"Who?" The lookout, Ma Mingliang, was the first to open his eyes.
"Little Ming Ge, it's me!" a coy female voice came from outside the door. "Can you open it for me?"
Ma Mingliang looked back, and after receiving a nod of agreement from his brother, who had been awakened by the noise, he opened the door. Standing outside was Ye Yao, one of the girls in Xiao Wenqiang's six-person team.
In reality, it was Ye Yao's turn to be on lookout at this time, so she should have been guarding for everyone in the convenience store. The fact that she was now appearing by the annex building clearly meant she had other intentions.
"What do you want?" Ma Mingguang got straight to the point.
After entering, Ye Yao closed the door behind her. She had originally intended to make some small talk, but being asked so directly, she froze a little. Although she had thought about it for a long time on her way here, now that she was in front of them, she couldn't speak.
Ye Yao lowered her head and twisted her fingers nervously. After taking a few deep breaths, she looked up and asked, "Big Ming Ge, do you want a spatial artifact?"
Ma Mingguang's pupils contracted instantly. He doubted his own ears and asked with a frown, "What did you just say? A spatial artifact?"
"Yes!" Ye Yao became bolder once she said it. "Our team's Xiao Wenqiang, she has a spatial artifact."
"Then how do you know about this?" Ma Mingguang didn't believe her immediately. "Also, does such a thing as a spatial artifact really exist?"
"It really exists. She and I are good friends, and we're roommates. I saw her secretly put away a large bag of things out of thin air once, which means she must have a spatial artifact." Ye Yao began to lie and weave a story, then said to Ma Mingguang, "Zombies have appeared in this world, so it's not surprising to have a spatial artifact, right!"
Ma Mingguang exchanged glances with the other two guys, and then showed Ye Yao the first smile since she entered the room. "Since you are such good friends, why are you telling us about this? Are you deliberately trying to lure us into a trap?"
"That's because Xiao Wenqiang is very selfish. She has such a magical spatial artifact but didn't tell us. If she had announced it earlier, we could have obtained more supplies these past few days."
Ye Yao continued to twist the truth and then flattered Ma Mingguang and the others, "The reason I'm telling you is because after spending time together today, I know that Big Ming Ge, Little Ming Ge, and Yong Ge, you all have a sense of justice. I believe if you obtained the spatial artifact, it would benefit everyone, right?"
Ma Mingguang smiled meaningfully. "Naturally. At this critical moment for humanity's survival, we will, of course, help as many people as we can within our abilities."
"That's good! I knew I hadn't misjudged you!" Ye Yao also smiled sweetly and extended her hand to shake Ma Mingguang's.
In fact, Ye Yao understood that Ma Mingguang and his group were hardly good people.
However, Xiao Wenqiang was becoming increasingly distrustful of her and her attitude was becoming more impatient. It would be too difficult for her to seize the ring on her own. Moreover, the longer it dragged on, the more uneasy she became. What if Xiao Wenqiang accidentally discovered the use of the spatial ring like before and was the first to bind it? Then she would have no chance.
Ye Yao had already made her calculations. Currently, only she knew that this spatial artifact was a ring and that it required a blood-binding ritual. So, she planned to let Ma Mingguang and Xiao Wenqiang's groups fight until both sides were depleted. Then, she would seize the opportunity to "accidentally" bind it with her blood.
If her plan went smoothly, she would have obtained the spatial ring and then would find a place to hide amidst the chaos.
If she couldn't escape, she would proactively share her spatial ability and pretend to work for Ma Mingguang's group, storing all the supplies in this spatial ring.
As for the spiritual spring inside, she would never reveal that. Then, she would find an opportunity to leave Ma Mingguang's group. This way, both the supplies and the ring would be hers.
If Ma Mingguang and his group failed and were killed, Ye Yao also had a fallback plan. By then, she would have already obtained the spatial ring, and Xiao Wenqiang, this woman with only brute strength, would be useless.
If the remaining people were obedient, she would spare their lives and smoothly take over as the leader of Xiao Wenqiang's team. If they were disobedient, she would leave on her own. With space and a spiritual spring, she would no longer fear the zombies!
With their own ulterior motives, Ye Yao and the three Ma Mingguang brothers chatted in hushed whispers for nearly half an hour before finalizing all their plans.
The sky outside began to brighten slightly, and Ye Yao returned to the convenience store. Seeing that everyone was still fast asleep, she revealed a triumphant smile.
Then she returned to her original position and sat down. After checking the time, she woke up Yang Ning, the next person on watch. Then she closed her eyes and went to rest.
What Ye Yao didn't know was that not long after she fell into a deep sleep, Xiao Wenqiang, who had been in a deep slumber, suddenly opened her eyes.
Yang Ning, who was on duty, was taken aback and silently asked Xiao Wenqiang, "Boss, why aren't you sleeping?"
Xiao Wenqiang looked at Yang Ning and considered his character based on their interactions over the past few days. Especially his volunteering to drive and his willingness to give up one of his own bottles of water and a loaf of bread after Wang Hu took Zhu Yan's food and water. These actions all indicated that he was a warm and compassionate person.
Xiao Wenqiang beckoned Yang Ning and silently called out, "Come with me!" She then quietly got up and walked towards the convenience store entrance.
Yang Ning quickly followed. As they stepped outside, he was about to speak when Xiao Wenqiang gestured for him to be quiet again.
Moving to the other end of the convenience store, further away from the annex building, Xiao Wenqiang confirmed that no one was around before saying to Yang Ning, "Xiao Wu, I've awakened two abilities."
"One is a strength-based ability, right?" Yang Ning's eyes lit up, and he asked with a beaming smile, still keeping his voice low, "I always felt you were particularly strong!"
"Yes! I awakened this ability in school." Xiao Wenqiang said with a half-truth, "And I awakened another ability yesterday."
"What is it? Is it something like controlling fire or water?" Yang Ning asked excitedly, thinking of the doomsday novels he had read before.
"No!" Xiao Wenqiang picked up a bottle of mineral water she had brought out earlier and put it into her space in front of Yang Ning. "It's a spatial ability, but the space isn't very large, only about five square meters."
Yang Ning's eyes widened in envy. "That's still great! We can store more supplies."
"Yes! That's what I was thinking too. When I first discovered this ability yesterday, I was planning to get more familiar with it before telling you all." Xiao Wenqiang pretended to lower her head sadly. "I just didn't expect her to do that?"
"Who is she? What did she do?" Yang Ning asked blankly.