Chapter 93: The Witch

"I was hired by Old Cui, and I have nothing to do with Zhao Shanhé," Chu Yunsheng said indifferently. His purpose for joining this team was entirely different from Li Yue's, so he had no interest in their internal conflicts.

Li Yue's expression changed. Although Chu Yunsheng claimed he was unrelated to Zhao Shanhé and was only hired by Old Cui, Zhao Shanhé was firmly on Old Cui's side.

"We're not ignoring Old Cui and the others. We will still take them with us. If we move quickly, we can reach Jinling City within a day, and it's not certain that many people will starve to death. Zhao Shanhé's plan to detour for food is truly dangerous. If we encounter a swarm of insects, none of us will survive!" Li Yue continued, and what he said wasn't entirely without reason. Everything was uncertain. Perhaps if they endured a bit longer, they would reach Jinling City, but no one knew for sure.

Chu Yunsheng smiled, neither confirming nor denying.

"Alright, Chu, as long as you remain neutral like Huang Renkuan!" Li Yue chuckled dryly. He didn't really expect much from Chu Yunsheng. First, he was new, and they had no real bond. Second, when Chu Yunsheng joined, he only mentioned that he was a fire energy warrior who used a pistol. Such a common fire energy warrior didn't play a decisive role in Li Yue's eyes. The key was the chef and the witch, who were both skilled.

Chu Yunsheng stood up, preparing to take Hu Zai out for some fresh air. He didn't respond to Li Yue, as he didn't need to make any promises to him.

Perhaps Li Yue would think he had tacitly agreed to their suggestion, but Chu Yunsheng didn't care what they thought.

Now, Chu Yunsheng planned to talk to Zhao Shanhé. The food issue was a minor matter for him. If Zhao Shanhé insisted on detouring to find food, it would waste a lot of time, which would be extremely disadvantageous for Chu Yunsheng, as one of his goals for joining this team was to reach Jinling City as quickly as possible.

Chu Yunsheng's storage talisman contained a large amount of insect meat. The space inside the talisman was completely static, so the meat wouldn't spoil no matter how long it was stored. Chu Yunsheng found the insect meat disgusting and had never eaten it himself; only Hu Zai liked it. However, compared to human lives, Chu Yunsheng knew the importance. Besides, the meat of the red-armored insects was enough for Hu Zai.

"Did you call me?" Zhao Shanhé followed Chu Yunsheng to the rear of the broken-down car, puzzled. He had been urging Old Cui's people to fix the car. In his eyes, Chu Yunsheng was only slightly better than the chef, who hardly spoke, and didn't seem very powerful, but at least Chu Yunsheng could give away a whole bowl of porridge, which even Zhao Shanhé couldn't do.

"Stop detouring and head straight to Jinling..." Chu Yunsheng prepared to be brief but was interrupted by the impatient Zhao Shanhé.

"Is Li Yue sending you? Chu, I know what they're thinking, but it's impossible. You can check Old Cui's car yourself; they haven't eaten anything for almost three days! They've only been surviving on water. If they had eaten well before, they might have held on, but three days ago, they could only eat one meal a day. Now they're almost dead, and they've given us food that's more precious than their lives!" Zhao Shanhé clenched his fists and said in one breath, "Chu, you're new and don't have a bond with Old Cui and the others, I understand. But I'm different. Old Cui's food saved my life. I'll remember this for a thousand years, whether in the sunny era or the dark era, this is my principle..."

Chu Yunsheng had known that Zhao Shanhé was a man of principles, but he didn't expect him to be so talkative, leaving no room for Chu Yunsheng to interject.

He simply threw the oversized travel bag he had prepared in front of Zhao Shanhé. It was filled with insect meat he had taken from his storage talisman, bulging with a full pack.

"What is this?" Zhao Shanhé was taken aback, a bit puzzled.

Chu Yunsheng opened the bag's zipper, revealing the white flesh of the insect, which looked eerie under the car's headlights.

"This! This... human flesh!!!" Zhao Shanhé was stunned, almost jumping up in shock.

It wasn't his fault for mistaking the insect meat for human flesh. When Chu Yunsheng first saw the insect meat at Jiang Lao's archery club, his first reaction was also human flesh.

"It's the meat of a monster!" Chu Yunsheng said calmly, pulling out a whole insect from the bag and showing it to Zhao Shanhé.

"What kind of monster? I've never seen anything like it!" Zhao Shanhé finally saw the shape clearly, calming down. The initial shock of thinking it was human flesh had given him a cold sweat. Dead bodies were common and not a big deal, but eating human flesh was almost unimaginable.

"Kun City, this thing only exists in Kun City." Chu Yunsheng said as if recalling a memory.

"Is that the mist city? I've heard that no one who enters ever comes out. We dare not enter and always detour. I can hardly believe you really came out of there. They say everyone inside is dead, and you've never mentioned it." Zhao Shanhé was surprised, finding it hard to believe that Chu Yunsheng had really come out of there.

At that moment, Chu Yunsheng involuntarily recalled the terrifying and fierce flame phantom bird that had cornered him. He had to pretend to be dead and rely on the sudden appearance of a green-armored insect to escape by a hair. The feeling of imminent death, so close, still made him break out in a cold sweat when he thought about it.

He shook his head, not wanting to continue the topic, and said straightforwardly, "This bag of insect meat, give it to Old Cui. Save it and it will be enough to sustain us until Jinling City!"

Zhao Shanhé was shocked, his mouth agape. He had racked his brain, thinking of countless ways to find nearby towns that might have food. He had almost worn out the only map Old Cui provided, but he never expected that the fire energy warrior they had hired a day ago, who had brought a small tiger, would now provide food for Old Cui and the others. Zhao Shanhé was dazed, trying to recall if Chu Yunsheng had brought this oversized bag when he got in the car.

Chu Yunsheng feared he would ramble on, so he quickly said, "The meat isn't free. We need to clarify a few things first. First, after the car is fixed, we must drive day and night to Jinling City. No more detours for food. Second, this is the only bag of insect meat. You must distribute it carefully. If it's not enough to get us to Jinling City, I'll have to part ways with you. Third, remember this isn't just for the six of you. No one has special privileges; it must be evenly distributed."

"Chu, can this really be eaten? The red-armored insect's meat has killed many people." Zhao Shanhé suppressed his immense curiosity, touched the insect meat, and asked nervously.

Chu Yunsheng hadn't seen Jiang Lao's people eat the insect meat, but Du Qishan's people had eaten it without any issues, completely different from the red-armored insect's meat.

The red-armored insect's meat contained a highly corrosive substance, and those who ate it almost always died from internal injuries. The only exception was Hu Zai, whom Chu Yunsheng suspected was related to his golden energy.

Chu Yunsheng picked up Hu Zai, turned around, and said simply and unequivocally, "It can be eaten!"

Zhao Shanhé's hand trembled. This was a large bag of monster meat. If it was really edible, it could save lives! Especially for Old Cui and the others, it was a matter of life and death!

Moreover, he could already feel Li Yue and the others' strong dissatisfaction with the detour to find food, and a storm was brewing.

"Chu! Thank you!" Zhao Shanhé was speechless for a moment before managing to say these few words.

Chu Yunsheng left with just one sentence: "Take care." Then he returned to the car.

The travel bag, though large, could only hold one super-sized insect. Chu Yunsheng didn't feel the need for excessive gratitude, as he and Hu Zai had ridden in Old Cui's car for free for a day without encountering any red-armored insects that needed to be eliminated. This insect was a form of payment for the ride.

He had made it clear that this was the only one. If they couldn't make it, Chu Yunsheng was clear that survival was the top priority, and he absolutely couldn't follow Zhao Shanhé's detours. The longer it took, the more worried he was about his aunt's family in Jinling City.

When Zhao Shanhé entered the car, he couldn't hide his joy, which surprised Li Yue and the others, who were prepared for a final confrontation.

However, when Zhao Shanhé suddenly announced that they would continue driving straight day and night, Li Yue and the others' expressions froze.

The matter was settled.

But not long after, the extremely hungry group led by Old Cui couldn't wait to cut a small part of the insect meat Chu Yunsheng had given them, cook it into a meat paste, and the aroma of food quickly spread.

Explaining to the six people that the insect meat wasn't human meat was left to Zhao Shanhé. The insect's body was still there, making it clear. As for the source, Chu Yunsheng didn't ask Zhao Shanhé to keep it a secret. He felt there was no need to hide it, as he had openly worn his unique armor in the mist city.

What he didn't expect was that the "witch" would claim that the food appeared because everyone believed in her. Even more surprising was that the "witch" seemed to have a group of believers who trusted her words!

The "witch's" words seemed to become their spiritual pillar, and she even proclaimed: "Those who believe in me will eventually awaken!"

For ordinary people, awakening was their greatest desire. Once they became awakened warriors, their chances of survival increased dramatically, and their families and friends would have a reliable support.

The "witch" used the promise of awakening through faith as a banner, which perfectly matched their urgent desire.

Chu Yunsheng didn't know if the "witch" had this ability, but he knew that using the Heaven Earth Yuan Fu, which he had learned on the first day of his cultivation, could truly force an ordinary person to awaken.

However, at his current level of Two Yuan Tian, he couldn't create such a high-level Yuan Fu.