Picking Up My Ex-Wife in the Apocalypse - Chapter 12

In the apocalypse, the few things that remained untouched were perhaps the cycles of day and night. Si Ruxu couldn’t tell exactly how far into the future they had been thrust, but she knew that by this era, neither humans nor mutated plants had much left to give.

One thing was certain: in this timeline, Si Qi was still alive. If Si Qi was alive and had grown powerful, then humanity and the base still had a chance. This thought brought Si Ruxu a strange, newfound sense of peace.

They had traveled for a long time, discovering that the primary human habitats were located near water sources but hidden deep underground. They didn’t explore further; after all, they didn’t belong to this era.

When the sun dipped below the horizon, Si Qi gathered wood and built a fire. After a quick cleaning, she leaned against a tree to rest. This time, she didn’t use the bed, terrified that if she slept too comfortably, she would fall back into those kaleidoscopic, murderous dreams.

Si Ruxu seemed to understand her hesitation. She didn’t push Si Qi to join her, instead handing her two energy bars and a carton of milk.

Si Qi sipped the milk slowly, her eyes bright as she stole glances at the woman beside her. Si Ruxu thought to herself that if this were a dating sim and she had a system, Si Qi’s affection meter would be flashing: +1, +1, +1…

She was so easy to satisfy. She always had been.

Si Ruxu purposefully avoided her gaze. The longer she spent with Si Qi, the more the memories of the past flooded back—including the details she had spent years trying to suppress. This wasn’t good. The past should stay in the past. She might owe Si Qi emotionally, but they had truly loved each other during those years. They loved while they loved, and when they parted, she felt she had no reason to feel guilty.

Si Qi noticed Si Ruxu’s retreating gaze. Her fingers curled slightly around the milk carton. She didn’t speak, silently eating her energy bars in the quiet night. For her, this was enough. Since the world ended, she’d had very few moments that felt truly “human.” This was already more than she’d hoped for.

Before drifting off, she glanced at the sky-screen:

[Surviving Awakened: 1,986]

[Time until next disaster: 26:00:00]

[Time remaining: 4 days]

They knew the immediate environment well, and with their combined abilities, they should have been safe. But Si Qi didn’t dare sleep deeply. The dwindling population count during the “quiet” hours was a testament to the numbness of human nature. She couldn’t let her guard down.

******

As the night deepened, she felt herself sinking into a massive mire. Her breathing grew shallow; she was being submerged. Voices swirled around her—sometimes like a lover’s whisper, sometimes like a distant echo.

“Why… why won’t you… why aren’t you willing…”

Si Qi struggled against the dark. “Willing for what? Who are you?”

The voice ignored her, repeating the same question over and over, growing more shrill and piercing until it sounded like a vengeful ghost.

Si Qi continued to sink, the oxygen failing her heart. Just before she lost consciousness, her only thought was that she wanted to tear the entity managing this world into a thousand pieces. What kind of garbage being spends its day playing mind games?

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her body, racing up her bones to her heart. She tried to curl into a ball, and with a violent jolt of disorientation, a massive gulp of fresh air flooded her lungs. She began to cough violently.

When she opened her eyes, she realized she was alive. Her body was sore and numb, and there was a faint smell of charred flesh in the air.

In front of her, Si Ruxu was rising from her side, her eyelashes trembling. Her breathing was heavy, and her hair was damp with sweat. Despite the cool night air, she looked flushed. Si Qi instinctively reached out to check her temperature, but Si Ruxu tilted her head away.

The woman gave her a cool, measured look. “You almost died.”

Seeing the “you’re lucky to be alive” expression in Si Ruxu’s eyes, Si Qi finally noticed the searing pain in her chest. The smell of lightning-burnt skin lingered.

“When I woke up, you weren’t breathing,” Si Ruxu said, her lips curving into a thin smile. “I tried to restart your heart with a jolt of lightning. I didn’t actually think it would work.”

If one ignored her pale face, she looked quite casual about the whole ordeal. Si Qi felt a surge of guilt. She reached out and hooked her pinky around Si Ruxu’s, apologizing in a soft voice. “I’m sorry. I’ll sleep lighter next time.”

Seeing Si Qi’s bloodless face, the irritation in Si Ruxu’s heart dissipated. “It’s not your fault. If ‘It’ wants you dead, ‘It’ will find a thousand ways to try. That just means you have to try harder to live.”

Si Qi nodded obediently. Then, Si Ruxu packed away the bed. “From now on, we sleep leaning against the tree together. And you’ll hold my hand.”

“Huh…?” Si Qi blinked, stunned.

“It’s so I can react immediately,” Si Ruxu said seriously. “I don’t want to find you when you’ve already stopped breathing. Understood?”

Si Qi nodded. It was a logical, survival-based reason. Anyone would do the same. Yet, her heart felt like a still lake that had just had a stone skipped across it—ripple after ripple. Even at the edge of death, I’m still a fool for love, she thought, chiding herself as she settled against the tree.

Si Ruxu sat down and took Si Qi’s hand. It had been so long since they’d touched like this. Si Qi had almost forgotten the feel of Si Ruxu’s hand, but she was acutely aware of the scars on her own. Are they too rough? Do they hurt her?

She didn’t move. Enveloped by Si Ruxu’s familiar, comforting scent, she finally fell into a peaceful sleep.

*****

Si Ruxu listened to the girl’s steady breathing and opened her eyes. She was certain now: Si Qi was the key to breaking this cycle. That was why the system was working so hard to kill her in her dreams.

But what about the future Si Qi? she wondered. How did she survive this? She sensed a spatial fluctuation lingering nearby—more stable and powerful than the current Si Qi. It bore no ill will. It seemed the future them hadn’t fallen out completely; the future Si Qi was still looking out for them.

She checked the screen: 16 hours left. Si Qi’s nightmare had lasted a long time, and the mental toll on her seemed immense. Si Ruxu spent some time organizing her thoughts before falling into a light sleep. She woke up two hours before the deadline.

Si Qi was still asleep. Her breathing was steady, but her vital signs felt weak. This “secret realm” was siphoning her life force.

Without changing her expression, Si Ruxu used a small jolt of electricity to shock Si Qi awake. Si Qi blinked at her, confused. “Did I die again?” she asked, clutching her sore chest.

“No, I’m just waking you up,” Si Ruxu said, her voice a bit stiff. She had forgotten she could just call her name. She turned her gaze elsewhere, looking unnatural.

Si Qi saw right through her and realized Si Ruxu felt guilty, but she found it adorable. Her eyes crinkled with a smile. “Two hours until the third disaster. Let’s eat and check the escape routes again.”

*****

The time finally arrived. Strangely, the surroundings remained silent.

“We might just be far from the crowd, but don’t drop your guard,” Si Ruxu warned.

Suddenly, Si Qi sensed a massive, stampeding force approaching. She grabbed Si Ruxu’s hand and began chain-blinking through space. Si Ruxu didn’t resist; seeing the alarm on Si Qi’s face, she manifested several crystals to orbit Si Qi for fuel.

“What do you see?”

“It’s a Mutated Beast Tide. The Awakened outside must be mostly dead by now.”

Si Qi’s heart ached. Through her spatial sense, she could hear the screams and the sound of bones snapping. If this was a “test,” it was monstrously cruel. She couldn’t understand who the apocalypse was supposed to be punishing.

The beast tide was incredibly fast. Despite her best efforts, Si Qi’s level was too low and her experience too shallow to sustain a long-distance retreat. The shadows of the horde began to loom behind them.

Si Ruxu held a charge of lightning, calmly observing. The beasts were all running in one direction, as if being herded.

“Si Qi, teleport into the rear of the beast tide,” Si Ruxu commanded. Si Qi didn’t question her.

They blinked. First, they were ahead of the tide; second, they were in the thick of it. Si Ruxu unleashed a lightning vortex around them, shredding any beast that dared get close. Si Qi kept blinking, zigzagging through the chaos as the crystals around her crumbled into ash one by one.

Finally, they reached the tail end of the horde. Si Qi gasped for air, looking back at the wall of monsters receding into the distance, their roars deafening.

Beside her, Si Ruxu collapsed into her arms, her strength spent. Si Qi caught her, blood welling in her own throat. It wasn’t safe yet. She hoisted Si Ruxu onto her back and took one last look at the sky.

[Surviving Awakened: 2]

[Next Trial: “Human Tribulation” (24:00:00)]

[Time remaining: 2 days]

Si Qi felt a chill that had nothing to do with the weather.

What on earth is a Human Tribulation?

Support