Chapter 35: The Call – Gu Xu’s Doubts

Shadow was dead. The one who felt it most was Gu Xu; the one who felt most ashamed was Gu Pei.

If Gu Pei hadn’t asked, if Gu Xu hadn’t insisted, if they hadn’t gone to the city to pick up those students’ families, would Shadow have been scratched by a zombie and lost his life?

Maybe even without this, Shadow would have gotten hurt, maybe even died. But now that it had happened, Gu Xu would blame himself for the rest of his life.

Qiu Yun knew this too, but…

“I feel awful! Bro, how did it end up like this? Shadow, he…” He clutched his hair and slid down the wall, banging the back of his head against it.

Their team had been through so much together—missions, life and death. Over the years, some had died, some had left, and now only five remained, as close as brothers. Qiu Yun was the youngest and always looked after. Shadow, though quiet, was attentive and caring. Everyone was just as fond of him as the others. His death felt like someone had gouged out a piece of their hearts—pain beyond words.

Qiu Feng turned his head away.

The atmosphere in the supermarket was so heavy it was hard to breathe. No one spoke; everyone gritted their teeth, eyes red.

Suddenly, Gu Pei cried out, “Bro! Shadow’s still breathing! Come look!”

The others rushed over in shock, voices rising with surprise and joy, all talking at once. Gu Xu turned, delighted—only to find Bian Changxi was gone.

Not far away, by a shelf stacked with tissues, Lin Rongrong was awkwardly trying to comfort Bian Changxi, “Changxi, don’t mind those brutes. They’re being unreasonable. It’s not your fault someone died.”

Before she could finish, cheers of “He’s alive! He’s alive!” erupted from the other side. Lin Rongrong froze—he wasn’t dead? Then why did they act like he was? What a bunch of drama queens!

“Let’s see what they have to say for themselves now!” Lin Rongrong looked at Bian Changxi with satisfaction, but saw no sign of shock or happiness on her face. “Wait… you knew all along?”

Bian Changxi just quietly cupped the broken pieces of her jade bracelet in her hands. “I’d like to be alone for a while.”

“Oh, okay, I’ll leave you be.” Even a fool could see she was in a bad mood—after being blamed and having her bracelet break for no reason, who wouldn’t be upset?

Lin Rongrong stepped out, just as someone approached. She shone her flashlight warily—oh, it was that handsome team leader. She immediately put on a frosty face: “What, here to apologize now that he’s alive? No need. She’s not in the mood.”

Before Gu Xu could speak, Qiu Yun hurriedly said, “Miss Bian, I didn’t mean what I said earlier. I was just too worked up and said things I shouldn’t have. I—I’m an idiot. You can yell at me, or even hit me if you want.”

Lin Rongrong rolled her eyes—he sure was quick to apologize.

Bian Changxi came out, her voice calm: “No need to apologize. It’s understandable. Besides, I didn’t lose anything.” Then, turning to Gu Xu, she said, “Shadow’s fine now. The rest depends on when he wakes up. We’ll stay here for the night.”

Gu Xu saw how pale and exhausted she looked, too tired to say much. He swallowed his questions and nodded quickly. “We’ve cleared out all the zombies in this building, and the main entrance is blocked. We’ll take turns keeping watch tonight, so you can rest easy. There are some dangerous people downstairs, so don’t go down. We’ve left plenty of food upstairs—later we’ll cook something hot, you should eat too.”

Bian Changxi’s expression was indifferent; she nodded noncommittally. Gu Xu looked at her and said softly, “Miss Bian, I’m sorry. And… thank you.”

Bian Changxi gave a faint smile, accepting it.

Qiu Yun was truly remorseful, bustling about to make up for it. He brought over Bian Changxi and Lin Rongrong’s bags, plus lots of dried food, fruit, and several cases and buckets of bottled water. His eager-to-please attitude made even Lin Rongrong, who was still annoyed, break into a smile.

“This guy’s annoying, but at least he knows when he’s wrong. Still, he’s got a thick skin,” she muttered.

She looked through the food—mostly practical stuff like jerky, chicken legs, and sausages, with only a few cans of congee and bread, plus some gummies and chips. The fruit included a big Hami melon, some apples, oranges, and bananas—all fresh and unspoiled. Clearly, they’d grabbed all this after entering the supermarket.

She frowned. “Why bring so much water? We can’t possibly drink it all. Planning to take a bath?”

Bian Changxi was holding a bag full of sparkling crystal nuclei—the payment she’d agreed on with Gu Xu, nearly two hundred pieces, quite heavy. She glanced over. “Actually, we can take a bath.”

“That’s such a waste.”

“We can’t take it all with us anyway. Might as well use it.”

“How could—” Lin Rongrong suddenly understood. None of those men had a spatial ability, so with so much stuff in the supermarket, they might as well use it up. Unlike her, always thinking of saving things for later.

“When I came in earlier, I saw the mess on the second floor. So much food, just a bite taken and then tossed on the ground. It broke my heart. If they couldn’t finish it, they could’ve left it for others. What a waste.” Lin Rongrong grumbled quietly.

Sitting on a mountain of treasure but unable to take it with you—of course you’d splurge. Bian Changxi felt the same. She’d experienced long, desperate hunger, and knew how crushing it was to finally find a supermarket only to discover it was empty. That’s why she treasured food and never liked to clear out everything at once.

But honestly, Jiangcheng had fallen early and quickly. No matter how well things were preserved here, there wouldn’t be many people left to take them. If things got wasted, so be it.

“There’s everything we need here. I’m definitely taking a bath. Do as you like.” Bian Changxi handed five white nuclei to Lin Rongrong. “Half of a second-tier green nucleus.”

“I thought we were trading for information? I can’t accept this.”

“I never told you anything about crystal nuclei.” Bian Changxi waved her off, then grabbed her flashlight and went searching. Soon, she’d gathered everything she needed for a bath—shampoo, soap, and a full change of clothes, inside and out. There wasn’t much food on the third floor, but plenty of daily necessities. She headed for the restroom.

The restroom was filthy, but the staff lounge had a suitable one. She checked it out, grabbed two four-liter bottles of Nongfu Spring, and went in. As soon as she closed the door, she slid down against it, unable to hold back any longer.

So tired. So much pain. Every inch of her ached. If all her energy hadn’t been pouring into the jade bracelet, she might have burst like a balloon.

But why had the bracelet shattered? For a moment, she thought she’d lose her mind. Luckily, she’d quickly checked and found the farm space was still there, which calmed her down.

She raised her hand. On her left wrist was a faint, circular mark. She touched it, thought about entering the farm—and in the next instant, her vision brightened. She was inside the farm.

She opened her eyes wide. The farm seemed to have doubled in size—the land, the lawn, even the creek was wider and deeper. She took a deep breath; even the air felt fresher, and all her discomfort vanished. The sky above was bluer and higher, sunlight draping down like golden gauze, a gentle breeze bringing soothing coolness. It was like a paradise.

She turned and saw, at the edge of the black soil and shrouded in white mist, a small wooden house standing beside a warehouse. Even the house had appeared!

As the farm upgraded, a residence would appear—first a wooden house, then a brick house, then two stories, and finally a delicate little villa. In her spare time, she loved spending time in the villa—reading, drinking tea, cooking, sleeping. Not a hint of disturbance. She’d wake up and find only a few minutes had passed outside, as if she’d stolen another life out of thin air.

Thank you to shannee for the reward—much appreciated!

Qidian Chinese Network (www.qidian.com) welcomes all readers! The latest, fastest, and hottest serialized works are all on Qidian Originals! Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read."

"**Restarting the Farm at the End of the World**