Chapter 13 Confronting Chen Chen Again

**Chapter 13: Confronting Chen Chen Again**

Tang Ning was fuming like a pufferfish inside, but on the outside, she maintained a cheerful smile.

Another one of the man’s subordinates said, “Boss, we got here too late—there’s nothing left. But these energy cores can at least compensate for our losses. It wasn’t a wasted trip after all.”

The man gave a slight nod in acknowledgment but remained silent, clearly a man of few words.

“Wait,” Ji An said, slowly standing up with Tang Ning’s support. He still felt weak and exhausted as he asked, “Are you from the Capital City Base?”

The man turned to look at Ji An, his dark, unreadable eyes like an endless tunnel, giving Ji An an inexplicable sense of danger. Yet the man didn’t answer.

Instead, his subordinate replied, “We’re from the Capital City Base. Which base are you from? Who would be so bold as to send out a Level 3 psychic superpowered non-combatant like you?”

Ji An still couldn’t figure out how they knew about his ability and its level.

“We’re from—” Tang Ning started to answer but was pulled back sharply by Ji An.

“I know the Capital City Base accepts people—ordinary or superpowered—with verified backgrounds. We want to join. Can we travel with you?” Ji An took out the Level 3 zombie energy cores he had obtained earlier. “We can offer supplies. Would this passage fee be enough?”

“Level 3 cores? Of course—” The subordinate eagerly reached out to take them but stopped dead as a chill ran down his spine. He turned to see his boss’s icy glare.

The subordinate choked back his words, swallowed hard, and awkwardly rubbed his nose through his protective suit. “Uh… well… this is up to the boss.”

He then fawned, “Boss, what do you think?”

The man coldly averted his gaze and leveled his dark, unreadable gaze at Ji An. “No.”

“Why?” Ji An and the subordinate asked in unison.

Ji An remained composed, and Tang Ning, curious, supported him. The subordinate, however, fared worse—he was promptly silenced and unceremoniously dragged away by the no-nonsense woman from earlier, just like a dead dog.

“Mmph—!” The subordinate struggled futilely.

Only then did the man speak again. “Not enough.”

Two icy words. Ji An understood immediately—the cores weren’t sufficient payment.

But judging from his subordinate’s earlier reaction, they should have been more than enough, possibly even excessive.

Ji An took a deep breath. “Very well. I have experimental equipment. I’m willing to hand it all over.”

At the mention of experimental equipment, the man’s expression shifted instantly. Even his normally boisterous subordinate snapped to attention, their attention snapping to Ji An.

Ji An briefly displayed several precious pieces of experimental equipment from his spatial storage before storing them again. Though his movements were swift, everyone present saw enough.

Even with only the man’s eyes visible, Ji An could tell his gaze had turned serious.

“You’re also a spatial superpower user—a dual-type with psychic and spatial abilities? No way! Can psychic types even develop secondary powers?” The subordinate blurted out.

Everyone ignored him. “I have more equipment in my space. I’m willing to surrender it all.”

“Your terms?” The man asked flatly. He wasn’t naive enough to think such valuable equipment was just for passage fees—there had to be more.

Smart, Ji An thought. Dealing with smart people saved effort. “In exchange, the Capital City Base grants us entry and provides housing. No barracks-style housing—private quarters, preferably our own place. A one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartment would work.

Also, three years’ worth of rations—standard rations will suffice.

And I need a dedicated laboratory with unrestricted access to all the base’s experimental equipment.”

Ji An's storage had plenty of food—he wasn’t short on supplies. But Tang Ning didn’t. As an ordinary person without awakened abilities, food was something she had to fight for with her life.

Plus, this time around, whether it was retrieving lab equipment or taking down zombies, Tang Ning had pulled her weight. By the standard of fair pay for fair work, this was what she deserved.

Three years’ worth of rations was more than enough compensation for what Tang Ning had done.

The man’s gaze toward Ji An was unreadable. Silence stretched between them, and for some reason, Ji An felt this man wouldn’t be easy to deal with. He said, “If you can’t decide, just take me back and I’ll talk to your commander.”

The man gave him a side-eye—neither agreeing nor refusing—and walked off.

What’s his problem? Just say yes or no!

For a moment, Ji An was completely baffled. But one of the man’s subordinates had already approached. Compared to his icy superior, this guy was warm as night and day. “Our boss *is* the highest authority in the base. He makes all the calls.”

The woman whose voice alone exuded confidence added, “That’s just how the boss is. You’ll get used to it—don’t take it personally.”

“You don’t know this, but everyone in the base secretly calls our leader a ‘human killing machine’—a cold-blooded weapon who only knows how to kill. His face is stupidly handsome, and his personality is just as ruthless.”

The subordinate scratched his head. “Honestly, though, today he *was* acting weird. Normally, even if he’s cold, he’s never *this* strange! Maybe it’s because you’re too good-looking? He can’t stand anyone prettier than himself—but you two aren’t even the same type! He’s got that rugged, masculine charm, while you’ve got that androgynous beauty.”

“Shut up already!” The woman rolled her eyes.

The man, unsure why he was being scolded, shrugged helplessly.

“Let’s go,” the woman said, catching up with the main group.

Ji An was wiped out, leaning entirely on Tang Ning. But as an ordinary woman without any powers, her strength was limited—she couldn’t support him. After only a few steps, they both collapsed in a heap.

Tang Ning landed on top of Ji An, adding insult to injury. He let out a pained grunt.

The chatty underling turned back. “I’ll carry you.”

“Thanks,” Ji An said, not foolish enough to refuse.

The subordinate crouched before Ji An, ready to give him a piggyback ride. But just as Ji An was about to climb on, a shadow fell over him. He looked up and met a pair of cold eyes.

Then, suddenly, Ji An felt weightless—the cold man had hoisted him up bridal-style.

Ji An froze, utterly confused. *What was his deal now?*

Didn’t he hate him? Just moments ago, he’d been stonewalling him so badly that even offering far more than necessary in payment hadn’t convinced him to bring them back to the capital base. It was only after Ji An offered the lab equipment that he finally agreed.

So why was he helping now? Shouldn’t he have pretended not to hear?

What Ji An didn’t realize was that the subordinate’s jaw had nearly dropped off in shock.

Their boss—*carrying someone voluntarily?!* Their boss, who supposedly had an allergy to people?!

But Ji An soon noticed something odd. As the man carried him through the base, almost every superpowered individual they passed immediately snapped to attention.

That was definitely not normal.

The man carried Ji An up the stairs and had barely stepped outside when zombies drawn by their scent appeared.

Fire blasts, wind slashes, wooden vines—abilities erupted from behind them, clearing a path instantly.

A few armored vans were parked roadside. The man went to the middle one, opened the door, gently placed Ji An inside, then moved to the driver’s seat.

His men followed. Ji An saw Tang Ning trying to approach, only to be ushered into another van.

Everyone got in the vehicles, and the zombies behind gave chase. Ji An glanced in the rearview mirror and noticed that this wave of zombies had split into three groups.

The guy sitting next to him leaned halfway out the window and tossed two grenades backward.

The grenades landed in the zombie horde, blasting them apart—limbs flying everywhere. A fire-type superpowered shot out a flaming dragon, instantly reducing the zombies to ashes.

"Hey, we’ll be at the same base from now on—let’s get to know each other. I’m Kong Zhongcheng, a level-four strength-type superpowered (early-stage)," the man said, nudging Ji An with his shoulder. "The driver’s our boss from the Capital City Base, Gu Jinsheng—a dual-type superpowered at peak level five, controlling both thunder and wind."

Kong Zhongcheng lowered his voice. "That tough chick over there is Wan Xueying, a peak level-four superpowered."

Wan Xueying, the bold and sharp woman, let out a cold laugh upon hearing this, which made Kong Zhongcheng shiver. He quickly flashed her an ingratiating smile.

"You nearly gave me a heart attack," Kong Zhongcheng muttered, patting his chest. "Anyway, what’s your name?"

"I’m Ji An, a dual-type—mental and spatial—superpowered."

"You’re seriously impressive. I’ve never met a mental superpowered—usually non-combat—who awakened as a dual-type level-three early-stage superpowered before."

Kong Zhongcheng blinked. "Hey, Ji An, what was it like when the boss carried you? Did you know he’s never held anyone else alive before? Can you believe it—at his age, he’s still never been with anyone!"

"So, do you think the boss actually likes you or not?" Kong Zhongcheng’s eyes lit up with nosy excitement.

Wan Xueying rolled her eyes hard enough to see her own brain.

Ji An stayed silent. How would he know?

The apocalypse messed people up mentally—many suffered psychological issues. Maybe the boss had a split personality or something. That would explain why he acted so inconsistently.

Whether or not he had multiple personalities, Ji An couldn’t say, but the team he led was undeniably formidable. They took on every zombie head-on, didn’t even flinch at hordes. A few grenades scattered the zombies, then flames burned the remains to ash.

Most teams with a fire-type superpowered made sure to burn zombie corpses thoroughly.

Zombies carried the zombie virus, which didn’t die with them. As the bodies decayed, the virus seeped into the soil, contaminating land and water sources. If animals ingested it, they could become infected too.

That’s why competent teams always torched the zombies after killing them.

Throughout the journey, Ji An witnessed the team’s prowess and realized the gap between Chen Chen’s base and the Capital City Base.

Peak level-three superpowereds were a dime a dozen in the Capital City Base—they only qualified as squad leaders. Yet, Chen Chen had become a base commander, a cut above the rest in the Third Base.

After seven years since the apocalypse began, the Capital City Base had grown significantly, restoring most pre-apocalypse infrastructure and looking like a real city again.

Factories and workshops were back in business, almost returning to how things were before the disaster.

Ordinary people could work in factories without needing to risk their necks. Though they didn’t make as much as superpowereds, they could support themselves just fine.

Listening to Kong Zhongcheng’s explanations, Ji An gained a basic understanding of the Capital City Base and learned it placed high value on researchers.

Ji An knew he’d made the right call.

About three days later, when they were just a kilometer away from the Capital City Base, their convoy encountered another base’s group.

The other side flashed their hazard lights, signaling they wanted to talk. As they drew closer, a familiar face popped out from the car—it was Chen Chen.

"Hello, have you seen a level-two mental superpowered? He might be traveling with an ordinary woman who hasn’t awakened any powers?"

As if worried he wasn’t clear enough, he added, "He might also be pretending to be normal, or traveling alone. But he’s strikingly beautiful—the kind of androgynous beauty that’s unmistakable?"

Hearing this, Kong Zhongcheng immediately turned to Ji An, eyes bugging out with gossip-hungry excitement.

"Haven't seen them. What, is that someone from your base?" Wan Xueying, sitting in the passenger seat, leaned forward to ask.

"It's embarrassing to say," Chen Chen said with shame. "It's a disgrace for our base. That person is a traitor who stole supplies from our base and fled."

At that moment, Gu Jinsheng, sitting in the driver’s seat, suddenly sneered, "Pathetic!"

Chen Chen's face darkened in shock—he never dreamed he’d be insulted like that.

Wan Xueying, sensing Chen Chen might not fully understand, added, "What our boss means is that your base actually allowed a non-combat psychic superpowered and an ordinary person to steal warehouse supplies. Everyone in your base—including you—is incompetent!"