Chapter 26

Warning: Food porn

The solar eclipse occurred around 9 o'clock in the morning. Everyone had spent the few hours at the start running before arriving at this unfinished building so, they were all exhausted. They spent their time lying on the ground or resting against the wall.

After they had enough rest, it was already four o’clock in the afternoon. Around this time, the fierce sun normally sank a bit, and the temperature wasn't as hot as the middle of the day.

Everyone was exhausted from the day's events, and their bodies were already covered in black ash and blood, which made them uncomfortable. Only Gong Lixin, who hadn't broken a sweat from the start of the apocalypse, still looked refreshed. His clothes were completely clean and he looked particular handsome.

This was strength. With superior strength, they could still live easily in the apocalypse, just like Young Master Gong. The useless sacrifices they made, had them more awed of Young Master Gong. Only He Jin, whose brows were wrinkled, was unwilling to see the invisible gap between them.

The zombies kept going back and forth just outside of the building, making it so that they couldn't get out. Thus they could only sit still and process their own thoughts. Like that, another two hours passed, it was almost seven o'clock. The hot sun outside had already disappeared into the western horizon. The coolness of the wind took this opportunity to feather out the lingering heat, making the temperature much more comfortable to bear.

Although people didn't have much of an appetite during the summer season, everybody present had ran for a long time and had only eaten a simple breakfast in the morning. They were all beginning to feel the hunger pangs as the temperature cooled down.

They didn't know who it was, but a loud noise erupted from a person's stomach. It was loud enough to echo throughout the empty hall, awakening everyone from their stupor.

Lu Yun didn't hesitate to make himself known. He held his stomach that kept calling out and turned to look at He Jin with ears tinged red and said, "Hey, I-I'm a little hungry." He was being quite modest about his level of hunger, by saying he was only 'a little' hungry.'

He Jin frowned at Lu Yun but didn't speak. Lu Yun licked his lips and, at the cold look given to him, shyly bowed his head. He suddenly felt that he was the food. And if he had to add a description to it, it would be 'useless' food.

"Oh, I'm also hungry. I only ate a bowl of porridge in the morning." Gong Lixin was a child who was sincere and honest. He had a heartfelt voice and he solved his problems in a timely manner.

"Lixin, endure it for a bit. I'm trying to remember the layout of the streets outside." The child looked at him with big eyes full of expectation, just like a little bird waiting to be fed and in desperate need of care and protection. Only in this situation did the invisible sense of distance disappeared. The heart that initially felt lost, was full once again. He Jin's mouth was slightly upturned and he gently touched the child's head.

Lu Yun heard this reassurance. As long as Brother He didn't intend to starve him then all is well. However, was Brother He not fierce and sinister, even cold, to him? Why was he so gentle towards Young Master Gong?

Looking at how clever and sensible Gong Lixin was and at the pleasing appearance of Young Master Gong, Lu Yun looked back down. He had no face to compare himself.

"We'll go to Chongwen Road which is 100 meters to the left outside of the iron gate. There is a row of shops on that street on the right side. The fourth block has a miniature supermarket. The shop is not too big but there was always some food being sold, so we'll go there." As a mercenary, exploring the surrounding terrain and layout became almost second nature; the instincts he had gained from battle were engraved onto his bones. He Jin only had to think for a little while before a map of the area formed in his mind.

"Alright, I got that down, let's go!" Wu Ming picked up his dagger and did not hesitate to speak. In the midst of danger, the first thing to do was to guarantee one's strength and well-being. Staying in one place because of fear but also not wanting to be hungry was foolish behaviour that would only hurt themselves. Only when one was full and had energy could one hope to escape alive.

"I will go too!" Lu Yun saw Wu Ming signaling for them to leave and stubbornly held the dagger that was given to him.

"Young Master Lu, stay here, it's dangerous outside." Wu Ming looked worried. Wu Ming was afraid that, if Young Master Lu went out and got scared to the point his legs turned to jelly, he would have to carry him on his back.

"I'm not afraid!" Lu Yun shrank back, his face red from shame as he obviously remembered the scene where his legs had given up on him.

"Let him go. Do you really want to protect him all the time during the apocalypse? He will have to learn to rely on himself!" He Jin advised as he patted Wu Ming shoulder.

"Brother He is right. Rather than relying on others to run or relying on trees to fall, relying on myself is better." He was too embarrassed to confess being carried over on someone's back.

Lu Yun was busy psyching himself up so he didn't notice the words that came out of his mouth, "There's just one problem. Can you give me another weapon? This dagger is too short, I-I'm a little scared of using it!" He Jin heard his words and his cold face smoothed over. He looked around the building and extracted two lengths of steel pipes from the building materials. He handed one of the steel pipes to Lu Yun and cautiously said, "Remember, don't waste your energy. When you see a zombie, directly hit their head."

When Lu Yun nodded, He Jin handed the other steel pipe to Gong Lixin beside him. He said nothing but he gently patted the boy's hair in exchange for the cute smile he was awarded.

The five men copied the other guys and walked towards the door. Gu Nan and Ma Jun hesitated for a few seconds before immediately following them. Gu Nan still held his Tang blade, the broken half with the handle at least. Although it was short and broken now, a blade was still better than a steel pipe.

The homeless man also climbed up from his position. He ran a few steps and saw the zombies outside the iron gate. His face paled and he retreated back to his original corner. He chose to go hungry.

Going up to the three-meter wall, they turned around to see Gu Nan and Ma Jun who came with them. He Jin looked cold and said, "You look after yourselves and we look after ourselves. Don't interfere with each other. Are we clear?" If the two of them planned to rely and take advantage of them, He Jin won't be polite.

He Jin had suffered a bloody life. His whole body exuded a bloody aura and his clear-cut handsome face was marked with a scar, making him look even more violent. Gu Nan and Ma Jun paled, bowed their heads and immediately replied: "We understand."

He Jin warned the two men before smoothly jumping over the wall. Gong Lixin easily jumped to the top of the wall without any support. Lu Yun and others didn't find it strange, but Gu Nan's and Ma Jun's faced each other, eyes filled with shock and surprise. They became even more afraid of this five-person group. Every person in this group seemed to have hidden abilities.

"Lixin, follow me!" Knowing that the child was a road idiot, He Jin took his small hand to guide him.

Waiting for Young Master Gong's nod, everyone immediately rushed towards the small supermarket He Jin had pointed out and killed a lot of zombies along the way.

Seeing the small supermarket just 50 meters ahead, everyone sped up but Gong Lixin suddenly stopped, pulling He Jin's big hand and pointing at a Western-style fast food restaurant across the street and with bright eyes said, "Big Brother He, I want to eat cake, pizza, caramel pudding and honey chicken wings!" [1]

"Are you for real?! Young Master Gong, this isn't the time to be a picky eater! There's a bag of instant noodles that you can eat!" Lu Yun yelled after glancing at the Western-style fast food restaurant filled with zombies.

The food in this store should be very delicious, it was the reason why there were so many zombies. One could see all the diners who've become zombies through the window. Because their joints weren't flexible, they couldn't open the sliding door and could only stay inside the store and scream.

"It'll be okay after I kill them." Gong Lixin said seriously after he turned towards them. He then tugged at He Jin's big hand and looked up at the other with clear eyes filled with eagerness and begged: "Brother He, let's go?"

"Go!" He Jin was stared at with those eager eyes. He knew that if the child asked him to fly up to pick stars for him, he would not hesitate to agree.

The two looked at each other and smiled before rushing into the fast food restaurant across the street. He Jin did not forget to turn to Wu Ming and instruct him to take things from the supermarket before rushing off to the fast food restaurant.

"Are you for real! He Brother is being way too nice, giving him whatever he wants to eat. Doesn't he see all these zombies in the store?! I don't want to eat anything!" Lu Yun was standing in the middle of the street, wondering whether he should follow them. If it was him that made such a request, he would be beaten by his brother! Lu Yun's lamented.

"Let's go, they can handle it!" Wu Ming said calmly before pulling Lu Yun away.

Their group divided into two directions, each side looking for food.

Going to the fast food restaurant, Gong Lixin didn't hesitate to push open the clean and transparent glass door. He Jin looked at his face and walked two steps ahead of him to protect the other.

Although the two had just met a few hours ago, their understanding of each other was solid. They stood back to back and faced the incoming zombies. Gong Lixin knocked the heads of the zombies with the steel pipe and He Jin, with his cold expression and cloudy eyes, sliced across a zombie neck each time his hand moved. In less than ten minutes, the ground around the two people was littered with stinky bodies, heads scattered all over the floor. The scene was truly terrible.

The two people who caused this tragic scenery did not change their expression as they cleaned up the zombies occupying the restaurant. As the zombies fell one by one, the rotten smell of their carcasses began to mix with the sweet scent of cakes.

Gong Lixin's nose was moving, following the fresh scent coming from the cabinet. His attention was instantly attracted by a piece of yellow, fragrant cream cheesecake. Behind him, a zombie waved its claws and rushed towards him.

"Lixin, be careful!" For the first time in his life, He Jin's face looked terrified. He was too far from the child and would not be able to rescue him in time. His eyes became red and bloodshot when a stream of air suddenly increased in his body. With a thought and a wave of a hand, wind gushed out and rushed towards the zombie.

A sharp wind hit the back of the zombie's head, the skull cleanly sliced in half. The stinky blood splattered all over the floor, immediately stunning Gong Lixin.

"You only have cake in your eyes, don't you care about your life? Huh?" He Jin rushed in front of the child and leaned over and grabbed both of the child's shoulders in his hands as he yelled harshly. His voice was a little hoarse as he hid the deep fear he felt. His feet were twitching visibly, his heart beating like he had ran a marathon until he felt the warmth of the child's body.

"Brother He, don't worry, I know when a zombie is close. I can deal with it." The child reached out and touched the back of the other's hand and reassured the other with his soft voice.

He Jin wanted to vomit, but instead, buried his head in the child's shoulder. The cold eyes were filled with powerlessness and loss. He wanted to do everything to protect the child. But he realized that the child did not need his protection. His fears now seemed ridiculous. He finally understood what it truly meant to be powerless for the first time. [2]

It seemed that Gong Lixin sensed He Jin's depressed mood. Gong Lixin indulged the other for a moment and carefully reached out and patted He Jin's head. He praised, "Brother He is so powerful! The wind blade just now was not only powerful, but also very accurate. Big Brother He's talent is outstanding. If you practice hard, you will become a master in this world!"

He Jin heard his words and felt even more powerless. This time though, not only was his heart tired, but the exhaustion from the power consumption also made him tired. He hugged the child's soft and flexible body and waited for a while to recover a portion of his strength.

Gong Lixin knew that He Jin was in his period of weakness due to energy consumption, so he let himself be held. But his hands weren't idle, he pushed open the door of the fresh-keeping cabinet and took out the cheesecake that he'd seen a while back and took a big bite.

"It's delicious!" He smiled and squinted his eyes in pleasure. He eagerly ate the cake, and then he held the cake out to He Jin. "Brother He, eat a bite and replenish your strength."

The child's clear voice was filled with care and worry for him. The orange light coming from the fresh-keeping cabinet projected a halo on the child's jade-like face, making it look warm and mellow.

He Jin's sense of powerlessness quickly faded and his eyes filled with happiness in a split second.

Gong Lixin brought the cake to He Jin's mouth. "Oh, it's really delicious!" He said after taking a bite of the cake.

He Jin deeply despised sweet things but ate the piece the child held out to him. The rich and milky and creamy cheese filled his open mouth and his eyes showed his joy. "Hn, it tastes good." He smiled, the feeling of loss and frustration had already disappeared. [3]

"Be careful next time, okay? Although you are very strong, you can't always defend yourself." He Jin straightened up and patted the child's head as he warned him.

"Okay." Gong Lixin nodded at his ate another mouthful of cake.

He Jin never liked to eat sweets but somehow, he felt that this cake was very delicious. The soft cream and cheese that he usually hated also tasted differently from the past. Perhaps it was because it was something rare in the apocalypse, so it was something especially precious.

He Jin thought this and patted Gong Lixin's head and said, "This cake tastes good, give me another bite." [4]

Gong Lixin immediately spooned another piece into the other's mouth. With the child's teeth indentation on the piece, He Jin tasted the cake with pleasure. One takes a bite, then the other and they both enjoyed the food. [5]

The atmosphere in the restaurant was warm and happy with the bloody cruelty of the apocalypse becoming a pale shadow in the background.

[1] CrazedCookies: I want to eat those too…

AutumnBreeze: I'll snatch the food from you and gorge on it myself.

[2] AutumnBreeze: Awwww… why can't I have such a nice guy in my life too?

[3] AutumnBreeze: See, my hubbie is so indulgent. I'm glad I have him.

[4] AutumnBreeze: I bet that isn't the only thing you want to have a bite of. *wink*

CrazedCookies: I bet you want him to take a bite of you. *wink*

[5] AutumnBreeze: Yay, indirect kissing. #first step to a relationship achieved.

Here’s the bonus chapter brought to you by Jessie. Thank you as always for the Ko-Fis Jessie! <>