An Audi R8 stopped at the drive-thru of a KFC.
Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, stepped out of the car and walked to the window. After exchanging a few words, she turned back and asked, "They're out of Original Recipe chicken. Can I get you something else?"
"Whatever," Yujin replied without even looking at her, his attention fixed entirely on the feather in his hand.
Natasha didn't show the slightest trace of annoyance. She turned back to the cashier and said, "Then just give us whatever, make it a larger portion. I'll leave it to you."
Ever since that day, Natasha hadn't dared to show even a hint of dissatisfaction toward Yujin.
What she'd seen might have been only the tip of the iceberg. No one could be certain of his true strength.
When Nick Fury learned that Yujin had "taken" Natasha Romanoff with him to the where the Hammer landed, he didn't dare underestimate the situation. He immediately began overnight preparations, terrified that the hammer might be stolen.
Taking the bucket of chicken Natasha handed over, Yujin shot her a sharp glance. "I'm guessing this cashier is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, isn't he?"
Natasha's face stiffened. She wanted to deny it, but saying so outright would sound even more suspicious. "I… I don't know."
Yujin laughed. "You really don't know? Come on! Forget it! I'm not eating." He tossed the bucket of chicken out of the car.
Five hundred kilometers away, Nick Fury frowned as he watched the scene play out on the screen. "This kid won't be easy to deal with."
Agent Coulson, standing nearby, spoke up. "Should we try negotiating with him directly? Maybe he doesn't actually mean any harm."
"We can't give him the upper hand. He's only one man." Fury thought for a moment. "Where's Agent Barton?"
"He's in Texas."
"Get him back. Something big is about to go down here."
"Understood!"
—-------------
The morning sunlight filtered through the thin mist, meant to illuminate every corner of the city, yet today it seemed unusually pale and weak.
Last night's calm had been shattered by a sudden storm of blood and terror, plunging the entire city into chaos and panic.
On the streets, the wailing of ambulances echoed continuously, and the busy figures of police and rescue workers were everywhere.
They were confronted with heartbreaking scenes: families attacked by Freddy in their sleep, only to wake and find their loved ones gone, their faces etched with grief and disbelief.
In the park, early morning exercisers found bodies sprawled across benches, their faces frozen in terror at the moment of death.
Newspapers and television news were filled with reports of the Freddy incidents, the death toll rising steadily, as a dark shadow fell over the city.
Schools and office buildings were eerily quiet; many people didn't show up, leaving once-bustling places unnaturally empty.
Those who had narrowly escaped shared their horrific experiences from last night, their voices trembling with fear.
Seeing the people suffer like this, Zhan Lan and Zheng Zha felt a rare sense of anger toward Yujin.
Zhan Lan stood before Yujin, her voice trembling with fury: "How can someone risk the entire city just to save themselves?"
Yujin slowly lifted his head. "You're wrong. It's not the city I'm risking—it's all of America."
"You… you're insane!"
"Enjoy it in secret," Yujin stretched lazily. "You should be grateful for me. Otherwise, you'd already be dead in the dream."
Seeing that Zhan Lan had also been affected by those visions, Yujin offered some comfort:
"What you saw felt like real people, so it's natural to be angry. But all of this is fabricated—it's a trap set by the Lord God. We might even just be projections, placed into some movie. Don't rush to judgment."
"This is originally Freddy's world of horror films. People here already live under his threat. I've only amplified it a little."
Zhan Lan didn't know what to say, sinking to the ground and quietly wiping her tears.
Zheng Zha watched her walk away, his own anger boiling.
He felt as if he had somehow become an accomplice.
Yujin's attitude wasn't as good as it had been at the beginning.
He looked at Zheng Zha and scoffed, scratching his nose with disdain.
He wanted to wait until Chu Xuan entered the Lord God Space and then steal some of Chu Xuan's side quests and reward points.
After all, Yujin was now stepping on the traps that Chu Xuan would encounter later.
Once Zheng Zha began to adapt to the intensity of the Lord God Space, then he would do whatever he wanted!
As long as there were bonus points, why wouldn't he nuke the whole city? Who cares if there were any survivors?
Thanks to many people feeling sleepy during the day, Freddy's appearances were restrained. Zhao Yingkong, Zhang Jie, Ruan Wei, and Xiao Yehui were also crouched near Yujin.
In the corridor, after last night's battle, only four newcomers remained, along with the Aunt who had lost her partner.
Ruan Wei glanced at Aunt, silently thinking, "This Aunt is really hard to kill."
Aunt was also sneaking glances at Ruan Wei, but what she was thinking remained her own secret.
Zhao Yingkong looked at Yujin and finally couldn't help asking, "What level is your Gene Lock at?"
Being a genius assassin from a family of assassins, Zhao Yingkong already had her Gene Lock activated before entering the Lord God Space. Yujin, familiar with the plot, naturally knew about it.
"Level One."
"Level One?!" Zhao Yingkong was astonished. "How did a Level One Gene Lock hold Freddy off for hours?!"
"It's nothing special," Yujin shrugged. "Once you go to the Light Sphere and exchange for more skills, you could even kill Freddy yourself."
Zhao Yingkong didn't really believe him, so she didn't press further and quietly waited for another day to pass.
The torturous ten days were spent amid panic throughout the city and the entire United States.
Only one day remained before the Central Continent Team returned.
The streets and alleys were quiet. Hospitals and pharmacies were in disarray, but only drugs containing stimulants had been taken.
No café or supermarket windows remained intact. After a few days, coffee and tea had become the most widely circulated "currency" in the market.
After a few days, Zhan Lan and Zheng Zha no longer worried about these things.
They realized they didn't want to die.
Going alive into the Lord God Space, seeing the Light Sphere, and generating the image they most wanted to see in their minds became their motivation to keep going.
Even saving up fifty thousand reward points to return to reality wasn't entirely impossible.
Watching the time slowly tick away, the members of the Central Continent team, with less than half a day left before their return, felt their fatigue fade and their excitement grow.
Xiao Yehui unusually took the initiative to speak to Yujin.
"Yujin, sometimes I feel that although you can be reckless, your mind is actually quite sharp. At least, I've never seen this kind of problem-solving approach before. You've earned my respect."
Yujin had no interest in playing the "Japanese-style politeness" game with Xiao Yehui. He continued to toy with the black feather in his hand, his eyes full of worry.
With less than two hours remaining until their return, a sudden anomaly occurred!
Countless corpses, left uncollected in graveyards and streets, suddenly came to life!
Their target—Westin Hills Psychiatric Hospital!
****
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