"The landscapes of Bashan and Chushui are desolate; today, Sang Sang is going to die."

I was making my final prayers under the sunny skies of the south when a huge chunk of something soft plopped onto the floor in front of me.

I looked closely and saw a zombie head staring at me through the cold night of the north.

Hmm, Fu Yue actually brought me a gift when he came. He must still have feelings for me. If he was a bit more sincere, I wouldn’t mind a little undead romance with him.

"Zhen Tiantian, still kneeling and waiting for your little lover to save you?"

I immediately saw red. Fu Yue had been targeting me since we met, and now he’s slandering me for cheating on him. A zombie could be killed but not humiliated.

I gritted my teeth and slid forward, hands clasped together, and cleanly grasped Fu Yue’s leg:

"Boo hoo hoo, brother! I finally see you. They've been bullying me so terribly!"

Fu Yue flinched, hesitated, and frowned while staring at me. His lips slightly parted as if he was struggling with what to say.

But hesitation leads to failure, and I wasn’t about to give him a chance to speak now.

I raised my hand as if to wipe away tears, but secretly dipped my fingers in my saliva and smeared it at the corners of my eyes. Then, I looked up pitifully at Fu Yue:

"Ever since I turned into a zombie, I've been living in constant fear, hiding everywhere. Today, I was unfortunate enough to get caught by Xiao Xian and his group. They coveted my beauty. If it weren’t for my struggles, it would have been disastrous.

"You don’t know how happy I was to see you! But you kept bullying me and slandering me, boo hoo hoo..."

My acting was melodramatic with a touch of pretentiousness, relying on volume to enhance the crying scene.

The more I wailed, the better I got into the role. Just as I planned to cry a storm, Fu Yue coldly interrupted my acting dream:

"Stop pretending; I saw you smear saliva."

"...Zombies can’t secrete body fluids, and I’m genuinely sad, which doesn’t conflict with me smearing saliva."

"Zhen Tiantian, haven’t you grown up at all these days? Still so childish!"

"How am I childish! I’m a zombie dominating three adjacent districts with dozens of underlings at my command. I’m practically invincible!"

I proudly puffed my chest, hands on hips, brimming with arrogance.

Upon hearing this, Fu Yue stayed silent for a moment, then squinted at me with more determination and anger.

"Living in fear? Hiding everywhere? Do you ever tell the truth?"

Oops, I got carried away.

I obediently resumed a proper sitting posture.

Fu Yue seized the opportunity to regain control.

"If you’re not childish, why did you break up with me over a text message? What do you take me for, someone you pursue with all your might and discard at will?

"I should have just stayed in City A to continue my research. Coming back only brought me trouble."

"Then why did you come back now?"

I really didn’t like his tone, as if it was my fault he didn’t have a stable life in the research institute. I couldn’t help but retort.

"What do you think? Isn’t it because a certain fool in City D was waiting for me throwing a tantrum?"

Fu Yue dared to call me a fool; at that moment, I swore to myself I wouldn’t make up with him again.

"The person I like wants to break up with me. How could I not be anxious?"

I never expected Fu Yue, with a cool expression, to say the most lovable words in the most intense tone. I was stunned for a moment.

... He’s truly something, even devilishly handsome.

"You... after moving around so much, are you hungry? Why don't you stay here, and I'll find some wild vegetables for you to eat?"

Fu Yue shook his head in exasperation, prying my arms off his leg, and turned away in silence, intending to leave.

On instinct, I felt I couldn’t let Fu Yue leave just like that. I slid and clung to his leg again, making him stagger.

"Waaah, I'm sorry! I won't talk nonsense anymore! Brother, let’s make up!"

"...Weren’t you the one who cried and made a fuss to break up?"

"Boo hoo hoo... Brother, give me another chance."

"No more breaking up?"

I quickly and firmly shook my head, fearing Fu Yue would doubt my sincerity even for a second.

"What if you do it again?"

"I’ll give you my brain core to play with like a walnut."

Determined to roam the world, from now on, I will be a zombie who stands up even if hit by a truck, fighting for love.

"Hey, by the way, how did you four manage to beat seven people?"

"Ah, because of this?"

Fu Yue lifted his shirt; a silver pistol was tucked at his waist, the gun's body gleaming menacingly like a sword.

"Fu Yue, be honest with me; did you accidentally take the wrong path?"

"No, just everyone leaving City A received one for self-defense."

Fu Yue lowered his shirt, turned, knelt on one knee, and drew a dagger from his pant leg, slicing through the loosely tied climbing rope on me with a swish.

After we exited, I saw the once high-spirited young men now squatting on the ground, looking despondent. Hong Mao and others were vigilantly observing the surroundings with their guns, and there was a cloth bag on the ground beside them.

I craned my neck and saw the bag was full of brain cores Xiao Xian’s group had collected today.

No wonder they were downcast; turns out they had experienced the bitterness of being exploited during a work internship.

While I was rubbing my chin, reflecting on society’s wickedness, Fu Yue told the others to put away their guns and said it was a misunderstanding and that Xiao Xian and the college students could go.

"Hey, wait, take these with you."

"Don’t you need them?" Seeing Fu Yue pointing at the bag of brain cores, the seven skeptically questioned his intentions.

"Do you need them?" Fu Yue looked at Hong Mao, then at the others in the team, receiving unanimous no's. Hong Mao even made a vomiting gesture to show his disdain.

"See? None of us need these, and they were originally yours. Returning them to their rightful owner."

"Then why didn’t you just help us from the start?" someone grumbled among the seven, causing Hong Mao's irritation.

"Brother Fu said he wanted to fight them, and we were bored so we joined in," Hong Mao impatiently scratched his bird's nest-like dyed hair, "Why so many questions? It’s annoying... Take them if you want."

Before he finished speaking, someone quickly grabbed the bag and the others clustered around him protectively, anxious and pitiful, afraid others would change their minds and snatch it.

"Alright then, let’s go back to where we came from," Hong Mao said, shooing them away like ducks, and then turned sincerely to Fu Yue, his gaze sparkling like 24k pure gold.

"Brother Fu, I’ve also reached my destination. We can’t travel together from here. Take care, everyone. See you around."

"See you around."

Each person in Fu Yue’s group had their reasons for returning to City A. After brief farewells, they each set off. Gradually, it was just Fu Yue and me, and pink bubbles began to float around us.

"Why are you still here? Your companions have left. Are you alright?"

I looked at Xiao Xian, squatting on the ground, disappointedly. He rolled his eyes nonchalantly.

"I need to make sure he won’t dig out your brain core."

"Brother, it’s a misunderstanding. He’s my boyfriend."

"Oh, now you admit he’s your boyfriend? What took you so long?"

Xiao Xian’s tone was inexplicably hostile, like he was planning to stick with me no matter what. It was frustrating.

I was speechless. After finally reconciling with my ex, I couldn’t even start to reminisce; our honeymoon was over.

But Fu Yue seemed to think differently. He tilted his head, thoughtfully sizing up Xiao Xian, and gradually revealed a meaningful smile:

"It’s fine if you don’t want to leave. I just have something to say to you."