Chapter 57: Seizing Power—Police and Migrant Workers

Gu Xu and the rat stared at each other, wide-eyed. After a while, he said uncertainly, “It feels strangely familiar.”

So this really is the kind of physique that attracts pets, huh?

Bian Changxi didn’t think much of it. She rummaged through Gu Xu’s backpack and pulled out a towel. “Wrap it up.”

Gu Xu bundled the rat in the towel and cradled it gently in his hands. The rat didn’t resist, instead burrowing with some effort into his arms, finding a comfortable spot and curling up contentedly. This made Bian Changxi even more fond of it.

Having wasted a bit of time, the two hurried back. The street they were on was home to other survivors, but now chaos reigned—people were fighting off bugs, or being chased and bitten, wailing miserably. Wu Dalang was helping people fend off the creatures near the entrance. Gu Xu called out from afar, “Old Wu, how’s it going?”

Wu Dalang smashed an unidentifiable bug with a clod of dirt. The other bugs, sensing he was tough prey, scurried away in confusion. Seeing Gu Xu, Wu Dalang grinned. “Captain’s back! Miss Bian’s alright?” Then he added, “Some nasty bugs crawled out from who-knows-where. We were caught off guard at first, but now we’re chasing them down instead.”

Just then, a wild laugh rang out from inside the house. “Look, I caught one!”

Everyone had gathered on the first floor. Tables and chairs were knocked over, signs of a struggle everywhere, with severed limbs of giant cockroaches and ants scattered around. Stranger still, the air was thick with steam and the strong smell of duck soup.

A huge rat, dragging half its body, struggled across the floor. When it saw Gu Xu and Bian Changxi enter, its bean-sized red eyes lit up, fur bristling as it bared its dripping fangs with a squeak. Before it could do anything more, a black object flew over and struck its head, then bounced back. Bian Changxi followed its path and saw Qiu Feng walking over, holding the object and smiling. “Ah Xu, Miss Bian’s alright?”

Bian Changxi smiled. They all asked the same thing. She replied, “Captain Gu got here just in time. I’m fine.”

She glanced at the black object in Qiu Feng’s hand—it looked like a boomerang. She hadn’t realized he had such skills. The half-dead rat had already been knocked out.

She looked around. Everyone was present. Gu Xu’s face suddenly lit up. “Shadow, you’re awake!”

A tall, thin, pale man walked over—it was Shadow, who had been unconscious for days. He managed a stiff smile, a little emotional. “Yeah, I finally woke up.” He turned to Bian Changxi, his eyes bright with gratitude, and bowed his head sincerely. “Miss Bian, I can’t thank you enough for saving my life. If you ever need anything from me, Song Annian, just say the word.”

Bian Changxi blinked. Gu Xu explained, “Shadow’s real name is Song Annian. It was too common and literary, so people teased him about it during boot camp. We all started calling him Shadow.”

Using his real name for a promise showed how serious he was. With straightforward people like this, being coy would only make things awkward.

Bian Changxi thought for a moment, then instead of replying, asked him to hold out his hand. She took it and sent a pulse of wood-type energy through him. The black stuff in his body was completely gone.

He should be fully recovered. She let go and smiled. “You should be fine now. Your captain already paid me, so technically I owe him again, but let’s keep things separate. I’ll remember what you said—if I ever need help, I won’t hesitate to ask.”

Bian Changxi had always kept her distance, making it clear she’d eventually go her own way. So when she said something so warm, everyone was a bit surprised. Shadow’s impression of her shot up.

Gu Xu was pleased too. He clapped Shadow on the shoulder. The two didn’t need many words—their brotherly bond was obvious. Suddenly, Gu Xu asked, “Is Old Chen hurt?”

Everyone turned to look at Old Chen, who was leaning weakly against the wall, supported by his wife, his face pale. Chen Haitao and his son rushed over. “What happened?” Mrs. Chen choked up, “He was bitten on the leg. I didn’t dare say anything before, didn’t want to worry everyone.”

Everyone frowned.

Bian Changxi calmly said, “Help him sit down, let me take a look.”

They rolled up his pant leg. Above his right ankle were two swollen, purplish lumps, veins twisted and visible, the skin torn as if bitten by some small animal.

She breathed a sigh of relief, recognizing the marks as ant bites. Being bitten by these mutated bugs wasn’t too serious. She was about to speak when a chill ran down her spine—she could feel Gu Xu’s eyes on her without even turning around.

Honestly, this guy had promised not to pry into her secrets, but look at him now. After Lin Rongrong’s spatial ability was exposed, he’d been watching her with those dark, probing eyes. She was developing a conditioned reflex to guard against him!

She ground her teeth in secret, but outwardly kept her expression serious. “How did this happen?”

“I think… I think I was bitten by an ant,” Old Chen said, breathing heavily.

Chen’s father trembled, “Will he…”

He wanted to ask if Old Chen would turn into a zombie. Bian Changxi understood and nodded, placing her hand on his leg to check. Her wood-type energy worked like a probe—she’d sensed black dots in Shadow, but here she found some green specks. This was a new ability she hadn’t had in her past life, and she wasn’t sure what it meant.

She shook her head calmly. “It’s not quite like Shadow’s case. Hard to say, but these ants are probably poisonous. See how swollen it is? Should we try to squeeze out the venom, like with snake bites?”

Chen Haitao gritted his teeth and looked at his father. “Let’s try it.”

The father and son were tense, unsure what to do. Wu Dalang couldn’t stand it. “Let me.” He deftly cut the wound, let it bleed, and squeezed out thick black blood.

When the black blood had mostly drained, Bian Changxi helped the wound heal, then bandaged it.

She was so focused on hiding her prophetic abilities that she forgot to conceal her technique—her bandaging was so skillful, even the ex-military guys were impressed. Gu Xu stared at her for a long moment.

Qiu Feng and the others exchanged thoughtful glances, their eyes sharp. Only Qiu Yun, clueless as ever, laughed, “He’ll be fine! Ants aren’t zombies. But hey, do you think these rats could kill someone?”

Everyone looked at his hands. He was holding a huge rat, its teeth bared and red eyes full of violence, desperate to bite him, but Qiu Yun had it firmly restrained.

It really was as big as a washbasin.

Its attitude was anything but friendly. After finishing the bandage, Bian Changxi instinctively looked at the rat in Gu Xu’s arms, worried it might suddenly bite him like its kin.

But all she saw was a dirty, miserable rat face, lips pursed in a look of utter disdain and frustration, as if it was embarrassed to be the same species as the other rat.

Everyone followed her gaze and finally noticed the black rat in Gu Xu’s hands. But why was it so much smaller? And that expression—so conflicted and strange.

*****Thank you to Zhuyiyin for the tip and recommendation votes! o(n_n)o~"