Chapter 1 — Apocalyptic Grass Sprouts

On the first day of the apocalypse, To Van was bitten on the back of the neck by a zombie. Not the arm, but the nape of the neck. At that time, she was lying face down in a pile of corpses pretending to be dead. A zombie passed by, bowed its head and bit her. The pain was so much that she almost screamed, but it only took one bite and then left - perhaps because it saw that she was too skinny and didn't eat well. The wound turned black, burned, and oozed pus. She thought she was about to mutate, huddled in the corner and waited all night. The next morning, she was still alive. The wound had scabbed over, but a hard lump appeared on the back of his neck, like there was a seed buried under the skin. No pain, no itching, just uncomfortable. Four hundred days have passed, and that hard lump is still there. No one knew, she didn't say either. During these four hundred days, she was the bottommost trash in the base. Drunk Loi Ho kicked her, she lay face down on the ground, and couldn't get up for a long time. Loi Ho's junior passed by and spat on her. She went to get porridge, someone pushed her down, the bowl fell and the porridge fell to the ground. She knelt on the ground, used her hands to pick up porridge from the mud, and stuffed it into her mouth. Someone passed by and stepped on her finger. She did not withdraw her hand. That person stepped on it again. She still did not retreat. It's not that I don't want to withdraw, but that withdrawing is useless. It's not that I don't want to cry, it's that no one cares about crying. It's not that she doesn't want to protest, but protesting will only make her beaten worse. She just squatted at the foot of the city wall every day, looking at the sky, waiting. What are you waiting for? She also doesn't know. Maybe waiting to die, maybe waiting to live, maybe waiting for an answer. Until today — the 400th day of the apocalypse, it finally moved.

“Awakened! Awakened! The waste has awakened!”

To Van was pulled out of the corner and pushed to the middle of the square. Everyone was watching excitedly, crowded into three inner and outer circles, like watching a monkey circus. Some people laugh, some scream, some jostle and push each other forward, just wanting to see clearly.

"What superpower is that? Let's try it out!"

She bowed her head, not daring to move. The hard lump on the back of the neck is beating every beat, like a heart. Then it broke. A green shoot sprouted from the back of her neck. Two leaves, so weak that even the wind could break them, hung down next to her shoulders, like a strand of hair growing from the back of her neck. There are also drops of water on the leaves, sparkling and flashing in the sunlight. The whole square was silent for three seconds. Then there was an explosion of laughter.

"Shy tree? Ha ha ha ha!"

"Growing on the back of your neck? What the hell is that!"

“Waste is truly trash, awakening abilities is also the worst kind of trash!”

To Van bowed her head and stood in the middle of the square. That small sprout hung down on her shoulder, and as soon as she touched it, it immediately shrank into a ball, sticking tightly to the skin on the back of her neck, as if scared. She could feel it shaking. The slender tree trunk trembled, the two leaves closed tightly, not daring to open. Loi Ho came. He was the most unruly person in the base, over one meter tall, his face was full of fierce flesh, and a scar stretched from the corner of his eye to the corner of his mouth. He closed his mouth and glanced at her, like he was looking at a pile of trash. He walked around her back, reached out and grabbed the stick, pulling it.

“Breathe…”

To Van inhaled a cold breath. Painful. Its roots were still connected to the flesh on the back of her neck, as if someone had pulled her hair out forcefully outside. She could feel the roots tugging under her skin, her veins pulsing, her wound bleeding. Loi Ho let go and laughed.

"But it really does grow on real meat! You're a waste, you can't even take down your powers!"

He raised his hand and patted the shy tree once. The leaves shrank, and the back of her neck felt a sharp pain, as if someone had slapped her. The blow wasn't strong, but because it connected to the roots, it hurt so much that her eyes stung.

“Let's go, let's go, I'm bored to death.”

Loi Ho waved his hand. The crowd dispersed. Someone passed by her and intentionally bumped her shoulder. Someone turned to look at her and shook his head. A child ran up, spat at her and then ran away again. No one asked her if she was in pain. To Van squatted on the ground and reached out to touch the back of her neck. The stick shrunk into a lump, sticking close to her skin. Small, thin roots stuck deep into the wound, which was still bleeding. She gently touched its leaves. It trembled, slowly opened, gently rubbing against her fingers. To Van looked at it. This was the first time she seriously looked at it. Its leaves are young green, covered with a thin layer of fluff, sparkling in the sunlight. Its body is very thin, like a thread, but it is very tough and does not break when pulled. Its roots were embedded in her flesh, she could feel it beating, in sync with her heart.

“Are you scared?” she asked.

The leaves do not move.

“Don't be afraid.” she said. “I'm here.”

The leaves rubbed against her fingers again. This time it rubbed a little harder, like it was responding. To Van stood up, brushed off the dirt on her body, and walked towards the foot of the city wall. When passing by Loi Ho, he was squatting on the ground, chewing a piece of dry food, with a bowl of water next to him. He ate very well, saliva flowing down the corners of his mouth. That bowl of water was very clean, just drawn from the well this morning. In the base, most people only drink old water from yesterday. She stopped and looked at him.

"What are you looking at? Get out!"

He didn't even lift his head. To Van didn't say anything, turned around and left.