The tunnel was long. With the traffic jam and people constantly cutting in, it took over an hour for Laudenor to drive out.
Even though he wasn't the one driving, Qin Siyang was already on the verge of road rage thanks to the congested vehicles.
"What the hell is wrong with these people?"
Meanwhile, Laudenor gripped the steering wheel tightly, his face maintaining a deep red color, like a piece of searing-hot iron.
Under normal circumstances, he would have stuck his car's nose right up to the rear of the one ahead, leaving no gap for any would-be cutters.
If someone actually tried to squeeze in, he might have just slammed the gas and rammed them out of sheer spite.
'Marefu*k, who do they think they're messing with?'
But today, that wasn't an option.
Qin Siyang was in his car.
Hosting Qin Siyang was the highest order given to him by Professor Florence.
On top of that, Qin Siyang was on a mission to collect research materials for their lab, so Laudenor couldn't afford to be careless.
If there was even a minor bump, the time wasted handling the incident could annoy Qin Siyang, and that would be a terrible trade-off.
So, while driving, he maintained a safe following distance, leaving about half a car length between him and the vehicle ahead.
That, of course, provided an opportunity for some shameless drivers, who repeatedly cut into his lane.
Even the cars behind him wouldn't stop honking, urging him not to let others cut in so easily.
But there wasn't much Laudenor could do.
'Endure it.'
He had been driving for so many years; one day of patience wasn't a big deal.
Yet, for some reason, the more he endured, the angrier he felt.
An hour passed. Laudenor's face shifted from pale to red, then from red to purple—he felt like if someone squeezed his cheek, old blood might just come out.
And so, the two of them inched forward through the tunnel at a snail's pace.
Once they finally exited the tunnel, the previously cramped two-lane road suddenly expanded into ten lanes.
Like a dam releasing floodwaters, all the vehicles surged forward freely, unimpeded.
Laudenor, too, felt like a wild horse breaking free. He stomped on the gas, instantly hitting seventy miles per hour, speeding ahead like the wind.
The sudden acceleration startled Qin Siyang slightly.
He considered reminding Laudenor to slow down, but when he saw the man's gritted teeth, the rage twisting his face, he chose to stay silent.
'Forget it.'
'If I don't let him vent now, this guy might actually explode.'
So, Qin Siyang quietly pressed his hand against the car door's inner panel, keeping an eye on the road ahead.
If anything went wrong, he was ready to force the door open and bail.
Laudenor's driving skills were excellent.
He weaved through traffic like it was nothing, moving with ease, completely at home.
Seeing this, Qin Siyang gradually relaxed.
The road signs along the way were massive, with bright, contrasting colors and flashing lights that made them impossible to miss.
Next to the signs, there were even large screens displaying real-time traffic conditions ahead.
Qin Siyang estimated that the cost of just one of these signs could probably cover the price of all the computers in Wang Defa's internet café.
If the road signs were this extravagant, he wondered what the entrance to the safety zone would be like.
His anticipation grew.
Following the directions on the signboards, Laudenor drove Qin Siyang to Safety Zone Exit No. 207.
"Mr. Qin, we've arrived."
As soon as Qin Siyang stepped out of the car, he was momentarily stunned by the sight of the safety zone's exit platform—comparable in size to a football stadium.
Standing on it were countless people, densely packed like a massive swarm of iron-helmeted flea mice. A rough estimate put the number at two to three thousand.
Near the platform, there were also several lavishly decorated sections.
[Medical Aid Zone]
[Cleaning Zone]
[Dining Zone]
[Rest Zone]
[Foot Washing Zone]
[Massage Zone]
[Cultured-Men Zone]
[High Bar]
Qin Siyang frowned in confusion.
'If there is already a Cleaning Zone, why are there separate Foot Washing and Massage Zones?'
'And what the hell are the Cultured Men Zone and High Bar?'
'The last four areas seem... shady.'
After some thought, he could only summarize it in eight words:
A fusion of East and West, appealing to all ages.
He had to admit, Safety Zone Exit No. 207 was built with thorough consideration.
Looking at the fully equipped safety zone exit, Qin Siyang took a deep breath, trying to calm his inner shock.
"This is... quite the eye-opener."
Outside the safety zone's platform, even more civilians were crowded together.
However, unlike the ordinary people at Safety Zone Exit No. 38324, these individuals were well-dressed and polished, showing none of the anxiousness or discomfort of the lower-ranked exits.
Qin Siyang wasn't sure what they were waiting for.
'Maybe they are waiting for their relatives to return from hunting gods?'
Laudenor interrupted his thoughts, "Mr. Qin, you can verify your identity and enter the safety zone exit platform now."
"We need to verify identity?"
"Yes. If your God-Hunting Points are below 2,000, you can't depart from this safety zone exit."
"That strict?"
"There are over a hundred thousand people with more than 2,000 points. If they all departed from here, it would be severely overcrowded. The lower the safety zone exit number, the higher the requirements."
Qin Siyang nodded, "Makes sense. But this is just Exit No. 207—why are there thousands of people? If we go by this logic, wouldn't the first 200 exits hold over a hundred thousand Sequence Ability users?"
"That's because exits ranked within the top hundred have an extremely high risk of encountering large-scale gods. Most Sequence Ability users don't dare to go there. Exit No. 207, on the other hand, does occasionally have large gods appearing, but most of the time, it's mid-to-small-sized gods. Combined with the high number of gods in this region, many high-score Sequence Ability users favor this place."
"Oh, I see."
"Mr. Qin, please go ahead. I'll wait for you here. Once you're outside the safety zone, just send me a message."
Seeing Laudenor's tired expression, Qin Siyang felt a little guilty, "That doesn't seem fair. I don't even know how long I'll be out—it's wasting too much of your time."
"It's fine. Professor Florence instructed me not to take on any research tasks for the next few days—my only job is to assist you. Please don't worry about it; I'm just fulfilling my duty."
"Well... thanks, then."
"It's my responsibility."
Qin Siyang walked up to the checkpoint outside the safety zone platform.
The security officer was a chubby middle-aged man. Without even looking up, he tapped away on his tablet, his attitude clearly bored and impatient.
"Name."
"Qin Siyang."
"Sequence Ability user ID."
"00009527."
"Show your God-Hunting Dagger for aura verification."
He took a scanner and waved it over Qin Siyang's dagger.
"Verified. Go in."
"Thanks."
"Next..."
Qin Siyang glanced sympathetically at the security officer.
The man looked absolutely drained, his face practically screaming, When the hell will these shitty days be over?
Honestly, this job did seem unbearably dull. If he were in the guy's place, he'd probably end up just as dead inside.
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