"Master, look, I've gained another ability, one you probably wouldn't expect."
As if presenting a treasure, the Director jumped onto Lu Heng's lap and began kneading his abdomen.
Lu Heng stroked the Director's head. The Director instinctively began to purr.
However, he couldn't feel what new skill the Director had acquired.
Logically, he should be able to sense the abilities of the animals he had contracted with.
"What skill?"
"I can control humans."
"What?!"
Lu Heng exclaimed in surprise, his voice so loud that Lin Yu, who had just returned to his room next door, came over.
"Brother Lu, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," Lu Heng glanced at Lin Yu and shook his head.
He had been communicating with the Director telepathically, so Lin Yu hadn't heard the Director's words.
"Oh, I'm just here to change. I went for a run with them outside earlier, and then the Director said you were back and insisted I bring it over."
"Mm, then you go ahead and get busy. I'm fine. I might have to leave after sitting here for a bit."
Lin Yu nodded and pointed at the Director, "Are you taking it with you? We don't really need its help in the city anymore."
"That's fine too."
Watching Lin Yu leave, Lu Heng took the Director back into his space. It was safer in the space, where he wouldn't draw attention with sudden exclamations.
"Alright, tell me, how do you control people?"
"Once, after I felt my level increase, I saw someone next to Lin Yu eating braised beef. I thought, 'If only he could pick out the beef and give it to me'..."
—Well, this must be the opportunity of a foodie.
"Later, that person indeed stopped eating. He started picking out all the beef and brought it to me."
The Director said with a little pride. In the space, it had also begun to speak human language.
"What beef? Was it good?" The Black Bear ambled over, sniffing the Director.
"Not just now, it was something that happened before!" The Director dodged slightly, afraid the Black Bear would grab it and search. This foodie was truly a match for it.
"Could it be a coincidence?" Lu Heng asked the Director.
The Director was a mental-type ability user. Its initial skill was to eavesdrop on people's thoughts; as long as it wanted to, it could know what others were thinking.
However, apart from Lu Heng himself being able to gain second, third, or even more skills after contracting with ability-using animals, ability users in the apocalypse had their ability types fixed when they became first-tier ability users.
When becoming a first-tier ability user, one was a single-attribute ability user and would only have one ability thereafter.
In the later stages, apart from being able to diversify the attack patterns of their abilities, they would not develop a second attribute.
This was one of the reasons why many people were surprised when Lu Heng displayed multiple abilities.
Therefore, Lu Heng had never heard of someone like the Director developing a new ability after leveling up in the later stages.
—Could it be because it's a mental-type ability?
In this world, Lu Heng had indeed not yet discovered any human or animal with mental-type abilities.
"No, I didn't hear any sounds in his mind at the time. He just suddenly brought the beef to me."
"Try controlling them."
Lu Heng gestured to the few animals gathered around him.
The Director's eyes rolled, and it looked at Lu Bai, who was lying down and sleeping.
Lu Bai... seemed to sense something. Perhaps the Director's gaze was too intense, as it suddenly raised its head.
However, its clear eyes showed no signs of being controlled.
"Why isn't it working!" the Director grumbled.
"Did you try? Who did you try on?" Lu Heng looked around, not seeing anyone in a dazed state.
"Lu Bai. It can transform into human form, so I tried it first."
"Try what?" Lu Bai propped itself up halfway and looked at Lu Heng. It had been sleeping and hadn't heard their conversation.
"Oh, I was trying to see if I could control your body. Didn't you feel anything?"
"I didn't feel anything, but what do you mean by controlling my body?"
"It means, if I told you to eat shit right now, you'd rush to do it without hesitation," the Director explained heedlessly.
"Is that so?" Lu Bai suddenly sprang up and pounced on the Director.
"Meow meow meow... No! Master, help me..."
The Director, terrified, blurted out its native language, and finally, with a cute plea, begged Lu Bai, "Lu Bai, Bai Bai, I was wrong! Ah! Don't bite my fur, they just groomed it for me yesterday, ah..."
Watching the two animals wrestling, Lu Heng took the Director out of the space.
The Director's inability to control Lu Bai was likely because they had both already been contracted by Lu Heng. Therefore, only Lu Heng could control them, and they couldn't use such abilities on each other.
He would find someone in the city to test it on later. Lu Heng also wanted to see if he possessed this ability to control humans.
If he did, it would be incredibly powerful.
Holding the rescued Director, Lu Heng left the inner city. The people in the inner city were very busy, and he didn't want to interfere with their work.
"Look at that person, he seems quite idle. Try him."
"What do you want him to do?"
Lu Heng glanced at the person. He was lying in the sun sleeping in broad daylight. The city's official personnel shouldn't be this idle.
Moreover, this person was acting alone and didn't seem to be from Wuming City.
"Control him, make him take off his clothes, and then run around on the road." Lu Heng's mischievous side emerged. Finding some amusement in the apocalypse wasn't bad.
Lu Heng watched as the man, who had been lying flat moments before, suddenly sat up. Lu Heng noticed that the man's gradually opening eyes were filled with confusion.
The man began to unbutton his clothes, taking them off one by one...
"Hey! You don't need to take it all off, at least leave him a couple of pieces..."
"No, why did you make him take off everything below, I said to leave a couple of pieces!"
"I did, there are two pieces on top, aren't there?"
Lu Heng...
Watching the man unhesitatingly strip down to his underwear in the sunlight, under everyone's gaze, Lu Heng stopped the Director from controlling him further.
The onlookers around began to whisper, unable to understand why someone would undress in broad daylight. Although many people in the apocalypse were no longer so concerned about such things, it was still an eyesore.
"Tsk tsk... It's not that hot yet, is it!"
"I don't know, but it's really not hot."
"Could he have wet himself?"
"Did you see his pants were wet?"
"......"
Having proven that the Director indeed had a new ability, Lu Heng quickly left with the Director, fearing he might arouse suspicion from others.
Behind him, freed from the Director's control, a man's terrified voice rang out:
"Ah... Who took off my pants..."