Chapter 1

Chapter 1

In the warm month of March, the sky was already bright by six in the morning.

Xu Qiao made her bed, washed up, and changed into a simple set of sportswear.

The building was filled with long-time neighbors who knew each other well. Xu Qiao parked her seven-tenths new bicycle in the stairwell.

She unlocked it, pushed the bicycle out of the entrance, and walked down a cement path that separated two small yards enclosed by wooden fences.

The two small yards belonged to the Xu family in apartment 101 and the Lu family in apartment 102 across the hall. Within the base, where every inch of land was precious, houses with attached yards commanded much higher prices than other floors.

To buy this house, Grandpa Xu had spent his lifetime savings in points.

An expensive yard, naturally, was used to grow expensive fruits and vegetables.

Since global biological mutations began a century ago, Earth entered a new era, during which some humans would awaken their spiritual bodies, becoming psychics.

Spiritual bodies nurtured within the psychic's brain nucleus could be released into the world, manifesting as visible and tangible energy forms that were nearly transparent.

These spiritual bodies came in all shapes and sizes, ranging from plants and animals to electronic products and mechanical weapons. Each type of spiritual body granted the psychic related abilities.

Four generations of the Xu family had lotus flowers as their spiritual bodies, likely due to Great-Grandpa Xu’s obsession with raising lotuses.

The wood element abilities bestowed by plant spiritual bodies could be categorized into three practical types: cultivation, healing, and combat. As technology advanced within the base, when psychics awakened their spiritual bodies, detection devices would automatically determine their ability attributes.

When Xu Qiao awakened, the detection device displayed:

Name: Xu Qiao

Spiritual Body: Lotus

Main Ability: Wood Element · Healing, Level: C

Secondary Ability: Water Element · Combat, Level: D

Dual or multiple abilities were common. For example, terrestrial plant spiritual bodies like wheat, corn, elm, and pine often had earth element as secondary abilities, while aquatic plants had water element. However, secondary abilities were usually one or even two levels lower than the main ability.

In the new era, non-wood element psychics had a ninety percent mutation rate for the crops they grew. Mutated plants either became harmful or inedible, so the base prohibited such individuals from private cultivation.

Among wood element psychics, those specializing in cultivation could increase yield and speed, while those in healing and combat could maintain the growth rate of the old era. This was enough to make ordinary people and psychics of other elements deeply envious.

After all, in Southeast Base, ordinary people could only drink nutrient solutions, E and D level psychics occasionally cooked meals, C level psychics managed to have a balanced diet, B level psychics lived comfortably, and A level and above belonged to wealthy families who could indulge in lavish meals.

Now, both yards were tended by Xu Qiao.

Two apple trees were covered in white blossoms, and various vegetables planted a week ago had sprouted green shoots.

Crime was strictly forbidden within the base, and the second ring where psychics lived was even more heavily regulated. Dense surveillance ensured no one dared to steal vegetables.

Satisfied, Xu Qiao "watered" the green shoots with her wood element abilities, then rode her bicycle away.

Ten minutes later, she locked her bicycle and followed some elderly residents into the local supermarket.

The five-story building provided nearby residents with clothing, food, housing, entertainment services, and the basement was dedicated to various ingredients and food items.

Although the Xu family wasn't wealthy, Grandpa Xu spared no expense on daily meals. Xu Qiao, accustomed to fresh ingredients, wouldn’t settle for tasteless and odd-textured nutrient solutions unless she truly faced dire straits.

Grandpa left her a small sum before passing away, and now that Xu Qiao was working and earning money, she could maintain her previous standard of living.

After a round of shopping, Xu Qiao bought enough vegetables and fresh meat for three days.

Returning to the neighborhood, she pushed her bicycle through the entrance when the door to apartment 102 suddenly opened. She looked up and saw Lu Yang.

The fifteen-year-old high school student, already close to six feet tall, was too thin, with his black school uniform hanging loosely on him.

This was her neighbor's younger brother whom she watched grow up. He used to be robust, but after Uncle Lu died on a mercenary mission, his depression and reduced expenses led to his rapid growth without gaining muscle.

Xu Qiao smiled at him and took out two shopping bags from the basket. "Go wash up; I'll cook. I’ll call you when it’s ready."

Lu Yang lowered his eyes and pulled out an empty nutrient solution tube from behind his back. "I’ve eaten. You can just cook for yourself."

Before Xu Qiao could react, he closed the door from inside.

Xu Qiao: "..."

With one less dining companion, Xu Qiao still prepared her vegetable, meat, and egg noodles as planned.

As the noodle soup bubbled, Xu Qiao leaned against the kitchen door, recalling how Lu Yang had changed over the past half year.

Uncle Lu was a B-level metal element psychic mercenary. Despite missing an arm, he was a strong fighter in the second ring, home to five million E, D, and C-level psychics.

After Aunt Lu passed away, Uncle Lu seemed to live only for two reasons: raising Lu Yang and saving enough money for his military academy tuition.

Military academy was a shortened term for psychic university, where all middle school students who awakened their spiritual bodies at sixteen could enroll. However, with limited resources, the base relied heavily on psychics for security and resource replenishment. Given that most psychics were unwilling to risk leaving the base, the military academy charged exorbitant tuition fees.

Wealthy families didn’t mind the fees, but ordinary families had to work tirelessly to save enough or sign a ten-year “indenture contract” with the military academy: graduates must stay in the army, undergo rigorous training, and regularly venture outside to gather supplies.

Everyone knew that the areas the guards went to were unexplored and dangerous, leading to high mortality rates among soldiers.

Xu Qiao’s military academy tuition came from the compensation for her father’s sacrifice in a guard mission.

Uncle Lu had only saved enough for two years of Lu Yang’s tuition.

After the funeral, Lu Yang briefly mentioned that he planned to pay for his first two years and use holidays to earn the third year’s tuition.

Xu Qiao sighed.

Both his parents were psychics, so Lu Yang would definitely awaken a spiritual body. If he inherited Uncle Lu’s B-level metal element ability, going on missions outside the base would be relatively safe. But what if he inherited Aunt Lu’s cotton spiritual body?

The cultivable land within the base is owned by the authorities, and planters can only earn a decent wage at best.

Uncle Lu...

The image of his stern and silent face flashed through Xu Qiao's mind, causing her heart to ache.

At sixteen, when she had just awakened her lotus flower spirit, her grandfather passed away peacefully. For the next four years, Uncle Lu took care of her, protecting her from some overbearing male classmates, helping her complete the basic mercenary missions required of abilities users every six months, and stepping in when other abilities users tried to force her to sell fruits and vegetables at low prices.

Given this care and the bond they shared as she watched Lu Yang grow up, Xu Qiao regarded him as a younger brother.

After breakfast, Xu Qiao changed into her work clothes and opened the door, just as Lu Yang emerged with his backpack.

Greeting him quietly, Lu Yang went straight to push his bicycle.

The middle school student bent down, his school uniform clinging tightly to his back, outlining his prominent spine—he was too thin.

Xu Qiao: "Nutrient fluid is rationed in the base; you can only buy three bottles per day. It’s enough for ordinary people, but you're close to awakening as an abilities user and have higher nutritional needs. A lack of supply could affect your abilities level. Even among B-level abilities users, there are differences in strength."

Lu Yang paused slightly, not agreeing. "There are only three months left; it's not as serious as you say."

Xu Qiao: "Suit yourself. I have a suggestion: move into the spare room here, and rent out your place. That way, you can pay me for food and save part of the rent."

Middle school students have strong self-esteem; she had to find a way to accommodate him.

Lu Yang glanced at their door, pondering for a few seconds before saying to Xu Qiao, "I'll pay for food, utilities, and rent."

Xu Qiao smiled. "So clear-cut, preparing to move to the central area after awakening as a B-level abilities user, don't want me to benefit?"

Lu Yang, hearing this, became anxious. "No, I..."

Xu Qiao: "Then do as I say. Focus on your classes, and I'll handle renting out the house."

Without waiting for Lu Yang's response, she rode off on her bicycle.

Southeast Base has many large hospitals and some personal clinics run by healing abilities users.

Large hospitals offer high salaries and good benefits but also strict management, requiring annual re-evaluation of medical staff's professional skills and abilities levels.

When Xu Qiao graduated from military school, her abilities level limited her to a C-level physician certificate. However, her knowledge of pathology and proficiency with medical equipment were comparable to those of an A-level physician.

Professor Lin admired her and recommended her for a position at the First Military Hospital in the central area. Xu Qiao was both surprised and grateful. But during a brief holiday before starting work, she accompanied Uncle Lu on a basic mission outside the base. While treating a mercenary, she suddenly sensed her spirit stirring.

It was an experience entirely new to her.

According to what she had learned, plant-based spirits are generally stable, unlike animal-based spirits that tend to appear spontaneously.

After finishing the treatment, Xu Qiao prepared to release her spirit to check, but upon catching a glimpse of its shadow, she quickly withdrew it.

She couldn’t explain why she felt so nervous or why she instinctively believed others shouldn’t discover it. In any case, her speed was such that even the resting mercenaries nearby didn't notice the brief appearance of the lotus flower spirit.

Back at the base, Xu Qiao drew the curtains and released her spirit.

Her familiar spirit should have been a lotus emerging from four green leaves, with eleven snow-white petals, only the tips tinged pink.

The newly appeared one still had four leaves, but the number of petals had changed...

Xu Qiao hugged the slender stem and counted the petals three times, each time totaling thirty-three.

From eleven to thirty-three, a tripling.

Xu Qiao knew abilities users could control their spirits' size, and larger spirits consumed more mental energy. But she had never heard of spirits changing details on their own. She knew some abilities users with flower spirits, including a popular actress in Southeast Base whose spirit was a peony, which always had a consistent number of petals.

In the New Era, scholars continued to study various spirits and abilities, making new discoveries almost yearly. Rumors suggested some laboratories and large corporations conducted human experiments on ordinary people or abilities users, though these were merely speculations. Xu Qiao had never encountered any evidence.

Before, she could dismiss such rumors, but now that she experienced changes herself, she preferred to believe them.

Especially since, as the lotus petals increased, her healing abilities also significantly improved, possibly reaching B-level.

If only the spirit looked better, it wouldn't attract much attention, but the improvement in abilities level...

Xu Qiao dared not reveal herself. She chose to forego the large hospital in the central area and instead joined a private clinic in her community, carefully controlling her healing effects.

Earning fewer points was acceptable; survival and freedom were paramount.