Chapter 37: Even a Pep Talk Counts as Help

Published Mar 13, 2026, 02:57 PM

Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Even a Pep Talk Counts as Help "Unlimited food and drink, training intensity doubled!" At Zhang Su’s command, the two women exchanged glances with complex expressions. "Brother Su, I still dream of being a sweet and delicate girl, but you’re pushing me down the path of a muscle-bound Barbie..." Zheng Xinyu gave an awkward smile, gently expressing her inner grievance. "A sweet and delicate girl?" Zhang Su shook his head, chuckling: "If the day ever comes that we leave the community, the scruffier you look, the better! The dirtier you are, the better! Sweet and delicate girl, wishful thinking!" "Why?" "How come?" One was a streamer known for her looks while gaming, and the other a mistress relying on her body and face to cling to power and wealth. Upon hearing Zhang Su’s words, they immediately expressed their strong dissatisfaction. Zhang Su pulled out a cigarette, tapped it on the coffee table, lit it, took a puff, and exhaled a stream of smoke before saying, "I’m too lazy to explain everything to you now, go replenish your energy for training. In time, you’ll understand!" With that, he ignored their puzzled looks, walked to the window, pulled back the curtain, and quietly exhaled smoke. The scene outside looked like Asura Hell. Zhang Su again focused on the place that seemed suspiciously like someone was hiding. Because he was three floors down, from a different angle, he clearly saw a leg! "Why did you hide there? Won’t you be trapped to death there? How are you planning to escape?" While Zhang Su was contemplating this, a line of text appeared in his mind. [How to deal with the hiding man: A. Rescue him, B. Provide assistance, C. Watch him die] [00:01:29] Zhang Su turned around to find that Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan were nowhere to be seen. They were probably in the bedroom changing clothes. "So no one saw me trigger the challenge? But there are many times no one sees, there must be other conditions, interesting..." Unable to help himself, Zhang Su pondered briefly before refocusing, as time was ticking away. "Rescue is definitely out of the question..." He clarified this immediately, seeing the dense crowd of at least a hundred and eighty zombies below. The difficulty of option A was the highest, excessively so. "However... since it triggered a challenge, this guy must have some significance, even if I can’t rescue him, it’s possible to lend a hand." Zhang Su made up his mind and decisively chose B. [Challenge time limit: A. Three hours, B. Twelve hours, C. Forty-eight hours] Zhang Su glanced at his watch; it was nearing noon. If he were to help, daytime was the most feasible. "The difference between A and B isn’t significant, let’s go with A, take a chance!" [How to help: A. Distract the zombies, B. Drop water, food, and weapons within three meters of the target, C. Offer encouragement] "What the hell with offering encouragement..." Zhang Su couldn’t help but twitch a corner of his mouth, puzzled by the bizarre option, yet oddly drawn to it... But he only entertained the thought; he never intended to merely offer encouragement. "Throw stuff within a three-meter range of him..." He gauged the distance, not far, but accuracy was a challenge. Just as he squinted, aiming with one eye, a thought struck him: "A, I choose A!" [Challenge initiated: Distract the zombies from the hidden person within three hours, Difficulty: A, Timer begins 02:59:59] The countdown started, Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan’s murmurs reached his ears, signaling the end of the mysterious bubble. "Ha, didn’t expect the difficulty to jump from C to A, really looking forward to it!" Excited, Zhang Su was inwardly happy, having already mastered the method to attract zombies; what seemed hardest was actually simplest for him! "Hey, you weirdo, pushing us to train madly while you look at the sky pensively at a forty-five-degree angle?" Zheng Xinyu came out of the bedroom in sleek, tight-fitting clothes, displeased to find Zhang Su zoning out by the window. Zhang Su gently let the curtain down, seriously saying, "I noticed the temperature is dropping fast; even with the sun, it’s not warm. It looks like winter is coming early!" In Qin City, it’s usually comfortable in short sleeves by end of September, and even early October has never been this cold. Yet the temperatures were extremely irregular this year, not even October and already as chilly as early November. Without a weather forecast but from the feel of it, it was barely above ten degrees! Using serious topics as a distraction technique was quite effective. Zheng Xinyu was immediately swayed, agreeing, "Yes, we need heavy blankets at night. It’s colder than in winter with heating, even though we don’t open the windows, imagine how cold it would’ve been otherwise!" "I... was just about to bring that up." Zhong Xiaoshan hesitated: "Um, can I sleep over? I don’t have thick blankets, it’s really cold." Zhang Su shook his head, "This cold isn’t much yet; I can give you a big blanket, but for now, stay in the other room." Saying so visibly dimmed Zhong Xiaoshan’s spirits; she thought she’d gained trust but apparently hadn’t... With a sofa moved out, the living room had a lot more space, and three people training didn’t feel crowded at all. Yet despite Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshan’s hard training efforts, they discovered Zhang Su still seated by the window. "Brother Su, what are you actually doing?" Zheng Xinyu sat on the floor, flustered, tilting her head and asking. Zhang Su turned and waved them over. "Acting all mysterious..." The two got up and went to the window. "Look over there!" 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺 Zhang Su pointed to where the man was hiding. "Hmm? That is... someone is really hiding there!" "Exactly, how did he end up down there?" They previously thought Zhang Su was hallucinating from stress, thus humoring him, but now they clearly saw someone! "I don’t know how long he’s been hiding there, but with the temperature dropping, even with supplies, he probably won’t last long." Zhang Su said in a deep voice. Zheng Xinyu looked worried and said, "Yeah, it’s even colder at night, temperatures probably dropping to single digits, and... we can’t save him." "If he were right below us, we could throw some things, but the distance is too far, we can’t help." Zhong Xiaoshan frowned and shook her head. "Is there really no way to help him?" Zhang Su seemed to be talking to himself or perhaps asking them. The two women bit their lips, shaking their heads, looking helpless. "Can’t you think of anything? If I were the one trapped there now, would you just watch me die?" Zhang Su glanced sideways, thinking these two still needed proper guidance.

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