Chapter 82

Chapter 82

At five in the morning, the sun was about to rise.

Some people in Zone One were already awake, starting another day just trying to survive. Rong Wazi stood on the corridor brushing his teeth, watching the men bedded down in the open below callously push away the women who'd been clinging to them all night, throwing them half-eaten compressed biscuits. The naked women finished the biscuits, put on their clothes, and staggered away.

The balcony-style corridor offered a strategic vantage point; people above had a clear view of those below, but not vice versa. The cold water numbed his lips and gums. Rong Wazi spat out the foam and rinsed quickly. Out of the corner of his eye, a dark shape suddenly moved.

Turning his head, he saw Bai Tu flipping in from outside the corridor, his movements as smooth as if he'd done it countless times.

Rong Wazi held his mug, silently watching him.

This building was close to the base wall. His room was at the end of the corridor, with Lu Touzi's room on one side and the base wall on the other. The gap between the two walls was less than half a meter wide. Bai Tu had clearly climbed up through this narrow crevice.

The base's outer walls had watchtowers at each zone boundary—four in total—used to watch for abnormal movements inside and outside. However, he was on the second-to-last floor. The roof eaves extended for drainage, making this narrow crevice a complete blind spot for the two watchtowers flanking Zone One.

After steadying himself, Bai Tu first patted his clothes, sending a cloud of plaster dust flying. Rong Wazi silently shielded his mug.

"Map."

Bai Tu handed him a piece of paper folded into a square.

Rong Wazi put down his cup. The paper had been folded many times, compressed to the size of a coin. It took Rong Wazi a moment to fully unfold it to its original size—about the span of two adult male palms. His expression changed as soon as he saw what was on it.

"You got inside?" he asked in a hushed voice.

Bai Tu shook his head. "Just scouted the perimeter."

There were many blind spots in the outer four zones where surveillance couldn't reach. Bai Tu used these blind spots to move around the periphery of the Core Zone, climbed to high points to observe, compared it with his memories from his past life, and drew a map of the Core Zone.

The map was drawn with great precision. After a few glances, Rong Wazi quickly figured out the layout of the Core Zone. Apart from a large warehouse and an armory, most of it consisted of research institutes.

Precisely because it was so detailed, Rong Wazi immediately spotted the problem after understanding the layout. "Don't tell me your plan to get in is to just climb over the wall like you did now."

The Core Zone was heavily guarded, with small watchtowers even inside, and almost no blind spots. If Bai Tu tried to climb over, his head would likely hit the ground the moment he poked it over.

Bai Tu didn't answer. He picked up a scrub brush nearby, wet it, and squatted down to clean his shoes.

The water pressure from the tap was low, the flow intermittent, accompanied by a teeth-grating squeak. Only then did Rong Wazi notice the mud on Bai Tu's shoes and trouser cuffs. There was also a strong, rank odor on him, but it was masked by another smell—the familiar odor of decay common in some areas of the base. Rong Wazi was used to it and hadn't noticed at first.

He put away the map and watched Bai Tu squatting and scrubbing off the mud. "Water fees aren't included in the additional services. You'll have to pay extra."

Without looking up, Bai Tu took a crystal worth thirty points from his pocket and slapped it onto the washbasin. The crystal was still stained with dried blood and brains, clearly fresh. When placing the crystal, Rong Wazi saw mud and another blue-green sap-like substance on his hands.

He cast a scrutinizing look. "Actually, I'm a bit curious too. Why did you choose the gray wristband?"

Bai Tu finished scrubbing the mud in silence, then replied, "Song Lan's information, I want it once a day. Core Zone information, I'll give you once a day."

Rong Wazi grinned. "Fine, fair. Hope you can keep your word."

Bai Tu washed the scrub brush and his hands, then climbed back down the way he came. Rong Wazi took a few steps and leaned over to look down. Bai Tu slid down the water pipe, his figure vanishing into the night like a ghost.

*

Bai Tu made it back to his room just before the first light of dawn appeared in the east. It took nearly half an hour of showering to wash off the smells. He also washed the clothes he'd changed out of. These clothes couldn't be seen by others, so he had to let them dry indoors.

He lay down on the bed and fell into a deep sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. But it felt like he had just closed his eyes when the watch on his wrist vibrated. Forcing his eyes open, he saw it was the alarm he'd set for eight o'clock.

He rolled over. His body touched the other half of the bed, cold and empty. He suddenly began to miss Huo Changfeng's embrace. If Huo Changfeng were here, he could have burrowed into him without reason and gone back to sleep. But Huo Changfeng wasn't here, so he had to force himself to get up.

Otherwise, if he "slept" for too long, it would be easy for others to notice something was off.

Bai Tu splashed cold water on his face to wake himself up. Going downstairs, he found everyone except Xiang Yashu in the living room. Guan Jianrui and Huo Changfeng were preparing breakfast, while the other three were busy with their own tasks.

Breakfast was just ready when Bai Tu came down—still toast and fried eggs. Huo Changfeng served the first portion to him, then asked, "Didn't sleep well last night?"

Bai Tu said, "It was a bit cold at night."

Hearing this, Huo Changfeng said, "I have an extra blanket in my room. I'll bring it over for you tonight."

Bai Tu nodded. Huo Changfeng turned to get his own breakfast, but as he turned, his hand was caught. He looked back in surprise. Bai Tu was sitting on the chair, looking at him with a hint of attachment.

Huo Changfeng's heart softened uncontrollably, but Bai Tu's hand was truly cold. He frowned, thinking he should buy a pair of gloves. He cupped Bai Tu's hands in his own, warming them for a while before saying, "Alright, eat first. It'll get cold soon."

"Mm." Bai Tu nodded obediently.

Guan Jianrui watched from the side, feeling like a proud old father, thinking *this is more like it*.

Everyone ate breakfast. Xiang Yubo took a portion upstairs and came down over ten minutes later, sitting at his place without a word.

Guan Jianrui glanced at his expression and tentatively asked, "Is it enough for Yashu?"

Xiang Yubo said stiffly, "Don't worry about her."

Apart from Huo Changfeng, the others didn't know what had happened and were momentarily puzzled. Ji Songyue asked, "Is Yashu feeling unwell?"

Xiang Yubo only shook his head without speaking.

Seeing this, Ji Songyue didn't press further.

Bai Tu let these exchanges go in one ear and out the other. He was terribly sleepy, keeping his head down and slowly eating his breakfast throughout. Consequently, he didn't notice Fan Xinglu opposite him glancing at him from time to time.

Just as they were eating, the doorbell rang.

Guan Jianrui went to open the door and turned back after a moment. "Boss, it's for you."

Bai Tu lifted his heavy eyelids. The person at the door was the guard from yesterday.

The guard's gaze swept around the room and quickly locked onto Huo Changfeng. He saluted. "Mr. Huo, fresh milk and fruit for today. Commander Liu sent me to deliver them."

Huo Changfeng was momentarily surprised, then said, "You don't need to salute me. The milk and fruit aren't necessary. Please thank Commander Liu for me. I appreciate the kindness, but you've troubled yourself to come."

"No trouble. Commander Liu's orders. I'm only responsible for delivery," the guard said rigidly. "Commander Liu would like to meet you and Mr. Guan at the command center at two this afternoon. You can speak to him directly if you have anything to say."

Bai Tu asked, "Can I go?"

The guard glanced at him. "You can follow Mr. Huo." With that, he put down the items and left directly.

Guan Jianrui had no choice but to bring the things in and asked Huo Changfeng how to handle them.

"We'll return them when we go this afternoon," Huo Changfeng said.

One shouldn't accept rewards without merit. Moreover, they hadn't finished the fruit Commander Liu sent yesterday. The others either weren't in the mood to eat it or found it too sweet to stomach. In the end, Huo Changfeng ate it all.

The fruit was indeed sweet, but still within Huo Changfeng's tolerance.

After this interlude, everyone finished breakfast and went their separate ways. Seeing Bai Tu sitting on the chair, nodding off with sleep, Guan Jianrui couldn't help but yawn too. "Can't you get used to sleeping here?"

Huo Changfeng said softly, "Don't sleep here. Go upstairs."

Bai Tu shook his head, moved to the sofa, and asked Huo Changfeng, "Can you stay here with me?"

"Okay."

Bai Tu was fairly tall, and even when sleeping alone on a sofa he still had to bend his knees a little. So Huo Changfeng headed for the adjacent sofa to sit down, but Bai Tu leaned over and pulled him onto his own. "Would you mind sitting here?"

"But you won't be comfortable."

It was the most common three-seater sofa. With Huo Changfeng occupying one end, the remaining space became even less suitable for sleeping. Bai Tu just said, "I won't be."

He was truly exhausted, his eyes already welling up with tired tears, a pleading look in his gaze. Huo Changfeng caved after just a second, but before sitting down, he first went upstairs to grab a thin blanket.

Bai Tu had already kicked off his shoes, his legs curled up on the sofa, scooting over to make room beside him. His eyes were still fixed on the staircase, just as they had been before Huo Changfeng went up. Huo Changfeng's heart melted completely. He hurried over and sat down. Bai Tu nestled against his side, lying down with his head resting against Huo Changfeng's leg, his whole body curled up.

Huo Changfeng draped the blanket over him, carefully tucking in the edges, and brushed the hair back from his forehead. "Sleep."

Bai Tu let out an almost inaudible 'mm' and soon closed his eyes.

Guan Jianrui wasn't in the living room—it was unclear whether he had returned to his room or gone out. The living room was very quiet. In the silence, Huo Changfeng gazed at Bai Tu's sleeping face for a good while before finally taking out the half-folded red paper and lowering his head to continue folding.

As he got to the final steps, Huo Changfeng held his breath, using the same focus and caution as during a frontline recon mission on the paper flower in his hands. Just as it was about to take shape, he suddenly felt a tug on his clothes.

He looked down and saw that Bai Tu was sleeping restlessly, frowning even in his dreams. His lips moved occasionally, but no sound came out. One hand kept making grasping motions, sometimes clutching Huo Changfeng's clothes, other times grabbing the sofa cover.

Huo Changfeng paused, startled, then extended his own hand. It was immediately grabbed tightly.

After a while, Bai Tu's brow relaxed, and he stopped his incoherent murmuring. Huo Changfeng breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing sweat on Bai Tu's temple, he stuffed the now-loose paper flower into his pocket, freeing his hand to wipe it away.

He couldn't fold paper with one hand. Huo Changfeng just closed his eyes as he was. Perhaps because Bai Tu was by his side, drowsiness quickly washed over him. He was startled awake by a loud bang outside the villa.

Huo Changfeng snapped to full alertness in an instant, instinctively looking at Bai Tu.

Bai Tu was also awake, shaking off the daze in seconds and quickly getting up to put on his shoes.

The two ran outside to investigate. There was just the one loud bang. Once outside, only faint sobbing could be heard. Following the sound around to the back of the villa, they both stopped short at the sight.

It was Xiang Yashu, sitting on the ground hugging her legs.

She looked utterly disheveled, slumped on the ground, both hands clutching her right calf. Seeing Huo Changfeng and Bai Tu approach, she immediately bit her lip to stifle her sobs, struggling to stand up. But as soon as her buttocks left the ground, she uncontrollably fell back down.

Huo Changfeng reached out to help but was brushed aside.

"I don't need your help!" Xiang Yashu turned her face away, wiping her eyes fiercely, then started tapping on her wrist device, probably sending a message.

Beside her lay a makeshift rope of twisted fabric, one end showing clear signs of tearing, the other end hanging from the villa's exterior wall. It stretched from a height around the second floor up to a window on the third floor. Clearly, she had twisted curtains or bedsheets into a rope, attempting to climb out, but had misjudged the cheap fabric's strength and fallen halfway down.

Huo Changfeng found this extremely tricky.

He was used to dealing with tough men who gritted their teeth through injuries; being melodramatic would earn them mockery. He'd never dealt with someone who cried from the pain but stubbornly refused treatment.

He had no choice but to send a message to Xiang Yubo, while telling Bai Tu, "Go see if Guanguan is in his room."

But before Bai Tu could go, Guan Jianrui had already come down.

"What's going on?" he asked, shocked, then saw the fabric hanging outside and immediately understood. He hurried to Xiang Yashu's side to help her up.

This time, Xiang Yashu didn't refuse. Leaning on his support, she staggered to her feet, head bowed, tears dripping down.

"You... ah." Guan Jianrui was at a loss for words. "Forget it, I'll take you to the medical center first."

He hoisted Xiang Yashu onto his back. Passing Huo Changfeng, he winked: *Quick, call Xiangyu Bao.*

Huo Changfeng understood, but Xiang Yubo, perhaps busy with training, hadn't responded to his message. After a moment's thought, Huo Changfeng decided to go directly to the training base to find him.

"I'll go help Guanguan. He might need help at the medical center," Bai Tu said.

*

The medical center was bustling. Ji Songyue rushed over as soon as she heard their names. Without a word, she immediately healed Xiang Yashu's broken leg, then said to Guan Jianrui, "Come with me to pay the fee."

A fractured calf was a minor injury. Since Xiang Yashu was treated in the main hall, a curtain was hastily set up for privacy. After Ji Songyue and Guan Jianrui left, the small enclosed space held only Bai Tu and Xiang Yashu.

"Why do you reject Huo Changfeng?" Bai Tu asked bluntly.

Xiang Yashu's attitude toward him was even worse. "Why should I answer you?"

Bai Tu said, "He hasn't done anything to you, hasn't even spoken to you much. You have no reason to dislike him so much."

"Does disliking someone need a reason?" Xiang Yashu retorted sarcastically. "Is he some super hero that everyone has to obey him like my brother, or suck up to him like you? You're freeloading in our villa. Why should I like you?"

Bai Tu fell silent. He didn't know Xiang Yashu well.

In their previous life, when they arrived at the North China Base, Xiang Yashu wasn't there. She had vanished, most likely dead long before. Xiang Yubo never reunited with his sister.

Perhaps in their previous life, Xiang Yashu had also been rescued by Liu Zihao, but in the subsequent upheavals, he couldn't protect her, returning to the base alone. But in this life, these two had been rescued by Song Lan through a twist of fate.

Xiang Yashu thought she had hit a nerve and he had no rebuttal, feeling even more contemptuous.

When Guan Jianrui and Ji Songyue returned, they found the two ignoring each other.

Ji Songyue had already learned from Liu Zihao the reason for Xiang Yashu's injury, but the root cause was clearly known only to Xiang Yubo and Xiang Yashu herself.

Unlike others who tiptoed around such sensitive relationships, and disliking roundabout talk, she spoke frankly: "Yashu, I understand how you feel, and I understand that conflicts between siblings are inevitable. I don't know what misunderstanding you have about Captain Huo, but I hope you can occasionally consider us, consider your brother.

"We've traveled with Captain Huo, received much care from him, and been saved by him countless times. He was originally living well in another base; it was us, entrusted by Commander Liu, who invited him here. By reason and by courtesy, we should treat him well. The way you're handling things now not only puts your brother in a difficult position but also makes things hard for us."

Xiang Yashu said angrily, "You don't know anything, so don't talk about understanding. Besides, did I want this? It was my brother who locked me up without even asking for my side first. What did I do wrong?"

Ji Songyue pinched the bridge of her nose. "Everyone alive today is already exhausted just trying to survive every day. I am, and your brother is no exception. In such circumstances, there will always be many things that get overlooked."

"So I deserve to be ignored?"

Ji Songyue was taken aback, wanting to explain, when a sudden commotion from behind interrupted.

Someone shouted, "Grab him! He's been scratched by a zombie!"

Ji Songyue's expression changed. She turned quickly and saw a man charging out from a corridor. His eyes were bloodshot, transparent fluid dripping from his mouth. Half his clothes were open, revealing a blackened wound on his left shoulder—a clear sign of zombification. He was still arguing, "I haven't! You've got it wrong, you bastards..."

His words were drowned out by the panicked, scattering crowd. The hall descended into chaos. Guan Jianrui looked grave, spreading his arms to shield the three. It wasn't that he didn't want to take them away; their corner position was simply too bad—backed against two walls, with the panicking crowd on one side and the zombifying man on the other.

To make matters worse, the medical center had tiled floors, with no soil to manipulate.

Bai Tu asked curiously, "Why not just deal with him?"

The hall wasn't lacking in Superhumans. In the man's current state, a single attack could easily finish him.

Ji Songyue was momentarily stunned, but Xiang Yashu spoke first, her voice filled with disbelief, "How can you be so cruel? He hasn't turned yet. What if he can still be saved?"

Bai Tu's face instantly turned icy cold. "Zombification is zombification. There's no saving them. From the moment he was scratched, he ceased to be human. Trying to save him means risking other people's lives."

His demeanor held an indescribable ferocity. Xiang Yashu was frightened, momentarily forgetting to retort.

Even Ji Songyue was surprised by his sudden outburst, giving him several extra glances.

The man moved swiftly, making a beeline for the exit. Just as he was about to rush out of the medical center, his movements suddenly halted. His face turned beet red in a split second, and then a foot appeared out of nowhere at the doorway, kicking him flying back.

The man fell to the ground, as if pinned down by something unseen. His face quickly turned from red to purplish-blue.

"What are you standing around for? Tie him up," Liu Zihao said coldly as he entered from outside. The pursuers snapped out of their daze and hurried forward with ropes to bind the man tightly.

Ji Songyue finally explained to Bai Tu, "The base has a rule: try to avoid harming people who are turning into zombies."

The man was carried out on a stretcher, still bound. Bai Tu asked, "Where will he be taken?"

"I don't know," Ji Songyue replied. "Specialized personnel will handle it."

"Enough about that. Looks like they're here for us," Guan Jianrui said.