The first time riding along with a teleport, especially over a long distance, was bound to be rough. After they landed, Shen Yu retched for a while before he started to feel better.
Feng Qing asked, “What now?”
Shen Yu gave a one-word answer: “Wait.” If they went searching nearby, they might miss them. Waiting was the safest option.
He had already taken off his work jacket and changed into a set of mountaineering clothes. The moment anything happened, he’d be ready to move. Every second counted; they couldn’t afford to waste any time.
He didn’t care at all about the people he’d left behind at Changfeng Base. Leaving them supplies had been generous enough.
Once they had supplies, they could hire perception or mental-power ability users from another base to escort them home. Whether they were willing to pay was their problem.
The mutated plants and animals of the apocalypse had never been harmless, especially high-level mutated beasts. Without someone with perception or mental abilities, encountering even one could bring devastating losses.
Perception abilities were certainly a natural gift, but mental-power ability users could serve as lookouts too. They might not be as good as perception ability users, but they could still help people avoid most dangers.
Shen Yu had relied on his powerful mental ability to lead the people of Chenggong Base through one disaster after another. He was every bit as good as a perception ability user.
The base didn’t need to rely on him for that anymore. The commander’s younger sister had awakened a precognitive ability last year. The trap that would kill Yi Han had been set with the help of this new prophet.
That was why Zhang Chenggong had dared to target Yi Han without worrying that Shen Yu would turn against him. His one miscalculation was probably Shen Yu’s ability type.
Mental-power ability users were often kept under suspicion, because they could hear anything they wanted to. So when people first mistook him for a perception ability user, Shen Yu hadn’t corrected them. It wasn’t as if he’d go around listening to what everyone else was saying.
If Zhang Chenggong had known Shen Yu was a mental-power ability user, he wouldn’t have touched Yi Han, if only to keep Shen Yu, a spatial ability user, on his side. Clearly, he’d been too sure of himself. Better to be guarded against than taken for a fool.
After the apocalypse, the people in charge of most bases were the strongest ability users. Chenggong Base was something of an exception. Zhang Chenggong was capable, but he was no match for Yi Han.
Yi Han had never tried to take his position. He didn’t even have a team of his own, always going out with everyone else. Yet Zhang Chenggong had still wanted him dead. It showed just how frighteningly cruel people could be.
As he waited, Shen Yu kept turning the matter over in his mind. How could he and Yi Han have been so foolish? Going through hardship together didn’t necessarily bring out the best in people. It could just as easily turn them into a pack of ungrateful bastards.
Time crept by, second after second. An hour later, Shen Yu finally picked up a disturbance. His spirits lifted, and he started the snowmobile, speeding toward it.
His custom snowmobile was exceptionally fast, and Canglang was fast too. In less than a minute, he saw Canglang’s silhouette, along with the people chasing it.
“Awooo, awooo!” Canglang sensed his presence and began calling for help. The cries were pitiful, a clear sign of how badly it was hurt.
Shen Yu was furious with those people. He sent a mental spike at them, and three of them dropped in a row. They were dead, and their snowmobiles went out of control, skidding a long way off.
When Canglang reached Shen Yu, it collapsed onto the ground. Several wounds covered its body, and it was drenched in blood. Zaizai, strapped to its back, was so terrified he couldn’t even cry.
Shen Yu quickly unfastened Zaizai from the custom harness and scooped him up. Then he tossed a level-three crystal core to Feng Qing, who had teleported over with him. “Heal Canglang.”
Feng Qing didn’t waste time talking. He began treating Canglang at once. One crystal core wouldn’t be enough for wounds this severe, so he took another level-three core from his pocket.
The rest of the pursuing team were closing in. They must have noticed something was wrong. One of them tried to stop, while the other two sped up.
Afraid something might go wrong, Shen Yu attacked before they could get close. He poured even more mental power into the strike and knocked two more people off their snowmobiles. His mental attack had no effect on the last one.
This team clearly had no mental ability user, or they would have sensed the danger. The only person who could dodge a mental attack in these circumstances had to be the protagonist bottom, Yuan Qing, Heaven’s chosen one. He’d found the real target.
The person Shen Yu hated most was Yuan Qing. If Yuan Qing hadn’t wanted dog meat and chased after Canglang, Yi Han wouldn’t have been distracted. Maybe there would have been a chance to save him.
In the book, Yuan Qing claimed he’d seen a child on a mutated beast and wanted to rescue him. But he’d have sounded more convincing if he hadn’t said, “It’s almost noon. Let’s hurry up and get things ready. It’s been ages since we had mutated dog meat.”
Shen Yu had pieced together the timing from bits of dialogue in the book. It was almost noon, which meant Canglang had died before noon. The system showed the date, but not the time.
The book also said that Canglang had been killed on the spot by an arrow through the body. Afterward, they skinned and cut Canglang up right there and roasted it, all in front of Zaizai.
Shen Yu remembered Yuan Qing’s exact words: “This kid’s pretty cute. Doesn’t look like a child of the apocalypse at all. Too bad he’s autistic.” What the hell did he know about autism?
A bunch of deranged people had chased Canglang down and roasted the companion who’d been by Zaizai’s side since he was little. How could any child bear that, let alone a five-year-old?
Zaizai was terrified now, repeating, “Blood… blood…” His eyes stayed fixed on Canglang. He didn’t even recognize his own Papa.
Shen Yu had no time to comfort him. Knowing Zaizai was worried about Canglang, he set him down and turned to deal with Yuan Qing. So he thought his instincts could dodge a mental attack and keep him safe? How naïve.
As if only they had crossbows. Shen Yu pulled his custom crossbow out of spatial storage and fired at Yuan Qing, who had been tripped by one of his guards and had only just gotten back up.
But apparently Heaven, or the world itself, didn’t want Yuan Qing to die. A bolt of lightning blew the arrow apart. Shen Yu attacked again, and the lightning struck again. The whole thing was bizarre.
Shen Yu understood. He quickly loaded the crossbow with an ordinary bolt. This time, the lightning didn’t stop him. The protagonist bottom could be injured, but attacks on vital spots were forbidden.
Yan Yun hadn’t intervened at all. Or rather, he hadn’t had the chance. Still, he was deeply shaken. He concluded that from now on, they should avoid antagonizing either side as much as possible.
Shen Yu’s mental power was too strong, and he had too many tricks up his sleeve. He was ruthless too, which made him hard to deal with. And the other one was even more extraordinary, undeniably Heaven’s chosen one, protected by Heaven itself. Who would dare provoke him?
Yuan Qing was stunned too. He’d only wanted a meal. Who could have guessed he’d provoke such a menace? His team had two level-four ability users. This made no sense.
One of Yuan Qing’s legs and his shoulder had been hit by arrows, but he had no time to cry out in pain. “I’m…” He wanted to tell Shen Yu who he was, hoping it would make him hesitate.
Shen Yu didn’t let him finish. While Yuan Qing was hurt and distracted, Shen Yu attacked with his mental power again.
So the protagonist couldn’t be killed? Fine. He wouldn’t kill him. But Shen Yu couldn’t just let him go back as if nothing had happened. He’d put their whole family through hell. Why should he get away without paying a price? Shen Yu refused to accept it.
When Shen Yu used his mental power, he didn’t let any killing intent show. The world didn’t sense what he was trying to do. He successfully destroyed Yuan Qing’s ability core.
Yuan Qing couldn’t hold back any longer. He forgot the pain in his shoulder and clutched his head, screaming in agony. His cries startled Canglang, who was already groggy from losing too much blood.
Zaizai was now lying across Canglang’s back. Feeling it tremble, he hurried to comfort it. “Pain, fly away. Pain, fly away. Langlang, don’t hurt.”
Canglang answered with soft barks. It had stopped crying out like a wolf. Ever since it mutated, it had learned to howl. Unless it was in trouble, it would never settle for acting like an ordinary dog. It thought being a wolf was cooler.
Border collies were clever to begin with, and mutated border collies were even smarter, with the intelligence of a ten-year-old child. Even border collies without owners wouldn’t attack people. How could those bastards bring themselves to hunt one down?
Canglang still wasn’t in good shape. The wounds had healed, but treatment couldn’t make up for all the blood it had lost. But Yi Han was already on the brink of death, and there was no time to tend to Canglang further.
Shen Yu first gave Canglang a large bottle of energy potion, then brought out a huge basin of its favorite dog food. Steeling himself, he ordered, “Eat something, then get up and lead the way. We’re going to save your daddy.”
Shen Yu and Yi Han had found Canglang not long after the apocalypse began. Canglang had only been a few days old and hadn’t awakened yet. Before Zaizai came along, they’d raised Canglang like their own child. Shen Yu was Papa, and Yi Han was Daddy.
Shen Yu loved Zaizai, but he loved Canglang just as much. He hated seeing it so badly hurt, but this was an emergency. No matter how much it pained him, Canglang had to lead the way.
He could follow the trail Canglang had left while running, but doing that would drain too much of his mental power. He didn’t dare absorb any crystal cores yet, not with another pile of trouble waiting for him. He couldn’t afford to waste his strength.
Canglang had a contract with Yi Han and could sense how dire things were over there. After drinking the potion, it struggled to its feet, swaying, then began to eat, wolfing down the food.
“Awooo, awooo!” It was saying it was time to go. Mutated beasts recovered much faster than humans, and the potion seemed to work faster in Canglang’s body.
Shen Yu had strapped Zaizai to his back and climbed onto the snowmobile. Feng Qing and Yan Yun didn’t need to be told. While Canglang ate, they’d already gone to collect two snowmobiles.
These snowmobiles were specially made for the apocalypse, and their quality was excellent. The two of them even managed to find two that still worked. One belonged to the protagonist bottom, and they didn’t hesitate to commandeer it.
Whatever else you could say, these people had excellent equipment. Chenggong Base’s gear seemed decent too. The hunting teams all had camouflage uniforms, but they couldn’t compare to this group.
They were all dressed in full combat gear. It was obvious they came from an important background, but Feng Qing and Yan Yun had no intention of doing them any favors. They didn’t feel sorry for them, either, much less consider treating their injuries.
They didn’t think Shen Yu was wrong to be ruthless with this group. If they’d been the ones to come across them, they would have done the same. People who went after a child were scum and didn’t deserve sympathy.
If Yuan Qing hadn’t been Heaven’s chosen one, they would have gone back and put another bolt in him before leaving, never mind saving him.
Yuan Qing was in agony now. He regretted listening to the prophet. What was that about a great opportunity in the north? He’d only just arrived and had nearly been killed. What kind of opportunity was that?
He was desperate. There was nothing for miles around, and the land was frozen solid. With an injured leg and his ability gone, all he could do was wait to die.
By now, the pain was the least of his worries. Staying alive mattered more. Dragging his numb left leg, he used his left hand to pull the guards’ coats off them. If he didn’t bundle up, he’d freeze to death.
Ability users usually weren’t bothered by the cold, but his ability had been destroyed, and he was badly injured. He couldn’t withstand the bitter cold of the little ice age.
Just as Yuan Qing was about to freeze solid, he saw a figure appear in the distance. Hope surged in his heart, and he hurriedly called out, “Help!”