Chapter Eight: The Terrifying Evolvers—Forming an Alliance

“Cleansing the muscles and refining the marrow?” Liang Jing felt a touch of envy. Even though he had a game system attached to him and had grown much stronger from defeating monsters, he hadn’t experienced any kind of transformation like that. By now, Liang Jing was almost certain his special power was unique to himself—at least, none of the people he’d met so far seemed to have anything similar. Of course, since he could mutate like this, maybe someone else could also acquire such abilities by chance (though this was just the protagonist worrying for nothing).

What Liang Jing didn’t know was that the muddy powder previously on his body was actually impurities and toxins being expelled from him. The white spiritual light he obtained from slaying monsters was actually their life essence—the purest form of energy. Unfortunately, only a fraction of it could be absorbed into his body; most of it dissipated unused.

This was something no one else could ever obtain, no matter how hard they tried! And yet, Liang Jing, who understood none of it, wasted most of this precious resource.

Leveling up by defeating monsters was, in a way, like an advanced version of a legendary energy-absorbing technique, but on a level far beyond anything known. However, Liang Jing wasn’t making any real use of it—he merely let it strengthen him passively.

“You don’t need to worry. He’s fine. He’ll be up soon—maybe even better than before,” Liang Jing said, shaking his head with a wry smile. He no longer felt envious; if the game system’s power counted as a form of evolution, he was convinced his was the most powerful of all.

Besides, if humanity could mutate and evolve, then his abilities wouldn’t seem so strange. He wouldn’t have to worry about being singled out and turned into a lab rat. The more people with abilities, the less attention any one of them would receive.

“Really?” the pockmarked man asked, both nervous and overjoyed, echoed by the hopeful faces of the others.

Liang Jing nodded with certainty, calming everyone down and telling them to wait.

After ten minutes or so, Yang Yuyuan finally woke up. Though his body reeked, his expression was exhilarated—he clenched his fists, trembling with excitement.

“How do you feel, Yuyuan? Any changes?” Ignoring the delighted chatter of the others, Liang Jing drew closer, examining Yang Yuyuan with great interest in the so-called evolution. “So, what’s it like?”

“It’s amazing! My body feels twice as strong as before, and I think I can shoot fire now or something,” Yang Yuyuan replied, his face alight with excitement. He barely had time to wonder how Liang Jing was here—almost instinctively, he raised his right hand and aimed at a nearby computer monitor.

As he waved his hand, a crimson fireball appeared mid-air, about ten centimeters across, and shot toward the screen.

In a burst of heat and light, the monitor exploded and burned away, leaving no question as to the power of the attack.

Such strength could probably kill a level-four mutant spider in a single blow. And with a spider’s speed, it was unlikely it could dodge such an attack.

“So you’ve become an Awakened now? Is this the apocalypse? Did you awaken fire powers?” Clearly, the pockmarked man was a fan of web novels, his face flushed with excitement. The others were just as thrilled—even if a little envious, since they hadn’t awakened. Still, Yang Yuyuan was a good guy—always eager to help and make friends. After all, he’d just risked his life to protect them from those terrifying monsters.

“Yuyuan, what’s your plan now? I’m planning to head to Qianbaihui Supermarket to find some food,” Liang Jing said, seeing that Yuyuan had recovered. He didn’t want to waste any more time and was ready to set out.

Although he envied Yang Yuyuan’s powers, he bore him no ill will. He had the game system—what more did he need? Still, it served as a reminder: there would always be capable and lucky people in this world. He was just one among many. If he wanted to become truly strong, he’d have to work even harder.

“Liang Jing, we still don’t know what’s really happened to the world. Could you fill us in?” Yang Yuyuan asked, after exchanging glances with the others.

“Go outside and look at the two suns in the sky—you’ll see it’s not just us; it’s the whole world. There’s no electricity, all communication and transportation are down, and monsters are everywhere. Even the government might not be able to help us anymore. We have to rely on ourselves. The first priority is survival. We need to find a safe place before swarms of mutated mosquitoes and other creatures gather, then figure out how to contact the authorities later,” Liang Jing explained. He wasn’t being paranoid—the world had only started mutating half a day ago, and already there were so many monstrous creatures. There were billions of insects on earth; if even a fraction mutated and swarmed, who could resist them? Wasn’t there a saying that there’s strength in numbers?

Just moments ago, Liang Jing had realized that with Yang Yuyuan’s evolution, he’d gained a valuable ally. He decided they should team up—at least until he had enough power to protect himself. Even with his system, he wasn’t invincible, and he could feel the pressure to survive.

Liang Jing, Yang Yuyuan, and the pockmarked youth moved cautiously down the street. Qianbaihui Supermarket was just at the corner—the busiest place in Qingshui Bay—only a few dozen meters from the internet café where Yang Yuyuan had been. But those few meters could be far more dangerous than they seemed.

After hearing Liang Jing’s explanation and seeing the two blazing suns in the sky, the others agreed to join his group. Survival was the first priority.

The three of them set out for the supermarket to scavenge food, while the remaining three stayed behind at the internet café to fortify their temporary shelter.

“Impressive,” Yang Yuyuan and the pockmarked youth exclaimed, watching as Liang Jing, his blades flashing with light and fire, sliced through the swift mutant mosquitoes. In no time, he’d killed three more, his movements seamless and calm.

Now that Liang Jing had equipped himself with leather armor and greaves, the mutant mosquitoes were barely a threat—they had become mere practice targets for him.

Yang Yuyuan and the pockmarked youth followed behind, sweating beneath the harsh sunlight, still wearing their winter clothes and gripping metal pipes torn from chairs.

“We never knew you were such a badass, Liang Jing. Are you an Awakened too?” the pockmarked youth asked, his voice full of awe and excitement.

“Yeah, I can hardly believe it!” Yang Yuyuan added. Even after awakening, he’d struggled to hit the mosquitoes—they were as big as fists now and far faster than before. Even his fireballs would have a hard time catching them. Watching Liang Jing dispatch them so easily was awe-inspiring.

Liang Jing’s speed was incredible—Yang Yuyuan suspected that in a fight, he wouldn’t even be able to react in time. Fireballs weren’t homing missiles; if the target dodged, there was nothing he could do. If Liang Jing closed in, Yang Yuyuan wouldn’t stand a chance.

“Yeah, I awakened a bit before you did,” Liang Jing replied, happy to be seen as an Awakened. It was safer to let others believe he had powers—maybe he could play the fool and hide his true strength.

The three of them forged ahead, with Liang Jing leading the charge against any mutant monsters. The others just had to stay close and watch each other’s backs.

Along the way, burning buildings sent up thick black smoke, filling the air with the stench of charred flesh. Blood stained the streets, and bodies—both human and insect—were scattered everywhere. The trio’s faces turned pale and their stomachs churned, but they were products of the internet age, having seen all manner of shocking videos online. Still, nothing quite prepared them for this reality.

At the entrance to the supermarket, they found the corpse of the cashier, still clad in her red vest. Her long hair was disheveled, her eyes rolled back in terror, her face twisted in agony—a stark contrast to the friendly woman Liang Jing had chatted with just yesterday while buying instant noodles. She and her family had moved here from the northern countryside to make a living—and now, this was her fate.

What a damned world.

“There are woven sacks behind the register. Yuyuan, you two start gathering supplies from the shelves; I’ll check the storeroom,” Liang Jing said, forcing himself to focus. He circled the main hall, killed three more mutant mosquitoes, and then moved on.

They were probably the first survivors to reach the supermarket.

He needed to collect boxed items for his inventory—the scattered goods on the shelves would waste too many inventory slots.

“Jing, why don’t we bring Liu Weixin and the others here and just live in the supermarket? There’s so much stuff here—it’d save us the trouble of hauling it all back,” the pockmarked youth suggested, clearly proud of his “innovative” idea.

“No way. That would make us a target for envy, and we can’t possibly use all this stuff anyway,” Yang Yuyuan interrupted before Liang Jing could reply.

“Why not? With you two Awakened here, we could just take charge! Start a survivor base, do whatever we want. Wouldn’t that be awesome?”

Liang Jing was at a loss for words.

The storeroom was just a couple of turns past the register—not far, but dim and quiet. Liang Jing had been here before to buy instant noodles. He knew the way, so he wasn’t worried.

There were few monsters inside, but plenty of corpses—mutant spiders, mosquitoes, and even a rat the size of a small dog. Clearly, the mutated creatures were fighting among themselves. The food chain had been utterly disrupted.

Seeing stacks of boxed goods piled high, Liang Jing’s heart raced. In the apocalypse, these were the most precious resources—irreplaceable. If only his inventory were bigger! Shaking his head, he began collecting what he could.

High-calorie compressed biscuits—he took entire boxes, ignoring scattered pieces.

Dove chocolate—every case went into his inventory. In the apocalypse, high-calorie foods were the easiest way to replenish energy.

Spicy chicken feet—his favorite—he took them all. Who knew if he’d ever taste them again?

Rice—he grabbed the largest sacks, each over a hundred pounds.

Salt—he took all he could find. It was essential for survival.

After filling five out of his eight inventory slots, he considered what else to take. He added ten boxes of sausages and as many blankets as he could. He left one slot empty, just in case.

After one round, the storeroom looked much emptier, but Liang Jing still felt a pang of regret—if only he had more inventory space.