Chapter 221: If I Can’t Survive, How Can I Take Responsibility?
Su Tao was stunned and stared at him for a long time.
Shi Zijin also looked at her.
The two of them remained silent, just gazing at each other.
Shi Zijin was the first to back down, letting out a soft laugh.
“I shouldn’t have asked. There’s nothing about me worth scheming for.”
Every step he took was like walking on the edge of a cliff, with no control over his fate.
If he didn’t even have control over his own life, what was there for anyone to plot against?
Su Tao sighed.
“You clearly know that, yet you still asked me. To put it bluntly, that’s called leading someone on. It’s worse than Ji Caizhe harassing me.”
Shi Zijin had been feeling a little frustrated with himself, but upon hearing this, he froze. Then, he immediately admitted his mistake.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”
Su Tao stared at him. “I won’t accept just an apology. You need to take responsibility for what you said.”
She was forcing him to take a stance.
What exactly did he mean?
He couldn’t just flirt and then run away.
Shi Zijin felt that even facing a Blood Scythe alone wasn’t as difficult as this moment.
He regretted asking that question a million times over.
Su Tao widened her eyes at him.
Shi Zijin surrendered again.
“I was really wrong.”
He sighed and said, “Just take it as me being reckless before heading out on a mission. I really can’t make promises. I’m afraid I won’t be able to keep them. I can’t even guarantee that I’ll survive my mission—to resist the Bone Wings and capture the Crawlers alive.”
“If I can’t survive, how can I take responsibility?”
Su Tao paused for a few seconds, then suddenly grabbed his hand.
Shi Zijin stiffened.
At the same time, a horrifying image exploded in Su Tao’s mind.
The night was dark, and everywhere she looked, there were corpses and severed limbs, piled into a small mountain. Zombies feasted on the remains, howling in excitement. Blood seeped into the ground, turning the cracked earth into an eerie, deep red… And among the remains, a familiar military uniform lay partially buried. When she looked closer at the face—
Su Tao’s face turned pale. She yanked her hand back, her legs giving out beneath her.
Shi Zijin caught her instantly, steadying her. His brows furrowed. “Your ability?”
Su Tao grabbed his hand again, holding it tightly, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t “see” the vision she had just witnessed.
“Tao Tao! Tao Tao!”
Shi Zijin called her name several times before she snapped out of it. She clutched his collar, looked up at him, and said with trembling lips—
“You can’t go—”
Shi Zijin gently stroked her back. “Did you see something?”
Su Tao clenched her teeth, refusing to answer. She just kept repeating—
“For the next three months, you can’t go anywhere. You have to stay where I can see you.”
She didn’t know exactly when he would die.
But she had “foreseen” that it would happen within the next three months.
If… if she could keep him safe for three months, maybe his fate could be changed.
Shi Zijin looked at her calmly. “You saw me dying within three months, didn’t you?”
Then he smiled.
“Every time I leave on a mission, I wonder if it’ll be my last. If I close my eyes, will I ever open them again? Hearing you say this… maybe I’ll finally get to have a long, peaceful sleep.”
Su Tao’s eyes widened. “What do you mean by that?”
Shi Zijin’s smile faded, and he lowered his gaze.
“I’m sorry. I have my orders. I can’t disobey.”
Su Tao opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
His voice seemed distant—
“Three months… I remember your birthday is in December. That’s exactly three months from now. If I’m still alive then… I’ll buy you a cake.”
Su Tao’s voice was hoarse. “I won’t sell one to you. And there probably won’t be any others available anywhere else.”
Shi Zijin smiled. “I’ll make one.”
Su Tao was stunned. “Why do you even know how to make something like that? I thought your hands were only meant for holding a gun.”
“I know a lot of things. I’ll tell you on your birthday.”
Su Tao held back her emotions, struggling to maintain her composure. She opened the door and started pushing him out.
“Just leave. Otherwise, if I change my mind, you won’t be able to take even half a step out of Taoyang.”
Shi Zijin was pushed out the door, but just as she was about to shut it, he suddenly held the doorframe and solemnly said:
“Lei Xing is more reliable than Gu Mingchi.”
Su Tao slammed the door in his face.
Shi Zijin stood silently for two seconds, then turned to leave—only to look up and see Lei Xing, who had been crouching at the stairway so long that his legs had gone numb, wobbling as he tried to stand up.
Lei Xing grabbed the stair railing and, a little annoyed, asked, “What did you just say to Boss Su? If you’ve got guts, fight me outside like a man. Stop trying to sow discord.”
Shi Zijin turned and walked away.
Lei Xing, still struggling with numb legs, couldn’t chase after him even if he wanted to.
Cen Tianjiao, who had just finished dealing with Lu Sheng’s corpse, ran over. Seeing his boss’s expression, he cautiously asked, “Are you and Boss Su in another cold war?”
For the past few months, their relationship had been like a tightly drawn bowstring—one wrong move, and it could snap.
Shi Zijin turned to look at him and asked, “Does your mother worry about you?”
Cen Tianjiao immediately sighed.
“Of course she does. She calls me all the time, nagging me to retire early, settle down in Taoyang, find a nice girl, and live a peaceful life. She’s been on me so much that I don’t even dare to visit her this time.”
“And do you want that?”
Cen Tianjiao’s expression turned serious, and he shook his head. “Of course not. I’m a soldier.”
I’m a soldier.
Those four words carried the weight of a thousand meanings, a responsibility beyond words.
Cen Tianjiao suddenly understood. “Boss Su doesn’t want you to take the risk, and that’s why you two fought?”
Shi Zijin felt a dull ache in his heart.
It wasn’t just that she didn’t want him to take risks—she didn’t want him to throw his life away.
He nodded but said nothing.
Cen Tianjiao looked at him with sympathy and sighed. After some hesitation, he said, “People like us aren’t suited for marriage, Boss. Maybe it’s a good thing Boss Su is mad at you.”
Shi Zijin furrowed his brows, suppressing the emotions churning inside him. He changed the subject.
“Is Lu Sheng’s body completely dealt with?”
Cen Tianjiao nodded quickly. “All taken care of. But, Boss, your ‘Eye of Detection’—it can even see through these kinds of illusions?”
Shi Zijin replied, “More or less. The area where he was hiding had traces of past ability use.”
Cen Tianjiao looked envious. “That’s seriously overpowered. Boss, your ability is practically god-tier… but it must be a heavy burden. If I were you, I might not be able to resist killing powerful ability users just to take their blood and strengthen myself.”
Shi Zijin shook his head. “You wouldn’t.”
Cen Tianjiao sighed. “You say that, but people are unpredictable. No one else could resist that temptation. Even the old commander said you’re the only one who can handle this ability, the only one who can keep your heart steady and never forget that every kill is meant to protect something greater.”
Shi Zijin patted his well-built shoulders. “Alright, go say goodbye to your mother. We leave tonight.”
Cen Tianjiao was surprised. “So soon? We haven’t even received reports of the Crawlers appearing yet. Are we heading there early to set up an ambush?”
Shi Zijin hummed in acknowledgment but didn’t explain further.
He was afraid Su Tao would change her mind.
And he was afraid he would too.
