David looked at Monica with a puzzled expression, seemingly questioning the truth of her words. Monica nodded, and her face once again showed deep sadness. Even though David had experienced it with Danny, David still found it hard to believe that all this had happened.

Seeing Monica's expression, David furrowed his brows slightly. He had never expected Danny to become such a person.

In his memory, Danny had always been mild and refined. Though he might occasionally be cunning, he would never go as far as harming Abraham or kicking out a fellow teammate.

"You said Danny brought back a new teammate?" David recalled Monica's words and asked again.

"Yes, and from that woman, I sensed a strange aura, as if it had a rotten smell," Monica pondered. She felt like she had smelled this kind of scent somewhere before, but she couldn't recall where.

"A rotten smell?" When David heard Monica's words, his expression immediately became serious. It reminded him of the scent from ghostly zombies.

Could it be that the woman Danny brought back is a zombie? David didn't share this speculation with Monica, but it made him more cautious about Danny.

In the apocalypse, there was no one absolutely trustworthy, not even their own teammates. David kept a distance from them in certain aspects, not because he was cold-hearted, but because the world forced him to do so.

In a moment of distraction, David felt that Danny was hiding too many secrets. Even the two individuals who appeared in D Town seemed to have some connection to him. After some thought, David looked at Monica and said, "Stay here for a while. When there's a chance, I'll ask Danny for you."

Monica had no place to go now, and after David upgraded the base, there were several unused rooms on the second floor, enough to provide Monica with a place to stay.

After hesitating for a moment, Monica nodded. At the moment, she could only agree, as she knew the consequences of a woman wandering alone in the apocalypse.

"Thank you," Monica said softly.

David smiled faintly. "No need to thank me. I'm helping you because you're my business partner."

After saying that, David turned and returned to the base. Monica followed and went inside. With Sally's guidance, she arrived at a room on the second floor.

Watching Monica enter the room, Sally sighed slightly when she closed the door. Back in her room, David took out the censer he brought back from the Abyssal Cemetery. He carefully examined it, feeling that this must be a valuable treasure. Otherwise, how could it be so out of place in the Abyssal Cemetery? David also knew that such items represented devout beliefs of certain people and usually contained indescribable energy, especially in the apocalypse.

All the rules had changed, indicating that some things had undergone qualitative changes. For example, the strange treasures in Duane's treasure chest might appear ordinary, but each one was a powerful existence.

After pondering for a moment, David bit his finger, dripping his own blood into the empty censer. "Drip~" The blood entered the empty censer, and unexpectedly, a crisp sound was heard, which surprised David.

Immediately, the censer emitted faint light, and the four kneeling figures below suddenly stood up, turning their heads to look at David. Each figure had a fearful expression, as if David was a threat to their lives.

Before David could react, the four figures turned into beams of light and disappeared into the air. In the next moment, four eerie black short swords floated in the void. Each sword was positioned in front of David, bowing down as if submitting to him.

David stood up and examined them closely. On each sword's hilt, there was the appearance of the four figures from earlier, extending from their mouths, making it particularly eerie and chilling.

Curiously, David reached out and grabbed one of the swords. "Hoo!" As soon as his finger touched the hilt, a chilling aura spread from the sword, creating a bone-chilling cold that exploded in the void. The blade gleamed with sharpness, looking incredibly deadly.

Suddenly, the system's voice rang in David's ear. [Ding! Congratulations, host, on obtaining the Ancient Furnace Flying Swords! ]

"Ancient Furnace Flying Swords?" David was taken aback by the name. He didn't expect that the censer could create four flying swords for him. With a thought, the four flying swords started flying rapidly around him, and the sound of slashing through the void constantly echoed in his ears.

"These are great swords!" Excitement filled David's face as he witnessed the ripples forming in the void. It was evident that these four flying swords were extraordinary and even comparable to the Space Blades he had with the ability to critically strike. Moreover, he could control them with his mind, enabling remote attacks.

For David, this was truly a precious treasure. With the support of these four flying swords, his attacks received a significant boost, complementing his combined abilities in space, defense, and spiritual power.historical

[Ding! Please name each of the four Ancient Furnace Flying Swords.]

The system's voice echoed in David's ear again.

After a brief thought, David spoke, "Let's call them Rainbow, moon, cloud, and sky!"

[Ding! Congratulations, host, on naming the four Ancient Furnace Flying Swords and activating another function of the censer--Prayer! ]

[This function can restore 30% of the host's physical and mental strength in a short period.]

[As the host's strength increases, the recovery rate will gradually improve! ]

The system explained the Prayer function to David, who nodded in approval. This was like having a healing esper by his side, enabling him to replenish his strength whenever needed.

Although the embers squad had Sophie now, David knew that he would have to act alone at times, and he couldn't always bring his teammates along. With this new function, he could maintain his combat readiness at all times.

With a thought, the four flying swords transformed back into the four kneeling figures that supported the censer. David nodded, placing the censer into the system's warehouse.

Over the next few days, David upgraded the base to the King-level, surpassing his previous understanding of its strength. He also completed the system's tasks, earning a reward of a thousand crystals.

Furthermore, David continued to expand the base upwards, turning all five floors into his territory, each section transformed into various facilities, making the embers squad the most powerful and luxurious squad that rose during the apocalypse!