CH 15

Bian Bian didn’t think about why did a gun suddenly appear. She had already grouped the gun and apple together since they were both things that suddenly appeared.

She had seen her grandpa use a gun before, and she had seen other people use guns. She felt like she should pick up the gun to fend off the monster. But, even with two hands, Bian Bian could not pick up the strangely designed silver gun. She barely moved it.    

— To the little five-year-old, Bian Bian, the weight of the gun exceeded the strength of her own body.  

It was too heavy.

Bian Bian’s brows furrowed in distress.

Perhaps the monster’s ridiculous movements due to its inability to get in, diminished her fear because miraculously, Bian Bian didn’t particularly feel scared when she faced the hideous ant corpse beast.  

“I can’t pick it up.” said the little girl in a depressed voice. 

……

“Lord Jiusi, this should be a simple, reality-based game with lifelike characters and settings which makes it easy for the player to immerse themselves into their role.” Inside a palace that was built almost entirely with precious stones, a young dragon with two horns on his head was respectfully providing an explanation to the handsome man standing in front of him.

He wore simple but casual clothing that looked ordinary at first glance. However, on closer inspection, one could see that the dark patterns on the clothes were all lined with gemstones.

A pair of black-framed glasses was perched upon a high bridged nose. Thick but slender eyelashes. The outer corners of his eyes were slightly upturned, revealing an indifferent gaze.

Handsome, powerful, and arrogant. This was the dragon clan’s only nine-clawed azure dragon, the oldest and most formidable dragon species. Within the dragon clan, this position was second only to the Dragon King.

Projected in front of them was the scene of Bian Bian’s living room encounter. 

Nong Jiusi went to inspect another planet a while back.  But in actuality, he had gone sightseeing. He obtained an NR virtual set in the process and coincidentally met Xiu Yan. He made him take care of it, lest he throws the device away when it became an inconvenience as he played around. 

It was only after he had returned from his trip and Xiu Yan had returned the device to its rightful owner that Nong Jiusi had remembered he had such a thing. He turned it on, ready to experience the wonders of the device. 

Who would’ve thought that when he turned it on, a projection scene would automatically pop up?

It was followed up with a systematic introduction. Nong Jiusi only understood what was happening after he finished reading through the introduction.

There was an extra game in the system. Within the game was a little one called Bian Bian. She was living alone after her grandpa was infected and became a zombie. He, as the player, was automatically bound in a father-daughter relationship with Bian Bian. 

That was to say, if he was going to play this game, he had to help his daughter within the game survive and help her grow up safely.

Nong Jiusi: “…”

Although he spent his days feeling rather bored, he wasn’t bored to the point where he would play an idiotic child-rearing game.

After glancing over it casually, he was about to quit this boring game. Unexpectedly, a corpse beast came in through the window, but the little girl sitting in the chair did not seem to notice it at all.

Because of the projection, Nong Jiusi was standing right next to Bian Bian. After staring at the little one for a bit, he walked over and lifted a hand to press the head of the entering corpse beast almost subconsciously. 

Then the corpse beast that he was pressing against as if it was real, couldn’t get in.

Nong Jiusi’s eyebrows rose and he thought that this was a bit interesting. He was within the projected game screen. And while he was incapable of feeling the objects he touched, he was able to interact with them.

Take this corpse beast for example. He didn’t really do anything other than press against its head, but it seemed to be controlled by fate. It couldn’t get in no matter how hard it tried.

The graphics were too realistic, unlike a game’s. The characters inside were as lifelike as movie characters. It was like he teleported into a movie.

Nong Jiusi was beginning to suspect that it was a real scene but shown through a game.

As he was doing this, his subordinate Nong Tang, who was also his assistant, watched everything unfold. After an inspection by Nong Tang, it was confirmed that this was only a game.    

Nong Tang was rather proficient in the field of science and technology. Nong Jiusi nodded his head. In accordance with his nature, he ought to quit the game now and no longer care about it.

But seeing the little one clinging onto the bear and not letting go, it seemed as if the little girl was genuinely facing a monster attack. Once he let go, there was a chance that she would be swallowed in one gulp.

The little one was unarmed and didn’t have the ability to protect herself. Nong Jiusi hesitated a bit before tapping open the market in the upper right corner.

Everyone knew about the Krypton Gold mode in games. He’d buy the little one a weapon to defend herself with. This way it’d be worth having opened the game.

To Nong Jiusi’s surprise, all the options in the market were grey and couldn’t be purchased.

“Is it reasonable for a game to be set up this way?”

The two horns on Nong Tang’s head twitched as he shook his head: “Not reasonable.”

Everyone knows that when developers release games to the players, their goal is to make players spend money to recharge. All games used this kind of method. This is how the developer is able to make a profit.

He’s never heard of a game with a Krypton Gold area, but no Krypton Gold channel. The “channel” was grey, unable to be tapped.

It wasn’t until Nong Jiusi tapped on the weapons column that he saw the only lit-up icon, a silver gun that cost a hundred star-coins.

After a successful purchase, the gun clattered to the floor.

Nong Jiusi was close by and clearly saw the little one cower from the noise.

“……”

If it weren’t for Nong Tang confirming that it was a game, he would have thought that it was happening for real.

Or perhaps… the reason it was so realistic was because of the NR virtual device?

Seeing that the little one could not pick up the gun, Nong Jiusi grabbed a part of the hard shell on the ant corpse beast’s head and shoved the corpse beast out the window.

After that, the scene disappeared.

At the same time, Xiu Jin logged into the game.

Nong Jiusi looked back and asked Nong Tang: “What’s the matter with this?”

Nong Tang thought for a bit and said: “My lord, it probably… disconnected.”

And that was indeed the truth. Xiu Jin logged into the game which caused Nong Jiusi to disconnect, but neither side knew.

Nong Jiusi adjusted his glasses, turned to pick up a cup of coffee, and took a sip. He didn’t care too much about it as it was just a game: “Too astringent. Get another cup.”   

He put the coffee down.

“Yes.” Nong Tang went as ordered.

As soon as Xiu Jin entered the game, he received a notification from the system: [Intimacy points +20]

???

Getting +20 intimacy points as soon as he entered? What had happened during the couple of hours when he wasn’t logged in? Although it was something to be happy about, it felt a little strange no matter which way he looked at it. 

Could it be that his precious daughter knew that he was the father?

Bian Bian watched as the monster stupidly dropped itself downstairs and the last bit of terror she felt towards the monster disappeared. She gave up on trying to pick up the silver gun. With a thud thud thud, she pushed a chair to the window and clambered on top of it so she could look down.

The corpse beast, confused and disoriented from the fall, kept shaking its head as if to confirm that nothing was pressing on it anymore.

Then, once it finally confirmed that it could move about freely, it lifted its head. Scarlet eyes stared at Bian Bian, who was peeking over the edge of the window. 

It started to climb up again, determined to eat the food that it had long marked as prey.

Before Xiu Jin had recovered from his joy at the sudden increase of 20 in intimacy points, he was startled by the corpse beast trying to attack Bian Bian. He hurriedly used his hand to press against the moving corpse beast to stop it from climbing up.    

However! His pressing only served to slow the corpse beast down, not immobilize it.

Xiu Jin: “…”

“Bian Bian, quickly hide!” At this moment, the voice of Zhu Yuan who was hurrying back could be heard.

He had been carefully searching for traces of the corpse beast nearby, not daring to go too far away when he had heard the sound of the corpse beast crashing down. He realized that something was wrong. That bastard had been unexpectedly stealthy.

Worried about Bian Bian, Zhu Yuan immediately turned back. Soon after, he saw a hideous corpse beast climbing up to the third floor. The little girl had been standing by the window with a face full of curiosity, not a bit afraid.

Zhu Yuan’s heart almost leaped out his mouth. With the help of his ability, he got closer to the corpse beast at breakneck speed, using several wind blades in a row. 

The wind blade streaked across the corpse beast’s outer shell with a “clang,” but didn’t leave behind any marks.

“……”

Such a hard shell!

Now that he was closer, Zhu Yuan found the corpse beast’s movement to be extremely strange. Ants were creatures that moved quickly. Seeing how fast the corpse beast had run after being scared by Lu Yu, it was obvious that the corpse beast’s speed had not been affected by its size.

And then—

The speed in which the corpse beast was climbing upwards was the complete opposite of the speed it had displayed when running away. It was like a snail, inching along slowly as it dragged its heavy shell.

It was Bian Bian!

She was using her ability to suppress the corpse beast.

Zhu Yuan’s eyes shone and he immediately seized the opportunity, taking advantage of the corpse beast’s slow movement to deliver the killing blow.

However, his ability was incapable of inflicting any substantial damage on the corpse beast, whose whole body had evolved to have a hard shell. 

Zhu Yuan’s gaze flitted across a small, abandoned car. Wrapping the small car in a ball of wind, he viciously slammed it into the corpse beast.

Bam!

Smoke spread in all directions. All that remained of the small car was debris. The small fire that had resulted from the violent impact gradually died out as it lost its supply of fuel. Finally, the upward movement of the corpse came to a halt. It once again shook its head before slowly turning around. Scarlet eyes no longer looked upstairs at Bian Bian, but instead turned to the nearby Zhu Yuan. 

The corpse beast’s original target was Bian Bian. Her pure flesh and blood constantly enticed it, making its hungry stomach even more eager to be filled with flesh and blood.

Even if it knew there was an entity that was a level higher than itself.

But it knew that that entity couldn’t come out. Since it posed no threat, it no longer had to restrain itself.

In order to be safe, the corpse beast did not intend to disturb the menacing entity. Thus it moved stealthily this time. However, the corpse beast was angry because it had encountered an unimaginable situation as it went to eat the easy prey that it had been tracking for days.    

Now Zhu Yuan had appeared. After weighing its options, the corpse beast whipped its head around. It would eat the larger prey first, then the smaller, tastier one.

Seeing the gigantic ant lunging towards him at a rapid speed, completely different from how it was climbing, Zhu Yuan’s pupils shrunk. He knew that Bian Bian’s ability couldn’t suppress the corpse beast anymore.

He took advantage of the terrain to nimbly avoid the corpse beast’s bristled foot aimed at him.

With a ‘pssch’ sound, that thing effortlessly stabbed into the cement. Zhu Yuan dodged by rolling. During their brief engagement, he could feel the terrifying pressure emitted by the level 3 corpse beast.

For a B rank ability user, a level 3 corpse beast was a full rank higher than him.

He and Du Mingyu had to join forces and put their lives on the line just to kill a wounded and weakened level 3 zombie. Now, he was being chased by a level 3 corpse beast at the peak of its power. He was no match for it, and could only take advantage of the terrain to flee.

It would have been fine if he could ascend to B rank. Zhu Yuan wiped away the blood pouring from the wound on his forehead and gritted his teeth. Even if he had to die here today, he was going to make sure that the corpse beast would never return!

Watching the corpse beast chase Zhu Yuan away from Bian Bian’s line of sight, Xiu Jin had no way to press on the corpse beast through the screen. He had no choice but to stop. He looked at his precious daughter, feeling relieved.

For a short while, he couldn’t tell if his precious daughter was brave or timid.

If he were to say brave, well… she had cried at first because she was scared of him.

If he were to say timid, well… she didn’t hide in the room when the corpse beast attacked but instead brought a chair over to the window to watch.

What was going on in her small head?!

Thankfully he came just in time. Otherwise, the corpse beast, who was chasing after Zhu Yuan at breakneck speed, would have swallowed her in a blink of an eye! 

It was horrifying just thinking about it.

He’d only raised his precious daughter for a few days, he didn’t want her to disappear just like that.

Bian Bian finally realized that the monster’s strange movements weren’t because of its stupidity, but because someone was secretly helping it, just like the gun that had appeared out of thin air.

With that in mind, could it be the bad guy from earlier that she thought was going to fatten her up before eating her?

He didn’t want to eat her but help her.

That’s why they sneakily sewed up Hui Hui’s arm after she fell asleep, gave her apples, and gave that gun earlier to help chase away the beast.

Now that the monster was chasing Uncle Zhu Yuan, did that person already leave?

“Are- Are you still here? Did you come to help Bian Bian?” Bian Bian’s little fist clenched and she anxiously looked around the empty living room.

Xiu Jin: “!!!”

What was the meaning of this?!

Could this be a transformation brought about by the +20 intimacy points? His precious daughter is no longer treating him as a bad guy and has accepted his existence?!

“Are you an uncle?” asked Bian Bian again. She had come to the conclusion that the invisible person was an uncle because of Hui Hui’s sewn up arm.

If it was an auntie, Hui Hui’s arm wouldn’t be sewn up in such an ugly manner. To be able to sew so horribly meant that it had to be an uncle.

“I’m Daddy!”

The feeling of being approved by his precious daughter made Xiu Jin feel like he was floating. It did not matter even if she couldn’t hear his voice.

“The monster is so powerful. Uncle Zhu Yuan won’t be able to defeat it by himself. Uncle, can you help Uncle Zhu Yuan fight the monster?” Bian Bian twisted her hands nervously. She quickly ran to her room and brought out the box filled with crystals. “I don’t have anything else to give you, just these stones…”

Bian Bian watched the living room expectantly, but nothing happened.

Xiu Jin was also helpless. He did want to help Zhu Yuan, but his perspective was based on Bian Bian’s. Bian Bian was currently in the living room. He could only move things in the living room and was unable to manipulate anything else.

There was a rumble from outside. The corpse beast had returned.

Bian Bian rushed to the window. She didn’t see Zhu Yuan’s figure, but the corpse beast as it climbed up the walls.

“……”

Xiu Jin hurriedly used his hand to press down.

Bian Bian’s eyes lit up. That invisible person was still here!

Once again, the corpse beast was crawling as slowly as a turtle.

Corpse beast: “……”

So frustrating!

Zhu Yuan who had come back covered in dirt once again saw the corpse beast climbing slowly like a snail.

Did Bian Bian’s ability recover?

On his knees, Zhu Yuan calmed his heartbeat.

For a short while, it was strangely tranquil.    

The corpse beast had been chasing after Zhu Yuan, but the prey had been too cunning. It didn’t manage to eat the prey despite chasing it for a long time. Hindered by the many buildings, it gave up on chasing after Zhu Yuan, deciding to return and eat the tastiest prey instead.

But never did it think that it would be stuck in the same situation again. It was as if the building had become an immense marshland. It climbed with all its might, but could only move at glacial speeds.    

The tired and hungry corpse beast felt furious, but for the sake of food, it had no choice but to persevere.

Roar—!

The roar of a zombie exploded out.

Lu Yu had woken up, or perhaps he felt that he had been provoked. He started to violently ram the metal wall and the whole building trembled. Bian Bian got covered in a layer of dust. 

The corpse beast’s movements halted. It hesitated but decided to ignore the menacing entity that couldn’t get out and continued to climb upwards.

For the sake of filling its stomach, even if it had to crawl slowly, it would devour its prey!

It was not concerned, no matter how Zhu Yuan attacked from behind. Its outer shell protected it so that it felt nothing more than a tickle.

Xiu Jin, who had been playing the game sitting down, leaped up anxiously when he saw the corpse beast steel its resolve and continue to climb. However, he couldn’t use gold to buy anything for his precious daughter. There was nothing else he could do, but press down on the corpse beast to make it crawl slower.

“……”

The system was playing dead, not uttering a word.

Xiu Jin gritted out: “If Lu Yu breaks out of the metal walls, what happens then?”

It was already so difficult to handle a level 3 corpse beast. If they let Lu Yu, who even level 3 corpse beasts were afraid of…

Xiu Jin imagines his daughter with a happy expression, running towards Lu Yu while calling for her grandpa, and then her getting bitten by Lu Yu. 

He shook his head fiercely, freeing that image from his mind.

The system seemed to have weighed its options, finally speaking up: [It depends on your abilities as fathers.]

Xiu Jin, who was wholeheartedly focusing on his precious daughter, didn’t even register the word ‘fathers.’

The young child on the screen suddenly moved.

Xiu Jin quickly looked.

Only to see Bian Bian run into the kitchen and appear with half a bottle of cooking oil a moment later. She knew that the situation was dire so she moved quickly, which led to a heavy fall on her way out of the kitchen. 

Her eyes watered from the pain, but she did not cry. She got up swiftly, stood on the chair beside the window once more, and leaned out of the window. 

“I’m not scared of you!” The little girl shook her little hand and poured the half-filled bottle of oil onto the head of the corpse beast.

At that moment the head of the corpse beast, who had been determinedly pushing against the indescribable pressure, was only around a meter away from the window. All of the cooking oil poured by Bian Bian landed on its head.

The corpse beast was completely drenched. Originally, it was just a regular little ant that humans could easily squish to death. After being infected by the virus, it had grown to become a giant ant. It still retained its sense of smell, except its ability to smell has been enhanced.

The smell of cooking oil wasn’t acrid, but with its enhanced sense of smell, it disliked the scent instinctively.

So much so that it led to a rare type of crisis. This sort of crisis did not originate from the menacing entity, but–

In the next second, Bian Bian took out a lighter from her pocket. With a ‘fwoosh’, she threw the lit lighter down.

Burning fire met oil, and in a flash, the flames leaped up.

Xiu Jin froze for a moment after seeing the head of the monster he was pressing on erupt into flames.

Other attacks were ineffective against the monster, so she would use fire to burn the monster. And it was a five year-old that came up with this method and successfully implemented it.

His darling was too smart!

To be able to think of such an idea— As an adult, he didn’t even think in that direction.

Fire burst from the corpse beast’s head. The hard shell protected its body but the beast could not withstand the high humidity. It closed its scarlet eyes and began to desperately slam its head against the wall in an attempt to extinguish the fire.

The scalding temperature brought about by the blaze was transmitted directly to its brain causing it pain and leaving it with a strong sense of unease. It decided to retreat.

It will come back next time!

Several barrels of gasoline encased within a ball of wind dropped from the sky, drenching the corpse beast’s body— That was from Zhu Yuan downstairs.

Bian Bian’s actions gave him inspiration.

The addition of the gasoline combined with the wind’s power instantly set the corpse beast’s whole body ablaze.

The boiling temperature was no longer limited to its head, but its whole body. It started to struggle painfully, no longer thinking about its prey and only thought about escape.

It had to escape from this place. Then it would have a chance to recover and return with full health.

However, Xiu Jin’s finger was still firmly holding it in place. The invisible pressure on the corpse beast made it laborious to climb up. Climbing down was still the same, but even struggling required all its strength. 

The corpse beast seethed.

Never before, had it felt so frustrated.

It let out a reluctant roar, one that was unique to corpse beasts. Its legs left many holes in the wall and parts of its body fell away in fiery clumps.

The crashing sound Lu Yu made sounded a lot weaker as if it sensed that the intruder in his territory was no longer a threat.

Zhu Yuan’s face paled. He looked at the body that spanned the second and third floors, the ant corpse seemingly pinned at the spot. He felt a mixture of lingering fear and gladness.

Bian Bian’s ability was powerful, but she was too young and her control was limited. From the start, Zhu Yuan never intended to let Bian Bian fight head-on.

He hadn’t even discussed how to kill the corpse beast with Bian Bian. Unexpectedly, the corpse beast had attacked today, ruining his plans.

He never would’ve thought that if faced with a sudden corpse beast attack, Bian Bian would be the one to turn the tides.

But he, the self-proclaimed fighter, didn’t contribute anything special except for the barrels of gasoline at the end. 

Zhu Yuan took a deep breath and used his abilities to quickly return to the third floor. He saw the silver gun on the ground but did not think much about it. Bending down, he picked it up and moved to the window.

“Bian Bian, you can stop using your abilities now.” He saw the little girl’s bangs matted with sweat and her red face. He worried that she overused her ability, which would cause harm to her body, and hastily pulled her behind him.

Bian Bian felt a little more relaxed after Zhu Yuan’s return, but his words left the little girl at a loss. 

She knew what the ability was.

But the problem was that she didn’t have the ability. Why did Uncle Zhu Yuan tell her to stop using the ability?

Despite her doubts, Bian Bian nodded her head obediently.

Xiu Jin saw that Zhu Yuan’s hand was now holding a silver gun. He didn’t know where this fellow found it, but he hadn’t used it earlier. He released the hand pressing on the corpse beast. Surrounded by fire and struggling painfully, the corpse beast fell downstairs with a thud.

It was not dead yet, just enveloped in pain. It stumbled and rolled around, trying to put out the fire on its body.

Seeing that the corpse beast still wanted to escape, Zhu Yuan did not hesitate to pull the trigger on the fiery mass.

In the next second, a ball of light burst out of the gun.

Zhu Yuan: “?”

What kind of bullet could emit light?

That ball of light landed on the fiery mass. With a loud boom, the fiery mass instantly exploded into two chunks. The corpse beast’s blood-curdling shrieks stopped. Its body twitched a few times and gradually became motionless.

Zhu Yuan stared blankly at the silver gun in his hand.

The muzzle had been blasted open. It was clear that the gun was no longer usable.

A single-use gun?

Xiu Jin’s face darkened. Zhu Yuan, this kid, had such a powerful gun. How come he didn’t use it before?! 

He glared at the Zhu Yuan on the screen. Previously he had felt that this person’s face had seemed honest and sincere, but now it just seemed unpleasant.

Was it hidden intentionally?

What was he trying to do?

But Xiu Jin kept feeling like something wasn’t quite right.

According to Zhu Yuan’s previously displayed personality, he would’ve long used the gun if he had it earlier and not waited until now.

Then where did this gun come from?

Did he pick it up on the way back just now?

“Uncle Zhu Yuan, is the monster dead?” Bian Bian stopped covering her ears. When the corpse beast had started to shriek, the little girl felt uncomfortable listening and had covered her ears.

Zhu Yuan came back to his senses. Turning his thoughts away from the gun for now, he picked up the little girl with one arm and leaned wearily beside the window. He smiled and said: “It’s dead. Want to see?”

Bian Bian nodded.

Zhu Yuan carried Bian Bian so she could look down.   

Following the corpse beast’s death, the streets once again became silent. The crashing from upstairs disappeared— Lu Yu quieted down.

Only the flames on the body of the corpse beast remained, burning brightly.

“Can’t see clearly.” Bian Bian rubbed her eyes. Fine, black ash floated in the air, blurring/obscuring the vision of the little girl.

“Let’s go down.”

The brain of the corpse beast will still produce crystals. That couldn’t be wasted.

The two reached downstairs. Zhu Yuan remained vigilant of the surroundings so as to avoid a missed threat.

Fortunately, after such a fierce confrontation, even if there were zombies and corpse beasts around, they would’ve turned tail and run as far as possible.

There was a strange smell in the air, kind of like burnt meat. The corpse beast’s body was charred black. Parts of the hard shell had cracked open, revealing a scorched interior.

No matter how hard the shell was, it could not withstand the fire.

Zhu Yuan stomped swiftly on the corpse beast’s skull. He didn’t forget to warn Bian Bian repeatedly, telling her to be careful and not fall. 

The other half of the body was not as burnt. Bian Bian walked around. Here, she smelled a different scent. It smelled like barbeque.

She remembered the barbeque that her grandpa gave her last year.

—Lu Yu caught a rabbit. Encountering a normal rabbit during the apocalypse can’t be called just luck, but extremely great luck.

Unfortunately, there had only been one. If there had been two, they could’ve raised them.

That time Lu Yu made grilled rabbit meat, spicy hare head, and stir-fried rabbit. It was delicious.

Currently, the scent that Bian Bian smelled was just like the grilled rabbit meat.

“Uncle Zhu Yuan, can we eat it?” She pointed at the corpse beast and seriously asked Zhu Yuan, who was looking for crystals. 

Zhu Yuan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He thought that the little girl was circling around the corpse beast because she was curious, but she had wanted to eat it instead.

His precious daughter was greedy to the point where she wanted to eat an ant. Xiu Jin glared at the food column within the market. He wished he could buy the whole column of food for Bian Bian. 

However, it was all grey.

“……”

When he turned and saw the -10 intimacy points, he felt relieved. With a little more effort, he’d be able to buy, buy, buy for his precious daughter!

Confirming that his precious daughter would be fine, Xiu Jin exited the game. He still had work to do. 

“Bian Bian, this is monster meat. It can’t be eaten.” Zhu Yuan said.

When the apocalypse had first started, people who couldn’t get food started laying their hands on corpse beast meat. Some corpse beast meats were smelly, but there were also others that weren’t. That had created a false impression that the meat was normal.

After eating, there was a 99% chance that the person would be infected and turned into a zombie. The remaining 1% received abilities.

“Can we give it to grandpa?” asked Bian Bian.

That question stumped Zhu Yuan.

Zombies eating corpse beast meat— In theory, it should be possible. It’s just no one seems to have tested it. And besides, for the zombies, why would they go for the corpse beast when they could eat fresh blood and meat.

Moreover, the hole in the metal wall was too small. There was no way to shove it in. Not to mention, there was a virus present in the body of the corpse beast. If they were to accidentally cut their finger, there was a high possibility of infection/ 

He looked at Bian Bian apologetically. 

Bian Bian seemed a bit disappointed, but she started smiling: “That’s okay. I can find something else for grandpa in the future.”

Zhu Yuan finally dug the crystal out from the corpse beast’s head. Once the crystal was dug out, the crystal’s surface was automatically cleaned by the energy contained within it.

“Uncle Zhu Yuan, it’s a blue-green crystal. You can use it.” Bian Bian jumped happily.

Zhu Yuan’s eyes were filled with ecstasy.

Although he had secretly prayed for it to be wind-based, now that he had dug up a level 3 crystal, it didn’t feel real.

He didn’t receive any big injuries and got a level 3 crystal just like that? And a crystal of the same element to boot.

With this crystal, he’ll be able to challenge his own limits. Maybe he’ll even advance to B rank!

Zhu Yuan’s heartbeat accelerated uncontrollably. Taking a deep breath to suppress his joy, he said: “ Bian Bian, this isn’t uncle’s alone. There is also a share for you.”

Psychics were a unique existence. They were able to use all sorts of crystals to cultivate and not be rejected.

Bian Bian’s box of crystals was probably given to her by her grandpa on purpose so that she could cultivate.

Bian Bian thought for a bit and said softly, “Then I’ll give my share to you.”

Zhu Yuan was slightly stunned. His face that was covered in dust flashed with emotion. His hand gently patted Bian Bian’s head and he said earnestly: “Thank you Bian Bian.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Let’s go home.” Zhu Yuan held out a large hand and Bian Bian reached over with a small hand. With Bian Bian’s little hand in his, Zhu Yuan’s face had a bright and cheerful smile.

Just as the duo was turning to leave, Zhu Yuan suddenly staggered.

“Uncle Zhu Yuan, what’s wrong?” Bian Bian stopped moving, lifting her head to face Zhu Yuan worriedly.

Uncle Zhu Yuan’s complexion had turned an ugly shade. She felt a little uneasy.

“I…” Zhu Yuan’s voice trembled a bit. Looking down and seeing Bian Bian’s eyes filled with concern, he took a deep breath. He faced the little girl, “Uncle is fine.”

After returning to the room, Bian Bian did not tell Zhu Yuan about someone helping her because uncle Zhu Yuan was resting. She would wait until he was rested and healed. Then, she would tell him.

Bian Bian looked around the house, not sure if the invisible uncle was still there or not.

Zhu Yuan also did not ask Bian Bian about the origins of the gun. After returning home, he went into the bathroom.

Thinking that Uncle Zhu Yuan must be tired, Bian Bian opened a bottle of mineral water and poured it into a cup. Then she sat on the sofa and waited for Zhu Yuan to come out of the bathroom.

Half an hour went by and Zhu Yuan still didn’t come out.

The little girl looked at the bathroom door with concern. She felt that Uncle Zhu Yuan had washed for a long time. At the very start, there were sounds coming from the bathroom. Now, it was silent. 

“Hui Hui, do you think Uncle Zhu Yuan got hurt fighting the monster and fainted?”

The little bear had no way of replying.

The more Bian Bian thought, the more worried she became. She stood up in a hurry and walked to the bathroom door: “Uncle Zhu Yuan, are you done washing?”

A few moments later, Zhu Yuan’s hoarse voice sounded: “Uncle is shaving. I’ll be done washing soon.”

Bian Bian immediately felt calmer.

Inside the bathroom, Zhu Yuan’s upper half was bare. One hand was used to support himself on the bathroom sink, the other was clenching the level 3 crystal.

The mirror reflected his pale complexion and his pained expression.

He curled in on himself like a trapped beast, panting heavily. His temples and the veins in his neck throbbed. His life was rapidly flashing through his mind.

Zhu Yuan was born to a regular family. His father was a police officer, his mother was a teacher, and he also had an older sister. He had excellent grades and was admitted to his dream college. After graduating, he found a job that suited him. He married his girlfriend and started a family. 

However, an unknown virus infected the whole world, and the apocalypse began. He was the only one who awakened an ability in his family, but he was unable to protect them. 

In the end, he was the only one left. 

He has recently sought refuge in a base in a southeastern city and met his girlfriend at the base. However, his girlfriend had already attached herself to another ability user. He wanted to bring her along, but she had refused. 

Afterward, he spent his time alone on the road, working hard to survive and improving his ability. Then he met Du Mingyu, and after that, Bian Bian. 

He thought that things were finally going to take a turn for the better and that he’d finally have good luck. In fact, he’d already made plans. He’d planned to use the crystal to advance to B rank. If he succeeded, he’d be able to bring Bian Bian along with him to the base. 

Although B rank wasn’t considered to be particularly powerful amongst the ability users, it was enough for him to be considered a strong ability user. He’d protect Bian Bian and raise her…

He could give Bian Bian a family, and with Bian Bian, he could have a family too.

But he never would’ve thought that God would play such a cruel prank.

Zhu Yuan laughed silently. The strength exerted caused the rims of his eyes to turn red and the whites of his eyes to turn a faint blue. 

On his waist, there was a small and inconspicuous wound.

At this point, his wound had already turned a dark blue. Veins of blue extended upward from his wound, following the lines of muscle. 

Like Lu Yu, Zhu Yuan had been infected. 

He actually didn’t know how he got the injury. 

Perhaps he had cut himself on something when he was running from the corpse beast.

Zhu Yuan turned his head slowly. There was a small shadow reflected in the frosted bathroom door from the little angel-like girl. 

His throat itched and Zhu Yuan couldn’t help but cough violently. Bian Bian was shocked hearing it. She smacked the door and said: “Uncle Zhu Yuan, what’s wrong?”

Zhu Yuan suppressed the itch with a swallow. He quickly put on his clothes, wiped his face, opened the door, and walked out.

“Uncle is fine.” Zhu Yuan met the little girl’s anxious gaze after he finished speaking. It was as if she was terrified of something. 

Zhu Yuan fell silent for a moment. 

He thought of Bian Bian’s grandfather. Perhaps the little girl sensed something was amiss. 

“You must be hungry.” Zhu Yuan said, “We killed the corpse beast and obtained a level 3 crystal. This is a happy event, so we should celebrate a bit… Do you want to eat fried apples?”

Zhu Yuan did not wonder where the apples came from. He had to take advantage of the time where he had his consciousness to make a meal for Bian Bian. 

He moved quickly. There was flour at home. He cut the apple into thin slices, covered them with flour, and fried them in a frying pan. 

Fortunately, there were several barrels of oil at home.  

Bian Bian stayed obediently by Zhu Yuan’s side. She wanted Uncle Zhu Yuan to go rest, but uncle didn’t listen to her. 

“Is it yummy?” After cooling a slice of the fried apple, Zhu Yuan handed it to Bian Bian. 

The little girl took a bite and her eyes lit up. She said in a clear voice: “Yummy.”

Half an hour later, the apple slices finished frying. Zhu Yuan turned off the heat and took out another pot with steamed rice. He placed them one by one onto the table.

Bian Bian climbed onto a chair and noticed that Uncle Zhu Yuan did not seem to have any intentions of sitting down.

“Bian Bian, I need to leave.” Zhu Yuan spoke softly. He crouched down to meet Bian Bian’s puzzled look.

Subconsciously, Bian Bian asked: “Why?” 

“Uncle needs to go to the base to find the person who hurt me and get revenge.”

Bian Bian said: “Then… can you bring Bian Bian along?”

“No.” Zhu Yuan shook his head slowly.

Bian Bian’s small hands were tightly clasped together and tears fell from her eyes.

“Uncle Zhu Yuan, are you going to turn into a monster like Grandpa?”