Yangyang was not yet five

"

The apocalypse

and its good-for-nothings" by Yan Guo Qing Tian [Completed]

Synopsis

When the apocalypse began, a few good-for-nothings came together... all to survive.

This story has

zombies

, mutated creatures, supernatural abilities, ancient martial arts,

cultivation

and other elements mixed into a hodgepodge of a setting. Cultivation and ancient martial arts play minor roles, and danmei and BG storylines run in parallel. If these are deal-breakers for you, proceed with caution!

Cast of good-for-nothings:

Main characters: Zhang Yi, Nan Shao, Zhang Ruiyang, Li Muran, Meat Tower Chen

Supporting characters: Nan Wei, Han Ling, Song Yan

Content tags: power couple, supernatural abilities, apocalypse, inspirational life

Search keywords: main characters: Zhang Yi, Nan Shao ┃ supporting characters: Zhang Ruiyang, Li Muran, Meat Tower Chen ┃ other:

Shou protagonist

fiction, zombies, doomsday, power couple

Work introduction

What did the apocalypse have? Zombies, supernatural abilities, mutated plants, men and women thriving with their cheat abilities dialed all the way up, and human nature laid "stark naked." In such a harsh environment, did ordinary people and abandoned ability users and mutants with useless powers have no choice but to wait helplessly for death, or be trampled and bullied by the strong? Zhang Yi, whose leg had been crippled after he was framed, had his five-year-old son with him when he took in Nan Shao, a useless ability user who had been bitten by a zombie while trying to get an apple for his scumbag younger brother, then abandoned by his companions. And so their own unique journey through the apocalypse began...

The apocalypse, supernatural abilities, rebirth,

space

are the mainstays of current apocalypse fiction. In this story, however, the author takes a different angle, making disadvantaged people the protagonists and depicting their struggle to survive in the apocalypse before finally attaining happy, stable lives. Immersive and refreshing, it draws readers right in. In sweet, well-behaved Yangyang, resilient Zhang Yi, dispirited Nan Shao, loyal Meat Tower Chen, quiet Li Muran, and many more ordinary people who have been isolated and abandoned, we can still see the bright side of humanity, even in the apocalypse.

Chapter 1: Yangyang was not yet five

The world had never been fair. Otherwise, why were some people rich and others poor, some clever and others stupid? Even after the world was reshuffled, that unfairness remained.

It had been six months since the apocalypse broke out. Ever since the first speed mutant appeared five months earlier, humanity had once again been divided into three tiers. At the top were those who held power and possessed supernatural abilities. Few in number, they nevertheless occupied the greatest share of the resources needed to survive. Next came ability users and mutants, who had emerged from ordinary people but possessed superpowers ordinary people lacked. At the very bottom were ordinary people who had not mutated. No matter how much influence someone had once wielded, they now had to follow these rules. Each tier had its own hierarchy, too complicated to go into in detail, but one thing was beyond doubt: those at the very bottom always had the hardest lives.

Zhang Ruiyang sat in a shack propped up with woven sacks, plastic sheeting, and wooden poles, his head down as he played with a filthy Ultraman toy. Although the shack was hot and stuffy, he did not run outside to play. He could not go outside without his dad. It had been the same when he lived with Grandma, anyway. None of the other children wanted to play with him, and he was already used to being alone.

His hair, yellowed by malnutrition, clung wetly to his little head, and his slightly parted lips were cracked. Zhang Ruiyang carefully picked up the small bowl beside him and took a tiny sip of the somewhat cloudy water inside, reluctant to drink any more. Dad had not had any yet. The water in the river outside was not safe to drink. He had once seen an old grandpa who could not bear his thirst scoop up a few mouthfuls of river water, only to turn very quickly into one of those man-eating monsters that were everywhere. He thought that if he turned into something like that, Dad would be terribly sad, just as he had been that day when he knelt in front of Grandma and cried so hard that Zhang Ruiyang could not help crying too. But Grandma had been sick. She would not even answer when he talked to her, and she would not eat the biscuits he fed her. Her face was so, so fat, and lots of little white fleshy worms had grown on her body. No matter how many he picked off, there were always more. Otherwise, Grandma would surely have comforted Dad the way she comforted him, because she missed Dad so much. Before she got sick, she told him every day how many days were left until Dad came home, and that they would go meet him then. But Grandma got sick, so they had not been able to go meet Dad. Luckily, Dad had found his way home.

Gently putting the bowl back where it had been, Zhang Ruiyang picked up Ultraman and twisted its raised arm down. Dad went out to fight monsters every day, then brought back shiny stones to trade for lots and lots of water and flatbread. He thought Dad was much more powerful than Ultraman. If Dad had come back earlier, maybe Grandma would not have gotten sick and been sent up to the sky in that big box for treatment.

He missed Grandma. Propping his chin on one little hand, Zhang Ruiyang held Ultraman by one arm and swung it, beginning to stare into space.

Footsteps sounded outside, drawing closer from a distance, clearly heading toward the shack. Zhang Ruiyang came back to himself, but instead of rushing out to greet the visitor, he stuffed Ultraman beneath the cardboard he slept on. Then he lifted a woven sack in the corner of the shack, picked up the bowl of water, and slipped underneath like a little mouse. He set the bowl on the ground and put the sack back as it had been.

Behind the shack stood an earthen wall five meters thick. A small hole, only about knee-high to an adult, had been dug near its base. Hidden by the shack, it could not be seen from outside at all, but it was big enough to hold the underdeveloped Zhang Ruiyang, who was not yet five.

Zhang Ruiyang huddled deep inside the hole, his grimy little hand pressed over his nose and mouth as he strained his ears to listen outside. The footsteps stopped outside the shack, followed by the sound of the burlap sack over the entrance being lifted. The visitor walked in and rummaged furiously through everything, then let out a coarse curse. Something was kicked out and struck the earthen wall beside it with a clang. Zhang Ruiyang held his breath even more tightly. His large, dark eyes shone in the shadows like two glittering black gems.

He was a little scared, but not especially scared. Before, after Dad went out, people had come to their home to rummage around like this, taking away everything they could use. Dad said it was all right, and only told him to hide well and not let anyone find him. Dad said they could find more things if their things were gone, but if Yangyang was stolen, he could never be found again. He knew what those people wanted children for. He had seen an adult holding a child's leg and gnawing on it. They were too hungry, and they would eat children. So whenever he heard someone coming, as long as Dad did not call out, he always hid himself well. Dad knew he was here.