.....
That night, Ye Fei had a very long dream. In it, the Spores he controlled became extremely vicious, spreading out in the blink of an eye to form a substance like the Insect Race’s Creep. This Creep was highly toxic, and the Fungal Hyphae tentacles it sprouted could easily pierce through enemies. It didn’t take long for him to use the Spores to achieve a global Infection, enslaving all living creatures. These infected animals spread Spores wherever they went. Some Spores even grew into giant mushroom turrets capable of firing plasma cannons into outer space. Finally, just as he was about to... achieve great global unity with a dozen adoring beauties from various races, he suddenly woke up.
"Sigh... I guess people really can’t dream about things they’ve never experienced."
Ye Fei sighed, savoring the memory.
The dream was fake, of course, but he had to admit, it was pretty interesting.
"From now on, I’ll call you the Doomsday Fungus."
Ye Fei whispered, giving his mushroom its name.
The name represented both the fungus’s origin—born in the apocalypse—and Ye Fei’s hope: to bring about a doomsday for his enemies!
Although the name was inspired by a dream, a man still had to have dreams. What if it came true?
"Well, damn. Is it just me, or have you gotten more handsome?"
Just then, the door to the room opened, and Wang Gang walked in holding a shriveled piece of fruit.
"I’m a Superpower User now, after all,"
Ye Fei said with a smile.
He had already thought it through. There was no way to explain coming back from the dead, but thankfully, Superpowers existed here. He could use his Superpower as a cover for all his future changes.
Of course, Wang Gang wasn’t mistaken. Ye Fei really had become more handsome. After all, anyone with a treasure worth billions would be filled with vim and vigor.
Not to mention, as the number of his mushrooms grew, Ye Fei’s physical fitness was constantly improving. Lifting his shirt, he could even see the faint outline of muscles on his abdomen.
The changes in his physique and spirit made the already good-looking Ye Fei strikingly handsome.
Ye Fei was quite satisfied with this development.
Compared to Ye Fei, Wang Gang’s appearance was a bit rough. With his big nose, wide nostrils, and short, stocky build, he could play a dwarf if you just handed him a battle-ax.
After a night’s rest, Ye Fei’s wounds had all scabbed over. He felt they were mostly healed on the inside as well, so he had Wang Gang help him up to walk around a bit.
He had been bedridden ever since he transmigrated into this world, and it was getting unbearable.
Wang Gang supported him as they strolled through ’Horizontal Tunnel Section 1,’ describing the surrounding scene as they went.
This horizontal tunnel was ten meters wide and five meters high, large enough for a forklift to pass through. It was originally used for transporting heavy equipment and as a rest area, but now it served as an excellent Shelter for the Human Race. Although there was mild nuclear radiation, it was nothing compared to the man-eating Mutants waiting outside.
Wang Gang said, "I heard from Doctor Liu that you might have awakened a Superpower. If your Superpower is strong enough, it might just be able to get us out of this predicament."
Ye Fei shook his head. "We’re not up against a single enemy."
Wang Gang grinned and clapped Ye Fei heartily on the shoulder. "Believe in yourself! You can do it! Think about it—when the whole world was plunged into an ice age, didn’t our ancestors fight their way out of the East African Rift Valley and gradually achieve Evolution into modern humans?
"Cataclysms, meteorites, viruses—we’ve conquered them all, one by one!
"So listen... We’re the Human Race! You’ve got to be confident!
"What if you awakened an SSS-Class Superpower? You could wipe out all the surrounding Mutants in an instant! Then we’d become the first of the Neo-Humans!"
At that moment, Wang Gang’s expression was resolute, and the lightbulb above his head seemed to shine like a holy aura.
"...Thanks."
Ye Fei’s eyes were listless, his face expressionless.
’Well, in that case, my thanks to Prophet Wang for his auspicious words.’
But considering his predecessor’s sullen personality, he resisted the urge to make a sarcastic remark.
Unlike Wang Gang with his blind optimism, he didn’t think a single Superpower could change their current situation.
It had been exactly two months since the sudden global mutation began. In those two months, more than half of the survivors who had fled into the mine had died.
As for the nearby town, everyone there had been completely wiped out.
The mutation had come too suddenly, an instantaneous outbreak without any warning. The elderly and children all died within a single day. Weak adults followed suit in the subsequent days, leaving less than 30% of the total population remaining.
Even then, many Mutants appeared among the survivors. These people either went mad and were killed, or they fled.
In short, the Human Race had been utterly defeated.
The entire human society of over eight billion people had failed to reverse this trend. Who was he, a single person, to think he could?
But he wouldn’t just lie down and accept it. Even if the entire Human Race was wiped out, he would fight to survive.
He believed that with his special mutated Ability, he could definitely carve out a space for himself to survive.
Strolling to the far end of Tunnel Section 1, he saw members of a Hunting Squad training in five rows and six columns.
A large, flat area had been cleared out here, and the lighting was much brighter.
However, due to their limited resources, the weapons they held were simple Long Spears made from sharpened steel rebar.
They were practicing defensive formations and coordinated thrusts. To Ye Fei, it looked a lot like the Macedonian phalanx from the movies.
The dense forest of steel rebar Long Spears ensured that any mutant creature, far stronger than an individual human, would be riddled with holes if it charged them.
It was simple and brutal, but effective.
After they had trained for over half an hour, two people walked over. One was the Hunting Squad captain, Qin Jiezhou, and the other was the doctor, Liu Ru.
Qin Jiezhou roared, "Attention!"
THUD—!
The Hunting Squad quickly lined up and stood at attention.
"Tomorrow is your rookie squad’s first time hunting outside. Everyone be prepared. Strive to awaken a Superpower!"
"Next, let’s welcome Doctor Liu to explain monster weaknesses and first-aid knowledge! Let’s give her a hand!"
CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP~!
The area immediately filled with enthusiastic applause.
It had to be said, Qin Jiezhou was an expert at training the Hunting Team. His orders were followed without question, making them no different from a military unit.
But personal charisma alone couldn’t have achieved this in such a short time. Qin Jiezhou was the first Superpower User to awaken in the mine.
And Liu Ru was the only doctor here, as well as the first person to discover that the experience ’Between Life and Death’ could stimulate the awakening of a Superpower.
This was also the reason the Hunting Squad was formed.
To put it bluntly, the Hunting Squad’s mission was to constantly go out and initiate combat, hoping to awaken Superpowers through the terrifying stimulus of being on the brink of death.
After Liu Ru finished speaking, Qin Jiezhou stepped forward, pointed seriously at a member of the Hunting Squad, and said, "From now on, you’re the captain of this rookie squad. Any problem with that?"
The squad member he singled out was instantly thrilled. Puffing out their chest, they replied in a crisp, clear voice, "No problem!"
Only then did Ye Fei notice that this person was actually a girl.
"Alright, continue training!"
With that, Qin Jiezhou turned and left. As he passed Ye Fei, he greeted him and invited him to join the Hunting Squad.
Naturally, the squad he was invited to join wasn’t the rookie squad, but the real Hunting Squad, which only Superpower Users could enter.
"Okay."
Ye Fei naturally agreed. After all, the mining camp didn’t support idle hands.
’But... why didn’t he ask what my Superpower is?’
’Shouldn’t he check to see if my Superpower is even useful first?’