The heartbeat resonated like a drumbeat in his chest.
Zong Lin thought, how could anyone refuse such intimate closeness and a request filled with trust from their beloved?
“Of course,” he said, his voice slightly hoarse.
Shen Jie smiled happily.
Zong Lin’s grip around his waist tightened slightly, bringing their bodies closer together. The warmth of Shen Jie’s chest transferred into his body, and his strong heartbeat resonated with Zong Lin’s own.
He felt his blood rushing faster, coursing through his limbs and whole body, making him feel more alive than ever.
Shen Jie couldn’t resist and tilted his head to touch Zong Lin’s lips.
Zong Lin instinctively hugged him back and returned the kiss.
Being partners for seven years, they had kissed many times before.
The first kiss was on the thirtieth day after Shen Jie suggested they try dating.
At that time, he had taken a rare long break due to his injuries.
/—-
Though it was a long break, he didn’t have many friends in the city, mostly participants of the “Guardian Program,” the original members of the “Dawn” team. They were more like comrades than friends. Most of them would stay in the city briefly due to injuries and then return to the wilderness once they recovered.
They were weapons that never rest; to fully stop and rest, they had to wait until the day they were completely destroyed.
Due to the instability of the “Soul” attack-type ability, even after training and gaining good control over it, he still habitually kept his distance from the world of ordinary people.
So, most of the time during his vacation, Zong Lin’s only activity was sitting in the temporary accommodation provided by the Ability Center and daydreaming.
He didn’t settle down in the city. Even though he had earned many contribution points, enough to buy any building in the outer city residential area.
The city favored high-level ability users greatly. The temporary accommodations provided by the Ability Center were spacious, with over two thousand square meters. Most imaginable facilities were fully equipped here. There was even a professional chef for cooking and various types of door-to-door services.
In reality, he knew that the convenient facilities and services were also a hint from the city that they didn’t want them to move around the city extensively.
After all, the corruption of abilities would inevitably attract the mist, and as guardians, they always bored the mark of danger.
Shen Jie was the first ordinary person to break into his world.
A soft, fragile ordinary person.
Seemingly easy to be harmed, yet as if with just a slight reach, could be gathered into his arms for complete protection.
But at the most critical moment, amidst the vast and silent crowd, this person came to him, reaching out a hand.
On the seventh day of agreeing to Shen Jie’s suggestion to try dating, they met for dinner at a restaurant. After eating, they parted ways at the intersection. He watched as the other walked away.
As he crossed the street, the red light turned green, and Shen Jie’s slender figure merged into the city’s hazy lights.
Suddenly, he felt that the figure ahead exuded a sense of seclusion and loneliness, as if isolated from the world.
Suddenly, a bright red sports car came speeding from a distance, driven by a young man with red hair and a bright red leather jacket. Probably intoxicated, he didn’t slow down even at the green light, roaring like a flame in the darkness of the night.
However, Shen Jie seemed completely unaware, continuing to walk forward.
Moving faster than his consciousness, he had already teleported behind the other, grabbing their hand and pulling them into his embrace.
The red sports car whizzed past them.
“Don’t daydream while crossing the road,” he said in a deep voice, feeling the slender and soft hand he held.
—Too soft.
Rarely having contact with ordinary people before, he couldn’t fully control his strength in the urgency of the moment, and he distinctly heard the crunch of bones being squeezed.
Feeling somewhat remorseful, he quickly released the person, but Shen Jie reached back and held his hand.
“Thank you,” Shen Jie said.
That was their first time holding hands.
During the first month of their dating, he took Shen Jie to see a movie.
As his vacation time was ending, he was about to head back to the wilderness to continue his mission of clearing the mist.
It had been nearly thirty years since the apocalypse began, yet the mist continued to spread, engulfing more and more areas. This ongoing catastrophe seemed to have no end in sight.
If left unchecked, the infected areas would continue to expand, with aliens emerging from the mist incessantly, making the task of clearing it increasingly difficult, eventually threatening the city itself.
Originally, this was his duty, and it was the trajectory his life had been fixed upon.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
However, for some reason, this time before his departure, he suddenly felt a bit reluctant to leave the city.
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As the midnight hours returned in his dreams, the image of his partner became more and more frequent. Upon waking in the morning, while taking a cold shower, he couldn’t help but anticipate the next meeting.
Never before had he felt such anticipation for meeting someone.
The stronger the anticipation grew, the harder it became to inflict pain.
He was a guardian of the city, and completing cleansing missions was his duty.
But going on a mission meant long periods of separation.
In the mist, there was no signal on his phone, leaving him without any news of life or death.
During times when his lover felt lonely and isolated, he couldn’t be there to accompany them. And in moments of danger, he couldn’t rush back in time.
Even if one day he died in the wilderness or in a nitrogen chamber, it wouldn’t be surprising.
Zong Lin thought.
Perhaps he should say goodbye.
The movie began.
The movie being screened was a well-known pre-apocalypse romance.
Shen Jie was deeply engrossed in watching it.
As he watched Shen Jie’s profile, serious and focused, reluctance felt like an impenetrable barrier. Even though his rational side urged him to act this way, his emotions held him back.
Until Shen Jie turned to him, blinked his left eye, and asked, “Want to try it?”
Try what?
Zong Lin was taken aback.
Only then did he notice the unfolding plot of the movie.
In the film, the young couple was deeply in love, embracing and kissing at the bow of a ship. The sea breeze gently blew, twilight enhancing the romantic ambiance, and the scene was incredibly captivating, accompanied by melodious music.
He didn’t reply, wanting to decline, but the words seemed to stick in his throat.
Shen Ji had already drawn closer.
“I really want to give it a try,” Shen Jie said.
Zong Lin felt his throat dry, scenes from midnight dreams suddenly flashing through his mind. Then, they transformed into the real-life image of Shen Jie’s face drawing closer, with eyes filled with expectation as he looked up at him.
He realized he couldn’t resist Shen Jie at all.
Knowing that Shen Jie didn’t like sitting close to strangers, he purposely chose seats in the last row, with no one around.
Shen Jie leaned in for a kiss.
Zong Lin dared not move.
Previously, even a slight hand squeeze resulted in the misalignment of Shen Jie’s bones, leaving visible bruises for days.
This time, he still feared losing control and harming Shen Jie.
“Mr. Zong,” the young man whispered against his lips, “If you stay completely still, you’ll seem quite silly, you know”
Is it silly?
Zong Lin felt his breath grow heavy, uncertain when it had happened. He restrained the rush of blood in his body, slowly raising his non-mutated left hand and gently pressed it against the back of Shen Jie’s head.
Then, he leaned down to kiss back.
In the dark movie theater, they kissed in the back row.
Both Zong Lin and Shen Jie were awkwardly excessive.
Without any experience, they relied solely on instinct to draw close.
Awkward collisions, tentative touches, and separations. Until it ended, they still hadn’t delved deeply. Yet, it left their heart rates racing uncontrollably.
The movie continued to play out scene by scene.
Shen Jie was someone who enjoyed learning and studying. As he watched the passionate couple on the screen, he absentmindedly rubbed his overly flushed lips, a result of Zong Lin’s inexperienced but eager kisses, lost in thought.
Zong Lin watched him ponder, finding it excessively adorable. All those rational farewell words he had thought of for so long were now thrown out the window. “Try again?” Shen Jie asked him after a moment. He replied, “Then… let’s try again.”
—-/
And now.
After seven years of trying, they were familiar enough with each other, knowing the sensations they desired.
They embraced under the tree.
Shen Jie kissed, and he kissed back.
Their lips and teeth met, hearts beating in sync. Following each other’s familiar rhythm, they danced between shallow and deep, exchanging breaths, restlessness, desires, and love.
The dangers within their domain didn’t allow them to be overly intimate, but the time of their kiss was still fulfilling.
As they parted, Zong breathed against the wetness on Shen Jie’s lips, whispering, “I’m sorry I’m late.”
He noticed the blood on Shen Jie’s body just now, guessing that Shen Jie had experienced many battles with the aliens.
He had never heard of exoskeletons that could change appearance, allowing ordinary people to have the strength to fight against aliens.
But Shen Jie didn’t want him to ask.
So he didn’t ask.
If Shen Jie wanted him to conceal something, he would. As long as Shen Jie was safe and sound, that was more important than anything else. However, when he saw the silver card turn into liquid and envelop his lover, only to reappear as the white-haired youth with red eyes before him, Zong Lin was still taken aback.
Zong Lin: “Xiao Jie…”
“Shh,” the youth raised his index finger to his lips, “I’m called Zong Lian.”
The youth’s voice was crisp and cold, his appearance familiar, which momentarily bewildered him. Zong Lin couldn’t help but wonder why his lover designed the exoskeleton to resemble this misleading appearance. And moreover… “Why are you called Zong Lian?” he asked.
Shen Jie chuckled, winked at him, and said, “I’ll tell you when we get home. For now, we need to figure out how to quickly deal with this mist and leave this place.”
Home.
“Alright,” Zong Lin pursed his lips and said, “I’ve already controlled the host body of the mist outside, the doctor involved in the pyramid scheme you mentioned. However, its life core is hidden within the mist. Without destroying it, we can’t completely eliminate it.”
“We don’t necessarily have to find it,” Shen Jie said, “As long as we rescue the remaining survivors, it’s the same.”
As long as they rescue all the survivors, Zong Lin can liberate his power without any reservations and eliminate Lin Ze and his domain together.
Zong Lin: “Do you know where the remaining survivors are?”
“Some guesses,” Shen Jie said.
After a moment of thought, Zong Lin said, “The people in the building just now are probably not survivors.”
“I know,” Shen Jie said, “They seem more like ‘beings’ created by the domain rather than survivors.”
“As for the real survivors,” he continued, “we’ll have to go and rescue them ourselves.”
Zong Lin looked at his lover in the form of a young man and felt quite peculiar.
Shen Jie, wearing the exoskeleton, seemed to lose some of his usual calmness and laziness, replaced by a sharp edge.
His demeanor was almost completely different from usual.
That was also why Zong Lin hadn’t recognized him at first.
Perhaps because at the beginning of their acquaintance, he accidentally lost control of his abilities and landed Shen Jie in the hospital, in his memory, Shen Jie had always been soft, in need of protection.
Shen Jie was usually gentle and soft, especially at home, where he liked to cuddle in his arms like a lazy cat.
He couldn’t imagine what his lover would look like when killing the aliens.
Shen Jie looked ahead.
They were now in a forest beside the main road extending from the hospital ward, with two forks not far ahead, one to the left and one to the right.
Zhang Shihe had just instructed him to leave from the left fork before sunset.
Recalling that earlier, in the pocket of the head nurse’s body upstairs, there was a key that could open the hospital gate and leave the mist.
Zhang Shihe’s words should be correct.
The left fork was probably the safest way to leave this forest.
But it was not where the survivors were.
The forest was too calm. So calm it was eerie.
The laughter and joy from the ward and the hellish scenes from the hospital upstairs were completely out of sync, as if two worlds were separated.
According to Lin Ze’s previous state of madness, his domain core would certainly not be as harmonious as this; there had to be deeper dangers hidden here.
“Let’s go check the right fork first,” he suggested.
Zong Lin agreed with his assessment. “Okay.”
So, the two of them headed towards the right fork.
Zong Lin walked slightly behind Shen Jie.
This position allowed him to easily pull Shen Jie into his embrace to protect him at any time and place.
Whatever might be in the mist, since he was already here, he wouldn’t let Shen Jie have any chance of getting hurt again.
Shen Jie looked up at the sun in the sky.
Compared to when they left the Inpatient Department just now, the sun overhead had already slanted significantly to the west, about one-sixth of a full circle.
When converted proportionally into time, it was two hours.
But their conversation and kissing just now lasted no more than ten minutes at most.
Of course, the “sun” here was definitely different from the sun in the real world.
He realized as soon as he arrived here that the sky was actually composed of countless luminous screens creating a false image.
In other words, it was artificially controllable.
Something had sped up the movement of the sun.
And the faster the sun set, the earlier the night would come.
According to Zhang Shihe’s reminder, the “night” here was dangerous, the mist would become dense, making it impossible to discern directions.
So, was someone trying to prevent them from leaving here?
As he pondered, they had already reached the end of the right fork illuminated by the sunlight.
A thick fog lay ahead.
“There could be danger,” Zong Lin whispered, taking his hand.
“Mm,” Shen Jie replied, feeling a slight itch at his fingertips from his lover’s tender care.
They stepped into the fog.
The path meandered ahead continuously. After a hundred meters, they began to see piles of scattered bones around them, with more and more appearing as they ventured deeper. The strong smell of blood wafted over.
Soon, the fog that was so thick one couldn’t see one’s fingers dissipated.
They arrived at the summit of a desolate mountain.
As mentioned by Zhang Shihe, the endpoint of the fork was indeed a massive graveyard.
But rather than calling it a graveyard, it was more like a gigantic mass grave.
Inside the enormous pit were densely packed discarded bodies.
What made people uncomfortable was that many of these bodies, although some male and some female, had nearly identical faces, as if they were mass-produced goods. Moreover, their expressions at death were all eerily uniform, with wide-open eyes and very strange smiles on their faces.
At that moment, the sun disappeared behind the horizon, casting the night suddenly upon them.
On the mountain, chilling winds swept through.
Around them, there were rustling noises as if something was scurrying and crawling from all directions.
In the dense darkness, a cold light suddenly gleamed, and a sinister skeletal claw lunged from the side!
“Be careful!”
Zong Lin instantly became vigilant, his bone wings spreading out to protect his lover beside him.
But faster than his movements was Shen Jie.
In the young man’s hand appeared a long knife at some point. Its sharp blade was even more chilling than the skeletal claw.
Zong Lin had never seen such a beautifully fierce swordsmanship.
The blade gleamed like the moon, cutting through the night sky.
Ooooh, little demonstration haha
I love their love
+1, couldnt have said it better myself
+1
Oh! (●♡∀♡) Powerful Couple Activate! Omg the 2 together!! And Zong flabbergasted by his “delicate” partner. And Shen, it’s time to show your mighty and make your Zong take you heavier! Go Go Go!
Thanks for the chapter!! ꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡
Hahaha he wants to be taken harder badly
makes me wish this novel was smut lol
I know right 😄
Zhong lin will see that his lover is not as weak as he thought
Thank you for the chapters! ❤
Thanks for the update!
Lol Zong Lin definitely realized he didn’t just win he hit a whole @ss jackpot xD He’s gentle, delicate, and pretty but at the same time, he’s also fierce and can fight!!!