Too weak and powerless

“Are you sure you still want to go out with me like this?”

After yesterday’s intimacy, Yang Yuan had intended to go out to buy necessary daily supplies, but Su Xiaoyou, lying beside him, started to make a fuss.

“Of course I do!”

After yesterday, Su Xiaoyou now completely regarded Yang Yuan as her exclusive boyfriend.

The possessive girl would absolutely not let Yang Yuan go out alone.

“Besides, it doesn’t hurt that much. I’ve been working out regularly, you know.”

Su Xiaoyou shyly wriggled out of Yang Yuan’s embrace. As she spoke, she supported her waist and slowly stood up.

“Hiss… it’s bearable!”

Faced with Su Xiaoyou’s stubborn attitude, Yang Yuan knew he couldn’t win against her. He could only slowly help her up, and they went out together to buy daily necessities.

On the way, Su Xiaoyou swept away her morning discomfort and became energetic again.

She held Yang Yuan’s arm, shyly yet expectantly asking him nonstop.

“A’Yuan, are we… considered a couple now?”

“Am I… your girlfriend now?”

This direct inquiry made Yang Yuan laugh. Of course, he didn’t want to be an irresponsible scumbag.

But for now, Su Xiaoyou was like a ticking time bomb. Confirming their relationship now might lead to a rapid detonation over some small matter in the future.

He planned to find a way to “train” her into a normal girl before confirming their relationship.

Yang Yuan stopped walking, turned his head, and asked her: “Have you forgotten what you did before? I don’t dare to date you right now.”

Hearing this, the smile on Su Xiaoyou’s face instantly vanished, replaced by deep disappointment. She greatly regretted her past crazy behavior.

“But…” Yang Yuan changed the subject.

“It’s only for now. If you can always listen to me in the future.”

“Promise not to misuse your ability anymore, and not to get jealous and hurt others casually, then this matter can be discussed differently.”

Su Xiaoyou’s eyes lit up again. She immediately raised her hand and excitedly promised: “I promise I won’t misuse my ability again!”

But then she thought again and felt something was wrong.

“Wait, then… doesn’t that make me a backup option now!” Su Xiaoyou exclaimed, puffing her cheeks.

“I don’t want to be a backup option!”

“Alright, alright, what’s so bad about being a backup option~”

Yang Yuan went along with her words, smilingly appeasing this fuming “backup girlfriend number one.”

Su Xiaoyou started to sulk and ignore him, thinking Yang Yuan was a scumbag who was stringing her along.

Seeing this, Yang Yuan had no choice but to lean close to Su Xiaoyou’s ear and whisper something.

“When we get back tonight, I’ll play those games from yesterday with you again.”

The girl’s little face quickly turned completely red, and only then did she coyly forgive Yang Yuan.

“Then… you have to promote me to official status quickly!”

****

In the crowded shopping mall, advertisements for holiday promotions were playing over the broadcast.

“We need to buy new toothbrushes, and also… laundry detergent.”

Yang Yuan and Su Xiaoyou pushed a shopping cart, slowly moving from the fresh produce section to the daily necessities section.

“Don’t we still have toothbrushes at home?”

“How can that be the same? We need to buy a matching couple’s set of toothbrushes now!”

Su Xiaoyou loudly retorted, placing item after item into the shopping cart.

“By the way.”

Yang Yuan suddenly glanced at a row of strangely shaped small objects on a display case not far away and couldn’t help but turn his head and ask.

“Have you noticed that there are more and more derivative products of superpowers now?”

“What derivative products? These are called ability-attached objects.” Su Xiaoyou looked up for a few glances, her interest also piqued, and explained to Yang Yuan.

“Some superpower users, through systematic training and learning, can attach the characteristics of their abilities to objects.”

“For example, that lighter has a combustion ability attached to it, which can make the flame hotter.”

“And those sports shoes over there have an acceleration ability attached. Wearing them makes you run faster.”

Yang Yuan nodded thoughtfully. He really didn’t know as much about this as Su Xiaoyou did.

“Are there any items that can be used for combat?”

He asked curiously. Although Yang Yuan had the [Insight] ability, he still wanted the thrill of battle.

“Of course there are, but powerful attached objects that can provide assistance in combat are strictly controlled by the state and won’t be circulated on the market.”

Yang Yuan had a new idea: “Then when are you going to learn? Just make me a spatial ring, and I won’t have to carry bags when I go grocery shopping anymore.”

“It’s not that simple!” Su Xiaoyou immediately retorted.

“Haven’t you heard the experts say? The stronger the ability, the harder it is to attach, and the greater the cost.”

“My [Void Palm] is so strong, it must be very difficult to do.”

Just as the two were flirting and shopping, Yang Yuan suddenly felt something was wrong with his eyes.

In his field of vision, several translucent panels appeared out of thin air in several places not far away in the mall.

This was Yang Yuan’s ability, [Insight], operating automatically.

[Item Name: Compressed Explosive (Attached Type)]

[Ability Attachment: Timed Detonation]

[Potential Risk: Unstable structure, may detonate prematurely upon strong impact.]

“What the hell? A bomb?”

Yang Yuan immediately took out his phone and dialed the hero center’s emergency hotline at the fastest speed.

“Hello, third floor of Qingtai Mall, daily necessities section, multiple explosives found. Please send support immediately!”

Just as he hung up the phone, before he could say another word.

“BOOM!!!”

A loud bang, and a violent explosion occurred not far away.

Flames shot up, and the lights and decorations on the ceiling rained down. The screams and cries of the crowd instantly drowned out everything.

The fire triggered the sprinkler system, but it couldn’t suppress this man-made mixed deflagration. The smoke grew thicker and thicker, choking people and making it hard to open their eyes.

In the chaotic smoke, Yang Yuan’s [Insight] ability became the only guide.

He could clearly see the locations of the other bombs. Yang Yuan had wanted Su Xiaoyou to use her [Void Palm] to suck away the bombs, but the situation was far worse than he had imagined.

“I can’t… A’Yuan, the smoke is too thick, I can’t see anything!”

Su Xiaoyou coughed incessantly from the smoke, completely unable to tell which direction to go. Even with Yang Yuan pointing it out, she couldn’t get a precise lock.

“Tsk… why haven’t the heroes arrived yet!”

Yang Yuan made a decisive decision, abandoning the idea of having Su Xiaoyou devour the bombs.

He grabbed Su Xiaoyou’s hand and had her try to absorb the surrounding smoke to see where they should go.

“This way! Everyone, this way! Don’t panic!”

Yang Yuan didn’t know when the other bombs would explode. He could only temporarily lead Su Xiaoyou, evacuating the panicked crowd around them while retreating in a direction away from the other bombs.

But they hadn’t run far when another explosion sounded not far away.

This explosion was even more powerful. The aftershock caused the ceiling structure above them to collapse, and a huge concrete slab mixed with steel bars came crashing down right towards Su Xiaoyou’s position!

“Xiaoyou, watch your head, use your ability quickly!”

Because of the smoke and chaos, even with Yang Yuan’s accurate warning, Su Xiaoyou couldn’t react in time to use her ability to deal with it.

In the nick of time, Yang Yuan lunged forward, grabbed Su Xiaoyou, and rolled to the side.

The two fell to the ground together. The concrete slab landed right next to where Su Xiaoyou had just been standing, sending debris flying.

“A’Yuan!”

Su Xiaoyou scrambled up and saw that to protect her, Yang Yuan’s left arm had been cut by the flying debris, a wound so deep the bone was visible. Blood instantly stained his sleeve red.

She looked at Yang Yuan’s wound, then at the surrounding chaos, her face full of remorse and self-blame.

Just then, an agile figure rushed in from the mall entrance.

The arrival of the heroes and rescue personnel quickly brought the scene under control. They began to deal with the remaining explosives and rescue the injured.

Several medical personnel came to them. After thanking them for their efforts in evacuating the crowd, they immediately gave Yang Yuan emergency treatment.

Yang Yuan’s still-bleeding arm filled Su Xiaoyou’s heart with guilt.

‘If my ability were a little stronger, if I had reacted a little faster, A’Yuan wouldn’t have been injured.’