“Where’s that base you said was located at?” asked Pei Zhaozhou. His golden amber eyes looked at Si Huaixi, then shifted to the desolate wilderness all around him. His brows wrinkled.

As matters stand, he wasn’t even worried he’d be fooled to go somewhere, he had nothing to lose after all, but…

Having been hungry for five days, his flattened belly was about to roar in protest!

Although he was an S-class Alpha with a strong constitution that could endure being starved for a few days, he had gone through an immensely consuming mecha battle before this happened. An explosion had even severely injured him to the point of shedding blood.

Logically, it would be impossible for an explosion of that scale to generate space-time crossover. Moreover, it wasn't an ordinary crossing over. Rather, it was from his original world to a higher dimensional main world, where the world he was born and raised in was nothing more than a book.

If it was before, he'd definitely can’t stand not researching the principle behind this space-time crossover, yet the current him had stopped caring so much.

His bodily function had long sounded its alarm. Pei Zhaozhou weakly pursed his lower lip. Long period of dehydration and starvation, as well as having high fever in the wilderness, had his pale face colored in abnormal flush.

Pei Zhaozhou started to worry. If he really goes to that whatever base, won’t he be so starved that he can’t move? That’d be very humiliating. Yet he had promised the man before him to go to that whatever base, it wouldn’t be good to go back on his words…

The idea made Pei Zhaozhou furrow his eyebrows tensely. Golden amber pupils slightly squinting, dissatisfaction spreading around, the telltale oppression of an angry cat.

Maybe because he knew he was about to die, Vice Marshal Pei who had always been regarded as high and mighty in the Interstellar Empire, who wouldn’t back down from his position by the imperial officers and soldiers no matter how arduous and dangerous a task was, who was worshiped and renowned by the soldier and the people of the Empire as the ‘Imperial Iron Vice Marshal Pei’, began to expose the unknown side under his tough shell.

Si Huaixi said, “Two-days walk eastward. We are going to Lucheng Base. To enter the base, an ordinary person has to go through a day of observation. It’s to check whether or not you’ve been infected by the zombie virus. After entering Lucheng Base, you’ll get a temporary ID card for living in the base. The reward you get from work will be deposited into this identity card…”

At first, Si Huaixi had still wanted to explain more about Lucheng Base and the related matters about living inside it. As well as about the selection that had to be passed if an outsider wanted to be a formal member of the base.

As a result, though…

Si Huaixi’s eyebrow twitched, helplessly staring at Pei Zhaozhou whose mind had started to wander elsewhere. His expression grave, his golden amber pupils inexplicably looked unhappy, and his thin lips pursed into a line, much like an unhappy cat meme sticker.

Si Huaixi stopped talking. He himself was bewildered that he was unexpectedly not that angry.

Looking at this…Err…bad-tempered, unreasonable, willful cat who had a good-looking face that was still good-looking even when it looked cold, with bright golden amber eyes akin to gold dusting atop of honeyed waffles, yet mind wandering to an unknown place, lost in thought. A willful cat that was about to get angry, impatient like he’d brandish his claws at any moment.

Si Huaixi should be angry. He should solemnly berate him like he would to an unreasonable, willful cat who was causing trouble.

This was his first time having an interest to speak to another about the important things to note for living in Lucheng Base. To ordinary people with no superpower, finding a base that’d tolerate them in the doomsday was a very difficult matter. Lucheng Base was the only one in the area which wouldn’t be too demanding to an ordinary person. It was a conscientious base that would even provide a rationed food of corn cakes, potato cakes, or the likes to allay their hunger.

But not everyone would be received in the Lucheng Base. Superpower users needed to pass selection and be assigned to suitable work. The base divided them into different ranks based on their contribution points, which would affect the rank of the distributed supplies and foods they’d get.

Even the rare superpower users needed to pass the selection, what's more ordinary people with no superpower.

Although his recommendation could guarantee Pei Zhaozhou's entrance to the base, what Si Huaixi's telling him was all about the precious experiences to survive in the doomsday, and also the knowledge that Pei Zhaozhou needed to understand if he wanted to integrate into the base in the fastest speed possible.

Toward such an unadvisable person who he’d only met for the first time, or if it was switched to anyone else who’d so unable to differentiate good from bad, Si Huaixi would have indifferently abandoned them from earlier on.

If it weren’t because the land Pei Zhaozhou was courting death in just happened to be his, Si Huaixi wouldn’t even come disgustingly close. He had intended to shoo him away, yet had amazingly started to tolerate him.

Si Huaixi solemnly scrunched his brows, telling himself that he ought to feel angry, then angrily started to talk, “Is there anything you don’t understand?”

The solemn, angry tone collapsed in an instant.

Even he himself didn’t notice how, like a master to his willful cat, he was step by step lowering his bottom line, very unprincipled in doting on and tolerating the cat. He hardened his face to feign solemnity, “I can explain it to you again more clearly.”

Under what Si Huaixi’s had believed to be a cold and angry yet actually warm and tolerating tone of voice, Pei Zhaozhou suddenly gathered his mind back. A hint of guilty expression flashed in his golden amber eyes.

As the Vice Marshal of the Empire, and still the chairman responsible for a mecha company after his illness got him discharged from service, he’d always been a staid person with great self-control. Having suddenly made a mistake and even got caught had him feeling kinda ashamed to lift his head.

He thought: he had gone as far as to get impatiently absentminded when such a good person was being concerned about him, and even wanted to back out of going to the base. His conscience was suddenly feeling troubled.

In his heart, Pei Zhaozhou actually quite cherished this goodwill of Si Huaixi. He immediately pursed his lips, his bright golden amber eyes opened wide, looking as if he wasn’t troubled at all as he very sincerely said, “I heard you clearly. After listening to your explanation of that base, I already understand many of the things.”

Si Huaixi promptly squinted his eyes, chilly ocean blue eyes filled with distrust. This time, he was really getting angry.

He could go absentminded but he shouldn’t lie about understanding the knowledge of surviving in the doomsday. This was a very stupid and ignorant behaviour, a slight incautiousness could cost one their life.

Anger filled Si Huaixi’s eyes, he somewhat coldly asked, “Then repeat what I’ve been telling you just now.”

Pei Zhaozhou was stunned, his rounded wide golden amber eyes filled with innocence. What’s the use of understanding those things for him who’d sooner or later die?

But when his sight catched Si Huaixi’s darkened expression filled with bad tiding, his first response was to guiltily dodge away. Yet he also sensed the concern and the importance Si Huaixi’s attached to him under that gloomy face, making his heart go limp, like a solid biscuit becoming soft and nearly dissolving after being dipped in hot milk.

This kind of pure and warm care caused him to blank, at a loss on how he should react to it.

Pei Zhaozhou lowered his sight, hiding the silver of guilt and loss that flashed on his golden amber eyes. A bitter smile appeared on his lips.

Si Huaixi didn’t know he had the incurable pheromone disorder. His death was only a matter of time. The way he was now bothering himself to teach him how to survive better in the doomsday base was nothing but a wasted effort. Might as well have let him die when the zombie bird came before.

But telling this to him…

Will make him feel sad, won’t it?

The light in Pei Zhaozhou’s eyes stirred. There’s crypticness in his eyes like he was struggling over something, before then slowly breathing out.

He called up his smartbrain, Yin Hu.

: Yin Hu, tell me everything he had just said about Lucheng Base.

The smartbrain, Yin Hu, was linked to Pei Zhaozhou’s own brain with a special installment method. It’s capable of noiseless exchange by way of brainwave communication.

The smartbrain, Yin Hu, had formerly thought its master had given up on living. It didn’t expect there'd be such a reversal. Even if the master had only wanted to understand the information about Lucheng Base, it still replied with exceptional excitement.

: Okay! Master! No problem! Everything the stranger, Si Huaixi, said had been all recorded by Yin Hu. Broadcasting it to you, right away!

Before half a second passed, the smartbrain, Yin Hu, broadcasted the entire voice recording of Si Huaixi’s talking from a moment ago.

Si Huaixi’s voice sounded in Pei Zhaozhou’s ear. The clear, magnetic male voice resembled the flow of a clear mountain spring. Letting his body which was on the verge of crumbling seemed to instantly feel at peace. The burning body temperature receded, leaving only his still urgently throbbing heart, which got faster at the moment because of the man before his eyes.

Pei Zhaozhou lifted his head. His golden amber eyes met the person before him. He spoke with sincerity, “You said Lucheng is two-days walk eastward. A day of observation needs to be passed to enter. This observation is for zombie virus. Then, the staff member of the base will give me a temporary ID card. The points gained from working for the base serve as currency and are stored in the card, which then can be used for living in the base… I’ve taken note of everything that you said in my brain.”

—If you want it, then I’ll strive to live a little longer, so as not to let you down.

Si Huaixi’s eyes filled with astonishment, yet he pursed his lips in the next second. Deep ocean blue eyes masked his emotion.

His gaze focused on that pair of particularly clear and bright golden amber eyes. The cat eyes which should have been like a jar of honey, reflecting bright, crafty golden sparks.

Yet now they were filled with moisture, flashing with complex emotion and sadness, causing their entire light to dull out.

Like a sobbing and whimpering cat. Showing off its claws lovably to the world, yet inwardly swaying his tail in dejection, feeling so wronged and saddened that its fur became grayish dark.

Si Huaixi’s expression suddenly became cold, his brows tightly scrunching up.

–When the cat was stirring up trouble, he’d get angry.

–When the cat was lovable and sensible yet hiding its unhappiness, he’d seemed to get even angrier.