The Adopted Sister is Acting Weird (27)

The pair of eyes that had once represented a zombie were now gone.

Le Xu had practically sped all the way here, terrified that the base might discover something. But now, seeing that Le Xiaowei had turned back into a human, though his heart was filled with shock, this wasn’t the time to ask about it.

"Here, put this on. Let’s head back first."

Le Xu handed over a down jacket, and even Yuan Qiaoqiao seemed to perk up a little, taking it and slipping it on.

"Thank you, brother."

Le Xiaowei’s eyelid twitched.

Le Xu found the address a bit odd—Yuan Qiaoqiao had never called him that before—but he didn’t comment on it.

"By the way, did the test results come back clear?" Le Xu asked the two staff members, his heart pounding nervously.

"They passed." The moment the words left their mouths, Le Xu handed over a dozen energy cores.

"Thanks." The two staff members didn’t refuse.

These things were practically the universal currency in the base. For an ordinary person, managing to gather two in a day was already an achievement.

Le Xu pulled open the car door and glanced at Yuan Qiaoqiao, whose face was flushed red.

"Running a fever? We’ll stop by the base hospital later for an IV." It honestly hadn’t occurred to Le Xu that the mastermind behind his sister’s disappearance would be this soft, delicate-looking girl.

Even now, he still found it hard to believe.

"Thank you, brother." Yuan Qiaoqiao’s voice was sweet.

Le Xiaowei’s eyelid twitched even harder. Yuan Qiaoqiao might as well have written "I’ve got my eyes on your sister" across her forehead.

But Le Xu, having lived two lifetimes, had never encountered anything like this, so he still hadn’t picked up on anything unusual.

"Don’t you dare pull any stunts," Le Xiaowei muttered under her breath, a hint of threat in her tone.

Yuan Qiaoqiao blinked her large, innocent eyes—her face was deceptively pure. If not for the eerie stillness in those pupils, Le Xiaowei might have thought she’d reverted to her old self.

"I’m not." Yuan Qiaoqiao lightly traced her fingertip against Le Xiaowei’s palm.

A ticklish sensation ran through her, and the moment Le Xiaowei loosened her fist, Yuan Qiaoqiao seized her hand, grip stubborn and warm.

Before Le Xiaowei’s expression could darken, Yuan Qiaoqiao leaned in closer, tilting her head just enough to glimpse the faint pink of Le Xiaowei’s earlobe. The warm breath that escaped her lips brushed against Le Xiaowei’s neck, sending a shiver down her spine.

She heard Yuan Qiaoqiao’s voice.

And it was crystal clear.

"Wife."

That cold yet sweet voice made Le Xiaowei’s bones melt, her posture slumping slightly.

It wasn’t even "husband"—why was she reacting like this? The sheer frustration made her want to smash herself into pieces.

"What are you two whispering about? Trying to keep secrets from me?" Le Xu teased, raising an eyebrow at their hushed exchange.

Le Xiaowei: "..."

"You don’t want to know." She patted her burning cheeks and replied coolly.

"By the way, Xiaowei, how did you turn back?" Le Xu couldn’t hide his astonishment.

Had his sister leveled up so fast that she became indistinguishable from a human?

If that were the case, wouldn’t that mean more zombies could enter the base in the future?

"You’ll have to ask Qiaoqiao. She found me a purification source."

Purification source?

Le Xu’s pupils constricted. In his past life, such a thing hadn’t even existed by the time he died.

"Where is it?" He couldn’t hide the excitement in his voice.

Le Xiaowei glanced at Yuan Qiaoqiao, who blinked once before answering.

"Under the glaciers in the Antarctic Ocean."

Le Xu: "..."

Le Xiaowei: "..."

For a moment, Le Xu wondered if Yuan Qiaoqiao was joking. But given how untouched the Antarctic had been before the apocalypse—unlike the rest of the world, which had suffered varying degrees of pollution—it wasn’t entirely implausible.

Xie Gantang’s earlier description of Yuan Qiaoqiao now made Le Xu believe about 70-80% of it.

Meanwhile, Le Xiaowei stared at Yuan Qiaoqiao in shock.

So she’d been right—this girl really had gone swimming in the ocean. The Antarctic Ocean, no less.

No wonder Yuan Qiaoqiao had been so strong yet came back with a cold and fever.

Wait—

If that was the case, then Side Mission Two was even harder than the main quest.

She didn’t have the ability to sense purification sources.

"Touched?" Yuan Qiaoqiao suddenly asked.

"I am." Le Xiaowei genuinely was.

"Then give yourself to me." Her demand was blunt and simple, effectively shutting Le Xiaowei up.

That fleeting sense of gratitude instantly evaporated.

For all she knew, the Antarctic story was just another one of Yuan Qiaoqiao’s tall tales.

While Le Xiaowei’s thoughts were still a mess, Le Xu had already brought them to the base hospital.

The hospital wasn’t far from the main gate—a precaution for emergencies.

It wasn't crowded. Medical equipment was expensive, and even ability users in the apocalypse avoided getting sick, let alone ordinary people.

But Le Xu wasn’t worried. He even had the doctor administer an IV for Yuan Qiaoqiao.

"Good thing you came early. At this stage, a cold can drag on forever," the nurse told Le Xu.

The hospital relied on iron stoves for warmth. Electricity was too scarce—even with the base’s power supply, they couldn’t afford to waste it like in the pre-apocalypse days.

"Hope she gets better soon. My sister’s usually tougher than this. Must be the cold outside," Le Xu said lightly.

In this weather, he rarely left the base himself. Might as well stay and keep them company while they got their IVs.

"Oh, there’s a snack street nearby. Qiaoqiao’s probably still hungry. What do you two want? I’ll go buy it."

Snack street?

For a second, Le Xiaowei thought she’d misheard.

"Maybe I should go instead." Though she’d eaten before leaving, the mention of snacks made her stomach growl.

The Northwest Base seemed to have more stockpiled food than the Southeast Base.

Had they developed soil suitable for farming yet?

Yuan Qiaoqiao glanced at Le Xiaowei, reluctant to let her go. But she knew her sister loved food more than anything—she’d suffered enough as a zombie.

No matter how possessive she was, if she stopped Le Xiaowei from getting snacks, her sister would probably turn on her.

Fine. She’d indulge her.

Le Xiaowei hurried outside. The snack street looked a bit deserted, but the shops were clean. The Northwest Base seemed well-prepared—the buildings were all new, each district clearly planned, not hastily thrown together.

If the original owner ended up here, she’d probably live comfortably.

Being from the north, Le Xiaowei loved northern snacks. The sight of stir-fried shredded pancakes made her stomach growl. She bought three portions—pricey at three energy cores each—then grabbed some grilled flatbreads and mixed vegetables before heading back to the hospital.

By the time she returned, the aroma had Yuan Qiaoqiao’s stomach growling too.

She clutched her belly, cheeks flushing.

"Bro, this one’s yours."

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