DDT - Chapter 74
Chapter 74: Parallel World: If We Were Together
A full year had passed since the apocalyptic disaster. The humans and ability users who had survived were now trying to rebuild their homes.
In just one or two short years, the ravages of the virus had left the world with no nations to speak of and no families to call home. Rebuilding a new country was an incredibly difficult task. The leaders of the major bases had tasted the sweetness of being in charge and were unwilling to hand over the power they had seized through their own strength. Moreover, countless zombies still roamed the lands beyond human territory, watching like hungry tigers.
A year ago, the Zombie King had led a tide of zombies to surround H City Base, the largest base in Asia and the place where the cure for the zombie virus had been developed. The Zombie King's power was not something mere humans could contend with. Fortunately, the Zombie King had only taken a single girl.
Sacrificing one girl in exchange for world peace was a worthwhile trade in anyone's eyes. People offered a token sigh for the girl, expressing a brief moment of pity.
The wind was strong that day. The Zombie King had specifically requested to see Yi Shuhan, the girl who had developed the "Hope" reagent. In the biting cold wind, their conversation was audible only to each other.
Chi Junluo snatched the reagent, standing high atop the city wall. "Shuhan, I'm sorry. I deceived you."
The words of apology spilled from the short-haired woman's lips. Yi Shuhan saw guilt and gloom in the woman's pale blue eyes, along with other emotions she couldn't comprehend.
The woman quietly awaited the girl's anger and the questions that were sure to follow.
But the girl wasn't angry. After a long moment of thought, she said, "Sister Chi, take me with you."
The girl knew her usefulness to H City Base was at an end. With the successful development of the "Hope" reagent, her mission was complete. Everything she had done was merely to atone for herself and for her research-obsessed father. With "Hope," eliminating the zombies was only a matter of time. Now, she had no attachments and wanted only to go with Chi Junluo, to leave this place together.
Chi Junluo looked at the girl, somewhat surprised and shocked. "Shuhan, I came to say goodbye to you today."
Chi Junluo shook her head, brandishing the "Hope" reagent she had taken from Yi Shuhan's hand. "As you can see, I am the Zombie King. This vial of reagent should be my final destination. Although I never intended to fight with humanity over anything, you know… my very existence is the original sin."
Yi Shuhan looked at Chi Junluo. "Sister Chi, don't you understand yet? I have nothing left. My usefulness has been completely wrung dry. In this world, you're the last person I can rely on, the last one I care about."
"Sister Chi, I don't care what you are. I only know that in this farce of life orchestrated by my father, you are also a suffering victim. Whatever happened in the past, can't we just let it go?"
"Sister Chi, you saved me time and time again. You protected me so well in this dog-eat-dog apocalypse. Sister Chi, I can't fight my reliance on you. The apocalypse is about to end. For the rest of my days, I want to spend them with you."
"Please don't refuse me!" This was the first and last time in her entire life that Yi Shuhan had ever felt such a sense of dependence on someone. The woman's somewhat thin body seemed on the verge of collapsing in the fierce wind. Yi Shuhan had a premonition that if she didn't hold on today, if she didn't express the feelings in her heart that were not yet fully clear, the woman before her might leave her forever.
Yi Shuhan felt something about to burst forth from the bottom of her heart. She had never felt this way before. She only knew that she couldn't lose Sister Chi, Chi Junluo. This powerful, gentle, beautiful woman—she selfishly wanted to claim her as her own. The whole world saw her as a terrifying Zombie King, but only she knew how good she was. And it was enough that she knew! Yi Shuhan wished she would be good only to her!
Yi Shuhan didn't know that the look of dependence and possession in her eyes that day nearly blinded Chi Junluo.
Chi Junluo wavered. The heroine before her was like a small kitten, and the hope in her eyes made her heart melt.
After spending so many days together, it was impossible not to have developed feelings. Thinking of Yi Shuhan's experiences, Chi Junluo couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy. This child had grown up so lonely, without a single friend. She was probably her only friend. If she left too, wouldn't the girl be even more pitiful?
Besides, while the threat from zombies was diminishing, ability users still existed. She thought of Yi Shuhan's father, whose powers she had crippled and left in the RV, and her mother, who had been in a vegetative state for years. And then there was the ordinary human Yi Shuhan standing before her with teary eyes. What if they were bullied later on?
What if someone tried to force a sale on them again?
What if the situation became unstable and humans started fighting amongst themselves for territory? Could the three of them, all ordinary people, protect themselves?
Chi Junluo wavered even more. She didn't know if it was her protective instincts acting up or some other inexplicable emotion, but she suddenly felt uneasy about leaving just like this.
To just leave, without a care in the world—she couldn't do it.
It was just like before she came to this world. When she had tried to take her own life, she had unfortunately killed an innocent person. If she were the kind of heartless, uncaring person, she wouldn't have felt any guilt, let alone agreed to the Heavenly Dao's mission to collect its power and soul fragments…
Looking at Yi Shuhan's reddened eyes, Chi Junluo's heart softened.
She had to form a contract with the fragment, right? She could stay and keep her company for a while longer. At least until humanity was stable again. She could leave then, couldn't she?
She could deepen their bond during that time. Wouldn't that work out well too?
The Heavenly Dao was silent, neither agreeing nor objecting.
Heavenly Dao?
Chi Junluo tried to negotiate in her sea of consciousness.
Yi Shuhan watched Chi Junluo quietly, waiting nervously for the final verdict.
"It's not impossible to stay," the Heavenly Dao said, its usual casual posture replaced by a formal one as it sat upright in her sea of consciousness. Its blurry face somehow conveyed a hint of seriousness. "But staying behind comes with a price."
"What price?" Chi Junluo asked.
"The price of memory," the Heavenly Dao said slowly. Chi Junluo was a little unaccustomed to this serious, non-trolling Heavenly Dao.
"You will leave a part of your divine sense in this world until the day you wish to leave. This Deity will still take your soul's true self away. The divine sense you leave behind will essentially form a parallel timeline here. This timeline will not run concurrently with your soul. Therefore, when your divine sense returns to your main body, you will experience memory confusion, or even memory loss. Even so, do you still choose to stay?" the Heavenly Dao explained, finally adding, "There are many more fragments waiting for you to form contracts with. This Deity cannot be certain if you will leave a wisp of divine sense in every world to change the final outcome on the line of fate. When the parallel worlds end and your divine sense returns, it may cause a series of negative effects. Even so, are you still going to make this decision? Your being will be split into piece after piece, you know."
Chi Junluo felt the Heavenly Dao was being a bit alarmist. Before, it had said she couldn't break character or change the ending in each world, but now it was changing its tune and talking about parallel worlds. She had a feeling this Heavenly Dao was still hiding something from her, but that wasn't important right now. There would be plenty of time to think about it later. "I've made up my mind. I choose to stay."
The Heavenly Dao looked Chi Junluo up and down, noticed the faint golden pattern on her left wrist, and nodded. "Then This Deity will take your soul and go on ahead. See you in the next world."
As soon as it finished speaking, Chi Junluo felt a lightness in her body. When she tried to probe her sea of consciousness again, it was completely empty.
The Heavenly Dao was really gone.
There was no time to dwell on it. Chi Junluo refocused her attention. The little white flower heroine, Yi Shuhan, was looking at her expectantly. Chi Junluo suddenly put the "Hope" reagent away and said to Yi Shuhan, "Don't call me Sister Chi anymore."
Yi Shuhan: ???
"Just call me Chi Junluo from now on. Come here, I'll take you away." Chi Junluo looked at Yi Shuhan, her eyes filled with a smile.
Under the nervous gazes of the ability users on the watchtower, Yi Shuhan ran towards Chi Junluo in a few quick steps. To everyone's astonishment, Chi Junluo swept Yi Shuhan's petite body up in a princess carry, then suddenly leaped into the air and flew into the distance. Yi Shuhan wrapped her arms around Chi Junluo's neck and let out a soft laugh. The ethereal feeling that Chi Junluo had exuded earlier, as if she were about to dissipate into the world, was now gone. Chi Junluo was willing to stay by her side.
This was wonderful.
The zombies outside H City Base retreated like a receding tide. Taken along with them was the RV Chi Junluo had driven there.
In the sky, Yi Shuhan gently buried her head in Chi Junluo's chest, greedily breathing in her scent. This feeling of security was something she never wanted to let go of. She wanted to hold on even tighter!
This was a small to medium-sized base in a remote southwestern region. "High-level ability user" Chi Junluo had traveled over mountains and rivers with Yi Shuhan and the RV to find a suitable place to settle down.
The base didn't have many high-level ability users. To curry favor with Chi Junluo, the base leader allocated two villas in the district on the mountain behind the base for Chi Junluo's group of four to live in.
Yes, four people. After leaving H City Base, Chi Junluo had landed with Yi Shuhan next to the RV, which had been carried out by several high-level zombies.
With an encouraging look from Chi Junluo, Yi Shuhan reached out and opened the vehicle's door.
On the bed inside the RV, a beautiful, pale-faced woman was gently holding the hand of a man lying on the bed. The haggard-looking man was her father, which meant this woman was…
A look of disbelief flickered in Yi Shuhan's eyes. The woman heard the door open and looked up. Seeing Yi Shuhan, a trace of confusion crossed her eyes. Before the woman could speak, Yi Shuhan asked in a trembling voice, "Are you… Ms. Shu Mingqing?"
The woman nodded hesitantly. Yi Shuhan couldn't hold back a sob. "Mom…"
Mother and daughter were reunited. Shu Mingqing still found it hard to believe. She had slept for so many years, and her daughter was already so grown up.
After getting out of the RV, Yi Shuhan threw herself into Chi Junluo's arms, hugging her tightly. Chi Junluo stroked the trembling girl's back, then carried her back onto the vehicle and settled her down, telling her to spend more time with her mother. Closing the door, Chi Junluo went to the driver's cabin, opened the door, started the engine, and drove towards the southwest.
Along the way, Yi Shuhan's father, Yi Mingchang, woke up.
His memory stopped at the moment Chi Junluo drained his ability, right beside his wife.
He opened his eyes to see a low ceiling above him. He was lying on a comfortable single bed, and he could hear the voices of two women talking.
He turned his head and came face to face with Yi Shuhan, who was laughing and chatting with his wife.
Yi Mingchang: …
Yi Shuhan: …
For a moment, the atmosphere was terrifyingly awkward. Shu Mingqing had been happily chatting with the daughter she hadn't seen in years when the conversation suddenly stopped. She looked at her husband, confused. The atmosphere between these two was not right. Shu Mingqing immediately guessed that during the years she was unconscious, many unpleasant things might have happened between father and daughter.
Shu Mingqing pursed her lips and gently took Yi Shuhan's hand, sitting quietly in the vehicle without saying another word. She had to find a chance to figure out what had happened.
The four of them soon settled into the villa district. Shu Mingqing had been asleep for years and had been well-protected in the RV, so she had never seen a zombie and had no idea what had happened to the world. How could the country be gone, and what was this base they had come to???
Naturally, neither Yi Mingchang nor Yi Shuhan wanted her to know anything. The two, whose relationship had hit rock bottom, did their best to put on a show, creating a warm family atmosphere.
Shu Mingqing was sharp and naturally noticed something was off, but she couldn't find any cracks in their facade. Moreover, she discovered that her daughter's feelings for her savior, Chi Junluo, seemed to be not so simple.
After moving into the villa district, there were more than enough rooms for everyone. Yi Mingchang and Shu Mingqing, being a couple, naturally took the master bedroom. When Yi Shuhan watched Chi Junluo choose an empty room on the second floor and then assign her to another, she couldn't help but pout in dissatisfaction. "I want to live next to you!"
Chi Junluo turned to look at her, puzzled. "But that room gets better light, and it has sunlight during the day…"
She trailed off as she looked into Yi Shuhan's watery eyes. She couldn't continue. "Alright. You can have this one."
Chi Junluo thought that would be the end of it. But late at night, just as she was about to read a book to pass the time she didn't need for rest, she heard a knock on the door.
When she opened it, Yi Shuhan was standing there in an oversized T-shirt, her eyes as soft as a drenched little rabbit's. She said, "Chi Junluo, I want to sleep with you. Can I?"
Chi Junluo didn't suspect anything. She just felt that ever since she carried her away that day, this little one had become exceptionally clingy. She always wanted hugs, to be lifted up, and now she wanted to sleep together.
She stepped aside to let Yi Shuhan into the room and closed the door. When she turned around, Yi Shuhan was already sitting on the large bed, patting the empty space beside her, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Chi Chi! Hurry up and come to bed!"
Chi Junluo: ??? When did I become Chi Chi???
Since Yi Shuhan was here, reading with the light on would disturb her rest. So, she turned off the light and climbed into bed as well.
The moment she lay down, a soft body snuggled up to her in the darkness. Two slender arms wrapped around her. Chi Junluo put her arm around the person in her embrace. Suddenly, she felt a moist touch on the corner of her lips. Yi Shuhan quickly lowered her head and burrowed into Chi Junluo's arms. "Good night, Chi Chi."
"Good night, Shuhan." Chi Junluo's mind was a bit fuzzy. Great, now on top of hugs and being lifted up, there were kisses too.
What was with this little clingy thing lately???
Daylight arrived quietly. Perhaps because she was sleeping in Chi Junluo's arms, Yi Shuhan slept exceptionally well. The sun was high in the sky before she woke up in Chi Junluo's embrace. Chi Junluo couldn't sleep and had meditated all night. She only released her hold when the fluffy head in her arms stirred and woke up.
Yi Shuhan's parents woke up early. After making some breakfast in the villa, they thought about going upstairs to wake them up, only to see the two of them coming out of the same room. Shu Mingqing was a little surprised. She made a mental note and called them downstairs for breakfast.
After breakfast, Chi Junluo and Yi Shuhan were heading out to lead a team to gather supplies. After all, they were living in such a nice house in the base and receiving daily food supplies. Helping the base collect resources was something they could easily do, so they accepted the task. Ignoring the base leader's grateful gaze, the two led the small team out.
Using her mental power, she drove the zombies out of the supermarket. Watching the zombies pour out of the supermarket like a tide, the team members' eyes widened in amazement, exclaiming how magical it was.
Once they confirmed there were no more zombies, the two of them entered the supermarket first. The team members immediately followed, splitting up to scavenge for supplies. This supermarket had been occupied by zombies for so long, and the people from the base had been eyeing it greedily but couldn't get to it. Now, they could finally search it to their hearts' content!
Chi Junluo and Yi Shuhan pushed a shopping cart towards the second floor. The aisles between the shelves were wide, and the two walked side by side. Yi Shuhan had no interest in searching for supplies. She turned her head to look at the woman beside her, a dark glint flashing in her eyes.
Suddenly, Chi Junluo's left hand was taken. Chi Junluo stopped and turned her head in confusion. ???
Yi Shuhan looked into her pale blue eyes and blinked. "I want to hold your hand forever."
Chi Junluo smiled at her words and gently squeezed their joined hands. "Then let's go for a walk every day." "Okay."
Chi Junluo was pushing the cart with her other hand and was about to move forward when her left hand was pulled back. Yi Shuhan stood still.
"Shuhan, what's wrong?" Chi Junluo asked with concern.
Yi Shuhan gently tugged Chi Junluo's hand again. "Chi Chi, will you always be with me?"
"I will," Chi Junluo nodded.
"No matter what happens, you can't leave me, okay~" Yi Shuhan stared intently into Chi Junluo's eyes and took a step forward.
"Shuhan, since I decided to stay, I won't leave you," Chi Junluo replied.
Yi Shuhan didn't catch the meaning behind "stay." She took another step forward, pressing close to Chi Junluo's body. "You can't go back on your word." With that, she stood on her tiptoes and gently kissed Chi Junluo's lips.
In that moment, Chi Junluo's mind went blank. The soft sensation exploded in her mind. She didn't push Yi Shuhan away. Instead, after two seconds, she finally reacted, reaching out to gently cup the back of Yi Shuhan's head and deepening the kiss.
She accepts me!
Receiving a response, Yi Shuhan's heart leaped with joy. She had been worried that Chi Junluo would push her away, but she never expected that she also had feelings for her!
After they finished gathering supplies and hauled them back in the vehicle, it was already evening. The base was developing well, brightly lit with lights. The two returned to the villa hand in hand. Shu Mingqing had already prepared dinner. Over the course of the day, she had gotten a rough idea of the current state of the world from her husband and was worried about her daughter and their savior being out. That was, until she saw them return, holding hands intimately.
The sweetness and excitement shining in Yi Shuhan's eyes couldn't be faked. Shu Mingqing sighed. Children have their own paths to walk. As long as she was happy, that was all that mattered. Their savior seemed like a trustworthy person, and she was powerful. In this chaotic world, Yi Shuhan had found a place to belong.
After dinner, Yi Shuhan eagerly pulled Chi Junluo upstairs, pattering into the room and locking the door.
Chi: …
Shu: …
Shu Mingqing smiled and shook her head, letting the kids have their fun. She looked at the still somewhat haggard Yi Mingchang and decided to work on their relationship later.
Upstairs, after they both showered, Yi Shuhan pulled Chi Junluo down onto the soft, large bed. Looking up at Chi Junluo above her, a sly glint appeared in her eyes.
The spring night was short, but the days to come were long.
Get instant access to all the chapters now.
Comments
Post a Comment