Chapter 5: Flowing with the Dirty Stream
Chapter 1, Section 1 of Ark Alliance Source Ability Textbook stated:
"Source Ability is the power belonging to the Gods.
Humans using Source Ability are merely borrowing divine power from them.
Source Ability Users establish a link through Source Essence, signing a divine borrowing contract.
This process is called Awakening.
A human has only one chance in their lifetime to gaze upon God's Twin Pupils and that is the moment of Awakening."
Those words echoed in Jiang He's mind as his consciousness drifted through a blinding void.
When he opened his eyes within that emptiness, two colossal eyes were already there staring down at him.
They weren't simply watching.
They were judging, peeling away every layer of his being until only his soul remained.
The gaze of a god.
He tried to avert his eyes, but the divine pressure pinned him in place.
Time seemed to stretch endlessly
an eternity compressed into seconds.
Then, within his mind, a series of thoughts descended neither sound nor speech, but commands etched directly into his consciousness, branding themselves upon his cerebral cortex like molten iron:
Flowing with the Dirty Stream:
The world is already unclean flow with its filth.
The Great Fog will erode your light, and you will sink into it.
Absorb more Source Essence, and you shall adapt to the Great Fog's embrace.
Source of Contamination: Eye Worm.
As the final line faded, the divine eyes slowly closed.
The blinding light collapsed into darkness.
And Jiang He awoke.
He gasped for air, vision stabilizing.
The first thing he saw was Lu Wenbiao, crouched in front of him, staring curiously.
"You've… Awakened?" Lu Wenbiao asked, eyes gleaming.
"Yes," Jiang He replied quietly. "I've Awakened."
"But you were an Ability Nullifier!"
"Not anymore."
Lu Wenbiao blinked in disbelief, then forced a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Well, congratulations. Guess that makes me the only Ability Nullifier left in Border Region No. 38."
He looked up at a forty-five-degree angle, expression halfway between admiration and melancholy.
Jiang He, however, was frowning.
According to the Alliance's textbooks, every Awakening imprinted clear details in the mind: the name, type, and usage of the Source Ability.
Yet his own imprint contained none of those things only cryptic phrases.
Flow with the dirty stream? Fall into the Great Fog?
Was that even an ability?
The final line echoed in his thoughts:
"After absorbing Source Essence, you will be more suited to the living environment of the Great Fog."
A strange condition.
Did it mean his power required devouring more Source Essence to grow?
But each Essence could only be obtained by killing a Ghoul
something that even veterans risked their lives to do.
The odds were worse than suicide.
He sighed and glanced at Lu Wenbiao's half-envious expression.
"Brother Biao, don't be jealous yet. My ability… seems useless."
"A useless ability?" Lu Wenbiao's eyes widened in exaggerated regret. He patted Jiang He's shoulder with a heavy sigh. "Brother, what a pity."
Jiang He twitched the corner of his mouth.
For some reason, that "pity" sounded suspiciously gleeful.
Still, useless or not, he couldn't stay weak forever.
He clenched his fists.
"Brother Biao, how can I become as strong as you?"
"Huh? You want to become my disciple?" Lu Wenbiao raised an eyebrow, smirking.
"Let's call it business," Jiang He replied calmly, brushing dirt off his clothes. "You teach me how to fight. I help you hunt Ghouls."
Lu Wenbiao's grin widened into that of a seasoned merchant.
"You've got a good head for deals, kid. Fine deal!"
He hefted a massive bag filled with bloody spoils and tossed it toward Jiang He.
"You take this back to the Bunker first."
"What am I, a pack mule?"
"No, no, this is weight training! How else do you think Brother Biao got these muscles?"
Jiang He eyed the man's round belly that looked five months pregnant and sighed deeply.
He had made a questionable deal.
By the time the sun dipped below the fog-choked horizon, Border Region No. 38 was finally silent again.
The survivors returned one by one, dragging their spoils back to the Bunker.
When Sun Zhen tallied the battle reports that evening, the results were… average.
Five dead.
Twelve Eye Worms slain.
But when word spread that Lu Wenbiao and Jiang He had killed both a D-class and C-class Ghoul in the same day without a scratch suspicion erupted.
No one believed it.
Whispers spread like wildfire through the crowded hallways.
Even the veterans scoffed.
So Lu Wenbiao silenced them the simplest way possible:
He dumped a massive bag of Eye Worm organs in the middle of the floor with a loud thud.
The stench alone was enough to make them shut up.
A strange mix of awe, jealousy, and disdain filled the room.
Lu Wenbiao didn't care.
He simply straightened up and shouted:
"New materials are in stock! Healing medicine, body cream, and more
first come, first served!"
Then he dragged Jiang He away to their quarters at the farthest corner of the Bunker.
That night, Jiang He lay on a soft bed for the first time in months, the faint warmth of the mattress melting away the day's exhaustion.
"How's that, huh?" Lu Wenbiao said proudly from across the room. "Brother Biao's mattress is a luxury! Everyone else sleeps on cold stone slabs. This baby's worth at least a thousand alliance coins!"
Jiang He chuckled.
"Then why not make mattresses and send them to your family through the teleportation array? They'd be rich in no time."
"See? You've got a head for business!" Lu Wenbiao grinned. "Too bad the Alliance forbids sending anything back except Source Essence and alliance coins."
Under flickering candlelight, Jiang He watched as Lu Wenbiao deftly sliced through an Eye Worm's carcass, extracting its inner membrane with surgical precision.
The pearly sheen reflected on his face.
It reminded Jiang He of home of his grandmother sitting under a flickering bulb, mending his torn pants with needle and thread.
The smell of warm soup, the sound of the old ceiling fan, the quiet hum of peace—
A world that now felt centuries away.
"Brother Biao, where did you learn to do this?"
"What, this?" Lu Wenbiao didn't look up. "Don't tell me you want to learn it too? Our deal didn't include this craft~ You'll need to pay extra!"
"…"
"If you really want to help, stop lying there and pick up a knife. Come on!"
Jiang He stood, stretching slightly, and joined him. The room was cluttered with tools needlework sets, wooden molds, alchemy pots. It seemed Lu Wenbiao's "business" extended to everything imaginable.
"What should I do first?"
"Over there," Lu Wenbiao pointed to a corner. "Pick a knife that suits you."
As Jiang He walked over, Lu Wenbiao's tone suddenly dropped.
"By the way, that guy who arrived with you today
the one you dragged into the teleportation array
he seems to hold a grudge."
Jiang He froze for a moment, then sighed.
"Of course. He wasn't sentenced. I pulled him in by force."
Lu Wenbiao blinked, then gave him a long, approving whistle.
"You've got some guts, brother. But be careful. This isn't the Alliance anymore. I saw that venom in his eyes
he might come for you."
"He will," Jiang He replied coldly. "Yuan Xie never forgets."
The teleportation array only activated every seven days. Jiang He knew Yuan Xie wouldn't waste that time
and neither would he.
He examined the knives embedded in the floor.
Their blades gleamed under the dim candlelight.
"You forged these yourself?"
"Ha! No, no, just keep them maintained," Lu Wenbiao said, chuckling.
Then, as if remembering something, he leaned closer.
"You know that brute always hanging around Yuan Xie? Be careful of him. The man's dangerous."
"The tall one?" Jiang He recalled. "Nearly two meters, bare-chested, with cross scars on his stomach?"
"That's the one. Name's Chen Kai. Dumb as a brick, but his body's pure muscle. C-class peak
one step away from B-class."
Jiang He's expression tightened.
If Yuan Xie had someone like that backing him, a direct fight meant certain death.
"How does he compare to you, Brother Biao?"
Lu Wenbiao tapped his own chest.
"Me? I can't even Awaken! He's a C-class peak user. You think I'm suicidal?"
"I thought you'd say something like, 'Brother Biao's evenly matched with anyone.'"
Lu Wenbiao's face darkened.
"Don't joke about that, kid. That man's Source Ability is called Rot. Every opponent who's seen it… died before they could describe it. Stay away from him. Don't get separated."
The air between them grew heavy.
Then, without another word, Lu Wenbiao squatted down and pulled out a dagger from a leather case.
Its blade shimmered faintly green.
"Here. Take this."
Jiang He blinked.
"What's this?"
"A little insurance." Lu Wenbiao's tone was solemn. "The blade's been soaked in venom. Use it only when you must
it could save your life."
The candlelight flickered, casting sharp shadows across Lu Wenbiao's face.
For the first time since they met, Jiang He saw no hint of humor
only quiet resolve.
He reached out and accepted the weapon, gripping the hilt tightly.
"Thank you… Brother Biao."