The story centers on a 12-year-old boy, Tong Nenghao. When questioned by Lu Yu, he admits to having awakened an ability, but his uncertainty about its usefulness fills him with sadness.
Despite this, he shows resolve, symbolized by his clenched fists. Lu Yu, noticing Tong's determination, playfully commends him for his courage. He learns the boy's name and inquires about his abilities and intentions.
It is revealed that Tong was present at the scene of Chen Fei's murder, hidden among the crowd. Aware of the crime, he courageously approaches Lu Yu, indicating he has a mission.
Lu Yu expresses interest in understanding Tong's abilities before comprehending his purpose. He argues that a purpose is meaningless if the ability is not beneficial.
Tong, unsure of how to articulate his ability, suggests that Lu Yu accompany him to witness it firsthand. Lu Yu agrees, and they embark on their journey together.
In the meantime, Lu Yu instructs Wu Qiang and Shi Lei to take the new members of his team for a meal. The new members, Xiao Wang, Li Yong, Fang Juan, Liu Quan, and Li Hong, are thrilled at the prospect of a meal, having been hungry since the previous day's food scramble.
Lu Yu assures them that he will explain the team's rules later and sends them off for their meal.
Left behind is Tong Nenghao, whose voice is still immature and whose appearance is innocent. Given that the apocalypse has just begun, it is unlikely that he poses any harm.
However, Lu Yu brings Xue Li along as a precaution.
They follow Tong Nenghao to the fourth floor, where they find the corpse of a lizard man.
Despite the stench, Tong Nenghao demonstrates his ability to peel off the lizard man's skin without using a knife. A faint red light emanates from his palm, covering the lizard man's body momentarily before the skin begins to peel off.
The good skin is separated from the rotting traces left on the corpse.
Lu Yu, observing this ability, speculates about its nature. Tong Nenghao, still uncertain, asks if his ability is useful. Lu Yu reassures him that it should be and invites him to address him as Brother Lu.
He then instructs Tong Nenghao to join the others for dinner, promising to continue their conversation afterward.
The narrative then shifts to Lu Yu's motivations for forming his own team. In addition to dealing with the protagonist, his primary objective is survival.
He acknowledges the challenges of everyday tasks in a post-apocalyptic world, such as the lack of flushing toilets. He recognizes the need for subordinates to assist him with these tasks.
His immediate plan is to stabilize his team, eliminate Chu Feng, and then lead his team out of Yancheng, which lacks a military district. He believes that in the face of monsters, their best defense is still firearms and rockets.
Therefore, he plans to find a location with a military area and build a shelter there.
After everyone has eaten, Lu Yu outlines the rules of his team and assigns tasks. He instructs Wu Qiang, Shi Lei, Li Yong, Liu Quan, and Xiao Wang to find a water source for cleaning the next day. He assigns Li Hong, Fang Juan, and He Li the task of maintaining hygiene.
He also allocates rooms to the newcomers, with at least two people sharing a room. Once the tasks are assigned, everyone disperses.
Lu Yu is left with Yan Yun, Li Wanning, Shen Bin, and Tong Nenghao. He invites Tong Nenghao to share why he sought him out. Tong Nenghao reveals that the little girl Lu Yu saw in Chen Fei's room is his sister and the beautiful young woman with a child is his mother, Dong Ying.
Their family was staying at the hotel while attending their grandfather's funeral when the man of the family went out to buy breakfast and never returned.
The previous night, Manager Zhao attempted to coerce Dong Ying into submission by threatening her with food.
However, she chose to starve rather than give in. Tong Nenghao overheard Manager Zhao's threats and decided to take action.
He approached Lu Yu for help, changing destiny plan of seeking help from Chu Feng.
After hearing Tong Nenghao's story, everyone is appalled at Manager Zhao's actions on the first day of the apocalypse.
Lu Yu, however, finds it amusing and asks Tong Nenghao what he wants to do about Manager Zhao. Tong Nenghao expresses his desire to prevent Manager Zhao from bullying his mother again.
Lu Yu assures him that he doesn't need to worry about Manager Zhao and instructs him to bring his mother and sister over.
Tong Nenghao thanks Lu Yu and leaves the room happily. Lu Yu is amused by the twelve-year-old's foundry ability.
Lu Yu was willing to let Tong Nenghao, a young boy with the rare casting ability, join his team and bring two burdens.
Although casters have little fighting power in the early stages of the apocalypse and cannot help Lu Yu much initially, they are very rare.
Even survivor bases with tens of thousands of people may not have a caster. In the late stages of the apocalypse, casters become the richest profession.
While others are still fighting monsters, casters grow wealthy selling popular weapons and armor to Awakened.
This is because melee weapons and armor crafted by casters are highly effective against monsters, whereas firearms lose lethality over time.
As monsters get stronger, firearms become increasingly useless. Casters' crafted weapons and armor remain potent against even high-level monsters.
Since bullets are finite consumables, special caster-crafted weapons are crucial once ammunition runs out. Although Lu Yu could not see Tong Nenghao's profession directly due to high betrayal risk, he deduced the boy's casting ability from his behavior. In Chu Feng's apocalypse worldbuilding, casters are among the many Awakened professions.
Although these occupations had only one name, Lu Yu discovered they lacked detailed descriptions and specifics about their abilities.
After careful study, he deduced that beyond blacksmiths and alchemists, almost no other job could decompose monster corpses.
Since Yan Yun was a healer, if the boy Tong Nenghao was a pharmacist, their skills would conflict. It seemed unreasonable for the protagonist's team to have two members with clashing talents.
That was why Lu Yu judged Tong Nenghao must be a blacksmith.
…Ten minutes later,
The little boy brought the mother and daughter to room 8008 where Lu Yu stayed. They had come secretly, without Manager Zhao knowing.
Currently only Lu Yu and Yan Yun occupied the room.
As Yan Yun relaxed on the sofa, Lu Yu looked at the newcomers. Dong Ying appeared about thirty-seven or thirty-eight. Though decent looking, she reached only seven or eight out of ten at best.
Her age likely attracted someone like Manager Zhao more. Seeing Lu Yu, Dong Ying shielded her daughter protectively. She was visibly anxious. Lu Yu said nothing at first.
"Your name is Dong Ying?"
"Yes, yes!"
"I'm Lu Yu. Just call me Young Master Lu like the others."
"Okay, Young Master Lu!"
Dong Ying didn't understand how her son had convinced Lu Yu. She only knew that Lu Yu was a ruthless killer of monsters.
In the face of such a powerful man, how could she dare disobey him?
Lu Yu nodded, "Your son has already informed me of your situation. His awakened ability will be useful to me, so I want him on my team."
"I assure you that as long as you cooperate, I will provide food and safety for you."
"Will Xiaohao be in danger?"
Dong Ying asked hesitantly.
"Generally no. Even if there is danger, I will send protection for him first," Lu Yu replied.
"Alright then," Dong Ying nodded cautiously after a moment's hesitation. Lu Yu's strength was clear, not to mention Manager Zhao's intentions toward her were not good.
It was better to join Lu Yu than face bullying from the others.
"Xiaohao, take your mother and sister to dinner," Lu Yu said.
"Okay, Brother Lu!"
The boy nodded and left with Dong Ying and his sister, closing the door behind him.
…
Yan Yun's eyes sparkled mischievously as she addressed Lu Yu.
"Lu Yu…" she began, her tone teasing.
Lu Yu raised an eyebrow.
"What did you call me?" he asked, intrigued.
Yan Yun leaned in closer, her lips curving into a playful smile. "h…husband," she whispered, her voice barely audible.
Lu Yu's expression shifted from curiosity to surprise.
"By the way," Lu Yu continued, "when there is no one else around , you will call me that!"
Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she stammered, "You… can you please stop bullying me like this?"
Yan Yun pouted, her face full of mock innocence.
"Bullying?
Oh, Yan Yun, you're too sensitive!" he replied, his laughter echoing through the room.
Yan Yun pouted, her face showing disappointment as Lu Yu walked. She had wanted to ask Lu Yu something, but his attitude toward her lacked the affection a boyfriend typically shows his girlfriend. This made her feel uneasy.
"Is this what you call women being delusional?"
Lu Yu asked, exasperated. "Forget it.
Did you have something to say?"
"I…I just wanted to know if this child's ability is really useful," said Yan Yun, who was not actually that concerned about the issue.
Although in her mind, bringing more survivors was good, this did not match Lu Yu's approach. So she felt curious.
"Why don't you test and find out?" suggested Lu Yu.
"Test?
How?"
"Come with me." Lu Yu didn't explain further. He took Yan Yun to find the boy again. Then they called Xue Li and the four went downstairs together.
The findings were indisputable. The boy had the capacity to disintegrate not only lizard skin but also lizard tendons, mantis scythes, and zombie teeth and bones.
These were all materials utilized for crafting weapons, not for medicinal purposes.
"Perfect, this is exactly the skill I was hoping for," Lu Yu expressed his contentment. "Xiaohao, take a break. We'll continue our conversation tomorrow."
With the verification that Tong Nenghao had the capability to manufacture weapons, Lu Yu started to devise new strategies.
The boy was too naive to surpass Lu Yu's contemporary weaponry. However, his ability held potential.
This marked the second night of the apocalypse. As was typical for young, energetic individuals, Yan Yun would share a bed with Lu Yu. A bit of intimacy wouldn't interfere with their duties the following day.
Li Wanning, on the other hand, had to sleep alone, even though rooms 10-12 served as Lu Yu's storage and armory.
Xue Li and Ding Feng shared room 6, Shi Lei and He Li occupied room 7, and Lu Yu and Yan Yun resided in room 8.
For safety reasons, Li Wanning was assigned to room 9, which was across from Lu Yu's room. Shen Bin shared room 5 with Wu Qiang, as he couldn't share a room with Li Wanning.
In room 8008, the soft glow of a candle flickered. Yan Yun, having expended minimal energy that day, utilized her powers to cleanse herself and changed into a t-shirt and pleated skirt. Kneeling beside Lu Yu, she briefed him on the evening's occurrences.
"Lu Yu, Miss Li just had Xiao Wang take the leftovers downstairs," she informed him.
"Let her do as she pleases," he responded nonchalantly, lying in bed and gazing at the ceiling with his hands resting behind his head.
"The food becomes stale at night anyway. Just ensure it doesn't end up with Manager Zhao's men."
Last night's surplus remained. The team hadn't finished it all day. Lu Yu wouldn't make Li Wanning dump good food.
"I told her not to give it to Manager Zhao," Yan Yun assured.
"Good," said Lu Yu. He closed his eyes, pulled Yan Yun into his arms. After their sparring match that afternoon, she did not resist.
"Sleep," he said.
For Manager Zhao, Lu Yu was not bothered at all. As a villainous boss, Lu Yu knew he could easily overcome any tricks from a minor character like Manager Zhao, who posed no real threat.
Lu Yu had heard that absolute power defeats all strategies.
When Yan Yun asked
Yan Yun's voice trembled as she whispered to Lu Yu,
"Husband, can we… survive?"
Lu Yu's confident smile appeared in the dim candlelight. "I'm so strong," he replied, "what do you think?"
Her eyes widened, and she pressed further. "You…you'll protect me, won't you?"
He drew her close, his voice gentle. "Be at ease as my woman," he promised, "you will live longer than others."
With that vow, Lu Yu leaned over and blew out the candle on the bedside table. Darkness enveloped them, leaving only the warmth of their entwined bodies.
Um!
The night was indeed pleasant.
Yan Yun nestled in Lu Yu arms, her soft touch igniting Lu Yu's imagination.
And that pleated skirt…so conveniently enticing.
A/n :- Dear readers, I welcome your suggestions and feedback in the comments section below. Your support through Power stones will be greatly appreciated.