RIACMET chapter 248

 

“Xiao Ji, once you return to the base and your hand heals, your daily duties will resume as usual. Since Cheng Jing and the others aren’t around, try to cooperate more with Yang Kai and Master Gao to help coordinate the affairs of the Superpower Legion.”

Inside the tent, Chu Yi briefed Tang Ji. His tone and demeanor were as calm and normal as always.

For some reason, however, Tang Ji felt a twinge of disappointment. He didn’t want to leave early, but he couldn’t think of a good reason to stay. A wounded soldier would only be a burden out here. In the end, he lowered his head and nodded.

“I see. Then, Brother Chu, please be careful.”

Chu Yi smiled.

“I know. You just go back and get some rest. We still have other tasks to complete.”

As he spoke, he helped Tang Ji out of the tent and walked with him away from the camp. After watching Tang Ji and Xiaoya board the aircraft, Chu Yi turned and returned to his work.

“Brother Tang Ji, if you’re thirsty or hungry, just let me know. I’ll feed you.”

Seeing that Tang Ji was in a low mood, Xiaoya helped him buckle up without disturbing him too much. After giving him a brief reminder, she returned to her seat beside the escort officer.

“Thank you, Xiaoya.”

Tang Ji forced a smile and thanked her, but sighed internally:

Am I going to keep feeling this awkward and uncomfortable forever?

It was unbearable.

After the aircraft took off, Chu Yi sent Tang Yi an update so the “worried parent” could finally relax.

…

Tang Ji returned to the base with mixed emotions. Thanks to treatment from a powerful healing ability user—reserved for core members only—his hand healed quickly.

The tension from his injury faded, but his unclear feelings began to take a more definite shape. They evolved from simple embarrassment and awkwardness into a confusing blend of shame and loss.

Even when passionate thoughts occasionally emerged in his mind, they always came with the image of Chu Yi’s calm face and his rough, slender, powerful hands.

I shouldn’t be thinking about this. I feel crushed and anxious.

He was already twenty. He knew very well what these feelings meant.

But in terms of background, status, or strength, Chu Yi was entirely out of his reach.

If not for the apocalypse, someone like Chu Yi would never have crossed paths with him in this lifetime.

He understood all that. But he was still too young and rash. In a world like this, he didn’t get to choose life or death.

After hesitating for a long while, Tang Ji decided he would wait until Chu Yi returned and try to find a chance to confess. Just in case…just in case there was a chance.

Over ten days passed after he returned to the base, and Chu Yi still hadn’t come back. They hadn’t exchanged messages during that time either.

A few days later, Chu Yi’s aide returned with a transport team carrying military supplies. The aide said that Chu Yi’s trip had been delayed again and that there was no set return date.

Tang Ji found an excuse to send a message asking about it. Chu Yi’s reply was short and formal: Just a routine change in plans.

Staring at that stiff message on his phone, Tang Ji became even more restless. The vague flutter in his chest intensified. His thoughts were a mess, and he couldn’t stop himself from sneaking into Chu Yi’s room to sleep.

I feel like such a creep.

…

Once the evacuation mission at Base Z was over, Cheng Jing and his team didn’t immediately return to Nancheng Base. Instead, they were redirected to assist at another location.

When 100,000 zombies gathered around Base Z, the military surrounded the safe zone and dropped a small “Ash-to-Ash” bomb.

Elsewhere, the scale and strategy were largely the same.

Each time the military conducted a sweep, they made sure to eliminate the zombie king and any other high-level zombies capable of commanding others.

Without a “leader,” the hordes of zombies that had once moved in coordinated swarms dissolved into chaos.

Within domestic borders, “Ash-to-Ash” bombs were used sparingly. More conventional methods were still the norm for zombie elimination.

After the antidote serum was developed, many powerful weapons were redeployed to border regions to guard against potential “foreign zombie invasions.”

This continued for over a month after the initial wave.

At the end of February, the central radio announced that Taipei City and Base S were about to face the largest zombie tide yet, estimated to include over two million zombies.

Leading them was a zombie king, and there were numerous zombies with special abilities, including more than one with spatial powers. The instant they appeared within the danger zone, alarms sounded.

Taipei and Base S immediately entered Level One combat readiness. The four major military-led bases—east, west, south, and north—used this moment to mobilize and converge.

Aside from handling the zombie tide, the authorities saw this as an opportunity to address long-standing internal conflicts at Base S.

Minister Wang and Yang Kai, who were closely connected to Base S in Taipei, led troops from South City Base to the front lines.

They also ordered Chu Yi, who was still out in the field, to head to Base S and join them after completing his current mission.

Due to the presence of multiple zombie kings, high-level zombies, and numerous supernatural users from Base S, as well as the political chaos within Base S, Gao Xuyang chose not to go. If he was exposed, it would cause major trouble.

Since Master Gao wasn’t going, Tang Ji—his “mortal enemy”—naturally remained behind at the base as well.

For various reasons, Minister Wang recalled Cheng Jing’s team to defend the base and prevent them from being dragged into the murky waters of Base S.

Although the team was strong, operating in a place flooded with high-ranking military personnel from all four major cities posed significant risks. With Jiang Nian’s identity, they could easily get into unnecessary trouble.

Team 017 had no objections to leadership’s thoughtful decision.

Cheng Jing, in particular, was relieved. He didn’t want to put his lover and his team in such a volatile situation.

The military should handle the zombie tide—superpowers couldn’t compare to heavy weaponry anyway. Liang Yunhao and Jiang Wenwen had already promised to handle the core personnel in Professor Xia’s human experiments. All they had to do now was wait.

After a month of rescue missions, the team was finally able to return to base to rest, recalibrate, and receive their rewards.