Cheng Jing's Strange Condition

"Huang Qian!"

"Sister Qian..."

The sudden turn of events startled both Cheng Jing and Jiang Nian, and they hurried over to help her up.

But Huang Qian glared at Cheng Jing and snapped:

"Cheng Jing, what the hell is wrong with you? You used something to shock me!"

"Huh? I... I didn't..."

Cheng Jing looked utterly bewildered. It was just a joke between friends, and it wasn't the first time they had messed around like this. He wasn't a sore loser, so why would he use something to shock her? No matter how wild she was, she was still a girl.

"..."

Huang Qian clambered to her feet, looking a little disheveled, and brushed herself off. Still displeased, she complained:

"It felt like you were shocking me with a high-voltage stun baton just now..."

She glanced at his hands. There was nothing in them, but...

"No way. Brother Jing wasn't holding anything..."

As Jiang Nian spoke, he instinctively reached for Cheng Jing's hand to take a look. But the moment he touched it, a powerful electric current passed through Cheng Jing's fingertips, making him cry out and let go, just as Huang Qian had:

"Ah!"

Jiang Nian stumbled back two steps and nearly fell. Clutching his wrist, he grimaced for a moment and felt a brief buzzing in his head.

"Jiang Nian..."

Cheng Jing hadn't recovered from his surprise and instinctively reached out to help him, but fortunately, Huang Qian pulled Jiang Nian away first.

"Cheng Jing, don't move! Something's wrong with you... It's like you've got electricity running through you!"

As she spoke, she looked down at his feet and around him, but she didn't see him stepping on anything.

"..."

Sweat poured down Cheng Jing's face from the heat. He lowered his head and looked at his hands, his expression serious.

"I can feel it too... It really does feel like there's an electric current running through my body..."

Then he looked at the two people he had shocked.

"Are you two okay?"

"I'm fine."

Huang Qian shook her head. She had pulled away in time, and now her body just felt a little numb.

"I'm fine too..."

Jiang Nian recovered from his momentary fright, and something suddenly occurred to him. His eyes lit up. Forgetting that Huang Qian was there, he swallowed nervously several times, then stepped forward and said to Cheng Jing:

"Brother Jing, listen to me... You might be awakening an ability."

The circumstances and reactions were never exactly the same when someone awakened an ability, although an unexplained high fever was the most common symptom.

"Awakening... what ability?"

Huang Qian looked baffled. She had heard every word clearly, but put together, they made no sense to her.

Jiang Nian shook his head, indicating that he would explain later.

"Awakening an ability..."

Cheng Jing recalled the bizarre news stories he had seen earlier, and how people had awakened abilities when the apocalypse arrived in Jiang Nian's nightmares. He had a sense of what was happening now, so he asked:

"What should I do now?"

Sweat poured off him like rain. He felt as though he was about to cook.

"First, don't panic. Try to calm yourself down..."

Jiang Nian recalled some of the sensations he had felt when he awakened his ability in his previous life, as well as what he had heard from others, and put it all together for Cheng Jing.

"Go along with the energy coming from your body. Don't resist or suppress it. Let the electric current of your ability fuse with your body. It takes time, anywhere from a few hours to a few days. We can't get close to you right now, so you'll have to go into a room and stay there by yourself."

"But I feel so hot. It's like my body is about to catch fire..."

As Cheng Jing spoke, his skin slowly began to turn red. Then arcs of electricity began flashing over his fingertips and exposed skin.

"Lightning..."

Just as Jiang Nian thought Cheng Jing was awakening a lightning-attribute ability, flames suddenly sprang up on Cheng Jing's fingers. Arcs of electricity flashed white as they curled around the flames, looking beautiful and dangerous.

"This... is a lightning-fire dual-attribute mutation..."

Even Jiang Nian was startled to see the flames and electric arcs appear at the same time, let alone Huang Qian. He hurriedly waved at Cheng Jing, whose whole body was giving off steam.

"Brother Jing, get to the bathroom, quick! Your ability won't hurt you, but it'll hurt the people and things around you. Since there's fire, you can't go into a room. Go to the bathroom, hurry!"

Cheng Jing was already dizzy from the heat. As soon as Jiang Nian finished, he ran straight to the bathroom. Jiang Nian followed and shut the door for him, then stood outside and said:

"Don't panic, Brother Jing. Keep calm and stay rational. Use a little of your mental power to restrain your ability. There's water in the bathroom. Don't let it spread too far or go out of control, or the whole apartment, even this building, could be in danger."

Attack-type abilities were terrifyingly destructive, especially a rare dual-attribute mutation like this. Though Jiang Nian hadn't seen many in his previous life, he had heard plenty about them.

Ability users with powerful offensive attributes were in demand wherever they went. Even the authorities sometimes had to rely on them.

"Don't worry, I can control it. But you and Huang Qian should stay away from the door. If it comes to it, you two should go downstairs first..."

Cheng Jing sat down against the wall, most of his body engulfed in lightning and fire. He had thought his hair would burn off, but it didn't. It really was amazing. His mind was clear, and he was confident he could control it. He was just afraid of what might happen.

"No, I'll wait for you right outside the door."

As Jiang Nian spoke, he brought over a stool and settled down to keep watch at the door. He believed in Cheng Jing.

Huang Qian had also calmed down by now. She likewise brought over a stool and sat down.

"We'll both stay right here with you. If you feel like you're losing control, just remember that your wife and your most capable assistant are outside the door."

Jiang Nian was a little embarrassed by how bluntly she put it, but he couldn't say much about it. He took the opportunity to tell her about awakening abilities, showed her the bizarre news stories he had saved, and mentioned the apocalyptic nightmares he had been having lately.

He picked and chose what to say, keeping it brief and touching only on the basics. Finally, he summed it up:

"I've heard there are always signs before a great disaster strikes. I believe this is one of them..."

Leaving everything else aside, with an ability awakening right before her eyes, Huang Qian couldn't have convinced herself not to believe it even if she had tried.

Then she thought of how Cheng Jing had indulged Jiang Nian's stockpiling. It all clicked, and she nodded.

"I understand."

Then she called to Cheng Jing in the bathroom:

"Boss, is that why you gave us the training task of stockpiling supplies?"

Cheng Jing didn't deny it.

"Some things don't need to be said. Huang Qian, I hope what happened tonight stays between the three of us for now, including Jiang Nian's dreams and everything we've done."

Huang Qian waved a hand.

"I know. Whether the apocalypse comes or not, if word of this gets out, it'll bring endless trouble. Take care of ourselves, respect other people's fates, and only think about anything else if we have the capacity."

It was already very good of the two of them to find a reason to look after their people at a time like this.

"That's right. I'm glad you understand, Sister Qian."

It was easy getting along with smart people, and Jiang Nian breathed a sigh of relief. He had actually been quite worried. After all, girls were prone to being softhearted, and "kill the saints first in troubled times" was more than just a saying.

As if she could see through his thoughts, Huang Qian gave him a bright smile and waved a hand.

"Don't worry. I'm not the kind of hypocritical saint who guilt-trips other people. Forget troubled times-at any time, idiots who can't read the situation or tell what matters most deserve to die."

"Mm."

Jiang Nian smiled too. "Saint" wasn't a derogatory term in itself, whether used for a man or a woman. He just couldn't stand people who guilt-tripped others into sharing the risks of their own brainless actions. In short, they could ruin things for themselves, but they shouldn't drag anyone else into it. Then there wouldn't be a problem.