Lantern Sister is still very capable.

Chapter 74 First Encounter

Chu Deng spent ten minutes traveling back and forth. Once back in the dormitory, she quickly took a shower to wash away the dust and grime, and then sat on the balcony chatting with Jin Xiaoyue.

Jin Xiaoyue was in a good mood and brewed a cup of tea. If it weren't for the stars in the sky outside, it would have looked like the two of them chatting leisurely over afternoon tea.

Chu Deng, enjoying the night breeze, took a sip of tea in a good mood: "Ask me anything you want, and I'll tell you everything I know."

If Chu Deng were to speak on her own initiative, the two of them wouldn't be able to sleep for three days and three nights.

Jin Xiaoyue asked the first question she most wanted to know: "So what exactly is that ability?"

"Special abilities? That's what everyone calls them, so those who possess them are called superpowered individuals. There are five basic elemental superpowers: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, plus five mutated ones: wind, ice, lightning, and light. There's also a special spatial ability. I'm a fire-type superpowered individual, and I can control flames. The giant rat I encountered tonight is a spatial ability user; it can store things and teleport."

"Then, can I become a superhuman too?" It sounds so amazing. Jin Xiaoyue touched her fingers together and couldn't help but ask.

She held her breath, awaiting Chu Deng's verdict.

A superhuman, someone with special abilities. It sounds like something only one in a million could possess. Her desire for such mysterious things wasn't actually that strong, but…

Jin Xiaoyue met Chu Deng's smiling eyes and felt a sudden sense of relief.

Chu Deng looked at her and smiled, then gave a firm answer: "Yes, you can become a superhuman."

Her tone was so certain, as if she could magically become a superhuman any second now without surprising her friend.

Jin Xiaoyue suddenly turned her head, picked up her cup, took a sip of tea, and suppressed the heat in her eyes.

She wasn't after any special abilities; she simply didn't want to be abandoned by Chu Deng, that's all.

Are there many people like you?

Chu Deng paused for a moment, then said, "I think so. This school training camp is for selecting people with superpowers, and our instructors have wind-type superpowers."

Jin Xiaoyue was surprised to find that the hidden superhumans around her included not only Dengdeng, but also Instructor Huo.

"Then, are they as good as you?" Jin Xiaoyue asked.

Chu Deng dared not exaggerate; she had personally witnessed the Fire Butterfly being killed by a level 5 wind-type. "There are those stronger than me."

But then Chu Deng thought of the battle at Haishi Port and added, "Most of them aren't as good as me." He was trying to project an aura of authority in front of his friend.

Jin Xiaoyue chuckled to herself, "Dengdeng will protect me from now on."

"Of course." Chu Deng smiled knowingly; this was precisely what motivated her to level up.

Jin Xiaoyue turned into a walking encyclopedia of questions, asking Chu Deng many things about his superpowers. But most of her questions actually focused on Chu Deng himself. Understanding superpowers was like understanding another side of Chu Deng. At this point, Jin Xiaoyue had a feeling that she was gradually touching on all of Chu Deng.

Looking back now, it's as if there was an invisible barrier between her and Chu Deng. Although the two were inseparable, she could never enter Chu Deng's heart. It was always Chu Deng who needed her.

It was only after Jin Xiaoyue experienced that incident in the alley that she seemed to break through that barrier, but she didn't realize it at the time.

Jin Xiaoyue touched Chu Deng's fingers, the real, warm lamp...

She was also trying to pull me into that mysterious world.

Chu Deng made her cripple that scoundrel herself, Chu Deng made her practice gymnastics diligently, Chu Deng took her to hunt rats and retrieve gems... Every single thing she did hinted at something.

I think about it every day and dream about it at night.

After talking with Chu Deng late into the night, Jin Xiaoyue fell asleep. She rarely dreams, but this time she dreamed of her first meeting with Chu Deng.

Chu Deng was always alone in her first year of high school, and was known as the unattainable beauty of her class. Everyone wanted to be friends with Chu Deng, but they were all intimidated by her inexplicable aura, and no one dared to get too close to her; they could only be acquaintances and classmates.

Jin Xiaoyue was a well-known aloof rich girl in the class. Her classmates talked about how she was driven to and from school by a private car, and that her stationery, backpack, and snacks were all high-end products just by looking at their packaging. It seemed that she was afraid of being called a sycophant who fawned over rich people, so no one took the initiative to befriend Jin Xiaoyue.

The two loners first had a close encounter during a physical education class in the second semester of their first year of high school.

Since it was still quite cold in winter, the PE teacher led them on a few laps to warm up before letting them do their own thing.

Jin Xiaoyue was walking alone by the lake near the playground. There used to be a lake near the playground with a pavilion in the center. Later, for some reason, the school filled in the lake.

On her way to the pavilion in the middle of the lake, she encountered Chu Deng, who was squatting under a tree.

Passing by the prettiest and best student in the class, even Jin Xiaoyue couldn't help but take a second look out of curiosity.

She stumbled and changed direction, which gave her a clear view of the direction Chu Deng was facing. As she walked, she looked at the dark object poking at the lawn with a twig and suddenly realized it was a black bird.

Jin Xiaoyue's heart skipped a beat, and she turned on her tiptoes and walked over.

Sure enough, lying on the lawn was a black crow. It was soaking wet, its two thin legs twitched from time to time, its feathers were messy, with a few feathers lying on the grass next to it, and its head was bald with bloodstains, as if it had fought with some animal and lost.

Even someone who knows nothing can tell that this crow is about to die.

"You!" Jin Xiaoyue was extremely anxious when she saw Chu Deng still poking the crow with a branch. She went around to the opposite side of Chu Deng, picked up the crow with both hands, and was about to take it to the infirmary.

Jin Xiaoyue was in poor health when she was young, and her mother passed away early. Her father was also busy with work. Fearing that she would be lonely while recovering from her illness, her father, Jin Dahai, brought a parrot to the house so that the parrot could keep Jin Xiaoyue company and keep her company.

Jin Xiaoyue grew up surrounded by birds, and out of love for birds, she naturally developed a fondness for them. She couldn't bear to see birds get hurt, and even if the chances were slim, she wanted to save this crow.

Jin Xiaoyue carried the crow to the infirmary without stopping. Because she was worried about students getting injured on the playground, the infirmary was not far from the playground, and Jin Xiaoyue arrived in two or three minutes. Along the way, she kept an eye on the crow's condition. Seeing that the crow's legs were still twitching, she was both nervous that it would die and hoping that it could hold on.

When the doctor arrived at the infirmary, he saw Jin Xiaoyue rushing in and immediately stood up from his chair, thinking that Jin Xiaoyue was injured. But when he looked closely, he saw that Jin Xiaoyue was holding a crow in front of him. It turned out that it was not a person who was in trouble, but an animal.

The doctor, who was barely able to play the role of a veterinarian, concluded: "Biteed by a venomous snake. We don't know what type of snake it is. Let's try giving it an injection first. The chances of saving it are slim."

Jin Xiaoyue frowned as she watched the crow convulsing incessantly. Helpless, she sat beside it, watching the doctor finish the procedure, and then waited blankly.

The doctor turned to look behind Jin Xiaoyue. "Student, is there something you need?"

Jin Xiaoyue turned her head and was surprised to see Chu Deng standing behind her.

“I was with her,” Chu Deng said calmly.

The doctor nodded, returned to his desk, and used his personal terminal to contact the school's principal. The crow had been poisoned by a snake, indicating that there might be venomous snakes at the school. It would be terrible if a student were bitten, so he had to contact the school immediately to remove them.

After the doctor left, Jin Xiaoyue and Chu Deng were left speechless, looking at each other in bewilderment.

Looking at the crow lying paralyzed on the hospital bed, Chu Deng suddenly asked, "Why did you save it?"

Jin Xiaoyue was a little confused. What kind of question was this?

"There's no reason why, I just wanted to save it." Jin Xiaoyue answered from the bottom of her heart. Although she felt that Chu Deng was a bit cold, she couldn't explain any grand principles. She just felt that a life was about to disappear before her eyes and couldn't help but want to do her best to save it.

Chu Deng remained silent.

Feeling uneasy under Chu Deng's gaze, Jin Xiaoyue shifted slightly, then, after a moment's thought, said, "It doesn't want to die either..."

Muttering something under her breath, Jin Xiaoyue lowered her head.

Chu Deng's eyes flickered. "It doesn't want to die, does it?"

Chu Deng watched as the little fire crow provoked the water snake in the lake and thought the little guy was courting death.

Jin Xiaoyue seemed to sense the hidden meaning in Chu Deng's words, and looked at Chu Deng firmly, saying, "It's been convulsing so violently, yet it's still holding on until now; it definitely doesn't want to die!"

Chu Deng nodded in agreement. "If you don't want it to die, then don't let it die."

Jin Xiaoyue looked completely confused. What did that mean?

"Excuse me, could you please sign something?" the doctor said to Jin Xiaoyue.

Jin Xiaoyue swallowed the question that was about to come out and went out to sign the papers.

When she returned to the hospital bed, she saw that the crow, which had been convulsing, had calmed down. Jin Xiaoyue thought it was dead, and her eyes welled up with tears. Then she saw the crow's wings trembling.

"He's not dead," Chu Deng said.

Jin Xiaoyue's voice choked, and she looked at Chu Deng with teary eyes: "Yes."

Chu Deng seemed startled by her, "Why are you crying if it's not dead?"

"I'm so moved, sob sob!" A surge of warmth welled up in Jin Xiaoyue's heart. She thought excitedly, "Is this... is this the miracle of life?!"

"Huh? It actually survived! It seems to be in stable condition. Hmm, just in case, observe it for a few more days. You two can come check on it during break. Once it's better, you can release it back into the wild—"

As the doctor's words faded into the distance, Jin Xiaoyue gradually regained consciousness from her slumber.

"Time to wake up."

She opened her blurry eyes, saw the familiar Chu Deng, and couldn't help but smile.

"it is good."