translator: xiin
editors: apricot & Juurensha

Regardless of what those people were thinking, the two of them were very leisurely. K City was short on electricity, so in the evening, just as the sky darkened, Bai Jing brought out the candles he'd prepared beforehand, and they enjoyed a candlelight steak dinner. The candlelight flickered in the darkened room, adding a little color to the dark night. 

As for Wu Guoan, he hid in his room and drew circles on the floor. He knew he hadn't come to be a light bulb, but his heart was filled with thoughts of the steak he held in his hands. He swallowed hard and slapped himself fiercely to make sure he wasn't dreaming. It wasn't until it was really in his mouth, and he had swallowed the steak into his stomach, the taste buds from the tip of his tongue telling him that the steak was really fragrant, that he finally felt that this was real. His evaluation of Xiao Sa jumped up several levels in his heart and rose directly to the level of G.o.d. He confirmed once again that he had made the right choice. 

"Cheers!"

“Cheers!” 

Bai Jing always knew how to enjoy himself. Their place had two bedrooms and one living room, and was well decorated. Although it was not as luxurious as it would've been prior to the apocalypse, there was still some measure of warmth. The two of them lightly lifted their gla.s.ses and smiled at each other, a warm current flowing through the air between them and adding a little ambiguity to the candlelit night.

The atmosphere in the room was very good as the two of them made inconsequential small talk. Xiao Sa's face clearly showed some regret, and the occasional glances he sent towards the window were very fierce. 

Bai Jing smiled blandly, his eyelashes fluttering, and his eyebrows showing that he was taking some joy in others' misfortune. His behaviour was graceful from beginning to end, as though this was not a common dinner, but a feast at a five-star hotel. 

Time went by slowly. Their meal was very leisurely, and except for the disgusting mice wandering around outside, Bai Jing wanted to express that everything was not bad at all.

After finis.h.i.+ng the meal, they rested for a while and cleaned up a bit before blowing out the candles, waiting quietly for their unexpected visitors.

Wu Guoan also gathered up his awareness after eating and drinking his fill, silently taking precautions and strengthening the room. Although he wasn't at the level of a professional, he had spent a few years in the underworld and laying out a few traps was not a problem for him.

Time flew by quickly. In a twinkling of an eye, it was deep in the middle of the night. After midnight, in the quiet night, there was a slight, barely audible scritching sound of friction.

Following the 'click' of the locked door opening, a black shadow flashed by, nimbly hiding within the apartment. Having wandered on the edge of danger for a long time, instinct told him as soon as he stepped into the house that danger was approaching. He didn't have any chance to escape or respond before there was a m.u.f.fled sound, and the apartment fell into silence once again.

Xiao Sa's expression was dark as he dealt with wave after wave of people. He was very careful about making sure that those who came made no noise. His means were vicious, and other than ensuring that they were still alive, the people who had come to spy and test out the waters all had bruised noses and swollen faces, and were basically no longer recognizable.

Wu Guoan was damp from cold sweat, his heart was chilled, and he felt like he was under very high pressure. They had to know that amongst the spies were also people from the Cheetah Mercenary Corps. Compared to facing Brother Sa's anger, he felt that it was more cost-effective to feel sorry for his friends. It would be no big deal as long as he apologized to them afterwards.

Bai Jing sat lazily on the sofa and found himself completely unnecessary. Xiao Sa's metal ability, coupled with the pressure he gave off as a rank three ability user, was more than enough. When faced with his absolute strength, the fights were completely one-sided, and Xiao Sa was steadily able to keep Bai Jing protected within his domain.

Bai Jing's lips curved in a beautiful arc, finding it a little amusing in his heart as he coldly looked on as Xiao Sa punched the latest trespa.s.ser in the chin before administering a severe beating. He felt no sympathy for them at all.

He had already expected Xiao Sa to be in a bad mood, but he hadn't thought that he would be so fierce. Bai Jing knew very well how the little abacus in Xiao Sa's heart worked, and had noticed that his l.u.s.tful expression had surfaced ever since they had arrived at K City Base. Even if he thought with his toes, he would be able to guess what Xiao Sa was thinking.

It was true that s.e.xually frustrated men shouldn't be provoked. Although Bai Jing didn't mind what he and his lover did together at night, he was still very willing to watch Xiao Sa suffer such a setback.

As for the mice and rats who had come forth to spy on them tonight, Bai Jing expressed that there was nothing he could do. They could only blame themselves for their bad luck; who asked them to jump in front of the muzzle of a gun?

The next day, K City Base was very lively. Early in the morning, Xiao Sa pushed the group of people to the Security Office of the base and claimed that there had been burglars. After the apocalypse, this was considered a felony.

“This…” The officers in the Security Office pulled 囧囧 faces as they stood there dazed. The people who were being accused looked worse than the accuser and had a few teeth beaten loose. Exactly who had robbed who?

Xiao Sa stood there, and let out a freezing aura, his expression cold as he remained silent. Bai Jing pointed at the six people on the ground who were in trouble, and spoke with a wide smile, "We caught several thieves last night. Originally, we wanted to deal with them privately, but we've only just arrived. Since we're law abiding citizens, we thought that it would be better to hand them over to security."

The whole crowd was choked by these words, and the faces of the factions that had come forth to retrieve their people turned green as they looked at Bai Jing. He was clearly telling everyone plainly that he was lying with his eyes wide open. He even had a reason for beating people up!

Xiao Sa kept his face expressionless, maintaining his profound image as Bai Jing drew his lips into a shallow smile and projected an amiable att.i.tude. Xiao Sa no longer kept up his pressure; he understood when to leave well enough alone, and powerful dragons didn't push down snakes that had lowered their heads. This time, they had come to K City Base to rest temporarily and not for the purpose of making enemies.

The two of them didn't linger after handing over the people to the Security Office. In any case, they had already achieved their goal, and the rest was none of their business. They still had a lot of work to do.

When they returned to the apartment, Wu Guoan was nowhere to be seen.

Bai Jing pouted in discontent, "I just knew that he was a dishonest guy. He must have followed us for a reason."

Xiao Sa ignored the complaints of the person in front of him. He fiercely pulled Bai Jing into his embrace, his arms strong and powerful, and without saying a word, he gave the little mouth that was still opening and closing a deep kiss. It was a long time before Xiao Sa finally relaxed his hold on the person in his arms. He said carelessly, "Who cares what he's doing or what he's planning? It's more important for us to do some proper things." Heavens knew how long he'd held back for. It hadn't mattered before when he hadn't tasted meat, but now he had already tried out Bai Jing's taste, it was torturous to be able to see but not enjoy. Wu Guoan at least knew what to do - it was good that he'd left!

Xiao Sa's impression of Wu Guoan instantly turned favourable, and he made a mental note to help him out in the future if he got into trouble with Little Jing.

“Mmm.” Bai Jing groaned low in his throat as Xiao Sa's hands moved irregularly over his body and slipped cleverly beneath his s.h.i.+rt. 

Bai Jing's cheeks were flushed, and his body writhed involuntarily. He made a show of pretending to refuse, but in fact he was also helping to push the boat along; to be honest, he also wanted it. He glanced at the closed door, suppressing the trembling of his body from the numbing pleasure, but his body unconsciously responded regardless. His voice was hoa.r.s.e from desire, "Let's go to the room, don't do it here…" 

Having received his instructions, Xiao Sa became even more unscrupulous. He pulled Bai Jing back into their room and casually locked the door. He couldn't wait to peel off the clothing from the person in front of him, exposing their supple, fair skin to the air. 

River crabs crawl by…

When Wu Guoan returned, he was followed by two old friends. If Xiao Sa was there, he would realize that he knew both of them. Ever since Wu Guoan met Xiao Sa, he had been thinking about what to do in the future. Regarding loyalty after the apocalypse: if Xiao Sa's momentum wasn't so strong, Bai Jing's att.i.tude so arrogant, and the way they put n.o.body in their eyes was more than just a superficial arrogance but rather based on real capital, and the fact that they had strength, supplies, and could not only eat meat but also drink wine… If Wu Guoan had been fifty percent loyal before, then it had shot up to one hundred percent after last night. 

Early this morning, when Xiao Sa and Bai Jing went out, Wu Guoan had left with them. Wu Guoan understood very clearly in his heart that Xiao Sa didn't trust him at all. If he wanted to regain Xiao Sa's regard, he would need to show corresponding value. After climbing and mixing around for so many years in society, and going through the baptism of the apocalypse, for him to have survived until now, disregarding anything else, he must at least have some measure of vision. Having guessed that Xiao Sa wanted to recruit men, as their first follower, he naturally needed to become the first soldier. What's more, he was now a member of the Cheetah Mercenary Corps. Regardless of whether it was for the good of the Cheetah Mercenary Corps or himself, it was imperative that he join with Xiao Sa. 

However, he had never thought that when he opened the door, even before he had put one foot inside, he would hear a blush-inducing murmur coming from the bedroom. Wu Guoan quickly retracted his foot and stared at the closed bedroom door in horror before, 'Pa!' slamming the door closed. There were only two words left in his heart, 'it's over!' They had come back at the worst time! If Xiao Sa and Bai Jing realized that he'd come by, they would definitely tear him to bits.

“What's going on? An, what's wrong? Where's Brother Sa?" Xu Feng couldn't quite understand what Wu Guoan was trying to do.

Wu Guoan's expression was stiff, and he pulled up a smile that looked even uglier than crying, "Nothing, Brother Sa is busy with some things. We'll come back later." 

Xu Feng was rather dissatisfied, but he didn't refuse. He had always been a big, rough man. Back then, when Xiao Sa had left the gang, he had remained behind to look after his parents. Although it was human nature, later on, when they all became fugitives, he couldn't help but wonder every time they encountered a life or death situation that if he hadn't craved that comfort back then and had instead taken his parents to leave with Xiao Sa, what would that have looked like? Would his parents not have died so tragically? Would the brothers who he had once fought shoulder to shoulder with not have killed each other over rations? Even if it would've been just as desperate under Xiao Sa's leaders.h.i.+p, he believed that based on Xiao Sa's ability, even if they became fugitives, they would still have had a better chance to live on.

In fact, in the end, they'd really let Xiao Sa down and failed to live up to his expectations and trust in them. As long as they were able to see Xiao Sa, right now, let alone just making them wait, they would be willing to let him do whatever he wanted.

In Xu Feng's heart and mind, Xiao Sa was someone who was infinitely resourceful. Not only had he known about the apocalypse in advance, he had also made preparations for it. Xu Feng had gone out to scavenge two days ago and returned empty handed. He could tell K City Base's situation was growing more and more severe. Ever since he learned news of Xiao Sa from Wu Gaoan, the shock in his heart went without saying - he would be lying if he said he wasn't surprised - but there was more of an indescribable, indecipherable sourness. His weary heart and spirit were instantly infused with strength, as though he had been looking for spiritual sustenance and had now suddenly found the light within the darkness. He anxiously made Wu Gaoan lead the way, pulling Li Ran with him to arrive at their doorstep, but it seemed that they hadn't come at the right time. 

As for Bai Jing, Xu Feng didn't count him at all and completely ignored him. In his mind, Bai Jing had an arrogant and willful temper, and was a Young Master who just relied on his powerful backing. Other than the fact that Brother Sa's lover was a s.p.a.ce ability user, he had no other use at all. All in all, Bai Jing was someone who needed to be protected and protecting him was equivalent to protecting their supplies. In an instant, Xu Feng felt that he had shouldered an additional responsibility; although Brother Sa was fierce, it was difficult to fight against four hands with two. He definitely had to help Brother Sa. Not only did he have to help Brother Sa by acting as the vanguard and opening up the way in front, he also needed to stand steadfast and guard Brother Sa's back court.