Early the next morning, Yuan Li woke up relying on the biological clock she had formed not long after graduating from high school.
But she still didn’t see Hong Yuan.
What surprised her even more was that after going downstairs, she saw quite a number of people moving in and out of the Cleaning Department.
Most of them were dressed in combat uniforms, carrying various weapons. They walked briskly with stern expressions.
To put it bluntly, they all carried a murderous aura.
Yuan Li’s animal-like instincts sensed something was wrong. She quietly edged toward a corner, avoiding most of the crowd, and slipped into the cafeteria.
But the cafeteria was also packed.
Yuan Li hesitated for less than a second at the entrance before deciding to go in.
What a joke—she had no idea how much the food outside cost, but it was definitely terrible!
Besides, since these people were so busy, how would they have time to pay attention to her?
Convincing herself, Yuan Li ignored the occasional glances cast her way, silently got her food, and sat down in a corner.
She had barely taken two bites when a lunchbox was placed in front of her.
“You’re the new recruit in the Cleaning Department? What did you do?”
Yuan Li nearly choked.
She looked up to see a muscular giant over two meters tall sitting across from her. His face looked fierce, and he was staring straight at her with wide eyes.
“…Did I have to commit something?”
Yuan Li asked cautiously.
The burly man grinned. “If you didn’t, why would you be here?”
Yuan Li: “?”
Wait—wasn’t the Cleaning Department supposed to work for the authorities?
Was it actually a prison?
The burly man felt something was off.
To be frank, Yuan Li’s appearance had already attracted quite a bit of attention.
Mainly because she looked far too fragile—too obedient.
Everyone here knew what kind of people they were. Those who were exiled here—how many of them had clean hands?
Yet precisely because Yuan Li looked so weak, they didn’t dare underestimate her.
That was why only the most confident among them—the burly man in front of her—had come over to test her.
But seeing her utterly confused expression, with not a trace of murderous intent or gloom about her, the burly man narrowed his eyes.
“You’re not here because you killed someone?”
Yuan Li’s face stiffened. She didn’t know how to answer.
That question alone practically assumed the answer.
Thinking back to how cautiously he had probed her just now, the burly man felt embarrassed. He slammed the table.
“Damn it, are you messing with me?!”
Yuan Li watched as her lunchbox was jolted into the air. She looked at it fall back down, then looked at him, irritation rising.
“How am I messing with you? I didn’t come looking for you—you came to me!”
And he had been the one talking nonstop just now.
The burly man grew even angrier. He reached out to grab Yuan Li by the collar.
“You—”
But halfway through, his pupils shrank, and he forcibly lowered his hand a few inches.
A thin blade the size of a finger brushed past his arm and stabbed firmly into the wall beside him.
The burly man looked at the cut on his forearm, anger flaring. “Who did that?”
Yuan Li, however, reacted completely differently. Her eyes lit up.
“Hong Yuan-sis!”
That’s right—it was Hong Yuan.
The short-haired woman strode forward with long steps, reaching them in just a few strides. Though slightly shorter than the burly man, her presence was no weaker.
“You’re bullying my person?”
The burly man instinctively felt a bit intimidated, but with everyone around watching, he refused to lose face and retorted stubbornly, “Bullying? What nonsense. There’s a new recruit in the Cleaning Department—I came to get acquainted. What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing wrong. But she’s not someone you can touch. If you know what’s good for you, get lost.”
Hong Yuan was completely unapologetic.
The burly man’s anger was pushed to the surface. He raised his voice.
“We’re all going to be colleagues sooner or later. We should at least test each other’s strength, right?”
As he spoke, he suddenly attacked Yuan Li while Hong Yuan wasn’t paying attention.
Yuan Li was startled. Even though the hand was intercepted midway by Hong Yuan, she still felt a bad premonition.
Especially since the people around them were starting to stir.
Some were watching the burly man and Hong Yuan, while others were watching her.
“What? You want to challenge Team 3?”
Hong Yuan kicked the burly man in the abdomen, sending him stumbling back three steps. Her gaze swept across the cafeteria.
“Or do all of you want to challenge Team 3?”
Most of the cafeteria fell silent.
Don’t be fooled by Team 3 being ranked third—within the Cleaning Department, Teams 1, 2, and 3 weren’t arranged in a descending hierarchy of strength.
Their strength depended entirely on the current members.
And unfortunately, the five current members of Team 3 were the strongest the team had ever had.
Some people backed down—but others were stubborn.
“I’ve long wanted to test Team 3’s Hong Yuan.”
One person stood up, followed by seven or eight more.
At this point, the situation had little to do with Yuan Li anymore.
Hong Yuan tilted her head slightly. “Stay back.”
Yuan Li tightened her grip on her fork. She knew staying would only drag Hong Yuan down, so she picked up her lunchbox and retreated.
Aside from the burly man who had just been taught a lesson, no one paid her any more attention.
No one knew who made the first move, but chaos erupted in the cafeteria. Forks and knives flew through the air, mixed with cries of pain and the sound of tables being smashed.
Even from her corner, Yuan Li occasionally saw forks and chopsticks flying past.
She shifted further into a dead corner, watching Hong Yuan in the crowd. Even against over ten opponents, she showed no sign of weakness. In fact, because they lacked coordination, she gradually gained the upper hand.
Yuan Li’s eyes first filled with admiration and awe—then worry.
No matter how strong Hong Yuan was, two fists couldn’t beat four hands.
And after suffering a few losses, those people began to wise up—they shamelessly started taking turns!
Even if Hong Yuan was strong, ants could bite an elephant to death!
Yuan Li could see that quite a few people nearby were growing restless, as if they wanted to join in.
She tapped her wristband again, silently praying that the other side would arrive faster.
But as they failed to take Hong Yuan down and instead found themselves in increasingly miserable states, those attacking grew angry.
Someone shouted, “Brothers, don’t you want to test the strength of the top three teams?”
Seeing no one move, he added, “Aren’t there rules? If you beat someone from Team 3, you can join Team 3. Who knows how many people will be cannon fodder today? What, not planning to take this last chance to gamble?”
In an instant, those who had been hesitating could no longer sit still.
Cannon fodder?
Take a gamble?
Was there some danger coming?
Before Yuan Li could process these questions, her body stiffened.
Because after those instigating words, most people indeed focused on Hong Yuan—
But a few… had set their sights on her.
Yuan Li was still stunned when she saw the burly man closest to her grin viciously, malice flashing in his eyes.
“She’s from Team 3 too, right? If we beat her, does that mean we can join Team 3?”