Chapter 80

Telekinetic control means objects can be moved by mental force, making it difficult to deduce the attacker's location from their strikes. These blades came from every direction, even from behind Ye Xiao.
Ye Xiao leaned against the wall, looking badly hurt; his eyes swept quickly across the blades scattered all over the floor.
Being able to control more than twenty blades at once was proof of a skilled hand.
He tried to move his hand; thin cuts marked both wrists, beads of blood running down toward his fingertips, those two blades had aimed for his tendons.
Their aim was excellent.
Ye Xiao seemed unable to lift his hand and let it fall limply. The communicator in his palm slipped from his grip and hit the ground, landing in a small pool formed by the gathered beads of blood.
A spray of blood splashed up and hit an ant that was crawling toward him.
Calling it an ant was generous, the thing was the size of an infant's fist, jet-black with an ominous sheen. It lifted its head toward him; its antennae and mandibles were clearly visible.
Ye Xiao's face went pale as he locked eyes with the little creature.
From the communicator in the blood came Ding Jinbo's triumphant voice: "Strike three, have that ant take a bite."
Before Ye Xiao could react, the ant leaped eagerly and bit into his hand.
Ye Xiao collapsed instantly.
This time he fell completely, utterly.
To onlookers who didn't understand, it simply looked as if he had been standing normally, then suddenly dropped to his knees coughing blood, struck by blades that seemed to appear from nowhere, bleeding all over, and finally inexplicably collapsing as if manipulated by invisible hands, it was chilling.
To Lin Tantan it was unbearable; she yelled at Bai Cheng, "Get someone to save him!"
Bai Cheng's face darkened, but before he could answer, several people suddenly rushed into view, hoisted Ye Xiao up and carried him away.
They went upstairs and vanished from sight.
Bai Cheng said awkwardly, "Ye Xiao issued strict orders, no one is to interfere. Don't worry, he shouldn't be that fragile; maybe he's faking it."
He couldn't help speaking a little truthfully, worried Tantan might act rashly. But she wasn't listening, her teeth were clenched. The car had pulled up where the road inward became a tangle of narrow, winding paths impassable by vehicle. They had to get out and walk. Lin Tantan bolted from the car and shouted to the little hamster, "Lead the way." She couldn't even wait for Bai Cheng to point the route.
Meanwhile, Ye Xiao had been carried up to the fourth floor and quickly bound. Because of the rough treatment his wounds bled more, making him look especially miserable.
Ding Jinbo was ecstatic, feeling days of grievance had finally been avenged in full. He squatted in front of him and laughed, "Captain Ye, you really surprised me."
Ye Xiao breathed heavily, his pale face tinged with purple, clearly badly poisoned, yet he didn't panic. Having taken a brutal psychic blow to the brain, his words came slurred: "Ming Ze?"
Ding Jinbo pointed to Ming Ze lying unconscious to one side. Ye Xiao showed a hint of relief, then looked around the room.
There were five people here: besides Ding Jinbo, the woman with two large braids was Zhou Hong, likely the one who controlled the blades. The burly man was Wang Shuo; the man in sunglasses was He Fan. Ye Xiao could only match those two to photos he'd seen and didn't know what abilities they had.
There was another lean, hard-faced man Ye Xiao had never seen before. He toyed with the giant ant that had bitten him, clearly the one who had released it.
Shao Ping said he'd at most seen the five of them together; now the full five were present. Whether they had other allies was unknown.
Ye Xiao lowered his eyes, looking utterly exhausted: "I'm here and I've taken three strikes. You can let him go."
Ding Jinbo replied readily, "If Captain Ye is so straightforward, of course I'll keep my word and follow the plan."
At that moment something at the window caught his eye. Startled, Ding Jinbo saw a hamster's head poking in through a hole in the glass. He frowned, "Where did that rat come from?!"
Ye Xiao saw the hamster too; his eyes flashed. Could it be...
The hamster saw him, squeaked, and darted away.
"Found him! Found the person! He's alive!" the little hamster squealed as it ran. Though Ding Jinbo couldn't understand it, his instincts told him something was wrong. He ran to the window, pushed it open, there was nothing outside. Then, without warning, a blinding sheet of golden light suddenly surged up from below and slammed across his face!
Ding Jinbo was startled and leapt back, but a strip of skin was sliced from his forehead. Shocked and furious, he stumbled backwards, and before he could say anything someone suddenly appeared at the window.
She had one hand hooked on the sill; her face was as cold as if it had been frozen, a hint of ferocity in her features. Her gaze swept across the room and landed on Ye Xiao.
Then that ferocity hardened into something even more savage.
When Ding Jinbo saw who it was he was equal parts surprised and delighted, wasn’t this exactly the person he’d been obsessing over?
One Ye Xiao showing up wasn’t enough; Lin Tantan had practically delivered herself to them!
The thought flashed and was gone; caution took over. What was this about? Were they really trying to stop them from leaving? Was Ye Xiao acting friendly as a ruse? Even if it were an inside-outside trap, Lin Tantan shouldn’t be the one to show up.
Thought racing, Ding Jinbo’s first reaction was still to attack Lin Tantan with his psychic power, and he shouted, “Afn, watch Ye Xiao! The rest, move in!”
But someone was quicker than he was. The very moment Lin Tantan’s face appeared in the window, Ye Xiao did something: the fingers tied behind him twitched, and a long-primed wind blade shot out.
Ding Jinbo’s attention had been completely stolen by Lin Tantan’s arrival; unguarded, the wind blade pierced through his right ear. It left no outward wound, but in an instant it smashed his brain to pieces.
To everyone else, Ding Jinbo simply stood there dumbly, his words cut off mid-sentence.
Ding Jinbo’s ability was invisible, colorless, without a trace, but invisibility wasn’t limited to psychic power. He took pride in silently destroying other people’s brains and stealing their lives. Ye Xiao took a page from that and made him die the same way.
Almost the moment Ding Jinbo froze, Lin Tantan vaulted through the window. Countless shards of golden light flew from her hands, sweeping toward the people standing in the room.
The others finally snapped out of their surprise and scrambled to dodge and resist. Only Ding Jinbo, a flash of golden light struck his neck and a head toppled to the floor.
Lin Tantan herself was taken aback; she hadn’t expected to kill someone outright, though she assumed he was the weakest rookie, so it wasn’t a huge surprise. After that attack she released a vast sheet of golden light that enveloped Ye Xiao.
The golden light that landed on Ye Xiao showed no murderous intent; instead it wrapped around him like a sheet of gold fabric and stiffened into a solid form in an instant.
He Fan had drawn a gun to take Ye Xiao hostage. His hand hadn’t even touched him when the “golden cloth” blocked him, as if he’d grabbed something harder than steel. With a bang the force jolted his hand so violently his fingers almost shattered.
He cried out in pain and fell to the ground, then, half in disbelief, banged his gun against the “golden cloth”, it rang, clang after clang, like striking a golden bell.
He Fan: “… What is this!”
Others: “… You can use an ability like that? It becomes a full shield on impact!”
Ye Xiao, who had been about to sneakily help Lin Tantan finish off the others: “…”
Suddenly all light was gone; before his eyes there remained only a blinding sheet of gold.
He pressed against it; it was indeed rock-hard and solid. After a moment’s silence he shouted, “Tantan, let me out!”
Once Lin Tantan had wrapped him up she breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the four others who were still alive.
Her gaze was first drawn to He Fan, who stood closest to Ye Xiao. That look, that face… He Fan?!
He’d been a celebrity at the start of the apocalypse, and she’d recalled him not long ago, reconstructing his features in her mind, so she recognized him instantly.
How was he here? That wasn’t the point. She remembered He Fan only had one skill, x-ray vision, and was otherwise a rookie. Good. Pass.
She was about to size up the rest, but the other three weren’t foolish enough to stand and be inspected. They attacked simultaneously: Zhou Hong unleashed her rain of blades, Wang Shuo sent out his fireball, and the other man, the sensate, waved his hand and the ground filled with a dense mass of black ants.
The ants were ordinary in size, but led by a baby-fist-sized leader they moved with terrifying speed, and in the blink of an eye they crawled up to Lin Tantan’s feet. If they made contact, it was easy to imagine the horror of being swarmed and eaten alive.
But these three attacks actually made Lin Tantan relax.
She’d heard that among the five there should be a psychic, she feared nothing except psychic attacks. Clearly these three did not rely on psychic power.
So the rookie who died first must have been the psychic?
How could he have died so easily?
The thought flashed and she stamped her foot. The ground surged up in a layer of soft earth, trapping vast numbers of ants, and in an instant the soft soil turned hard, freezing each ant in place.
At the same time the blade rain came from the left. Lin Tantan raised her hand and sent a broad, substantial sheet of water over it; the razor-sharp, dense blades were doused without ceremony.
Those blades had been ground by Zhou Hong herself, her favorite shape and size. Now each one was soaked, even submerged; trying to control them with psychic power would be far harder.
Zhou Hong was dumbfounded. People had always met her blades by blocking, blowing them away, or matching force with force; she’d never seen them simply washed down by water.
But the water wasn’t finished. After dousing Zhou Hong’s blades like a splash of rinse-water, a truly majestic water dragon surged from Lin Tantan’s hand, coiling half a turn around her body and charging into the incoming fireball. At the moment of impact it gave a roar and swallowed the entire massive fireball in one gulp.
The fireball, several times the size of a human head and, when it burst, capable of turning into countless rockets, was swallowed whole. One could plainly see it being snuffed out within the droplets; water hissed and steamed, mist rising. The great water dragon kept its momentum and slammed into Wang Shuo’s chest, sending him flying.
Wang Shuo slammed heavily into the wall, his bones and organs seeming to shift. He spat a mouthful of blood, then was drenched by the water from the burst water dragon and collapsed into the water, barely clinging to life.
In an instant, all three waves of attack had been undone, and the floor lay soaked with water.
He Fan, Zhou Hong, and the gaunt man stood there stunned, staring at Lin Tantan.
He Fan was the first to react. He had nothing but a clairvoyant power, no offensive means, so he turned and ran, smashed open another sealed window and jumped out.
Lin Tantan paid him no mind. But just as He Fan was about to step from ledge to ledge toward the ground, a thick root shot up through the soil and wound itself around him. He Fan went pale; he struggled helplessly and, screaming, was dragged beneath the earth.
The people upstairs shuddered at the scream, running out would be a death trap. The gaunt man let out a fierce cry and waved his hands; this time he did not summon countless ants, but unleashed ribbons of black mist heavy with an ominous aura.
The black mist drifted toward Lin Tantan. Her brows knit slightly; the dark-type power was intricate, but she had already expected a dark technique. While discussing how to deploy his ability with Mei Baisheng, she’d been thinking about how to counter such powers, ones you couldn’t douse, tear apart, blow away, or move. Her conclusion: either encase yourself so it can’t corrode you, or burn it outright.
Lin Tantan raised her hand. Scarlet chains of flame spiraled forth, ensnaring each wisp of black mist; at their touch the mist burned away cleanly. The chains fused into a single blaze and engulfed the gaunt man. He screamed and toppled, rolling on the ground in flames.
Zhou Hong recoiled in horror, how many tricks did this girl have? A five-ability user, truly a five-ability user! She lunged at the still-unconscious Ming Ze, grabbed him, pressed a knife to his throat and hissed, “Don’t move, or I’ll kill him!”
Lin Tantan looked at her coldly. Zhou Hong trembled under that gaze. “You…”
The water on the floor beside Lin Tantan quietly gathered into a thin film. The membrane writhed and drifted, and in a flash it slid across Zhou Hong’s neck. Zhou Hong froze, incredulous, felt her throat with shaking fingers, choked out two sounds and fell backward, eyes wide.
Suddenly Lin Tantan felt weak. From the moment she climbed up until now only a dozen seconds had passed, but she had been cycling abilities in rapid succession at high intensity, even she felt her strength ebbing.
Her gaze passed over Wang Shuo, who was still coughing up blood; he shrank back, shaking his head and begging with his eyes. She saw the gaunt man who had nearly been burned alive. She waved her hand and the flames on him quietly died out.
One by one, mutated rats crawled in through the window and closed around the two of them.
Lin Tantan’s eyes moved to the “Golden Shield.”
Inside that shield, Ye Xiao, though bathed in golden light, could still sense what was happening outside. He had been about to step out, but seeing how powerful the girl was, how, in just a few breaths, everyone had fallen, he hesitated.
Ye Xiao: "..."
Ye Xiao fell silent.
The girl was stronger than he had imagined. Would he look utterly useless lying here so badly wounded? Should he pull himself together and signal that his injuries were only superficial, a pitiful appearance meant to deceive the enemy and salvage his image, or should he keep up the act and stick to his plan?
Ye Xiao took only a moment to decide: what did appearances matter? Even if his image were perfect, what good would it do if she refused to accept it?
So he resolutely continued to play the wounded man.
The golden light vanished in the next moment, and he looked up and saw Lin Tantan.
Lin Tantan looked back. Earlier it had been a hurried glance; now she took him in. He leaned against the wall, the fitted fabric of his clothing was sliced in many places, each cut slick with blood. Ropes bound him in places, some cutting into the wounds so the cords were bloodstained. His hair was disheveled, his face pale with bluish bruises, cold sweat beading his forehead, breath coming in short gasps; his chest rose and fell with difficulty. He looked battered and weak.
Lin Tantan bit her lip and hurried over. Golden light gathered on her fingertips and, with a few quick movements, she cut all the ropes binding him and hastily checked his injuries.
Ye Xiao “weakly” smiled and said, “I’m fine, just flesh wounds.” Lin Tantan’s examination confirmed there were no tendon or bone injuries, but the twenty or thirty cuts across his body were still shocking. She took his hand; the wound on his wrist was deep, the people who’d bound him had paid no heed and the rope had chewed into the flesh.
Her lips trembled. She bowed her head and poured wood-type energy into him to mend the wounds, probing his insides as she worked. Then she paused. “You’re poisoned.”
“Mm. An ant bit me, but it’s not serious,” Ye Xiao explained slowly, watching the girl’s expression.
The girl kept her head down and silently repaired his wounds.
Ye Xiao felt puzzled. What was this reaction? Had Bai Cheng really done as he said?
He tried, “Tantan?”
Lin Tantan’s voice was low: “You shouldn’t have come.”
Ye Xiao said, “It was the best option. Don’t mind how badly I look, I knew what I was doing.”
Lin Tantan remained mute; then suddenly tears burst free and fell, landing on the hand she was holding.
Ye Xiao was startled and abandoned the pretense. He scrambled upright. “Don’t cry, I really am fine, just surface wounds, they’ll heal. I lied to them…you taught me to use abilities all over my body, right? When the knife came I used my ability to block it; it didn’t hit anything vital! The ant bit near a wound, but I used my power to force most of the toxin out! And my mental force wasn’t harmed, I blocked that too. I’m fine, really!”
But Lin Tantan seemed not to hear him; she kept her head bowed and the tears kept falling and falling.
Ye Xiao's heart seized; he didn't want her to be hurt and crying, what he wanted was... ah!
Ming Ze finally came to, still groggy. His memory stopped at leaving the villa district: his head inexplicably throbbed, and then he lost consciousness. How had he ended up here? Where was this place?
He saw, right in front of him, a woman with eyes wide and unrelenting, a man coughing up blood, and another who had nearly been burned to a crisp, this, this...
Hearing voices, he finally recognized familiar faces and was at once delighted and alarmed. "Captain Ye, Miss Lin, what are you doing...?"
Ye Xiao relaxed when he saw him awake and, wanting to distract Lin Tantan, hurried, "Ming Ze, you're awake! Tantan, stop crying, look, Ming Ze's awake."
The moment he mentioned Ming Ze, Lin Tantan exploded. With a sweep of her hand, just as Ming Ze was about to stand and come over, a burst of golden light knocked him out. Lin Tantan glared at Ye Xiao with bloodshot eyes: "Who is Ming Ze? What does Ming Ze have to do with you? On what grounds did he let you do this?"
Ye Xiao was stunned. "He..."
"Like him? Whether I like him or not is none of your business! Even if I had been taken, you can't take such risks. No one is worth making you humble yourself and hurt yourself like this."
"Do you have any idea? Your 'idea' is nothing! Even if you knew you wouldn't die, don't the injuries still hurt? Isn't being tied up like that miserable? Isn't being grabbed by those lowlifes humiliating? You can't do this. You can't bear it. You are the most important, nobody compares to you!"
Ye Xiao stared at her, dazed.
Lin Tantan cried her eyes out, clutching his sleeve tightly like a child who had nearly lost her most precious thing.
Warmth and pain rushed through Ye Xiao. He opened his arms and gently held her. "I was wrong. I shouldn't have lied to you. I'm really okay, please don't cry, alright?"
Lin Tantan buried her face in his chest, gripping his shirt. "Seeing you hurt makes me feel awful."
Ye Xiao patted her back. "I know, I know."
"You mustn't sacrifice yourself for anyone. Not for anyone, if the whole world asked, still no. You're the one who matters most. You must always take care of and cherish yourself."
"I know."
Lin Tantan said, "You have to promise me!"
She looked exactly like a stubborn child who needed a promise; without it, she was filled with unease.
Ye Xiao found it mildly amusing and oddly bittersweet; his chest warmed until it threatened to overflow. It wasn't quite what he'd imagined, but it delighted him all the more, she really cared about him?
He kissed the top of her head, tightened his hold on her, and whispered, "Okay, I promise. I won't sacrifice myself for anyone; I'll always take care of and cherish myself." In his heart he added, Not for anyone, except you. You are more important than I am.
Lin Tantan closed her eyes and her panic finally ebbed. She had always carried a knot in her heart, an inner fear that Ye Xiao might end up blowing himself up. Although changing the fates of those around him and preventing him from dying alone could alter his mindset and make such an outcome impossible, she still felt uneasy.
She had read and watched so many historical accounts and films that that ending had taken root in her mind. She was truly afraid that one day some unbearably brutal situation would arise that required him to sacrifice himself to save others, what would he do then?
That one Ming Ze had made him go in person to be a hostage, an almost absurd fact, and the sight of him injured in the video tore at her with pain and anger, making her want to take his place and awakening that fear.
He must not sacrifice himself for others; he must not treat his life as nothing. Not even entertaining such a thought was acceptable.
Lin Tantan pressed against Ye Xiao's chest, listening to his heartbeat and feeling his warmth; only then did she feel genuinely steady. This was the real Ye Xiao, alive, and someone who would keep living.
She sniffed and belatedly felt embarrassed, she had cried so dramatically!
She hurriedly slipped from Ye Xiao's embrace and wiped her face, too shy to meet his eyes. Ye Xiao only smiled at her and didn't press the matter; his gaze was filled with tenderness.
Feeling awkward under his look, Lin Tantan searched for something to say and then remembered, "Oh, what did you say you lied about just now?"
Ye Xiao: "..."