Eaten Ch.204

Chapter 204: Contacting Colonel Xie

Watching as the two figures walked farther and farther away, the others hurried to follow.

The plants inside the building had grown to a terrifying extent, completely blocking the lobby and the corridors on several sides. But the moment Wu Heng stepped inside, his wood-type ability took effect—the plants slowly retracted back into the ground, leaving behind countless holes where they had been pierced through. Yellow sand drifted down, along with scattered documents strewn across the floor.

The two of them wordlessly let go of each other’s hands and began picking things up separately.

[National Coordination Plan for Metal-Type Ability Users]

[Effective Links Between Magnetic Ability Users and the Earth’s Magnetic Field]

[New Humanity Management Measures]

[Tenth Nationwide Promotion and Planting Round of the Super Unpalatable Corn Continues]

[Southern Evacuation Plan]

[Southern Evacuation Plan 2]

[Southern Evacuation Plan 3]

…

Jiang Xun’s voice echoed through the lobby.

“The Earth’s magnetic field weakened by another 20% last week. The western regions, the north, and dozens of countries have all been eroded. No one has counted the number of extinct species yet. Ginger told me the situation is very grim now—global collapse is only a matter of time.”

“There are also some things Ginger said he wants to tell Captain Xie personally.”

A pair of signal-receiving earpieces, specially made by the institute for ability users, was placed into Xie Chongyi’s hands.

Xie Chongyi stood still, watching Wu Heng’s figure disappear deeper into the corridor. He put on the earpiece and looked out the window.

“The Colonel is safe, but she doesn’t have time to speak with you right now. She has a heavy workload to deal with.”

“Xiao Xie.”

“Yeah?” A bad feeling was already creeping up on Xie Chongyi.

“Only Wu Dian, Sixth Brother, and I survived,” Ginger said in a low voice, as if he had been crying. “To cover the evacuation of civilians, many people sacrificed themselves. Sixth Brother has lost his sight as well. Some researchers argue that Deathlands is a place where Earth has exiled things, so it may not be affected even if the rest of the world falls. That’s why the Colonel hopes you will never come back.”

“And also… if possible, the Colonel hopes that when the time comes, you can take in some survivors,” Ginger paused for a long time. “Don’t worry—it won’t be many.”

“How are things between you and Wu Heng?”

Xie Chongyi almost laughed. “You still have the mind to worry about that?”

“When people are in extreme grief, they sometimes fixate on random, meaningless things—like me.”

“We’re doing pretty well.”

“You’re lucky. Originally, Sixth Brother was supposed to stay behind too, but Third Brother knocked him out and had us secretly take him away. He still refuses to eat—I think he’s planning to starve himself to death to follow Third Brother in death.”

Xie Chongyi let out a short laugh, but there wasn’t the slightest hint of amusement in his eyes.

Wu Heng had been paying attention to him the whole time, using his ability, since they were now separated by an entire corridor.

He stood inside an office belonging to some director. From a drawer, he took out a document sealed in a file envelope. Several drawers were empty—only this one file remained, as if it had been accidentally left behind in the rush to evacuate.

Wu Heng opened it and pulled out the document.

[On the Close Connection Between Xie Chongyi and the Source of Contamination, and the High Feasibility of Xie Chongyi Absorbing and Purifying the Contamination Source]

Expressionless, Wu Heng read the entire document word for word. At the end were the signatures of the participants and the initiator—Wu Mo.

Beside them were the signatures of the Ability Users Committee, the Human Federation, and Xie Yi—all marked as “Not Approved.”

Lin Mengzhi’s voice came from the corridor—they were looking for him.

Wu Heng lifted his gaze, then tore the document into pieces and stuffed them into his mouth, one bite after another.

A man-eating plant couldn’t even properly digest human food, let alone paper—but Wu Heng suppressed the nausea and forced himself not to throw up. He wouldn’t give Xie Chongyi even the slightest chance to see a single word of that document.

“Hello?” Xue Qi found Wu Heng even before Lin Mengzhi did, relying on his keen spider-like vibration sensing. Leaning against the doorframe, he said, “We found a conference room upstairs. Captain Wen said we’re having a meeting.”

“A meeting?” Wu Heng moved to the other side of the desk, checking if there were any more documents he needed to quickly dispose of. “Sure, let’s have it.”

Xue Qi said, “You have to come too.”

Wu Heng didn’t understand.

“If you still have something to do, we can wait for you. Without you, the meeting has no meaning,” Xue Qi added, noticing that Wu Heng seemed to be searching for something.

Wu Heng’s thoughts drifted for a moment before he nodded. “Alright.”

After Xue Qi left, Wu Heng activated his ability again. The plants inside the building began to sprout once more. The scattered documents on the floor, the drawers and cabinets in every office, even the safes—he searched through all of them.

The others had no idea what was happening. They only saw that the plants, which had just obediently retreated, suddenly became restless again—rifling through everything before quickly disappearing once more.

“What is going on?!” Dou Lu was nearly scared out of her wits when a green vine suddenly slid past her feet.

One of Liu Shen’s wood-type ability users tried to step in and stop it, only to be whipped out of the building by a kudzu vine.

“Aren’t I a wood-type ability user too? What’s wrong with them?!” the man’s indignant voice echoed from the street.

Only after the plants withdrew again did Wu Heng walk out from an office. His expression didn’t look too good—he had secretly eaten quite a few documents he felt they shouldn’t see.

“A’Heng, are you hot? Your face is covered in sweat,” Ruan Silian asked with concern as she looked at him.

“I’m fine,” Wu Heng replied, glancing at the people scattered around the lobby. “Didn’t Wen Yuan say we were having a meeting? Let’s go.”

“Where’s the class monitor?” Wu Heng noticed someone was missing.

“He’s already in the conference room,” Lin Mengzhi said, hopping over and slinging an arm around Wu Heng’s shoulder. “He doesn’t look like he’s in a great mood. Do you think he’s trying to take the boss’s position from you?”

“…Probably not,” Wu Heng said. “It’s more likely because other bases have fallen.”

“I know, a lot of people died. But honestly, I think we should be more optimistic. Back then, just one man and one woman could produce a whole population—now we can too. With just our group, having tens of billions of people wouldn’t be a problem.”

Dou Lu strode past him and headed upstairs. “Sometimes I really want to crack open the captain’s head and see what exactly is inside.”

“How dare you talk to me like that? You’re fired.”

“There are only three of us in total, and you still want to fire people?”

…

Wu Heng walked behind the two who were bickering. Led by Xue Qi, he entered a half-open door. Quite a few people were already in the meeting room—some sitting, some standing. A few were cleaning up fallen leaves and yellow sand, and the chairs had all been put back in place.

“Some of the chairs are already damaged.”

“So?”

With quick reflexes, Liu Shen grabbed two of his subordinates and tossed them to the side against the wall. “You two can stand and listen.” Then he sat down.

As soon as Wu Heng entered, he saw Xie Chongyi sitting at the very end of the long table. Without hesitation, he started walking toward the back of the room.

But Wen Yuan suddenly stood up from a seat near the front and pointed to the head position on Wu Heng’s right. “Wu Heng, this is your seat.” There was no seat more forward than that one.

The group, who had been joking around just moments ago, fell silent under Wen Yuan’s stern tone.

Wen Yuan had always been strict. Even at a time like this, he still adhered to order—if Wu Heng weren’t here, he probably would have dragged Xie Chongyi into the assigned seat himself.

But as long as Wu Heng sat down, it didn’t matter where Xie Chongyi sat. Everyone understood that.

Xie Chongyi leaned back in his chair, the piece of paper in his hands folded and unfolded again and again. Wu Heng’s gaze lingered on his face for a moment before he turned and took the seat at the front.

At that moment, the others unconsciously felt their throats tighten.

Wen Yuan stood upright, his emotionless gaze sweeping across every face before finally stopping on Lin Mengzhi. “Please, have a seat.”

Lin Mengzhi took a step back, looking awkward. “Uh, I… well, then I won’t stand on ceremony!”

Some of the chairs were damaged, but even if all of them were intact, there still wouldn’t be enough for everyone to sit—only about one-fifth of the people could have seats. So Wen Yuan only assigned chairs to those who needed them and were qualified to sit.

There were twelve seats in total. Aside from Wu Heng and Xie Chongyi—who seemed practically glued to his chair without the slightest reaction—the remaining ten were divided into three groups by Wen Yuan. Wu Heng’s people got five seats, while the rest were split evenly between Wen Yuan’s group and Liu Shen’s, each getting two.

“Everyone else stay and listen. This concerns the survival of us all,” Wen Yuan said, pulling out a notebook he had somehow prepared in advance. “This time, I have thirteen main points and eighty-seven subpoints to cover. If you can, take out pen and paper and make notes.”

Lin Mengzhi’s expression, which had just been full of curiosity and excitement, froze on his face.

Across from him, Xue Shen tore pages out of his own notebook one by one, glancing at Lin Mengzhi with amusement before tossing a sheet over.

“We’ve gone through countless hardships to reach Deathlands. Let’s all give ourselves a round of applause first.” Wen Yuan took the lead and clapped twice, and scattered applause followed in the meeting room.

“Next, I’ll begin with the first point—regarding the planning and development of Deathlands…”

No one knew how much time had passed when faint daylight finally appeared outside the window. Pale yellow rays filtered through the cracked and mottled glass, casting light onto the black long table covered in fallen leaves and yellow sand. A few sparrows landed briefly before flying off again.

Wen Yuan, like a wind-up machine that never tired, continued talking endlessly. Those sitting felt sore and stiff, let alone those standing—some had already squatted down, while others had simply lain flat on the ground.

Wu Heng had initially tried to keep an eye on Xie Chongyi, but after a while, his eyelids drooped and he started dozing off.

Lin Mengzhi, who was sitting close to him, had no idea how long he’d already been asleep—his mouth hung open, a line of glistening drool trailing down.

In the middle of the long table, a gray parrot lay sprawled on its back, fast asleep.

As the sun set in the west, Wen Yuan finally said the words everyone had been waiting for: “Alright, that’s everything for today. Next—Wu Heng, do you have anything to add?”

Dozens of eyes turned toward Wu Heng, whose head was already drooping so low it was nearly touching the table.

After a long silence, Wen Yuan withdrew his gaze and said calmly, “Meeting adjourned. Jiang Xun, go arrange the tasks I just mentioned that need to be completed within a week.”

As Jiang Xun stood up, the others—whose bodies were practically numb—showed visible relief. Before arriving at Deathlands, they had imagined coming here as carefree, domineering “kings of the hill.” Even if they ran into military personnel, they had never expected to actually work alongside them.

Deathlands was so vast—ideally, everyone would just take their own territory and mind their own business.

The least ideal situation was exactly what they were facing now: they had been absorbed into an organized structure.

“Confirm the safety level of this dead city, eliminate threats, map out the entire Deathlands, and establish defenses—these are today’s tasks,” Jiang Xun said as she walked downstairs. “Liu Shen, the western part of Deathlands is yours. If you’re unclear about the boundaries, go ask Captain Wang. Mo Zhaohong will go with you.”

“I don’t—”

Jiang Xun didn’t even turn her head, nor did she have time to listen to objections. “If you’re unwilling, go talk to Wu Heng.”

“…”

That wasn’t a suggestion—it was a threat.

Soon, most of the ability users were assigned their tasks. They had to quickly grasp the internal conditions of Deathlands—terrain, climate, water sources, living organisms—everything had to be thoroughly understood to save as much time and manpower as possible for future construction and management. They were severely understaffed, but that was now Wu Heng’s concern.

Wu Heng, meanwhile, was still asleep—completely slumped over the table.

—

Night was falling. The meeting room was even dimmer than outside.

Xie Chongyi leaned against the edge of the table beside Wu Heng, his gaze lowered, eyes fixed on the floor. He stayed in that posture for an unknown length of time.

Until Ruan Silian walked in and said it was time to eat.

Wu Heng’s fingers twitched.

“…” Xie Chongyi’s mood was far from good, but seeing that, he truly couldn’t help but laugh. Looking at Ruan Silian, he asked, “Where did you get food from?”

“Liu Shen and the others hunted a few sheep. We’ve already cooked them—you can come down and eat. There’s some fruit too…” Ruan Silian studied the expression on Xie Chongyi’s face. “Class Monitor, are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Xie Chongyi smiled at her, then lowered his head and pinched the back of Wu Heng’s neck. “Baby, dinner’s ready.”

The transition from dusk to complete darkness usually took only ten minutes or so. By the time Wu Heng and Xie Chongyi went downstairs together, it was already pitch black outside.

The battered building, riddled with holes before, had somehow been completely repaired. The surrounding wild plants had clearly been cleared away as well, and they could even see a few stars in the distant sky.

The lobby on the first floor was even lit up.

The ability users had immediately activated and restarted a nearby transformer, successfully restoring power to the area. But that was only a temporary solution—developing wind and hydroelectric power as soon as possible was the only way to ensure long-term growth. Fortunately, that wouldn’t be difficult; it just couldn’t be done in a single day.

Wu Heng was led to the cafeteria. When he saw Lin Mengzhi in a chef’s uniform, tossing a wok with an iron pan in hand, he thought for a second that he still hadn’t woken up.

Xie Chongyi snapped his fingers in front of his face.

Wu Heng finally came back to himself. “Class Monitor, are you okay?”

Xie Chongyi knew what Wu Heng was asking about. Uncertainly, he replied, “I think… I’m okay.”

People sat scattered throughout the cafeteria in groups of three or five, each staying with their own team. Truly blending into one big family was still impossible for now.

Wu Heng picked up a bowl and chopsticks. Lin Mengzhi ladled him a huge spoonful of mutton, making the hand holding the bowl sink a little lower.

“Aren’t you eating?”

“It’s been so long since I’ve used a wok—let me enjoy myself first!”

The mutton had been stir-fried with a plant whose flavor resembled mint leaves, though there was almost no salt. The sheep bones had been simmered into a clear soup, the legs had been roasted, and the staple food was a local tuber they had dug up that afternoon—sweet and soft and sticky.

Many people hadn’t had a proper meal in a long time, and the cafeteria was filled with the sounds of people wolfing down food.

Xie Chongyi peeled a steamed tuber with his hands and placed it into Wu Heng’s bowl. Wu Heng sniffed it first, and only after confirming he didn’t dislike the smell did he take a bite. It was… alright.

With a clank, a tray was set down in front of them. Wu Heng slowly raised his eyes and saw the face of the person sitting across from him—Wen Yuan.

“There are some things we should discuss while we eat.”

Wu Heng picked up a large piece of mutton with his chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth, nodding once.

“Today, we completed seven tasks in total. We established over a hundred defensive points and nearly a thousand sentry posts. Wu Heng, we need people. We don’t have enough.”

Wu Heng kept eating in silence. From the very beginning, what he had wanted was simply to occupy Deathlands and make it his home. He hadn’t thought as far ahead as Wen Yuan, so he didn’t really know how to respond.

“Why do we need so many people?”

“Do you plan to run the entire base by yourself and ensure Deathlands isn’t invaded by outsiders?” Wen Yuan set down his chopsticks. His expression was firm, the kind of person who normally spoke little and disliked wasting words. But now, he seemed endlessly patient as he spoke to Wu Heng.

“Deathlands covers nearly 1.3 million square kilometers. With just us, we might not even be able to secure the most basic claim over it—let alone restore normal life afterward. We’ve already surveyed it during the day. Deathlands is rich in resources; the only thing we lack is manpower. Every aspect requires specialists. We’re not capable of everything.”

Wu Heng kept stuffing meat into his mouth, his expression almost carrying a hint of innocence.

After a while, he lifted his gaze. “Captain Wen… aside from needing manpower to complete the work, you have other motives too, don’t you?”

Wen Yuan’s left hand, resting on his knee, clenched into a fist. He didn’t hide it.

“People get a chance to be saved, and you get the manpower you need. Mutual benefit.”

He looked toward Xie Chongyi. If there was anything Wu Heng was unwilling to do, only Xie Chongyi had any real chance of persuading him.

But before Xie Chongyi could even notice Wen Yuan’s gaze, Wu Heng spoke first.

“We had an agreement before—Xie Chongyi and I would help Jingzhou restore order in Hanzhou, and in return, Jingzhou would provide us with manpower. Trying to get some people into Deathlands to survive… that was actually your plan with Jingzhou from the very beginning.” The documents he had seen during the day all pointed to one thing: everything Jingzhou was doing now was nothing more than a futile struggle before humanity’s complete destruction. They had long known that the true end was approaching.

Wen Yuan didn’t avoid Wu Heng’s gaze. “Yes.”

“You used me.”

“Not exactly,” Wen Yuan said frankly. “Both of us knew from the start that this was an exchange.”

Wu Heng looked at him for a while, then lowered his head and continued eating. This time, he ate much more slowly. After several bites, he spoke again.

“Make the arrangements.”

Wen Yuan looked at him in confusion, but quickly understood what Wu Heng meant. A rare, unmistakable look of joy appeared on his face. He immediately stood up. “I’ll arrange a video call between you and Colonel Xie right away.” With that, he strode off, not even bothering to take his tray.

Wu Heng took a few more bites, murmuring something under his breath. Then suddenly, he choked. Dropping his chopsticks, he reached out and tugged at Xie Chongyi’s sleeve, a trace of confusion on his face.

“Colonel Xie… is that your mother?”

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