AFTCKCTCKATD - Chapter 59

Chapter 59

Lu Qing liked Ji Yanqing. And that displeased him.

Feng Yimo’s figure was shrinking, about to become a mere black dot in the distance. The black beast tilted its head towards the sky, despair flooding its eyes. It had the sinking feeling they might never find the one called Ji Yanqing in this lifetime.

“Hmm?” Ji Le glanced confusedly between Feng Yimo and the large black dog beside him. Ji An was equally baffled—why were they turning back?

“Brother…” Ji Le sniffled, reaching out.

Ji An quickly took his younger brother’s hand.

The black beast cast a hopeless look towards Ji An and Ji Le. Seeing their diminutive, bean-sprout-like figures, it instantly abandoned any notion of help from them. Even if Ji An and Ji Le had awakened into Corpse Kings, they still seemed more like small human cubs. They had to crane their necks just to look up at Feng Yimo; the city itself must seem an overwhelming behemoth to them. Relying on those two was less practical than relying on itself.

The beast trotted quickly to Feng Yimo's side. Before it could utter the excuse it had carefully rehearsed, Feng Yimo’s icy glare pinned it in place. Dawdling. The unspoken accusation hung in the air, leaving the black beast choked and speechless...

“Awooo.” It scrambled forward a few steps, positioning itself in front of the group—one large, two small—to lead the way. It guided Feng Yimo directly around a nearby building, heading back the way they had seemingly come.

Feng Yimo remained utterly oblivious.

Ji An and Ji Le exchanged a look, their wide, clear eyes mirroring their confusion. They glanced at Feng Yimo, but seeing he perceived nothing unusual, they kept their silence.

With its tail and ears drooping in utter despair, the black beast began to trot through the city, driven by the urgent need to get out as quickly as possible.

***

After resting on the rooftop for half an hour and regaining some strength, Ji Yanqing descended the building. He moved swiftly through the labyrinthine clusters of structures, heading for the city limits at top speed. By the time he reached the edge, the sun was but a faint red smear against the mountains, the sky awash in orange-red hues.

Under that crimson glow, the city sprawling behind Ji Yanqing took on an eerie aura—heavy with the miasma of death, yet disturbingly poised, as if it might stir back to life at any moment.

“Hiss.”

Hearing the noise, Ji Yanqing, who had turned to gaze back at the city, instantly tensed, whirling towards the sound's origin, senses on high alert.

Outside the city, amidst vegetable fields bathed in the orange-red sunset, Gu Wenmo peeked out from behind a massive, shed-like structure—likely formed from some mutated crop—and waved at him. Ji Yanqing paused briefly, then quickly moved towards the shed.

Reaching it, he found more than just Gu Wenmo waiting. Behind the structure huddled nearly twenty-one or twenty-two people. All five members of Gu Wenmo’s team were present, alongside fifteen or sixteen strangers—men and women who belonged to Lu Yunxiao’s team. Still reeling from the encounter with Lou Ye, their already bleak expressions and dejected spirits made them look even more wretched. Many bore fresh scrapes and bruises—clear evidence of a panicked escape.

“You finally made it out,” Gu Wenmo breathed, a long sigh of relief.

Ji Yanqing looked at them. They waited here for me? He recalled Gu Wenmo seeking him out earlier. The young man certainly had guts.

“What now?” Gu Wenmo asked.

Ji Yanqing opened his mouth, the words “leave, don’t follow me” on the tip of his tongue. But a glance at the mountains, now swallowing the last traces of the sun, made him reconsider. “Let’s get out of here first.”

Before Gu Wenmo’s group could react, he turned and led the way away from the city. Lou Ye was undoubtedly scouring the city for him; remaining nearby wasn't safe. Seeing Ji Yanqing move, Gu Wenmo and the others hastily gathered their belongings and hurried to follow.

A wide stretch of farmland bordered the city. Closest to the edge were patches of common vegetables; further out lay vast fields of rapeseed. The rapeseed had mutated. No longer reaching for the sky, the plants now crept along the ground like vines, their flowers not the familiar solid yellow, but an unsettling mix of blue and white.

From a distance, under the deepening twilight, acres upon acres of this blue-and-white sea of flowers presented a breathtakingly surreal vista, like a scene plucked from some fantastical game world. A faint, strangely refreshing fragrance drifted from the mutated plants.

Ji Yanqing didn't allow himself more than a whiff before quickly pulling a cloth over his mouth and nose. Behind him, Gu Wenmo's group saw his action and immediately imitated him, no questions asked. They had witnessed Ji Yanqing nearly sever the neck of a thrice-evolved Corpse King with a single axe blow, and they knew he had subsequently hunted that same Corpse King down. Their trust and reverence for Ji Yanqing had reached the point of near-blind faith.

Since they didn’t ask, Ji Yanqing saw no need to explain and simply led the group rapidly onward.

They crossed the vegetable plots, then the mutated rapeseed fields, eventually entering a stretch of wilderness before finding their way back to the main road leading away from the city. Night descended, draping the world in a furtive, black shroud.

They walked in darkness for nearly half an hour before vegetable fields reappeared alongside the road. Another ten minutes brought them to a fork on the right, a road leading towards a town visible in the distance. Between the main highway and the town lay a stretch of concrete pavement, perhaps half a kilometer long, flanked by fields barren of crops but choked with thick weeds and strewn with discarded clothing.

The concrete road ran from the town’s entrance, cutting through the settlement before continuing into the mountains looming behind it. Someone must have driven through after the outbreak, drawing most of the zombies towards the back of the town; the front section held relatively few.

The town once housed twenty to thirty thousand people. Its center comprised mostly planned four- or five-story row houses, while the outskirts featured numerous small villas with gated courtyards, hinting at its former prosperity and bustle.

Ji Yanqing led the way towards the town. The noticeable number of zombies milling about caused unease among Gu Wenmo’s group, but Ji Yanqing felt a measure of relief. Ordinary zombies meant no Awakened or Corpse Kings resided here.

He followed the concrete road into the town, quickly spotting a row house near the entrance with its ground-floor door ajar. He headed inside. The hallway was clear. Figures shuffled within a room on the second floor. Leading the way upstairs, Ji Yanqing hooked the door with his axe and pulled it shut before the zombies inside could spot them.

On the third floor, one apartment door stood open. Ji Yanqing slipped inside quickly. As soon as they were through, Gu Wenmo's group scrambled to secure the door behind them.

Axe still in hand, Ji Yanqing swept the apartment. Finding no zombies after a quick patrol, he dropped his backpack. He went into a bedroom, found some clean-looking clothes, and retreated to a corner of the living room to tend to his wounds.

He unwrapped the blood-soaked rags from his hands, revealing the mangled flesh of his palms. A frown creased Ji Yanqing’s brow. The injuries were severe, mostly deep lacerations. He’d had wounds like this before, but never this bad.

He picked up a piece of the clothing he’d found, intending to rip it into bandages. Before he could muster the strength to tear, sharp pain lanced through both his arms. Lou Ye’s bones were incredibly hard. Swinging the axe with full force against him repeatedly… the impacts had likely sent hairline fractures through the bones in both his arms.

“Let me,” Gu Wenmo said, stepping forward quickly. He’d been watching Ji Yanqing intently and saw him falter, clearly lacking the strength even to rip cloth.

Gu Wenmo swiftly tore the fabric into strips about three fingers wide. Finished, he glanced cautiously at Ji Yanqing, then gathered his courage. "Let me help you bandage them."

Ji Yanqing didn’t object. He truly lacked the strength to do it himself; every slight movement sent agony shooting through his hands, as if the bones themselves were splintering.

“You…” Gu Wenmo stared at the hands held out in front of him in the dim light, raw with wounds and stained dark with blood. He swallowed hard, an involuntary grimace twisting his face as if he could feel the pain himself.

Seeing Gu Wenmo help, a young woman from his team, maybe twenty-one or twenty-two, came forward to tend to Ji Yanqing’s other hand. “Just bear with it…” she murmured.

Both Gu Wenmo and the young woman worked with the utmost gentleness, but their light touch did little to ease the searing pain.

Ji Yanqing’s gaze drifted to the axe lying beside him. He focused on contemplating his next steps, using the mental exercise to distract from the pain. His axe, like his hands, was in a sorry state. The axe blade's edge was curled back, the steel warped and even cracked in places. Repair was likely impossible. It was less an axe now, more a bludgeon.

His speed and reflexes hadn’t failed him against Lou Ye. The problem was the weapon—it wasn’t sharp enough, wasn’t hard enough. Even landing blow after blow on Lou Ye’s neck, he couldn’t sever it. A chainsaw might solve the sharpness issue, but finding one, let alone finding power for it, was improbable. Besides, a chainsaw lacked the familiar balance and ease of an axe. In a high-stakes fight, any awkwardness, any hesitation in handling a weapon, could spell disaster.

“Done,” Gu Wenmo murmured, releasing Ji Yanqing’s hand and stepping back slightly. He exchanged a look with the young woman who had helped. They saw mirrored horror and pity in each other's eyes. Ji Yanqing was so grievously injured, yet he hadn't uttered a single sound. If they'd suffered such injuries, they'd surely have been howling in agony.

Ji Yanqing flexed his bandaged hands tentatively. For the time being, swift axe work was out of the question.

Remembering something, Gu Wenmo quickly retrieved his own backpack. Kneeling, he pulled out a few food items and a half-empty bottle of water, offering them to Ji Yanqing.

Ji Yanqing looked at the meager offering.

“Eat something. You’ll recover faster,” Gu Wenmo said, already tearing open a wrapper and unscrewing the bottle cap.

Ji Yanqing was, in fact, ravenous. Since eating some vegetable leaves before meeting Gu Wenmo yesterday afternoon, he hadn't had a bite or a drop of water. He took a chocolate stick and began to eat slowly.

After finishing the first one, he noticed Gu Wenmo’s group standing by silently, just watching him. He looked up.

Gu Wenmo scratched his head, embarrassed. “That’s… that’s all we have left.” Ji Yanqing had led them to supplies last night, but they’d eaten some then, more this morning and at midday, and lost two backpacks during their escape this afternoon. This was it.

Ji Yanqing paused, the half-eaten chocolate stick in his hand.

“You eat,” Uncle Wang spoke up. “We ate something earlier, at least…”

The other two members of Gu Wenmo’s original team immediately nodded in agreement. They knew Ji Yanqing hadn't eaten since yesterday evening. He could have, but he’d given everything he found to them.

Hearing this exchange, the dozen or so people from Lu Yunxiao’s team exchanged uneasy glances. Their expressions turned strange. They all knew Ji Yanqing was powerful, had seen proof of his abilities. But Gu Wenmo's group giving him all their remaining food and water just for that? It seemed… excessive. They certainly wouldn't have been so generous.

“Eat, then get some sleep. We’ll take turns keeping watch tonight,” offered the man from Gu Wenmo’s team with the injured leg.

Ji Yanqing’s gaze swept over the faces of Gu Wenmo and the others on his team. After a moment's thought, he resumed eating.

When he had finished the food and drained the last of the water, he lay down. The profound exhaustion from the day’s ordeal, combined with the throbbing pain from his wounds, pulled him under almost instantly. Though woken several times during the night by the cold gnawing at his injuries, it was the most deeply, most peacefully he'd slept in a long time. For one night, at least, thoughts of Feng Yimo and the others didn't plague his rest.

Sleeping until just past six the next morning, Ji Yanqing woke feeling significantly refreshed, though the pain in his hands was sharper, more intense than the day before. Beyond the ache of fractured bones and split skin on his palms, a wave of muscle soreness also washed over him.

Seeing Ji Yanqing awake, Gu Wenmo and the others let out a collective, quiet sigh of relief.

Ji Yanqing scanned the faces before him and spoke directly, “Go upstairs and see if we can get to the roof. If we can, we need to figure out the layout of the town and where the main street is.”

He paused, then added, “And keep an eye on the zombies in town. Normal zombies don’t move with a sense of purpose ... unless they’re being controlled.”

Gu Wenmo and his immediate team exchanged glances and moved without hesitation. The dozen or so people who had followed from Lu Yunxiao’s team looked at each other, but no one budged.

Ji Yanqing’s gaze landed on them. “Anyone who can move, go. There might be zombies on the roof, so take weapons.”

At the mention of potential zombies, reluctance flickered in their eyes.

Ji Yanqing’s tone left no room for argument. “Take your backpacks. If you run into zombies, one person pins it down, the others bash its head. If three people can’t take one down, then four or five of you go at it together.”

The group exchanged another look, then reluctantly, they stood.

Ji Yanqing turned back to Gu Wenmo. “Try to memorize the town’s layout as best you can.”

Gu Wenmo nodded, grabbed a gun, and led the uneasy group upstairs.

Once Gu Wenmo’s contingent had departed, only five or six people in poor condition remained in the room. Every one of them was pale-faced, holding their breath, listening intently, terrified of hearing any commotion from above.

Gu Wenmo and his group moved slowly, taking nearly ten minutes before they returned.

The town wasn’t particularly large, its layout simple. Besides the main road bisecting the town, there were only two or three other moderately sized streets. Apparently, someone had driven straight through previously, drawing many of the zombies towards the back of the town and into the fields beyond.

The town's only relatively busy commercial street was situated towards the left side, roughly a seven or eight-minute walk from their current building.

“There are zombies on the street, but not too many,” Gu Wenmo reported to Ji Yanqing.

Ji Yanqing rose. “We’re going.”

Gu Wenmo and the others, having already anticipated Ji Yanqing’s intentions, quickly helped gather his gear. Both of Ji Yanqing’s hands were swaddled thickly in bandages.

Ji Yanqing didn’t refuse their help. He watched as Gu Wenmo and the others took his backpack and axe, then followed them downstairs.

Reaching the ground floor, Ji Yanqing didn't scout ahead as usual. Instead, he allowed Gu Wenmo and his group to take the lead, cautiously guiding him forward.

Gu Wenmo’s team lacked finesse in their movements, but they were survivors nonetheless. Though the seven-or-eight-minute walk stretched to nearly fifteen minutes, they successfully reached the targeted street without incident.

They halted behind a building adjacent to the main street, peering around the corner at the road ahead. While most of the town’s zombies had been drawn away, the main street still hosted a scattering of shambling figures.

Ji Yanqing took a couple of steps back, surveyed the immediate surroundings, then decisively headed towards a stairwell entrance that opened directly onto the street.

Gu Wenmo and the others followed closely.

“Upstairs,” Ji Yanqing instructed.

Exchanging nervous glances, the group cautiously ascended.

The stairwell was clear of zombies. The rooftop access above was locked, barring entry, so they proceeded into an apartment on the third floor.

Inside, Ji Yanqing led the way to the window overlooking the main street and peered down.

The street stretched out, but given the town's small size, most shops lining it were small and dated. The outbreak had occurred during business hours, leaving most storefronts agape. It was clear most had been looted already; debris littered the shops and the street itself, painting a scene of desolate chaos.

Fifty or sixty zombies were scattered along the street, wandering aimlessly, dispersed over the area.

“That convenience store,” Ji Yanqing indicated to Gu Wenmo and the others crowding the window beside him.

Gu Wenmo’s group scanned the street below, quickly spotting the store Ji Yanqing meant.

The street was old; shops selling clothing or shoes were scarce, and those that existed catered mainly to an older demographic. Being close to a larger city, younger residents likely preferred shopping there. Consequently, most businesses on this street dealt in food. There were three convenience stores—one slightly larger, two quite small—flanked by a fruit stand and a dumpling and noodle shop. A small clinic occupied a corner spot.

“The cellphone store,” Ji Yanqing added, nodding his chin towards a shop directly opposite their position.

The group shifted their focus. The phone store stood out, appearing the most recently renovated building on the block. It was a branded franchise outlet, its interior filled with display counters still holding several newer phone models.

Critically, the store was empty of zombies. Gu Wenmo and his group were puzzled. What did Ji Yanqing want them to see? Surely he didn't just want a phone?

“Front and back doors are both open,” Ji Yanqing prompted, directing their attention.

They looked again. He was right. Both the glass front door and the rear exit of the phone store stood wide open.

“Given this setup,” Ji Yanqing explained, his voice calm and instructive, “we can lure all the zombies on this street into that phone store, then shut both doors. There aren't that many out there. If we're fast enough, and coordinate properly, they won't be able to keep up.”

Hearing the plan, varied expressions crossed the faces in the room. The dozen members from Lu Yunxiao’s former team visibly paled, their eyes fixed on Ji Yanqing. The same fearful thought echoed among them: Is he going to make us lure the zombies?

In contrast, the five from Gu Wenmo’s original team—excluding the young girl huddled close to Uncle Wang—showed faces marked by grim concentration and careful consideration.

“Alright, I’ll draw the zombies,” Ji Yanqing continued, outlining the roles. “You split into three teams. Team One goes to the back door of the phone store. The second I pass through it, slam the door shut, trap them inside. Team Two waits downstairs. Once all the zombies are inside the store, shut the front glass door and barricade it with whatever you can find.”

“Team Three—the rest of you—get to those nearby convenience stores immediately and gather supplies. Fill your backpacks first, then use cardboard boxes if you have to. Grab as much as you can possibly carry out.”

Ji Yanqing looked steadily at everyone. “Don’t panic. Don't get disorganized. Each person focuses solely on their assigned task.” He added reassuringly, “Even if something goes wrong, it’s manageable. Three or four of you together—one uses a backpack to block, the others aim for the head. After I lead them into the store, I’ll circle back to the street to help if needed.”

He held their gaze. He’d previously judged Gu Wenmo’s group harshly, constantly comparing them unfavorably to Xia Shen Shu’s capable team. Beside Xia Shen Shu, Lan Zi, and the others, Gu Wenmo's crew had seemed almost entirely incompetent. But witnessing Gu Wenmo and another teammate bravely venture back to find him yesterday had planted a seed of doubt about his own judgment. Maybe he’d been too arrogant. Maybe he simply hadn’t given them a real chance.

They weren’t inherently inept; they’d just never been shown how to operate effectively, never given the opportunity to try. Under someone like Lu Yunxiao—who would surely be the first to run from danger—and with other armed members likely following suit, the rest of the team would inevitably dissolve into chaos. In such an environment, trust was impossible, let alone coordinated effort.

“Everyone understand? Remember your roles?” Ji Yanqing asked.

Hearing him confirm he would be the lure, undisguised astonishment spread across the faces of Lu Yunxiao’s former team members. Their own speed and reflexes were clearly inferior to Ji Yanqing's, and he was already injured… Why would he take the biggest risk?

Ji Yanqing met their shocked gazes.

Beside Gu Wenmo, the young woman in her early twenties and the man with the injured leg both looked hesitant, as if wanting to object, to volunteer themselves instead. Somehow, with Ji Yanqing present, even the zombies seemed less frightening.

A complex, unnameable emotion stirred in Ji Yanqing’s chest. “No need,” he said firmly. “I’ll handle the lure.” He paused, then added significantly, “This time, I demonstrate. Next time, you figure out how to handle situations like this yourselves.”

Gu Wenmo and his core team exchanged glances, then gave solemn, synchronized nods.

Seeing no further objections, Ji Yanqing quickly assigned individuals to the front and back door teams. “One last thing,” he instructed the door teams. “Don’t rush it. Wait for the right moment, make sure I'm clear before you shut those doors.”

The chosen few looked deathly pale, the tension palpable. Closing the doors too early could trap Ji Yanqing inside with the horde; closing them too late would let zombies escape back onto the street.

Seeing their tense nods, Ji Yanqing offered no further time for apprehension. He turned and immediately led the way downstairs.

On the ground floor, the three teams quickly separated.

Ji Yanqing, accompanied by Gu Wenmo and the other man assigned to the rear door, took a wide route, circling around to the far side of the street. They found two zombies lurking behind the buildings there. Ji Yanqing had Gu Wenmo toss a few stones towards the main street, drawing them away from the alley.

With the alley clear, the trio moved swiftly to the phone store's back entrance. They double-checked that the door could be properly shut and secured. Then, they exchanged signals with the team positioned across the street, confirming everyone was ready.

All preparations complete, Ji Yanqing took the axe back from Gu Wenmo. Alone, he moved from behind the building towards the designated starting point at the end of the street.

Reaching the corner, he took a quick peek, judged the timing, then exploded onto the main street, weaving through the scattered, shambling figures.

The ordinary zombies were sluggish, no match for Ji Yanqing's speed. Even halfway down the street, with thirty or forty of them lurching in his wake, he spared a moment for a quick glance back over his shoulder.

He angled his run from the side of the street towards the phone store towards the middle. As he neared its front, zombies from further up the street began to converge, drawn by the commotion.

Ji Yanqing darted into the phone store, making a beeline straight for the rear exit.

Almost the very instant he shot through the back doorway, Gu Wenmo and his partner threw their weight against the door, shoving it closed with a solid thud.

It wasn't locked, but that hardly mattered—zombies couldn't operate doors anyway.

Clang… As the heavy iron door slammed shut, the sound was immediately followed by the sickening thuds of zombies throwing themselves against it from the inside.

Gu Wenmo and the other man pressed their shoulders firmly against the door, foreheads slick with sweat, their nerves stretched taut.

Ji Yanqing gave them a fleeting glance before turning without a word, moving swiftly out of the alley and back onto the main street.

Spurred by the continuous crashing from the back door of the phone shop, the remaining zombies scattered along the street surged like a grotesque tide towards the building, pouring inside.

After the last two zombies shambled into the shop, the three people hidden across the street dashed out, faces flushed with adrenaline. They rushed towards the glass front door. In their panic, one fumbled, losing their grip and letting the door swing back briefly, but they recovered quickly, managing to pull it shut and jam a sturdy stick through the handles to secure it.

With the front entrance sealed, the trapped zombies inside were drawn by the noise, many slamming themselves against the glass barrier. The trio who had closed the door quickly backed away.

Simultaneously, those assigned to scavenging emerged from their hiding spots around the corner, dispersing to rush into the nearby storefronts – the convenience stores they’d targeted earlier.

Ji Yanqing didn’t join the scavenging. He remained positioned on the street, a vigilant sentinel. The men who had closed the front door were now tasked with keeping watch alongside him. Their foreheads glistened with nervous sweat, their breathing shallow and quick, as if they’d forgotten how to inhale properly.

The tension was palpable, affecting both the lookouts and those frantically searching for supplies. When the scavengers finally emerged, clutching their finds, every face on the street, save for Ji Yanqing’s, was deathly pale. They looked utterly drained, as though they might collapse at any moment.

Once Ji Yanqing confirmed everyone was accounted for, he calmly led the shaken group away.

They didn't return to their previous shelter, instead finding a new refuge in an apartment on the fourth floor of a nearby building. After sweeping the rooms and ensuring it was clear of zombies, they secured the door.

Ji Yanqing leaned his axe against a wall and glanced back. The room was filled with the sight of over twenty people who had collapsed onto the floor, faces bleached white, legs trembling beneath them. They hadn’t even shrugged off their backpacks.

They exchanged wide-eyed, shaky glances, the raw terror of their narrow escape still etched onto their features. They were too strung out, too deeply frightened for coherent thought.

Ji Yanqing didn’t push them. He simply found a spot against the wall and sat down to wait.

After five or six long minutes, the heavy pall of fear began to lift. Gradually, the intense emotional wave receded, replaced by burgeoning smiles that spread uncontrollably across their faces. The aftermath of extreme terror bloomed into profound relief and a surprising surge of joy.

“How much did everyone grab?”

“Okay, let’s get everything out, see what we’ve got.”

“Food goes here, drinks over there.”

A sudden burst of energy filled the room as the group scrambled to unload their backpacks and arms, quickly sorting the items. The entire process was over in another five or six minutes.

Ji Yanqing surveyed the haul. It was even less than he’d anticipated. For over twenty people, the meager collection of supplies wouldn't last more than three days, tops.

Despite the meager haul, expressions of profound satisfaction and happiness illuminated the faces of Gu Wenmo and his original team members. They’d scavenged before, even used similar tactics, but never had an operation gone so smoothly. Under Lu Yunxiao, such excursions were always undertaken under duress, and any spoils were immediately confiscated by Lu Yunxiao himself. This success, earned through their own coordinated effort under Ji Yanqing's guidance, felt entirely different.

“Captain…” Gu Wenmo looked at Ji Yanqing, his expression alight with an almost childlike eagerness for praise.

“Divide it,” Ji Yanqing said simply.

Beaming, Gu Wenmo turned back to the group and began distributing the food.

Once everyone had received their share, the five members of Gu Wenmo’s core team began eating eagerly. The dozen or so from Lu Yunxiao’s former team exchanged glances filled with surprise and delight. They’d never received such generous portions under Lu Yunxiao; back then, they were lucky to get a single, meager meal consisting of only a few mouthfuls each day.

Observing the group eating with genuine contentment, Ji Yanqing spoke again, his voice quiet from the corner where he sat. “After you finish, divide whatever’s left evenly among yourselves. Then you need to leave. Don’t follow me. Lou Ye will come looking.”

The cheerful atmosphere evaporated instantly. Everyone froze, their food halfway to their mouths, turning to stare at Ji Yanqing.

The name ‘Lou Ye’ sent a visible ripple of unease through the room, darkening the faces of everyone present, including Gu Wenmo’s steadfast five. They had witnessed Ji Yanqing’s formidable power, but they also possessed a chillingly clear understanding of just how terrifying Lou Ye truly was.

Lou Ye was an intellectually evolved Corpse King, capable of commanding hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of lesser zombies through sheer mental will. If he found them, they wouldn't just be killed; they’d be overwhelmed, torn limb from limb by an unstoppable tide of undead. They might not even get the chance to turn, likely devoured down to the bone.

“Captain… maybe… maybe you should come with us?” one of the men formerly under Lu Yunxiao ventured, his tone tentative but sincere. They had followed Ji Yanqing out of necessity before, but hadn't truly accepted him as a leader. Now, that single word, "Captain," felt earned, offered willingly.

Ji Yanqing didn’t respond, merely continuing to eat in silence.

“Why are you so determined to kill that Corpse King?” Uncle Wang asked, voicing the question that had lingered since the previous day.

Again, Ji Yanqing remained silent. Explaining would require untangling the complex web of his connection to Sunward's ideals, the situation involving Feng Yimo, Ji An, and Ji Le – things he wasn't prepared to share.

“Sometimes… it’s better to let things go,” Gu Wenmo offered carefully, trying to be tactful. “Staying alive is what matters most right now. You can always seek revenge later…”

“It’s not revenge,” Ji Yanqing stated flatly, cutting off Gu Wenmo’s assumption.

Seeing he wouldn't elaborate further, a heavy silence settled over the room once more.

Gu Wenmo quietly finished his own food. He cast a glance at Ji Yanqing, who was leaning back against the wall, eyes closed as if resting, then silently began dividing the remaining provisions among the group members.

Ji Yanqing kept his eyes shut, but he was listening intently.

Half an hour ticked by. He hadn't heard the sound of the door opening, the sound of anyone leaving. He opened his eyes.

Every single person in the room was still there, sitting exactly where they had been. All eyes were fixed on him. No one had moved to leave.

Ji Yanqing was momentarily speechless.

“Captain—” Gu Wenmo started, his voice sounding almost pitiful.

But the young woman from Gu Wenmo’s team, the one in her early twenties, interrupted him. “We’re staying,” she said firmly, her gaze steady on Ji Yanqing. “We want to help. I know we might not be much use, but we want to stay. This is our choice. If we die… well, that’s our choice too.”

Before Ji Yanqing could reply, she pressed on, her voice filled with grim conviction. “Honestly, Captain, it doesn’t really matter where we are or who we’re with. If Lou Ye doesn’t get us, some other pack of zombies will eventually.” It wasn’t just a matter of individual fighting skill; it was about trust, about having someone to rely on. Without Ji Yanqing, they knew the reality: if faced with danger, even if one person bravely charged forward, they’d likely turn around to find everyone else had already scattered. Their success today, the successful execution of the plan, was largely fueled by the underlying knowledge that Ji Yanqing was there, a powerful safety net. That knowledge had given them the courage not just to act, but to trust each other, perhaps for the first time.

Ji Yanqing’s lips parted slightly, then pressed shut. He swallowed the words he might have said. He had warned them. He’d told them the risks.

“Do what you want,” he murmured finally, and closed his eyes again. Lou Ye would come. It was inevitable, only a question of when.

“Oh, right—this is for you.” Gu Wenmo suddenly remembered something, fishing an object out of his pocket and holding it out to Ji Yanqing.

Ji Yanqing looked. It was a small cardboard box of pills.

“I found it in that clinic earlier,” Gu Wenmo explained. “There was a lot of medication scattered around, most of it junk, probably. But I grabbed this one… the box says something about calming effects, maybe pain relief?” He squinted at the small print on the packaging. The clinic had clearly been looted thoroughly; only useless or less desirable medications remained.

Ji Yanqing glanced at Gu Wenmo, surprised. He hadn’t even realized Gu Wenmo had made a detour into the clinic during the supply run. He took the box and examined it. Cardiovascular medication, noted to have mild sedative properties.

He hesitated for only a second before popping two tablets out and swallowing them dry. Taking unfamiliar medication was risky, especially medication intended for something else entirely, but his options were severely limited.

“You should try to get some more rest. We’ll keep watch,” Gu Wenmo urged gently.

Ji Yanqing never voiced his pain, but the stark pallor of his lips, drained of all color, was testament enough to the agony radiating from his bandaged hands. His gaze swept across the determined faces watching him. A quiet, almost imperceptible sigh escaped him. “Alright. Post a few lookouts on the upper floors. Wake me immediately if you spot any zombies acting… unusual.”

“Got it.”

Ji Yanqing lay back down. The medication began to work in an unsettling way, making his heart pound erratically. While it slightly dulled the sharp edges of the pain in his hands, it dragged him down into a restless, fractured sleep rather than offering true peace.

Through the murky haze blurring the edges of consciousness, he saw them—Ji An and Ji Le. Their small faces were stained with tears, their eyes burning with an anguish that cut deeper than any physical wound. Their voices, choked with betrayal, echoed in the darkness: Why did you leave us? Why did you abandon us? You promised! You promised you wouldn’t!

He tried to answer, to explain the impossible choices, but the words wouldn’t form. He tried to run, to escape the weight of their accusing eyes, but the darkness was absolute, pressing in from all sides, swallowing him whole.

***

Ji An dragged his gaze away from the sight of the massive Corpse King finally collapsing under Feng Yimo’s relentless blade. He turned his wide, anxious eyes towards the hulking black beast standing nearby.

“Doggy…” Ji An’s voice trembled slightly. “Is… is Daddy really this way?”

They had been traveling in this direction for three, maybe four days now. Days filled with crumbling ruins and encounters with other stray, dangerous Corpse Kings, but no sign of the person they sought.

Doggy?

The black beast’s ear twitched almost imperceptibly. Who in the blighted hell are they calling Doggy?! A low growl rumbled deep in its chest, unheard by the children. It was a Corpse King! A thrice-evolved engine of destruction! An apex predator! They were the dogs! Their entire flimsy human bloodline—dogs!

“Doggy…” Ji An’s soft, plaintive voice trembled, verging on tears when no answer came.

“Awooo…” Humiliation warred with impotent fury within the black beast. It ground its teeth together. Damn it all, I can’t beat him. Probably, it projected the thought grudgingly, though a flicker of deep unease surfaced in its eyes.

It wasn’t truly certain Ji Yanqing was in this direction; it had merely seen him heading this way earlier. But admitting that to Feng Yimo was unthinkable. Such honesty would undoubtedly be met with the cold steel of Feng Yimo’s blade.

The beast’s gaze drifted involuntarily towards the nearby carcass of the massive, centipede-like Corpse King. That creature had been nearing its third evolution, radiating an aura of immense power. Armored plating covered its body, its maw bristled with razor teeth, and its limbs ended in sharp blades. Yet, even that formidable monster hadn’t withstood five strikes from Feng Yimo’s sword.

“Move,” Feng Yimo commanded, ignoring the colossal corpse behind him as he approached the black beast and the two small children.

The black beast swallowed hard, tearing its gaze from the slain Corpse King to look at Ji An and Ji Le. “…Awoo…” Shouldn’t we rest for the night?

Feng Yimo’s brow instantly furrowed. A chilling glint of killing intent flashed in his cold, pitch-black eyes. We haven’t found Ji Yanqing yet.

The beast’s fur bristled involuntarily under that frigid intent. It fought down the primal urge to turn tail and bolt. With a reluctant flick of its tail, it glanced again at Ji An and Ji Le. “Awoo.” We’ve been running non-stop for three days. You and I can manage, but they can’t.

Ji An and Ji Le were fully awakened Corpse Kings, yes, but the beast had observed them closely during their time together. They were… different. They possessed the raw power, yet they seemed to retain memories, emotions, vulnerabilities from their human lives. They behaved more like scared, lost three-year-old children than nascent killing machines.

True Corpse Kings arose from zombies who had utterly succumbed to the virus, their humanity extinguished. Awakening was a rebirth, devoid of past memories. They rapidly developed new, often ruthless personalities and intellect shaped by their evolutionary path—be it towards cunning intelligence or brute strength. Neither path resulted in anything like Ji An and Ji Le.

“It’s okay! We’re not tired…” Ji An piped up immediately, his voice strained.

“Me neither! Let’s find Papa first!” Ji Le added, his tone urgent and anxious.

Feng Yimo looked from one small, tear-streaked face to the other. He’d been about to reject the beast’s suggestion outright, but seeing the redness rimming their eyes, the raw fear and longing there, gave him pause. Ji Yanqing had always cherished these two, fussing over them, shielding them from hardship, unable to bear seeing them tired or cold. He’d always treated them better than he’d treated… Feng Yimo himself. A sudden, sharp pang of bitterness resonated deep within his chest.

“Let’s go, please, let’s find Papa…” both children pleaded, looking up at Feng Yimo with desperate hope.

“We rest tonight,” Feng Yimo stated, his voice leaving no room for argument.

Ji An looked instantly distressed, opening his mouth to protest again. But as his gaze met Feng Yimo’s unwavering stare, the resistance melted away, replaced by a familiar, enforced compliance. Ji Le reacted the same way. As their own Corpse King abilities strengthened, their susceptibility to Feng Yimo’s subtle mental commands grew. Sometimes, frighteningly, they could even feel the turbulent undercurrents of his emotions.

Hearing Feng Yimo’s decision, the black beast, whose heart had been pounding with anxiety, nearly leaped with unrestrained joy. Suppressing the urge, it took the lead, eager to find suitable lodging. “Awoo.” It had never cared for human dwellings, past or present, but if it meant delaying the inevitable search—and potential confrontation with Feng Yimo's blade—it would gladly find the most comfortable shelter available.

“Awoo…” Spotting a likely house, the beast called out.

Feng Yimo led the children inside. The house was spacious and surprisingly clean. No owner in sight, and more importantly, no signs of violence, no bloodstains.

After a quick sweep of the ground floor, Ji An went into a bedroom. He tugged a heavy quilt off the bed, dragging it laboriously into the living room. He didn’t lead Ji Le to the actual bed; instead, mimicking how Ji Yanqing used to care for them, he folded the thick quilt neatly in half on the floor, creating a makeshift bed.

He watched Ji Le snuggle into the folds, then lay down beside him. Copying another gesture he remembered, Ji An patted Ji Le’s head gently. “Sleep now.” I’m the older brother. I have to take care of him.

Ji Le closed his eyes obediently, but sleep wouldn’t come. His eyes snapped open again. Under the quilt, his small hand found Ji An’s. “Brother…”

Ji An opened his eyes. “Hmm?”

“When… when will we find Papa?” Ji Le whispered, his voice thick with anxiety. The thought of Ji Yanqing immediately brought back the painful memory of being abandoned, of experiencing their own father flee from them. Fresh tears welled, blurring his vision. Papa doesn’t want us anymore.

Hearing the question, seeing Ji Le furtively wiping tears from his eyes, Ji An felt his own eyes sting. Mimicking the comforting gestures of an adult, he reached over and gently wiped Ji Le’s cheek. “Tomorrow,” he whispered, trying to sound certain.

“Really?” Ji Le looked up, hope flickering in his tear-filled eyes.

“Really.”

“How… how do you know?” Ji Le asked, his voice choked with unshed tears.

Ji An hesitated for a split second. “…The doggy said so.”

Curled up miserably in a dark corner, mentally plotting how to string them along for another day, the black beast’s lip curled in a silent snarl. A murderous impulse surged through it. But it was trapped, powerless against Feng Yimo. It suppressed the rage, curling its body tighter, trying to shrink into the shadows, wishing it could simply cease to exist.

“Go to sleep now,” Ji An murmured, patting Ji Le’s head again.

“Mm,” Ji Le mumbled, closing his eyes once more.

Watching Ji Le finally drift off, the weight of his lie settled heavily on Ji An. Tears he couldn't stop began to slide silently down his own cheeks. He pulled the quilt up, covering his face, muffling the small, heartbroken sobs that threatened to escape. Even if they found Papa… Papa might just run away again. Papa didn’t like them anymore. Papa was afraid of them. Maybe… maybe Papa even wanted to kill them.

***

“Ji Yan—” Gu Wenmo’s urgent call died in his throat as Ji Yanqing, who had been lying seemingly asleep on the floor, snapped his eyes open.

In the oppressive darkness, Ji Yanqing’s eyes were chips of ice, reflecting no light, possessing the predatory stillness of a wild beast coiled to strike. For a terrifying instant, Gu Wenmo had the chilling certainty that if his outstretched hand had actually made contact, it would have been instantly severed.

“What is it?” Ji Yanqing was fully awake, his mind instantly sharp and alert.

Gu Wenmo blinked, momentarily disoriented by the intensity of that gaze, before finding his voice. “We just saw them! A few zombies entering the town. From the direction they came… they have to be Lou Ye’s.”

“Are you sure? Not ordinary ones?” Ji Yanqing bolted upright, simultaneously grabbing his backpack and axe. The sudden movement spurred the others into action, hastily shouldering their own packs.

“No, definitely not,” Gu Wenmo confirmed grimly. “They came from outside the town limits.” Ordinary zombies wandered aimlessly within their territory; they didn’t purposefully migrate from one settlement to another.

“Which direction?”

“From the city,” Gu Wenmo pointed towards the left flank of the town.

“Let’s move.” Ji Yanqing wasted no time, heading straight for the door. The rest of the group scrambled to follow.

They descended to the ground floor quickly and silently. Ji Yanqing cracked the door open, peered cautiously into the inky blackness outside, then led the way out.

Night had fallen completely. Without streetlights, the darkness was absolute, a suffocating void where you couldn’t see your own hand in front of your face. The familiar world transformed into something menacing and alien. Every unseen shadow, every dark corner, potentially concealed lurking zombies or perhaps something even worse.

Ji Yanqing glanced left, towards the city they’d fled. The main street where they’d scavenged earlier was on that side of town. They weren’t far from the town’s western edge. If Lou Ye’s controlled zombies had already entered, they could be mere hundreds of meters away right now.

The town itself teemed with ordinary zombies. Trying to navigate through it in the dark courted disaster, risking alerting the local populace. Instead of attempting to skirt around to the right, Ji Yanqing made a decisive choice: straight ahead, towards the open farmland bordering the town’s edge.

Minutes later, they reached it – the wide expanse of agricultural land separating the town from the main road. In the dense darkness, the fields appeared empty, just a sea of tall, overgrown weeds interspersed with patches of tattered clothing.

Nearly half a kilometer of open ground lay between them and the relative cover of the tree line flanking the distant main road. They had to cross it, and they had to do it fast.

Huddled at the corner of the last building, the group scanned the dark fields. Seeing no immediate threats, they broke cover, moving quickly towards the open land.

Running off the packed earth at the town's edge, Ji Yanqing’s foot plunged into the farmland – and kept sinking. The soft, loamy soil gave way, sucking at his boot, his entire body starting to bog down.

He froze for a critical second. The ground’s unstable. We can’t cross here, it’ll slow us down too much. “Wait—!”

The warning cry barely left his lips when a choked groan sounded from someone nearby. “Ugh!”

“What’s wrong?” someone called out nervously from the back of the group.

The groan turned into a raw, piercing scream of agony that shattered the night’s oppressive silence. “Ah!”

Hearing that terrified cry, the group members still on solid ground flinched violently, muscles seizing. Everyone whipped around, staring back towards the source of the scream. From the darkened buildings behind them, a distinct, slithering, rustling sound seemed to emanate, growing louder.

“Pull me up! Something’s biting me! It’s biting my leg!” the screamer shrieked, desperately trying to pull himself free, but the more he struggled, the deeper his trapped leg sank into the mire.

Reacting instantly, Ji Yanqing slammed the hooked end of his axe into the firmer ground of the field bank beside him, using the leverage to haul himself free of the sucking mud. Planting his feet on the stable edge, he lunged towards the screaming man, grabbed a handful of his collar, and yanked upwards with explosive force, pulling him bodily from the treacherous earth.

He flung the man onto the relatively solid path beside the field, then pinned the man’s thrashing leg – the one that had been trapped – firmly to the ground with his boot. Looking down, he tried to see what had attacked him.

Something was attached to the man’s lower leg.

It took Ji Yanqing a stunned moment to process the writhing shape in the dimness. It resembled a thick, grotesque eel, or perhaps a muscular snake. Thumb-thick and easily half a meter long, its specific features were obscured by the dark, but its skin appeared smooth, patternless. It moved with a boneless, fluid grace, disturbingly reminiscent of some monstrously mutated earthworm…

And it was actively burrowing into the screaming man’s flesh. Already, in the few seconds since the attack, its blunt head had disappeared beneath the skin, tunneling deeper into muscle and tissue.

“Hold his mouth shut! Stop him from screaming!” Ji Yanqing snapped, simultaneously pulling a small knife from a sheath on his backpack and yanking a spare piece of clothing out.

Reacting instantly to the command and the urgency in his voice, several members of the group lunged forward, pinning the thrashing man to the ground, clamping a hand firmly over his mouth.

With one swift, brutal motion, Ji Yanqing slashed open the man’s trouser leg. His other hand, protected by the cloth, seized the writhing body of the mutated worm. Before the muffled screams could fully register, Ji Yanqing’s knife plunged into the wound beside the creature. With a sickening slice, he carved into the man's flesh, digging out the worm’s burrowing head and wrenching the entire creature free.

“Ungh!” A strangled groan tore from the victim as agony shot through him, his body arching rigidly off the ground.

Ji Yanqing glanced down at the grotesque thing twisting in his grasp, trying to coil back and bite him. It was, horrifyingly, an earthworm—or what had been an earthworm. Now monstrously large, its mouth had mutated into a gaping, cylindrical orifice lined with rows of needle-sharp teeth and rippling suckers. Once latched onto prey, the teeth would shred flesh while the suckers clamped down, simultaneously feeding and pulling the creature deeper into the host's body, consuming them from the inside out.

Caught in Ji Yanqing’s grip, the giant worm writhed violently, its horrifying mouth gaping wide, emitting a high-pitched, grating screech like the sound of pressurized air scraping against rubber – a noise that sent shivers down the spine.

Without hesitation, Ji Yanqing flung the vile creature back into the dark field. “Get him up! Move!”

He led the way, back towards the concrete path they’d used to enter the town. Even as they hurried forward, his eyes scanned the waterlogged fields flanking the path. They’d seen these fields before – barren of crops, filled only with tall weeds and scattered scraps of clothing. It hadn’t seemed significant then, but now the truth was hideously clear: the fields weren't barren by chance. Something within them consumed everything. Those weren’t just discarded clothes; they were the tattered remnants left behind after humans and zombies alike had been dragged down and devoured alive.

The moment their feet hit the relative safety of the concrete path, a chorus of rustling erupted from the tall grass on both sides. Something large, disturbed by their proximity, was moving beneath the concealing vegetation.

The entire group froze instinctively, eyes darting nervously towards the surrounding fields. As they stood motionless, the rustling gradually subsided. But the lull was short-lived. Behind them, back towards the town, the sounds of commotion grew louder, more frantic. The injured man’s earlier screams had undoubtedly alerted the town’s zombie population. And among them, potentially, were Lou Ye’s controlled puppets.

In the oppressive darkness, all eyes fixed on Ji Yanqing, waiting for his command. He swept his gaze around, assessing the impossible situation, then made a swift decision. He started forward again, moving as lightly and quietly as possible along the concrete path. There was no other way out.

Understanding dawned on the others. Holding their breath, they followed, mimicking his cautious steps, acutely aware of every sound. The need for stealth slowed their pace considerably, ratcheting up the tension as shuffling figures began to emerge from the town’s edge behind them. Zombies were closing in.

They were nearly halfway across the exposed stretch when the first wave of pursuers, a dozen or more zombies, blundered off the town’s edge and into the treacherous farmland. They didn’t get far before the ground gave way, sucking them down. The undead felt no pain, but the escalating sssshhhhh sounds from beneath the grass – a wet, tearing, squirming chorus – served as a horrifying auditory clue to the carnage unfolding just meters away.

The sound crawled under their skin. Ji Yanqing and the others felt their scalps prickle, unable to banish the mental images of those monstrous worms burrowing into undead flesh, a frenzy of silent feeding in the dark.

By the time the survivors reached the midpoint of the path, the number of zombies stumbling into the fields behind them had swelled to seventy or eighty. As each one became ensnared, adding to the frantic thrashing, the entire expanse of farmland seemed to awaken. From both sides of the narrow concrete strip, the horrifying, slithering, rustling sound intensified, emanating from every patch of ground, a suffocating wave of unseen menace.

The sheer auditory horror caused the group on the path to falter instinctively, their steps slowing, terrified of drawing the attention of the things lurking just beyond the concrete edge.

Ji Yanqing was about to bark at them not to stop when a different sound caught his ear – a deeper, heavier disturbance. He snapped his head towards its source.

His breath hitched.

In the field to their right, illuminated momentarily by some internal bioluminescence perhaps, a colossal mutated worm, easily as thick as a grown man’s thigh, was churning powerfully beneath the grass cover. It was immense, at least ten meters long, more than capable of heaving its bulk onto the concrete path…

Ji Yanqing held his breath, gooseflesh erupting across his skin. As that primal fear seized him, someone ahead gasped, pointing frantically to their left.

Ji Yanqing’s gaze shot in that direction. There, in the field on the opposite side, another worm, even larger than the first, was undulating tumultuously through the earth, its passage marked by violently swaying weeds.

Seeing these behemoths, the survivors trapped on the narrow path felt a cold dread grip their hearts, a visceral, paralyzing fear.

Ji Yanqing swallowed hard, forcing his eyes towards the rear. Zombies continued to pour into the fields from the town, their numbers growing, the feeding frenzy intensifying. But amidst the chaos of the struggling undead, two figures stood perfectly still on the concrete edge back where the town met the fields. They weren’t thrashing or shambling. They were watching. Motionless. Intent.

Not ordinary zombies. Lou Ye’s.

***

Miles away, in the city they’d fled, Lou Ye lounged amidst the ruins. The grievous wounds Ji Yanqing had inflicted were long healed, his severed arm fully regenerated. His eyes snapped open in the darkness, burning with a manic, triumphant light. A wide, ecstatic grin stretched across his face.

“Hah… Found… you…”

***

“Run!” The single word exploded from Ji Yanqing. He broke into an all-out sprint towards the distant main road. There was no more time for caution. If Lou Ye himself was closing in, stealth was pointless. Survival meant speed.

Galvanized by his shout, the group, already teetering on the edge of panic, surged forward, a desperate stampede towards the main road.

As they ran, the ground beside the path erupted. Giant, boneless shapes burst from beneath the grass cover on both sides. Pale, segmented bodies like nightmare earthworms, crowned with those hideous cylindrical maws bristling with teeth and suckers, lunged towards the fleeing humans. The grotesque sight plunged the survivors into sheer terror.

Gritting their teeth against the rising panic, they pushed themselves harder, sprinting for their lives.

Ji Yanqing swung his axe in a wide arc, batting aside one of the lunging worms that threatened to cut off their path. Without breaking stride, he grabbed the arm of a survivor who was falling behind, hauling him forward.

They burst onto the relative safety of the main road just as the concrete path behind them reverberated with heavy, wet thuds – the impact of the colossal worms slamming their bodies down where the humans had been moments before. The air filled with that high-pitched, grating screech, the sound of a dozen inflated balloons being scraped raw.

“Don’t stop! Keep moving!” Ji Yanqing yelled, leading the charge away from the town, away from the horrifying fields.

No one dared slow down. Jaws clenched, they ran with frantic, desperate energy, pushing past the burning ache in their chests, ignoring the frantic buzzing in their ears, fueled purely by adrenaline and terror. They ran until the blood pounded in their temples, until coherent thought dissolved into the singular imperative: escape.

They ran blindly, putting as much distance as possible between themselves and the town. Only when their legs finally gave out, when they physically could not force themselves another step, did they collapse, gasping for air, far from the town and its nightmarish farmland.

Looking back into the oppressive darkness, they could still faintly make out the grotesque sight of those thick, pale bodies writhing and thrashing in the distant fields. Revulsion and raw horror twisted their faces. The sheer size and shape were unsettling enough, but the image of those sucking, tooth-filled maws induced a profound, visceral dread. Surely, hell itself could hold no worse horrors.

“We can’t stay here,” Ji Yanqing stated, his voice grim, shattering their brief respite. “Lou Ye knows where we are now.” The words hung heavy, adding another layer of dread to their exhaustion.

Exchanging weary, frightened glances in the darkness, the group needed no further urging. They struggled back to their feet and pressed onward, driven by the need to put as much distance as possible between themselves and their relentless pursuer.

Heavy snow had begun falling some time ago, swirling around them now in a blinding curtain. The wind howled, a desolate sound like the tormented cries of demons, biting through their inadequate clothing. Soon, their limbs grew numb, unresponsive to the biting cold.

But stopping was not an option. To stop meant Lou Ye could catch them.

They trudged onward, losing track of time, lost in the disorienting whiteout. Thought processes slowed, then ceased, replaced by the mechanical act of putting one foot in front of the other. Survival became instinct. Later, mere movement became a struggle; they had to physically support each other, leaning on one another to stay upright as exhaustion and cold threatened to overwhelm them entirely, their very minds feeling frozen numb.

Relentlessly, they pushed forward. Just as the faintest hint of grey began to lighten the eastern horizon – the promise of dawn – they saw it: the towering silhouette of a city looming ahead through the blizzard.

Details were obscured by the swirling snow, but the city was undeniably massive. Its sheer scale was intimidating, casting an eerie, ominous pall, giving it the unsettling aura of a ghost city, a place one might enter but never leave.

A fresh wave of trepidation washed over them, but they were past the point of caution or choice. Gritting their teeth against the cold and their own fear, they stumbled towards it. They desperately needed shelter, a place to rest, a place to hide.

They found refuge in an apartment building, collapsing onto the floor of a fourth-floor unit. For a long moment, the only sounds were the howling wind and driving snow outside the windows, and the ragged gasps of the exhausted survivors.

Ji Yanqing allowed himself only two minutes of rest. Before the feeling could even return to his numb limbs, he pushed himself upright, axe in hand. He began methodically checking the windows facing the direction they’d come, scanning the blizzard-swept landscape for any sign of pursuit.

Seeing him move, the few others who still had a shred of strength left forced themselves to their feet as well, moving to different windows to survey the surroundings.

“Captain…!” A voice called out urgently from the other side of the apartment.

Every head in the room snapped towards the sound, fear instantly cutting through their numbed exhaustion. Did Lou Ye follow them this quickly?

Ji Yanqing crossed the room in swift strides.

“Look…” Gu Wenmo pointed, his hand trembling uncontrollably from the cold, towards the window. Outside, partially obscured by another building and the swirling snow, a massive, dark shape was vaguely discernible.

Snow blanketed the entire cityscape, yet even through the blizzard, the scale of the object and the wreckage surrounding it – collapsed sections of nearby buildings – were unmistakable. It was a corpse. The corpse of a Corpse King.

Specifically, the segmented, multi-legged corpse of a giant, centipede-like Corpse King.

As the others gathered and saw the monstrous carcass, sharp intakes of breath hissed through the room.

“It’s… dead?” someone whispered, awestruck.

“Broken into pieces… Definitely dead.”

A beat of silence, then the inevitable, chilling question: “…What could have possibly done that to it?”

No one answered. A new, heavier silence fell over the room. They had escaped the ravenous worms, outrun Lou Ye’s immediate pursuit, only to stumble into a city where something existed that could tear apart a creature like that.

Out of the frying pan, into the fire.

A fresh wave of despair, cold and sharp as the wind rattling the windows, flooded their chests. Unease, fear, hopelessness – it was the familiar cycle since the world ended. A few managed bitter, humorless smiles. They were too tired, too beaten down, to even find the strength to curse their fate anymore.

*

In the darkness of another shelter, miles away, Feng Yimo sat rigidly on a sofa. From the bundle of blankets on the floor came the soft, choked whimpers of Ji An, like the cries of a lost kitten. Each small sob seemed to tighten the knot of sour, aching bitterness in Feng Yimo’s chest.

He focused his will inward, trying to activate his powerful Corpse King self-healing abilities, urging the regenerative power to mend the persistent ache. But just like the sharp, unexpected pain that had pierced him when he first realized Ji Yanqing had fled from him, this deeper, sourer wound remained untouched. His power could regenerate flesh and bone with astonishing speed, but it was utterly useless against this… feeling.

Feng Yimo considered the possibility, with cold detachment: he might be sick. He’d gotten sick the moment Ji Yanqing had seen him for what he truly was, and recoiled.

He recalled observing humans during his time embedded with Ji Yanqing’s survival team. He'd seen them succumb to illness – runny noses, coughs, fevers brought on by cold nights. Ji Yanqing had even treated Ji An and Ji Le’s evolutionary fevers as simple sickness.

Lu Qing, the team's doctor, knew how to treat illnesses. But Feng Yimo had no intention of seeking Lu Qing’s help. He didn’t like Lu Qing.

Lu Qing liked Ji Yanqing.

And that displeased him.

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