22 New Ability

Li Xiaoxiao hid in the shadows. Fortunately, Lin Shuangshuang did not disappoint her.

The accelerator was floored, and the vehicle shot forward like an arrow released from a bow. However, the street was too narrow for the heavy off-road vehicle to maneuver effectively, and with a slight miscalculation, it slammed into a wall. Even so, the impact crushed two of the scoundrels into a bloody pulp, including the one whose thigh had been struck by the chubby man earlier.

"Bang! Bang!"

In a panic, the chubby man pulled the trigger, but no matter how he aimed, the bullets left no mark on the vehicle's body.

"Damn it!" Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, the bald man decided to flee, abandoning his underlings.

"Boss, wait for me!"

The chubby man was too slow to dodge and was crushed to death by the vehicle. The last remaining man looked regretfully at the gun the chubby man had dropped, which was now mangled under the car's wheels. Seeing the bald man running, he scrambled to follow. It was a joke to think he could survive alone; his frail frame couldn't withstand the heavy vehicle, and he couldn't make it out of the city on his own, so he had to stick with the bald leader.

The ideal was beautiful, but reality was harsh. Li Xiaoxiao would not let them escape. She raised her hand, sending two clusters of flames that landed squarely on the two men, igniting them instantly. In her past life, these men had already been tortured to death by her; since they had crossed paths in this lifetime, she would simply finish them off to prevent them from harming anyone else.

[Host, do you need manual labor? The two upstairs are not bad.]

Li Xiaoxiao initially wanted to refuse, but then she remembered the base upgrade mission.

"Let them live for now."

Li Xiaoxiao got into the car and drove away. The rain was coming soon.

***

[Congratulations to the host: Luck +5, Strength +10, Stamina +11, Agility +8.]
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining 15 Energy Potions.]
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining one B-grade Crystal Core Gun.]
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining 6 Ability Activation Potions.]
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining 14 Recovery Potions.]

Listening to the system's notifications, Li Xiaoxiao placed her daughter, who had fallen back asleep, into her cradle. She had moved the cradle out of the nursery space; the child couldn't stay in the void forever and needed to adapt to the current environment. She opened the door to let in Xu Zixuan, who had been waiting outside. Ever since he learned that Li Xiaoxiao had a daughter, the boy had been eager to see the little baby. However, he knew the outside environment was harsh, so he had waited until now.

They were currently in a hotel on the upper floors of the International Trade Building in the city center.

Before the rain even began to fall, the female zombie became restless, standing atop the car and roaring wildly. All other zombies approaching their vehicle steered clear. The zombies along the way were all moving toward the central plaza. They were numerous and packed tightly together, yet a vacuum formed around their vehicle.

Li Xiaoxiao signaled for Xu Zixuan to release the zombie. This rain was crucial for them. Zombie leveling was clearly defined; high-tier zombies could suppress and command lower-tier ones. At this moment, the female zombie had already evolved to Level 1, easily crushing the common Level 0 zombies. After this rain, she would undergo a second evolution. Furthermore, the female zombie's obsession would only grow stronger after evolution, not fade; Li Xiaoxiao was not worried about it betraying Xu Zixuan.

Drinking two more ability potions, Li Xiaoxiao successfully activated her Metal and Earth abilities. With this, all the powers from her past life had returned. Looking at the remaining potions, she wondered if she could activate others. She tentatively drank one, but after two minutes, she felt nothing, other than a clearer head. It was unclear if she had activated another ability.

"Mom, Shuangshuang, take these two. See if you can activate any other abilities."

Lin Qiu, having done this once before, took one and drank it skillfully. Three minutes later, a chunk of solid ice appeared in her palm, and a look of joy flashed in her eyes—she finally had an offensive ability. Lin Shuangshuang, watching with envy, hurriedly drank hers as well.

Three minutes later.

"Ahhh! Sister Xiaoxiao, Aunt Lin, I've awakened the Wind ability! This is amazing!"

Lin Shuangshuang hovered ten centimeters above the ground, screaming in ecstasy. "Sister Xiaoxiao, I love you! I love you! I love you so much!"

Freshly awakened, her power could only keep her afloat this high, but it was enough to make her ecstatic. She lunged forward, ready to hug Li Xiaoxiao. Li Xiaoxiao dodged quickly, avoiding the embrace. This girl was too intense; she couldn't handle it.

Xu Zixuan, who had been watching Li Yueyao in the bedroom, came out upon hearing the commotion. He gently closed the door and looked at Lin Shuangshuang with disapproval. "Sister Shuangshuang, keep your voice down. You're going to wake up the baby."

Lin Shuangshuang quickly went quiet, though the excitement on her face remained. Upon learning she had gained a new ability, Xu Zixuan looked at Li Xiaoxiao with hopeful eyes.

"Sister, I want a new ability too."

He wanted a new power, preferably an offensive one, so he could control zombies while killing them himself—how cool that would be! Li Xiaoxiao handed him the last activation potion. The boy took it happily, drank it in one gulp, and waited quietly for three minutes.

Then, Lin Shuangshuang watched the lightning crackling in the boy's small hand and fell into silence. Why did he get lightning? It was so cool and stylish!

"Sister Xiaoxiao, you must save the next batch of activation potions for me," she pleaded.

"Focus on mastering your own ability first. If you use it well, you can be invincible."

Although Lin Shuangshuang knew Li Xiaoxiao had her best interests at heart, she still felt a bit aggrieved.

"Greed leads to nothing! Let alone leveling up, do you even know what forms the Wind ability can take?"

"Wind blades!" Lin Shuangshuang answered immediately.

"And besides wind blades?"

This time, Lin Shuangshuang fell silent.

"As far as I know, besides wind blades, there are wind tornadoes, wind restraints, storm summoning, and even space-time storms. There are many more, depending on your comprehension and control of the Wind ability. Furthermore, the Wind ability doesn't just let you float; used well, it can even achieve invisibility. Can you do that? Also, your sound ability is very powerful. You might find it useless in the early stages, but it will absolutely stun you once it levels up."

Li Xiaoxiao's words made Lin Shuangshuang's eyes sparkle; she had never imagined the Wind ability could manifest in so many ways.

"Sister Xiaoxiao, I'm sorry, I was narrow-minded. I will work hard to study it; I won't hold everyone back." Lin Shuangshuang clenched her fists, promising.

"Sister, I will work hard too. I want to protect sister Yaoyao," Xu Zixuan also promised.

Li Xiaoxiao had corrected the boy's way of addressing her before, but he refused to change, insisting on calling her "Sister" while calling the baby "Sister Yaoyao." She eventually let it go.

[Ding! The host helped Xu Zixuan obtain a second ability. Reward: B-grade Crystal Core Gun *1.]
[Ding! Detected Xu Zixuan's corruption value -10. Current corruption value: 89. Reward: Energy Extractor.]