“Why?”
The confession had come so suddenly. Although Quan Xiaoyu had always thought Chu Tian was a good person, he also knew that not every man in the world was gay, so he had never once considered Chu Tian in that way.
“Why, you ask?” Chu Tian tilted his head, thinking. “Perhaps it’s precisely because I want to know why that I hope you’ll give me a chance to figure it out.” Chu Tian smiled.
“I want to know why, even though I had so many opportunities to leave before, I still wanted to stay in the villa district. I want to know why I’m always wanting to be around you, and why I keep trying to understand you. What I want to know most is why, when you were in danger, I didn’t even have time to think before I stepped in and took that fatal blow for you. You know? That really isn’t like me. I never thought I would do something like that.”
His tone was slow and his voice deep. Although he was smiling, his brows were slightly furrowed, as if he were seriously pondering the matter while at the same time feeling strangely happy.
“Actually, I’ve been thinking about this just now.” Chu Tian looked straight into Quan Xiaoyu’s eyes. “When that man came over and said he was your boyfriend, and when I realized how much you cared about him, I felt really damn unhappy. I wanted to beat that guy up. Maybe…” He glanced sideways at him. “I even wanted to beat you up.”
“So—I think you should say yes and help me figure out the answers to these questions.”
Chu Tian’s grip on Quan Xiaoyu’s hand did not loosen in the slightest. If anything, his gaze became almost intimidating. At this moment, Chu Tian displayed a domineering side of himself that Quan Xiaoyu had never seen before.
Perhaps this was who he really was underneath?
Quan Xiaoyu’s mind instantly turned into a complete mess. Every little moment they had shared over the past two months flashed through his mind like scenes from a movie replaying one after another.
The Chu Tian standing before him now felt so unfamiliar. For a moment, Quan Xiaoyu had no idea how he was supposed to react.
“I…” Quan Xiaoyu lowered his head, unable to say anything for a long time.
But at that moment, Chu Tian let go of his hand and seemed to instantly return to his usual self. He lazily stretched.
Then he suddenly leaned close to Quan Xiaoyu’s ear and whispered, “I’m not forcing you. But you owe me your life, so think about it seriously, okay?”
And he said he wasn’t forcing him!
What did he mean by “you owe me your life”?!
And he still claimed he wasn’t forcing him!
Quan Xiaoyu’s face immediately flushed bright red, half from anger and half because Chu Tian had suddenly leaned against his ear to speak. The warm breath brushing against his ear gave him a strange, unfamiliar sensation.
Chu Tian had achieved his goal, so he knew when to stop.
He patted down his clothes and stood up. “I’m going to find the doctor to discuss something. If that guy comes to harass you again, just hit him. Either way, you’ll never win an argument with anyone. Don’t worry if you hit him too hard. The doctor and I will deal with the aftermath.”
“Mm.”
Quan Xiaoyu was still sitting with his head lowered and his knees hugged to his chest. He gave a vague reply, and it was impossible to tell how much of what Chu Tian had said had actually sunk in.
Meanwhile, Chu Tian left and went to find Xiao Ziran.
Old Wu and the others knew that these two obviously had something to discuss, so they tactfully moved away, giving them a private space while keeping watch around the area to prevent anyone else from casually approaching.
Xiao Ziran nodded in satisfaction at their reaction. The training over the past two months had not been wasted.
“Tell me. What do you think?” Chu Tian had always been direct when speaking with Xiao Ziran.
Xiao Ziran stared at Chu Tian for a long while without saying anything.
The man before him had gradually stopped hiding himself. He was slowly beginning to reveal his true abilities. Even the members of the group had unconsciously begun to acknowledge Chu Tian’s position as a leader.
But originally, Xiao Ziran himself had been the absolute and sole leader.
Chu Tian did not avoid Xiao Ziran’s scrutiny in the slightest. He continued looking directly into his eyes.
Xiao Ziran habitually curled his lips and finally gave up observing Chu Tian.
“Based on the information you gathered, I don’t really care about those students and residents. It’s mainly those other two groups. Originally, I planned to gradually build up a team along the way, preferably one made up entirely of supernatural ability users. Do you think we can recruit those two groups?”
Chu Tian shook his head. “I knew that was what you were planning. But I also guessed that over there—”
He gestured with his chin toward the direction where Jia Lunxu and the others were.
“They’re probably thinking about us too! But—” Chu Tian smiled somewhat mischievously. “I just ruined their plans.”
“So whether you’re planning to recruit them, or they’re planning to recruit us, neither side is going to get what they want!”
Xiao Ziran looked at Chu Tian with a hint of disdain. “You’re too childish. It’s just an ex-boyfriend. Speaking of which, when did you become interested in the little poker face? How come I didn’t notice? Were you playing the long game to catch a big fish?”
The doctor’s gossip-loving soul had suddenly ignited.
Chu Tian couldn’t be bothered to entertain him. “No. You misunderstood what I meant. We only need obedient supernatural ability users. We don’t need their original leader.”
Xiao Ziran immediately understood what Chu Tian meant.
It was actually the same principle as when they had gotten rid of Zheng-ge and taken over his subordinates.
“Hmm…” Xiao Ziran rubbed his chin, thinking about whether this was feasible.
After a long while, he finally asked, “You’ve already thought of a way to handle it, haven’t you?”
Chu Tian smiled without answering.
Xiao Ziran spread his hands. “Fine. Whatever. Just tell me what you want me to do, and I’ll cooperate.”
Actually, most of the time, the doctor preferred to solve problems directly with violence. To him, nothing was more beautiful than a scene filled with flying blood.
But Chu Tian wasn’t someone who liked resorting to violence directly.
Since that was the case, Xiao Ziran might as well wait and see just how far this sly guy, who liked hiding his true abilities, could go.
“Then—what about those guys?” Xiao Ziran glanced at the group who called themselves retired soldiers.
He was particularly interested in those people. They looked formidable. What excellent combat support they would make!
Chu Tian shook his head. “They were clearly an organized group even before the apocalypse. They’re not some temporary gathering of people. But I think they look more like mercenaries. If you want to make use of their combat strength, it’s not necessarily impossible.”
“You mean—hire them?”
Mercenaries?
But how could Chu Tian tell what their background was?
Sure enough, this guy was hiding his cards very deeply!
Xiao Ziran gave Chu Tian a meaningful look.
Chu Tian had long since trained himself to ignore the doctor’s strange expressions and movements. He maintained his own pace and said, “Yes. But now that the apocalypse has come, what they want definitely isn’t money. As for what they do want—you figure that out yourself.”
“What do you mean, I figure it out myself? What, you don’t benefit from having more combat power along the way?” He was doing this to him again! The doctor was annoyed.
Chu Tian gave a cold laugh. “One person handles one side. Otherwise, do you want me to be your boss?”
Xiao Ziran curled his lips again.
Why was this guy so petty about everything?
He impatiently waved his hand, signaling that Chu Tian could leave.
Chu Tian didn’t waste any time either. He still had plenty of things to do.
The next day, the church was filled with a harmonious atmosphere.
The previous night, a small wave of zombies had attacked the church. The various groups had all gone outside to fight them without distinguishing between one another.
It had been a battle of moderate size, but it had allowed everyone to see each other’s abilities clearly.
As soon as dawn broke, Lei Shi brought some people to find the doctor.
Lei Shi was in his prime and had awakened a lightning-based supernatural ability. His already stern and resolute face now carried an added air of heroic determination.
This time, Jia Lunxu and his people did not appear.
Lei Shi got straight to the point. He sincerely invited the doctor to join his team.
“I’m Lei Shi, captain of the Leijia Squad. After witnessing everyone’s abilities last night, I wonder if you’ve ever considered joining a team and making yourselves even stronger?”
Xiao Ziran nodded solemnly. “Yes! Since yesterday, I’ve been thinking about how to persuade you to join us. I never expected you to come to us voluntarily. Congratulations.”
Lei Shi was left speechless, the words catching in his throat.
He had come here sincerely intending to negotiate. He simply hadn’t expected this person to play by absolutely none of the usual rules.
He cleared his throat and emphasized, “We came here to invite you to join our team.”
“Mm, yes. You came to join us.”
Xiao Ziran continued nodding solemnly, without the slightest hint that he was joking.
This was getting ridiculous.
Lei Shi frowned unhappily. “We came here with sincerity. If you keep talking like this, there’s no way we can negotiate.”
Xiao Ziran finally smiled.
“You certainly came with a great deal of sincerity. Without even saying anything, you came straight here intending to absorb us into your group. May I ask, what exactly is your sincerity? What are you planning to offer to win us over?”
His face was full of disdain, his expression practically equipped with a built-in taunting skill.
Lei Shi endured the sarcasm without getting angry. Instead, he said seriously, “You’re also the leader of a group. You should understand that in the apocalypse, only by having us humans unite together will we have a greater chance of surviving. Especially those of us with supernatural abilities. When Heaven bestowed these abilities upon us, it also gave us a great responsibility. We must build a new world with our own hands, protect ordinary people, and allow humanity to continue reproducing. That is what we are supposed to do.
“As for personal honor, disgrace, gains, and losses, compared with the interests of humanity, they are insignificant.”
Lei Shi raised his voice.
The church naturally amplified sound, so although everyone was standing some distance away, as Lei Shi’s voice grew louder, practically everyone could hear what he was saying.
“You asked me what I can offer to win you over. I want to say: responsibility! The responsibility to protect humanity! Whether ordinary people or supernatural ability users, as long as we are still alive and have not become monsters, we all bear the mission of carrying humanity into the future.”
Lei Shi’s gaze moved away from Xiao Ziran and swept across the many other people present.
“Everyone, think about how you made it here. Did you do it by fighting alone?
“Now think about all those people who tried to flee through the apocalypse relying solely on themselves. How many of them are still alive?
“Of everyone standing here right now, is there a single person who didn’t rely on the strength of a team? Who didn’t make it this far by joining with others and standing together?
“Is there anyone?
“If there is, step forward!”
Lei Shi looked around, meeting the eyes of everyone staring back at him.
Quan Xiaoyu had originally been crouched in a corner, thinking about Chu Tian.
Then he suddenly heard those familiar words.
He was stunned for quite a while before realizing—
This wasn’t the scene from his previous life.
No. More precisely, it was still the same place from his previous life.
It was still the same leader.
He was still saying the same words and making the same gestures, as though everything were a replay of what Quan Xiaoyu remembered.
Except that the people he was speaking to were quite different.