Nana’s announcement hit the crowd like a shockwave. Every eye in the clearing snapped to Chen Ye, filled with a potent mix of awe, disbelief, and naked envy.

“Mechanic Sequence? Seriously?”

“Hiss… lucky bastard!”

“That makes four Sequence Beyonders in our convoy. We’re getting stronger.”

Four? Chen Ye’s mind raced. So there’s one more besides Nana and the giant.

He glanced at the barefoot young man. Him?

Nana tossed her ponytail, gesturing theatrically at Chen Ye’s Frankenstein tricycle. Her chin was lifted high, radiating pride as if she were the one who had awakened him.

“Captain! Look at this machine. You remember what it looked like last night, right? And look at it now! Only a Mechanic could pull this off overnight without a workshop.” She slapped Chen Ye’s shoulder hard enough to make him wince. “Not bad, right? Having a Mechanic on the team is going to be huge!”

The survivors murmured in agreement. Their gazes lingered on the modified trike, then drifted back to Chen Ye. The women looked at him with starry eyes; the men, with bitter jealousy.

Sequence Beyonders were legends. Everyone had heard the stories, and Apricot Blossom Town had proven their power was real. To be under the protection of another one… just the thought made hope kindle in their desperate eyes.

Mechanic Sequence? Chen Ye thought. Guess I’m a mechanic now.

His Upgrade System certainly fit the description. It was a convenient cover story.

“Welcome to the awakened world.”

The barefoot man stood up. His aura was distinct—calm, grounded, almost ethereal amidst the grime of the apocalypse. He extended a hand, his smile sunny and disarming.

“I’m Chu Che.”

Shaking that hand felt like crossing a threshold. Chen Ye sensed the door to the world of Sequence Beyonders swinging open for him.

A wisp of steam curled lazily from a porcelain teacup.

It was the first time Chen Ye had tasted tea since the world ended. Before, he’d found it bitter and pretentious. Now, the delicate, refreshing fragrance felt like a luxury beyond measure, a fleeting taste of civilization.

He sat inside a spacious tent with the convoy’s elite. Only three people were present: himself, Chu Che, and Nana.

“Let’s do formal introductions,” Chu Che said, his voice smooth. “I’m Chu Che. Pathfinder Sequence.”

“Nana. Sword Immortal Sequence,” the girl said, tapping the hilt of her weapon.

“Chen Ye,” he replied, leaning into his new role. “Mechanic Sequence.”

“There’s one more you’ve seen—the big guy, Iron Lion. He’s a Titan Sequence, currently recovering from his injuries.” Chu Che took a sip of tea. “You must have just awakened, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I thought so. New Beyonders always have questions. When I first awakened, I was completely in the dark too. Ask away.”

Chen Ye paused, feigning ignorance. “What exactly is the Mechanic Sequence?”

Chu Che blinked, surprised. Usually, awakening came with a flood of genetic memory or instinctual knowledge. For Chen Ye to know nothing was odd. But he pushed the suspicion down. Every awakening was different.

“From what we know,” Chu Che explained, “Mechanics possess an innate, almost supernatural intuition for machinery. They understand the principles, operation, and structure of devices at a glance. It’s a support-class Sequence. In peacetime, it would have been one of the most coveted abilities. Now… well, it’s still useful.”

Chen Ye nodded slowly, absorbing the information. Chu Che’s explanation opened a window into this hidden world.

“There are over a hundred known Sequences,” Chu Che continued. “Even I only know a fraction of them. The apocalypse has only been going on for a few months; most are still undocumented.”

He outlined the categories: Combat, Support, Supernatural. He explained that some were culturally specific—Xia Country had Sword Immortals and Celestial Masters, while the island nations had Ninjas and Shikigami.

“The Anomalies actually started appearing back in 2025,” Chu Che revealed casually. “It wasn’t severe at first. Governments covered it up. That’s when the first Beyonders started awakening.”

Chen Ye listened intently. This was history he had never heard.

“Anomalies are immortal,” Chu Che said, his face darkening. “Only Beyonders can interact with them, fight them. But as you saw in Apricot Blossom Town… fighting isn’t winning. The White-Dress Scissor Lady isn’t even a high-tier Anomaly. Yet Iron Lion and Nana together barely escaped with their lives. Iron Lion lost an arm just to buy time.”

He sighed, setting down his cup. “Humanity is weak. And the Anomalies? They’re evolving. Getting stronger every day. The future… is bleak.”

A heavy silence filled the tent. Chen Ye felt a chill that had nothing to do with the night air.

The cities were nests. The world was a Forbidden Zone.

“Does humanity still have hope?” Chen Ye murmured.

Chu Che didn’t answer directly. Instead, he explained why the convoy had survived this long.

“I’m a Pathfinder,” he said. “My Sequence has zero combat power. But I can sense the ‘aura’ of Anomalies within a certain range. I find the safe paths between the danger zones.”

That explained it. Why they never got ambushed on the road. Why they ran so frantically from the town before nightfall.

“But Anomalies are drawn to life,” Chu Che added grimly. “The more people we have, the brighter our ‘scent.’ We have to keep moving. There is no destination. Survival is the destination.”

He looked Chen Ye in the eye. “That’s why we need you. A fourth Beyonder makes the convoy safer. Welcome to the team, Chen Ye.”

Nana nodded enthusiastically.

Chen Ye shrugged. “Not like I have much of a choice.”

He shook Chu Che’s hand again. “By the way, Captain Chu. Does the team have gasoline?”

“We do,” Chu Che said, a glint of shrewdness entering his eyes. “But what do you have to trade, brother?”

Chen Ye paused. “Trade?”

“In this convoy, everyone pulls their weight. You gather your own supplies, or you trade for them.”

Chen Ye stared at him. I’m a Sequence Beyonder now. I still have to barter? No perks? You just welcomed me to the team!

“Tell you what,” Chu Che said, seeing his expression. “How about we hold an internal market? We just came out of a town; everyone’s packs are full. It’s a good time to exchange resources.”

He winked at Chen Ye. “As long as you can pay the price, you can trade for anything you want.”

Chen Ye’s mind began to whir.

An internal market?

He thought of the women’s clothes, the extra food, and the secret knowledge he had bought from the system.

Maybe he could get exactly what he needed to finish his tricycle.