Chapter 36: The Extraordinary and the Wastrel

Lu Kailin’s expression was contorted with fury, his eyes bulging as if they might burst from their sockets. The long, crimson whip was mere inches from striking Li Ye’s temple.

Suddenly, the whip stopped in mid-air with an eerie stillness. No matter how hard Lu Kailin exerted himself, it would not budge an inch.

The giant chimpanzee that had been charging from the corner seemed to sense a lethal danger. Its body, which had been mid-leap, slammed onto the ground, its muscles trembling inexplicably, its coarse black fur standing on end.

Li Ye watched Lu Kailin calmly, a playful smile on his lips.

"Did you really think such a petty trick could hurt me?"

Lu Kailin used every ounce of his strength, his face twisting in agony as he struggled to swing the whip again. But his arm felt as if it had been encased in concrete, frozen in space.

The older man began to tremble all over. His legs gave way, as if the bones had vanished, and he collapsed onto the ground. Yet, his right arm remained locked in mid-air, a truly absurd sight.

He spoke with a bitter tone: "Xiao Ye, Uncle was wrong. Xue Ning still needs a father, doesn't she..."

Li Ye acted as if he hadn't heard him. He raised his right arm, poised to strike down.

Lu Kailin’s pupils contracted. He hurriedly cried out, "Don't kill me! I can help you reach Lingxiu Mountain. There are immortal fruit trees on that mountain!"

Seeing Li Ye’s arm pause, Lu Kailin’s face lit up with hope. He pressed on, "You have transcendent powers too; those immortal fruits will surely be useful to you! To get up the mountain, you have to pass through that tiger’s territory. I know the way—I can lead you through it!"

As Li Ye slowly lowered his arm, Lu Kailin’s frantic heart rate began to settle, replaced by the relief of having survived a brush with death.

*Splat!*

A crimson spray of blood erupted from Lu Kailin’s chest, gushing out uncontrollably. His smile froze.

He looked down at his chest, then slowly raised his head to look at Li Ye, his lips trembling as if he wanted to say something.

Among the onlookers gathering around, many began to cheer. Seeing the young man's previous actions, everyone had assumed the beast was about to escape justice once again.

Li Ye walked over to the side of the chimpanzee and spoke to himself: "That tiger is my prey. You’ll lead me? Lead me where? Into the maw of the demon crane on the mountain?"

The two-meter-tall chimpanzee was now prostrated at Li Ye’s feet, emitting a whimpering, fawning sound. Li Ye crouched down, running a hand over the ape’s muscles with a satisfied expression.

Two minutes later, a colossal chimpanzee burst out of the main gate of the factory in the center of the Jiangning Zoo. Standing steadily on the ape’s back was a lone figure, racing toward the Lingxiu Mountain in the west.

***

Meanwhile, at the Dongming Military District.

The establishment of the Seventh Army had revitalized the entire district, bringing a long-absent vitality to the post-apocalyptic base.

By the edge of the large training field, Shen Zhihong and Chen Xianyun watched as the instructors drilled a group of rather peculiar new recruits.

"Did Yan Fenghua speak to you?" Commander Chen asked quietly.

Staff Officer Shen adjusted his infrared night-vision goggles, which had been reduced in size, and replied, "About the Haicheng experiment?"

"Exactly. That kid is one of our own now; we can't just leave him to clean up his own mess."

"What’s the rush? We’re in the Red Fog period. Do you think Haicheng or Nanyu would dare send anyone here to Dongming to snatch him?"

Shen Zhihong continued with a shameless tone: "They always brag about the prosperity of the Southern martial arts schools. How is it possible they can't find a single decent pugilist right now? Let's wait until the Red Fog ends."

Chen Xianyun looked at Shen Zhihong in silence, then couldn't help but remark, "Your attitude is becoming more and more like that wild kid’s."

Hearing this, Shen Zhihong flushed with anger, glaring at the commander. "I’m like him? I think your eyesight is getting worse by the day, you old man!"

"What? Want to fight about it?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Zhihong calmed down, merely snorting without a reply.

Most of the God-Chosen in the center of the training field were being tortured by the twenty-kilometer weighted run.

Old Man Chen, lost in thought, asked, "What do you think... what if the Yundu faction sends a messenger?"

Shen Zhihong’s eyes narrowed as he pondered. "You mean, using the most primitive method—sending a courier?"

Chen Xianyun nodded. "If we could think of using the reconnaissance company to scout the outside world, there’s no reason Yundu or other places couldn't do the same. Even if the mortality rate is high, it’s a form of communication, given that all the radios are destroyed."

Shen Zhihong shook his head with a smile. "So what if they come? Out of all the surrounding cities, only we have that giant creature. Even the people from Yundu can’t say anything. Once the Red Fog dissipates and that kid, Li Ye, takes care of Xiangliu, will we still have anything to fear in Dongming?"

Hearing this confirmation from the staff officer, Chen Xianyun nodded slightly. He turned his gaze to the training field and noticed an instructor standing on the sidelines, his brow furrowing.

"Why is he here? He was causing trouble at the Blood Crystal Marrow warehouse just yesterday."

Shen Zhihong let out a long sigh. "Fei Mingjie... it’s truly a pity."

***

The training tracks at the Dongming Military District were standard: 1,200 meters for the inner loop, and 5,000 meters for the outer.

All the members of the Seventh Army were on the track, including Yan Fenghua.

Baptized by both their God-Chosen abilities and the Blood Crystal Marrow, most of them were gritting their teeth and pushing through. Only one person was an exception: Suo Hao.

He had broken away from the main group, collapsed on the ground, and was dry-heaving every so often.

The instructor in charge of supervising their training was a hulking man with bulging muscles. He walked slowly over to Suo Hao, staring down at him in silence.

Fatty Suo felt a chill down his spine under that gaze and instinctively began to stammer an explanation.

The instructor spoke first: "Are you very tired?"

Suo Hao blinked, then gave a hesitant nod.

"May I ask how you obtained your God-Chosen ability?"

Fei Mingjie looked at Suo Hao with a sincere, puzzled expression.

The fat man felt uneasy at the question and sat up reflexively.

"I wouldn't say 'obtained.' Since it’s 'God-Chosen,' I suppose it’s just some deity in the heavens rolling the dice and granting powers at random. It’s all fated by the heavens..."

"If I had to say, maybe it’s because the deities happen to like me?"

As he talked, Suo Hao seemed to open the floodgates, completely failing to notice the instructor's expression growing increasingly twisted.

"A brother of mine once said that the greatest fairness in the world is that it’s unfair. These abilities are all so strange..."

"Enough."

The instructor interrupted him, reached down, grabbed Suo Hao by the collar, and hoisted him into the air. He stared at him with piercing eyes.

"You, a piece of trash like this, were allowed to become a transcendent and join the Seventh Army. The deities you speak of—are they planning to watch you get all your teammates killed?"

The exhausted Fatty Suo was stunned, pressing his lips together in silence.

"Can't you flap your tongue? Go on. Say 'I am trash' ten times, and I’ll let you go rest. Say it!"

Suo Hao struggled, his jaw muscles tight, and roared, "I am not!"

The main body of the Seventh Army, currently running laps, passed by the two of them once again.

Lu Xuening, Xiao Qi, and several others stepped out of the formation in silence and stood behind Suo Hao.