The Apocalypse 6
The fire crackled as flames licked the oil-dripping meat roasting above it.
Tang Xi sat by the fire, staring unblinkingly at the meat, occasionally swallowing his saliva. His messy tuft of hair stuck out, making him look pitiful.
Chen Yao handed out some of the roasted meat to the survivors who had helped earlier. When she turned back, she saw Tang Xi gazing longingly at the food.
She chuckled. “Xiao Tang, you’re in luck! The boss hasn’t personally grilled meat in ages.”
Lu Mang, silent as ever, sprinkled cumin over the meat and swiftly flipped it.
The rich aroma made Tang Xi feel lightheaded with hunger, prompting him to inch closer to the fire.
His face turned slightly red from the heat.
Lu Mang grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him closer to his side, scolding, “Stay put and don’t mess around.”
Faced with the person who was about to feed him, Tang Xi became unusually obedient. “Oh.”
He crouched beside Lu Mang, motionless like a little mushroom, his wide pupils reflecting the flickering firelight.
Huang Yuanmiao, having already forgotten the pain of past lessons, couldn’t resist teasing him. “You look exactly like the cat my grandma used to have.”
At the mention of “cat,” Tang Xi tensed up.
If he had a tail right now, it would definitely be flicking uneasily.
Huang Yuanmiao continued, “That cat used to curl up by the heater and once burned its own white fur—hahaha!”
He laughed so hard he nearly collapsed.
Tang Xi pouted, feeling offended. “I’m not that dumb.”
Lu Mang shot him a glance, then sneered while holding a piece of roasted meat. “Tsk, if I hadn’t pulled you back just now, that silly tuft of hair on your head would be gone.”
Tang Xi’s cat-like eyes widened in alarm, and he quickly covered the most noticeable tuft of hair on his head.
Only after confirming it was still intact did he realize—his poop scooper had just been messing with him.
Just as he opened his mouth to protest, a piece of roasted meat was stuffed inside.
Lu Mang had even thoughtfully let it cool for a moment, picking a perfectly balanced piece with both fat and lean meat.
Tang Xi chewed and swallowed instantly, his frustration vanishing. He obediently opened his mouth for more.
One fed, the other ate. Neither of them found anything strange about it.
The rest of the team, however, was dumbfounded.
Huang Yuanmiao pinched his own cheek to check if he was dreaming—only to yelp in pain and curse under his breath.
Chen Yao immediately clamped a hand over his mouth.
The group huddled together, eating in silence while exchanging frantic glances.
There was only one word in all their eyes—horror.
. . . . .
After resting for the night, they set out again, heading deeper into H City.
Tang Xi looked at the bloodstains and remains littering the streets, his stomach churning with nausea.
They stopped near the base, where Chen Yao warned the survivors behind them.
“There might be high-tier zombies inside. It’s safer for you to stay here for now.”
Xue Shuirong handed out plenty of water, storing it all in Tang Xi’s space, along with the rest of their supplies.
For once, Tang Xi stood his ground—he refused to stay behind alone.
Yi Feng adjusted his glasses. “Staying here would be safer for you. You’re a spatial ability user—you don’t have to go into the mission center with us.”
Wei Xuncheng nodded in agreement. “Yeah, that’s right.”
Lu Mang deliberately kept his distance and said coldly, “Let’s go.”
Chen Yao shot Tang Xi a reassuring look before quickly following after the boss.
Lu Mang took long, hurried strides, his face tense and unreadable.
He didn’t dare look back, afraid that if he did, he would want to scoop the boy up and take him along.
Tang Xi: [1551, I’m sorry. I can’t just stand here and watch them go in.]
1551 wanted to stop him, but before it could, Tang Xi was already jogging after them.
Seeing this, 1551 gave up on trying to dissuade him. Forget it. His poop scooper will protect him anyway.
The people ahead, hearing footsteps, turned around—only to stare in disbelief as Tang Xi caught up.
Breathless, he spoke before they could say anything. “I’m not just a spatial ability user! I have healing abilities too!”
As soon as he said it, he tensed up, eyes wide, awaiting their reactions.
Huang Yuanmiao stammered, “D-Dual support abilities?!”
Chen Yao gasped. “We hit the jackpot!”
Yi Feng and Wei Xuncheng also looked at him in pleasant surprise—there was no trace of blame.
Tang Xi let out a sigh of relief, his eyes sparkling. “So, can I follow you now?”
Among support ability users, healers were often needed in more dangerous areas. The more perilous the mission, the more crucial a healer became.
Only Lu Mang remained expressionless, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Everyone else is desperate to stay in their comfort zone, yet you’re the only fool running toward danger with bright eyes.”
Once again, his poop scooper called him dumb.
Tang Xi looked a little aggrieved.
In this world, his poop scooper was undeniably handsome, but every word out of his mouth was harsh.
If the other team members knew what he was thinking, they’d probably pat his head and say, This isn’t being harsh—this is blatant favoritism.
Lu Mang’s temper had never flared around Tang Xi. Even when he was annoyed, his irritation would dissipate the moment he saw him.
None of them had ever seen Lu Mang scold someone so gently before.
If they weren’t together every day, they might’ve suspected he had been swapped with someone else.
Seeing the grievance on Tang Xi’s face, Lu Mang paused.
The words he wanted to say got swallowed back down. In the end, he simply grabbed Tang Xi by the collar and growled, “Stay close. If you get lost, I’m leaving you behind.”
“Oh.” Tang Xi obediently trailed after him, sticking close like a little shadow.
The base’s gates stood wide open.
Tang Xi glanced up and saw a corpse hanging above—half-devoured, intestines spilling out.
There were quite a few zombies, so they had no choice but to unleash their abilities as soon as they entered the base, attacking almost indiscriminately.
1551 thoughtfully activated a filter for him, shielding him from the sight of flying organs and shattered bones.
Since Tang Xi stayed close to the team, zombies never got near him, and no one noticed that the undead seemed to avoid him entirely.
He continuously channeled his healing ability, over and over again grateful that he had come along—these people fought as if they had no regard for their lives.
Chen Yao, wielding a heavy machine gun, rolled across the ground, ending up with scrapes all over her face.
She spat out a mouthful of blood without a care.
Tang Xi hurried over to heal her, and just as he finished, he saw Wei Xuncheng get struck on the forehead by a flying piece of rubble.
The little medic was running around in a frenzy.
But no matter where he went, a small flame figure always trailed behind him.
Lu Mang’s strength was displayed in full—while fighting off zombies, he still managed to keep an eye on the little medic.
More and more blood stained Tang Xi’s clothes, yet he remained unscathed.
[1551, can I tell them that I’m the research subject they’re looking for?]
1551 immediately rejected the idea: [No.]
Seeing the little cat looking so troubled, it softened its tone. [That would seriously break character. Even if you hadn’t transmigrated, they would still have come here as part of the plot. Your presence actually made things easier for them.]
In the original timeline, they had left empty-handed.
They never found the hidden underground lab entrance. With the overwhelming number of zombies and their injuries piling up, they had no choice but to retreat.
At least now, with Tang Xi as their support, they could recover instantly whenever they got hurt.
Suddenly, Lu Mang yanked Tang Xi toward him. “What are you spacing out for?!”
Tang Xi blinked. “Sorry.”
Without thinking, he reached up and touched Lu Mang’s brow.
There was a shallow cut from flying debris. The moment Tang Xi’s fingers brushed over it, the wound vanished completely.
Lu Mang froze, his ears heating up.
Before the strange atmosphere between them could linger, Huang Yuanmiao came sprinting over, screaming as a hunched-back zombie chased him.
Lu Mang’s face darkened. With a flick of his fingers, a bolt of lightning struck down, killing the zombie on the spot.
They continued moved forward. Chen Yao cursed at the base in frustration. “No photos of the research subject, barely any useful intel on the lab’s location—what the hell is this mission?!”
They hadn’t found the landmark described in the mission brief, so they had no choice but to move blindly.
Tang Xi suddenly said, “Let’s try going left.”
The moment he spoke, a sharp pain shot through his head.
A foreign system notification echoed in his mind: [Task Performer Tang Xi has deviated from character settings by 10%. Initiating Level 1 penalty.]
However, the pain only lasted a few seconds before vanishing.
He immediately knew who had intervened and poked 1551.
[Thanks.]
1551 huffed and wobbled its round little body. [I learned this bribery trick from the 996 System. Otherwise, you would’ve been in pain for a full half-hour.]
The world’s consciousness favored Tang Xi—but not the villains.
When he broke character to help them, he was more likely to be penalized for it.
1551 shared these little secrets it had figured out. Now that it had spoken, it felt relieved, happily shaking itself again.
Tang Xi fell into deep thought: [But isn’t my mission to save the villain? If the world’s consciousness also rejects the villain, then why does this mission even exist?]
1551: [All I know is that normal villains aren’t actually rejected by the world’s consciousness. The world’s consciousness repels those with excessive negative energy, but a single villain isn’t enough to trigger that rejection.]
[So it’s not about being a villain—it’s about the poop scooper?]
1551 responded with a vague hum.
Without an answer to this question, Tang Xi’s gaze toward Lu Mang grew more conflicted.
What kind of identity does the poop scooper have to be rejected by the world’s consciousness…?
Lost in thought, he didn’t even realize that he had subconsciously taken the lead.
He had led them directly to the entrance of the research facility.
The research facility on the surface was just a facade—the real lab was underground.
1551: [Be careful not to leave any traces behind.]
Tang Xi reassured it confidently: [Don’t worry, in the original storyline, they never found it.]
The moment he finished speaking, the basement door suddenly opened.
1551 gloated a little: [Oh no.]
Lu Mang pressed his hand against a slightly sunken brick, his expression unreadable. “Looks like what we’re looking for is down there.”
Tang Xi swallowed nervously. He hadn’t expected the poop scooper to completely disregard the original plot.
He had suspected it before—
The poop scooper was always more formidable than the villain in the storyline.
If he weren’t here and only the poop scooper existed in this world, would the plot still deviate like this?
The protagonist wouldn’t be able to defeat the poop scooper. If left unchecked, the poop scooper villain would truly throw the world into chaos.