Chapter 42: The Rules of Survival and a Glimmering Core

After successfully entering the room, I turned my head to glance at the three people still perched in the tree outside the window.

Disregarding their desperate cries for help, I promptly shut the window.

If my sister hadn’t screamed loudly in time, drawing the nearby zombies, I would likely have been kidnapped by those three by now.

Merely leaving them to their fate now was letting them off easy. In the past, I would have directly cut them down with a single strike.

However, my sister was still by my side, her eyes wide and fixed on me, so I couldn’t take a life.

I couldn’t bear to let her witness the bloodshed of the apocalypse yet.

Especially the sight of me killing someone.

Perhaps wanting to maintain the image of a good older brother, I didn’t want my sister to see me kill. Such a scene might cause my standing in her heart to plummet.

Still, killing was secondary. Right now, I felt the need to have a serious talk with my sister.

It was time to discuss the rules of survival in the apocalypse!

“Bai Xia, do you know what mistake you made today?”

“Huh? I don’t think I made a mistake! If it weren’t for—”

“There are no ‘if onlys’. Tell me now, what exactly did you do wrong today?”

Seeing my sister’s defiant expression, I felt fortunate to have discovered this flaw early. Had it gone unchecked, her nonchalant attitude could very well have led to her demise later on.

However, when my sister saw my stern expression, and recalled her actions today, she slowly lowered her head.

Her eyes still darted glances at me, seemingly trying to gauge my mood.

“Speak! What did you do wrong today?”

“I shouldn’t have yelled so loudly and attracted the zombies…”

“Anything else?”

“I shouldn’t have opened the window…”

As she spoke, my sister’s head dropped lower and lower until only the crown of her head was visible.

Looking at her pitiable state, I continued speaking.

“Firstly, in a situation with bad people, yelling loudly to attract zombies is a good tactic. However, I hope that unless absolutely forced, you always think of an escape route. That’s why those three were trapped in the tree, helping us distract the zombies. But what if they had died? How long do you think our wooden door could have withstood the zombies?”

“Mm… I was wrong.”

“And! After I returned, your voice, comparable to a loudspeaker, was an excellent tool for attracting zombies. I remember telling you before I left that speed and sound attract zombies. It seems you’ve forgotten all of it.”

“Yes, I’ll be more careful from now on.”

My sister didn’t lift her head as she spoke, her dejected appearance making me reluctant to scold her further.

After a moment of hesitation, I finally reached out a hand and ruffled her dark, shiny hair.

Truthfully, she had done well enough today, but there were some potentially fatal flaws I absolutely had to point out to her.

I hoped my sister wouldn’t die in this apocalypse.

“Alright, I’ve said my piece. Now, it’s time to reveal today’s spoils.”

As I spoke, I extended my clenched left fist towards my sister.

Upon finishing, I rotated my fist and then unfurled my fingers, revealing the crystal core within.

“What is this? Is it a crystal? It’s so pretty!”

Indeed, shiny stones were a woman’s weakness; my sister was no exception.

After I handed her the crystal core, she immediately placed it in her palm.

As she continuously turned and played with the crystal core, my sister’s small face furrowed in thought.

It seemed she had no idea what this glowing stone actually was.

“This isn’t an ordinary stone. Aren’t you curious why I suddenly became so strong?”

“Why?”

“It’s because of this. It’s not a stone; it’s a crystal core.”