"Rebirth After the Apocalypse" - No Rebirth (Part 12)...
Everyone turned around and discovered that another team had appeared behind them at some point.
When they appeared, Mao Hong's team immediately recognized them: they were the Sunshine Team, the strongest superpowered team in the base!
The Sunshine Squad was highly respected at the base, and the Mao Hong Squad cheered immediately upon seeing them.
Only Mao Hong looked unwell. She turned around and said in a deep voice, "No need. You all go about your tasks."
A blond-haired boy suddenly appeared from the Sunshine Squad, excitedly saying, "It's okay, Sister Mao Mao, it's fate that we met, and it won't take much effort anyway."
Before Mao Hong could stop him, the blond-haired boy turned around and jumped up, calling for his teammates to join in.
As expected of the strongest superpowered team in the base, Mao Hong's team needed to take turns working to complete the task.
The earth-elemental ability users they sent out instantly exploded, followed by the wind-elemental ability users who scattered the rubble.
The remaining blond kid was also a metal-type ability user, but he was clearly much stronger than Mao Hong.
In an instant, countless steel bars broke through the concrete, completing the work that Mao Hong would have taken a long time to do.
After finishing everything, the golden retriever turned to look at Mao Hong with bright eyes, as if seeking praise.
Mao Hong: ...
The other team members around her were cheering for the Sunshine Squad's strength, but Mao Hong felt very frustrated.
Not everyone can feel genuine admiration for someone who can easily do what you cannot, rather than frustration.
Watching this scene unfold, Ye Xiqing couldn't help but pat her arm and turn to the leader of the Sunshine Squad: "Captain Lin is also on a mission here?"
It was too cold in winter, and wearing metal gauntlets outside was just plain stupid. Ye Xiqing went out with her arms bare.
She was still wearing that black cloak. Before winter came, Gan Man was afraid she would get cold, so she made it even thicker, almost like a quilt.
I did think about advising her to dress properly, but Ye Xiqing is very stubborn in this regard, and she is not someone who likes to listen to advice.
The thick cloak wrapped her up completely, obscuring her face, but no one would mistake her for someone else; her cloak was more recognizable than she was.
Lin Yao did not participate in his subordinates' activities; he simply stood aside and watched.
Hearing Ye Xiqing's question, he looked over without any expression and said, "We were clearing out zombies nearby when we ran into you."
Ye Xiqing suddenly realized: "Oh, I see. What a coincidence! We've helped you clear out a lot of zombies along the way, and now it's your turn to help us."
Lin Yao and his superpowered team: ...
On their way here, they also saw zombies with their limbs removed, but this was something that every mission taker would do on the spur of the moment. It was really hard for Ye Xiqing to say that she was doing it for them.
The wind-type ability user of the Sunshine Squad stuck out his tongue. Why does it feel like we're working for free?
But there's nothing to argue about with a team led by a teammate's sweetheart. The Sunrise Squad completed the mission in a flash with a series of actions.
Mao Hong's team went to move things with great joy; today's task was completed smoothly! They could go home soon!
Mao Hong wasn't one to like owing others, so she looked at the superpowered team and said, "Are you here to clear out zombies? I can help you."
The members of the Sunshine Squad didn't really need it, but since the blond guy seemed very excited, Lin Yao didn't say anything and tacitly agreed.
The task of moving steel bars could be done by ordinary people, so the ordinary people in the team were allowed to load and unload them.
Mao Hong followed Lin Yao and the others to search for zombies deep in the ice field, and Ye Xiqing followed behind her as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
In the extreme cold, the activity of the zombie virus drops to its lowest level, and the zombies also fall into a deep sleep.
But when their limbs are severed, they occasionally jump suddenly, just like fish whose bodies have been cut off, which can be very psychologically stressful.
While ordinary field squads deal with zombies by hand, the Sunburst Squad is far more powerful.
They extended their grappling hooks and dragged the zombie into a large ditch.
Once enough zombies had been gathered, Lin Yao displayed his strength as the strongest superhuman, quickly igniting flames in the icy and snowy environment and setting the zombies ablaze.
As temperatures rise, the zombies begin to revive, trying to escape the flames but unable to leave the crater, and can only be burned to ashes.
Because of the flammability of the flames, this batch can continue to burn after being ignited, and the Sunshine Squad can keep adding "firewood" to it.
Watching from the side, Mao Hong once again felt the difference between people. This highly efficient method of dealing with zombies made her, who had been forcefully hacking at zombies before, seem like a human-machine.
Ye Xiqing didn't help drag the body this time; she just watched the spectacle from the sidelines.
The Sunshine Squad's abilities are diverse, ranging from elemental to enhancing strength and speed, making it much more entertaining to watch than Mao Hong breaking steel bars.
This made Ye Xiqing curious: what kind of wood-type ability did the original owner have?
The system didn't give her a main storyline; her superpowers were crippled as soon as she arrived, and she had no idea.
However, judging from the background information revealed, the original owner should be quite strong, since the setting of this world is that the earlier one awakens their superpowers, the stronger they become.
The original owner seems to have awakened at the beginning of the apocalypse, and her abilities should be no weaker than the male protagonist's.
Well, Ye Xiqing is probably certain that Lin Yao is the male lead.
Feeling compassion for one another, the group initially burned the zombies with great enthusiasm. However, as they watched the zombies, which resembled themselves, howling at the bottom of the pit, their mood gradually became heavy. Before they knew it, the crowd fell completely silent.
These are all former humans, how could we not feel pity for them? But if we don't deal with them while they are immobile, the living people in the base will be in danger once they form a tide.
Watching from the side, Ye Xiqing suddenly felt that if the apocalypse really came, perhaps it wouldn't be scary if only superhumans or zombies remained; what would be scary would be if only a few remained on one side.
As long as there are factions, there will be endless conflict.
If everyone turned into zombies and lost consciousness, it might actually be a good thing.
Everyone is brainless, doesn't know what "human" is, and has no human worries. They hibernate in winter and come out to air their brains in summer. They don't know what changes have occurred in the outside world, or who they were in the past. They only know that they hibernate in winter and come out in summer with the temperature.
Since everyone is a zombie, there's no need to worry about someone throwing you into a fire pit while you're hibernating, so you can sleep peacefully.
So, did the zombies attack the humans, or did the humans disturb the zombies?
...
The flames burned for a long time, but eventually ran out of fuel and the sky grew darker. The Sunshine Squad began to prepare to call it a day.
The blond guy from the Sunshine Squad clearly had a thing for Mao Hong, and kept trying to get her to come back to the base with him, but Mao Hong refused without hesitation.
The blond-haired man looked pitifully at the captain, pleading for help. Lin Yao glanced at him, then turned to Ye Xiqing: "Dr. Luo, shall we go back together?"
Ye Xiqing refused without hesitation: "No."
Lin Yao: ...
On the way back with Ye Xiqing, Mao Hong was very happy. She probably didn't expect Ye Xiqing to be such a good friend. If it were an ordinary person, they might have kindly tried to set them up.
Ye Xiqing certainly didn't like being a matchmaker, but she loved gossip. When no one was around, she couldn't help but ask curiously, "Do you have a relationship with that person?"
Mao Hong: ...
"There's no relationship between us, we're just colleagues."
It could even be described as a competitive relationship.
She and that person were competing for a spot in the Sunshine Squad. Back then, joining the Sunshine Squad was an honor for every superhuman, and the selection process was extremely rigorous. Clearly, she was not selected.
The reason she was not selected was not because she lacked ability, but because she was too individualistic and too pragmatic, making her unsuitable for teamwork.
I was really resentful back then, but now it seems that the people I competed with back then are so much better than me.
Who could be completely unperturbed by such a stark contrast? Mao Hong felt uncomfortable, but the man still kept moving closer to her as if nothing had happened.
Before the apocalypse, Mao Hong was a test-taker in a small town. She had no family willing to support her and no connections, so she could only rely on her own efforts to try to change her terrible environment. She had a strong sense of self-esteem and ambition.
In the apocalypse, all order collapsed and conditions were extremely harsh, yet she unexpectedly enjoyed the end times.
Because in the apocalypse, she awakened a very powerful superpower, and for the first time, she had a real feeling of holding onto something.
Her superpowers were arguably what she was most proud of, and when the Sunshine Squad was recruiting, she was determined to get the job.
But she never expected that her dream would be completely thwarted by someone, who then turned around and expressed his love for her.
What does it mean? Pity? Almsgiving?
Every time he got close, Mao Hong's inner venom would boil, but the people around her were like machines that would cheer whenever someone confessed their love, and they would somehow end up bringing them together.
Being with Ye Xiqing means tolerating some of her strange ways of thinking and her sudden outbursts of spoiled princess temper, but thankfully, she's not a human machine.
Mao Hong confided in her about the cause and course of events.
Ye Xiqing couldn't help but laugh after hearing this: "That's normal. I took advantage of you but don't want to give you any real compensation, so I'll reward you with free affection."
“A man’s deep affection always has a lifelong immunity. If you reject him, he becomes the pitiful one, and others will start to blame you for being too heartless. Anyway, he doesn’t suffer any loss.”
Mao Hong paused for a moment; it was the first time in her life she had heard such an apt description.
For a moment, he almost forgot his cold and aloof persona and nodded repeatedly.
That's right! That's absolutely right! That's exactly it!
Ye Xiqing also stopped, reached out her left hand to touch her chin, and began to act as her life mentor.
"Then you're in the right, so why be polite? Just slap him."
"You're a superhuman, aren't you afraid you can't beat him? Why are you feeling so upset?"
Mao Hong: ...
Putting aside whether it's acceptable to slap someone between colleagues at the same base, isn't slapping someone over such a trivial matter a bit too serious?
and……
"I probably can't beat him right now."
This is also why she felt frustrated.
Mao Hong was in low spirits, but Ye Xiqing didn't care: "If we can't beat them now, we'll just keep practicing. Practice makes perfect, and superpowers can definitely be cultivated."
"The reason he is able to surpass you now is not because he is stronger than you in any way, but because the members of the Sunshine Squad do not have to think about anything and only need to focus on fighting, so they can naturally get better training."
"You spend all your time at the base breaking steel bars, forging machinery, and handling miscellaneous tasks. If your ability training can surpass that of the Sunshine Squad members, then everyone in the Sunshine Squad might as well commit suicide."
"Even the idea that the earlier one awakens their superpowers, the stronger those powers are is debatable."
"The earlier you start something, the better you become. There's no need to say that. A six-year-old is stronger than a three-year-old. Can you say that children born earlier are more talented than those born later?"
"The strength of those who awaken their superpowers first lies in being the first to withstand the explosive impact. Their bodies are definitely more adaptable, which is commendable."
"People who awaken later cannot be described by the strength or weakness of their talents. Strength and weakness are concepts defined by humans after birth. The human body does not have that concept; the human body is simply different."
"Just like how allergies may seem like a weakness to humans, from the body's perspective, it's actually a sign of an overly strong immune system that's alert to everything."
"Those who awaken first can be proud, and those who awaken later should not be disappointed. It may just be that your body is very vigilant and you have to test things repeatedly before you change."
"If you can change, it means your body has already come to terms with it. How you change from here on out depends entirely on your personal efforts."
"Once you are enlightened, defeating a beginner with superpowers is not difficult. What is scary is setting limits for yourself."
"Jinshan is not afraid of being buried, but it is afraid of losing the belief in digging. If you don't even dare to dig, that is a real waste."
Mao Hong: ...
Why is Ye Xiqing, who is usually unreliable, able to say something so reliable?
...
Heart-to-heart talks are indeed the best way to communicate feelings. After a conversation, Mao Hong was completely convinced by Ye Xiqing and listened attentively to Ye Xiqing's teachings.
"When you train your superpowers, don't just mechanically use them. You need to think about them. Superpowers aren't muscles that get stronger the more you use them. As a mysterious ability that can manipulate the microscopic world, it definitely relies on understanding."
"Instead of learning about your superpowers, you should first learn about the chemical properties of metals."
"As the most common single-atom structure in reality, when you used your superpowers to cut it, did you use mysterious force to sever its metallic bonds, or did you change its properties?"
Is the change physical or chemical?
Do different metals exhibit different properties?
Is there a difference between active metals and inert metals?
What causes this difference?
"Hard work is the effort you put in, but thinking is the direction you take. If the direction is wrong, all your efforts will be wasted. Think first, then exert your strength."
Mao Hong: ...
"I... I studied humanities in school, so I'm a little confused by what you're saying..."
Ye Xiqing nodded without hesitation: "That's it. No wonder your progress in cultivating your superpowers is so slow. You don't even understand metal, how could you understand metal superpowers?"
Mao Hong: ...
"Could you teach me?"
Ye Xiqing smiled and nodded: "Of course, but I'm a little hungry. What about that piece of meat on your plate..."
Mao Hong glanced down and immediately turned around to go to the cafeteria to buy two more pieces. Two pieces was the limit she could buy today. You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub!
Luan Anchun and Gan Man watched Mao Hong turn and leave, their hands frozen in place. Was this still their Captain Mao...?
Ye Xiqing's brainwashing ability impressed Luan Anchun, who looked at her with a smile: "Xiao Luo, you are really amazing. You not only know how to make medicine, but also how to cultivate metal-type superpowers."
Ye Xiqing smiled knowingly and said, "I'm just a person who loves learning and thinking."
Moreover, he loves to fabricate stories, and those who believe them can't be stopped.
Luan Anchun applauded her talent and looked at her with a smile: "Then could you teach me something too? I heard you also know about traditional Chinese medicine?"
In the end times, both traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine have actually become obsolete.
Traditional Chinese medicine is now facing the fact that almost all plants are now extinct, and those that are not extinct are beginning to mutate, rendering the herbs in the old medical books useless.
Western medicine, as a discipline that relies heavily on various medical devices, would be severely constrained even if it could still salvage some medical equipment in the end times.
Leaving aside surgical instruments, it's difficult to even diagnose illnesses. With this approach, the authority of traditional Chinese medicine pulse diagnosis has returned.
In the ancient world, Ye Xiqing learned some traditional Chinese medicine when she had nothing else to do.
She had little interest in ancient things, only in traditional Chinese medicine. As someone who was often ill and frequently dealt with the Imperial Medical Academy, she became quite skilled in medicine through long-term illness.
Mao Hong's fabricated cultivation theories can be appeased with just a few pieces of meat, but traditional Chinese medicine won't do that.
Ye Xiqing smiled and looked at Luan Anchun: "Then what will Dean Luan offer me in exchange? My knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine is very valuable."
Luan Anchun raised an eyebrow: "With our relationship, do we need to talk about this? When you were recovering from your injury, I begged and pleaded to take care of you for several days."
Ye Xiqing shook her head without hesitation: "Dean Luan, you are the doctor and I am the patient, of course you have to take care of me."
"And I'm not asking for much from you, just one vial of your blood, is that alright?"
Luan Anchun sat up, smiled and shook her head: "You child, look at my age, you still want to torment an old lady like me?"
Ye Xiqing, however, did not budge.
Ye Xiqing had been paying close attention to the old woman, Luan Anchun, the first person she met upon entering the base. The old woman was indeed quite cunning; she had received everyone's genetic information except for hers.
With such a huge treasure lying outside, Ye Xiqing couldn't sleep because she hadn't gotten her hands on it yet.
Smiling, she gestured for Gan Man to extend her hand and place it on her pulse.
He had originally intended to entice Luan Anchun with his demonstration, but his smile vanished the moment his fingers touched her wrist.
He placed his hand on his wrist and probed it again.
Turning to look at Gan Man, she asked incredulously, "You're pregnant?"
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