Chapter 63: I Don’t Need a Reason to Beat You Up

She was in a foul mood—truly, thoroughly vexed!

Yu Yan had heard the commotion caused by Zuo Changyu and the other man from the very beginning. But she figured, with her tent buried under layer upon layer of sand, there was no way those two could possibly discover its presence. She was at a critical moment refining the flesh of an eighth-grade Vermilion Fruit, and the burning pain in her chest was gradually easing. So she decided to finish absorbing the fruit first before dealing with anything else.

Who could have guessed that Zuo Changyu, with one careless kick, would send Zhu Le’s corpse flying straight onto her tent—showering her with sand from head to toe!

Excellent. This man had certainly succeeded in catching her attention.

It had to be said: without Yun Duo’er by her side, Yu Yan’s disposition had grown markedly more ruthless and cold-blooded. With Yun Duo’er around, Yu Yan always restrained the chillier aspects of her character. In these replica worlds—especially in high-level scenarios like “Crocodile Island” a few days ago or the current desert oasis—countless lives perished every day.

Yu Yan was neither a saint nor a hero, and she had no interest in playing savior. After all she endured in her past life, she would never again do something as foolish as risking herself for the sake of two strangers. Besides, neither Zuo Changyu nor Zhu Le appeared to be decent folk. They carried hot weapons in abundance—even before the replica worlds descended, that would have marked them as dangerous. After the arrival of the replicas, such people were unlikely to become any less troublesome. Yu Yan had no intention of inviting trouble.

But now things were different. Yu Yan decided to teach Zuo Changyu a lesson—he needed to learn a thing or two! Littering is everyone’s responsibility, after all. Was rubbish to be kicked around at random? What if it hit someone? Even if it didn’t, what about the plants and flowers? That was no good, either.

“Pah! Pah! Pah!”

Expressionless, Yu Yan spat the sand from her mouth and shook out her ears. She could feel some fine grains had gotten inside, making her ears buzz with discomfort. Gathering her wind element, she moved with the swiftness of a breeze. Lifting herself into the air, she quickly located her target, kicking aside the wolves blocking her path with casual ease.

Without a shred of gentleness, Yu Yan grabbed Zuo Changyu by the collar and landed a fist squarely on his face.

“That’s for littering!”

“And for your sheer lack of decency!”

“Ever heard of ‘everyone is responsible for protecting the environment’?”

“Didn’t your mother teach you to bring your own trash bag and clean up after yourself when you go out?”

While she beat him, Yu Yan lectured him with each punch.

After a quarter of an hour, she’d finally vented the frustration pent up from hours of being hunted by fire wolves. She squinted down at Zuo Changyu—he was barely clinging to life, breathing out more than in. He had been running on fumes, forcing himself to kill Zhu Le with his last ounce of strength.

Two days and nights of pursuit by the wolf pack had depleted his stamina and will. Even though Yu Yan had held back, not using her wind element, her beating still made him cough up several mouthfuls of dark, blood-tinged clots—bits of his own organs mixed in. Yu Yan rubbed her nose, feeling unexpectedly guilty.

She tossed Zuo Changyu aside and nudged him with her toe. “Hey, if you’re not dead, make a sound!”

“Ugh…” Zuo Changyu spat out another lump of bloody phlegm. Oddly, after her beating, his muddled thoughts cleared a little. He looked up at Yu Yan. “Why… why did you hit me?” He was certain he didn’t know this woman who’d appeared out of nowhere!

Granted, he’d made plenty of enemies in his life due to his temperament. But Yu Yan looked so delicate and frail—his manly pride wouldn’t allow him to bully someone like her.

Of course, that was only her appearance. When she’d grabbed him, her grip was like an iron clamp, and there was something strange about the energy pulsing beneath her skin. Zuo Changyu was certain that even if he were at his best, not exhausted from two days of running, if Yu Yan wanted to beat him up, there wouldn’t be a thing he could do about it.

Yu Yan arched a brow.

She doubted he’d heard a word of her scolding during the beating. Even if he had, he’d never link it to his act of kicking Zhu Le’s body. Yu Yan didn’t care to waste her breath explaining. “Do I need a reason to beat you?”

“You’ve got the words ‘asking for it’ written all over you.”

Zuo Changyu: …

Indeed, before or after the arrival of the replica worlds, women were always synonymous with unreasonable.

His mind drifted to another unreasonable woman—one he could do nothing about and could only indulge. A trace of longing flickered in Zuo Changyu’s eyes. Perhaps it was for the best to die now; he’d soon see her again.

Still, there was one lingering regret.

Zuo Changyu looked at Yu Yan. She’d dispatched the wolves chasing him with a single effortless kick each. The wolves, even after being knocked aside, dared not approach again. Zuo Changyu made up his mind.

“Woman, this gun on me… well, you probably wouldn’t understand even if I explained. Anyway, it’s useful. Cough…” He coughed up more blood, feeling death creeping closer, and hurried his words. “I know you’re strong, but it never hurts to have a gun for self-defense. If you ever run out of strength, it might save your life in a pinch.”

“I’m giving you the gun—and there are a dozen or so bullets at my waist. Not many left, but don’t look down on them.”

His usual weapons were actually two other, more powerful guns with greater range, but all the special-made bullets for them had been spent. Without ammunition, those were just lumps of scrap metal, useless even if given to Yu Yan. He felt a pang of regret.

“What do you mean?” Yu Yan understood his intent instantly, but she had no interest in playing along.

Did she look like she had nothing better to do? Was “great philanthropist” written on her face? Honestly, he must have forgotten she’d just beaten him up, pushing him closer to death. And if she wanted his gun or his bullets, the man was about to die—why not just loot him when he was gone? No need to waste her time running errands for him!

“Anyway, I’ve given you everything. Whether you help me or not is up to you.”

Zuo Changyu seemed to realize that such a request was highly unreliable.

Ignoring Yu Yan’s sour expression, he struggled for breath and continued, “I have a group of brothers who got separated from me. They risked everything for my sake, left their posts, and ended up trapped in a drug lord’s gang. Later, they followed me into this replica world while fleeing for their lives. I hope you can find them for me.”

“If possible, I—”

“Shit!”

He blacked out before he could finish.

Yu Yan cursed under her breath, “Do your own damn business—I’m not anyone’s nanny, you think I’ll run errands for you?” Still feeling indignant, she gave Zuo Changyu another kick—though she pulled back most of her strength at the last moment, barely disturbing the hem of his coat.

She muttered a few more curses, then, with a look of distaste, grabbed Zuo Changyu by the collar and tossed him into the tent.