The impact came from the side!
Xiao Huang’s eyes snapped open, but he couldn’t see anything clearly. It all happened too fast—everything blurred into horizontal streaks of motion.
Glass shattered!
Falling!
Weightlessness!
Then, miraculously, deceleration and cushioning!
As if some force rose from the ground to catch him.
Only when he landed safely did Xiao Huang see the blue sky.
Above him was the third-floor window, glass shattered, with Mother Huang crouching on the windowsill, looking down.
The next second, she leaped after him!
Xiao Huang’s pupils contracted sharply.
But suddenly, his body was airborne again.
Zhou Wang and Brother Dong—both Wind-types—dragged him along as they rushed outward.
Xiao Huang watched helplessly as his mother jumped from the third-floor window, breaking her leg bones, and let out a hoarse roar in his direction.
“Hurry, hurry!” someone shouted.
Many zombies came pouring out of the building.
But the two Wind-types were pushing their abilities to the max. Not only had they used updrafts to cushion their landing from the third floor, but even with a half-dead person in tow, the zombies couldn’t catch their speed.
A van was parked outside the compound, its door open, someone inside shouting at them.
The Development Zone Government Building was on the edge of Technology New District’s residential area—quite far from Mai Duoduo. They had to drive.
But yesterday was Thursday, a workday. When the zombie virus broke out in the afternoon, the residential area of Technology New District had been nearly empty. Unlike last time, when there were plenty of empty cars with keys still in them, left by drivers who’d vanished.
When Zhou Wang got the call from Longlong’s grandma and learned that Xiao Huang had gone alone to the Development Zone Government Building, he froze for a moment.
He knew very well that his wife and child hadn’t come back—they were almost certainly gone.
His own child was lost. Now, there was another child he had to save.
He looked around, quickly scanning the people nearby.
Before anyone could react, he’d grabbed Brother Dong by the collar: “Old Dong! Come with me to save someone—hurry! It’s a kid!”
There wasn’t an available empty car with keys lying around outside.
But that didn’t matter—everyone’s eyes landed on a van parked by the roadside.
Cui Haiyang picked the lock.
Gao Yuxuan hot-wired the engine.
Song Jingshuo took the wheel, because he was an excellent driver.
Everyone piled in: “Go, go, go!”
Song Jingshuo shifted into gear, hit the gas, and drifted backward before tearing off.
The car would make noise, so they couldn’t park too close. They stopped outside the government compound. Land in the Development Zone was much cheaper than in the city, so the distance from the compound gate to the main building was dozens of meters.
But that was nothing for two Wind-types.
Brother Dong was dragged out of the van by Zhou Wang and sprinted into the building.
What lousy luck! What did this have to do with him? He didn’t even know this kid.
But people get swept up by their environment.
Everyone had mobilized to participate—even those who weren’t joining had crowded around the Mai Duoduo entrance to see them off.
It was very hard to slip away under so many watchful eyes.
But now Brother Dong was one of the stronger ability users, and his mindset had changed a bit too. Even as he grumbled under his breath about his bad luck, he obediently followed along.
After getting out of the car, the two shot into the building like gusts of wind.
As for Mother Huang’s job—Zhou Wang might have known even more about it than Xiao Huang.
Because both he and Mother Huang were middle-aged professionals. When they chatted, they didn’t talk about what they’d eaten—they talked about work, policy changes after the disaster, industry prospects, and the like.
He knew she was the director of the Science, Technology, and Industry Promotion Bureau at the Development Zone Government.
But he didn’t know which floor or which office.
Fortunately, they found it in time.
One second later, and it would have been too late!
Just as Mother Huang lunged to kill Xiao Huang, the two of them lunged too. At Wind-type speed, they reached Xiao Huang before she did. All three burst through the window together and fell from the third floor.
Jiang Cheng had said she’d found a same-type ability user for Zhou Wang and told them to chat.
And sure enough, when two same-type users got together, they actually came up with something.
Before Zhou Wang got the call from Longlong’s grandma, Brother Dong had mused: can we Wind-types fly?
They’d tried it together.
Flying was impossible.
Using airflow to counter gravity—with their builds (one with a beer belly, the other solidly built)—was pure fantasy.
But it did make them realize that when falling from a height, they could use upward air currents to cushion and decelerate.
Brother Dong had said at the time: “That’s useful!”
Even if they couldn’t fly, it was great for escaping a dead end.
Like jumping off a building, for instance.
Who knew that would turn out to be prophetic.
Half an hour later, they really did jump off a building.
Dragging a nearly unconscious Xiao Huang as they sprinted, with zombies pouring out of the building behind them…
“Hurry, hurry!” Gao Yuxuan shouted.
Brother Dong and Zhou Wang shoved Xiao Huang into the van.
Gao Yuxuan and Cui Haiyang pulled from the inside.
Then Zhou Wang squeezed into the back, while Guo Jun ran around and jumped into the front passenger seat.
Bang—Squeal—
One sound was the car door slamming shut.
The other was the tires screeching as the van floored it and drifted hard.
Everyone without seatbelts was thrown around, their heads banging against the windows.
Once the van steadied, they looked out the back window and saw the zombies from the government building already far behind.
“Jesus~” Brother Dong collapsed into the passenger seat, exhausted.
Zhou Wang was just as wiped.
Even though the time they’d spent inside seemed short, the density of zombies had forced them to burn through their abilities at an explosive rate.
Brother Dong gasped for air, felt his nose itch, and wiped it—coming away with blood.
Song Jingshuo drove while glancing in the rearview mirror: “Check him.”
The situation had been urgent. Zhou Wang’s emotions had infected everyone. And they’d just finished a big fight, still riding that high. When Zhou Wang called out, their blood was hot and they acted.
Zhou Wang had a bond with Xiao Huang and was dead set on saving him.
Brother Dong had been dragged along in a daze.
But after the two of them went inside, the three people left in the van calmed down.
Song Jingshuo said: “Be prepared for this to be for nothing.”
If that kid had even one scratch, this trip wouldn’t just be for nothing—they’d have to deal with him themselves.
Cui Haiyang sighed and said: “At least we’ll have a clear conscience.”
Xiao Huang had always been by Zhou Wang’s side. And he was Old Huang’s son.
Almost everyone on the Youth Apartments Interim Committee knew him.
After Old Huang died, Xiao Huang had stuck close to Zhou Wang, and they saw him often. Under those special circumstances, Zhou Wang had clearly been looking after the widow and orphan.
As a leader, he could be called compassionate and honorable.
So at that moment, everyone truly understood his desperation. That urgent desire to save someone had infected them too.
They’d come along. Even if the kid couldn’t be saved, at least they could say with conviction: “We did our best.”
But if they hadn’t come, they’d spend every future day and night wondering, “What if I’d gone that day? Maybe…”
After Song Jingshuo’s reminder, Cui Haiyang and Gao Yuxuan immediately checked Xiao Huang all over.
Once the adrenaline left him, Xiao Huang had collapsed into a state of complete exhaustion.
But thankfully, Cui Haiyang said in surprise: “This kid doesn’t have a single scratch.”
How had he managed that—charging alone into a nest of zombies, fighting his way up to the third floor, and coming out unharmed?
Then it hit them: “He made it back from school alive. He must have an ability.”
Gao Yuxuan said: “His armor is pretty unique.”
The standard-issue armor from the government was all made by a fracture-brace manufacturer, uniformly white plastic. This kid’s shoulder guards followed the same style, but they were made of metal.
Cui Haiyang touched them and said with certainty: “This was modified by a Metal-type ability user.”
He praised: “Nice work.”
Not only was the style faithfully copied, but it also had the same ventilation holes. Even the edges were smooth and rounded, as if polished—not sharp or scratchy.
This Metal-type user was very meticulous.
Gao Yuxuan said: “If that’s the case, can kids awaken abilities too?”
Zhou Wang slumped in his seat, turned his head, and asked dazedly: “Is that so? Can they?”
How he wished his own child could awaken an ability too, survive with it, and come home with his mother.
But adults knew that was a dream. Xiao Huang being alive was already a miracle.
Old Huang’s wife had already turned into a zombie.
“Yuxuan,” Song Jingshuo said. “Call Jiang Cheng. Tell her we’re okay. Xiao Huang’s okay too.”
Gao Yuxuan said “Oh” and pulled out his phone to make the call.
Jiang Cheng glanced at the time—another day had passed.
She pulled out her phone and looked at her call log. It had been six or seven hours since Li Feng had called her.
Jiang Cheng thought for a moment, then tried calling back.
A stiff electronic voice came through: “The subscriber you are calling is out of service area. The subscriber you are calling is out of service area. The subscriber you are calling…”
Dead?
Too many people had died. Li Feng wasn’t anyone special to her anyway.
Jiang Cheng calmly closed her phone.
But as her gaze swept across the many familiar faces, she had to admit—even though she tended to run cold, some people were different.
For instance, some had received her early warning texts but hadn’t believed them and hadn’t come back.
Jiang Cheng wasn’t angry at them for not believing her, nor was she sad about their deaths.
But if Li Jiangbing and Song Jingshuo hadn’t believed her, she would have been angry.
Without realizing it, this time-traveler had formed bonds with people in this world—neither blood ties nor romantic ones.
And yet… that was okay.
Jiang Cheng watched Li Jiangbing’s boisterous antics in the distance and the corner of her mouth curled up slightly.
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