Chapter 39: Who Wouldn't Be Furious?

Gunshots, screams, and the sound of panicked footsteps intertwined inside the tent.

Ma Qibo could not wait to finish relocating those people before eagerly moving to seize Li Wangcheng.

Unfortunately, he had not expected Li Wangcheng to completely disregard the usual rules of engagement and resort to direct violence straight away, which left Ma Qibo so furious that his face turned dark.

Hiding to the side, Ma Qibo watched as Li Wangcheng shielded Fang Yun and shoved his way into the panicked crowd, a move that severely restricted his own subordinates.

After all, those small fry under his command had no way of knowing who was meant to be harmed and who was meant to be spared.

This hesitation gave Li Wangcheng and Fang Yun numerous opportunities, allowing them to dodge incoming attacks while fighting back without missing a beat.

A large number of his own men had already fallen, whereas Li Wangcheng and Fang Yun had not even lost a single hair—who wouldn't be furious seeing that?

However, Ma Qibo soon found a breakthrough. He shifted his gaze onto Fang Yun.

Li Wangcheng had been protecting Fang Yun tightly all along, which indicated that she was extremely important to him. If he could use her as leverage, would he still have to worry about failing to reclaim everything he had lost from Li Wangcheng's hands?

Having made up his mind, Ma Qibo issued an order to concentrate all firepower on Li Wangcheng, instructing his men that as long as the man didn't die, anything else went.

Instantly, the pressure facing Li Wangcheng directly multiplied exponentially. He was momentarily stunned, wondering if Ma Qibo had lost his mind.

Bearing everyone's firepower entirely on his own while also looking after Fang Yun—even with her continuously supplying him with ammunition—was starting to stretch his limits.

"Has Ma Qibo gone mad? Does he not plan on leaving anyone alive?" Fang Yun was getting sick of pulling out ammunition, yet the enemy's offensive remained this ferocious.

Did Ma Qibo really have that endless a supply of resources at his disposal? The cavern full of resources she had plundered, combined with those in the cellar, had already pushed her spatial storage to its absolute limit.

Had she not acquired a treehouse in the nick of time, she probably would have had to reluctantly abandon a portion of those supplies.

And yet, it turned out Ma Qibo wasn't just mad; this frantic style of attack showed he no longer cared about the quantity of resources at all.

Seeing that they were making zero progress, Ma Qibo's expression turned so gloomy it looked as though water could be wrung from it.

He directly altered his command, ordering his subordinates to direct their attacks at Fang Yun instead.

The moment this order was given, the effects were immediately visible.

Li Wangcheng was unable to fend off the assaults converging on Fang Yun from all directions. When someone suddenly lunged at her from the side, his heart skipped a beat. As he whipped around to neutralize the threat, he pulled Fang Yun a bit too forcefully, accidentally flinging her a few paces away.

Ma Qibo was waiting precisely for this opportunity. Moving with what was likely the fastest speed of his life, he rushed right up to Fang Yun and, before she could even react, locked a strong arm around her neck.

Fang Yun only felt her vision blur. Before she could steady her stumbling steps, an arm suddenly clamped around her windpipe, and something cold pressed firmly against her temple.

The situation changed in the blink of an eye.

"Fang Yun!" Li Wangcheng turned his head, saw this scene, and instantly panicked.

Noticing the clear panic on his face, Fang Yun was slightly taken aback, while Ma Qibo was ecstatic.

His judgment hadn't failed him; he had bet on the right horse.

"Hahaha, Li Wangcheng! Never expected this, did you? You've finally met your match."

Ma Qibo's triumphant laughter echoed in her ear. Fang Yun frowned and couldn't help tilting her head away.

"You damn bitch, move again and I'll blow your brains out." Sensing her movement, Ma Qibo tightened his chokehold and spat out a vicious threat.

"If you don't shoot, you're a coward." Fang Yun replied coolly.

Having quickly regained her composure, Fang Yun immediately figured out what he was planning.

She knew he wouldn't dare lay a fatal hand on her at this juncture; otherwise, he would lose his only bargaining chip against Li Wangcheng.

Unwilling to let him revel in his triumph, Fang Yun refused to make it easy for him. Her single retort instantly caused Ma Qibo's breathing to quicken with rage.

"Shut up!" Another loud roar rang in her ear, almost deafening her.

"Ma Qibo, if you have a grievance, take it out on me! What kind of man takes a woman hostage?" Seeing Fang Yun's distressed expression, Li Wangcheng was so angry he wanted to curse, but he had to rein in his temper and negotiate with Ma Qibo.

"Cut the crap! If you want her to live, show some sincerity, or else..."

With that, Ma Qibo pulled his gun away from Fang Yun's temple and fired a shot that grazed her cheek, shattering a table not far away.

"You'll end up just like that table."

Li Wangcheng gritted his teeth in secret, locking eyes with her while frantically searching his mind for a countermeasure.

Even if Ma Qibo demanded resources, the supplies he currently had on hand probably wouldn't be enough to satisfy the man's appetite.

The supplies aboard the submarine were actually quite limited. His true stockpiles were not located in Haishi at all, and given the current external situation, transferring supplies over was no easy task.

With these thoughts running through his head, he shifted his gaze to Fang Yun, only to see her giving him a slight shake of her head.

Even if she were to die, she would never hand those resources back to Ma Qibo.

If he lost his resources, he would die sooner or later. Though dying like this let him off too easily, it was still infinitely better than giving him the supplies and letting him use those things to commit atrocities and bully the innocent.

To say nothing of others, people like Xiaoqing and He Gaolang would meet a miserable end. Yet what wrong had they done, other than refusing to submit to him?

The world had already begun to transform. Nature's selection was ultimately the consequence of humanity's own sins, and the hope for the future could not be placed in the hands of such a man.

"Fine, I agree to your terms." Li Wangcheng closed his eyes tightly, drew a deep breath, and spoke words that made Fang Yun's eyes widen in shock.

Her lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but then she heard him add, "However..."

The triumphant smile on Ma Qibo's face instantly froze. He glared at Li Wangcheng with displeasure and demanded, "However what? Don't you try any tricks; I don't have that much patience to play games with you."

"You want resources? I at least have to go order people to prepare them. Did you really think that just because I'm standing here, my subordinates would automatically know to bring them over?"

He was practically on the verge of calling Ma Qibo hopelessly stupid. If he wasn't allowed to go out and make arrangements, how on earth were the supplies supposed to materialize?

Did Ma Qibo think this was still before the apocalypse, where everything could be settled with a single phone call?

Right now, let alone a phone, finding someone to even deliver a message was far from guaranteed, especially when it involved matters of this scale regarding supplies.

If Li Wangcheng didn't step forward personally, his men probably wouldn't take the matter seriously at all.

Deep down, Ma Qibo knew this was the truth, yet he felt an inexplicable sense of frustration.

He didn't want to let Li Wangcheng go, harboring a lingering fear that he was releasing a tiger back into the mountains. But if the man didn't leave, how could the preparations for the supplies be communicated?

Was he supposed to release the woman in his grasp instead?

Just as he was hesitating, a sudden shout rang out from outside the tent flap.

Everyone in the tent froze and turned their gazes toward the entrance, bewildered as to why someone would shout like that, sounding as though they had witnessed something terrifying.

The more timid individuals had already begun imagining unmaterialistic horrors, pressing their palms together and muttering incessantly under their breath.

Meanwhile, Ma Qibo frowned and ordered his subordinates to go out and see what was happening.

A spark of realization flashed through Li Wangcheng's mind. Calculating the time, Shang Xingbing should have brought his men by now, and whoever was shouting outside must be him.

With this thought, he looked back at Fang Yun and gave her a subtle nod with his head as a hint.