Chapter 50: The Crystal Core’s Revelation

Qiao Xia had never imagined he would suddenly become the focal point of everyone’s animosity.

He had never once involved himself in the conflict between the two factions.

Even as the tension escalated, Qiao Xia had merely assumed the ‘Staying’ faction would make a valiant attempt to seize the readily available food.

He certainly hadn’t anticipated that their true target would be him.

He hadn’t even registered that the taunt of “weakling” had been directed at him.

Did he truly appear so easily intimidated?

These people dared not provoke Li Lin Guan, so they chose to make an example of Qiao Xia!

Well, now look.

Snatch, snatch, snatch.

Let them snatch.

Their true intentions were exposed!

Qiao Xia watched, utterly bewildered, as everyone collectively retreated several steps, as if he were some highly contagious influenza virus that would bring instant death upon contact.

Even Li Lin Guan’s subordinates were no exception, their retreat so swift it was almost comical.

Among those present, only Li Lin Guan and the Ye Dafeng brothers remained composed.

After all, they had personally witnessed Qiao Xia severing a head without a flicker of emotion. Merely looking at a severed head now was child’s play for them.

Hmph.

‘Clearly, they’ve never seen the world,’ the brothers thought.

Ye Dafeng and his brother cast a scornful glance around. They then quickly clutched their food, determined to prevent anyone from snatching it away.

This food had been acquired at great risk; anyone who dared to steal it would face their desperate struggle!

“You all carry on. I’ll go take care of this.”

After a prolonged silence, it was Qiao Xia who finally broke the quiet.

Without lingering on the ongoing conflict between the two factions, he carried the severed head to a corner. There, he immediately took out his knife and began to cut through the tangled hair.

Watching the red-eyed infected’s eyes wide open in fury, Qiao Xia couldn’t help but sigh, ‘Even in death, they don’t make it easy.’

Despite his initial reluctance upon regaining control of his body and suddenly finding a head in his hands, Qiao Xia knew the situation had been too critical for him to overthink.

However, during the swift dash to the rooftop, Qiao Xia had grown strangely accustomed to it. Looking at the head now, he no longer felt the initial urge to vomit; instead, he simply found it familiar.

‘It even looks a little cute,’ he mused.

As Qiao Xia tried his best to reassure himself, the knife swiftly cut through the hair. With ample time now to complete the task, Qiao Xia’s blade moved with precision.

He quickly severed the hair wrapped around his fingers, completely freeing himself.

However, just as Qiao Xia was about to toss the troublesome head away, he noticed a bulge on its forehead.

He recalled wondering earlier if the red-eyed infected had undergone a new mutation.

Why did some infected have bulging foreheads while others remained smooth and normal?

Amidst this confusion, Qiao Xia glanced around, confirming no one was nearby. He then immediately used the fruit knife in his hand to make a cut on the head’s forehead.

The tip of the knife struck something hard.

Once the bulge was fully sliced open, a milky white stone lay quietly within the wound.

As Qiao Xia gazed at the white stone, his mind seemed to crash, flooded with a chaotic jumble of thoughts. It was as if a massive amount of data had been suddenly crammed into a computer, overwhelming its memory card.

‘Damn it,’ he thought, ‘considering everything that’s happened these past two days—first the sudden outbreak of the red-eye disease, leading to a global pandemic.’

‘Then, stabbing the infected in the heart wouldn’t kill them; only severing their heads worked. Now, this white stone… could it be that the red-eyed infected are actually zombies?’

‘Is this white stone the ‘crystal core’ mentioned in apocalypse novels???”

Thinking this, Qiao Xia hesitantly extended his left hand, wanting to touch the white stone.

Since no premonition appeared, it meant he was safe for at least ten minutes.

So, after tentatively poking the white stone with his fingertip, Qiao Xia suppressed his disgust and carefully extracted it from the wound, examining it closely in his hand.

‘Hmm, it looks like a stone, feels like a stone. No matter how I look at it, it’s just an ordinary white stone.’

There were no signs of any special ability activating.

‘Do I need to hold it in my palm and silently wish for an ability to activate?’

With this thought, Qiao Xia immediately clenched the white stone, closed his eyes, and devoutly prayed for an ability to awaken. If an ability truly manifested, it would be immensely helpful for escaping U City later.

“My God, what is that murderer doing? He’s muttering to that head—it’s terrifying!”

“Ah, I can’t even look! How can someone like this be in our school? It’s too scary!”

“Shh, don’t talk. If you make him angry, he might kill us too.”

“When will the rescue arrive? I can’t hold on much longer. I’m so hungry.”

As Qiao Xia quietly hoped for a miracle, some jarring voices suddenly broke through. Qiao Xia’s lips twitched in exasperation upon hearing them.

He wondered if his hearing was simply too good, or if these people hadn’t even considered controlling their volume.

If he truly were the kind of madman who killed at the slightest provocation, he would have already silenced these gossiping individuals.

‘No, I need my ability to activate. I must calm my heart and mind.’

Quickly realizing he had become distracted, Qiao Xia ignored their incessant chatter. Instead, he focused on the white stone in his palm, eagerly anticipating what his new ability might be.

However, five minutes passed.

Ten minutes passed.

Half an hour passed.

Nothing happened. The white stone remained a white stone, completely inert.

Finally unable to sit still, Qiao Xia lowered his gaze to the white stone in his hand. He wondered if it was merely something akin to a gallstone, utterly unlike the heaven-defying crystal cores from apocalypse novels.

He had been deceived by fiction.

****

While Qiao Xia was feeling dejected about the white stone, the other side of the rooftop was filled with continuous complaints.

Ever since the severed head appeared in Qiao Xia’s hand, the ‘Staying’ faction, who had initially intended to overthrow the ‘evil forces,’ now dared not even utter a peep.

One by one, they returned to their original positions to conserve energy, awaiting the arrival of rescue personnel.

However, upon seeing the ‘Attacking’ faction happily devouring their food, many from the ‘Staying’ faction involuntarily swallowed. Their hatred for Li Lin Guan, who refused to share even a morsel, festered deep in their hearts.

“Wang Su, when are we leaving? Li Lin Guan and them are fine, so there shouldn’t be any danger in the teaching building.”

“Exactly. If we wait any longer, we’ll be too hungry to move.”

“Didn’t your cousin text you, saying the teachers are at the cafeteria? Let’s hurry over there too!”

In a corner of the rooftop, several members of the ‘Staying’ faction huddled together. As they spoke, they couldn’t help but glance at the ‘Attacking’ faction eating, their faces growing increasingly indignant.

“Wait a little longer,” Wang Su said, surrounded by the others, her grim gaze like a venomous snake about to strike. “Since Li Lin Guan refuses to share food with us, then don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

“We’ll leave tonight while they’re asleep, and we’ll even give them an unforgettable ‘gift’ as a bonus!”