Am I going to be sacrificed too?

Chapter 33 Li Miaoyu

Becoming a chosen one did not change Bai Yan much; he remained the same taciturn young man.

Bai Yan refused the kindness of the Lost Church members and went outside the city alone, where he found a job clearing ruins.

Clearing the ruins is not much different from scavenging before. It's just that you've gone from picking up trash yourself to picking up trash for Strange Stone City. The only difference is that you now have a guaranteed minimum wage, and any treasures you find no longer belong to you.

Although they have less money, at least they no longer need to worry about the dangers that may come at any time.

Moreover, the ruins near Strange Stone City are not only for resources; the higher-ups are preparing to take advantage of this opportunity to begin outward expansion.

This undoubtedly gave everyone a boost of confidence. They were not defeated by the disaster, but instead rose from the ashes and are thriving!

Although it was just clearing rubble, Bai Yan was, after all, an extraordinary person with physical abilities several times greater than ordinary people, making the work much easier for him than for others.

He didn't overdo it; he was just a little better than the others. His years of experience in the wilderness had taught him that showing off was never a good thing.

He didn't have any grand ambitions; he just wanted to quietly collect garbage, enough to support himself, and then buy a small house in the outer city.

The other survivors clearing the rubble probably never imagined that they would have such a low-key superhuman coworker by their side.

"Ouch!"

Suddenly, a cry of surprise came from not far away. Bai Yan looked in the direction of the sound and saw a long shadow darting out from a pile of rubble, about to pounce on the person.

Bai Yan recognized it at a glance—it was a snake!

Without time for further thought, Bai Yan attached the Chaos Divine Power to his feet and swiftly kicked out a piece of broken stone.

With a bang, the snake's head was smashed by the rubble and fell to the ground. It twitched for a moment and then went still.

The person who was about to be attacked by the snake fell into the ruins due to fright. After struggling for a long time, Bai Yan finally pulled him out.

After pulling them up, they realized that the person in front of them was a young girl.

"Are you... are you alright?" Bai Yan stammered.

Despite his long-standing silence and the return of his voice to normal after his successful awakening, Bai Yan was still not fully adapted to speaking and remained very unskilled when he spoke.

The girl poked her head out from the ruins, her chestnut hair gleaming golden in the sunlight. Perhaps due to exercise, her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her bright eyes were looking Bai Yan up and down, her gaze filled with curiosity and nervousness.

Unlike other survivors who had struggled for a long time in the apocalypse, her clothes, though stained, did not have that pungent odor, suggesting that she was someone who usually took care of herself.

"Thank you! Thank you for saving me! Are you alright?" The girl bowed repeatedly in gratitude.

"No...it's nothing."

He was the one who asked the question, so why is it that he's the one saying it's nothing?

Bai Yan was not good with words, so he could only scratch his head blankly as he prepared to leave.

"Then...I'm leaving."

"Wait!" the girl called out to Bai Yan.

"You saved me, and I still don't know your name. My name is Li Miaoyu. What's yours?"

"Bai...yan".

"Baiyan? What an ordinary name."

Li Miaoyu shook her head: "You saved my life, and I, Li Miaoyu, am not an ungrateful person. How about this, I'll treat you to a meal, okay?"

"Forehead……"

Faced with Li Miaoyu's overly enthusiastic kindness, Bai Yan was momentarily at a loss and fell silent.

"Li Miaoyu, what just happened?"

At this moment, others also noticed the situation and heard Li Miaoyu's earlier exclamation, including the foreman in charge of managing them.

This ruin is the private property of Strange Stone City. Since they are allowed to mine and clear it, someone needs to supervise it. However, since everyone is just an employee, there won't be any aggressive behavior.

"Brother Zhang is here. A snake suddenly popped out of the ruins just now, which startled me, but it's alright now."

Foreman Zhang looked at the snake carcass on the ground and gasped, "Hiss~ I recognize this kind of snake; it's highly venomous! I didn't realize you were so capable, managing to kill it with a single blow. You weren't bitten, were you?"

Li Miaoyu waved her hand: "I didn't kill him, this young man reacted quickly and saved me."

Foreman Zhang glanced at Bai Yan with slight surprise. He had some impression of this recently joined scavenger. Although he looked rather thin, he usually worked more than others. Every day when he paid wages, he would check everyone's work progress. The wages of the man in front of him were among the highest of his men.

He initially thought it was because the other party frequently scavenged. Scavengers from other places often wandered the wilderness year-round, and their scavenging efficiency was higher than that of the locals in Qishi City, which was a normal phenomenon.

Judging from the wound on the snake's head, the attack was ruthless and fatal. It seems this kid has some skills.

However, that's all.

Foreman Zhang doesn't care about your status or abilities; to him, all you have to do is scavenge and work honestly.

"Since everything's alright, let's get back to work. Move and clear away the dilapidated buildings and bricks. If we don't meet the standards, we'll have our wages docked."

This is a strict standard set by Qishi City; everyone has to work, and they get paid according to how much they do. Foreman Zhang can't change it.

As for workers' compensation, that's out of the question.

"Alright, alright, I got it." Li Miaoyu waved her hand dismissively, then said to Bai Yan.

"Then it's settled. Come to No. 179 East Street in the outer city tonight. It's on me. I'll be waiting for you there." Before Bai Yan could refuse, Li Miaoyu finalized the plan and turned to leave, leaving Bai Yan stunned.

"Alright, stop looking." Foreman Zhang patted Bai Yan on the shoulder.

"That's just the kind of person Li Miaoyu is. She's very easygoing with everyone. Just go when the time comes, since she said she'd treat us anyway."

I bet you're from outside the city. You bunch of outsiders are always so anxious and worried. I think you're all a bit paranoid. You've already come to Qishi City, why are you still afraid of this and that?

There are plenty of places to have fun in the city; don't die before you've spent all your money.

Is this the difference between a wilderness dweller and a city dweller? Bai Yan's mindset couldn't change for a moment, living in fear and anxiety versus dying carefree.

It seems... that's not that different?

Bai Yan wondered, "Isn't there a way to have the best of both worlds and let everyone live carefree?"

He shook his head and stopped thinking about those messy things. Changing the world was something only gods should do.

After silently praying to the Lord of the Lost in his heart, Bai Yan returned to his workstation and continued his cleaning work for the day.

Since things have come to this, let's get back to work.