Because of Qin Mingyang's promise, everyone put their minds at ease and moved to another arched platform on the side.
They sat down, relieved.
"Qin Mingyang has so many heavy weapons; no wonder he was able to lead the team here before," someone in the group began, rubbing their hands together, a hint of excitement in their voice.
"Now that our safety is temporarily guaranteed, I think we can hide here for a while," another added.
Luo Xiaole shook her head silently, protesting fiercely in her heart.
Although she used to be timid, she was always persistent when it came to figuring things out.
If they had come up from somewhere else, there must be another survival passage.
If an emergency occurred, they could escape through that passage.
But if they were locked in here... then they either had enemies...
Or they themselves were extremely dangerous.
Qin Mingyang's protection felt inexplicable, and there was no one here particularly close to him.
On what basis was her protection being offered?
However, everyone was engrossed in their relief, and she couldn't say much.
She could only sit in a small corner, minimizing her presence, reverting to the familiar "locksmith" everyone knew.
She secretly observed Qin Mingyang and his group's movements.
After watching for a while and finding nothing unusual, she sighed softly.
She had been reinforcing many weapons lately, and her mental energy was depleted.
Today, she had also experienced such a thrilling escape.
Her stomach was already rumbling.
So, she took out a bag of bear crackers from her backpack and began to eat them with relish.
"Look at Luo Xiaole, hoarding all the food for herself again!" Xu Lingyan sat in the corner, glaring at Luo Xiaole with disgust.
She complained frantically to Zuo Ran.
Zuo Ran, however, suddenly had an inspiration from this remark.
She quickly took out the food she had saved earlier, tossed her hair back, letting it fall to one side, and with a graceful pose, began distributing crackers to everyone.
"This is a little food I saved up. If you don't mind, let's share it." Although her face was dusty from the escape, her smile was incredibly charming.
For a moment, several boys stared blankly.
She then swayed her hips, turned sideways, and smiled at Luo Xiaole, "Little classmate, don't just eat your own. Come over and get some of our food. You're too thin; you need to eat more to replenish your energy."
The boys who were staring at her heard her words and looked at Luo Xiaole.
"She's hoarding food for herself?" they began to mutter softly.
"If she didn't know how to pick locks, who would have bothered to bring her along? She's so slow," they whispered, getting more animated. "Exactly, if her combat power isn't good, she should eat less and share more with everyone!"
"Zuo Ran is the campus belle, isn't she? She truly has grace, sharing her own food with everyone."
The admiration in the eyes of several boys towards Zuo Ran grew.
Zuo Ran then shyly tucked a stray hair behind her ear and sat down with dignified posture.
"What is this woman doing?" Zhou Xiaojun and Luo Shu raised their eyebrows upon hearing this.
"If I remember correctly, these bags of food were distributed to her after we arrived, weren't they?"
"Giving us back our own food to make herself look generous is ridiculous!" Zhou Xiaojun said indignantly.
Luo Xiaole was stunned upon hearing this.
She felt a bit speechless in her heart.
But on second thought, her uncle, brother, and Qin Mingyang, whose ring wasn't activated yet, were still watching from over there.
It didn't seem wise to create a conflict at this moment.
Besides, didn't this Zuo Ran like Mo Chen and want to show off?
On the escape route, this kind of drama seemed quite interesting.
She savored the moment and felt she wasn't at a disadvantage.
She simply waved her hand, politely declined, and continued to munch on her own collected bear crackers.
Not bad, her mindset was improving!
Luo Xiaole gave herself a big thumbs-up in her heart!
Seeing that she had no reaction, Zuo Ran rolled her eyes dramatically behind her back.
However, this eye-roll was caught by Mo Chen, who had just opened his eyes.
The warmth in his gaze towards Zuo Ran suddenly and silently plummeted again.
...
Soon, everyone had eaten their fill.
The surrounding walls of the bell tower were high, but the wind was noisy, and the temperature was a bit cold.
They lit a bonfire on the small platform and gathered around to warm themselves.
As the warmth increased, facing their "good classmate" Qin Mingyang, they let down their guard, and most of them quietly dozed off.
Only Luo Xiaole was not with the group.
She had already quietly slipped down to the bell tower level.
She gazed blankly at the enormous bell tower.
Although the defensive clothing had been given to the others in the team,
the money had not yet been collected.
Moreover, she needed to collect more items along the way to prepare for the next trade.
This bell tower, only this bell tower level, had some items that were slightly neglected.
She quickly walked around the bell tower level.
Soon, she collected a few baseball bats, some banners, and a few small stools...
Scattered items, but she managed to gather 30 pieces.
Luo Xiaole rubbed her hands and looked up.
Good, there seemed to be no one around.
She concentrated her mind and activated her skill on the small pile of materials laid out before her.
[Reinforcement Skill Activated: Blade of Sharpness!]
About half an hour later.
[Baseball bats and 29 other items have been reinforced, costing 6000 Shop Coins. Balance: 12950 Shop Coins.]
"Phew..." She finally sighed in relief and leaned against the wall to sit down.
Looking up, she suddenly saw the mighty and imposing great bell hanging there.
She suddenly had the urge to add another weapon for herself!
If this bell were reinforced, it would deal exponentially more damage against zombies!
Moreover, after reinforcement, the bell's weight would be almost zero, and she could enlarge or shrink it at will, making it perfectly suitable as a weapon!
The more she looked at the bell, the more she liked it.
Finally, she couldn't resist taking action.
[Great Bell Reinforced. Area too large, costing 2000 Shop Coins. Balance: 10950 Shop Coins.]
Although it pained her, she was excited.
Luo Xiaole danced with joy, wanting to take the bell down.
Suddenly, she remembered that if the bell suddenly disappeared, it would raise suspicion, wouldn't it?
Otherwise, she could collect it all together when it was time to leave.
With this thought, she clapped her hands, stood up, and happily put the other spoils into her pocket.
She turned to go upstairs.
As she turned, she bumped into a well-muscled and sturdy back.
"Ouch!"
She recoiled in pain.
Looking up,
her ink-black hair emitted a fine, lustrous sheen under the moonlight.
His deep eyes seemed to draw one into a bottomless pit.
"Mo Chen! It's you! You scared me to death!" Luo Xiaole exclaimed softly.
Mo Chen grabbed her by the sleeve and gently pulled her back.
Before Luo Xiaole could react, she heard a faint whistle from the corridor beside them.
It was one of Qin Mingyang's special forces soldiers, who was now cheerfully relieving himself in another direction.
"Phew..."
Only after the person left did Luo Xiaole's racing heart gradually settle.
Then, she began to sweat profusely, her toes curling.
She was too close to Mo Chen!
Who could withstand looking at such a heaven-defying face up close!
Mo Chen lowered his head, sensing something.
He coughed lightly and released Luo Xiaole.
"Are you making weapons again?" Mo Chen's deep voice inquired.
"Mm!" Luo Xiaole replied woodenly.
"Tomorrow, put the weapons behind my backpack, and I'll help you sell them," Mo Chen said, looking up at the sky with a cool demeanor, not daring to look at her.
"!!" This was too perfect.
With Mo Chen continuing to hold the title of 'Weapon Master,' no one would dare to cause trouble.
This way, she could continue to implement her plan of 'hiding in plain sight.'
"Thank you," she said sincerely.
But why would Mo Chen help her?
She couldn't figure it out.
However, for now, Mo Chen seemed trustworthy.
"I'll give you a weapon when the time comes," Luo Xiaole said, her eyes bright, "as a return gift for protecting us and helping me."
...
The next morning, everyone slept soundly and gradually regained their spirits.
Thinking back to yesterday's events.
"Mo Chen, what were the clothes you gave us yesterday made of? They're amazing!" Curiosity began to bubble up in the crowd.
"Yes, they weren't afraid even when zombies bit them."
"Could it be... you... you are the Weapon Master?" someone in the crowd whispered in surprise.
"I know her," Mo Chen replied coldly, dropping just a few words.
Mo Chen actually knew the Weapon Master!
And he had obtained his new weapons!
Everyone's gaze towards Mo Chen instantly filled with even more respect.
They had followed the right person!
"New weapons have arrived," Mo Chen announced, throwing out the weapons Luo Xiaole had placed behind his back, his words shocking.
"Come and pay."
The crowd was stunned at first, then rushed forward.
No one noticed a figure quietly leap up from the dark stairs at the bottom of the bell tower.