Chapter 421 Loopholes and Breakthroughs
Lucas didn’t bother replying–his silence said enough.
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Xavier leaned back in his chair, watching his one and only grandson walk away. A deep sigh slipped out, then another, then another. The more he thought about it, the more certain he became.
Hah… who am <i>I </i>kidding? <i>If </i>I keep waiting for Lucas <i>to </i>bring a girl home and settle down, I’ll <i>be </i>waiting till my <ist </i>breath. The boy’s got everything–brains<i>, </i><i>looks</i>, ability<i>–</i><i>but </i>when ites <i>to </i><i>romance</i>? Ilopeless, <i>and </i>absolutely clueless
Tessa, of all people… She’s bright, dazzling, the kind <i>of </i>woman most men <i>would </i><i>be </i>tripping over themselves for. What does my grandson do? Stands there <i>like </i>a tree, probably expecting <i>her </i><i>to </i><i>be </i><i>the </i><i>one </i><i>to </i><i>chase </i>him. <i>Honestly</i><i>… </i><i>his </i><i>ambition </i>in love is about as alive as a <i>stone</i>.
Xavier shook his head in quiet frustration. <i>Well</i>… <i>at </i>least I <i>pulled </i>Theresa <i>into </i><i>the </i><i>Keaton </i><i>family </i><i>myself</i><i>. </i><i>Small </i>win, but I’ll take it.
Thinking of her made him think of Tania.
He picked up his phone and dialed. “Hey, Tania, been busy?”
“Not too bad,” she replied, her voice light and cheerful. “Just hit a breakthrough in my research. I’m about to head over to see Terry.”
He replied. “Alright, I won’t keep you. Go on, go.”
“I’lle by when things settle down,” she promised..
A smile crept across Xavier’s face. “I’ll be waiting.”
The line clicked off, leaving a gentle warmth in his chest.
Tessa and her <i>aunt</i><i>… </i><i>Now </i><i>those </i><i>two </i><i>are </i><i>the </i><i>real </i><i>deal</i><i>–</i><i>smart</i>, <i>capable</i><i>, </i><i>grounded</i>. <i>If </i><i>only </i><i>my </i>own <i>family </i><i>could </i>be more like them.
Just as Tania hung up, a familiar voice called out.
“Aunt Tania!”
“Terry!”
They closed the distance in seconds. Tania’s face lit up like antern as she pulled her niece into a tight, smothering hug. “I’ve missed you so much! Let me see… have you lost weight? No, no, stand still. I need to check properly.”
Theresa stood still and let her pinch her cheeks. “Have you looked enough yet?”
Tania’s grin widened. “Yup. Now for the best parte here, my gorgeous, slim Terry. I’m going to smother you with kisses!”
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Chapter 421 Loopholes and Breakthroughs
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She made good on the threat, nting one kiss after another until Theresa finally squirmed free,ughing and slightly out of breath. Her aunt’s affection seemed to be hitting record highstely.
“Alright, alright, Aunt Tania, mercy! I need to talk to you,” Theresa said, fixing her hair.
“Perfect timing,” Tania replied with a teasing glint in her eyes. “I need to talk to you, too.”
“You first,” Theresa offered, raising an eyebrow.
Tania shook her head. “No, you first. What’s up?”
Three minutester, they were seated in Tania’s office.
Theresa reached into her pocket and handed over a fire–based ability seed. She didn’t exin what it was -just said it was good for her.
Tania didn’t even blink. She popped it straight into her mouth without asking a single question.
Theresa kept her eyes locked on her, ready to react if something went wrong. Nothing did–no odd reactions, no sign of difort.
Then, a voice rang in her mind.
<i>‘</i><i>Ding</i><i>! </i>Camp guard Tania Owen–Gray has awakened her fire–based ability.
<i>‘</i><i>Ding</i><i>! </i>Congrattions! You have obtained the guard’s fire–type ability. Duplicate detected–converting to proficiency.’
<i>‘</i><i>Ding</i><i>! </i>Warning: This camp guard’s granted ability can be revoked at any time.‘
Theresa’s heart skipped a beat. I <i>knew </i><i>it</i><i>… </i><i>I </i><i>was </i><i>right</i>.
<i>The </i><i>system </i>won’t <i>let </i><i>me </i><i>grab </i><i>the </i><i>same </i><i>ability </i><i>twice</i><i>–</i><i>but </i><i>if </i><i>I </i><i>give </i><i>the </i><i>seed </i><i>to </i><i>one </i><i>of </i><i>my </i><i>own </i><i>people</i>, their <i>awakened </i>power <i>bounces </i><i>right </i><i>back </i>to <i>me</i><i>. </i><i>Perfect</i>.
<i>That </i><i>means </i><i>every </i><i>time </i><i>I </i><i>strengthen </i><i>my </i><i>team</i><i>, </i>I’m <i>strengthening </i><i>myself </i><i>too</i><i>. </i><i>The </i><i>whole </i>camp <i>benefits </i><i>more </i><i>than </i>if I kept <i>everything </i><i>for </i><i>myself</i><i>. </i><i>This </i><i>changes </i><i>everything</i>.
<i>Wait</i><i>… </i><i>hold </i><i>on</i>. <i>That </i><ist </i><i>prompt</i><i>… </i><i>“</i><i>ability </i><i>can </i><i>be revoked</i><i>.</i><i>” </i>
So, <i>because </i><i>I’m </i><i>the </i>one who <i>gave </i><i>it</i><i>, </i><i>I </i><i>can </i><i>take </i><i>it </i><i>back </i><i>whenever </i><i>I </i>want<i>?</i><i>Whata </i>dangerous kind <i>of </i>control…
Her eyes practically gleamed.
Meanwhile, Tania still hadn’t noticed what she’d just gained. She smiled and said, “Terry, our research team finally made a major breakthrough. Remember the zombie–sensing spray I made before? We’ve got an upgraded version now–it works on high–level zombies.”
Theresa felt like she’d just stepped from one pleasant surprise straight into another.
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10:39 Fri, 22 Aug
Chapter 421 Loopholes and Breakthroughs
The system’s abilities were incredible, but human innovation was the real foundation of survival.
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Tania’s original zombie–sensing spray had been a lifesaver in the early days, but as zombies evolved, its effectiveness dropped. Now, with this upgrade, they were back in the game.
Theresa never saw the system as the sole answer. She treated it as a tool <i>to </i>store and channel power, which she then invested into strengthening humanity–farming, industry, research, equipment, medicine… everything.
What belonged to the system stayed with the system. What she built with her own hands belonged to her.
True human strength would alwayse from themselves.
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