☆, Prison break, everyone goes their separate ways

Chris tried his best not to think about unnecessary things, like how shameless this woman was. Just two minutes ago, he had impulsively wanted to throw those two strangely shaped wires to the ground, but he restrained himself and silently walked towards the door under Ye Xi's innocent gaze. Undeniably, Chris desperately wanted to escape this damned place. He wanted to find his restless sister; how could he just stay in this cage like a trapped beast waiting to meet God? Claire could testify that he never loved that old man and had never even been to church, but if Ye Xi hadn't handed him the escape tools in such a lewd way, he might have hugged Ye Xi and loudly thanked God.

Unfortunately, Ye Xi wasn't your average girl. It's hard to imagine that anyone else would go crazy if bitten, but she remained completely calm. It's unbelievable what's going on in her head. Chris sighed and unlocked the lock with a "click." "Do you still need... this thing?" Chris held up the deformed wire in his hand, looking at Ye Xi's indifferent face, deciding to ease the tension. "I mean, I can bend it back, after all, without this, your breasts are more likely to sag."

Unfortunately, Ye Xi maintained her distance from him with a cold expression, calmly saying, "No need, there are many shops outside I can take whatever I want. Anyway, mine isn't big, and the sagging won't be that bad."

"Girl, you win." Chris's lips twitched; he wasn't good at this kind of teasing at all. "Alright, then stick close to me. The guards will be back soon. They'll be in a panic if they see us, especially you, because you were bitten. A search is inevitable. Luckily, I'm familiar with this area. By the way, you haven't told me your name yet."

"Ye Xi." Ye Xi opened the door and walked out first. "You can follow me, but I need to find my things first." With that, she walked out of the empty, dark room without looking back. Chris immediately strode after her: "What things? Wandering around like this isn't a good idea, so do you know where your things are?"

Ye Xi shook her head. "But someone knows." She slightly curled the corners of her lips and said softly. Ye Xi didn't know where her weapons and some dry rations were, but the people here definitely knew. And if she just "entered" them a little, someone would inevitably tell her. Ye Xi didn't want to give up the weapons she had finally found that she was quite comfortable using. After all, she had searched many shops before finding Miao swords that were even sharper than the previous pair.

Chris was somewhat helpless. He didn't know what could make a dying person—or so he thought—so fixated on something. But it was someone else's privacy, and he wouldn't pry. Besides, he'd find out when he went with her to look for it. "Fine, if you insist, considering you got me out of that damned cage, I'll go with you to find 'the one who knows.'" Chris thought for a moment. Maybe that scumbag Bennett could tell them something; after all, it was that cowardly guy who initially insisted on locking him and Ye Xi together.

Chris led the way, keeping a close watch on their surroundings while also silently monitoring Ye Xi's condition. Ye Xi had been bitten for at least an hour; depending on individual circumstances, she might turn into a zombie in the next second, or she might not become the monster even after two hours. Therefore, he had to juggle both, hoping that this seemingly delicate and cold girl wouldn't become too weak.

The sounds of panic from not far away reached Ye Xi's ears clearly. Her extraordinary hearing allowed her to hear every single word they were saying, and she couldn't help but scoff. "They've probably figured it out. They're really efficient," Chris deduced, having also heard the noise. He snorted and then asked Ye Xi, "How are you feeling now? Any discomfort? We might have to speed things up later."

“I feel great.” Ye Xi glanced at him, thought for a moment and then said, “You don’t have to worry about me later. Just head out to the large open space in Central Park in Los Angeles. There’s a special Umbrella helicopter that’s capable of crossing the Pacific Ocean. You can rest assured that it won’t suddenly explode in the air—provided you can find fuel.”

Clearly, the word "Umbrella" is taboo at this time, and anyone associated with it is highly suspicious. "How do you have something like that?" Chris looked at Ye Xi with some surprise, a dark glint flashing in his beautiful eyes. Could it be that she was an Umbrella agent?

"I stole it, believe it or not," Ye Xi replied seriously. Right, how did that guy named Alex get this seemingly ordinary but actually strange thing? And then so easily give it away to someone else—he's no pushover… Ye Xi lowered her eyes; in the darkness, Chris couldn't see the dangerous glint in her gaze.

If we're talking about stealing... Chris really finds it hard to believe. He knows about Umbrella's security measures, and Ye Xi... her appearance is too deceptive. Although she single-handedly broke through the zombie horde, it's still hard to believe that she has the ability to steal a helicopter from Umbrella.

In fact, Ye Xi herself didn't know if she really had the ability to break into the Umbrella underground base, as long as she carried enough T-virus. Of course, this was assuming Wesker wasn't around. Poor Ye Xi had a psychological trauma related to Wesker. Whenever she encountered him, without him saying or doing anything, her overall combat effectiveness automatically dropped by 50%. Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it's a psychological hurdle that Ye Xi finds very difficult to overcome.

Getting back to the point. Although Chris still had some doubts, he didn't show them on his face. "We need to find a place to hide now. If they find out we're gone, they'll definitely notify everyone. Running around isn't a good idea," Chris suggested. It was a suggestion, but in reality, it brooked no refusal. He grabbed Ye Xi's arm and ran towards the stairwell, pressing himself against the wall to make sure no one was around before pulling her up, giving Ye Xi no chance to choose. Ye Xi frowned. She had no doubt that if there was a chance to escape, Chris would never abandon her. This was troublesome, because he would definitely go looking for his sister Claire, and Claire was definitely in Umbrella's hands now, so…

Thinking this, Ye Xi broke free from his hand and, under his questioning gaze, said coldly, "You can go. I'll go lure them here. I don't have long to live anyway. I'm feeling really unwell..." As she spoke, Ye Xi pretended to cough a few times, pushing Chris away. Chris felt guilty about leaving her like this, but he was also helpless about Ye Xi's condition. He wasn't a sentimental person, and he didn't have any antibodies; he couldn't save Ye Xi at all—that was decided the moment she was thrown in.

He gritted his teeth, squeezed out a few words: "Be careful," and then ran into the darkness without looking back, afraid that if he turned around and saw Ye Xi all alone and helplessly waiting to die, he would change his mind.

All of the above were misunderstandings Chris had about Ye Xi. In reality, if Chris had turned around then, even just glanced back, he would have seen Ye Xi, who was standing there a second ago, vanish in the next—the speed was so fast it would have been unforgettable. Unfortunately, he didn't turn back. Months later, when he encountered Ye Xi again, who was living a wonderfully carefree life, Chris once again recalled the day he last parted with her, and couldn't help but slap his own head—yes, who would be so nonchalant knowing they were going to die?! Of course, that's a story for later.

Ye Xi slipped away before Chris was completely gone. This place was no place to linger; after all, that ship floating on the beach was a trap set by Umbrella. "Holy crap, Ye Xi! Are you and Umbrella some kind of magnet, always revolving around each other no matter where you go?!" Ye Xi mentally slammed the table a thousand times over.

"Cough cough, Ye Xi, you need to calm down. What can you do if Dust is a complete stepmother?" Ye Xi took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. Ye Xi could now completely use the darkness to hide herself. For example, right now, close to the dark wall, Ye Xi coldly watched the people passing by. She was returning the way she came, so she would soon encounter those who came to search for her and Chris—or rather, her men. Although they carried flashlights, the agile Ye Xi could slip behind them a second before the light shone on her.

Ye Xi needed to find someone who could tell her where her things were, but not one of those people who actively came out to search. She wanted someone who wouldn't even dare to search, someone easier to ask. Ye Xi strolled leisurely down the dark corridor, and soon saw a dim yellow light emanating from a room ahead. Without a doubt, her target was in that room. Ye Xi's lips curled into a slight smile…

Bennett was originally just an agent who made money off third-rate celebrities. The only things that mattered to him, besides money, were his own life. Heaven knows how many people he sacrificed to reach this safe haven. He thought he could stay here peacefully for the rest of his life, but who knew that Luther, that brain-dead black guy, would bring back a near-zombie, and the mother zombie he'd painstakingly thrown into the cage with that scumbag had suddenly disappeared?! "Damn black guy!" he couldn't help but curse, "It's all his fault! Now we're all going to die, bitten to death by that mother zombie!"

Christa rolled her eyes at him with disgust and curled her lip. She was originally an artist under Bennett's management, but she had always disliked this hypocritical scoundrel. Because she was a woman with no strength to even kill a chicken, Christa didn't join the search; otherwise, she wouldn't have bothered with this good-for-nothing.

"Hey, you woman, what did you mean just now?!" Bennett clearly saw Chris Tao's eye roll and questioned her angrily. "You should know that you're under my protection now!"

"Who will protect whom is still uncertain," Christa replied coldly.

"What the hell did you say?!"

Chris Tao, not wanting to get entangled with him, remained silent for a moment before saying, "It's nothing..."

"This young lady just clearly told you that you are weak and that she hates you, so why are you still bothering her?" A cold voice suddenly interrupted Christa's words. Bennett and Christa were startled and were about to look towards the source of the voice when, with a "snap," all the lights in the room went out.

"Ah!—Ugh—" Christa screamed in fear, but her mouth was suddenly covered. Then, there was a banging on the door; Bennett was probably trying to run away alone, but the door was locked. "Quiet, beauty." A cold voice came from behind Christa; it was a clear female voice, and she tightly covered her mouth. "I'm not looking for you. If you continue to be so restless, I don't care if you live or die."

She spoke softly, then released her hand and patted Christa's trembling shoulder. Christa turned around stiffly, but saw no one, only darkness. A few seconds later, Bennett's pig-like screams echoed in the empty room, lingering and blending into the darkness, adding to the eerie atmosphere. Christa covered her mouth and slumped down, sobbing softly, until the room's lights came back on, the door remained locked, but Bennett had vanished as if he'd evaporated.

Author's Note: The next chapter is a transitional one, and another conspiracy is about to unfold (shrug, but it wasn't Uncle Wei's doing, so...). Please leave a comment! >///<