8: Chapter 8 The Fall of Wariness

Early morning on the third day.

Lin Yuan opened his eyes and immediately checked his phone.

Outdoor temperature: minus 40 degrees.

He sucked in a breath of cold air.

Minus 40 degrees.

Is this damn place even fit for human habitation?

Even more terrifyingly, the indoor temperature had also dropped below freezing.

Even with the electric blanket on, the room was still deathly cold.

Lin Yuan could see his own breath forming a white mist that lingered for a long time.

The frost on the walls was thicker than yesterday.

The window glass was covered in a thick layer of ice.

Ice crystals also began to appear on the floor.

And the most frightening thing was...

Lin Yuan felt the cold.

A very real, palpable cold.

He hadn't contracted snow poison, and his body temperature was normal.

But even so, in this environment, he began to feel a bone-chilling cold.

His hands and feet were somewhat stiff, and his body was trembling slightly.

Those two sisters...

Lin Yuan looked beside him.

Ye Qingxue was still in the same position as last night, her back to him, holding her younger sister.

But her body was as cold as a block of ice.

Lin Yuan could feel that her body temperature had dropped even further since last night.

As for Ye Qingyue, she almost had no body temperature left.

If it weren't for her faint breathing, Lin Yuan would have thought she was dead.

These two sisters really couldn't hold on much longer.

Lin Yuan got up and walked to the refrigerator.

He opened it.

Inside, there was one pack of instant noodles and half a bottle of water left.

That was it.

These were the last of the supplies.

Once they were eaten, there would truly be nothing left.

Lin Yuan took out the noodles and water and walked to the water heating station in the corner.

He used the induction cooker to boil water and prepared a bowl of noodles.

Ten minutes later, the instant noodles were ready.

Carrying the bowl, he walked back to the bedside.

"Wake up."

He nudged Ye Qingxue.

Ye Qingxue slowly opened her eyes.

Her eyes were bloodshot, and her face was deathly pale.

Clearly, she hadn't slept well all night.

"Eat something."

Lin Yuan placed the noodles by the bed.

Ye Qingxue looked at the bowl of noodles, then at her sister.

"Qingyue... Qingyue..."

She gently shook her sister.

Ye Qingyue struggled to open her eyes; her lips were purple, and she couldn't speak.

Ye Qingxue fed her a few sips of the broth.

After a few sips, Ye Qingyue fell back into a deep sleep.

Ye Qingxue also took a few sips herself.

Then she handed the rest to Lin Yuan.

"You... you eat some too..."

Her voice was so weak it was almost inaudible.

Lin Yuan took the bowl, drank some broth, and ate a few strands of noodles.

One bowl of instant noodles, shared among three people.

It was finished.

The last of the food was gone.

Lin Yuan walked to the fridge and picked up the half bottle of water.

He poured three cups, one for each person.

They drank it all.

The water was gone too.

Lin Yuan sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the empty refrigerator.

It was over.

Completely over.

No food.

No water.

If this continued, they would all be dead in a day at most.

Ye Qingxue realized this as well.

She struggled to sit up and picked up her phone.

She dialed her father's number.

It rang for a long time before connecting.

"Dad..."

Ye Qingxue's voice was raspy.

"Qingxue? Are you all okay?"

Father Ye's voice also sounded exhausted.

"We... we're out of food and water... Dad, when can you come..."

"Qingxue..."

Father Ye was silent for a long time.

"The Ye family is also dealing with a crisis. There are more and more mutated creatures outside, and the rescue teams... have suffered heavy losses."

"I don't know when we can get to you."

"But you must hold on. You must survive."

Ye Qingxue's tears began to fall.

"Dad... Qingyue is fading... she..."

"I know."

Father Ye's voice was filled with pain.

"But there's really nothing I can do right now. All of Jiang City is in chaos; there are monsters and dead people everywhere."

"Even though the Ye family has strength, we can barely take care of ourselves."

"Qingxue, you are my smartest daughter. No matter what, you must survive."

With that, the call hung up.

Ye Qingxue stared blankly at her phone.

Tears flowed incessantly.

She dialed the police next.

Beep... beep... beep—

No answer.

She changed to another number and kept calling.

Beep... beep... beep—

Still no answer.

Ye Qingxue put down the phone and slumped onto the bed.

Finished.

It was truly over.

She couldn't rely on her family.

The police couldn't be reached.

They were really going to die here.

Lin Yuan looked at her without saying a word.

He walked to the window, pulled back the curtain, and looked outside.

The snow was still falling.

It was coming down even harder than the previous two days.

The entire world had turned into a white hell.

In the streets, mutated creatures were everywhere.

Giant Mutated Wild Dog were sprinting through the snow in packs.

Mutated plants and vines covered the entire street.

Lin Yuan's heart sank.

In another corner, he saw an ice sculpture.

It was a person, frozen solid, forever fixed in a running posture.

Lin Yuan pulled the curtains shut and turned around.

Ye Qingxue was holding her sister, curled up on the bed.

Both of them were shivering.

Ye Qingyue was completely unconscious.

Ye Qingxue was also about to break.

Time passed bit by bit.

Daylight slowly turned to dusk.

The room grew colder and colder.

Although the electric blanket was still working, it could no longer withstand this extreme cold.

Ye Qingxue could feel her body temperature continuing to drop.

Her hands and feet had completely lost all sensation.

Her body was as stiff as a piece of wood.

Her consciousness began to blur.

She knew she was about to die.

Her sister was also about to die.

6:00 PM.

The sky was completely dark.

Lin Yuan looked at the two sisters and made a decision.

"Go to bed and sleep."

He said to Ye Qingxue.

Ye Qingxue struggled to open her eyes and looked at him.

She didn't speak.

She was already too weak to talk.

Lin Yuan got onto the bed and lay on the outside.

Ye Qingxue, holding her sister, struggled to move onto the bed.

This time, she didn't keep her body tense like last night.

She was too tired.

Too cold.

She just wanted to live.

Ye Qingyue lay on the innermost side, completely unconscious.

Ye Qingxue lay in the middle.

This time, she didn't face her sister.

Instead, her back was to Lin Yuan.

She actively leaned against Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan could feel her icy back pressed against his chest.

He could feel her faint breathing.

He could feel her body temperature; it was frighteningly low.

Ye Qingxue closed her eyes.

She could no longer afford to be on guard.

She just wanted warmth.

She just wanted to live.

Lin Yuan's body heat transferred over.

Although it wasn't very warm, to her right now, it was a life-saving temperature.

Lin Yuan felt the soft body against his back.

He could smell the scent of her hair.

He could feel her curves.

But he restrained himself.

The time was not yet right.

Lin Yuan didn't want to take the risk.

Moreover, if he really forced himself on her...

Given Ye Qingxue's character, even if she submitted, she would definitely find an opportunity for revenge.

Living under the same roof, that was too dangerous.

What if she acted while he was asleep...

Lin Yuan had considered the worst-case scenario: killing them!

But he didn't dare gamble.

If he killed them and the system didn't give him the reward, what then?

Then his entire plan would go down the drain.

So, he had to wait.

At this moment, Lin Yuan could feel that Ye Qingxue had also relaxed.

Although she was still alert, she wasn't as rigid as last night.

Her body leaned softly against his.

She was trembling slightly.

But not because of fear.

It was because of the cold.

Ye Qingxue leaned against Lin Yuan with her eyes closed.

Tears flowed silently.

She never thought there would come a day like this.

Lying in a strange man's bed.

With her back against him.

Relying on his body heat.

But she had no choice.

The experiences of the last few days had taught her one thing.

In the Apocalypse, pride is nothing.

Surviving is what matters most.

And...

Ye Qingxue thought to herself.

This man, though heartless and selfish...

At least he hadn't harmed them.

Over the past two days, if he really wanted to do something to them, there had been plenty of opportunities.

But he hadn't.

Last night, when they slept in the same bed, he hadn't made a move.

Tonight, when she actively leaned against him, he just lay there quietly.

Perhaps...

He wasn't as bad as she imagined?

Ye Qingxue didn't know.

She could no longer tell.

She only knew that she had to rely on this man now.

Only then could she survive.

The night grew deeper.

The room was silent.

Three people crowded into a single bed.

Warming each other.

Outside the window, the snow was still falling.

The roars of Mutated Wild Dog could be heard from time to time.

But inside the room, it was unusually quiet.

Ye Qingxue slowly fell asleep.

This was the first time in days she had truly fallen asleep.

Because she was too tired.

Because she knew that resisting was useless.

She might as well relax and get some rest.

Lin Yuan felt her breathing become steady.

He knew she was asleep.

He also slowly relaxed.

His hand was still on the hilt of his knife.

But he wasn't as tense as before.

The third night.

It was much more peaceful than the previous two nights.

No crying.

No struggling.

Only three people, warming each other.

...