Tears finally fell down the boy’s pale cheeks:
“Dad wasn’t sick, he… he’s already dead…”
“…He’s gone forever.”
Lightning lit up the sky above the manor, thunder rolling across the horizon.
The boy ran up the stairs, rushed into the hall, and pushed open the heavy mahogany door at the end of the corridor.
Wind swept through, a burning candle falling onto a silver tray, and the boy stopped, his eyes reflecting a pair of suspended feet.
His gaze slowly moved upward, meeting the disheveled woman’s eyes for a moment before helplessly kneeling on the ground.
“Noah,” a voice came from the other end of the corridor.
The hand-woven carpet disintegrated beneath trembling fingers. The boy stood up, swaying through the corridor, passing by the person without shifting his gaze.
“Noah!” The person grabbed his hand.
The boy did not struggle, speaking flatly: “Are you happy?”
All words were choked back by the person, who after a while let out a nasal laugh, his expression slightly twisted: “Yes, of course I’m happy.”
Before finishing the sentence, the boy had already broken free from his hand, walking out of the luxurious hall along the path that was lush and gloomy before the rainy season, leaving the manor.
Rainwater connected into countless lines between heaven and earth, the world a white expanse, each step muddy and heavy, as if his feet were bound by countless invisible chains, extending toward the edge of a nightmare.
Dead, all dead.
So why do these chains still exist?
Having no connection to this world anymore, but why do hurt, pain, and constraints still exist so clearly in the bone marrow, impossible to erase?
Breathing in the rainstorm was like a beast’s lament, the boy’s steps gradually accelerating, becoming frantic, turning into a desperate run.
No way… he thought.
Like the countless electric shocks branded into the depths of his soul, all fates had already determined the final outcome, and besides endless killing, there would be no other way.
“You know Rong won’t hurt you, will always protect you, you want to come with me, right?” Si Nan: “…” Zhou Rong’s thick and domineering voice directly poured into his ear, like hypnosis entering a dream. “Zhou Rong…” he said nervously in a low voice, avoiding eye contact. “It’s me, look at me.” Zhou Rong turned his exquisitely shaped chin again: “It’s okay, I’m here to pick you up, you’re safe… be good, be obedient, look at me.” Si Nan’s wavering gaze was finally caught by Zhou Rong, forced to make eye contact. Zhou Rong’s deep gaze seemed to contain an invisible power. After a moment, something violent finally slightly retreated from the bottom of his eyes, softly calling out with an uncertain tone: “…Zhou Rong?” Zhou Rong leaned down and kissed his trembling eyelids, then moved down, kissing his nose wing, cheeks, and lips. That warm and gentle contact like sunshine dispersed the rainstorm, memories returning to a summer day, in a dense forest, with a young boy tiptoeing to kiss a special forces soldier’s chin, with a cunning light flashing in his eyes. “…Zhou Rong.”
“Si Nan murmured. Though it was just an ordinary call of a name, Zhou Rong’s heart instantly softened, unconsciously humming and instinctively rubbing the tender white soft flesh at the back of his neck. Si Nan fell silent. Zhou Rong felt the body beneath him slightly relaxing, a huge stone falling from his heart, he loosened his restraints and gave Yan Hao a look to push the motorcycle, then casually held the assault rifle, pulling tight the gun strap that was about to slip off his shoulder – Then he reached out, wanting to carry Si Nan horizontally. But at that moment, Si Nan caught a glimpse of him holding the assault rifle. Reality reflected through the retina into the brain, being exaggerated, distorted, magnified… Run! Run quickly! “Why do we lose our freedom, get plundered and imprisoned?” The little boy, holding his mother’s hand, looked up and asked: “Mom, does God love the world?
In the light halo, the mother lowered her head, her familiar face gradually distorting, rotten black spots climbing her beautiful face, maggots and soil covering her amber-like eyes, her flesh falling off her fingers, exposing white bones, all reflected in the little boy’s terrified eyes.
“Si Nan!” Zhou Rong suddenly stood up, but it was too late. In that thousandth of a second when he relaxed his vigilance, Si Nan shot up like a cannonball, knocking Yan Hao flying! “Catch him!” Yan Hao rolled and got up. Si Nan sat sideways on the motorcycle, one long leg propped on the ground, breathing and looking at them—no, he wasn’t actually looking at anyone, his gaze piercing between Zhou Rong and Yan Hao, as if staring at something in the void.
“Come back…” Zhou Rong trembled softly, spreading his arms: “Come back, little Si Nan, please come back to your Rong brother… Si Nan!!” At the same moment, the engine started, and Zhou Rong rushed out, like an arrow leaving the bow, but only touched a corner of the rear seat. The motorcycle turned into flowing flames, roaring towards the street! Woo—!
Under Zhou Rong and Yan Hao’s dumbfounded gaze, the motorcycle leaped high over the guardrail, landing with a loud noise.
Si Nan had no hesitation, didn’t even look back, the motorcycle like a meteor breaking through the sky, roaring and disappearing around the street corner! Zhou Rong chased two steps, picked up the assault rifle and slammed it to the ground, giving himself a head slap.
Yan Hao shook his head in panic: “Why, what’s going on, this is…” Zhou Rong’s voice was full of irritation and suppression: “Come back!” Yan Hao abruptly stopped, only then noticing that zombies scattered in the distance had somehow reappeared, gathering in small groups, slowly approaching the construction site.
Just as Yan Hao was grabbing his gun, the roar of helicopter propellers suddenly approached overhead, followed by machine gun fire bombing, sending zombies flying and twitching across the street! Looking up, they saw two dark green large helicopters hovering at low altitude, with cabin doors suddenly opening, Chun Cao throwing down a soft ladder: “Hurry up!”
“Where’s Si Nan? What happened?” Ding asked loudly in the strong wind. Zhou Rong’s face was dark, shaking his head without answering, briefly saying: “Turn on the searchlights, search along the city center, quick!”
The sky rapidly darkened, with the black curtain descending, the most terrifying night of the apocalypse was about to arrive.
A person lacking warm clothing and food, having lost his gun, with an unclear mind and alone in a city center with millions of zombies – how long could he survive until the next morning? The answer, like the black clouds in the current night, was heavily pressing on everyone’s heart. Both helicopters had turned on their searchlights, yet all calls were like stones thrown into a stormy sea, instantly disappearing in the zombie-gathered huge waves.
The helicopters flew along streets and alleys, low over the top of every building, but no miracle appeared. That familiar slender and agile figure had truly disappeared without a trace, just as suddenly as he had appeared, as if helpless yet already destined.
Brother Rong…” Ding Shi’s voice trembled: “We have limited fuel, and we still need to fly to the South China Sea, I’m afraid…”
The fuel was running low.
In the focus of everyone’s gaze, Zhou Rong sat behind the cockpit. The man’s handsome and gloomy side profile, from his forehead to his taut thin lips, was outlined with a shocking sharp silhouette in the shadow behind the searchlight.
“When I left,” he suddenly spoke without warning: “I told him, wait for me to come pick you up.”
—Despite the seemingly calm tone, Ding Shi was overwhelmed by the horrifying power in those words that he dared not respond.
“He really waited.’
