In the line behind them, a man stared sullenly at Stella Sterling’s back, his gaze as venomous as a snake’s.

Sensing the stare, Stella glanced back. The man quickly lowered his head, avoiding her eyes.

After a moment, he lifted his head to look at Stella again. The next second, his heart skipped a beat. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Not far away, the woman was still standing there, smiling at him.

The man’s heart tightened. He knew he’d been caught. A moment later, he sneered. ’So what if she found me out? It’s not like I’m afraid of her.’

’She already saw me, but she isn’t running. She’s just standing there. She must have a death wish.’

"What’s wrong?" a man behind him asked, noticing his strange expression.

"I see that damn bitch from last time," the man said coldly.

"Which one? The one who ratted on us, the one who got away!" The man behind him’s face darkened as well, his eyes scanning the area for Stella Sterling’s figure.

The memory of him and his brothers waiting all night in the freezing snow for nothing filled him with rage.

His gaze swept past Stella Sterling and moved on, not recognizing her at all.

The man in front of him prompted, "Over there. The woman in the white coat!"

The man’s eyes returned to Stella Sterling, but he asked uncertainly, "Are you sure that’s her?"

"Yeah, that’s her," the first man nodded, his tone certain.

Everyone was in line and bundled up so tightly that, unless you knew someone well, you wouldn’t recognize anyone.

But what just happened had drawn his attention to the woman, and the more he looked, the more familiar she seemed.

If he had only been suspicious before, the look she just gave him confirmed it.

He knew she had recognized him, too.

"You and Tie Zi wait here in line. After you get the supplies, wait for us. I’m taking the others to corner her. This time, she won’t get away!"

The man said, handing their IDs to the person behind him and motioning for a few of his other brothers to hurry with him in Stella Sterling’s direction.

...

"You damn bitch, you got away last time. Let’s see you run now!"

On a certain street, next to a skyscraper that used to be an office building but was now deserted, the man and a few others surrounded Stella Sterling.

This spot wasn’t far from Solara Plaza, but it was outside the patrolled area.

He knew that to ensure the supply distribution went smoothly, no one would bother with what happened here.

That was precisely why he’d waited until he followed the woman here to make his move.

The man and his group were shivering from the cold and panting for breath. They blew on their hands constantly, but their eyes never left Stella Sterling.

The snow was lighter than it had been during the night, but it still blurred their vision, so they couldn’t clearly see the look in Stella Sterling’s eyes.

Thinking Stella was already in their grasp, their eyes filled with smug satisfaction.

"Damn it, you just had to be difficult. You dare to mess with me and my boys? You’re courting death! Let’s see you run this time!"

Stella Sterling let out a low chuckle. "Do I look like I’m trying to run?"

’If I wanted to run, these guys could never catch me!’

The men were taken aback. Her reaction was strange. She had clearly seen them earlier, but instead of hurrying away, she seemed to be waiting for them.

Then she had walked so slowly. Knowing they were following her, not only did she not go back for help, but she even walked toward this deserted area.

’Could it be a trap?’

’Does she have friends with her?’

Alarmed, the group’s leader scanned his surroundings warily, on guard for a sudden ambush.

But after looking around for a while, he saw no one. He turned back, only to see the woman watching them with a mocking smile.

The man realized he’d been tricked, and rage surged through him. "You dare to fool us? You’re asking to die!"

’It’s not that she doesn’t want to run; she’s probably too weak in this cold to even move. Now she’s trying to scare us off with words? Dream on.’

He wasted no more words, yelling, "This woman’s a tricky one! Let’s take her down first!"

With that, he was the first to charge at Stella Sterling.

This was exactly what Stella wanted. This time, she hadn’t brought any weapons. She was planning to go bare-handed and test the results of her recent training.

’Run?’

’Scare them?’

’How ridiculous!’

’I was waiting here for them on purpose, okay?’

She had just been wondering how to test her current strength, and now these guys had delivered themselves to her doorstep.

How could she pass up such a perfect opportunity? Naturally, she had to make good use of it.

’If I wanted to run, with my speed, I’d have been long gone. Why would I wait for them?’

It was a pity these men were just ordinary people. They wouldn’t be much of a test, but it was better than nothing.

Seeing that he was right upon her and she hadn’t moved a muscle, as if scared stiff, the man sneered. ’This is the kind of trash that dared to offend us? She really is courting death.’

As he charged right up to her, Stella took two steps forward, ducked under his punch, grabbed his clothes, and lifted him straight into the air. Before his shocked eyes, she hurled him toward the men behind him. The man’s body—a full one hundred and eighty pounds—crashed into them. They were knocked to the ground, and one coughed up a mouthful of blood.

They stared at Stella in shock, their eyes filled with terror. ’Over one hundred and eighty pounds! She lifted and threw him so easily, without any effort! What kind of strongwoman is she?!’

Seeing Stella striding toward them, the men pushed their comrade off, scrambled to their feet, and started running back toward the supply distribution point, yelling, "Help!"

But Stella had already reached the man who hadn’t managed to get up. Ignoring his pleading gaze, she grabbed him with one hand and threw him at the fleeing group again, sending them tumbling several meters away.

This time, the men didn’t dare hesitate. They seized the opportunity to help their leader up and fled in a flash.

Stella didn’t give chase. She dusted off her hands, a look of satisfaction in her eyes.

Although she couldn’t measure the exact force of her punch, Stella now had a general idea of her own strength.

The man she’d just thrown was over six feet tall and not skinny; she estimated he weighed around one hundred and eighty pounds. Yet whether lifting or throwing him, it had felt effortless, without the slightest strain.

From this, she could conclude that she could handle objects around two hundred and twenty pounds with ease. Even something heavier probably wouldn’t be a problem.

Besides, her strength was increasing daily from drinking the spatial water.