Zombie Apocalypse: Don't be afraid, I'm not a good person.

Jiang Manluo's parents' room

The atmosphere was somber.

Two security guards sat on the beds near the door.

A few steps further in, Jiang's mother, Song Ziqing, lay asleep on the pillow with her eyes closed. Her face was deathly pale, and her brows were furrowed even in her sleep.

Jiang Siyuan sat on a low stool in front of the bed. His usually straight back was now slumped. He hunched over, holding his wife's hands with both of his, gently stroking her cold hands with his fingers. His eyes were vacant as he stared at the ground, looking as if he had aged several years.

She had been holding on outside, but the moment she stepped through that door, Song Ziqing broke down completely.

They only had Jiang Manluo as their child, and they doted on her since she was little, giving her whatever she wanted. They treated her like a precious gem, afraid she would break if they held her in their hands or melt if they kept her in their mouths. Now that their daughter's life or death is unknown, the old couple are half-dead with her.

"Knock knock knock".

Three knocks, neither too loud nor too soft, suddenly sounded on the door.

The two security guards sprang to their feet, darted to the side of the door, and with a flick of their wrists, a gleaming dagger slid into their palms.

One of them turned his head to look at Jiang Siyuan, his eyes questioning, waiting for his instructions.

"Let's open it."

Jiang Siyuan's voice was terribly hoarse, and he didn't even raise his head. "On a warship, no one dares to do anything."

A security guard opened the door a crack, squinted, and scanned the area outside. The door was empty; there wasn't a soul in sight.

He looked puzzled and opened the door a little wider. The corridor was only lit by cold white lights, and the faint sounds of voices from other cabins could be heard in the distance. It was very quiet.

He shook his head at his companion and was about to close the door when he suddenly noticed a square piece of paper on the ground out of the corner of his eye. He hesitated for two seconds, then bent down to pick it up, glanced at it by the edges, and quickly turned around.

"Uncle Jiang, there's a note at the door."

Jiang Siyuan was taken aback. He had just arrived on this ship and was unfamiliar with the place; who would pass him a note?

That's enough. Now that he's lost his daughter, what's there to fear in death? He wearily raised his hand.

"Bring it here so I can take a look."

The security guard put away his dagger and came over, handing over the note with both hands. Jiang Siyuan took it; the paper was the kind of ordinary printing paper commonly used on the ship, nothing special.

He unfolded it flat, and as soon as his eyes fell on the first line, he was jolted, his pupils contracted, and his hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

"Jiang Manluo is not dead..."

"She's in a very safe place..."

"You two don't need to be upset..."

"But she's at a crucial juncture right now..."

"Take good care of yourself. Don't let Jiang Manluo come out healthy and cause you all so much worry."

At the end of the letter, —A kind person.

"She's not dead... Manluo isn't dead..."

Jiang Siyuan's lips trembled as he read it over and over, his gaze fixed on the paper, checking it again and again, afraid that he might have misread it because he was too heartbroken.

After confirming that everything was correct, he came to his senses, reached out to pull his wife out of bed, and said in a trembling voice, as if she had been resurrected, "Ziqing! Ziqing, wake up!"

He believed the note wholeheartedly; the messenger could accurately call out Manluo's name, so there was no mistake.

Perhaps subconsciously, he never wanted to believe that his daughter was gone.

Song Ziqing opened her eyes groggily, but when she saw her husband's excited expression, she immediately became alert.

She propped herself up on her arms, grabbed Jiang Siyuan's arm tightly, squeezing it until it hurt, her eyes brimming with an intense, unyielding longing, her voice trembling, "Siyuan... has... has he found Manluo?"

Jiang Siyuan first shook his head, but seeing the disappointment in his wife's eyes, he quickly nodded.

A business tycoon acted like an immature child in front of his wife, handing her a note.

"Look! Someone left a note at the door! It says Manluo isn't dead! She's perfectly fine and safe!"

Song Ziqing quickly grabbed the paper and brought it close to her eyes, reading each word aloud. Tears streamed down her face without warning, falling onto the paper and spreading faint ink marks.

She didn't know who the messenger was, or whether what the messenger said was true or false, but at that moment she was willing to believe it wholeheartedly.

Her daughter must still be alive and well in this world.

Upon reading the last word, she loosened her grip, the note fluttering onto the bedsheet. She threw herself into Jiang Siyuan's arms, and a suppressed sob finally broke free.

"That's great... Siyuan, that's great... I knew Manluo would be alright..."

Jiang Siyuan patted his wife's back, trying to calm her down, his eyes reddening.

"That's right! We need to take care of ourselves! Then we'll go home and find our precious daughter!"

The two security guards by the door also breathed a sigh of relief, exchanged a glance, and both saw smiles in each other's eyes.

They weren't bodyguards hired by the Jiang family; they were orphans adopted by Jiang Siyuan in his early years. He raised them from a young age, taught them skills, and only wanted them to protect his family.

The Jiang family has always treated them sincerely. When Miss Jiang had an accident, they were also heartbroken. Now that they heard that she was still alive, they were naturally overjoyed.

On the other side, Shenhe returned to his cabin after delivering the note and locked it with a click.

A faint spatial fluctuation condensed in front of him, as he planned to teleport back to the airport where there were still quite a few zombies left, and it would be a pity not to kill them.

He couldn't stay cooped up in this small room all day.

Just as the address was chosen, there was a knock on the door next door.

It was Jiang Yan's cabin door.

Jiang Yan opened the door, leaned against the door frame, and glanced indifferently at Chen Jie outside the door.

Chen Jie held a metal tray in his hand, inside which were five energy cores, each the size of a woman's fist, crystal clear.

Jiang Yan reached out to take the tray, but Chen Jie spoke first, cautiously, "Um, Miss Jiang..."

Jiang Yan glanced at him, expressionless, licking her lips with the tip of her tongue, puffing out her cheeks.

Chen Jie cleared his throat.

"That new guy, Brother Shen, who's also an ability user, seems to have never seen an energy core before. Could I... take one over to show him what it looks like?"

He had originally intended to say he would take two, but when he met Jiang Yan's condescending gaze, he swallowed his words.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yan slightly raised her chin, lowered her eyes, and glanced at Chen Jie from top to bottom.

Two seconds later, she glanced sideways towards Shenhe's cabin door, her voice slow and languid, tinged with surprise.

"What? He's never even used an energy core before? What a pathetic greenhorn, humph..."

She looked at the tray; of the five energy cores inside, only one floated up and flew toward her, while the remaining four remained intact.

After eating his candy, she would give him a few more energy cores so that he would call her "sister" when he came back, as compensation!

She glanced at Chen Jie, turned and walked into the house. Just before closing the door, her arrogant voice slowly drifted out, "Take it all to him. Remember to teach him how to use them, so that by tomorrow his strength hasn't improved at all and he doesn't hold me back, heh~"

With a click, the door closed.

Jiang Yan's smug chuckle came from inside.

Shenhe, who was in the room, was not angry at all when he heard Jiang Yan's words. Instead, he found it quite amusing.

The more she mocks him now, the more agonizing her screams will be when she discovers his true strength!

No wonder they all like to play dumb to fool others!

Just thinking about that scene makes me look forward to it.