With three superpowers at his fingertips, he could dominate the 1970s.

The two deliberately chose to go to secluded places.

The deeper they went, the denser the ruins became, and the more difficult the path became. Some alleys were completely blocked, and the two had to climb over half-collapsed walls and tumble and crawl across the piles of rubble.

Jiang Zhiyu was already very tired.

Her mental energy was like a string stretched too long; with each use, it loosened a little, and she could feel her limits approaching. But before she could even release her mental energy at each new ruin, Seventeen had already swept it all away for her.

Jiang Zhiyu didn't stop and continued walking forward.

She crouched down and said in a voice that Ji Buzhi could hear, "There are people here, still alive." Then the two of them started moving bricks.

Seventeen's scanning was much less strenuous than her releasing her mental energy herself—she only needed to follow Seventeen's guidance, saving those she could and marking those she couldn't with wooden plaques.

She couldn't go too far. Ji Buzhi was right next to her, so she couldn't use her special abilities too obviously.

Those that required moving large precast slabs to be saved, she could only mark them and hand them over to people with the necessary equipment later.

By noon, the sun peeked out from behind the hazy clouds, but it brought no warmth. Instead, it evaporated the moisture from the ground into a sweltering fog that clung to the skin, making it hard to breathe.

Jiang Zhiyu leaned against a wall that hadn't collapsed yet, took a sip of spiritual spring water, and suddenly spoke.

"Ji Buzhi, go to the command post and get some supplies."

Ji turned around to look at her.

"We should eat, I'm starving." Jiang Zhiyu forced a smile. "Don't worry, I won't wander off. I'll wait for you right here. You haven't eaten all night either, so go ahead."

Ji hesitated for a moment, then glanced at her—her complexion was indeed poor, her lips were chapped, and there were dark circles under her eyes. He wanted to say something, but swallowed it back and simply nodded.

"Then don't move, I'll be right back."

He walked towards the command post, turning back every few steps, and kept looking back even after he had walked a long way. Survivors by the roadside stopped him and asked where the relief supplies were. He pointed the way while turning back again, until he completely disappeared into the alleyway.

-

Jiang Zhiyu watched his retreating figure grow smaller and smaller until he completely turned the corner and disappeared from sight. Only then did she ask in her mind, "Seventeen, you said there were three people in the house ahead, and they were all trapped?"

"Yes, host. Three children. Their parents have passed away."

Jiang Zhiyu's heart tightened, and she took off running.

-

It was a completely collapsed bungalow.

From the outside, it looked like a pile of bricks and wooden beams, with no discernible shape. But since Seventeen said there were people inside, Jiang Zhiyu didn't hesitate—with no one around, she took the precast concrete slabs, broken beams, and whole brick walls that were pressing down on them into her space.

One by one, the heavy building materials disappeared, and the ruins seemed to be peeled away by an invisible hand, layer by layer, revealing the space underneath.

Then she saw a scene that she would never forget.

A narrow, triangular space was held together by a dilapidated wooden table and a back.

That's the child's father.

He hunched over, his arms braced on the table, his back like a bent iron beam, holding back the collapsing roof beams and precast concrete slabs from above. He left the space for the child beneath him to survive.

The children's mother was lying on top of the three children.

Her left hand, with one finger stuffed into the little girl's mouth?

The three children were huddled in the small space created by their parents' bodies. The two slightly older boys, about seven or eight and five or six years old respectively, were covered in dust and abrasions, but they were breathing and conscious, just terrified.

The smallest one was a baby girl.

Her breathing was so weak it was almost imperceptible; her face was bluish-purple, her lips were pale, and her mouth, which was holding her mother's finger, was loosely open. Her condition was critical.

Jiang Zhiyu didn't think much of it.

She first induced vines to grow, and the soft tendrils grew from her fingertips, reaching into the triangular space like living things. They gently wrapped around the waists of the two older children, carefully lifting them up and carrying them to a safe place on the ground.

Then she reached out and picked up the smallest baby girl.

The tiny body was so light it was almost weightless. Jiang Zhiyu took out a cup of spiritual spring water from her spatial storage, dipped her fingertip in a drop, and gently placed it on the baby girl's lips.

One drop, two drops, three drops.

The baby girl's eyelashes trembled, her chest rose and fell slightly—then she let out a loud "waaaah!" and burst into tears.

The crying was particularly loud in the silent ruins. The two older children on the upper floor were startled awake by the sound. They stared blankly at Jiang Zhiyu, and after two seconds, they burst into tears as well.

Jiang Zhiyu pretended to take two breads out of her backpack—actually from her spatial storage—and handed one to each of them.

"Go sit in that open space over there."

The two children didn't move; they stood by the ruins, clutching their bread, refusing to leave.

"I want to stay with my mom and dad," the older boy said in a hoarse voice.

But she knew she had to make the children face this fact.

She carried the baby girl to the bottom of the ruins and waved to the two boys.

"You guys come over here first."

Two children came over, covered in dirt and grime, their faces stained with mud and tears, clutching the bread tightly in their hands, reluctant to eat it.

"Eat first," Jiang Zhiyu said. "I'll go and bring your parents over here, okay?"

The older boy paused for a moment, then burst into tears.

"I know... my dad is gone..."

He sobbed uncontrollably, his voice breaking, "He told me last night... that he couldn't be there to watch me grow up... that he wanted me to take good care of my younger brother and sister... that he was going to go to a very far place with Mom..."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhiyu suddenly looked up at the sky.

She didn't want the tears in her eyes to fall.

Jiang Zhiyu retrieved a cotton quilt from the ruins, spread it on the ground, and placed the baby girl in her arms on it.

"You're the oldest, so look after your little sister. You and your brother eat your bread first. You're the older brother, so you have to be strong, okay?"

The boy wiped the tears and mud from his face and nodded firmly.

Jiang Zhiyu climbed the ruins, spurring vines to gently wrap around the two already cold bodies, carefully pulling them up. She then grabbed a quilt from the house, carefully wrapped the woman's body, carried them down from the ruins, and placed them not far from the children.

The two boys ran over and carefully lifted a corner of the quilt, revealing their mother's face.

Her face was calm, as if she were asleep.

The boy squatted there, staring at his mother's face for a long time, as if trying to remember what she looked like.

He was lucky to survive.

He is already nine years old.

It's time for him to take charge of the family.

He tugged at his younger brother's hand, looked up at Jiang Zhiyu, his eyes red-rimmed, but he stopped crying.

"Sister, can I sit here with my mom and dad?"

Jiang Zhiyu nodded: "Okay. But when the rescue team arrives, you must go with them. Someone will help you with your parents' funeral arrangements."

The child seems to have grown up overnight.

He nodded solemnly, and then did something that made Jiang Zhiyu unable to hold back any longer—

He tore off a small piece of bread and gently put it into his father's mouth.

"Go with your mother to a faraway place, and make sure you eat your fill."

His voice was soft and steady, as if he was trying hard not to let it tremble.

"I'll take good care of my younger brother and sister. Didn't you say I'm a man now?"

Jiang Zhiyu couldn't bear to listen any longer.

She picked up the baby girl from her swaddling clothes and placed her in the boy's arms. The boy caught his sister, his forearm tightening around her, supporting the back of her head steadily like an adult.

"She's still very young and can only be fed formula. Once the rescue team arrives, you can all go together. There are tents over there, and they have formula and everything. Understand?"

The boy nodded.

Then he covered his parents' faces with the blanket, stood up, looked at his younger sister in his arms, and then at Jiang Zhiyu.

"Sister, I haven't had a chance to thank you for saving us."

"You're welcome. I'm a rescue worker; it's what I should do."

Just then, she heard footsteps.

Looking back, I saw Ji Buzhi leading a small team of rescuers.

Ji Buzhi was carrying a water bottle and some compressed biscuits, his face still covered in dust, but he walked quickly. He spotted Jiang Zhiyu at a glance, then looked at the baby in the boy's arms, and paused for a moment.

"Just rescued?" he asked in a low voice.

Jiang Zhiyu nodded.

He stuffed the food into Jiang Zhiyu's hands, then turned around and handed the three children over to the rescue team.

"Are there enough supplies at the relief point?" Jiang Zhiyu asked.

Ji Buzhi nodded: "There's enough for now. It's just too chaotic right now; the golden time for rescue is precious, and everyone is busy saving lives."

Jiang Zhiyu watched as Ji Buzhi handed the three children over to the rescue team, then walked up to the big boy and squatted down.

"My sister needs to go rescue other children. You guys go to the rescue point first, okay?"

The child nodded, then suddenly asked, "Sister, what's your name?"

"My name is Jiang Feng. My younger brother's name is Jiang Yu. My younger sister's name is Jiang Mian."

Jiang Zhiyu smiled – this surname seemed to have a connection with her.

"My older sister's name is Jiang Zhiyu."

Jiang Feng silently repeated the three characters "Jiang Zhiyu" several times.

Then he followed the rescue team, carrying his youngest sister in his arms, with his younger brother following behind. The three small figures disappeared into the smoke and dust at the end of the ruins.

-

Jiang Zhiyu walked along, munching on compressed biscuits. They were dry and hard to swallow, but she didn't even bother to drink water, stuffing them into her mouth one bite at a time.

Ji Buzhi followed silently behind without saying a word.