RIACMET chapter 135

 

Woof, woof, woof!

The fight was over. The swearing dog saw its master frozen as an ice statue. It ran up to him, circled around, and lifted its head to bark.

After a while, the dog turned back to the group. Its eyes were bright and spirited but filled with contradictions and confusion.

“That’s really heartbreaking,” Liao Yu sighed. Trained military dogs are as intelligent as seven- or eight-year-old children. It was truly endearing.

“Huh? There’s something on its collar…” Jian Cheng noticed that inside the collar, where the dog’s neck lifted, was a small, black, rectangular box tied with a transparent, waterproof strap. It was about two fingers wide and long—roughly the size of a standard lighter.

Zhou Rongbin walked up, gently stroked the dog’s fur, and whispered soothingly as he checked the collar.

Whether because the collar hadn’t been adjusted in a while or the owner had done it deliberately, the strap was snug—so tight that it was easy to miss if one wasn’t paying attention.

The buckle wouldn’t open, so Zhao Lei stepped forward, fiddled with it for a moment, and finally loosened the leather collar.

Inside, faint letters had been heat-stamped, listing information about the dog. Most of the words were worn and faded, but four clear characters remained:

Name: Xiaoqi.

They were most likely engraved by the owner before he lost his mind completely, so that others could identify the dog.

“Woo, woo, woo—”

As the tightness around its neck eased, the dog let out a comfortable sound.

Zhou Rongbin took the chance to call its name:

“Xiaoqi.”

Woof! The anxious dog paused, then gently nudged his palm in response.

Zhao Lei quickly peeled off the waterproof tape and pulled out the attached device.

“It’s a recorder. It’s well-protected, but the battery is dead.”

He handed the slim, black device to Cheng Jing.

“Brother Cheng, try charging it and see if it still works.”

“…”

Cheng Jing examined it. The design was simple, yet the build felt solid. It had only a power button, a charging port, and an indicator light.

With a thought, a current ran through his fingertips and into the recorder’s port.

Zhao Lei and Zhou Rongbin reattached the collar to Xiaoqi. Though it was old and frayed, the owner had left it, so they let the dog keep it.

After a moment, the indicator light turned green. Cheng Jing pressed the button, and a calm male voice played:

“No matter who you are, if you’re hearing this from Xiaoqi, it means I’ve turned into a zombie.”

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Xiaoqi, who had been interacting with Zhou Rongbin, suddenly jumped up, raised its front paws, and scratched at Cheng Jing.

Woof woof—

Woof woof…

Cheng Jing patted its head, half-kneeling down to continue the playback while comforting it.

“I’m a soldier. I won’t say my name or anything else. Xiaoqi is my partner. He turned one year old on the day the poisonous rain fell.”

“Xiaoqi is very obedient. Though he sometimes slacked off during training, he prefers being around people more than other dogs do. He can tell the difference between humans and zombies, and he’ll protect humans and attack zombies. He’s very smart.”

“I know I can’t recover from the infection, so I can’t go with the main unit. Xiaoqi didn’t want to leave either. Since all the survivors in Xihe City have been evacuated and no one is left here, I chose to stay and become a zombie.”

“My mind is starting to fade; my memories are slowly slipping away. Only my will to fight zombies remains untouched. Xiaoqi is doing his best to guide me, and I feel…different.”

“Xiaoqi has become quite fierce, but as long as I listen to him, I can continue to kill zombies. If you come across our strange pair, please don’t hurt him. Also … help put me down. A headshot from a distance will do. Thank you.”

After five recorded messages, there was a brief rustling, followed by a final message in a solemn tone:

“Xiaoqi, you must always protect humans. You can do it. You know I’ve turned. If someone tries to kill me, don’t stop them. Follow the good people and leave here. Goodbye.”

After that word, “goodbye,” the recording ended.

Xiaoqi’s owner hadn’t shared much about his background or his thoughts about the apocalypse. He simply stated calmly that even after turning, he could still fight zombies and that he was more worried about Xiaoqi.

They didn’t know his name, where he was from, or which jurisdiction he’d served. They only knew that he was a soldier—calm, reserved, and not good with words—who had left behind a faithful and intelligent companion.

“…”

Cheng Jing replayed all six messages. The team listened silently, their emotions heavy.

In a different situation, if they had acted impulsively, Xiaoqi might have been the first one they took down. Thankfully…

As the recordings played, Xiaoqi changed from being excited and happy at first to gradually becoming quiet.

By the last message, he listened attentively and barked twice each time it was replayed.

He had likely heard his master repeat this many times before his mind faded.

Finally, Xiaoqi stopped circling the recorder. He walked over to the statue of his frozen master, lay down on the ground, and kept silent watch—no barking, no sounds, just a quiet, unwavering presence.

It was a heartbreaking sight.

As dusk fell, Cheng Jing turned off the recorder and handed it to Zhou Rongbin. Then, he walked over to Xiaoqi, crouched down, and said,

“Xiaoqi.”

“… ”

Xiaoqi looked up at him and let out a soft whimper in reply.

Cheng Jing gently stroked his head and spoke to him, not caring how much he could understand.

“We’re going to send your master off now. That was his wish. He can’t care for you anymore. You’ll stay with us from now on, okay?”

“…”

Xiaoqi looked slightly confused. Cheng Jing smiled.

“Don’t worry. You’ll love your new home. You’ll love your new friends, too.”

He nodded at Liao Yu, who stepped forward and placed his hand on the ice sculpture.

Unable to bear witness, Jiang Nian turned away and walked off to the side.

Xiaoqi seemed to realize what was about to happen and whimpered. Zhou Rongbin tried to hold him back, but the dog didn’t resist; he merely stood his ground.

But they were overthinking it. Xiaoqi was intelligent and obedient. He was carefully carrying out his master’s final command.

Whether Liao Yu shattered the ice or Cheng Jing struck it down with thunder and flame, Xiaoqi simply watched quietly. He whimpered softly as if saying goodbye, but he never stepped forward to stop them.

Only after the fire died down and only a single crystal core remained did Zhou Rongbin finally let him go, his eyes filled with pain.

Woof!

Just as Cheng Jing reached out to retrieve the crystal, Xiaoqi called out.

“…?”

Cheng Jing paused.

“You want it?”

Xiaoqi ran up, pawed at the crystal a few times, picked it up in his mouth, and walked back the way he and his master had come.

He stopped a few steps ahead, looked back, set the crystal down, and barked twice, clearly signaling for them to follow.

“Come on, or he’s going to scold us again.”

Huang Qian let out a shaky breath and joked. She always thought of herself as tough, but she couldn’t stop the swell of bittersweet emotion in her chest.

Everyone’s hearts felt heavy. Hearing this, they all smiled bitterly.

Jiang Nian was walking in the back when Cheng Jing came up and gently took his hand.

“Niannian, are you okay?”

“A little sad,” Jiang Nian answered honestly. He opened his palms, laced his fingers with Cheng Jing’s, and walked forward with his head slightly bowed.

Cheng Jing turned to look at him, then suddenly had an idea. When the others weren’t looking, he leaned over quickly and kissed Jiang Nian’s cheek to comfort him.

“Don’t waste energy on things you can’t control. Otherwise, you’ll only wear yourself out.”

“Brother Jing!”

In a panic, Jiang Nian glanced around at his teammates. Relieved that no one had noticed, he let out a deep breath.

Sure enough, the heavy mood lightened a bit.

Cheng Jing held his hand tighter.

“I haven’t kissed you since we left the base.”

“You liar. You kissed me in secret last night…”

Jiang Nian retorted, then froze. Oops.

“…”

Sure enough, a second later, he heard a sharp intake of breath beside him, followed by a whisper through gritted teeth:

“So…you were awake! Did you turn your back on me and pretend to sleep?!”

Everyone else had been thrilled by the rare drop of a special crystal core. Afraid Jiang Nian was too tired, Cheng Jing had tried to sneak a kiss in the middle of the night—but hadn’t expected that.

“I’m sorry…”

Jiang Nian felt too guilty to look at him. He sped up, walking forward without turning back.

He hadn’t meant to ignore him. He just didn’t want their relationship to interfere with the team’s progress or cause social fallout.

Cheng Jing didn’t argue. After all, sneaking a kiss wasn’t exactly noble. Personal feelings were better resolved privately.