Song Tiantian was backed up two more steps. "I..."
"I know, I know — you still don't like me. It's always been Fang Cheng." Gu Dongling shifted back a little, and Tiantian let out a quiet breath of relief. This was her most helpless spot: even when she'd turned him down, he kept finding ways back into her space, as if her refusals were part of some elaborate game. "But Tiantian, at least take a look at me — is there anything I fall short of Fang Cheng in? Fang Cheng is cold, he can't say a nice word to save his life, he walks around with a stone face all day. What's so great about that?"
What could Tiantian say? Liking someone, having feelings for someone — it wasn't something a checklist could decide.
"Gu Dongling!"
Fang Cheng's voice came from behind. Gu Dongling flashed Tiantian a quick smile. "Think about it, okay? I'm completely sincere. In this world, as long as you stick with me, I'll make sure nothing ever touches you."
"Gu Dongling, are you bothering Tiantian again?" Fang Cheng's brow furrowed. Gu Dongling took one look at him and immediately backed off. "Not at all — I just happen to like her. Fang Cheng, you know as well as I do that she hasn't chosen you yet. I still have every right to try."
"Keep it in check. You scared her just now."
"Yeah, yeah. Won't happen again."
Not that he'd let it go — he just couldn't take Fang Cheng in a fight. Tiantian would be his eventually. He'd already made up his mind. No rush. Time was on his side, and he didn't believe Tiantian could simply fly away.
"Brother Fang," Tiantian said quietly, "I don't like him."
Fang Cheng paused, then nodded. "Understood."
"Gu Dongling is just... blunt. I've warned him — he won't do anything reckless." Fang Cheng ruffled Tiantian's hair lightly. "From now on, stay close to me. He won't dare touch you when I'm around." Gu Dongling was still a core team member — strong, reliable, second only to Fang Cheng in a fight. He couldn't throw him out over this. The loss to the team would be too significant.
Tiantian nodded without surprise. This was also why she'd hesitated to define anything with Fang Cheng — in his heart, she clearly ranked below even Gu Dongling. In the apocalypse, feelings were a luxury. She was beginning to understand that.
The road to City C turned out to be longer than any of them had imagined. An elevated bridge that should have been there was badly damaged — its midsection collapsed entirely, leaving only a roaring river beneath. They had to turn back and find another route.
On the way back, they ran into another group of survivors. Hearing their situation, those travelers fell in step with them, taking the alternate road. It was a decent-sized group, though based on their individually packed supplies, clearly just a temporary alliance.
Among them was a man with a clean, scholarly face — striking in the apocalypse for still wearing a pressed collared shirt. He came up to Fang Cheng directly and proposed joining their team.
"Water and wind abilities," said Pei Wenqing with an easy smile. "I hope there's room for me, Team Leader Fang?"
"Of course. We always welcome ability users."
Pei Wenqing had expected exactly this. His gaze shifted toward Tiantian. "Miss Song — space ability, if I'm not mistaken?"
"That's right."
Xiaojiao noticed that A-Xin's attention had lingered on Pei Wenqing and couldn't help giving her a little tug. Sure, the man was good-looking — but was he really more attractive than her? Even now when she wasn't at her best, she'd definitely be even more gorgeous later.
A-Xin glanced back. "What?"
What are you looking at him for? Is he prettier than me?
"He's not prettier than you."
Then why are you looking?
"Curious."
Is he interesting?
"Not particularly." A-Xin touched Xiaojiao's face gently. "You're the most interesting."
Xiaojiao brightened up immediately, the moment entirely forgotten. But she was still a little curious — if he wasn't prettier and wasn't interesting, why had A-Xin been watching him?
"Nothing. Just thinking about how even the most dangerous predators tend to come wrapped in something appealing."
Xiaojiao was many things, but not slow. She'd attended one of the top schools in the country — her mind was sharp. Hearing that, she understood at once: A-Xin was saying Pei Wenqing was a wolf in sheep's clothing.
She glanced over at him and nodded to herself. He did have a certain slick, polished look about him.
A-Xin turned over what she knew of the story. After Tiantian had unbound the jade pendant, Pei Wenqing had — the very next day — gotten engaged to the daughter of a powerful ability user at the base. Within weeks, they were married. But before all that, he'd had people quietly monitoring Tiantian and searching for the jade pendant.
Yes — by the end, all three men had known that Tiantian's space ability came from the pendant. They'd each tried to steal it, every single attempt a failure. They assumed taking it in the night while Tiantian slept meant she'd never know. She had known every time.
In those days, Tiantian had lived like a bird in a cage. Even with the extraordinary jade pendant, what could she actually do?
Pei Wenqing had two reasons for joining Fang Cheng's team: first, Tiantian's space ability; second, the team's overall strength. Without those, a man of his abilities was better off alone.
"Are they not part of your team?" Pei Wenqing had, at some point, struck up a conversation with Tiantian — casually, naturally, yet with eyes that felt like probes. Tiantian had noticed from the start. That gaze, always searching, always angling to find whatever secret she might be hiding, made her deeply uncomfortable. She kept him at arm's length, her voice polite but carefully distant. "No, they're not."
"Ah..." Pei Wenqing's gaze drifted toward A-Xin's vehicle. The glass blocked most of it — he couldn't see much from this distance — but the car itself was impressive.
Just then, Big Round pushed open the back door and bounded out, disappearing around the side of the vehicle. A moment later, a rather distinctive smell wafted over.
Pei Wenqing's expression flickered briefly. "That's...?" A huge cat. And clearly a bright one — even going off to find a discreet corner for personal business.
"That's Xiaojiao's pet. His name is Big Round — a mutated orange tabby. High intelligence, extremely skilled at being adorable, and a bottomless stomach," Tiantian said. She'd gotten to pet that enormous cat a few times through Xiaojiao's goodwill. The fur was something else.
Pei Wenqing raised an eyebrow. "A pet? In the apocalypse?"
"They can afford it."
Tiantian's own mouth twitched a little. Every mall they passed meant dresses, jewelry, and cosmetics for Xiaojiao, and cat food and snacks for Big Round. What else was there to say?
"They seem to be traveling with you — why not formally join the team?"
"With their strength, they don't need to."
More precisely, the team had been riding their coattails. But Tiantian didn't say that out loud — it would inevitably bring up the fact that Xiaojiao was a zombie, and Xiaojiao was her friend. She wasn't about to invite that kind of talk.
Besides, this man had barely arrived and was already asking too many questions. Even without bad intentions, it still wasn't a good sign.
Pei Wenqing caught the guardedness and let it drop.
Over the course of the journey, he kept watching A-Xin's side of things. Watching long enough, he noticed something off about Xiaojiao. Other team members eventually told him — Xiaojiao was a zombie who hadn't lost her mind. He was stunned. Then he heard that A-Xin was an extraordinarily powerful space ability user, and that the road had been completely clear of zombie attacks because of Xiaojiao.
Tiantian spotted Pei Wenqing deep in easy conversation with the others and took her bread over to sit near A-Xin. She'd gotten into the habit of eating near Xiaojiao on this journey.
"Your team picked up a new member?" A-Xin asked.
Xiaojiao was definitely the one who wanted to know — A-Xin was just translating, as always. Tiantian looked up to find Xiaojiao's eyes fixed on her and said, "Yes. His name is Pei Wenqing. Water and wind abilities."
"A wolf in pretty clothing."
Tiantian barely suppressed a laugh. That was Xiaojiao speaking, no question. It was almost impossible to imagine A-Xin — cool and composed as still water — delivering that line with a completely straight face. True love. This was definitely true love. After everything she'd witnessed in the apocalypse, these two had somehow managed to heal a part of her that had gone numb.
"Watch yourself around him. The way he looks at you isn't right."
Tiantian nodded quickly, desperately fighting down a smile. Why did Xiaojiao insist on making A-Xin say things like this? Anyone who didn't know better would think A-Xin's whole persona had suddenly cracked.
"If you're ever in danger, call for me."
More nodding. Tiantian kept her mouth firmly shut — if she opened it, she'd lose the battle. Meanwhile A-Xin delivered every word like it was the most natural thing in the world.
They set off again. A few days later, they stopped at a roadside inn. Inside, the place was already occupied.
Two tables of people. One table: several broad, rough-looking men. The other, smaller table: a handful of gaunt, hollow-eyed women — and, Tiantian noticed with a jolt, one thin young man among them. Around twenty, maybe — close to her own age. His face was fine-featured, but he sat with the same defeated, cornered stillness as the women. No abilities. In the apocalypse, that was often a death sentence of a different kind.
As their group entered, the men's eyes swept over the women immediately.
"You the team leader?" The man at the head of their table walked up to Fang Cheng. "How about a trade?"
"What kind of trade?"
The man's gaze slid to Tiantian, then gestured toward the table of women. "We give you all of them. You give us that one. You're getting the better deal."
Even knowing she wouldn't actually be handed over, Tiantian felt the blood drain from her face.
"No." Fang Cheng didn't even take a second to consider it. The rest of the team instinctively closed ranks around Tiantian.
The man's expression shifted. Before he could say anything else, A-Xin came through the door with Xiaojiao, and his eyes lit up immediately. "These two — are they with your group? How about one of them instead?"
The team members exchanged glances, something close to sympathy flickering across their faces. Of all the people to set your sights on. You're picking a fight with the quiet woman who can take down a grown man in under two minutes, and a zombie who could slap you through the floor.
"They're not part of my team," Fang Cheng said. "But I'd strongly advise you not to provoke them."
The man paid no attention, taking "not part of the team" as permission. He sauntered toward A-Xin — and hadn't taken three steps before Big Round squeezed in through the door behind her.
The man stopped short at the sight of the enormous orange tabby. Then greed lit up his face. It had been a long time since any of them had had meat. Was this fat cat delivering itself to their table?
Big Round sensed the shift. Every strand of fur stood on end. That previously adorable face turned very clearly, very unmistakably hostile. He let out a low growl that left no room for misinterpretation.
"Two ladies traveling alone in the apocalypse — that's dangerous, you know," the man said, recovering himself. "Why not join us? And is that cat yours?"
"No," A-Xin said flatly.
"Miss, I'm giving you good advice. You'd be better off with us." He clearly didn't believe two women could do anything meaningful. He'd seen plenty of stubborn women come around in the end — and in the apocalypse, even pretty men with no abilities ended up kneeling.
A-Xin didn't get angry. Xiaojiao did. And when Xiaojiao got angry, Big Round felt it. No zombies nearby meant she couldn't summon backup. So she looked at Big Round with a very clear meaning: wasn't it time you earned your keep? All this time being fed and pampered — this was the moment.
Big Round licked his paw thoughtfully. Was this really his job?
He swished his tail, wound himself up — and before the man could react, launched forward and knocked him flat. The man wheezed. This thing weighed a ton. He couldn't breathe properly with the cat sitting on his chest.
Then Big Round brought one paw firmly down across the man's face. The man howled.
He had a fire ability. He immediately conjured a fireball and flung it at Big Round. Big Round was fat, yes — but fat and nimble. He rolled out of the way in an instant. The fireball caught just the tip of his tail.
That did it. Both Big Round and Xiaojiao were furious now.
Big Round charged back and gave the other cheek the same treatment. Now both sides matched — two long, ugly red lines crossing a face that was no longer remotely pretty.
"What are the rest of you standing around for?! Take that animal out!"
The others scrambled to their feet — and then heard a calm, clear voice: "Big Round. Come back."
Big Round understood the math. One cat against a group was not good odds. He retreated without hesitation.
"Your cat hurt me," the man snarled through gritted teeth, pressing his torn-up face. "Here's what I'll accept: you two, one month. We'll call it even for the cat."
They'd all assumed A-Xin had called Big Round back out of concern for him. None of them had realized she was simply stepping in herself.
A-Xin reached for the whip at her hip, released Xiaojiao's hand, and said quietly, "Go play with Big Round for a bit."
Xiaojiao nodded at once and patted Big Round's considerable backside — both of them obediently moving aside. Tiantian quickly dragged over a stool for Xiaojiao. She'd watched enough of these by now. When someone crossed A-Xin, there was really only one word for how it ended: badly.
"Let's take this outside," A-Xin suggested pleasantly.
The men looked at each other. They figured she had a death wish. But they'd been without entertainment for a while, and this kind of woman who thought she was something was exactly the type they found most satisfying to put in her place. None of them imagined for a single moment that one woman could do anything to five ability users.
They also planned to slip sideways toward Xiaojiao and use her as a hostage — she was walking stiffly, clearly injured.
Fang Cheng's team, internally: that's a zombie. She's going to flip you and sit on your face.
But no one felt like offering that particular heads-up.
It didn't last long. Two minutes. A handful of strangled sounds — and then silence.
Even those who'd seen A-Xin work before felt their throats tighten. Pei Wenqing was seeing it for the first time. He ran the calculation: taking those five on himself would have taken at least half an hour. She'd used two minutes.
He filed that away. Do not provoke.
"Miss, we were blind — completely blind. We're so sorry, it was all our fault. Take any rooms in the inn — we'll sleep in the lobby, that's fine."
The men on the floor scrambled to their knees, faces freshly decorated with matching crisscrossed whip marks — grotesque and somehow faintly ridiculous. Swallowing their pride was humiliating, but alive and humiliated beat dead and dignified.
"Weren't you just saying I'd spend a month with you?"
"No — no, no, absolutely not. That never happened."
A-Xin looked at them calmly. "Then deal with yourselves."
What?
The confusion lasted about two seconds before understanding set in. Tiantian, watching from the side, felt a strange rush of vicarious satisfaction. A-Xin was, by nature, fairly cold. She only stepped in for two reasons: Xiaojiao asked, or someone crossed a line. This crossed both.
The men had a split second of shared decision-making — and came to the same conclusion. Kneeling in apology, they could stomach. Permanently dismantling themselves? Non-negotiable. They had their pride as men.
They moved at the same time, attacking A-Xin from multiple directions. Two also slipped sideways, trying to reach Xiaojiao and use her as leverage — she was walking stiffly, clearly compromised.
Fang Cheng's team, internally: that's a zombie. She's going to flip you and sit on your face.
But before anyone reached Xiaojiao, A-Xin had already spotted the move. Even knowing Xiaojiao wouldn't be hurt, she was already mid-air — the whip snapping out and catching the nearest man around the throat. One crack. He didn't have time to register it.
He hit the ground and didn't get up.
"Third Brother!"
A-Xin took her whip back and looked at the remaining men. "Dead suits you better."
Quiet. Not cold, exactly — just very, very even. The kind of tone that traveled from your heels to the crown of your skull and left you shaking.
Xiaojiao applauded from the side, watching with visible delight as the rest of the men met the whip at their throats. Behind her, every member of Fang Cheng's group reached up simultaneously to rub their own necks.
Under three minutes this time. The floor held only bodies, still faintly warm. No one spoke.
The women and the young man who'd been trapped there exhaled and came forward. "Can we come with you?"
"No," A-Xin said. "I have no obligation to protect you."
She tucked the whip back at her hip, walked over to Xiaojiao. Xiaojiao stood and took her hand immediately. Big Round fell into step behind them, trotting happily upstairs.
Tiantian shrugged at the others. A-Xin protected Xiaojiao. That was it. That was the whole of it. And somehow that simple, absolute devotion had healed something in Tiantian — something the apocalypse had been quietly wearing away.
In the end, the stranded survivors joined the team temporarily. For survival, each of them found their footing the only way they could — most by pairing off with a team member. Without abilities in this world, options were narrow.
Tiantian watched with sad eyes. Without her space ability, this would probably be her story too. The apocalypse had been going for just over a month, and already the world felt almost unrecognizable. Even if calm returned someday, she doubted it would look the same. Once abilities existed in the world, nothing would ever go back.
A-Xin couldn't protect everyone. There were too many people like this. Tiantian felt it, understood it, wanted to help — but didn't have the means.
Perhaps because the group now had more couples in it, Fang Cheng started paying closer attention to Tiantian. Lei Zhe had feelings for her too, but she was clearly Fang Cheng's person — so he kept himself in check, nothing visible. Pei Wenqing had some interest in her as well, though he was, frankly, more curious about A-Xin. After watching A-Xin wrap a whip around someone's throat with surgical precision that afternoon, he put that curiosity firmly to rest. He touched the suddenly cold-feeling back of his own neck and redirected his attention to Tiantian. She was the more sensible option — and that space ability was endlessly intriguing.
As Tiantian and Fang Cheng grew closer, Gu Dongling's stare turned increasingly ominous.
Another half-month passed. City C, finally.
When the base walls came into view, Tiantian let out a long, slow breath. She went straight to find A-Xin and Xiaojiao first. "They're going to do checks at the gate. Xiaojiao probably can't get through."
"You go ahead," A-Xin said — translating Xiaojiao, as always. "Don't worry about us. Xiaojiao just wants to find her brother and her parents. We'll figure things out from there."
"Okay. Then I'm heading in." Tiantian hesitated. "Take care of yourselves."
A-Xin watched Tiantian disappear through the gate, then found a spot to sit with Xiaojiao. "Do you want to go in? If you do, I'll get you in — no one could stop us."
Xiaojiao shook her head. No need. She could go anywhere. Going in would only cause trouble. People in the apocalypse were already struggling — why add to their burden?
A-Xin smoothed her hair. "They don't know that with Xiaojiao around, they'd never have to fear zombies again."
They wouldn't understand. They wouldn't believe it. Xiaojiao gestured — even if she went in, they'd eventually find ways to study her. Cut her apart to see how she worked. Even with A-Xin there to protect her, she didn't want to face that kind of situation.
She tucked her head down. Admitting it: she was afraid.
"Then let me go ask if your family is inside. All right?" A-Xin already knew the answer. She knew where this story went — Xiaojiao's parents and her brother weren't here anymore. They'd moved on to City B by now. And the road to City B passed right through here.
She came back with the answer, told Xiaojiao, then added, "Let's rest here a few days before moving on."
Xiaojiao didn't ask why. She just nodded.
Tiantian settled into the base. On her first free day, with most of the stronger team members — including Fang Cheng — out on a mission, she stayed behind to cook. A simple role. A safe one.
Then she felt it — that particular prickling at the back of her neck.
She turned.
Gu Dongling. Standing there with eyes that had gone somewhere very wrong.
"You... Brother Gu, why didn't you go on the mission?" Tiantian's unease sharpened immediately. Gu Dongling's expression was frightening.