Apocalypse Chapter 53: Jin Jianceng’s Beans

Chapter 53: Jin Jianceng’s Beans

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Remembering the previous life when Jiang Rong went on missions with espers, he heard them discussing dreams. One esper said he hoped to wake up on a bed covered with crystals. At that time, the other espers beside him were mocking him, thinking his idea was unrealistic.

Crystals were such precious things. After each esper obtained a crystal, they either quickly absorbed it to prevent others from coveting it, or they wanted to use it to exchange for greater benefits. Not to mention a bed full of crystals, even having a dozen crystals would make someone a wealthy person among espers.

Yet, Little Guaiguai actually made a nest with crystals. Its nest was in the southwest corner of Jiang Rong’s house roof, hidden among the solar panels. As long as one climbed up the folding ladder, they could see countless shiny crystals scattered on the roof.

While Jiang Rong and the others were struggling for crystals, Little Guaiguai had already achieved crystal freedom. Looking at the countless crystals on the roof, Jiang Rong had a complicated expression and didn’t know what to say.

Twisting its vines, if Little Guaiguai had eyes, Jiang Rong and the others would surely see a pair of bright shiny eyes. Jiang Rong understood its meaning; it wanted to hear his praise.

When it came to praising family members, Jiang Rong had always been generous. Even if Lele brought him a slipper, he would pet Lele for a long time.

Feeling that Jiang Rong was about to pet it, Little Guaiguai happily extended its vine. The thorns on the vine obediently lay down, never hurting Jiang Rong’s hand as long as he didn’t stroke against them.

Jiang Rong picked up the crimson vine, his slender fingers gently stroking the smooth surface between the thorns, “Thank you, Little Guaiguai, you’re really amazing.”

Little Guaiguai felt relaxed both physically and mentally. Its vine trembled as if electrified, and its voice became much louder, “Obey!”

While petting Little Guaiguai, Jiang Rong’s fingers continuously emitted blue-colored esper energy. The energy was quickly absorbed by the Bloodthirsty Vine. Little Guaiguai was so happy that it felt like it was floating, “Master Jiang~”

Hearing Little Guaiguai calling him like that, Jiang Rong smiled and responded, “Hmm?”

Little Guaiguai extended a thin vine and wrapped it around Jiang Rong’s pinky finger, softly saying, “Like~”

Initially, when it first saw Jiang Rong, Little Guaiguai didn’t pay much attention to this person. In its view, anything that could run and move would only end up becoming its food. After being severely reprimanded by Jiang Rong, it was actually very afraid of him for a while. Whenever Jiang Rong raised his voice a little, Little Guaiguai would tremble uncontrollably.

But the more it interacted with Jiang Rong, the more it liked him. Besides his ability to emit comforting energy, it also liked seeing Jiang Rong’s face and hearing his voice. Besides cartoons and Little Fairy, Jiang Rong was now Little Guaiguai’s favorite person!

Jiang Rong’s body suddenly paused, and his gaze towards Little Guaiguai softened a lot. Actually, Little Guaiguai was just a naive mutated plant. Foraging was its instinct, and as long as it received proper guidance, it was even more obedient than humans. Jiang Rong softened his voice, “I like you too, Little Guaiguai. You and Little Fairy are both my treasures.”

Hearing his master praise it like this, Little Guaiguai let out a long sigh of admiration, “Wow~” It happily rolled into a ball and tumbled around the courtyard, “Like! Like!”

On the side, Little Fairy twisted its body and stretched out a few flowers to Jiang Rong, “Master Jiang~ chirp chirp~”

Guan Shao leaned against the wall, holding his arms and watching Jiang Rong, who was covered in pollen, with a smile, “Not bad, not only do people love Master Jiang, even flowers and plants love Master Jiang.”

Jiang Rong smiled wryly, “Stop it, help me carry the crystals.”

Jiang Rong wasn’t greedy. He didn’t force Little Guaiguai to bring out the crystals from its nest just because he was its owner. How many crystals Little Guaiguai gave him was its own choice, and he wouldn’t push it further.

Outside the window, Little Guaiguai held up a small mouse like a treasure to show Little Fairy and the two children. Inside the house, Jiang Rong looked at the table full of crystals and fell into silence.

Until today, Jiang Rong had always assumed that Little Guaiguai was also one of the mutated plants and animals that relied on crystals to advance. Now it seemed that he had been too presumptuous.

When Guan Shao entered the room, he saw Jiang Rong holding a crystal in thought. He spoke slowly, “What’s wrong? What are you thinking about?”

Jiang Rong hesitated before speaking slowly, “I always thought that mutated plants and animals could advance by relying on crystals, and even thought that crystals were the most important assistance for their advancement. Now it seems that’s not the case. Besides crystals, mutated plants and animals should have other ways to gain power.”

Guan Shao smiled, “Isn’t that normal? In my opinion, mutated plants and animals just have some additional defensive and offensive means compared to before, but their essence hasn’t changed. For example, us espers, even if we’re hungry, we still need to eat. Crystals can only enhance esper abilities, but they can’t fill our stomachs.”

The reason why Little Guaiguai grew so fast was because it absorbed ample flesh and blood. Flesh and blood acted as fertilizer for the Bloodthirsty Vine, allowing Little Guaiguai to thrive.

Jiang Rong nodded in agreement, “You’re right. Take Little Fairy for example, it has grown so big and its abilities have become so powerful, yet it has never absorbed any crystals.”

He remembered that after the Great Crisis, Little Fairy grew thousands of times in just a few days. At that time, most of the animals and plants hadn’t encountered any crystals yet, so Little Fairy couldn’t obtain any. Now it seemed that, like before, it only absorbed nutrients from its leaves, skin, and roots from nature.

Other mutated animals became powerful, but they didn’t absorb many crystals either. In comparison, humans’ degree and speed of mutation were far inferior to other species. To survive, they had to huddle together for warmth.

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Rong stood up and carefully collected the crystals, “Anyway, this is good news for us.” 

If all mutated plants and animals could only advance by relying on crystals, chaos would inevitably arise sooner or later. Jiang Rong and Guan Shao didn’t plan to tell anyone about Little Guaiguai collecting crystals. With so many crystals scattered on his house roof, if unscrupulous people found out, who knows what crazy things they might do.

***

Finding the grain silo, Jiang Rong felt relieved. Next, he would focus on building the warehouse.

Although Chu Qiang had already started building the warehouse with his team, the warehouse being built could only be used to store some less important items, such as furniture and other household items. These supplies were scavenged by espers from nearby towns, and when new people arrived at the base, the warehouse would be opened to distribute some basic supplies.

This resulted in the warehouse lacking in security and secrecy; the things used to save lives couldn’t be stored there.

Jiang Rong needed to build a large warehouse capable of accommodating thousands of military vehicles and storing the essentials for the base’s survival.

After discussing with the team members, they decided to build the warehouse in a secluded mountain valley northwest of Fisheries Village Three. The valley was surrounded by mountains on all sides, easy to defend and difficult to attack. Moreover, there was only one road in and out, making it extremely concealed.

Originally, there was a village in the valley, with over a dozen survivors still living there. Jiang Rong had previously planned to install solar panels for these households, but during a routine inspection before installation, he was ambushed by a mutated snake. Fortunately, with Little Guaiguai’s help, he was able to escape unscathed. After learning about this incident, the villagers dared not stay in place anymore and collectively moved to the Fisheries Brigade.

From the map, this village wasn’t large, but as long as the terrain was fully utilized, a very good warehouse could be built.

After deciding on the location, the esper team began to take action. They selected over twenty students majoring in civil engineering and design from the rescued university students to form a temporary surveying team.

Although these were all students, compared to laymen, they knew more professional knowledge. With them, Jiang Rong believed that the design drawings for the warehouse would be completed soon.

However, before the students went out to survey, Jiang Rong and his team had important tasks to do. They needed to eliminate the mutated snake that would ambush people.

In late August, the forest was so stifling that it was hard to breathe. Even though Jiang Rong was a wood-type esper, his clothes were soaked with sweat. He took out his water bottle and called to Guan Shao, “Let’s take a break and have some water, okay? We’ve been searching here for a while now, and the snake might have already left.”

Guan Shao waved his hand and squatted down, carefully examining the soil on the slope. “It should still be here. Look at this trace. It just slid out.”

Jiang Rong leaned forward and saw a long friction mark on the dry, dark gray soil in front of Guan Shao, sliding towards the ravine ahead. His eyes narrowed. “Little Guaiguai, come here.”

Upon hearing his master’s call, Little Guaiguai immediately gathered its vines and approached. Jiang Rong pointed to the traces on the ground. “See if you can track down this snake.”

Little Guaiguai said nothing and rolled in the direction of the traces. The thorns on the vines made rustling sounds as they moved through the mountain forest. Guan Shao glanced at the red vines receding into the distance and chuckled, “Can you see it? Little Guaiguai is feeling frustrated.”

After observing for a while, Guan Shao had figured out the emotions represented by Little Guaiguai’s movements. When it exposed its vines lazily, it meant it was in a good mood. When it curled up into a ball without moving, it meant it was afraid. Rolling like a ball and waving its vines excitedly meant it was excited. And now, with its body rolled into a ball and swiftly moving between the vines on both sides, it meant it was on the verge of a fight.

Jiang Rong chuckled, “I see. It’s because it let the mutant snake escape last time, so it’s angry.”

Little Guaiguai moved swiftly and soon rolled into the ravine. After pausing for a moment in the ravine, it rolled northeastward.

Jiang Rong tightened the lid of the water bottle. “Let’s go, we’ll follow.”

As soon as they descended into the ravine, a low roar of a fierce beast suddenly resounded. “Roar!” 

From the tone and volume, it sounded like a tiger’s roar! There’s a tiger on the mountain? The direction from which the tiger’s roar came was exactly where Little Guaiguai was heading. Could it have collided with a mutant tiger?

The two of them ran quickly along the ravine. Jiang Rong sighed, “Ever since the collapse of the D City Zoo, a lot of things have been coming out.” 

First, there were mutant wolves, and now there were tigers. Would they discover other magical animals in a while?

Guan Shao’s eyes darkened. “Whatever it is, as long as it’s harmful to the base, it should be eliminated in time.”

After walking for a few hundred meters, they came to a shallow pit about fifty meters in diameter. This was a naturally formed pond, but the continuous drought had dried it up completely, leaving thick layers of fallen leaves on its surface.

Even before they approached the pond, Jiang Rong and the others saw countless dried leaves flying up. Among the dried leaves, a huge snake was raising its head and thrashing its tail wildly. This snake had a head as big as a millstone, with cold orange eyes. Its body was covered in brown-yellow patterns, and its massive body occupied most of the pond. From its appearance, this was a mutant python. Pythons were tropical animals that liked to live in humid environments.

The area around Lingshan Reservoir had abundant water sources, attracting pythons to come here. But the water had been polluted by black rain, so it could only seek shelter in the mountains. Although the pond it sought had run dry, the thick mud still contained moisture. Because of this, the python had occupied the pond and made it its nest.

Compared to the python, the mutant tiger seemed quite small. It was three meters long, covered in black and orange stripes, with the character “king” on its forehead very clear. Although the tiger’s body was not as large as the python’s, it was much more agile.

The three terrifying mutant beasts each occupied a corner of the pond, on the verge of a battle.

Just as Jiang Rong was about to step forward, Guan Shao stopped him. “Don’t go over, it’s too dangerous.” 

This was a melee between giants. If Jiang Rong rushed in, not only would he not be able to help Little Guaiguai, but he would also end up with more wounds. The two of them crouched behind a rock, peeking out. Just as Jiang Rong stretched out his head, he saw a huge tail sweeping towards his face. Before he could react, Guan Shao quickly pulled him back, using his own body to protect Jiang Rong’s head.

The snake’s tail whistled past Guan Shao’s head and slammed heavily on the stone in front of them. With a loud bang, a long crack appeared on the stone, and the flying debris fell on Guan Shao’s back.

In theory, Jiang Rong and the others were small targets, and the python shouldn’t have noticed them. But its attention happened to be on Jiang Rong. Seeing that the first strike didn’t hit him, it raised its tail high and swept towards him.

Guan Shao’s eyes narrowed. “Not good!”

At that moment, a bright yellow figure came sprinting in the direction of the snake’s tail. The splendid tiger bit onto the snake’s tail and stood on the giant rock.

From a distance, the tiger didn’t seem very large. But when it stood on the rock, the dominance of the king of beasts radiated. Its physique was robust and its fur shiny, with every stripe on its body exuding its dominance. The tiger glanced sideways at the two of them, giving them a surreal feeling: the tiger recognized them.

The battle of the giants was about to begin, and they tangled in the pond. Because of their speed, Jiang Rong could only see flashes of red, yellow, and brown in the pond.

Guan Shao calmly looked at the serpent and silently reached for the sniper rifle behind him, propping it on the giant rock. After observing for a while, Guan Shao noticed something: Little Guaiguai was coordinating with the tiger. They were both attacking the serpent with unity of purpose.

Could it be that in the face of a strong enemy, two slightly weaker forces were preparing to join hands? Would they settle their differences after dealing with the serpent? After a moment of thought, Guan Shao stopped himself. Perhaps he shouldn’t interfere in this battle.

This was the most intense fight Jiang Rong had ever seen in his life. The three creatures were incredibly fast, making it dizzying to watch them fight, their speed too fast for the eyes to keep up.

The serpent’s body was covered in tough scales, and Little Guaiguai’s spikes couldn’t pry them open. The friction between the spikes and the scales made a harsh scraping sound. Little Guaiguai angrily swung its vines, watching helplessly as the serpent slipped away.

Originally, Little Guaiguai had wrapped around the snake’s head, but as the snake slid away, it could only grip onto the tail. As the serpent’s tail whipped towards Little Guaiguai, the bloodthirsty vine flew out with a “howl”.

Jiang Rong could only watch as Little Guaiguai flew over their heads, the red vines forming a ball flying behind them, rolling down the mountain gorge. Seeing Little Guaiguai being knocked away by the mutated snake’s tail, the tiger raised his head and let out a long howl. It lowered its body and charged fiercely towards the serpent. The serpent showed no fear, opening its large mouth to meet the tiger.

After a few swift dodges, the tiger jumped up and landed accurately on the serpent’s neck. Its long, sharp claws hooked onto the edge of the scales and forcefully tore them off, causing several brown-yellow scales from the serpent’s neck to fall into the mud pit.

The serpent, in pain and anger, shook its head violently, trying to throw the tiger off. The tiger’s sharp claws tightly gripped its neck, and after a few rapid scratches, scales from the serpent’s neck fell like snowflakes.

Unable to shake off the tiger, the serpent rolled on the ground, attempting to crush the tiger with its own weight. But how could the serpent compare in speed to the tiger? Before the serpent could fully roll over, the tiger, sensing something wrong, quickly leaped away.

The tiger then repeatedly jumped up, each time landing on the serpent’s neck. After scratching, a basin-sized wound appeared on the serpent’s neck, oozing strands of blood.

Perhaps due to the exhaustion from consecutive jumps, or maybe the serpent’s violent rolling made it difficult for the tiger to find the right timing. After several jumps, the tiger’s speed noticeably slowed down. In its last attempt to land on the serpent, the serpent anticipated its move.

The tiger couldn’t dodge in time, and most of its forelegs landed in the serpent’s mouth. As the mouth closed, bright red tiger blood spurted out, and the tiger let out a miserable howl. Before the tiger could struggle, the serpent, its prey caught in its jaws, swiftly wrapped its body around the tiger’s lower half.

As the tiger was about to meet its end in the serpent’s jaws, a howling wind swept over their heads. Looking up, they saw a large mass of red flying over them.

Using the trees in the mountain forest as leverage and its own vines as ropes, Little Guaiguai propelled itself like a bullet. The ferocious bloodthirsty vine aimed straight for the serpent’s vulnerable spot. The vine deeply pierced into the wound where scales had been lost. The serpent, in pain, opened its mouth wide. In that moment, the tiger finally found its opportunity to escape.

The tiger limped over to the edge of the pond and collapsed. Deep bloodied wounds appeared on its forelegs, and fresh red blood slid down its fur. Serpents don’t rely on their teeth when hunting; they rely on their body size to constrict prey. The tiger, entangled by the serpent, had its fur in disarray, possibly suffering internal injuries as blood oozed from its mouth and nose.

The bloodthirsty vine showed no fear, regardless of how many times the serpent bit it, firmly anchoring itself in the wound on the snake’s neck. The wound that the tiger fought so hard to create was fully utilized by Little Guaiguai, with the sound of flesh being sucked constantly heard.

The serpent went berserk, opening its mouth with a hiss of pain. At first, it tried to constrict Little Guaiguai, but no matter how it twisted and turned, the bloodthirsty vine dug deeper and fiercer. Eventually, the serpent lost the strength to constrict. It writhed in the pond, its huge tail constantly slamming the ground. With each strike, a deep depression appeared in the pond.

There was no chance of survival for the mutated creatures entangled by the bloodthirsty vine. With the wound created by the tiger, Little Guaiguai achieved overwhelming victory. The serpent’s struggles grew weaker and weaker, and within ten minutes, it lay lifeless on the ground.

Jiang Rong walked out from behind the rock. The scene of the three giant beasts fighting was too spectacular, and he was still savoring the thrilling moments. In his reflection, he couldn’t help but ponder: if he had encountered the tiger or snake without Little Guaiguai, would he have had a chance to fight back?

The answer was no. In fact, the last time he encountered the mutated snake, if it hadn’t been for Little Guaiguai’s help, he would have perished. Little Guaiguai seemed like a red net enveloping the serpent. As it fed, the serpent visibly shriveled at an alarming rate. Jiang Rong felt that with each sway of the bloodthirsty vine, it seemed to grow larger.

Guan Shao reminded, “The tiger ran away. Should we pursue it?”

Jiang Rong looked to where the tiger had just laid down, but it was nowhere to be seen. Thinking of the tiger’s gaze as it bit the snake’s tail and looked at them, Jiang Rong shook his head. “Let it be. Considering it helped us, there’s no need to finish it off.”

Moreover, the tiger was severely injured, and its chances of survival were unknown. If it managed to survive, it would be wise to let it stay in the mountains without harming anyone. If it dared to harass the base, there would be time to deal with it then.

The mutated snake was thirty meters long, and it took Little Guaiguai an hour to completely digest it. Guan Shao dug out a palm-sized crystal core from the snake’s head. Seeing the color of the core, Jiang Rong chuckled. “After all that effort, we made a wedding dress for Qiang.”

Guan Shao pointed to the snake skin and bones, smiling. “We still have these.” 

The skin of the mutated snake was extremely tough and surely had many uses. As for the snake bones… they would probably be useful in the future too.

Jiang Rong never liked cold-blooded animals. Just the thought of the mutated snake in the mountains made him uncomfortable. But now, with the mutated serpent gone, a heavy burden was lifted from his heart.

***

Coming to the mountains, they walked through the forest; now, on their way back, they could take the main road. The two of them descended along the mountain road, and before long, they saw the huge body of Little Fairy.

Normally, Little Fairy would enthusiastically greet them from afar when they returned, but today, even as Jiang Rong approached it, it remained hanging on the courtyard wall. Jiang Rong wondered, “Little Fairy?”

Little Fairy suddenly shuddered as if startled. That was odd. What happened? Jiang Rong furrowed his brow, “Little Fairy, what’s wrong?”

Little Fairy grunted twice, “Master Jiang…”

The sound of Jiang Xiaoheng crying came from the courtyard, and soon Jiang Xiaoheng ran out of the courtyard crying, “Daddy, come quickly and see Dou Dou, Dou Dou is bleeding a lot, it’s dying! Sob, Daddy, please save Dou Dou!”

Jiang Rong and Guan Shao exchanged a glance. What was going on? Thinking of the awkward look on Little Fairy’s face and analyzing Jiang Xiaoheng’s words, a terrible thought arose in their minds: could it be that Jiang Xiaoheng brought a child to the house, and Dou Dou got stung by Little Fairy?

At the thought of this possibility, Jiang Rong’s hair stood on end. He couldn’t afford the responsibility if something happened to someone else’s child in their house!

The two hurriedly ran towards the courtyard, imagining the horrifying scene of a child’s death. As they entered the courtyard, their footsteps suddenly stopped, and their pupils contracted sharply: lying under the eastern courtyard wall was a splendid tiger, Jiang Hao squatting beside it with gauze and iodine, tears streaming down his face just like Jiang Xiaoheng’s.

The appearance of the giant tiger was extremely familiar. Wasn’t this the same tiger that had just defeated the mutated snake with Little Guaiguai in the mud pond?

Jiang Xiaoheng’s tears were flowing, and he urgently pulled Jiang Rong’s hand towards the tiger, “Daddy, Dou Dou, Dou Dou is not doing well… sob, sob, please save it…”

Jiang Rong looked at his son and then at the tiger, recalling what his son had said to him some time ago.

“Daddy, the Meow Meow Team has a new member, a little tiger named Dou Dou.”

“Daddy, Dou Dou is very cute, you’ll definitely like him.”

“Can I bring Dou Dou home?”

“Daddy, can I bring some treats for Dou Dou?”

He felt a surge of darkness in front of his eyes. Oh my, so his son had been raising a giant Bengal tiger outside, and he, as a father, only realized it today!

 

 

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