Chapter 1086: The Out-of-Control Lord of Territory Fourteen

Seeing Yan Meng in this state, Xia Qing understood why Feng Wen had come to her with a mix of coaxing and deception, and why Yan Meng had walked out of his territory.

Without medicine, he won't last a few more days. Xia Qing hadn't expected that, without being infected by the evolution fungus, an Evolver's body could deteriorate this quickly.

What exactly did Liehuo have him taking? What's his current Qiang element content?

Xia Qing turned on the dashcam, left hand on the steering wheel, right hand gripping her gun as she kept moving forward. The moment Yan Meng made any move to attack her, Xia Qing would open fire and add injury to injury.

As a Lord, Yan Meng certainly knew the consequences of attacking a Lord. He straightened up as best he could, tottered to the middle of the road, picked up his phone, and dialed Xia Qing.

Xia Qing stopped the car and looked at Yan Meng, who stood nearly one meter ninety tall in front of the vehicle.

"Xia Qing, it's Yan Meng." Although Yan Meng wanted nothing more than to blow up the stinking woman who'd brought him to this state, he had to bow his head to survive. "I have a deal for you. You'll definitely be interested."

Xia Qing stopped the car and stared at Yan Meng through the bulletproof glass with an expressionless face, wanting to hear how his story differed from Feng Wen's.

The corners of Yan Meng's mouth pulled into a stiff smile. His voice was hoarse, weak and feeble. "This can't be overheard by others. Open the car door and I'll get in to talk with you."

The muscles on Yan Meng's face and neck had gone slack and atrophied; the wrinkles on his face became even more pronounced when he forced that fake smile. Though he was smiling, not a trace of goodwill could be felt from him.

The way he looked now was just like the beggars on the roadside inside the Safe Zone, the ones barely clinging to life.

In the first two years after the Catastrophe, people still had some illusions about human nature, believed social order would soon be restored, and tried as much as possible to help those in need. Such kind souls were the main targets the beggars begged from.

The moment you met his eyes, he'd immediately flash you a smile just like Yan Meng's. If you didn't give him food, he'd start cursing; if he noticed your combat ability was low, he'd rush over to rob you of supplies. But if you softened and pulled out a little food, a whole swarm of beggars would surround you, demanding and snatching food and other supplies, stripping you clean.

Over these past few years, the good people in the Safe Zone's outer city had long vanished. The beggars began lurking outside the inner city gates, waiting for their chance. Every time Xia Qing came back from construction work inside the inner city, she'd run into hundreds of those smiling faces. At those moments, Xia Qing would walk through the crowd with an expressionless face, machete and iron rod in hand, leading her construction crew past without so much as a sideways glance.

Her machete and iron rod were often stained with blood.

Yan Meng, standing on the North Isolation Belt of Territory One in the north, saw that Xia Qing refused to open the door. He struggled to straighten his emaciated frame, turned in a circle in front of the car, and said in a slightly panting voice, "I haven't brought any weapons. I'm sincerely here to deal with you. Besides, you're already a dual-system Advanced Evolver now—there's no way I could hurt you."

Xia Qing remained expressionless.

The muscles on Yan Meng's face twitched. A ferocity that didn't belong to any human began showing in his eyes, and the veins on his neck popped out one by one.

He stood in front of the battered off-road vehicle, took several deep breaths, struggled to control his emotions, and with trembling hands gripping his phone, haltingly laid out the terms of his deal. "The soybeans you planted this year contain an extremely potent slow-acting poison. The very first batch of edamame you sent to Territory Seven was swapped out by Ji Li… with soybeans grown in my territory… I secretly kept some. Do you want them? … You get the Lord of Territory Seven to treat me and prescribe medicine, and I'll give them to you…"

She now understood why Yan Meng had radiated that malicious aura that made little Shiyi feel danger toward the pregnant Feng Wen—because he was on the verge of losing control.

Xia Qing stopped wasting time and stepped on the gas.

The North Isolation Belt was 50 meters wide; even with a wall erected down the middle, the road itself was still 25 meters across. Xia Qing didn't even bother turning the wheel—she drove straight at him.

Rationally, Yan Meng knew Xia Qing wouldn't dare actually hit him, because killing a Lord was a grave crime. But seeing her car barreling toward him at full speed, Yan Meng panicked anyway, rolled clumsily to the roadside, and started cursing. "Xia Qing, you stinking bitch! You think others don't know what you used to be? I know every damn bit of it! Cough, cough—"

"…Back in Year Nine of the Catastrophe, or even earlier, you were already mixing with those wolf-beasts up north. Cough, cough—it was you who had the wolves kill the Fengyun Squad, killed my sister…"

Yan Meng coughed and panted, staggering as he chased the car from behind. "I've got nothing to lose… I'm not afraid of someone who has something to lose. Believe it or not, I'll make a call right now and report you…"

Hearing that this was all Yan Meng had to say, Xia Qing knew the "Shan Ying" who'd contacted Yan Meng was something Feng Wen had made up.

After Xia Qing left, Zhu Li walked out from the wild-grass wall, stood by the north gate of Territory Six, and laughed coldly. "Surname Yan, you want to report Qing-jie? Go ahead! If you've got the guts, stand right there and make the call!"

After yelling his head off and running a stretch, Yan Meng was now panting like a broken-down ceiling fan, without even the strength to speak. He barely managed to get up, hunched his body forward, and walked on—uncertain whether he was heading back to Territory Fourteen or still chasing Xia Qing's car.

Zhu Li lowered the right hand she'd been hiding behind her back and twirled her knife in disappointment. "I was hoping that goading him would make him lose control and charge in."

Kuang Qingwei laughed. "If he didn't have at least this much brains, could he have survived till now? Though looking at him, he won't last many more days either."

Zhu Li nodded. "I'll follow him and see if he dares go straight to Third Brother."

"Even if he does, it's useless…"

Before Kuang Qingwei could finish, the clear, cheerful voice of the Lord of Territory Fifteen came over the walkie-talkie. "All Lords, all Lords, the truck hauling the cattle and sheep has entered the East Gate!"

Hearing that the Tang family had delivered the cattle and sheep early, Xia Qing—who had originally planned to go discuss matters with her idol—slammed the brakes, did a U-turn on the spot, and hurried back to her own territory to receive the goods.

Yan Meng, leaning on his crutch, saw Xia Qing turn back. A gleam shot into his eyes, and he slowly straightened his body.

As Xia Qing drove past him without the slightest hesitation, Yan Meng broke down. He collapsed onto the muddy road—still wet from the recent weeding of the Qiang grass—and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Xia Qing, I know my sister's death can't be blamed on you. I was wrong!!! Please, help me. I don't want to die… please help me—"

"Why? Why!!! All you'd have to do is open your mouth and you could save my life—why won't you help? Are you even human? Ah—ah—"

Yan Meng roared, his voice rising higher and higher. "I'll kill you, kill you—"

The Yan Meng who had needed a crutch just to walk moments ago leapt up, clawing at the air as he shrieked and chased after Xia Qing's car.

Tan Junjie, who had been monitoring Yan Meng through the camera on the wire-mesh wall, pressed the walkie-talkie button. "Territory Five, attention. Territory Six, attention: an out-of-control individual has appeared on the North Isolation Belt of Territory Six. Personnel from Territories Five and Six, do not go outside. If he charges into Territory Six and harms people or damages fields, subdue him first. Acknowledge if received."

The Lords of Territories One through Ten, who had been in a state of excitement, immediately tensed up at this news.

Qi Fu immediately replied, "Territory Five, received."

"Territory Six, received." Zhu Li gripped the walkie-talkie, knife in hand, watching the out-of-control Yan Meng pass the north gate of Territory Six as he continued chasing Xia Qing.

Before long, a patrol vehicle came roaring up through the mud. Two inspection-team members jumped out, pinned the already out-of-control Yan Meng down, and injected him with a sedative.

Just then, a box truck hauling cattle and sheep drove past the patrol car at a steady speed, bouncing along the uneven North Isolation Belt on its way to Territory Three to make the delivery.