Chapter 27: Unconventional Strategy
The vehicle sped all the way out of the base.
The frozen layer of ice extended nearly a thousand meters beyond the perimeter, and past that ice lay the battlefield that was about to erupt.
Qi He slammed the brakes just outside the combat zone and got out of the car.
Around him, other ability users were also taking their positions.
He shut the car door with a bang and looked ahead at the calm stretch of forest and road. A faint wind rustled through, but an instinctive sense of danger stirred in his chest—
“Guan Shang, how far?”
Guan Shangchun had also gotten out. He closed his eyes briefly. “Five hundred meters…”
Qi He’s eyes fixed on the front, his voice sharp. “Prepare for battle.”
The formation around them shifted with a synchronized swish, everyone tensing for the coming fight. On the high wall behind them, the heavy artillery locked its aim on the battle zone ahead.
In the stillness of held breaths, Guan Shangchun suddenly said, “They’re here.”
A rustling sound grew nearer—then, BOOM!
Thick vines burst from the earth right before their eyes, lashing through the air like tentacles. Qi He’s pupils contracted as they reflected the monstrous shapes ahead—mutant plants of every imaginable kind. Some were covered in teeth and mouths, others armored in hard shells, and even after breaking through the ground, they kept splitting and growing—
Perhaps they could no longer even be called plants.
A flash of memory crossed Qi He’s mind—the term he’d seen when the briefing files had scrolled past earlier: Mutated Species.
Their grotesque forms were enough to make anyone’s skin crawl.
As a dozen-meter-high vine monster came crashing down toward them, Qi He raised a hand and pressed them all down at once. Boom! The assault faltered for a moment, just long enough for him to issue rapid orders:
“Defensive-types to the front, close-combat retreat! Controllers, start the attack! Focus all wall artillery on the rear of the battle zone!”
Multiple strikes rained down simultaneously.
While maintaining control of the battlefield, Qi He’s eyes flicked across the oncoming wave of mutated species.
“How did they even get here?”
Guan Shangchun focused his perception, and after a moment, his face paled slightly.
“It’s not exactly accurate to say they came here. The roots within a radius of several li underground have all connected, channeling nutrients and energy layer by layer to ensure that the mutated plants near the base can evolve—enough to launch an invasion.”
Qi He drew in a quiet breath.
Yan Chuanbai’s ice layer had temporarily forced most of the mutants above ground, but there would undoubtedly still be some that continued to infiltrate the base.
He opened a comm line to Yan Chuanbai.
A deep, steady voice answered almost at once. “What is it?”
“They’re vine-type mutated species—high-grade, evolved variants,” Qi He reported rapidly. “They’re strong enough to breach the base.”
The battle before him had already plunged into chaos.
Even as he tried to keep part of his mind focused on the conversation, only three seconds passed before the comm crackled again with a simple, composed reply:
“Got it.”
That calm, steady tone—reassuring even through the noise of combat.
Qi He paused briefly, then left the defense line behind him entirely in Yan Chuanbai’s hands, turning his full attention to the battle ahead.
—
Inside the base, Yan Chuanbai ended the call.
Yu Tianxing was still holding a gesture of prayer and asked, “How is it?”
Yan Chuanbai didn’t answer immediately. He scanned the surroundings, then said,
“Post-disaster reconstruction might trouble you a bit.”
“…?”
As the word fell, another layer of ice formed—this one beginning fifty meters from the first. The new frozen wall extended more than ten meters underground. Between the two layers, he deliberately left a narrow gap—
—a controlled breach for the enemy to enter.
He mobilized the defense force. “Prepare. Hold the second line.”
The troops of the military division spread out on both sides with a clatter.
As for the scattered stragglers that slipped through, the other ability users stationed inside the base would be enough to deal with them.
—
On the frontlines, the air was a storm of abilities flashing across the battlefield.
A wave of fire roared toward the mutant vines.
The vines twisted violently, then came crashing down again! Two ability users were about to be caught in the sweep when a powerful force yanked them backward—
Ji Yan, who had just hurled a fireball, cursed, “What the hell—this thing’s fire-resistant!”
A cloud of poison gas spread low across the ground. The mutant vines only stalled for two seconds before splitting into even more branches. Mo Jiayan was pulled behind Ye Yi, who exclaimed in horror, “What the hell—it’s poison-resistant too?!”
Bang! Qi He scanned the chaotic battlefield, then lowered his gun.
Their firepower wasn’t enough.
They couldn’t keep fighting like this in the usual way.
Explosions and shouts rang all around. Qi He stood still for a breath, his gaze fixed forward. The white T-shirt he hadn’t had time to change out of stood out against the dust and smoke of battle—clean, almost detached, as if untouched by the world.
He was deep in thought when a voice beside him suddenly asked, “Why do you always go to the most dangerous place?”
He turned his head to see Guan Shangchun looking at him.
“…” Because that’s just what his role demanded.
Qi He parted his lips slightly, then turned back toward the front, his voice calm and steady.
“Only power can fight power.”
A shiver ran down Guan Shangchun’s spine. He held his breath.
His ability was Perception, and ever since the apocalypse began, he’d relied on prediction to evade danger. “Avoidance” had become second nature.
He’d almost forgotten—he was an S-rank too.
A few seconds later, Guan Shangchun lifted his eyes toward the battlefield.
“Got it.”
His mental power surged to full capacity, and his clear, rapid reports rang out one after another:
“Eleven o’clock, 2.1 meters underground—rapidly propagating buds.
One o’clock, 3.2 meters underground.
Three o’clock, 0.3 meters underground…”
Roots were ripped out one by one, and the nearby ability users immediately followed up—BOOM!
…
But the mutant species continued to reproduce endlessly.
The ability users’ spiritual energy had its limits—one glance around told Qi He that fatigue was already starting to show.
His movements didn’t stop, but his mind was racing.
His ability was restricted under these conditions: the mutants had already been forced above ground, so he couldn’t press them back down; the massive root network below was all interconnected— even if he tore some out by force, they would just regenerate endlessly.
Gravity, traction, magnetism—none of it would work.
His lashes lowered slightly, then he spoke quietly.
“System, I have a bold idea.”
The system tensed immediately. […How bold, exactly?]
After about two seconds of consideration, Qi He suddenly lifted his gaze and gave a command:
“All ability users, fall back behind the battle line. Suspend artillery fire from the high wall—fire-type ability users, stand by for orders!”
The entire field froze for a moment.
Qi He didn’t elaborate—there was no room for distraction in a battlefield that shifted by the second. As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled everyone back behind the line—
“What the hell… what’s going on?”
“With this many mutants, we’re just—stopping?”
…
On the high wall, the military division was stunned as well.
Pause the attack? Impossible.
The command channel was still open, and within seconds, an officer turned to request confirmation from Yan Chuanbai.
“Colonel, Qi—”
Bang! A gunshot rang out through the smoke.
Yan Chuanbai seemed still engaged in combat, but his voice—low, cold, and unwavering—cut through the channel, leaving no room for doubt:
“The pre-battle orders—I don’t repeat them.”
——Outside the base, command authority belonged to Qi He.
The officer hesitated, then answered, “Understood.”
With that, the entire line of artillery on the high wall fell silent.
On the frontlines—
Qi He used “force” to hold the whole scene in check for the moment, then issued an order: “All fire-type ability users, unleash your widest-range, highest-intensity attacks.”
The fire-type users present didn’t understand why, but they obeyed.
Whoosh! A vast wall of flames spread toward the farthest, deepest reaches.
Amid the fierce blaze, the mutant vines only writhed and let out hissing roars from their mouths, causing little real damage.
The other ability users stood by with nothing to do.
In the ranks, Ke Yuan sneered and finally seized on what he thought was Qi He’s mistake: “We knew these mutants resist fire. If you’re just going to burn them, bullets would be faster.”
“Why should we listen to him—he doesn’t know command—”
Before the words finished, a shout rose from the front.
Qi He was standing alone before a mass of mutant vines. The towering tendrils twisted and writhed as if nearly beyond control. The raging fire lit his face; there was a glint of crimson in his eyes, and he raised both hands.
Heat, temperature, pressure—all were present.
Thermal energy was produced.
The temperature differential with the surrounding frozen layers converted into mechanical energy, which pushed back along the tangled root network beneath the ground. Qi He’s crossed hands closed in front of him—one clench—
The deeply buried roots were wound and snapped inch by inch.
The supply of “nutrients” was severed, and the vines above as if lost their vitality, becoming brittle.
Qi He lowered his hands. Though the exertion had drained him, his body did not move.
He pressed his lips and gave a second order:
“Concentrate firepower—everyone, attack.”
—
The situation turned almost completely one-sided.
No one quite knew what had happened—only that the mutant vines had stopped regenerating.
A single thought rose in everyone’s mind at once:
So this is an S-class. What a terrifying level of power.
Those who’d been struggling moments ago could finally fight without restraint—
Ji Yan flared another burst of fire and glanced toward Ke Yuan. “See? I told you fire-type abilities are the coolest~ Of course, Qi He’s ‘Force’ isn’t bad either!”
Everyone around: “…”
Ke Yuan’s face instantly went an ugly shade of purple.
The entire battle was over within half an hour.
Troops from the military division arrived in an orderly fashion to clear the field. When they caught sight of Qi He, several officers stiffened—their expressions awkward yet tinged with respect. They saluted. “Mr. Qi.”
“From here on, it’s your job,” Qi He said simply.
Then he got into the vehicle and headed back to base.
The base itself was a wreck. Along the second defensive line lay heaps of mutant remains. Military personnel were cleaning up the area, and Yan Chuanbai stood at the front, posture straight and composed.
As the car pulled to a stop at the side, Yan Chuanbai turned his head.
Qi He stepped out, met his gaze for a brief moment, then immediately looked toward the battlefield—the place where a deliberate breach had been created in the ice layer.
A flicker of approval crossed his eyes. “System, Yan Chuanbai’s pretty capable too.”
The system sounded suspicious. […Why are you suddenly complimenting him?]
“……”
Just then, a pair of military boots entered his field of vision.
Qi He looked up and met Yan Chuanbai’s lowered gaze. The man studied him silently for several seconds before asking,
“What did you do?”
Qi He’s reply was brief.
“Thermal energy.”
Yu Tianxing felt his entire understanding of physics collapsing. He forced a smile. “…That also counts as part of your ability?”
Qi He shook his head. “It just passed briefly through my world.”
Unlike gravity or traction, thermal energy was a form of energy conversion—not something he could directly control.
But he had a professional habit: to make use of everything that could be used.
The system grumbled: [You don’t produce force—you’re just a courier for it.]
Yu Tianxing finally felt a little better, pressing his palms together. “Good, at least the world hasn’t gone completely insane.” Then he turned and saw Guan Shangchun stepping down from the vehicle. “You okay, Guan Shang?”
Guan Shangchun seemed to come back from deep thought. He tilted his head with a faint smile, a glint of sharpness flashing in his eyes. “I think I’ve gotten addicted to the feeling of charging the frontlines.”
Yan Chuanbai slowly turned his gaze toward him.
Yu Tianxing: “?”
What on earth just happened—to make a psychic-type ability user turn battle-hungry?
Qi He, however, wasn’t paying attention to the scene before him. Standing a little apart, he summoned the system.
“Pull up the key story segment from earlier—I want to watch it again.”
It had all happened too fast before, and there were details that caught his attention.
The script quickly appeared:
“The base is attacked by mutated species, causing internal chaos… As the strongest combat power, he naturally remains on the frontlines…”
Qi He’s eyes lingered on a few key words: internal, frontline.
He remembered that when the emergency plot sequence had triggered, the system’s prompt was: Detected location change.
Which meant—in the original plot, the mutant creatures had already invaded the base.
So in the original storyline, Guan Shang hadn’t come to Base I at all?
So much had already changed, yet no new warning had been triggered.
Where, exactly, was the true key point of this story’s progression?
…
Six or seven meters away, Yan Chuanbai’s gaze landed on him.
People were coming and going all around, but Qi He just stood there quietly. His head was slightly lowered, his pale side profile looking clean and focused, his eyes faintly narrowed as if deep in thought.
That slender figure gave off an illusion of harmlessness—but just moments ago, outside the base, he had slaughtered an entire field of mutant vines.
As Yan Chuanbai watched, a soft voice spoke beside him: “He’s incredible, isn’t he?”
Yan Chuanbai’s fingers twitched slightly as he turned his head.
Guan Shangchun had withdrawn his gaze from Qi He. Yu Tianxing had gone off to handle logistics, leaving only the two of them here. Guan Shangchun smiled at Yan Chuanbai. “I used to think I was just easily drawn to strong people. But now, I don’t think that’s all there is to it.”
Yan Chuanbai looked at him for two seconds, then gave a faint smile. “What are you trying to say?”
“I can tell you dislike me. Why?”
Yan Chuanbai’s tone was calm, his smile easy. “Do I need a reason to dislike someone?”
Guan Shangchun replied, “Disliking someone needs a reason. Liking someone doesn’t.”
Something in that word liking made Yan Chuanbai’s heart skip a beat.
“What I’m drawn to,” Guan Shangchun said, lifting his eyes slightly, the light catching in them as the softness faded to reveal a hint of challenge, “might not just be the thrill of charging into battle.”
“It’s already the apocalypse—no one knows how many days we have left. If there’s something I want, I’ll fight for it, tooth and nail.”
For a few seconds, silence hung between them.
Then, suddenly, Yan Chuanbai laughed. “You’re right.”
He raised his eyes too, no longer bothering to hide the unrestrained, reckless glint within them.
—
The battlefield had already been handed over to the military.
Yu Tianxing called together the S-ranks for a post-battle meeting.
Yu Jiang also emerged from the high-rise; fortunately, she hadn’t been caught in the blast—though her workload for “purification” had increased significantly.
In the conference room, Yu Tianxing stood at the front.
“This time, we were fortunate to receive the warning in time. Also, my thanks to the two combat units for their hard work.”
Guan Shangchun replied, “It’s nothing—just doing what we can.”
Qi He, seated to the side, suddenly thought of how things had gone in the original storyline and asked, “Why did you come to Base I?”
Guan Shangchun was briefly stunned, then said, “I ran into a zombie horde at the time. I was planning to detour toward headquarters or Base II, but the horde retreated quickly, so I just came to Base I instead.”
He smiled after speaking. “Thanks for your concern.”
…Well, not exactly. Qi He paused for a moment, then nodded. “You’re welcome.”
It seemed like someone to his right glanced his way.
A moment later, Yu Jiang, sitting across from him, also turned to look. Somehow, three pairs of eyes ended up on him, and even Yu Tianxing, standing in front, stopped mid-sentence and looked over: ?
Qi He: “…”
He considered it for a second. “System, do I have a bad reputation or something? Is caring about others really that attention-worthy?”
The system’s assessment: [Given your track record, shouldn’t it be?]
Fortunately, the stares soon shifted away.
Yu Tianxing returned the discussion to the main topic.
Qi He didn’t really need to listen to the strategy summary—after all, he was the one who’d drafted it. The system, however, paid close attention. After recalling Qi He’s earlier maneuvers, it couldn’t help commenting:
[You actually made use of Yan Chuanbai’s ice layer too.]
Qi He replied, “Occupational habit.”
In a past open-world game, he’d once pulled such an outrageous move that a mob of players hunted him down. Fleeing all the way to a wild boss area meant for new exploration, he’d lured the boss’s firepower, forcibly triggered the dungeon event, and wiped everyone out in one go.
He shared with the system, “Sure, I got wiped too—but trading one for many? Totally worth it.”
System: […Impressive. It’s our world that’s holding you back.]
The post-battle meeting didn’t last long.
The battle statistics and mutation analysis reports weren’t out yet, so after Yu Tianxing finished his tactical summary and follow-up arrangements, he announced the meeting’s end.
“Good work, everyone. Go back and get some rest.”
It was almost six o’clock—another day nearly over.
Qi He was about to get up and leave when Guan Shangchun suddenly called out to him. “I want to improve my skills—can you help me train tonight?”
After all, he was someone who’d be heading to the front lines.
Qi He thought for a moment, about to agree. “Sure, but—”
His communicator suddenly beeped. He glanced at the display—Yan Chuanbai.
“?”
Qi He lifted his head to look at the man sitting nearby.
Yan Chuanbai was right there on his right, communicator in hand, looking straight at him with a faint curl of his lips.
Qi He didn’t understand, but opened the message: [Tonight, 29th floor of the high-rise.]
Qi He: “????”
System: [????]
Then, another message came in—right in front of everyone.
Qi He took one glance, his breath catching slightly, before turning to Guan Shangchun, who was still watching him expectantly. “Sorry, Guan Shang, I’ve got other plans tonight.”
Guan Shangchun: “…”
Yan Chuanbai hadn’t even tried to hide the act of sending the message.
Qi He cast him a look. Yan Chuanbai’s careless smile carried a trace of provocation as he stood and left.
Qi He closed his communicator and got up as well.
Inside were two consecutive messages, both laced with a subtle undertone—
[Tonight, 29th floor of the high-rise.]
[I know you want to do something to me. Come to me—do whatever you want.]
————————————————————
Author’s Note:
Yan Chuanbai: Seducing with my body. (Literal meaning.)
—
Qi He: Developing myself (in progress)
Yan Chuanbai: Developing myself (in progress)
Today’s theme: The long game. Male rivalry is a virtue. 🕶️
P.S. The abilities and settings are based on fictional supernatural mechanics. The related “theories” are not meant to be studied or applied—purely for entertainment.
