Pregnant During An Apocalypse [BL]-Chapter 168 - Was he in it

"Oh my god... oh my god..." Jai fell to his knees, eyes locked on the burning wreckage in the distance. His hands trembled as he tapped his dead phone again and again, as if sheer desperation could force it back to life. Nothing.

"Fuck..." His voice cracked, his breath coming in short gasps.

Yunfeng stared blankly at the devastation, his mind struggling to process what had just happened. It wasn’t supposed to end like this.

Then, something hit him like a punch to the gut.

"Jai... your grandfather wasn’t on that, right?"

Jai’s body went rigid. He lifted his pale face to Yunfeng, eyes wide with fresh horror. He hadn’t heard his grandfather’s voice.

"No..." His voice wavered. "I don’t think so... but—" His hands clenched into fists. "He wasn’t on the call. He didn’t say anything. Do you think he—"

His gaze snapped back to the raging flames. To the black smoke swallowing up any hope.

"No... no... oh no... please no..."

Yunfeng gritted his teeth. They had to check.

His sharp eyes swept over the edge of the rooftop. The drop was steep, but survivable. The problem was the swarm of undead below, their heads tilting, their decayed hands clawing at the air, their hunger palpable.

"I’ll go." His voice was steel. "If your grandfather was in there, then—"

A rough hand grabbed his wrist, yanking him back.

Muchen.

"What the hell do you think you’re doing?" Muchen’s grip was like iron. His dark eyes burned with barely contained fury. "You are not going anywhere."

Yunfeng turned to shake him off, but Muchen pulled him closer, forcing him to meet his gaze.

"Yes, the chopper crashed," he growled. "Yes, it’s fucking horrible. But if you throw yourself down there, we’re losing you too. Then what? You think you can fight off a horde by yourself? You think you can bring back the dead?"

Yunfeng clenched his jaw. "Muchen—"

"No, listen to me!" Muchen’s fingers dug into his face, his voice shaking with emotion. "The only chance we have of getting out of here is waiting for backup. The military will send more soldiers. They have to. And for that, we need to stay the hell alive."

Yunfeng exhaled sharply, trying to push down the growing storm in his chest. He knew Muchen was right.

But...

"You don’t understand," he said, his voice lower now, more desperate. "If the Major General dies... it’s not just his death. It’s a chain reaction. The soldiers’ morale will shatter. The chain of command will collapse. Everything will fall apart."

Muchen’s grip tightened. "And you think throwing yourself into a fire is the answer?"

Yunfeng closed his eyes, inhaling sharply. "I just... I need to make sure. I need to know that the old man doesn’t die."

Muchen’s expression wavered for a moment. His fingers, still gripping Yunfeng’s face, trembled slightly.

Then, after a heavy silence, he let out a bitter chuckle. "You’re such a goddamn idiot."

Yunfeng swallowed. "Maybe."

Muchen exhaled harshly, stepping back. "Then we all go."

Jai lifted his head. "What?"

"We all go," Muchen repeated, his voice unwavering. "No one goes alone. We move as a unit. And if shit goes south—" He looked at Yunfeng. "We pull out together."

Yunfeng studied him, then glanced at Jai, whose face was streaked with fear but firm.

"You can’t go. You’re pregnant." Yunfeng’s voice was firm, leaving no room for argument. He stood his ground as Muchen glared at him, lips pressed into a thin line.

"You stay here," Yunfeng continued, his tone gentler now. "I’ll go and check it out. It’s so close. Nothing will happen to me. Besides, if those things try to bite me, I’ll just burn them with my flames."

He lifted his hand, and a small blue flame flickered at his fingertip, casting an eerie glow on their faces.

Muchen’s jaw clenched. He was still unconvinced. Still unwilling to let him go alone.

"Not alone," he muttered stubbornly.

Yunfeng sighed and looked around. Jai was too distraught to make the journey. Muchen was out of the question. The others? He wasn’t familiar with them, not enough to trust them in a life-or-death situation.

His gaze finally landed on Shao.

Shao, who had fought beside him before. Shao, who knew how to survive.

The man sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Fine, I’ll come with you."

Before they could move, a voice cut through the tension.

"Wait, wait!"

Jiang Hao, the schoolboy, suddenly rushed forward. His eyes were wild with desperation.

"My house is that way too! Can you save my mother? She looks like this."

The boy fumbled with his wallet, pulling out a small, creased photo. A woman with soft eyes and a gentle smile.

Shao took it, giving it a brief glance before looking back at the boy. His expression was unreadable.

"Sorry, kid. We’re not making new stops." He handed the photo back. "We check the crash site, find any useful weapons, and come back. Nothing else."

Jiang Hao’s face fell. His small hands clenched the photograph so tightly it crumpled at the edges.

"But you’re going the same way!" His voice rose in frustration. "You can easily pick her up! She’s a small woman—she won’t take up much food. She’s—"

Shao held up a hand. His voice was calm, but firm.

"As I said. Sorry, we can’t. We’re not the police or soldiers. We don’t do rescue missions."

The boy froze. His face twisted, as if he wanted to argue, to scream, but no words came.

Shao turned to Yunfeng. "And we’re not going just as we are."

Before Yunfeng could protest, Shao grabbed his arm and dragged him back into the warehouse.

"Seriously?" Yunfeng muttered as Shao rummaged through the supplies.

"You’re too reckless," Shao grumbled. "At least try to have some damn protection."

A moment later, he threw a bundle of cloth at him.

Yunfeng unfolded it and groaned.

"Are you serious?"

Hospital bed sheets. The same torn fabric Shao had used before to pad himself up like a sumo wrestler.

"If we’re walking into danger," Shao said, wrapping his own arms in layers, "then we’re going armored."

Yunfeng sighed, reluctantly pulling the fabric around his arms and chest.

Muchen watched them from the side, arms crossed, eyes filled with conflicted emotions.

Once again, they were on top of the warehouse. The cold wind brushed against their faces. Yunfeng and Shao peered over the edge, eyes scanning the ground below.

"So we jump?" Shao whispered, frowning.

"Yeah," Yunfeng whispered back.

Shao stared at him like he’d grown a second head. "Yeah, that’s not happening."

Instead of humoring Yunfeng’s reckless idea, Shao walked along the edge, scanning the area. His eyes landed on a large lorry parked nearby.

"Come," he said, moving without hesitation.

With a practiced ease, he leaped onto the top of the lorry, landing in a crouch before carefully climbing down its back. Yunfeng followed, his boots landing with a soft thud.

They didn’t waste time. Every second spent here was a risk. The moment their feet hit the pavement, they moved.

Back on the roof, Jiang Hao stood frozen, fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. His eyes burned with anger as he watched them disappear into the distance.

"He has powers," the boy whispered, voice shaking. "Why won’t he help?"

Still kneeling on the rooftop, Jai glanced up at him, eyes hollow.

"Because they’re not the fucking heroes you watch in TV shows."

Jiang Hao flinched.

Jai looked back down at his dead phone, his hands trembling as he pressed the power button again and again, praying for it to turn on. But all he got was darkness.

He swallowed hard, his throat dry. His grandfather...

Was he still alive?