Chapter 264: Turning the 'Kill the Chicken to Warn the Monkey' into a Recruitment Activity

Ding!

What Ling Xue'er didn't expect was that, not long after she hung up the video call, she received another message from Scar‑face Man.

Opening it, she saw that it was the video of the pale skeleton warriors killing Scar‑face Man and his group.

Logically, the communication bracelet should become unusable after its original owner dies, but now, after Scar‑face Man's death, his bracelet sent this message, leaving Ling Xue'er utterly puzzled.

But soon she figured out the key point.

The communication bracelet is a special supernatural item found inside the shelter, but strictly speaking, the bracelet and the shelter are not bound together; they are two independent items.

So, it is not necessary to own that shelter in order to use the communication bracelet.

Scar‑face Man's communication bracelet was most likely obtained by the intelligent system robot after his death, granting it the right to use the bracelet.

"In that case, perhaps many of the original owners of these communication bracelets have already been lost, and the ones chatting online are no longer the original people—they could be new beings, or perhaps…"

"Monster!"

Thinking this through, Ling Xue'er's eyes narrowed slightly.

Since joining Su Hao's territory, her daily task has been to lurk in the water groups, gaining a certain understanding of the survivors in each group.

However, after a while she noticed that some of the more active people suddenly underwent a drastic change in personality, as if they had become different persons.

Now it seems likely that it's not just a personality shift, but that the person using the communication bracelet has actually been replaced.

Perhaps the person you were chatting with yesterday was still human, but by the next day they could have turned into a fallen monster.

If at that moment you were invited out by them, you'd very likely never come back.

As time passes, the number of monsters using the communication bracelet to chat in the groups will only increase, raising the odds of leading other survivors into traps.

After careful consideration, Ling Xue'er merely reported this discovery to Zhu Ge Chang Qing, without making it public.

Although making this public would reduce survivor casualties and thus be a good thing for them,

but at the same time there is a major drawback: publicizing it would inevitably breed mutual suspicion among survivors and likely cause unnecessary panic.

Informing the Divine Summer Official about this and letting them handle the guidance might take a bit longer, but the outcome would be better and she wouldn't have to worry about it—clearly a better choice.

After sending her speculation about the communication bracelet to Zhu Ge Chang Qing, Ling Xue'er watched the video sent by the intelligent bronze robot; after a long silence, her expression gradually shifted from hesitation to resolve.

"We must let all survivors know that anyone who dares to harbor ill intentions toward us had better prepare for death!"

Ling Xue'er immediately opened a group chat, preparing to forward that video.

But just then, her communication bracelet chimed, receiving an invitation for a video call.

Opening it, she saw an intelligent bronze robot appear inside her communication bracelet, and she instantly had a bad feeling.

After a brief exchange, the intelligent bronze robot's words confirmed Ling Xue'er's suspicion.

Sure enough, their team also ran into an ambush; the other side had no information about the aggregated stitching monster and merely wanted to kill and loot.

"Good, then let's send both videos together."

A cold flash crossed Ling Xue'er's eyes as she ordered the intelligent bronze robot to slaughter the opposition completely, recording the whole process and sending it to her.

After receiving the video sent by the other side, Ling Xue'er repeatedly opened group chats and sent out those two videos along with a piece of text.

【Ling Xue'er: If you approach us with sincerity and wish to trade, I can guarantee you won't lose out—in fact, you'll gain even more.】

【Ling Xue'er: But if you harbor ulterior motives, this will be your fate—please weigh carefully whether you have the strength to oppose us!】

……

All along, Ling Xue'er has behaved very kindly; the transactions she oversees always leave the other party satisfied.

Moreover, she spends her days in the water groups, helping survivors resolve their doubts, so her reputation among them has always been good.

This was the first time the survivors had ever seen Ling Xue'er angry, and they all couldn't help wondering what had happened.

As they opened the two videos above, they all gasped in shock, their faces draining of color.

After a brief moment of silence in each group chat, heated discussion erupted.

【Hiss! Am I seeing things? That bone dragon flying in the sky—what supernatural grade must it be? Second rank or third rank?】

【A few days ago while exploring, I once saw a bone dragon far off; its size was much smaller than the one in the video, and those are all third‑rank supernatural monsters, so this bone dragon surely isn't below third rank!】

【Holy shit! If that's the case, is this bone dragon a fourth‑rank supernatural monster?】

【Fourth rank is impossible; this bone dragon should be in the upper middle of third rank.】

【Even if that's true, that's still absurd—we humans probably don't even have a single third‑rank supernatural being…】

【Never mind the bone dragon—I feel those four‑armed skeleton monsters' supernatural grade can't be low either; at least second rank, possibly third, and there are so many of them—this is just ridiculous!】

【You might not believe me, but in the Dark Forest these four‑armed undead creatures and that giant bone dragon wreathed in green fire are counted by the herd; I used to think they were minions of some forbidden‑zone overlord…】

……

No sooner had those words been spoken than the group chat fell into another brief silence.

What the heck? One bone dragon isn't enough, and they're counting them by the herd? Unless you see it with your own eyes, nobody would believe such a thing.

But soon, as more survivors from the Dark Forest confirmed it, the rest were forced to accept the truth of the matter.

【I'm fucking numb—these undead creatures are all lackeys of Boss Su Hao; if that's true, then the undead armies counted by the herd in the Dark Forest are also his lackeys?】

【Wait, wait, let me think—does this mean Su Hao's underlings have hundreds or thousands of at least second‑rank supernatural undead beings?】

【The guy who just said humans have no third‑rank supernatural beings—can he step forward? This is damn it, Su Hao's underlings already have so many second‑ and third‑rank supernaturals; just how terrifying must his own strength be?!】

【@Ling Xue'er, may I ask if Boss Su Hao is still recruiting? I work extremely hard.】

【@Ling Xue'er, I have succubus talent, my bed‑warming skills are top‑notch, please take me in, Boss Su Hao!】

……

Just a couple of minutes‑long videos revealing a corner of Su Hao's power were enough to shock survivors worldwide and completely overturn their understanding. Don't look at Su Hao now—ample supplies, countless followers, tens of thousands of third‑rank undead armies—not only has he seized a piece of land and become a local hegemon, but he can also send troops outward to expand his territory.

In reality, other survivors, even if not in dire straits, are still struggling to survive in this world.

Many survivors aren't even supernatural beings; a mere first‑rank monster can easily take their lives.

Even most survivors lack clean water and food.

Every day, a large number of survivors die due to lacking essential survival materials.

Here, the survivors referred to are not only humans, but all living beings that have not yet fallen.

Precisely because their situation is so difficult, after seeing that Su Hao has under his command such a large number of undead creatures with such high Supernatural Grade, they all began to doubt life.

We are all survivors of the strange apocalypse, yet how can our gap be so huge? We have struggled to survive this long, yet we end up worse off than someone else's single undead creature…

After deep self-doubt, they naturally want to cling to Su Hao's thigh; if they could receive his protection, even just the safeguard of a single undead creature.

For a long time to come, they no longer need to worry about survival.

All survivors who saw those two videos, under the premise of not affecting their own safety, display their strengths in the group.

Their hearts are full of anticipation, hoping Su Hao will take a liking to them, so they can be recorded within his territory.

Even beings without a translation module cannot understand the God Summer people's discussion about the Dark Forest.

They merely see the power Su Hao displays in the video, which is enough to make them yearn, and they desperately showcase their strengths.

Ling Xue'er glanced at this scene and was slightly startled; originally she had posted those two videos just to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys.

Tell all survivors worldwide that if anyone still dares to harbor ill intentions in the future, they had better weigh whether they have the strength, so that future transactions will go more smoothly.

I never expected things to turn out like this; it unexpectedly became a gain.

A few days ago, Su Hao assigned her a new task: to help watch for suitable survivors and try to recruit them into his territory.

For selecting these survivors, Su Hao has only two requirements.

First, their conduct need not be impeccable, but they must be sufficiently loyal.

Second, their Supernatural Grade need not be high; with Su Hao's resources, even an ordinary person can become a supernatural being in a short time, reaching Second or Third Tier is no problem.

But they must have a specialty, just as Flower Spirits excel at planting, Dwarves at crafting equipment, and mining supernatural ore.

If they also possess an outstanding talent—for example, Flower Yao can communicate with plants to accelerate growth and have a chance to make them gigantic, as well as the awakened talent to produce plant growth liquid—that would be ideal.

In short, Su Hao does not need the other party's strength to be great, but their ability must be beneficial to the construction of his territory.

Originally Ling Xue'er thought to prioritize recruitment within the God Summer Doomsday Investigation Group, but now this scene makes her realize it is an excellent opportunity.

She then used the translation module's function to broadcast the same message in all group chats.

【Ling Xue'er: All survivors who wish to join our territory, regardless of race, can privately send me your abilities; however, those of corrupt conduct should not waste time!】

As soon as this was said, it immediately caused a great uproar.

In an instant, countless survivors sent their talents and specialties to Ling Xue'er, and even some who felt they were quite attractive attached a selfie.

In just a moment, her communication bracelet received over a thousand private messages, leaving her dazed.

Even though she was mentally prepared, she still underestimated the allure of joining Su Hao's territory.

Even if those two videos only reveal a corner of Su Hao's power, it is enough to drive all survivors mad.

In their eyes, as long as they can join Su Hao's territory, it amounts to having a chance to survive.

Seeing the private messages still increasing, Ling Xue'er helplessly turned off the notifications, otherwise it would be too noisy.

As for the screening issue, we can only take it slow.

Ding! —But she hadn't had a few minutes of quiet when her communication bracelet chimed again with a small alert; opening it revealed a call invitation from Zhu Ge Chang Qing.

"Xue'er, were those undead creatures in the video taken out aboard that airship?"

As soon as the call connected, Zhu Ge Chang Qing skipped any pleasantries and went straight to the point, asking the question he most wanted to know.

While most survivors were shocked by the strength of the undead creatures, Zhu Ge Chang Qing and the high-level leaders of various nations and factions focused more on the Mechanical Transport Warship.

In their view, even if those undead creatures were incredibly strong, they are still Su Hao's subordinates; no matter how envious they are, they have no chance to obtain them through trade.

But the Mechanical Transport Warship is different; these are merely flying vehicles used for transport, and perhaps with sufficient cost they could be traded for.

Only a few survivors and the high-ranking leaders of various factions know that not long ago, due to the people of Cherry Blossom Country, a large-scale fire bombardment was carried out against a Fourth-Tier supernatural monster in the sea.

During this process, several missiles were blown away by that Fourth-Tier supernatural monster and fell onto a nuclear power plant, causing a violent explosion.

Because of this, the Evil God's power descended.

All high-tech creations of humanity and other races have been cursed, rendering high-tech weapons unusable.

Even personal transportation vehicles and various communication equipment are thus cursed; using them outside a sanctuary invites misfortune.

Although God Summer here had Su Hao's reminder, when building their territory they did not rely too heavily on high-tech products, so their territory was not greatly affected.

Being unable to use firearms while exploring is tolerable; nowadays God Summer has plenty of supernatural beings and supernatural items, enough to deal with most enemies.

However, not daring to use vehicles greatly hinders their exploration; previously ordinary people could make several round trips a day with cars and planes, but now even a single round trip per day is extremely difficult.

Moreover, without vehicle protection, the casualties of ordinary people venturing out are truly huge.

Therefore, upon seeing that Su Hao's Mechanical Transport Warship could still fly normally, he became extremely eager; if he could acquire one or two, it would greatly aid God Summer's exploration and development.

But whether he could obtain them through trade, he had no confidence.

He clearly understood that a vessel able to operate normally under the Evil God's curse must certainly not be mundane.

(End of chapter)