After that day, Ru Lan had accepted Ling Kai’s care to recover from his exhaustion after he consumed too much power. Ling Kai didn’t have the exact same power as Bi He that could regenerate damaged tissue and replenish energy instantly, because Bi He’s ability was one of a kind.
What Ling Kai had was using water ability to soothe the muscle ache. It took almost two months for Ru Lan to be able to recover fully. He was now doing push ups at the second floor, while Ling Kai was cooking food for him.
They were living under the same roof in this abandoned city infested with zombies. Though, of course, those zombies became somewhat of guards who patrolled around the area. Ling Kai would notice when a human had entered the city.
"Ru Lan, I made a mushroom soup for lunch," Ling Kai said. He watched Ru Lan who was in his one hundred push ups, barely breaking any sweat. Yunyu however, he was about to die.
[Uurgghh! System, I can’t do this!]
[Pupa: You have Ru Lan’s body, why are you complaining, do more push ups!]
[But my inner strength is not built for training! I’m a couch potato, not an athlete!]
After Ling Kai called him, he took a breather. He stopped his push up and stood, "I will take a bath first."
Ling Kai watched Ru Lan’s muscular back glistened with sweat as Ru Lan walked to his room to take a bath. His face started to get hot for no reason whenever he saw the topless Ru Lan.
Ru Lan was indeed a fine man. He was tall, handsome, and he had the right amount of muscle in his body. He had bronze skin, and he was clean for a human in the zombie apocalypse. Ling Kai felt his body was hot all over whenever he saw Ru Lan walking around, topless. Sometimes he walked around with only underwear. Completely disregarding Ling Kai’s presence.
Meanwhile, Yunyu was grieving while he took a bath.
[I have been trying to seduce him every day! Why is Ling Kai not seduced by me? Is he really impotent? He can’t set up a tent at all?]
[Pupa: Why are you so consistent about it anyway. I thought you like Bi He.]
[I mean, a man has to vent his frustration somehow, right?]
[Pupa: Wow, your love is so cheap.]
Pupa sighed. Ru Lan’s world setting prevented Yunyu from taking the initiative of sexual or romantic acts in this world. Ru Lan was never in love in his life, truthfully. He was dedicated to protect his people and his job.
Meanwhile, for Ling Kai, love was already foreign enough for him, let alone sexual attraction and sex. These two were in this deadlock and this had gone on and on for two months.
Because of this, Pupa had to listen to Yunyu’s grumbling everyday about how pitiful his life was, unable to get laid in this world.
[Maybe I should do more crunches, so my butt will be perkier. Ling Kai might be into that. I really want to know whether he can set up a big tent or not.]
[Pupa: If only you have this much dedication to fill the Breakmeter.]
Pupa started to get anxious about the meters. Because both were stuck since the last time the Fatemeter rose, with Breakmeter at 30% and Fatemeter at 70%.
[... the meters will definitely increase after I get laid, trust me, Pupa.]
[Pupa: Then, I guess we have to give up.]
Ru Lan finished his bath and went to the dining table. Ling was already sitting at the table with a chopstick and a bowl full of rice. Although Ling Kai didn’t need to eat, he still ate with Ru Lan to show an illusion that he too, was a human.
Ru Lan sat across the table and they ate in silence. Ling Kai kept glancing at Ru Lan who was eating comfortably. Although they had maintained an ambiguous air between them, Ling Kai knew that it was not for long.
Because Ru Lan would want to return back to Duran City after he was fully recovered.
And Ling Kai was not happy with it. He didn’t want this illusion of harmonious life between them to disappear. He wanted this to stay forever. Because Ru Lan would definitely return back to Bi He, and soon, Ling Kai would be forgotten again.
After ten years of surviving in this apocalypse alone, Ling Kai didn’t want to lose the most important person in his heart right now. That was why, if their separation was inevitable, at least Ling Kai wanted Ru Lan to know everything about him.
He hoped that Ru Lan would remember him as a fraction of his memory in his old days.
After they ate lunch, Ling Kai started the conversation, "Ru Lan, I want to tell you something."
"Hm?"
"I... I want to tell you about something I remember before I turned as a zombie," Ling Kai confessed. It caught Ru Lan’s attention immediately, "I mean, something I noticed once I gained my consciousness as a zombie."
"What is it then?" Ru Lan asked.
"When I gained my consciousness, I was in this house. I was on the bed with a gunshot wound on my chest. But I remember nothing except my name."
"I checked the room and saw many things that are foreign to me, numbers and words I don’t understand. But I see myself in a pic with people who might be my parents," Ling Kai explained, "I will show you."
Ru Lan followed Ling Kai to his room. Ling Kai clicked the door handle and opened the room.
It was a regular room, similar to Ru Lan’s current room. But it had a certain air of scholar. There were many books about biology stacked on the bookcase. Many research papers were scattered on the table, and there was a picture hanging on the wall. The picture of an unknown man, sitting side by side with two older couples, probably his parents.
"That is my original body..." Ling Kai commented, "I don’t know anything about my previous life, but when I woke up as a zombie, I was holding this..."
Ling Kai opened the drawer and there were two small vials. The vials were empty and had labels on it, ZX caution and ZX mutation. He gave the vials to Ru Lan, "Maybe you know about this."
Yunyu picked the empty vials from Ling Kai’s hand, then a sudden notification from Pupa rang in his head.
[Pupa: Ding! Hidden plot has been triggered! Ling Kai’s groundbreaking research!]