Chapter 37: Dongfang Tian's Ability

Upon returning to the gymnasium, Jiang Yi suddenly stopped. He squinted at a nearby window, where a familiar face had just flashed by.

Zhu Caijun hid beside the window, filled with regret. He had never expected that Seito and the other person, after leaving the team, would not only survive but actually join Dongfang Tian’s group on the fourth floor.

"Damn it! If I had known, I shouldn't have let them leave alive!"

A flicker of malice crossed Zhu Caijun's eyes. Dongfang Tian had always felt like his nemesis; ever since the student council presidential election, Zhu Caijun had been constantly overshadowed by him. Even after paying ten thousand yuan to force Dongfang Tian to withdraw from the race, he still had to endure whispers behind his back that he only became president because Dongfang Tian had stepped down.

Guo Hanxue turned around and, seeing Jiang Yi staring blankly in one direction, urged him, "Jiang Yi, hurry up, what are you looking at?"

Jiang Yi shook his head, losing interest. The group returned to the fourth floor to find it much more crowded and chaotic. Li Gang was roaring at his subordinates, "Hurry! Lock up the wounded. If they turn into zombies, finish them off!"

A male student with blood streaming from his arm panicked upon hearing Li Gang’s shout. He shoved aside the classmate holding him and bolted. Li Gang cursed viciously, "What are you idiots staring at? Catch him!"

The group immediately chased after the boy. Everyone knew the horrific consequences if someone turned into a zombie. The boy ran fast, his desperate urge to survive allowing him to slip through the net, and he was just about to bolt out the door when he collided head-on with Jiang Yi’s group, who were just walking in.

Everyone froze. The boy waved his blood-soaked hands at them, shouting, "Don't come closer! Let me go, or I’ll infect you too!"

The crowd dared not approach and merely followed from a distance. Seeing the exit blocked, the boy screamed frantically, "Get out of my way! Let me pass!"

The group walking in did not retreat. They were battle-hardened survivors; a man suffering a mental breakdown could not intimidate them. Only Jiang Yi stepped slightly away, helping Seito move aside; he had no intention of letting Seito come into contact with potentially infectious blood.

Dongfang Tian cast a deep look at Li Gang, who had run over from across the hall. Li Gang noticed him, his face changing instantly; he wanted to explain but dared not utter a word.

"Li Yue, what are you doing?" The frenzied Li Yue froze. He turned to see Dongfang Tian walking slowly toward him. Looking at the president he respected most, Li Yue’s composure shattered. His face was streaked with tears as he cried, "President, save me! I don't want to die! Please..."

Dongfang Tian stepped closer, finally gripping Li Yue’s shoulders firmly. As if finding the ultimate support, Li Yue relaxed completely, feeling that with Dongfang Tian there, he had nothing to fear.

"President, I don't want to die... I want to go home!"

Dongfang Tian comforted him softly, "We all want to go home. Don't worry, you’ll be fine."

As he spoke, he gently lifted the sleeve torn by the zombie. After glancing at the two blackened, foul-smelling wounds beneath, he lowered it slowly. He then placed both hands gently on either side of Li Yue’s head, as if comforting him.

But seconds later, the heartbroken Li Yue suddenly looked terrified. He stared at Dongfang Tian in disbelief, his mouth hanging open as if to speak, but only heavy, labored breaths emerged. He clawed frantically at Dongfang Tian’s wrists, but could not make him let go. Jiang Yi’s pupils contracted; he watched in horror as Li Yue’s face turned deathly pale, with dark blue veins climbing up from beneath his collar.

His eyes widened, the whites rapidly suffused with blood-red...

Everyone present noticed the abnormality. By the time they realized something was wrong, Dongfang Tian had already released his grip. Li Yue slumped to the floor, his body instantly stiffening, his expression twisted in a horrific mask of agony.

"My god, Dongfang Tian, what are you doing?" Guo Hanxue watched in shock as Li Yue, who had been alive just a moment ago, died in such excruciating pain. She looked at Dongfang Tian in disbelief.

Dongfang Tian slowly took a handkerchief from his clothes and wiped his fingers one by one, as if he had touched something filthy. He smiled calmly, "I only helped him go more easily."

After cleaning his hands, he tossed the handkerchief onto Li Yue’s grim face and said to his subordinates, who had witnessed everything, "Take him out. Find a quiet place and bury him."

No one dared to object; it was clearly not their first time facing such a scene. Soon, the strangely contorted corpse was carried away.

Guo Hanxue was furious. "Dongfang Tian, what are you doing? He was still alive! What right did you have to kill him?"

Dongfang Tian looked innocent. "Hanxue, he had already been bitten. Surviving would only mean waiting for death. I had no choice. You wouldn't have wanted me to wait until he turned into one of those monsters outside to kill him, would you?"

"You!" Guo Hanxue was incensed. She couldn't believe how cold-blooded her former friend had become. Just as she was about to argue further, her arm was gripped firmly. "Guo Hanxue, you’re exhausted today. Take Seito to get some rest!"

Guo Hanxue turned to see Jiang Yi’s solemn expression and urged, "Jiang Yi, you..."

Jiang Yi lowered his eyelids, his tone light but leaving no room for argument: "Guo Hanxue!"

Guo Hanxue paused. The firm pressure on her arm told her that Jiang Yi was being incredibly serious. After a moment of hesitation, she decided not to argue with Dongfang Tian further. Instead, she gave him a long, cold look, took the golden bow from Jiang Yi, and helped Seito away.

Jiang Yi did not leave. He simply looked up at Dongfang Tian, who returned his gaze.

Dongfang Tian suddenly smiled. "Hanxue seems to trust you a lot!"

Jiang Yi shrugged indifferently. "Maybe it's because I stayed by her side when she was at her most helpless."

A dark shadow crossed Dongfang Tian’s eyes. "You know I like her, right?"

Jiang Yi nodded with a smile. "I can tell. But so what?"

Dongfang Tian suddenly took a step forward, his powerful aura pressing down on Jiang Yi. His tone was sharp, enough to chill one’s heart. "Believe me, I will do anything for her. If you don't want any 'accidents' to happen to you, stay away from Hanxue."

Jiang Yi was not intimidated. Even with Dongfang Tian’s formidable aura, for an awakened individual like Jiang Yi, such a threat held no fear.

He curled his lips into a smile. "I don't want to be your enemy. However, President Dongfang, you seem to have misunderstood one thing! What makes you think you have the right to threaten me?"

With that, Jiang Yi took a step back, his face beaming with a smile. "Also, I’m quite curious: how exactly does Commander Dongfang plan to make me have an 'accident'?"

Dongfang Tian was stunned. He couldn't believe that after witnessing his own formidable power, Jiang Yi showed absolutely no fear. For a moment, he remained silent, filled with confusion.

Jiang Yi turned and walked away, waving his hand. "If that’s all, I’m going to rest. Dongfang Tian, I hope you can take responsibility for the consequences of your actions."

Only after Jiang Yi had disappeared from the doorway did his expression turn gloomy. He hated being threatened, and Dongfang Tian was currently his greatest threat. But Jiang Yi was certainly not the type of person to shrink away from such challenges.

Moreover, Jiang Yi wasn't too worried. Just moments ago, he had roughly analyzed Dongfang Tian’s ability. He had carefully observed Li Yue’s corpse and noticed that the body had stiffened rapidly; even standing near it, one could feel a bone-chilling cold. The reason Li Yue’s face had turned so pale was that a layer of frost had formed on his skin.

Clearly, Dongfang Tian possessed a cryokinetic ability.

He had used a burst of speed to freeze Li Yue into an ice sculpture. However, to hide the extent of his power, Dongfang Tian hadn't frozen Li Yue’s entire body, but rather the blood inside him. This proved that Dongfang Tian’s power was not yet overwhelming; otherwise, he should have been able to freeze him solid instantly instead of taking over ten seconds, giving Li Yue time to struggle.

When Jiang Yi returned to their resting area, Guo Hanxue was still filled with indignation. Seeing him return, she walked over immediately. "Jiang Yi, are you okay? What did you say to him?"

Jiang Yi shook his head. "Nothing much, just a small talk about emotional matters."

Guo Hanxue tilted her head in confusion. "What kind of emotional matters could you two possibly have?"

Jiang Yi gave a fake smile. "Perhaps our President Dongfang is a bit sensitive in that regard and thought my experience might be of some help to him."

Guo Hanxue rolled her eyes, not believing a word of his nonsense. However, seeing that he seemed fine, she stopped pressing him.

The rest of the night on the fourth floor felt exceptionally stifling. The screams of the students who had returned injured from the outside echoed from the third floor, their agonized cries permeating the entire gymnasium. The timid could only crouch in corners, covering their ears to block out the sound.

Jiang Yi, having experienced such scenes every day in the cafeteria, remained unaffected. He had realized upon returning that because so much time had passed, the injuries of those people had already begun to trigger the transformation. At this point, even consuming a zombie core would not allow them to awaken. Saying so would only offer false hope before plunging them back into despair.

Besides, Jiang Yi didn't believe Dongfang Tian would be willing to part with enough cores to give to everyone.

The three of them finished their dinner and were resting when a girl timidly crept toward them. "Pr... President!"

The three of them froze. Looking up, they saw Han Ya from the third floor standing there, looking nervous.

Guo Hanxue stood up. "Han Ya, why are you here?"

Han Ya looked at Guo Hanxue, who had shown her such concern, and felt a sudden shyness. She lowered her head and whispered, "I... I just wanted to come and thank you. Thank you for the food you gave me."