Chapter 35: Substitute Savior in the Apocalypse 12

"To be honest, I can’t quite explain it myself. On the day I awakened my abilities, I had a dream—a dream of this world facing calamity, a dream where the world itself selected a savior. But that savior was killed. It was Yu Xinling from the Congxia Base. I am the substitute savior chosen by the world afterward, tasked with preventing Yu Xinling and those around her from destroying the world, and to seize the crucial item she possesses: the spatial key. With it, I must open the gateway to begin the revival of spiritual energy."

Mu Yin spoke with a mix of truth and falsehood. Sometimes, she felt it was foolish to shoulder the burden of saving the world alone. If she could speak of it, why not? After all, if someone intended to annihilate humanity, to wipe out the world, surely even the worst among humans wouldn’t be so weary of life as to willingly perish alongside everyone else. Even if such a person existed, ignorance wouldn’t help. Those without a desire for destruction, even if they were scoundrels, would surely do their utmost to thwart the destroyers. It was only after careful consideration that Mu Yin decided to reveal the truth.

“Have you read too many novels?” Liu Lin, one of only two female soldiers in the group, burst out laughing at Mu Yin’s story.

“I’ve told you what I know. Believe it or not, it’s up to you. All I can say is, Yu Xinling holds the spatial key, which can open a secret realm filled with concentrated spiritual energy—enough to revive the planet. Moreover, those around her have long enjoyed food and water saturated with spiritual energy, so their abilities advance quickly. If we don’t act soon, I fear we won’t be strong enough to oppose them. I’ve said what I can; whether you believe it or not is your concern. My mission must be fulfilled. Once you return to the base, I’ll take my leave.”

Mu Yin wasn’t angry, but she emphasized the crucial points. Her target was Yu Xinling; she couldn’t let her escape.

Her words still met with skepticism, and Mu Yin knew there was no remedy for that. Early next morning, after returning to the base together, she turned to go. “Captain, are we just going to let her leave like this?” Wan Yuanheng, who had a measure of faith in Mu Yin, watched her departing figure and spoke.

“This matter needs to be reported, but I agree it’s not ideal to let her go. Yuan, you follow her.” Ye Leng, too, was inclined to believe, but the gravity of the situation and their own responsibilities required that they report to their superiors first. Still, letting Mu Yin leave didn’t sit well, so he decided to have Wan Yuanheng accompany her.

“All right, then I’ll go. Please let my parents know, Captain.” Wan Yuanheng and Ye Leng had grown up together in the same compound, so he could entrust his parents with confidence. With that, he ran off and quickly caught up to Mu Yin, who hadn’t gone far.

“Mu Yin, wait for me!” Wan Yuanheng called out to her.

“Why are you following me?” Mu Yin turned, surprised to see him.

“It’s too dangerous for you to go alone. I want to help you.” Wan Yuanheng flashed a bright, handsome smile.

“All right, suit yourself.” Mu Yin considered for a moment and didn’t refuse. Yu Xinling had many companions; having an ally would be useful.

“Do you know where they are?” Wan Yuanheng, relieved at her agreement, asked.

“I left something for them earlier—now we just need to follow it.” Mu Yin pulled out a pair of glasses and put them on. These were the tracking glasses she’d drawn before, paired with a tracking mosquito. This time, her ability evolution hadn’t exhausted her powers entirely, but she’d lost about a fifth.

“Oh.” Seeing her don the glasses and recalling her abilities, Wan Yuanheng didn’t press further. “Should we find a vehicle?”

“Yes, a motorcycle will do.” Mu Yin nodded. A mode of transport was necessary, but a car wasn’t needed.

“I think a car would be better—that way we can carry extra gasoline in the trunk.” Wan Yuanheng thought ahead and shared his idea.

“You’re right, that makes sense.” Mu Yin checked the glasses for their target’s location and made no objection. It looked like their quarry was heading back to Congxia Base, so it would take some time to catch up.

Cars were plentiful on the road, but many were ruined—some from battles, others from clearing blockades, and many had their fuel tanks pried open to siphon gas. A moving vehicle always had some fuel left.

After much effort, they finally found a usable car. More than half an hour had passed. “I should’ve just driven one out from the start,” Wan Yuanheng said as he looked at the relatively intact vehicle. Using the universal key Mu Yin had drawn, he opened it. The interior was thick with dust, so he finished with a clean rune she’d made.

“A regret is worth its weight in gold. Come on, don’t dawdle—let’s get moving.” Mu Yin settled into the passenger seat. Wan Yuanheng had seemed so reliable before; now he felt a bit scatterbrained.

“Which way?” Wan Yuanheng was only making conversation to avoid awkward silence between just the two of them.

“They seem to be heading back to Congxia Base. The direction matches their movement.” Mu Yin pulled out a map, compared the surveillance marker with the map, and confirmed the route.

“Got it.” Wan Yuanheng nodded and started the car. Perhaps it had been idle too long, as it took several tries to start. Mu Yin finally wrote a restoration rune and stuck it on, after which the engine roared to life.

Wan Yuanheng marveled at Mu Yin’s abilities but said nothing. In truth, her powers were indeed useful, but not omnipotent. For example, a car unused and rusted could be fixed with her runes, but if it were shattered into pieces, repairing it would consume most or all of her energy.

On the road, they gathered gasoline wherever possible, searching vehicles that appeared intact. Still, many cars that looked fine had empty tanks. Luckily, they found a gas station with some fuel still left.

Afterward, Mu Yin experimented with the gasoline, trying to figure out how to draw it. Strangely, she couldn’t create water, but she could reproduce water in a bottle; however, she couldn’t draw gasoline from a drum. It made her realize that pure energy might be higher than matter—even the lowest form of energy like gasoline. In fact, she couldn’t draw fire from a pile of logs either, and this puzzled her. Still, Mu Yin felt she was starting to grasp the nature of energy, though she couldn’t quite catch the thread.

At first, Mu Yin led the way, but eventually she handed the glasses to Wan Yuanheng. Fortunately, they didn’t obstruct his vision and didn’t need to be worn constantly—just briefly to confirm the direction.