149: Chapter 149 Should we invite him to join us?

"Wait a moment." Su Wan reached out, interrupting her conversation with Fang Shouzheng.

Then, her gaze fell on the information panel floating before her, and her fingertips began tapping rapidly.

Fang Shouzheng watched from the side, a look of surprise on his face.

"I'm replying to a message," Su Wan explained while typing her response.

Hearing this explanation, Fang Shouzheng became even more confused and surprised.

They were currently discussing serious matters regarding the future development of the Stronghold; what message could be so urgent that it had to be replied to right now?

Of course, he didn't voice his interruption, simply waiting by her side.

A moment later, Su Wan ended the conversation, closed the panel, and offered an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, it was a friend."

"What kind of friend?" Fang Shouzheng asked with a smile.

He was curious about what sort of friend could make Su Wan disregard their current talk to reply so quickly upon receiving a message.

"I've mentioned him to you before—the one who saved us during the fourth Assessment," Su Wan said.

Fang Shouzheng's eyes flashed. "You mean the one who solo-killed the Blood-Patterned Spider Mother outside?"

The commotion that Beast King caused outside the Xinhuo Stronghold back then had been quite significant.

Moreover, he had heard from Su Wan and the others that the Blood-Patterned Spider Mother had brought a swarm of spiders with her; her combat power was not something an ordinary Beast King could match.

"Yes, he's coming over now, so I'm going to go pick him up." Su Wan nodded, an unconscious smile appearing on her face.

"Hold on." Seeing Su Wan about to stand up, Fang Shouzheng stopped her again, then rubbed his fingers together and asked, "How is his strength now?"

Before Su Wan could speak, Lin Jianqiu, who had been standing quietly behind her, spoke up first:

"He's likely stronger than you."

"..."

Fang Shouzheng looked helplessly at Lin Jianqiu, then back at Su Wan, saying irritably, "Hey now, Xiao Su, keep a leash on your teammate. Look at how she talks."

Su Wan chuckled and replied, "He really is quite formidable. He's likely reached C-rank long ago, so he's indeed a bit stronger than all of us."

Fang Shouzheng didn't dwell on Lin Jianqiu's words. He rubbed his fingers again and lowered his voice, saying, "Then... do you want to try recruiting him? Have him join our side?"

If the Xinhuo Stronghold could gain such a powerful combatant, it would certainly be beneficial for their future development.

Su Wan didn't answer immediately upon hearing this.

She tilted her head slightly, seemingly giving it serious consideration, before finally speaking: "If there's a chance, I'll mention it to him."

Fang Shouzheng stood up as well. "How about I go with you?"

Su Wan might be too embarrassed to ask as a friend, but he was quite thick-skinned.

Su Wan pressed her hand down in a dismissive gesture. "Next time. I'll go pick him up first. If he wants to stay for a few days, I'll introduce you to him."

Seeing Su Wan's persistence, Fang Shouzheng didn't insist on following.

...

After stepping out the door, Lin Jianqiu naturally followed Su Wan, and the two walked side-by-side down the corridor toward the exit.

After walking a distance, Lin Jianqiu turned slightly and asked softly, "Is he really coming?"

It had to be said that her impression of Gu Changming was incredibly deep.

Even though her strength had improved to the point where she was now capable of killing that Blood-Patterned Spider Mother herself,

that guy still left her with the impression of being incomparably powerful and invincible.

Su Wan nodded. "Yes, he just sent a message saying he's almost here."

Lin Jianqiu looked thoughtful. After a moment, she spoke again: "Seriously, do you want to... try inviting him to join us?"

Su Wan's pace slowed slightly before she replied:

"He might not necessarily be willing."

Lin Jianqiu smiled, her pace slowing by half a beat as she lightly hugged Su Wan from behind, resting her chin on Su Wan's shoulder.

"That was before," she whispered into Su Wan's ear. "Back then, we were just a four-person squad, but now we've developed into a Battle Group. You're even the Commander, and we have two C-rank ability users... our strength is decent now. He might be willing now."

Yes, she was no longer feeling inferior.

Su Wan thought for a moment and said, "We'll see when the time comes."

She didn't even know what he was coming here for yet.

...

Several hundred meters away from the Xinhuo Stronghold.

Gu Changming leaped down from the back of the Netherworld Wolf that the Mimic Beast had transformed into.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, the lithe wolf beside him rapidly shrank and morphed, transforming in the blink of an eye into a pitch-black crow that flapped its wings and landed on his shoulder.

Gu Changming looked up at the Stronghold not far away.

The Stronghold was surrounded by high metal walls. Although its scale wasn't as large as in his past life, its appearance was gradually overlapping with the 'Xinhuo Stronghold' in his memory.

The last time he came here, it had still been very primitive.

After taking a look, Gu Changming began walking toward the city walls.

Before he even reached the entrance, he saw Su Wan and Lin Jianqiu waiting outside.

Gu Changming's footsteps paused slightly, a bit surprised.

He hadn't expected them to arrive so quickly.

In truth, he didn't necessarily need to tell them he was coming, but thinking about Cheng Yubai and the other two, he felt it was better to ask for a favor like this in person.

That was why he had messaged Su Wan.

When they met, Su Wan spoke first, explaining with some embarrassment.

"Chen Yanzhi and Zhang Yuanfan had some matters to attend to outside, so they didn't come."

Gu Changming nodded, not really minding.

To be honest, if Su Wan hadn't mentioned them, he might have forgotten their names, just as he had forgotten Su Wan's name initially.

After meeting, the three of them walked toward the interior of the Stronghold.

On the way in, Gu Changming briefly mentioned the matter regarding Cheng Yubai and the other two, telling Su Wan that if they came over, he'd appreciate her looking after them.

Su Wan didn't hesitate much before agreeing to Gu Changming's request.

After their brief exchange, Lin Jianqiu suddenly turned and looked at Gu Changming, asking in a casual tone:

"You could have just sent a message for something like that. Why did you come all the way here specifically?"

Hearing this, Gu Changming's footsteps came to a halt, and he looked at the two of them.

"Because of the matter regarding this Assessment."

He wasn't lying. His visit to the Xinhuo Stronghold was indeed because of the Assessment; there were more people here, and thus more people chosen by the curse.

If he wanted to obtain more curse fuel, he naturally had to come here.

"The Assessment? That transmissible curse?" Su Wan asked.

"Yes."

Gu Changming nodded, then looked at Su Wan before him. His eyes blinked as an idea occurred to him.

In the next second, he suddenly reached out and grabbed toward Su Wan's shoulder.

The movement wasn't fast, but it was very sudden.

Su Wan was clearly stunned for a moment, but she didn't dodge.

She simply let Gu Changming's hand grasp her shoulder.

Then.

She looked at Gu Changming with a face full of confusion.

Eh?

The air fell silent for a few seconds.