Chapter 83 Dark Ability User

When Jiang Rong returned to the mall carrying the child and the mischievous cat, the superhumans from the Spark Base gathered around. Chu Qiang looked at the thin child with surprise, "Xiao Jiang, where did you get this child? And what's wrong with this cat? Why is it so bald?"

Jiang Rong put the child and cat down and looked around. "They're probably just a kid from an ordinary family in the mall. I don't know how he ended up on the roof. I brought him down with me. Could you please keep an eye out and help him find his father?"

Chu Qiang scratched his head. "Really, how come there are such careless fathers everywhere?"

As he spoke, Chu Qiang shouted at the top of his lungs, "Whose child is missing?! Who has lost a child?! We found a child! Has anyone lost a child?"

After calling out several times, there was no response. Chu Qiang muttered to himself, "This child might be an orphan?"

It's normal to encounter orphans these days, Jiang Rong said with a smile. "When we go back, let's find him a pair of adoptive parents. It's hard for someone this young to survive on the streets."

Just then, a tense voice came from the crowd eating instant noodles, "Um... Superpowered Person."

Jiang Rong was stunned for a moment. He pointed at himself in surprise, "Are you talking to me?"

A middle-aged man stepped out from the crowd, holding a rice bowl in both hands, his eyes filled with apprehension and his expression tense. "This child is not good. If you take him with you, you will suffer misfortune."

Jiang Rong frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

The man sighed. "This child was in this mall before us. He has no parents, and we took good care of him at first. Life is tough, and it's fate that we met. We thought we should help him if we could. At first, a few families were willing to take him in. But all of them who adopted him have suffered misfortune."

"The first woman who adopted him fell ill inexplicably and died soon after. The second woman who adopted him was bitten to death by zombies... To date, the child has been adopted by five people. All of those adoptive mothers died tragically, without exception."

If only one or two adoptive parents died, it could be considered an accident. But with so many deaths, people can't help but start to wonder. Was this child a jinx, bringing bad luck to everyone who encountered him?

At this moment, the superhuman from Peace Base suddenly spoke up, "So it's this kid. Captain Jiang, this kid is indeed a bit mysterious. Before, our Captain Zhou didn't believe in ghosts and said a few words to this kid. As a result, when we tried to break through that day, the zombies chased after Captain Zhou like crazy and started gnawing at him. If you don't believe me, go and see, Captain Zhou still has a piece of flesh missing from his arm."

As soon as the superhuman finished speaking, Jiang Rong and his teammates exchanged glances. After a moment, Jiang Rong said slowly, "Don't impose the misfortunes of adults on children. He's still a baby. He should be given a way to live."

As he spoke, Jiang Rong patted the child's head and said softly, "Baby, don't be afraid. Uncle will take you back to our base." There was more than one orphan at the Xinghuo Base, and the child would have a chance to survive if he went to the base.

The child looked at Jiang Rong with bright eyes, and grinned to reveal a set of snow-white teeth.

Seeing the child's innocent smile, Jiang Rong decided to find him some food first. He patted the child's head, "Don't move here, Uncle will get you some rice." The child didn't speak, but just hugged the rascal cat and tilted his head to look at Jiang Rong earnestly.

Just as Jiang Rong was scooping instant noodles for the child, Pan Pan and the others rushed over. "Captain Jiang! Go outside and take a look! It's strange, the zombies are all standing still."

"Is this for real?" Jiang Rong grabbed her bowl and ran towards the gate. Looking through the hole Pan Pan and the others had made in the barrier, she saw that all the zombies in the square had stopped. They were facing the mall, and their originally ferocious faces were now somewhat calm.

The superhumans were completely baffled, whispering amongst themselves, unsure of what was happening. Some thought the zombies' sudden stop was a sign they were conserving their energy, and that they would soon launch a terrifying attack on the superhumans. Others believed that another superhuman had killed the zombie king who controlled the zombies.

Various speculations circulated among the superpowered individuals. The leading superpowered individuals gathered together and discussed the matter for a while. In the end, they decided to send a few superpowered individuals out to check the situation.

Chu Qiang and Wang Chenggang, both enhanced ability users, were dispatched from the Spark Base. One had enhanced his physical strength, and the other his speed, allowing for a rapid retreat in case of an emergency.

Seven or eight superhumans walked out of the mall. At first, they were cautiously wary of the zombies around them. However, after walking a dozen meters, the zombies didn't react at all. They stood still as if they were really dead, and the superhumans became bolder.

They even pushed over a few zombies, which fell heavily to the ground and remained motionless. After a moment of silence, the crowd erupted in cheers as they watched the zombies fall. "They're not moving! They're really not moving! We're safe!"

An Ran smiled and said to Jiang Rong, "Captain Jiang, I think it's possible that Xiao Guai Guai and Xiao Xian Nv accidentally killed the leader of the zombie horde."

Jiang Rong had never encountered this situation before. He said frankly, "If that's really the case, it's a good thing for us. It's an opportunity. Captain An, let's clear out the zombies outside together in a bit." As long as the zombies don't chase and bite people, they're no different from inanimate objects, making it easy for the ability users to eliminate them.

An Ran smiled and nodded, "Okay."

Just then, a terrible barking sound came from inside the mall. Zheng Zhanqing yelled, "Captain Jiang! That kid bit Bawang!"

Jiang Rong turned around abruptly and saw the child flip over and straddle the mutated dog, Tyrant, with its two little hands tightly wrapped around Tyrant's neck and its face buried in Tyrant's thick fur.

The dog must have been in a lot of pain from the bite; it twisted its head and opened its mouth, trying to pull the child off its back. However, the child got stuck in the dog's blind spot, and the dog struggled for a while but eventually gave up.

The honest-looking bully lay on the ground, whimpering and pleading for its owner's help. Zheng Zhanqing reached out to grab the child by the back of its collar, but as soon as he did, the child slipped off the dog's back.

The child turned his head and spat out a mouthful of bloody dog ​​hair, then pounced on the ground, quickly picking up the dog food and stuffing it into his mouth. The mischievous cat beside him also buried its head and ate the dog food greedily, the two of them emitting low growls like wild animals guarding their food.

Seeing this, Zheng Zhanqing opened his mouth but couldn't utter a word. How did this child survive? He dared to fight a mutated dog for a bite to eat; what kind of life did he lead before?

Jiang Rong's eyes stung with tears. He quickly stepped forward and picked up the child, saying, "I'm sorry, it's all my fault." He had been so busy with his own things that he had forgotten to feed the hungry child first, even though he was holding a bowl.

Suddenly picked up, the child glared fiercely and struggled a few times. But when he saw that it was Jiang Rong who had picked him up, his little body relaxed. He chewed on his dog food and gave Jiang Rong a fawning smile. Jiang Rong hugged him and said, "Stop eating dog food, let's go eat something delicious."

The child smiled brightly and stretched out his little hand to Jiang Rong, saying indistinctly, "Daddy, here."

A few hard, brown kibble pieces landed in Jiang Rong's palm, and the child urged, "Daddy, eat. It's delicious."

Jiang Rong felt as if his heart was being squeezed tightly by an invisible hand, a mixture of sourness, distension, and pain. He turned his head away, his eyes already red. At this moment, the child overlapped with Jiang Xiaoheng from his previous life.

Jiang Rong felt a lump in his throat. He hugged the child and said softly, "Good boy, you will never be alone again."

*

After the zombies stopped moving, the superhumans cleared the corpses from the streets and alleys in less than three hours. The massive zombie army found peace in the flames, and seeing the huge mounds of earth rising, the superhumans could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Even if the zombies become active again, their numbers won't be as frightening as before. With their strength, they will definitely be able to completely wipe them out.

The industrial park didn't quiet down just because the zombies weren't moving. Thunderous roars and explosions continued to emanate from the northwest, and the powerful energy fluctuations astonished the ability users. When they learned that it was Xinghuo Guan Shao and Huangquan Gu Zefeng fighting, everyone was eager to go and see.

These two were too powerful; watching them up close risked getting caught in the crossfire. So, they opted for a less ideal solution: observing the fight using drones. The superhumans clearly overestimated the drones' capabilities; after losing over a dozen, they could only look northwest and listen for any sounds.

As dawn approached, Jiang Rong's expression grew increasingly grave. He hadn't heard thunder for several minutes, and there was a patch of fire in the northwest. Had Guan Shao been defeated by Gu Zefeng?

Thinking this, Jiang Rong closed his eyes and entered his sea of ​​consciousness, wanting to see the battle from the perspective of Little Darling or Little Fairy. But the moment his consciousness entered, he was bombarded with the Meow Meow Team's cheerful voiceover. For mutated plants, what's more entertaining than a fight between two superhumans in an animated film?

Seeing that Jiang Rong looked unwell, Chu Qiang comforted her, "It's alright, Xiao Jiang, let's wait a bit. It's still dark, isn't it?"

Jiang Rong pursed her lips and said, "Mm."

Just waiting around isn't going to work, so Jiang Rong needs to do something to distract himself. His teammates have already taken over most of the smaller tasks, leaving him with very little to do personally.

After looking around, Jiang Rong's gaze fell on the child who was following closely behind him: "Little Yuanyuan, how about Uncle gives you a bath?" This child seemed tireless, always following closely behind him no matter how busy he was.

The child was too young to know her age or where she lived; she only knew her nickname was Yuanyuan. While the adults were disheveled, they could still take care of themselves, but Yuanyuan was so filthy that even dogs wouldn't go near her. Jiang Rong had been bothered by the child's stench for hours.

Yuanyuan was easy to talk to, and he listened to everything Jiang Rong said, saying, "Okay."

Bathing a child is not difficult; Jiang Rong has extensive experience in caring for children. With Ruan Hanyu's help, Jiang Rong quickly obtained a basin of clean water.

Jiang Rong carefully removed the child's coat. It was already June, but the child was still wearing thick winter clothes. The clothes were so dirty they were practically caked with grime, making a dull thud when thrown on the ground. After removing the old clothes, the child's thin, small body came into view.

Just as Jiang Rongyu had thought, it wasn't just the clothes that were stained; Yuanyuan's body was so dirty it was unsightly. Jiang Rong casually pulled down the child's pants, "Come on, let's..."

After glancing at her casually, Jiang Rong looked at Yuan Yuan in surprise. "Ah, this..." He had always thought Yuan Yuan was a boy, but he didn't expect her to be a little girl.

Jiang Rong quickly placed the child in the bathtub. "I'm sorry, Yuanyuan, Uncle didn't know you were a little girl. Shall Uncle go find a little girl to help you bathe?"

Yuanyuan obediently nodded, clinging to the edge of the bathtub. Jiang Rong scratched his head in annoyance; he had been so careless. The child was too young to understand; as an adult, he should have basic gender awareness.

Jiang Rong quickly ran to the side and asked for help, "Sister Chunlan, Leilei, can you help me with something?"

*

Wang Chunlan laughed until her stomach hurt. "Xiao Jiang, you're being too cautious. Yuanyuan is so young, there's nothing wrong with you helping her take a bath."

Jiang Rong said seriously, "No. A young lady's body cannot be seen by others casually, let alone helped with bathing." To Yuanyuan, he was just someone she had only met a few times, no different from a stranger.

As the clear water flowed over her round skin, Wang Chunlan frowned slightly. "Xiao Jiang, look."

Jiang Rong turned around and saw that Yuan Yuan had many bruises on her body. Considering how fierce she was, even fighting with dogs for food, it was obvious how she got all these injuries.

Jiang Rong couldn't help but squat down and hold Yuan Yuan's hand. Yuan Yuan hadn't been treated well before, but from now on, she would definitely receive a lot of love.

Yuanyuan washed herself in three basins of water, and it wasn't until the fourth basin that her true appearance was revealed. Her skin was very fair, and her eyes were big and round. Wang Chunlan dressed Yuanyuan in the dress that Leilei had worn when she was little. Wearing the red dress, she looked like a cute doll, her face filled with childlike innocence.

Feeling more relaxed, Yuanyuan's smile broadened. She squatted beside the bathtub watching Ruan Hanyu bathe her rascal cat, who had very few good tufts of fur left. But it was lucky to have met a cat owner like Ruan Hanyu; she believed its fur would grow back soon.

Jiang Rong stood in front of the bathtub, gazing northwest. Half an hour had passed since she last heard thunder; the battle should have ended by now. She wondered how Guan Shao was doing.

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Rong said to Chu Qiang, "Qiangzi, I'm going to check on Guan Shao. You stay here and hold the fort for now."

Chu Qiang clicked his tongue. "What nonsense are you talking about? Of course we'll go together. You wait here, I'll go get the car."

Wild animals always thrive in deserted areas. Just as Chu Qiang was walking towards the pickup truck, a large rat darted past his feet. Chu Qiang stomped on the rat, smashing its brains. "Damn it, people are already dying, but the rat is getting fat and big." After saying this, he casually kicked the rat aside.

This scene was witnessed by a pair of bright eyes. Before Chu Qiang had gone far, Yuanyuan waved towards the direction of the rat. The large rat, whose head had been flattened, stood up unsteadily and walked stiffly toward the bathtub.

The blood-stained rat walked to the edge of the bathtub and collapsed on the ground. Yuanyuan reached out and petted the rascal cat. "It smells good, eat up."

Ruan Hanyu's hand trembled. Her gaze swept over the rat and Yuanyuan a few times before she called out in a trembling voice, "Captain Jiang, Captain Jiang, come here quickly..."

What kind of kid did Captain Jiang pick up?

Author's Note:

Jiang Rong: Don't bully Xiao Yuanyuan, you can't beat her.