Having you is humanity's good fortune.

The convoy up ahead exclaimed in delighted surprise, "Really?"

Ye Jiang's convoy eagerly spread the word: "We're not lying!"

The old man in the last vehicle nodded repeatedly. They weren't lying.

Ye Jiang: "..."

She silently watched the convoy ahead swiftly get into formation and happily join them. Her expressionless face grew even more blank. Good thing she was fairly lucky. Otherwise, what would she do with so many people?

She turned her head away, refusing to watch the convoy join them, but tacitly agreed to let them come along.

The convoy grew longer. When Polluted attacked along the way, she leaped back and forth across the roofs of the vehicles. Fortunately, nothing went wrong.

There were too many people in the city, and the Ability Control Bureau's manpower was nowhere near enough by comparison. Many citizens, both those who had found rides and those who hadn't, lacked protectors. Ye Jiang picked up who knew how many people along the way. By the time she came to her senses, they had become an immense, sprawling procession.

Inside the vehicles, the citizens occasionally heard footsteps land on the roofs and felt utterly reassured.

They didn't know who was protecting them up above, but they knew she was ridiculously strong. They felt very safe. They spoke quietly among themselves, their words filled with praise and gratitude for Ye Jiang.

Ye Jiang led the enormous convoy toward the highway out of the city. The journey went smoothly, without any scares, until they encountered another convoy, one taking a break. There were more than a dozen luxury modified vehicles. One had its rear doors open, revealing neatly arranged supplies inside. While other vehicles were being used to carry people, this one extravagantly carried food, drinks, and daily necessities.

Several men had gotten out and were smoking as they leaned against the vehicles, wreathed in smoke. Every so often, they exchanged a few laughing remarks and bounced a leg, looking leisurely and carefree.

What were these people doing?

Ye Jiang's convoy was forced to stop. They didn't dare honk for fear of attracting more Polluted, so they had one person roll down a window and call ahead, "Hey, guys, what are you doing? There's not much time. Get moving!"

The Ability Control Bureau's broadcast had said that emergency supplies would be distributed at the evacuation exit. Collecting supplies once they got there would take time too. They didn't have that much time to waste.

The convoy ahead made no move when they heard the shout. The smoking men exchanged glances and burst out laughing. Who knew what they found so funny.

Someone in Ye Jiang's convoy lost patience and said more forcefully, "If you're not leaving, could you at least move aside and let us through? We..."

Before they could finish, a cigarette butt shot through the air with an oppressive force and embedded itself deep in the vehicle's outer shell, narrowly missing the speaker's head.

The voice stopped abruptly. The laughter ahead grew louder.

"Quit your yapping. This is the Jin Family's convoy. One of our young masters went to take a piss. He'll be back soon. It's just a piss. Sit tight and wait," one of the smoking men said with a roguish air.

The Jin Family, the ability-user family?

Ye Jiang's convoy fell silent, angry but afraid to speak.

Everyone in City A knew the Jin Family. It was a powerful force with numerous B-rank ability users. Ordinary people didn't dare challenge them.

Word that the Jin Family was tyrannically blocking the road traveled from the front of the convoy to the rear. Everyone was furious, but they could only swallow it. What else could they do? Just look at that cigarette butt.

When Ye Jiang noticed the convoy had stopped, she moved forward from the vehicles at the rear and soon reached the front. She saw the people blocking the road. A wisp of foul cigarette smoke drifted into her nose. Lowering her eyes, she spotted the cigarette butt embedded in the vehicle.

She jumped down and headed straight toward the Jin Family's convoy. The citizens she led were startled by her actions. They quietly called for her to come back, telling her that was the Jin Family's convoy.

As an amnesiac, Ye Jiang knew nothing about any Jin Family or ability-user families. She walked over without a care. The men stopped smoking and all stared at her in astonishment. The Jin Family members still inside the vehicles rolled down their windows to look too. Uh, was there something wrong with this woman's head? Hadn't she heard them say this was the Jin Family's convoy?

Another cigarette butt shot through the air. Ye Jiang tilted her head slightly to dodge it, and her figure suddenly became a blur. The Jin Family members instinctively blinked, thinking something had gone wrong with their eyesight. Only after several bangs, when the smoking men's heads were slammed into the vehicles beside them one after another, did the ability users realize there was nothing wrong with their eyes. The approaching woman was simply moving too fast for their vision to follow!

So fast!

The Jin Family members were astonished. A speed-type ability user?

"No smoking in public," Ye Jiang said quietly. "It stinks."

With that, she withdrew the hand pressing against the back of a smoking man's head. She didn't look at the fingers of the men she had slammed into the vehicles. If she had, she would certainly have noticed the Blood Moon marks on their hands and known they were ability users too. If she had looked, she certainly wouldn't have stepped forward, because she was a frail F-rank.

The men were dazed from the blows, blood streaming from their noses as they slowly slid down the sides of the vehicles. The Jin Family members inside reacted. A mere speed-type ability user dared charge single-handedly into their Jin Family's home base? Did she think their dozen or so B-rank ability users were pushovers?

The ability users were about to get out and help. Their hands had just reached the door locks when a miserable scream suddenly came from a nearby building. That voice belonged to their young master who had gone to take a piss!

Forgetting Ye Jiang, the Jin Family members looked toward their young master, only to see something terrible. Several A-rank Polluted had appeared from who knew where and were attacking their young master and the guards beside him!

A-ranks, attacking?!

Weren't the A-ranks in the city supposed to refrain from attacking humans first?

Before they could think, several waves of killing intent shot toward them. Looking out, they saw a dense mass of A-rank Polluted heading their way. Their menacing approach made it clear they were attacking. Gentle, their asses!

Horrified, the Jin Family members tried to start their vehicles and leave without another thought. But it was too late. The A-rank Polluted arrived in the blink of an eye and attacked the people inside the vehicles. Screams rose one after another.

Ye Jiang's convoy was frightened by the horrifying scene too, thinking they were doomed. Yet... the A-rank Polluted only attacked the Jin Family members, not them.

"Huh?"

What was going on?

No one knew it was because all the A-rank Polluted drew power from Mushroom Man. Her mycelium was embedded in their bodies, and they were influenced by her in every respect. Mushroom Man was gentle by nature and hated only the Jin Family. They had tormented it day and night, and its hatred had influenced the A-rank Polluted.

Although the Polluted showed no intention of attacking them, Ye Jiang's convoy still started their vehicles and prepared to turn away, planning to take a detour. The A-rank Polluted's contamination was too strong, and they were gathering here. Ordinary people couldn't hold out for long. They had to leave at once.

The convoy called for Ye Jiang to return. She was still watching the besieged Jin Family members, wondering whether to lend a hand while she was at it. Though she disliked smoking in public, she was already here. There was nothing wrong with helping them out and making them pay a protection fee afterward. Then, a moment later, she heard someone shout, "Big shot, get back here! Those are A-rank Polluted!"

She turned and left without the slightest hesitation.

A-rank?

Frail as she was, she couldn't afford to mess with them.

Ye Jiang jumped onto a vehicle's roof and sat down, watching the A-rank Polluted besiege the Jin Family members from afar. The vehicle drove farther and farther away until she couldn't see anything anymore.

Chapter 29: Having you is humanity's good fortune.

At the highway exit leading out of the city, the Ability Control Bureau's Logistics Team was distributing emergency supplies to arriving citizens, one portion per person. It wasn't much, only enough to last until they could get assistance in the surrounding cities. As a branch of the Logistics Team, the Cleanup Team was helping here too. Ordinarily, they were responsible for cleaning up battlefields, but not today. There was no need.

More than two hours had passed since the Ability Control Bureau issued its notice, but few citizens had reached the exit. The end of the line of vehicles waiting to collect supplies was visible at a glance. Compared with the city's entire population, this number wasn't even a tiny fraction.

The S-rank Polluted had not only conjured up many A-rank Polluted, but also triggered a massive pilgrimage phenomenon. Low- and mid-rank Polluted were killing throughout the city, severely hindering the citizens' evacuation. It was heartbreaking.

Yu Qingyi was very, very worried about one person.

Yu Qingyi was worried about Ye Jiang. The moment she received notice that an S-rank Polluted had appeared, she immediately called her friend, urging her to evacuate at once and meet her at this exit.

Would Jiangjiang arrive safely?

Would she get hurt?

Would she...

A battered vehicle stopped in front of Yu Qingyi. She immediately put away all her emotions and smiled, offering these citizens about to leave their homes one last bit of gentleness before their departure. "How many?"

"Eight."

Another overloaded vehicle. This was a very common arrangement.

Yu Qingyi counted out eight portions of supplies and handed them into the vehicle. The person taking them was a mother sitting by the window with her child. The mother's clothes were dirty and disheveled, her face pale and her lips dry. It was clear that reaching this escape route had not been easy for her.

After accepting the last portion, the mother did not let go of Yu Qingyi's hand for a long time. Her eyes fixed on Yu Qingyi as she asked with trembling lips, "Will we be able to come back?"

The little girl in her arms stared with wide, empty eyes, tears still clinging to her lashes.

The citizens

had followed the authorities' instructions and prepared to leave, but that did nothing to lessen their uncertainty about leaving home.

Yu Qingyi swallowed several times. She removed a pink hair clip from her hair and gently fastened it onto the little girl's head as she sat in her mother's arms, securing her messy hair.

She said, "We'll all come back."

The mother released her hand, a little light suddenly returning to her eyes.

Holding her daughter's hand, she waved to Yu Qingyi with a bright smile, thanking her for her hard work and saying, "We'll see you again someday."

The vehicle drove away.

Yu Qingyi looked down at the hand the mother had held, unable to smile as easily as she had. In this difficult, cruel world, some people were destined to carry others' hopes and press forward beneath that burden. Yu Qingyi was only a peripheral member of the Cleanup Team, but she too felt the weight pressing on her shoulders.

-Will we be able to come back?

Yu Qingyi didn't know either.

But she could only say they would. At that moment, she could only be the person who bore someone else's hope.

Supplies were distributed in an orderly fashion at the exit. Vehicles came and went.