Humans Shrunk 100 Times

Chen Mu could already guess the general sequence of events.

That morning, the three individuals had initially come to negotiate with them, but evidently, at the last moment, they suddenly fell into a state of mental disorder.

Liu Shanshan mentioned that after falling into this confusion, they would wander around like zombies. It was then that Chen Mu understood why he had felt a sense of lifelessness when he saw them. Whether killing or being killed, their facial expressions remained unchanged.

Moreover, they didn't utter a word; they simply attacked ruthlessly.

Clearly, they had come with good intentions, but approaching strangers triggered painful memories of the last time they were attacked. This sent them straight into chaos mode, attacking anyone they saw.

The reason Chen Mu didn't consider these three individuals particularly formidable was solely due to the circumstances at that time.

It could be said that the narrow gap of the door saved his life.

The combined telekinetic ability of the three people was evidently more powerful than the simple combined strength of three individuals. Although Chen Mu had already awakened his abilities at that time, his ability utilization was far inferior to what it was now. If they had engaged in a direct confrontation, he probably wouldn't have been a match for them.

However, his decisive choice to retreat into the room severely reduced their abilities. Taking advantage of the situation, he successfully disabled one person and, in the chaos that followed, the other two only knew how to attack randomly. This allowed Chen Mu to take a hit, kill another person, and ultimately annihilate them.

It was the first time Chen Mu had taken a life.

And now, knowing that it was all a misunderstanding, he felt even more uneasy about it.

Although it wasn't his fault, he still found it difficult to accept for a moment.

...

Liu Shanshan's facial expression froze for a long time. Then, as if deflating, she slumped to the ground. Her hands and feet were bound, contorting her body into an uncomfortable position.

Obviously, she had anticipated this outcome.

After Chen Mu apologized, she had a rough idea of what had transpired.

"They fell into chaos again, didn't they?" Liu Shanshan looked up at Chen Mu.

Chen Mu nodded.

Then, he reached out and took back the chain around her feet to allow her to sit more comfortably.

Liu Shanshan adjusted her position and sat cross-legged on the ground. Although her hands were still tied, at least she could sit up straight.

She softly said her thanks and then hesitated to speak several times before finally sighing, "Those three are actually good people. They never saw others as burdens. Without them, we might have died long ago."

Chen Mu didn't want to dwell on this topic any longer and instead asked, "What happened afterward?"

"We assumed that the three of you wouldn't come, and we guessed that something might have happened to you. At that time, we thought you were all wicked and vicious people, so we dared not approach this area. Fortunately, later on, some people in our group gained special abilities, which barely allowed us to survive.

But as time went on, it became increasingly difficult to find food. Several people died while searching for supplies outside, and some left on their own to avoid becoming burdens on others. In the end, only four of us were left."

Suddenly, Chen Mu asked, "Where was your original base camp?"

"It was in a drain on the first floor corridor of the teaching building. We found some leaves to lie on, and it was not too bad."

"Do you know who attacked you before?"

"We have no idea."

"Weren't they from Yi Zhong*?" (*Note: Yi Zhong is likely a place or an organization)

"Yi Zhong? I don't know," Liu Shanshan looked puzzled.

Chen Mu was taken aback. He had assumed that only those from Yi Zhong would hold a grudge against all students from Zi Wei High School due to their conflicts. Otherwise, there was no explanation for why they would attack their own kind without any reason. In such a situation, collective cooperation was the key to survival. It was understandable for strangers to be wary of each other, but it made no sense to needlessly bring harm to others.

Clearly, the outside world was far more complex than they had imagined.

"Have you encountered people from Yi Zhong?" Chen Mu asked again.

"Yi Zhong? What's that?" Liu Shanshan still seemed clueless, and she didn't appear to be pretending. Besides, there was no significant reason to hide this information.

Chen Mu didn't answer but continued to inquire, "Apart from those who attacked you, have you encountered any other people?"

"Excluding your group, no."

Chen Mu frowned. While the school was not too big or too small, it seemed quite coincidental that they hadn't encountered anyone else during such a long time. Of course, from Liu Shanshan's account, she rarely ventured outside, so it wasn't strange that she hadn't encountered anyone. Perhaps the three deceased individuals had met people from Yi Zhong, but they refused to talk about it or chose not to go back to the subject.

Or maybe there just weren't many people around the teaching building area.

Chen Mu pondered for a moment but couldn't make sense of the situation. He decided to discuss it with Tang Jing and the others later.

He thought for a moment and asked, "If you were afraid to come near here, why did you sneak in tonight?"

"Because we could no longer go on. In the end, we could only scavenge the bodies of dead ants and insects we found on the road. If we happened to find something relatively fresh, we would eat it," Liu Shanshan explained.

"Eating them raw?" Chen Mu was taken aback.

"We couldn't make a fire, so we had no choice but to eat them raw," Liu Shanshan said without much emotion, as if she had become accustomed to it.

Chen Mu found himself somewhat admiring them. Indeed, in the face of survival, people could do many incredible things. Although there was Mr. Bei, the pioneer who taught them that many insects were not only harmless but also high-protein and high-quality food, when it came to actually eating insects raw, not many people dared to try, especially with their current reduced stature, making insects and ants equally repulsive.

"So, you came in here to steal food?" Chen Mu asked.

"Yes, although we were afraid to get too close, we occasionally kept an eye on you from a distance. Sometimes, at night, we even dared to approach the entrance to check it out. We were still hesitating, but after seeing you sealing the gap in the door yesterday, we were afraid that we might not get another chance. So we decided to take the risk and come in tonight, but it turned out you discovered us."

"To be honest, you guys really don't have the talent for being thieves."

Chen Mu was quite speechless. They were stealing from someone else's home, and they had almost given themselves away several times. With their poor performance, it was truly a miracle that they had managed to survive until now.

Liu Shanshan looked embarrassed.

Chen Mu asked again, "Out of all of you, besides the classmate who can fart, have others awakened their abilities?"

Liu Shanshan seemed unfamiliar with the term "awakened" and hesitated for a moment before nodding, "Yes, everyone has awakened."

This time, Chen Mu was surprised.

All four of them had awakened?

Combined with his previous questions, it seemed that the proportion of awakened individuals in this group was quite high, possibly not much lower than their own side.

Unlock exclusive early access to 100s of chapters before anyone else by becoming a valued member of my Patreon community.

As a cherished member of our Patreon community, here is what you'll get:

For just $5, you'll receive:

• Early access to 100s of chapters before they go public. (check all the novels I'm translating from HERE, all the novels have 100s of exclusive early access chapters and some are complete.)
• Your name prominently featured on the "Wall of Gratitude".
• The power to vote on which novel I should translate next.

If you decide to pledge $10, you'll get all the perks from the $5 tier, plus:

• You get to suggest a Novel (Chinese or Korean) for me to translate, It may take some time for me to do it but it will be done as soon as possible.
• Your name prominently featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in gold).

And if you're feeling generous with a $20 pledge, you'll unlock all the perks from the $5 tier and $10 tier, plus:

• You get to recommend a Novel (Chinese or Korean) and I will immediately start translating it.
• You get to recommend an abandoned Novel (Chinese or Korean) and I will immediately start translating it.
• Your name featured at the top of the "Wall of Gratitude".

Don't let this amazing opportunity slip through your fingers!