Axolotl Translations

“Wait, wait, hold on—what did you just say? Superpowers?”

Gu Mengran was so stunned he couldn’t help but interrupt Zheng Yijie.

“Come on, drop the act. I saw everything.” Zheng Yijie didn’t seem angry. Instead, he shrugged and analyzed the situation on his own. “A whole vehicle vanishing into thin air? If that’s not a superpower, what is? I’m guessing you’ve got some kind of spatial ability.”

Gu Mengran: …

As expected of a well-read web novel author—his way of thinking was on an entirely different level. Not only was he completely unfazed, but he even filled in the gaps himself, made sense of it, and nailed the ability.

The word “superpowers” wasn’t new to Gu Mengran. He’d read enough novels to know the concept. Following Zheng Yijie’s logic, waking up with a personal space versus a supernatural ability… the latter did seem more reasonable.

…But this wasn’t the time to be debating that. The priority now was shutting Zheng Yijie up and making sure he kept the secret to himself. That said, using “superpowers” as an excuse wasn’t a bad idea.

Gu Mengran’s mind raced, and in seconds, he’d made a decision.

“Ahem!” He cleared his throat, lightly touched his chin, and put on a serious face. Then, in a deep voice, he said, “Since you already know, let’s be straight—come with us.”

The sudden shift caught Zheng Yijie completely off guard. “Go where?”

“You’ve got supplies, I’ve got abilities. Let’s leave Shancheng and head to Yinan together.”

Zheng Yijie barely hesitated before refusing. “No, no, no. Jiu Street isn’t a threat to me right now. I’ve got food, water, plenty of supplies—I’m not leaving yet. And about your ability, I swear I won’t say a word. Let’s just pretend I didn’t see anything today, okay?”

Choosing to stay was no surprise. Of course—with enough food and water, why leave the comfort of a safe place?

But…

Gu Mengran raised an eyebrow, a confident smirk playing on his lips. “You really think I’m the only one with an ability? And you think we’re going to Yinan for no reason?”

“Huh? What do you mean?” Zheng Yijie blinked, stunned. His neck stiffly turned as he looked at Liang Zhao in disbelief. “You—you have an ability too? What kind of ability?”

Liang Zhao wasn’t entirely sure where Gu Mengran was going with this, but their minds were in sync. He grinned, nodding his chin toward Zheng Yijie. “Have a guess.”

That short response confirmed everything. Zheng Yijie’s pupils narrowed, his eyes darting between Gu Mengran and Liang Zhao, then settling on the door. His lips trembled. “Grandpa Meng… and the girls… don’t tell me they have abilities too?”

“No, they don’t.” Gu Mengran cut him off, quick and firm—no need to go overboard with the story.

“Phew! You scared me!” Zheng Yijie let out a big breath, patting his chest twice, trying to calm his racing heart. “For a second, I thought you guys were some kind of world-saving superhero team!”

“And what’s so scary about saving the world?” Gu Mengran asked casually.

Zheng Yijie shook his head. “Saving the world is noble. But me? Doing it? That’s terrifying.”

At least he knew his limits. Gu Mengran chuckled. “You’re reading too much into it. Even with abilities, we’re just regular people. We don’t have the power to save the world, or the desire. We just want to survive—to get through whatever’s coming with the people we care about.”

That last part made Zheng Yijie pause, a flicker of unease in his eyes. He quickly followed up, “Wait—’whatever’s coming’? You’re saying… this isn’t over?”

Zheng Yijie turned to Liang Zhao, a flicker of panic in his eyes. “Come on, give me a clue! How am I supposed to guess if you don’t give me something to work with?”

The moment was perfect, the tension was just right. Gu Mengran decided to drop the act. He lowered his gaze, fixing Zheng Yijie with a serious look, and enunciated clearly, “Premonition.”

“Pre—premonition? Seeing the future?” Zheng Yijie’s face went pale, his eyes widening, his mouth falling open in stunned silence.

“Not exactly.” Gu Mengran chose his words carefully, explaining calmly, “It’s not about seeing everything—it’s about disasters. The yellow fog, the eruptions, the quakes… everything he dreamed came true.”

“And? That’s all stuff that’s already happened. If you want to convince me, tell me something I don’t know.” Zheng Yijie, though still shaken, quickly regained his composure and fixed Gu Mengran with an expectant look.

Gu Mengran sighed. “I was just laying the groundwork to make it easier for you to believe—”

“No need. I believe you.” Zheng Yijie cut him off, his voice firm, his expression serious. “You have no reason to lie or trick me. Even if I knew your secret, you could just lock me in this room and leave me behind, and I wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.”

Not a bad idea, Gu Mengran mused, the corners of his lips curving up slightly. He shot Zheng Yijie a knowing look, making the man shiver.

“Relax, I was just kidding. Since you seem to have a good handle on this, I’ll get straight to the point.”

Gu Mengran’s smile vanished, his expression turning grave. “Since the earthquake, my brother’s dreams have been the same—endless, unrelenting rain. A torrential downpour that never stops, lasting for years. And after that… the land begins to disappear. Bit by bit, it gets swallowed up, until nothing remains. In other words—Earth will become nothing but a vast ocean. A second Waterworld.”

The words had barely left his lips when Zheng Yijie’s legs gave out beneath him. He stumbled backward, collapsing onto the edge of the bed, staring blankly ahead as if the weight of that revelation had drained him of all strength.

“The land… disappearing? Earth turning into… Waterworld? That’s insane!”

As a web novel author and self-proclaimed apocalypse junkie, Zheng Yijie had pictured every possible end—scorching heat, freezing cold, endless daylight, eternal darkness, asteroid strikes…

But never once had he considered that humanity’s home would be swallowed by an endless ocean.

Where would they even live? Would they evolve gills or something? His mind raced, lost in a daze, unable to grasp the enormity of it.

Before he could process it, Gu Mengran stepped closer and gave his shoulder a light pat. “It’s not just rain. The storms will trigger landslides, flash floods, and mudslides. To be blunt—Shancheng will be submerged soon. And with your current supplies, survival is practically impossible.”

“Hiss—”

Zheng Yijie sucked in a sharp breath, the sound cutting through the silent room.

He ran a hand through his hair, struggling to maintain his composure. “Then… what about Yinan? Yinan won’t be flooded, right? That’s why you’re going there?”

“Don’t fool yourself. When the land disappears, it’s gone—Yinan will drown too.” Gu Mengran’s tone was firm, but he offered a sliver of hope. “We’re going there because it’s further up the Huang River. The terrain is flatter, less prone to flash floods and landslides.”

Zheng Yijie groaned, flopping onto the bed, arms spread wide in defeat. “That’s it. The world’s really finished, isn’t it?”

But his dramatic collapse lasted barely ten seconds before a thought jolted him upright. He sat up abruptly, his eyes suddenly bright.

“Wait a minute—you guys got your abilities before the disasters? You’ve got spatial storage and the power to see the future… That means you must have made some serious preparations, right?”

For the first time in their conversation, a spark of hope lit his eyes.

Finally, they had arrived at this topic. Gu Mengran smiled and nodded. “Of course. We’re a bit more prepared than you, to say the least.”

“What exactly did you prepare? If the land disappears, where do you plan to live? A super-yacht?”

Gu Mengran’s lips curved into a teasing smile. “Can’t say. Not unless you become one of us.”

The moment those words hit his ears, Zheng Yijie almost blurted out a “yes.”

He understood the situation perfectly. If the world really became a vast ocean, these people weren’t using him—they were offering him a lifeboat.

But… he had just refused them so adamantly a moment ago. If he changed his mind this quickly, wouldn’t it make him look like he was terrified of dying? Besides, they had powerful abilities. It wasn’t like they needed him just because he had stumbled upon their secret. What would they even gain from bringing him along?

Wait… supplies!

Maybe they had a solid plan, but their supplies weren’t as complete as they let on. No shelter, no transportation, and for the past few days, they had all been relying on his food…

Thinking of the warehouse full of stockpiled goods back home, Zheng Yijie suddenly felt a surge of confidence.

To secure a better position in this arrangement, he deliberately cleared his throat, as if he were stepping into a serious negotiation. “So, lay it out—what’s the plan? How do you intend to survive in Yinan? If your arrangements make sense, I might consider bringing my supplies along and joining you.”

…What the hell was this guy imagining? Give him an inch, and he wants a mile.

Gu Mengran gave him a flat look, then, without a word, turned and walked away. “Let’s go, Liang Zhao. Let him take his time thinking it over.”

Wait, they were actually leaving?!

Zheng Yijie panicked for a split second, though he didn’t let it show on his face.

It wasn’t until Gu Mengran reached for the door handle, swung the door open, and showed no sign of stopping that Zheng Yijie finally snapped. He jumped to his feet, darting over and pressing a hand against the door, halting it just as a sliver of daylight peeked through.

“Can’t we at least talk this through? Shouldn’t I have the right to know if I’m going to be part of your group?”

“Weren’t you still ‘thinking it over’? Since when are you ‘part of the group’?” Gu Mengran shot back.

Zheng Yijie immediately lost some of his momentum, his shoulders drooping as he mumbled, “I… I do want to go with you. But I’m not just some useless deadweight—I have supplies. I just want to know a little more so I have some sense of what I’m getting into.”

Gu Mengran wasn’t about to be foolish enough to lay all his cards on the table. He’d already shown plenty of sincerity, and if Zheng Yijie kept dragging his feet, he might just abandon the idea of bringing him along entirely.

Locking him in the basement wasn’t a bad backup—leave him some supplies as a parting gift, and that’d be that. But considering Zheng Yijie had taken them in out of kindness, Gu Mengran glanced back at him and decided to give him one last piece of advice.

“Trust me, leaving is your only choice. The only question is when, and with who. You have your concerns, and we have ours. This isn’t an era of peace anymore—you can’t just trust everyone. But I can promise you this: if you come with us, life won’t be worse than it is now.”

Zheng Yijie must have sensed Gu Mengran’s hesitation, because he suddenly gritted his teeth and met his gaze head-on.

“Fine, I’m in. I’ll go with you!”

“Then let’s move. We’ve got some business to handle first.” Gu Mengran smirked and turned the doorknob again.

“Where? What business?” Zheng Yijie asked.

Oh, right. Almost forgot.

Gu Mengran paused briefly before laying out the deal he’d made with Jiu Street.

The moment he heard they were heading to Jincheng, Zheng Yijie, who’d just made up his mind, started backing out again. He shuffled his feet, then cautiously suggested, “Do I… really have to go? I could stay and watch the kids. They listen to me.”

“Sure,” Gu Mengran replied, shrugging. “But we need three people. So, you’ll have to talk to the two teachers and see if one of them is willing to go in your place. They should be easy to convince.”

Easy to convince? Even if they were, he couldn’t bring himself to ask them!

Zheng Yijie’s face twisted in reluctance. After a beat of silence, he pouted and muttered, “Fine, I’ll go. But you have to answer one thing first.”

Realizing that sounded pushy, he quickly checked their reactions.

Seeing that neither of them seemed bothered, he patted his chest and softened his tone. “It’s nothing unreasonable. I just want to know—how did you guys get your abilities? And can I get one too?”

He leaned forward, eyes full of anticipation. “Think about it—you guys both have support-type abilities. But if I awakened a combat-type ability, wouldn’t that be a huge help?”

Gu Mengran let out a low chuckle, glancing back at him with an amused expression.

“We’re not entirely sure how we got them,” he said casually. “But before the disasters hit, we trained our bodies regularly to prepare for survival. So maybe, just maybe…” He paused, then grinned. “Two hundred push-ups a day?”

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