Tian Tian shook her head. "In this game, if you don't kill, others will kill you. But those who kill aren't necessarily bad people."
Bai Xi wasn't someone who fell for flattery. Right now, she just wanted to leave, but she was somewhat wary of the siblings.
"My superpower is my sense of smell, and my brother can sense other people's emotions, which could also be considered a superpower!
"We want to team up with you because we are certain you aren't a bad person. You're a Superpower User too, right?
"We want to find a companion we can truly trust. Besides, after teaming up, there's a status buff," Tian Tian said frankly, completely laying her and her brother's cards on the table.
But Bai Xi didn't want to team up with anyone. Human nature was fickle; who knew when someone might change their tune?
"I don't want to form a team. Don't go revealing all your secrets to people so casually in the future—humans are fickle."
Leaving the siblings with that warning, Bai Xi turned and walked away.
She planned to leave the city proper and head for the countryside.
To accommodate this city's rapid development, the surrounding environment had been severely destroyed. Consequently, there were actually far fewer small animals in the wild than in the city.
Along her way here, she had seen that the ground-floor shops were entirely overrun by abnormally large insects and rats, their sheer numbers enough to make one's scalp tingle.
Right now, humans were their most easily accessible food source. Given the dense population in the city, the mutated animals would definitely congregate there in massive numbers.
Although the wilderness was dangerous, it shouldn't be as exaggerated as the city. She just needed to find a small rural house to hide in.
If her judgment was wrong, she would accept the consequences.
After Bai Xi left, Tian Mo tugged at Tian Tian's hand, looking up at her questioningly. "Sister?"
Tian Tian looked down at her brother. "Momo, do you want to team up with her?"
Tian Mo gave a firm nod. He could sense that Bai Xi was guarded against them, but she had no intention of harming them.
"Then let's follow her quietly." Throwing caution to the wind, Tian Tian grabbed her brother's hand and chased after Bai Xi.
Tian Tian admitted that she was being thick-skinned and shameless, but she truly had no other choice.
Although teammates couldn't kill each other directly, those with malicious intent would always find a way.
If she teamed up with someone harboring ill intentions, and then she and Momo didn't get sorted into the same round of the game, someone as young as him would surely be eaten alive with nothing but bones left.
From the previous round to this one, they had met quite a few people, but this young woman was the only one Tian Mo had nodded at.
She couldn't afford to gamble anymore!
If, in the next game, she and Momo weren't grouped together, nine-year-old Momo would undoubtedly die without her by his side.
For Momo's sake, she would cling to Bai Xi no matter how shameless it seemed.
She wasn't asking for anything else; as long as they could team up, it would guarantee that she and Momo would be assigned to the same round of the game. That was enough.
Around noon, Bai Xi stopped to rest and eat on a bench by the side of the road. She didn't dare enter the roadside shops, having no idea what might be lurking inside.
Along the way, many who went into stores to scavenge for supplies never came out alive.
It was as if these mutated animals knew that humans would come looking for food, so they simply laid in wait inside the shops.
At a distant intersection, a three-person team out searching for food appeared.
"Boss, look over there! Someone's eating, and she even has milk." A young man among the trio pointed at Bai Xi.
The other two looked in the direction he pointed, feeling somewhat hesitant. "It's been seven or eight days. We're all in such a sorry state, so how can she still be so calm and composed?"
"Forget it, let's not cause unnecessary trouble. If she turns out to be an experienced veteran player, we'll be screwed."
"Let's just focus on finishing our mission first!"
Unwilling to let it go, the young man made a suggestion. Upon hearing it, the other two nodded in agreement.
After a brief discussion, the three of them started walking in Bai Xi's direction.
Bai Xi had been keeping a vigilant watch on her surroundings and had spotted the trio long ago. However, she remained unfazed, feigning a completely calm demeanor.
At a time like this, panicking would only broadcast her fear. Appearing unruffled and self-assured would instead instil apprehension in others, making them reluctant to provoke her.
As the trio walked past, they kept a cautious eye on Bai Xi.
Showing no fear, Bai Xi openly met their gazes. This caused them to shrink back; they quickly hurried past and ducked into the nearest alleyway.
Hiding in the distance, Tian Tian and her brother stacked their two little heads—one on top of the other—as they observed the situation.
"Sister, that big sister is so amazing. She wasn't scared at all," Tian Mo said in admiration.
Tian Tian nodded in agreement.
After ducking into the small street, the three men let out a collective sigh of relief.
"My god! That scared the crap out of me."
"She wasn't scared in the slightest, and she even dared to stare right back at us."
"Why do I feel like she was targeting us?"
"Hurry, let's get out of here. We can't afford to mess with her."
The trio hurriedly scurried away.
Bai Xi also breathed a secret sigh of relief. She quickly finished her food and continued on her way.
At 6:00 PM, Bai Xi finally made it out of the city. Ahead of her lay a village.
The entire village was eerily quiet. There were a few newly built houses that didn't even have doors or windows installed yet, entirely devoid of people.
Bai Xi planned to stay here temporarily. She glanced back at the siblings who had followed her all the way and sighed. Why were these two so persistent?
After familiarizing herself with the layout of the rooms on the ground floor and ensuring there were no ant nests or other mutated creatures, Bai Xi headed straight to the third floor to observe her surroundings from a high vantage point.
The vicinity was filled with over-cultivated fields. The low hills in the distance were completely bare, with hardly a tree in sight.
It was what people usually called a godforsaken place—a barren wasteland with few humans and even fewer wild animals. For Bai Xi right now, it was an absolutely perfect safe haven.
Returning to the second floor, Bai Xi found a spot to sit down, pulled some cookies and milk from her backpack, and began eating in silence.
Tian Tian and her brother also followed her inside. Tian Tian wanted to say something, but fearing that Bai Xi would find her annoying, she kept her mouth shut.
The two sat down in the corner opposite Bai Xi to rest and eat.
They had stockpiled quite a bit of food previously, but they had eaten most of it over the past few days. All they had left were three packets of instant noodles and five or six small bread rolls.
Taking out two small bread rolls, Tian Tian handed one to Tian Mo. "Eat up!"
They quickly finished the small rolls, but Tian Mo's stomach continued to GRUMBLE; he had burned far too much energy that afternoon.
Tian Tian pulled another small roll from her bag and offered it to him.
Rubbing his belly, Tian Mo said sensibly, "Sister, if I rub it, I won't be hungry anymore. Let's save it for tomorrow."
He glanced at the 38% survival rate. "There are still three or four days left before this ends!"
Tian Tian nodded and put the small bread roll back into her bag.
The pitiful appearance of the siblings tugged at Bai Xi's heartstrings. She still had plenty of food in her spatial storage—enough to comfortably last another seven or eight days.
These two siblings—one around eight or nine, the other fourteen or fifteen—were still supporting each other, caring for each other, and refusing to abandon or give up on one another in such an apocalyptic world. It was truly admirable.
Moreover, they had been very well-behaved throughout the journey.
Even when Bai Xi subtly exposed a few deliberate flaws in her guard, they showed absolutely no signs of making a move against her.
As someone who would cry just from watching a touching short video, Bai Xi had the hardest time stomaching such pitiful sights.
However, past lessons constantly reminded her to stay alert and never trust anyone.
Bai Xi took a bite of a cookie, then a sip of milk. Across from her, Tian Mo was leaning against Tian Tian, pretending to be asleep, but in reality, he was staring at Bai Xi and secretly swallowing his saliva.
The GROWL from his stomach was so loud that even Bai Xi could hear it.
After a long while, Bai Xi let out a soft sigh. She took out two bread rolls and two cartons of milk and tossed them to the siblings.
"Eat. Kids shouldn't go hungry."
Tian Mo really wanted to eat but didn't reach out for the food. He looked eagerly at his sister. Tian Tian hesitated for a moment before picking up the bread. "Thank you, big sister."
She put one of the large rolls and one carton of milk into her bag. She then gave the other carton of milk and more than half of the remaining bread to her brother.
However, Tian Mo only broke off a small piece, taking exactly half of the bread. Tian Tian stroked his head, and the two began eating happily.
Taking advantage of this opening, Tian Tian eagerly explained the teaming system to Bai Xi.
According to Tian Tian's explanation, there were two types of teams among players. One was a temporary alliance between players, which went without saying.
The other type of team was formed using a card obtained by a player. Once successfully teamed up, each team member would receive a 3% to 5% status buff.
As the synergy between teammates and their personal abilities improved, this buff could also increase.
Furthermore, team members could not directly kill one another, ensuring the stability of the group.
However, they could still betray and scheme to get each other killed through indirect means—a fact that Tian Tian did not try to hide.