Ruan Xing had been busy all the way until nightfall and finally showed up late under Hua Mei’s (the thrush) nagging.

Mayor Rabbit was hosting a grand banquet at City Hall, inviting all the city residents to celebrate the upcoming significant upgrade of their city.

There was a banner hanging in the back that read [Social Gala], but in reality, it was just a chaotic zoo gathering.

Ruan Xing sat quietly at a guest seat, watching all the animals getting completely wasted, dancing and flailing about.

Even Mayor Rabbit had downed a few drinks and was slightly tipsy. “Why aren’t you drinking?” he asked.

Ruan Xing replied, “The deal’s not done yet.”

The Mayor didn’t press any further, just chuckled meaningfully. “Always putting on a show.”

He pointed to the animals below, slurring, “Hypocrites, all of them! The human world is so pretentious. Wolves in sheep's clothing and sheep trying to act like wolves. But here, in Fairy Tale City, everything is honest. A wolf is a wolf, a sheep is a sheep—no disguises, ever.”

Ruan Xing said, “But that’s exactly what makes disguises interesting. If the whole world were like Fairy Tale City, it would be far too boring.”

Mayor Rabbit burst out laughing, flashing his huge buck teeth. “Such a naive thought. That’s why you’re still just a human while I’m already the Mayor of Fairy Tale City!”

Ruan Xing didn’t respond. He simply lifted a cup of plain water and took a sip.

On the dance floor, Mama Pig was dancing with her little piglets. But while they were dancing, one of the piglets suddenly let out a bloodcurdling scream. A drunken green wolf had sunk its teeth into the piglet’s arm. The bitten piglet let out a heart-wrenching shriek.

“They’re slaughtering pigs! Slaughtering pigs!”

The other piglets started squealing in panic. Mama Pig rushed to shield them but couldn’t fend off the green wolf. Its claws tore through her thick layer of fat, and the scent of blood stirred every carnivore present.

Ruan Xing raised his hand. Mayor Rabbit glanced at him and laughed wildly, “Isn’t this your favorite kind of chaos?”

An arrow flew out and pierced straight through the green wolf’s mouth, leaving behind a bloody Mama Pig, trembling but alive.

“I just didn’t think it was chaotic enough,” Ruan Xing said calmly.

The death of the green wolf was both a warning and a spark. The place erupted into chaos. Carnivores and herbivores began slaughtering each other.

Mayor Rabbit clapped like he was watching a show. “Keep going! Everyone is doing great!”

As the slaughter reached its peak, Mayor Rabbit jumped onto the table. “My dear citizens are just too boring. That’s why we need new blood. New citizens bring fresh unpredictability—and that’s what keeps Fairy Tale City interesting. Come, join your favorite part—sacrifice for the city, build it with the cycle of life and death!”

Ruan Xing couldn’t openly defy the Mayor, but behind the scenes, he rescued a piglet, an otter, and a small rabbit.

The little animals quickly slipped away from City Hall, but the Mayor didn’t bother pursuing them. He just clicked his tongue. “Hmph, lucky little things.”

The chaos lasted for a while before someone came to report that the goods had arrived outside, which brought the madness to a halt.

The remaining animals huddled together, shivering. Around them, blood-covered carnivores stared with glowing eyes, clearly still hungry for more.

Mayor Rabbit clicked his tongue again. “Alright, let’s go take a look outside. Your goods are ready.”

Outside City Hall, two lions stood guard over two piles of people.

Yes—piles. These people were all unconscious, stacked like bags of flour. You couldn’t even see the faces of those at the bottom or tell if they were still breathing.

One pile was much larger, filled with well-built individuals wearing quality gear. The other pile was clearly more ragtag and thin.

Mayor Rabbit pointed at the larger pile. “These are for you. Look how generous I am—strong and healthy ones, all for you.”

Then he pointed to the smaller pile. “And these... these are the new prospective citizens.”

He raised his cane, and the two blood-soaked green wolves that had been fighting the hardest howled up at the sky.

“Come on, guess how many herbivores and how many carnivores we have in this batch?” he asked with a grin.

Fu Gui: [The pollutant is starting to use his powers—it's very strong. Stay back. If it touches you, you might get turned into an animal too.]

Ruan Xing lowered the hand he had almost raised and took a few steps back. Now wasn’t the time yet.

Mayor Rabbit lifted his cane. It glowed faintly, and intense pollution radiated from his body, heading straight for the smaller pile of people in the corner.

A blinding light engulfed them, and screams rang out, followed by thudding sounds—Bang! Bang! Bang!

When the light faded, the people lying on the ground were gone. In their place were various animals—rabbits, cats, dogs, even lizards and snakes.

Mayor Rabbit’s eyes sparkled. “Looks like we got a lot of surprises this time! Ha! More carnivores, nice!”

The newly transformed animals looked confused, unaware of what had happened. Mayor Rabbit took the chance to step up to the City Hall loudspeaker.

“Dear citizens, welcome to Fairy Tale City. I’m your Mayor. Fairy Tale City is a place full of love—”

While the Mayor was giving his speech, Ruan Xing quietly walked to the larger pile of people and searched through them carefully. The lion beside him bared its teeth but didn’t stop him.

He saw some of the Investigation Corps members, including the ones who had joined him on this mission. But Su Xiaona wasn’t among them.

Strange. Where was she? Could she be buried at the very bottom?

Mayor Rabbit finished his speech, quite pleased with himself. Seeing Ruan Xing searching for something, he couldn’t help but ask.

“Why are there no women?” Ruan Xing asked bluntly.

Mayor Rabbit chuckled creepily. “Women? Oh, they’re rare resources! In the apocalypse, women are super valuable—they help expand the population…”

Ruan Xing cut in, “I’ll pay extra.”

Mayor Rabbit: “I kept the women separately.”

Ruan Xing: “I want to see them.”

Mayor Rabbit agreed readily—only a fool wouldn’t take a better deal.

But just as they were about to leave, a loud explosion shook the candy factory.

Mayor Rabbit’s face changed. The candy factory—it was the heart of Fairytale City!

What the hell happened?!

Hua Mei wobbled in, then crashed to the ground with a flop, completely drained. “Report, Mayor! That female two-legged beast we captured—she escaped! And she blew up the factory!”

“WHAT?!” the Mayor roared in rage.

Su Xiaona dashed through the shadows. Her glasses were gone, and her sharp brown eyes gleamed fiercely—completely different from the woman they’d seen before.

She had no idea how she ended up in a zoo when she woke up. And then those damn monkeys drugged her! Unforgivable!

She had been held separately. The pollutants here seemed to sense her abilities and slapped four or five restraint collars on her. But Su Xiaona just extended a slender finger, and those rings—which could hold down an elephant—snapped like twigs.

Her gaze sharpened as she took off her glasses.

To protect her teammates, she hadn’t acted recklessly. She waited until nightfall, when the guards were few before she made her move.

The place was clearly a factory. Machines were everywhere, and conveyor belts carried human limbs and plant scraps into machines that churned out a sickly sweet scent of candies.

She took a deep breath and searched for an exit. But as she moved, she noticed the wall seemed to wiggle as it tried to trap her.

What the hell was this place?

She kicked the wall hard. It caved in like a stomach punched too hard, curling in pain. The cookie-like wall winced in pain and even coughed up a few human thigh bones through the cracks.

This factory eats people.

Su Xiaona had seen her share of polluted zones, but none as twisted as this.

The doors were melted shut, so she planted bombs, retreated, and hit the detonator.

A massive explosion rocked the place. The candy factory started squirming violently, like a parasite writhing in agony. It wailed, then finally revealed a tiny exit.

Su Xiaona dove through it.

She’d overheard the monkey guards saying the other team members were taken to City Hall.

She has to rush over to save them.

The wind roared in her ears as she sprinted full speed. Soon, she reached the brightest-looking building through the shadows.

It looked like a battle had just ended here. Severed limbs littered the ground, and the thick smell of blood filled the air. Two lions lay unconscious nearby, and a familiar tactical headset lay abandoned in the middle of the clearing—but no sign of any humans.

Where did everyone go? Had her attack spooked the pollutants into hiding the humans?

Su Xiaona paused to think, then started searching inside City Hall—every corner, every crevice. Still no clues.

Just as she was about to give up, something at the far end of the steps caught her eye.

It was a mark—an Investigation Corps signal: “Meet at the entrance.”

Her eyes narrowed, and she looked toward the end of the main road where a banner was hung. It looked like the city gate.

Whoever left the sign, she had to check it out.

Dodging patrolling guards, she reached the end of the road—but there was nothing. Not even a so-called “exit.” Just more road.

A trap?

Su Xiaona’s lips pressed into a thin line. The air around her began to shift.

Someone was behind her!

She turned and raised her arm to strike—but as soon as she saw who it was, she pulled back just in time. The other person also dodged instantly, and the sudden gust lifted the young man’s black hair.

Su Xiaona froze. Her fierce gaze turned awkward. “Xingxing! I’m so sorry—I didn’t know it was you… Oh my, what are you doing here!”

Ruan Xing felt that he had just brushed shoulders with death and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

“Long story. Let’s find a safe place first.”

Ruan Xing led her to a large candy house, which was already filled with people lying everywhere. Many were familiar teammates.

Su Xiaona was stunned. “Whoa—how did you rescue so many people, Xingxing?”

Of course, he couldn’t tell her he’d secretly drawn a teleportation circle using hidden magic crystals and evacuated everyone after knocking out the lions with poison gas.

So he said, “I disguised myself as a candy merchant. The Mayor even sent me out personally…”

After telling a half-truth, half-lie version of the story, Su Xiaona sighed. “No wonder Senior Pei praises you—you are really smart!”

Ruan Xing was a little embarrassed. “So… what should we do with them?”

Su Xiaona patted his shoulder. “Leave it to me.”

Then she grabbed one of the teammates by the collar and slapped them hard across the face.

Ruan Xing had never heard such a loud slap before.

The teammate let out a muffled groan and slowly woke up.

Ruan Xing silently gave a thumbs up.

By the time Mayor Rabbit rushed to the candy factory and saw the wreckage, he completely lost it. “WHERE DID THAT B*** GO?!”

His rabbit teeth turned into fangs, and his body swelled. The once half-meter-tall rabbit now reached the average height of humans with eyes blazing red with flames of rage.

Hua Mei stumbled in late, trembling. “She escaped... and the candy merchant too… he took our goods and ran.”

Mayor Rabbit whipped around. “They WHAT?!”

 

 

 

 

Explosively spicy rabbit head* is coming. (T/N: 爆辣兔頭 (bào là tù tóu) – a Sichuan dish)

We’ll find the tower. I promise. (puffs out chest)