Chapter 127
The eyes of the crowd moved back and forth between Young Master Gong and the zombie. Seeing that the image of Young Master Gong standing tall with the zombie lying on the ground with blood coming out of its mouth didn't disappear, they slowly returned to reality. They didn't hear it wrong! Young Master Gong was going to raise a zombie and a fourth-level low-grade metal zombie at that! What is Young Master Gong thinking? Does he want to start an internal genocide? How is this any different then putting a wolf in a flock of sheep? If these sheep aren't even allowed to resist, would anyone still live?
Seeing the fear, reluctance and doubt in everyone's eyes, Gong Lixin exclaimed, "You don't have to worry. He doesn't eat human flesh, but zombies instead. As long as you don't provoke him or Jin Shangyu, he won't take the initiative to attack you. I believe in him."
Believe in a fourth-level low-grade zombie? If those words were spoken by someone else, they would have definitely been drowned in the spit of others insults, but this person was Young Master Gong, whose strength was incomparable to others. If Young Master Gong says it, then it will surely yield different results. Although they didn't know who Jin Shangyu was, everyone only hesitated half a minute before they agreed.
Even when exhibiting such a dangerous behaviour as inviting a wolf into their den, everyone chose to follow blindly their leader. Gong Lixin's appeal and importance in the base was impressive. The leader's nature determined the kind of followers they'll have. Liu Qing and his group approved of Young Master Gong's personality and competency, and as such, they felt good towards Young Master Gong's followers upon their first meeting as well. Liu Qing and his companions looked at each other, saw that they all felt happy with their decision to come along. Perhaps this was what they needed to secure themselves and settle down.
Even if the people behind Dou Heng had doubts, they didn't dare argue under the pressure of the other's strength. In today's world, strength was everything. The words of the strong, no matter how ridiculous and absurd, were the law.
On one hand, Gong Lixin was dealing with Jin Shanghui's identity issue. On the other hand, Jin Shangyu rushed to Jin Shanghui's side, wiping the line of black blood from the corner of his mouth even as she felt great pain in her heart.
"Brother, are you okay?" Seeing Jin Shanghui's frown as he growled and groaned sadly and couldn't get up from where he lay on the ground, she panicked. She carefully placed her hand on his chest, where he was hit, and was ready to treat his internal injuries. Only when her palm had a fluorescent glow did she realize that she couldn't expose her ability to the general public. If her abilities caught the eyes of the wrong person, it will cause her a lot of trouble. As soon as she thought that, her face tightened and she immediately retracted her power. The faint, fluorescent light disappeared and no one noticed it.
The members of the group were instructed to broadcast the news that a fourth-level zombie was coming into the base to prevent everyone from accidentally provoking it. Seeing the members of the group nod in agreement, Gong Lixin stepped up to Jin Shanghui and leaned over before asking, "Why aren't you getting up?"
"How can he get up after such a strong attack?" Jin Shangyu asked with tears in her eyes. Obviously, it was that other man who hit her brother first. So why was her elder brother beaten instead? Jin Shangyu was furious. Like Gong Lixin, she was also the zombie's guardian.
"I just pushed him away with a palm of wind, so he shouldn't be seriously injured." Gong Lixin said with a frown.
"Haven't you seen him throwing up blood? Isn't that serious enough?" Jin Shangyu pointed at the corner of Jin Shanghui's wet mouth as her voice rose sharply.
"Let me see." Gong Lixin squatted down and opened Jin Shanghui's mouth and scanned the other's pale, thin lips with his fingertips before lightly saying, "He bit the corner of his mouth."
"Ah?" Jin Shangyu paused, looked along the young man's fingers and, sure enough, he saw a small wound on the inside of her brother's lips slowly seeping out blood before overflowing from the corner of his mouth. "Since he doesn't have a serious injury, why doesn't my brother get up" She blushed and stubbornly asked.
Gong Lixin didn't look at her, but patted Jin Shanghui's cheek and said in a coaxing tone, "Xiaohui, you must be obedient in the future. Don't fight with others, especially when the other person is a friend of mine. I hurt you to make you remember that you will be beaten in the future if you do so. Come now, I will rub it for you."
He covered Jin Shanghui's chest with his palm while teaching him a lesson. He inserted a hint of his internal force and massaged the area back and forth, clockwise and counter clockwise and was very skilled in his actions.
Jin Shanghui's crumpled, handsome face immediately relaxed and his golden eyes twitched as they stared at the youth. A low growl came from his throat, like a big cat trying to act cute to please its owner. The palm of the teenager was very warm and the movement and touch was very gentle, which made him feel very happy and reluctant to part with it. Unable to express his feelings in words, he reached out his claws and caught the teenager's sleeve, unwilling to let go.
Gong Lixin chuckled and continued to press and rub a few more times before stuffing a crystal nucleus into his mouth and touching his cheek, "Okay, get up now. I will continue next time."
As if Jin Shanghui understood what he was saying, he got up and twirled around the young man enthusiastically, roaring a few times as well. Although no one could understand him, the joy and flattering behaviour could not be mistaken.
The interaction between the two was so familiar and intimate and looked as if they had done it hundreds of times. This time, she had not known that her brother was playing tricks and Jin Shangyu felt ashamed of her title of a genius. She felt as if she had those characters engraved onto her forehead and felt embarrassed, but she watched as her brother flirted and acted spoiled with the other and her mouth twitched. She had on a helpless expression, but her heart was desperately holding back her excitement. In just a few days, her brother had grown rapidly and his behaviour became more and more humane. She was convinced that her brother would return to normal one day. As for the teenager who stole her brother away, the jealousy in her heart was getting smaller and smaller as the gratitude increased day by day. Because she knew that only the teenager in front of her could be so close to her brother without any fear and would not hurt her brother. Except for this youth, no one could let his brother lead a normal life, herself included.
Everyone in the field, except for Lin Wenbo, Song Haoran and Liu Qing and his companions, were all stunned and amazed. If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, they would never have believed that people and zombies could get along in such a harmonious and loving way. This picture was too weird and it challenged their worldview. Dou Heng's men had doubts and dissatisfaction before, but now, they were completely relived. Was this really a zombie? Look at his gentle and obedient behaviour! It's obviously a loyal dog!
"Brother, is this Miss Little Demon?" Gong Xiangyi asked with anticipation when Gong Lixin approached with the Jin family.
"Hn." Gong Lixin nodded, glancing strangely at Gong Xiangyi's abrupt change in how she addressed him. He then looked at Jin Shangyu and asked, "Can you see my dad now?"
"Of course." Jin Shangyu promised and followed him to the infirmary where his team members also accompanied him.
Seeing this, Dou Heng nodded towards Gong Lixin as he watched him go while standing at the same place. Longing flashed in his deep, purple eyes, although fleeting. He wanted to solve the young man's problems for him and fight side by side with the young man. Therefore, when the men of Bao Long and Kang Zhengyuan fled away from him, he chose to deal with them. Today, he was no longer the uncaring Dou Heng, he was capable of guarding the person he wants to guard, which was very good for him. He squeezed the candy hidden in his pocket tightly and, when the young man's back completely disappeared at the corner, he let go of his grip and slowly left.
On the way to the infirmary, Tan Mingyuan simply told the youth what happened on the island. He ground his teeth at the mention of Bao Long and Zhao Ying even as he deeply self-reflected on his actions.
Their levels were rising too quickly. They had become careless as they relied on their high strength and thus, relaxed their guards, forgetting how insidious and cunning humans were. After this incident, they didn't dare to let their guard down the slightest bit, completely restructuring the Eastern District so that it was firmly under their control. In fact, they really couldn't be blamed. They could only be blamed for being too deeply influenced by Gong Lixin. As they say, like master, like student; the master had a straight-forward and carefree personality, thus the students had also become carefree. This incident however, sounded their alarm bells. At least, Gu Nan, Li Dongsheng, Luo Dahai and the others picked up the slack and thought things thoroughly. Of course, the incident also left a deep scar; that was to see everyone else as someone with dark intention and suspicion took deep roots in their hearts.
This was difficult for Liu Qing and his companions who wanted to follow Young Master Gong in the future. Facing this rigorous test of hell, they almost ran away without tears, but in the end, they persisted in wanting to join Young Master Gong's cult. Of course, what happened later on need not be mentioned.
"Since they aren't dead, where are they?" Gong Lixin's clear voice dropped and his seemingly indifferent tone leaked a cold killing intent that made Tan Mingyuan tremble, but it also eased his heart which was hanging in suspense. It seemed that Young Master Gong doesn't hold them accountable.
"In Dou Heng's hands. We asked him to hand them over, but he didn't agree, saying that he was waiting for you to come back." Tan Mingyuan frowned, his tone unhurried, "I guess he wants to use those two as bargaining chips to ask us for supplies and food."
"It's okay, we can give it to them. Even if my dad makes a fuss, I want them to die!" Gong Lixin waved his hands, his eyes became cold and a heavy and evil aura flowed from his body, causing Jin Shanghui to feel a little uneasy. He snarled and slightly scratched the corner of the young man's clothes with his nails, as if comforting him as well as asking what happened to him.
Gong Lixin immediately put away his grievance. His eyes narrowed and he patted Jin Shanghui's hair in comfort, "Your sister and I will go in to see Dad. You obediently wait outside; we will come out soon." Then he took out a bag of metal crystal nuclei of varying shades and handed it over to Jin Shanghui. Jin Shanghui yelled, as if to agree to what he said, then held the bad with great interest. Gong Lixin then safely opened the door to the infirmary.
Lin Wenbo and Song Haoran couldn't help but feeling sad. When they walked past Jin Shanghui, they calmly told Tan Mingyuan and the others, "Don't worry about him, just don't let him run in, so as not to scare Uncle Gong."
"Ah, I see!" Tan Mingyuan and the others reluctantly agreed. A fourth-level low-grade metal zombie? They would be destroyed in a matter of minutes. What is there to look after?
The crowd let out cold sweats as they quietly surrounded Jin Shanghui. Even Wang Tao and Cao Yanan, who had the most amount of courage, were weak in the knee from fear that the zombie would suddenly be provoked and rush forward to bite them. When the offensive and defensive formation was formed, Jin Shanghui was trapped in the middle, but there was no abnormal behaviour on his part. The members relaxed their nerves slightly. In fact, Jin Shanghui didn't really look abnormal, but more normal. His slender body leaned against the wall as he held the cloth bag made out of mutant python skin with one hand while the other reached in from time to time and pulled out a crystal nucleus before putting it in his mouth. Then his throat would slightly wriggle as he swallowed. Just like an ordinary young man enjoying his delicious snacks.
Five minutes later, Jin Shanghui seemed to be full. He opened his mouth and growled with half-open, half-closed eyelids covering his fierce, golden vertical eyes. His fingertips moved up and down with the cloth bag as if he had fallen asleep. This unguarded, lazy look, coupled with his overly feminine and handsome face looked really pleasing to the eye, making everyone slowly let go of their alertness.
Cao Yanan was closest to Jin Shanghui and, seeing him like that, her courage gradually increased. Her eyes stared at his perfect face and became more fascinated as she looked. Was this really a zombie? Why wasn't his body not rotten at all?
She got closer and closer, anxious to poke his face with her finger. Le Jia and Yang Xiaoxue opened and closed their mouths, wanting to scream and warn her to stay away, but was too afraid to wake up the sleeping zombie.
When the two's anxiety was about to pierce through their heart and lungs, Jin Shanghui suddenly opened his eyes, turned his head and opened his mouth to yell at Cao Yanan. His sharp teeth flashed with a cold light and there was no trace of human emotion in his golden, vertical eyes, only the fierceness peculiar to beasts. Cao Yanan became so pale and frightened that she took a few steps back and slammed into the wall behind her.
Jin Shanghui was about to approach and scratch her, but the door to the infirmary opened up just a slit and Gong Lixin poked his head out. The other frowned at him and his pale finger pressed against his pink lips, making a shushing gesture. This gesture was commonly used between the two and Jin Shanghui had already become familiar with it.
Jin Shanghui didn't move and slowly retracted his claws, letting out rhythmic grunts from his throat as he looked at the youth, as if to please the other. Gong Lixin smiled and whispered, "Be nice. Don't make any noise so as not to disturb father." Then he closed the door gently behind him.
Jin Shanghui continued to mumble a few more times before his tight body relaxed and he leaned back against the wall, restoring his original lazy state.
"I can't believe it! I was scared to death!" Cao Yanan patted her chest and said with some lingering fear.
The youngest, Sun Jie, tugged on Ma Jun's clothes and, with feverish admiration on his face, whispered, "Young Master Gong is so awesome! Even this zombie listens to him! And he's even better than a puppy!"
Ma Jun patted the youngster's head, his tone filled with pride as he said, "Of course, to accept a boss-level zombie as a younger brother, such a shocking thing can only be done by Young Master Gong!"
Sun Jie was too young and didn't understand it, but he knew that it was a good thing. He nodded hurriedly and the others also showed an expression of amazement. Their worship of their boss had taken another step.
Not only was he able to think the unthinkable, but he was able to do the unthinkable. This was their deepest impression of Young Master Gong and this impression would not be broken in their lifetime.