Urban Powers After the Apocalypse

When he grabbed hold of Tang Guo, it slightly reduced Xu Mo's speed as he rushed forward. However, the explosive force unleashed by the orange fragment was still comparable to that of the Ferrari speeding by. The narrow five- or six-meter-wide non-motorized lane offered no sufficient buffer for him, and despite holding Tang Guo, Xu Mo continued to crash like a rolling cannonball toward the stone cobbles at the edge of the sidewalk.

The surrounding crowd simultaneously screamed in shock. Xu Mo's heroic act of saving someone from a speeding car was nothing short of miraculous. However, if he crashed into the cobblestones at this speed, it would likely result in a tragic outcome.

Despite rolling over repeatedly, Xu Mo hadn't fully exited that peculiar slowed-time state. He was perfectly aware of the danger that lay ahead, even calculating how far Tang Guo was from the stone blocks as they rolled toward them.

It was Tang Guo!

Although Xu Mo wasn't completely certain, his calculation suggested that, without any cushioning, the probability of Tang Guo getting hit first was over 80%.

In some ways, although the cobblestones wouldn't move, their hardness and sharp edges could cause far more severe damage than a car crash. If Tang Guo collided with one, even a fracture might be considered a mild injury. If she struck her head at the wrong angle, it could be fatal.

The last thing Xu Mo wanted was for Tang Guo to be injured after he'd worked so hard to save her.

He gripped Tang Guo tightly with one arm, and with the other, he shielded her head with his chest, pressing it firmly against him. He used his face to block her head, ensuring that no part of her head was exposed. Simultaneously, without hesitation, he activated his ability, "Gentle Touch," channeling his mental energy to soften the ground beneath them. While he couldn't guarantee the impact would be completely negated, he hoped to reduce the damage as much as possible.

"Gentle Touch" was his first ability unlocked by the Apocalypse fragment. It could soften all non-living matter within a two-meter radius around him. This ability had saved Xu Mo's life several times, and it was one of his most reliable skills, with a 90% success rate in any scenario.

But this time, despite the numerous times Xu Mo had relied on it, the ability's effect wasn't as impressive. The "Gentle Touch" was only at its first level and hadn't been enhanced. At this stage, it could soften objects to the level of rubber. It worked well on thinner objects but became much less effective as the objects' thickness increased.

It was like how rubber tires are harder to bend than rubber sheets. Even with some elasticity, the asphalt surface under them couldn't absorb much impact because it was backed by solid ground. Even though Xu Mo's ability was working, he still felt the pain of the impact as they rolled, and it was clear that Tang Guo's slender body wouldn't be able to handle the full force of the collision.

There was one more thing he could try!

Xu Mo's time to think was rapidly running out. With no other options, he decided to take a risk. As he held Tang Guo tightly, he activated his other ability, "Demon's Hand," with his right hand, slamming it into the ground!

The steel-like fingers of the "Demon's Hand" scraped along the ground, sparking nearly half a meter of fire. The friction made an unbearably harsh sound. Xu Mo's rolling finally came to a stop, but their momentum didn't slow much. The inertia still carried him and Tang Guo toward the edge of the road.

Boom!

Xu Mo's back slammed hard into the long cobblestone at the edge of the sidewalk. The powerful impact made the ground tremble beneath the bus stop where people were waiting. The collision was so violent that the sound of their bodies hitting the stone was painful to hear.

With such a car crash, the onlookers, especially the Chinese, couldn't resist coming over to see what happened.

Soon, a large crowd had gathered around Xu Mo and Tang Guo, and several concerned people had dialed 110 (the police) and 120 (emergency services). However, likely out of fear of taking responsibility, no one dared to help them up; they just stood around, pointing and murmuring.

"What happened? I just saw this boy suddenly dash across the street, and it looked like they were about to crash into each other, and then suddenly, my eyes went blurry, and both of them were on this side of the road…"

"I also saw something strange with my eyes, but that boy is really a good person. People like him who risk their lives to save others are rare nowadays…"

"Did anyone see the license plate of that car? Someone needs to call the police!"

"There was no license plate on that car! But I recognize it—it was a Ferrari 458, a car worth over four million!"

"No license plate and it's still driving? Isn't he afraid of getting pulled over by the police?"

"Are you from Mars? People who can afford a few million for a car aren't worried about the police. They're the privileged class! Us common folk would just get some money as compensation if we got hit…"

The crowd buzzed with conversation about the car accident, but Xu Mo, as the person involved, heard it all clearly. Surprisingly, he hadn't fainted from the impact. The crash had only left a bruise on his back about ten centimeters long. Aside from some minor internal shock, his injuries didn't even qualify as light wounds!

This wasn't due to luck or the result of his enhanced physique, but because, in the final moments, Xu Mo had activated an ability he had never used before: "Immovable as a Mountain!"

Luckily, Xu Mo had won the gamble. Although the ability was difficult to use, he managed to activate it just before the crash, and it played a critical role at that moment.

It turned out that "Immovable as a Mountain," despite rendering Xu Mo immobile, provided a powerful defense. The force of the impact was similar to being hit by a 70 km/h motorcycle, but the actual damage to Xu Mo was only equivalent to a heavy blow from a thick wooden stick.

Furthermore, the ability's accompanying pain-dampening effect made the collision feel like someone had kicked him hard in the back—painful but not debilitating.

Despite this, Xu Mo kept his eyes closed and remained still, pretending to be unconscious. After all, to the onlookers, someone who had been in such a violent crash shouldn't be up and moving around immediately—it would be too unbelievable.

Tang Guo, who was tightly cradled in Xu Mo's arms, rolled across the ground like a little dirt ball. But despite the shock, she miraculously didn't have a scratch on her. When she got up, dazed, she stared at Xu Mo for a moment. Suddenly, she remembered everything that had just happened. She pushed Xu Mo a few times but got no response, then, in a panic, threw herself on top of him, crying out loudly.

"Xu Mo! Wake up! Wake up! I finally found someone who can play with me, you can't just die like this! I won't let you die! Do you hear me?! Get up! Get up now!"

It turned out, the little girl had just been treating him like a toy…

Hearing Tang Guo's almost bratty cries, Xu Mo couldn't help but hold back a laugh. No matter how hard she pushed and called, he didn't react, even slowing his breathing to feign death.

After all, she had just been playing him for a fool. How could he let her off so easily now?

Of course, Xu Mo's act was not very convincing. Anyone with even a bit of attention would notice something was off—who could look this healthy while "dying"? But Tang Guo had never experienced anything like this. The whole experience had left her frazzled, and she didn't notice the small details at all.

Tang Guo, seeing that Xu Mo wasn't waking up, wiped away her tears and made a decision. She suddenly grabbed Xu Mo's chin with one hand and pinched his nose with the other. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and leaned down to kiss Xu Mo's lips!