi-automatic sniper rifle! Finding this is incredible. With this weapon, we might even be able to snipe some dangerous Demonized Beasts from a distance!"
This type of firearm was deadly to humans and could cause significant damage to Demonized Beasts. Used effectively, it could increase combat options significantly.
"Indeed." Tang Yu nodded, "So this sniper rifle will be yours from now on."
"Mine? This is too valuable." Chen Haiping couldn't believe it.
Tang Yu pushed the sniper rifle towards him.
"Your marksmanship is impressive. This sniper rifle can only realize its true value in your hands. If you feel unworthy, consider it a loan from me. Use this sniper rifle well to kill Demonized Beasts, so it doesn't go to waste..."
This sniper rifle, if left with him, would merely be a display piece. Luo Zhe and Eileen, not to mention wouldn't use it, wouldn't need such a weapon.
Weapons, if not used to their potential, were just decorations.
Coincidentally, among these people, Chen Haiping was adept with guns. Tang Yu had witnessed Chen Haiping use a pistol to kill a Demonized Beast.
"Alright." Chen Haiping took a deep breath, "I won't let you down, Director, and certainly won't waste this sniper rifle."
He solemnly put away the sniper rifle, then suddenly recalled something, "Director, those people before were sent by a big shot in Lindong. Now that they've suffered losses here, that big shot likely won't let it rest easily."
He was worried, seeking Tang Yu's strategy.
"Strategy? Don't worry, that big shot isn't a military leader and doesn't have an army. No matter how strong, as long as a modern army doesn't come charging, there's no issue. Besides, since those people were lost here, the Lindong figure would need time to understand the situation, a round trip, and that might take plenty of time. In short, don't worry."
Chen Haiping was somewhat anxious, yet glanced at Tang Yu, then at Luo Zhe, and found neither showed any sign of concern. On the contrary, Luo Zhe looked ready for battle.
He initially wanted to suggest relocating the Sanctuary, but now couldn't voice it.
The big shot in Lindong, with strong forces, was far beyond what their group could currently compare to. However, Director Tang did not appear to act without confidence.
From the very beginning, he thought the idea of establishing a Sanctuary was too bold, yet step by step, until now, he believed Tang Yu had the capability.
Director Tang still had a hidden trump card to deal with that big shot in Lindong?
Chen Haiping couldn't figure it out, but he was willing to believe.
He never thought of leaving.
Leaving here might remove the worry of the Lindong big shot, but Chen Haiping didn't want to continue lingering in such a world.
Some things needed someone to do.
Helping Director Tang establish the Sanctuary, whether for fame, profit, or his belief, he wanted to try.
Failure wasn't scary, losing humanity's awareness and living like a walking corpse was frightening.
Unable to convince Director Tang to relocate, Chen Haiping could only do his best in his duties.
Training survivors' shooting skills to improve the Sanctuary's defense strength.
The rest was up to Director Tang's hidden cards and destiny.
"... However, Director, we still have too few people, these firearms can't even be fully utilized."