Apocalyptic Flood: Sexy Beauty Neighbor's Midnight Plea for Food Chapter 1172 - 513: Ji Xiaoyu Wants to Make a Deal

Liang Yuan stood frozen in shock; Ji Xiaoyu's words revealed a ton of vital details.

He had always assumed Ji Xiaoyu survived solo.

Her hints suggested she had companions after all.

Ji Xiaoyu nodded faintly and murmured, "In this dire circumstance, I can tell you stand apart from Wu Yaobang and his crew, Mr. Liang—you're decent folks."

"Truth is, I'm not by myself; a group supports me too."

Curiosity piqued in Liang Yuan; he pulled up a seat and prompted, "Spill the full story."

Ji Xiaoyu took a seat as well and explained deliberately, "Wu Yaobang hit the mark there. Some three months prior, those of us confined in Fold Space formed an alliance group."

"The organization boasts numerous Genetic Species Level superpower users, yet Wu Yaobang secretly eliminated them all."

"Once Wu Yaobang slew those Genetic Species experts, he seized control of Little Straw Mountain, dominated its survivors, and founded Eden, fantasizing about building his personal Divine Country."

"During that era, countless women suffered savage assaults, got seized, and endured rape at his hands."

"Resisters met brutal deaths by his order, their bodies displayed on crosses across Little Straw Mountain as grim warnings."

"I recall vividly how, in just that short half-month span, almost one-tenth of Little Straw Mountain's survivors perished."

"My sister, refusing to submit to rape, got nailed to a cross by his thugs too."

Here, Ji Xiaoyu's eyes reddened, tears brimming and spilling over with raw fury.

Only now did Liang Yuan grasp why Ji Xiaoyu harbored such deep loathing for Eden's inhabitants.

And the fierce grudge she nursed against Wu Yaobang.

Such a grim history explained it all.

Given Wu Yaobang's ruthless and deceitful nature, such atrocities came as no shock.

Liang Yuan inquired, "What happened next?"

Ji Xiaoyu replied gently, "Some among us gained Merfolk type superpowers, allowing underwater life, so our group fled Little Straw Mountain to dwell beneath the waves."

"We constructed an underwater refuge, accessible solely to Merfolk Superpower Users who breathe below the surface."

"Wu Yaobang knows we exist, but lacking the ability for prolonged underwater fights, he's powerless against us."

Liang Yuan felt immense astonishment—a band of Merfolk Superpower Users had crafted an aquatic hideout?

"Hold on, you refer to yourselves as Merfolk Superpower Users? Not plain Merfolk?"

Ji Xiaoyu shook her head, "They're distinct; Merfolk Superpower Users and Merfolk Evolvers differ greatly."

"Both can shift to fish-like states for underwater survival, but Merfolk Evolvers lean toward bodily evolution."

"We Merfolk Superpower Users favor spiritual power evolution instead."

"Plus, in transformed state, Merfolk Superpower Users keep much of their human shape, while Merfolk Evolvers grow far more fish-like."

Liang Yuan marveled; that clarified why Ji Xiaoyu's shift differed starkly from Zhang Peng's Merfolk form.

He'd chalked it up to gender before, unaware they wielded separate superpowers.

Liang Yuan questioned, "What's your group's size?"

"Around a dozen."

Ji Xiaoyu offered no precise count, evidently guarding details from Liang Yuan's scrutiny.

Liang Yuan sensed at once she downplayed it; her Merfolk Superpower Users numbered far more!

Shock overwhelmed him; he blurted, "How did so many identical superpower users emerge?"

This wasn't some basic Strength Type or Speed Type ability.

Liang Yuan rarely encountered Merfolk or Merfolk Superpower Users elsewhere.

Until now, only Zhang Peng qualified.

Ji Xiaoyu made the second.

Yet here came a sudden horde?

Ji Xiaoyu paused briefly, "Our folks examined the cause; consensus holds that post-Great Flood, humanity's water-survival urges sparked many such awakenings."

"It's no rarity for desires like that to birth powers akin to ours in droves."

"Additionally, pre-Great Flood, we resided riverside; generations of our kin were fishermen."

"Post-Linjiang fishing ban, official jobs stayed fishing-linked despite the halt."

"Our households covertly snagged fish for meals regardless."

"All believe ancestral fish genes eased our path to Merfolk or Merfolk type superpowers."

Liang Yuan sank into quiet contemplation.

Even back at Meidu Garden, he had already noticed that human superpower awakenings tie closely to their innermost mental cravings amid deadly perils.

The power they crave most desperately right before dying usually dictates the abilities they awaken.

These genes respond foremost to that mental yearning, materializing it as a superpower.

Based on Ji Xiaoyu’s account, the group with her hails from families tied to fishery operations.

Generations of their forebears fished relentlessly, devouring fish daily, so their bodies overflow with varied fish genetics.

In those conditions, awakening Merfolk traits or Merfolk genes comes as no shock.

The Great Flood keeps surging upward relentlessly to this day.

For survival, humans must climb to higher terrain or adapt by fusing with the floodwaters themselves.

Merfolk embody that second choice, slowly blending into the deluge.

Humanity now treads diverse evolutionary trails.

These notions raced through Liang Yuan’s thoughts.

He glanced up at Ji Xiaoyu and inquired, "Can you take me to see your underwater shelter?"

Ji Xiaoyu shook her head at once, turning wary: "No way, we absolutely cannot tell you about our underwater shelter."

Her gut reaction rebuffed Liang Yuan, though she quickly sensed her tone was off.

She softened her stance and suggested, "Besides, even if I told you, you wouldn’t be able to enter."

"The water runs too deep, the pressure overwhelming—even a superpower user struggles to endure it."

"Unless you are a merfolk or a superpower user of the merfolk type, able to adjust cell osmosis pressure to adapt to underwater environments."

Her reasoning rang true and fair, far gentler than a blunt refusal to Liang Yuan.

Yet Liang Yuan simply grinned and replied, "How do you know I’m not a superpower user of the merfolk type?"

"Huh?"

Ji Xiaoyu stared in shock, her look screaming that he must think her foolish.

He had displayed potent Spirit Superpower in her presence earlier, so she refused to buy that he held merfolk powers.

Noting her skepticism, Liang Yuan skipped talk, rose abruptly, and stated: "Let’s go."

"Go where?"

"To the underwater, you’ll naturally find out."

Ji Xiaoyu furrowed her brow, trailed Liang Yuan, and headed to the floodwaters below Little Straw Mountain.

There, Liang Yuan vaulted straight into the depths.

Ji Xiaoyu dove in lightly after him.

The instant she hit the water, her form shifted on instinct.

Fine pink scales bloomed across her skin, her pretty face turning even fairer and more exquisite, eyes gleaming like radiant gems.

Webbing sprouted between her fingers and toes.

Ji Xiaoyu luxuriated in her transformed body, then turned toward Liang Yuan.

That look made her eyes fly wide.

She spotted Liang Yuan nearby, bereft of any gear or water barriers.

He simply stood amid the currents.

Webbing formed on his hands too, gills emerging behind his ears.

No fish scales covered his face, yet his cells morphed, thickening the keratin layer.

"You, you... you—"

Ji Xiaoyu gaped in utter shock, face twisted in incredulity, stammering briefly.

Liang Yuan grinned and asked: "How about it, do I look like a merfolk?"

"This is impossible, this is impossible, you are clearly a Spirit Superpower user, no, not right, you are still an Ice Attribute Superpower user."

"That’s not right either, I’ve seen you release flames, what type of superpower user actually are you?"

Ji Xiaoyu reeled in confusion, utterly lost on what power type this man truly wielded.

Liang Yuan smiled: "All you need to know is, I am now a merfolk, now, can you take me to your shelter?"

Ji Xiaoyu scratched her head, confusion clouding her features.

Liang Yuan chuckled: "What, is your shelter this exclusive?"

Ji Xiaoyu shook her head: "Everyone is very kind, but they’ve been hurt by people on the shore, so everyone doesn’t want to associate with people from the shore."

Liang Yuan queried: "They never come to shore? Always stay underwater?"

"Not exactly, sometimes when really bored, or miss the food on the shore, they’ll come up to find something to eat."

Liang Yuan laughed: "Do you say I’m a person from the shore, or am I considered one of your underwater people?"

"This..." Ji Xiaoyu didn’t know how to answer.

Liang Yuan remarked: "I think, whether people on the shore or underwater people, everyone used to be human, right?"

"People like Wu Yaobang merely represent a portion of folks; scoundrels such as them appear everywhere."

"Even if everyone’s submerged underwater, don’t bad eggs exist among merfolk or humans with tails?"

Ji Xiaoyu fell quiet, finding herself partially swayed.

The crucial point was that her convincer happened to be a merfolk as well.

Alright, maybe.

At minimum, she lacked that same sense of alienation toward Liang Yuan compared to those from the shore.

Liang Yuan suggested: "Bring me to see them. Don’t you wish to strike a deal with me?"

"I must learn about the companions around you before I can relax about dividing half of Little Straw Mountain’s resources with you, correct?"

Ji Xiaoyu got convinced instantly; after a moment’s thought, she declared: "Swear it then—absolutely no harming them."

"I swear." Liang Yuan grinned as he replied.

Ji Xiaoyu nodded: "Follow along."

The young lady propelled herself ahead with a few strokes, her superpower’s glow shimmered, and her two lithe pale legs fused into one.

Wrapped in the superpower’s light, a sleek membrane enveloped her legs, taking on the form of a fish tail.

With a gentle swing of her legs, she surged forward like a launched arrow!

This sight left Liang Yuan mildly astonished.

He swiftly engaged his [Genetic Transformation] talent at his legs, forming a comparable energy layer that shaped into a fish tail form.

Then, with a forceful tail whip, his pace skyrocketed in a flash!

Gazing at the display before her, Ji Xiaoyu marveled: "Aren’t you a merfolk? How do you perform our human fish’s tail-swim techniques?"

Only then did Liang Yuan grasp that this ability was named [Tail Swim], and as Ji Xiaoyu explained, it belonged solely to superpower users of the human fish variety.