Chapter 19 A Sword that Runs Rampant in the Apocalypse (19)

Bai Tang said calmly, “You lost, Shi Minzhi.”

Shi Minzhi slightly raised his eyes and said nonchalantly, “It should be you who lost, Bai Tang. How do you know he didn’t throw his wife away? Human nature, selfish and self-serving, always yearning to live and fearing all threats.”

“We’ll see,” Bai Tang said as she pushed his wheelchair and followed behind her grandparents. She carefully kept a distance and had her sword, Canglan, ready at her side.

“Wife, we’ve gotten old. It’s true that we’ve gotten old! Back in our younger days, I carried you all around the old mountains. Now, just a few steps and I can’t walk anymore. When you wake up, you’ll be laughing at me again!”

The road was too long and the sky was too dark.

In the darkness, nothing could be seen clearly— those evil spirits hiding in the shadows, the potential danger that might appear at any moment, might take the lives of two weak old people at any time.

“The mountains are green and the road stretches on,
I sing a song to my love with pride,
Our hearts entwined, like a pair of swans,
Lifetime to lifetime, never apart,
Generation to generation, never apart,
…”

Grandpa’s low singing voice was carried on the wind, entering the ears of the two behind him. The tenderness and inseparability in the song was clear, and there was a sense of tragedy.

“I summoned two zombies,” said Shi Minzhi.

At the next moment, Bai Tang’s sword pressed against Shi Minzhi’s throat. The edge was too sharp, and just the pressure on his throat caused a wound to open. Bai Tang slightly withdrew the sword.

Shi Minzhi continued, “You see, in a time of crisis, the old man will always abandon the old woman and cry that there is no other choice, that this is the only decision he can make.”

“You have already lost, but you refuse to admit it and are trying to test me in various ways,” said Bai Tang slowly.

When two unsteady zombies appeared, Grandpa’s heart sank and he held on to his wife even more firmly, determined not to let her fall.

At this point, Grandma woke up and saw the two twisted monsters in a daze. She couldn’t lift her arms and was too weak to do anything. With difficulty, she said, “Old man, there are monsters.”

Grandpa comforted her, saying, “My wife, don’t worry, we’ll definitely be able to escape.”

There were no grand oaths made, only the relentless, emaciated hands.

Grandma reluctantly said, “Put me down. If one of us can escape, that’s already something. You need to live and go find our son, daughter-in-law, and little granddaughter.”

Grandpa continued to run, panting with exhaustion. The zombies were still chasing him from behind. “I won’t put you down. I’ve already seen our granddaughter, she’s alive and well. I have no regrets. You always say I’m stubborn and won’t die, but it’s because I won’t leave you behind.”

“That’s enough, Shi Minzhi. Some people are like this no matter how many times you try. Your so-called proof is just you trying to get the answer you want.”

As she flicked her fingers, Bai Tang’s sword Canglan flew out like a graceful swallow, cutting off the head of one zombie with a single stroke. With a twist of her wrist, she gently struck the other zombie’s head, bursting it open before retracting the sword.

In her hazy state, Grandma couldn’t tell if the familiar face belonged to her own granddaughter, so she patted her husband’s shoulder and asked, “Old man, doesn’t she look like little Tang’er?”

Breathless and ashamed, Grandpa acted like a child who had done something wrong and didn’t dare to look at Bai Tang. He simply replied, “Wife, she is little Tang’er.”

“Grandpa, why did you bring Grandma out at night? It’s dangerous outside with all the scattered zombies. Hurry back,” Bai Tang said.

“I…” Grandpa didn’t know what to say. He couldn’t tell her that he was afraid her grandmother would turn into a monster and endanger them, or that he was afraid their own useless, old selves would burden her.

“We’ll talk when we get back,” Bai Tang said, taking charge.

——