The apocalypse is coming, but thankfully I have a harem of paper dolls.

Page 41

But before continuing their journey, Luo Jiajun asked Leida an even more important question—whether Zhou Yaoyang had revealed the location of the Devil Fruit Tree.

Despite the fact that the Devil Fruit Tree's fruit contains the huge pitfall of "Ionian Fruit," the strategic value of the Devil Fruit Tree is still too high for Luo Jiajun to ignore.

Unfortunately, on this question, Leda only shook her head, giving a negative answer:

"No, that guy treated the location information of the Devil Fruit Tree as his last bargaining chip. Even when I tortured him, he refused to answer without any guarantee of that information. I was in a hurry to get back to the team, and when I saw that he wouldn't say anything no matter what, I killed him."

That makes sense. Zhou Yaoyang knew that if he were to tell Leda all the information for nothing, he would surely die. It would be better to risk everything to hold onto the most important piece of information and fight for a chance to survive.

It has to be said, this guy named Zhou Yaoyang is quite clever. But it's all for naught when he encounters a crazy woman like Leida; his cleverness is useless.

"Fine!"

"It seems the only way to find out the location of the Devil Fruit Tree is to go to Ma Xiaolian. She should be the only one left who knows where the Devil Fruit Tree is."

"But as I said before, Ma Xiaolian can hide in any nook or cranny of the city. She's hard to find, so there's no need for us to do something that might be a lot of trouble but ultimately futile."

After saying that, Luo Jiajun called to the women around him and set off towards Zhou Yaoyang's gang's camp.

With Jiela leading the way and deterring all sorts of "minor monsters" that would be a waste of effort to kill, the group arrived at Xinghe Street in less than fifteen minutes.

Led by Luo Jiajun with practiced ease, as their group approached their target area, they saw from afar a wall of fire built around the parking lot using a large amount of firewood. Surrounded by flames, no mutated plants in the vicinity dared to approach.

This is similar in principle to how the smoked wall restricts crimson corruption.

In this apocalyptic world where plants have mutated, firewood is virtually inexhaustible as long as you have the strength. With Zhou Yaoyang's abilities, obtaining a large amount of firewood would be a piece of cake, especially since he already possesses the ability to control fire. It's quite plausible that he could create such a wall of fire to protect the camp.

"No wonder they chose the parking lot as their campsite. The parking lot is open and well-ventilated, and spacious enough to reduce the impact of smoke and fire. I just wonder how these people deal with it when the wind blows smoke into the parking lot. Do they just endure it?"

Luo Jiajun walked along, lost in thought.

As they got closer to the parking lot, some ominous sounds faintly reached their ears.

It was a series of low, beast-like growls from men, mixed with the helpless, pitiful cries and groans of women.

"Knew it……"

Luo Jiajun sighed inwardly, already guessing what was happening in the parking lot, so he gestured to the four women beside him to stop.

"It's better if you don't watch what's coming next, so you don't get your eyes dirty."

After giving such an unquestionable order, Luo Jiajun quickened his pace and strode forward. Finally, with superhuman jumping ability, he leaped over the pile of burning firewood outside the parking lot wall and landed inside the parking lot through the smoke.

With Zhou Yaoyang leading the main force away, only six or seven people remain in the parking lot.

These remaining men, all dressed like primitive savages, openly raped several pitiful women in broad daylight. Their eyes had long since lost their sparkle, and only occasional painful groans could be squeezed out of their throats.

"It seems that even if that woman named Ma Xiaolian didn't end up like these women, she was at least forcibly taken by that rubber man. No wonder Ma Xiaolian secretly fled from here."

With this thought in mind, Luo Jiajun sighed again, placed his hand on his collarbone, and in a sudden burst of golden light, pulled the holy sword out of his body.

……A few minutes later.

When Mai Shiranui, Leda, 2B, and Zyra entered the parking lot at Luo Jiajun's beckoning, Luo Jiajun had already cleared away all the corpses. He had stuffed all the men into the trunk of the car, leaving them to rot and decompose. The women, however, had been covered with clothes; they had all been stabbed through the heart, dying a quick and painless death.

“These women have no intention of living any longer, I can only help them find release.” Standing beside several female corpses covered with clothes, Luo Jiajun took a deep breath and said to 2B and Zella, “Put their bodies on the fire wall outside and burn them.”

After 2B and Zyra left, Luo Jiajun focused his gaze on Mai Shiranui and whispered, "Mai, do you understand now? Leda did the right thing."

Ever since discovering that Leda had killed all of Zhou Yaoyang's group, Mai Shiranui has been frowning.

Ultimately, the women around Luo Jiajun aren't mindless puppets. Rita and Mai Shiranui, for example, are two completely different types.

Leda is typically ruthless and decisive in her actions.

While Mai Shiranui may not be considered a saint, she is kind-hearted and has sound values. This upright character is certainly commendable and worthy of respect, but in the apocalypse, she can sometimes appear indecisive and wishy-washy.

Neither side can be definitively said to be right or wrong, but clashes in their perspectives are inevitable. Furthermore, Raida's indiscriminate killing spree, despite having no prior grudge against Zhou Yaoyang and his group, had already deeply disturbed Mai Shiranui. (The remaining text appears to be unrelated and possibly machine-generated gibberish.)

However, because Leda had been reporting important news about the Crimson Corruption to Luo Jiajun, Mai Shiranui didn't react. Then, when she heard Luo Jiajun say he wanted to visit Zhou Yaoyang's group's camp, she couldn't help but think: Maybe these people are all bad, and they all deserve to die?

In short, although she didn't like Leda, she tried her best to restrain herself and didn't want to argue or fight with Leda in front of Luo Jiajun.

Now it has been proven that Zhou Yaoyang and his gang deserved to die, which confirms her suspicions, but she feels confused instead.

Could it be... that she was really wrong?

Is the idea that one should kill indiscriminately without knowing whether the other person is good or bad, like Leda did—something she would never do—would be wrong?

With this thought in mind, the female ninja subconsciously glanced at the female knight standing on the other side of Luo Jiajun.

Rita wore a closed helmet, concealing her expression, but Mai Shiranui's gaze seemed to penetrate the helmet's barrier, seeing Rita's mocking and disdainful eyes.

Besides, didn't Master also say that Rita was right?

So who else could be at fault?

At this point, Mai Shiranui finally gave a helpless smile and said self-deprecatingly, "It was my fault, I..."

"Snapped!"

Before the female ninja could finish speaking, Luo Jiajun immediately raised his hand and patted her shoulder. Looking into her eyes, he said in a low voice, "You're not wrong either. Why do you have such strange ideas? It's like, if Leda is not wrong, then you must be wrong, or conversely, if you are not wrong, then Leda must be wrong."

Just then, 2B and Zyra returned to move the remaining corpses. Luo Jiajun raised his hand and pointed to one of the bodies, asking Mai Shiranui, "Look at this yourself. Tell me, who is to blame for what happened to these women? Is it because you didn't come to kill those bastards earlier? So, is their tragic fate all your fault?"

Upon hearing this, Mai Shiranui was taken aback, then shook her head violently.

Luo Jiajun smiled and used the words the female ninja had once told him to resolve her doubts: "Isn't that right? How could you be the one in the wrong? The ones in the wrong are always those wicked and heinous bastards."

Mai Shiranui was stunned again, finally realizing that what Luo Jiajun was saying to her now was the same thing she had said to Luo Jiajun before.

In an instant, a feeling of spiritual connection dispelled all her worries.

She instinctively raised her hand and covered her mouth, trying to control her emotions, but tears still welled up in her eyes with emotion. However, her eyebrows were curved, and she didn't look like she was crying; she was clearly smiling happily.

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After clearing out Zhou Yaoyang's gang's camp, before leaving, Luo Jiajun found a ready-made backpack in the camp, filled it with a large amount of supplies, and handed it to 2b to carry.

Mai Shiranui jokingly said to Luo Jiajun, "How can you let a girl carry so much stuff? Mr. Luo, you're not a gentleman at all!"

Then, before Luo Jiajun could respond to her...

"Ahem!" Leda immediately spoke up, trying to remind Mai Shiranui to be mindful of hierarchy.

As a result, Mai Shiranui, rolling her eyes, preemptively said what Leda was about to say:

"Ah, yes, yes, you should call me 'Master'. Also, servants shouldn't joke with their masters, am I right, Miss Leda?"

Rita wanted to say something more, but then Luo Jiajun patted her shoulder armor, reminding her it was time to move. Rita could only nod in agreement and obediently follow Luo Jiajun's steps. Taking advantage of the moment, Mai Shiranui widened her bright eyes and gave Rita a smug smile, not afraid that Rita might one day go crazy and secretly stab her.

Continue on your way.

Walking through the chaotic streets, all the wildly growing plants under the sunlight remained so calm as Zyra passed by, as if they were entirely harmless and not the source of civilization's decline.

Before long, the group arrived at their destination—the county's Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.

Luo Jiajun, accompanied by several women, passed through the main gate and arrived at the hospital courtyard. He immediately spotted a treasure chest placed in the center of the open space, without any cover or "monsters" guarding it.

"Hmm? Something's not right!" Luo Jiajun raised an eyebrow and silently brought up the game panel. He opened the map and found that the skull icon symbolizing "high-value targets" and the treasure chest icon symbolizing "high-value items" were almost overlapping.

In other words, there should be a "boss" guarding the treasure chest on the dam in front.

But at this moment, all Luo Jiajun could see was the treasure chest.

"Invisible? Or... hidden underground?" Luo Jiajun pondered, then reminded the women around him, "Be careful, there are enemies ahead."

Although they couldn't see anything, everyone trusted Luo Jiajun and went into a state of alertness, maximizing their senses to try and find the enemy.

Time passed slowly, and without Luo Jiajun's orders, Leida and the others dared not act rashly. After standing guard for five or six minutes, Luo Jiajun's eyes flashed, and he suddenly had an idea.

"Zyra, use your thorny vines to slowly drag that treasure chest over there. Remember, slowly."

"Yes!"

Following Luo Jiajun's instructions, Jiela raised her hand and cast a spell, instantly tearing apart the stone slabs paving the road ahead with thorny vines that sprouted from the ground. As the vines, carrying the treasure chest, slowly approached, Luo Jiajun whispered a reminder to everyone to prepare for battle.

A little while later...

No matter how slow it was, because everything went too smoothly, the thorny vines that Zyra summoned eventually brought the treasure chest over.

"Huh?" Mai Shiranui blinked her eyes innocently, casting a questioning look at Luo Jiajun.

Jera was also a little at a loss, so she whispered to Luo Jiajun, "Master, the box has been brought over."

Luo Jiajun: "..."

With the game map markings, Luo Jiajun was certain that a boss was hiding in this place.

but……

It shouldn’t be!

I've already dragged the treasure chest over from a distance, but the boss still hasn't appeared?

Damn it, according to the normal game level design concept, putting a boss and a treasure chest together is essentially just having the boss guard the treasure chest, encouraging players to take high risks to challenge for high rewards, right?

This boss is so arrogant! If he doesn't show up soon, I'm grabbing my loot and running away!

With this in mind, Luo Jiajun had just decided to "eat it first and worry about the consequences," but when he looked down at the treasure chest in front of him, a sudden inspiration flashed through his mind.

"Could it be that there's something wrong with this treasure chest?"

In an instant, Luo Jiajun felt that he had grasped the key, so he immediately looked at the game map again and found that the skull icon symbolizing the [high-value target] and the treasure chest icon symbolizing the [high-value item] had indeed appeared on his face together.

Luo Jiajun immediately showed a knowing look.

"There's something wrong with this box, everyone be careful." While giving the warning, Luo Jiajun drew the True Silver Holy Sword from the radiance through the sword-shaped mark between his collarbones.

Then, he inserted the tip of the sword into the gap in the box and pried it open.

"Hoo~!"

Even though Luo Jiajun only lifted it slightly, the lid of the treasure chest suddenly opened like a gaping maw, spewing out a large amount of gray smoke.

But whether it was Luo Jiajun standing in front or the other women beside him, everyone remained highly vigilant and immediately stepped back to create distance, without inhaling a single drop of smoke.

As Luo Jiajun and the others quickly dispersed, they saw that in the hazy gray smoke, a perfectly good treasure chest had withered arms growing from its sides, and a wooden humanoid torso had grown from its bottom, making it look very much like the Stone Spirit in "Black Myth: Wukong".

As the strange creature stood upright, Luo Jiajun saw a string of purple text on its "head," which was the box: 【High-Value Target - Treasure Chest Monster】

Luo Jiajun: "..."

Okay, okay, classic Mimic. You have to risk your life just to open a treasure chest, huh?

No wonder the two icons overlap on the map!

In other words, Luo Jiajun had the game map and was able to detect the anomaly.

If it were anyone else, they probably wouldn't even have a chance to fight the mimic; they'd be hit the moment they opened the chest, right? Who would believe that the gray smoke that just spewed out of the chest was harmless?

Next, without waiting for the smoke to dissipate, the mimic, which had already stood upright, rushed out of the smoke on its own.

Seeing this, Rita swung her sword and struck the mimic's lid with a vertical slash, but it only produced a clang like metal striking metal and did not cause any effective damage to the mimic!

At that moment, the treasure chest opened, and withered tentacles shot out from inside, ready to attack Rita.

With her backpack on, 2B wielded her greatsword, flashing like lightning and severing the tentacles spat out by the mimic monster in a flash of light.

Zyra also summoned thorns from the ground to entangle the mimic's feet, restricting its movement.

Luo Jiajun spotted the humanoid torso beneath the mimic's box, charged forward, and thrust his True Silver Holy Sword through the mimic's chest.

Clearly, the mimic's lid has extremely high defense, and its weak point is its torso!

With Luo Jiajun's sword piercing its chest, the treasure chest monster's movements immediately became violent and chaotic, further indicating that it had suffered a severe injury.

Luo Jiajun pressed his advantage, kicking the monster to the ground again. As he drew his True Silver Holy Sword, he turned to Mai Shiranui: "Mai!" (The rest of the text appears to be gibberish and unrelated to the previous sentences.)

Without Luo Jiajun's prompting, Mai Shiranui had already drawn a folding fan from her person.

"Shua~!"

She suddenly unfolded the folding fan in her hand, sending out sparks.

Then throw the unfolded fan at the fallen mimic, and the fan bursts into flames as it flies through the air.

As Luo Jiajun, Leda, and 2B distanced themselves from the fallen mimic, Mai Shiranui's "Flame Flower Butterfly Fan" struck the mimic. The flames then exploded on the flammable wooden mimic, which only struggled briefly on the ground before going completely still.

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Under the burning flames, the mimic, which had fallen silent, quickly turned to ashes and vanished, leaving only a golden treasure chest in place.

At the same time, Luo Jiajun also received a notification: