The Team Grows Larger; A New Temporary Residence

Two hours later, the entire dormitory area, which had been filled with the constant roars of zombies, became deathly silent. Apart from the sound of rain hitting the ground, there was no other noise.

Lin Chen casually wiped the blood off his Tang sword in the rain before sheathing it. He then walked to the pile of corpses, scanned them with his mind, and stored each zombie body into his special ability space.

Seeing that he had finished cleaning, Wang Ting and the others immediately jogged over to him, their faces still flushed with excitement from watching the game, their eyes eager.

"Brother Lin, are you tired? You've been killing for so long, are your shoulders sore? Do you want me to massage them for you?" Wang Ting's voice was a little softer than usual.

"Let me massage your legs! You've been standing and putting a lot of strain on them." Ma Xiaoyan also stepped forward.

Others also spoke up, wanting to find something to do and prove that they weren't just "useless" people who could only stand around and watch.

Lin Chen found their chatter and eagerness to show off amusing yet helpless.

He casually patted the buttocks of Wang Ting and Ma Xiaoyan, who were closest to him, with a light touch—the movement was casual and natural, even carrying a hint of teasing.

"Alright, stop fooling around. I'm fine," he said.

The slap made the two girls freeze instantly, their cheeks flushing crimson like ripe apples, even their ears turning pink. They lowered their heads, not daring to look at him. The other girls also paused for a moment, then their eyes darted around, and the atmosphere suddenly became subtly ambiguous.

Lin Chen also realized that his casual act might not have been a big deal before the apocalypse, but in the current environment, and after experiencing a bloody massacre, it seemed somewhat frivolous.

However, he was thick-skinned and had a mental fortitude far beyond that of ordinary people. He showed no embarrassment whatsoever, acting as if nothing had happened, and turned to walk towards the teaching building.

"All cleaned up, time to go back."

Just then, the dormitory windows upstairs were all flung open, and many students leaned out, excitedly shouting downstairs:

"Big brother! Hero! Please save us!"

"Take us with you! There's no food left here!"

Please!

The voice was filled with despair and longing.

Lin Chen stopped and looked up at the anxious young faces behind the windows. It was getting late, and there wasn't enough time to organize people for each building. He could only say in a low voice:

"The bloodshed hasn't stopped, and you risk infection if you come into contact with them. I can't take you away. However—"

He raised his voice: "I will set up a shelter in the Tianshui Garden villa area. Once this rain stops, you can go there to find your own way to survive. Be careful on the road."

After saying this, he said no more and ignored the shouts and pleas behind him. He led his six team members around and walked quickly toward the school's office area.

The office area had relatively few people, and the zombie density was already sparse, making it easy to clear out. They then swept through the adjacent faculty and staff accommodations. After Lin Chen casually killed the last wandering zombie, it became difficult to find any large, threatening zombie hordes within the entire art academy area.

As dusk deepened, the setting sun cast its last few rays of dim yellow light through gaps in the thick clouds, which were quickly swallowed by the deeper gray.

The group walked back to the dance hall in the teaching building, trudging through the slippery surface.

The hall was brightly lit, and the crowd was more orderly than when they left, but the atmosphere remained heavy. Li Ya was standing in the center, speaking to a group of neatly arranged young women.

Upon seeing Lin Chen return, Li Ya immediately stepped forward, speaking crisply and clearly: "Brother Lin, the initial screening and statistics are complete. A total of 158 people meet the recruitment criteria and are willing to join. Among them, 148 are students and 10 are teachers."

She turned to the side and raised her hand to indicate the somewhat unusual "team" behind her.

The group consisted entirely of young women, mostly between eighteen and thirty years old. Though they all bore the weariness of fleeing a post-apocalyptic world, their clothes disheveled, their natural beauty remained. Some were elegant and refined, others radiant and captivating, some gentle and intellectual, others full of vitality… They varied in height and weight, but without exception, they were all undeniably beautiful.

Standing together at this moment, against this dark backdrop of the apocalypse, there is an unreal feeling, as if it were a talent show.

After Li Ya finished her report, Lin Chen's gaze swept over the team of young women, and a slight smile appeared on his lips—as expected, Li Ya understood him very well.

Loyalty, controllability, good looks, and the ability to share tasks—these were his core criteria. Li Ya strictly adhered to them.

Seeing Lin Chen's reaction, Jiang Yingxue, Jiang Yingyue, and Su Yun were initially taken aback. Looking at this "women's army," they suddenly understood something, and their expressions became subtle. Bai Xin stood a little distance away, her gaze thoughtfully shifting between the group and Lin Chen.

The three girls almost simultaneously thought the same thing: 'Men...they're all such jerks! They might not say it, but their actions speak louder than words!'

Bai Xin, who possesses sensory abilities, was utterly speechless at Lin Chen's reserved and brooding behavior.

However, the satisfied look on Lin Chen's face didn't last long. He quickly frowned slightly.

The candidates have been chosen. But what's next?

How to safely bring them back to Tianshui Garden? The villas need time to be cleared out one by one. He actually has a very simple solution—the internal space of the Hongmeng Creation Pearl has now been stably expanded to more than 300 acres, which is more than enough to accommodate these people.

However… it's far too early to reveal this biggest trump card now. If it were to be leaked, it would invite endless greed and attacks, and there would be no peace ever again.

Just as he was deep in thought, Li Ya quietly walked to his side, waved for Su Yun and the others to continue maintaining order, and then accompanied Lin Chen to the corridor outside the hall.

Rain pattered against the glass roof, creating a monotonous and dull atmosphere.

"Brother Lin," Li Ya said softly, her voice filled with knowing concern, "are you thinking about how to bring these people back safely, and... how to make initial arrangements?"

Lin Chen paused, turning to look at her. In the dim light, Li Ya's eyes sparkled. He couldn't help but smile, reaching out to affectionately pinch the tip of her nose: "You really know me inside and out."

"Ugh—" Li Ya wrinkled her nose in disgust and said coquettishly, "How disgusting! I'm Brother Lin's sweet little darling, okay!"

"Alright, my little darling." Lin Chen laughed heartily. "Tell me, have you already come up with a solution for me?"

Li Ya's eyes were bright. She lowered her voice and spoke clearly: "Brother Lin, do you remember the 'Tinglan' five-star hotel we passed on the way here? It's less than two kilometers from here. The main building has fifteen floors. It has a solid structure, plenty of rooms, a secluded location, and an open area, making it easy to guard."

Lin Chen's eyes flickered slightly: "You mean..."

"Yes." Li Ya nodded. "There's still more than an hour until dark. We've cleared most of the zombies from the main road, so the road conditions are relatively clear. We can temporarily settle these people at the Tinglan Hotel. The facilities there are intact, it provides shelter from the rain, and it's enclosed."

"Once the bloody rain stops, we'll have time to thoroughly clean up Tianshui Garden before relocating everyone. This will solve the immediate resettlement problem and provide a buffer period to further observe these people's character and behavior. The supplies in the hotel can also be utilized."

Clear and logical, with thorough consideration.

"Good idea." Lin Chen no longer hesitated. With the Creation Crystal, he wasn't worried about loyalty at all. It was just that Li Ya didn't understand; it was truly rare for her to think of such things.

He gave her an appreciative look, "We'll do it your way."

The operation was immediately launched.

He walked back to the entrance of the dance hall, a thought flashing through his mind—

"Buzz..."

A large silver school bus appeared out of thin air in the square in front of the teaching building and came to a smooth stop. Then came a second, a third... and so on, followed by thirteen black minivans that appeared one after another, lined up neatly.

Another low gasp rang out in the hall.

The drivers were quickly assembled. Lin Chen swiftly organized the boarding: the vehicles drove to an exit with a rain shelter, where Li Ya, the twins, and others organized 158 women to board in an orderly fashion. Each vehicle was slightly overloaded, but since most of the passengers were slender women, it was still bearable.

Lin Chen was on the lead bus, with Li Ya bringing up the rear. Bai Xin, Su Yun, Zhou Xiaomin, and other core team members were scattered across key vehicles to provide security.

The convoy slowly drove away from the art academy, heading towards the Tinglan Hotel, two kilometers away. Tires splashed water as they churned over the wet, dark red road.

Before leaving, he left a considerable amount of food and water for the remaining survivors and suggested that they go to Tianshui Garden after the blood rain stopped.

He wasn't stingy with this "investment." Making these potential future "labor force" owe him a debt of gratitude for life-saving food and water was beneficial and harmless. In the end times, manipulating people's hearts through a combination of kindness and severity is far more effective than simply killing or giving alms.