Chapter 963

Please explain in detail

Besides those chasing you who know this, who else knows?

Without a shred of emotion.

After confirming the card's function, although Lin An didn't like wanton slaughter of innocents, he didn't mind carrying out a cleansing.

Whether out of selfishness or from a global perspective, once the news spreads, more people will die in the chaos.

To divide his attention.

Lin An extended his mental power to monitor the whole scene while contacting Long'an Base, mobilizing many personnel to monitor the battle zone channels and locate any possible leak.

Although theoretically unlikely, after all Fang Hai wouldn't likely tell others about this card; at most a few close confidants would know.

But just in case, he had to be on guard.

"No."

"Only I know."

Fang Yirou shook her head firmly; facing Lin An's solemn attitude, she suddenly felt she might still have underestimated the card's significance.

Actually, the few people who trapped me don't know about the card.

They were just with my brother at the start of the apocalypse, knowing his strength was a bit off, and they could always get some extra stuff.

So they guessed whether my brother was hiding something, and simply trapped me to get some information from me.

His expression slightly relaxed, Lin An nodded, indicating for her to continue.

The situation is better than imagined; it seems Fang Hai isn't too stupid either.

She swallowed, Fang Yirou's eyes showed recollection, and she slowly spoke:

"The card... at first was discovered by my brother in the West City area."

"At that time he was still an ordinary person; to find supplies, he would risk going to the suburbs of West City to scavenge food."

"Life was bitter, really bitter. Our group often went hungry, and once an Awakened One stole our food."

She brushed back the hair in front of her forehead, a hint of bitterness flashing in Fang Yirou's eyes:

"When we were starving."

"We've eaten rats... pet dogs... even insects."

"Many times we felt we could barely go on."

"I'm afraid every day, afraid my brother will be bitten by zombies, afraid he'll die outside and never come back."

"Until six months ago..."

"Once he came back, he mysteriously told me he was going to become an Awakened One."

Six months ago... West City suburbs...

Isn't that near the direction of Heiyu?

Lin An's expression shifted slightly.

Unusually, he didn't choose to interrupt the girl's narration; he needed to find clues from the detailed description.

The appearance of the battle zone task card made him keenly realize something: such cards are likely scattered across major battle zones.

The appearance of the four title-level 【entities】 in his past life means at least four cards have been completed.

The Hope River major battle zone where Linjiang is located might have such a thing, and I—including everyone from Long An—are essentially working for the card's owner.

To be honest, not being moved is fake.

Without trusting others, Lin An even felt an impulse!

Better to take all the cards into hand!

As for whether it's too overbearing and might alter others' fates, Lin An doesn't care at all.

Only when power and fate are in one's own hands is it the correct choice.

He trusts only his own judgment! If it's wrong, it's still his choice.

Seeing Lin An had nothing more to ask, the girl paused briefly then continued:

"After retrieving the card, my brother showed me its effect."

"You probably saw it too, right? Completing each stage's task grants a special reward."

"Of course, those tasks don't necessarily need to be done by oneself."

"When others complete them, my brother also gains strength; sometimes he gives equipment or items."

"That's how his strength comes about."

"But that's also why those people noticed he hardly killed mutants yet his strength kept increasing out of nowhere, so they harbored ulterior motives in private."

He nodded.

Lin An glanced at the stage mission information on the card.

The three main tasks are: raising the Safe Zone to Level 2, eliminating Third Stage mutants, and having more than 20 Third Stage individuals within the battle zone.

Upon completion, they respectively grant equipment, props, and spiritual energy.

The minor tasks are miscellaneous, such as clearing zombies and thousands of resource‑gathering tasks.

Upon completion, they provide supplies and food.

One could say this card is equivalent to a small system.

It provides all‑round help and enhancement; aside from being weaker in scale than the Savior System, this card is far stronger than the Doomsday System.

Most importantly, the tasks don't necessarily have to be completed by oneself!

Theoretically, Fang Hai just needs to find a place to hide; he could even idle straight up to Fourth Stage before emerging! If the card's affiliation is in Hope River, he has already completed one task.

This card is essentially a Fourth Stage admission ticket; whoever holds it almost certainly becomes Fourth Stage, surpassing the world.

Just that...

Fang Hai was clearly anxious; he probably wanted to actively speed up the mission progress.

After all, given what Lin An had seen, no one in the Eastern Third War Zone could "help" him complete the three main tasks in a short time.

Whether hunting third-rank beings or upgrading the Safe Zone, the Awakened Ones of this war zone would find it hard to achieve in a short time.

Therefore, unwilling to remain stuck at the initial third-rank for too long, he simply went out on his own adventure.

While distracted in thought, Lin An listened to Fang Yirou's somber recollections while secretly pondering the meaning behind the card.

After a while, he heard the end and asked lightly:

"Besides the card, did Fang Hai leave anything else?"

"Or, did he ever notice anything abnormal?"

According to Fang Yirou, Fang Hai left the card with her purely out of worry that, when he went out to fight, if it were dropped or discovered, it would cause trouble.

After all, he had no spatial equipment.

Meanwhile, Fang Yirou had always stayed in a safe place, so her exposure risk was obviously much lower.

Even if he died, his sister could live well relying on this card; if he died at someone else's hands, there would still be a chance to help him take revenge.

It must be said, this line of thinking is correct.

But Fang Hai probably never imagined that he would die so suddenly; his subordinates, who had long been under his protection, had already suspected him and were secretly plotting against him.

"Things..."

He blinked.

Fang Yirou shook her head with an honest expression, indicating that Fang Hai had left her nothing.

Besides a few pieces of white equipment and this card, there was nothing else.

"But if there's something abnormal..."

Fang Yirou hesitated for a moment, her fingers gripping the hem of her clothes.

After thinking, perhaps she felt that since the card had already been handed over, hiding anything else would be pointless.

So, she spoke frankly:

"Yes."

"My brother often would take the card and hide in his room, talking to himself."

"He would always say, 'The seed is about to sprout...'"

"Moreover, he actually didn't like touching the card; leaving it with me... might also be because of that. He seemed, a little afraid of the card..."

"Huh?"

Lin An narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at Fang Yirou:

"The seed sprouting? Afraid?"

Seeing Lin An's confusion, the girl hurriedly explained:

"Actually, I don't know what it means either."

"I just once worried about him and talked with him."

"He was afraid I'd worry, so he said this kind of card is like a seed, absorbing the nutrients of the entire war zone and such..."

"Then he also said, in this world, nothing comes without a cost."

While speaking, Fang Yirou also felt her words were a bit confused, but that was all she knew.

Recalling how Fang Hai had hidden in his room, staring fixedly at the card, she also felt a bit uneasy for a moment.

The reason for handing over the card, besides being forced to have no choice, was likely also due to Fang Hai's influence; deep down, she always felt that holding the card might not be a good thing...

As her words fell, the cabin fell silent.

Lin An lowered his gaze to the metal card in his hand; its metallic sheen brought a hint of cold touch.

Cost, seed, Heiyu...

For some reason, he suddenly recalled that crystal skull.

And, that being suspected to be of the Fourth Stage.

Title...

Immortality?