Xia Qing remembered that in her past life, she had slaughtered countless mutants just to reach Tier 3 spatial ability, which expanded her storage to a thousand square meters.
Spatial abilities required twice the amount of energy cores compared to other abilities to level up.
Advancing to Level 1 required two cores.
Level 2 required ten, and Level 3 required a hundred!
She wondered what tier Lin Yao would manage to reach in this lifetime after stealing the spatial storage ability.
Xia Ran led Lin Yao toward the front, stopping in front of a military armored vehicle.
Instantly, Lin Yao recognized the man wearing a camouflage military uniform, holding a small dagger in his hand.
He had a tall, upright figure and slightly curly hair, appearing thoroughly aloof and unapproachable on the surface.
In her past life, Lin Yao had witnessed with her own eyes as this man dug the brain matter right out of a mutant’s skull.
Furthermore, she had tried to use her charm on this man in her previous life, only to have him grab her by the throat and cast her aside…
She still remembered the chilling look of disgust the man had given her back then.
Clenching her fists, she told herself that since she had spatial storage in this life, Jin Chao would definitely look at her in a different light.
Xia Ran: “A-Chao.”
Upon seeing Xia Ran, Jin Chao’s icy demeanor softened just a fraction.
Jin Chao: “Sorry, we had a sudden temporary mission earlier, so I didn’t get a chance to help you rescue your younger sister.”
Xia Ran replied: “She’s already been rescued. This is my cousin, Lin Yao.”
“She awakened the spatial ability.”
Jin Chao showed a trace of slight surprise, and the two team members standing behind him looked at Lin Yao with curiosity as well.
“I know you guys were looking for a spatial ability user.”
Jin Chao’s gaze toward Lin Yao instantly turned serious.
They indeed needed a spatial ability user because their special missions required transporting vital supplies.
Now that mutants were running rampant, conventional vehicles were easily destroyed.
A thought crossed Lin Yao’s mind: Did Jin Chao invite Xia Qing the exact same way in their past life?
Yet she remembered that Xia Qing hadn’t had much interaction with Jin Chao at all.
In the end, Xia Qing hadn’t joined his team.
Xia Ran: “Yaoyao, are you willing to join?”
Jin Chao looked at Lin Yao, seemingly awaiting her answer.
Lin Yao remembered that Jin Chao was exceptionally powerful. Later on, when the base collapsed, he was the one holding the very last line of defense for humanity.
“I’m willing.”
A man like this would undoubtedly survive until the end.
Lin Yao thought to herself that the Xia Qing of her past life had been truly foolish to give up such a wonderful opportunity.
Xia Ran: “I’ll have to trouble you to look after my sister.”
Jin Chao: “Naturally. Joining my special squad means I will naturally protect the safety of my teammates.”
Jin Chao’s special squad consisted of five members, every single one an ability user with formidable strength.
They specialized in carrying out special operations.
Lin Yao was thrilled. True to her expectations, having spatial storage meant she no longer had to crowd together with the rest of the refugees.
The special squad’s military vehicle sat only their small group, ensuring it wasn’t cramped at all.
Xia Ran: “Then I’ll see you when we reach North City.”
With that, Xia Ran returned to find Xia Qing.
“Qingqing, Lin Yao is a spatial ability user, so letting her join the special squad is for the best. On one hand, those people can protect her safety; on the other hand, spatial ability users are far more useful. Please don’t blame your brother.”
“Even if you just stick with me, I will protect you properly.”
Xia Qing nodded: “Brother, you’re my own flesh-and-blood brother. How could I ever blame you? I’m happy to stay with you.”
In her past life, Xia Ran had died early.
However… in that past life, Xia Qing had refused to join Jin Chao’s special squad because she didn’t want to be separated from her brother and cousin, leading to a huge argument with Xia Ran.
Meanwhile, Lin Yao had cried, desperately trying to keep Xia Qing from leaving.
Because once Xia Qing left, the food supply would vanish with her.
“Brother, since Lin Yao is leaving, shouldn’t we get some food from her? After all, we were the ones who killed the mutants in that supermarket.”
Xia Ran: “…”
He hadn’t considered that angle at all.
With so many people fleeing toward North City and all operations shut down, what were they going to eat and drink along the way?
Fortunately, Xia Qing had packed some high-calorie chocolate candies in her backpack.
Without wasting time, Xia Qing walked over to find Lin Yao.
The special squad’s vehicle was an armored car, offering far more comfortable and secure seating inside.
The moment Xia Qing approached, one of Jin Chao’s team members stepped up to her.
It was Qiao Sheng, a speed-type ability user.
“My, where did such a pretty little sister come from?”
Xia Qing: “I’m Lin Yao’s cousin, Xia Qing.”
Lin Yao assumed Xia Qing had come over to beg to be taken along, recalling how in their past life Xia Qing had pleaded with her not to abandon her.
Lin Yao pulled Xia Qing over to a large tree by the roadside.
Crossing her arms over her chest, a trace of triumph crept into her tone.
“Qingqing, I’ve joined the special squad now, but I’m only an external member; I’m in no position to take you along.”
“Besides, don’t you have your brother to protect you?”
Before long, Xia Qing’s words wiped the smug expression right off her face: “I never wanted to tag along with you. My brother and I cleared out the mutants in that supermarket. The least you can do is give us half the supplies.”
Lin Yao frowned: “If I give you half, would you even be able to carry it?”
Xia Qing thought to herself: Even if she wanted to give half, she couldn’t pull it out anyway.
Retrieving items from storage consumed energy.
Xia Qing: “I only want two large packs of instant noodles and two bottles of water.”
Lin Yao knitted her brows, clearly reluctant to part with the items.
Xia Qing: “What, don’t want to give it up?”
Furious, Lin Yao had expected Xia Qing to come crawling on her knees in humiliation, yet here Xia Qing stood, radiating a haughty and arrogant aura.
Xia Qing: “If you refuse, don’t blame me for being impolite.”
“If you throw away courtesy, I won’t bother with morality either.”
Startled by the sudden sharpness in Xia Qing’s gaze, Lin Yao faltered for a second…
Putting on a tough front, Lin Yao snapped, “If I’m giving it to you, I’ll give it to you. Just don’t come crying to me for help later.”
With that, Lin Yao pulled two large packs of instant noodles and two bottles of water out of her spatial storage. The moment she finished retrieving them, a wave of hollow exhaustion washed over her.
Xia Qing snatched the items and turned on her heel.
Suddenly, a realization struck Lin Yao: Could Xia Qing have been reborn too?
In their past life, their relationship had still been quite good at this point, and Xia Qing had never carried such an icy, intimidating presence.
Is it because I chose the spatial ability instead?
She remembered how much she had envied Xia Qing for having spatial storage back when she hadn’t awakened it, until jealousy eventually consumed her.
That initial choice had become an obsession torturing her mind.
Now, she had finally made a different choice.
Yet, watching Xia Qing’s retreating back, Lin Yao sneered: “Whether you were reborn like me or not, I’m the one who got the spatial ability in this life.”
“Even if you come begging on your knees later, I might not give you a single crumb.”
Lin Yao clenched her fingers tightly.
By taking the food, Xia Qing had essentially torn away the final shred of pretense between them…
Though her memories remained somewhat hazy, she knew her ultimate death in the past life had been intimately tied to this very Lin Yao.
Naturally, Xia Qing wasn’t going to put on a friendly face for her. She was no soft-hearted “Xia Qing.”
After living in the wasteland world for so long, human nature was something she had seen through completely a long time ago.
Of course, she didn’t deny that pure souls existed; it was just that excessively kind people rarely survived for long.
When Xia Ran saw that Xia Qing had returned with only two packs of instant noodles—despite watching Lin Yao harvest an entire supermarket’s worth of supplies—he couldn’t help but feel a bit perplexed.
Xia Ran consoled her: “Yaoyao is our eldest aunt’s child; it’s normal that she isn’t very close to us.”
Xia Qing replied: “This is enough.”
Lin Yao couldn’t have pulled out a single extra item even if she wanted to.
Did people really think using spatial abilities came completely free of cost?