Gu Yan did not intend to pay any attention to He Qing.

Huang Simiao also discovered He Qing.

Knowing that He Qing had not been implicated by her, she rushed over excitedly.

Before even He Qing could react, someone hugged her tightly and said, "Thank goodness! Captain, you're alright too!"

He Qing was stunned by her actions and hesitated for a moment before deciding not to push her away.

He simply asked gently, "Huang Simiao, were you injured by the mutated vine just now?"

Huang Simiao quickly shook his head.

She thought of the captain's differential treatment of Shen Jing and Li Chu's unspoken words, and finally let go of He Qing's hand, which she had impulsively held tightly.

She said cheerfully as always, "It's okay! Luckily, Ah Jing... and Mr. Gu saved me!"

Seeing her sunny smile, He Qing finally felt relieved.

He failed to protect Huang Simiao, allowing her to be taken away by the mutated vine. If anything had happened to Huang Simiao, he would be held truly responsible!

Seeing that the two were still arguing about whose responsibility it was, Shen Jing simply said, "I brought you up here, so if we have to say, the responsibility lies with me."

Seeing that they were about to argue, she reached out to stop them, "It's very late. If we don't go down the mountain soon, the people at the camp will probably start searching the mountain."

After Shen Jing finished speaking, she picked up the backpack on the ground, walked over and patted Vasi, who had just successfully advanced.

Unsurprisingly, after a trip to the mountains, everyone made some kind of progress.

Vassi's superpower has also been upgraded to level 7, grade B!

There's not much time to dwell on things in the mountains now.

Getting down the mountain as quickly as possible is the most important thing, since we still need to travel in the early morning. And we might encounter zombies during the day, so we can't hold others back!

Gu Yan watched this scene from a short distance away, and a deep look appeared in his eyes.

Despite being very strong, he insisted on carrying two burdens.

He found it hard to understand Shen Jing. It wasn't accurate to say that she was friendly to everyone; she usually seemed too detached.

However, while she may be exploiting these people, she is genuinely worried and willing to risk everything to save them.

Gu Yan withdrew his gaze, and before leaving, he took a deep look into the depths of the forest, and with a slight movement of his fingertips, a surge of energy flowed out.

When he finished doing all this, the dull pain from the loss of power was very intense, but fortunately he was already used to it.

In a daze, Gu Yan heard the sound of a dead branch being broken by footsteps.

He looked in the direction of the sound.

He then saw that Shen Jing had appeared behind him at some point.

Gu Yan didn't pay much attention, but his gaze lingered a little longer when he saw the sadness in Shen Jing's eyes.

Why be sad? Why be grieving?

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Gu Yan said sarcastically, scoffing at her undisguised worry. "I will not buy time for those greedy humans. When the time comes, this world will be destroyed."

Shen Jing shook her head; she couldn't bring herself to ask Gu Yan to continue sacrificing himself to supply energy to the Earth's core.

But what he is doing now has indeed secured a precious chance for humanity to survive.

There's a saying that's quite true: don't listen to what he says, but look at what he does!

Shen Jing was annoyed by the constant prompts in the space to kill Gu Yan. Why should he be killed as a villain after doing all that?

After handing the spiritual spring water to Gu Yan, she took out a nutrient solution from her backpack, saying, "We still have a chance."

She will never admit defeat!

Gu Yan didn't understand what she meant by "opportunity" at first.

But when he saw what she handed him, Gu Yan burst into laughter, his laughter growing increasingly maniacal.

It was quite abrupt in the darkness, but he never cared about such things. After laughing his fill, he said dismissively, "Stop your sentimentality. I don't need your cheap worries."

"I need you, I need you to stay alive."

Shen Jing's voice was too soft, sounding ethereal in the night.

He Qing, who was walking in front, turned around and glanced back.

However, he did not go up to disturb them, but continued walking back with Huang Simiao along the way.

Huang Simiao glanced at Chen Jing and Gu Yan out of the corner of her eye. She was undoubtedly very grateful to her two saviors. To be honest, whether before or after the apocalypse, they seemed like a perfect match.

One is arrogant and disdainful, while the other is indulgent and distant.

She lowered her head and smiled unconsciously. It was the first time she had seen Shen Jing so humane.

She looks like an ordinary girl now, a far cry from the fearsome, invincible figure she was at the base.

Thinking of this, Huang Simiao turned to look at He Qing, "Captain, should we tell them about what happened on the back mountain when we get back?"

The back mountain not only harbors mutated vines that pose no threat to Huang Simiao, but also other ferocious mutated animals and mutated plants that can instantly strangle humans. It's only a matter of time before they attack the western base, but if word gets out, will any squads still be willing to venture out to find supplies?

Although Shen Jing said that the wave of awakening of superhumans would come soon.

Currently, only a few wood-type ability users are suspected to have appeared in the Huang family, and a few power-type ability users in the He family have used awakening agents.

The lightning-type ability users in S City must have awakened naturally...

But how many people with superpowers are there in the country and even the world?

Can humanity really withstand a simultaneous attack from mutated plants and animals and zombies?

He Qing saw Huang Simiao's smiling face and burst out laughing.

"Captain?" Huang Simiao glanced at He Qing with resentment.

He Qing quickly waved his hand and whispered to comfort her, "Don't mention that you can absorb energy from the mutated vines. We can reveal other things, though; these are things humanity will have to face sooner or later. It's better to tell them early and be prepared than to keep them in the dark!"

As he said this, his eyes were filled with determination and courage.

As the base commander, He Qing had long been prepared to sacrifice himself.

If even those with superpowers can't put up a fight, what will happen to the ordinary survivors in the base?

Huang Simiao looked at his profile thoughtfully, and finally just shook her head with a complicated expression.

This is exactly the kind of base leader she's willing to follow.

Moreover, she is now a level 3 ability user and no longer needs their special protection!

Since a consensus had been reached, Huang Simiao didn't say anything more.

However, after returning to the camp, she decided to go back to the team's vehicle first.

After all, she guessed that Gu Yan would definitely ride in Shen Jing's car, so she didn't want to be that blinding third wheel.

Shen Jing was too lazy to use her special ability to detect anything; she was just too tired tonight. After getting into the driver's seat, she said to Huang Simiao, "Wake me up when we leave. We should be able to get to the outskirts of the city after driving on the highway for an hour, trying to avoid the hottest time of day."

These words were spoken not only to Huang Simiao, but also to He Qing.

Although she knew they must have a detailed plan for going out, Shen Jing still wanted to confirm it.

“Okay! We should set off again around 4 a.m., right?” Huang Simiao asked He Qing.

He Qing nodded, looked up at Shen Jing and said, "We won't stop on the road anymore, don't worry."

That would be the best, of course.

Shen Jing only cared about getting more crystal cores.