“Even though I protected you today—and you protected me with that disposable item—I still really can’t stand you. Don’t go thinking we’re friends or anything. I haven’t forgotten how you framed my brother…”

Shi Jie sat on the ground, muttering to himself while stealing glances at Cen An. “O-of course. If you’re willing to keep today’s events a secret, I might just be able to forgive you…”

Cen An jumped to his feet.

Shi Jie’s face lit up. “What? Are you agreeing…”

Cen An walked past him. “Tian Yuan! Are you hurt?”

The dark-faced ability-user stepped out from behind the trees, carrying the giant wolf’s carcass on his shoulder. He pushed the carcass toward Cen An and smiled. “Just a few scrapes. Nothing serious.”

He felt a bit uneasy inside. Although hiding his abilities was understandable, it was still a form of deception… The main issue was that everyone else had already figured it out, but it was hard to explain to Cen An, and he’d never known how to put it into words.

He hadn’t expected that at a critical moment like this, he wouldn’t be able to hide it anymore. What if Cen An got angry…

Tian Yuan sighed. Cen An was a friend he’d chosen; if Cen An got angry, he’d just have to bear it.

With that in mind, he pushed the giant wolf forward again. “I know you collect these things. Here, take this…”

Cen An had no time to worry about that. With a flick of his hand, he took the Rejuvenation Ointment and the moss bandages, even pulling out the Rain Dew Essence. “Where’s the wound? Let me take a look. Is it serious?”

Tian Yuan paused for a moment, then laughed and turned his back. “Just a scratch on my back. It’s not serious.”

Cen An looked at the long gash running from top to bottom across his back and gasped, “If this isn’t serious, what is?”

He quickly applied the Rejuvenation Ointment. “Don’t you people always say you shouldn’t turn your back on an enemy? Yet you still get injured there all the time. You never pay attention—really…”

He grumbled under his breath, but his hands moved gently.

Tian Yuan rubbed his nose. Of course you shouldn’t turn your back on an enemy, but in a fight, everyone targets the back—so of course you’re going to get hurt…

But he didn’t dare say it. He had a feeling that if he made excuses now, something terrible might happen…

Cen An applied the healing ointment and wrapped it with a moss bandage. “There. You’ll be fine by tomorrow.”

Only then did he gather the beast’s carcass from the ground.

Tian Yuan looked at the red-tailed fox and frowned. “Were you attacked too?”

Cen An nodded. “Not long after you left, we ran into this red-tailed fox and a howling rabbit.”

Tian Yuan’s brow furrowed even deeper. He pulled a fiery-red bead from his robe. “You already have Su Rui’s wooden whistle and Yu Lin’s grass rabbit. Why not take this bead from me as well?”

“What’s this?” Cen An asked curiously. The bead looked like glass, about the size of a glass marble, with a streak of red firelight inside, swirling as lightly as red silk—it was quite beautiful.

Tian Yuan smiled. “If you’re in danger, throw it and shatter it. It’ll burst into flames and burn the enemy to death.”

The Flame-Sealing Bead—which required the combined abilities of all Level 4 Fire-elemental ability users to craft just one—was casually handed over to Cen An by him.

Cen An furrowed his brow, thought for a moment, and ultimately didn’t refuse; he carefully put it away.

Given what had happened—and the fact that Tian Yuan had been injured—they naturally couldn’t stay on the mountain any longer.

The two of them carried Shi Jie, whose legs were still weak, down the mountain.

Sure enough, there were signs of an attack on the mountain, with occasional traces of blood visible. The area near the mountain was no longer safe either.

The three entered the village only to find it in utter chaos. The once poor but peaceful mountain hamlet was now gripped by panic, with fear etched on every face.

Cen An grabbed a passing ability-user by the arm. “What’s going on?”

“Ah, Brother Cen!” The ability-user recognized him and hurriedly explained, “The ability-user squad encountered a wave of beasts in the mountains. Leading the pack were three Level 4 beasts. Many in the squad were injured, and we’re on our way to pick them up.”

Cen An’s heart sank. “Who’s injured? Where are you going to pick them up?”

“We’re heading to…” The ability-user was about to answer when he suddenly looked ahead. “They’re back!”

Cen An immediately turned to look. Qu Yue, radiating a menacing aura, was leading the group back. Her face bore several scrapes, and green vines were wrapped around her shoulder; the intense battle had left her temporarily unable to control her powers properly.

Zhao Wu, beside her, was in even worse shape; two deep gashes ran down the outer side of his arm, and blood had stained half his sleeve red.

Wang Lie trailed behind, his baby-faced expression devoid of any trace of a smile. A large patch on his chest bore scorch marks from fire… What kind of battle could possibly cause a fire-type ability-user to suffer burns?

Cen An suddenly realized that the situation seemed far more serious than he had imagined.

Behind Wang Lie were the other squad members; everyone had sustained injuries to varying degrees, and some were even missing an arm…

“Quick, go find Old Geng!”

“Hurry up and take Xiao Ji with you! Where’s the wind-type ability-user? Speed up! Hurry!”

“Damn it… I’ll give it one last push!”

The wind-type ability-user, who had already exhausted his abilities, turned purple with the strain, but finally released a gentle breeze, slightly increasing the speed of those around him!

Cen Anxin snapped to attention. “What’s going on? What happened?”

“Someone’s been seriously injured.” It was Tian Yuan speaking. He whispered, “Old Master Geng is one of the two elderly ability users who retired from the team. He has a healing item. If someone weren’t critically injured and near death, no one would go looking for him.”

“Seriously injured?! Near death?” Cen An didn’t care about anything else; he immediately ran forward. Finally, through the gaps in the crowd, he saw the person being carried—pale-faced, eyes tightly closed… It was Xiao Ji!

The members of the Supernatural Squad were carrying him, running as if their lives depended on it, toward a certain direction. Cen An immediately followed, and the other villagers nearby instinctively followed as well.

Cen An also heard an elderly woman wailing, “The ability-user squad are all good people! Such a young lad—how could he suffer such severe injuries? Heaven, you’re blind to this suffering…”

The group ran to the entrance of an ordinary courtyard. Qu Yue stepped forward and pounded on the door, “Old Geng! Old Geng! Come out quickly—help us!”

Whether it was because of her strength or something else, she actually smashed the wooden door right off its hinges. It clattered to the ground, revealing the old man inside the courtyard.

The old man knew something was wrong the moment he saw the scene. Frowning, he hurried out, horrified. “How bad is it? Put him down! Everyone else, step back!”

The group immediately set Xiao Ji down and stepped back.

Only then did Cen An see that a thick, long thorn was lodged in Xiao Ji’s chest, nearly piercing right through his entire torso. Blood had stained half his body red, and his face was already deathly pale, devoid of any sign of life.

Old Geng immediately exclaimed, “This is bad,” and pulled a pendant from his robe. It was an exquisitely ornate pendant—a golden chain suspending a heart-shaped ruby.

Cen An instantly recognized the item: the Healing Heart! An instant-heal item!

【Healing Heart:

Category: Item

Rarity: Common

Effect: Instantly restores 10% HP.

Notes: Can only be used 3 times (2/3)】

Old Geng held the Healing Heart close to Xiao Ji. The red heart-shaped gem emitted a faint glow, and under its light, his pale complexion seemed to flush slightly.

Click—The glow of the Healing Heart faded; the red gem turned grayish-white and shattered, its remaining uses reset to zero.

Old Geng closed his eyes tightly and sighed.

Xiao Ji slowly opened his eyes, looking dazed for a moment. “Brother Wang Jin…”

Wang Jin, standing nearby, hurried over. “What’s wrong?”

Xiao Ji forced a smile, his voice barely a whisper. “The goose I caught—don’t forget to give it to Brother Cen… Tell Grandma and my little sister… I’m sorry…”

He closed his eyes.

The crowd fell instantly silent. Cen An’s heart skipped a beat. How could this be? Wasn’t it supposed to restore 10% of his health?

“A-Ji!”

“Brother…”

Suddenly, deafening wails erupted from the crowd nearby. Cen An turned to look and faintly heard someone say that Xiao Ji’s grandmother and younger sister had arrived.

An elderly woman with snow-white hair and clothes patched all over her body shakily pushed her way through the crowd, holding the hand of a frail little girl.

The old woman and the child rushed over. Upon seeing the man on the ground, they froze. The old woman raised her hand, as withered as a dry branch, and slapped the young man across the face. “You promised to take care of me in my old age and see me off when I die! You ungrateful wretch…”

The kind-hearted young man who couldn’t speak lay there on the ground, his face as pale as paper. He could hear neither the cries of his relatives nor the grief of his friends.

This scene moved the villagers to tears…

Suddenly, a commotion arose in the crowd, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Cen An, what’s wrong with you?”

“Cen An, don’t go over there—they’re saying their final goodbyes to their grandson…”

Cen An stopped the two of them. “I can save him. If we wait any longer, it’ll be too late!”

Cen An’s mind was in a daze. He hadn’t expected that the “Healing Heart,” an instant-healing item, would actually fail. Was it because Xiao Ji’s injuries were too severe, or because the item wasn’t all-powerful in this world? Or was it that thorn lodged in his chest?

He didn’t know. All he knew was that the moment the Healing Heart shattered, a countdown suddenly appeared on Xiao Ji’s body: 【Critically Injured, Dying in 15 Seconds】.

Just as he’d said, it really was too late!

Upon hearing this, Tian Yuan immediately let go of him and even helped hold Shi Jie back.

Cen An lunged forward in a single bound to Xiao Ji’s side. The weeping old woman was startled and instinctively shielded her grandson. “What are you doing? What are you going to do to my boy!”

The little girl started crying, too, and chaos erupted on the scene.

Cen An dared not waste a moment. “Sister Qu, Brother Zhao, stop them!”

Qu Yue and Zhao Wu hadn’t even figured out what was happening yet, but they acted instinctively.

Vines shot out from Qu Yue’s shoulders, gently restraining the old woman, while Zhao Wu scooped up Ji Yong’an’s younger sister.

With only 5 seconds left on the countdown, Cen An took the Rain Dew Essence in his right hand and poured it into the young girl’s mouth, while his other hand retrieved the Rejuvenation Ointment and moss bandages.

“Wang Jin, help me hold him down and pull out the thorn!”

Wang Jin froze. “What?”

“I said pull out the thorn,” Cen An said calmly. “Do you want to save him? If you do, do as I say!”

Wang Jin slapped himself across the face, finally regaining his composure. “Yes, Brother Cen!”

He pressed down on Xiao Ji’s chest with one hand while gripping the tip of the thorn with the other. Following Cen An’s instructions, he yanked it out with all his might.

A spurt of blood sprayed from the tip of the thorn. Without batting an eye, Cen An quickly grabbed five or six packets of Revitalizing Ointment, smearing them all over the wound, then immediately wrapped it with a moss bandage…

The bleeding stopped, and the essence of the rain and dew took effect rapidly. Xiao Ji’s chest began to rise and fall slowly, and his complexion shifted from deathly white to the pallor of a critically injured person.

Seeing the 【Critically Injured, Near Death】 status disappear from his body and change to 【Critically Injured】, Cen An finally let out a long sigh of relief and relaxed.

Old Geng, who had watched the entire process from the sidelines, nearly pulled his beard out in shock. “He’s… he’s alive? You actually saved him? This young man has incredible medical skills—bringing the dead back to life and mending broken bones…”

Those words instantly ignited the scene. The crowd, who had been holding their breath just moments ago, now seemed to have come back to life along with Xiao Ji:

“He’s alive? He’s really alive?”

“Someone who couldn’t even be saved by the props—and yet our Brother Cen managed to save him?”

“I knew Brother Cen was the best!”

“What do you mean, ‘Brother Cen’? What are you guys from the Supernatural Squad talking about?”

“Cen An—he’s the one who just saved the man. He’s also the one who sold us the Wind-Cold Fruit earlier.”

“So it was him. What a good man. The Wind-Cold Fruit saved our whole family…”

“Remember that barrel of Wind-Cold remedy from the Rainy Season? That young man made that too—and gave it to us for free!”

“Wow, what have we in Yongning Village ever done to deserve such an amazing and kind-hearted young man…”

As the center of attention, Cen An only realized after relaxing that he’d moved too quickly earlier—his arms were already starting to ache.

The members of the nearby special abilities squad gathered around him, so overjoyed they didn’t know what to say, just repeatedly thanking him.

Ji Yong’an’s grandmother even tried to kowtow to him, but fortunately, Tian Yuan pulled her up.

Cen An waved his hand wearily. Glancing at the injuries on these people, he took out the last few packets of Rejuvenating Ointment. “Help yourselves to apply the ointment. Xiao Ji is fine now—take him home and let him recover properly.”

He turned to leave.

“Brother Cen.”

When he turned back, he saw everyone from the Supernatural Ability Squad staring at him; several of them had tears in their eyes.

Cen An sighed helplessly. “What is it now?”

“Nothing.” Wang Jin wiped his face—he couldn’t tell if it was tears or sweat. “I just wanted to ask if you’ll be home tomorrow. I’d like to bring you a goose…”

Cen An smiled broadly, waved his hand, and left with Tian Yuan.

The members of the ability-user squad watched his retreating figure… It seemed this wasn’t the first time he’d saved them. This time, he’d saved Xiao Ji; on the night of the raid, he’d rescued the ability-user whose leg had been severed by a mousetrap.

And what about those vegetables? Hadn’t they saved them from the peril of a potential outbreak?

They were the ones with psyshic abilities, yet he was always the one rescuing them from danger…

A young woman with special abilities suddenly whispered, “It feels like we haven’t done enough for Brother Cen.”

Or rather, they hadn’t really done anything for Brother Cen at all.

Patrolling the nearby forests and villages? That was simply their duty. Buying Brother Cen’s vegetables? Those were in such high demand anyway…

The group exchanged glances. “What does Brother Cen like?”

“Meat?”

“From now on, we’ll take care of Brother Cen’s meat! Anything else?”

“Um…”

They turned to look at Qu Yue. “Sister Qu?”

Qu Yue thought for a moment. “Lumber, hay, herbs, and the like? Anyway, he wants everything from the mountains except the land itself… right?”

Cen An led Tian Yuan back home. It wasn’t until they reached the front door that he turned around and asked, “Why are you still following me?”

Shi Jie shrank his neck. “I—I just wanted to ask you, since you’re already so powerful, why are you still picking on my brother? He’s just the deputy captain of a special abilities squad; he doesn’t get in your way.”

Once Cen An had assessed his IQ, he was able to speak to him calmly. “I already told you, I didn’t frame your brother.”

Shi Jie protested, “If it wasn’t you, then who else could it be? It can’t be that my brother actually did those things, can it?”

Cen An shook his head. “Are you sure he’s really your brother?”

“Huh?” Shi Jie’s eyes widened, revealing a mind so pure you could see right through it—a mind that had never been tainted by knowledge.

Cen An decided to ask him directly, “Has your brother changed a lot compared to before?”

Shi Jie frowned in thought. “It seems like… yeah… um…” He suddenly tucked his neck in, looking quite frightened.

Cen An exchanged a glance with Tian Yuan. Tian Yuan suddenly sneered, “Tell the truth when I ask you. If you dare to lie, I’ll have you dragged out and your legs broken!”

“No!” Shi Jie turned pale with fear. “I’m not lying! I just realized that my brother has indeed changed a lot over the past two years. Even when I did something bad, he didn’t scold me or discipline me.”

Cen An immediately asked, “When did this start?”

“It seems…” Shi Jie racked his brain, “Ah, I remember! It was during the rainy season three years ago. Someone suddenly reported that the rain had washed away a section of the mountain, revealing a hole with the scent of a strange beast inside. At the time, Team Leader Liao took a team out, and Sister Qu and the others weren’t around, so my brother led a group to check it out himself.”

“That day, I went out for a stroll and accidentally knocked over a stall. When I came back, I was afraid my brother would scold me, but to my surprise, he sent me away without even asking a question. Since then, he hasn’t really kept an eye on me.”

“The mountain? Which mountain? Where is that cave?” Cen An pressed him immediately.

“How should I know…” Shi Jie mumbled, “No one ever told me about that kind of thing.”

Cen An realized he had a point, so he waved him off.

Shi Jie hurried away, completely forgetting why he’d come in the first place.

Cen An led Tian Yuan through the courtyard gate. The vine sneaked up on them, its sharp antennae brushing against the hem of his robe. A blush spread across its body, and it shyly retreated.

Tian Yuan sighed and pressed his hand to his forehead, unable to bear the sight. “Alright, Brother Cen, now that I’ve safely delivered you home, my mission for today is complete.”

Cen An gave him a half-smile. “You’re still calling me ‘Brother Cen’? I’m not worthy of that title.”

Tian Yuan feigned ignorance and laughed, “What are you talking about, Brother Cen?”

Cen An suddenly fell silent and looked at him. “You’ve lost some color in your face.”

Tian Yuan instinctively touched his face, but as soon as he raised his hand, he sensed something was wrong… After a moment, he gave a wry smile. “I really didn’t mean to hide it from you. I came to Yongning Village to investigate something.”

Cen An shook his head and said curtly, “Wait.”

He took a large handful of Spring Prosperity Grass from the rack in the courtyard, quickly burned it to ashes, and whipped up about ten doses of Rejuvenating Ointment.

He then pulled a large roll of moss bandages from his backpack. “Take these. Change the dressing yourself when you have time. It should be mostly healed in three or four days.”

Tian Yuan looked at the items in his hands, his smile gradually fading. “You really…”

Cen An looked at him questioningly.

“Never mind.” Tian Yuan rubbed his nose and laughed heartily. “Then I won’t hesitate to accept them.”

Cen An watched him walk away, shook his head, and then pushed open the door to enter the house.

Inside, Xiao Yi stared expressionlessly at the Green Shade Mouse on the table.

The Green Shade Mouse was a tiny little ball, curled up and trembling…

Cen An froze at the sight. “Xiao Yi, what are you doing?”

Hearing his voice, Xiao Yi instantly became well-behaved. “Big brother, I’m playing.”

“That’s no way to play.” Cen An couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time.

Xiao Yi stood up, looking a bit flustered, and hung his head. “I—I don’t know how to play…”

He couldn’t recall his earliest memories clearly, but he remembered that he’d once had a happy family and loved ones who cared for him.

But later, he became just another little creature in this world, forced to fight fiercely for his life just to earn a single bite to eat. Every day when he opened his eyes, all he could think about was how to survive. The word “play” had never crossed his mind.

“Big brother will teach you.” Cen An ruffled his hair, pulled him down to sit, and said in a soft voice, “Although the Green Shade Mouse is a small animal, it’s different from ordinary animals—it can understand what we say. You can do it like this, gently stroke it…”

Cen An stroked the Green Shade Mouse’s little head, and the mouse immediately nuzzled him affectionately. He then took Xiao Yi’s hand and gently stroked it.

Xiao Yi felt the warm, soft touch against his fingertips, but beneath that warm fur, the Green Shade Mouse seemed to be trembling slightly…

It seems a little afraid of me.

This thought suddenly crossed Xiao Yi’s mind, and his fingers withdrew nervously…

He didn’t like that the Green Shade Mouse was hogging his brother’s attention, but his brother had brought the mouse home, and his brother said it was very useful. He didn’t want his brother to think he was disobedient…

Cen An guided his hand, stroking the Green Shade Mouse again and again. The timid little mouse finally got used to it, slowly stopping its trembling, and even nudged its fingertips with its damp nose.

Xiao Yi was startled again.

Cen An rarely saw him react so jumpily, and he burst out laughing. “Don’t be afraid. It just wants to remember your scent. From now on, you two will be friends. When I’m not home, I’ll be counting on the two of you to look after the house.”

Xiao Yi looked at the little mouse, then at his brother’s smile, and slowly nodded. “Okay, big brother. I understand.”

Whatever his brother asked him to do, he would definitely do it.

Cen An ruffled the two little ones’ heads once more, then pulled the last fragrant apricot from his backpack. “Share this between yourselves.”

With that, he stood up and went into the back room.

The moment the golden-yellow apricot was taken out, it released a delicate fragrance.

Xiao Yi gently pried open the fruit, and crystal-clear juice flowed out. He tore off a small piece and handed it to Green Shade Mouse, then leaned in to take a light sip himself… a sweetness he had never tasted before.

He lowered his eyes and suddenly realized that his older brother wasn’t just a piece of driftwood he was clinging to… but more like a great tree, whose shade sheltered everyone who passed by, whether a child or a little mouse.

This realization made him feel a little sad, yet also a little relieved. His older brother would probably never truly belong to him, but he wouldn’t leave him either.

Cen An wasn’t nearly as calm on the inside as he appeared on the surface.

The entire ability-user squad had been injured, and Xiao Ji had nearly lost his life—this had shaken him deeply.

He had always known this world wasn’t safe, and had always worked hard to improve his chances of survival… but knowing and seeing it with his own eyes were two different things.

After all, in his previous life, he had lived in the safest country on the entire Blue Star; the most dangerous thing he could encounter was getting hit by a car while walking down the street. This created a gap between his understanding of danger and that of the people in this world.

Fortunately, this issue was discovered early on.

After spending some time with Little Mouse and Xiao Yi, Cen An felt much calmer now.

He couldn’t help but start thinking about how he could provide his friends with an extra layer of security. With such a massive advantage at his disposal, he couldn’t just sit idly by…

The busy night passed quickly.

Since he’d gone to bed late the night before, he woke up a bit later the next day.

He yawned as he climbed out of his bamboo cot. Xiao Yi had gotten up early, already cleaned the house, and even boiled water for him to wash up.

Cen An watched the little one bustling around the room and felt, for some reason, as if he’d raised a little slave.

“Is Big Brother awake?” Xiao Yi peeked in and whispered, “It seems someone delivered some things outside.”

“Hm?” Cen An washed his face and felt much more awake. He pushed open the door and nearly jumped out of his skin.

All he could see was a circle of supplies—lumber, hay, herbs, and the like—arranged around his small courtyard… Anyone unaware might have thought it was some kind of mysterious ritual!

He stared in disbelief. “What is this? Has the Mountain God appeared to bring me supplies?”

A figure seemed to dart past the corner of his eye. “Wait!”

Seeing the figure running further away, Cen An shouted, “Strangling Vine, stop him!”

The Strangling Vine usually only handled matters within the courtyard, but since Cen An had given the order, it extended its tendrils and bound the person.

Cen An peered over and groaned, “Wang Jin? Did you guys arrange all this?”

Wang Jin said sheepishly, “Not exactly. Some of it was brought by the villagers. We couldn’t have gathered this much in just one night…”

Cen An’s headache grew worse. “The villagers don’t have any spare supplies. This is nonsense. Hurry up and send it all back to them.”

Seeing that he wasn’t angry, Wang Jin felt slightly relieved. He said bitterly, “Brother Cen, just stay here. We don’t know what else we can do for you… Yesterday, Xiao Ji… he did that to save me… If you hadn’t brought Xiao Ji back, I wouldn’t know how to face his grandmother and sister.”

He wiped his face and whispered, “And those villagers—they didn’t give you things just so you’d save people in the future. It’s because…” He gestured as best he could, trying to make himself clear. “It’s because you gave everyone hope. Do you understand?”

“The world after the Great Cataclysm is so hopeless—everyone’s grown used to it. But you’re different. Since you arrived, it’s as if you’ve carved a path to survival out of a dead end. That’s why the villagers are willing to give you things; they’re all afraid you’ll leave.”

After a long silence, Cen An sighed. “I’m from Yongning Village. Where else could I go?”