The priest asked Xin Feng if he wanted to stay with them and work together, since Xin Feng had to have a potential of an exorcist to be able hear the warning of God. Xin Feng obviously declined, as he humbly told them that he had his family to protect. "If I bring them here with you, it will give you all a lot of burdens." Was his opinion, when they told him that they didn't mind bringing others with them. "I have different plans, as well" He added, which the priest heartily understood.
"Sister, bring him two sacks of holy salt."
When the sacks of holy salt were placed near Xin Feng's feet, the Priest handed him an unfamiliar device that looked like a walkie-talkie. "Take this. If you ever need to know where we are, or if you need assistance, press the button to talk to me through the device. I'll prioritize my assistance towards a fellow brother who is able to connect with God."
"Thank you, Reverent father."
"Your connection to God is as close as mine, so just call me brother from now on."
"I understand, fellow brother. I'll be going now to prepare for the Armageddon." He waved his goodbyes, while the others waved their hands as well.
…
"Salt? Do we need that to salt food or something?" Jessica asked, when she saw Xin Feng unloading two sacks of salt out of the truck.
"Oh, I didn't think of that. And also, in case the undead are ghosts or something spooky, these salty bois might work. It has a faint trace of divine power, and it is salt! What can you ask more in an apocalypse with the living death?"
"Whatever you say, bro."
"Uhu~ Right! your first training will be to carry both of these inside my basement. After that, lock the door, and get inside my car."
Xin Feng waited for her inside his car, and when she had arrived, he took off to an abandoned factory not too far away from his home. The factory was a candy factory that had been abandoned a long time ago. Dirty water lay at the floor, and different scraps were scattered everywhere. Fortunately, there weren't anyone there who would continue "decorating" the place. It was a place where Xin Feng could prepare his sister for survival, without getting disturbed.
"You see those scarps around you…?" Xin Feng asked her when they were in the building, which she replied with a nod.
"Important fact one! Anything can be turned into a weapon in a desperate situation as long as you can hold it and grasp it without it injuring you. Remember. You will be fighting to survive, so if you get an infection trying to defend yourself, it would be pointless to even defend. It will be an apocalypse after all, where there's no easy access to medics."
"Important fact two! As I said safety is the most important factor in surviving. So always pick the safest route, unless the less-safer routes are more beneficial or necessary." Xin Feng continued, as he kicked a few scraps to create some space among them. "See what I did? Rather than using my naked hand, I use my foot that has some safety, to safely get the thing I need."
He picked up a meter long metal pipe, as he told her why it was necessary to separate the scraps. "Venomous snakes, Rats with deadly diseases, name them all!"
*Bonk* He tapped the side of his sister's head with the pipe, which made her fall unconscious. After confirming that she was indeed unconscious, he took out a bottle of water that he had brought with him, and poured it on her face to startle her awake.
"Are you okay?"
"No, I'm not, you f*cking sh*t! What was that for?! You didn't even warn me!"
"That is important fact three. To be safe, you need to be aware of your surroundings. If not, things like this might happen. Schemes, betrayals, sneak attacks… You've seen them before in those games you've played, didn't yah?"
"Still…" She tried to complain, while she was touching the part of her head that was hit.
"Now, try attacking me."
Xin Feng gave the pipe to her, before he turned around to have his back face her. He knew she would try to get even with him, and could predict that she would aim for his head. When he heard the sound of wind going pass the hollowness of the pipe, approaching his head, he crouched down, before he swept the legs of her, causing her to fall down on her butt. The floor near her didn't have any puddle of water nor scraps, but it was still dirty. It caused her pants to dirty, and the long sleeves of her shirt.
"Too predictable. Don't worry though. What I'm doing is to show you how easy it is to make a mistake when you're not using your brains. In a fight, it is always the one who makes mistakes that loses."
"Unless we meet actual demon lords or things like that, you don't need to worry too much about combat. That's why I won't be forcing you to learn martial arts. All you'll need, is to be smart and careful.
"Continue swinging that pipe, so you can get a little more used to wielding a weapon. No techniques needed, just swing. I'll train as well, so don't slack off."
Jessica began her training that consisted of repetitive swings, while Xin Feng went a bit further away from her, in search for a smooth pillar. When he found one, he started doing some basic versatile martial movements that could be used anytime. He punching, he kicked, he hacked. Rapid waves of attacks came at the pillar, but because he wasn't strong enough, he was the one to receive damage instead.
"What are you doing?!" His sister shouted, terrified and panicked from what she saw. It was when she had decided to take a break, and ask her brother if he had brought some water to drink.
His sight was too gruesome for her, and seeing her handsome and lovely brother in such an awful state, broke her heart. His fingers and wrists were out of place, and the skin of his hands had peeled off, which caused his hand to drip a lot of blood. Even when his elbows were dark red from possible blood cloths, he continued punching and hacking. From the looks of his shredded legs that had its shin dented, she couldn't stop asking herself how he was still able to stand and move too.
"Mind your own business! This is nothing!" Xin Feng rebuked, which made his sister question reality.
She wondered what had happened to her brother. She knew that he wasn't like this before, because he would always complain about his back whenever he finished writing for a day. Sitting for more than twelve hours was definitely less painful than having each limb broken, and she knew that. It made her wonder why her brother would go so far. 'Does he care about us so much? But what happened to safety first? If he's injuring himself, he wouldn't be able to survive…' Was one of her thoughts, until she saw her brother popping the magical vial open.
What happened after he opened the vial, was magical to her. It was too surreal for her to see the awful state of her brother disappear within two seconds. Even the blood had evaporated, bringing his shirt back to its clean state. "Why?" She questioned her brother once again, as she couldn't understand why he would go to such limits, and abuse the healing vial.
*Sigh* "Improvements. Muscles and so on, heals, and I become stronger. Simple."
"B-but… Isn't it just too overboard to hurt yourself so much?"
"So? You have to go through pain to become better. What's a silly bit of pain compared to the possible rewards that could benefit you in the long run? If you can get rewarded greatly from pain, why won't you?"
"Steven… You, you've changed." Jessica slowly muttered, as she looked at him as if she was depressed.
"Heh? What do you mean? Didn't I always go after things that benefits me more?"
"Yes, but… You've become a… Masochist." She struggled to tell him the truth.
"That…" Xin Feng stood still, looking at his arms, while in deep thought. 'It can't be… It's just that, this pain is nothing to what I experienced. Also, I'm used to gaining power from getting hit. That doesn't mean I'm a… No… I'm just doing it for the benefits, not pleasure.'
"No, you're wrong. There's a difference. I'm not doing this have fun, but become stronger to protect you all and to survive. You know how much you, mom, and dad, mean to me, right…?"
"I… I'm sorry. That was stupid of me to think like that."
She already sensed why he was going through such pain, but she couldn't understand why. It made her even more depressed, knowing that he's hurting himself so much for his family. 'Why? What's the point of working so hard to be alone in the end…?'