"Exactly, they said we might not even get bedding. In weather this cold, what are we supposed to do?" the girl complained, her breath hitching as she pulled her thin coat tighter.
The air in the private room was already losing its warmth, the damp chill of the mudslide beginning to seep through the walls.
Jing Shu lifted her eyes, the gaze steady and cool. She stood up without a word and signaled Xiao Liu to begin packing their things. Picking up the black case, she felt the familiar weight of it, a reassuring anchor in the growing chaos. She walked toward the door, her movements precise.
"If you want to play the hero, do it yourselves. don't drag me into it," Jing Shu said, pausing at the threshold. "don't try to be a hero when you don't have the ability."
With that, she left the private room, leaving behind a effortless silhouette that seemed entirely unaffected by the judgment of her peers.
Jin Baba clicked his tongue and shook his head as he watched her go. When he first met her, she had held back a little, keeping a low profile and blending in. Now, she was completely showing her edge, like a blade finally drawn from its sheath.
"As for rooms, there's nothing I can do either," Jin Baba added, turning back to the group. "You have seen how tight resources are. Either you girls give up the room and sleep on the cold floor, or your old principal does. Alright, I'm done here; I'm going to check out my room. Oh right, Lan Shao, those two pigs are on you for the next few days."
"Ah, got it, Ba Ge, don't worry. I'll call you when it's time to eat," Lan Shao replied, though his expression remained troubled.
The girls discussed the situation for a long time, their voices hushed and anxious. In the end, comfort won out over conscience. There were too many of them, and the thought of sleeping on the hard, freezing floor of the communal hall was too much to bear. They decided not to give up the room. The old principal would simply have to endure the hardship.
Jing Shu took Xiao Liu outside and found Li Youtian. He was sitting on the ground near a temporary workstation, looking exhausted. He took small sips from a small flask of turtle snake wine, the sharp, medicinal scent of it cutting through the smell of damp earth. Ever since he started drinking it, the deep ache of his rheumatism hadn't flared up, even in this biting cold.
Around them, the hall was a hive of desperate activity. Quite a few people had already started digging pits in the grit and filtering water through layers of stone and sand.
"I have arranged your truck and driver," Li Youtian said, smacking his lips as he lowered the flask. "They are under my management for now. I also assigned your driver and this companion of yours a two-person room with a bed."
He was thinking ahead. He knew he would still need Jing Shu's help and her resources in the future, and keeping her people comfortable was a small price to pay.
"Thanks, I was just worrying about where they would stay. But wait, weren't there only fifty rooms with beds?"
Li Youtian rubbed his nose and laughed, a rough, tired sound. "Set up a frame, throw in some bedding, divide the space with a few curtains, and there you go—another room. The problem is, there isn't enough bedding to go around. We have already handed out old curtains and scraps of cloth, but still, plenty of people won't have anything to cover themselves with tonight."
He leaned in closer. "Luckily, our team always carries gear when we go out. If you want another single room, I can make it happen. don't worry, it's all from our own team's supplies."
Jing Shu nodded, her mind immediately going to the old man Lan Shao had mentioned. "That works. I do need another single room."
"That's easy. Just give me the name; I will have my nephew, Li Chenglong, set one up on the spot. It will be fully equipped."
Jing Shu gave him the old principal's name, then turned to Xiao Liu. "Go pick him up first. Explain the situation and see if he needs anything else. We will meet back in the auction room later."
"Got it, boss." Xiao Liu adjusted her glasses, her admiration for Jing Shu growing. A boss who handled things this quietly and efficiently was the most impressive kind.
What others saw as scarce and tense resources, Jing Shu handled with a few words.
Li Youtian kept sipping his drink, his eyes scanning the workers as he shouted out instructions. His walkie-talkie crackled every few minutes with frantic reports from the different floors.
Outside, the wind howled, a sharp and mournful sound that echoed through the structure. The building vibrated beneath their feet, a subtle shudder that hinted the tower was moving faster. To most people, the windows offered only faint, dark reflections of the hall. But with her full night vision, Jing Shu could see everything outside as clearly as if it were dusk.
"Damn…" she muttered under her breath, her eyes narrowing.
Li Youtian looked up, noticing the shift in her posture. "What is wrong?"
"Nothing." She sighed and turned away from the glass.
He wouldn't understand, nor would anyone else standing in the dark. But she could see it clearly. The building was moving like a massive, clumsy ship, drifting forward through the sludge at about twenty kilometers per hour.
The tower was wedged between two massive mountains, carried along by a churning river of mud. Endless mountain ranges stretched out on both sides, their peaks jagged against the sky, and below them was an endless flow of black sludge.
For rescue teams to find the New World Tower in such a vast, moving landscape would be incredibly difficult. If they drifted to the end of the range or slammed into a solid rock face, the result would be disastrous. Then again, at this speed, they might not hit anything at all. The land was barren and empty, a suffocating expanse of nothingness.
"Let's head back," Jing Shu said, shaking her head.
Even with her abilities, she couldn't stop something this massive. This wasn't just a few buildings; it was practically a small island of concrete and steel.
By sheer coincidence, the villa assigned to Jing Shu was right next to the private rooms. Passing the rooms and stepping onto the raised display platform led straight to the front entrance of the villa. It was right in plain sight of the entire hall, but there wasn't a better place to put it. The parking lot outside had already been torn away, leaving little space, and the structure itself wasn't safe.
Being in plain sight would have to do.
Under the envious gaze of the crowd, Jing Shu walked into the villa alone and shut the door with a firm, resounding click.
Thankfully, the interior was fully enclosed. The villa had been built before Earth's Dark Days, and right after entering, there was a closed courtyard. To the right was the garage, and to the left was the main hall. It had two floors, four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, and two kitchens. Everything was in place, exactly like a functional home. Most of the furniture was fixed to the floor or walls—the cabinets, the dining table, the sofa, and the beds were all immovable.
There was no water or electricity, and without power, cooking was out of the question for a normal person. The moment she stepped inside, however, it felt like the world outside had been shut away. The noise and the constant, buzzing arguments of two thousand people faded into silence.
In the pitch-black quiet, Jing Shu stood straight, her hand still gripping the black case. She half-closed her eyes and began to act.
Two soft gloves melted into liquid and slid down from her hands, merging with her skin. Following her silent command, black cloth unrolled from her sleeves to seal every window and corner, completely closing off the villa from any prying eyes outside.
Snakes slithered out from her cuffs, their scales dry and rasping against the floor. Countless bugs poured forth in a dark tide, covering the ground, the walls, the ceiling, and the eaves. They swept through every inch of the villa, inside and out, checking for anything unusual. They searched for red lights, black lights, surveillance cameras, or hidden listening devices. Jing Shu searched alongside them. Only after confirming that every corner was safe did she switch on the energy-saving lights in the living room and kitchen.
The villa lit up instantly. The faint, warm glow chased away the shadows, and Jing Shu found herself liking the presence of light, even if it was dim.
The villa wasn't as sturdy as the ones in Banana Community, but it was lightweight and designed to be moved. The swarm of bugs receded like a tide, disappearing into the cracks and corners of the house. The snakes vanished as well, leaving the rooms empty once more, as if none of it had ever happened.
Jing Shu took out daily supplies from her Cube Space. It was freezing inside the unheated rooms, so she pulled out thick silk quilts and a portable stove.
Finally, she unfolded a collapsible bathtub in the center of the bathroom.
It was time for a proper hot bath.