The eagle couldn’t help but glance at Si Ye with some surprise. “A practitioner?”

“Go ahead.” Si Ye had also noticed and gave Chen Dong a signal.

Chen Dong, climbing onto the fighting ring, looked at the stunningly beautiful Nan Muran, hesitating: “Sister Nan, maybe we should just forget it. I…”

“If you don’t give your all today, the chance to awaken your abilities will be gone,” Nan Muran said seriously.

She was eager to know how much distance there was between herself and these truly powerful individuals.

The helplessness she felt when her abilities vanished in her previous life—she could never experience that again in this life.

“No way, Sister Nan,” Chen Dong said, his expression showing some frustration. He regretted asking that unnecessary question just now.

Nan Muran looked at him, her tone firm: “I never joke around, and don’t try to deceive a psychic.”

Knowing there was no other choice, Chen Dong still looked uneasily at Si Ye, who was standing off to the side.

Although Si Ye didn’t know why Nan Muran was so determined, he chose to support her.

After receiving approval from their team leader, Chen Dong quickly entered fighting mode.

Without hesitation, he threw a punch at Nan Muran.

To the surprise of everyone below, Nan Muran didn’t try to dodge the full-force punch. Instead, she moved forward to meet it head-on without hesitation.

“Oh…” Qiangzi, watching from the sidelines, winced at the sight.

Si Ye, too, furrowed his brows in concern.

The two collided with force, both suffering some noticeable minor injuries.

However, this exchange revealed to Chen Dong that Nan Muran was not an easy opponent.

She had undergone strict martial arts training and had participated in numerous real combat situations. Every attack she launched was quick, agile, and packed with power.

Their bodies quickly spun on the ring, each trying to exploit openings in the other’s defense, aiming to bring the other down.

Those watching could also see that Nan Muran was more agile than him in terms of speed, and equally matched in strength.

The only chance for Chen Dong to win lay in his combat skills, honed from countless life-or-death training experiences.

“Psychic abilities change one’s physical condition. In a head-to-head clash, my physical abilities are not necessarily inferior to yours,” Nan Muran said, charging forward without hesitation, striking quickly and fiercely.

After more than twenty rounds, those watching couldn’t help but feel nervous for Chen Dong.

Nan Muran’s tactics were brutal, many of which were banned moves.

Unfortunately, her real combat experience was still lacking in some areas. So in the end, the fight concluded with Chen Dong’s single-leg sweep.

Although he won, it was a hard-earned victory, and it came at a significant cost.

Si Ye looked at Nan Muran, who was breathing heavily against the wall, her injuries evident, and let out a sigh of relief before looking at Jia Wu.

“You trained her?” he asked.

Her style of fighting was so vicious, it was as if she was aiming to kill.

“Not bad, right?” Jia Wu replied, feeling quite proud.

On the ring, Chen Dong didn’t hesitate to give Nan Muran a thumbs-up.

He genuinely admired her skills. “Impressive.”

Nan Muran got up, grabbed a bottle of water from the side, and threw it to Chen Dong.

She also took out the crystal cores and the remaining four small white fruits she had obtained from the secure lockers in the park.

“Let’s begin. Who wants to go first?”

“Do you want to rest a bit?” Si Ye’s usually cold voice softened instinctively.

Nan Muran shook her head slightly. “No need, absorbing the crystal cores will help recover stamina quickly. However, each of you needs to keep track of the cores you used. You’ll need to return triple the amount later.”

“That’s fair,” the eagle quickly nodded. As long as they could awaken their abilities, the number of cores didn’t matter.

“This is just my first request,” Nan Muran’s voice was cold.

“There’s more?” The eagle suddenly realized, this girl was completely different from what he had imagined.

Even though she treated their team leader very specially, she would never let it interfere with her own decisions.

“Once your abilities are awakened and stabilized, you’ll have to accompany me to the underground lab in Mount Tai.”

“Agree to both conditions, and we can start now. If not, everything ends here. Forget everything I said earlier,” Nan Muran put down the water bottle, her tone showing no signs of joking.

“Alright.” Others might not understand Nan Muran’s obsession with the underground lab, but Si Ye did, so he agreed without hesitation.

“Then I’ll go first.” Chen Dong eagerly stepped up.

Nan Muran handed him three crystal cores. “Cut your hand and hold them.”

Then, with her left hand, she gripped his bloodied hand, her palm emitting a mix of green and white light. A stream of warm energy flowed into Chen Dong’s body from the wound.

The extreme comfort made Chen Dong sigh in pleasure. “This feels amazing.”

After thirty crystal cores had been absorbed, Nan Muran stopped.

“Is it over?” Chen Dong looked at his healed wound, uncertain.

Aside from feeling incredibly comfortable, there didn’t seem to be any other changes in his body. Was this really considered an awakening?

“Eat this fruit. It’ll be very painful, so get ready,” Nan Muran handed him a small white fruit.

As expected, shortly after eating, Chen Dong began to experience severe abdominal pain, breaking into cold sweat and writhing on the ground.

The eagle, watching Chen Dong’s agonizing screams, couldn’t help but frown. This was just pathetic; couldn’t he endure without screaming?

To prove they were real men, the tough guys, without hesitation, the eagle slashed open his palm. “Bring it on.”

The same painful process soon followed for the eagle and Qiangzi.

It was truly painful.

Only after all three of them had fallen unconscious from the extreme pain after eating the fruit did Nan Muran turn her attention to the last person, Si Ye.

Sensing the power flowing from Nan Muran’s hands, Si Ye couldn’t help but worry. “Won’t this harm you?”

“Aside from exhausting my psychic abilities, there’s no other effect,” Nan Muran replied with a smile.

Si Ye finally relaxed.

Suddenly, he froze, feeling something change in his body.

Nan Muran noticed it too and reminded him: “It’s awakened. Don’t lose focus.”

“Really?” Si Ye, hearing the slight surprise in her usually cold voice, wondered if it was a dual ability awakening.

“Yes, try again and see if there’s any other possibility,” Nan Muran continued to infuse him with life force, showing no signs of stopping.

In her previous life, awakening five types of abilities had proven Si Ye’s special talent.

That’s why she had deliberately saved him for last, worried that his exceptional talent would completely expose the secret of psychic ability awakening.

Si Ye, too, realized something wasn’t quite right.

Nan Muran had said that the fruit was necessary for awakening abilities in others.

But clearly, she could do it even without the fruit.

Such a rare and extraordinary ability in the post-apocalyptic world could easily become the target of all forces, should it be exposed.

He looked at Nan Muran with a concerned gaze. This girl had been exceptionally kind to him, so much so that he didn’t want to see her suffer even the slightest harm or threat.

Nan Muran, focusing on the sensation of his awakening power, didn’t notice the change in his expression.