Apocalypse Survival Guide for a Beta [GB] - Chapter 73

Lou Tiannan established his base in the border building of Eastern District Five. In the underground storage of the building, he had stockpiled military supplies left to him by his father.

Because Eastern District Five was under the dual control of Aurora and the Federation, there weren’t many zombies in the area. The border building itself had a purification system and Zhu Liang’s wood-type ability was also a great help. The green leaves and vines absorbed and purified the air, effectively masking the residual energy signatures of ability users.

Using the communicator Wu Zeyue had given him, Lou Tiannan contacted dozens of ability users who had been hiding nearby. When they gathered at the border building, many of them recognized each other as they had all crossed paths in the Security Bureau before the apocalypse.

Seeing Elena among Lou Tiannan’s team, several Federation ability users were first surprised and confused, then suddenly understood.

One of them clapped his hands together. “Ah, Elena! So those rumors about you betraying the Federation were actually part of the plan?”

Elena smiled and nodded. “Yes.”

“As expected of the brilliant Adjudicator!”

Hearing this, Bai Chuan quietly muttered to Tang Mary, “Since when did she become this shameless?”

Tang Mary smacked Bai Chuan and said in a serious tone, “This is called putting the bigger picture first!”

Rather than having Elena explain that she had left the Federation for personal reasons or offer some other excuse, it was better to go along with the misunderstanding. It avoided unnecessary complications since, for now, their goals aligned.

Building a foundation of trust quickly was crucial for cooperation in future battles.

Most of the Federation’s ability users came from military backgrounds. They were straightforward and direct in nature. Sitting together in small groups, they quickly bonded over casual conversations, even with those they didn’t know well.

Not to mention Bai Chuan and Tang Mary, who were natural at handling social situations due to their merchant backgrounds.

When the ability users noticed Lin Bai and Xi Ya, they were initially puzzled, but Tang Mary effortlessly provided explanations.

“They’re family members of a researcher from Institute 621.”

“Highly skilled in combat.”

“Traveled all the way from Western District Seven with a child.”

“Out for revenge for a fallen partner…”

With just a few short sentences, everyone formed a basic impression of Lin Bai; a capable and deeply loyal Beta woman. Their respect for her grew.

Among the group of ability users, Alphas and Betas made up the majority. Only Wen Xiaxia and Bai Chuan were Omegas. However, the Alphas present all made sure to wear pheromone suppressor patches as a sign of courtesy and respect.

Most of the ability users had lost their families in the apocalypse. At first, they were hesitant to bring up the research institute around Lin Bai, fearing it might stir up painful memories. However, they soon realized that Lin Bai was quite open about it and had no reservations about discussing her partner. She spoke with calm certainty, “My partner wouldn’t want me to be sad when I mention her. She would want me to be happy.”

From her words, they learned that Lin Bai’s partner had been an outstanding researcher, gentle, humorous, optimistic, and highly skilled. Lin Bai herself admitted that all her combat abilities and various skills were taught to her by her partner. Gradually, others were influenced by Lin Bai’s attitude and began speaking more freely about their own lost loved ones. Occasionally, someone would recall a funny story, making everyone laugh. It felt as if their departed family members hadn’t truly left but were simply waiting for them to return safely to the safe zone.

The atmosphere was warm and comforting. However, Lou Tiannan, standing in the crowd, watching Lin Bai talk about her partner, felt conflicted. His gray eyes were clouded with emotion and without a word, he turned and headed to the underground training ground.

Lin Bai was the first to notice his departure because the temperature in the room dropped.

Most people, who weren’t as sensitive to temperature changes, wouldn’t have noticed. But with the constant snowstorms in the past days, Lin Bai’s energy reserves had once again fallen into the danger zone, making her particularly sensitive to the cold.

It wasn’t just the snowstorms since Aurora was also leaving an impact on her. Aurora seemed to be growing desperate, causing Lin Bai’s energy to deplete at an accelerating rate.

Moreover, Lou Tiannan had shown greater control over his ability particles in recent days. Previously, anyone within a meter of him could feel his high body temperature, but now, Lin Bai noticed that the temperature within that range had become almost indistinguishable from the surrounding air.

At such a critical moment, Lin Bai couldn’t afford to make a mistake. Quietly, she slipped out of the conversation and went to find Lou Tiannan.

In the underground training ground, Lou Tiannan was doing parallel bar dips, dressed in a tight-fitting tank top. It was a common military training exercise used to strengthen arm muscles.

Few could make it look as impressive as Lou Tiannan. His broad shoulders and narrow waist made his posture striking with his head held high and his chest upright. Each time he pushed himself up, the muscles in his chest and triceps tightened and bulged, and as he lowered himself, they gradually relaxed. The rise and fall of his shoulder, chest, and back muscles created fluid, well-defined lines.

He seemed to be deep in thought. Even after performing over a hundred dips, he showed no signs of stopping. Sweat trickled down his sharp jawline, following the curve of his neck, tracing along the veins standing out against his skin, and soaking into his black tank top.

Standing at the entrance of the training ground, Lin Bai could already sense the restless energy particles surrounding him.

She took a sniff of the air. It carried a faint scent of green citrus. It was Lou Tiannan’s pheromone. Glancing at him, she noticed that the pheromone suppression patch on the back of his neck had loosened slightly due to sweat.

Lin Bai frowned. She had never particularly liked the smell of green citrus, but another thought crossed her mind. Was Lou Tiannan entering his susceptibility period?

That would explain the erratic energy particles around him and the unsettled expression on his face.

In the days before and after an Alpha’s susceptibility period, their emotions tended to be unstable. For Lin Bai, however, it was actually a good opportunity to replenish her energy. She needed to find a way to stay close to Lou Tiannan over the next few days.

“Who’s there?!” Just as Lin Bai was lost in thought, Lou Tiannan sensed someone at the entrance. He jumped down from the bars and turned to look. When he saw Lin Bai, he froze for a moment. “Why are you here?”

Lin Bai said casually, “Just here to watch Captain Lou train. You really are strict with yourself.”

“It’s necessary for combat,” Lou Tiannan replied emotionlessly. He grabbed a towel from the parallel bars and silently wiped the sweat from his forehead and neck. As he touched the suppression patch on the back of his neck and felt it had shifted, he adjusted it back into place. Then, he turned to leave the underground training ground.

As they passed each other, Lin Bai suddenly grabbed his wrist. Her puzzled voice rang out, “Captain Lou, why do you seem unhappy these past two days?”

Lou Tiannan stopped in his tracks and looked down at Lin Bai’s hand gripping his wrist. His gaze traveled upward until he turned slightly, standing face-to-face with her. He was more than half a head taller than Lin Bai and she barely reached his chin. From this angle and distance, he could clearly see her face.

She was still wearing light makeup. Her eyebrows were well-shaped with the help of an eyebrow pencil, her eye sockets subtly deepened by a light brown eyeshadow, and her lips were painted a bright red.

She looked very beautiful.

Lou Tiannan quickly averted his gaze and said in a low voice, “I’m not unhappy.”

Lin Bai tilted her head slightly, showing a doubtful expression. Based on the facial expressions and body language she had observed, along with her limited understanding of Lou Tiannan, she was certain he was angry. Yet now he was claiming he wasn’t.

Do all men say one thing but mean another?

However, Lin Bai wasn’t interested in figuring out why Lou Tiannan was upset or what had made him angry. That had nothing to do with her. The rare opportunity of being alone with him wasn’t something she wanted to waste. Plus, the energy particles surrounding Lou Tiannan felt very comfortable to her. She needed to stall him a little longer.

So, she quickly thought of something else. “Captain Lou, before you left for the Federation’s safe zone a couple of days ago, you said you had something to tell me when you got back. What was it?”

When Lou Tiannan heard this, his Adam’s apple bobbed slightly. What could he say? What was there to say?

After seeing how Lin Bai openly talked about her partner with the other ability users, how she spoke of her with pride and nostalgia, and how her face lit up when she described her partner, what could he possibly say now?

Everyone, including himself, knew how much she loved her partner.

What was the point of saying anything?

“Hmm?” Lin Bai noticed the strange change in Lou Tiannan’s expression. Frustration, a hint of gloom, suppressed anger, and a trace of restraint all mixed together.

Tsk. Men really are complicated creatures.

But this was good. Lou Tiannan’s emotional instability was making his energy particles even more chaotic. Lin Bai was quite pleased.

She spoke slowly and leisurely, completely unconcerned as she tried to console him, “Captain Lou, we’re comrades now. There’s no need to hide anything. My partner always said that the most important thing between teammates is trust… She also said that comrades are the closest people to you because—”

Lou Tiannan watched Lin Bai’s lips open and close, while his pheromones and energy particles raged uncontrollably in his bloodstream. His headache worsened and his frustration reached its peak. Hearing her mention her partner over and over again, he finally couldn’t hold back his disgraceful thoughts and blurted out, “Is your partner really that important to you?!”

The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted them. His mind suddenly cleared. He knew how thoughtless and disrespectful his words were, not just to Lin Bai, but to her partner as well. He immediately apologized in a hoarse voice, “Sorry, I lost my head for a moment.” He clenched the towel in his hand and turned to leave quickly.

However, once again, his wrist was grabbed. Lin Bai’s grip was firm, her slender fingers pressing into his skin.

This time, Lou Tiannan lowered his gaze, refusing to look at her.

But then—

Bang!

With a slight sound, he was pushed against the wall. His back hit the surface as Lin Bai leaned in close, her eyes filled with curiosity and confusion.

Lou Tiannan felt uneasy and instinctively wanted to look away. But in the next second, the soft touch at the corner of his lips made his gray eyes widen in shock. His heart pounded like a war drum.

The moment Lin Bai kissed him, she could distinctly feel the violent surge of energy particles within him. The raging heat poured into her energy storage like a waterfall. Lin Bai pressed her ear against Lou Tiannan’s chest. She didn’t even need to get too close since his rapid heartbeat was already loud in her ears. She looked up at him and hesitated. “This reaction… does it mean you like me?”

It was as if she had exposed a hidden truth. Lou Tiannan’s breathing stuttered, his heart nearly leaping out of his chest. His fingers, still clutching the towel, trembled slightly.

He had many ways to respond. He could deny it, push her away immediately, joke about her teasing him, or act indifferent and say she was overthinking things…

But—

His Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed, and from deep in his throat, he uttered a single syllable, “Mm.”