The little snake, which had seemed obedient before, began to swell gradually.
"Roar! Roar! Roar!"
The little snake let out a deafening roar toward the sky.
Lightning crackled and scattered in all directions around it.
Crack, crack…
A cracking sound came from the swelling snake.
Cracks appeared across its body, and from within them, beams of golden light shone through.
This was the metamorphosis of the mimic war spirit!
A moment later…
Bang!
The little snake completed its transformation. Its old skin began to peel away.
When the old layer was fully shed, a brand-new little snake was revealed to everyone.
The new snake had grown five or six centimeters longer than before.
Two thunder-dragon horns began to sprout from its head.
Its eyes now exuded even greater majesty.
At this point, the little snake had reached the second stage of the mimic war spirit.
"Wanrou, congratulations! Your mimic war spirit has leveled up." Chen Jie happily patted Xia Wanrou's head.
"It's all thanks to your help, Xiao Jie."
Xia Wanrou looked at Chen Jie. In her eyes, besides love, there was a deep sense of gratitude.
Since the start of the apocalypse until now, she felt that her survival was largely due to Chen Jie.
He had given her talent and constantly protected her, which moved her deeply.
"Boss… when we first arrived at this hospital, I already protected sister-in-law once. Then, when that five-eyed monster appeared just now, I bravely stood in front of my classmates…"
Lin Yao recounted his deeds, hoping Chen Jie would reward him.
Not long ago, when Chen Jie went after the Living Sacrifice Spirit, Lin Yao had guessed that Chen Jie must have gained a lot of benefits.
Now was the perfect time to claim credit.
"Got it. I remember your contributions. You won't miss out on your share." Chen Jie took out a small pouch of spirit crystals and tossed it to Lin Yao.
"These are over a hundred spirit crystals. Use them well and work on improving your strength quickly."
"Thank you so much, Boss Chen!"
Lin Yao gratefully accepted the crystals.
This was far better treatment than he ever received in the family.
Back in the family, only by risking his life could he earn a few dozen crystals.
Here with Chen Jie, he had worked less than two days and was handed over a hundred crystals.
This was the benefit of having a good big brother!
After giving the crystals to Lin Yao, Chen Jie turned to Lin Shiyu beside him.
He planned to give him a reward as well.
Anyone working under him would receive appropriate compensation.
"These are for you—five spirit crystals."
Chen Jie handed five crystals to Lin Shiyu.
Lin Shiyu stared wide-eyed at the crystals, hardly able to believe what he was seeing.
He was just a low-level errand runner, yet he was being given spirit crystals.
"Thank you, Boss! Thank you, Boss!" Lin Shiyu bowed repeatedly, his voice full of excitement.
"Try absorbing them. You might awaken your potential and become a regular awakened. That would be great."
Chen Jie nodded to Lin Shiyu.
In the apocalypse, besides devouring creatures and mutations, another form of awakening existed: stimulation by spirit crystals could trigger awakening.
However, such awakenings usually granted weaker abilities.
Still, even these minor awakenings were a tremendous blessing for an ordinary person like Lin Shiyu.
Following Chen Jie's instructions, Lin Shiyu held the crystals, slowly absorbing their energy.
Soon, his body began to emit light.
Soft yellow light spilled out from him.
But this yellow was far weaker than the golden hue of Chen Jie's Hongmeng Purity Qi.
Whether he could truly awaken a talent depended entirely on his own fortune.
After a while…
The yellow light coalesced around Lin Shiyu.
A faint layer of armor began forming over his body.
"He's awakened!" Lin Yao exclaimed in shock.
Before, awakening had been an arduous process.
But for Chen Jie's errand boy, it happened so effortlessly.
Truly, following Chen Jie was the right choice.
"Boss! I've awakened a super martial talent! I… I'm an awakened now!"
Lin Shiyu shouted excitedly at Chen Jie, his body trembling, barely able to stand.
Awakening a talent in the apocalypse meant he now had the ability to protect himself.
He was no longer just an ordinary person at the mercy of others!
"Ahh, I should have volunteered to help Boss Chen with the luggage! Maybe today, it would have been me who awakened!"
"From now on, this life of mine belongs to Boss Chen. I just hope Boss Chen is willing to accept me!"
"Being able to stick with Boss Chen and survive a few more days is already amazing. Who cares about anything else!"
…
The other classmates watched enviously, regretting their lack of initiative.
Boom!
Just as everyone was admiring Lin Shiyu's awakening, a cannon shot sounded from outside.
"Where's Chen Jie? Come out! I'll take your life!"
A middle-aged man's voice echoed inside.
Lin Yao instinctively turned to look.
Weren't these people from his clan?
Chen Jie was now a fourth-stage peak awakened!
For these clan members to come looking for trouble was suicide.
Lin Yao felt anxious watching these fools.
Although he had already given Chen Jie their intel when he joined him, seeing them come to die still felt unpleasant.
Chen Jie noticed Lin Yao's expression.
"These are the people you mentioned from your clan who wanted to kill me, right?"
"Yes…" Lin Yao nodded.
"Fine, go and take care of them for me. I'm too lazy to deal with them myself."
Chen Jie waved casually.
Lin Yao hesitated.
"I…"
"Going or not?"
Chen Jie's voice turned stern.
Lin Yao shivered.
He was now Chen Jie's subordinate.
As far as Chen Jie was concerned, anyone who opposed him was the enemy.
"All right! Boss, wait for my good news!"
Gritting his teeth, Lin Yao donned his armor and charged out.
"Yo! Lin Yao, you're sticking with Chen Jie now? Surrendered already?"
A middle-aged man with a rat-like face laughed at him.
He was Lin Fei, the one who awakened after eating a Stinkbug, mentioned by Lin Yao before.
"Hahaha, you traitor! Betraying the clan and following an unknown kid! How dare you face us!"
An old man with a frog-like face and a beard also scolded Lin Yao.
He was the one who awakened after eating a frog.
One of the five elders of the Lin Clan.