Chapter 63: New Members
Little Yu lifted his head from Chu Yang’s embrace. His eyes were red and swollen, but an edge of desperate longing burned in his gaze. “Grandpa told me… to come find you. Brother Chu Yang, can I please come with you? I’ll be good, I’ll do whatever you say, and I know how to use a knife! I just killed five mutant rats all by myself…”
He caught his breath, as if suddenly remembering something crucial, his voice trembling with urgency: “I—I also awakened an Invisibility Ability! The rats couldn’t bite me earlier because I vanished into thin air… I can scout ahead for you, I can carry supplies… Please, don’t leave me alone…”
He gripped Chu Yang’s sleeve with white knuckles, clutching the fabric as if it were his final lifeline in this ruined world.
Chu Yang lowered his gaze, taking in the small, blood-splattered face, before turning to look at Jiang Jue.
Jiang Jue’s dark eyes rested quietly on the boy, sweeping over the bloodstained hem of his coat, his puffy eyes, and the small, trembling hand still clutching the chipped blade.
Yet this child had slaughtered five or six mutant beasts alone in a dark room. How old was he?
At barely twelve or thirteen, faced with the gruesome death of his only family member and surrounded by vicious monsters, he hadn’t frozen in terror. Instead, he had unlocked an ability in a moment of crisis and fought back with a simple fruit knife. In a wasteland where human life was cheaper than dirt, that level of grit and instinct was rarer than gold—even among grown adults.
Furthermore, an Invisibility Ability offered unmatched advantages for scouting and infiltration. With proper training, the boy would easily become a razor-sharp asset to the squad.
Jiang Jue gave a firm nod.
The tension in Chu Yang’s shoulders melted away instantly. Raising a hand, he gently wiped the dried blood from Little Yu’s cheek. “All right. You’re coming with us. Starting today, you’re an official member of our team…”
“Really?” Little Yu’s eyes went wide. A heartbeat later, fresh tears spilled down his cheeks—not of grief or terror this time, but born of fragile hope.
He nodded frantically, his lips parting to choke out his thanks, but the lump in his throat robbed him of words. In the end, he simply buried his face against Chu Yang’s neck, his small shoulders trembling with quiet relief.
Standing off to the side, Li Yu and Zhang Qiang watched the scene, a stinging warmth rising behind their eyes. When they traded a quick glance, a shared spark of hope ignited between them.
If even a child could be accepted, did they stand a chance too?
Li Yu drew a deep breath, mustering every ounce of courage to take a step forward. “Um… Brother Chu Yang, Brother Jiang… could the two of us join as well? We… we just awakened abilities too!”
She held out her right hand and focused her intent. A clear orb of water slowly coalesced above her palm. Though it was only the size of a ping-pong ball, it was undeniably conjured straight out of thin air.
Zhang Qiang scrambled to demonstrate his own power. Pressing both hands firmly against the frozen earth, the ground vibrated faintly before a section of soil surged upward, forming a low, rough earthen barrier. Though crude, it was unmistakably an Earth Ability.
“Brother Chu Yang, Brother Jiang, I awakened Earth and Li Yu has Water,” Zhang Qiang said with earnest sincerity. “We know our powers are still weak and we can’t do much yet. But we’re ready to learn! We’ll train hard! Could you… give us a chance?”
In an instant, every eye in the courtyard turned to Jiang Jue.
Jiang Jue’s gaze swept over the pair, his dark eyes assessing them with cool precision. Water and Earth were exceptionally practical abilities. Water provided clean, drinkable moisture—an invaluable resource in this contaminated wasteland—while Earth was indispensable for building fortifications, erecting defensive walls, and manipulating battlefield terrain.
Though their powers were currently rudimentary, the boost from absorbing crystal cores would allow Ability Users to grow at a pace ordinary survivors could never match. Bringing two practical elements into the fold would significantly increase the team’s long-term survival odds.
His thin lips parted, offering a single, decisive word: “Fine.”
That single syllable made Li Yu and Zhang Qiang gasp with joy. “Thank you, Brother Jiang! Thank you, Brother Chu!” The pair bowed repeatedly, sheer relief and excitement breaking across their faces.
In a world where life hung by a thread, securing a spot in a powerful, elite squad meant their chances of seeing tomorrow had multiplied exponentially.
Just then, a pale figure stepped forward from the shadows of the crowd. It was Jiang Lin.
Her face was still deathly pale from the lingering shock of the attack, but her lips were pressed into a tight line, her gaze burning with stubborn resolve.
Her eyes flickered between Jiang Jue and Chu Yang before locking firmly onto Jiang Jue’s impassive face. Her voice carried an unyielding determination: “I want to join your squad, too.”
She paused, lifting her chin slightly as she added, “I’ve also awakened the Water Ability. I might not be completely proficient with it yet, but I’ll train relentlessly. I swear I won’t hold the team back.”
Saying this, she raised her hand, attempting to mirror Li Yu’s technique to condense a sphere of water above her palm.
“A Water Ability?” Chu Yang raised an eyebrow, surprise coloring his tone. He remembered that Jiang Lin had been an ordinary survivor just hours ago; he hadn’t anticipated that tonight’s crisis would trigger her awakening as well.
And just like that, they had the potential for two Water Users? Clean water was virtually liquid gold in the apocalypse, especially with the sweltering summer months looming ahead. Adding another Water User would provide an incredible buffer for their logistical needs.
Chu Yang turned his head toward Jiang Jue, his eyes silently asking: What about her? What do you think?
Jiang Jue’s gaze settled on Jiang Lin, his eyes freezing over like black ice. “No.”
There was no explanation, no hesitation, and not a sliver of room for negotiation—just two cold, absolute letters.
Jiang Lin froze. The color drained from her face in an instant, only to flush with humiliated red a second later. She clearly hadn’t expected to be shut down so brutally and decisively.
Refusing to back down, she pressed forward, a sharp edge creeping into her voice: “Why? We both have the Water Ability. Why can they join while I’m cast aside? What makes me inferior to them?!”
Chu Yang frowned, feeling a touch of confusion himself. While Jiang Lin’s past actions had been somewhat calculating, they were old acquaintances, and she genuinely had awakened a practical ability now. Logically speaking… there wasn’t an obvious reason to turn her away.
Even so, Chu Yang instinctively trusted and respected Jiang Jue’s judgment. If Brother Jiang was this adamant, he had to have his reasons. Chu Yang parted his lips, but ultimately kept quiet.
“Brother Jiang, she really does have the Water Ability, and our squad could always use—” Lin Xiao, being straightforward by nature, couldn’t help speaking up to smooth over the awkwardness.
“No,” Jiang Jue cut in sharply.
His chilling gaze swept over Jiang Lin once more before snapping straight back to Chu Yang, his eyes darkening.
He had no intention of maintaining any connection with anyone tied to the Jiang family; that revulsion was etched into the marrow of his bones. Beyond that, from the way she had shamelessly thrown herself at Chu Yang yesterday afternoon to the lingering, calculating looks she directed at the boy tonight, everything about her triggered his deepest instincts of rejection and hostility.
Yet he had neither the obligation nor the desire to air his personal grievances before a crowd.
He simply repeated with absolute finality: “No.”
Without sparing another glance for Jiang Lin’s humiliated, twisted expression, Jiang Jue reached out, clamped a firm grip around Chu Yang’s wrist, and spoke in an unquestionable tone: “Let’s go back and sleep.”
