30: Xie Jichuan is back

In the days that followed, everything proceeded as usual.

However, with the addition of Yi Nian and Doudou, life became much richer and more interesting.

She was the kind of child that made one's heart ache for her the more they spent time together.

Though she wasn't old, she had experienced many hardships, making her mind more mature than those of her peers.

She saw Lin Wan as the angel who saved her, making her the most important person in her heart—even her father had to take second place.

She even made Lin Wan her role model.

The way she had stood up for her that day was deeply etched in her mind.

She felt she would never forget it for the rest of her life.

The scene where Lin Wan had decisively killed those villains who bullied her while talking and laughing.

She was beautiful, cool, and domineering!

She wanted to become that kind of person—to grow strong and protect her, protect Doudou, and protect herself. To protect everyone she cared about.

Uncle Wang spent every day with her, moving from initial caution, unfamiliarity, and awkwardness...

...to the current natural closeness. Only they knew best how much psychological processing and sadness they had gone through in between.

Fortunately, Wang Yinian was being healed every day.

Although she still frequently had nightmares, she was growing taller, and Lin Wan gave her plenty of delicious food every day.

So, her body soon filled out significantly.

She was already a natural beauty, and now her skin was fair with a healthy glow. She stood tall and graceful, finally looking her actual age and appearing quite lovable.

Lin Wan and Shen Mo Chi even gave her professional training so she could strengthen her body and learn proper self-defense techniques, rather than the disorganized fighting she did before.

Of course, they would take her and Doudou along every day when they went out to hunt monsters.

She was exceptionally bright and understood everything instantly.

Three months later, she was able to hold her own and had become the only Level 3 Invisibility Ability user in the base.

She and Lin Wan were inseparable, sharing almost everything with each other.

Because of this, Shen Mo Chi often couldn't sleep with his baby for several days at a time.

After he sternly pulled Yi Nian aside for a talk, Nian Nian only went back to her own home to sleep at night.

When Lin Wan found out, she gave him a thorough scolding.

Shen Mo Chi...

...

Doudou was subjected to Shen Mo Chi's devilish training every day.

At first, it was very resistant, but later on, it would come looking for Shen Mo Chi to be tormented as soon as it woke up...

It had tasted the flavor of power.

The final result was that Douzi underwent a complete transformation, becoming a majestic Grade 4 Mutated Beast!

That day, Lin Wan and Shen Mo Chi could no longer contain themselves and went to find Director Zhang.

"Ji Chuan hasn't sent any messages for a long time. Something must have happened. Moreover, since he's been gone for so long, there's definitely something fishy. Please help us contact The Authorities over there to see where they are exactly. We want to go find them."

Director Zhang had intended to do the same, as he was about to assign them a mission. Returning early would give them time to adjust, and he had matters to discuss.

Finally, in August, Ji Chuan and Yue Yue returned.

Having not seen them for a long time, both had lost a lot of weight, to the point where Lin Wan almost didn't recognize them!

Despite being apart for over half a year, everyone remained as affectionate as always.

Ji Chuan had become more mature. Although he still cracked jokes occasionally, he always seemed to carry a heavy burden on his mind, no longer appearing as carefree as before.

He would often sit and stare blankly.

Yue Yue looked much more haggard. The once bright and lively happy pill now had an unshakeable exhaustion in her eyes.

As soon as she returned, she went to her room and held Lin Wan, crying for a very long time.

"Wanwan, he's really suffered! Do you know? Along the way, my heart truly bled for him!"

It turned out that when they had rushed anxiously to East City, they discovered everything was a scam!

When they arrived, his mother was sitting perfectly fine at the door, chatting and laughing with her stepson.

It was his stepfather who came up with the idea to trick him into coming over.

To make it realistic, his mother had even actually taken some medicine and spread news of her critical condition, which was why Director Zhang had passed on the message for them.

The goal was to demand supplies from Ji Chuan.

And his mother, who was faking the illness, just silently looked down through the whole ordeal.

"Ji Chuan was disheartened and prepared to come back immediately!"

"But do you know? His mother actually had the nerve to use her life as a threat!"

"She demanded he give half of his supplies to his stepfather's family, saying it was for her sake! When had she ever cared for Ji Chuan over the years? Why didn't she just actually die? Wanwan, I've never hated someone so much! I wanted to kill that old witch on the spot!"

"But I had to consider Ji Chuan. Ji Chuan couldn't kill her, but giving them supplies was also out of the question."

"We looked at that family of leeches and resolved to leave, completely severing his relationship with his mother!"

"But those despicable people actually collaborated with over a dozen other Ability Users. With his mother's help, they tricked and imprisoned me! They used me to coerce him."

"I was stupid too. I was caught off guard for a moment and they grabbed me."

"They were certain that since we flew a helicopter and carried medicine, we must have a massive amount of supplies."

"They were certain that since Ji Chuan had followed AChi for so many years, it was impossible for him not to have supplies..."

What made him most desperate wasn't this, but his mother, who just watched and kept advising him to be generous!

Later, later...

Many, many things happened later...

"Ji Chuan didn't want his wrong decision to make you worry, nor did he want you to go look for him, so he sent messages back every month or two saying we were fine."

"That day, they completely drove Ji Chuan over the edge. He was so worried about me he was going insane. He knelt and kowtowed to his mother, saying he was willing to give them the supplies as long as they let me go..."

"But in the end, his mother coldly said they would only release me once the supplies arrived."

"He was forced into a corner... He took his mother and stepfather hostage! He forced them to release me."

"After that, he became a completely different person.

Every day, he dragged me out to frantically fight zombies, kill Mutated Beasts, and collect crystal cores.

He began to plan meticulously, using zombies to go on a killing spree!"

"I stayed with him, Wanwan. Of course I had to stay with him, even if it meant dying!"

"In the end, we personally wiped out his stepfather's family entirely!"

"And his mother, that beast with a human face, was still screaming curses at him until the very end..."

"The reason we stayed so long afterward was because the commotion was quite large and many Ability Users died. The Official Base there saw our capabilities and wanted to keep us!"

"First, they had us help kill several very strong Mutated Beasts."

"After doing many more things, they only agreed to let us return once Leader Zhang intervened."

"Wanwan, what is Ji Chuan going to do..."

Lin Wan felt a pang of sorrow listening to this and silently comforted her while staying by her side.

She kept asking what Ji Chuan would do, but she had also been hurt...

Those omitted processes and the 'later' that followed must have contained many unknown dangers and moments of despair.

But this was human nature in the Apocalypse!

Even blood relatives could turn against each other at any moment. Whoever was soft-hearted would lose!

Lin Wan could empathize!

With Ji Chuan and the others back, the Qingyun Squad was finally complete.

Recalling that night when they had happily named the squad, over half a year had already passed.

The difference now was that their team had two new members: Yi Nian and Doudou.

Ji Chuan and Yue Yue had gone through this "tempering."

Their state of mind had changed once again, and they now possessed many things they didn't have before.

...

It was New Year's Eve once again.

This winter, there had been several heavy snowfalls, but the snow wasn't white—it was multicolored, beautiful yet deadly.

It had once again caused fatal damage to the soil.

Lin Wan gave the seeds and saplings she had stored in her space to the base to see if they could try growing them using greenhouses combined with the acceleration of Wood-type Ability Users.

Despite the harsh environment, the zombies and Mutated Beasts didn't seem affected; they continued to evolve as usual.

That night, they sat around a large table, drinking and chatting happily.

This time, it was Ji Chuan who came to find Lin Wan for a drink.

"Lin Wan, are you drinking?"

Lin Wan said with a smile:

"Tonight, no one can control us. I'll risk my life to accompany a gentleman!"

"Good, how straightforward! Let's not go home until we're drunk!"

With things on his mind, Ji Chuan, who usually had a high tolerance, soon became drunk.

A grown man like him just slumped on the table and cried for a long time.

"Why! How can human nature be so disgusting! Why could she never think of me even a little! Do I deserve this!"

"Yes! I deserve it, AChi, I deserve it! I shouldn't have had that damned filial piety in the first place!"

Shen Mo Chi let his good brother vent. He, who hadn't smoked for a long time, lit another cigarette.

He deeply regretted not stopping him from going to East City back then...

"It's fine if I suffer, but why did she have to join forces with outsiders to target Yue Yue? She clearly knows that Xia Yue is my life!"

"I guess, AChi, she just wanted my life! On what basis! From the moment I went there without looking back, I had already paid her back in full!"

"AChi, Yue Yue... she really suffered so much!"

Xia Yue was already sobbing uncontrollably.

Lin Wan and Yi Nian both had reddened eyes as well.

Lin Wan thought to herself that their Qingyun Team was just a bunch of miserable souls!

...

After that day, Xie Ji Chuan seemed to suddenly return to his old self, playing and joking with everyone, acting as the team's mood maker.

The Lantern Festival.

Director Zhang held a meeting for the Qingyun Team; they were about to start their operation.

"Your mission is to investigate exactly how many zombie squads Country M and Japan have. Also, their Ability User teams? What weapons and equipment do they have?"

"Lin Wan, your space—especially your space—use it freely when necessary! Depending on the situation, you must use your space to its absolute limit!"

"Now, you are all Level 7 Ability Users. Squads that can rival you barely exist. But even though you are powerful, you cannot be careless. After all, you are facing two nations."

"I know you have great chemistry and don't like outsiders interfering, but I will still have Shi Li accompany you. It adds another chance of success. As for the rest, you understand without me saying it."

Lin Wan and the others naturally understood the deeper meaning.

This was a consideration from the perspective of The Authorities.

They understood; having lived here for ten months, they had long since grown accustomed to the rules.

"Alright, then it's settled. We set out tomorrow morning! I wish you all the best of luck!"