Wang Tao, who was behind him, reached out to steady the taller man.
"Hey, what's wrong with you?"
Wang Tao fretted as he helped his general settle on the nearby couch. Noticing that the man was burning up, he put Zhou Jian to lie down before getting some medicine and a damp cloth. After observing Zhou Jian for a while, he discovered that the fever was unnatural and most likely was a sign of the start of the apocalypse.
[ From what I've seen, the humans who catch a fever either gain abilities or turn into zombies. Would…would Zhou Jian turn? Calm down Wang Tao, you know that won't happen. Zhou Jian is strong enough to overcome this. ]
Wang Tao soon calmed himself down but couldn't completely rid himself of his worries. He spent the night watching over Zhou Jian until the fever broke. He called Mr. Zhou to inform him that they couldn't make it.
The next morning, the young general slowly opened his eyes and stared at the man who was sitting beside him with an expression of concern. Zhou Jian propped himself up as his face scrunched up feeling his clothes which clung to his body, soaked with sweat.
"You're awake! How are you feeling? Does anything feel off?"
Wang Tao handed his general a towel as he questioned.
[ He's not a zombie, that means he must be an ability user. ]
Zhou Jian asked about what happened and Wang Tao told him that he caught a fever.
"This wouldn't have happened if you used your real body like me. I don't understand why you won't, don't I already know that you're not human?"
The younger man grumbled under his breath but Zhou Jian picked it up. A sheepish smile flashed on the general's face.
"Sorry, I'm just used to it. Maybe in the future?"
Wang Tao didn't bother with it anymore, his frown fading.
"Anyway, since you woke up from your fever you probably got an ability. How about trying to manifest it?"
The older man nodded his head before focusing on his extended oalm. Recalling something, he gave it a try. After a few attempts, a blazing hot purple flame formed in Zhou Jian's palm.
Wang Tao stared at the flame, observing the peculiar purple color and instantly made the connection with the enchanting purple eyes he witnessed in the previous world. With this discovery, the two were now completely certain that the apocalypse had begun.
Some weeks later, a group of men in black military uniforms, trotted through a wrecked mall, silently hopping over the debris, avoiding making as much noise as possible. As they moved, they gathered as many materials and products as they could and gave them to a silver-haired male.
Upon receiving them, the materials would suddenly disappear from sight. No one panicked when they saw this and continued handing materials over to the man. Once they finished, the group left the mall, only to come face to face with a horde of zombies.
The silver eyed man stretched out his hand and many spikes of ice rose from the ground, piercing through the zombies bodies, immobilizing them. The tall blue eyed man beside him shot out multiple purple flames at the zombies killing them. The two were Wang Tao and Zhou Jian who were out on an expedition with some ability users from their base.
It was a short while after the start of the apocalypse and their military base outside S city changed to accommodate fleeing civilians. Thanks to their preparation, the base had enough food and supplies to last a few thousand people for about a year.
Of course that wasn't enough, hence why they're scavenging for food in advance. The two's abilities were much more advanced than others who were oblivious as to how to use their powers.
When Zhou Jian got his abilities, Wang Tao decided to pass off his ice and space magic as abilities he got after a fever. He didn't inform anyone when Zhou Jian fell sick for this reason, allowing him to pretend that he fell ill too. As no one knew when it had truly happened, there wasn't anyone who would notice the irregularities in his story.
As the group entered their armored cars, Zhou Jian spotted a young man nearby who was about to be devoured by zombies. He raised his hand and purple lightning stuck the zombies, burning them.
"Help him up."
"Of course, General."
Giving a salute, a soldier hurried over to the man to fulfill his order.
While the soldier returned with the person, Zhou Jian, who stood by the military vehicle, examined the rescued from afar. In only moments, General Zhou was smiling brightly, almost unable to control the impulse to run over. Noticing his friend's giddy expression, Wang Tao looked out of the vehicle in confusion.
His light mood immediately darkened when he recognized him. It was Chen Xiang. The boy looked very different from his last life, with short blond hair and almond green eyes but the two friends easily recognized the foreign soul within.