Chapter 227

Chapter 227

Due to the nature of "emergency response," Jiang Nian's daily schedule was highly unpredictable.

Sometimes, after purifying infected rescue team members, he would swing by to check on Gao Xuyang, spending most of the day in Lab 3.

The purification sessions for Gao Xuyang gradually lengthened—from a few minutes to ten, then over ten minutes...

As Professor Gao's endurance improved, the effects of purification became increasingly evident:

His speech, movements, and mental agility grew sharper, almost like a regular person.

By the end of the month, Gao Xuyang was recovered enough to leave Lab 3 and return to the central district dormitory with Yang Kai.

After a period of observation, and with assurances from Yang Kai, Cheng Jing, and others that he wouldn’t act alone, Department Head Wang and the base’s senior officials deliberated and allowed him to skip the special collar.

They even permitted him to occasionally join patrol teams outside the base, using his Zombie King senses to detect abnormal zombie movements—way better than human scouts.

Zombies talked through some weird brainwave thing, with their range dependent on their level of evolution.

By emitting hostile signals through this method, Gao Xuyang ensured that no zombies dared get close to the Southern City Base, and even other Zombie Kings like him would think twice.

By September 1st, a full year after the apocalypse began, extreme heatwaves hit over 70°C (158°F), kicking off the worst of the heat, which would last over half a month.

Every base in the country shut down outdoor ops, including rescue missions.

Even Superpowered individuals with slightly weaker resistance minimized daytime outings.

Jiang Nian was pretty much forced by Cheng Jing into staying in the dorm to avoid the heat while Cheng covered for him.

The team shuffled their schedules around, supporting each other as needed.

That was all normal behavior—until Gao Xuyang offered to take over Yang Kai’s duties:

"Too hot... You stay home... I’ll work for you."

At the dining table, Yang Kai ate cafeteria food while Gao Xuyang consumed cleaned-up energy cores, his voice flat.

After several "intense purification treatments" from Jiang Nian and continuous evolution from absorbing crystal energy, Gao Xuyang’s limbs had grown far more agile.

All suited up, anyone who didn’t know would only see a guy who took his time—never suspecting a zombie.

"Professor Gao, you only need to patrol outside the base with us occasionally. No need to take over my work... The corps has too much to handle that requires Cheng and me to handle personally."

Yang Kai declined with a smile. Just having Gao Xuyang out with them was a win.

"......"

After a pause, Gao Xuyang nodded and added,

"Then I’ll follow you... to work."

More exposure to the outside world helped him, and extreme weather posed no threat.

Yang Kai tried persuading him to rest at home and consume more crystal cores, but Gao Xuyang refused. Unable to argue, Yang Kai relented.

Thus, Yang Kai gained an ever-present shadow glued to his side.

Curious onlookers tried prying for gossip, but the fully armored Gao Xuyang gave off serious back-off vibes—obeying only Yang Kai.

However, to dispel others' curiosity, he took off his helmet and spoke to people during assembly, clarifying his relationship with Yang Kai.

Using his superpower on himself, others saw him as a refined and elegant appearance.

Regarding the title "Teacher Gao," Yang Kai openly stated that they had a "teacher-student" relationship before.

As Gao Xuyang listened, fragments of memories clearer than before surfaced in his mind:

Behind the bookshelves in the school library, in the faculty dormitory, in the office after school, and even in the pretend encounters at bars and clubs...

They embraced, kissed, and Yang Kai pinned him down, doing as he pleased. The marriage certificate was fake, but their partnership and bond were real.

Cheng Jing, the head regiment leader, was envious of this. He had made advances toward Jiang Nian several times, but the brat rejected him without hesitation, even teasing him provocatively:

"I know Brother Jing wants to keep me as a trophy boy, but forget it, hahaha... I won’t be your assistant. My goal is to be your equal—just you wait."

That smug look was truly infuriating, yet Cheng Jing couldn’t even get angry.

The one who'd "broken free" seemed ready to fly too close to the sun. Given that, Cheng Jing could only stay steady, ensuring he could always rein in the reckless troublemaker.

"..."

Natural disasters were far more terrifying than zombies. As the hottest period hit, the death toll in the base surged again, leaving many outer-zone dormitories empty.

Clearing corpses became the most "grueling and oppressive" daily task, dragging everyone’s morale down.

Jiang Nian and the superpowered individuals did their best to pitch in with rescue efforts, but compared to killing zombies, their capabilities here were limited.

Even the hospital doctors were helpless, watching people succumb to heatstroke and its fallout.

If the Southern City Base was struggling this much, other bases were even worse off.

Every few days, the central satellite broadcast reported another shelter being "wiped out," disbanded, or destroyed.

The entire world was scraping by under the brutal heat—no shortcuts, no good solutions, just endurance.

Some bases attempted "cloud-seeding," but like droughts before the apocalypse, the lack of suitable clouds made it futile.

Water, medicine, and cooling resources were vanishing at a terrifying rate.

Bases that clung to stocks or ran short saw more deaths and even riots.

Official bases at least considered ordinary civilians, but private shelters often abandoned bottom-rung survivors to conserve resources.

"..."

"Da Jun and Xiao Liu are dead."

When it was Liao Yu’s group’s turn to distribute supplies at the volunteer dormitories, the young master broke the news upon returning.

In the office of Command Center Team 017, the teammates met the news with shrugs. Jiang Nian recalled the last time he saw the two and remarked:

"Their superpowers weren’t elemental. If their condition deteriorated badly, it’s normal they couldn’t endure this weather. Maybe death was a mercy—alive, they’d only be a thorn in our side, and we’d still have to worry occasionally."

"Damn right."

"No kidding."

"..."

Everyone nodded in agreement. Da Jun and Xiao Liu were the type who would surely bite back given the chance. Although they no longer paid those two any mind, pulling those thorns out completely eliminated any what-if situations.

The tough days dragged on forever.

Jiang Nian skipped work and visited Cheng Jing’s parents every morning and evening. The heat was brutal, so he stepped up to cook while keeping a close eye on the elders’ health.

The rest of the time, he stayed in the dorm, reading farming and livestock encyclopedias or watching educational videos, jotting down notes for future farm upgrades.

After about a grinding, nerve-wracking week, Jiang Nian received a call from Jiang Wenwen at S Base.