At this moment, Jason Carter suddenly felt a pang of heartache, because his coat had been clawed with several holes by the giant sparrow’s talons.

Suddenly, there was a thud in his mind, and Jason Carter dropped to his knees on the ground. It was as if a massive bronze bell had rung in his head, plunging him into utter darkness and chaos.

Damn, his illness usually only struck at midnight, but this time it came early.

This wasn’t his first “attack.” Almost everyone in the town knew he had some kind of problem with his head, and that he would be struck by pain from time to time.

But Jason Carter knew very well, it wasn’t pain—it was pure chaos.

Wait, this time was different from before. The black fog in his mind actually parted, revealing a palace inside!

Jason Carter suddenly opened his eyes wide, stood up in disbelief, and looked himself over: “I woke up this quickly this time?”

He originally had a chance to take a good look at that palace, but he knew better than anyone that falling unconscious in the wilderness was no different from courting death. He had to hurry back to the town outside Refuge Barrier 113 before the acid rain arrived in full force!

Jason Carter tied the sparrow’s two talons together and slung it over his shoulder, then hoisted his big iron pot and flipped it upside down over his head before sprinting madly, the raindrops drumming out a “ta-ta-ta” sound on the pot.

At this moment, the iron pot became his umbrella.

But before he could run far, a figure blocked his path, brandishing a bone knife: “Hand over the prey to me…”

But before the man could finish his sentence, he saw a huge iron pot in his field of vision, coming at him fast and smashing into his face!

“Shit!” The robber was knocked flat on his back, never expecting Jason Carter to act so decisively—and with such force!

Jason Carter took off the pot, swung it, then hoisted it back up as an umbrella and dashed off in one smooth motion, without the slightest pause… Before the robber even hit the ground, Jason Carter was already running off into the distance!

The robber lay on his back, face up, the acid rain stinging and itching his skin. There were some things he just couldn’t figure out.

Normally, people would at least exchange a few words—just how many times had this kid been through situations like this to react so instinctively?!

Wait, the sound of that boy’s footsteps was coming back!

The robber scrambled to sit up and turned his head, only to see the boy had circled back!

Jason Carter hadn’t planned to return, but he clearly heard a voice from the palace in his mind: “Mission: Give the prey to someone else.”

Who was speaking? Jason Carter hesitantly turned back and walked toward the robber.

The robber panicked: “We can talk this out… Wait, I’m the victim here…”

Jason Carter looked the robber over carefully—there was no one else around.

“You want this sparrow?” Jason Carter asked.

The robber’s eyes lit up: “I do!”

“Here you go,” Jason Carter said, stuffing the sparrow into the man’s arms without another word.

That strange, neutral voice sounded again: “Mission complete. Reward: Basic Skill Learning Chart. You can learn others’ abilities.”

Jason Carter froze for a moment, because he could clearly feel a sheet of parchment appear in his mind!

A skill learning chart—did that mean he could use it to directly copy someone else’s abilities? Hunting? Survival? Or maybe something else?

The robber hugged the huge sparrow tightly, about to say a word of thanks: “You’re a good person…”

Before he could finish, he watched as Jason Carter snatched the sparrow back and strode off.

The robber: “???”

He stared at Jason Carter’s retreating, sprinting figure… What kind of person is this?! What’s he after?

Chapter 2: This World Never Believes in Tears

Because of the robber and the sudden blackout, Jason Carter returned later than usual. He glanced at the sky, which was about to be swallowed by darkness. At this hour, carrying prey through the town was extremely dangerous.

During the day, people from the refuge barrier would come out to maintain order, but at night, they all returned inside.

Of course, the people from the refuge barrier weren’t doing it out of kindness—they were just worried that too much chaos in the town would affect the labor of the refugees.

“Hey, Jason Carter, you had quite a haul today!”

As Jason Carter ran into town with his iron pot, someone greeted him. The man’s face was pitch black, as if he hadn’t washed it since birth.

Many people in the town were like this. To get food, they would go to the nearby coal mine to dig coal. The coal would be sent into the refuge barrier, and the workers would get just enough black bread or potatoes to survive.

It wasn’t just coal mining—any dirty or exhausting work needed by the barrier was done by those outside.

Even the well water in town was rationed; there was only so much each day, and no one could get more. There were no clean water sources nearby—or rather, the clean ones were too dangerous, swarming with beasts that came to drink. So everyone in town was filthy and unrecognizable, Jason Carter included.

But Jason Carter never went coal mining; he had his own way of surviving.

At this moment, even when someone greeted him, Jason Carter didn’t respond. He just wanted to hurry back to his own shack.