Chapter 67 Fungal Remains Frenzy 28 Parting Ways
Zhang Zhi didn't understand what Nanmen Jue was saying, and Nanmen Jue didn't explain this sudden madness either. She returned to the place where the mother tree was, where she had specifically placed the unconscious Jin Jian before.
Standing under the tree, Nanmen Jue looked up at the branches that had almost killed her, which now seemed so harmless. If it weren't for the thousands of wailing, mummified corpses on the branches, the scene would have been somewhat beautiful.
She asked Zhang Zhi, "Can't this tree really be moved?"
Zhang Zhi frowned, "It won't leave, it won't listen to me."
Nanmen Jue pondered, "You can only communicate with it, but you can't directly command it?"
Zhang Zhi nodded. "At least for now, it doesn't listen to me."
Nanmenjue said, "After we leave, will it come back to life and continue to pollute this place?"
Zhang Zhi tilted her head and thought for a moment, "I'm not sure. It can't move now, but maybe it will get rid of my influence once we're far away."
Nanmen Jue understood. Zhang Zhi was still commanding the mother tree, but she was too small and lacked the energy to make the mother tree completely obey her. However, the fact that she could command the mother tree was enough to cause alarm.
Zhang Zhi absolutely cannot stay here any longer, otherwise she doesn't know what she will face, but she also cannot go too far away from here, at least until all the remaining people here have evacuated.
Once Nanmen Jue had figured this out in his mind, he bent down and picked up Jin Jian. When he touched him, he noticed that Jin Jian's body stiffened almost imperceptibly for a moment.
Nanmen Jue paused. "You're awake, so why pretend?"
Jin Jian weakly opened his eyes, looking at Nanmen Jue with a complicated expression. "I never expected that you would actually come to save me."
They went to such great lengths to protect him.
The person who risked his life for him wanted him dead, but the person he only met once and who made a verbal promise saved him at all costs. Jin Jian's heart was in turmoil, and he couldn't help but cough, coughing up blood.
"Take it easy. I don't have any good hemostatic agents on me. I barely managed to save your life. If you want to continue living, you'll have to rely on yourself," Nanmen Jue said calmly.
Jin Jian understood what she meant, and his eyes became even more bitter and complicated. He glanced at the little girl next to him and said in a restrained tone, "I... have been exposed. Cheng Xiuye will no longer believe me."
Nanmen Jue tilted his head, as if asking, "And then?"
Jin Jian paused for a moment, then blurted out in despair, "I mean, I'm useless now! Even if you save me, I can't go undercover as you want... cough cough cough!"
In his agitation, he coughed up blood again. Nanmen Jue pulled Zhang Zhi behind him to prevent her from getting splattered with blood.
“Now that Cheng Xiuye knows, why not just kill him?” Nanmen Jue said. “The cooperation continues, but you still have to go back to work.”
Jin Jian paused in his coughing and looked up at Nanmen Jue in disbelief.
He lost consciousness long ago, and only remembered the scene of Nanmen Jue willingly being locked up by Cheng Xiuye to protect him. He knew nothing about the confrontation and battle between Nanmen Jue and Cheng Xiuye that followed, and naturally did not know that in terms of pure strength, Nanmen Jue could even crush Cheng Xiuye.
Nanmen Jue asked, "Can you still stand up?"
Jin Jian nodded subconsciously.
"Then let's go," Nanmen Jue said.
Jin Jian didn't ask where they were going. Anyway, his life was now completely tied to Nanmen Jue. If he didn't kill Cheng Xiuye, one could imagine what it would mean if this traitor returned to the main hall.
At this point, it's a desperate gamble; death is inevitable, whether you choose to fight or not.
After all, he was a reincarnator who had gone through thick and thin with the second-in-command of Ouroboros. When pushed to the limit, Jin Jian's eyes revealed a fierce light.
Just as the group was about to leave, Nanmen Jue suddenly stopped and turned to look at a wall.
Jin Jian wanted to ask what was wrong, but Nanmen Jue had already spoken: "Get out here."
Two people, their necks hunched and heads bowed, pushed and shoved each other as they slowly emerged from behind the wall and came to Nanmen Jue. Their voices were so soft they sounded like mosquitoes buzzing.
"Brother Jue."
"South Gate".
It was Mo Gui and Guan Junren.
Nanmen Jue remained expressionless. "What do you mean?"
The two exchanged a secret glance. Mo Gui coughed lightly, then looked up with a wide, fawning smile. "Um... Brother Jue, look, Lao Guan and I are so weak, and now he's lost an arm. We have absolutely no way to protect ourselves!"
As he spoke, Guan Junren cautiously glanced at Nanmen Jue's face. Seeing that she showed no emotion whatsoever, his heart sank.
Mo Gui continued, "You saved me, and you saved Lao Guan too. In this world, only you care about whether we live or die..."
"I won't interfere anymore."
"So we're thinking... what? Just give up?" Mo Gui swallowed back his words, dumbfounded.
“I’ve already said, we won’t be companions, nor do we need companions.” Nanmen Jue’s expression and voice were both cold and hard. “Where you go is your freedom, but it has nothing to do with me.”
“But… wait a minute,” Mo Guiyi said, pointing to Jin Jian, who was standing silently behind Zhimen Jue, “then why is this guy here?”
He was filled with righteous indignation at being used and then abandoned. Jin Jian glanced at him silently, his eyes also showing doubt, but he was very clear about his position, so he continued to remain silent.
Mo Gui was completely baffled, her almond-shaped eyes gazing at Nanmen Jue with watery eyes. "Brother Jue, am I not more loyal than him? You want him but not me? Although I'm not as strong as him, I can take a knife for you in a critical moment, but this guy can only stab you once!"
They were just acting, but now Mo Gui is genuinely aggrieved.
Jin Jian couldn't hold back any longer. "What nonsense are you talking about? I've already established a cooperative relationship with Mr. Nanmen. I won't betray him!"
"Bullshit! Weren't you just Cheng Xiuye's man? Are you here now because he adopted you out to Jue-ge?"
"I……"
That's enough.
Nanmen Jue stopped the farce. She could see a large group of people about to surround her. She didn't know if they were after her or Zhang Zhi, but they all seemed to have ill intentions, so it was not advisable to stay any longer.
"Stop clinging to me as a lifeline; I can't save anyone."
After saying this while looking into Mo Gui's eyes, Nanmen Jue glanced at Guan Junren, who had his head down, and then took Zhang Zhi's hand and strode away.
The three walked along the abandoned street. In order to take care of Zhang Zhi, Nanmen Jue walked slowly, which also helped to take care of Jin Jian, who was seriously injured.
As they walked, Jin Jian couldn't help but look back, wanting to ask something, but fearing Nanmen Jue, he didn't dare to ask.
Zhang Zhi had no worries and whispered, "Brother, those two people are still following us."
Nanmen Jue knew, of course, that Mo Gui and Guan Junren were determined to follow her, neither moving forward nor falling behind, and there was nothing Nanmen Jue could do about it.
She could have gone even further, like beating them both up so they couldn't keep up and giving up. The old Nanmen Jue might have done that, but she couldn't bring herself to do it now.
How could anyone not like her? Someone trusts her wholeheartedly and admires her. They are connected by life and death. No matter what happens, there will always be someone willing to side with her.
But that won't work.
There are so many landmines around her that you can't count them all. Following her is like entering a minefield. She's already been cowardly enough, and enough people have died indirectly because of her. She can't go and actively kill for money.
"Let's find an opportunity, like a car, and shake them off," Nanmen Jue thought almost childishly. Once they couldn't catch her, the two of them would naturally go back to find Deng Erhuai and the others; those people still had some feelings for them and wouldn't abandon them.
Thinking this, Nanmen Jue ignored the two people behind him and let them follow him from daytime to dusk.
There was a little incident in the middle. Nanmen Jue didn't bring any food. Just as she was about to search for food, Jin Jian took out a few bottles of energy liquid.
“I grew up in a poor rural area and was terrified of hunger, so I’d rather pay a price to bring some food.” Seeing Nanmen Jue’s surprised look, Jin Jian explained, “Do you know where it’s made? One bottle can last for two or three days.”
Nanmen Jue did not refuse Jin Jian's kindness, but to her surprise, Jin Jian gave her nutrient solution and then limped a bit further back, also giving Guan Junren and Mo Gui nutrient solution.
The two were utterly shocked; Nanmen Jue's hearing was sharp enough to hear their conversation.
"Is it poisonous inside?" Mo Gui asked.
Jin Jian rolled his eyes. "Believe it or not, take it or leave it."
Guan Junren took it with one hand, put it under his nose and smelled it. Mo Gui stared at him nervously, "What is it?"
"I can't smell it," Guan Junren said. "There's no smell."
Mo Gui remained silent. "You've betrayed my trust, Dr. Guan."
Guan Junren smiled sheepishly. Jin Jian watched coldly, and seeing that the two of them still whispered and took it, he turned and left.
"Hey!" Mo Gui called out to him, asking hopefully, "Did Brother Jue ask you to give it to us?"
Jin Jian hesitated for a moment, shook his head, and then limped away.
It wasn't Nanmen Jue who ordered him, but as a good lackey, he should have this kind of insight.
Although Nanmen Jue spoke coldly to the two of them, he wasn't truly indifferent to them. Moreover, the scene of Nanmen Jue confronting Cheng Xiuye on behalf of these people in the conference room was still fresh in his mind, and he dared not forget it.
Ultimately, he's following Nanmen Jue, and Nanmen Jue probably doesn't want to see them suffer. As a newcomer, it would be beneficial for him to interact more with the "veteran employees" and gain their favor.
Nanmen Jue had no idea that such a simple act of kindness would cause Jin Jian so much turmoil. She didn't ask any more questions, but silently added two points to this person's score in her mental assessment.
This happened at noon, and now that the sun is setting, according to end-times custom, they should find a place to spend the night.
Nanmenjue dared not stray too far from the furnace base, fearing the mother tree would go out of control. Therefore, they returned to Yongjiang City. Having walked through a section of it before, they at least remembered some of the way.
Nanmen Jue's destination was clear: Hong Chenxi's former home.
It's not about reminiscing about the past, but simply that the rooftop that Red Dawn has renovated is the most comfortable and safe place known in this city.
They just didn't expect that someone else would take over their place before them.
Nanmen Jue stopped downstairs, looked up at the lit rooftop, and squinted slightly.
"Are there other survivors?" Jin Jian asked.
Nanmen Jue glanced at him, and he immediately understood, taking the initiative to climb up the ladder, saying, "I'll go up and take a look."
If the people above are ordinary survivors, Jin Jian's strength will not pose any problem. If there are reincarnators above, Jin Jian is only a blue-named individual and does not seem to be a threat. Even if they are red-named individuals, he can hold them off for a while, which is enough time for Nanmen Jue to go up and rescue them.
There was no problem no matter how you looked at it; the person standing behind him was Nanmen Jue. This realization gave Jin Jian an unprecedented sense of security. Even though he was still a little sore, he climbed up with extra vigor.
He climbed more than halfway up the mountain when he realized something was wrong.
It smells of blood.
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