CHAPTER 66: CHAPTER 65: HELLO, EARTHLING.

"There are seventy-four more people to rescue."

Ma Ran glanced at Su Qiangwei beside him: "Rescuing one person consumes seven to eight acupoints of inner qi."

"There might be some fluctuations, but..."

"Not less than six."

"We’ll have to stay here for another two days."

Su Qiangwei snorted softly.

She wasn’t like Song Chu, who would foolishly trust people who betrayed him!

No need for Ma Ran to say more, she understood his meaning immediately.

"I get it."

"You just want me to replenish your energy, right?"

"That’s pretty much what ’Energy Transmission’ is for."

Power bank girl, online!

...

Three days later, all the survivors in the A3 District were out of danger.

8:25 in the morning.

The special car sent by Grass Hut Academy took Ma Ran and Su Qiangwei away.

"Salute!"

The survivors stood straight, with five fingers closed, raising their hands in unison.

Their middle fingers lightly touched their temples, facing the direction of the departing vehicle.

Swish!

Some wore military uniforms, some donned white lab coats, others wore chef hats, and the rest in academic society uniforms...

No matter their age or gender, the gratitude and sincerity in their eyes were unmistakably genuine.

In the sudden morning rain...

The five-starred red flag waved in the wind.

...

Outside the car window, torrential rain poured down.

Su Qiangwei munched on wasabi-flavored chips, humming a cheerful tune, happily like an innocent child.

Ma Ran looked at the muddy road outside the window, furrowing his brows, thinking about the myriad disasters ahead.

"In the next half a month, there haven’t been any sudden events with too high danger levels."

"It’s worth mentioning that nine days later, a group of alien invaders will arrive in Guangdong."

Crunch crunch...

The sound of chewing chips echoed in his ears, like a magical sound drilling into his brain.

"Based on the encrypted archive records, they are the same as the batch from Jinshui Town, all ’White Mane’ aliens."

A faint purple light glimmered in Ma Ran’s eyes.

This group of alien invaders, though mostly as weak as ants, are the kind that can be taken down with conventional weapons, yet their origin remains a mystery. Their equipment encryption is exceptionally good.

Even at the moment of Earth’s destruction, they left no valuable information.

Because they always wear pure white protective clothing, China gave these aliens the codename ’White Mane aliens.’

White Mane, meaning white hyena.

Insidious and cunning, vicious and cruel.

They are not bound by morals or laws, careless of individual dignity, adept at plundering, trampling, and killing civilians. When faced with a large number of warriors or elite Earth Civilization Guardians, they flee in panic.

Not difficult to deal with, but extremely annoying.

"This time, the White Mane aliens arriving in Guangdong, there are just more of them, but no improvements in equipment or combat skills."

"Perhaps the painful lessons from the first time taught them some lessons."

"The casualties they’ve caused are much lower than the first time."

Crunch crunch...

"But as long as we make a ’prophecy’ ahead of time, providing sufficiently detailed intelligence..."

"The higher-ups want the Baiyue Academy members to provide logistical support with their superpowers, coupled with firepower coverage, ensuring zero casualties."

Crunch crunch...

Ma Ran raised an eyebrow, glanced at the potato chips in Su Qiangwei’s hand, and slowly moved his gaze to her face.

The power bank girl was momentarily stunned, then offered the chip at her lips: "If you want some, just say it. Since when did you become so fussy?"

Ma Ran glanced at the chips again.

They did taste quite good...

Years before Earth’s destruction, one could no longer savor these fried snacks.

Feeling tempted, Ma Ran still chose to decline: "What I mean is..."

"The noise you’re making is disrupting my thinking."

Su Qiangwei paused for a moment, her face flushed with anger.

Annoyed, she tossed the chips into the bag, crushed them with her hand, and poured them into her mouth, finishing them all in a few bites.

How can you eat chips without making noise!

Plus, what’s wrong with humming a song?

I’m proud now!

If I wasn’t so hungry, I’d put my hands on my hips!

Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda.

In the A3 District, she saved a total of seventy-five lives!

After being a power bank for three days, Su Qiangwei felt her stamina drained, her energy overdrawn, and her body as if emptied.

However...

Thinking about the genuine gratitude and respect from those in A3 District before leaving, Su Qiangwei felt all the effort was worth it!

A sense of achievement!

Feeling of satisfaction!

Sense of fulfilling her value!

All of it!

Hmm...

Su Qiangwei had to admit that Ma Ran’s efforts and contributions in this couldn’t be overlooked either.

This is the charm of team collaboration!

Thinking of this, she suddenly felt it wasn’t worth getting upset about.

Ma Ran is just like that.

Didn’t she already know?

The generous little fairy never fusses over such trivialities!

Su Qiangwei glared at Ma Ran, turning her frustration into appetite, grabbed the meat bun stored in the insulated box, and devoured it in three bites.

No more noise.

That’s good.

Ma Ran leaned against the car window, eyes slightly closed.

Though the White Mane aliens come and go without a trace and are extremely annoying, under the grand scheme, they aren’t much of a threat.

What truly concerns Ma Ran is the special event a month later, codenamed [Demon Mountain].

Its danger level is even above that of the Nightmare event!

It is precisely because of the [Demon Mountain event] that the news about extraterrestrial creatures and Superpowers truly began to spread nationally, eventually leading to the disclosure of some Supernatural Ability information to the public by various academic societies six months later.

So...

After solving the A3 District Nightmare event, the second script specifically for the [Demon Mountain event] should now be activated.

Ma Ran slowly opened his eyes.

A strong current of cold air swirled outside the car.

At some point, the sudden rain outside the window had turned into drifting, thick snowflakes.

This scene reminded Ma Ran of Li Bai’s line — "Perhaps celestial immortals drunkenly scatter the clouds."

The car came to a stop.

The driver uncle got out to install snow chains on the tires.

Su Qiangwei and Ma Ran also stepped out of the car.

The ice and snow were like knives, and the cold wind was biting.

Ma Ran raised his hand to catch the falling snowflakes.

"Senior Wan Haihao..."

"The next part will be tough for you."

Swoosh!

A shadow darted towards Ma Ran.

He lifted his eyelids slightly and waved his hand with a gentle pat.

Bang!

A snowball exploded in his palm.

"Hahaha!"

Su Qiangwei let out a childish and maniacal laugh, with thirteen snowballs floating between her hands: "Ma Ran! Let’s battle!"

...

The following content comes from an encrypted diary in a dormitory at the Grass Hut Academy.

——

Almost half a month has passed since the [Nightmare event].

It is now my twenty-fourth day joining the Grass Hut Academy.

I, Wan Haihao, a Chinese.

Currently a second-year doctoral student.

Unlike other doctoral friends, I do not need to worry about problems with my thesis and experimental results.

The word "withdraw"① has never been in my range of choices.

Under normal circumstances, I would smoothly obtain my doctorate and continue to excel in the field of scientific research, becoming an object of admiration.

But I am not happy.

I am always unsatisfied with myself.

I always want to do better in all aspects.

However...

This kind of life seems endless.

I do not understand why I am living.

I feel like I am on a desolate island isolated from the world.

Not knowing what I am doing or what I want to achieve.

The excitement of joining the Grass Hut Academy has gradually faded with time.

I began to ponder, what is the true meaning of my life?

Dong Huaiming is exploring the mysteries of the Extraordinary.

Wu Di strives to find sincere friends.

Su Qiangwei wants to defeat Ma Ran.

And what about me?

Why am I alive?

I am like a wooden puppet with no goals and dreams, mindlessly busy every day.

He Nanguang, a senior from the Fulan Academy, talked with me for a long time, trying to help me find an answer.

But he failed.

From time to time, I feel fear.

Fear of being surpassed by others.

Fear of developing a terminal illness.

Fear of sudden death.

Fear of no longer being the pride of my family and friends.

For over two decades...

I have never lived for myself.

It seems I have never truly lived.

I feel like there might be something wrong with my spirit.

Lately, even in my sleep, there is always someone talking to me in my dreams.

When I listen carefully, I completely cannot understand what is being said.

It’s like the garbled text often seen in low-tier single-player games.

It’s time to see a psychologist — when I had this thought, that increasingly familiar voice came again.

This time...

I was awake.

Moreover, the other party was speaking Mandarin.

I finally understood what he was saying.

"Hello, Earthling."

——

(① "Withdraw": yì yè, has many meanings; in Wan Haihao’s diary, it specifically refers to the inability to complete graduation experiments and thesis smoothly and successfully graduate.)

——

Thanks to reader ending in 2827 for the 200-point reward!

Thanks to Zhongbei Zhibeiyou Guayan for the 200-point reward!

Thanks to Wanfa Daoist for the 100-point reward!

Thanks to "Has Time Passed Yet, Are You Still Here?" for the 100-point reward!

Thanks to Little Fatty Who Loves Reading for the 100-point reward!

Thanks to "Random Nickname Is Better Than Numbers" for the 100-point reward!

Thanks to Dried Fish for rewarding Ma Ran with a chicken leg (100 points)!

Thanks to Moyu Xingyuan for the 100-point reward!

Thanks to Cold Heart O for the 100-point crushing reward!

Thank you! (๑▽๑)

```