In the desolate wilderness.
Lin Weiran stared at the boiling pot, momentarily lost in thought.
“Weiran, the porridge is ready.”
Her companion’s reminder barely managed to bring her back to her senses.
“Oh, okay.”
Out of reflex, she ladled out two bowls of meat porridge first and handed them to the two companions who had stayed by her side from the beginning.
“You two eat first?”
The two companions took the bowls and casually asked, “What about you?”
Her?
Lin Weiran forced a smile. “I’ll check if Si Zhe wants to eat first.”
At the mention of Si Zhe, the two teammates fell into silence as well.
The reason they were still willing to follow Si Zhe and Lin Weiran out of the Southern Base was perhaps half due to loyalty, and the other half… because of the explosive argument between Lin Weiran and He Heng that day, which had completely shattered their hopes for the Southern Base.
Even if Su Su and that giant python left for good and never returned, what about He Heng? Would He Heng still treat them the same?
No, he wouldn’t. They had already lost their place there.
Instead, they might as well follow Lin Weiran and Si Zhe to the Northern Base to try their luck at a better future.
As the two were lost in thought, Lin Weiran carried a bowl of meat porridge and walked to the off-road vehicle.
She hesitated for a few moments before knocking on the window with her knuckles.
In the end, she still knocked. “Si Zhe, lunch is ready. Eat something.”
After several seconds, a deathly still refusal came from inside the car.
“I’m not hungry. You guys eat.”
Lin Weiran’s eyes instantly reddened.
Standing by the car, she lifted her head and forced herself to endure for a long time before swallowing back the tears that were on the verge of spilling.
“Eat a little at least. You haven’t had a proper meal in days.”
There was no movement from inside the car for a long time.
Unable to hold back, Lin Weiran forcefully pulled open the car door.
The man sat in the shadow of the last row of seats.
The combat uniform and tactical jacket he usually wore had long been removed, leaving his thin, bony frame making the t-shirt on his body look loose and empty.
His once-handsome face was now reduced to just its striking features, his skin stretched taut and sunken from the loss of fat. Adding to that the stubble that had been left unattended for a long time, his entire appearance had undergone a drastic transformation.
At first glance, he no longer seemed striking—only terrifying.
Lin Weiran could no longer hold back her long-suppressed tears as they rolled uncontrollably down her face.
“Si Zhe, don’t be like this, I’m scared.”
“When we reach the Northern Base, we’ll find higher-tier healing ability users. Your ability can definitely be restored!”
Si Zhe remained unmoved.
From the moment he woke up, the devastating news had shattered his mind.
In the apocalypse, abilities were the foundation of survival. Losing limbs could still be restored, but losing his ability… meant he had become utterly useless!
Having once enjoyed the status of someone superior, how could he now accept becoming a burden to others?
Si Zhe’s palm slowly clenched, his neatly trimmed nails digging harshly into his flesh. When the sharp pain pierced his skin, he suddenly loosened his grip again.
Unwillingness, anger, resentment… All these emotions churned and roared within him, yet in the end, they all faded into utter despair.
He could no longer use his ability.
He had already become a cripple.
The more Si Zhe sank into despair, the more heartbroken Lin Weiran felt.
He had ended up like this because he saved her! Even if it took everything she had, she would bring him to the Northern Base and fight for a chance to restore him to the way he was before!
But before that, he had to take care of his body.
Wiping away her tears, Lin Weiran climbed into the car with the bowl of meat porridge in her hands.
“The Southern Base only has Tier 4 healing ability users, and their abilities haven’t fully evolved yet. Once they reach Tier 5, Tier 6, or even Tier 7, they’ll definitely be able to restore abilities too!”
“On our way north, we’ll collect as many high-grade crystals as possible. When we arrive at the Northern Base, we can hire a high-tier healing ability user. Maybe they can completely heal your dantian, and you’ll regain your ability!”
“Si Zhe, we’ve overcome so many hardships together. You can’t give up now. I’m still waiting for us to get through this one too…”
By the time she finished speaking, Lin Weiran was already sobbing uncontrollably.
She cried for a long time before the bowl in her hands was finally taken away.
“Si Zhe?”
“I’ll eat.” Si Zhe opened his eyes and began devouring the meat porridge in large mouthfuls.
He was willing to eat—that was the best news!
Lin Weiran finally showed a hint of joy as she watched her lover finish the entire bowl.
“Do you want more? I’ll get you another serving!”
Before she could get up, she was pulled into a tight embrace.
“Weiran, don’t worry. I won’t give up.” Si Zhe held Lin Weiran firmly, his voice filled with fierce determination. “I will regain my ability. And when that time comes…”
He would make the culprit experience the same agony!
“I’m glad you’ve thought it through! Si Zhe, you still have me! No matter what happens, I’ll always stay by your side!”
“Mm.”
The two embraced tightly, their hearts closer than ever at this moment.
But—men and women ultimately thought differently.
Lin Weiran was thinking about sharing hardships together, enduring the most difficult and darkest times side by side.
As for Si Zhe, while he was moved by his lover’s unwavering devotion, what he cared about even more was revenge and making a comeback.
Regardless, the team’s goals were aligned.
…
The continuous rain had lasted for more than half a month.
With the combat power of the new base joining in, the Southern Base had barely managed to recover its strength. The subsequent waves of zombie hordes were no longer a city-destroying threat.
The tense atmosphere that had enveloped the base finally eased.
Both ordinary people and ability users alike had more smiles on their faces… except for a certain Tier 2 ability user cursing on the roadside.
“This damn weather! How long has it been raining? Still not stopping? Am I supposed to go out and fight zombies in a raincoat?”
His companion, lounging lazily, replied, “Just take a break while it rains. Didn’t we repel so many zombie waves before? Didn’t you get enough crystals to lie low for a while?”
“I can’t,” the Tier 2 ability user said bitterly. “I spent too much. My crystals are almost gone.”
No matter the times, there were always people living paycheck to paycheck.
Su Su withdrew her gaze and continued browsing through the miscellaneous items at the street vendor’s stall.
“How much is this?” She held up a bib, the kind only small children would need.
The middle-aged woman tending the stall looked at her in surprise. “One miscellaneous crystal. Little sister, you already have a child at such a young age?”
Su Su was silent for a moment.
Thinking of the Xiao Hei creature curled up in her backpack—it truly was no longer a baby snake. It had already grown to a stage she couldn’t quite comprehend.
She had intended to put the bib back, but after a moment of hesitation, she silently fished out a miscellaneous crystal.
The transaction was completed.
Just as she stuffed the bib into her pocket, hurried footsteps approached from behind.
“Sister Su Su! I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” Pang Cancan excitedly hooked her arm around Su Su’s. “Brother Wei sent me to find you—he wants to ask how we should handle that batch of battle pets!”
After half a month of effort, Su Su had managed to save a few scattered battle pets… The rest, however, had consumed too many crystals. Some hadn’t survived, while others were beyond her ability to help.
Now that those remaining had fully recovered, they couldn’t just be kept penned up forever.
“Let’s go take a look.”
The two headed toward the temporary enclosure where the battle pets were being kept.
Throughout the journey, the black python curled up in Su Su’s backpack never once poked its head out.
Pang Cancan found this extremely unsettling.
In the past, whenever she clung to Sister Su Su, Xiao Hei would always glare at her and give her a warning hiss. But lately…
“Sister Su Su, why haven’t you been holding Xiao Hei lately?”
Su Su’s steps faltered slightly.
Inside the backpack, the black snake quietly poked out half of its head.
“Xiao Hei is too heavy,” Su Su quickly adjusted her expression and said calmly, “It’s easier to carry it this way.”
“Oh.”
Pang Cancan didn’t suspect anything and continued cheerfully clinging to Su Su as they walked forward.
A rustling sound came from behind.
The black snake, which had just poked its head out, silently retreated back into the backpack.
Su Su knew Xiao Hei had heard her words, but she didn’t explain.
What was there to explain?
She still hadn’t fully moved past that psychological hurdle from that day, and in the short term, she couldn’t act as naturally as before, carrying Xiao Hei around in her arms.
The only thing she could do was take out a larger backpack again.
Xiao Hei was intelligent. The moment it saw her take out the backpack, it seemed to see through that trace of awkwardness in her heart.
It remained silent for a few seconds before obediently crawling inside.
To be honest, Su Su felt relieved.
Xiao Hei was her most important companion—she had never wavered on that.
Even if she felt uneasy inside, whenever she passed by a street stall and saw a Pikachu bib hanging there, she would still stop involuntarily… imagining how it would look on Xiao Hei.
She could drag this out. If she dragged it out long enough, maybe things would go back to normal.
Maybe she and Xiao Hei could return to the way they used to be.
Holding onto this hope, Su Su arrived at the temporary enclosure for the battle pets.
Wei Yan, Guan Zixuan, and the others were already waiting at the entrance.
Seeing Su Su, Wei Yan finally relaxed his tightly furrowed brows. “How do you plan to handle these battle pets?”
These were all animals accustomed to the wild. Keeping them confined like this indefinitely wasn’t an option.
They could either be released back into the wild, far from the Southern Base…
Or they could be taken in by someone, becoming the exclusive battle pets of ability users.
Of course, since Su Su had saved them, the final decision was hers to make.
Su Su didn’t answer immediately. “Let’s go in and see what they want first.”
The group stepped into the open-air enclosure.
Inside, a large tiger, which they had encountered a few times before, was lazily sprawled on the grass.
A bird happened to fly by, and with a precise flicker of flames, it was roasted midair.
The tiger swallowed the roasted bird whole and rolled over lazily.
As it turned, it locked eyes with the group of humans who had just entered.
Immediately, it sprang to its feet, muscles tensed in an attack stance, letting out a low, menacing growl.
The sound stirred up hostility among the other battle pets, and in an instant, various roars erupted simultaneously.
Su Su remained calm and let out two soft coughs.
A white light enveloped the entire open-air enclosure, soothing all the animals with a familiar sense of comfort.
The battle-hardened tiger that had been on high alert just a second ago instantly transformed into a docile kitten.
“Roar~~~”
Recognizing the human it was most familiar with, it rolled onto its back, exposing its belly in submission. Its cowardly yet perceptive behavior made it seem oddly adorable.
Su Su stepped up to the iron mesh fence. “He Heng is dead, and your injuries have mostly healed. What are your plans now?”
To outsiders, asking a group of non-sentient animals this question seemed absurd.
But Su Su knew they could understand her. “Do you want to choose a companion and fight alongside them in the future? Or would you rather leave the base and return to the wild?”
The Tier 4 tiger hesitated.
It had followed He Heng out of coercion, not by choice.
If it really had to pick a human as its companion… Its tiger eyes landed on Su Su.
As if sensing something, the black python slowly slithered out of the backpack, its cold, dark body emerging from behind Su Su’s neck.
Taking advantage of her momentary distraction, it bared its fangs at the foolish tiger, its mouth stretching wide in a sinister display.
— Hiss!
I wasn’t able to update this for over a month… thank you for being so patient 💖 Dropped 15 new chapters for you today!