Chapter 108: Lin Xiaoyu
Lin Xiao seized the opening to bring a brutal elbow down onto the back of the bandit leader’s neck. The burly man didn’t even have time to scream before his vision blacked out, and he collapsed heavily to the asphalt with a dull thud.
Without sparing him a second glance, Lin Xiao planted his boot firmly on the man’s back, his icy gaze sweeping over the rest of the battlefield.
The clash had been completely one-sided. Jiang Jue, Lin Xiaoyu, and Chu Yang were all formidable ability users, Lin Xiao possessed immense physical power, and Su Mubai provided seamless control support. Despite having the advantage in numbers, the bandits were ultimately nothing more than a disorganized mob. Within moments, they were thoroughly routed, leaving the road scattered with groaning men clutching their injuries.
Lin Weiwei had hidden behind one of the off-road vehicles in terror the moment the fight broke out, trembling from head to toe.
Only now that the dust had settled did she dare to peek out. Seeing Lin Xiao standing victorious over the bandit leader, Chu Yang casually flicking blood from his blade, purple lightning still crackling faintly around Jiang Jue, and vibrant green energy pulsing at Su Mubai’s fingertips, her heart twisted with a toxic mix of dread and burning jealousy.
Why… why had all of them awakened superpowers?
Especially Su Mubai—how could a support healer suddenly wield offensive combat power as well? Why did the universe seem unfair only to her?
Meanwhile, having quickly dealt with the enemies before her, Lin Xiaoyu scanned the area. Her gaze eventually settled on Chu Yang, a flicker of genuine surprise flashing in her eyes.
Were they the same two people from her memories?
Back when the apocalypse first began, she had teamed up with them to clear zombies from an old residential complex. Her impression of the handsome young man was his remarkable agility—especially the swift, surgical precision with which he dug out crystal cores, which had caught her attention back then. The taciturn man beside him, Jiang Jue, had been equally ruthless in combat, carrying a frigid, imposing presence that naturally made others keep their distance.
She had never expected to run into them again here, let alone in the middle of a highway ambush.
Lin Xiaoyu was not one for small talk, but she understood common courtesy. Stepping forward, she offered Chu Yang a slight nod. Her voice, much like her demeanor, was calm and detached: “Thanks for the help. I’m Lin Xiaoyu.”
Just moments earlier, when two bandits had attempted to flank her, Chu Yang had used his spatial movement to disarm one of them, instantly breaking their pincer attack.
Hearing her greeting, Chu Yang looked up with an easy grin. “Don’t mention it! It was no trouble at all. I’m Chu Yang.” He turned slightly and gestured toward the man beside him. “This is my Brother Jiang, Jiang Jue.” Then, pointing toward Lin Xiao, who was just lifting his boot from the bandit leader’s back, he added, “And that’s Lin Xiao. We usually call him Old Lin.”
Following his gesture, Lin Xiaoyu looked at Lin Xiao. Her pupils contracted sharply, and a storm erupted in her mind.
Lin Xiao?!
That name, paired with a youthful face that already carried the faint shadow of future greatness, instantly matched a legendary figure buried deep in her memories of her past life!
Before she died in that chaotic timeline, she had heard his name countless times. He was a renowned, top-tier powerhouse in the massive survivor base where she had struggled to survive—an imposing figure whose strength and decisive methods made him someone no one dared to cross.
More importantly, she distinctly remembered that Lin Weiwei, who had later climbed the ranks by latching onto high-ranking officials, had relied on Lin Xiao as her greatest protector and pillar of support! Back in her past life, Lin Xiaoyu had been at the very bottom of the food chain, far below the status required to ever speak with someone like him.
She had never imagined she would encounter a future titan right here, on an open highway.
What’s more, the dynamic between him and Lin Weiwei didn’t look anything like the rumors from her past life. If anything, they seemed to be in the middle of a bitter confrontation.
Lin Xiaoyu’s gaze flickered between Lin Xiao and Lin Weiwei, who was cowering behind the car, deep suspicion stirring in her thoughts. Even more baffling was that, across all the rumors she recalled about Lin Xiao, there had never been any mention of a powerful companion named “Chu Yang” with rare spatial abilities! A combatant with such tricky, formidable powers should have left a massive mark on the world.
As for “Jiang Jue”… that name sounded faintly familiar as well. Was he another untouchable powerhouse from a distant survivor base?
Lin Xiaoyu quietly evaluated Chu Yang and Jiang Jue, a wave of shock rippling through her chest. In a single day, she had encountered two potential apocalyptic overlords, along with a massive variable entirely missing from her past life’s memories: Chu Yang.
Though her mind was racing, she kept her expression carefully composed, masking the sharp scrutiny in her eyes.
With the fight over and the immediate area secured, Wang Qiang and Li Yu conscientiously jogged toward the small gas station building to search for supplies. They moved quickly through the rooms, but the place had already been stripped clean. The shelves held nothing but flattened cardboard boxes, and the underground fuel tanks were coated in thick dust; opening the valves yielded not a single drop of gasoline.
Before long, the two jogged back with furrowed brows.
Wang Qiang reported with frustration, “Boss, we checked inside and out. The tanks are bone dry, and the pump nozzles don’t have a drop left. This gang must have drained the entire station and hoarded it somewhere else.”
Hearing that there was no fuel, Chu Yang frowned. The gasoline stored in his personal space was running low, and after driving all morning, their tanks would likely empty out within a few dozen kilometers. Being stranded without fuel in the middle of nowhere would be a disaster.
Dropping any further pleasantries with Lin Xiaoyu, Chu Yang strode over to a bandit clutching a broken arm on the ground. He planted his boot firmly on the man’s wrist, his tone turning cold and dangerous: “Talk. Where did you stash the gas from this station? Where is it hidden?”
The lackey grimaced in pain, terrified out of his mind. “Mercy, boss! Please spare me! The fuel… it’s not here! Our leader had everything hauled back to our hideout!”
“It’s at an abandoned villa nearby! I swear it’s the truth! We have crystal cores on us too—take them all, just don’t kill me!” With trembling hands, the man pulled a cloth pouch from inside his jacket, offering dozens of Level 1 crystal cores to Chu Yang with both hands.
Chu Yang took the pouch, weighed its substantial heft, and let out a cold snort before stepping back.
He casually stored the crystal cores into his spatial dimension, then walked over to Jiang Jue and lowered his voice. “Brother Jiang, the fuel is at their base. From what this guy said, roughly half their crew was out here at the roadblock, so their hideout shouldn’t have much defense. Besides, our tanks won’t last much longer. We have to make the trip.”
Jiang Jue gave a calm nod. His gaze swept across the bandits groaning on the asphalt, glanced briefly toward Lin Xiaoyu’s group, and settled back on Chu Yang. “Get ready. We’ll go check it out.”
Chu Yang nodded in agreement and turned around to rally the others for departure.
As he passed Lin Xiaoyu, he offered a polite nod of farewell.
