TIC Chapter 29

 Chapter 29

Xiao Yan knew exactly what consequences his choice would entail.

He was not as forgetful as he liked to imagine; he would forever remember the look in Lily’s eyes at that moment—and never know a peaceful night’s sleep again.

He recalled his father once saying: "We may fear death—for whether we fear it or not, death will inevitably come. But we must never harbor shame in our hearts; that will cast a shadow over one’s entire life, a burden far more unconquerable than death itself."

To risk everything for the sake of a weak woman—Xiao Yan knew just how foolish his decision was.

Yet she was not merely "a weak woman"; she was the woman he had secretly adored for so long.

Xiao Yan sprinted toward Lily. He had entered the Central Academy of Sciences at the age of seventeen, yet the world of academia and research had never been the world his heart truly yearned for. As for Lily—perhaps in reality she was shallow, weak, and far from perfect—she remained, nonetheless, the most beautiful hope in his otherwise mundane existence.

She cowered in terror against the wall, clutching her knees and weeping. Not far away, a horde of zombies was bearing down on them.

Xiao Yan rushed forward, grabbed her by the arm, and hauled her to her feet. With an expression bordering on ferocity, he snarled at her: "Get the hell up!"

Lily stared at Xiao Yan, wide-eyed and dumbfounded; she simply could not believe that he had actually come back for her!

To sit and wait for death’s arrival would only amplify the terror; Xiao Yan would sooner run with every ounce of his strength—even if it meant collapsing from sheer exhaustion.

Behind them, countless zombies surged forward, clawing at Lily’s arms and pressing down upon Xiao Yan’s shoulders. Closing his eyes, Xiao Yan tumbled to the ground; yet Lily, her fingers locked tightly around his wrist, did not cry out in the same panicked hysteria as before.

They held their breath, bracing themselves for the agonizing moment of impact.

But the searing pain of tearing flesh never came. Instead, Xiao Yan felt only a gust of cold wind whistling past his ears; he looked up—and found himself staring into the gleaming blade held in Hein’s hand.

"Move. If you can’t keep up this time, I won’t stop again."

A suppressed fury simmered in Hein Burton’s eyes—a look that suggested he was ready to slice Xiao Yan into a thousand pieces at any moment. He stood there like a deity wielding the power of life and death—calm, fearless, and absolute. For a fleeting instant, Xiao Yan was stunned; for Hein to turn back for them was, in its own way, nothing short of a concession. Yet the hatred in his eyes was unexpectedly stark—even unleashed without the slightest attempt at concealment.

Lily looked up; the moment her gaze met Hein’s, she froze rigid, unable to breathe.

But in Hein’s eyes, Xiao Yan saw something else entirely: an unshakable resolve. This man would never give up until the very last moment; for the first time, Xiao Yan felt a pang of regret—he had given up far too soon!

To give up so easily was not a matter of pragmatic judgment; it was weakness!

They ran headlong once more—ahead lay a shattered corridor, while behind them, the zombies were already closing in. Hein tightened his grip on his twin blades and stepped in front of Xiao Yan. "You two go on ahead!"

He intended to cover their retreat.

Xiao Yan gazed at the figure before him—a silhouette devoid of hesitation, devoid of fear. No matter what transpired, this man would survive; never again would Xiao Yan doubt his strength!

Just as a zombie lunged, poised to strike Xiao Yan’s shoulder, he reacted without a shred of hesitation: he spun around, grabbed Lily, and dragged her forward. Hein’s right arm flashed out in a sweeping slash, and with a clatter, several zombies tumbled to the ground.

As they ran, the corridor beneath their feet began to slope gradually downward; Xiao Yan frowned. He was intimately familiar with the structural layouts of all the bases; most utilized a T-junction design for their connecting corridors. The sudden downward tilt of the passage likely meant that a T-junction node had been obliterated by a ground-penetrating missile strike, causing the entire structure to lose its structural support.

Another thunderous boom shook the air, and the incline of the floor beneath them grew even steeper.

"Lily!" Xiao Yan suddenly threw himself in front of her; he had a terrible suspicion...

In that very instant, the entire corridor seemed to snap apart. Xiao Yan and Lily tumbled to the ground, sliding violently down the steep incline. It all happened too fast—they were completely unprepared. Just as they were about to slide completely over the edge, Xiao Yan managed to grab hold of a jagged protrusion in the torn metal flooring. The sensation of the sharp metal slicing into his fingers and tearing through his muscles was sheer, agonizing torture! Lily, however, slipped over the edge; yet, in the final fraction of a second before she plunged into the abyss, she managed to grab hold of Xiao Yan’s leg!

Beneath them lay the second floor of the base—a chaotic scene where countless zombies, having already fallen to the lower level, flailed their arms and leaped upward in a desperate attempt to seize them. Too drained to feel panic, Xiao Yan’s face flushed a deep crimson, his fingers turning white at the tips as blood trickled down his arm, staining his shoulder red.

“Lily—you have to hold on! You *must* hold on—do you understand? If you let go, I’ll let go too!”

Lily looked up, gazing at Xiao Yan’s trembling shoulders; she swallowed hard, then—with a seriousness utterly devoid of her earlier panic—she said: “I’m letting go now, Xiao Yan. Get ready! You have to climb up!”

“No! If you let go, I swear I’ll let go too! I haven’t reached my breaking point yet!”

Lily smiled faintly. “I figure death happens pretty fast, actually. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

In that very instant, Xiao Yan felt the weight on his legs vanish abruptly; Lily had released her grip and was plummeting downward.

“Lily!” Xiao Yan’s heart felt as if it were about to burst.

The zombies stared wide-eyed, their faces contorted in expressions of bloodthirsty cruelty; yet Lily kept her gaze fixed on Xiao Yan, as if only by looking at him could she find the courage to face whatever came next.

Suddenly, a rope whipped downward, coiling around Lily’s waist and yanking her away just as the zombies were about to seize her.

Xiao Yan looked up; silhouetted against the light, he saw a figure standing high above—a figure emerging from a bath of blood.

Lily crashed heavily onto the ground below, and the rope around her waist instantly snapped free.

Just as Xiao Yan’s strength finally gave out, a hand clamped firmly around his wrist. Through his blurring vision, Xiao Yan saw the figure of Hein Burton kneeling before him—his cold, stern face radiating a palpable aura of lethal intent—as he hauled Xiao Yan upward with a single powerful tug.

As Xiao Yan tumbled into the man’s arms, he was seized by a strange, fleeting sensation—a sense of destiny fulfilled.

Without a word, Hein sheathed his blade, hoisted both Xiao Yan and Lily onto his shoulders, and took three quick steps backward.

The moment Lily realized what Hein was about to do, she let out a piercing scream of alarm.

Xiao Yan, however, felt an unexpected sense of inner calm.

Hein moved with a speed Xiao Yan had never experienced before; as they launched themselves into the air, Xiao Yan was transported back to that memory—the moment he had touched the azure ocean, and felt the wind rushing past his ears in absolute, boundless freedom. Before his eyes lay a scene of frenzied, surging zombies—yet somehow, it seemed to transform into a tableau utterly detached from his reality.

Xiao Yan knew: this man would never let him fall—just as he had never failed him during every airborne leap in the past.

Hein landed steadily on the far side of the severed walkway; the sheer force of the impact made them both hold their breath. Hein then tossed Xiao Yan and Lily down to the ground. Lily scrambled unsteadily to her feet, scarcely able to believe that Hein Burton had actually carried two people while leaping across a gap of four or five meters!

"We have to reach the evacuation tunnel before you bleed to death."

Hein glanced down at Xiao Yan’s bleeding hands, then turned and strode forward with an air of detached indifference.

At that moment, Xiao Yan was in excruciating pain, yet he shook his head at Lily, and together they continued to follow close behind Hein.

Finally, they arrived at the entrance to the evacuation tunnel. The first door slid open, and they rushed inside; as the door began to close, a few zombies managed to slip through, but Hein dispatched them instantly.

He gave the blade in his hand a sharp flick to clear it, then sheathed it.

All the chaos and clamor were now sealed away behind that door; Lily stood panting, still reeling from the shock.

Xiao Yan leaned against the door, gazing at Hein’s tall, upright figure—a silhouette just as he had first seen it: solitary, proud, and utterly resolute.

The inner door opened, and Liv and Mark came rushing out.

"Boss!"

"Mm." Hein gave a curt acknowledgment, then suddenly grabbed Xiao Yan by the wrist and shoved him toward Liv. "Treat his wounds."

Mark stared at Xiao Yan, his expression one of utter disbelief. "Boss... you did all that just for this clumsy rookie?"

Liv elbowed Mark sharply. "That’s enough, Mark!"

"Treat his wounds? How exactly? Are you supposed to kiss them better, or...?"

Mark didn't get to finish his sentence; Liv delivered a swift kick to the inside of his knee, sending the hulking man nearly crashing to the ground.

Xiao Yan took a deep breath and stepped down into the underground levels of Base 14.

He was still alive.

He was still breathing; his eyes could still clearly make out that man’s retreating figure, and his mind was still functioning.

Xiao Yan’s body swayed slightly as he looked out at the countless officers bustling around him—all frantically working to coordinate their response to the ongoing attack. Blood still seeped from Shen Bing’s temple, yet he already stood before the holographic screen, issuing commands with methodical precision.

Heine was currently planning and strategizing operational protocols with his subordinates; his profile exuded an aura of grim severity—so intense that merely meeting his gaze felt painful.

Liv sat facing Xiao Yan, disinfecting his wounds and wrapping a specialized bandage around his palm. The bandage was completely transparent; the moment it touched the wound, it adhered to the skin like a second layer, sealing it off from harmful bacteria while still allowing for oxygen exchange.

"Does it still hurt?" Liv asked with a soft chuckle.

"The worst of the pain has passed," Xiao Yan replied, the corners of his lips curling upward.

"I honestly never expected the Boss to go save you. When danger strikes, his primary duty is supposed to be ensuring the safety of this base's Chief Commander."

Xiao Yan paused, slightly taken aback.

"Don't make that face. It doesn't mean the Colonel compromised his principles or forgot his duties for your sake. If it had been me or Mark trapped out there, the Boss would have done exactly the same thing."

*So I shouldn't get carried away with wishful thinking or feel smug about it?*

"What it *does* mean, however, is that to the Boss, you aren't someone he can simply cast aside."

Xiao Yan’s heart gave a sudden, sharp lurch; for a long moment, he remained too stunned to react.

Liv said nothing more, silently attending to Xiao Yan’s wounds.

From the conversations drifting around him, Xiao Yan gathered that—effective immediately—Base 14 would abandon its surface facilities and retreat underground. Char would dispatch aircraft to resupply Base 14 and oversee the construction of its subterranean biological life-support systems. Heine’s unit would also be deployed to patrol the perimeter of the base.

Once the wound dressing was complete, Liv stood up and lightly tapped a spot on his cheek.

Xiao Yan reached up to touch it, only then realizing it was zombie blood; the sticky, viscous sensation on his fingertips was deeply unpleasant.

"There’s a decontamination chamber over there; you should go wash up. If that stuff stays on your skin for too long, it starts to corrode it."

"Thanks."

It hadn't bothered him until Liv mentioned it, but the moment she did, Xiao Yan suddenly felt an intense itch spreading across his face.

Xiao Yan stepped into the decontamination chamber; the entire space was shrouded in a milky-white mist, rendering his surroundings a vast, indistinct blur. The entire disinfection process was simple; one merely had to walk through the decontamination chamber. Not only did it eliminate all harmful pathogens, but it also served to cleanse one's clothing in the process.

The itching sensation on Xiao Yan’s face gradually subsided. Yet, whenever he closed his eyes, he would see that horde of zombies surging madly toward him—and, in his mind’s eye, every single time Hein Burton had turned back to look.

His fingers were still trembling; clenching his fists, he pounded them against his chest, right over his heart.

Taking one step forward, he bumped into someone.

"Whoa there, buddy—sorry! I didn't realize anyone else was in here!"

Xiao Yan clutched his forehead as the figure before him slowly turned around.

With those chiseled features and sharply defined contours—who else could it be but Hein Burton?

Xiao Yan froze. "...Colonel Burton..."

Amidst the swirling mist, Hein’s face appeared unnervingly soft—almost unreal. Only those eyes, still as cold and steely as ever, served to remind Xiao Yan that this was, without a doubt, Hein Burton. Of course—Hein, a man with an extreme aversion to filth, had been splattered with zombie slime while saving Xiao Yan; naturally, the very first thing he would do was head to the decontamination chamber to clean himself off.

"I'm sorry... Colonel!" Although the man before him still exuded an intimidating aura, the words that had been lodged in Xiao Yan’s throat finally spilled out.

"What exactly are you apologizing to me for?" The tone was flat and direct, devoid of even the slightest hint of inquiry—as if Xiao Yan’s apology held absolutely no significance to Hein Burton whatsoever.

Xiao Yan parted his lips, only to find that he couldn't utter a single word.

*I’m sorry... that I chose Lily.*

Xiao Yan felt that answer was utterly stupid; after all, whether he chose Lily—or anyone else, for that matter—had absolutely nothing to do with Hein.

*Or should I say: I’m sorry for squandering the opportunity you created to save me?*

*Or perhaps: I’m sorry for making you turn back time and again—and for even doubting your ability to protect me and keep me completely safe from harm?*

While Xiao Yan hesitated, Hein had already turned away, his figure gradually fading into the swirling white mist.

Xiao Yan curled the corners of his lips into a low, helpless smile—yet deep within his heart, a yearning took flight, beating its wings with fierce intensity.

He wanted to follow in this man’s footsteps, to journey to places higher and farther than ever before. He wanted to grow strong—so strong that even if Hein Burton never turned back to look, he would know—without a shadow of a doubt—that Xiao Yan was right there, following close behind him! The figure within the white mist came to a halt.

“If I hadn’t caught you, would you have let go?”

His emotionless voice seemed to cleave through the thin layer of mist.

Hein stood neither too close nor too far from Xiao Yan; amidst the white fog, his features appeared ethereal yet strikingly handsome.

“No one wants to die...” Xiao Yan hadn't expected Hein to ask him such a question.

Hein took two steps forward, raising his arm; his long, elegant fingers closed around Xiao Yan’s neck—a mere exertion of slight force would be enough to crush his cervical vertebrae.

“Then remember this: you are not to die at anyone else’s hands but mine, nor are you to die anywhere else.”

It was a simple, utterly dispassionate statement, yet Xiao Yan felt as though something had branded itself deep within the recesses of his mind—a mark he could never hope to erase, no matter how hard he tried.

“And one more thing: the next time you tell me to let go, I *will* snap your neck.”

Dimly, Xiao Yan sensed that beneath Hein’s indifference lay a multitude of things too profound to articulate. In the depths of the other man’s eyes, he clearly saw his own reflection.

“So don’t get too full of yourself.” The words were spoken softly—so softly that Xiao Yan could not quite grasp their true significance.

“Perhaps *you* will be the one to die.” Xiao Yan wanted to step forward to discern the expression on the other man’s face, but the oppressive aura radiating from Hein Burton was simply too heavy; his legs felt as if they were cast in lead, pinning him immovably to the spot.

*If you are truly indifferent to everything, then why did you save me?*

“We all die—sooner or later.”

It seemed there was nothing in this world capable of instilling fear in him; even death itself would surely bow down at his feet.

And to his own dismay, Xiao Yan found himself unable to avert his gaze—even knowing that an enraged Hein could kill him at any moment.

He released his grip on Xiao Yan’s neck, then slowly cupped his cheek; Xiao Yan could feel the touch of those fingers—a touch that bordered on the tender, almost *indulgent*.

The other man leaned forward slightly; as his golden-brown hair fell forward, it seemed to caress Xiao Yan’s very line of sight. Xiao Yan knew he ought to turn away and avert his eyes, yet as that cold, dispassionate face drew near, it felt as though something deep within him had burst into a frenzied, burning flame. The tip of Hein’s tongue flickered in and out between his lips until it brushed against Xiao Yan’s upper lip, slowly coaxing it upward. Xiao Yan gasped and was just about to pull back when the other man’s fingers buried themselves deep in his hair, clamping down hard on the back of his head and rendering him utterly immobile.

When Hein’s lips finally descended to cover his own, they asserted a forceful dominion over everything inside his mouth—pressing down upon Xiao Yan’s lips and tongue as if no amount of ravenous sucking could ever satisfy his hunger, and ruthlessly stealing the very air from his lungs. Under such intense pressure, a throbbing pain began to radiate through Xiao Yan’s skull; meanwhile, Hein continued to kiss and bite at his lips relentlessly, driving everything rapidly toward a point of total, uncontrollable chaos. It felt like the prelude to a brutal act of plunder—a fate Xiao Yan foresaw with chilling clarity, yet found himself utterly powerless to resist.

He was going to die! He was absolutely going to die!

Liv’s old joking remarks suddenly rang in Xiao Yan’s ears. Just as he threw up his hands in sheer terror to push against Hein’s shoulders, he realized with a sudden jolt that his hands met nothing but empty air.

“Hah...”

Stumbling back two steps as if drained of all strength, Xiao Yan finally realized that, at some point without his noticing, Hein had already moved to the far end of the decontamination chamber.

Blinking hard, Xiao Yan pressed his hand against his forehead.

Damn it... that hallucination again...

Hein had already left the decontamination chamber; the entire space was now eerily, suffocatingly silent.

Xiao Yan walked slowly toward the exit. As his hand touched the sliding door of the chamber, his mind was flooded with a ceaseless torrent of images: Hein, slashing and hacking away with ferocious intensity—a desperate, all-consuming effort undertaken not to complete some mission objective, but solely to save *him*.

It all felt like a delusion—a fantasy in which Xiao Yan discovered that, to that man—that figure of such immense power and cold detachment—he himself seemed to be of immeasurable importance.

“Hah...” Xiao Yan pushed open the sliding door and stepped out. He lifted his head... 

Every step he took was unshakeably firm.

For he knew that he would never be able to escape the deep-seated yearning within his heart to pursue that man; thus, his only choice was to make himself strong!

Space within the base’s underground levels was extremely limited; having any private space of one’s own was a complete luxury.

Xiao Yan and the other trainees were utterly useless here; everyone else had their assigned posts and was bustling about in tense activity, while they could only sit in a corner—quiet and silent.

Lily sat right beside him, head bowed. Perhaps finding the atmosphere too stifling, she finally spoke in a hushed voice: "It’s a relief... that your face is unharmed."

"It was just a little zombie pus that splashed onto it."

Lily still seemed uneasy; catching a glimpse of her fidgeting with her fingers, Xiao Yan reached out and gently placed his hand over hers. "Everything is going to be alright," he said.

"Thank you..."

*No need to thank me—after all, who’s to blame but me for having had a crush on you for so long?*

Though he thought this to himself, Xiao Yan ultimately left the words unspoken. For Lily already had a boyfriend: Major Denzel of the Military Discipline Office—a young, handsome officer with a brilliant future ahead of him. Often, the act of giving is not done merely for the sake of a specific outcome.

"I find Colonel Burton a little—intimidating," Lily said, gazing into the distance. Hein sat silently in a corner, meticulously adjusting the weaponry he carried with him.

His expression was one of such intense focus that it bordered on ruthlessness; the heavy cast of his lowered eyelids seemed to weigh down upon Lily’s very heart.

"But he saved us," Xiao Yan said, offering a faint smile of reassurance.

Lily shook her head. "It wasn't 'us' he intended to save. It was only you."