Apocalypse King: Recruiting S-Tier Beauties With My Ruler System
Chapter 186: Spring’s Thaw

Chapter 186: Spring’s Thaw

March 23rd, 11:21 PM

Gu Tianhao’s Compound, Main House

John Wang POV

——

After eating, everyone split up and followed my words.

Night settled over the shattered mansion.

The lamps flickered with their last drops of battery, painting the walls in dim yellow and shadow. I moved through the rooms quietly, checking on the wounded, helping Tang Wei settle a few restless survivors, and trying to convince myself that my heart wasn’t pounding from exhaustion and relief.

Then I found Shen Yifei, who sat by the window with her knees pulled up, leaning on the cold glass with her tangled hair dangling to the side.

’She must be tired... She didn’t even tie her twintails.’ I thought.

Yifei didn’t look back or react until I sat beside her, and she scowled outside.

"Hey..."

She huffed and turned her head away with a flick.

"You’re too noisy. And you stink."

I grinned, nudging her with my shoulder.

"So do you. But I missed you."

She puffed her cheeks, trying not to smile.

"Liar. You were too busy showing off for everyone else."

I leaned closer, voice softer. "You worried about me?"

Yifei tensed, ears practically twitching and face making an amusing shape

"No! Of course not... idiot, why would I care if some dumb muscle-head gets killed?"

Yifei gripped my hand and squeezed it twice before she pulled it away.

"Don’t do anything reckless again... or I’ll... I’ll bite you."

"Looking forward to it."

To my response, she squeaked and jumped on me after batting at me with her hand. I stayed beside Yifei until her breathing evened out, her head resting lightly on her arms.

For all her bluster, she was still just a young woman lost in the middle of hell, pretending she was alright.

When I finally stood, she didn’t look at me. I let her have that last scrap of pride.

Though the blushed cheeks and that cheeky smile of hers made me realise that Yifei was doing better.

’That’s enough for now...’

I left her without a sound, creeping through the dark corridor, avoiding the survivors and makeshift beds. The noise faded, replaced by gentle snores and the sound of cleaning bowls.

My body ached like hell, but thanks to my dantian brimming with energy, I felt lighter, like gravity became weaker.

That’s when I caught the familiar, sharp tang of metal and perfume. A shadow moved ahead, laughter trailing behind her like a warning.

Someone was waiting for me in the hallway.

Mu Qinglan found me and rushed at me in a blur of black and blue, blood still covered her clothes, but she smelled of soap. She pushed me against the wall with a loud thud, with a wicked smile on her lips.

"You look even hotter all banged up," she hummed with a soft voice, glaring at me in dark eyes glinting like a horror movie killer.

"I was ready to tear down the entire mansion if you died."

"You’d look sexy doing it," I shot back, letting her press her forehead to mine.

She giggled, low and dangerous, her hands sliding under my shirt. "Maybe I’ll do it anyway. For fun. Don’t you dare let another woman touch you first, John. Or I’ll cut your—"

"Yeah, yeah. You love me too much."

I caught her mouth in a quick kiss.

She bit my lip, just hard enough to sting, then let me go.

"I’ll keep you in one piece for now, idiot..."

Mu Qinglan pulled away, blushing as she vanished down the hall.

Qinglan’s laughter still echoed in my ears as I stepped away, leaving her to prowl the halls like a wolf in borrowed skin. She’d always been wild, always brighter at the edges. My lips still stung from where she bit me... but I couldn’t complain.

I wandered toward the back of the house, heart hammering in the hush. Each step led me past people I’d fought for, faces lit by candlelight, eyes wide with hope or exhaustion. Somewhere, a baby started to cry, and someone shushed it gently.

I didn’t have to search for Roulan.

Jiang Roulan found me last, when I’d just finished setting out blankets near the kitchen.

She looked at me as if struggling to focus her eyes, then her eyes softened with the glow of the lantern.

"You never stop moving, do you?"

"I will die if I stop."

She knelt and brushed my hair back from my brow, like an older sister or a lover or both. "You did good, John. You really did." Her hand lingered a second longer before she rose. "Rest. Tomorrow’s going to be hell."

I caught her hand, just for a second. "Stay?"

Roulan hesitated, then sighed, lying down next to me, close enough for our arms to touch.

"Just sleep, idiot."

With her beside me and the others close by, the worries of tomorrow faded for a while.

We were together.

Alive.

And as sleep pulled me under, I let myself believe, if only for tonight, that maybe we’d earned this peace. As I finally settled back on the battered mattress, the camp outside went quiet.

Before I noticed... Shen Yifei hand snuck into the room and into my bed, before lying against my chest, her sweet breath blowing against my neck, with one hand sliding under my shirt.

My eyes closed when I heard the door creak open again. Qinglan slipped inside, her hair a wild mess, eyes glittering with the kind of trouble that never let me sleep easy.

She flopped down on my right, head on my shoulder, sword propped against the wall.

"Move over, pervert. It’s cold."

A heartbeat later, Roulan padded in barefoot, arms folded, face unreadable. She glanced at Qinglan, then at Yifei, then at me. She didn’t ask for permission. She just slid in on my left, pulled the threadbare blanket higher, and sighed.

"We’ll leave at first light," she whispered.

I wanted to complain, but my words caught.

All three of them seemed to want the same thing and pressed against me.

I stared up at the cracked ceiling as Qinglan pinched my side and Roulan muttered something about not hogging all the heat.

The night was cold, but with a woman’s heat, I might just feel warm.

However, the battered mattress wasn’t the most comfortable.

Yifei curled against my chest like a portable heater, purring. Her hair tickled my neck with every breath, one small hand clinging to my shirt.

I was just drifting when the door creaked again.

Mu Qinglan slipped in without a word, blood still streaked on her sleeve, eyes shining with the kind of wild energy that made my heart race for all the wrong reasons.

She flopped down beside me, stealing the blanket with a wicked smirk.

"Shift over, John. I’m freezing and you’re warm."

I barely had time to grumble before another shadow appeared. Roulan entered quietly, barefoot, her long hair loose, eyes sweeping over the scene. She hesitated—just for a heartbeat—then slid in on my other side, the blanket stretching tight across all three of us.

She nudged Qinglan aside, claiming her share of warmth, then shot me a look. "If you snore tonight, you’re sleeping outside."

Yifei mumbled something half asleep and hugged me tighter. Qinglan poked my ribs, grinning like a devil. "Try not to wake her up, old man."

Roulan gradually became quiet, but she draped her arm across my chest, heavy and comforting.

We didn’t need words. The tension, the terror, the blood and madness—all of it faded for a little while, lost in their warmth.

For a long moment, I just listened to the slow breathing of the women around me, letting myself believe in something gentle again even if it was only for a night.

Maybe tomorrow would be hell all over again.

But for now, I was surrounded.

And somehow, I didn’t mind at all.

I thought maybe... just maybe that soon spring would fade and summer would warm this cold world.