4: Chapter 4! At this moment, beauty is merely an admission ticket.

"Who... is willing?"

Qin Yu's voice wasn't loud, but it was like a massive boulder thrown into a deathly still pond, stirring up towering waves.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

In an instant, outside the ring of the dark firelight, fair and slender arms shot up frantically, one after another, as if they couldn't wait.

In the face of the cold night and the fear of the unknown, the spot closest to the fire, next to the man who possessed formidable strength and held power over their life and death, was the only Eden.

As for the deeper implications behind the term 'warm the bed,' no one cared anymore.

Dignity? Decency?

Could you eat those? Could they stop the beasts that might pounce from the darkness at any moment?

No!

So they raised their hands, using every ounce of their strength, as if they weren't lifting their arms, but their hope for survival.

Even the beautiful counselor Lin Waner, who had just been kneeling in humiliation, now bit her lip and, after an intense internal struggle, tremblingly raised her hand.

She didn't want to die.

Her charming eyes, which usually sparkled with allure on the lecture platform, were now filled with pleading and a hint of ingratiation she herself hadn't noticed, illuminated by the firelight.

Qin Yu's gaze swept coldly over these women who had once seemed unattainably high and mighty.

The campus belle, the counselor, the rich heiress, the arts committee member... Their faces flickered in the dancing firelight. Beauty, at this moment, was nothing but the cheapest entry ticket.

What he wanted were not vases.

Tools! Useful tools!

The [Totem Eye] was already active. In his vision, a line of data appeared above each girl's head, visible only to him.

[Name: Wang Mengmeng]

[Loyalty: 55 (Fear)]

[Hidden Talent: None (Quality: Gray)]

[Name: Li Jing]

[Loyalty: 60 (Fear)]

[Hidden Talent: Beginner Sewing (Quality: White) — Can stitch wounds and clothing faster.]

[Name: Zhou Li]

[Loyalty: 45 (Resentment)]

[Hidden Talent: None (Quality: Gray)]

...

He scanned them one by one. Most had ordinary gray or white talents, utterly worthless.

There wasn't the slightest ripple in Qin Yu's eyes, like a discerning monarch inspecting his property.

His gaze first fell on Su Qingyao, who had already become a 'Beginner Diviner.'

[Name: Su Qingyao]

[Loyalty: 70 (Awe/Dependency)]

[Hidden Talent: Goddess of Luck (Quality: golden legend)]

[Occupation: Beginner Diviner]

"You, come here."

Qin Yu pointed at Su Qingyao.

Su Qingyao trembled all over. Under countless gazes filled with jealousy or envy, she lowered her head, obediently stepped out from the crowd, and came to sit beside Qin Yu.

She was closer to the fire now. A wave of warmth instantly enveloped her icy body, making her nearly moan in comfort.

The first spot was settled.

The remaining girls grew even more tense. They straightened their backs, trying their best to present their most appealing selves, hoping to be chosen by Qin Yu.

Qin Yu's gaze continued to move. Soon, he locked onto two other targets.

One was the sports committee member, tall and athletic, brimming with youthful vitality.

The other was a usually quiet girl in class, but who had just carried two other girls' luggage without a word when moving supplies.

[Name: Chen Xiao (Sports Committee Member)]

[Loyalty: 65 (Awe)]

[Hidden Talent: Amazon Valkyrie (Quality: golden legend) — Not Awakened]

[Name: Liu Qian]

[Loyalty: 68 (Awe)]

[Hidden Talent: Beginner Artisan (Quality: Green) — Has some talent in construction and tool making.]

Another golden legend!

A ripple stirred within Qin Yu, but his expression remained unchanged.

A Diviner, a future Valkyrie, and an Artisan.

Good. The value of these three far exceeded the sum of all the other vases.

"You, and you." Qin Yu pointed at Chen Xiao and Liu Qian. "Come here."

The two who were called instantly erupted with ecstatic joy on their faces. They practically scrambled over to Qin Yu's side and sat down in the two spots he designated, greedily absorbing the warmth of the bonfire.

The selection was over.

The girls who weren't chosen froze with their arms still raised high, then let them drop weakly. Their eyes instantly dimmed, filled with despair and venomous resentment.

Why?

Why choose those three? Fine, Su Qingyao is the campus belle, but that Chen Xiao is just a brawny tomboy, and Liu Qian is an utterly unremarkable quiet one!

In terms of looks and figure, wasn't anyone here better than them?

"Qin Yu! I won't accept this!"

A sharp shriek shattered the silence.

It was the rich girl, Zhao Lei, whose face Qin Yu had slapped swollen earlier.

Clutching her still-swollen cheek, she pointed at Qin Yu with venom-filled eyes, shrieking hysterically, "Why didn't you choose me? Do you know who my father is? When we get back, my dad can give you more money than you could spend in a lifetime! If you curry favor with me now, later..."

"Shut up."

Qin Yu didn't even turn his head, merely uttering two words flatly.

The voice was icy and piercing, as if carrying tangible killing intent, choking off the rest of Zhao Lei's words in her throat.

"One more word, and you get no share of the meat tomorrow."

Zhao Lei's body shook violently. Her arrogant bluster instantly extinguished, replaced by boundless fear.

She remembered the scene of the Velociraptor tearing her classmate apart this afternoon, remembered the searing pain from Qin Yu's slap.

Money? Her father?

In this godforsaken place, those things weren't even worth a piece of roasted meat!

Zhao Lei bit her lip so hard it nearly bled, the resentment in her eyes almost overflowing, but she didn't dare make another sound.

Qin Yu couldn't be bothered to care about the inner turmoil of such a foolish woman.

He tore off a piece of the most tenderly roasted dragon leg meat. Half he handed to Su Qingyao, the other half he had Chen Xiao and Liu Qian share.

"Eat it. Conserve your strength," Qin Yu commanded. "The night won't be peaceful. Your task is to keep the bonfire from going out while I rest, and... to wake me immediately when I need it."

"Yes... Chief!"

The three of them received the still-warm meat with both hands, their eyes filled with gratitude and excitement. They ate in small bites, as if savoring the world's most delicious delicacy.

All around were the sounds of other girls swallowing their saliva frantically and jealousy so thick it was almost palpable.

Just then, Su Qingyao, who had been sitting quietly beside Qin Yu, suddenly furrowed her delicate brows. Her small nose twitched slightly as she sniffed, and her face instantly turned deathly pale.

"Chief..." Her voice carried a tremor. "That smell... it's here!"

Smell?

The other girls hadn't reacted yet, but Qin Yu, with his years of training and senses far surpassing ordinary people, had already sensed something amiss.

In the sea breeze, besides the salty and bloody smells, there was now an additional scent...

A nauseatingly thick, bizarre odor mixing earthiness and rot!

This smell seemed to seep from all directions, penetrating everywhere, drilling into everyone's nostrils, making their scalps prickle!

Whoosh—

Almost simultaneously, a ghastly white lightning bolt split the sky without warning, followed by raindrops the size of beans, pelting down pitter-patter!

The rainstorm had arrived without warning!

"Ah! It's raining! The fire will go out!"

A girl screamed in terror.

However, more terrifying than the rainstorm and the dying fire was the sight illuminated by the lightning tearing through the night sky at the edge of the dark rainforest, on that stretch of sandy ground!

Rustle... rustle rustle...

Dense, countless black shadows, like a writhing tide, were surging from the depths of the rainforest toward their lone source of light!

"Wh-what are those things?!"

A girl pointed a trembling hand in that direction, her voice completely distorted.

Lin Waner also widened her eyes. When another flash of lightning lit up, allowing her to see the true forms of those 'black shadows,' her stomach churned violently. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed directly onto the cold, muddy ground in the rain.

They were snakes!

Snakes blotted out the sky and covered the earth!

Tens of thousands of venomous snakes, of varying sizes and colors, had converged into a terrifying tide of serpents that made one's scalp explode with fear!

"Chief..." Su Qingyao's prophecy had come true, but witnessing this scene firsthand, she was still so frightened her pretty face lost all color. Subconsciously, she grabbed Qin Yu's arm, as if only that could provide a sliver of security.

Yet, at this moment, Qin Yu's eyes shone with a frightening intensity.

Crisis?

No!

In his system panel, that writhing tide of snakes was no crisis at all!

It was...

A moving experience pack! A massive amount of attribute points!

"Stay here and don't move."

Qin Yu coldly commanded the three girls beside him, then slowly stood up, gripping his m9 tactical folding knife in a reverse hold.

He looked at the surging tide of snakes, a cruel and excited curve lifting the corner of his mouth.

"How could I refuse a dinner delivered right to my doorstep?"