51: Resident Evil? No, it's a social death crisis!

Virtual Reality: Survival Island, Central Lake Area.

The aroma of cumin and roasted meat that had originally permeated the air was now being rapidly replaced by an indescribably eerie smell.

That smell was like hundred-year-old fermented surströmming mixed with sewer sludge, seasoned with the essence of several tons of low-quality durian baked under the scorching sun.

“Glug... Glug...”

On the lake's surface, the massive crater Zhao Gang had smashed out in a "jet-takeoff" posture was now continuously churning out eerie yellow-green foam.

The originally crystal-clear, shimmering lake water turned murky at a speed visible to the naked eye. Several innocent Virtual Koi floated up with their white bellies exposed, their fishy eyes wide open, unable to die in peace.

On the shore, hundreds of freshmen who had been pushing and shoving just to buy skewers now covered their noses and mouths in unison, retreating a full fifty meters.

【Island-wide Announcement: Warning! Warning!】

【Detected that the central lake water source has been contaminated by "high-concentration biochemical toxins."】

【Pollution source identified: Zhao Gang (and the potent laxative metabolites within his body).】

【Current water source status: Highly Toxic. Consumption will result in irreversible physiological diarrhea, hallucinations, and mental breakdown. All examinees, please stay away from the water source!】

The synthesized electronic voice echoed in the night sky, coldly and heartlessly pronouncing Zhao Gang's "death sentence."

The entire field was stunned.

Immediately after, everyone's complex gazes turned toward the splashing figure in the center of the lake.

“Help... Help me...”

Although Zhao Gang was a trained martial artist in reality, under the double blow of extreme social death and physiological loss of control, even his swimming posture had become deformed. As he paddled, he continued to output "propulsion power" behind him, causing him to move across the lake in a bizarre "S-shape."

“I'm going to kill him... *blech*... Gu Fan... I'm going to kill you...”

Zhao Gang retched while making a poisonous oath in his heart. But just as he opened his mouth to roar, a mouthful of lake water inevitably poured in.

“Glug glug...”

That sensation was so intense it shot straight to the crown of his head.

On the shore, Gu Fan pushed the sunglasses up the bridge of his nose and very thoughtfully picked up the megaphone in his hand.

“Attention students, please maintain your manners. Although Student Zhao Gang is engaging in some rather uncivilized personal excretion in the lake, we should be understanding; nature calls, after all.”

Gu Fan's voice was lazy, yet it clearly reached every corner. “However, given that Young Master Zhao has single-handedly destroyed the island's only freshwater source, on behalf of the vast number of environment-loving students, I express strong condemnation of this behavior.”

Standing beside Gu Fan, Lin Xue wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

She looked at Zhao Gang, who was still "spraying" in the lake, and her heart collapsed. That was her specially made "Thousand-Mile Diarrhea Powder"! It was originally intended for Gu Fan, but now it had all been fed to Zhao Gang, and it had even destroyed the island's water source in the process.

If this got back to Eden, her code name would probably be changed from "Succubus" to "Poison Queen."

“President... what do we do now?” Xiao Fan covered his nose with a bitter expression. “The water source is ruined, and we won't have any water to drink ourselves. Plus, this smell is too strong; we can't stay here at all.”

“What's the panic?”

Gu Fan calmly pulled a bottle of chilled mineral water from the Super Supply Crate behind him, unscrewed the cap, and took a large gulp in front of the hundreds of examinees whose throats were parched.

“Ah—Refreshing!”

This exclamation was practically more deafening than the explosion earlier.

Countless pairs of greedy eyes instantly locked onto the bottle in Gu Fan's hand.

Everyone had been struggling in the jungle all day and was already parched. They had originally hoped to get a drink by the lake, but now the lake water had turned into "sewage." Who would dare drink it?

But Gu Fan had water!

And it was chilled! Tempting droplets of water were even hanging off the bottle!

“Gulp.”

No one knew who swallowed first, but soon, the sound of swallowing rose and fell, joining together in a wave.

“Water... I want water...”

A burly freshman with bloodshot eyes took a step toward Gu Fan as if possessed. “Give me a sip... just one sip...”

Gu Fan raised an eyebrow, revealing the characteristic smile of a profiteer.

He snapped his fingers.

“Wangcai, hang up the sign.”

The Flame Lion, who was lying nearby gnawing on a bone, flicked its tail extremely perfunctorily. A burst of flame shot out, lighting a wooden sign next to Gu Fan.

On the wooden sign, several bold, flowing characters were exceptionally striking in the firelight:

【Gu's Mountain Spring—Nature's Porter (Though it was ported from an airdrop crate)】

【Today's Special: 50 points/bottle. No credit.】

【Barter accepted: A-Rank equipment for one case, B-Rank equipment for three bottles.】

“This is robbery!”

Someone in the crowd roared angrily, “50 points for a bottle of water? Why don't you just rob a bank? Our initial points were only 10!”

“My fellow student, your vision is too narrow.” Gu Fan wagged a finger. “This isn't just water; it's the source of life. In a desert, a cup of water can be exchanged for a mountain of gold. On this Survival Island filled with toxic gas, is 50 points too expensive for a life?”

He shook the bottle in his hand. “Besides, this is a monopoly. Once you miss this chance, you won't find another. Young Master Zhao is still adding 'ingredients' to the lake; are you sure you don't want a bottle to wash your stomach out?”

As soon as he finished speaking, another loud noise came from the center of the lake. Zhao Gang was clearly still engaged in intense "underwater operations."

Everyone looked at the green-tinged lake water, their faces turning various shades of pale.

“I... I'll buy it!”

Finally, someone broke. A girl from the Mage Department ran over with a tearful face, slapping her points card on the table. “I just killed two wild boars, I have 60 points! Give me a bottle of water! I want it cold!”

“Right away! That'll be 50 points!”

Gu Fan took the points card with a smile, swiped it on the card reader, and then handed over a bottle of water misting with cold air. “Lin Xue, get a straw for this distinguished guest; don't let her mess up her lipstick.”

Lin Xue, with a dark face, mechanically handed over a straw. She felt like she wasn't an agent or an assassin; she was now just an emotionless supermarket cashier.

Once there was a first, there would be a second.

Once the psychological defense collapsed, the rest was the bandwagon effect.

“I'll buy one too! I only have 30 points, but I have a B-Rank dagger! Can I trade?”

“Trade! Throw the dagger in the basket over there.”

“Grandpa Gu! Can I sell my charms? I'm the beauty of the Dance Department!”

“Sorry, this shop only accepts hard currency. However, you can go over there and dance for Wangcai. If it's happy, maybe it'll grant you half a bottle.”

In just ten short minutes, a long queue formed in front of Gu Fan's stall.

The originally tense Survival Arena had been forcefully turned into a marketplace by him.

Of course, not everyone was willing to pay up obediently.

At the back of the crowd, several boys with unfriendly gazes gathered together. They were the "Venomous Scorpion Squad," specialists in dirty tricks and ambushes.

“Captain, this kid is too arrogant.”

A boy with a buzz cut whispered, “He has so many supplies, plus that S-Rank combat blade... if we can snatch them, first place in this competition will be ours!”

The captain licked his dry lips, greed flashing in his eyes. “Exactly. That lion might be powerful, but it's just a beast after all. Gu Fan is busy collecting money; his alertness must be at its lowest. We three will split up: Old Third will lure the lion away, Old Second will throw smoke bombs, and I'll strike Gu Fan directly!”

“Let's do it!”

The three exchanged looks and instantly scattered.

A few seconds later.

“Bang!”

A smoke bomb exploded in front of the stall, thick white smoke instantly enveloping Gu Fan and Lin Xue.

“Move!”

The Venomous Scorpion Captain roared, his figure moving swiftly as he held a poisoned dagger, lunging straight for Gu Fan in the center of the smoke.

At the same time, Old Third recklessly charged toward the Flame Lion, throwing a stone in an attempt to provoke it.

However, just as the captain's dagger was about to pierce the smoke.

【Ding! Detected 'Venomous Scorpion Squad's' intentional robbery and personal injury.】

【Malice Rank: C+.】

【Backlash triggered! Multiplier: Forty times!】

【Law of Karma loading: Environment Leverage · Biochemical Counterattack Edition.】

At that very moment, several dark shadows suddenly darted out from the edge of the originally peaceful jungle.

They were several "Iron-skinned Crocodiles" that lived by the lake. They were originally amphibious Vicious Beasts, thick-skinned and bad-tempered.

But right now, the state of these crocodiles was very wrong.

Their eyes were bulging, their mouths wide open, and their tails tucked tight. They were charging out frantically in a posture that completely defied the laws of crocodile crawling—running upright on their hind legs.

Because they had accidentally taken a sip of the lake water contaminated by Zhao Gang.

That water, a mixture of potent laxatives and Zhao Gang's resentment, had made these Vicious Beasts instantly experience what was called the "unbearable pain of a beast's life."

They desperately needed to vent, or desperately needed to find a place to resolve their physiological issues.

And the Venomous Scorpion Captain's charge route happened to block the crocodiles' essential path to the bushes that served as their toilet.

“Roar—!!!” (Get lost! Don't block me from taking a crap!)

The lead three-meter-long Iron-skinned Crocodile let out a shrill roar, completely ignoring the dagger in the Venomous Scorpion Captain's hand, and performed a direct "Savage Charge."

“Bang!”

A muffled thud rang out.

The Venomous Scorpion Captain felt like he had been hit by an out-of-control truck.

He flew back, spinning three and a half times in the air, before finally crashing heavily onto... the soaking wet Zhao Gang, who had just climbed ashore.

“Ouch!”

Zhao Gang, who had just caught his breath, was smashed back into the water by the man falling from the sky.

On the other side, Old Third, who had tried to provoke the Flame Lion, was even worse off.

The stone he threw didn't hit Wangcai but was blown off course by a sudden gust of strange wind, hitting a nest of "Killer Bees" on a nearby treetop.

“Buzz—”

The black swarm poured out, instantly wrapping Old Third up like a black mummy.

“Argh! Don't sting there! It's swollen! It's swollen!”

The screams were incredibly shrill, making the students waiting in line to buy water instinctively tighten their legs.

The smoke dissipated.

Gu Fan was still sitting in his lounge chair, holding that thick stack of points cards, his posture not having changed even slightly.

“That's it?”

Gu Fan glanced at Old Second, who was being chased and bitten on the butt by a crocodile in the distance, and shook his head. “Young people these days, their physical fitness just isn't up to par. Robbery is physical labor; how can you do it without drinking more Gu's Mountain Spring?”

Lin Xue stood to the side, her mouth twitching as she watched the crocodiles, driven mad by drinking "Zhao Gang Brand Toxic Water," attacking the assailants.

This worked too?

Even the crocodiles became his thugs?

Is this Gu Fan the illegitimate son of the Heavenly Dao?

“Student Lin, stop daydreaming.” Gu Fan threw a pile of points cards into Lin Xue's arms. “Count them up and see how much we've made today. Also, take note of that person over there who just tried to cut in line; sell it to him at a higher price later.”

Lin Xue took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to throw the points cards in Gu Fan's face.

“Yes... President.”

She frantically comforted herself in her heart: I am a professional, I am trained. As long as I get the intelligence, all this humiliation is worth it!

The night grew deeper.

A blood-red moon hung on the treetops.

According to Survival Island's settings, night was when the real slaughter began.

Gu Fan looked at the virtual interface on his wrist showing that his points had already broken the five thousand mark and stretched satisfied.

“That's about enough.”

He stood up and looked at the pitch-black jungle in the distance, seemingly having a new idea.

“Since we've earned enough points and everyone is fed and watered, how can we not have some entertainment?”

Gu Fan snapped his fingers. “Xiao Fan, go pile up that dry wood we collected earlier.”

“President, what are you going to do?” Xiao Fan had an ominous premonition.

“Host a bonfire party.”

Gu Fan's smile was pure and kind. “And while we're at it, set up that Map-wide Taunt Megaphone. I'm going to play some explosive rock music for all the wild monsters on the island to liven things up.”

Xiao Fan looked at the glittering golden megaphone in Gu Fan's hand, then at the jungle where beastly roars occasionally echoed, and his legs began to shake.

“President... do you think we're not dying fast enough? Playing rock music now? Won't that draw all the bosses on the map over here?!”

“That's exactly the effect I want.”

Gu Fan patted Xiao Fan on the shoulder. “If we don't draw the monsters over, how do we farm points? If we don't farm points, how do we get first place? Don't worry, tonight's expenses are on Young Master Zhao.”

In the distant lake, Zhao Gang, who had just poked his head out, heard this, his eyes rolled back, and he sank again.