The Apocalypse 5
Chen Yao noticed Tang Xi’s hesitant expression. Smiling, she reached out, wanting to pat his head.
But out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of their boss standing nearby.
Remembering yesterday’s team rule about “no intimate contact,” she hesitated and ultimately refrained from touching the soft-looking black hair.
Chen Yao reassured him, “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”
She assumed Tang Xi was afraid of heading to H City, which had just suffered a zombie horde attack.
Lu Mang scoffed from the side. “You’ve got the guts of a hamster.”
Tang Xi puffed up his cheeks in frustration. I’m a cat, not a hamster.
Deciding to ignore his poop scooper, he pretended not to hear the mocking remark.
“I’m fine, Sister Yao. I’m not afraid.”
Chen Yao gave him a warm, motherly smile and was about to say something when Lu Mang’s sudden action interrupted her.
Without warning, Lu Mang grabbed Tang Xi by the collar and dragged him over to the vehicle. Lazily, he gestured to the supplies inside and said, “Store all of these in your space. We’ll pick up more supplies on the way.”
Tang Xi straightened his collar but didn’t immediately follow the order. Instead, he looked up with a serious expression and said slowly, enunciating each word, “I don’t like you grabbing my collar. Please don’t do that again.”
Lu Mang rubbed his fingers together, reconsidering his earlier comment. This kid’s courage wasn’t like a hamster’s at all—it was clearly more like a cat’s.
Easily startled and sensitive, but sometimes recklessly bold.
Watching Tang Xi now, he looked just like a little kitten baring its claws in defiance, fur bristling.
Lu Mang paused for a moment before giving a nonchalant “Mm.”
That was his way of acknowledging the request. Whether he’d actually listen or not was another matter.
Tang Xi earnestly stored all the supplies into his system space. He knew this was a sign that the team trusted him.
By the time they set off, Chen Jinhao had shamelessly ordered his convoy to follow them.
Huang Yuanmiao glanced at the trailing vehicles through the rearview mirror and clicked his tongue but didn’t say anything.
They had already warned the group about the dangers and even told them the shortest route to Dawn Base. If they still insisted on following, that was their choice. They were a mercenary team on a mission, not a military escort.
Since there were many ordinary civilians among them—including children—Lu Mang, despite his usual bad temper, allowed them to tag along.
Along the way, Tang Xi witnessed just how terrifyingly strong this team was.
Their coordination was flawless, and not a single zombie even got close to them.
Huang Yuanmiao and Yi Feng, both fire-type ability users, had perfectly complementary attack styles. Meanwhile, Chen Yao, who had a water-type ability that had mutated into ice, paired up with Wei Xuncheng, an earth-type user. Their offensive and defensive strategies were strikingly similar, making them an excellent team.
Tang Xi leaned against the car window, his eyes sparkling as he watched the dazzling display of elemental abilities outside.
Lu Mang rarely took action himself. He turned his head and scoffed in irritation at the boy’s awestruck expression.
Just then, a high-level zombie appeared—three to four meters tall, with five heads and seven twisted arms, charging toward them.
Lu Mang casually swung his hand downward. A thick bolt of lightning struck, hitting one of the zombie’s heads squarely.
One head wasn’t enough. Following his hand gestures, four more bolts of lightning crashed down in perfect synchronization, striking each of the monster’s remaining heads.
And just like that, the high-level zombie was obliterated.
Tang Xi blinked in shock. “Aren’t you a fire-type?”
Lu Mang, clearly pleased with the admiration in the boy’s eyes, felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction. “Who told you I was fire-type?”
Seeing Tang Xi’s confused expression, he let out a deep chuckle.
It was the first time anyone had heard their boss laugh in a way that wasn’t a cold sneer. Huang Yuanmiao, who was driving, was so startled he almost yanked the entire steering wheel out and threw it away.
Feeling teased, Tang Xi sulked, shrinking into a corner of the car and turning his back to the man.
He poked at the system. [1551, is my poop scooper a dual-type ability user?]
1551: [No.]
There was no real reason to keep it a secret. Now that Tang Xi had joined the team, he would find out sooner or later. But Lu Mang, seeing the boy’s wide, clueless cat-like eyes, felt an irresistible itch to mess with him.
Those lightning strikes? Completely intentional. And the dumbfounded reaction he got? Exactly what he expected.
Even after making Tang Xi sulk, Lu Mang’s fingers still twitched with the lingering itch to tease him.
Yet, for once, it wasn’t the usual irritation he felt—it was something else.
With a flick of his hand, more lightning bolts rained down on the zombies, this time mixed with bursts of fire.
It was almost like a performance—sparks and flashes exploding like fireworks.
Tang Xi’s eyes were instantly drawn back to the spectacle.
The itch in Lu Mang’s chest faded, replaced by that same inexplicable satisfaction. Like a cat owner deliberately dangling a toy, he continued to manipulate his abilities, intensifying the display as he felt the boy’s amazement.
One kept showing off his abilities outside.
The other sat inside, staring in fascination.
They were going through zombies faster than the horde could replenish.
Huang Yuanmiao retracted his own ability and focused on driving, inwardly grumbling. Why is Boss using his abilities like a peacock showing off its feathers?
Tang Xi kept watching the dazzling elemental attacks when something strange caught his attention.
[1551, why do I see traces of black in my poop scooper’s fire?]
He had observed Chen Jinhao’s fire before—it wasn’t this bright, nor was it this hot. More importantly, it didn’t have those dark, ominous strands.
Temperature and brightness could be explained in levels, but what were those dark things?
Tang Xi observed carefully, almost pressing his face against the car window.
Lu Mang’s expression became slightly unnatural.
Cough, does he really like watching his abilities this much…?
Feeling an inexplicable sense of pride, Lu Mang used his flames to shape a small human figure.
The little flame figure outside was showing off, punching and kicking wildly—almost doing a full-on laser rain dance on a zombie’s head.
Tang Xi’s pupils slightly dilated, and his fingers itched.
It reminded him of the little paper figures Ji Fuqing used to amuse him with.
Both were similar in size and demeanor, but this little flame figure was much more arrogant than Ji Fuqing’s paper ones—probably influenced by its creator.
Tang Xi was no longer upset. He turned his body and secretly peeked at Lu Mang.
Every world’s poop scooper had a different personality, yet once you got close enough, you’d realize they were actually quite similar.
Especially when it came to teasing him—they were all equally bad.
His little glance was quickly caught by Lu Mang. Though Lu Mang kept a straight face, the flame figure outside started dancing even more energetically.
They traveled smoothly all the way to the outskirts of H City, where zombies had noticeably increased.
Their group’s scent was too distinct, attracting all the nearby zombies toward them.
The unique scent of humans lured these creatures in, even drawing some mutated animals.
Tang Xi spotted a wild boar nearly the size of a small house charging toward them, kicking up a cloud of dust.
His little face instantly turned pale.
Was that really a pig? It looked more like one of the monsters Ultraman fought!
Lu Mang and the others all got out of the car, not even bothering to ask Chen Jinhao—the hitchhiker—for help. The guy was trembling even worse than an average person at the sight of the mutant beast.
Seeing his reaction, Tang Xi suddenly didn’t feel so cowardly anymore.
He gripped a small dagger, intending to help, but the moment he stepped forward, he was immediately grabbed by an irritable Lu Mang.
Maybe it was because of what he’d said earlier that morning, but this time, Lu Mang finally refrained from grabbing him by the collar. Instead, he pinched the soft flesh at the back of his neck.
“Stay put and be good.”
Lu Mang rubbed the smooth skin for a moment before letting go, allowing Chen Yao to build a massive, sturdy ice wall around the car, safely enclosing Tang Xi inside.
Even when facing a beast several times their size, they looked completely at ease—more like hunters tracking a rabbit than people fighting for their lives.
They used their actions to prove that their strength was even more terrifying on open ground.
Half an hour later, the giant boar collapsed.
Because of the swirling dust and the distance, they could only see its massive body falling to the ground.
Tang Xi heard cheers from behind him. Ignoring Xue Shuirong’s attempts to hold him back, he sprinted forward.
When he saw Lu Mang standing beside the fallen boar, hands in his pockets, looking impatient, his initial worry transformed into pure joy.
“Lu Mang!” Tang Xi’s eyes sparkled as he threw himself at him.
Lu Mang’s originally irritated expression shifted to one of momentary surprise before softening into warmth—but the change was so brief that no one noticed.
He raised a hand and knocked on Tang Xi’s head. “Didn’t I tell you to stay put? Running off to find me on your own—such disobedience to the team.”
His words were sharp, but his touch was as gentle as if he were flirting.
Tang Xi pulled his hand away from his head, rubbing it as he sized up the stubborn man in front of him. Once he was sure the man was fine, he stuck out his tongue playfully.
Glancing to the side, the first thing that caught his eye was a strikingly bright red head. With complete confidence, he declared:
“I wasn’t looking for you! I just wanted to check if Hong Yuanmiao was hurt!”
Huang Yuanmiao, who had been slicing pigskin, froze. Suddenly, he felt an ominous presence surrounding him.
Wait… was there another mutant beast nearby?
He instinctively lowered his hand and turned to report to Lu Mang.
“Boss—”
But before he could finish, he caught sight of Lu Mang’s expression and immediately swallowed the rest of his words.
Oh. So it wasn’t a mutant beast. It was something even scarier.
Silently, he decided to step back and roll away from trouble.
Meanwhile, Wei Xuncheng approached, holding up a massive piece of pigskin with an honest, good-natured expression. “Boss, this wild boar mutated so much that its skin is too thick to eat.”
Lu Mang nodded. “Just take the meat and tusks, then.”
Chen Yao cheered, “That’s great! Now that we have Xiao Tang, none of the supplies we collect on the road will go to waste!”
It was only then that Tang Xi realized what they meant by “collecting supplies” along the way.
Normal people would run for their lives at the sight of a mutant beast.
As the area was deemed safe, more people began to arrive, expressing their gratitude to Lu Mang.
Led by Xue Shuirong, some of them even stepped forward to help with the butchering.
The pigskins were incredibly thick and difficult to handle. It took over an hour to crudely divide up the meat, and when piled together, it reached the height of a whole truck.
Some opportunists tried to sneak off with a few extra pieces, but Xue Shuirong stopped them with a low reprimand, “They saved our lives, you know.”
Lu Mang took in the scene without a word.
Tang Xi, however, simply stored all the meat in his system space.
His eyes crinkled with joy. “Are we having meat for dinner tonight?”
Huang Yuanmiao, unable to resist his adorable expression, reached out and ruffled his hair. “Of course! Let’s celebrate our new team member with a full meat feast!”
Who could say no to such a cute little guy?
Hearing the word “meat,” the cat-like creature in Tang Xi’s heart practically cheered.
Just as he was about to say thank you, he saw Huang Yuanmiao suddenly yelp in pain, flailing his arms.
Huang Yuanmiao blew on his hand, looking aggrieved. “Boss, you’re too ruthless!”
Lu Mang remained expressionless as he reminded, “Team rules.”
With that, he grabbed the scruff of the new recruit’s neck and vigorously messed up his previously neat hair.
Tang Xi, with his messy hair sticking up from being ruffled, slowly tilted his head: ?
Author’s Note:
Team Rules:
- No intimate contact between teammates ✗
- No randomly petting the “cat” ✗
- Only Lu Mang is allowed to pet the “cat” ✔