Chapter 47: A New Ability
A phrase flashed through Qi He’s mind: third evolution.
But an ice-type ability mixed with poison… was that even possible?
Up ahead, Mo Jiayan squatted down and poked at Gong Lianyu’s motionless body.
“How can an ice-type ability contain poison? He’s probably just frozen numb. Huh…? You’re still warm.”
Everyone: “……”
Gong Lianyu wailed in grief, “I’m not dead yet!!!”
Xia Jiu pressed his chin thoughtfully and examined him for a few seconds.
“There’s indeed a trace of toxin, but it’s harmless to humans. More like… paralysis?”
All eyes immediately turned toward Yan Chuanbai—
Yan Chuanbai stood nearby with his hands in his pockets, silent for a few seconds before saying evenly, “It’s probably the result of a third evolution.”
“Third evolution!?”
A chorus of shocked voices followed.
Everyone who had been crowding around Gong Lianyu suddenly turned to him.
“So that means you’ve reached 4S-level!?”
“Why would an ice-type ability evolve to have a paralysis effect?”
“Brother Yan! Say something, Brother Yan!”
Meng Yan, startled, blurted out, “Is this also… one of your body’s mysteries?!”
The noise died instantly.
“?”
Qi He: “……”
System: [……]
The bizarre phrasing made Yan Chuanbai glance sharply at Qi He beside him. Then he said calmly, “I just evolved, so I’m not sure yet. Let’s deal with Gong Lianyu first.”
…Deal with?
Gong Lianyu’s eyes went wide with tears. He wriggled on the ground with a pat pat sound.
Everyone’s attention returned to him.
“How do we deal with him? Is there an antidote?”
“The paralysis will wear off on its own. Otherwise, just leave him.”
Gong Lianyu: “Wuwuwahhh!”
Yan Chuanbai stood leisurely to the side, offering no further comment.
In the end, it was Yu Tianxing who couldn’t stand watching any longer. He laughed awkwardly, “Ahaha,” and called out to Yu Jiang:
“He tried to sneak food for himself and got poisoned. Can your Purification ability detoxify him?”
Yu Jiang blinked, then seemed to understand. “Sneaking food… causes poisoning.”
She added, “I can.”
Then she picked up a cup of water and poured it into Gong Lianyu’s mouth. Amidst a series of gurgling, bubbling sounds, the toxin slowly dissolved away.
—
Over there, Yu Jiang was still pouring water.
Standing at the back of the circle, Qi He lowered his eyes in thought. Theoretically, this didn’t quite make sense. And Yan Chuanbai had said that his latest evolution was different…
As he thought about it, he turned to look at Yan Chuanbai.
Yan Chuanbai sensed his gaze and turned his head toward him: “?”
Qi He stepped closer, leaned in by his ear, and looked up at him quietly. “What else?” he asked in a low voice.
Yan Chuanbai turned slightly, their profiles almost overlapping. “What?”
“Your third evolution—it shouldn’t just be ice laced with poison.”
“Mhm.” The tail of his tone lifted slightly, as if he understood something. He leaned in a little closer, his voice softer, “After the dinner party’s over…”
His breath brushed against Qi He’s cheek, carrying an undertone that hinted at something deeper.
Qi He tilted slightly to the side.
His lashes lowered, and Yan Chuanbai’s turned face blocked the light from his eyes; from an outside view, it almost looked like the two were touching foreheads…
Suddenly, a loud glug-glug and a choking sound burst out:
“Wahlah! Stop—wah!”
Qi He turned his head and saw Yu Jiang jerking her gaze away from their direction, startled, then quickly looking back at the sprawled Gong Lianyu. The stream of water she’d been continuously pouring into his mouth finally stopped. Her cheeks flushed pink. “Sorry.”
Gong Lianyu finally regained movement and sat up as if resurrected.
Water was still dripping from Gong Lianyu’s chin as he looked at Yan Chuanbai with pitiful, wounded eyes.
“You really have nothing to say to me?”
Yan Chuanbai replied, “Get some rest.”
Gong Lianyu’s face softened a little.
Yan Chuanbai added, “And when you’re done, clean the floor.”
Gong Lianyu: “……”
Yan Chuanbai finished speaking, turned around, and went back to preparing food.
The people in the living room exchanged looks of admiration mixed with amusement. Some even let out a faint sigh of relief.
“Now that’s more like it—that’s our Brother Yan.”
“Him not talking like a normal person—it’s so much more righteous that way.”
Qi He withdrew his gaze and said to the system, “See? That’s how a reputation is built.”
[……]
—
Yan Chuanbai was still the same Yan Chuanbai.
That realization seemed to relax everyone except Gong Lianyu, and the atmosphere at the dinner became even lighter.
All the dishes were set on the table, and everyone began to eat.
Yan Chuanbai sat down beside Qi He.
Qi He had just taken two bites when he heard the man next to him ask, “The stew—today’s version is modified. Which one do you think is better?”
It took him two seconds to recall the late-night meal from before. “Each has its own charm.”
The people around the table sensed something and looked up: “?”
Yan Chuanbai turned slightly toward him. “Which one do you like more?”
Qi He looked down at the food before him.
“The one you redeveloped.”
Yan Chuanbai nodded once. “Alright.”
The others, now clearly noticing the exchange, fell silent for a second before resuming mismatched, awkward small talk—yet their eyes kept drifting toward the two of them, as if hoping to glean more information.
Behind her bowl, Yu Jiang’s bright eyes flickered—‘If you don’t eat now, it’ll go cold… Which one do you like? The one you once made for me…’
Her hands trembled slightly.
‘So! Why aren’t you two back together yet?!’
And so, the dinner—filled with unspoken thoughts—finally came to an end.
Everyone lingered for a while after dinner, then began to leave one after another.
Having “come back from the dead,” Gong Lianyu strode up to Qi He, snapped his fingers with a loud “pop!”, and said breezily:
“Heading off now~ Mind lending me your power again? Half an hour should be enough for me to sprint back to Base II.”
Qi He could only marvel at how quickly he forgot his lessons.
…
Once everyone was gone and the door clicked shut, Qi He remained standing in the entryway.
Night had fully fallen outside. The lights in the living room were off; only the row of lamps above the kitchen counter was still on, casting a soft glow.
Yan Chuanbai had just finished clearing the dishes and was drying his hands.
Qi He paused for two seconds, then walked up to him.
“Can you tell me now?”
The gentle overhead light shone down on them, their shadows overlapping across the narrow walkway behind the counter. Yan Chuanbai looked at him—and suddenly curved his lips into a faint smile.
“?”
Before Qi He could react, something tickled at his ankle. His eyes widened slightly—then, in the next instant, something tightened sharply around it. A quick pull—
He lost his balance for a split second but managed to catch himself, slapping a hand down on the counter!
At the same time, Yan Chuanbai moved in, closing the distance.
His hands came down on either side of Qi He with a bang. He lowered his gaze, smiling.
“Now you get it?”
Qi He followed his line of sight downward.
In the shadow between their bodies, several vines had wrapped themselves around his ankle, sending a faint numbing sensation through his leg. And while he’d glanced down, his wrist—resting on the counter—had also been quietly ensnared.
He was effectively trapped, caught between Yan Chuanbai and the counter.
Qi He lifted his eyes, meeting Yan Chuanbai’s gaze from only inches away.
The truth dawned on him—Yan Chuanbai’s third evolution wasn’t merely a deeper development of his ice-type ability.
It was—
“Dual abilities.”
Yan Chuanbai laughed, low and pleased. “Mm.”
Qi He tested his fingers—they could still move.
Then he released a burst of force! The vines binding him snapped apart, only for new ones to whip forward and coil around him again in an instant.
The sensation wasn’t unpleasant. On the contrary, it carried a strange sort of freshness, almost fascinating.
He had already grown familiar with most of Yan Chuanbai’s moves, but now—there was something new, something unknown waiting to be uncovered.
Yan Chuanbai seemed to catch the look in his eyes. “You like it?”
Qi He met his gaze—those dark eyes were as dangerous and alluring as the vines winding around his wrists.
His throat moved unconsciously. “Yeah.”
Yan Chuanbai’s eyes darkened, the vines tightening slightly…
But Qi He had already drifted into thought.
Yan Chuanbai’s ability had long been in a suppressed state, so it had never been entirely stable. It must have been earlier today that his second ability was triggered.
And as luck would have it, when Gong Lianyu stole from him at that exact moment, he ended up copying traits from both abilities.
As for why the vines carried a paralyzing effect—
It was likely because of the earlier infection from the mutant vines, combined with his near-death experience that led to his third evolution. The two events overlapped by coincidence, resulting in dual abilities.
——He knew it. For the “male lead,” having only an ice-type ability was way too simple.
While he was lost in thought, a faint constriction crept around his waist—
Qi He blinked back to the present, realizing more vines had silently coiled there. Yan Chuanbai stood in front of him, clearly testing—or teasing.
Qi He exhaled softly. “Too tight. Loosen it.”
Yan Chuanbai seemed to pause for a moment.
Then Qi He felt the trace of toxin on his skin being drawn away—the vines obediently relaxed their hold.
Qi He: “?”
The toxin could… be reabsorbed?
He glanced at Yan Chuanbai. “Then why didn’t you just suck the poison back out of Gong Lianyu?”
Yan Chuanbai straightened up, looking utterly unbothered.
“He deserved a little lesson. Besides, doesn’t he eat everything anyway?”
“……”
Qi He nodded, equally untroubled. “Fair point.”
The mystery behind the ability had been solved.
Seeing that it was getting late, he said a brief goodbye and left.
Outside, the elevator was rising toward his floor.
The system finally spoke, sounding dazed:
[…Yan Chuanbai actually has dual abilities? Doesn’t that make him even stronger? No, wait—but you’re a concept-type…]
Ding! The elevator doors slid open.
Qi He stepped inside and said simply, “A fight will tell.”
—
The next morning, daylight streamed in bright and clear.
Qi He sat up in bed, stared blankly for a few seconds, then reached for the Little Genius smartwatch beside him. With a click, he folded it back into its original spherical form and rolled it between his fingers.
The system was spun dizzy. [What are you doing? Have some respect—stop fidgeting with me!]
Qi He said, “Congratulations on defeating the main program. You’re completely free now.”
The system’s tone turned smug.
[Hmph, that is—]
“But since you’re disconnected from the main program, your remaining energy probably won’t last very long.”
Click. The system froze.
[Then what should I do!?]
“Don’t worry. I’ve got a solution.”
Qi He stroked its smooth surface.
“When I dissected that flying zombie’s brain and found a crystal core, I figured—since those serve as energy sources in this world, they should also be able to power you. Maybe even repair your interface.”
The system was silent for a beat—then furious:
[You—you knew all along! And you still made me stay broken!?]
Qi He replied, calm as ever, “If you were fixed, how else would I exploit the bugs?”
[……]
The system opened its mouth to curse him out—but after recalling the pile of dog-shit that was its main storyline, it changed tack instead:
[Hmph. Forget it.]
Qi He got out of bed and walked toward the desk. “Alright, alright. I’ll make it up to you with a new look. What kind do you want?”
The system, appeased almost instantly, answered with a proud little tone:
[Something cool. Handsome, even.]
He spread a sheet of paper across the desk.
After tapping the pen a few times, Qi He quickly sketched out a concept and folded the page neatly. “I’ll go to the lab later and ask Yu Tianxing to hook you up with an energy source—maybe tweak your appearance while we’re at it.”
The system’s view was blocked by his hand.
[What kind of ‘tweak’?]
Qi He stood up, answering with certainty:
“The most handsome one in the world.”
With that, he grabbed the system and headed to the research institute.
—
Third floor of the research institute, laboratory.
Yu Tianxing, dressed in a white lab uniform, was sitting inside, examining a new piece of equipment when someone knocked on the door.
Qi He walked in.
For a moment, Yu Tianxing’s thoughts blurred—the last time Qi He had entered this room was right after a devastating battle…
A few steps later, Qi He was standing before him.
Yu Tianxing pulled himself out of his reverie. “What’s up?”
Qi He plunked the spherical smartwatch onto the table with a clatter.
“My Little Genius watch ran out of power.”
“……”
S-rank researcher Yu Tianxing blinked. “What?”
Qi He continued calmly, “I’ve saved up a bunch of crystal cores from past missions. I want to use them all as its energy source.”
Across the tabletop, the glossy surface of the sphere shimmered faintly, like a ripple of light passing beneath it.
He pulled out the folded design sketch and handed it over.
“And while you’re at it, give it a new exterior. Shouldn’t take much material.”
Yu Tianxing stared for several seconds, processing this, then accepted the papers.
He turned the device over in his hands, confirming he’d never seen anything quite like it—curiosity sparking in his eyes.
“Ah—no problem. But it might take a little time. Want to leave it with me for now?”
The system was startled: [!]
Qi He noticed and said to it, “There are no missions now — you can detach from me for a while.”
[……]
“You can’t… or you won’t leave me?”
The system stiffened its voice: [A-as if! Of course I can!]
Qi He smiled in satisfaction. “Then there’s no problem.”
He handed the system to Yu Tianxing and was about to leave when the latter suddenly added,
“By the way, the training room is still under reconstruction. But we set up another one next door — just for you and Yan Chuanbai. No instruments or equipment inside; all the materials are made to take a beating.”
Yu Tianxing smiled. “You get what I mean, right?”
Qi He: “……”
He reassured him, “We won’t go break anything else.”
Yu Tianxing’s expression brightened again. “Good~ Take care.”
The lab door closed behind him.
Qi He stepped into the corridor. There were no classes today, and the system was off being upgraded. As he was wondering whether to pick up a mission, his communicator suddenly chimed.
He took it out and saw a message from Yan Chuanbai:
“Sixth floor training room.”
“Want to test my new ability at full power?”
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Author’s Note:
Qi He: Hit me with everything you’ve got!
Yan Chuanbai: cling cling cling cling cling… prprpr. [kisses]
Qi Qi is the strongest; Yan “Roast Chicken” is working hard to catch up!
Only the strong deserve to capture all of Qi Qi’s attention 💋
