Matter Determines Consciousness

Song Zhi sat on the narrow bed and rolled up her sleeve.

Cool iodine was swabbed onto her arm. Lai'en leaned close and carefully inserted a slender needle into her arm, slowly injecting the clear medication into her body.

Lai'en withdrew the needle, took out a cotton swab, and pressed it against Song Zhi's arm. "All done," he said softly. "Keep pressing on it."

After disposing of the used syringe properly, he didn't leave. Instead, he leaned against the wall and looked down at Song Zhi, as though conducting a rigorous tactical analysis.

Song Zhi threw away the cotton swab she had used to stop the bleeding and looked up at Lai'en. Their gazes met in midair, as if they had accidentally triggered some mechanism.

Lai'en took a step forward, reached out to hold Song Zhi's shoulders, and bent his head to kiss her.

The sudden kiss seemed to carry some inexpressible, unspoken declaration, as if announcing an exclusive claim to the whole world. His movements were swift and smooth, without the slightest hesitation.

At first, it was a careful, tentative taste. After his scorching lips brushed hers, they slowly moved down to Song Zhi's slightly upturned neck.

His warm breath washed over Song Zhi's delicate skin, making her shiver slightly. When she finally couldn't help letting out a soft murmur, as if giving her tacit consent, she slowly raised her arms and wrapped them around his neck, giving him a clear response.

The desire he had deliberately suppressed all this time ignited at a touch. His scorching breath swept over Song Zhi as she gradually lost herself. He swiftly gained the absolute upper hand, directing and controlling the entire encounter with the forceful, rapid movements he was accustomed to on the battlefield, unstoppable!

Song Zhi's Italian dagger and Lai'en's kukri were tossed onto the battered table beside the bed, and clothes lay scattered across the floor. The bed boards creaked in untimely bursts, mingling with their intertwined gasps, all of it swept away by the gentle sea breeze.

"Don't go anywhere alone... Wherever you go, someone has to go with you. It isn't safe here... We're still in our quiet period, too, so we can only stay here for now. It won't be for long..." He spoke slowly, and when he had finished, he rested his chin on the soft crown of Song Zhi's head and held her from behind, as though building an impregnable barrier.

"Mm..." Song Zhi murmured weakly.

Tears and sweat mingled, dampening the hair at her forehead. Exhausted, Song Zhi pressed close against Lai'en's scorching chest and sank into darkness.

Morning sunlight streamed through the dilapidated window. Everyone else was gone; only Kelante sat on the worn-out sofa.

He was looking down at the tactical tablet in his hands, typing a few lines from time to time. Hearing Song Zhi stir, he looked up at her and smiled. "Morning! Want something to eat first?"

"I overslept again..." Song Zhi came over awkwardly and greeted Kelante.

"It isn't late. You really do need more rest. After all, a woman's physical strength and energy are limited." Kelante put away the tablet and stood up. He walked to the fire and brought Song Zhi a bowl of oatmeal and a serving of fried oysters. "Eat up. We've all eaten already."

"Thank you, Kelante." Song Zhi sat on the sofa, eating the warm food in small bites.

Kelante said nothing, merely smiled, then returned to the sofa and resumed handling work on his tablet.

After eating, Song Zhi tidied up briefly, then sat on a rock outside the door to bask in the sun.

The island got plenty of sunlight, bright but not harsh, and it felt comfortable on her skin. The sea breeze made it even more pleasant. She was willing to call this place a mysterious ruin in the apocalypse.

But this kind of life also caused a faint unease to arise in one's heart. It was too comfortable and materially abundant, enough to make a person feel guilty.

When Kelante finished working, he saw Song Zhi sitting by the door with her head lowered, nearly asleep again, like a kitten dozing in the sun.

He got up and walked over, his tall frame blocking the dazzling sunlight and sheltering Song Zhi in his shadow. "Stay out here much longer and you'll be burnt to a crisp."

"Kelante, the sun is so nice here, and there's plenty of water. Don't you think it's too comfortable? Having so much without working for it makes a person feel guilty!" Song Zhi looked up at Kelante and said this out of the blue.

"Material things? Guilt? How did you connect the two?" Kelante frowned, strongly disagreeing with Song Zhi. He said slowly, "The world is material by nature. Matter determines consciousness, and consciousness reflects value. People are right to pursue material things!"

"...Getting something without working for it should be a gift and reward from fate to you alone, not a charge laid against you. Don't feel so guilty. After all, you don't owe this world anything. The nuclear war didn't break out because of you, and you didn't cause the environment to deteriorate..." Afraid he had made the subject too heavy and formal, Kelante added a little humor at the end.

Song Zhi chuckled at his words. Kelante was right.

She was just an ordinary person struggling to survive in the apocalypse. What was wrong with being a little materialistic? Wasn't it all for the sake of staying alive? The earth wouldn't explode because of her, so why did she feel so guilty?

"We Chinese have an old saying: listening to your words is worth ten years of reading. You're a very good teacher." Song Zhi was unstinting with her praise.

She looked toward the coconut grove in the distance and suddenly thought of a few questions. "The resources here are fairly plentiful. The only drawback is that some of the plants on the island can't be eaten, and some are even poisonous! Only those coconuts on the outside are edible... It's really strange!"

Kelante followed Song Zhi's gaze to the continuous stretch of coconut trees, his expression growing somewhat grave. "I think that ring of coconut trees is more like a defensive system, and those poisonous plants inside are a second defensive mechanism."

"If edible crops grew here, I don't think it would be lying so peacefully in these waters, with nobody paying it any attention..."

"Plants are poisonous to protect themselves from natural enemies. That's a biological trait, and aren't humans one of plants' natural enemies too? If a day comes when even plants stop reproducing, this planet is probably going to perish!" Kelante offered a reasonable explanation from a philosophical perspective.

Song Zhi nodded, thinking Kelante made a lot of sense. She stretched, stood up, and patted the dust off herself. "What do we do next, then? We can't just stay idle like this forever."

"Right now, you and I can't do anything. We're keeping watch over the house... The others went out. If you want to go play on the beach, you'll have to wait for them to come back," Kelante said regretfully.

Song Zhi's face fell at once, and she pouted.

"What... You don't want to keep me company?" Kelante looked at Song Zhi's dejected expression. She looked just like a child sulking because she couldn't go out and run wild, and he couldn't resist teasing her.

"Of course not. I'd love to be with you... I just want to find something I can do." Song Zhi hurried to contradict him. She was happy to be with Kelante; it was relaxing.

Kelante smiled slightly, then said softly, "I'd love to be with you too. It's been a long time since we spent time alone together."

Song Zhi looked up at him and noticed a hint of indulgence in his eyes, along with an expectation that was hard to discern. The atmosphere grew subtle for a moment, and the distance between them seemed to close a little in silence.

"Will I disturb your work?" Song Zhi asked quietly.

"Of course not! You're very well behaved. Come on... I'll show you something interesting. You'll be able to use it someday." Kelante held out his hand, the corners of his lips lifting slightly, his amber eyes shining with a captivating glow in the sunlight.

"Let's go back inside."