Su Mu skewered the cleaned wild chicken with a sharpened, clean tree branch. It turned slowly between the young man’s pale, dexterous fingers as he sprinkled on salt and took out seasonings from his backpack. As the skin gradually turned golden, the roasted chicken released a rich, mouthwatering aroma—just smelling it was enough to make one’s appetite surge.
The others borrowed Su Mu’s seasonings to coat the remaining two chickens, but no matter what they did, the smell couldn’t compare to his.
In Lu Shuangshuang’s eyes, Su Mu had always been a steel-straight guy. She hadn’t expected his cooking to be this good. A man who could cook carried a certain unique charm. Watching Su Mu’s refined side profile, Lu Shuangshuang couldn’t help touching her flushed cheeks.
She really liked him.
She really, really liked Mu Tou.
Su Mu himself found it strange as well. The meat he’d roasted before had only ever been edible. When had it started tasting this good?
After thinking it over briefly, he concluded that it was probably because of the seasonings.
Once all the chickens were done, Su Mu ignored the eager, longing looks around him. He tore off two large drumsticks and handed them to Su Wanmei and Lu Shuangshuang, then tore off a smaller piece and gave it to Luo Beiyao.
Seeing the slightly dazed, at-a-loss expression on his face, Su Mu said flatly, “If you’re not eating it, I’ll take it back.”
Luo Beiyao hurriedly took it, carefully biting into it. His gaze drifted to Su Mu’s refined side profile. Long lashes lowered, concealing the dark, unreadable look in his eyes.
After eating roast chicken and then chewing on dry rations, the already tasteless rations became even harder to swallow.
At night, someone had to stay on watch—otherwise, if zombies or mutated beasts attacked, the entire group could be wiped out. Three people took turns keeping watch, rotating day by day.
The first night, it was Su Mu, Wu Keke, and Su Yang. Zhou Haichen and Fang Yiyang, who had been driving all day, needed proper rest.
The cargo truck had spare bedding and straw mats to spread on the floor. With conditions limited, everyone squeezed together and made do.
Luo Beiyao gave up his spot to Su Wanmei so she could sleep more comfortably, then, without the slightest courtesy, walked over to Su Mu’s seat and sprawled down with his head resting on Su Mu’s thigh.
Su Mu swore that if the truck hadn’t already been packed full of people, he would’ve kicked him straight onto the floor.
They were fortunate—nothing happened throughout the night. Once Zhou Haichen and Fang Yiyang had rested, they resumed driving. Su Mu sat in the passenger seat, holding that level-two Zombie Emperor crystal core, slowly absorbing it. From the outside, it looked as though he were asleep.
In fact, being interrupted during crystal core absorption was something many people simply couldn’t handle—unless they were highly familiar with that level of crystal core.
Su Mu had lived in the apocalypse for many years. He was long familiar with the absorption methods and energy routes of low-level crystal cores. That was why he could be interrupted mid-cultivation and still find his way back without suffering the backlash others would.
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Everyone sat idly in the truck. With nothing else to do, they started chatting—mostly about survival in the apocalypse. After all, no matter who it was, what they cared about most was their own life and the lives of those close to them. In a world where even the air was polluted, everyone struggled to breathe—to keep living.
“There’s a gas station up ahead.”
Yan Yitao, the vision-type ability user, suddenly spoke, breaking the flow of conversation.
Everyone stopped talking and instinctively looked forward.
Sure enough, less than twenty minutes later, a medium-sized gas station came into view. Around it wandered more than a dozen zombies, nearly half of them still wearing uniforms.
Even while absorbing the crystal core, Su Mu could spare part of his attention to sense the surroundings. But he didn’t move at all, lowering his gaze and continuing to absorb the core.
Luo Beiyao didn’t get out either. He leaned lazily against his seat, lifting his dark lashes as his gaze slowly settled on the young man beside him.
He knew Su Mu carried many secrets.
He hoped that one day, Su Mu would tell him himself.
And that day—would be the moment they reconciled again.