Night of Despair
Chapter 94 - 94: Rune 2

In his excitement, Yu Hong did not continue to reinforce the rune array that night. In the past, he would take out the rune array every evening for reinforcement, calculating the reinforcement time, then increase the number of rune arrays, package them together for reinforcement, and by the next day, he would have several decent rune arrays.

But this time, he planned to test the Black Mark reinforcement pod.

With one hand on the stone wall, Yu Hong silently chanted in his heart.

*Reinforce the entire safehouse, direction: add a new room, the same size as this pod, extending towards the mountain. Keep the appearance unchanged, enhance the door's strength, integrate the stone wall, and reinforce the impact resistance.*

A black line flashed, and a countdown appeared: 6 days 9 hours 42 minutes.

*"Reinforce this pod?" the Black Mark inquiry sounded.*

"Yes!" Yu Hong eagerly responded.

Instantly, the entire underground pod lightly shimmered before returning to its original state. The countdown on the wall started ticking.

With these steps completed, Yu Hong contentedly withdrew his hand.

*Six days plus, and although the Black Mark will be unavailable temporarily, once it is successfully reinforced, future expansions can be done this way!*

*By the time the reinforcement ends, the reception team should be here. Once we get the intelligence, we can retrieve the nuclear power generator. As soon as the energy problem is solved, the water source should be directly accessible.*

By utilizing the Black Mark's reinforcement and synthesis capability, Yu Hong felt he could perfectly integrate the water supply system and nuclear power generator into the entire safehouse system.

This process saved a lot of design planning and retrofit efforts. After all, without the Black Mark and relying solely on himself, he wouldn't know how to install or integrate them into the safehouse.

After confirming the countdown activation, Yu Hong returned to the upper cave layer and rested. In a cheerful mood, he slept until near noon the next day.

He could've continued sleeping, but a noisy commotion outside woke him from his dream.

*

*

*

Outside the safehouse, in the stone-walled yard.

Wei Shanshan and Qiu Yanxi stood inside the wall, close to their small wooden hut, facing off against more than a dozen people outside.

Near noon, the daylight was at its brightest.

This group of more than ten people, both men and women, held weapons like machetes, wooden sticks, daggers, and handguns.

Some wore school uniforms similar to Wei Shanshan's, others wore camouflage outfits, and there were girls in ill-suited ultra-short dresses, exposing their pale thighs.

But regardless of their attire, their faces were filled with extreme fear and dread. Some were even trembling.

"Rune arrays, Large Pyroxene Stones! We need enough Large Pyroxene Stones and rune arrays!"

"Hand them over!! Give us the rune arrays!!" The girl at the front, not too old, approximately in her twenties, didn't have a better figure than Qiu Yanxi, but surpassed Wei Shanshan in this respect. Her face, however, was not attractive, with noticeable herpes due to stress on her lips.

She was holding a submachine gun and aimed its muzzle at the mother and daughter inside the wall.

"So many people died last night! Damn it, knowing you have so many rune arrays and pyroxene stones here, why didn't you share it with everyone to save our lives!? Why!!?" The girl's eyes were terrified, her gun trembling slightly, clearly experiencing extreme fright, and her voice escalated.

"Li Jingyuan!" Qiu Yanxi suppressed the fear from the gun muzzle, her body trembling slightly, and shouted loudly. "Weren't you sheltering at the post office? What happened? What's going on? Calm down first, it's noon, the least dangerous time, don't be afraid now!"

She was a teacher, and facing a student-dominated group, the remaining vestige of authority had some effect.

"Shadows... too many shadows!! We couldn't withstand them at all! The post office refused to let us stay! Their rune arrays and pyroxene stones were also insufficient! In one night... one night, eight of us died!!" The leading girl howled, "Too many shadows outside! We couldn't fend them off at all!! Without pyroxene stones, without rune arrays, we're all going to die! We'll die tonight!!"

Her eyes widened, bloodshot.

"I don't want to die! I need Large Pyroxene Stones! Give me Large Pyroxene Stones!!"

"There is a pyroxene mining area nearby; you can mine there to save your lives..." Qiu Yanxi's words were cut off abruptly by two gunshots. The bullets hit the grass next to her, sending splatters of black soil, with some dirt hitting her feet, leaving red marks.

"Who the hell is going to the mining area!? Am I a damn fool!? Going there isn't different from becoming an idiot or dying!? Regular pyroxene is useless! Large Pyroxene Stones, give me Large Pyroxene Stones!!" Li Jingyuan roared.

"I can call Mr. Yu out for a fair trade..." Before Qiu Yanxi could finish her sentence, she was interrupted again.

"Fair, my ass! We're so many and armed, why should we be fair to a single person!? Everything should be shared!"

"Share!!"

"Yes! Share!!"

"If they don't share, we'll kill them!!"

"We're dead anyway!! Let's fight!!"

The group's nerves were clearly pushed to the breaking point, nearing collapse.

"There's Large Pyroxene Stone there! I saw it!!" Suddenly someone pointed at a large pyroxene stone placed in the yard's corner, shouting.

"Hell! Grab it!!" Li Jingyuan waved, and a group of boys rushed toward the Large Pyroxene Stone.

"There are rune arrays! And food! Get that Yu guy out! We're taking this place!!" A tall guy shouted, charging toward the wooden door of the mountain's safehouse with his gun.

They were the discarded group, squeezed out by more influential individuals from the post office.

Lacking enough rune arrays and Large Pyroxene Stones, even though they entered the underground facility, a lot still died overnight.

The harsh reality shattered their delusions in an instant.

They attempted to assault the team comprised of Union Army families and guards but had to flee after a few casualties.

Having nowhere else to turn, this group thought of Yu Hong.

Deprived of food, rune arrays, and Large Pyroxene Stones, they rushed here, trying to grab a lifeline.

"Charge! Break in!! There's enough Large Pyroxene Stone since those two are unharmed!!" Someone shouted, joining the rush into the yard.

"Why should so many of us obey a few of them!?"

"We're damned to die anyway!! Screw it!!"

Li Jingyuan also charged in, ignoring Qiu Yanxi and her daughter at the wooden house door.

More than ten people swarmed the yard, stepping on luminous grass, rushing toward the wooden door.

The leading male lifted his gun, ready to fire at the door's lock.

Wham.

The wooden door slammed open, a shadow thrust out, hitting his chest squarely.

Bang!!

The gunman was directly knocked back, his ribcage cracking, blood spurting from his mouth, and heavily slammed against the stone wall, rolling to the ground with blood scattering everywhere.

The sudden turn of events stunned the charging crowd.

All actions halted, directed at the now-opened wooden door.

Inside the door.

The towering figure of Yu Hong, over six feet tall and fully geared, slowly walked out.

Clad in complete White Bear reinforced bulletproof armor, resembling a heavy tank, he wielded a massive wooden shield in one hand and clutched a Wolf Fang Club in the other. Weighing over three hundred pounds, he stepped forward effortlessly leaping onto the grassy yard.

Thud.

The long boots sank deeply.

His descent stirred air currents that rippled across the yard.

The gust swayed the luminous grass outward from Yu Hong's center.

Whoosh...

A substantial white mist streamed out from Yu Hong's respirator, blowing toward his helmet's sides, forming two white lines.

"I offer you fairness," he raised his head, eying the yard's crowd.

"And this is how you repay me?"

His deep voice snapped several near individuals to attention.

"Fairness my ass!! You hoard so many Large Pyroxene Stones and rune arrays, watching us die—this is fairness!!?"

"Kill him!!"

"Shoot him!!"

Bang Bang Bang Bang!!

Li Jingyuan first lifted her submachine gun, starting a barrage at Yu Hong.

The gunfire incessantly burst out, bullets pelting Yu Hong's heavy bulletproof suit, sparking small bursts.

Additionally, two more guns unleashed continuous fire upon Yu Hong.

Three guns' bullets hammered the bulletproof suit, massive wood shield, explosively shedding wood chips.

"Fools!" Yu Hong lifted the massive wooden shield, crouching, and surged forward!

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

With three successive steps, he resembled a bull, crashing into three individuals upfront.

Unable to evade, the wooden shield sent the trio flying, tumbling like bowling pins.

Without pause, Yu Hong charged to the wall, lifting the massive wooden shield single-handedly down smashing.

Bang!

The massive wooden shield crashed ruthlessly on Li Jingyuan.

The tremendous force prevented her from even groaning as she was knocked sideways, blood arcing midair, landing lifeless outside the wall.

Yu Hong spun, the Wolf Fang Club swinging casually, sending two more flying like toy sticks.

Then dropping the shield, grabbing a man's collar single-handedly, and smashed to the side.

Bang!!

Bone-breaking sounds ensued.

The strike slammed the individual into two others, bursting with blood sprays.

Finally, Yu Hong flung the Wolf Fang Club, whistling, precisely hitting two attempting to flee.

Both upper bodies were snapped on the spot, fell silent.

The Wolf Fang Club rolled on the ground, retrieved by Yu Hong who strode, gripping it single-handedly.

"A bunch of weak fools."

He sighed.

Standing up, surveying the bloody bodies strewn over the yard, he shook his head slightly and walked over to a youth still crawling slowly, his lower half completely crushed under the shield.

"You...!!!" The groaning youth glared at Yu Hong with bloodshot eyes, attempting to speak.

Wham.

The Wolf Fang Club crashed down, snapping his neck.

Life extinguished.

Yu Hong regretfully withdrew the club.

He wasn't a bloodthirsty person, but sometimes, one must inevitably do what's necessary....

After finishing, he looked at the frozen Qiu Yanxi and her daughter.

The two stood their ground before their wooden house, blood-splattered, stunned as if petrified.

"Go back and rest." Yu Hong sighed. "Those who kill are constantly killing. I didn't want this either, it's their fault."

"...."

Qiu Yanxi's eyes twitched, a surge of extreme absurdity welling up inside.

Watching Yu Hong sigh as if with pity, returning to the cave, leaving a yard full of bloody corpses.

Clutching her daughter's head, she suddenly recalled the deranged killer who appeared midway in the group.

*'....It's not my fault... they forced me to consume them!! They forced me!!'* That man's voice was eerily identical to Yu Hong's before her eyes.