Chapter 58: Recovery

Bringing a bowl of porridge, Seito noticed Jiang Yi waking up and immediately hurried over with a pleasantly surprised expression. "Jiang Yi, you're awake? How do you feel? Does anything still hurt?"

Guo Hanshuai unceremoniously shoved Seito aside as he practically glued his face to Jiang Yi, then glanced at Jiang Yi's terribly pale complexion and snapped, "Are you an idiot? You were injured and didn't even say a word, just acting like a tough hero and gritting your teeth through it?"

Jiang Yi gave a wry, helpless smile. "Come on, Hanshuai, considering I'm the wounded one, spare me the lecture! I'm starving, share a bowl of porridge with me!"

With her sharp tongue, Guo Hanshuai let out a huff and placed the bowl of porridge by the bedside. "Let him feed you. You two are so close, keeping watch over each other. I'm going to go eat!"

Watching Guo Hanshuai turn and leave, Jiang Yi and Seito exchanged blank stares, momentarily at a loss for words.

Seeing Seito's clumsy movements, an awkward Jiang Yi hurriedly raised his left hand. "I'll eat it myself, my left hand is fine!"

Seito immediately handed over the spoon while holding the bowl for Jiang Yi, finally dispelling the awkwardness in the room.

Jiang Yi eagerly devoured the white rice porridge, which wasn't particularly soft or smooth. After the apocalypse, being able to have a hot meal—even without any side dishes—felt like a slice of heaven.

After finishing two bowls, his stomach finally stopped growling so fiercely. While Jiang Yi ate, Seito briefly recounted everything that had happened afterward.

Jiang Yi nodded. "Hmm, that's for the best. Once everyone knows that zombie cores can cure the zombie virus, you and I won't stand out quite so much."

Seito looked at Jiang Yi with deep gratitude. "Thank you. I don't know how to express it, but truly, thank you! Thank you for not giving up on me at the very end."

Whenever Seito thought about how he could easily have turned into a soul-less, flesh-eating zombie, a wave of lingering fear washed over him.

Jiang Yi shook his head. "It's nothing, aren't we teammates? Until the very last moment, I will never give you up." Seito was filled with profound respect, his gratitude toward Jiang Yi growing even heavier, until Jiang Yi couldn't take it anymore and shooed him away to go eat his own meal, only then feeling a sense of relief.

Open the status screen!

He was still at level 8, but the previous battle had brought him very close to leveling up again.

Scanning the team mode, Jiang Yi discovered that the trust value between Seito and himself had reached the maximum, entering a state where it would no longer decrease!

"Trust Value: 100%, will not decrease further. This teammate will fight alongside you for life! He is a partner you can trust one hundred percent! Recommended to utilize resources for vigorous cultivation..."

Jiang Yi let out a long breath. The mere thought of Seito's fierce, adoring gaze brought a wave of quiet joy to his heart. In the apocalypse, what could be more gratifying than a powerful teammate worthy of absolute trust?

Compared to him, Guo Hanshuai possessed a rational personality; even though she already trusted him immensely, she was still some distance away from the maximum value!

Dismissing the screen, Jiang Yi opened his backpack to check his harvest! Thanks to the frantic zombie-slaying earlier, his backpack no longer looked quite so empty.

Aside from an even larger stash of Heavenly Spring Water and Jade-Flesh Pork, there were also one hundred pounds of fresh dog meat, a sky-blue Demon-Restoration Potion, a bright-green Body-Tracing Potion, and a fiery-red... Blood-Recovery Potion!

"Thank goodness, at least my injuries weren't in vain!" Jiang Yi excitedly pulled out the Blood-Recovery Potion and swallowed it in one gulp! A wave of searing heat instantly flooded his entire right arm!

Jiang Yi could feel the arm beneath the bandages realigning itself segment by segment. Gritting his teeth, he tore off the bandages; as sensation returned to his right arm, the pain grew even more intense.

Enduring the agony without a sound, Jiang Yi watched as his previously purple and swollen arm slowly began to revert to its normal state, starting from the fingertips.

"Hiss!" Once the medicinal effects faded, Jiang Yi forced his arm upward and couldn't help sucking in a breath. It seemed his injuries this time were simply too severe; even the Blood-Recovery Potion couldn't restore him to peak condition all at once.

Still, it was enough. As Jiang Yi stood up and walked out of the bedroom bare-chested, the three people eating on the second floor all froze in astonishment!

Li Huiyu was the first to react, standing up in shock. "How is this possible, Jiang Jing, your injuries?"

Jiang Yi smiled, gritting his teeth against the friction in his bones as he raised his arm slightly. "They're mostly healed! I should be thanking you, too. If you hadn't come back in the end, who knows how long we would've had to run for!"

Li Huiyu's eyes remained locked onto Jiang Yi's arm, completely deaf to his expression of gratitude!

Naturally, Guo Hanshuai knew how Jiang Yi had managed to recover. Overjoyed, she also stood up and glanced dismissively at Li Huiyu. "Making a fuss over nothing. This is just Jiang Yi's unique ability!"

Li Huiyu blankly withdrew his gaze. Hearing Guo Hanshuai's words, he simply assumed Jiang Yi possessed some sort of recovery-type ability, never suspecting the existence of a far more miraculous system.

Jiang Yi smiled inwardly at Guo Hanshuai covering for him, choosing not to expose the truth. After all, he could not quite read Li Huiyu. Once a transparent bystander within the group, Li Huiyu had suddenly started slaughtering people without batting an eye; while he seemed selfishly focused only on his own safety, at the very last moment, it was thanks to his appearance that they had escaped...

Jiang Yi was reluctant to assume the worst of people, but a primal instinct made him maintain a high degree of vigilance toward Li Huiyu, so he naturally wouldn't expose his abilities on his own initiative.

With Seito's awakening and Jiang Yi's recovery, a palpable wave of joy briefly filled the second floor!

Yet, this joy appeared utterly blinding and grating in the eyes of Dongfang Tian and Zhu Caijun!

Ascending to the second floor, Dongfang Tian saw Guo Hanshuai, Jiang Yi, and Seito chatting and laughing, and felt as though his anger was about to explode.

Yesterday's full day of fleeing had left him mentally and physically exhausted, and the chain of events had even caused him to doubt himself: could he truly become a powerful leader?

Muddled and lost, he had accepted Zhu Caijun's suggestion to come upstairs and discuss their next steps with the group, only to walk in on this scene. Instantly, his rage soared to the heavens!

Meanwhile, Zhu Caijun stared at the still-steaming pot of porridge and couldn't help swallowing hard.

Throughout their escape, they had thrown away everything they couldn't carry. Although there was still some food on the first floor, if given the choice, he would gladly trade ten bags of spicy chicken feet for a single bowl of fragrant, hot porridge.

The two men harbored very different thoughts, yet both possessed immense self-control. No matter how angry they felt, they showed no trace of it on the outside, simply smiling as they spoke. "Captain Jiang is awake. When we came up earlier, Hanshuai said you were resting."

Dongfang Tian smiled and sat down beside Hanshuai. Guo Hanshuai frowned, shifting her body slightly away, though she ultimately didn't distance herself completely.

Zhu Caijun also took a seat, casting a sideways glance at the white porridge and pickles on the table before smiling. "Indeed. Regarding yesterday's events, both Director Dongfang and I are deeply apologetic. We never expected Li Zhitian to be such a person! Still, he got what he deserved in the end. We hope Captain Jiang isn't holding onto too much anger!"

Jiang Yi slowly sipped his porridge, glanced at the two men, and continued eating without a word. Dongfang Tian and Zhu Caijun exchanged a look, a flicker of shame and wrath flashing through their eyes!

The two of them were prominent figures back at school; when had they ever had to lower themselves so much, only to be met with outright neglect and indifference? Yet right now, they had no choice but to bow their heads...

Because despite Jiang Yi's group consisting of only four people, their combat strength far exceeded the total of everyone on the first floor combined!

Guo Hanshuai alone possessed a terrifying level of strength that left people helpless; even Dongfang Tian was no match for her wind-type abilities! And then there was the mysterious Li Huiyu—his sudden rise to prominence left Dongfang Tian feeling deeply insecure!

Furthermore, Seito, who should have undergone zombie transformation, not only failed to die but successfully awakened. Dongfang Tian, who had suffered heavy losses because of this, grew even more vigilant, having far from forgotten his past grievances with Seito!

Finally, there was Jiang Yi, who appeared deceptively fragile yet possessed awakened abilities. Neither Dongfang Tian nor Zhu Caijun could fathom the exact nature of his power. Had they not witnessed his mysterious recovery abilities, Dongfang Tian would have taken him for nothing more than a standard speed-enhancer!

But clearly, Jiang Yi was no ordinary person!

And someone capable of earning Guo Hanshuai's allegiance could only possess strength far more unfathomable than met the eye!

Alas, the two of them completely overlooked the fact that earning trust required far more than mere strength. What truly made Guo Hanshuai place deeper and deeper trust in Jiang Yi was his fragile yet unyielding soul!

When Guo Hanshuai felt most helpless, Jiang Yi's appearance had been like a beam of light tearing through the darkness, gradually becoming her greatest pillar of support...

Li Huiyu coldly watched the two men eloquently patter on while engaging in endless probing. Annoyed by their presence, he picked up his bowl and turned to leave, refusing to give them even the slightest shred of a pleasant expression.

After swallowing his last bite, Jiang Yi raised his gaze, looked at the awkward and furious pair, and said indifferently, "So, what is it you two actually want to say?"

A trace of anger flashed in the depths of Dongfang Tian's eyes. Suppressing his wrath and abandoning all further probing, he spoke with blunt directness: "I'll be straight with you, Jiang Yi. Earlier, I heard you mention that you came from Cafeteria No. 1. I want to know the real situation there, and... I want to lead everyone back with you!"

Jiang Yi smiled and clapped his hands once. "Being straightforward works best! No problem at all. Let's all head back together!"

Zhu Caijun and Dongfang Tian were momentarily stunned. They had anticipated all sorts of potential problems and prepared various counter-strategies, only to find that everything they had thought of turned out to be completely useless. A profound sense of frustration washed over them; even though their objective had been achieved, they felt not a shred of victorious joy...

Watching their expressions, which looked as though they had swallowed a fly, Guo Hanshuai finally lost control and burst into laughter!

She tightly clamped a hand over her mouth just in time to keep from shattering the inexplicable awkwardness in the room! She was discovering that she increasingly enjoyed watching her captain shut people down...

Hearing Guo Hanshuai struggling to stifle her laughter, Zhu Caijun felt awkward and inwardly cursed Jiang Yi for being uncooperative. Nonetheless, he plastered on an infectious smile. "Really? Well, then, thank you so much! After all, without your formidable combat strength, it would be terribly difficult for the ordinary people on our side to make it all the way to Cafeteria No. 1! I just wonder... will we be welcomed over there?"

Dongfang Tian sneered, "Why wouldn't they welcome us? Don't forget this is a school, we're all students here! The cafeteria doesn't belong to them!" Hearing Dongfang Tian's words, both Seito and Li Huiyu rolled their eyes—evidently, Dongfang Tian had conveniently forgotten how he had unilaterally seized control of the gymnasium just yesterday.