Ch 96: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Yang Sen’s face was still pressed against the bath towel, his body convulsing twice like a dying fish before going stiff, collapsing onto the bed like a pile of lifeless flesh.

Zhang Sujuan stared at Song Kaiji in front of her, unable to believe her own eyes. Tears welled up as her lips trembled, about to speak, when faint noises suddenly came from outside—it seemed that the ability users left behind were coming to check on the situation.

Song Kaiji quickly gestured for silence.

The girl on the bed, understanding the situation, let out two well-timed moans. The movement outside gradually faded. The scene on the bed was still explicit, and Song Kaiji, having never seen anything like this before, quickly turned away and pulled out a set of clothes from his space, handing them to Zhang Sujuan to help dress the girl.

In the adjacent large room, two of the four ability users left behind had already fallen asleep, snoring loudly. The other two were sitting by the window, gathered around a small hot pot. One of them suddenly perked up and listened carefully. “Did something just move in Sen Ge’s room?”

“They just sent someone in. A bit of noise is normal,” the other replied with a lewd grin, lowering his voice. “Even if Sen Ge’s body is weak, he’s not that useless, right?”

Hearing him joke about Yang Sen, the first man couldn’t hold back a chuckle and punched him playfully. “You better watch what you say. If Sen Ge hears that, he’ll make trouble for you.” Yang Sen knew everything that happened in this factory—only now, when he was focused on his own business and his psychic ability wasn’t spread out, did they dare to talk like this. Then, the first man furrowed his brows. “I swear I heard someone say ‘Mom’ just now.”

“They were probably cursing. Didn’t you hear how Sen Ge slapped that girl? It was loud as hell.” Though dismissive, he also tilted his head to listen. Just then, they heard the woman’s pitiful moans inside the room, and he relaxed. Seeing his companion stand up, he quickly pulled him back. “Don’t go sticking your nose in. You know Sen Ge’s temper. Right now, he’s in his weakest moment as a man. If you start lurking around his door and scare him, you won’t have a good ending.”

The other man thought about it and agreed. Yang Sen had a strange temper—overly cautious, to put it bluntly. If he misunderstood his concern as something else, things could get awkward. Hearing the continuous moans from the room, he figured everything was normal and gave up. He reached under the table, pulled out a bottle of beer, and poured them both a drink. “Forget him. Let’s enjoy our own drinks. I’ve been hiding this beer for ages—never dared to take it out when there were more people around.”

Meanwhile, inside Yang Sen’s room, Song Kaiji, worried that Yang Sen might not be completely dead, decisively cut off his head.

He had thought this would horrify Zhang Sujuan and the girl, but instead, their faces showed only satisfaction. After a month in this place, they had seen far worse.

The next step was escaping the factory. Running into Zhang Sujuan right away had made things much smoother than expected. After a brief thought, Song Kaiji stored Yang Sen’s corpse and severed head in his space. Then, he wiped the bloodstains off the room with the same bath towel and stored it away as well.

He could move quickly on his own using teleportation, but carrying Zhang Sujuan and the girl—who had just helped in this plan—would slow him down significantly. Leaving her behind wasn’t something he could bring himself to do.

The longer they took, the higher the chance of being discovered. If someone found Yang Sen’s body too soon, their escape would be compromised. Taking his corpse with them would at least delay suspicion—people might assume he had simply left the room temporarily.

They couldn’t risk speaking, but thanks to Song Kaiji’s space ability, they could still write on paper to communicate. Zhang Sujuan led the way, Song Kaiji carried the girl on his back, and the three of them stealthily moved along the walls toward Li Aiguo’s quarters.

Inside the room were over a dozen enslaved ordinary people. Li Aiguo and Zhang Sujuan had claimed a small corner for themselves. At that moment, Li Aiguo was leaning against the wall, dozing off.

He had finished his work for the day but couldn’t rest, too worried about his wife, who was still serving the girls. These people were unpredictable—they could kill on a whim. Until he saw her safe, he couldn’t sleep. Even if he was powerless to protect her, waiting for her return was the only thing he could do.

Based on his experience, she wouldn’t be back for a while. After Yang Sen finished his business, Zhang Sujuan would still have to return the girl to the locked room and clean up afterward. But tonight, through the door crack, Li Aiguo suddenly saw his wife returning far earlier than expected.

Zhang Sujuan gestured for Song Kaiji to stay back while she and the injured girl moved to the doorway. Supporting the girl, she called out softly to Li Aiguo. “Come help me. My leg hurts—I can’t manage.”

A few of the other captives glanced at her but didn’t think much of it. The couple was known to be close, and Zhang Sujuan’s leg injury was no secret. It wasn’t unusual for her to ask her husband for help with tasks. As long as they weren’t trying to run, even if Yang Sen noticed, he wouldn’t care.

Some of the other captives even glanced at Zhang Sujuan’s injured leg with hidden hope. If a bear was chasing you, did you have to outrun the bear? No—you just had to outrun your companions. If Zhang Sujuan died first, their “rations” would be replenished, and the captors wouldn’t have to kill them next.

Li Aiguo noticed nothing strange and quickly stepped out to take the girl from his wife’s arms. But as soon as he did, his eyes widened in shock—was he hallucinating? Was that his son hiding behind the door?

Zhang Sujuan discreetly pinched him. “Take her first. I’ll go inside and get the key.” She had one of the keys to the women’s locked quarters, but it wasn’t kept in the room—it was always on her.

Li Aiguo hesitated. Unlike Zhang Sujuan, he had long given up on escape. Seeing Song Kaiji now, he quickly pieced things together, but he wasn’t mentally prepared. He had no idea what to do.

His wife gave him a shove and quietly closed the door. “What are you standing there for? Move!”

“Oh, oh!” Feeling the key being pressed into his palm, Li Aiguo snapped back to reality. He quickly carried the girl away. As soon as the door was shut, Song Kaiji followed.

They reached the locked room where the girls were held, opened the door, and tossed in a few sets of clothes along with a small paper note before immediately heading toward the factory’s exit. Zhang Sujuan soon caught up—she had pretended to search for the key for a while before slipping away, leaving another paper note inside the room.

This was all planned beforehand. They didn’t have the strength to save everyone, but they couldn’t just ignore them either. Both notes had the same message:

The psychic ability user is dead. Only four ability users remain inside, and they haven’t noticed yet. If you want to escape, leave now!

From here on, their fates were in their own hands.

Song Kaiji carried his mother on his back and ran as fast as he could with his father down the mountain.

The first to find the note were the imprisoned girls. The sudden unlocking of the door, the thrown-in clothes—such an unusual disturbance left them frozen in fear. At first, they thought it was another cruel game, and they huddled in the corners, holding their breath.

But after a long time, no one entered.

Finally, one girl gathered the courage to pick up the note.

Her eyes widened in shock.

Could this be another trap? Or was someone genuinely giving them a chance to escape?

The note passed between them, their expressions shifting from fear to determination.

One girl clenched the note tightly. No matter what, they were going to die anyway.

Many of them had begged for death before but weren’t even given that mercy. If this was a trap, at least it might mean a quick end. If it wasn’t…

Without even stopping to dress, she grabbed whatever clothes she could and bolted out of the room.

The first girl’s escape sparked the others into action. Soon, more and more followed.

At the same time, in the slaves’ quarters, someone else discovered the other note.

More and more people were escaping, but some were too weak or injured to run fast. They desperately grabbed onto others, begging not to be left behind, pleading for help.

Others cursed Zhang Sujuan in low voices. The captives in the slave quarters quickly realized that the note had been left by her. She had taken her husband away in advance but only let them know so late!

The murmurs grew louder, waking up the two ability users who had been sleeping while the other two, still groggy from drinking, looked around in confusion. “What’s that noise?”

When they realized that the enslaved women and laborers were escaping, all four of them were stunned. “What the hell is going on? Where’s Sen Ge? Why didn’t he send a warning?”

“Damn it, did Sen Ge die on top of that woman?” One of the ability users cursed, kicking open Yang Sen’s door, only to find the room completely empty. “Did those slaves kidnap him? If the boss comes back and finds out, we’re dead!”

“What are you standing around for? Chase them! The people escaping aren’t the real problem—we need to get Sen Ge back!”

At the foot of the mountain, Shen Qing and the others had been waiting for a while. As soon as Song Kaiji left, Shen Qing had noticed that the empty space in the car had been filled with supplies. He immediately understood that Song Kaiji had left with the determination to die.

Before, when Song Kaiji didn’t know Shen Qing was from ancient times, he would only collect specific things like gold and jewelry upon request. But now, in the darkness while waiting for midnight, he had carefully chosen everything he thought an ancient person could use.

Daily necessities, fabrics, ceramics, copperware, books…

Shen Qing ran his fingers over the covers of the books before opening his phone. Inside was a video of Song Kaiji reading the Three Character Classic to him. He had originally intended to keep it as a memory after severing ties with the post-apocalyptic world, something to look back on occasionally.

But he never expected that before he could completely cut off his connection to this world, the video might already be needed.

Shen Qing closed his eyes. Honestly, if Song Kaiji had died tonight, it would have been the best outcome for him. He wouldn’t have to worry about his secret being exposed, and no one would covet the cave’s entrance. If he was just a little more careful, he could still secretly travel back and forth between the worlds, exchanging supplies.

But, but…

Time ticked away. About forty to fifty minutes later, Tang Wenjie and Qu Weiwei, who were on watch by the roadside, detected rustling sounds in the grass—someone was running through it. They immediately went on high alert. Tang Wenjie prepared to attack, while Qu Weiwei turned on an emergency light and shined it toward the sound.

“It’s me!” Song Kaiji called out. “No one is chasing us, start the car!”

Tang Wenjie quickly relayed the message while Qu Weiwei used her vines to lift Song Kaiji and the people on Li Aiguo’s back into the vehicle.

Meanwhile, Shen Qing watched Song Kaiji running down the mountain. There was some blood on his face and clothes, but not much. He looked unharmed and was even able to carry someone. Were there wounds that weren’t visible?

What kind of life-or-death situation had he gone through up there?

Finally unable to suppress his emotions, Shen Qing ran straight into Song Kaiji’s arms as he reached the car.

Qu Weiwei groaned. “Is now really the time for this? If you two want to hug, do it inside the car!” With that, she used her vines to fling them both inside.

They tumbled onto the seat in a heap, Shen Qing’s head still buried in Song Kaiji’s chest, their bodies pressed closely together. For a young man raised in the traditional, conservative Lantang Village, this level of intimacy was overwhelming.

But Song Kaiji only held him tighter. “I’m back. I made it back alive. I can see you again.”

Zhang Sujuan and Li Aiguo, who had just escaped death, were at a loss for words.

The couple exchanged glances. It was obvious to anyone with eyes what was going on between Song Kaiji and this young man. But having just escaped from hell, there were more pressing concerns than questioning their son’s love life.

Sun Cheng was in the driver’s seat, ready to shut the door and start the car as soon as Qu Weiwei got in. But at that moment, Li Li suddenly appeared out of nowhere and threw herself onto the steering wheel, refusing to let them leave. “Why are there only them? Where are my parents? They’re still up there, aren’t they? Song Kaiji, you can’t do this! Second Uncle, even you have changed? My father is your own big brother! How can you just leave him behind?”

She had seen Qu Weiwei use vines to pull two people into the car. One of them was Zhang Sujuan, so she had assumed the other was her mother. But when she rushed over, she found that it was a young woman she didn’t recognize.

She had waited a little longer, expecting to see her parents, but when only Song Kaiji and Li Aiguo came running down, she realized they weren’t coming. And now these people were about to leave.

“You were just looking out for yourselves! You didn’t tell them because you were afraid it would alert the enemy, right?”

Song Kaiji was still holding Shen Qing, still savoring the joy of surviving and being reunited with his parents—not to mention the warmth of the person he loved throwing himself into his arms. But before he could fully enjoy the moment, Li Li jumped out, causing a commotion.

He glanced back at the mountain. The noise was growing louder—it seemed that many people had found the notes and were all fleeing.

At this rate, those ability users would soon realize something was wrong and come after them. And what if those who were escaping decided to seek their help? Should they take them in or not?

If they took them in, there wouldn’t be enough room in the car. More importantly, how could they differentiate friend from foe in such a short time? If even one enemy infiltrated their group, would the whole team be doomed?

If they didn’t take them, they might be entangled and unable to leave. The best option was to escape before those people reached them.

Song Kaiji’s expression darkened. “Weiwei, tie her up and drag her behind the car. Sun Cheng, start the car. Now!”

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