Apocalypse: I Can See Health Bars
Chapter 35: Preparing to Depart

Chapter 35: Chapter 35: Preparing to Depart

Initially, Lin Fan had been a little worried about leaving Su Qing home alone, but watching her figure rush off to "hoard" more water, he suddenly felt reassured.

[96/100]

Su Qing’s health bar was almost full.

Aside from her physical fitness and athletic skills, Su Qing’s mindset—after his guidance—was that of a true survivor.

[190/190]

After two days of rest, Lin Fan’s health bar was completely full.

Su Qing was already doing everything she could to prepare. Naturally, he had to get moving too.

Su Qing had rushed out so fast she hadn’t even cleared the table. Lin Fan casually gathered the dishes and pots, placed them in the sink, and turned on the tap to let them soak.

As he did, he noticed the tap water now had the faint taste of rust.

’Looks like my prediction was correct. The water will be cut off right after the power.’

He wasn’t too worried about the natural gas for cooking, though. As long as there were no major problems with the pipes, natural gas was mostly independent of the power grid.

It wouldn’t be shut off for at least a few days.

Realizing the water was already having issues, Lin Fan went ahead and washed the pots and bowls. He then filled them with water and set them aside.

’I have to learn from Su Qing. Every little bit counts.’

In that short time, Su Qing had already run back from the apartment across the hall.

"Ah, this power outage made me completely forget."

She said as she returned to her room. A moment later, she came out with two leather belts.

"You said you were going out today, right? I made you some straps."

"Straps?"

Lin Fan looked at the "straps" in Su Qing’s hands, confused. He asked uncertainly:

"Chic—"

"Oh, you and your memes..."

As someone who spent plenty of time surfing the web, Su Qing naturally got Lin Fan’s reference. She walked over and playfully nudged him with her shoulder.

"Here, let me put it on you and see how it fits..."

As she spoke, she wrapped one of the belts around his waist.

Only then did Lin Fan see it wasn’t just a belt. Thick and thin strips of canvas had been sewn onto it, fashioned into loops. The stitches were fine and dense, making it incredibly sturdy.

"What’s this for?" Lin Fan asked.

"You said you were going out today, didn’t you? It’s a weapon sheath I made for you," Su Qing said as she fastened the belt for Lin Fan. "Those two iron rods of yours are too heavy. They’ll fall if you just tuck them into your waistband like before..."

Lin Fan finally understood. Su Qing had made this weapon sheath especially for him...

Lin Fan had originally planned to just tie some cloth strips around himself. He never expected Su Qing to be so thoughtful as to think of this.

"Here, try it out."

As she spoke, she knelt and tied the other belt to Lin Fan’s long spear.

Lin Fan slid the short spear diagonally into the canvas loops on the belt.

The one-meter-long short spear slid more than halfway through. A thick canvas loop caught perfectly on the adhesive tape Lin Fan had wrapped around the shaft, securing it firmly to the belt.

A thinner canvas loop hanging below pulled the inserted spear back slightly, angling the tip diagonally backward so it wouldn’t stab him even during intense movement.

It was clear Su Qing must have tested it with the short spear while making it; otherwise, it wouldn’t be such a perfect fit.

In that time, Su Qing had also finished rigging the other spear.

Canvas loops on the belt fastened it along the shaft of the long spear.

She had even deliberately left the part where Lin Fan had wrapped adhesive tape exposed, so it wouldn’t affect his grip at all.

If he needed to free up his hands, this belt could also be slung diagonally over his shoulder, with the spear tip pointing up, without hindering his movement in the slightest.

Lin Fan’s eyes lit up as he looked at the set of equipment.

"This is amazing, Sister Qing! You’re so skilled! I swear, you’re like a real sister to me..."

Lin Fan didn’t hold back his praise for Su Qing at all.

"It’s just like they say, having an elder in the house..."

BAM!

[-1]!

"My foot, my foot, my foot!"

[189/190]

...

Although Su Qing’s hand—or rather, her foot—was ruthless, Lin Fan could still feel her genuine care.

He hadn’t realized that after he went to sleep last night, Su Qing had done so much for him.

The leather of the belts was high quality; it would be hard to pierce without specialized tools.

’For Su Qing to have made him two weapon sheaths like this with just a sewing needle, she must have put in a lot of effort...’

In the midst of their playful scuffle, Lin Fan pulled one of Su Qing’s hands toward him. He saw that several of her fingers were dotted with pinpricks and bruises from pressing against a thimble.

Lin Fan didn’t know what to say. He just brought her hand to his lips, his heart aching as he gently caressed it.

"Little bro, you have to come back safely..." Su Qing hadn’t wanted to say anything sentimental that might affect him, but looking at the man before her—the man who gave her an unprecedented sense of security—she couldn’t help but mumble,

"Even if you can’t solve the problem, you still have to come back. We still have a lot of food at home, enough to last a long time..."

...

’Bonds. In the apocalypse, they’re the greatest luxury... and the most fatal liability.’

’Sentimental weakness or indecisiveness could get you killed at any moment in this chaos and darkness.’

’As a doctor, he understood the power of "loss" better than anyone, which was why he often deliberately avoided his own emotions and desires.’

’Women would only slow the speed at which he drew his sword.’

’But in this very moment, she had touched a place deep within his heart.’

Feeling Su Qing’s affection and seeing the glistening tears in her eyes, Lin Fan couldn’t stop himself from pulling her into his arms.

Two slender arms wrapped tightly around his waist in response, just above the new belt.

He lowered his head, inhaling the faint, sweet scent of Su Qing’s hair. They just held each other like that, neither one speaking, simply conveying their feelings through the warmth of their bodies...

"It’s so hot..."

Su Qing murmured, her head buried in Lin Fan’s chest.

"Ha... yeah, it is hot..." Lin Fan said, a bit awkwardly, as he slowly released his hands from Su Qing’s back.

A moment later, Su Qing let go as well. She looked down and silently straightened her clothes.

"When you get back..."

After saying that, she turned and ran back into 302. The sound of GUSHING water followed as she started filling containers again.

’When I get back?’

Lin Fan scratched his head, but then a smile spread across his face.

"Heheh..."

His motivation to go out, drive away the zombie horde, and find a generator had just gotten a lot stronger.

Lin Fan steeled himself and temporarily placed both weapons in the hallway.

Time to execute his plan!

「 ... 」

First, he needed to test the effect of the Concealment Crystal on the zombies.

He had to lure the zombies scattered downstairs further away.

Lin Fan lined up the few glass jars he’d found in 402 on the windowsill. He picked one up and hurled it forcefully toward the middle of the road!

CRACK!

The few zombies loitering in front of Lin Fan’s clinic immediately turned and charged toward the middle of the road!

’Good...’

Then, Lin Fan grabbed his short spear, jogged downstairs, and entered the first-floor clinic.

Both the vehicles and the main road were on the street-facing side. If he was going to go out, it had to be from here.

Lin Fan stood behind a window in the first-floor clinic and equipped the Concealment Crystal.

After confirming a gem icon had appeared below his health bar, he slowly slid the window open.

One of the zombies, drawn to the road by the earlier crash, had wandered back after failing to find any prey. Its eyes met Lin Fan’s just as he opened the window...