I hacked through the chaotic world with my blade

After speaking, he dragged He Qing along briskly towards home.

"Let go, let go, what are you doing so early in the morning..."

He Qing shuddered, feeling chills from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, "Let’s talk it out, no need to get handsy."

"Hmph, it’s not up to you." As Lin Fan left, Wang Nan’s aggressive nature burst forth, and powerless at the Sunshine Shelter, He Qing was no match for Wang Nan, only able to be dragged further away under the watchful eyes of the onlookers.

A man, who was wiping down the shop glass, looked at the helplessly dragged He Qing, shook his head, and sighed.

"The once mighty He Ye has fallen. This is karma; there’s no escaping it."

Thinking back to how domineering He Ye was on the Fortune.

And now how miserable he is.

...

Across the Cross-river Bridge out of Huang City.

"I really didn’t expect you’d come looking for me."

Lin Fan met someone he wanted to see but knew was difficult to encounter. Cui Xiaofei took the initiative to contact him for a meeting here, which really exceeded his expectations.

"Surprised?" Cui Xiaofei looked at Lin Fan, who seemed calm but contained unparalleled energy. In the whole apocalypse, the order was gradually being stabilized by him alone. Zombies were brainless, simply relying on their numbers to dominate this ruined world, but what does it ultimately matter? At least on his way here, he hadn’t encountered those zombies that drove humanity to the brink of extinction.

As for the organization headquarters, they were merely hiding and developing in secret. Dare they emerge? Surely not, and if they did, they’d be met with a thunderous sweep.

"A little bit surprised. Hey, what are these books for?" Lin Fan noticed a large package of books beside Cui Xiaofei, the cover’s title "The World of Love." He hadn’t read such books; his favorite was "Stark and His Three Hundred and Sixty-Five Girlfriends." Now, that’s an interesting read.

Never mind that some details in these might seem a bit vulgar, but vulgarity is just a matter of textual description. A reader should glean insights from the words; what the eyes see isn’t necessarily true, and truly understanding comes from heartfelt appreciation.

Cui Xiaofei said, "Books recommended by Zhong Hong. After reading them, they can soothe one’s heart."

"Hmm, reading indeed can bring peace to one’s mind. The power of words in books can often be heart-shocking, just like the books I read. When idle, I like to read, though recently, I’ve read less." Lin Fan said.

Cui Xiaofei said, "I’m not here to discuss books with you."

"I know, but since you brought books, I just mentioned it." Lin Fan said with a smile.

Cui Xiaofei still felt Lin Fan was an interesting person. His demeanor never hinted at someone capable of cutting down countless zombies as if they were nothing.

Indeed, those truly fearsome existences are often impossible to decipher.

"Can you help me with something?" Cui Xiaofei asked.

"Please, go ahead."

When facing someone who needs help, he never hesitated to extend his abilities. Sometimes, helping others equates to helping oneself.

"I want to meet with Principal Duan Chenghu."

Cui Xiaofei knew that Principal Duan Chenghu had high hopes for him and considered him his most outstanding student. Any teacher who encounters an excellent student, even if no longer teaching them, would often mention them to new students—not to boast about others, but having taught such a student was a proud highlight of his career.

"Anyone else to meet?"

"No, just the principal."

"Alright, wait a moment, I’ll send him a message to come over."

Lin Fan took out his phone, found Duan Chenghu in his friend list, sent a location, and asked him to come over, telling him that your student Cui Xiaofei wanted to meet.

A moment later.

Lin Fan put away his phone, "The message has been sent. He should come soon."

"Thank you," Cui Xiaofei said.

"You’re welcome."

The wind blew, and in this desolate place, the two looked at each other. After a brief silence, Cui Xiaofei voiced a long-held question.

"Do you think the future has a future?"

"Yes, I firmly believe it."

Lin Fan always held hope for the future, never doubting it, and even made it his goal, constantly striving forward despite small setbacks along the way.

"Really? You’ve been redeeming survivors in the apocalypse, how many have there been?"

"Nine thousand and fifty-eight people."

Cui Xiaofei gazed at the sky, his expression calm as he slowly said, "Yes, out of billions, only nine thousand people in the Huang City Shelter. Do you really believe human civilization will continue? How long will it take to regain what was once prosperous?"

He sensed Cui Xiaofei’s lack of hope for the future. Clearly, in his eyes, what could this small number of people accomplish? It felt truly trivial compared to the past.

Lin Fan firmly said, "Time isn’t the issue; the issue is having belief and confidence. If we don’t even have confidence, then there’s truly no hope.

Fifty years, a hundred years, two hundred years, as long as we maintain confidence, I believe that day will come."

Cui Xiaofei smiled, touched deep within. If he had met Lin Fan earlier, joined the Sunshine Shelter under his redemption, perhaps on the path to pursuing a better future, among the countless figures, his silhouette would be there.