The apocalypse struck, and I became a druid.

Page 39

Chairman Wu was the first to react, turning his head with a gentle smile on his face:

"Speaking of which, Vice President Lin's abilities and characteristics are quite complementary to Han Ning's. Since Vice President Lin is willing to take the lead personally, that's naturally the best thing. I'm sure this matter will go smoothly."

His tone conveyed complete trust in Vice President Lin.

"Hmm." A faint response came from the shadows.

"Then we'll await good news." Chairman Wu nodded and left the suite with the burly man.

Only after Chairman Wu left did the woman's calm voice rang out: "Chen Feng, where is Han Ning now?"

“He should still be buying supplies at the market in the banquet hall on the second floor,” Chen Feng replied.

"Okay," Lin Qianqian replied, and silently left the suite.

Chen Feng and Lu Yunping were left looking at each other in bewilderment.

...

Outside the banquet hall, Han Ning was just leaving, preparing to go back.

"Han Ning".

A pleasant female voice came from the stairwell above.

Han Ning paused, that voice... why does it sound so familiar?

He subconsciously looked up.

At the top of the stairs stood a tall woman.

She looked to be around twenty-six or twenty-seven, wearing a well-tailored dark gray windbreaker, the zipper pulled up to just below her collarbone, revealing a simple black turtleneck underneath.

He wore a pair of durable dark cargo pants and a pair of brand-name outdoor hiking boots.

Her long, jet-black hair was simply tied back, revealing a smooth, full forehead and a charming face.

Han Ning stared at that face for a few seconds, then asked uncertainly, "Boss Lin?"

He remembered.

The woman in front of him was his former boss, named Lin Qianqian.

About a year ago, he joined a small game company as a programmer.

Although the company is small, it is quite profitable. The boss, Lin Qianqian, graduated from a prestigious university in China and seems to have some connections. She has managed the company very well by leveraging her network and capital.

His reason for leaving his job had nothing to do with the job itself; it was because a close family member was seriously ill, and he had to resign to go home and take care of him.

Unexpectedly, I encountered my former boss again in this apocalyptic alien world.

Seeing the look of surprise on Han Ning's face, Lin Qianqian's lips curled up slightly, forming a faint smile:

"It really was you. Chen Feng mentioned you earlier, and when I heard your name, I thought it was a coincidence."

Han Ning suppressed his surprise and regained his composure.

He and his former boss weren't actually close; their relationship was limited to that of a superior and subordinate at work, and they had no interaction outside of work.

"What a coincidence." He nodded politely. "Is there something you need from Mr. Lin?"

Lin Qianqian didn't mind his slightly awkward way of addressing her. She took two steps forward and stood at the edge of the stair landing, level with Han Ning.

Her gaze swept over the snow cakes at his feet, then returned to Han Ning's face.

"I heard Chen Feng explain your abilities in detail."

Lin Qianqian got straight to the point, without beating around the bush, "I'm not going to beat around the bush with you."

She looked directly into Han Ning's eyes and spoke clearly:

"I want to explore the foggy area with you."

Han Ning was somewhat surprised by his former boss's sudden invitation to form a team.

He didn't answer immediately, but instead remained wary, asking in return, "Are you also an Awakened One? What abilities have you awakened?"

Without saying a word, Lin Qianqian extended a finger, and a circle of shimmering white light appeared at the tip of her finger.

"Touch my finger."

Han Ning recalled that Lin Qianqian had actually treated her employees quite well in the past.

There's no need for them to resort to any underhanded tactics.

However, just to be on the safe side, he glanced at the rice crackers at his feet.

Then he raised his right hand, extended his index finger, and gently touched Lin Qianqian's fingertip, which emitted a soft white light.

The moment their fingertips touched.

hum!

A faint warmth flowed from Lin Qianqian's fingertips into Han Ning's body.

This warm current was not as violent as the blue energy orb obtained after killing a monster.

It is gentler and purer, like the warmest sunshine in winter.

Han Ning could clearly feel that the spiritual energy he had lost in the battle was rapidly recovering.

[Spiritual Power: 17 → 18 → 19...]

In just two or three seconds of contact, he recovered two or three points of his depleted spiritual energy.

"This is..." Han Ning couldn't help but look at Lin Qianqian's delicate face.

Lin Qianqian withdrew her finger at the right moment, and the shimmering white light at her fingertip disappeared.

"I can help you restore your lost energy; that's my ability."

Chapter 43 Entering the Fog Zone

Han Ning felt the spiritual energy within his body becoming noticeably abundant.

On the panel, the spiritual power has been restored to 21/25 points.

This ability is so useful!

He calculated that since he leveled up to Lv4, his spiritual power has been recovering at a rate of about 8 points per hour.

This is much faster than the 1 point recovery per hour at Lv1, but correspondingly, as the skill level increases, the consumption of spirit energy also increases while enhancing destructive power and various effects.

For example, when a high-level vine technique is unleashed at full power and entangles a large target, it may consume 2-3 points of spiritual power at once.

Han Ning also figured out some techniques for conserving spiritual energy.

One can control the output of spiritual power through mental power, summoning a small number of low-strength vines for reconnaissance or simple binding.

Each time it might consume less than 1 point of spiritual energy; this precise control is a benefit brought about by increased proficiency.

But no matter how much he conserved his energy and how naturally he recovered, it was still far slower than Lin Qianqian replenishing him with nearly 4 points of spiritual power in just a few seconds.

The value of such rapid replenishment during lulls in combat or in critical moments is self-evident.

In addition, Lin Qianqian was someone he knew before he transmigrated. Although they were only in a superior-subordinate relationship, in his impression, this Boss Lin was capable, fair in rewarding and punishing, and fairly upright. She was at least more reliable than Chen Yan, that scoundrel in Liu Feng's team.

However, Han Ning did not immediately let his guard down.

He didn't refuse immediately, but cautiously asked, "How do you want to cooperate?"

Lin Qianqian said:

"Exploring foggy areas, especially deep into the core, is very dangerous."

"Those monsters' mental attacks are impossible to defend against, and I cannot guarantee that you can always maintain a clear mind."

"Therefore, we need an assistant."

Han Ning frowned slightly but remained silent.

Adding one more person means adding more variables, and as Lin Qianqian said, mental defense is their weakness.

He was able to get rid of the illusions before because of the purification effect of Nature's Blessing, a skill that consumes a lot of resources and is not always effective.

A teammate specializing in mental defense is indeed a great support.

"I only know about your strength from Chen Feng's description, and I need to confirm it with my own eyes."

"Tomorrow morning, we will enter the outer edge of the fog zone from the southern entrance for a simple hunt, targeting the monsters on the outer edge of the fog zone."

"If your performance meets my expectations, we'll continue until we can't go on anymore."

This is the value of ability; Lin Qianqian's ability to quickly restore energy directly proves her worth.

"Southern entrance?" Han Ning was somewhat curious about this division.

"Mmm," Lin Qianqian explained.

"Based on our exploration over this period of time, taking the direction from Biyun Resort to Bailugang as the central axis, we have currently discovered three relatively safe entrances."

“There are two entrances in the north, which we call North 1 and North 2.”

"There is one in the south, which is the South Entrance. This time we will go through the South Entrance. The monster density there is relatively low, and the monsters are weaker, making it a suitable place for us to practice and get used to each other."

"Understood," Han Ning nodded in agreement.

After agreeing on a meeting time and place, both parties went their separate ways.

……

Back in his apartment building, Han Ning didn't rest immediately.

He walked to the planting area in the corner of the balcony and looked at the few potato and tomato seedlings that were still growing hard in the dim light.

He stretched out his palm, and a soft emerald green light emanated from it once again, enveloping the two crops.

[Nature's Blessing (Beginner) Proficiency +1, currently 22/200]

The green light seeped into the leaves and stems, making the potato seedlings' leaves appear more vibrant, but there were still no visible changes.

Han Ning was not discouraged and released the tomato seedlings next to him again.

[Nature's Blessing (Beginner) Proficiency +1, currently 23/200]

After being released six times in a row, rapid growth was then released several more times on other plants.