Actually, ever since Bai Zemin formed and came to reinforce the theory that each parallel universe to the main universe might be a product born to leave fragments of the souls of the most powerful soul evolvers that existed in the main universe, his thoughts had changed considerably in terms of his future direction.
Even if he was not 100% sure if his train of thought was on the right track, the truth was that both the Qiao Long of the main universe and the 'Qiao Long' of this parallel dimension were Air Manipulation users before Bai Zemin killed them.
Since Qiao Long had 'a double' in this parallel dimension, it was only natural to assume that Shan Li had one as well.
The only thing Bai Zemin still couldn't understand was why he and his "other self" were so different; different to the extent that 'Bai Zemin' had absolutely no ability similar to Blood Manipulation, the first skill Bai Zemin learned and had his soul molded to at the beginning of evolution.
'Shangguan Bing Xue', 'Chen He', 'Liang Peng', and 'Bai Zemin' couldn't help but raise their guard when they saw the two-meter tall stout man walking towards them alone.
Although this man was alone, the muscles of his body were explosive and his eyes were fierce like those of a leopard.
The group of four could sense danger coming from his body, which meant he was no weaker than any of them.
The stout man dressed in a camouflaged military uniform stopped 20 meters distance away and announced in a powerful voice: "I am Captain Shan Li of the Sixth Battalion of the Chinese Liberation Army. Premier Wu Jianhong sent me and my squad north to assist the people on this side before returning... May I know if among you is a young woman named Wu Yijun?"
Without needing words, 'Shan Li' got his answer as more than a dozen students turned to look at a beautiful young woman with black hair and onyx-black eyes.
"Are you Miss Wu Yijun?" he asked, with no change in his tone of voice.
'Wu Yijun' hesitated for a moment before taking two steps forward. She nodded and said in a dignified voice, "My name is Wu Yijun, that's right. Wu Jianhong is my grandfather."
'Shan Li' showed a trace of a smile on his serious face as he heard this, "It's great to see that you are safe, Miss Wu. I imagine you have experienced a lot during this half a month, but you don't need to worry anymore. We will take care of taking you back to your family."
'Shan Li's' words covered up the fact that he would take her to her family to verify her identity, and if she was lying...
'Wu Yijun' couldn't help but close her eyes and sigh in relief. Her shoulders slumped and she suddenly felt like crying at the thought that she was finally out of the hell she had been living in for the past half a month, but she barely managed to hold back the tears that threatened to fall.
'Chen He' took a deep breath and took the opportunity to step forward to announce his family name, his father's name, and his grandfather's name.
After hearing about his background, 'Shan Li' was a little more respectful while rejoicing in his heart. He had just found two VIPs, which meant that when he returned back home, a good reward certainly awaited him.
'Shan Li' had already forgotten that he had ordered his men to ignore the students' safety earlier.
"Young master Chen, although we have managed to establish quite a few safe areas with large perimeters free of monsters, I'm afraid that right now all of China and even countries around the world are struggling to regain lost territories and save their citizens."
Everyone's expressions sank when they heard Captain Shan's words.
"How can this be possible..." 'Liang Peng' muttered under his breath.
Although the central government was still active and had not fallen, the fact that even half a month later the problem had not been solved was proof of how serious and big the change had been for the world.
Several minutes later, the group of over two hundred students gathered under the protection of the army.
Bai Zemin rested inside a small tent with his hands serving as a pillow as he thought about everything that had happened so far.
Beside him, Sylvia watched silently as she saw that he was lost in his own thoughts.
About 1 hour later, the voice of 'Shangguan Bing Xue' sounded from outside.
"Xun Tian, may I come in?"
Bai Zemin replied without much thought, "Come in." The cloth curtain opened and 'Shangguan Bing Xue' walked in with her body leaning forward, bringing with her a fresh breeze with the scent of jasmine.
Bai Zemin couldn't help but close his eyes and take a deep breath of that familiar scent, feeling for the first time in several days at home.
'Shangguan Bing Xue' paused at the sight of Sylvia and her eyes shone with a peculiar light before she sat down where she was able.
"We just finished meeting with Captain Shan." She announced in a serious voice, "To make a long story short, things outside are very bad. The only good news is that the army and public security forces managed to clear over 300 safe areas all over China, and it looks like they are slowly managing to reclaim the lost territories."
"I see." Bai Zemin nodded without much interest.
Because he had neither fought nor shown his strength before, 'Shan Li' only called the four fighters who fought against the giant mantis, as well as 'Wu Yijun' whose status could not be ignored to his tent.
'Shangguan Bing Xue' hesitated for a moment seeing his lack of concern or interest, and after a moment's hesitation, she softly remarked, "Captain Shan Li said that tomorrow he will turn around and take his army back home. Apparently, they have been fighting for a week non-stop so the number of ammunition dropped below 70% not to mention the destruction and massacre that the mantis from earlier caused on his troops."
Bai Zemin simply nodded and calmly said, "Thank you for letting me know about it."
The more she watched his indifference to the world and to life, the more shocked 'Shangguan bing Xue' became in her heart, "You... don't you worry about the safety of your friends on campus? I'm sure there are many survivors here."
"Friends?" Bai Zemin blinked in surprise as he did not expect such a question. Then, he chuckled and said without much thought, "I have no friends to worry about here."
'Shangguan Bing Xue' narrowed her eyes as she heard this, "You're telling me that in 7 months since the year started, you haven't forged friendships with anyone? Not even with your roommate?"
"What can I say to that." Bai Zemin shrugged.
Actually, he had noticed that 'Shangguan Bing Xue' was suspicious of his identity. However, Bai Zemin did not care if she found out that he was not a student of Beijing University nor did he care if she knew that his name 'Xun Tian' was fake.
Because Bai Zemin was 100% sure that it was impossible for her to find out who he really was.
'Shangguan Bing Xue' sighed, and after a moment she said softly, "You are really a mystery."
Bai Zemin finally looked at her for the first time since she walked in.
"I don't know who you are, but you definitely do know me." She stared at him with an expression that let her feminine weakness shine through as she said softly, "I don't know why you hide your strength but I know you are strong enough to kill that giant beetle by yourself. You don't need to hide it, I know it was you who helped me at that moment... Even when you look at me I can see a lot of complicated emotions in your eyes. I don't even know why it doesn't bother me when you call me by my first name just like that."
Bai Zemin couldn't help but look up at the ceiling of the tent and sigh. He closed his eyes, and after a long time said in a kind voice, "Even though I do know you, you shouldn't know me... In fact, you and I weren't supposed to meet at all."
" ... What does that mean?" 'Shangguan Bing Xue' stared at him in shock and for some reason she felt extremely uncomfortable in her heart.
"You, Yijun, Chen He... You all should try not to get too close to me as far as possible. You just need to go on with your life naturally... I will also do my best not to interfere too much with you." Bai Zemin sighed again, knowing that it would be hard for him not to extend a friendly hand when the lives of any of them were in danger.
The haze of confusion in 'Shangguan Bing Xue's eyes kept growing along with her curiosity. Her desire to learn more about the young man in front of her swelled like a torrent and with such force that she couldn't help but bring a hand to her chest.
Startled by the irregular behavior and feelings she was feeling, 'Shangguan Bing Xue' quickly stood up to announce her departure.
"W-We'll leave tomorrow morning. You... Try to rest." Before leaving, 'Shangguan Bing Xue' could not help but glance sideways at Sylvia.
After several minutes, Bai Zemin heard Sylvia's voice sounding beside him.
"Just... What was that all about???" The American beauty's confusion was evident in her words.
" ... I'll soon tell you the truth." He replied weakly, "And then you will have to make an important decision about your future."
The question marks in Sylvia's head only increased in number as she heard his cryptic words.
... The next day, the group began to move as 'Shangguan Bing Xue' said.
The students and few teachers who were among the group of survivors rode what were about a dozen or more of slightly modified buses while the soldiers rode military or normal vehicles as they had lost a good number of their driving forces due to the giant mantis.
One thing worth mentioning was the fact that under the orders of Captain 'Shan Li' the body of the mantis was being taken to the base.
Due to their personal strength, 'Shangguan Bing Xue' and the other three joined the army troops to fight against the enemies that appeared on the road back to the south.
Fortunately, the convoy did not meet many zombies or mutant beasts as 'Shan Li' was using the same road that had been cleared on their way to the university.
A few more days passed, and during this time Bai Zemin practically did not see 'Shangguan Bing Xue' or anyone else besides Sylvia again.
Only 'Wu Yijun' visited him occasionally when everyone stopped to rest, and apparently, she had some kind of important argument with 'Lian Xuan' since the guy didn't seem to be glued to her as before.
About 4 or 5 days later, Bai Zemin who was sitting in one of the buses in front finally saw a large perimeter enclosed by wood and giant rubber tires in the middle of a series of buildings.
Even more eye-catching, however, were the heavily armed police officers and heavy machine guns on the sides as well as on the roofs of some of the taller buildings.
"Stop!"
At 'Shan Li's roar the entire fleet stopped, including the bus where Bai Zemin was sitting next to Sylvia.
Soon, everyone was ordered to get off the vehicles in an orderly manner.
Although the survivors were nervous as they faced so many guns, seeing the people beyond the closed perimeter made many sighed in relief or cry disconsolately as they realized that they were finally safe.
Under the care of the soldiers, the few thousand survivors were ordered out of the monster-cleared perimeter.
"Each of you will be checked to be certain that you are not carrying anything suspicious into the inner city." Announced Captain 'Shan Li' in a cold voice: "At the same time, my colleagues will also let you know the rules of the settlement. Remember that in times of crisis like this the last thing we will tolerate will be trouble caused by people so keep this point in mind and behave wisely."
As the survivors began to be checked one by one and carefully by several soldiers before being allowed to enter the settlement, 'Shan Li' scanned the area with his eyes as if looking for someone in particular.
His eagle eyes shone when he found said someone and moved forward with heavy steps towards there.
"Young miss, is it true that you have an ability that can suppress zombies and monsters alike?"
Sylvia subconsciously took a step back as she met the serious gaze and fierce face of this Captain she had seen smash a giant dog a day ago.
"I... I'm not too sure about that..." She stammered.
'Shan Li' sighed in exasperation and extended his big hand forward, "I'm going to ask you to follow me for a while. I'm afraid someone with special abilities like you needs to be carefully examined and brought in front of the main government of the base first."
Sylvia's face went white as she knew what those words meant, she was not stupid.
She would be forced to fight in the front line even against her will. Just at that moment, a relatively smaller hand compared to 'Shan Li's' shot out from the side and caught his wrist, stopping his movement with seeming ease.
"What are you doing?"
Although that person's voice was even colder than ice, Sylvia subconsciously patted her big chest several times and closed her eyes as she sighed heavily.
Although Sylvia knew that the person called 'Shan Li' was strong and had an army that obeyed his orders, as long as she stayed with the person that stood next to her she did not need to fear.
She knew that her feelings went against all logic, but she simply felt safe and she trusted those feelings.
* * * * * * * Really thank you very much to all those who send gifts to the novel and support with valuable Golden Tickets. I hope we can all keep it up <3

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