Chapter Seventy-Five: A Scene of Misery

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No one knew how long they had been traveling; all Yue Qi knew was that whenever they had a moment, they would dash forward with all their might. Xin Zi seemed to act as a metronome—no matter how anxious Yue Qi became, the moment Xin Zi called for a halt, they would instantly stop.

The purpose of these pauses was, of course, to rest properly.

Yet it was strange: Yue Qi felt that their daily rest wasn’t long, but during the journey, he was always brimming with energy. This was all Xin Zi’s doing, and once again Yue Qi realized how terrifyingly capable this man was—everything seemed to be precisely calculated by him.

“All right, this is far enough. We need a proper, long rest now,” said Xin Zi, having reached a small stream with the group. He took a few sips of water and addressed everyone.

“We’re not moving on today? The sky is still bright,” Yue Qi splashed water over his face and spoke to Xin Zi.

“No, we’re staying put,” Xin Zi shook his head. “If my guess is correct, we’ll reach Qinghe Town soon. We must rest well tonight and aim to arrive by noon tomorrow.”

“But if we hurry now, we could get there by nightfall. Wouldn’t it be easier to deal with zombies at night?” Yue Qi, still impatient, protested.

“At night? Are you sure? Even if you’re more adept at dealing with zombies, what about the rest of us? Not only do we need to rest today, but tomorrow you must scout ahead before we make any plans. If we rush in blindly, disaster is inevitable,” Xin Zi replied calmly, offering Yue Qi no concessions.

“Xin Zi is right. Let’s rest for now,” Bai Lian, seeing Yue Qi’s rising anger, quickly shot a look at Xin Zi and spoke to Yue Qi. She could not allow discord to fracture the group at such a moment.

Seeing Bai Lian speak as well, Yue Qi closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, then turned and walked toward the nearby woods.

“Ah, Brother Yue and his temperament…” Xin Zi sighed and shook his head, turning to Bai Lian. “Madam Yue, please try to persuade him. Brother Yue is excellent in many ways, but in this world, being overly sentimental can be dangerous.”

Bai Lian nodded. She knew this well enough herself; though she had spent much of her life in the sect, her time with Yue Qi had taught her that the world was far from idyllic. Especially now, with law and order gone, those with ill intent acted even more recklessly.

“You all set up camp here. I’ll go talk to Yue Qi,” Bai Lian apologized softly to the others, then headed in the direction Yue Qi had taken.

The air was turning cooler; though the sun hung overhead, the temperature had dropped noticeably since a few months ago.

Bai Lian had not walked far before she saw Yue Qi sitting atop a hillside. What surprised her was that, unlike the surrounding grassy fields, the hill was bare save for a few oddly shaped stones.

Yue Qi sat atop the largest stone, deep in thought as the autumn wind whipped his hair.

Something about the scene struck Bai Lian with a pang of pain, but she calmed herself and walked toward Yue Qi.

“Lian’er, you’ve come?” Yue Qi obviously sensed her presence, but did not turn around. He spoke with his back to her.

“Brother Qi…” Bai Lian approached, placing both hands gently on his shoulders, hoping to ease his burden.

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“Sigh… You don’t need to persuade me. I understand everything Xin Zi said, but I simply can’t rest easy,” Yue Qi sighed. “I don’t know how Xin Zi treats his own family, but if it were me, I could never be so composed. After all, they’re my brothers who have fought and lived alongside me, and some are my last remaining kin…”

“Brother Qi, you’re just exhausted. Don’t worry—Second Brother and the others are blessed with good fortune; they’ll be safe. Perhaps those mutated zombies don’t even exist in Qingzhou, maybe it’s just the unique terrain of Dragon Burial Pit that caused it,” Bai Lian soothed him, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her face to his back.

“That’s enough, Lian’er. No need to comfort me. I know this time my guess is probably right. With the power of those mutated zombies, Qingzhou might hold, but our camp would be utterly defenseless… Now, I just hope those mutated zombies don’t discover our camp,” Yue Qi forced a bitter smile; even he could not believe his own words.

Bai Lian stayed silent, simply listening to Yue Qi’s lament.

“Lian’er, do you think I’m not a good leader? I led everyone, lost so many, even my father and mother…” Yue Qi’s gaze became vacant as he suddenly spoke.

“No, never! Brother Qi, you’ll always be the best!” Bai Lian abruptly raised her head, grasping Yue Qi’s hands. “Brother Qi, you know, though many sacrificed themselves for us to escape Yue Manor, many more survived because of you. Without you, they would have starved and been turned into zombies.”

“But still, I left them behind and escaped alone. If something happens to them, how will I ever have peace of mind?” Yue Qi grew more agitated, his eyes reddening.

“Brother Qi, calm yourself!” Bai Lian shook his shoulders firmly and spoke with resolve, “This is not abandonment! It was to save them. If you hid in the camp forever, what about the zombies? They’d only grow stronger, and when you can no longer protect them, they would leave you too!”

Seeing Yue Qi remain silent, Bai Lian continued, “Brother Qi, have you heard the saying: ‘Death comes to all, some heavier than Mount Tai, some lighter than a feather’? If, in seeking the answer to the zombie threat, some must be sacrificed, then their names will be forever engraved in our hearts.”

Yue Qi still said nothing, but it was clear his soul was in torment.

“Trust me, Brother Qi. No matter what happens, I’ll always be by your side, through life and death,” Bai Lian said earnestly, each word brimming with love.

“Ah, good Lian’er…” Yue Qi drew Bai Lian’s head into his embrace, inhaling the faint fragrance of her hair, as if this was his last tether to the world.

After a long while, they parted.

The wind atop the hill was always fierce. Bai Lian shrank into herself, and Yue Qi pulled a fur coat from his mustard seed bracelet and draped it over her.

“Come on, it’s cold here,” Yue Qi smiled at Bai Lian, a smile so clear and pure it seemed nothing had happened between them.

Back at the stream, Yue Yunsheng had already built a fire. There was plenty of firewood in the woods, and with Xin Zi’s help, even without Yue Qi, they managed to get a blaze going quickly.

Night fell swiftly. Perhaps it was the exhaustion from their journey, but everyone fell asleep soon after eating, except for Xin Zi, who remained by the fire, deep in thought.

“Father, Uncle, are you all right…” Xin Zi murmured softly, a glimmer of tears flashing in his eyes, quickly evaporated by the flames.

“I’ll return, I promise. Wait for me, all of you…” Xin Zi continued, his gaze resolute.

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The next morning.

Yue Qi and the others traveled even faster. After a night’s rest, everyone felt much more refreshed, except for Xin Zi, who still seemed a bit drained, but it did not impede their progress.

“All right, let’s stop here for now,” Xin Zi said as they arrived at a fork in the road. He remembered clearly—this was the first fork they had encountered when leaving Qinghe Town. If nothing went wrong, the town gate would be less than a kilometer ahead.

“As we discussed yesterday, Brother Yue, you go ahead and scout the camp. Try not to let the zombies spot you. We’ll wait here. We still have some scrolls; if there’s danger, we’ll call you immediately,” Xin Zi explained, ensuring he had considered every contingency.

“Understood!” Yue Qi nodded without hesitation and prepared to leave.

“Wait!” Xin Zi suddenly called out, his gaze complicated as he looked at Yue Qi. “If you encounter a mutant zombie you can’t handle alone, remember to send a signal into the sky to alert us.”

“We’ll definitely come to save you!” Yue Yunsheng vowed fervently.

“No…” Xin Zi looked deeply at Yue Qi. “Brother Yue, be prepared. We’ll do everything to escape. I won’t elaborate further…”

Yue Qi was stunned; though Xin Zi’s words were blunt, they were for the good of the group. “Thank you, brother! Please, take care of them for me…” As he spoke, Yue Qi bowed to Xin Zi, then looked at Bai Lian and Yue Yunsheng. “After I leave, you must follow Xin Zi’s instructions! No matter what happens, do not come to rescue me…”

Arriving at Qinghe Town, the outskirts were much as before—ruins everywhere, but no sign of zombies.

“Not good!” Suddenly, from the direction of the camp, plumes of black smoke rose—certainly not from cooking.

Yue Qi had no time to consider Xin Zi’s request to scout. Seeing nothing amiss nearby, he rushed toward the camp with all his might!

When he finally reached the camp, he stood in shock. Everywhere were broken walls and rubble; everything they had just built was destroyed.

“This… this…” Yue Qi stared in disbelief, then suddenly realized something and ran frantically into the ruins…