Xie Zhiwei quickly hid behind He Xu, grabbing the hem of her clothes with his hand, trembling slightly.
“You can have the things.” He Xu said calmly, slowly taking the backpack off her shoulder, deliberately making her movements very slow so the other party could see she had no intention of grabbing a weapon.
She placed the backpack by her feet and pushed it forward with the tip of her toe. “Take it and leave.”
The men roared with laughter. The bald one bent over laughing, his laughter echoing through the basement. “Little girl is really naive.”
The bald man took two steps closer, the beam of his flashlight sweeping across He Xu’s face, then moving to Xie Zhiwei. “You two look pretty clean. Bringing you to the base could trade for quite a lot.”
He Xu’s brain raced. Her hand quietly moved toward the fire axe behind her waist.
One against many, and the other side had weapons. A direct confrontation had almost no chance of winning. She needed an opportunity, a chance to break the standoff, even if it was just a moment of chaos.
Just then, Xie Zhiwei suddenly screamed: “Don’t touch her!”
The air temperature plummeted.
He Xu watched in shock as frost spread from beneath Xie Zhiwei’s feet, rapidly covering the ground. The water stains under the bald man’s feet instantly froze. His feet slipped, and he fell backward, the back of his head hitting the ground. The flashlight flew from his hand and rolled across the ground.
“An ability user!” Another man cried out in alarm, his voice carrying fear. He stepped back several paces, almost unable to keep hold of the iron pipe in his hand.
The bald man struggled up from the ground, clutching the back of his head. The arrogance on his face was gone, replaced by terror. “How can there be such a young ability user?!”
“A natural type?! Or a mutated ice type?!”
Xie Zhiwei’s eyes took on an abnormal ice-blue color, his breathing rapid and disordered. He clearly could not control this sudden power.
The frost continued to spread, beginning to climb the walls, and also creeping up along the bald man’s pant legs.
The original plot had been moved forward! He Xu’s heart tightened.
She remembered clearly that in the original work, Xie Zhiwei’s first large-scale loss of control happened after meeting the protagonist group, probably several weeks later. But now, the threat from those thugs had obviously triggered his stress response.
If it was not guided, this loss of control could severely injure or even kill these people, and Xie Zhiwei would from then on believe that his power only brought fear and destruction.
He would remember this moment, remember it for a lifetime, and then the next time his power awakened, he would choose to obey it rather than control it. He Xu took a deep breath and suppressed her quickening heartbeat.
She had no time to think about the issue of the plot point being moved earlier. Right now, she could not let Xie Zhiwei face this alone.
He Xu turned around and gently held Xie Zhiwei’s ice-cold hand. “Zhiwei, look at me.”
Xie Zhiwei looked at her blankly, his eyes full of panic. He was now like someone trapped by his own ability, not knowing how to escape.
He Xu could see his pupils trembling slightly, the ice-blue light flickering, extremely unstable.
“Take a deep breath, like me.” He Xu slowly inhaled and exhaled. “You can control it. This is just your power. It listens to your command.”
“I—I can’t do it…” Xie Zhiwei’s voice carried the tone of crying. “I can’t control it…”
“You can.” He Xu gripped his hand tightly and slowly extended her own ability toward him. She did not know if it would work, but she had to try. “Imagine the frost returning to your side, like an obedient little animal.”
Something wonderful happened. He Xu’s contract ability seemed to link with Xie Zhiwei’s ice-type ability. She could perceive that violent, cold power and tried to use her consciousness to soothe and guide it.
The speed of the frost’s spread slowed.
Xie Zhiwei stared wide-eyed, looking at He Xu in disbelief. He felt that the power rampaging inside him suddenly became a little docile, as if a hand had gently pressed the vital point on the back of its neck, gentle yet full of deterrence.
She can actually soothe my ability…
That cold power began to respond to his will, slowly and reluctantly flowing back. The ice on the ground began to melt, and the water seeped down along the cracks in the floor, making faint dripping sounds. The frost on the walls also disappeared, leaving only a few dark water marks between the bricks.
The bald man quickly broke free from the remaining ice and climbed up from the ground. He glanced at He Xu, then at Xie Zhiwei, his expression as if he had seen a ghost.
“Two—two ability users… run!”
The men scrambled and crawled out of the basement. Their footsteps thudded through the corridor for a while, then grew farther and farther away, finally disappearing into the night.
The crisis was over. Xie Zhiwei’s legs went weak, and his whole body began to fall.
He Xu quickly caught him, steadying him half in her arms. The boy’s face was as pale as paper, his whole body soaked in cold sweat, the hair on his forehead wet and clinging to his skin.
“You… aren’t afraid of me?” Xie Zhiwei asked softly, a trace of expectation in his voice, and more of it was fear.
He feared that the girl in front of him would, like those men, run away because his ability was powerful. Xie Zhiwei still clearly remembered that when his father saw him awaken his ability, the expression he showed was not joy, but fear.
He Xu gently wiped the sweat from his forehead. “Afraid? Why should I be afraid? You just saved us.”
“But… that kind of power…”
“Power has no good or bad; it depends on how you use it.” He Xu looked at him seriously. “You chose to use it to protect us, not to hurt the innocent. That is remarkable, Xie Zhiwei.”
He did not cry out loud, only lowered his head, his shoulders trembling in small jerks. Tears ran down his cheeks, dripping onto his dirty sportswear, leaving small dark marks.
He Xu did not disturb him, only gently patted his back.
After a long time, Xie Zhiwei raised his head, his eyes red and swollen but bright. “You said you’d take me with you… does that still count?”
“It counts.” He Xu smiled. “But there’s one condition.”
Xie Zhiwei looked at her nervously.
“You have to promise me that you won’t casually use your ability to hurt others, and that you won’t let your power control you.” He Xu said. “I will teach you how to control it, how to use it to protect yourself and the people who matter. Can you promise me that?”
Xie Zhiwei nodded vigorously. “I promise.”
“Then,” He Xu extended her hand, palm up, “let’s survive together, Xie Zhiwei.”
Xie Zhiwei hesitated for a moment, then placed his hand in hers. His hand was very cold, but He Xu held it steadily.
He Xu: “You can call me jiejie. From now on, we are sister and brother, a new family.”
Xie Zhiwei was stunned for a moment. He lowered his head, looking at the two clasped hands, his lips moving as if trying to make that sound.
“Okay, jiejie.”
He Xu looked outside. The sky had completely darkened, the moon was hidden by clouds, and the playground was pitch black. Several zombie roars came from the distance, impossible to tell whether near or far, but at least not nearby.
“Let’s rest here tonight.” He Xu said. “We’ll leave when it’s light tomorrow.”
She opened her backpack and handed Xie Zhiwei a bottle of mineral water. “Drink.”
Xie Zhiwei took it and drank in small sips.
Occasionally, he could not help but steal glances at He Xu. This girl who had suddenly appeared was not afraid of his power, did not despise his wretchedness, and even said she would teach him to control his ability.
She was like the only light that had shone into the basement in many days.
He looked down at his own hand, where the cold feeling still lingered. Before, every time his body temperature dropped abnormally, he would be so scared that he hid, afraid he would become a monster.
But today, He Xu-jiejie said this was only a power that needed to be learned and controlled.
“Jiejie.” He spoke softly.
“Hm?”
“Thank you.” Xie Zhiwei said, his voice so light it was almost inaudible.
He Xu’s heart softened, and she rubbed his hair. “You’re welcome.”
She thought to herself that the future world-destroying villain was now nothing more than a poor little thing with no food or water.
He Xu found a fitness mat from the sports equipment to use as a bed. After she laid it out neatly, she turned to look at Xie Zhiwei sitting in the corner.
He had already washed his face and changed into sportswear found in the sports room locker. Although it was two sizes too big, at least it was clean. At this moment, he was nibbling on compressed biscuits in small bites, his gaze occasionally drifting toward the kitten crouching at the door keeping watch, then quickly withdrawing.
“I named it Meiqiu.” He Xu sat down beside Xie Zhiwei and handed over half a bottle of water. “Don’t be afraid, it won’t hurt you.”
Xie Zhiwei took the water bottle and hesitated for a moment. “Why does it listen to you?”
“Because I made friends with it.” He Xu said softly, not directly mentioning the ability. “In the apocalypse, whether people or animals, everyone needs to rely on each other to survive.”
The boy drank water in silence.
He Xu could feel that he was still vigilant toward her, and she repeatedly reminded herself not to rush, to proceed step by step.
“Your ability,” He Xu chose to cut directly to the core issue, “has a similar situation happened before?”
Xie Zhiwei’s body stiffened slightly, and biscuit crumbs fell from between his fingers.
“Once.” His voice was very soft. “Dad was about to become a monster. I wanted him to turn back, and then his hand froze and shattered.”
Hearing this, He Xu wanted to comfort him. She reached out to pat his shoulder, but Xie Zhiwei instinctively dodged.
“That wasn’t your fault.” He Xu withdrew her hand, her tone firm. “At that time, you were just too sad, too desperate to keep your father.”
Xie Zhiwei raised his head, his eyes reddening. “But they were all afraid of me. Later, some adults came to search for supplies, saw the ice on the ground, and said I was a monster…”
“They were wrong.” He Xu looked directly into his eyes. “You controlled your power just now, remember? You can learn to master it, just like learning to walk or speak.”
“Really?” Xie Zhiwei asked.
“Really.” He Xu smiled. “And I have a special ability that might be able to help you. Want to see?”
Xie Zhiwei nodded hesitantly.
He Xu concentrated and slowly extended her ability, like a white tentacle touching Xie Zhiwei’s forehead.
Xie Zhiwei asked in confusion: “My head feels cool…”
“Don’t resist my connection, just relax.” He Xu replied. She could feel his consciousness tentatively touching her ability, carrying an instinctive vigilance, but he did not push it away.
Xie Zhiwei: “Okay.”
The moment He Xu connected to Xie Zhiwei’s mind, she saw an ice-blue energy channel flowing inside his body, beautiful yet dangerous, currently trembling slightly due to emotional fluctuations.
“Your power is like a river in winter.” He Xu described softly. “The surface is frozen, but deep down it keeps flowing. When emotions are intense, the ice surface cracks, and the river water overflows.”
Xie Zhiwei stared wide-eyed. “You can see it?”
“To some extent.” He Xu withdrew her ability, avoiding excessive consumption. “So I know this is not an out-of-control power. It is just a river that has not yet learned to build a dam.”
Hearing this, Xie Zhiwei looked down at his own hand. A faint white frost seeped from his fingertips, then slowly withdrew under He Xu’s encouraging gaze.
“I want to learn.” Xie Zhiwei finally said.
“Good.” He Xu nodded. “But rest first today. You are already very tired. Starting tomorrow, we will look for a safer stronghold while practicing.”
She got up to check the door, reinforcing the entrance with discarded desks and chairs. Xie Zhiwei silently followed behind her to help. Although his strength was small, his movements were serious.
He Xu noticed that Xie Zhiwei would carefully crouch down to check whether the chairs were wedged tightly, would push the desks with his hands to see if they were steady, and would turn back for one more look before leaving to confirm there were no overlooked gaps.
This meticulous and sharp trait, in the original work, eventually evolved into Xie Zhiwei’s extreme desire to control his surroundings.
A faint alarm bell rang in He Xu’s heart, but on the surface she showed nothing. “You are very careful.”
Xie Zhiwei pressed his lips together, seemingly unused to being praised. “Dad used to say that whether doing problems or living life, you have to pay attention to details…”
Halfway through, his voice trailed off. He did not continue, only stood there, looking at the chair he had just arranged, not knowing what he was thinking.
The loneliness at the end of his words made He Xu’s heart tighten.
She quickly changed the subject. “Tonight we’ll take turns keeping watch. I’ll watch the first half of the night. You sleep well.”
Xie Zhiwei: “I can help.”
“You need rest to recover your strength.” He Xu’s tone was gentle. “Listen to jiejie, Xie Zhiwei.”
This form of address made the boy pause for a moment. He eventually nodded and curled up on the mat. He Xu covered him with a sports jacket she had found and sat by the door next to Meiqiu.
The night deepened. The full moon gradually hid behind the clouds. In the basement, only the breathing of the two remained, along with the occasional zombie roars from afar. He Xu closed her eyes to rest, sorting through the next step of her plan in her mind.
According to the original timeline, in a few days, the first large survivor base would be established in the north of the city. But that base later split due to power struggles. Those in power treated ability users as tools, using them and then discarding them. And it was there that Xie Zhiwei encountered the first true bullying of his life.
“Can’t go there.” He Xu decided silently, murmuring softly. “Have to find a place to build our own stronghold, even if it starts very small. That’s still better than sending him into a place destined to hurt him.”
She recalled the descriptions of the surrounding terrain in the novel. In the west of the city, there was an abandoned industrial park with intact walls and an independent water supply system. The drawback was that it was close to the main urban area, with dense zombies. With just her and Xie Zhiwei, the two of them could not hold it.
In the south of the city, there was a newly built villa district. It had just been delivered before the apocalypse, with a low occupancy rate, relatively safe, but its defensive facilities were almost nonexistent. It was open on all sides, and any few organized people could attack and get in.
While weighing the options, He Xu suddenly felt a palpitation. Meiqiu’s fur suddenly bristled, and it bounced up from the mat, making a low hissing sound.
Something was approaching!
He Xu quickly stood up and gripped the fire axe. She had Meiqiu observe outside through the skylight. Under the moonlight, black shadows were moving on the playground—not the slow steps of zombies, but an organized advance.
Three figures, holding weapons, approaching their direction in a triangular formation.
He Xu’s heartbeat accelerated, and several thoughts flashed through her mind. Was it those people from the afternoon? Come for revenge? Or other survivors?
“Zhiwei,” He Xu lowered her voice, “wake up, there’s a situation.”
Xie Zhiwei immediately woke up and lightly came to He Xu’s side, looking in the direction of her gaze.
“Is it them?” Xie Zhiwei asked softly.
“Not sure.” He Xu narrowed her eyes. “The numbers don’t match. There were more than three people who came in the afternoon, and their builds don’t look quite the same either…”
Before she finished speaking, the leading figure suddenly raised a hand, and a ball of flame ignited in his palm, instantly illuminating the surroundings.
A fire-type ability user!
And not just one. Another person beside him gathered a water sphere in his hand.
Water-type ability.
He Xu’s heart sank. In the original work, ability users were extremely rare in the early apocalypse, and those who could control natural forces were even rarer. Someone like Xie Zhiwei, who awakened a mutated ice type from the very beginning, was one in ten thousand. And now, right in front of her, two natural-type ability users had appeared at the same time.
These people were definitely not ordinary survivors.
“People inside, come out.” The fire-type ability user shouted loudly, his voice especially clear in the silent night. “We saw you go in.”
He Xu did not answer. Her brain was running at high speed, weighing every possible response.
Fight head-on?
She and Xie Zhiwei—one had a support-type ability, and the other had just awakened and could not control it. Against two combat-type ability users, there was almost no chance of winning.
Negotiate?
The other side clearly did not come with good intentions.
Run?
Unfortunately, the basement had only one exit, and it was very likely already blocked.
“Jiejie…” Xie Zhiwei grabbed the hem of her clothes, his fingertips ice-cold.
He Xu could feel his fear, and that ice-type energy was restlessly surging.
“Don’t be afraid.” She held the boy’s hand, trying hard to keep her voice steady. “Listen to me. If things go wrong, take Meiqiu and leave through the ventilation opening at the back. Remember the passage we checked?”
At the very back, there was a ventilation opening. The iron grating was already rusted, and she had knocked it a few times with the fire axe and could get it open. The opening was not large. She could not squeeze through, but Xie Zhiwei, who was smaller in build, could.
Xie Zhiwei shook his head. “We go together.”
“Be obedient.” He Xu’s tone was serious. “I have a way to get out, but I need you to be safe first.”
She was lying. He Xu knew it herself. If these people really made a move, the only thing she could do was buy time for Xie Zhiwei to escape. Her ability was not a combat type, and her stamina was not enough to contend with three adults.
All she could do was stand there, blocking in front of him, holding them off for as long as she could.
Xie Zhiwei’s eyes glinted in the darkness, as if he had seen through her lie.
Suddenly, a banging sound came from the basement door. The sound was heavy, the entire door trembling, and the desks propped behind it made a harsh scraping noise.
“Last warning!” The people outside shouted. “If you don’t come out, we’ll burn this place down!”