Chapter 521: Chapter 521: Brother Monkey’s True Identity
The pot was filled with decaying meat, its exact origin unclear, heaped together limply.
Maggots squirmed densely over the rotting flesh.
Blackened meat oozed dark fluid, mingling with the maggots.
A stench of decay assaulted their senses.
Just one glance, and Bai Xiqin felt her stomach churning.
Thankfully, Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai had strong mental resilience, or they would have snapped.
The butcher, the cook, and the contractor sat opposite them, eyes fixed on Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai.
This was their final test to go through.
To test if Leng Yebai and Bai Xiqin were completely under Xiao Guai’s mind control. If they passed, they would be deemed the most loyal guests.
"The smell of stewed goose is so enticing! Ordinary folks rarely get to eat it! Come on, give it a try!"
The contractor made a show of taking a deep breath near the pot, suppressing his revulsion, then fiercely picked up a large chunk of rotting meat with chopsticks, placing it in front of Leng Yebai and Bai Xiqin.
Bai Xiqin glanced down; there was not just rotting flesh in the bowl but also boneless little creatures squirming incessantly.
The small animals crawled up the sides of the spotless bowl, falling off only to tenaciously climb again.
Leng Yebai’s expression remained calm, but Bai Xiqin sensed a slight disturbance of his superpower.
Bai Xiqin slowly shifted her gaze, slightly moving her fingers, and the Mandala Flower on her wrist began emitting a peculiar fragrance.
Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai sat still, doing nothing.
But in the eyes of the three men, the scene changed abruptly.
They "saw" Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai drooling over the pot with ardent eyes.
They "saw" Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai picking up the rotting meat with chopsticks, unhesitatingly bringing it to their mouths.
There was no hesitation at all. If left unchecked, Leng Yebai and Bai Xiqin would surely put the decayed meat in their mouths.
"Wait!"
The cook suddenly reached out, stopping Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai, his smile greasier.
"Seems like the stewed goose isn’t fully cooked, wait a moment, I’ll stew it a bit longer."
In reality, Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai hadn’t moved an inch; the cook just suddenly made a motion to stop them.
This was an illusion caused by the Mandala Flower’s scent affecting the minds of the cook, butcher, and contractor.
The Mandala Flower interfered with the minds of the three, making them see what they wished to see.
The contractor stood up, took away the bowls from in front of Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai, replacing them with clean ones.
Until Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai advanced to a higher rank as superpower users, they couldn’t allow them to turn into zombies.
The cook carried the big pot away, saying he’d stew it more, but in less than a minute he came back with another big pot.
This time, Bai Xiqin caught a whiff of rich meaty aroma.
Opening the lid, the scent was mouth-watering; this was the real stewed goose.
"From now on, you’re truly our guests. If you want crystal cores from superpower users’ brains, exchange them with zombie brain crystal cores: ten same-rank crystal cores for one human superpower user’s brain crystal core!"
The butcher happily chewed on a goose leg, and spoke to Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai with a smile.
Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai didn’t want to eat anything from this yard, so the fragrance of the Mandala Flower grew even stronger.
Now they didn’t need to pretend; they sat leisurely on the bench, while the three men imagined Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai behaving obediently.
The Mandala Flower’s scent could make those who smelled it visualize the scenarios they most desired to see.
Perhaps they saw Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai showing exceptional behavior, so they spoke more freely, no longer as silent as before, eventually inquiring if the chat was enjoyable.
This time, the chat was indeed enjoyable.
The cook devoured the meat, frowning slightly, sighed softly, "If only we had wine to accompany this."
The cook, butcher, and contractor were meat lovers and fond of drink, finding it regrettable to eat such solid meals without alcohol.
In the post-apocalyptic world, it’s rare to enjoy such substantial dishes.
"Forget about wine, Brother Monkey forbade us from drinking, saying that Sun Wukong causing havoc in the heavens and ending up under the Five Finger Mountain was due to drunken mischief! It leads to errors in judgment!"
The contractor, recalling the days of drinking with bliss, found the goose in his mouth less flavorful.
Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai exchanged a glance.
Is there really a Brother Monkey?
Could this person be Wang Ge?
Bai Xiqin took the Mandala Flower from her pocket, the fragrance intensified, wafting over the three across from them.
"Brother Monkey isn’t very considerate!" the cook murmured.
"Never mind, drop it, discussing this can be fatal."
The butcher glanced at the zombies in the yard, gesturing to the two to make them stop.
The pair realized something and ceased speaking.
Subsequently, regardless of how the Mandala Flower released its scent, the three never revealed Brother Monkey’s true identity.
They only knew that some of the crystal cores for sale were provided by Brother Monkey!
However, Bai Xiqin unexpectedly obtained a list.
This list of "guests" had many formidable superpower users, over half from the Yunhua Safety Base.
Powerful superpower users had gone to the Yunhua Safety Base.
These were their "sheep," and once these superpower users reached a specific rank and could no longer advance, it was time for the butcher and his group to collect High Rank Crystal Cores!
Bai Xiqin pulled out paper and pen from her pocket, which was actually from her space, and wrote down all the names before handing the list to Leng Yebai.
If the list were handed over to the Base Commander, this matter would likely be resolved well.
Afterward, Bai Xiqin listened for a long time, still failing to uncover clues about Brother Monkey.
They only knew Brother Monkey was formidable, backed by a powerful organization, and that the three were merely workers.
All indicators suggested Brother Monkey was indeed Wang Ge.
The sun was slightly westward but still scorching; Bai Xiqin felt enveloped in sweat, so she released Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing.
Since Captain Zhu was bitten by a zombie last time, although they didn’t see him scream, everyone had already presumed him dead.
When Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing, who had been watching Captain Zhu, were brought into the spatial domain by Bai Xiqin.
After spending some time there, Xiao Qing and Bai Suzhen seemed more sentient and intelligent.
Leaving Xiao Qing and Bai Suzhen in the yard to notify Bai Xiqin if a person wearing a monkey mask arrived.
Since Wang Ge’s disappearance, neither the animals within the space nor the zombies controlled by Zhang Yiming had tracked his trace.
It was unclear how he concealed himself.
He likely altered his scent and aura, so animals and zombies that track by scent didn’t find his trail.
Now with a hint of a lead, Bai Xiqin was addressing this matter seriously, regardless of validation.
Bai Xiqin took some fruits from the space, handing them to Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing before using the Mandala Flower to compel the butcher to drive them back to the Yunhua Safety Base.
