Chapter 437: Heading to the Capital
On the other side, things were a little easier for Dean. He first stopped the bleeding on Gu Qingji’s body, then turned to reattach Liu Rui’s arm. But the moment he touched the skin, he felt a sticky sensation—something wasn’t right. Frowning, he called out to the water-type ability user, “Help clean him thoroughly—I suspect he’s been poisoned.”
Dean rubbed the fingers that had just made contact and felt a stinging sensation. Noticing the red, irritated fingertips, he used his other hand to heal Xu Sa’s external wounds while asking, “What is this?”
“It’s mucus from a mutant octopus. He got sucked in by one of its suction cups,” Xu Sa explained. He was the least injured—after treatment, aside from some overexerted energy, he was fine.
Gu Qingji, Ning Yuan, and Lu Weiyi had severe bone injuries. Their base didn’t have the full surgical capabilities needed, so Antonio immediately contacted Zhuang Mingxu.
Just as the critical wounds were stabilized, screeching brakes sounded, and Zhuang Mingxu rushed onboard. “I’ve contacted Capital—they’ve prepared a hospital. You’ll take the helicopter. One hour, max.”
“Xiao Yi?” he softly called out to Lu Weiyi.
Lu Weiyi turned his head sluggishly. He tried to smile, but his eyes reddened first.
“It’s okay now. Don’t be scared. Uncle’s already called the doctors—they’re ready,” Zhuang Mingxu gently carried him onto a stretcher as dockworkers rushed over.
The wounded were rushed toward the helicopter on West Island. Zhuang Mingxu trailed behind. “Xu Yi, Dean—you two go with them. No matter what, make sure they survive.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t worry.”
The two quickly caught up with the others.
“Antonio, you take…”
“I… Brother Zhuang, I’ll go with them—” Gu Qingyue ran up, panting.
“You have other tasks,” Zhuang Mingxu said calmly. “You’ll take Team 3.”
“You’re not going?” Antonio asked as he sent Li Yan to gather the team.
“I have to handle the aftermath,” Zhuang Mingxu replied, turning to the sea with a steely gaze.
“Brother Mingxu, where’s my brother? What happened to him?” Lu Xi shouted as soon as he arrived on the West Island.
“He’s injured. He needs surgery in the Capital.” Zhuang Mingxu grabbed him. “Lu Xi, aside from your brother, your mental ability is the strongest. We need you to protect the helicopter from mutant birds during the trip. Can you do it?”
“Yes,” Lu Xi answered without hesitation.
“Li Yan, go to Minister Lin and get a batch of crystal-core rocket launchers installed,” Zhuang Mingxu said. While buying time, he took Lu Xi back to the villa and swapped out all his storage instruments—loading his space with purified crystal cores.
There were so many, even Lu Xi was stunned.
“This surgery is critical. Do whatever it takes to ensure success. If needed, break open a path with the crystal cores. Understood?”
“I understand.” Lu Xi carefully stored everything.
Back on West Island, the team was assembled. Li Zhuang stood by the hatch and asked with a frown, “I’m not going?”
“No. You staying here is more important,” Zhuang Mingxu said firmly. He pushed Lu Xi forward and looked at Antonio. “You’re in charge this time. Ensure the surgery succeeds at all costs.”
Antonio made a reassuring gesture and closed the hatch decisively.
Watching the helicopter ascend and disappear into the distance, Zhuang Mingxu’s demeanor changed sharply—like he had made a major decision. His whole being radiated a mountain-like resolve.
“Have we found out what happened exactly?” he asked those around him.
“Yes. They were attacked by a mutant octopus. According to the crew, its size was immeasurable, with over a dozen tentacles covered in suction cups. The ship was already caught before anyone could react.”
“The base commander and his team saved a few people, but the creature was so massive that their attacks seemed insignificant. Eventually, they used weapons to kill it and return. The corpse is being dragged ashore—it looks like some of the tentacles are nearly 100 meters long.”
Zhuang Mingxu glanced toward the dock, where a group was working together to haul it up. Even from this distance, the massive tentacle was clearly visible—just imagining close contact sent chills down the spine.
He exhaled deeply and said to Li Zhuang, “Contact Xiong Jie, Wu Yue, and all captains of the Ability Users’ Guild. Emergency meeting in one hour. The base has a major decision to implement. You’re joining too.” He looked toward Gu Qingyue, who was still staring anxiously into the distance.
*
On the helicopter
Xu Sa sat silently, holding Liu Rui’s hand. Dean and Xu Yi moved among the wounded, monitoring everyone’s condition.
Lu Xi knelt beside Lu Weiyi, wiping the sweat from his forehead, tears dripping onto the floor.
“Don’t cry. Don’t let him worry about you,” Li Yan patted him on the shoulder. “Go to the front. Once we hit the city, the mutant birds will be thick.”
Lu Xi nodded. Lin Mo took the towel from his hands and said softly, “Leave it to me. I’ll take care of him.”
They had to hurry. There was no need for a weapons operator now—Antonio reassigned Lu Xi to the co-pilot seat to monitor the surroundings and use his mental power to protect the aircraft.
“I’ll use flying blades to assist outside—conserve your powers so you can last until Capital.”
“I understand,” Lu Xi said firmly, gripping a crystal core in hand, ready to replenish his power at any moment.
“Let it help…” Gu Qingji’s voice was faint—barely audible over the drone of the helicopter. If someone hadn’t been watching closely, they wouldn’t have noticed.
“Qingji, Brother Qingyue has another mission. We’ll be back soon,” Dean said loudly, thinking he was asking about Gu Qingyue.
Gu Qingji raised his hand, and the mutant vine on his wrist began to writhe and crawl toward Dean. Antonio understood immediately. He grabbed it and bent down to ask, “It’s okay to release it?”
Gu Qingji’s eyes wavered slightly.
Antonio stood up, carried the small vine to the hatch, and cracked the door open slightly.
The vine instantly extended and spread outward, coiling around the helicopter. The fingernail-sized leaves were barely noticeable, but when a massive mutant eagle swooped in from afar, the vine lashed out with tremendous force, slapping it out of the sky in one blow.
Antonio’s flying blade, attached to the nose of the aircraft, paused midair and then reattached itself to the fuselage as the plane sped forward.
With the mutant vine’s help, all the lone mutant birds they encountered along the way were smacked away. But then, a swarm of sparrows, each the size of a basketball, came flying in thick clusters, darkening the sky as they swarmed toward the plane.
“Lu Xi!” Antonio shouted.
“I got it,” Lu Xi replied calmly. His threads of mental power wrapped around the entire aircraft, forming a shield that intercepted the incoming sparrows.
Though each impact was small, the sheer volume made the force overwhelming. The shield was repeatedly breached and quickly patched by Lu Xi.
Only now did he finally understand why Zhuang Mingxu and Antonio thought he wasn’t ready. Under such continuous assault, energy consumption was insanely fast.
Antonio and the other ability users didn’t remain idle. Everyone used their powers to fend off the swarming mutant birds, but even then, they were barely holding on.
“Captain, don’t you think there are way more mutant creatures this year? Last year didn’t feel this intense,” Lin Mo asked while using metal manipulation to assist Lu Xi. He could clearly see corpses falling to the ground and more mutants constantly approaching.
“Yes. Capital Base’s research institute released a national report saying that all non-human species have shown dramatically increased reproductive capacity,” said Li Yan, a fire-type user, who was stuck guarding the tail of the aircraft to avoid damaging the nose.
“So basically, humans are heading toward extinction?” Lin Mo joked grimly. Then noticing a shift in the impact angle of the mutant birds, he asked warily, “Lu Xi, you okay?”
“I’m fine. I changed the shape of the mental shield—now it’s angled at less than fifteen degrees in all directions. That way, the birds are deflected away before direct contact. The shield lasts longer that way.”
Lin Mo went silent for a while, then turned to ask Li Yan, “What’s he talking about?”
“Never try to understand the brains of top students or arts students,” Li Yan replied.
Even with Lu Xi’s clever tactics, the sheer number of birds and their suicidal persistence was overwhelming. By the time they reached Capital Base, Lu Xi had already overdrawn his energy multiple times, relying on crystal cores to stay conscious.
Lu Xiao was anxiously waiting on the helipad with his team. The helicopter’s rotors hadn’t even stopped when he ran up into the gale.
“What happened?” he shouted.
“Save them first,” Antonio didn’t explain further and had the wounded carried out immediately. Lu Xiao’s people quickly followed him into the prepared surgical room.
The two healers followed into the operating room. Lin Mo and Li Yan, each carrying a crystal-core rocket launcher, entered as well. Their fierce appearance seemed to silently warn the doctors: fail, and you’re dead—scaring the medical staff so much their legs went weak.
Antonio stayed with the rest of the team outside the OR. Just as Lu Xiao was about to ask what happened, Lu Xi bit his lip and tugged his sleeve.
“Dad, I think I’m about to upgrade.”
“Now?” Antonio asked first. Other than Dean, who was a healer, Lu Xi was the only non-S-level among them. One awakened late, the other was too busy to train.
“I started feeling it on the plane. I can’t suppress it anymore.”
“Did Zhuang give you crystal cores?” Antonio asked, instantly regaining composure.
“Yes.”
“I’ll stay with him during the upgrade. You watch over things here, okay?” Antonio said. With only two S-level users here and Li Yan already inside the OR, Antonio had no choice.
Even if his presence wasn’t technically required, having someone strong nearby gave psychological comfort.
“Don’t worry. My people are securing the area, and the doctors are all reliable. No one will disturb us before the surgery ends,” Lu Xiao reassured him.
Antonio glanced at the others, handed over command to Fourth Squad Vice Captain Lin Sheng, and ran off with Lu Xi toward the temporary upgrade chamber.
