Tiana Lynch was about to lose her mind.

She had used her own Superpower to peek at Sue Lawrence’s Superpowers. Wasn’t it just a Healing Skill and an Ice Control Skill?

How could there be another one?

And what was it?

’Oh, could it be the Ice Control Skill?’

"She also has an Ice Control Skill?"

’It has to be the Ice Control Skill, right? After all, that’s the most practical Superpower to have in this frozen wasteland. It must be that one, right?’

She stared at Dominic Trent as if grasping at a lifeline, questioning him with frantic urgency.

But Dominic Trent just laughed. "So she even has an Ice Control Skill? Turns out she’s that strong. Then why did you call her useless?"

As he spoke, he deliberately glanced behind her. "Isn’t that right, Jason?"

Jason Sterling? Behind her? ’No way. How is that possible?!’

Tiana Lynch felt the blood freeze in her veins. Her fingertips trembled uncontrollably as she stiffly, slowly, turned her head.

Jason Sterling stood just a step behind her. His face was as cold as permafrost, his dark eyes devoid of any warmth. Every bit of her nervousness, every lie and concealment about Sue Lawrence’s Superpowers, had fallen squarely into his ears.

Tiana Lynch’s heart constricted violently, as if squeezed by an invisible hand. A suffocating feeling washed over her. Her mouth, which had just been spouting urgent questions, now opened and closed, unable to form a single word.

She never imagined that Jason Sterling would appear here so silently. ’No, it’s that I was too shocked just now. As Jason walked further in, of course he would end up near me. I’m the one who didn’t notice. Damn it!!’

She was both terrified and furious. The one thing she never wanted Jason Sterling to know, he now knew!

"Jason, it’s not what you think! Let me explain!" Tiana Lynch practically lunged at him, grabbing his sleeve. Her fingertips turned white from the force of her grip. Her voice, trembling uncontrollably and tinged with sobs, scrambled for an explanation. "Her Superpowers are redundant with ours—an Ice Control Skill and a Healing Skill. Their levels aren’t even as high as Tia Norris’s or Pamela Sutton’s, so she wouldn’t have been useful... I didn’t mean to keep it from you..."

She desperately tried to salvage the situation, to explain herself, but Jason Sterling just coldly shook her hand off. The disgust and disappointment in his eyes were unconcealed. He wouldn’t even give her a chance to make a single excuse before turning and walking away.

The moment he flung her off, Tiana Lynch froze in place. A sharp resentment surged from the bottom of her heart. She hated Jason Sterling for not listening to her explanation, hated him for so easily dismissing all the good she had done.

But this resentment lasted only a moment before being swallowed by a deeper regret.

’How could I have been so careless? This is all Sue Lawrence’s fault! How can she cause so much trouble just by going out on a mission? That bastard!’

Her resentment for Sue Lawrence grew even stronger.

Meanwhile, the safe return of Silas Hawthorne and Theodore Frost was a great relief to Marcus Morgan.

These two "fierce generals" were highly valued even by the higher-ups. It would have been a true pity if they had been lost in this polar apocalypse.

Since everyone had returned safely, Marcus Morgan was delighted and added an extra meat dish to everyone’s dinner that night.

As for their Points, everyone received a generous amount. Sue Lawrence’s Points increase was the largest of all; Silas Hawthorne had given her a full 100 Points. The others received around ten-odd Points each, with the highest getting 20. But no one knew exactly how many Points anyone else got, since the leaderboard used ID numbers, not real names.

Soon, the rankings on the points leaderboard began to shift. However, the person in first place remained unshakable, their Points simply jumping from over four hundred to over five hundred.

At first, no one paid it much mind. After all, that person had always been number one, and many people weren’t particularly sensitive to numbers. But those who were constantly watching the leaderboard noticed the change in Points.

"The ID number in first place... that can’t be Sue Lawrence’s, can it?"

"She was on the same mission as us. How could she have gotten that many Points?"

"How many Points did you all get?"

"I got 12."

"I got 18..."

Everyone chattered amongst themselves. In the end, not a single person believed Sue Lawrence could have received so many Points.

’Over five hundred total Points? How is that possible?’

Jason Sterling was also looking at his Points. He had gained 16 Points this time. Added to the 3 he had before, his total was now only 19 Points, not even 20.

Then, prompted by the others’ conversation, he looked at the god-like figure at the top of the leaderboard who had just gained a hundred Points, and he too found it incredible.

’Could that be Sue Lawrence? Impossible. It could be anyone but her. A difficult mission like this only got me 16 Points. We nearly died out there, and we only got this little. If I had to guess, I’d rather believe the person in first place is Silas Hawthorne. After all, he’s the sole leader; he planned and led every operation.’

The thought brought him some relief. Believing it was Silas Hawthorne made it much easier to accept. ’If it were Sue Lawrence... no, it’s definitely not her.’

"Jason..."

Tiana Lynch sidled up to him, instinctively wanting to explain everything, but Jason Sterling turned his head and walked away almost immediately.

Tiana Lynch bit her lip hard. ’This won’t do. Where did Sue Lawrence get that Superpower, and what is it? Why didn’t I see it last time? Could she have gained a new Superpower in the last few days?’

Feeling utterly indignant, she decided to go find Sue Lawrence directly. However, the person who met her at the door was Elliot Lawrence. He was a hothead and immediately told her to get lost.

Seeing Sue Lawrence was now impossible, so Tiana Lynch could only go and ask Dominic Trent.

As for Dominic Trent, he was the type who loved to stir the pot. If it weren’t for needing to hide his spatial Superpower, he wouldn’t have even wanted to team up. But now, even after teaming up, his spatial ability had still been found out.

Even he was starting to think that Tiana Lynch and her group were just too unlucky, and that they were dragging his own luck down with them. After all, falling into a shopping mall right at the start of the mission was some seriously bad juju.

So when Tiana Lynch asked, he simply switched into bullshit mode. He was a Debater, after all. As long as the logic sounded plausible, he could spin any tale he wanted.

"How would I know what Superpower she has? All I know is that she’s incredible. She didn’t slip on the ice, and she could even navigate in the snow. Her Ability is really strong. She must have gotten a lot of Points this time, right? I’m just saying, with so many people in our team, are we all worse than a single Sue Lawrence? Is she really useless?"

This barrage of questions made Tiana Lynch’s face turn pale, then flush with anger. She was about to explode.

’No, I have to think of something...’

’But there’s nothing I can do inside the base right now. So many eyes are watching, and there are cameras in every corner. What can I possibly do?’

’This damned polar apocalypse is completely restricting my movements.’

She cursed inwardly. That night, the outside temperature plummeted to -139 degrees Celsius. The base’s three gates were sealed shut, and no one was allowed in or out. The only thing to do was stay put, because going outside meant being instantly frozen into a popsicle.

Then, the meteorology department finally brought some good news.