Apocalypse Chapter 31: Instinct

Chapter 31: Instinct

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

The person who climbed onto the car didn’t even look back and walked away. In the blink of an eye, three of the four cars drove off. The only one left was still there because the car key was with Li Xiaojun; others couldn’t drive it.

Li Xiaojun, caught off guard, was pushed stumbling by his relatives. Fortunately, he was young and in good shape. After rolling on the ground for a circle, he quickly got up. The wooden stick he casually picked up became his only lifesaving weapon. Li Xiaojun waved the stick while retreating towards the direction of the car.

His heart raced up to his throat, his temples pulsated, and big drops of sweat slid down his face. He panted like a bull, his face pale with fear. In all his life, he had never encountered such a terrifying situation. Losing his weapon and the shelter of the house, he was unexpectedly so close to death.

Regret and frustration filled his mind at this moment. He kept reflecting: how good it would be if he didn’t leave home today, how good it would be if he didn’t go to save that treacherous relative…

However, no matter how much he regretted it, time couldn’t turn back, and the dilemma before him remained.

The giant wolf was singed by the flames on the stick, looking wary at the stick while unwilling to let go of Li Xiaojun as prey. Whenever Li Xiaojun stepped back, it followed closely.

Through the flame stick, Li Xiaojun could smell the foul stench from the wolf’s mouth. He believed that if the wolf got the chance, it would not hesitate to bite his throat. Fortunately, he wasn’t far from the car. After retreating a few steps, his back touched the car door. After opening the car door with one hand, Li Xiaojun threw the wooden stick in his hand towards the giant wolf and quickly climbed into the car, closing the door.

As the stick arched through the air and fell heavily to the ground, sparking a pile of fire, the giant wolf’s body bounced aside to dodge the stick. After realizing that it posed no harm to it, it actually approached to sniff it.

At the moment he closed the car door, Li Xiaojun’s tense nerves finally relaxed for a moment. Cold sweat kept seeping out of his body. God knew how terrifying that moment just now was. No wonder his father-in-law ran away without looking back. In the short seconds facing the giant wolf, his legs were trembling so badly. If he hadn’t got into the car, who knows what would have happened.

Li Xiaojun tremblingly took out the key and started the car with difficulty. When the car lights came on, he felt his soul finally return to him. At this moment, he just wanted to leave quickly and never face the mutated wolf again.

However, his legs were too weak. He couldn’t press the brake, and the vehicle only received power but didn’t start properly. Under the collapse, he cursed, “Damn heartless thing!”

What goes around comes around; now he understood. Despite taking care of that relative all along, he never thought that risking his life to save him would end up with him being pushed into the wolf pack. In this world, one can’t be a good person anymore. Good deeds receive no good returns; good people die early.

Anger brought him courage. His weak feet finally stepped on the brake. As the car key turned again, the car’s engine finally roared. Li Xiaojun breathed a sigh of relief. At this moment, he felt a cold gaze outside the window staring at him. Turning his head, he saw the giant wolf staring at him through the window. The wolf’s eyes emitted a green light, and its emerald pupils were like two soul lanterns, making him shudder.

It’s going to pounce! Li Xiaojun’s heart, which had just calmed down, rose to his throat again.

However, the giant wolf gave Li Xiaojun a cold glance and then turned its head and ran to the side.

Li Xiaojun looked in the direction the wolf was heading, and with just one glance, he felt his blood freeze. The wolf was heading towards Qianqian and her mother. What’s even more frightening is that behind Qianqian and her mother, there was another giant wolf approaching.

Qianqian and her mother stared blankly in the direction the car fleet had left, their eyes dull and desolate, having given up resistance. They sat huddled together on the ground, ignoring the two giant wolves approaching from behind.

Qianqian’s mother had a numb expression, muttering to herself, “Such a cruel heart… so cruel…”

She and her husband had been married for more than thirty years, always seen as a model couple by relatives and friends. Until today, she had always thought her husband was the most responsible man in the world, but when disaster struck, he abandoned her and their daughter without hesitation.

It’s ridiculous. What blood ties, what love between husband and wife… they’re not worth mentioning in the face of life and death tests.

If the mother-in-law suffered a great blow, Qianqian suffered an even greater one. She watched helplessly as her loved ones, whom she usually cherished, abandoned her. The huge gap made her dizzy. She closed her eyes and prayed, hoping this was just a nightmare and that everything would return to normal when she woke up. However, no matter how she prayed, how she pinched herself, as long as she opened her eyes, all she saw was the pitch-black mountain road. Qianqian stroked her belly, and because of the excitement, the child inside her moved restlessly.

Feeling the movement of the child, Qianqian burst into tears. In a few months, she would become a mother. She should have been the happiest mother in the world, but now she was abandoned by her family on the escape route.

Qianqian and her mother’s surrender instead alerted the two wolves. They cautiously approached the two women. As they got closer, the wolves confirmed that these were just two scared prey, no different from the sheep they usually ate.

After probing, the two wolves crouched, ready to leap. Just then, the sound of a car accelerating and braking rang out. With a loud bang, a silver-gray sedan forcefully rushed behind the mother and daughter, knocking the two wolves away.

The impact was so great that the windshield of the car shattered. One of the wolves couldn’t dodge and was hit, whimpering a few times before dying. The other wolf jumped aside before the impact, showing its ferocity, baring its teeth at the car.

Li Xiaojun blocked the wolf with the car, shouting loudly through the car window, “Get in the car! Get in the car!”

The mother-in-law raised her head incredulously, “Xiaojun…” 

She couldn’t believe that at this critical moment, it was the son-in-law she usually looked down on who rushed out. The deadness in Qianqian’s eyes suddenly lit up. She felt a surge of strength, “Mom, help me, let’s get in the car together!”

She didn’t want to die, and she couldn’t die. Her baby hadn’t been born yet, hadn’t seen Daddy and Mommy. She couldn’t give up easily. The mother-in-law quickly helped Qianqian up, “Let’s go.” As her hand touched the car door, a warm drop of water fell on her hand back.

The heavy breathing of the beast came from above, and the mother and daughter trembled, raising their heads. They saw a giant wolf standing on the roof of the car, looking down at them.

The mother-in-law’s body trembled like a sieve. She wanted to scream, but when she opened her mouth, only a weak breath came out. Qianqian was so scared that her body went limp, staring blankly at the giant wolf on the car roof.

This was it. In her mind, uncontrollably, the words emerged: “Mom and I are going to be eaten by wolves.”

Just as the giant wolf was about to jump off the roof of the car, a faint blue streamer flew swiftly from west to east. This stream of light was only a foot long, yet it silently and irresistibly pierced through the giant wolf’s skull.

“Click.”

The blue stream of light passed through the wolf’s skull, which shattered with a cracking sound, and red and white splattered out from within. The wolf’s body jerked violently, its limbs stretched straight as it collapsed in the direction the stream of light was headed. Despite this small obstruction, the stream of light did not stop its momentum, continuing to fly forward.

With a heavy thud, the huge wolf body fell from the car roof to the ground, emitting a dull sound, and crimson blood flowed out, forming large patches of black on the ground. Qianqian, still in shock, hugged her head and screamed. At this moment, Li Xiaojun shouted, “Get in the car! Hurry!”

The mother and daughter, as if waking from a dream, quickly climbed into the car and closed the door. The silver-gray sedan honked its horn and sped northward. At this moment, the vines that had bound the giant wolf loosened, and more than a dozen wolves swarmed up, chasing the car to the north.

Li Xiaojun saw the relentless pursuit of the wolf pack in the rearview mirror, his scalp tingling. He stepped on the gas pedal, not daring to look back. Once caught up by them, his whole family would probably be left with nothing but bones.

Jiang Rong witnessed the scene, surprised that Li Xiaojun would still save his family at such a critical moment. Jiang Rong had thought he would abandon his wife and child to save himself. In this regard, Li Xiaojun could still be considered a man.

Watching the car disappear quickly on the mountain road, Jiang Rong turned to Guan Shao and nodded, “Good archery skills.”

The mutated wolf had thick skin and flesh; ordinary crossbows and arrows couldn’t harm them at all. But crossbows and arrows imbued with the power of lightning were different. With the power of lightning, their strength increased tens of times, piercing through their bodies effortlessly. It was Guan Shao’s crossbow and arrows that had just killed the mutated wolf on the car roof.

Guan Shao could shoot a giant wolf dozens of meters away from high up in the treetops, while he could only shoot prey within twenty meters on level ground. When he got back, he would definitely ask Guan Shao for advice on how to use crossbows and arrows so proficiently.

Guan Shao put down the bow and arrow in his hand, gazing in the direction the car was traveling, and said, “Not bad.”

In fact, this arrow was originally prepared for Li Xiaojun. If he had abandoned his wife and children to save himself, Guan Shao would not hesitate to shoot the car with his crossbow.

Jiang Rong looked northward with deep eyes, “We can go back now.”

He only wanted to teach Li Xiaojun and his party a lesson, but he didn’t expect mutated wolves to suddenly appear. But this way, the effect was even better. As long as Li Xiaojun and his party remembered today’s terrifying moment, they wouldn’t dare to turn back recklessly at least.

In addition, the appearance of the mutated wolves turned the existing grievances among this group into irreparable rifts. Restoring the team relationship to its original state was now impossible.

Unity and trust are paramount for a team to survive in the wilderness. Although Li Xiaojun and his group seemed to have escaped, the real test was yet to come. In the upcoming journey, they had no supplies, no trust, no assistance from mutants… Whether they could make it to the base alive would depend on their luck.

Suddenly, a loud explosion came from the north, and looking in that direction, flashes of fire could be seen in the mountains to the north. The howling of the wolf pack came from the north, sending shivers down the spine.

Jiang Rong furrowed his brows slightly, “Have Li Xiaojun and them been caught up by the wolf pack?”

Mutated wolves, terrifying as they were, couldn’t outrun a car, right? He had at least bought Li Xiaojun half a minute to escape. With the situation so urgent, if he were Li Xiaojun, he would definitely step on the gas pedal without hesitation for even a second.

Guan Shao shook his head, “The timing doesn’t match.”

Jiang Rong nodded thoughtfully. Li Xiaojun and his group had just set off in their car and hadn’t reached the explosion location yet. There were several consecutive bends in the northbound road, and unfamiliar drivers from out of town could easily crash due to excessive speed. It was normal for vehicles to lose control in the panic and darkness. But how do you explain the howling of the wolves? Guan Shao analyzed, “It’s possible that the car that left earlier was blocked by the wolf pack.”

Wolves are skilled ambush predators. Although they have been domesticated by humans for a long time, the genes ingrained in them will tell them how to surround their prey. A good leader will assign tasks to the wolf pack, including ambushing, driving away, and surrounding prey.

It’s possible that the people who left earlier happened to run into the encirclement of the wolf pack. In a panic, they crashed into the roadside, causing the vehicle to explode. But that’s no longer Jiang Rong and their concern. They’ve already achieved their goal for today.

After both of them came down from the treetops, they headed straight towards the direction of the military truck. Guan Shao felt around under the engine and found an iron nail. Li Xiaojun would never have imagined that an iron nail could disable the engine.

After closing the engine hood and turning the key, the military truck started successfully. Guan Shao rolled down the window and called out to Jiang Rong, “Jiang Rong, get in the car.”

Jiang Rong was standing in front of the wolf corpse, which had been shot in the head by Guan Shao’s arrow. By the dim light of the fire, he saw a blood-stained crystal nucleus in the wolf’s blood. This crystal nucleus was the size of a thumb, emitting a warm light.

Seeing this crystal nucleus, Jiang Rong felt a desire rising in him. He wanted to absorb this crystal nucleus. The desire was so strong that he involuntarily reached out towards the nucleus.

The nucleus retained the warmth of the wolf’s body. As soon as Jiang Rong held it in his hand, a familiar power eagerly overflowed from the nucleus into his body. Just controlling the vines had consumed a lot of energy, and now with this energy supplement, every cell in Jiang Rong’s body trembled with comfort.

If it weren’t for the inappropriate time and place, he would have completely absorbed this nucleus. Suppressing his desire, Jiang Rong put the nucleus in his pocket.

Seeing Jiang Rong squatting in front of the wolf corpse in a daze, Guan Shao thought he wanted to take the wolf corpse back. Each wolf weighed four to five hundred pounds, and even after removing the fur and innards, there was still a lot of meat left. In this current world, getting a bite of meat would only become increasingly difficult, so it shouldn’t be wasted.

Guan Shao walked over and dragged the two hind legs of the wolf towards the military truck. Behind the military truck was a large portion of supplies, and he jumped in and cleared out a space. Afraid of getting blood on the car, he also laid a layer of plastic bags in the truck.

After dragging both wolves onto the car, Guan Shao once again called out to Jiang Rong, “Get in the car.”

On the way home, Jiang Rong remembered something important, “Do you think those wolves will come back?”

If the wolf pack occasionally patrols the nearby forests and turns them into their territory, wouldn’t that be troublesome? Not only would Uncle Li and Aunt Li be in danger, but he and his son wouldn’t escape either.

Guan Shao thought for a moment before saying, “They should be gray wolves living in the north. Previously confined by humans, they will instinctively head north after gaining freedom. But it’s not ruled out that after mutation, they have adapted to the local climate and environment. Anyway, let’s be prepared. If they disturb our normal life, we’ll figure out a way to deal with them.”

By the time the two arrived home, it was already late at night. Guan Shao parked the military truck in the parking area outside the west courtyard wall. As soon as they got out of the car, they heard the familiar music of the Meow Meow Team. Looking up, they saw a tablet placed on the courtyard wall. Little Fairy was leaning against the wall, snuggling close to the tablet. Its spikes swayed with the music, making a rustling sound. Jiang Rong was stunned. What was going on?

Seeing Jiang Rong getting out of the car, Little Fairy waved the cactus on its body indifferently, “Master Jiang.”

Jiang Rong was speechless. Little Fairy was acting just like Jiang Xiaoheng when he was engrossed in watching cartoons. The problem was, why was Little Fairy watching cartoons? Did Xiaoheng set it up?

Behind them, there was a “clang” sound as Guan Shao opened the rear gate of the military truck. He unloaded baskets of fruits and supplies from the car, “Is there space at home to put things?”

Jiang Rong snapped out of his daze, “Yes.”

The car was mostly filled with fruits, along with a small amount of rice, flour, and gasoline. Jiang Rong decided to keep the fruits and exchange the rice and flour for better packaging to give to Uncle Li and Aunt Li in the morning.

After moving all the supplies back home, Guan Shao dragged the two wolf corpses down from the car, “What are you going to do with this car?”

The military truck was still functional, and having it would make future travel much more convenient. But it was the car Li Xiaojun and his group had used. If Uncle Li and Aunt Li saw it, Jiang Rong wouldn’t be able to explain.

Jiang Rong also understood this logic. After thinking for a moment, he called out to Little Fairy, “Little Fairy, please move aside.”

Little Fairy straightened its body, and the spikes on its body lifted the tablet from the wall. Jiang Rong felt that even if the sky fell, it couldn’t stop Little Fairy from watching TV. With Little Fairy standing straight, a passage appeared between its body and the wall, allowing the military truck to easily drive in.

When Little Fairy mutated, it happened to be stuck in the middle of his family’s parking lot. There was still a space of more than ten meters behind it for parking. Parking the military truck here was very safe, as no one would dare to risk being pierced by Little Fairy’s spikes to explore.

After parking the truck, Jiang Rong summoned the vines to cover it. In a short while, the military truck was engulfed by the vines. Without a close look, one wouldn’t even notice there was a car underneath.

After observing for a moment, Guan Shao nodded slightly, “Good spot.” With the double protection of the vines and Little Fairy, besides Jiang Rong, no one should be able to drive the military truck out.

With the issue of the military truck resolved, it was time to deal with the wolf corpses. Looking at the huge wolf corpses, Jiang Rong felt a bit helpless. Apart from slaughtering chickens and fish in his two lifetimes, he had never dealt with such large animals before. “Well… Guan Shao, can you handle this?”

Guan Shao seemed very experienced, “No problem. I’ll find a tree to hang the wolves up first.” This would make it easier for him to work.

As soon as he finished speaking, a fluffy gray “pillar” suddenly appeared between the two of them. Taking a closer look, it wasn’t a pillar at all, but a flower stalk extended by Little Fairy.

Little Fairy proudly shook its spikes, “Any problem?”

The two understood what Little Fairy meant. It wanted Guan Shao to hang the wolf on the flower pillar. It must be said that Little Fairy was very considerate, but could its flower pillar withstand the weight of the wolf’s body?

Guan Shao jumped up and hugged the flower pillar with both hands. After doing a few pull-ups, the seemingly soft flower pillar remained motionless. After confirming the hardness of the flower pillar was okay, he let go and landed on the ground, “No problem.”

After the wolf’s neck was hung up, Guan Shao used a small knife to cut around the rope below. After loosening the fur near the neck, he pulled down the wolf skin with both hands. There was a slight tearing sound, and the whole wolf skin peeled off like clothes.

Jiang Rong leaned against the wall and watched quietly as Guan Shao skinned the wolf. Although it was a bloody act, Guan Shao’s hands remained clean. His movements were smooth and pleasing to the eye.

Just as Jiang Rong was getting into it, a tablet suddenly extended from the side, blocking his view. Little Fairy’s ingratiating voice sounded, “Master Jiang~ Master Jiang~”

The screen displayed: You’ve been watching for five hours, please take a break~

Jiang Rong was speechless. He took the tablet and closed it with a snap, “No more watching.”

Little Fairy hummed for a while, then squeezed out words after a while, “Why not?”

Jiang Rong was stunned. Little Fairy could actually say other words now? Did this mean that as long as it went through the system learning, it would eventually be able to express itself fluently?

So he took out the set of rhetoric he used to deal with Jiang Xiaoheng, “Watching TV for too long is not good for your eyes. And you’ve been watching for five hours, the kittens in the Meow Meow Team will get tired too. Be good, how about watching again tomorrow?”

Little Fairy twisted its body and reluctantly spoke after a moment of silence, “There’s a problem…”

This voice clearly showed surface obedience but inner rebellion. Jiang Rong smiled gently and spoke in a soothing tone, “Little Fairy is the most obedient and well-behaved. We like you the most. How about studying with brother Xiaoheng in the future? You can read books and watch TV every day, okay?”

Little Fairy became happy, and it “popped” a flower, “There’s a problem!” 

While Guan Shao, who was lowing over the flower pillar and skinning the wolf, was caught off guard and got a face full of pollen. Guan Shao was speechless.

Night was the time when the cacti were active. Little Fairy intermittently hummed the theme song of the Meow Meow Team, and it happily began its guard duty. Every thorn on its body remained alert, and once there was any foreign object entering its territory, it would not hesitate to launch its thorns.

Watching Little Fairy’s joyful appearance, Jiang Rong felt both happy and worried. It felt like there was another child in his house. If the child was raised well, that would be fine, but if not… there would be a rebellious period.

At this moment, Guan Shao’s voice came from beside him, “What are you thinking about?”

Jiang Rong replied softly, “I’m thinking about Little Fairy’s rebellious period.” 

If children cry, throw tantrums, threaten to run away, and actually run away during their rebellious period, what would it be like when Little Fairy had its rebellious phase? He didn’t dare to imagine. Guan Shao’s expression twisted, “Just let it be.”

After all, no one had ever seen a talking plant before, and Jiang Rong’s Little Fairy at home was indeed an unusual one in the world of mutant plants. With that, he reached out his hand to Jiang Rong, “Here.”

Jiang Rong lowered his head in confusion, “What is this?”

Guan Shao let go, and a warm, hard object fell into Jiang Rong’s palm. Jiang Rong’s heart skipped a beat. A crystal nucleus. This was the feeling of a crystal nucleus. Guan Shao actually found a crystal nucleus on the other wolf.

Guan Shao said in a gentle tone, “I saw you looking for this just now, and I thought it might be useful to you.”

So Guan Shao had seen his actions just now. Jiang Rong looked at the crystal nucleus in his hand with a complicated expression, “Do you know what this is?”

Guan Shao thought for a moment, “Crystal nucleus? Although I haven’t seen it before, I’ve heard of its existence.”

Jiang Rong was puzzled, “Where did you hear about it?” 

Could it be that there were other people in the world who were reborn like him and knew how to use crystal nuclei?

Guan Shao said seriously, “I have a teammate who is obsessed with it and often talks about words like apocalypse, abilities, crystal nucleus, and so on. The Great Crisis we experienced could also be considered another kind of apocalypse. Both you and I are espers, so I think the appearance of crystal nuclei is only a matter of time.”

Jiang Rong was speechless. Guan Shao continued, “There’s immense power in it. I think it should be absorbable by espers.”

Jiang Rong just responded without denying. It wasn’t his first time encountering a crystal nucleus; he had absorbed the crystal nucleus of a mutant ant before. But… knowing that crystal nuclei were useful for espers, why didn’t Guan Shao keep it for himself?

As if sensing Jiang Rong’s question from his eyes, Guan Shao smiled and said, “The power inside this crystal nucleus isn’t suitable for me. I think it’s more suitable for you.”

Jiang Rong opened his palm, and there lay a transparent crystal nucleus the size of a fingernail. After reaching out with his ability to touch it, the ability inside the crystal nucleus obediently flowed out, indeed, it was an ability he could easily absorb.

Without comparison before, he now found that the power inside the green crystal nucleus in his pocket was livelier and more to his liking. Could it be… that when an esper absorbs a crystal nucleus, they also have to consider the nature of the crystal nucleus? Should a wood-element esper absorb the power of a wood-element crystal nucleus?

Thinking of the experience of absorbing the crystal nucleus of the mutant ant, cracks appeared on Jiang Rong’s calm face. His breath was somewhat unstable, “You’ve just encountered a crystal nucleus for the first time, how do you know so much?”

Guan Shao looked innocent and puzzled, “Isn’t this just instinct? It’s like when you get a steamed bun and a stone, you know you can eat the bun but not the stone. Isn’t it easy to distinguish at a glance?”

Jiang Rong felt like he had been pricked hard. “I’m sorry, I don’t have that kind of instinct.”

 

 

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