That said, there was absolutely no way she was going to stand there and take a beating either. Chen Wan used about thirty percent of her strength — she caught the man's wrist mid-swing with one hand and drove her other fist clean into his face. She wasn't going to kill him, but a bruised and swollen face was the bare minimum he deserved. One punch, and the man's face immediately puffed up.
He'd been confident in his close-combat skills within the squad. He hadn't expected to get clocked in the face by some woman who'd come out of nowhere. Fury surged through him, and he swung a heavy kick at Chen Wan. She already knew it was coming — in a fight, the angrier you got, the more openings you left. Chen Wan drove her foot into his shin, and he went down and didn't get back up. His lower leg appeared to be fractured.
Chen Wan glanced down at him. "That's all it takes? I only kicked you once."
Her words were enough to push the onlooking First Squad leader, Xing Feng, over the edge. He launched himself at Chen Wan with his fists flying.
On the other side, Qin Ke had gotten into a grapple with her own opponent. He was known throughout the Special Operations squadron as the unit's strongest man — but against Qin Ke, he couldn't gain a single advantage. Qin Ke hadn't even noticed how much her physical strength, speed, and endurance had been enhanced since joining Chen Wan's group — the daily consumption of crystal cores had quietly improved her across the board. The gains weren't dramatic enough for her to consciously register, but the moment she was in combat, every one of them showed. In a fight, being even a fraction of a second faster than your opponent could mean a decisive blow.
Qin Ke had climbed onto the man's back, locking her legs around him in a scissor grip. Against an actual enemy, she would have gone straight for the throat — but knowing he was military, with armed guards all around, she held back. One arm pinned around him, the other hammering rapid strikes to his face — punch after punch until blood appeared. Then she drove her elbow down hard, slammed him face-first into the ground from behind, and wrenched both his arms back into a lock, pinning him completely.
Watching his two elite soldiers get beaten into this state by two women, Xing Feng's blood rushed to his head, and in that moment, he forgot everything his squadron leader had told him before — that this was just a test, to go easy, no causing trouble. His vision had gone red. All he could think about was winning back some pride for his squad.
Chen Wan saw the sharpness in the man's punches, and her expression turned serious. Retreating was out of the question — he was clearly fighting to hurt. If she didn't show her hand now, she'd have no one to blame but herself.
She dodged one punch, then swung back hard, landing her fist squarely in Xing Feng's face. Two of his teeth flew out on impact. He spat them onto the ground along with the blood in his mouth, grimacing through the pain. This was the most humiliating moment of his life. In a fit of rage, Xing Feng unleashed a spinning kick at Chen Wan — which she intercepted mid-air with her own kick, sending him flying.
Xing Feng forced himself upright through the pain, then, in a flash of reckless fury, drew his sidearm and pointed it straight at Chen Wan.
Major General Yao had been watching, and with the outcome already clear — Chen Wan and Qin Ke were genuinely formidable — she was about to invite them inside. Then Xing Feng pulled his weapon. "Xing Feng, stand down!" she ordered sharply.
As one of the Special Operations squadron's most accomplished squad leaders, Xing Feng had been humiliated in front of everyone. In his blinding rage, he couldn't hear orders. He had gone completely feral — and he squeezed the trigger toward Chen Wan and Qin Ke.
Chen Wan hadn't expected the military to throw lives away this casually, but her reflexes were fast. She hit the ground and rolled. Qin Ke immediately found cover and dropped too.
The smile had vanished from Major General Yao's face entirely. "What are you all standing there for?" she barked at the guards nearby. "Get the riot shields — restrain him first."
The guards grabbed their riot shields and surrounded Xing Feng. Once he'd emptied the magazine, the reality of what he'd done finally caught up with him. He collapsed to the ground, soaked in sweat, blood still smeared at the corner of his mouth.
He looked up at Major General Yao, struggling to justify himself. "Major General — those two women were brutal. Two of my men are down because of them. I drew my weapon for the Commander's safety."
"The Commander's safety is not a call a squad leader gets to make. Or has the apocalypse given you all new ideas? Are you trying to rebel?" Major General Yao's gaze was ice cold.
"Major General, these are just two outsiders—"
"Enough. Take it up with your direct superior. You're not under my authority." Major General Yao gave a few quiet instructions to her personal guard, telling them to hand Xing Feng over to his own squadron leader.
By now, Chen Wan was running out of patience with everything in front of her. She turned a cold, sharp gaze on Major General Yao, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Quite a production you've put on, Major General. You're all military — you've all got guns. If you want two defenseless women dead, just shoot us. We'd be riddled with holes in an instant. Why go to all this trouble with the theatrics? Good cop and bad cop — it's disgusting."
"Watch how you talk." One of Major General Yao's personal guards moved to step up to Chen Wan, But they were stopped by Major General Yao.
She sighed and spoke: "I know you won't believe me now, no matter what I say, but the Commander's order was genuinely just to test the two of you — and he specifically said to stop at the first sign of yielding. I gave the same order to the Special Operations squadron leader. What Xing Feng did just now was insubordination, and I apologize. I could also clearly see that one of you was obviously holding back."
Chen Wan let out a soft laugh, eyes fixed coldly on Major General Yao. "That's right — we had no choice but to hold back. Otherwise, we might both be dead by now, don't you think?"
Major General Yao sighed, knowing that what had just happened had completely enraged the person before her. She could only say: "I know nothing I say will be believed at this point. How about this — please come meet with the Commander first, then decide on your next move."
"It's not like we can say no, is it?" Chen Wan asked, her face cold.
Major General Yao had never encountered such a tough nut to crack. The building inside and out was filled with armed soldiers, yet Chen Wan still dared to speak with such sharp edges. If someone like this could be brought under the military's banner, she would undoubtedly be a tremendous asset.
"This way, please," Major General Yao replied neutrally.
Chen Wan and Qin Ke weren't about to back down either. Since it had come to this, the worst case was going down together. They followed Major General Yao into the elevator.
Meanwhile, the Commander had already been watching everything unfold on a nearby monitor. He furrowed his brow and turned to his aide: "Deputy Officer Liu, go notify the Special Operations squadron leader — the soldier who fired without orders must be strictly punished. In a world like this, if the military can't control its own soldiers, the world will only descend further into chaos. Tell him: strip that soldier of all military rank and place him under observation."
"Yes, Commander!" Deputy Officer Liu received the order and hurried off to carry it out.
Shortly after, Chen Wan and the others arrived outside a room on the fourth floor. Major General Yao knocked respectfully, and only after hearing a "Come in" from inside did she push the door open and lead them through.
Chen Wan surveyed the room. It was an ordinary one-bedroom suite — nothing like a lavish presidential suite. Further inside, a man in his sixties sat at a desk reviewing documents. Two personal guard soldiers stood at attention in the living area.
"Commander Yang, I've brought the people you asked to see. There was a small incident — I didn't expect Xing Feng to fire, but fortunately, no one was hurt," Major General Yao reported, standing at attention.
Commander Yang set down his documents and smiled at Chen Wan and Qin Ke. "I'm truly sorry about that. The people under my command are becoming harder to rein in. You nearly got hurt."
Chen Wan met Commander Yang's gaze without a word. Qin Ke did the same.
Commander Yang smiled, unconcerned, and continued: "The two of you helped us deal with Xiang Jiawei and his people — that was a great service to the military. I won't beat around the bush. With your abilities, staying in Zone D is a waste of your talents. I'd like to ask whether you'd be interested in joining us. If you agree, you, your families — everyone — will be moved to Zone A and given the best treatment available."
Chen Wan shook her head. "We appreciate the Commander's kindness, but we still need to get to Jing City to find our family. We won't be staying long."
"Young people, finding family in the apocalypse is no easy thing. From here to Jing City spans two provinces. I know you're both highly capable, but can you really get a large group of people there safely? Funan City's base is already the largest in the province, and Zone A offers the best conditions. Don't let a moment of stubbornness make you throw away such a good opportunity," Commander Yang continued to urge.
Chen Wan smiled and shook her head again. "Dead or alive, we need to know. Maybe if we get to Jing City and can't find anyone, we'll come back."
Commander Yang sighed. Seeing that Chen Wan was immovable, he turned his attention to Qin Ke. "And you, young one? Your combat techniques look like one of ours — you've served before, haven't you? Which unit?"
Qin Ke glanced at Chen Wan, then answered: "I served in the Special Operations unit near Weibei City."
Commander Yang smiled at Major General Yao, then turned warmly back to Qin Ke. "I knew it — those restraint and combat moves of yours, I could tell right away you were one of ours. The apocalypse has brought suffering to everyone. A soldier's duty is to protect ordinary people. Everyone who has served carries that sense of purpose. At a time when the whole planet is in chaos, people with your capabilities are needed more than ever. It's the duty and responsibility of every soldier — every citizen. What do you say? Join us. The entire planet R2 needs people like you."
Commander Yang's words carried the weight of genuine conviction. Qin Ke privately admitted that if it weren't for Yanyan, she might have agreed on impulse. But now that the world had become like this, all she wanted was to be with Yanyan. She had no desire to be a superhero or to sacrifice herself for humanity's grand causes. She just wanted Yanyan by her side.