Xue Zhen carried Su Jingxuan on his back and did not immediately join his brothers. Instead, he left the Long Island base directly and found an uninhabited house outside to rest.
At this moment, returning to the base was not an option as it was temporarily inaccessible. With Bian Yujie taken captive, given Bian Zhaokun’s protective nature toward his son, the base was undoubtedly in chaos, and Xue Zhen decided it was best to wait until the commotion died down.
Su Jingxuan wasn’t in a hurry to go back either. Besides, he couldn’t return at the moment, as what he did today wasn’t just about finding Xue Zhen.
He never liked wasting time, and considering the tragic outcome for the Bian family in the original plot, besides the retaliation the protagonist faced, internal chaos played a significant role. It was time to clean up these parasites.
Xue Zhen chose a secluded suburban villa as a temporary residence. After three years of post-apocalyptic devastation, there were few living beings outside the base other than zombies and occasional survivors collecting resources.
The villa was empty, just like everywhere else outside the base, except for the dust and signs of scavenging.
Since his lover and himself were now enemies with opposing positions, the previous approach of actively getting close might not work. Su Jingxuan didn’t know Xue Zhen’s personality well, so he pretended to be unconscious and contemplated along the way.
Upon reaching the villa, Xue Zhen laid the unconscious Su Jingxuan on the sofa in the living room. He tore a bedsheet and bound him before transforming back into a human. He then covered his face with a toy mask before returning to the villa.
Although the wolf form had formidable combat abilities, the human form was more convenient for other tasks, such as tending to injuries.
When Xue Zhen returned as a human, Su Jingxuan was still unconscious. The young man lay quietly on the sofa, his face turned to the side, long eyelashes trembling, and his complexion not looking good, with a slight frown.
Xue Zhen’s usually tough heart softened for a moment. When he uncovered Su Jingxuan’s clothes to inspect the injuries, he felt uncomfortable. The injuries weren’t severe, just bruises from the fall, but the original owner of this body had delicate skin and was well-cared-for. The entire back was bruised, looking gruesome.
Xue Zhen’s heart tightened as he applied ointment to his hands and gently blew on the injuries, displaying a delicate and gentle side that he had never shown before.
Fortunately, there was no one else around. If his brothers saw him, they would surely tease him endlessly.
Su Jingxuan enjoyed this gentleness with closed eyes, finally feeling relieved. At the same time, he was reassured. Despite their current opposing positions, Xue Zhen treated him kindly, indicating that the world’s rules did not affect his feelings for his lover.
When Xue Zhen finished applying the medicine, Su Jingxuan woke up.
“Who are you?” He opened his eyes, seemingly calm but actually staring at Xue Zhen with a mix of panic and fear. His round peach blossom eyes were nervously gleaming.
After seeing Su Jingxuan’s reaction, Xue Zhen understood that, despite his previous flamboyance and dominance in the arena, he was just a teenager. In such moments, he knew fear.
“Don’t be nervous. I won’t kill you. I just want to know where Shu Wenze is.” After consoling him in a tone he didn’t know could be so gentle, Xue Zhen went straight to the purpose of taking him away today.
In the past, Shu Wenze’s brother had saved him from zombie attacks and died, leaving a dying request. Regardless of how troublesome Shu Wenze had become later, owing his brother a life was something Xue Zhen couldn’t forget.
Su Jingxuan remained silent. Although he could sense Xue Zhen’s concern for the protagonist’s life and death, he couldn’t help but feel jealous.
Turning his head to the side in silence, he secretly cursed the damn world rules that made his lover the protagonist. Xue Zhen, unaware of his thoughts, treated him as a rebellious hostage.
“Don’t forget your current situation. I can kill you at any time. Tell me, where is Shu Wenze held captive?” Xue Zhen directly threatened by grabbing Su Jingxuan’s chin.
However, his eyes were fixated on those rosy lips. His fingers rubbed against them, tender and soft, just as good as he imagined, making him reluctant to move his hand away.
Su Jingxuan pretended to resist the intimate contact but continued the act, struggling while displaying anger and arrogance.
“Let go of your claws. Who allowed you to touch this young master? I don’t know who Shu Wenze is, but let me tell you, if you dare harm a hair on this young master, my father will definitely kill you and feed you to the zombies when he finds you.”
He portrayed the perfect image of a stubborn and arrogant young master.
Naturally, Xue Zhen knew he wouldn’t easily talk. He pointed a gun at his head, coldly threatening, “If you don’t talk now, you’ll die.”
Though it seemed like a threat, Xue Zhen hadn’t even released the safety on the gun, and there was no killing intent about him. It was evidently an empty threat.
However, Su Jingxuan couldn’t see it, and he felt a bit uneasy. This guy had crossed the line, daring to point a gun at his head.
Xue Zhen continued to escalate the situation, moving the gun a bit closer to intimidate him. “Speak or challenge my patience.”
It looked as though he might actually shoot if Su Jingxuan didn’t talk.
Although Xue Zhen wore a mask that covered his face, his well-built physique, developed through years of training, exuded a dominating presence, making those without special psychological training easily intimidated.
Su Jingxuan wasn’t afraid, but he felt a surge of jealousy. With his pretty peach blossom eyes fixed on Xue Zhen, he said, “Speak, but you have to untie me first.”
Xue Zhen remained silent, clearly hesitating. He had experienced the young man’s skills before, and untying him would be troublesome if he resisted.
“If I had the ability to resist, you wouldn’t have captured me here. Hurry up and release me; my hands hurt.”
Seeing his hesitation, Su Jingxuan put away his show of resistance and adopted a look of distress and stubbornness. His eyes were red, conveying both distress and defiance, attempting to persuade and complain.
Xue Zhen stared at him, glancing at the bruised wrists and ankles where he was bound. The young man’s delicate skin indeed had bruises, making him appear like a fragile porcelain doll.
Even though he knew it was likely an act, people who enjoyed the brutal spectacle of the arena wouldn’t be this fragile. Nevertheless, he found himself softening at the pitiful appearance.
With a sigh, Xue Zhen gave in and untied him. “You better not play tricks. Tell me about Shu Wenze’s whereabouts, and I’ll let you go.”
Although the restraints were removed, Xue Zhen didn’t lower the gun. He knew this young man was no fragile doll.
But Su Jingxuan, catching sight of the gun in his hand without the safety engaged, couldn’t help but smirk.
“In the underground laboratory. But you won’t find it, and even if you do, you can’t get in. It’s rigged with explosives. Without the key, entering the lab will trigger the explosion. So, capturing me is useless.”
Su Jingxuan raised his chin defiantly, appearing like a proud little rooster with its tail feathers raised. If they wanted to save Shu Wenze, knowing the location without the key was a futile effort.
Xue Zhen remained serious. “What do you want with Shu Wenze?”
“If you’re his friend, shouldn’t you know why we captured him?”
Su Jingxuan looked at him with a puzzled and suspicious expression.
Xue Zhen remained silent. He indeed didn’t know, and it was strange that the Bian father and son had gone to such lengths to capture Shu Wenze, an ordinary person.
“Tell me everything you know,” Xue Zhen threatened, increasing the pressure of the gun against Su Jingxuan’s temple.
The gun on his temple felt ice-cold, as if it could take his life at any moment. Su Jingxuan mentally noted this down, planning to settle the score with this jerk later.
He lowered his head under the eaves, showing a resentful expression.
“Shu Wenze wasn’t captured by us. Someone sold him to my father. The person who sold him claimed he had the ability to cure zombies. When my dad turned into a zombie, we just wanted him to cure my dad. But he stubbornly refused, despite threats and enticements, so we had to lock him up in the lab for research.”
With this revelation, Xue Zhen’s expression became even more serious. To his knowledge, Shu Wenze was just an ordinary person, lacking any supernatural abilities. However, the young man’s demeanor didn’t seem like he was lying. Otherwise, why would Bian Zhaokun want to capture Shu Wenze?
Various questions surfaced in Xue Zhen’s mind, but he decided to temporarily set them aside and focus on rescuing Shu Wenze first.
“Where is the key to the lab?”
“I don’t know about that, but my dad only wanted him to save my dad. He wouldn’t want him dead.”
After Su Jingxuan spoke, he rubbed his bruised wrists. “I’ve said what I know. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. Can you let me go now?”
“No.”
Xue Zhen’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing this word, decisively refusing.
“You’re not keeping your word,” Su Jingxuan complained with teary eyes.
Xue Zhen remained cold and silent. He simply didn’t want to let him go.
Seeing the young man’s tearful eyes, Xue Zhen felt a twinge of guilt. However, he resolutely picked up the cloth again, re-tied him, and placed him on the bed in the villa’s room, instructing him to stay put. Only then did he feel assured enough to leave and join his brothers.
After he had been away for a considerable amount of time, Su Jingxuan finally shook off the restraints, rubbed his wrists, and followed after him.
Revenge is a dish best served cold, especially when dealing with a man.
