It hurts↑ hurts↓ hurts→ hurts……

Because of the pain, Lu Yao had no choice but to recite ‘Hard is the Road to Shu’ ten times.

The first three times, he kept reciting “peng ya” as “bing ya,” and by the fourth time, Jiang Xingrui finally couldn’t help but correct him.

“It’s ‘Pengya’! Can’t you be a little more cultured? How come you can’t even pronounce English words correctly, and you can’t even get this one right!” Jiang Xingrui lost his temper.

He Junwen: “…Xingrui, at a time like this, you’re actually supposed to tell the other person to stop reciting.”

Only then did Jiang Xingrui realize he’d been tricked: “Oh, right… Could you please stop reciting the poem?!!”

But when it comes to yelling at someone, the momentum fades after the first outburst—by the third, it’s gone. After being reminded, Jiang Xingrui’s resolve to shut Lu Yao up had already waned. Lu Yao said gleefully, “So you guys were all listening after all! That’s really great. Otherwise, reciting by myself would’ve been so lonely.” 

Jiang Xingrui: “…So you did this on purpose!”

I’m too mature to stoop to his level. Jiang Xingrui gritted his teeth and held his tongue.

He knew this treatment was excruciating. They’d treated people infected with the common zombie virus before, and only one had been infected with the mutated zombie virus. After the treatment, that person suffered such excruciating pain that they had a complete mental breakdown; they still haven’t recovered.

So the pain Lu Yao was enduring was beyond anything Jiang Xingrui could imagine.

Jiang Xingrui had originally thought that no matter how Lu Yao might act out during the surgery, he could endure it—as long as Lu Yao didn’t die. Jiang Xingrui had steeled himself for it.

…But in the end, he realized he hadn’t prepared enough.

After taking a deep breath, the surgery continued.

Lu Yao then began inserting other misspelled characters into “The Difficulty of the Shu Road,” but this time no one paid him any attention.

Finally, Jiang Xingrui said, “Let’s gag him.”

He turned around and saw He Junwen wearing an expression of utter weariness.

As for Li Yu, he looked even more listless… Jiang Xingrui knew this was a sign that Li Yu’s mind had already wandered far away;  sometimes, during internal meetings at Torch Dragon, Li Yu would act just like this.

Lu Yao: “Hey, hey, hey! Tying me to the bed with chains is one thing, and making me caught between a rock and a hard place is fine too. I didn’t say anything when you guys let your sweat drip on my brother while you were working, but now you’ve gagged me too? This is way too 18R!”

Of course, his protest was to no avail.

Next, Lu Yao had no choice but to send a telegram using “woo-woo-woo” sounds of varying lengths, then tried to convert the frequency of his toes’ wriggling into Morse code.

Of course, he wasn’t just winging it. He’d read a steamy novel rewarded by the system where the protagonist was captured, raped, and filmed. The male lead noticed that the frequency of the protagonist’s “oo” contractions in the video was off! Eventually, he discovered that the protagonist was actually using those contractions to send Morse code!

As a result, they eventually succeeded in capturing the criminal.

When Lu Yao read this, he was utterly amazed and moved to tears, feeling that Morse code was truly incredibly useful—a beacon of human civilization.

In any case, to promote the light of human civilization, he gave it his all for a little while longer. But after about ten minutes, his toes started cramping, and still no one was willing to give him a hand.

In any case, Lu Yao’s “light of human civilization” nearly caused cracks to appear in the sanity of the three people present. Just before everyone lost it, the treatment was finally complete.

Lu Yao was the first to know the treatment was complete, because the zombie virus had disappeared from the racial stats panel the system had given him.

By the time the treatment was over, Lu Yao had already been playing an idiom chain game with the system in his mind for an hour—after all, they’d kept him from speaking.

Incidentally, half an hour of that time was spent with Lu Yao and the System endlessly playing “Do As You Please.”

Lu Yao could see that the zombie virus had been completely eradicated, but He Junwen remained cautious, thoroughly examining Lu Yao from head to toe.

Wherever his fingertips touched, they felt slightly cool. He checked every crease and crevice of Lu Yao’s body using his power. He confirmed and double-checked. Only after ensuring that all injuries had been healed did he remove his gloves and nod, saying, “All done.”

After He Junwen removed the cloth gag from Lu Yao’s mouth, Lu Yao’s first words were, “What time is it?” He Junwen raised his wrist, the contours of his bones glinting beneath the cuff of his white coat: “9:43.”

Lu Yao began struggling frantically: “Quick, put me down! Put me down! The Labor Day holiday is almost over!”

Li Yu stopped tuning out Lu Yao’s voice as white noise and asked, somewhat puzzled, “The Labor Day holiday?” 

He Junwen echoed the question: “The Labor Day holiday?”

Jiang Xingrui froze for a few seconds, then suddenly remembered the promise he’d made to Lu Yao: “The Labor Day holiday—are you talking about farming?” He Junwen looked at Jiang Xingrui with a hint of surprise.

“You understood? How did you understand? Are you okay?”

Lu Yao got excited: “Yes! Yes!”

Jiang Xingrui: “Oh, oh, oh, sorry, I totally forgot about that. I’ll take you there right now!” Lu Yao flopped around like a live fish pulled ashore, urging him, “Hurry up and let me go!” 

Jiang Xingrui immediately let Lu Yao go, and Lu Yao ran out while still getting dressed. Then the two of them ran off, one in front and one behind.

And off they ran…

Leaving He Junwen and Li Yu standing in the hospital room, where the white walls felt cold, and the lights shone brightly, casting a chilling atmosphere. Li Yu was even more confused: “What just happened? Did they communicate in sign language that I couldn’t see?” He Junwen put away his instruments and said slowly, “Trust me, boss, I’m just as confused as you are right now.”

But what truly terrified him was how Jiang Xingrui could possibly have understood what Lu Yao said. The two stood in the empty room for a while longer.

Li Yu: “My head hurts.”

He Junwen: “…Let me walk you back to your room.”

He knew that Li Yu suffered from headaches, but He Junwen knew that this one wasn’t caused by mental stress—it was caused by exhaustion. After all, He Junwen was also experiencing a headache right now.

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Of course, Lu Yao had his reasons for doing this.

Today is the last day of the Labor Day holiday, and the task will expire after midnight! And he still had a two-hour task to work in the farm fields or orchard that he hadn’t completed yet.

Darn it—why is the Labor Day holiday only five days long now? Back in the day, it used to be seven days!

If it had been seven days, he would’ve had plenty of time and wouldn’t have had to rush like this.

Jiang Xingrui’s reaction was easy to understand: Lu Yao had been insisting all along that he wanted to work in the fields, and Jiang Xingrui had agreed, telling Lu Yao that Torch Dragon had farmland where he could go and plant crops.

Jiang Xingrui’s logic was simple: once he’d made a promise, he had to keep it.

The Nanshan Nursing Home already had some farmland—a place where the elderly used to pass the time—but after the apocalypse struck, its importance had grown significantly. “I’ll go get you some farming tools,” Jiang Xingrui said.

By the time Jiang Xingrui returned with the tools, Lu Yao was already crouched on the ground, pulling weeds by hand. “You’re in a bit of a rush,” Jiang Xingrui remarked.

Lu Yao: “Time really does catch up with you.”

Jiang Xingrui shoved the hoe into Lu Yao’s hands.

Lu Yao shook his head: “I’ll pull it out with my hands.”

Jiang Xingrui: “It’s faster with a hoe.”

Lu Yao: “It’s precisely because it’s too fast with the hoe that I don’t want to.” After all, he’d have to work in these fields for two hours.

Jiang Xingrui: “All right.”

Jiang Xingrui squatted beside him for a while. The sight of Lu Yao weeding so earnestly struck him as a bit eerie—it was pretty spooky in the middle of the night: “I’m going to bed. You should get some rest early, too.”

Lu Yao: “Okay, okay.” Lu Yao continued weeding.

His fingertips gripped the roots, and with a tug upward, the soil fell away, making a rustling sound in the night. The grass roots carried the damp scent of earth—it actually smelled quite nice. In truth, Lu Yao was exhausted and wanted to sleep.

But then he thought: completing the two-hour farmwork task meant all his Labor Day tasks would be finished! Who knows how generous the rewards would be!

Lu Yao immediately felt motivated.

The night breeze was cool, and the starlight and moonlight were faint. Occasionally, the sound of an old man coughing drifted through the darkness. This was the first time since the apocalypse began that Lu Yao had felt so relaxed and at ease outdoors.

It was a rather strange feeling. 

Smack… a mosquito.

It was too dark, so Lu Yao pulled out his phone and turned on the flashlight.

He pulled them up quickly—faster than he’d expected. The fields at Nanshan Nursing Home were very well maintained, with few weeds, and in just over forty minutes, he’d actually cleared all the weeds from this section of the field.

No, he had to figure out a way to make up the time quickly—it was almost midnight, and the Labor Day holiday was about to end! Was he supposed to go fertilize?

Lu Yao thought for a moment, then decided to simply start tilling the field next to it.

After a while, his phone ran out of battery, so Lu Yao had no choice but to till the soil in the dark.

His body ached all over; he was exhausted and hungry, working on an empty stomach.

Hmph. Is this how Torch Dragon treats his guests? Lu Yao roared in boredom in his mind.

Just before midnight, after two hours of hard work in the fields, the task was finally complete.

Lu Yao lay down on the ground, blissful, as the dampness from his back gradually seeped through his clothes, cooling him down.

He broke into a beaming smile. System, settle up!

【Settling… 】

【Congratulations, Host, on completing all Labor Day holiday tasks except for “Traveling Elsewhere.”】 

Lu Yao: !!!

“I’m in Torch Dragon right now—why doesn’t that count as traveling to another place?”

Lu Yao scrambled to his feet, furious.

【Travel should include three elements: sampling local cuisine, enjoying the local scenery, and participating in recreational activities】

【So far, you’ve only had tea at the Nanshan Retirement Home; the other two items haven’t been completed】

Lu Yao:!!!

Lu Yao: I even checked out their boss’s chest! His chest is so big and handsome—how is that not a stunning sight?

【The host is twisting the facts】

Lu Yao immediately switched to battle mode: “That’s your problem! You’re too narrow-minded! Scenery is divided into natural and man-made scenery! His chest is the man-made scenery of the Torch Dragon!”

【Thinking…】

【You are absolutely right. Thank you for your correction and clarification. My previous understanding of scenery was indeed too limited and traditional.】

【The Torch Dragon leader is part of the Torch Dragon itself and has provided the Host with unique and unforgettable travel memories—this is reasonable】

【Congratulations, Host, on completing the “Scenic Appreciation” segment of the travel mission.】 Now all that’s left is the entertainment activities!!!

Lu Yao sprinted all the way.

He spotted what looked like the biggest house and rushed inside.

The next second, he was blasted out by a wall of flames, his back slamming into the hallway wall so hard that everything went black before his eyes.

Wait, did I just barge into Li Yu’s house?

Lu Yao scrambled back inside, rolling and crawling: “Li Yu! It’s me, Li Yu!” He paused for half a second, then cleverly blurted out, “Help! I’m having a side effect from my superpower!”

Those words certainly did the trick.

The fire in the room instantly subsided.

Lu Yao hurriedly scrambled inside, nearly tripping in the process.

Although both Jiang Xingrui and He Junwen had adopted that “you’ll have to offer us something in return” attitude, everything Lu Yao saw at Torch Dragon showed just how kind-hearted they were.

Laundry hanging to dry in the courtyard, elderly people taking leisurely strolls, and even a cat dozing on a windowsill.

This was the apocalypse, yet they had still chosen to care for so many elderly people.

So Lu Yao suspected that even if he hadn’t promised anything before his surgery—if he’d simply broken down in tears and begged, “Please, I’m begging you”—they would have saved him anyway.

It’s just a shame he’d already cut off any chance of negotiating peacefully…… Oh well, every cloud has a silver lining.

Lu Yao looked up and saw Li Yu sitting on the bed.

Li Yu, who had just woken up, had slightly disheveled hair, tousled like a lion’s mane. In the gray moonlight, his features appeared strikingly defined, and the faint scar on his cheekbone faded in and out of the shadows.

Li Yu: “It’s you…” His voice carried the lingering warmth of a fire that had just died down.

Lu Yao bowed deeply and said, “I’m really sorry to ask this, but please play rock-paper-scissors with me for six minutes!”

Silence…

All that could be heard was the sound of the wind rustling the leaves outside the window.

After a moment, Li Yu said, “You must know I’m blind, right?”

Lu Yao:!!!

For a split second, Lu Yao felt as if his head had been struck by lightning.

Lu Yao: “…So, I’m really sorry.”

Then Lu Yao burst into tears: “Please, I beg you, please…”

Li Yu was silent for a moment, then finally sighed, like a wild beast that was reluctant but would ultimately carry its cub back to the den. It had been a long time since he’d encountered someone who dared to be so rude to him.

Actually, it wasn’t really rude—Lu Yao’s plea was sincere—but… never mind. “Come over here,” Li Yu said.

Lu Yao: “If you’d like, I can crawl over on my knees.”

Li Yu: “…I said, come here.”

Woo-hoo~ What a great vibe~~~

It was already very late at night, and He Junwen was still in his office.

The window wasn’t fully closed, and the night breeze made the candle flame flicker erratically, with wax tears slowly trickling down the candle.

His fingers were beautiful, with well-defined knuckles and neatly trimmed nails that carried a faint, pungent scent of disinfectant. Although today’s surgery had left him physically and mentally exhausted, there was still some work left to finish.

With a boss who liked to leave things unfinished and a third-in-command who preferred field work, He Junwen had no choice but to shoulder a bit more of the burden.

Fortunately, his special ability allowed him to repair his own body at any time.

As for whether it would affect his ultimate lifespan… Who has time to worry about that in the apocalypse?

The intelligence Jiang Xingrui brought back was piled up on the left side of the page: the distribution of Linchuan genetic resources, road blockades, and the movements of zombie hordes. The most valuable piece of information was Lu Yao himself—Jiang Xingrui was certainly right about that.

Then there was Lu Yao’s research on zombie evolution.

To actively induce zombie evolution for the sake of ability fragments—that’s truly the act of a madman.

He began writing on the paper.

“Lu Yao, has he acquired a source of supernatural power? Do ordinary seeds possess extraordinary powers?” 

“Side effects of supernatural abilities…”

“Paranoia? Rule-following? Loves farming? Obsession with holiday rituals? Burning things? Harming others without benefiting oneself? Has he lost his mind?”

His pen tip paused on the paper.

“…What am I even writing?” he muttered to himself, feeling as if Jiang Xingrui had possessed him.

It had to be said that Lu Yao’s personality, mixed with his “side effects,” made it really hard to tell them apart… “Knock, knock.” Someone was knocking on the door. “Brother Wen, it’s me.”

“Come in.” He Junwen set the paper alight with the candle, destroying the nonsense he’d written to cover his tracks: “How’s it going?”

The visitor was the surveillance officer assigned by He Junwen—a middle-aged man named Yan Xiangming. When the apocalypse struck, he had rushed to a nursing home to save his parents, and upon seeing that they were safely protected by the Torch Dragon, he decided to stay.

Yan Xiangming closed the door behind him: “…Surveillance is complete. The target, Lu Yao, was first weeding in the farm fields.”

He Junwen snapped the cap back on his pen, sat up straight in his chair, and listened intently to the report: “Hmm, then what?” 

The surveiller, Yan Xiangming, replied: “Partway through, he got bitten by a mosquito, so he walked over to ask me for some insect repellent.” 

He Junwen repeated: “…He walked over to ask you for some insect repellent.”

Yan Xiangming said sheepishly, “That’s right, Brother Wen. He spotted me.” 

“Then what happened?”

Yan Xiangming said, “I told him I didn’t have any insect repellent. He said the mosquito bites were driving him crazy, and then he started yelling at me for a while.”

He Junwen: “…That must’ve been tough.”

Yan Xiangming: “So I had no choice but to tell him I was keeping an eye on you and couldn’t step away.”

He Junwen was silent for a second, then reluctantly accepted that explanation.

Could this Lu Yao actually be spreading his creepiness to everyone around him?

Yan Xiangming: “Then he went back to tilling the fields. After working for a little over two hours, he suddenly started dancing around on the spot.”

He Junwen remained relatively calm: “Uh… okay. Then what happened?”

Yan Xiangming: “He stormed into the boss’s office, and after the boss kicked him out, he said he was experiencing side effects from his superpower, so the boss let him in.”

He Junwen paused for a moment. So, was Lu Yao’s visit to Torch Dragon indeed motivated by ulterior motives?

Jiang Xingrui was actually pretty smart, but He Junwen felt that if Lu Yao wanted to, he could have Jiang Xingrui running around in circles. “So then you came back?”

Yan Xiangming: “I plucked up the courage to crouch by the window and watch for a while longer. The boss usually hates that, but today his attention was entirely on the target.”

“What did you see?”

“The target asked the boss to play rock-paper-scissors with him.”

He Junwen:“……”

He Junwen’s mind went blank for a moment.

He Junwen said slowly, “Lu Yao and Brother Yu were playing rock-paper-scissors.”

Yan Xiangming couldn’t help but wipe the cold sweat from his brow; he’d nearly wet himself with fear out there. “That’s right, and that kid kept cheating the whole time,” he said, sounding a bit indignant.

He Junwen:“……”

He Junwen felt a headache coming on. “Then what?”

Yan Xiangming: “After they stopped playing, Lu Yao begged the boss to use a hot iron to burn his mosquito bite because it was driving him crazy with itchiness.”

The proteins and formic acid in mosquito saliva denature and become inactive at high temperatures of around 42°C to 50°C, so applying a warm compress to a mosquito bite can quickly relieve the itching.

He Junwen: “Did Brother Yu agree?”

Yan Xiangming: “I didn’t dare keep watching, but the boss must have agreed.”

He Junwen asked, “How did you figure that out?”

Yan Xiangming: “Because as I was leaving, I heard sounds of ‘hot, hot, hot’ and ‘feifeifei’ and ‘eek, ouch, ouch’ coming from inside.”

He Junwen:“……”

The candle flame on the desk suddenly flickered, as if startled as well.

He Junwen buried his face in his hands. He felt he really should go to sleep tonight.