Scarface’s squad was notorious in Oasis Base, though not in a good way.
Although the base had administrators and duty personnel overseeing it, maintaining basic order and prohibiting acts like arson, murder, and plunder, once you stepped outside the base, it was a brutal world of survival of the fittest. As long as they acted "cleanly" and left no evidence, the higher-ups couldn’t do much to them.
If anyone wanted to settle grudges privately and confront their squad, they were no match, and the matter would eventually be dropped.
Robbery became a highly profitable side business for Scarface’s squad—easy and lucrative.
The existence of the Store spread like a storm both inside and outside the base. Upon hearing the news, Scarface, like a hungry wolf catching the scent of prey, eagerly gathered his trusted comrades and armed themselves.
As soon as night fell, many others would come to the Store. They had to complete the robbery before then, take the large amount of supplies, and flee to another base to continue their comfortable lives. That’s why they came to rob the Store in the early afternoon.
In Li Yang’s description, this Store was an undefended treasure trove.
The shopkeeper was nowhere to be seen, and payment and item retrieval were entirely self-service by the customers. Large quantities of water were neatly arranged on the shelves. Wasn’t this the perfect target for a robbery?
As for the so-called giant, it seemed like nothing more than wild speculation, and they didn’t take it seriously at all. Their hearts were filled with greed, and thinking about the vast amount of supplies they were about to obtain, the corners of their mouths unconsciously curled upward.
The large truck screeched to a halt in front of the Store. Scarface kicked the door open and swaggered out with his comrades.
As soon as they stepped out, they all wore expressions of astonishment. Feeling the surrounding temperature, they couldn’t help but exclaim, "Boss, it’s really not hot here! What those people said was actually true!"
Though they didn’t know how it was achieved, the effect was undeniable—this place was much cooler than the underground parking lot!
Scarface raised an eyebrow and sighed, "If not for the fact that everyone in the base already knows about this place, it would’ve made a great base for us."
Unfortunately, the Store’s location and unique features had already been made public, and all the thousands of people in the base were aware of its existence. It was no longer suitable for them to set up camp here.
"If we pull this off today, we’ll be set for a long time," Scarface’s voice was filled with greed and madness. He took the lead, striding toward the Store with his men. "This is a robbery! Hand over all the supplies!"
However, no one inside responded to his words, but the scene inside the Store left him stunned.
On the first-floor shelves, there were either rows of bottled water or stacks of Toast—all precious supplies.
He had initially thought that the people in the base were exaggerating. Even if there really was a Store, how much supplies could it possibly have? But now, these precious food and water items were right before his eyes. Those guys hadn’t been lying after all.
"Haha, I’m going to be rich!" Scarface was the first to snap out of it, letting out a wild laugh filled with greed and triumph.
He charged inside, his hands moving frantically as he stuffed the supplies from the shelves into his arms, preparing to load them all onto the truck.
The brothers were not to be outdone, quickly following suit. In an instant, the store descended into chaos—shelves were knocked askew, and scattered goods littered the floor.
Qin Zhiyuan had been observing everything all along. Seeing his store being wantonly destroyed by this group, his expression darkened abruptly. A voice filled with anger echoed through the store, "Put it down!"
"If you dare touch the goods again, don’t blame me for being ruthless!" he threatened sternly, but his words failed to stop Scarface and the others from continuing their actions.
Scarface glanced around, searching for the source of the voice, but could only hear it without seeing anyone. A contemptuous sneer appeared on the man’s face, convinced that the so-called store owner was a coward too afraid to show himself. He grew even more brazen.
"Stop playing tricks! Come out and face us if you dare!" Scarface said, redoubling his efforts to load supplies onto the truck. "Ignore him!"
His brothers joined in the commotion, whistling and turning a deaf ear to the warnings as they continued to frantically loot the store, completely disregarding Qin Zhiyuan’s words.
[System, can you make them see the part of my body extending into the Sand Table?]
[Yes. The invisibility is only to avoid causing panic. The Host can choose to enable visibility.]
[Enable it.]
"You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit." Qin Zhiyuan’s voice rang out once more, this time filled with a sharp, chilling killing intent.
Scarface remained unimpressed. He believed that with his numbers, even if the store owner did appear, they would still have the upper hand. As he carried water, he taunted, "Come out if you dare! I’ll chop you to pieces!"
Just as they were reveling in their arrogance, the clear sky suddenly darkened, as if shrouded by a massive shadow.
Scarface and his brothers instinctively halted their actions. Since the apocalypse, the world had never experienced cloudy weather—why had the sky suddenly darkened?
Puzzled, they looked up at the sky, trying to see what was happening.
What they saw was a colossal, bony, and slender hand slowly piercing through the clouds, descending toward them.
The hand blotted out the sky, like a divine hand from mythology, exuding a terrifying pressure that made their hearts race and fear instantly spread through their bodies.
Scarface’s eyes widened, his mouth agape. The smugness on his face vanished without a trace, replaced by boundless terror.
Before they could react, the giant hand had already swiftly reached them.
With a gentle push against the truck, the once-sturdy vehicle toppled over as easily as a paper toy, its wheels spinning in the air with a low hum.
Immediately after, the hand effortlessly grabbed Scarface as if he were a ragdoll.
The goods Scarface had just stolen clattered to the ground with a crisp sound, shattering the suffocating silence.
His body was tightly enveloped by an immense force. He struggled desperately to break free from the terrifying grip but found his strength utterly insignificant before the giant hand.
"What… what is this thing?!" one of his brothers cried out in terror. The others collapsed to the ground in fear, their eyes no longer filled with greed but only deep dread.
"Save… save me!" Scarface desperately cried out, his voice pitifully weak within the enormous grasp. Yet his comrades were utterly paralyzed, their legs trembling so violently they couldn't move an inch.
Qin Zhiyuan held him aloft, lifting him higher than the Store itself, then casually shook him a couple of times, nearly rattling the bile from his guts.
Scarface's face turned deathly pale, his body trembling uncontrollably, consumed by even greater terror.
"Do you think just because it's the Post-apocalypse, you can act with impunity?" The young man's voice rang out once more, carrying boundless authority.
He slightly tightened his fingers, and Scarface felt as though his chest were about to be crushed by the immense pressure, his breathing growing increasingly labored.
Staring at the colossal hand before him, Scarface was filled with bitter regret. He never imagined the shopkeeper possessed such formidable power.
That Han Qingying said the shopkeeper might be a giant—was it actually true?! He thought she was just making wild guesses and talking nonsense! Damn it all!
"No… don't kill me!" Scarface wailed, his voice thick with pleading. In his final moments, tears and snot streamed uncontrollably down his face.
As for his so-called loyal brothers, their earlier arrogance had completely vanished. Seeing Scarface firmly trapped in the giant's grip, fear instantly overwhelmed everything else.
The sharp-faced man gritted his teeth, abruptly hurling the large bucket of water he was clutching. The container rolled several times on the ground, emitting a gurgling sound.
"S-sorry, boss! I've got an old mother at home waiting for me to take care of her!" he stammered, scrambling away in a frantic, ungainly rush, completely ignoring Scarface's despairing gaze.
In an instant, the brothers who had been frantically looting supplies all dropped what they were holding and fled headlong without a backward glance. Even if they stumbled and fell face-first in their panic, they ignored the pain, quickly scrambled back up, and kept running.
Before long, they had dashed beyond the Sand Table's boundaries and vanished from sight, leaving Scarface utterly alone and helpless.
"Bastards!" Scarface stared at the fleeing backs of his comrades, never imagining that the brothers he'd called friends in ordinary times would prove so cowardly and selfish, abandoning him without hesitation in a crisis.
Qin Zhiyuan watched Scarface's desperate pleas and despair-filled expression with an impassive face, feeling no satisfaction whatsoever.
He had no intention of actually taking lives or causing their deaths; he merely wanted to make an example of one to warn the others, teaching a lesson to those with malicious intentions.
Seeing that the others had already been frightened into fleeing and that their leader, Scarface, was thoroughly broken by fear, Qin Zhiyuan's tone softened slightly, losing its earlier sharp lethality. "I won't kill you, not because I'm merciful, but because I don't want to dirty my hands."
Then, his voice shifted, carrying an unyielding coldness. "But I can't simply let you off so easily. Pay three hundred Points as the price for your life."
Li Yang's entire team had only managed to scrape together a little over two hundred Points, which showed their regular wages and savings weren't high—they barely had any money. But Scarface was a robber; surely he must have some savings, right?
Causing trouble in his shop—like plucking feathers from a passing goose or skinning a fleeing beast—required payment.
Life and death hung on the other's whim. Scarface dared not hesitate for even a moment, immediately nodding frantically. In his overwhelming agitation, his entire body trembled along. "I'll give it, I'll give it right now!"
Qin Zhiyuan slowly loosened his grip, lowering him from mid-air. As Scarface's feet touched the ground, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud, utterly humiliated.
It took several seconds before he shakily rose to his feet and stumbled toward the store's POS machine. His hands trembled uncontrollably, and he struggled to complete the payment process.
Qin Zhiyuan glanced at the Points balance now credited to his account, his gloomy mood lifting slightly. Only then did he speak coldly, "Get lost. Don't let me see you again."
Scarface felt as if he had been granted a pardon. Not daring to linger for even half a second longer, he scrambled away without looking back, not even daring to reclaim his truck, as though fleeing from a ferocious beast.
Watching Scarface's retreating figure disappear, Qin Zhiyuan took a deep breath and turned his gaze toward the store, now ransacked and in complete disarray. A wave of resentment washed over him.
He would have to tidy everything up again—what a pointless addition to his workload…
It was time to consider hiring a few people as employees! He would go draft a Recruitment Advertisement right away!
Author's Note:
Shoutout to my friend's completed novel in the same genre: "Post-apocalypse Lord Life"
A crimson rain fell silently, melting buildings like chocolate,
Human civilization corroded overnight—
Along with the acid rain came the brutal "apocalypse game."
Torrential rain, sandstorms, scorching droughts, frigid cold waves…
Fishing, gathering, logging, farming, stockpiling food, selling potions and equipment,
Unlocking buildings, constructing defenses, creating delicacies, building safe zones,
Amidst the Natural Disasters, Wen Lin strives to develop her territory.
From a dilapidated thatched hut to wooden houses, brick homes, and standalone villas,
From a shelter the size of a playground to a base with vast fertile fields,
From starting with ten copper coins to amassing mountains of gold and immense wealth,
From struggling to find enough food to having delicacies everywhere, their fragrance wafting for miles…
As the disasters intensified, territories fell one by one, disappearing from the map.
One day, on a whim, Wen Lin opened the rankings and took a look—
Huh? How did her little rundown territory manage to cling to the top spot on the entire leaderboard?!
#Starting with a Thatched Hut, a Journey of Survival for All#
#A Base-Building Food Fanatic Creates a Post-apocalypse Paradise#