Of course, on this cool night breeze, Ren Yuanhao could still feel the warmth of family.
He watched Meng Meihui ecstatically hugging their four-year-old child, radiating maternal glow, and his heart ached with longing for his own aged parents.
Meng Meihui's mother was skeletal, and outside the small makeshift tent, all sorts of household waste was scattered amidst overgrown weeds, a scene of desolation.
Fortunately, the population wasn't dense; a hundred meters away, it seemed there was only Meng Meihui's family.
The small tent was a home, with two smaller tents outside serving as storage and a toilet. The only entertainment available was likely a cheap smart reading machine clutched by the child.
Ren Yuanhao quietly tucked several stacks of money beneath Meng Meihui's pillow, pretending he needed to go out for a smoke.
Stepping out of the tent, the wind surged in from beyond the high walls, rustling the wild grass, casting flickering shadows. Just then, he suddenly heard a series of low moans emanating from a garbage dump about fifty to sixty meters away.
As Ren Yuanhao was about to move towards it, he was suddenly stopped by Meng Meihui, who had emerged from the tent.
"Don't go. Those are victims of the Mandara gene's live failure. These people used to live in the city, holding various unremarkable jobs. Although their living conditions were humble, at least they had a place to stay. But now, even their qualification as humans has been stripped away."
Ren Yuanhao lit his cigarette, never before finding the smoke so acrid. He coughed a couple of times and then asked, "Meihui, do you know about the recent frequent car accidents?"
"I know. Those aren't really car accidents, but deliberate ones caused by people from the 'Nanming' group to evade the tracking of Tianyu."
"Why?"
"It seems the Nanming group believes that those whose bodies were consumed by the Mandara gene should return to their homeland, rather than being burned alive by Tianyu's subordinates."
After speaking, Meng Meihui pointed towards the southeast, an area dimly lit.
"Baogēge, that is the true hell."
Ren Yuanhao knew that place was likely the graveyard of all those consumed, and he had already witnessed an even more terrifying hell long before.
"Do you remember who implanted you with the Mandara gene last night?"
This was what Ren Yuanhao wanted to know most. However, Meng Meihui had no memory of it, but she still offered her opinion, "This mirage, much like its name, is inherently illusory. All prosperity is like clouds and smoke. Nanming and Yutian have been fighting here for many years, but the Mandara gene has only intensified this conflict. However, as an outsider, I believe the mastermind behind all this is the Yutian Group."
"You mean to say, the Yutian Group is manipulating the Mandara gene from behind the scenes?"
"That's what I think. However, except for the people in the south, almost all citizens are pointing fingers at us in the south. After all, vehicles that had to pass through the south have posted photos of the慘状 they witnessed online. Almost everyone would assume that these consumers are a result of Nanming Group's internal poor control over the Mandara gene. But, only a very small number of them know that most of these consumers are local people who fled from the east, west, and north to return to the south."
Meng Meihui's expression turned somber as she said this. "Baogēge, almost everyone who couldn't escape to the south was annihilated by Yutian in a fire. That's why the citizens couldn't see any consumer corpses. Doesn't this behavior perfectly illustrate their guilt?"
Ren Yuanhao remained noncommittal. Both Tianyu and Nanming groups had their own versions of the story. However, one situation greatly concerned him—if Tianyu was truly the culprit, then Fang Dasheng, Sun Wenchu, and others should never have taken in Meng Meihui, who was a victim of the Mandara gene.
Nor would they have allowed him to approach her, as they knew he could glean too much detrimental speculation and rumors from Meng Meihui.
Yet, they had not stopped him from approaching Meng Meihui. Wasn't that strange?
Ren Yuanhao smiled. "You go back. I'll go take a look over there; perhaps I'll discover something."
"Alright, be careful. Although most of those consumers have lost their minds, some still retain strong aggressiveness."
Ren Yuanhao nodded and slowly walked towards the nearby 'graveyard.'
At this time, the sky was darkening, and dark clouds were churning. This was a large city in the great desert, where rainfall was almost a luxury.
An eerie wind whistled, slightly lifting Ren Yuanhao's hair while also carrying a nauseatingly rotten smell. As he got closer, he could still hear the moans of those struggling on the verge of death.
The corpses lay scattered like vegetables and fruits rotten in the ground for a hundred meters. As the tall grass swayed, one could see the dull, lifeless light emanating from the eyes of the consumers, their skin textures like parched earth, with maggots everywhere.
And at this moment, Ren Yuanhao suddenly heard a faint, stern warning.
"Kid, don't go any further, or my blade will pierce your skull and nail it to that tree."
Ren Yuanhao looked up and saw a man sitting on a van. He casually pulled a valve, and the truck bed tilted, dumping out corpse after corpse.
Ren Yuanhao suddenly realized that this man was the one who had caused the car accident that morning. By flipping over a fuel tanker, he had merely intended to block his pursuers and bring these consumers, who had not yet been eliminated by Tianyu, back to their homeland.
Returning to one's roots.
"You're the one who caused the accident, aren't you?"
Ren Yuanhao appraised the innate ability user with amusement.
"I didn't expect your eyesight to be so good. Then tell me, what does this character say?"
The man took out a white paper, casually wrote a character on it, and held it up towards Ren Yuanhao.
The black characters on the white paper read: 'DEATH'!
As soon as the man made these gestures, he immediately charged at Ren Yuanhao like a hound, roaring!
Just then, the system voice suddenly chimed in with a reminder.
"Beep beep, be careful. This man's ability likely belongs to the animal system within the change system. The common characteristic of almost all animal system abilities is extremely strong regenerative power, and the body will also gain buffs from the animal's本体, resulting in incomparable speed, strength, and agility."
"Yes, a pity. I, Ren Yuanhao, am not so easily bullied!"
Ren Yuanhao did not move. He merely manipulated the surrounding wind power, instantly pressing it onto the man.
The sound of wind reversed, like a solidified wall, slamming down onto the man's head. His speed immediately slowed. Ren Yuanhao clenched his fist, and the wind wall, like an iron bucket, tightly gripped the man.