The two adults and two children returned to the storage warehouse with Old Jin.

Although the place was in a sorry state, it provided better shelter from the wind and rain than being exposed outdoors.

"Rest now, conserve your energy," Su Ling suggested, leaning against the wall and sitting down.

Having had very little water in the past two days, she felt her physical strength rapidly depleting, as if her whole body was falling apart.

Sheng Hongye was slightly better off than her, but he couldn't hide the weariness in his eyes.

He collected some dried grass and made a simple bed for Xiaoyue and Gu Kai Xuan to lie down. Then, he sat beside Su Ling.

The two children soon fell asleep, and Old Jin settled down as well.

Sheng Hongye glanced at the children, then turned his gaze to Su Ling.

"How are you holding up? Can you manage?"

Su Ling turned her head slightly and managed a faint smile. "I'm okay."

At the same time, she felt deeply guilty.

If Sheng Hongye hadn't held her back, they wouldn't have been blown to Luocheng. In the end, it was her fault that brought trouble to Sheng Hongye.

Sheng Hongye seemed to sense her thoughts. "Don't overthink it. We all have to go through such things sooner or later. Perhaps you're right; we really should go to Panlong Island and take a look."

When Sheng Hongye brought up Panlong Island, Su Ling's interest was piqued.

"You've been so secretive about that place; you must be very familiar with it. What kind of place is it, exactly?"

Sheng Hongye shifted his gaze away and looked at the opposite wall.

His voice was low as he said, "Yes, I'm very familiar with that place. I grew up on Panlong Island... It's a place piled with bones."

"Why do you say that?"

Su Ling had always been curious about Sheng Hongye's background. She had long suspected that he wasn't just an ordinary president doing business in the mall.

Sheng Hongye chuckled softly. "I didn't expect you to be so curious. I thought you didn't care about anything."

Su Ling gave him a side-eye, speaking sardonically, "I'm human too. Curiosity is part of being human."

Sheng Hongye curved his lips slightly before continuing, "It sounds like a melodramatic story, one you could treat as a tale."

He sneered, his voice slow as he said, "My mother was my father's second wife. Strictly speaking, Gu Kai Xuan is not my real nephew. His mother and my elder brother were both from my father's previous marriage. Later, my mother married into the Sheng family, and my elder sister was always kind to us. But my elder brother was always afraid that I would replace him in the family, so he had me kidnapped when I was around ten years old. I was later rescued by an old man and brought to Panlong Island. There, the only way to survive was through constant killing. The skills I learned were all the simplest techniques for taking lives."

"So, how does this story sound? Does it seem melodramatic enough?"

Sheng Hongye turned back to Su Ling, seemingly waiting for her evaluation.

Su Ling was indeed surprised. Such a bizarre plot, typically found in novels, had unexpectedly happened in real life. Moreover, Gu Kai Xuan wasn't even Sheng Hongye's true nephew. ¹This is what the author wrote. Incest? Or maybe the first wife brought her daughter when she married into the Sheng family and Sheng Hongye's elder brother was an illegitimate child. Thus, Gu Kai Xuan's mother and father are not blood-related brother and sister? But if I'm not mistaken, Gu Kai Xuan is still Sheng Hongye's nephew since they are still blood-related?

However, observing his dependence on Grandma, it's certain that his mother must have a good relationship with Sheng Hongye's mother.

Thinking about the ten-year-old Sheng Hongye constantly fighting on Panlong Island, Su Ling couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you afraid?"

"Of course, I'm afraid. After all, we only have one life, but if we don't kill, we'll lose that life even faster."

Recalling the scene of countless wild dogs roaring and chasing after him, Sheng Hongye's eyes narrowed, as if he could still hear the howling in his ears.

"I never expected you to have such an experience. So, how did you come back?"

Sheng Hongye replied calmly, "Every year, Panlong Island leaves five people behind. After ten years, those fifty people engage in a deadly battle called 'Freedom.' Only the five survivors can leave Panlong Island."

"So, you and four others came back?"

"Yes."

Sheng Hongye seemed like he wanted to say more, but his wristwatch suddenly made a beeping sound.

Su Ling saw him look at a button, and then a series of codes appeared.

Sheng Hongye glanced at them, his expression visibly grim.

Curious, Su Ling asked, "Is your wristwatch some kind of receiver? Why does it still have a signal now?"

Sheng Hongye looked at her and said, "You can think of it that way; it can indeed receive signals encoded with passwords."

"Can you reveal what the message is about?"

"A friend is coming to find me, but their transportation broke down, and they can't find another one to use. It might take a long time for them to get to China."

"Okay," Su Ling acknowledged and didn't inquire further.

She still believed Sheng Hongye's story to some extent; after all, the world had all sorts of incredible things. However, if what he said was true, there might still be living people on Panlong Island, and that would be quite terrifying.

She couldn't figure out why that strange man insisted that Panlong Island was a must-visit place. Could he be from Panlong Island as well?

But it didn't seem likely; if he were, Sheng Hongye would surely know him.

Lost in her thoughts, Su Ling noticed that Sheng Hongye had already stood up.

Su Ling's thoughts were interrupted, and she asked, "Where are you going?"

"Just taking a quick restroom break."

"Oh."

Feeling a bit awkward, Su Ling cleared her throat and said, "Go ahead."

Borrowing the moonlight, she glanced at her watch, which showed it was already past ten o'clock at night. It seemed that the zombies probably wouldn't come tonight. She could finally get a good night's sleep.

Yawning, she closed her eyes.

She only dared to fall asleep when she heard Sheng Hongye's footsteps.

In her half-asleep state, she seemed to hear Sheng Hongye murmuring something about also coming out...

But she was too tired, so she dozed off.

When she woke up, it was already bright outside.

Sheng Hongye was standing at the door, and as he saw Su Ling open her eyes, his furrowed brows gradually relaxed.

"Are you awake?"

Su Ling stood up, leaning against the wall. Her legs had gone numb from sitting all night.

The two children were sitting on the withered grass, playing with a Rubik's Cube, looking quite harmonious.

"Yeah. What's our next step?"

Sheng Hongye pondered for a moment and said, "I'll go check out the place Xiaoyue mentioned. You all wait here."

Su Ling wanted to suggest going together with Sheng Hongye, but she reconsidered. It wouldn't be safe to leave the children here alone, and besides, if Sheng Hongye wasn't lying, a dozen people wouldn't be a concern to him.

"Alright, we'll wait for you."

Sheng Hongye nodded, then walked away without looking back.

Watching his figure, Su Ling couldn't help but have a strange thought.

If Guan Yuxin knew about Sheng Hongye's background, would she write it into her novel?

Thinking of Guan Yuxin, Su Ling also thought about Wang Pian and Luo Xiaobing. She wondered how they were doing, if they had enough food to eat.

While Su Ling was lost in her thoughts, Sheng Hongye had already found the tunnel Xiaoyue mentioned.

He kicked away the wooden board blocking the entrance and walked in without glancing back...

 

Notes:

[1] This is what the author wrote. Incest? Or maybe the first wife brought her daughter when she married into the Sheng family and Sheng Hongye's elder brother was an illegitimate child. Thus, Gu Kai Xuan's mother and father are not blood-related brother and sister? But if I'm not mistaken, Gu Kai Xuan is still Sheng Hongye's nephew since they are still blood-related?