Published: February 8, 2025
“Thank you to Yixi and A Hai for each contributing 13,000 starting coins, ha! And thanks to the other brothers too!”
If Yang Yixi and Mao Ying were both telling the truth, then their thoughts were understandable.
In a city closed off with corpses of trees everywhere, it was no different from any other part of the world. Living underground like rats, one could easily be turned into a mindless zombie at any moment. Not wanting to leave would indeed be abnormal.
Ye Zhongming felt a sense of relief now. His experiences during the apocalypse had made him wary of trusting others easily. At least these two had given him the most reasonable explanation for their previous behaviors and good attitudes.
Looking at their hopeful faces, Ye Zhongming felt a bit reluctant to disappoint them. He glanced at the still-damp water stains on the ground and shook his head, saying, “The way I came in isn’t suitable for you.”
Yang Yixi and his girlfriend exchanged glances, revealing disappointment on their faces.
“However…”
The change in tone caused their heads, which had drooped a bit, to rise again.
“However, there is a way out. When I leave, I can take you with me!”
If anyone else had said this, Yang Yixi and Mao Ying would definitely not have believed it. As far as they knew, even the strongest survivors in Lin City could not escape from here.
But Ye Zhongming had clearly come in from the outside, so his words carried a lot of weight.
Of course, Yang Yixi and Mao Ying wouldn’t press for more details. Although their mental states had changed little due to the closed environment, they had deeply understood what the apocalypse was, knowing everyone had their secrets. Pursuing those secrets recklessly could turn them into enemies.
Though they hadn’t received the answer they most wanted, there was now a glimmer of hope, and both were still happy.
At that moment, some sounds came from outside, and shortly after, footsteps approached the room.
“Yixi, Yixi? Are you in there? I heard from the guards that you returned.”
A male voice called out, knocking on the door.
“It’s A Hai.”
Yang Yixi signaled to Ye Zhongming and then opened the door of the simple room, revealing a face with a hint of a smile. However, when this face saw there were outsiders in the room, it showed obvious surprise.
“This is Ye Zhongming, a survivor we just met on the surface. And this is A Hai, a good friend of mine and Xiao Ying’s. We’ve known each other since before the apocalypse began.”
Ye Zhongming and A Hai nodded at each other, but Ye Zhongming could clearly see a hint of suspicion in A Hai’s expression. However, he felt too polite to ask questions in front of Ye Zhongming.
“Is there something going on?”
Yang Yixi glanced at the dark passageway of the air raid shelter and asked.
“The boss called us over. It seems there are a few things he wants to discuss with everyone, and he wants us all to go.”
“Okay.”
After Yang Yixi agreed, he hesitated for a moment, and Ye Zhongming immediately said, “You guys go ahead. If there are no objections, can I wander around here by myself?”
The three of them quickly nodded, saying it was fine but told him not to go too far and to avoid the storage area. They would let everyone accept Ye Zhongming’s presence once they had spoken with the boss.
Watching the three of them walk away, Ye Zhongming looked around and headed in a certain direction.
With his keen senses, he felt that this camp, transformed from an air raid shelter, housed many people. However, it was evident that not everyone was qualified to be summoned by the boss like Yang Yixi and the others.
His equipment had been slightly damaged during the intense battles upon entering Linhai. After ensuring his safety, he placed them in the Treasure-Holding Gourd for repairs. The green grade of the Thousand Leaf Scale Armor had just reached the highest level of repair.
Right now, Ye Zhongming was simply dressed in outdoor gear and appeared somewhat dirty due to crawling through tunnels, making him look no different from the apocalypse survivors.