Even before the helmet was fully off, Shen Yuan knew the man was the last person he wanted to meet—let alone deal with—from his white hair. His golden, hooded eyes further confirmed it.
Why was it that when he didn't need something, they showed up so easily instead?
With how unpredictable Zhou Jingchen acted in the previous session, he didn't want to attract unnecessary interest from this ticking time bomb, let alone seduce him. Unfortunately for him, outright ignoring this person's help under these circumstances would also attract a different kind of attention. Not to mention he had to keep being at least cordial with him to avoid any chance of suspicion in reality.
This guy was a real pain in the ass.
He kept his face expressionless as he lowered his head in polite gratitude. "Thank you for your help. I've never encountered anything like that before and didn't know what to do."
"It was a special type. You made a good call not to engage with it." Zhou Yi turned off the engine and dismounted from his bike. He placed his helmet on its seat. "Are you alone?"
"I move alone, but I met two people inside. I don't know if there are more survivors." Shen Yuan raised his head back. "Again, I'm grateful for your help, but I need to leave. I hope I can return the favor if we have the chance to meet again."
He turned on his heels but had only taken 2 steps forward when his path was blocked by the broad, towering man. Suppressing his annoyance, he looked up at Zhou Yi in askance.
"It's dangerous to roam by yourself." Zhou Yi glanced down at the cat and crowbar. "Let alone with your baggage and equipment. We're from a shelter. Independent, but nonetheless safe. You should join us."
"I appreciate the offer, but I still have unfinished business to attend to. A very important one."
15 fully geared people got out of the cars and one of them approached Zhou Yi. Piercings outlined his right ear, and he tied his long hair up to a bun, revealing the tattooed undercut beneath. Despite his fashion, his gaze carried the calmness of water and his postures and gaits revealed a sophisticated background.
"Boss, everything is prepared. We're ready to enter," he reported, his eyes couldn't help but wander to Shen Yuan. He had never seen his boss invite anyone to join before. What was so special about him?
"Send in the scout team," Zhou Yi ordered.
"Yes, boss."
Once his subordinate was gone, Zhou Yi returned his focus to Shen Yuan. "There are still 5 days left in our schedule to look for supplies. I can help you with your matter in the meantime."
Shen Yuan walked around Zhou Yi. "I rather not. It's a private matter. Don't worry about me and good luck on your task."
Zhou Yi fixed his gaze on the back of the departing man, his golden eyes flickered with thoughts.
He couldn't be mistaken. The second he entered his sight, his heart knew it was this person's presence that called him here. It faded with their distance, but now, the further the other went, the stronger it became.
Almost like a leash.
Shen Yuan crossed the road to increase his distance from Zhou Yi as soon as possible. Nearing the end of the block, the space by the traffic lights glitched for a second, prompting him to halt his steps.
Seconds later, ominous black mists formed and swirled right where the space glitched before, and a woman in a red dress warped into existence. She held impossibly huge scissors in her hand, more than half of her height, and big red stitches stretched from her head to her jaw, distorting her already broken features.
"Why did you leave me…?" A delicate, alluring voice whispered out of her half-stitched mouth. "Am I not—"
5 bullets flew straight into her skull. Her pleas turned into shrieks, and she evaporated into thin air as soon as her arrival.
"…" Shen Yuan glanced back at Zhou Yi lowering his gun.
This bastard.
"Abnormal activities have been spiking. As I thought, I can't let you leave by yourself." Zhou Yi held his gaze on Shen Yuan, feigning ignorance to his blatant irk. "I promise I won't pry about your matter, so let me take you where you need to go with my bike."
"And leave your task to your subordinates? How very responsible of you."
"They wouldn't be here in the first place if they didn't have the capability. I'm not their babysitter."
"And you're not mine either. I'm not an enthusiast of bearing debt, so please leave me alone."
"Think about your cat. If anything happens to you, you think it can fend for itself?"
Shen Yuan rolled his eyes and made his leave once again. It was exactly for Huo Yan that he didn't want to be anywhere near this bastard.
He canceled his plan to circle back to the road he came from and turned to the nearest corner instead, anything to get out of Zhou Yi's sight sooner. But unlike where he came from, what greeted him was far from an empty, quiet road.
Tens of damned filled the block, both throughout the road and inside the shops. Not only the burnt skeletons like the ones in the mall, there were also those who still had layers of meat clinging to their bones with active flames blazing alight.
Before any of them noticed his presence, he took a step back and hid himself behind the corner. Seeing Zhou Yi still watching him made a corner of his eyebrow twitch.
"I don't have the intention to burden you with debts." Zhou Yi approached Shen Yuan "You can take it as me pushing my own self-satisfaction to you."
When he crossed the remaining 3-meter distance between them, Huo Yan hissed in warning, causing him to stop and take a step back. The cat kept his eyes on him without blinking, as if he was a thief intending to put his foul hands on his most precious treasure.
Shen Yuan combed down Huo Yan's fur though he didn't have any qualms on his protectiveness—or perhaps possessiveness. He also didn't want Zhou Yi to take a step closer to them.
Still, there was no out of this. The world would only keep hindering his progress in favor of Zhou Yi's whims. Now, only a few more damned appeared. Next, he wouldn't be surprised if the ground literally collapsed just to stop him from leaving.
At the very least, it didn't seem like Zhou Yi regarded Huo Yan as anything other than his pet cat. Unless Huo Yan revealed himself to be a type of undead, he doubted Zhou Yi would do anything to an animal.
"…Fine." Shen Yuan surrendered. "I'm looking for a certain someone back in my office. It's not far from here."
Zhou Yi hid his satisfaction and nodded. He stretched out a hand. "Zhou Yi."
Shen Yuan stepped forward and shook his hand. "Shen Yuan."
He didn't linger a second longer and retrieved his hand to turn and leave, missing the flare in the man's eyes.
They returned to the front of the mall where Zhou Yi parked his bike. Shen Yuan mounted the bike first and waited for Zhou Yi to finish giving instructions to the same guy who reported to him earlier—he soon found to be called Bai Feng.
"You can leave your cat in the car. My people will look after it," Zhou Yi suggested.
Huo Yan jumped off Shen Yuan's hold and landed on the bike seat. He perched down his butt and licked his paw, declaring his stance. Shen Yuan chuckled as he rubbed down Huo Yan's neck.
"Seems like he wants to go for a ride too. He's coming with us."
The small smile scratched Zhou Yi like flints, sending sparks to his heart. Just a slight shift of the other's eyes and he would be on the receiving end of that smile. He wanted it.
No.
It should belong to him. Only him.
But when Shen Yuan finally peeled his attention from his cat, his smile only faded along. "Are we going or what?"
"…Mn."
Zhou Yi hopped on as well and turned on the engine. He offered his helmet to Shen Yuan which the other refused in regard to hygiene, so he wore it himself.
"Hold on."
There was no rear frame that Shen Yuan could hold onto, so he grabbed Zhou Yi's shoulder with one hand and maintained half an arm's distance from his back. His other hand secured Huo Yan occupying the space between them.
"You'll fall if you don't hold on properly," Zhou Yi warned.
"I have a strong core. Don't fuss about unnecessary things and just drive." Shen Yuan didn't budge.
Zhou Yi inwardly sighed and didn't push Shen Yuan's buttons further. He kicked off the stand, revved up the engine, and drove away.
There was no helping it that he made a bad impression. He himself was aware his persistence was abnormal. He could only take one step at a time and slowly warm Shen Yuan up.