Two years later, Shu Prefecture Base had become a large base comparable to B Base. It could accommodate more than 100,000 people, but because of its perfect management, excellent living conditions, and equal protection and treatment for ordinary people, its reputation among the country’s survivors was that of a desirable paradise.
More and more people were willing to risk their lives to travel to the south and settle down, and the northern bases had reached out to the south for friendly cooperation and mutual benefits. The social order that was on the brink of collapse was re-established.
This morning, Lei Chuan woke up from a dream while hugging the doctor. He carefully removed his too honest place off against the doctor’s lower back. For half a year, he was in this state every morning when he woke up, and sometimes, when his dreams were filled with the doctor’s flushed eyes, he’d also wake up with a damp crotch. Those days always caused endless embarrassment.
While the doctor had not yet woke up, he walked into the bathroom to hastily resolve himself. He ate breakfast in the cafeteria and left to exterminate zombies as usual. Due to the expansion of the human settlements, they needed to narrow the zombies’ range of activities. At the moment, several hundred miles within Shu Prefecture Base was already a safe zone, and the other southern bases were cleaning up their jurisdictions, forming a safety network.
Ordinary people could freely live in the network, but the zombies outside the network couldn’t be ignored, so they had to clear them away little by little. The world had billions of zombies, no one could predict when the cleaning up would end, but the hope was strong. Plus, now that they had solved the water, hunger, and security problems, mankind had all the fundamentals to survive, they could focus all their efforts to deal with the infestation.
The convoy proceeded slowly to the area where the zombies were gathered.
The Warrior man sitting by Lei Chuan’s side had glowing red cheeks, from time to time he opened his mouth but didn’t speak, he looked shy, like a small daughter-in-law.
“You’ve been looking at me with that fucking bashful expression all morning, what are you trying to say?” Lei Chuan recently dreamt of doing animal like things with the doctor and had woken up to severe disappointment, so his temper was very irritable.
“Boss, I, I have something to say to you.” The Warrior man stammered.
His companion couldn’t stand it anymore, he pulled the other man into his arms and ruthlessly bit him, then he straightforwardly said, “Boss, we’re ready to get married, can you please give us a few days of marriage leave?”
“What did you say?” Lei Chuan was about to dig out his ear canal, seriously suspecting that he was having auditory hallucinations.
You can’t blame him for being so surprised. Lei family was a military and political family, his parents died when he was 7 years old, and his grandfather had no interest in taking care of a child, so he’d casually thrown him into the barracks. Every day he lived with a group of rough, old people, he only learned training, doing tasks, more training, doing more tasks, his emotional intelligence could be called mediocre. He only knew that men should marry and have children when they are old, but he was ignorant of same-sex feelings.
“They said they want to get married and asked you for a few days leave. Are your ears deaf?” Guo Zerui snorted in laughter. “What, are you scared? You didn’t know men could fall in love with other men? What’s so strange, it’s the Apocalypse, who cares who you love. My friends, congratulations!” He leaned over and slapped the young couple on their shoulders.
Everyone had long suspected it, there were a few who had caught the two sneaking away, so they naturally were not surprised and opening gave them their blessings. The car was filled with laughter for a while.
“See how happy everyone is ah, should you also find someone? Doesn’t anyone give you the desire to spend your life together with them? When you see them, you feel light, and when you feel depressed, you cheer up just by seeing them. You want to hold them, want to kiss them, and even want to do them…have you met such a person boss?” Guo Zerui patted his boss’ shoulders inexplicably.
They had been dawdling for two years, but the boss was still not yet enlightened. Whenever he looked at Dr. Bai, his eyes were hot enough to burn anyone looking at them to ashes, but he had not taken the most critical step, so Guo Zerui was anxious for him.
Lei Chuan was struck by lightning, he held his head for a moment in thought, before hoarsely opening, “There is someone, he, he’s also a man.”
“What’s wrong with a relationship between men? I also like men. In this world, you have to live today, cause there may not be a tomorrow. If you can find a source of happiness, you have to quickly enjoy it. If you hold yourself back and miss your chance, you’ll have a lifetime of regrets.” Guo Zerui looked at the roof of the car and sighed heavily.
Lei Chuan was silent, his eyes flash with electricity, there was suddenly a feeling of enlightenment. So, he had fallen in love with the doctor, from the last life, to this life.
When they arrived at the territory, everyone found that the boss was particularly enthusiastic, he almost didn’t stop to breathe, while he gobbled down the drugs to restore spiritual power and ability, he continuously used his power to destroy half the zombie crowd. After a few minutes, there was a pile of crystal nucleus that formed a small hill, and everyone was a little dumbfounded.
They knew that the boss was hiding his strength. Was he now level 11 or 12? The nicknamed “King Warrior of China” who lived in B Base was level-10, but now they knew that that man couldn’t hold a candle to their boss. The next time that person swaggered into Shu Prefecture Base, he’ll be walking to his death ah!
Guo Zerui only knew that his boss had breached through the King level. Because of their rebirth, he and Zhao Ling Feng leveled up faster than others, but not to an exaggerated extent, however, the boss’ strength rose like a rocket, you’d see him at level-8 today, then level-9 the day after tomorrow, and no one knew how he cultivated.
Guo Zerui sighed for a while, then bent over to gather together the crystal nuclei from his own kills.
Two hours later, Lei Chuan drank a bottle of the strength replenishing drug and eagerly ordered, “Take the team home.”
“Aren’t we going to stroll around the city and find something good for the doctor?” A soldier asked, confused. In the past, after a completed task, the boss would always overturn the task’s site in order to find a few fresh toys for the doctor. Why was he so anxious to return early today?
“Go back, I have something to do.” Lei Chuan said energetically.
Guo Zerui glanced at him and smiled, then entered the truck.
While the convoy was still on its way back, a major event occurred in the base. The anti-zombie virus vaccine was successfully developed. The seventh person to visit the institute with an infection was now a safe and unharmed patient.
“Does your throat feel itchy? Do you have a headache? Thirsty? How many fingers am I holding up?” A researcher asked these questions for the 1001th time.
The patient answered very tolerantly, in fact, even if these people questioned him for three years, he wouldn’t find it annoying. Yesterday, he’d thought he would become a zombie, so, with the expectance of death, he’d walked into the doctor’s lab to be an experimental body, but today he had miraculously improved. He was a Christian, he should believe and have respect for God, but now, he had the urge to believe in the doctor and serve him as a lifelong believer.
God had long abandoned mankind, but the doctor gave humans the hope of living. He repeatedly praised himself for courageously consenting to be the doctor’s test subject.
“My throat doesn’t itch, I have no headache, and I’m not thirsty, you’re holding up three. Doctor, can I hold your hand?” The patient looked at the doctor standing by the bedside with tearful eyes.
Zhou Yun Sheng took his hand and concisely said, “You will not mutate in the future, and your cells will now swallow up the zombie virus, you’re well protected.”
“No, you’re the one protecting me doctor, not my cells!” The patient firmly held the doctor’s hand and wailed. He had to vent out all the despair and fear that had accumulated over the years.
The ecstatic researchers calmed down and banded together to sob. For this day, they’d waited for a long time, longed for a long time, they were really afraid that everything in front them was just a dream and they would wake up to nothing.
“Why are you crying?! Today’s a happy day, you should be laughing! Wipe away all your tears. We’re holding a celebration banquet tonight!” Jiang Yuanshan rushed in, his old face smiling until his eyes turned into slits.
“Is that the infected person? Let me see.” He lifted the patient’s chin and carefully looked, stunned, “His face really changed back! Boy, you don’t know, yesterday your mouth was full of fangs and you were dripping thick, yellow, rotten saliva! We all thought you were hopeless!”
The infected person laughed, “I can’t thank the doctor enough. I thought I was dead. In fact, death isn’t a terrible thing, becoming a monster is a much more terrible fate. But now, when everyone is vaccinated, no one will have to become a monster, and as we grow in power, we’ll one day be able to clean up all the zombies.”
Jiang Yuanshan laughed and turned back to praise the biggest hero, but found that Dr. Bai had disappeared.
Zhou Yun Sheng left everyone to their rejoicing and quietly retreated, he waved the excited and crying Zhao Ling Feng over.
They climbed to the lab’s roof quietly, then picked a cool place to sit down.
“Why are you crying again? You’ve never been such a crier before ah.” Zhou Yun Sheng took out a handkerchief to help the faithful dog wipe his tears, and finally ruffled his coarse short hair.
Zhao Ling Feng pushed his head closer so the doctor could rub more smoothly, and choked out, “I’m so happy. Doctor, I knew you’d save the world.” And it happened twice. No one in the world can be greater than you!
Zhou Yun Sheng smiled and slipped his palm down the other man’s head to caress his face for a moment, then he suddenly leaned forward and touched their lips.
There was a bitter, salty taste- it should be the fallen tears. Zhou Yun Sheng carefully tasted, then pulled away with a wry smile.
Zhao Ling Feng was completely confused. He remained stunned for a moment, then he covered his red cheeks and quickly ran down the stairs. To him, the doctor was the moon in the sky, the snow on the mountain peak, the pearl buried in the deep sea, he was the most pure, beautiful and noblest existence. He worshipped and admired him, so he never entertained such blasphemy.
But now, the doctor had unexpectedly taken the initiative to kiss him, his mind was suddenly in a mess, he just wanted to quickly find a place to hide and think.
Just as he ran out the safety exit, a big hand suddenly grabbed him and a fist carrying lightning punched him. Even though he’d instinctually wrapped himself in metal after hearing the flow of electricity, Zhao Ling Feng still coughed up a mouthful of blood and laid on the ground, unable to climb up.
“What did you do to the doctor?” Lei Chuan’s crimson eyes and twisted expression appeared above him.
“I, I didn’t do anything.” Zhao Ling Feng coughed up more blood.
“You dared touch the doctor with your filthy mouth, you wretched!” Lei Chuan raised his hand, his palm slowly filling with a chilling force. Layers of coercion accumulated in the air, almost crushing Zhao Ling Feng’s bones.
“If you kill me, the doctor will be sad.” Zhao Ling Feng truthfully said.
Lei Chuan froze, after a moment, he pressed down his coercion and lighting, straightened up and warned, “Stay away from the doctor in the future, if I see you, I’ll rip you to shreds!”
“Why? The doctor isn’t your possession!” Zhao Ling Feng murmured through his teeth clenched in pain.
“From now on, the doctor will be mine.” He dropped this sentence and walked toward the top floor. He never imagined that he’d come back to declare his own love, just to see the doctor take the initiative to kiss Zhao Ling Feng. The raging jealousy corroded his heart like sulfuric acid.
When he’d pushed open the lab’s door and saw a familiar celebration scene, he’d immediately realized that the doctor was successful. He was anxious to find him, to be the first to hug him. But the person who deserved the tightest embrace had quietly left. He’d left the hustle and bustle and went off to a lonely place.
Lei Chuan had instinctually looked up to the top floor and ran up with the fastest speed. He had imagined the scene countless times, the day the vaccine was successfully developed, he would carry the doctor to the roof, step by step, to see the sunset.
But he’d missed his chance once again.
Why did fate love to always tease him?
At the same time, Zhou Yun Sheng was also questioning his wretched fate. He’d thought that Zhao Ling Feng was his love. Because, in every world, that person would always take the initiative to be at his side, quietly loving and protecting him, and Zhao Ling Feng fitted the bill. He’d also thought, a soon as he successfully developed the vaccine, he would get rid of Lei Chuan’s monitoring and him and Zhao Ling Feng could find a quiet place to spend the rest of their lives.
But he was wrong, Zhao Ling Feng was not the person he was looking for.
Where the hell is that man? He looked up to the sky and suddenly felt very confused. He couldn’t sense the man’s presence, except for a kiss, he couldn’t be certain. Every time, that person took the initiative to appear and take care of him, he’d chased him for several lifetimes and Zhou Yun Sheng had also opened up his heart’s defensives to let the man in.
But, was there a law that said he must be with him forever? Perhaps he just wanted to take his power, perhaps he was just a mess of code that finally fixed its error, even worse, maybe he was a free person that was just playing a game.
But Zhou Yun Sheng was real, and he was thoroughly too deep into this love to remove his heart.
Zhou Yun Sheng had never felt such exhaustion in his heart, he suddenly felt very weak. His eyes dulled and he slowly released his soul from his body, there was nothing left for him in this world.
At this time, the door opened and Lei Chuan stood still at the entrance, his expression odd.
The doctor wasn’t weeping, but he had never seen such sorrow in his eyes, it was as if he could see his broken heart through his clear eyes. He instantly regretted letting Zhao Ling Feng escape with just an injury.
Why must it be Zhao Ling Feng? Can’t it be me?
He walked over, sat by the doctor’s side and whispered, “Doctor, can I tell you a story?”
“What story?” Zhou Yun Sheng endured the pain of stripping his soul away, his tone still nonchalant.
“Once, there was a man who, because of his special physique, was captured by a scientist and taken as a test subject. The scientist studied him in cruel ways, and when his brother broke into the lab to save him, his brother was killed. The man couldn’t stand the stimulus and chose to commit suicide. But he didn’t die, instead, he turned into a ghost that was tied to the scientist.”
“He’d thought that the scientist was a perverted madman, but actually, everything the scientist did was to save humanity. He was very brave, but also very stubborn. His heart was simple and pure, and he was sometimes extremely intelligent, but sometimes very foolish. He was so foolish that he traded his own life so mankind could have a hope. The man initially hated the scientist, then he calmed down, and eventually, he couldn’t contain his unstoppable love.”
The more Zhou Yun Sheng heard of the story, the more scared he felt, he realized that this was Lei Chuan’s experience in the last life. He was a soul that was bound to his side?
Lei Chuan held the doctor’s hand and continued, “That man was me, and doctor, that scientist was you. That was our previous life. To monopolize your research results, B Base assassinated you, and I chose to self-destruct again. The moment I opened my eyes in rebirth, I swore I would never let anyone hurt you. I love you, doctor.”
Zhou Yun Sheng stared at him, stunned, he didn’t know how to respond.
Lei Chuan hugged him tightly in his arms, his voice hoarse, “If you must love someone, you must love me, or, I don’t think I could bare to let the other man live.” The words fell and he bowed his head to gently touch the doctor’s pale lips, he gently pried opened his teeth to deepen the kiss.
Even if his chest was filled with jealousy and violence, he was still reluctant to be too rough with the doctor, he didn’t want to hurt him.
A familiar throbbing passed through Zhou Yun Sheng’s soul, he suddenly understood, when he’d kissed Lei Chuan before, there was no special feeling because he’d only kissed a soulless shell.
Fate had turned around…and roundhouse kicked him into a pit. Now, everything was too late.
He pushed Lei Chuan away and gave him a wry smile, then he coughed out blood. Once he started pushing his soul out, he couldn’t return it, he had to leave.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” With every word he said, more blood poured out.
Lei Chuan’s blood chilled, he forcefully grabbed the doctor and covered the blood continuously spilling out of his mouth with his palm. He saw the blood leaking out through his palm and his heart collapsed.
“Why is this happening? Weren’t you fine yesterday?” His voice trembled, he continuously poured his healing ability into the doctor’s body, but to his despair, his power was useless.
Zhou Yun Sheng shook his head and tightly held on to his cold hand, he said with difficulty, “I’m waiting for you in the next reincarnation, you have to hurry…. and find me. I feel very tired without you…. I can’t stand… being apart…. Do you hear me?”
Lei Chuan was speechless in misery, he didn’t want to promise him farewell words. Why must it be the next reincarnation? He wanted him in this reincarnation, and the next reincarnation, and the next reincarnation … … he wanted him forever, he didn’t want to watch him leave in a bloody way.
Zhou Yun Sheng saw him not responding and used the last of his strength to say, “I want you to promise me…. that you’ll find me. Let me leave at peace….please…… can’t you do it?”
“Yes…I promise….In the next reincarnation no matter where you are, I’ll find you!!” Lei Chuan buried his face in the doctor’s heaving chest and whimpered.
Zhou Yun Sheng was relieved, his soul quietly slipped into the world’s consciousness void.
The body in his arms gradually cooled, and Lei Chuan’s heart shattered. If the doctor wasn’t in this world, then what was the meaning of existence? If the happy faces was missing the doctor’s face, then what was worth looking forward to in the future?
He realized that the doctor had already become the driving force behind his life.
He rested his blood-stained cheek on the doctor’s forehead and gently smiled, but his body was releasing a terrifying energy.
Guo Zerui felt the pressure and ran upstairs, and was shocked by this scene. He didn’t know how the doctor died, but he knew that he couldn’t let Lei Chuan continue. If a King level Warrior self-destructed, the blast would be enough to bury the entire Shu Prefecture Base with him.
“Boss, did you forget the reason why the doctor used all his energy to develop the vaccine?! He loves this land, he loves all the creatures on this land! Do you have the heart to destroy everything he loves? No!! Stop!! The doctor is still in your arms, don’t crush him!”
The last sentence had an effect, the suffocating pressure suddenly receded. Lei Chuan held the doctor’s body, jumped off the edge of the 30 meter tall building and disappeared out of sight.
Six months later, he returned to the base, bearded, still clutching the doctor in his arms. But the body didn’t look like a corpse, because Lei Chuan had injected a large amount of healing power into it every day. Not only did the doctor’s body not rot, his complexion was even healthier than when he was alive, he looked like he had only fallen asleep.
Lei Chuan made a crystal coffin with meteor-tempered glass and carried the doctor wherever he went. The scene of him carrying the coffin into a zombie tide and slaughtering everything he came across became an unforgettable memory for many people.
He behaved more and more eccentrically, and he always bravely leaped into the most dangerous situations. His heroic lack of fear of death caused everyone to admire him, yet fear him at the same time. Only Guo Zerui knew that he was courting death. From the moment the doctor closed his eyes, Lei Chuan become a zombie, but because the doctor loved the land and longed to restore the world to its original beauty, he was stranded in the world, emotionlessly slaughtering every zombie he could.
He was willing to pay everything for the doctor, including his life force and soul.
One day, he suddenly attacked B Base, crushing almost all of the base’s higher-ups. He was especially cruel to a level 11 Ice Warrior, he not only shattered the man’s nucleus, he eviscerated his body and skinned him to the bone, then hung his body on the wall for the crowd to overlook.
His cruelty provoked public outrage, but because of Shu Prefecture Base’s protection, they couldn’t touch him.
Eight years later, a King level zombie turned up and it single-handedly destroyed several small and medium-sized bases. Lei Chuan heard the news and tracked it day and night, when the zombie was cornered in the northwest desert, he self-destructed his nucleus to kill it.
When Guo Zerui and Zhao Ling Feng arrived with a Warrior team, they only meet a huge crater, as if an atomic bomb had dropped. In the center of the crater was an intact crystal coffin. Even in his last moments of self-destruct, Lei Chuan didn’t forget to spare power to protect his beloved, even if that person could no longer open his eyes to see him.
Guo Zerui and Zhao Ling Feng knelt in the crater and wept bitterly, then they eventually carried out the crystal coffin carefully, using every method to ensure that the doctor’s body wasn’t damaged.
Many years later, after the world had completely shaken off the gloom of the Apocalypse, this corpse became a holy object that many people regularly visited to pay respects. Bai Mo Han and Lei Chuan, the two names were honored and engraved in the history books forever.
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T/N:
A tragic chapter to welcome my return ?