C26 Chapter 26

There weren't any zombies in the residential building; they had all flocked to the stadium's exterior. It seemed likely that there were indeed survivors inside.

Upon entering the building, everyone conducted a thorough check of the apartments. Finding no damage or zombies, they settled in with a sense of relief. Even during the day, the rooms remained dim with the windows shut tight.

"After a long day's work, we'll head into the stadium first thing tomorrow morning," Jiang Ruan announced, choosing a spot to sit. She cleaned the blackened blood from her knife and stowed it in her backpack.

Du Jianghong and Quan Sisi dutifully set out to prepare a meal. Night fell, and occasionally the groans of zombies and the shuffle of many feet could be heard outside. Thankfully, their residential building remained undisturbed.

At dinner, everyone brought out the crystal nuclei they had collected over the past two days. Zeng Qiang's eyes lit up at the sight, and he quickly claimed them for himself.

Faang Yu's expression briefly betrayed his annoyance, but he remained silent, aware that Jiang Ruan was still part of their team.

Zeng Qiang, practically glowing with excitement, sorted through the crystal nuclei and declared, "These twenty-three yellow ones are mine. I'll distribute the rest among you."

Jiang Ruan was incredulous. With over eighty nuclei in total, how could Zeng Qiang claim twenty-three for himself?

"Let's divide them equally among the ten of us," she suggested, knowing full well Zeng Qiang's intentions. "There are eighty-four in total. Any extras can go to you and Faang Yu."

She saw right through Zeng Qiang's plan. He feared empowering Faang Yu too much, lest he break through in strength and become uncontrollable. Jiang Ruan couldn't help but smirk at the thought. Regardless of the energy's potency, Faang Yu could leave the group whenever he wished.

Lu Ming slammed his hand on the table in protest. "That's not fair! Brother Zeng is our leader. What gives you the right to speak up, Jiang Ruan?"

"Fine, I'll give you all the crystal nuclei here, but after this, we part ways. How does that sound?" Jiang Ruan wasn't someone to be trifled with. Lu Ming and Zeng Qiang trying to rein her in? Not a chance!

Zeng Qiang's confidence deflated instantly. He tugged at Lu Ming, who was about to interject, and slid the crystal nuclei forward with a placating tone, "I was merely joking earlier."

"Each person gets eight crystal nuclei, while Faang Yu and I take ten." Zeng Qiang grudgingly picked up ten yellow crystal nuclei. After he and Lu Ming collected their share, they retreated to their room.

Du Jianghong and Quan Sisi hadn't anticipated receiving crystal nuclei themselves. Despite the fact that they owed it all to Jiang Ruan, gratitude was the last thing on their minds—they felt entitled to their share.

It wasn't until the others had departed that Faang Yu approached with his group.

Liu Dajun offered his crystal nuclei to Jiang Ruan, "Miss Jiang, without your leadership against those zombies, we wouldn't have survived to reach this place. Truthfully, these all belong to you."

Jiang Ruan eyed the eight crystal nuclei he presented and flashed a wry smile, "You really don't want any of them?"

"We'd rather fight zombies alongside you, Miss Jiang!" Hu Lang's memories of the encounter in the bamboo forest were still vivid. To him, Jiang Ruan was nothing short of a hero.

"More than fighting zombies with me, what you need is to grow stronger. Strength is the ultimate weapon." She couldn't always shield those without the means to protect themselves.

The fervor in everyone's eyes was a testament to Jiang Ruan's influence. It also served as a silent vow to themselves—to become capable enough that one day, Jiang Ruan would choose to keep them by her side.