From the ruins to the highway usually took only twenty minutes.
Today, it had taken almost an hour.
Ning Rongrong supported Zhang Mo, inching forward one step at a time. Half his weight pressed down on her shoulder, making it ache. But she gritted her teeth and didn't make a sound.
Zhang Mo lowered his head and glanced at her.
Her forehead was slick with sweat, which streamed down her cheeks. The back of her shirt was soaked and clung to her body. Her legs were trembling, shaking with every step.
But he said nothing.
Because he knew she wouldn't listen even if he did.
After they'd walked for a while, Ning Rongrong suddenly spoke:
"Zhang Mo."
"Yeah?"
"How much do you weigh?"
Zhang Mo thought for a moment. "A little over a hundred and thirty pounds."
Ning Rongrong fell silent for a few seconds, then said quietly:
"I weigh eighty pounds."
Zhang Mo said nothing.
She continued, "I've been carrying someone who weighs over a hundred and thirty pounds for an hour."
Zhang Mo still said nothing.
She turned her head and glared at him. "You're not even going to say anything?"
Zhang Mo thought for a moment, then said, "Thanks for the effort."
Ning Rongrong huffed and turned back to keep walking.
After a few steps, she spoke again:
"You should eat less from now on."
Zhang Mo was taken aback.
"Why do you eat so much anyway?" she muttered under her breath. "You're killing me carrying you."
Zhang Mo couldn't help laughing.
Hearing him laugh, Ning Rongrong blushed and seemed about to say something, but in the end, she only huffed.
After they'd walked a little farther, she suddenly said:
"Zhang Mo."
"Yeah?"
"Just now... you scared me to death."
Zhang Mo lowered his head to look at her.
She kept her eyes on the road ahead and didn't turn around.
Her voice was muffled.
"When I saw you fall, and couldn't wake you no matter how much I called, I thought... I thought..."
She didn't finish.
But Zhang Mo understood.
He was quiet for a few seconds, then said softly:
"I'm sorry."
Ning Rongrong was taken aback.
"What are you apologizing for?"
Zhang Mo said, "For making you worry."
Ning Rongrong was silent for a while, then said quietly:
"Then don't do that again."
Zhang Mo said, "I'll try."
Ning Rongrong looked up and glared at him. "What do you mean, you'll try?"
Zhang Mo thought for a moment, then said, "Next time I fight, I'll do my best not to fall."
Ning Rongrong stared at him for a few seconds, then looked away.
"That's more like it."
She continued supporting him as they walked.
After a while, Zhang Mo suddenly said:
"Rongrong."
Ning Rongrong was taken aback.
He usually called her "Ning Rongrong" or "Hey." He rarely called her "Rongrong."
"W-what?"
Zhang Mo said, "Just now, did you save me with your blood?"
Ning Rongrong stiffened.
Then she insisted, "No such thing."
Zhang Mo lowered his head and looked at her wrists.
The wounds on both wrists had scabbed over, but the marks were still there—deep tooth marks, clearly self-inflicted.
Following his gaze, Ning Rongrong quickly pulled her hands back and hid them in her sleeves.
"What are you looking at?" she said quietly. "I fell by accident."
Zhang Mo said nothing.
Under his gaze, Ning Rongrong grew more and more flustered, her voice growing quieter.
"I really... fell..."
Zhang Mo suddenly stopped walking.
Ning Rongrong stopped with him and looked up.
He looked down at her for a long time.
Long enough to make her uneasy.
"W-what are you looking at?"
Zhang Mo said, "Don't do that again."
Ning Rongrong was taken aback.
Zhang Mo continued, "Using your blood to save me—don't do that again."
Ning Rongrong opened her mouth to say something, but he cut her off.
"You don't need to trade your life for mine," he said. "Got it?"
Ning Rongrong stared at him for a few seconds, her eyes slightly red.
But she bit her lip and stubbornly held back her tears.
She nodded and said quietly:
"Got it."
Only then did Zhang Mo start walking again.
Ning Rongrong supported him, keeping pace beside him.
After a few steps, she suddenly said in a small voice:
"Then you're not allowed to trade your life for mine either."
Zhang Mo's steps faltered.
He didn't turn around, only gave a soft "Mm."
The two of them continued forward.
Moonlight spilled across the road, stretching their shadows long. One was tall, the other short, and they leaned tightly against each other.
After walking for a long time, they finally saw the highway.
Ning Rongrong let out a sigh of relief, but her legs buckled and she nearly fell. Zhang Mo caught her and helped her over to the roadside.
"Let's rest."
Ning Rongrong stopped pretending she was fine and plopped down on the curb, gasping for breath.
Zhang Mo sat beside her.
They sat there, looking at the empty highway.
It was late at night, and there wasn't a single car in sight.
Ning Rongrong suddenly said:
"Zhang Mo."
"Yeah?"
"What did that system say just now?"
Zhang Mo froze for a moment, then brought up the system panel to check.
[Killed Huyan Li (Level 65 Spirit Emperor) — Complete] [Obtained World Origin Points: 600] [Obtained Spirit Bone: Strength Boost Right Arm Bone (absorbed)] [Dual World Collision delayed: 65 days] [Time remaining: 506 days] [Countdown to next Crisis Summon: 7 days]
Ning Rongrong leaned over to read it. She was silent for a few seconds.
"506 days," she said. "More than a year longer."
Zhang Mo nodded.
Ning Rongrong thought for a moment, then said, "You absorbed that Spirit Bone?"
Zhang Mo raised his right arm and clenched his fist. A warm force flowed through his arm, stronger than before.
"Mm."
Ning Rongrong stared at his right arm for a few seconds, then suddenly asked:
"Does it hurt?"
Zhang Mo thought for a moment. "It feels a little swollen."
Ning Rongrong nodded and said nothing more.
The two of them sat there.
After a while, headlights appeared in the distance.
Zhang Mo stood up and flagged down the car.
It was a night-shift taxi. The driver saw the two of them covered in blood and jumped, nearly driving off. Zhang Mo offered him an extra two hundred yuan, and only then did he agree to take them.
In the car, Ning Rongrong leaned against Zhang Mo's shoulder with her eyes closed.
Zhang Mo lowered his head and glanced at her.
Sweat still clung to her face, tear tracks remained at the corners of her eyes, and her lips were chapped. Her hands rested in her lap, the wounds on her wrists exposed.
He watched her for a while, then looked away and gazed out the window.
The night scenery flashed past outside: neon lights, overpasses, and the occasional passing car.
He suddenly thought of his childhood.
When he was seven, his parents died, and he lived alone at his grandmother's house. She had treated him very well, but she passed away when he was twelve.
After that, he was alone.
Eating alone, sleeping alone, going to school alone, working alone.
He had gotten used to it.
Used to facing everything by himself.
But now—
He lowered his head and looked at the person leaning against his shoulder.
She was fast asleep, breathing evenly. Her brow was slightly furrowed, as if she were having some kind of dream.
He suddenly felt that maybe he wasn't quite so used to it anymore.
Used to being alone.
But also used to having her by his side.
The car drove along the overpass, and the Oriental Pearl Tower glittered in the distance.
Watching those lights, he suddenly said softly:
"Rongrong."
Ning Rongrong didn't react. She was fast asleep.
He looked forward again.
"Thank you."
His voice was so quiet that only he could hear it.
Forty minutes later, the car stopped outside the Old Western-style House.
Zhang Mo paid the fare and woke Ning Rongrong.
She opened her eyes groggily. When she realized they'd arrived, she rubbed her eyes and got out.
The two of them slowly climbed the stairs.
As soon as they got inside, Ning Rongrong collapsed onto the sofa, not wanting to move a muscle.
Zhang Mo went to the kitchen, poured a glass of water, and set it on the coffee table.
"Have some water before you go to sleep."
Ning Rongrong murmured in acknowledgment, but didn't move.
Zhang Mo sat in the chair beside her, watching her.
She closed her eyes, and her breathing gradually evened out.
He had fallen asleep again.
Zhang Mo stood up, fetched a blanket from the inner room, and gently draped it over her.
He stood beside the sofa, watching her.
For a long time.
Then he said softly:
"From now on, I won't make you wait too long, either."
Of course, Ning Rongrong couldn't hear him.
She slept deeply, breathing evenly as the furrow in her brow gradually smoothed away.
Zhang Mo returned to the chair and sat down, bringing up the system panel.
[Detected change in Ning Rongrong's affection level--] [Current affection level: 85 (Bound by life and death)] [Note: She is willing to trade her life for yours. This is the highest level of trust.]
Zhang Mo stared at those words and remained silent for a long time.
Then he closed the panel, leaned back in the chair, and closed his eyes.
Outside the window, dawn was drawing near.
A new day was about to begin.
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