ISWTDB Ch159

Chapter 159: The End of the World (17, 18)

You have to know, in the original plot before Situ Shuyao was reborn, it was mentioned that Deng Wendong had colluded with the Zombie King.

For some reason, Ying Zhao always felt that this Zombie King was not as simple as he seemed.

As he left the mansion, Ying Zhao noticed a shadowy figure hiding sneakily in the distance.

Although the person’s concealment skills were decent, they couldn’t escape Ying Zhao’s sharp eyes.

Ying Zhao knew exactly who that person was, but he had no intention of stopping them.

Over the past few days, although Situ Ran appeared to obediently wait in his room for him every day, in reality, while Ying Zhao was busy with his experiments, the man had already found a special way to contact the people he trusted.

After all, he once had a group of brothers who had fought life and death alongside him.

In fact, Ying Zhao was also aware that Situ Ran had been training his supernatural abilities during this time.

Every time he gave Situ Ran some healing medicine, he would have Xiao Bai use a bit of system energy to nourish the man’s body as well.

By now, the bottleneck at his ninth ability level was probably loosening.

It wouldn’t be long before the man’s ability would leap to the tenth level.

Ying Zhao understood that his lover couldn’t remain cooped up in a house forever.

But since he was still pretending to be in a “memory loss” state in front of Ying Zhao, he couldn’t explain too much.

The fact that he stayed close to Ying Zhao was just his way of keeping him at ease.

However, his lover couldn’t allow Ying Zhao to be completely “blind and unaware.”

So, he had no choice but to use such a roundabout method to stay in contact with the outside world.

Connecting with Pei Yuebin was clearly Situ Ran’s best option at the moment.

As for Pei Yuebin, Ying Zhao trusted him.

This man was considered the second most powerful individual in the Northern Base, right behind Situ Ran.

Back when he and Situ Ran were part of the same mercenary team, Situ Ran had saved his life in a critical moment.

Since then, he had been utterly loyal to Situ Ran.

Along the way, as Situ Ran escorted everyone to the Northern Base, Pei Yuebin had faithfully followed him.

In both the original plot and now, Pei Yuebin had strongly opposed sending Situ Ran to the research institute.

But no matter how much he opposed it, there was nothing he could do.

After all, with Ying Heng overseeing the institute, who could possibly influence that place?

Everyone knew that the research institute was focused on developing the antidote to the zombie virus and didn’t involve itself in other base matters.

Although it seemed removed from the center of power, in reality, it was as solid as a rock.

With Ying Heng present, manipulating the institute was impossible.

Not to mention, if Ying Zhao wanted, he could set up a restriction so that no one could even enter.

That’s why, in the original plot, even when Pei Yuebin resorted to using force, he still couldn’t meet with Situ Ran.

As for Ying Zhao, he didn’t have any particular opinion about Pei Yuebin.

What’s more, Pei Yuebin’s loyalty to his lover made Ying Zhao view him more favorably.

Since they had agreed to meet today, and the heroine happened to find him, Ying Zhao pretended not to notice and left with Situ Shuyao, giving his lover some space.

Ying Zhao followed Situ Shuyao to the meeting room at the Northern Base headquarters.

Because his current residence was quite remote, it was a long way to the meeting room.

Having been here for so long, this was the first time Ying Zhao had the chance to personally observe the state of the Northern Base.

Along the way, Ying Zhao carefully observed his surroundings.

Based on the original host’s memories, he realized that the entire Northern Base had undergone significant changes.

The streets on both sides appeared clean and tidy, with no sign of the desolation typical of the apocalypse.

Occasionally, a few well-dressed people passed by.

Ying Zhao recognized most of these people; they were all fairly powerful ability users.

The ordinary people who used to live in tents, struggling to survive and constantly searching for food, seemed to have completely disappeared.

This strange atmosphere made Ying Zhao furrow his brows, and he asked Xiao Bai in his consciousness about the base’s situation.

After learning the answer, Ying Zhao glanced at Situ Shuyao out of the corner of his eye.

He hadn’t expected this woman’s vanity to be so reckless.

Although everything along their route through the Northern Base appeared to be in excellent condition, Ying Zhao knew from Xiao Bai that it was all just a facade.

Because of the arrival of the people from the Southern Base, Situ Shuyao had ordered the base to be cleaned up to make it look more restored, as if it had returned to its pre-apocalypse state.

She had confined all the ordinary people without abilities or special positions to their homes, forbidding them from going outside.

As for the refugees who had just arrived and hadn’t been settled yet, Situ Shuyao had sent people to herd them into the largest warehouses on the outskirts of the city.

The outskirts had originally been H City’s industrial area. After the apocalypse, the factories were abandoned, but there were still several large warehouses.

Situ Shuyao had gathered these people together like livestock and posted guards to prevent them from entering the main city.

Seeing those people hiding behind their windows in their cramped homes, secretly watching him, Ying Zhao furrowed his brows. He hadn’t expected that the heroine would go to such great lengths just for her own reputation.

It was important to understand that the people from the Southern Base could not leave immediately.

Although the warehouses on the outskirts could provide shelter from wind and rain, they were remote and desolate.

Most of these ordinary refugees had to rely on finding work within the base.

Or they risked accompanying ability users outside the city to search for supplies in order to obtain some basic food and necessities.

However, in that area on the outskirts, there was virtually nothing for them to do.

These people were confined to one area and couldn’t go out to look for resources.

Even if Situ Shuyao had the guards distribute a bit of food to these people every day, it was barely enough.

Originally, Situ Shuyao had planned to have the refugees build new homes.

She even hoped to make the city prosperous again and had even sought the help of earth-type ability users for this purpose.

However, everyone knew that given the current situation, it was already a struggle for people to have enough to eat and wear.

Ordinary people were already toiling daily just to secure a meal; where would they find the energy to build any luxurious houses?

Moreover, the effort required to build homes would be unpaid.

It wasn’t until the ability users spoke out against it that the heroine had to back down.

To put it bluntly, Situ Shuyao had lived like a young lady in both lives.

Before the apocalypse, she was the cherished daughter of the prestigious Situ family.

After the apocalypse, the entire Situ family was protected by Situ Ran.

Even though Situ Shuyao had once attempted to seduce him, she had never lacked for food or supplies.

So, even though in her past life the heroine had been deceived by Deng Wendong, in reality, Situ Shuyao had never truly suffered during the apocalypse.

Even if her current life could not compare to that before the apocalypse, she still could not understand the struggles of ordinary people who had no abilities and toiled daily just to fill their stomachs.

In Situ Shuyao’s mind, only ability users were the backbone of the Northern Base.

As long as she could win over these strong individuals, she could control the situation.

She overlooked the fact that even though ability users were incredibly powerful during the apocalypse, they were still vastly outnumbered by ordinary people.

Since they had come to the Northern Base seeking refuge, they were part of it.

Moreover, in a large base, if there were no ordinary people, relying solely on ability users would not be sustainable.

Though they were currently too preoccupied with their survival to protest against such obvious discrimination, it was undoubtedly a significant hidden danger.

Ability users, no matter how strong, would always be outnumbered.

Even if these ordinary people could still endure now, once they were unable to maintain even the most basic standards of living for an extended period, their emotions would eventually reach a breaking point, leading to a backlash.

Ying Zhao had been working in the laboratory for the past few days, so he hadn’t paid much attention to the situation within the base.

But looking at the current state of affairs, if the heroine continued her reckless actions, the Northern Base would soon suffer significant consequences.

Thinking this, Ying Zhao glanced again at the heroine beside him.

He saw that Situ Shuyao was completely unaware of any wrongdoing on her part and still appeared full of vigor.

Clearly, she had already fallen into a fantasy where the people from the Southern Base would admire and envy the orderly scene before them.

Meanwhile, Pei Yuebin had already sneaked into the residence of Ying Zhao and Situ Ran.

Since Ying Zhao spent most of his time conducting research in the mansion, Situ Shuyao viewed his residence as quite significant.

She had arranged for some personnel near Ying Zhao’s residence to monitor the place at all times.

However, it was obvious that these individuals were no match for Pei Yuebin.

Like Situ Ran, Pei Yuebin was an outstanding member of the mercenary team.

After gaining abilities in the apocalypse, he had honed his skills through constant battles against zombies, and his abilities had naturally improved.

He easily broke through the guards’ defenses and stealthily entered Ying Zhao’s residence.

Having observed the place for a while, Pei Yuebin knew very well that usually only Ying Zhao and Situ Ran lived in the mansion.

So, once he entered, he let out a sigh of relief.

No longer restraining himself, he quickened his pace and soon found the room where Situ Ran was.

Seeing the man sitting by the window, his expression as cold and stern as ever, the rugged, dark-skinned man couldn’t help but feel his eyes redden.

Pei Yuebin couldn’t control himself and took a few steps forward, standing before Situ Ran.

With a choked voice, he said, “Boss! Boss, I’m sorry!”

“We really have been trying our best, doing everything we could to oppose them sending you to the research institute.”

“But by the time we found out, it was already too late. That place is extremely dangerous! We simply couldn’t break in!”

“Boss, I’ve heard everything! It’s that damned Ying Heng!”

“They actually conducted experiments on you! Just a few days ago, our people overheard a conversation at the Situ family. They said that the people from the research institute even cut off your arm!”

Speaking of this, Pei Yuebin’s honest face flushed black and red with anger, and he clenched his fists, looking as if he wanted to kill someone.

At this moment, Situ Ran was sitting by the window.

Because the weather had turned cold, Ying Zhao had put a coat over his shirt before leaving.

The coat perfectly covered the man’s arms.

After finally seeing Situ Ran, Pei Yuebin inevitably became emotionally agitated.

At this moment, he could not see Situ Ran’s arms, and for a time, he thought the rumors he heard were true.

He thought the other person really had lost his remaining right arm, and he couldn’t help but grit his teeth at Situ Ran and say, “Boss, don’t worry! No matter whether you have an arm or not, you will always be our boss!”

“Xiao Wang and the others have been thinking about you, and now I’ll take you out!”

“Once you recover your health, I will definitely help you kill that bastard Ying Heng in front of you!”

While Pei Yuebin was cursing and speaking, he stepped forward, wanting to help his boss up.

Who knew that before his hand could touch Situ Ran, he was slapped on the head by the other party.

Pei Yuebin was stunned by the slap, looking at the man in front of him, but found that the other party’s right hand was completely intact.

Ignoring the pain from being hit, he broke into a silly smile.

With a face full of joy, he said to Situ Ran, “Boss! Boss, your hand is fine! Could it be that that bastard Ying Heng hasn’t had time to make a move on you?”

As soon as his words fell, he was slapped on the forehead again.

Pei Yuebin finally realized that his boss was truly angry and was hitting him, so he looked at the cold-faced man with an innocent expression.

He heard Situ Ran angrily reprimanding him, “Who the hell allowed you to talk about A-Heng like that! I tell you, she’s your sister-in-law!”

“What, what?” Upon hearing Situ Ran’s words, Pei Yuebin’s whole being fell apart.

He stared blankly at Situ Ran, instinctively saying, “Boss! Are you saying that who is my sister-in-law? It can’t be that you’re talking about that pretty boy Ying Heng, right?”

Originally, Pei Yuebin wanted to say something else, but seeing the increasingly dark expression on Situ Ran’s face, he hurriedly changed his words, “No, no, no! I mean, you’re saying that Ying Heng… no, Professor Ying is my sister-in-law?”

“But why have you never mentioned that you and Professor Ying have this kind of relationship!”

“And why is it still being said outside that Professor Ying has done many terrible experiments on you, and there are even people saying you died in the research lab!”

Situ Ran looked at Pei Yuebin, who no longer spoke ill of his beloved, and his expression finally softened.

Even though he knew the other party meant well, he couldn’t allow anyone to misunderstand and insult his beloved.

However, after not seeing this brother for a long time, seeing the genuine worry on his face, warmth flowed through Situ Ran’s eyes.

So what if he had no family? The brothers under him were solid, and his precious lover was genuine.

With them, what other relatives did he need?

He had not expected that the usually reckless Pei Yuebin would react so strongly because of his matter.

The other mercenary brothers who had fought side by side also hadn’t abandoned him; they had been trying hard to rescue him.

These were the people he should truly be close to!

Thinking of this, Situ Ran’s tone towards Pei Yuebin softened a lot.

His usually expressionless face also showed a faint smile as he laughed and scolded Pei Yuebin, “I still have to report to you if I want to find a wife?”

“If it weren’t for A-Heng this time, I might have really lost my life here!”

When Pei Yuebin heard Situ Ran say that it was because of Ying Heng that he could live well, he immediately perked up.

Carefully observing his boss, who indeed didn’t seem to have suffered any torture, he immediately became energetic.

As for the fact that his sister-in-law was a man, he didn’t feel there was anything wrong at all.

In this apocalypse, who cares if you like men or women?

Who knows, tomorrow you might end up being eaten by zombies!

Finding someone who truly cares for you and whom you like is better than anything!

But just thinking about how he had misunderstood Ying Heng for so long, even having cursed him a lot, and even considered secretly ambushing him, Pei Yuebin felt very regretful.

He thought it was a blessing that usually Ying Heng didn’t go out much; it was hard to catch him.

The research institute and the people around him were always being closely monitored by the supernatural beings arranged by the Situ family, so he couldn’t make any big moves.

Looking back now, it was really fortunate. Otherwise, if he had truly succeeded in ambushing and injured his sister-in-law, he wouldn’t know how Situ Ran would deal with him!

After figuring out the ins and outs of the situation, Pei Yuebin knew that his boss had been living quite comfortably under his sister-in-law’s care.

Every day, he ate well and slept well, not to mention having a wife to keep him warm at night.

Not only had the injuries he sustained during battles with zombies completely healed, but even old wounds had been treated.

Looking at his boss’s rosy complexion and hearing that he was beginning to break through the bottleneck of his supernatural level, Pei Yuebin couldn’t help but admire him.

Especially when Situ Ran talked about Ying Heng with a gentle expression, if the other brothers saw it, they would definitely be scared to death!

Seeing Situ Ran’s face obviously soften when talking about Ying Zhao, Pei Yuebin couldn’t help but feel a surge of admiration.

It seemed that his sister-in-law was capable! This hardened steel had truly become soft!

He couldn’t help but think, how nice it would be to find a wife?

However, despite his envy, seeing that Situ Ran was in such good condition made Pei Yuebin feel extremely happy.

When Situ Ran asked him what had happened outside, Pei Yuebin answered every question.

He displayed himself as a loyal and good subordinate vividly.

Originally, Pei Yuebin planned to take his boss away while Ying Zhao wasn’t there.

But seeing the situation now, it was clear that Situ Ran was safer staying here.

He had his sister-in-law to take care of him, and the brothers could rest assured.

Furthermore, looking at his boss’s appearance, he seemed to have no intention of leaving.

The northern base had been completely taken over by the Situ family for the time being.

Although Pei Yuebin was not worried that their strength was insufficient with Situ Ran around, he still felt uneasy.

After all, it was widely rumored outside that Situ Shuyou was some kind of savior of the apocalypse, claiming that she had developed an antidote for the zombie virus.

Even Pei Yuebin and the others believed it, so they felt it was even more inappropriate to take action.

After all, the people’s hearts are with the Situ family; if they insisted on being enemies with the Situ family, it wouldn’t be a solution.

At the very least, he needed to get his hands on the antidote formula first.

Here, Pei Yuebin was extremely worried, while Situ Ran did not expect that his brother had gained quite a bit of street smarts after the apocalypse.

He chose not to go out purely to avoid distractions.

On one hand, he needed to accompany Ying Zhao. On the other hand, he had to break through level ten. He would go out only when there were truly no opponents left.

However, when Pei Yuebin asked about his arm, Situ Ran secretly chose not to tell him that his arm had been reshaped.

The fact that the antidote was manufactured by Ying Zhao was something he also planned to postpone sharing until later.

Even though he felt Pei Yuebin wouldn’t leak the information and he trusted his brother who had fought alongside him, he couldn’t shake the feeling of caution.

After all, Ying Zhao’s abilities had become too prominent now.

If others found out about the antidote for the zombie virus, it would already be eye-catching enough.

If they also learned that he had the ability to reshape limbs, it would likely lead to all the major bases attempting to seize Ying Zhao.

For Situ Ran, the safety of Ying Zhao was the most important thing, no matter what.

After such a long time, Pei Yuebin finally saw Situ Ran again and had a lot to say to his leader.

The two chatted for a long time, and as Situ Ran watched Pei Yuebin chattering away, he felt no annoyance whatsoever.

He simply found it a bit strange, as if he had been possessed in the past.

Although he had seen through many things, he seemed to be guided by something, with his thoughts fixed in a particular circle.

He always felt that his purpose for existing was to save more people, to help everyone live a better life, and even to protect the entire Situ family.

He had everyone around him, yet he had forgotten about himself.

Although he lived like a savior, he rarely paid attention to the brothers who fought alongside him through life and death.

In reality, these were the ones he should truly care about.

Situ Ran felt that his past self was very wrong.

While he did not mind helping more people within his capacity, it was clear that he didn’t consider himself someone willing to sacrifice for others.

At the very least, if he had to weigh his own safety and that of important people against others, he would definitely choose his own side without hesitation.

Once this thought crossed his mind, Situ Ran found himself even more perplexed about his past self.

Just as he was thinking, he saw Pei Yuebin smack his forehead and quickly say to him, “Oh right, Boss! I almost forgot to tell you that people from the Southern Base have come over!”

Hearing that the Southern Base had sent people over, Situ Ran’s heart tightened.

Later, Pei Yuebin informed him that there were rumors circulating outside, claiming that the antidote for the zombie virus was about to be completed.

Although many bases had been established since the apocalypse, the two largest bases were clearly the Southern Base and the Northern Base.

The Northern Base was the earliest established and remains the largest base to this day.

Although the Southern Base was a latecomer and its current strength seemed inferior to the Northern Base, its leader, Deng Wendong, was ambitious and had been gaining momentum over the past two years.

Situ Ran had dealt with Deng Wendong a few times in the past and found him too cunning and untrustworthy.

Especially since Ying Zhao had been by his side all this time.

Situ Ran knew very well what stage the research on the antidote for the zombie virus had reached.

The so-called appearance of a finished product was merely a rumor spread by the Situ family.

He really couldn’t understand why Situ Shuyou would do such a thing.