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

--Translated by likesnovel--

Inside Tian Tian's apartment, a translucent blue dimensional film suddenly appeared in midair.

Cola, the chubby black cat lazily sprawled across the couch, lifted its head and glanced over with little interest.

The next second—

Tian Tian tumbled out of the dimensional gate.

Thud!

She slammed face-first into the floor.

"Owww!"

Cola: ???

How could someone possibly fall that badly?

Humans really are idiots.

Just as Tian Tian was about to get up, another dimensional gate opened.

Jiang Fan calmly stepped out.

Then, without hesitation, he pressed her head back into the floor with his foot.

Smack!

Her face hit the ground once again.

"Oww!"

Tian Tian cried out.

"That hurts! It hurts! It really hurts!"

Jiang Fan chuckled softly before lifting his foot and grabbing her collar with one hand.

The girl's forehead was already bright red.

Tian Tian was so embarrassed and angry she wished she could disappear into a hole.

"You did that on purpose!"

"Yes."

Jiang Fan answered casually while lifting her up like a sack of potatoes.

"This is your home, right?"

At that moment, Cola jumped off the couch and walked over.

The black cat rubbed affectionately against Jiang Fan's leg.

Jiang Fan glanced down at it briefly before looking away.

Just an ordinary cat.

He casually scooped the cat up with one arm.

Meanwhile, Cola curled up comfortably in his embrace as if it had found the perfect bed.

Tian Tian's eyes widened.

"Cola!"

"You never let me carry you!"

Her voice was full of grievance.

Cola let out a soft meow.

"Meow~"

Jiang Fan ignored the protest.

He quickly scanned the entire apartment with his ability.

Nothing could escape his perception.

There were no dangerous weapons inside.

Only a kitchen knife and a fruit knife in the kitchen.

After confirming everything was safe, he finally relaxed.

Pulling over a chair, he sat down and casually picked up an anime figure from a display shelf.

The room was packed with collectibles.

Figures covered nearly every available space.

The computer chair was bright pink.

Even the headset had bunny ears attached to it.

Jiang Fan nodded.

"So you're an otaku girl."

He then took a leisurely tour around the room.

Afterward, he stored everything inside his Personal Space.

Tian Tian stared in disbelief.

"Those are my things!"

Jiang Fan smiled faintly.

"They belong to me now."

"!!!"

Tian Tian nearly coughed up blood from frustration.

A moment later, Jiang Fan snapped his fingers.

A large dimensional gate opened once more.

Earlier, before leaving Tang Xuerou's apartment, he had already placed a Dimensional Anchor there.

Returning was now effortless.

Tian Tian froze again.

"Huh?"

"Why can you use the same ability as me?"

"Did you copy my power?!"

Jiang Fan sighed.

This imaginative little girl had come surprisingly close to the truth.

Naturally, he had no intention of explaining.

Holding Cola in his arms, he walked toward the dimensional gate.

"Follow me."

Tian Tian clenched her teeth.

At the moment, Cola—her biggest weakness—was in the hands of this villain.

She had no choice but to obey.

...

A short while later, they returned to Tang Xuerou's apartment.

Jiang Fan took all of Tian Tian's belongings out of his Personal Space and placed them inside one of the rooms.

Then he said calmly,

"Alright. Time to eat."

Eat?

Tian Tian blinked in confusion.

She had no idea what he meant and didn't dare ask.

More importantly, she had already used up all her daily teleportation attempts.

Even if she wanted to run away, she couldn't.

All she could do was obediently follow along.

As soon as she stepped into the living room, a rich aroma filled her nose.

Her beautiful eyes widened in shock.

The dining table was overflowing with food.

At the center sat a bubbling hot pot.

Around it were more than 10 dishes.

Tender braised meat.

Stir-fried bamboo shoots.

And all kinds of other delicious dishes.

Several dipping sauces had been prepared as well.

Beside them sat a pot of freshly cooked rice, releasing a fragrant cloud of steam.

Tian Tian stood frozen.

"W-What..."

"How is this possible?"

She felt as though she were dreaming.

In a world suffering from severe food shortages, a feast like this was almost impossible to imagine.

Tang Xuerou and the other women stood up to welcome Jiang Fan.

They invited him to sit at the head of the table.

Jiang Fan looked around and said,

"There are more people now."

"The old table isn't big enough anymore."

With a wave of his hand, he pulled a large round dining table out of his Personal Space and placed it in the center of the living room.

The 4 women quickly helped transfer all the dishes onto the larger table.

Jiang Fan sat down first.

"Let's eat."

Tang Xuerou, Hu Lili, Liu Mengyao, and Xu Mengqian sat down as well.

Then they began eating naturally.

Tian Tian remained standing for a few moments.

She had never imagined that, during the collapse of civilization itself, she would still have the chance to enjoy a meal this luxurious.

Tang Xuerou smiled warmly and waved her over.

"Come on."

"Sit next to me."

"Make sure you eat your fill today."

Hu Lili and Liu Mengyao smiled knowingly.

Meanwhile, Xu Mengqian secretly glanced at Jiang Fan.

A trace of disappointment lingered in her heart.

'Brother Jiang hasn't come to see me for 2 days...'

'And now there are more and more women joining us.'

'When will it be my turn again?'

Or perhaps...

Was she slowly becoming less important?

As for Tian Tian—

The moment she sat down, she completely abandoned any concern for appearances.

She immediately grabbed her chopsticks and dug in.

After the first bite, her eyes sparkled.

"Wow!"

"This is so good!"

"I haven't eaten meat in days!"

"It's amazing!"

She ate and talked excitedly at the same time.

Then she suddenly paused when she noticed the hot pot was still boiling vigorously.

"Wait a second..."

"You actually have natural gas here?"

Jiang Fan was in a good mood, so he answered honestly.

"It's not natural gas."

"It's a propane camping stove."

Earlier, he had collected more than 1,000 propane canisters from various supermarkets.

Enough to last for a very long time.

Tian Tian's cheeks were stuffed with food.

As she ate, her eyes gradually became misty.

"Wow!"

"This is delicious!"

"This one too!"

"Oh no... I'm seriously going to cry!"

The 4 women couldn't help smiling at Tian Tian's gluttonous behavior.

Tang Xuerou lifted her chin proudly.

"Hmph. You should consider yourself lucky that Brother Jiang accepted you."

Hu Lili nodded in agreement.

"Exactly."

"Where else are you going to find meals like this?"

Liu Mengyao smiled.

"As long as you stay with Brother Jiang,"

"you'll never have to worry about food."

"And there are ability fruits too."

...

Tian Tian immediately looked up.

"Ability fruits?"

"You can actually eat those?"

Her heart began pounding with anticipation.

Over the past few months, she had learned just how important supernatural abilities were.

A single teleportation fruit had saved her life countless times.

If she could gain another combat-oriented ability...

Her chances of survival would increase dramatically.

Jiang Fan smiled meaningfully.

"Of course."

After everyone had eaten their fill, a cold glint flashed through Jiang Fan's eyes.

Yet his smile remained warm and friendly.

"So?"

"Do you want to stay here?"

"If you do, you can eat like this every day."

The words sounded like a simple invitation.

But in reality...

Jiang Fan had already made his decision.

If Tian Tian refused...

He would kill her immediately.

Her ability was simply too special.

If she wasn't willing to stay voluntarily, there was no way for him to restrict her freedom.

She could escape through a dimensional gate at any time.

More importantly—

She already knew far too much about his abilities.

No matter what, Jiang Fan couldn't allow someone this dangerous to remain outside his control.

If a dimensional teleporter decided to carry out an assassination...

Even he might not react in time.

And if Tian Tian ever joined one of his enemies...

The consequences would be far worse.

Therefore...

She only had 2 choices.

Submit.

Or die.

Unfortunately, Tian Tian had no idea she was standing on the thin line between life and death.

If there had been another option, she definitely wouldn't have agreed so easily.

But the world was no longer what it used to be.

Even if she escaped with Cola...

What then?

Over the past months, she had frequently ventured out in search of supplies.

And she had witnessed humanity's darkest side more times than she could count.

Some places still tried to preserve the old order.

But in many others...

Order had completely collapsed.

The strong ruled over everything.

Worse still—

Even obeying the strong didn't guarantee a full stomach.

Food was simply too scarce.

Many survivor leaders couldn't even guarantee 3 meals a day for themselves.

But Jiang Fan was different.

Tian Tian wasn't stupid.

Ever since arriving, she had secretly observed the 4 women.

Their skin was healthy and radiant.

Their expressions were bright and relaxed.

They were obviously well-fed.

Some even had time to put on makeup, style their hair, and wear nice clothes.

That alone proved one thing.

Their quality of life was extremely good.

In other words—

Jiang Fan possessed enough resources to support everyone comfortably.

Tian Tian rolled her eyes thoughtfully before asking,

"The supplies from Yida Plaza..."

"You were the one who took them, weren't you?"

Jiang Fan smiled faintly.

"Your information network isn't bad."

"But that was only a small portion."

Tian Tian's jaw nearly dropped.

A small portion?

The supplies in Yida Plaza alone had been enough to drive countless survivors into a frenzy.

If that was only a fraction...

Just how much did he actually have?

While everyone was talking, Cola wandered over to Bai Yan.

"Meow?"

"Woof?"

"Meow!"

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

...

The 2 animals immediately began a serious conversation.

No one had any idea what they were discussing.

Jiang Fan watched with interest.

Maybe someday he'd figure out how they communicated.

A while later, he checked the time on his phone.

3:30 AM.

There was no chance he was going to sleep tonight.

Since that was the case...

He might as well take care of some business.

Jiang Fan pulled out a thick set of mountaineering clothes from his Personal Space and changed into them.

Then he returned to his own apartment.

The moment he opened the door, Bai Yan excitedly rushed toward him.

Jiang Fan took out several steaks and tossed them over.

Bai Yan wagged its tail so hard it looked ready to fall off.

"While I'm gone,"

"don't let anyone into the room."

The dog seemed to understand.

"Woof! Woof!"

Jiang Fan rubbed its head.

Then he stood up and traced a line through the air with his finger.

Whoosh!

A large blue dimensional film appeared before him.

The entrance to subspace.

Bai Yan immediately jumped backward in alarm.

"Woof?!"

The dog stared at the dimensional gate with obvious caution.

In contrast, Cola remained sprawled comfortably on the floor.

It looked like a city cat watching a country bumpkin embarrass itself.

'Tsk... what an idiot.'

Jiang Fan opened the map app on his phone.

Then he stepped into subspace.

His eyes scanned various locations on the screen as he muttered to himself.

"The Security Bureau should have quite a few firearms..."

"Now then..."

"Where's the nearest office?"