Apocalypse Chapter 16: Mutant Ants

Chapter 16: Mutant Ants

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

The golden sun was descending in the west, and the earth, which had been scorching all day, felt like a steamer. Through the windows, one could see the sky ablaze with fiery clouds. Thanks to the continuous operation of the air conditioning, the interior of the house remained cool and comfortable, and neither Jiang Rong nor his son felt the heat.

At this moment, father and son were making a phone call to the Chu Qiang family. The Chu Qiang family had been driving on the expressway for three days and still hadn’t left the boundaries of City C. In the video call, Chu Qiang’s eyes were bloodshot, his voice hoarse, “We can’t go any further ahead. It’s completely blocked. I’m planning to exit at the next interchange and take the national highway. It might be a longer route, but it should be safer.”

The scenes Chu Qiang had witnessed along the way were too terrifying. Not to mention the numerous car accidents, the horrifying corpses made even Chu Qiang, a tough man, feel fear from the depths of his heart. The harassment from mutated plants and animals was one thing, but what shocked him more was the disunity among people who should have banded together for survival. He had witnessed countless incidents of robbery and even murder for wealth.

He had never felt death so close before. Previously, he might have just vented his emotions, but now death could occur anytime, anywhere. He dared not rest, fearing that a single wrong decision would doom his entire family.

At this moment, fear filled his heart, and he regretted not listening to Jiang Rong and taking his parents back to their hometown earlier. They could have lived peaceful lives there, so why did they have to endure fear and danger on the road?

Seeing the exhaustion and anxiety in Chu Qiang’s eyes, Jiang Rong also felt anxious. But they were hundreds of miles apart, and even if he wanted to help, he couldn’t. All he could do was comfort Chu Qiang, “Okay, taking the national highway is a good idea. Remember to fill up the gas tank. If you can’t get gas at the gas stations or service areas along the way, see if you can siphon some from the tanks of abandoned cars on the roadside.”

In his previous life, he had successfully driven his car to the Peace Base using this method. He hoped it would help Chu Qiang and his family.

Chu Qiang wiped his face, “I got it.” After a pause, he lowered his voice, “Xiao Jiang, do you think the heavens are not giving humanity a way out?”

Jiang Rong encouraged him, “Don’t talk nonsense. Didn’t you awaken your enhanced ability? If the heavens really wanted us dead, then we wouldn’t have a reason to live. Don’t overthink it, focus on driving. If the national highway doesn’t work, try the provincial highway…”

Before Jiang Rong could finish his sentence, the call suddenly blacked out. At the same time, the household appliances stopped working one after another. Jiang Xiaoheng, holding a toy phone, looked puzzled, “Dad, the call suddenly got cut off. I haven’t said goodbye to grandpa and grandma yet.”

Jiang Rong’s heart sank as he held his phone. He glanced at the screen, and the signal had disappeared. It seemed that the civilian electricity in City D had been cut off. From today onwards, he wouldn’t be able to make or receive calls on his phone.

The appliances that had stopped working emitted a beep as the power was restored. The solar panels on the roof of Jiang Rong’s house started working again. A cool breeze blew, but it couldn’t dispel the anxiety in Jiang Rong’s heart. Now, all he could do was hope that Chu Qiang’s family would return home soon.

After the power outage, they couldn’t receive the TV programs they used to. Jiang Xiaoheng, holding the remote, flipped through the channels but stared disappointedly at the screen, “Dad… Meow Meow Squad is gone.”

Jiang Rong eased his emotions and took the remote from Jiang Xiaoheng’s hand, “You’ve been watching TV for a long time today. You can’t watch anymore. Come on, let’s go outside and do some activities together.”

Ever since he gained his wood-based ability, Jiang Rong had been earnestly researching its usefulness. After confirming, he found that he could produce a faint bluish light. This light could make plants stronger. Plants on the verge of death would perk up when exposed to this light, and mutated plants would become more friendly.

Jiang Rong felt that his awakening of the wood-based ability wasn’t much different from other wood-based espers. In his previous life at the Peace Base, many wood-based espers were kept in the base to grow vegetables because of this ability. Therefore, wood-based abilities, along with spatial and healing abilities, were classified as auxiliary abilities.

He thought this ability was great. If used properly, he and his son might be able to eat fresh vegetables.

If he had known he could awaken a wood-based ability, he would have set up a vegetable greenhouse in the yard. But it wasn’t too late to do it now. Taking advantage of the slightly cooler weather in the morning and evening, Jiang Rong was clearing the land outside.

The eastern part of his yard was slightly lower, with a flat area of about two to three acres. Beyond the field ridges was a mountain path leading into the mountains. This used to be his grandparents’ vegetable garden. Even in the coldest winter, one could see lush vegetables here. After his grandparents passed away, no one tended to the garden, and it was overrun by weeds.

Under the scorching sun, most delicate grasses had withered, but the sturdy vines of the burweed were flourishing. Burweed was a kind of vine plant covered with fine thorns, giving it a sticky feeling when touched lightly. If someone accidentally brushed against it, they would surely leave behind blood marks on their skin.

Jiang Rong had been plagued by this thing since he was a child. Once, he and Chu Qiang were running all over the mountains and accidentally fell into a burweed nest. If it weren’t for his grandparents, they wouldn’t have known how long they would have been entangled by burweeds.

After the Great Crisis, even the weeds began to mutate. The vines became thicker than before, and the thorns on them became harder. Carelessly brushing past them was no longer as simple as leaving a bloodstain.

To have a vegetable garden, the annoying weeds had to be removed first. Jiang Rong spent two days clearing out a small patch. The tangled weeds were knotted together, giving the feeling of a dominant force despite being annual plants.

As soon as he stepped outside, Jiang Xiaoheng was startled by the heatwave. He hesitated, looking at the cement ground in the courtyard, and a resistant expression appeared on his chubby face, “Dad, it’s so hot.”

Jiang Rong casually placed a sun hat on his son’s head, “A true man faces the scorching sun bravely. Xiaoheng, are you a real man?”

Jiang Xiaoheng raised his small fist and responded loudly, “I am! I am a real man!”

Jiang Rong skillfully placed a gardening shovel in his son’s hand. He was already adept at this act of deceiving his son. “Well done! Pretend you’re digging sand at the beach and let us enjoy the labor happily.”

With renewed enthusiasm, Jiang Xiaoheng rushed out of the yard as soon as the door opened. He raised the gardening shovel and shouted, “Lele, let’s go dig sand!”

Lele wagged his tail and ran ahead. In no time, the two of them were out of the yard.

Jiang Rong followed not too far behind them. As soon as he stepped out, he saw large cacti hanging on the west wall of the yard. “Little Fairy, stand up straight.” 

The cacti, upon receiving the command, straightened its body, casting a huge shadow over half of the yard. But as he took a few steps, Jiang Rong saw, from the corner of his eye, the cacti leaning towards the wall again. They lazily swayed their thorns, humming a nursery rhyme Jiang Rong had heard earlier today.

A few meters east of the yard, a jujube tree in full bloom could be seen. The milky-white jujube flowers occasionally fell, covering the ground with a layer of delicate petals. Jiang Rong walked to the jujube tree and touched its leaves. They seemed waxed, shining even more.

On the east side of the jujube tree, there were five or six steps leading to the vegetable garden below. When he arrived, Jiang Xiaoheng was already using a small shovel to dig vigorously at the stems of the weeds.

It seemed like an illusion, but as Jiang Rong approached the weeds, they seemed to stir with excitement. They gently swayed their tender leaves toward Jiang Rong, and many vines slowly crawled in his direction. Their movements were sluggish, but Jiang Rong, with his senses sharper than before, noticed them.

Jiang Rong felt like a big piece of fertilizer in the eyes of these mutated plants. His emitted aura seemed to attract them. For safety reasons, he should shield his aura, but he was still in the experimental stage and couldn’t control it well yet.

Compared to Jiang Xiaoheng’s chaotic hacking, Jiang Rong had already figured out a way to deal with the weeds. As annual plants, once their roots were severed, the supply to their vines would be cut off, and they would stop growing. Deprived of their roots’ supply, the weeds would wither quickly under the blazing sun.

Jiang Rong walked into the weed patch with a sickle in hand. Occasionally, he cut away obstructive vines, searching for the roots. After a while, he found a large cluster of weed roots, each as thick as a thumb.

Dealing with the weeds required full protection. If exposed skin accidentally got scratched, it would burn like fire. Jiang Rong’s clothes were soaked with sweat after just a short while of bending over. Just as he finished cutting the last weed, Lele suddenly started barking wildly towards the mountain path. Surprised, Jiang Rong looked over and saw Lele crouching, all the fur on his neck standing up aggressively.

Lele was usually a silly and happy pet, always with a smiling face. It was the first time Jiang Xiaoheng had seen Lele look so fierce. He bent down and patted Lele’s head while looking towards the mountain path, “There’s nothing there…”

Jiang Rong’s hair stood on end like Lele’s. In his past life, Lele would always behave like this when he encountered violent mutated animals. Although he didn’t know what was coming down the mountain path, Jiang Rong didn’t hesitate to say to Jiang Xiaoheng, “Son, run, run home with Lele!”

As he spoke, he also ran towards home. However, his feet were deeply entangled in the weed patch, making it difficult to move, let alone run.

Jiang Xiaoheng was bewildered by the sudden turn of events. He stood there dumbfounded, holding the small shovel, until Jiang Rong suddenly raised his voice, “Run!” 

Only then did he snap out of it and run towards home. The mutated weeds were extremely tough, and the more Jiang Rong panicked, the harder it was to break free. Then came the roar of a wild boar from the mountain path, and Jiang Rong’s face turned grim. This was bad.

People in the mountains feared wild animals the most, with wild boars and venomous snakes always topping the list of threats. Venomous snakes wouldn’t attack unless provoked, so as long as one stayed out of their territory, they were generally safe. But wild boars were different; they were violent and often roamed in groups.

From the sound of the boar’s call, Jiang Rong could tell that the boar in the mountain hollow must be sizable. If they were caught, they might not survive. As the boar’s call drew nearer, he found himself more tightly entangled in the weeds. In desperation, a thought flashed through Jiang Rong’s mind: these weeds were completely unnecessary; it would be better if they were all dead.

As soon as the words left his mind, he felt his heart skip a beat, and the world suddenly fell silent. Many greenish-blue orbs appeared on the weeds, flying towards Jiang Rong as if guided. The moment they touched his skin, they were absorbed, and he felt his body becoming incredibly agile.

The weeds entwined around Jiang Rong began to wither en masse. The once vibrant branches drooped, and the dark green leaves quickly dried up. In an instant, the weed patch lost its vitality, becoming a field of dead grass. Jiang Rong was stunned for a moment. What was happening? At this moment, Jiang Xiaoheng had already run to the gate, shouting anxiously at Jiang Rong, “Dad, hurry!”

The urgent cry woke Jiang Rong from his trance. It wasn’t time to be dazed; if they were found by the wild boar, they might not survive today.

This time, Jiang Rong finally managed to break free from the weed patch, and he sprinted towards the direction of the house with all his might. When he ran back to the gate and was about to close it, two giant wild boars appeared on the mountain path, one after the other.

The gate of Jiang Rong’s house was heavy, and it took some time to close. Just as father and son waited for the gate to close, the boar at the back suddenly let out a pitiful scream and then collapsed, rolling on the path. The screams gradually weakened, and soon, the boar behind lay motionless on the ground.

The one in front dashed along the mountain path, its hind hooves constantly kicking backward as if trying to shake something off. After one frantic kick, it lost control and charged into Jiang Rong’s vegetable garden.

The garden was full of dead weeds. As the boar rushed in, it was tripped by the grass roots and fell to the ground. Normally, the soft grass and soil wouldn’t harm a wild boar, and it could quickly get up even if it fell. However, this boar, like the one before, let out a painful howl. It rolled on the ground, its screams startling the birds in the woods.

Jiang Rong noticed something black and red falling off the boar as it rolled. Like a tide, the black-red substance surged from under the boar and quickly covered its body. After a while, the boar stopped struggling. Seeing the black-red substance, Jiang Rong’s hair stood on end. It was a mutated ant swarm! Wherever they went, no one survived!

 

 

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