Apocalypse: Resources consumed by women will be returned ten thousandfold.

--Translated by likesnovel--

Jiang Fan glanced at the 2 women before speaking in a half-serious, half-playful tone.

"I have a personal storage space that only I can access."

"I knew the disaster was coming, so I filled it with supplies long before everything started."

"Food, drinking water, medicine, daily necessities... everything is inside."

"As long as you obey me and do as you're told, I can guarantee that you'll never have to worry about food or clothing for the rest of your lives."

"So... follow my orders. Understood?"

Xu Mengqian couldn't tell whether Jiang Fan was joking or telling the truth.

But one thing was certain.

The resistance in her heart had diminished significantly.

If what Jiang Fan said was true...

Following him might be the smartest choice available.

In a brutal apocalypse like this, survival was the highest priority.

As for Tang Xuerou—

After seeing Jiang Fan continuously produce large amounts of food, along with those mysterious special fruits, she already believed about **70–80%** of what he was saying.

His explanation matched her earlier suspicions perfectly.

Besides, she couldn't think of any other reason why Jiang Fan had been so thoroughly prepared for the catastrophe.

At the same time, Jiang Fan clearly noticed that the red aura surrounding Xu Mengqian had begun to fade.

It gradually shifted into yellow.

Although the color was still faint, her hostility had completely disappeared.

Jiang Fan smiled in satisfaction.

"Very good."

"I like smart women."

He lightly patted Xu Mengqian's cheek and smiled.

"Be a good girl and don't move."

"I'll remove the tape."

**Riiip!**

**Riiip!**

Jiang Fan tore away the tape covering her mouth without the slightest bit of mercy.

Several strands of hair were pulled out along with it.

Xu Mengqian trembled from the pain.

Yet she didn't dare make a sound.

Next, Jiang Fan removed the stocking that had been stuffed into her mouth.

"Cough! Cough!"

"Urgh..."

Xu Mengqian coughed and gagged for quite some time before finally regaining her breath.

Jiang Fan tossed a loaf of bread in front of her.

"Eat."

"After you're done, you still have work to do."

Xu Mengqian didn't even have time to wonder what "work" meant.

Her eyes locked onto the bread.

In a pitiful voice, she asked,

"Can you untie my hands first?"

"I can't eat like this..."

Jiang Fan replied calmly,

"Of course you can."

"I think you can."

Xu Mengqian tried acting spoiled.

"How can you do this?"

"My hands are tied. How am I supposed to eat?"

Jiang Fan sneered.

Trying the same trick you used on Hu Lei?

On me?

He lifted his foot.

Then crushed the loaf of bread beneath his shoe.

After that, he kicked it straight out the window.

"Excellent."

"There goes your lunch."

Xu Mengqian froze.

At that moment, she finally understood.

Jiang Fan and Hu Lei were completely different kinds of men.

This man wasn't swayed by sweet words.

He didn't care about pitiful expressions.

And he refused to negotiate.

Realizing that, she immediately changed her attitude.

"Brother Jiang..."

"Please..."

"Just let me have something to eat..."

Jiang Fan raised an eyebrow.

This woman adapted quickly.

He flipped his palm.

Another loaf of bread instantly appeared in his hand.

Xu Mengqian's eyes sparkled.

Jiang Fan tossed the bread onto the floor before letting out a cold chuckle.

"When a toast is offered, you refuse to drink."

"So now you'll have to drink the penalty wine."

"I'm giving you 1 more chance."

"Kneel down and eat it."

Xu Mengqian didn't dare disobey.

She immediately dropped to her knees.

Lowering her head, she bit into the bread and ate it as quickly as possible.

At the same moment, Jiang Fan noticed something.

The yellow aura around her became even fainter.

And a trace of green slowly began to appear.

Then the system notification sounded.

**[Ding!]**

**[Xu Mengqian has consumed 1 loaf of bread provided by the Host.]**

**[Reward: 200 loaves of bread.]**

**[Stored in Personal Space.]**

A faint smile appeared on Jiang Fan's lips.

"Very good."

"Now that's what I call obedience."

...

After dealing with the threat posed by Hu Lei, Jiang Fan's sense of urgency only grew stronger.

The world was becoming more chaotic with every passing moment.

And he needed to become stronger as quickly as possible.

So Jiang Fan immediately began training.

He started with push-ups on the living room floor.

However, after his overall physical stats had increased so dramatically, ordinary push-ups no longer provided much benefit.

They were simply too easy.

Jiang Fan switched to handstand push-ups.

His entire body inverted.

Only his **2 arms** supported his weight.

Even then...

It still felt unbelievably easy.

Like an adult playing a game designed for kindergarten children.

"Looks like I'll need to find a new way to train..."

Jiang Fan muttered to himself.

His gaze slowly drifted toward the blood-red mist beyond the window.

The outside world was changing at an astonishing pace.

And the real dangers...

Had only just begun.

Jiang Fan balanced his entire body upside down using only **2 fingers** pressed against the floor.

His inverted form remained perfectly steady.

Only now did he begin to feel a little resistance.

After completing **100 repetitions**, he effortlessly flipped back onto his feet.

His face wasn't red.

His breathing wasn't even heavy.

It looked as if he had merely taken a leisurely walk.

Yet Jiang Fan frowned in dissatisfaction.

"Looks like I need some weighted equipment."

"This kind of training is barely useful anymore."

"Or maybe I should find someone who can teach me real combat techniques."

"And we're still lacking proper weapons."

Tang Xuerou stared at him in shock.

She had never imagined that a human could become this powerful.

As for Xu Mengqian—

A bright light appeared in her eyes.

This was the kind of man she truly wanted.

Only someone this strong could protect her in the apocalypse.

I have to make him interested in me.

Jiang Fan noticed the looks from both women.

He simply smiled.

Afterward, he continued experimenting with different training methods for about **1 hour**.

In the end, he gave up.

Without proper guidance, training blindly wasn't accomplishing much.

Perhaps...

Eating those enhancement fruits was actually more effective.

Jiang Fan walked out onto the balcony.

At this moment, Hu Lei had already lost consciousness.

The wound from the mutated dog's bite had begun to rot.

Pus seeped from the flesh.

A foul stench filled the air.

Under normal circumstances, an injury like this would take at least **3–4 days** to deteriorate to such a state.

But now...

It had happened in just a little over **1 hour**.

Far too fast.

It wasn't only animals and plants that were evolving.

Even bacteria and viruses were changing at an alarming rate.

Tang Xuerou cautiously followed him outside.

Then she asked softly,

"Will he die?"

Jiang Fan replied calmly,

"With a wound like that, surviving without antibiotics or anti-inflammatory medicine is almost impossible."

"And I suspect the bacteria themselves are evolving."

"So even if we had old medicines, there's no guarantee they'd still work."

"In simple terms..."

"Anyone can die from an ordinary wound now."

Tang Xuerou bit her lip.

Then gently tugged on Jiang Fan's sleeve.

Even she hadn't realized it.

In just **2 days**, she had become increasingly dependent on him.

Xu Mengqian looked at Hu Lei with complicated emotions.

Her fiancé hung there.

Like a dying dog.

Meanwhile, she herself...

Was kneeling before the man responsible for his condition.

The young woman bit her lip tightly.

She felt a little guilty.

But she also felt she had no choice.

She was only an ordinary woman.

And she wanted to survive.

The more she thought about it, the more resentment she felt toward Hu Lei.

Who told you to be so useless?

Trash.

This is all your fault.

...

Jiang Fan continued observing Hu Lei's condition carefully.

So much time had passed.

Yet the mutated frog still hadn't appeared.

He couldn't tell whether it was unable to reach this height...

Had moved elsewhere...

Or simply hadn't noticed its prey yet.

Aside from several giant flies circling around Hu Lei's body, no other mutated creatures approached.

Maybe...

The **32nd floor** was simply too high.

Jiang Fan let out a sigh of relief.

At least for now, external threats couldn't easily reach this place.

Just as he was about to turn around and head back inside, something caught his attention.

A vine.

A single vine was wrapped around Hu Lei's left hand.

"Hm?"

Jiang Fan froze.

"That thing grew all the way up to the **32nd floor**?"

He reached out and grabbed the vine.

Then gave it a gentle tug.

But his expression changed instantly.

Because it wasn't merely wrapped around Hu Lei's finger.

It had...

Pierced into his body.

Jiang Fan pulled harder.

**Rip!**

A dark crimson vine was violently torn free.

Along with a large amount of flesh and blood.

Even Jiang Fan felt a chill at the sight.

After the vine was removed, Hu Lei's left hand visibly shriveled.

It looked like nothing but skin stretched over bone.

The flesh and blood inside had been completely drained away.

Jiang Fan's pupils contracted.

A cold shiver shot from his spine to the back of his neck.

"Holy shit..."

"What kind of insane plant is this?"

"Don't tell me it actually feeds on human flesh?!"