Chapter 286 | Chapter 287 | Chapter 288
Chapter 286: Do You Want to Become Stronger?
After the meal, Bai Yu and Fang Ze found themselves at a loss for words.
With food like this, even retired defense force soldiers could live comfortably—but their garrison troops couldn’t manage it!
Forget retirement—even on duty, they didn’t eat this well, this luxuriously!
What shocked Bai Yu even more was that the siblings didn’t seem to think this meal was anything special. They even looked a bit lacking in appetite…
What kind of wealthy life was this?
If she wanted to persuade Zhou Qian to leave such a life and join her team as a non-ability user, she would have to show enough sincerity first, right?
But sincerity ultimately came down to food, clothing, housing, and work…
Her gaze shifted to Huai Yu. If she arranged a job for her as well, would they agree?
She fell into deep thought.
Of course, Bai Yu didn’t know that to entertain them, Huai Yu had deliberately left some mutation values unremoved from the vegetables. It was just that going from frugal to luxurious was easy, but the reverse was not—so they found the meal a bit lacking instead.
And so, this beautiful misunderstanding took shape.
Huai Yu’s thoughts, on the other hand, were much simpler—meeting Zhou Qian’s lifesaver and inviting her home for a meal as thanks was only natural.
She happily gathered the dishes, first casting an expectant glance at Fang Ze. Seeing him unmoved, she helplessly looked at Zhou Qian instead.
Zhou Qian asked,
“Is one bucket enough?”
As he walked toward the well.
The previously “useless” water-type ability user Fang Ze finally snapped out of it and hurriedly raised his hand:
“I’ll do it, I’ll do it!”
He had failed at everything today in Huai Yu’s eyes—at least providing water for dishwashing should be something he could do, right? With a sense of urgency to redeem himself, he said proudly:
“Actually, Little Yu-meimei, your understanding of water-type abilities is still too shallow. How could I only have that one trick? With my fine control over water flow, I’ll let you witness it today—360-degree full-coverage cleaning, a fully automatic dishwasher!”
Huai Yu sat by the basin, eyes full of anticipation:
“Mhm mhm! Should I pour in detergent first?”
Fang Ze grinned.
“Do it!”
This time, he wasn’t exaggerating. His hand hovered slightly above the basin, and several thin streams of water poured down like a shower, evenly covering every dirty dish.
The water looked gentle, but it was actually powerful. With just one rinse, combined with the detergent, dense white foam quickly spread across the basin. In just a few moments, all the grease and residue were washed away.
By the time Zhou Qian finished drawing a bucket of water, a thick layer of grime had already settled at the bottom of the basin.
Experienced in dishwashing, Zhou Qian stepped forward, quickly transferring the clean dishes into another basin, then said politely to Fang Ze:
“Please rinse them again here. Oh, and rinse this basin too, then fill it about sixty percent.”
Looking down at the clean, fresh dishes, Zhou Qian smiled warmly:
“Thanks a lot!”
After thinking for a moment, he added sincerely:
“Your ability is really practical!”
Fang Ze: …
Sometimes, some compliments… are better left unsaid.
…
Although his combat ability had been reduced to doing household chores, Fang Ze felt he had regained some dignity. Bai Yu, meanwhile, saw a different kind of opportunity—
“Zhou Qian, do you want to have abilities?”
“Or rather—do you want to become stronger?”
Zhou Qian looked at her.
“You have a way to awaken abilities? If so, having one wouldn’t be bad.”
Bai Yu’s prepared speech faltered slightly. She could only say:
“It’s said that the closer one is to life and death, the easier it is to awaken abilities. With your level of skill, staying idle at home is truly a waste. With us, you can train your abilities, earn contributions for your family, and we will do our best to ensure every member’s safety.”
“So—have you considered gaining another chance to become stronger?”
“We’re about to form a new team in the garrison troops. If you’re willing to join, the team’s positions and benefits can all be decided by you.”
Though defense forces and garrison troops differed only in function, in reality, they competed in every aspect—
Including honor and benefits.
Zhou Qian glanced at his leg.
After the sparring, he had already refilled the spore powder. In truth, he was already becoming stronger.
If this offer had come before he decided to retire, he would have agreed without hesitation.
But now…
He looked at the tense Huai Yu and shook his head firmly.
“Thanks, but no.”
Bai Yu froze slightly.
Huai Yu, however, became anxious.
“Brother Zhou Qian, won’t you think about it again?”
Zhou Qian smiled.
“No need. If I join someone else’s team, what will you do alone in winter?”
His gaze drifted toward the distant Rose Corridor, meaningful.
Huai Yu understood immediately and shook her head.
“Brother Zhou Qian, don’t just think about me—think about yourself too. Whether I have help or not doesn’t affect me in the forest—you know that.”
“I know.” Zhou Qian smiled. “But I’m enjoying this peaceful life now. I don’t want to keep fighting for survival.”
“Little Yu, forming a new team might bring good benefits and glory, but… what if I die again?”
Last time, he had truly felt himself on the brink of death.
Huai Yu had paid so much to save him—even exposing all her secrets. If it happened again, he didn’t know if he would survive.
Having been together so long, he understood her well. As expected, her expression tightened instantly:
“That’s true—just going into the wasteland a few times a year with the defense forces, you already got hurt so badly. If you join the garrison troops, wouldn’t that be even worse?”
“And aren’t garrison troops all ability users? Brother Zhou Qian, you’re not. If they form a team, will people look down on you? What if they force in unqualified connections?”
Now armed with her “three volumes of mental nourishment,” Huai Yu analyzed seriously:
“If there’s dead weight in a team, it’s too easy to lose your life! Brother Zhou Qian, you’re right—it’s not suitable!”
Bai Yu, who had only asked one question: …
“So… you’re not even going to ask about benefits? Isn’t this rejection a bit too quick?”
“I was even planning to apply for higher-level compensation.”
“Or do you have any requirements? Just say it. I’ll do my best to secure whatever I can. Also, regarding your single status—we’ve even organized matchmaking events between the garrison troops and local areas!”
Chapter 287: My Own Team
Sigh!
Bai Yu let out a breath. She herself was still single, yet now she had to use that as a condition to recruit new members…
It felt a bit strange.
But an ability user who doesn’t want to become a general is not a good commander.
Having just arrived in Flower City, if she wanted to become a garrison officer, the more trustworthy teams under her command, the better! Especially with Zhou Qian’s outstanding combat ability—on the wasteland, fighting alone might not show much, but once coordinated with ability users…
Bai Yu believed they would work exceptionally well together!
Moreover, Zhou Qian’s identity was special—he had served in the defense forces and retired due to injury.
He was a natural bridge for deeper cooperation between the garrison troops and the defense forces!
If she could establish this precedent of close cooperation between the two forces, future collaboration with local authorities would become even tighter!
For that, even if it meant “buying a horse’s bones with gold,” she was willing to show full sincerity—especially since the other party truly was a rare talent.
However, faced with her question, Huai Yu answered even more matter-of-factly:
“My Brother Zhou Qian already deserves the best!”
“And also—what do higher-level salary and benefits mean? Does it mean eating meat and fish every day?”
Bai Yu: …
She really wanted to boast about the garrison cafeteria, but after the meal they had just eaten, the words simply wouldn’t come out.
“I wouldn’t go even for meat every day,” Zhou Qian said, patting Huai Yu’s head, then shook his head at Bai Yu. “Commander Bai, thank you for your invitation. But whether it’s personal reasons or future plans, I don’t intend to join any team again.”
His hand rested on Huai Yu’s shoulder.
“You’ve seen it—my sister is still so young and doesn’t understand much. I can’t leave her alone at home anymore.”
Otherwise, who knows what trouble she might cause.
Bai Yu sighed.
Zhou Qian’s years in the defense forces must have been especially hard on these siblings who depended on each other.
“I understand.”
She extended her hand solemnly.
“No matter what, you’re remarkable.”
“And even if you don’t join us, I still want to say—whatever you need, I’d be happy to help.”
Zhou Qian actually paused to think.
When he withdrew his hands, he made his request decisively:
“In November, when the wasteland enters its short dormant period, could you approve a permit for us to enter?”
He pointed at Huai Yu.
“Her awareness of danger is too weak. I want to personally take her into the wasteland to experience it.”
“Just the two of us,” he emphasized.
Bai Yu froze for a moment, then gave a bitter smile.
“Must it be like this? There are too many unpredictable dangers in the wasteland. I was actually planning to suggest that if you don’t mind, next month you could follow behind our garrison team—look after each other while exploring.”
If this had been Zhou Qian from a few months ago, he would have felt greatly relieved hearing this.
But now, his heart tightened instead. He gave a wry smile:
“No need. We won’t go too deep. With too many people, it’s inconvenient.”
The excuse sounded a bit strange, but not unusual—Bai Yu even guessed the siblings might be planning to form their own exploration team.
After a brief thought, she nodded decisively.
“I’ll submit the documents for approval when I get back. By tomorrow before six in the evening, please go to the administrative hall and wait for me.”
“Well then, we’ve disturbed you long enough. We should head back—Zhou Qian, I hope we can cooperate in the future.”
Zhou Qian nodded.
“Thank you. We will.”
Even after getting into the car, Fang Ze, who was driving, still felt reluctant.
“We’re really giving up just like that? His ability is truly strong—his strength is unbelievable.”
“Mm.” Bai Yu nodded. “Even with my physical condition, I could barely withstand his attacks. And judging from how calm he was, and the slight hesitation when lifting his leg, I suspect he still has a trump card he hasn’t revealed.”
No wonder everyone in the defense forces would sigh in regret when mentioning Zhou Qian… A talent like this, overlooked for so many years just because he had no abilities—it was truly a pity.
But since he clearly didn’t lack anything for now, Bai Yu could only try to leave a good impression.
Next time.
She glanced at Fang Ze.
Next time she came, she would ask his opinion about General Wu Yue, and then decide whether he was worth going all out for.
…
Meanwhile, back here, Huai Yu was tidying the house while asking curiously:
“Brother Zhou Qian, she seems to have a really good impression of you! Will she come to find you often?”
“What if she comes and no one’s home?”
“If she finds out, she finds out,” Zhou Qian replied casually. “We’re living so well—if someone were always at home, that would be stranger. Don’t worry.”
“That commander big sister looks so young, yet already so capable! Brother Zhou Qian, if you joined, maybe in less than two years you could become a commander too.”
Thinking of Bai Yu’s fighting, Huai Yu’s eyes shone with admiration.
Zhou Qian shook his head.
“I’m good at frontline combat. From what I saw, she’s also extremely experienced in battle.”
“But for her to make other ability users willingly follow her at such a young age—” for example, Fang Ze instinctively looked to her when he couldn’t answer, clearly trusting her deeply.
That kind of judgment in people and politics—he didn’t have it.
Huai Yu half-understood.
But that didn’t matter.
What mattered was—
“So we can get the permit tomorrow?”
“Mm!” Zhou Qian nodded. “Since she said so, we’ll definitely get it. Little Yu, you can start preparing—given your abilities, we don’t even need to wait for full dormancy. Once November starts, we can set out.”
Huai Yu grew excited too.
“Okay! I’ll tidy up the vegetable garden and the little ones at home, then ask Gao Ming to take care of things every day—”
She paused suddenly, blinking in confusion.
“Brother Zhou Qian.”
“Mm?”
“Did we… forget Gao Ming when we were eating just now?”
They were still holding baskets, staring at each other.
The next moment, Huai Yu hurriedly urged:
“Quick, quick! Gao Ming’s condition has been really bad these past two days—we can’t let him go hungry!”
Zhou Qian added,
“You ride back first and cook some noodles quickly. I’ll drive to pick him up!” That morning, he had seen Gao Ming’s pale face and unsteady steps—clearly, consecutive sleepless nights had taken a heavy toll on a normal person.
Feeling guilty, the two set off immediately.
Meanwhile, in Rose Mansion District Three, in the house farthest from the Rose Corridor, Gao Ming had already poured hot water into a cup. Two thin ginseng whiskers inside released a faint medicinal fragrance under the heat.
He felt his spirits lift instantly. Staring at his workbench with excitement, he said:
“Mutated Cold Arrow Bamboo Experiment—Attempt 43!”
Chapter 288: Reaching the Heavens
On the lab bench, inside the compressed culture dish, lay a section of mutated cold arrow bamboo rhizome.
Thin, twisted, pale yellow, with many knotted joints.
Under the repeated induction of Gao Ming’s nutrient solution, it once again grew roots wildly, striving to sprout. In just a few minutes—while Gao Ming felt dizzy and unsteady—the pale yellow rhizome bulged with tiny budding points.
A surge of joy filled his heart.
“Let it succeed… let it succeed… let it succeed…”
Gao Ming muttered, his bloodshot eyes blazing with obsession from sleepless nights.
The nutrient solution was being consumed rapidly. The roots grew faster and faster. The budding points swelled, their arcs rising higher and higher—
Then, with a pop, a small grayish-brown sprout pushed out from a bamboo node. Beneath it, the root system expanded continuously.
From past experience, Gao Ming knew—this was the stage where the rhizome stored energy.
This phase could last as short as three hours or as long as two days. It would accumulate massive energy for the bud, allowing it to erupt overnight into a strong shoot, break through the soil, and begin a new mutation path…
As long as it approached the mutation direction he wanted, everything would be worth it!
He slowly straightened his body. Having been hunched over the dish for so long, the moment he stood upright, the world spun. His vision darkened, and he staggered, gripping the table for support.
After a long while, Gao Ming finally steadied himself and could see clearly again.
He took a deep breath, then groped for the ginseng tea he had prepared earlier—and gulped it down!
Huai Yu guarded her treasures closely and rarely let him study their mutation paths, so he could only explore blindly.
But from his experience, no matter how things mutated, their fundamental nature wouldn’t change. For example, this ginseng tea—at the very least, it nourished the body—
Yet before he could even taste the ginseng flavor, something changed.
The cold arrow bamboo roots, which had been quietly accumulating energy, suddenly went berserk!
With a bang, they pierced straight through the culture dish and lunged toward the cup in his hand!
Only half a cup of tea remained. The pale yellow liquid and the thin ginseng whiskers at the bottom were instantly sucked dry by the fine roots.
Still unsatisfied, the roots groped along the inner walls of the cup like a greedy octopus.
Even the two tiny ginseng whiskers were not spared—they were gently wrapped by the slender roots and pulled back into the dish, pressed tightly against the rhizome.
Soon, they were completely absorbed.
At the same time, the bamboo’s roots suddenly spread several meters in an instant! The culture dish shattered, and the roots spilled over the table, drilling into the solid ground.
A series of cracking sounds followed—as if even the foundation was being forced apart.
Countless roots stretched in all directions, piercing out through windows and doorways, plunging into the soil! At that moment, the energy in the earth seemed to be visibly drained—the surrounding grass withered instantly, and the once-soft soil turned into a strange, dry, sand-like state.
A pulsing force traveled through the roots, causing the small rhizome to swell larger and larger! The roots crisscrossed like spider silk, weaving the entire workspace into a dense web.
Then the tiny bud above expanded—
And suddenly burst forth into a bamboo shoot nearly 40 centimeters thick!
Gao Ming gasped, clutching his chest as he coughed violently, yet his eyes burned with fanatic excitement as he stared at it all.
The mutation direction was still not what he had hoped for—but who could remain unmoved by such a scene?
Including Zhou Qian, who had just arrived.
As soon as his car entered District 3, he felt a faint tremor beneath the ground.
Not understanding why, he instinctively stepped on the gas. But the moment he stopped at the door, he saw—
From the windows, from the doorway—countless thin strands shot out!
They crisscrossed and spread outward, then plunged into the soil!
The sight instantly reminded him of the spider creature he had encountered in the wasteland.
Zhou Qian’s expression changed. Without hesitation, he pushed open the door and shouted:
“Gao Ming!”
“Gao Ming!”
The next moment, another loud crash came from inside, as if something had been smashed apart.
Before Zhou Qian could step onto the stairs, the ground trembled again—this time even more intensely. The entire house shook.
Then—
He heard a strange sound.
Zhou Qian suddenly looked up.
From the roof came a faint but continuous creaking, as if something was forcing its way through—
Crack!
With a dull explosion, a large hole burst open in the roof beam!
Tiles flew outward, concrete fragments scattered everywhere. Zhou Qian stepped back to avoid them, then looked up—
A brown, cone-shaped object shot upward like a massive drill, piercing straight toward the sky!
He froze in place.
It looked like the sky-reaching vine from ancient tales, still growing upward. But its speed slowed, slower and slower, until it finally stopped about thirty meters high, suspended in the air.
Looking around, the fine roots had already formed a cage-like web.
This mutated plant—friend or foe, unknown.
Not wanting to provoke it, Zhou Qian twisted his body carefully and slipped through the dense network of roots into the house, still calling out:
“Gao Ming, are you alive?”
Inside, everything was in ruins. Stones, bricks, and wood littered the ground. Dust thickly covered the living room.
Zhou Qian struggled into the workspace—and saw Gao Ming lying flat on the ground, unmoving!
“Gao Ming!”
He rushed forward, only to see Gao Ming’s eyes wide open. One side of his forehead had been struck by falling debris—blood was flowing, and a large swelling had formed.
Zhou Qian finally let out a breath.
For a moment, he had truly thought the man was dead.
Now, his tense muscles loosened slightly.
But Gao Ming didn’t respond. He didn’t cry out in pain either. His eyelashes trembled faintly, his bloodshot eyes staring through the broken roof into the sky as he muttered:
“Forty-third mutation induction experiment of cold arrow bamboo…”
“With mutated ginseng energy solution, the mutation direction of cold arrow bamboo—normally three meters tall—is…”
He paused.
Then said precisely:
“Reaching the heavens.”
