Apocalypse King: Recruiting S-Tier Beauties With My Ruler System Chapter 130: Nipping the buds

March 19th — 10:25 AM

Zone 3A-Δ – Ninth Floor – Training Hall

———

The training room door sealed shut behind with a low hiss. I didn’t turn around because the two following were people I knew well.

Our footsteps echoed on the way to the elevator, light and quick, followed by slower taps.

Shen Yifei was first, then Mu Qinglan

"Leader~"

I didn’t need to turn.

Shen Yifei’s voice was unmistakable — casual, cocky, dripping with amusent.

I kept walking.

"Hey," Yifei called out in a bright voice, her arm wrapping around mine. Her twintails bounced lightly with each step, the tip of her spear tapping behind her like a tail brushing the floor.

"You’re not really leaving her limping like that, are you?"

She said it with a grin, but I could hear the edge buried under it.

"Didn’t know you were the jealous type."

"I’m not," she replied, leaning in closer. "But I am the curious type."

I gave her a look.

She gave one right back — chin tilted, lips pulled into that half-smirk she wore like armour.

"I an, if you’re going to break your sword, you better have a spare in hand, right?"

"...You calling yourself the spare?"

"Calling myself the better sheath."

I huffed. No answer would satisfy her.

But before I could say more, the hallway grew colder.

I stopped at the entrance to the elevator and looked at the blonde who was bouncing slightly with each step, clearly full of energy. Qinglan arrived a mont after, arms leaning against the wall and her limp still present.

However, she didn’t look tired or annoyed.

Her face was glossy, bright as she curled her lips deeply, smiling at .

"Was it your idea?" she asked. "Splitting the teams, I an."

"No," I said. "Tang Wei and Roulan suggested it."

"Then why didn’t you stop them?"

I turned slightly. "Because they were right."

Qinglan’s face beca blank, frozen as if shocked, but I couldn’t let her misunderstand , so I stepped closer, dragging Yifei along. "Lan’er, don’t misunderstand..."

Yifei stepped forward. "But—"

"What do you an?"

"You’re strong enough to lead," I said, looking at Qinglan. "And you know how I fight. If sothing happens on that rooftop, I need soone I trust up there. You are the woman I trust most... haven’t we known each other for years?"

Her expression shifted — just a little.

She didn’t respond at first, instead biting her lower lip, and looking away, her face dark for a mont before it brightened. Qinglan’s eyes beca brighter, flicking back to as she laughed. "I see... I see..."

Yifei stepped in with a huff. "You could’ve told us first."

"I didn’t want votes. I needed results."

Neither of them spoke.

Then Yifei muttered, "Idiot."

I nodded. "I’ve been called worse."

But they didn’t walk away.

Qinglan glanced down the hall, then back at . "You really trust with this?"

"I trusted you with my life already."

Her shoulders trembled, she seed happy, walking towards with light steps.

Then Qinglan leaned up and kissed my cheek. Her kiss was a warm, soft feeling... the stickiness of her lip gloss lingered after she pulled back.

Yifei looked between us, then turned away quickly, her lips pushed out, pouting.

"Fine. But when you get back..." Her voice dropped a note, eyes flitting down.

"You’ll owe ."

Qinglan smirked.

I tilted my head. "You both planning to fight over that?"

"No," they said together.

Then glared at each other.

I walked past them, brushing my fingers along Yifei’s shoulder, then Qinglan’s hand and trying to show them my biggest, cheesiest smile.

"I’m going to speak with Lan’er a little first Yifei, can you wait for on the ninth floor?"

I didn’t wait for a reply.

Their silence was enough.

It was trust.

And they were mine.

——

Yifei smirked as she pressed the elevator call button and turned toward us with a lazy stretch of her arms.

"I’ll take the lift. Stairs are for losers," she chirped.

Before I could say anything, she leaned close to Mu Qinglan and stuck out her tongue like a smug little devil.

"Don’t limp too hard, General."

Then the elevator chid, and she slipped inside, leaving behind a silence far heavier than her voice.

Qinglan let out a long breath through her nose.

"She’s unbearable sotis," she muttered.

I turned toward the stairwell.

Qinglan followed, slower. She remained quiet at first, but forced her pace to increase. Her hips were stiff, and every few steps her right leg would lag just a half-inch too long behind.

But the woman refused to show it.

I stopped mid-step and held out my arm.

She hesitated.

Her eyes flicked up at , sharp with pride — then softer, with sothing she wasn’t ready to admit.

Then she took it.

No words.

Just her fingers slipping around my wrist and her palm pressing lightly to my forearm as we walked side by side. Step by step. Her weight leaned in, but just enough to stay upright without limping.

The quiet lingered until we passed the seventh floor.

"I didn’t want to be in the other team," she said finally.

Mu Qinglan’s voice sounded different from usual, a little like a sulking cat. It was cute.

"I’m not angry at Roulan or Tang Wei. It’s not that I don’t trust the others. It’s just..."

She paused, her grip tightening slightly.

"I wanted to be beside you when it mattered."

We stopped walking, and I turned toward her.

"Lan’er..."

She looked at , her lashes low, but her expression unwavering.

"I know you’re stronger now. I know you’re not the sa man who used to work behind a desk and pretend to be invisible." Her words weren’t cruel — they were a mirror. A reflection I couldn’t deny.

"But the mall... sothing about it feels wrong. I felt it the mont you said its na."

"I know," I said quietly. "I feel it too."

Her brows knit slightly, uncertain. "Then why go there without ?"

I raised my free hand and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Because I trust you more than anyone in this base. That’s why you’re leading them. You are the ones who will save us if sothing goes wrong."

Her lips parted.

But nothing ca out.

Instead, she just looked at with her sharp eyes, filled with worry and affection.

Qinglan smacked her lips, and a wet pop sounded as she huffed.

The next two flights passed in silence.

By the ti we reached her floor, her arm still looped with mine, her steps were slower, so I lifted her off the ground, wrapping my arm under her knees, causing the stoic ice queen to make a cute sound.

"Kya... wait!"

No one would actually wait, and so we climbed the stairs faster.

"John, sotis you are so strange!"

Mu Qinglan blushed in my arms, we soon reached the tenth floor, which shocked , because I didn’t feel tired or exhausted, rather my breathing was calm and better than the past when doing nothing.

"I am strange for you."

Pah!

She tapped my cheek and bit .

"Don’t be so cringe!"

Because the bite hurt, she really caught the flesh of my neck... and reminded of when I first turned her four days ago.

’It’s almost been a week...’

Though I didn’t get the chance to wallow in my thoughts, we reached our room. At her door, she let go of and dropped to her feet, then stood for a mont, looking up at .

Then kissed.

The kiss was soft, a little wet and warm... it slled like Qinglan.

But as she reached for the handle, she stopped and looked back.

"You better co back in one piece," she said softly. "Or I’ll kill you myself."

I smiled.

"I’d like to see you try."

She laughed under her breath and finally stepped inside, letting the door slide shut behind her.

I sat on the steps halfway between the ninth and tenth floors.

Not long.

Just long enough to breathe.

The kind of breath that doesn’t co from exertion, but from pressure. The kind that pushes up from under your ribs and wraps around your neck like a slow noose. Not enough to kill — just enough to remind you that you’re responsible for more than yourself now.

Thirty-one people.

A base.

A mission.

Two teams heading out tomorrow, one of them led by the woman I just kissed goodbye — again.

Another led by .

I leaned my head back against the cold concrete wall and closed my eyes for a mont.

’Am I doing this right?’

The stats were just numbers, but the marrow sutra... that was sothing else.

The first few nights after awakening it, I didn’t sleep properly. My bones ached like I was outgrowing my skin. Every punch felt heavier. Every glance from soone made my instincts twitch.

It wasn’t just power.

It was a purpose.

And maybe a little... hunger.

The desire to act. To move. To claim. To touch.

The hesitation I used to carry in my spine — the one that always whispered wait, hold back, stay quiet — that voice was gone.

And I didn’t miss it.

I flexed my fingers, watching the faint shimr of strength run through my skin like pressure under the surface of calm water.

"Am I still ?" I muttered.

The stairwell didn’t answer.

So I did.

"...I hope not."

I stood.

Rolled my shoulders.

Then opened the stairwell door.

And stepped into whatever ca next.