Picking Up My Ex-Wife in the Apocalypse - Chapter 13

Si Qi carried Si Ruxu until she found a relatively sheltered spot. Once she confirmed there were no other biological signatures in the air, she carefully set the woman down and leaned against a tree, gasping for breath.

She began a dual task: absorbing crystals to replenish her own reserves while simultaneously funneling energy into Si Ruxu’s parched core. This time, Si Ruxu’s energy had been severely overdrawn, but the internal chaos wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been during their first encounter.

As she watched the woman’s unconscious profile, Si Qi’s mind raced. Who exactly was powerful enough to push Si Ruxu to such an edge? And what was their connection to the base?

Si Ruxu kept saying everything would be fine once they returned, but was the base even a safe haven anymore? Everyone knew that anyone capable of ambushing Si Ruxu had to be a high-ranking official. That S-rank bounty practically screamed “conspiracy.”

Si Qi wanted to suggest defecting to another base where their lives wouldn’t be at risk, but she had no standing to do so. She could see that Si Ruxu’s feelings for the base ran deep. It was a loyalty she couldn’t hope to break.

For six hours, Si Ruxu remained unconscious. For six hours, Si Qi sat there, watching her.

What Si Ruxu would never understand was that every second spent in her presence was a dull ache mixed with impossible sweetness. It was like swallowing shards of glass coated in honey, gulping them down alongside the blood in her own mouth.

For years, Si Qi had tried to shed this skin, to cast off her devotion. Yet here it was, surging back in a wave of love that left her feeling pathetic in its wake. How starved for affection do you have to be, she chided herself, to remain obsessed with the person who threw you away?

Eventually, Si Ruxu’s breathing steadied. Si Qi softened her own movements, her hands glowing gently as she finished the energy transfer. When those amber eyes finally fluttered open, they were filled with fragmented light and a soft, crinkling smile.

Si Qi looked away, unsure if she felt more pain or relief. “Any discomfort?” she asked in a low voice.

Si Ruxu shook her head, looking uncharacteristically docile. “No. I feel much better… thank you.”

Si Qi let out a dry chuckle. “It’s fine. We’re partners.”

*****

The sky-screen flickered. Only eighteen hours remained. Si Ruxu’s gaze lingered on the words “Human Tribulation” for a long time. Her brow, which had momentarily smoothed, knit back together in a look of profound unease.

“Human… Tribulation?” Si Ruxu murmured. Her face, which had gained a bit of color, turned deathly pale again. “Si Qi, don’t worry about scouting. We stay here and recover.”

Si Qi blinked in confusion. She hadn’t fully grasped what the “tribulation” meant, but she’d thought familiarizing themselves with the terrain was always a good idea.

“Aside from us, everyone else is dead,” Si Ruxu said, her voice like ice. “The ‘Human Tribulation’ likely means the dead will be sent to hunt us. It never intended to let anyone out alive.”

The realization hit Si Qi like a physical blow. If the first and second disasters were meant to cull the masses, the beast tide was designed to finish off the lucky ones. Without a Space ability or Si Ruxu’s high-output attacks, their survival rate would have been zero.

But wait, Si Qi thought. What about the people from the future who live here? Are they affected by the Purge?

She lowered her eyes to hide her wandering thoughts. Beside her, Si Ruxu was staring toward a point where the spatial energy felt strongest.

Since her energy was being replenished by Si Qi, her affinity for Si Qi’s specific power signature was incredibly high. Combined with her higher rank, her perception was razor-sharp. She could feel a powerful yet unstable Space ability looming over them.

The hidden figure in the shadows seemed to sense the gaze; the “scent” of her energy in the air thinned instantly.

Si Ruxu let out a cold, mirthless smile. She felt a wave of resistance and wariness from the “Future Si Qi.” She didn’t like it.

In a fit of pique, she reached out and pinched the “Current Si Qi,” who was lost in thought. Si Qi let out a startled yelp, and only when she looked back with wet, confused eyes did Si Ruxu feel a flicker of satisfaction.

“I thought I was dreaming, so I pinched you,” Si Ruxu explained calmly.

Si Qi: “…?”

“What did you dream about?” Si Qi asked. Even though Si Ruxu’s tone was flat, Si Qi caught the underlying hint of petulance that needed soothing.

Si Ruxu offered a smile that was a little too sweet. “I dreamed that the future you not only avoids me but is incredibly defensive and hostile toward me.”

Si Qi went silent, choosing the polite path of saying absolutely nothing.

How is this different from a girlfriend dreaming you cheated and then punching you in real life? Si Qi thought. But since her food, water, and crystals were all coming from Si Ruxu, she swallowed her grievances.

*****

Si Ruxu began arranging crystals in a circle around Si Qi. “Do you trust me?”

Si Qi looked at the lightning dagger manifesting in Si Ruxu’s palm and shook her head.

Si Ruxu laughed softly. “Don’t worry. I’m a Healer and a Level 7. As long as you aren’t dead, I can bring you back. I’ve calculated it—your Space ability is currently Level 5. That’s fast, but Level 6 would be safer. I won’t let you die. Neither will that second ability in your body. Trust me, okay?”

For survival. It was such a perfect, logical reason.

Si Qi stared at her blankly. A minute later, she looked away. She saw the plea in Si Ruxu’s eyes, the frantic urgency—but she saw no fear of losing her, no heart-wrenching hesitation.

Fine.

She closed her eyes. “Do it.”

The familiar scent of Si Ruxu enveloped her, followed immediately by a sharp, searing pain near her heart. She took shallow breaths, the feeling of her life force draining away making her feel like a drowning woman reaching for a straw.

But she hesitated. Her hand twitched, reaching out before curling back and falling to her side. She wouldn’t touch her. Si Ruxu was not her lifeline; she had to sever every lingering hope.

*****

Once Si Qi lost consciousness, Si Ruxu pulled her into her lap. She watched as the blood-red patterns crawled across the girl’s skin, siphoning energy from the surrounding crystals directly into her core.

Si Ruxu could feel Si Qi’s core expanding and tearing under the pressure. It was an agonizing process. Even unconscious, Si Qi’s brow was knit in pain, yet she didn’t make a sound.

Si Ruxu felt a momentary lapse in memory. Did I remember wrong? I thought she used to be so afraid of pain.

Facing a dead end, they had to gamble. If this didn’t work, Si Ruxu would have to use the expensive experimental weapons in her space, but she wanted to save those for humanity’s future. She couldn’t be reckless.

She used her healing energy to stabilize Si Qi’s core until, ten minutes later, it split in two and fused back into a single, larger, more refined unit. Si Qi coughed up a spray of blood onto Si Ruxu’s light trench coat, staining it a deep crimson.

Si Ruxu felt the girl’s pain and fear, and she whispered reassurances over and over until the breakthrough was complete. Sweat beaded on Si Ruxu’s own forehead.

Finally, she exhaled. The wounds on Si Qi’s body vanished under the rolling red patterns, replaced by new, pink flesh. She rested Si Qi’s head on her lap, fed her a few sips of milk, and held a single piece of candy in her hand, waiting for her to wake.

*****

Two hours before the deadline, Si Qi opened her eyes. The sensation of her bones being crushed had finally faded, replaced by a sense of newfound physical power.

She sat up, her expression a complex mask of silence, until Si Ruxu pressed a milk candy into her mouth. The unfamiliar sweetness flooded her senses.

Her eyes lit up. Si Ruxu shook her head regretfully. “I don’t have many left. I’ll give you more later.”

Si Qi chewed slowly. This woman once promised to buy a house and raise a dog with her. She had broken those promises, too.

But Si Qi didn’t bring it up. She reached out and tore a rift in the air—one significantly larger than before. She tested a teleport and blinked twenty meters away in an eye-blink. A single space blade tore through eight trees in a row and shattered a boulder.

Like a child with a new toy, she displayed her power until Si Ruxu had a clear idea of her new limits.

“Impressive,” Si Ruxu praised. “Your ability is the strongest I’ve ever seen, and you’re only Level 6. Once you hit Level 7, you’ll be able to walk all over me.”

Si Qi’s newfound swagger vanished. Walk all over Si Ruxu? Forget it. Thoughts of revenge had crossed her mind early on, but now she just wanted to get through this without any more “fairytale” dreams.

She offered a small, obedient smile. “I’ll follow you for a lifetime.”

Even if a lifetime only lasts until tomorrow. She was ready to die.

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