16 – Supermarket Break
“Brother Hao, don’t worry too much about sister. She’s really capable – she killed many zombies all by herself.”
After saying this, Yu Ruanruan lowered her head, her eyes filled with sorrow: “It’s all my fault for being useless and not knowing how to do anything. I think sister probably didn’t mean to abandon me.”
Fu Yihao responded indifferently: “Hmm.”
Yu Ruanruan’s expression stiffened.
Then she heard him agree: “She’s indeed not that kind of person.”
Yu Ruanruan was speechless. Ye Jin isn’t that kind of person? Was he implying she was making things up? Ye Jin was clearly doing it on purpose back then!
But she didn’t refute him at the moment, only saying: “Sister must have gone to wait for me at my home. My father has been good to sister since she was little. Maybe Xiao Chen is at my home too!”
Yu Lejia, standing nearby, secretly laughed to herself. This green tea was still the same as always, lying without even drafting her script.
Calling her sister? Did Ye Jin even acknowledge her? Last time they met, Ye Jin clearly didn’t want to hang out with her anymore and was avoiding her. Even she knew about how Yu Ruanruan used to go to school every day looking for Ye Jin.
But it would be good to go home once. Although she didn’t like that old man either, they were still related by blood. As for Yu Ruanruan’s mother, that homewrecker who climbed her way up – if she had really turned into a zombie, she’d be happy to chop her down to vent her anger.
“Alright, we’ll set off tomorrow.” Fu Yihao said: “Let’s check your home first.”
Fu Yihao had come looking for Ye Jin immediately after arranging everything at home. Now that he couldn’t find her, he could only try his luck at the Yu family.
…
Ye Jin spent the first half of the night sitting on the sofa keeping watch. After the apocalypse began, she had maintained the habit of night watch, sleeping lightly, as no one knew what might happen the next second. Besides, the danger level of Yu Ruanruan’s strange System next door was no lower than that of zombies.
“You go rest. I’ll take over the watch.”
Ye Jin looked up at the man who spoke. Moonlight streaming through the window fell behind the man’s back, making his entire demeanor appear much softer, less cold and fierce than during daytime, with a touch of gentleness.
“No need. You’re injured and need rest.” Ye Jin refused.
Gu Jingzheng smiled lightly, his tone teasing: “A Jin~ Girls can afford to show some weakness occasionally.”
“You!” Ye Jin was exasperated. Other than her parents, this was the first time she heard someone call her like that, making her feel somewhat uncomfortable.
“Go rest quickly!” Seeing Ye Jin like this, Gu Jingzheng’s playful side emerged, and he called out again: “A Jin?”
This time, Ye Jin simply ignored him, got up and went to the room.
Zhang Yiyi was still snoring softly on the bed. Ye Jin lay down beside her, thinking how this man who appeared so proper could be so frivolous.
Gu Jingzheng didn’t actually mean to tease her. It was just that Ye Jin usually kept a cold face, appearing more serious than him despite her young age.
These past two nights, Ye Jin had been keeping watch over him and hadn’t slept well, her complexion somewhat haggard. He was only injured, not disabled – keeping night watch wasn’t a problem for him.
He thought of Ye Jin’s face and chuckled softly. Jin meant beautiful jade, and rivers accept impurities. But jade that’s too hard becomes brittle, much like her personality.
This was the first good sleep Ye Jin had gotten since the apocalypse began.
Waking up in the morning, she watched from the window as Fu Yihao left with Yu Ruanruan and the others downstairs before setting out herself.
Their routes were different. The Yu and Fu families were in the same residential compound, which housed many powerful and influential people. The military should be coming to evacuate them soon.
Thinking that she would have to see Yu Ruanruan again before long, Ye Jin felt thoroughly disgusted.”Wow! Ye Jin, is this the car you specifically went to get these past two days?” Zhang Yiyi gazed at the massive G-Class, spacious and comfortable, modified to look incredibly cool. Its chassis was much higher than ordinary vehicles, making her feel very secure sitting inside.
Ye Jin, seated in the back, glanced at the man beside her: “Yeah, the previous car got wrecked in a crash, so I wanted a better modification. Didn’t expect it to come in handy.”
Gu Jingzheng felt indirectly criticized again and immediately said, “I’ll get you a better one than this later.”
“Sure!” Why turn down a freebie?
Gu Jingzheng chuckled lightly—she really wasn’t holding back.
Along the way, where there were few zombies, they simply plowed through; in areas swarming with zombies, they got out to clear them. Stop-and-go progress meant that even by evening, they hadn’t managed to leave the city.
Near the outskirts, there was a small supermarket where they could rest for the night.
The zombies at the entrance had been cleared by someone—not many remained—and they sensed people inside the supermarket.
It had been nearly over a week into the apocalypse. Many, unable to wait for national rescue and with no food left at home, had started venturing out to scavenge. When pushed to the limit, people inevitably save themselves.
The first floor of the supermarket was in complete disarray: shelves toppled, items scattered everywhere, bloodstains all over the floor, and remnants of limbs left uneaten by zombies.
Only a few zombies still roamed around. Zhang Yiyi was the first to charge forward. This girl had gone from vomiting at the sight of zombies to not even flinching anymore—she was getting fiercer by the day!
After dealing with them, they headed upstairs. Just as they reached the second floor, a kitchen knife came swinging toward them, nearly slicing Zhang Yiyi’s face.
Ye Jin reacted instantly, deflecting the knife with a swift slash of her own.
She glanced at the attacker—a sloppily dressed hoodlum.
The thug’s hand trembled after having his knife knocked away, and his eyes lit up with awe when he saw Ye Jin.
Gu Jingzheng found his gaze lecherous and kicked him hard to the ground.
He said coldly, “Watch your eyes!”
Hearing the commotion, people on the second floor quickly gathered—most of them dressed like gangsters.
A man in a black tank top with full-sleeve tattoos shouted loudly, “Damn! Who’s the reckless one now?”
He immediately hurled an earth spike at Gu Jingzheng.
Wang Biao had been in and out of trouble even before the apocalypse and had only been out of prison for a few months. After awakening his Special Ability, he felt the apocalypse was his chance—he was the protagonist destined to conquer the world, just like in the novels. He’d gathered a few buddies and taken over this supermarket.
Gu Jingzheng sent a Space Blade flying, shattering the earth spike and cutting the man’s arm, drawing blood instantly.
Wang Biao cried out in pain, “Damn you!”
He kicked a lackey standing nearby and roared, “Get them!”
The group attacked with weapons—some with batons taken from the supermarket security, others with kitchen knives and wooden clubs.
Zhang Yiyi and Xia Li, though accustomed to killing zombies, were still students and froze at the sight of this human confrontation.
Ye Jin pushed them back a couple of steps, drew her blade, and in one swing cut the wooden club in half. Before the attacker could react, there was a “crack”—his arm was dislocated. Ye Jin swiftly followed with a flying kick, knocking aside another assailant wielding an electric baton.
Gu Jingzheng used a Space Blade to slice through the earth ball Wang Biao threw, then spun into a side kick that smashed into his face, sending him crashing to the floor. Gu Jingzheng stepped on his neck, pinning him down with such force that Wang Biao couldn’t even struggle to get up.In less than two minutes, Ye Jin and Gu Jingzheng resolved the situation directly through physical force.
Wang Biao had been hiding in this supermarket since the apocalypse began and was learning for the first time that others possessed Special Abilities—he wasn’t the only one.
Seeing that so many of his men were overpowered, he could only beg for mercy: “Big bro! Big bro! I was wrong, I’m sorry! Can you let me up first?”
Ye Jin shot a glance at Xia Li and said, “Tie them up first.”
Xia Li immediately activated his Wood-based ability, using branches to bind these people securely.
Wang Biao hadn’t expected that out of the four of them, two were actually Ability Users! This time, he was done for. Even while tied up, he glared fiercely at the guy who had been cutting people down at the stairwell earlier, blaming him for acting without first assessing the situation.
Wang Biao stared at the woman in front of him—beautiful yet fiercely tough—and felt a twisted desire.
Sensing the malice in Wang Biao’s gaze, Ye Jin backhanded him across the face: “Still not behaving even when tied up?”
The kick Wang Biao had received from Gu Jingzheng earlier was no light matter; his cheek was swollen like a pig’s, and now he felt like two teeth had been knocked out, his mouth filled with bloody foam!
Damn, she’s ruthless!
“Help!”
A cry for help came from the clothing section on the supermarket’s second floor.
Several women were there, alongside a few men tied up with nylon ropes.
“Are you here to save me? Please, I beg you, save us!” One woman tried to grab Gu Jingzheng’s pant leg in desperation, but he avoided her before she could make contact.
The woman on the ground was disheveled, covered in bruises and wounds. The other women nearby had hollow eyes and were in similar states, making it clear what had happened—a pack of beasts.