Chapter 156

Chapter 156

Perhaps Jin Gao's death had driven Gu Lin to complete madness; the Cloud Peak aircraft bombarded Linya City for several days without ceasing, even as their own losses mounted. They also tightened the blockade on Linya City, cutting off the sea routes to the Zia Archipelago, determined to starve the city into submission.

During this period, Chu Ya was constantly in battle, and Shen Juanjuan rarely saw him. However, he and his group of friends had recovered from their injuries and joined the other students from the orphanage in defending Linya City.

After each battle, ground troops rushed about, working against time to repair the dark spots on the light membrane, assess the damage to factories, and extinguish fires ignited by bombings.

Shen Juanjuan, wearing a steel helmet, sat in a military vehicle, his face smeared with dirt as he gnawed on an ear of corn, listening intently to the conversations and orders on the combat channel.

"There are large dark spots on the light membrane above the food factory; one workshop has been destroyed by artillery fire. We need to clear it now."

"Second Squad received, heading to the food factory immediately."

...

The Teddy Bear hurried back from across the street, holding a wet towel in its paws, which it pressed to Shen Juanjuan's face to wipe it clean.

"No need, our squad is up in half an hour. If you clean me now, I'll just get dirty again," Shen Juanjuan raised his hand to block it.

"Roar!" The Teddy Bear swatted his hand away, insisting that cleanliness must be maintained regardless of future dirt.

Shen Juanjuan closed his eyes in patience, allowing the Teddy Bear to clean his face before resuming his corn munching, mumbling, "Brother and the others went out to patrol the sea, they should be back soon, right?"

"Roar."

"There's damage to the light membrane over Jindi Street; we need to replace a light membrane machine. A shop on Jindi Street is also on fire."

"Third Squad received, heading to Jindi Street immediately."

...

As Shen Juanjuan listened to the orders on the combat channel, the voices and chaotic background sounds suddenly vanished, replaced by a buzzing sound, like that of an engine.

Then, a familiar, deep, and gentle male voice came through the speaker.

"I am above the clouds, where the sunset is changing its color structure and brightness, turning the clouds from light red to crimson, extending towards the distant horizon. I am passing through the cloud sea, seeing the ocean surface also dyed golden..."

When Shen Juanjuan heard Chu Ya's voice, he straightened abruptly. The Teddy Bear stopped cleaning his face, looking surprised at the car radio. The three others in the back seat, who were also eating corn, looked up, puzzled, muttering, "What's going on? Is there a frequency mix-up?"

"...A group of dolphins leaped out of the water, I lowered my flight altitude and followed them forward..."

The driver quickly fiddled with the knobs: "There's no frequency mix-up, strange, what's happening?"

"Does this sound like the flight squadron's channel?"

The driver glanced at the small lights on the radio and said, "No frequency mix-up, this is single-frequency directional transmission, only our car can hear it."

"But why are we hearing this?"

"Don't talk, all of you, don't talk." Shen Juanjuan suddenly stood up, bumping his head on the roof. Ignoring the pain, his face flushed with excitement, "Shh, don't talk..."

The others in the back seat were stunned, but the driver immediately understood, gesturing for them to get out of the car.

"What are we doing getting out now?"

"Idiots, that's a private message for the little guide, why are you listening here?"

...

"...The sunset colors the sky and the sea in layers of red... It's beautiful, very beautiful, I hope you can see it."

Chu Ya's last words were extremely soft, like a whisper or a gentle sigh, gently touching Shen Juanjuan's heart.

A moment later, Chu Ya's voice disappeared, and the urgent commands returned to the speaker. Shen Juanjuan propped his hands on the open car window, looking up at the sky, his eyes shining with a dreamy and captivating light.

"...Roar." The Teddy Bear also looked up, reaching out a paw to swipe at the air.

After obtaining the second chip, the research institute didn't idle. Under Dr. Xu Wangduo's leadership, all researchers worked overtime, finally creating a serum to cure black sores disease six months later.

Chu Ya was among the first patients to receive the injection. In the quiet laboratory, he lay on the bed bare-chested while Dr. Xu Wangduo removed the seal from the syringe with a soft pop.

"This serum can cure black sores disease, but it won't prevent zombification if bitten by a zombie. However, the immediate concern is the black sores disease, and the zombie threat seems less pressing. I will continue my research and should solve the zombification prevention issue within a year or two."

Dr. Xu Wangduo held the syringe and looked down at Chu Ya.

"Time is short, and clinical trials haven't been completed yet. If you're not comfortable, we can wait."

Chu Ya replied, "No need, start the clinical trial with me."

Shen Juanjuan sat on a bench in the institute's corridor, nervously biting his nails until they were ragged. The Teddy Bear lay at the door of a room, its eyes pressed against the crack.

"Don't be nervous," Yun Tuo said, sitting beside Shen Juanjuan.

"I'm not nervous."

Xiao Rui stood by the corridor window, "If you're not nervous, stop biting your nails."

Yun Tuo took Shen Juanjuan's hand out of his mouth, "Believe in Dr. Xu. Since he's willing to inject Xiaoya, he must have a good degree of confidence."

"I definitely trust him," Shen Juanjuan leaned his head back against the chair, "Even if the black sores disease can't be cured, it doesn't matter much, right? At least it can delay the progression. Even if there are side effects, they won't be too severe. Worst case, I turn into a zombie."

"How can you say that? There's no way you'd turn into a zombie," Yun Tuo laughed.

Shen Juanjuan closed his eyes, "Dr. Xu already injected Miao with the serum, and Miao slowly opened its eyes, which had turned black. Dr. Xu was stunned, and then Miao suddenly reached out and grabbed his neck—" He suddenly sat up straight, shouting at the Teddy Bear by the door, "It's coming to bite you, move!"

The Teddy Bear, no longer lying by the door, perked up its ears and listened to him. Hearing this, it let out a startled roar and darted over, squeezing between Shen Juanjuan and Yun Tuo, tucking its feet tightly under itself.

"Hehehe." Shen Juanjuan laughed, looking at the Teddy Bear.

The Teddy Bear came to its senses and was immediately alarmed and angry, raising its paw to strike him, but Yun Tuo picked it up and held it in his arms.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!"

"Don't pay attention to this boring person; go play with Brother Rui," Yun Tuo coaxed.

Xiao Rui also said, "Let's go to the rooftop for a smoke."

As they were talking, the door of the room next to them suddenly opened, and the Teddy Bear immediately stopped struggling, while Shen Juanjuan sprang up abruptly.

Chu Ya and Dr. Xu walked out of the room, looking perfectly normal. Shen Juanjuan finally relaxed, letting out a long sigh of relief and wiping his sweaty palms on the Teddy Bear's head.

"Meow."

Chu Ya approached and said to Shen Juanjuan, Yun Tuo, and the Teddy Bear who were staring at him, "There's no problem."

"What about the black sore disease? Is it cured?" Yun Tuo asked.

Dr. Xu smiled, "I just gave him a full-body check-up; the activated black sore virus has all entered a dormant state, making him completely like a normal person."

Shen Juanjuan was so excited that he couldn't speak coherently, "Good, that's great, really good, thank you, Dr. Xu, really good."

The Teddy Bear jumped off Yun Tuo and walked to Chu Ya, "Ow?"

Chu Ya bent down and snapped his fingers in front of the Teddy Bear, and a shadowy outline appeared on the ground beside him.

The shadow quickly became clear, revealing a large wolf standing before them, its silver-white fur smooth like silk, shimmering with a mercury-like luster.

"Shen Wangwang!" Shen Juanjuan exclaimed, rushing over and circling around the silver wolf, hugging and kissing its neck, "Shen Wangwang, you've changed, you look so handsome. No, you were always handsome, now you're even more handsome..."

The silver wolf freed its head from Shen Juanjuan's embrace and looked at the Teddy Bear.

The Teddy Bear had been in a daze since the wolf appeared. Now, meeting the silver wolf's gaze, it slowly backed away, hiding behind Xiao Rui, but peeking out one eye to observe it quietly.

"Roar." The silver wolf said softly.

The Teddy Bear shook its head slowly, "Ow."

The silver wolf looked at Chu Ya for help, and Chu Ya asked Shen Juanjuan, "What's wrong with Bao Long?"

Shen Juanjuan replied, "It thinks that's not Shen Wangwang, it must be a silver tiger."

"Roar?" The silver wolf was shocked.

Chu Ya also said, "They just have similar colors, but their appearances are quite different."

Shen Juanjuan was silent for a few seconds, as if communicating with the Teddy Bear through the mental domain, then continued, "Give it some time to adapt; it seems to have trouble accepting it right now." He glanced at the silver wolf beside him and leaned closer to Chu Ya, whispering, "It probably doesn't like silver much."

Everyone was unusually free today, including Dr. Xu, and they all went to Yun Tuo and Xiao Rui's house for dinner.

A gentle evening breeze blew, and the Teddy Bear sat on the windowsill, looking melancholy into the distance. The silver wolf stood nearby, watching it, wanting to come closer but not daring to.

Shen Juanjuan stood by the window, putting an arm around the Teddy Bear's shoulder, "I once dyed my hair silver-white, and my brother didn't stop recognizing me; he didn't think I had become someone else."

"Ow..."

"Don't worry, Shen Wangwang won't take you for heavy training every day. It's just a change in color; it won't suddenly become very ambitious."

"Ow."

The silver wolf also hurried over, softly roaring to assure it that it wasn't a silver tiger and wouldn't drag it to run or do pull-ups at every turn.

After the afternoon, the Teddy Bear gradually accepted that the silver wolf was indeed Shen Wangwang. Now, hearing them say this, it no longer showed resistance. The silver wolf moved closer and carefully licked its head.

"Roar." The silver wolf said cautiously.

The Teddy Bear raised its paw to stroke its fur, watching the silver strands slide between its claws, reflecting the orange glow of the sunset. It leaned in closer to examine the fur closely, seeing that it was pure and clean, without a single speck of impurity, and nodded, reluctantly accepting it.

In the following week, the military department was very busy, and Shen Juanjuan hadn't seen Chu Ya again, only talking to him on the phone every day.

That night, after completing his mission, Shen Juanjuan returned to the orphanage. As he entered the gate with a group of students, he saw a military vehicle parked in the courtyard.

He let out a short "Ah!" and immediately ran towards home. The Teddy Bear also ran at top speed, bouncing along the ground like a ball, quickly surpassing him and rushing up to the fourth floor, pounding on the door.

The door opened, and the Teddy Bear pounced, hanging onto the silver wolf's neck. Shen Juanjuan squeezed past the two quantum beasts and rushed straight to Chu Ya's bedroom. Finding no one there, he ran to the bathroom, where Chu Ya had just stepped out of the door. He eagerly threw himself into Chu Ya's arms.

Chu Ya seemed to have just taken a shower, holding a wet towel in his hand, his upper body bare and muscular, his military pants loosely hanging on his tight waist.

Shen Juanjuan crashed into Chu Ya's chest, wrapping his arms around his neck, trying to pull his head down. Chu Ya used both arms to lift him, cradling him.

Shen Juanjuan kissed him passionately, wrapping his legs around Chu Ya's waist, pressing his body closer and closer, but still feeling it wasn't close enough.

While kissing him, Chu Ya caressed his back, soothing him with low murmurs, "I'm here, don't rush..."

Chu Ya's left hand still held a wet towel, water droplets continuously dripping onto the floor, making a tapping sound. The Teddy Bear, still clinging to the silver wolf's neck, perked up its ears and turned to look. Seeing the small puddle on the floor, it immediately rushed over and swatted at their legs with its paw, "Ow!!"

Ignoring it, they continued to kiss passionately. The Teddy Bear attacked from both sides, "Ow! Ow! Ow!"

Chu Ya looked down at the Teddy Bear, but Shen Juanjuan turned his face back, panting, "Ignore it."

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" The Teddy Bear pointed at the wet towel in Chu Ya's hand and the puddle on the floor, roaring angrily.

Shen Juanjuan kicked it away, and the Teddy Bear immediately pounced to attack. The silver wolf quickly grabbed the Teddy Bear, and Chu Ya, still holding Shen Juanjuan, retreated into the bathroom, quickly closing the door.

Two seconds later, the door opened, and a mop was thrown out, followed by a loud slam.

"It's too annoying, obsessive-compulsive, always interrupting us," Shen Juanjuan sat on the sink, forehead touching Chu Ya's.

"Ignore it."

Chu Ya kissed him again.

Outside the bathroom door, the Teddy Bear was still pointing at the door, angrily barking at the silver wolf. The silver wolf comforted it while wiping the water on the floor with a cloth.

The Teddy Bear, looking at the water marks smeared all over the floor, finally couldn't bear it anymore. It took the cloth and squatted down to wipe carefully.

After a long time, the two people in the bathroom ended their kiss. Shen Juanjuan's lips were moist and swollen, softly leaning against Chu Ya's arm, with a hint of intoxicating red at the corners of his eyes.

"Meow."

"I'm here."

"Are you going to the military headquarters tonight?"

"Not tonight."

Shen Juanjuan kissed his chin and chuckled.

Chu Ya pecked his lips, then lifted him off the ground and opened the door. "What do you see on the coffee table?"

Shen Juanjuan poked his head out and saw a familiar paper bag on the coffee table. He was instantly delighted. "Foggy Vegetable Balls."

"They might be cold now. Heat them up before eating."

Chu Ya had bought a whole bag of Foggy Vegetable Balls this time. Shen Juanjuan took them to the kitchen, heated up two skewers, and put the rest in the small fridge in the corner.

The Teddy Bear passed by the kitchen entrance with the cloth in its mouth, sticking out its tongue: "Awooo."

Shen Juanjuan immediately followed suit, sticking out his tongue: "Awooo."

The silver wolf followed the Teddy Bear step by step, afraid they would start another fight, so it quickly dragged it to clean the windowsill.

Shen Juanjuan returned to the living room, where Chu Ya was drying his hair with a towel. He sat beside him, took the towel from his hand, and started drying his hair, asking, "Is there still a stall selling these? I haven't seen one."

With frequent battles breaking out recently, vendors had no heart for business. Just as they set up their stalls, air raid sirens might go off, forcing them to rush to the air-raid shelters.

"I found the person's home and asked him to bake me a bag," Chu Ya said, leaning back on the sofa with his eyes closed.

Shen Juanjuan laughed. "You even went to someone's house?"

"So I asked him to bake a full bag, enough for you to eat for several days." Chu Ya opened his eyes, a few wet strands of hair falling onto his forehead, giving him a more relaxed look.

Shen Juanjuan found him irresistibly charming in that state and couldn't help but lean in for another kiss. "Don't buy so many at once. I want you to buy them every day and bring them home for me."

Chu Ya reached out to hold his chin, looking at him intently and seriously. Shen Juanjuan let him gaze at him, even adjusting his position slightly.

But Chu Ya's expression remained serious, which made Shen Juanjuan sense something else. He reined in his smile and sat up straight, slightly nervous.

Chu Ya released his nape, smoothing out a messy strand of hair, and said calmly, "I'm about to go to Cloud Peak."

Shen Juanjuan opened his mouth to speak but closed it again, his face showing a look of helplessness.

"The black sore serum has been developed, and I need to take the sample to meet Meng Heguang and Jiang Xian. Yun Tuo and Chairman Xiao wanted to go, but Linya City can't afford to lose them right now. Also, because of my father, I am the most suitable person to have this conversation."

After Chu Ya finished speaking, neither of them said anything. The Teddy Bear, which had been lying on the sofa playing cards with the silver wolf, looked up in surprise at the sudden silence. Seeing nothing unusual, it continued playing.

Chu Ya took Shen Juanjuan's hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed it. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon."

"When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow."

"So soon..."

Chu Ya explained, "We're racing against Gu Lin. Every extra day we wait increases the danger."

Footsteps sounded outside the door, someone passing by and continuing upstairs until the sound disappeared on the upper floor. Shen Juanjuan then said, "I want to go too."

Chu Ya looked at him without answering, but his expression and gaze conveyed the same message. Shen Juanjuan pulled his hand out of Chu Ya's palm and said solemnly, "This trip to Cloud Peak is too dangerous. I must go with you to feel reassured."

"It's not as dangerous as you think. We've already contacted them in advance and requested a meeting. Meng and Jiang have been coerced by Gu Lin and are very dissatisfied inside. When they heard we had developed the black sore serum, they agreed to the meeting."

Shen Juanjuan immediately responded, "If it's safe, what difference does it make if I go? I can be your guide. If anything happens, having me by your side would be an advantage, wouldn't it?"

"No, this is a military mission. You haven't joined the army; you're just a student."

"I'm a reserve soldier of the Third Army. I've participated in the resistance against the enemy during this period. I have the right to apply to go to Cloud Peak with you."

Chu Ya stared at Shen Juanjuan with a stern gaze. Shen Juanjuan met his stare unflinchingly, his lips tightly pressed together, and his eyebrows knitted in determination.