Chapter 105

Chapter 105

Inside the hospital room.

Huo Changfeng made a cut on his wrist, pried open the mouth of the person on the bed, and let his welling blood drip into it. A few minutes later, a bullet was expelled from the person's chest. The ghastly wound healed visibly, eventually becoming smooth.

Huo Changfeng withdrew his hand, casually pulled down his sleeve, walked to the door, and opened it.

He saw Bai Tu's slightly anxious face. Bai Tu first looked Huo Changfeng up and down, then rose on his toes to peer behind him. Pushing Huo Changfeng aside, he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, shutting out the others who were waiting nervously outside.

Bai Tu pushed up Huo Changfeng's sleeve. He found no wound, but the skin surface and cuff were stained with dried blood. He shot Huo Changfeng a reproachful glance, pulled a damp towel from his pocket to wipe the blood from the skin, folded the bloodstained part of the sleeve inward, then quickly walked to the bedside. Looking down, he also wiped the blood from Xiang Yubo's lips.

"Be more careful," he said. "What if someone finds out?"

"They won't talk."

"I know that, but it's better to be safe than sorry." Bai Tu put away the damp towel. Seeing Huo Changfeng still wearing that indifferent expression, unsure if he had taken it to heart, Bai Tu approached and said, "Do you want me to live in constant fear and worry every day?"

Huo Changfeng's Adam's apple bobbed. He fell silent for a moment before turning his face away. "Don't get cute with me here."

Eyes glinting with amusement, Bai Tu tilted his head and leaned in closer. "Then where can I?"

Huo Changfeng roughly ruffled the back of his head, messing up his hair, then smoothed it back into place a moment later. "Let's go home."

Bai Tu thought for a moment. "I want to go somewhere first."

*

Several hours had passed since the siege. After watching Fan Xinglu erase those people's memories of Huo Changfeng and the files, and burn all the Zero archives, Bai Tu had pulled Huo Changfeng away from the core zone, leaving the cleanup to Rong Wazi.

The core zone had now become a prison, holding all the researchers. Bai Tu, afraid Rong Wazi might kill everyone in a fit of rage, couldn't help but say before leaving that not every researcher might have known.

There were also researchers among them who had simply been dedicated to normal research.

Rong Wazi only said he would judge for himself and asked Bai Tu not to interfere.

With everyone confined to the core zone and people from the other three zones unable to enter, the fourth zone was unusually deserted. Bai Tu and Huo Changfeng walked hand in hand along the deserted streets, and before long they arrived behind the training base.

The scenery here hadn't changed much. Bai Tu exclaimed with delight, "They're still here."

The paper rose bushes stood in the dried mud pits. The wax-coated petals and leaves glittered with scattered points of light under the sun, exuding a unique vitality.

"I thought with the recent storms, these flowers would have been destroyed long ago, or maybe picked by passersby." Bai Tu roughly counted them. Apart from a few broken at the stem, wilted and drooping in the mud, the rest looked as if they had just been folded, and the number hadn't changed much either.

"No one comes here. The wax on the flowers is quite waterproof. Plus, the surrounding walls block most of the wind, so they've been preserved until now." Compared to Bai Tu's delight, Huo Changfeng's reaction was much more subdued.

"Let's take them back," Bai Tu suggested. "Move them to the town, or find some vases to put them in at home."

"No need for that trouble. I can fold some more."

"But these are beautiful too," Bai Tu still couldn't bear to leave them. "And you must have spent a lot of time arranging them back then."

"Didn't you want me to fold one for you every day? If we take the old ones back, where will the new ones go?"

Bai Tu was stunned for a moment. "You... you could hear back then?"

Huo Changfeng said, "I could hear bits and pieces, intermittently."

Bai Tu felt inexplicably embarrassed. Back then, taking advantage of Huo Changfeng's coma and secretly fearing he might never wake up, he had said many things he wouldn't normally say. Some were meant for Huo Changfeng, some were muttered complaints to himself, and others were his deepest fears and sentimental thoughts, all poured out unreservedly.

"What did you hear?"

"A lot. For example—" Huo Changfeng's voice was low. He paused for several seconds, making Bai Tu both eager and apprehensive, before continuing, "You said I wasn't as good-looking as before."

Bai Tu froze, his mind instantly flooded with chaotic thoughts.

Could it be that Huo Changfeng ran off after waking up because he heard that? And kept avoiding him afterwards because he thought Bai Tu disliked him? But he didn't.

He frantically thought about how to explain without making Huo Changfeng think he was just trying to placate him. His mouth uttered a vague excuse first, a mix of reproach and annoyance. "I said so many things, and that's the only sentence you remember."

As he spoke, he looked up and suddenly met a pair of smiling eyes, immediately realizing. "You did that on purpose."

Huo Changfeng chuckled softly, leaned down, and pressed a light, lingering kiss to the corner of his mouth. Not pulling away immediately, he stayed close and said, "It's too late for regrets now."

Even though they had done everything, Bai Tu still felt blood rushing to his head, his cheeks warming.

Perhaps because, in front of this rose field, the meaning of this kiss felt different.

"No regrets," he whispered in response.

In the end, they didn't take the paper roses from the mud pits. Although Bai Tu loved them dearly, countless new paper flowers awaited him in the future. Perhaps roses, or maybe one day Huo Changfeng would learn a new folding method and give him other flowers.

They walked back the way they came, stopping when they passed the villa they once lived in.

A van was parked in front of the villa. Liu Zihao stood beside the hood, head bowed, looking at the ground. He had changed out of his camouflage uniform into slightly looser casual clothes. The shoulders and sleeves were a bit wrinkled, making his back seem slightly hunched.

After a few seconds, he seemed to sense someone approaching and turned to look. Recognizing Bai Tu and Huo Changfeng, he paused, took a step towards them, then awkwardly retracted it.

"I'm leaving," he said, straightening up a little. "I know you probably don't want to see me, but before I go, I still wanted to tell you."

Huo Changfeng nodded. "Take care."

Liu Zihao was stunned for a moment, not expecting Huo Changfeng to offer such a formal farewell. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but felt there was nothing left to say. In the end, he only smiled mechanically, turned around, and got into the car.

The car window was open. Bai Tu saw him lean over to fasten the seatbelt for the person in the passenger seat, then take a bottle of water, unscrew the cap, and bring it to that person's lips.

That person lowered their head slowly. Liu Zihao slightly tilted the bottle, slowly feeding them water until they shrank back a little, then withdrew the bottle and used a handkerchief to wipe the water that had spilled from their lips.

After having part of his memories erased, Song Lan had become like this—not exactly foolish, but slow to react, like a wooden puppet.

At first, Liu Zihao had frantically accused Fan Xinglu of tampering, but after the latter coldly retorted that he wasn't like some people and wouldn't stoop to underhanded tricks, Liu Zihao had fallen silent for a while, seemingly accepting the reality, and quietly led Song Lan away.

The van drove off along the road leading to the fourth zone's gate. Bai Tu withdrew his gaze and tightened his grip on Huo Changfeng's hand.

"What's wrong?" Huo Changfeng asked him.

"It's just... suddenly feeling that we've been quite lucky."

In this apocalyptic world, for two people to understand each other's hearts and be together, whole and unharmed, was truly a rare occurrence.

"I think... the most content moment of my life seems to be right now," Bai Tu said.

Nothing in this world could hurt Huo Changfeng or him anymore. From the moment that van drove away, his and Huo Changfeng's future had truly become a smooth, open road.

Huo Changfeng smiled. "If you're satisfied now, what about the future?"

Bai Tu joked, "That depends on you."

"Depends on me for what?"

"I don't know. You figure it out."

"Do I get a reward if I'm right?"

"Hmm, depends on my mood."

Neither of them planned to stay long at the North China Base. After a quick pack-up, they prepared to leave. Just before departure, Fan Xinglu and the others came to say goodbye. Xiang Yubo was back on his feet, though he had grown much thinner from being bedridden and still needed a crutch for support.

Regarding the fact that Huo Changfeng was still alive, he, Ji Songyue, and Xiang Yashu tacitly agreed not to ask too many questions. They simply offered their blessings to him and Bai Tu, saying they would meet again if fate allowed.

Huo Changfeng asked about their plans, and Bai Tu was also curious. After all, the North China Base was now leaderless and was sure to descend into chaos for some time.

Surprisingly, Xiang Yashu was the first to answer.

"Rong Wazi and I have made a deal." Seeing everyone look at her, she got a little nervous, but her voice remained steady. "My brother and I will continue living in this base, in our original house."

Bai Tu thought it over.

When it came to understanding the base, Rong Wazi was indeed the best candidate to take over the North China Base at the moment. However, he wasn't a Superhuman, so he would need others to help him suppress potential dissent from other Superhumans in the base. Once he successfully won people over and took control, those who had assisted him would be well taken care of.

Xiang Yubo didn't speak; his expression suggested he intended to follow his sister's lead completely.

"I'm staying too," Fan Xinglu said. "I'll study the base's operational code. Maybe it'll all be handed over to me in the future."

That would be a massive undertaking as well.

They had all made a deal with Rong Wazi. Guan Jianrui was actually still confused. In his view, he had just encountered an accident during a mission, and the world had turned upside down. After listening, he said, "As for me, I should probably continue on to the Central China Base. After all, this mission isn't finished yet."

"I'll assist," Lei Ou chimed in.

Ji Songyue was the last to speak. "I'm staying here too. I'm used to it."

Huo Changfeng nodded. "We'll say goodbye here then. We'll meet again if fate allows."

Huo Changfeng drove for the trip back, with Bai Tu in the passenger seat. Suddenly, Bai Tu remembered the underworld debt he had forgotten about for a long time.

He opened the panel and was surprised to find the total debt had decreased a bit. Customer Service Yi diligently sent him congratulations every time merit points were deposited, always ending with the same four words: "Keep up the good work."

He looked at the total debt and felt paying it off seemed impossible, which made him somewhat worried.

He and Huo Changfeng only had this lifetime left.

Although the idea of meeting again in the next life seemed too far-fetched, what if?

If his next life was doomed to be awful, he definitely wouldn't meet Huo Changfeng then.

Was he being too greedy? This life wasn't even over yet, and he was already thinking about Huo Changfeng's next life.

Beep—

A new message suddenly popped up on the panel.

Bai Tu looked down and realized he had accidentally sent a meaningless symbol while lost in thought just now.

Your Dedicated Customer Service Yi: [Long time no see, Mr. Bai.]

Bai Tu glanced at Huo Changfeng, tucked his right hand into his sleeve, and replied: [Long time no see.]

Your Dedicated Customer Service Yi: [Mr. Bai has been making good progress on paying down his debt recently. I believe at this rate, Mr. Bai will be able to repay it all in a few decades.]

Bai Tu: [Do I have to do good deeds every day?]

There weren't that many good deeds one could do.

Your Dedicated Customer Service Yi: [No need to force it, Mr. Bai. Just go with the flow.]

Bai Tu stared at this sentence, not understanding what "go with the flow" meant. Did it mean that if he did nothing, merit points would just fall from the sky?

He was so lost in thought he didn't notice something appearing on the right side. When the car suddenly braked, he wasn't prepared and his body lurched forward, but his forehead hit something soft instead.

He looked up, puzzled. Huo Changfeng was just pulling his hand back, his eyes fixed outside the car window.

Bai Tu turned to look to the right and saw a mutated bird on the ground outside, already electrocuted.

Many more mutated birds were circling in the sky. This one had probably been attracted by human scent. The car window was open; if Huo Changfeng hadn't noticed in time, this bird would have just pecked Bai Tu.

But Bai Tu didn't pay it much mind. He closed the window and asked Huo Changfeng to keep going. The latter watched the circling birds outside for a moment before slowly looking away and restarting the car.

This interruption made it hard for Bai Tu to return to his previous state of focused thought, so he simply closed the panel and dropped the subject.

Following Customer Service Yi's advice couldn't be wrong anyway.

They returned to the small town and continued their ordinary life. The scorching summer slipped away amidst the whirring fans and iced tea drinks, leaving only a hint of its lingering warmth.

On a particularly fine day, Bai Tu and Huo Changfeng, carrying a fish basket, went to the stream to do something they had planned for a long time.

The stream water, after nearly a day of sun exposure, was pleasantly warm. Bai Tu rolled his pants up to his thighs and waded in, chasing after the startled, scattering fish. Before long, he caught a plump, large carp.

He held the carp over his head with both hands, excitedly showing it to the person on the bank. "Huo Changfeng, look!"

The carp was still struggling, its water droplets splashing onto Bai Tu's face, but it didn't affect his smile in the slightest. He stood in the clear stream water; even the fish seemed particularly fond of him. After a brief scare, they leisurely swam around his legs again, with the green mountains and white clouds serving as a backdrop.

This should have been a picturesque scene to be fully appreciated, but Huo Changfeng had to divert some attention to guard against whether any mutated species might be hiding among the fish or if a mutated animal might emerge from the green hills.

He watched as Bai Tu, holding the fish, waded back to the shore and handed him the fish basket. He asked softly, "Would you like to go back to the Central China Base for a visit?"

Bai Tu thought for a moment. "Sure."

"But why did you suddenly think of going there?" he asked.

"Autumn is almost here. We should go exchange for some grain," Huo Changfeng replied. "When winter comes, we won't need to go out anymore."

Bai Tu's playful mood hadn't subsided yet. After saying "Oh," he went back into the stream to catch more fish.

The Central China Base had changed dramatically, but the house where the two had lived before was still empty, arranged exactly as they had left it. Ren Yan said the Central China Base's doors were always open to them, and this room was specifically reserved. Whenever they wanted to come, they could stay anytime.

Huo Changfeng and Bai Tu thanked him and settled in.

Bai Tu occasionally went to the research institute to help out, but most of the time he followed a few researchers to learn farming techniques. He still hoped to grow something himself in the small town so they wouldn't have to travel far for food.

Although each outing was like a trip, there were still times when they felt lazy. If they had a field, they wouldn't need to leave the town when they were lazy or the weather was bad.

After staying for three to five days, Bai Tu slept very soundly at night due to consecutive days of physical activity. After Bai Tu fell into deep sleep, Huo Changfeng opened his eyes, went to the bathroom to draw several tubes of blood, then secretly went out. Avoiding surveillance, he placed the tubes of blood on Yue Jingming's bedroom windowsill, tapped on the window, then silently leaped down from the balcony and walked back in the shadows.

A few minutes later, the bedroom behind him lit up. Yue Jingming, pulling on his clothes, opened the window and was stunned to see the items on the windowsill. A note was pressed under the glass tubes. Yue Jingming picked up the note and saw a single sentence written on it:

Research the serum. Do not seek its origin.

The handwriting was very rigid, each stroke written distinctly, clearly intended to be unrecognizable.

Yue Jingming stood dazed for a moment, his mind unable to believe what he was seeing. His first thought upon realizing was that this was a prank.

But he was a man accustomed to exploring the one chance of success among ten thousand possibilities, so even if it was a prank, he would still consider how to achieve some pie-in-the-sky possibility from it. In the end, he carefully stored away the glass tube.

Huo Changfeng returned to the room and changed back into his pajamas. Bai Tu was still in the same sleeping position as before he left, his head tilted to the side, the soft curve of his cheek pressed against the pillow, forming a gentle slope. Huo Changfeng smoothed Bai Tu's sleep-tousled hair back from his temples, and suddenly understood the feeling of luck and contentment Bai Tu had spoken of that day.

If possible, he still hoped this world would be okay—not for any grand reason, but at least so that he and Bai Tu could live together in a truly beautiful and peaceful environment.

By then, even if their lives were filled only with the daily grind, he and Bai Tu would be happier than they were now.

He stayed awake for what felt like ages. Bai Tu stirred awake, saw him sitting by the bed, and after a moment, his eyes gradually focused. He asked softly, "What are you thinking about?"

Huo Changfeng smiled faintly and countered, "What are you thinking about?"

"I'm wondering why you're not asleep yet."

Huo Changfeng still smiled. "You never used to lie about things like this."

"Alright, I'm hoping that every time I wake up like this in the future, I can see you. Now can we sleep?"

Bai Tu lifted the other half of the blanket. Huo Changfeng lay down, and Bai Tu snuggled into his arms, looking up to give him a kiss. "Goodnight. Tomorrow is another day."

"Mm." Huo Changfeng's eyes smiled. "Tomorrow is another day."

-end-

Author's Note:

2024 is about to end, and Bai Tu and Huo Changfeng's story is also coming to a close. Wishing everyone a Happy New Year in advance~ May 2025 bring you joy all year long, abundant wealth, and lots of good luck~~ See you in the next world >3<