Chen Ye muttered to himself, bewildered.

The apocalypse had only begun a few months ago, yet this device in front of him already bore a serial number over a thousand.

Who was ranking these items?

And Nana, this girl who looked no older than seventeen or eighteen—how did she know so much?

Before Chen Ye could dwell on it further, Chu Che raised his head, his eyes carrying a hint of uncharacteristic nervousness. “Alright, it’s starting!”

Zzzzz…

“Welcome to the Fair Convoy channel. The current time is 8:35 PM on November 5th, 2030.”

Fair Convoy?

This was the first time Chen Ye had heard the official name of their group.

“According to reports from our station’s correspondent, ten kilometers ahead lies Longevity Village!”

“Longevity Village is a relatively obscure settlement within our country. As there are seventeen villages nationwide sharing this name, it holds no particular fame.”

“The village earned its name because a local elder lived to the ripe age of 127 before passing away.”

“…”

After a burst of static, the Artifact known as the Eavesdropping Radio began to detail the situation in Longevity Village.

The information seemed factual enough.

This specific Longevity Village was indeed obscure. If it were a nationally renowned location, the convoy—with its meager strength of just a “few cats”—wouldn’t dare treat it as a supply point.

The broadcast sounded indistinguishable from a pre-apocalypse radio host, smoothly introducing the village to the listeners.

Chen Ye listened quietly, suppressing his surprise.

Cities had fallen, turning into Forbidden Zones for Humanity. Forget radio stations; even mobile phones had zero signal now.

No wonder this radio was classified as an Artifact.

But why was it called the “Eavesdropping Radio”?

“According to our correspondent’s inquiries, Longevity Village had a population of 357 villagers across 112 households, covering an area of approximately 2,000 mu.”

“Three months ago, an Anomaly outbreak occurred. Everyone died. There were no survivors in Longevity Village!”

Hearing the cold, detached voice from the radio, the tent fell into a heavy silence.

A village of over three hundred people, wiped out without a single survivor.

No one spoke.

In this new world, such tragedies were all too common. In supercities like Shanghu, with populations in the tens of millions, the survival rate was likely less than one percent.

Chen Ye now understood why Captain Chu had brought out this device. Presumably, Artifact 01257 specialized in intelligence gathering.

Sure enough, the radio’s next words made everyone prick up their ears.

“Zzzzz… Longevity Village currently possesses relatively intact supplies. Notably, there is a small supermarket under the big willow tree in the village center with sufficient stock. This should be a priority target for collection.”

“There are also significant grain reserves in the cellar of the village chief’s house, which can be a secondary target.”

“Each household also retains a portion of grain reserves.”

“There is a well at the village entrance. The water is uncontaminated and safe to drink.”

“The village currently… zzzzz…”

At this point, the radio seemed to suffer interference, emitting a harsh burst of static.

But it quickly stabilized.

“There are over one hundred Anomalies in the village. Based on the Fair Convoy’s current strength, the danger rating for Longevity Village is SSS level.”

“…”

Armed with this information, everyone now had a clear mental map of the dangers ahead.

Without the Eavesdropping Radio, barging into Longevity Village blind would have been a massive waste of time. And in a village infested with Anomalies, wasting time meant wasting lives.

However, throughout the broadcast, Chu Che’s expression remained puzzling to Chen Ye. The Captain stared intently at the radio, his demeanor tense, as if the device might transform into an Anomaly at any second.

Only when the broadcast ended did Captain Chu finally let out a long sigh of relief.

He turned to Chen Ye. “Chen Ye, for this operation, will you act with us or alone?”

Chen Ye didn’t hesitate. “I’ll act with everyone.”

He was still only a pseudo-Sequence Beyonder, and a support class at that. Going solo would be suicide. The luck he’d had in Apricot Blossom Town wouldn’t strike twice.

“In that case,” Chu Che proposed, “for the supplies we gather, I’ll take thirty percent, Nana thirty percent, and Iron Lion and Chen Ye will take twenty percent each. Is that acceptable?”

The distribution reflected their roles. Chu Che was irreplaceable; without his Pathfinder ability, the convoy would be dead. Nana, Chen Ye learned, was a Sequence 2 “Opening Edge” Sword Immortal, making her combat power equal to or greater than Iron Lion’s. And Chen Ye’s Mechanic Sequence abilities were rapidly becoming indispensable.

Chen Ye naturally had no objections.

They began formulating a plan based on the intelligence. Upon reaching the village, Chu Che would stay back; his job as a Pathfinder was done. The strike team would be Chen Ye, Nana, and Iron Lion. They would hit the supermarket under the willow tree first, then the village chief’s cellar.

Just as the plan was finalized, a familiar voice suddenly drifted from the Eavesdropping Radio.

” Sigh …that damn girl Nana. She looks delicate and pretty, but acts like a mischievous monkey all day. Neither male nor female. If it were before the apocalypse, surely no man would want her!”

“And that Iron Lion. That big oaf really makes you wonder how his brain works. I’ve heard the price of the Titan Sequence is reduced intelligence, but being this stupid is truly a marvel!”

“That new guy, Chen Ye. He has an irritable temper and is a bit gloomy! I really don’t know what goes on in his head all day!”

“That guy definitely wasn’t a good person before the apocalypse!”

“I even saw him hitting old people and children with my own eyes. My heavens, what kind of marvels did I end up with in my convoy?”

“And that female celebrity Zhou Lan. She looked pretty on TV, but in real life, she’s just average!”

“…”

At this moment, Chen Ye finally understood why Captain Chu had looked so terrified when he took out the radio.

The Eavesdropping Radio didn’t just spy on enemies.

It spied on its owner.

Who knew when Captain Chu had vented these thoughts? But the radio had heard them, recorded them, and decided that now—when everyone was gathered and relaxed—was the perfect time to broadcast them.

The tent fell into a deathly silence.

Chu Che had frantically thrown a jacket over the radio the moment it started speaking, but it had been completely useless.

The Captain looked at the faces of his three companions. For the first time, his perpetually calm mask cracked, replaced by an expression of pure awkwardness.

Chen Ye: “…”

Wait, Captain Chu thinks I’m irritable and gloomy? And that I’m not a good person?

Nana’s face was dark as a thundercloud. “Captain, you’ve got some nerve. ‘Neither male nor female’? You want to die?”

Iron Lion looked genuinely hurt. “Captain, the Titan Sequence might not be smart, but I’m not stupid either! And certainly not a marvel! Does your conscience not hurt saying that?”

Chu Che’s mouth twitched. Just as he opened his mouth to explain, he saw the irritable young Sword Immortal slowly beginning to draw her blade.