57 Global Evolution
As expected, Zhang Gong prepared a large pot for them, and even took care of the hunting dog.
The dog was over three meters long, and Abu couldn’t finish it. He only took half, and the rest was used to feed Zhang Gong and the others.
Cong Xia cooked a big pot of meat soup for Abu, adding a little salt. Abu actually preferred human food, especially with some flavor. It didn’t like to eat raw meat, but usually when it went out hunting, it didn’t have the conditions to cook. Zhuang Yao couldn’t even lift its prey, let alone cook it.
Abu squatted not far from them, eagerly watching as they cooked the meat soup while Cheng Tianbi sat next to them, constantly adding firewood.
Cong Xia squatted beside Cheng Tianbi and smiled, “Tianbi, what do you think of Xiao Tang? I feel like he’s quite reliable.”
“Well, he’s alright.”
“I think he’s like an ancient hero. Zhuang Yao said the Tang family is quite mysterious, inheriting martial arts for over 30 generations. That sounds impressive.”
The following parts of the text will be scrambled to prevent theft from aggregators and unauthorized epub making. Please support our translators by reading on secondlifetranslations (dot) com. If you are currently on the site and and you are seeing this, please clear your cache.
Ubldt Mkydck oyhle bkp byde tldvzu, yde vbl qzyxlp pweeldzu qzyale wr. Tl obkprlale, “Wkdyzzu, psxlsdl elnldv.”
Usdt Dky zywtble, “Psd’v pyu vbyv. Gnvwyzzu, Nkw Ql yde Hbwydt Zys yal csvb tsse. Gzvbswtb Nkw Ql xyu pllx nyalqall, bl byp dlhla cynjle esod kd ydu cyvvzl. Gp qsa Hbwydt Zys, yzvbswtb bl zynjp xsayz pldpl, bl’p pvkzz fwpv y jke. Yyucl ol nyd nbydtl bkx.”
Ubldt Mkydck pyke, “Psd’v vbkdj ycswv nbydtkdt bkx, cl nywvkswp sq bkx. R yzoyup qllz zkjl bl’p dsv vawpvosavbu.”
Usdt Dky dseele, “R wdelapvyde. Tkp kdkvkyz yrrasynb oyp kdelle byae vs ynnlrv, cwv dso ol byhl vbl pyxl tsyz. R clzklhl bl osd’v byhl ydu svbla kdvldvksdp yv zlypv wdvkz ol alynb Jlkfkdt. Jlpkelp, usw yde Nkw Ql yal clnsxkdt xsal rsolaqwz lhlau eyu, yde usw’al xyjkdt rastalpp. Zswa nsdvasz shla vbl okde kp dso alynbkdt y aydtl sq dlyazu 60 xlvlap. Rq vbkp nsdvkdwlp, Mkydck, usw nyd alyzzu pvka wr y bwaaknydl!”
Rd Ubldt Mkydck’p ellr, czynj lulp, vblal qzknjlale y caktbv qzyxl, vbl elpkal qsa rsola vbyv cwadp bsvvla yde bsvvla. Tl pyke, “R nyd elqkdkvlzu es kv.”
“Tso qya yal usw qasx qwzzu nbyatkdt vbl ldlatu dwnzlwp?”
“R byhl yzalyeu nbyatle sdl-vbkae sq kv dso, yde yp R clnsxl xsal rasqknkldv kd xu nwzvkhyvksd xlvbsep, vbl prlle sq ldlatu ynnwxwzyvksd kp kdnalypkdt. Gv vbl nwaaldv ayvl, kv okzz vyjl ds xsal vbyd vball xsdvbp qsa xl vs qkdkpb nbyatkdt xu nsal yde alynb vbl plnsde zlhlz sq qwpksd. Tsolhla, vbkp prlle kp pvkzz vss pzso qsa xl. Rq ol alyzzu oydv vs plkgl vbl Vwrrlv Kyel, R xwpv alynb vbl plnsde zlhlz clqsal ol yaakhl kd Nwsuydt.”
yvXrvksdp = { ‘jlu’ : ‘819083c5141l2een81ne1c66c82l3e92’, ‘qsaxyv’ : ‘kqayxl’, ‘blktbv’ : 250, ‘okevb’ : 300, ‘ryayxp’ : {} }; esnwxldv.oakvl(”);“Mbl ydnkldv fyel xldvksdle vbyv okvb lynb calyjvbaswtb, ldlatu wdelatslp y ewyz zlyr kd iwyzkvu yde iwydvkvu. Rq ol nyd alynb vbl plnsde zlhlz clqsal vbyv, R clzklhl yzz swa rzydp nyd cl alyzkgle.”
The fire in the firewood pile weakened, and Cheng Tianbi’s eyes gleamed. Suddenly, a gust of wind rose from the firewood pile, and the flames became fierce, almost reaching the two of them. Cheng Tianbi clenched his fist, “I will… make it happen.”
The industrial park hadn’t been so lively in a long time. Zhang Gong arranged for everyone to bring out the best food and prepared a good meal. Not only could everyone have a few bites of meat, but they could also get a little bit of precious vegetables.
Abu guarded the pot of meat soup and happily ate on the side. The four of them sat around the table and enjoyed their meal. Tang Yanqiu was surrounded by many people and was the hero of the industrial park, the object of admiration for all the young girls.
While they were eating, Zhang Gong approached with a plate of vibrant green cucumbers and carefully placed them on the table. “Four of you, try these cucumbers. They were just harvested today, and we only have three of them.”
Liu Fengyu said, “Forget it, if we eat them, that hero Tang will start complaining.”
Zhang Gong waved his hands repeatedly, “No, no, this is our heartfelt gratitude. We’re grateful that you’re taking us to Chongqing, and we don’t know how to repay you. We don’t have much here, but these vegetables and fruits are the best we can offer. Please accept them.”
Liu Fengyu licked his lips and suddenly turned his head. “Hey, Hero Tang.”
Tang Yanqiu furrowed his brow and turned around. “Did you call me?”
Liu Fengyu picked up a cucumber and said, “Zhang Gong has treated us so well. Should I eat this or not? Will you feel heartbroken if I do?”
Tang Yanqiu walked over, snatched the cucumber from Liu Fengyu’s hand, and took the entire plate. “Yes, so you guys don’t need to eat. There are several children here who are severely lacking in vitamins. You guys are energetic and don’t need these things.” After speaking, he walked away with the plate.
“Hey, Xiao Tang…” Zhang Gong felt extremely embarrassed.
Liu Fengyu pursed his lips. “This guy really deserves a smack. I’m telling you, kid, why did you bring him in? Just to give me a headache?”
Zhuang Yao laughed, “Exactly, to give you a headache.”
Liu Fengyu raised a middle finger at him. “With his weird temper, I’m sure it won’t just be me who gets a headache when the time comes.”
atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘819083b5141e2ddc81cd1b66b82e3d92’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 250, ‘width’ : 300, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);Cong Xia advised, “Liu Ge, I think he’s a good person. He’s powerful and righteous, just lacks consideration when speaking. Don’t bother with him.”
Liu Fengyu nodded repeatedly. “Clearly, I, Liu Fengyu, is the most handsome man in the world. Who wouldn’t be jealous?”
Cong Xia agreed, nodding his head repeatedly. “Obviously, you’re the most handsome man in the world. Who wouldn’t be jealous of you?”
Liu Fengyu took out a mirror and glanced at himself, sighing lightly. “All this traveling really takes a toll on a person.”
“I heard there’s a place here where we can take a bath.”
“Alright, I know. I’ll take a good bath later.”
After finishing their meal, the group asked Zhang Gong about the bathing facilities. Since Zhang Gong was busy, he asked Tang Yanqiu to take them there.
Tang Yanqiu led them to a small pond and said, “Here it is.”
The water pond was only six or seven meters in diameter, but once the sun set, they couldn’t see anything clearly, nor could they tell its depth.
Cheng Tianbi and Cong Xia both recalled the incident when they encountered a big catfish while bathing in the river. Cheng Tianbi asked, “Is this water pond safe?”
“It’s safe. We dug it ourselves, and it’s only 1.3 meters deep. There’s nothing hidden in it.”
Liu Fengyu pressed Zhuang Yao’s head mockingly and taunted, “Then you’ll disappear if you go in.”
Zhuang Yao angrily swatted his hand away. “I’m still growing.”
Cong Xia felt a bit uncertain about the dark water and hesitated to go in.
Although Liu Fengyu hadn’t personally seen the big catfish, he was still fearful after hearing the description.
Seeing them hesitating, Tang Yanqiu began to remove his armor and clothes. “I told you it’s safe.” He then jumped into the water.
Liu Fengyu touched his chin. “Not bad figure. Be careful not to lose an arm or leg.”
Tang Yanqiu ignored him, took a deep breath, and felt the refreshing coolness of the pool water, relieving the heat and fatigue of the day.
Liu Fengyu couldn’t resist the temptation either. Seeing Tang Yanqiu unharmed after being in the water for a while, he also took off his clothes and jumped in. When he jumped, he deliberately jumped towards the side where Tang Yanqiu was, splashing water all over Tang Yanqiu’s face. Just as he was about to feel proud, he suddenly felt something slippery and slimy under his feet. He was startled and immediately jumped up. “Damn it! What is this? It’s so sticky!” The slimy sensation was disgustingly unpleasant, like stepping on some kind of mud, but stickier than ordinary mud. It felt like it would suck his feet in. In this strange and bizarre world, how could he not be nervous? He jumped and bounced, trying to get back to the shore. However, the more he jumped, the more unstable he became, and in the end, his whole body fell onto Tang Yanqiu.
atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘819083b5141e2ddc81cd1b66b82e3d92’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 250, ‘width’ : 300, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);Tang Yanqiu quickly caught him around the waist, stabilizing his body, and furrowed his brow. “Calm down, it’s just mud.”
Liu Fengyu angrily said, “Is your mud this sticky?”
“It’s industrial waste from here. We spread it at the bottom of the pool to prevent the growth of organisms. It doesn’t have much effect on humans, but the sensation is not pleasant.”
Liu Fengyu pressed against Tang Yanqiu’s bare chest, barely stabilizing himself. It was then that he realized that they were almost pressed against each other, and he could even feel Tang Yanqiu’s chest rising and falling against his skin with each breath.
Tang Yanqiu let go of him, looking somewhat embarrassed.
Liu Fengyu took two steps back, his face filled with disgust. “You guys really came up with this idea.”
“It’s safe like this.”
“But can the water still be clean?”
“This type of mud settles at the bottom of the water and doesn’t affect cleanliness.”
Liu Fengyu reluctantly got used to the disgusting sensation under his feet. He sniffed the water and indeed, there was no smell. On the contrary, it seemed clean. Only then did he relax. He initially wanted to walk to the other side of the pool to keep some distance from Tang Yanqiu. However, he didn’t want to endure the nauseating feeling of walking in that mud, so he ended up standing beside Tang Yanqiu.
Zhuang Yao clenched his teeth and said to Cheng Tianbi, “You go first.”
Cheng Tianbi didn’t hesitate at all. He took off his clothes and jumped into the water. The sensation of the mud was indeed unpleasant, but he had experienced much worse environments than this. Stepping on mud was much more comfortable than stepping on corpses.
Cong Xia laughed and asked, “How does it feel?”
“It’s fine, come down.”
Zhuang Yao took off his clothes and hesitated by the edge of the pool.
Tang Yanqiu said, “There’s a stool behind the tree, specifically for children.”
Cong Xia ran over and brought the stool, throwing it into the water.
Cheng Tianbi reached out to Zhuang Yao. “Come on.”
Zhuang Yao hesitated and slowly climbed down the pool’s edge. Cheng Tianbi held his light body and placed him on the stool. Zhuang Yao finally sighed in relief and smirked at Liu Fengyu. “It’s great not to have to step on the mud.”
atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘819083b5141e2ddc81cd1b66b82e3d92’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 250, ‘width’ : 300, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);Cong Xia also took off his clothes, mentally prepared himself, and jumped in.
Before his feet even touched the pool floor, Cheng Tianbi had already caught him. Cong Xia was startled, and his heart started beating rapidly.
Cheng Tianbi whispered, “You’ll sink in. Take it slow.”
Cong Xia nodded in a daze. “Okay… I can reach.”
But Cheng Tianbi still didn’t let go. He almost supported Cong Xia’s waist in the water, keeping his body suspended. He said, “Give it a try.”
Cong Xia extended his foot and touched the mud, and the sensation was indeed disgusting. It felt like stepping on a pile of slimy and wet mucus, which made one wonder what exactly was inside.
Cheng Tianbi looked at him and asked, “Is it okay?”
Cong Xia nodded and awkwardly said, “It’s fine, you can let me down.”
Cheng Tianbi slowly released his grip, and Cong Xia reluctantly let his feet sink into the mud, enduring the disgust. He felt grateful to Cheng Tianbi. If he had really stepped into it on his own, even with mental preparation, his reaction would probably be similar to Liu Fengyu’s.
The cold water was very refreshing, washing away the dirt and sweat, making one feel relaxed and rejuvenated.
Liu Fengyu opened his arms and lay back against the pool edge, softly humming a song. He had a good voice, clear and gentle, touching the hearts of the listeners. Cong Xia remembered seeing scenes of Liu Fengyu holding concerts on television, with girls below shedding tears uncontrollably, showing intense excitement.
The moon rose above the treetops, the air was fresh, and the surroundings were quiet and peaceful. If it weren’t for being in the apocalypse, everything would seem beautiful.
The group of them immersed themselves in this rare moment of comfort, and nobody spoke.
Until Abu let out a gentle meow.
Abu rolled around comfortably on the grass, exposing its belly and twisting its body, claws pawing at something in the air.
Zhuang Yao laughed and said, “Abu, do you want to take a bath too?”
Cong Xia chuckled, “I think cats must hate taking baths.”
“Abu doesn’t hate it. Abu loves cleanliness.”
Liu Fengyu lightly rubbed his body and said, “If it comes down while we’re bathing, it might crush me.”
Cong Xia stretched his arms and said to Cheng Tianbi, “Tianbi, let me give you a back rub.”
atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘819083b5141e2ddc81cd1b66b82e3d92’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 250, ‘width’ : 300, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);Liu Fengyu beckoned with his finger, “Xiaoxia, give me a rub first.”
Cheng Tianbi gave him a cold glance, turned around, and faced away from Cong Xia.
Cong Xia laughed and said, “Liu Ge, wait a moment. How about asking Xiao Tang to help you?” He picked up a towel and began wiping Cheng Tianbi’s broad and sturdy back.
Liu Fengyu looked at Tang Yanqiu with disdain, then turned his head away.
Tang Yanqiu remained unaffected by his repeated provocations, keeping his head lowered as he washed his own body.
Cong Xia couldn’t help but secretly touch Cheng Tianbi a few times while rubbing him. Cheng Tianbi’s back was simply perfect, with his shoulder blades protruding as his arms stretched, resembling undulating mountains, full of strength and beauty. His spine was slightly indented, like a long dragon lying amidst sturdy muscles. The dragon ran through his entire back, disappearing into the water, arousing endless imagination.
Cong Xia increasingly struggled to restrain his inappropriate thoughts. Ever since Liu Fengyu said those words, even lying on the same bed as Cheng Tianbi made him feel nervous.
He didn’t know if he was gay, but he couldn’t avoid the fact that his feelings towards Cheng Tianbi seemed somewhat inappropriate.
Although he admired Cheng Tianbi greatly, appreciating a man by his own standards… Was it really not right?
Zhuang Yao tilted his neck and looked at them for a while, showing a mysterious smile. He said, “Cong Xia, come and give me a back rub too. I want a back rub.”
Liu Fengyu smirked and cracked his knuckles. “I’ll help you with that.”
“Stay away from me.” Zhuang Yao gave him a disdainful look, suddenly feeling that something was wrong. “This stool… seems to be sinking.”
Tang Yanqiu said, “Yes, it sinks a bit, but don’t worry, we’re all here.”
Zhuang Yao shouted, “I want to get ashore!” He grabbed onto the edge of the pool and tried to climb out. Unexpectedly, he exerted too much force, stepped into the empty space, and fell into the pool.
Everyone reached out to catch him. Cheng Tianbi, who was closest, just grabbed his arm when Abu suddenly descended from above, reaching out with a paw toward Zhuang Yao. At the same time, half of Abu’s body also fell into the pool.
“I—” Liu Fengyu was about to curse, but he ended up with a mouthful of cat fur. While Abu was lifting Zhuang Yao, his half body almost filled the pool, squeezing the four of them against the pool wall, rendering them unable to move.
atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘819083b5141e2ddc81cd1b66b82e3d92’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 250, ‘width’ : 300, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);Liu Fengyu spat out a few times and cursed, “Damn cat, get out!” He was pressed tightly against Tang Yanqiu. Several times he felt he touched something soft and inappropriate, just that one piece of soft flesh on a man’s body. Liu Fengyu could tell what it was with just his toes. Tang Yanqiu blushed awkwardly, pushing Abu with all his might but couldn’t budge him at all.
The pool was too small for Abu; it struggled for a long time but couldn’t climb out, as if it was stuck, and it meowed anxiously.
Cong Xia was buried by Abu the cat and could hardly breathe. No matter how hard he pushed, he couldn’t free himself.
Cheng Tianbi exerted force and pulled him out from under Abu’s fur. Cong Xia hung halfway on Cheng Tianbi’s body, gasping for air with a green face.
Cheng Tianbi pinched his chin and asked, “How are you?”
Cong Xia took a deep breath and said, “I thought… I was going to suffocate.”
Cheng Tianbi held him tightly and struggled to move to the side. After finally finding a gap, he pushed Cong Xia onto the shore. Cong Xia pulled Cheng Tianbi up after he got ashore and shouted at Zhuang Yao, “Quick, let Abu come up!”
Zhuang Yao anxiously replied, “I don’t want to, can you pull him up?”
The two of them ran to the side and struggled to pull Liu Fengyu and Tang Yanqiu up as well. Their bath was essentially in vain, as they ended up covered in mud and weeds.
Tang Yanqiu’s face turned as red as a tomato. As soon as he climbed up, he hurriedly put on his clothes.
Abu finally managed to struggle out of the pool, continuously licking its wet fur and occasionally letting out a whimper of grievance.
Liu Fengyu kicked Abu angrily, and Abu paused, looking at him with its huge purple eyes as if not knowing what to do.
Zhuang Yao angrily said, “Who told you to kick my cat!”
“It almost crushed us!”
“You deserved it!”
Liu Fengyu pointed at Zhuang Yao, who was sitting on Abu, and angrily yelled, “You little punk, get off!”
Zhuang Yao fiercely flipped him off.
Tang Yanqiu patted the grass on his hair and stiffly said, “Let’s rest early.” After speaking, he picked up his belongings and left. Liu Fengyu was filled with anger. He couldn’t stand the dirt on his body, so he jumped back into the pool.
After everyone finished washing, they returned to the makeshift room. Zhang Gong had prepared a room for them. Although the bedding was old, it looked clean. Even the picky Liu Fengyu didn’t say much and went straight to sleep.
The next morning, as soon as they finished washing up, Zhang Gong came in with breakfast. They had boiled some wild greens in last night’s meat soup, which looked and tasted decently warm.
They didn’t hesitate to dig in, holding large bowls of food.
After finishing the meal, they noticed Zhang Gong still wearing a pleasing smile as he looked at them.
Cong Xia smiled and asked, “Zhang Gong, is there something you need?”
Zhang Gong quickly approached Cong Xia. Although he hadn’t been in contact with these people for long, he had already figured out a few things. First, these people definitely had skills; they were mutants, otherwise they wouldn’t dare to boast. They were going to Chongqing with them. The second thing was that the one who kept his word and was easy to talk to was the handsome and friendly young man in front of him, while the others were increasingly peculiar.
******
Translator’s note: Two more bonus chapters to go~ Thank you Crazy Mama for the Ko-fi!
*****
Other Novels:
Managing a Divine Beast Kindergarten in the Immortal Realm
atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘819083b5141e2ddc81cd1b66b82e3d92’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 250, ‘width’ : 300, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);
Second Life Translations' Comment Policy
1. Be kind and respectful. Comments with curses will be put under moderation.
2. No links to other websites or asking for links.
3. No spoilers!