The reason Xu Ge’s ability was so difficult to awaken was because of the experiments.
He had been the most successful experimental subject. When awakening his ability, the process was extremely difficult and dangerous, but once awakened, his power would be the strongest.
Three days after that day, Mu Jing heard the news that Xu Ge’s grandfather had passed away.
At that time, she had been experimenting with her own ability.
Yes, Mu Jing had already awakened her ability, and it was a rare Special Type—Purification.
Regarding abilities, this world divided them into three major categories: Elemental Type, Beast Type, and Special Type.
The male protagonist’s ability had also been classified as a Special Type.
However, while his ability was incredibly powerful, hers could only be considered a supportive one. She could purify impurities within living beings and cleanse negative emotions from people.
Abilities were ranked from F to S, divided into seven levels.
Her current level was D-rank, neither particularly good nor particularly bad.
When she arrived at the cemetery by car, a light drizzle was falling outside.
Xu Ge stood in front of his grandfather’s grave. His back was straight and firm, yet for some reason, the sight of him stirred sympathy.
“Give it to me,” Mu Jing said as she took the black umbrella the bodyguard had been holding. She instructed him, “You don’t need to follow. I’ll go by myself.”
The umbrella shielded them from the rain, yet Xu Ge showed no reaction.
Mu Jing held the heavy umbrella with both hands and looked at the side of his face, where a single trail—whether rainwater or tears—ran down.
She did not speak and simply stood beside him quietly.
Xu Ge finally reacted. He reached out with one hand and took hold of the heavy umbrella, sounding slightly helpless.
“Is it heavy?”
“It is. Letting go makes it easier,” Mu Jing replied as she looked at the tombstone and placed the bouquet in her hands before it. “Aren’t you curious about what Grandfather said to me that day?”
Xu Ge responded with silence.
“He hoped you could live a little more easily and not always ignore other people’s concerns.”
Only then did Xu Ge look at her. “Really?”
“There’s also… he entrusted you to me, asking me to take care of you. What do you think?”
“…I’ll repay the money spent on Grandfather’s hospitalization as soon as possible.”
The male protagonist never lacked pride or dignity.
Mu Jing did not know whether her attempts to remedy things would make the male protagonist spare the Mu Family in the future.
She did not dare to gamble on it, because Xu Ge’s narrow-minded nature was something every reader knew well.
His tendency to repay every slight was not just a saying.
Perhaps because Mu Jing had been paying too much attention to Xu Ge recently, even Mu Jianbai had begun to feel uncertain.
That evening, after attending a banquet, he knocked on his daughter’s door.
“Jingjing, Daddy has something to ask you…” He carefully considered his words. “It’s about Xu Ge… What exactly do you think about him?”
He had always indulged Mu Jing.
“If you like him, we can even have that poor—Xu Ge marry into the family. Daddy supports your decision.”
Mu Jing looked at the man before her. He had taken good care of himself, though in recent years he had gained some weight and looked slightly greasy.
Memories of how the original owner of this body had interacted with her father surfaced in her mind. Thinking of his ending in the novel made her feel a wave of sadness.
“Daddy…” Mu Jing stepped forward and hugged him.
“I don’t like Xu Ge. I just feel that if Mom were still here, she would definitely treat Xu Ge well. Xu Ge has also lost his mother, so I feel like we share a similar kind of loneliness.”
Mentioning his late wife made Mu Jianbai sigh.
“If it’s only sympathy, then you can help him.”
Mu Jing sensed a deeper meaning in his words.
“Dad, why were you so angry that day?”
Mu Jianbai fell silent for a moment.
“Sigh, it’s a long story. Xu Ge’s father used to be a well-known superpower scientist in the Mu Family. Later, the laboratory he established was exposed for conducting involuntary human experiments… The situation behind this is very complicated. Dad doesn’t want you to get involved.”
Mu Jing had read the novel thoroughly and knew the male protagonist’s background very well. However, the Mu Family had only been a minor villain in the story, so Mu Jianbai’s inner thoughts had never been described in detail.
It turned out that he had spoken those harsh words to the male protagonist that day because of his daughter.
After showering and lying in bed, Mu Jing thought about the true reason behind the broken engagement and could not help but sigh.
From Mu Jianbai’s perspective, he had tried to drive Xu Ge away through harsh insults. In his eyes, Xu Ge had come to their door with a marriage contract and token while possessing nothing—poor and burdened with the stigma of his father’s forced human experimentation.
Mu Jianbai did not want his daughter to get involved, nor did he want Xu Ge to continue pestering them, so he had spoken extremely unpleasant words.
Who could have known that because of this, he would miss out on an outstanding son-in-law and instead bring about the destruction of his own family?
Mu Jing sighed and sat up in bed, unable to sleep as she organized her thoughts.
She still needed to get closer to the male protagonist—not only to survive, but also to cling to this powerful future ally.
It should be within the next few days.
The day when the male protagonist would awaken his ability was about to arrive.
After his grandfather’s death, Xu Ge continued going to work as usual.
Previously, after finishing his work at the courier station, he still had to rush to the hospital. Now that there was no need for that, he found another part-time job that did not conflict with his schedule.
After graduating from high school, finding a decent part-time job without connections was difficult. Since he was usually only free at night, he ended up working as a waiter at a late-night street food stall.
After working busily until around eleven at night, the final group of customers finally left.
He quickly cleaned the tables and chairs before heading home, silently calculating how much money he had earned and when he would be able to repay the money he owed others.
When he thought about his debts, the figure of someone from the Mu Family naturally appeared in his mind. He had rejected her kindness in front of his grandfather’s grave, and it had been several days since he had last seen her.
That woman… what exactly did she want?
Was it really just so her mother wouldn’t be saddened?
“Help! Help—mmph!!!”
While he was thinking, a woman’s desperate scream suddenly came from an alley beside the road.
Late at night, such a sound spoke for itself.
Xu Ge stopped walking. After a brief hesitation, he still changed direction and headed toward the alley. Shadows moved inside the dark alley. He grabbed a wooden stick nearby and swung it fiercely.
Chaos erupted in the alley. Taking advantage of the confusion, the woman ran away without even considering what might happen to the person who had saved her.
Xu Ge could fight, but among the attackers there was a strength-type Ability User. He soon lost and curled up on the ground, protecting his head.
His body was kicked repeatedly. It hurt, yet the pain strangely made him feel alive.
He held no resentment toward the woman who had run away, nor did he regret his decision.
Was being alive truly a good thing?
He did not know.
After his grandfather died, he did not even want to return to that empty and cold house.
“Damn brat! Ruined my fun—serves you right!” One of the men kicked Xu Ge hard in the back again. The Federation’s laws imposed many restrictions on Ability Users, so they did not dare to kill him. After venting their anger with a beating, they cursed and left.
A light drizzle began to fall from the sky.
Summer weather often cried for no reason.
Xu Ge coughed and dragged his battered body back home. His body hurt and he felt exhausted, so he simply lay down on the floor.
His body grew heavier and heavier.
For a moment, it felt as though he had returned to the experimental table once again.