[BL] A Collapsing Apocalyptic World

13：You Came Back?

Backtracking to where Delli was easy. Qing Lianmu jumped onto the branch and took Delli into his pocket. Then, he headed back to where the man was previously.

The streets were devoid any life, zombies crawled around the place and unknown creatures lurked around. Most cities had been evacuated to bigger, much safer areas due to the government and association.

Haeven City used to be bustling, busy almost all year round but now, it was like a desert that had been abandoned.

Before Qing Lianmu passed through the window, he opened his dimension to take his backpack out and the first aid kit. The man sensed his arrival and saw the backpack behind him.

Qing Lianmu walked over to him with a first-aid kit in his hand. He sat down closeby and unpacked the kit with a little hum.

"Why did you come back?" The man asked. His tone was still cold but it didn't possess the same hostility as before.

'I guess he's just a naturally cold man.'

"Was I not allowed?" Qing Lianmu glanced over and tried to make eye-contact but it was useless when the other had long bangs covering his eyes. He just smiled at him carrying antiseptic, cotton balls and a tweezer.

"..."

"My apologies if that was the case." From his backpack, a towel was taken out along with a bottle of water which he unscrewed.

"However, I cannot leave you here with such severe injuries. A meaningless death should be avoided where possible."

The man sat slouched on the wall, disimpassioned. His line of sight traced upon Qing Lianmu's hand, they were slender and clean, like untouched porcelain. His fingers twisted the bottle cap with soft movements and poured it over the towel.

Once it was sufficiently wet, Qing Lianmu passed it over to the man who stared at it blankly before scoffing.

"What a waste of water."

Qing Lianmu only laughed in response. "So you're not going to waste it right?"

Rolling his eyes, the man grabbed the wet towel and held it for a few minutes, clenching it tightly. He finally began wiping his face down just as Qing Lianmu was about to question him again if he would use it.

Qing Lianmu sat by idly, exploring the room with his eyes before going back to the man. Most of his face was cleaned and he clenched the towel around his bloody bangs.

"What's your name mister? You know mine so it's politeness to return the favour."

With his face cleaner, Qing Lianmu got a better look at the man but his vision darkened as the bloody towel was thrown his way. He caught it but dropped it right afterwards.

The man stood up and stretched his limbs. Suddenly, he turned round and opened his mouth with a penetrative tone. "Ke Xia."

Ke Xia stood in front of the window where the dim light flowed through the room. His wet bangs were like curtains, covering his frosty eyes yet it was somehow endearing with the way it moved from the shallow movements of the wind.

Qing Lianmu blankly stared at Ke Xia. A small smile spread to his lips as he stood up from his spot and approached Ke Xia. The two had their eyes glued on each other, not a single movement missing their line of sight.

The room was incredibly silent and only the creaking of the floorboards and their breaths could be heard. Qing Lianmu finally stopped and stood in front of Ke Xia. His hand moved, causing Ke Xia's eyes to shift down and then up.

When he revealed what was in his hands, Qing Lianmu cheerfully said, "You should treat the rest of your injuries. Not just clean the blood off."

It was rubbing alcohol and cotton balls.

... ...

The bandage was cut with the scissors and tied securely. Qing Lianmu put the equipment away while talking. "It's a good thing your external injuries aren't serious. I was worried that you wouldn't survive."

"Why would you be worried I wouldn't survive?" Ke Xia asked, then he mockingly said. "If you're thinking of getting something out of me by saving my life then you can forget it. No one asked you to save me."

"True, no one asked me to save you." Qing Lianmu responded to him with an even tone. " I saved you because I wanted to. I won't leave someone who can be helped if possible. Even if it wasn't you, I would've saved them anyways."

Ke Xia was silent for a few seconds before letting out a derisive scoff at Qing Lianmu. "What's this? Do you have some type of saviour complex? The world's changed, this ain't the same peaceful world you're used to anymore."

"I know."

"You know jackshit."

Qing Lianmu only smiled. The two went silent and Ke Xia turned his head over, indicating his disinterest to speak.

"Grrrr..."

Both of them grew vigilant and silenced their own breathing.

"Grrrrr..."

Qing Lianmu pointed to the wall and mouthed. "Next door."

Spreading out his spiritual senses, the neighbour next door was a zombie who had wandered in because the door was left wide open. Another night crawler creeped in as well. It was surprising how many there were and their level wasn't low either, it was incredibly dangerous if facing ordinary people but the duo were unfazed.

I'm hindsight, killing the night crawler was a good choice because they would be able to gain a level 1 energy core but then the distribution would be unbalanced. Qing Lianmu knew Ke Xia was powerful, though he didn't understand how he achieved it so quickly, he assumed the other figured out the benefits of the cores.

The problem now was how to convey this to Ke Xia, Qing Lianmu could say he had the ability to see through the place but this man was a very cautious person despite his current docileness, it could change in an instant.

The situation wasn't dire so Qing Lianmu didn't say anything in the end and leaned against the bedside, facing Ke Xia.

... ...

The next day passed quietly.

With the sun up, the zombies lessened, their movements appearing even slower.

Qing Lianmu opened his eyes, not unfocused or dazed. He had been meditating the entire night and felt the movement of someone else in the room.

His eyes drifted to the skinny man. "Good morning."

The other didn't reply, only packing his own backpack up. Qing Lianmu didn't mind the silence and leisurely asked, "Mr. Ke, do you want to form a team with me?"

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