Apocalypse King: Recruiting S-Tier Beauties With My Ruler System
Chapter 76: The Bond of Brothers!

Chapter 76: The Bond of Brothers!

I couldn’t even breathe.

Yin was licking a rib bone like he’d just finished eating grilled pork. His fur puffed up slightly as he saw me, pupils narrowing into two sharp slits before his ears twitched, as if remembering who I was.

"Meow~"

Then he trotted over.

Head held high.

Proud.

His steps were silent even on broken glass. Yin’s paws treading like a trained killer reporting in from a solo mission. He then dashed at me, and without ceremony, leapt up, landing against my chest with a dull thump.

——

"Woah—shit—easy!"

I caught him on instinct, almost staggering back from the weight.

He was heavier now. Not by much, but enough to notice. The lean muscle beneath the soft fluff was dense. Compact. The kind of body that could hunt and kill something in complete and utter silence.

Yin purred.

"...You got bigger."

He headbutted my chin once, then nestled against my neck with that low, vibrating hum he always used when he wanted food or affection.

"Why did you leave?" I asked, ruffling the top of his filthy fur. "You didn’t even say goodbye."

"Meow?" he replied innocently, tail flicking.

[Unlike humans, the Lunar Beast has a powerful instinct to hunt.]

[When left unchecked, the beast will complete a hunting cycle, returning after reaching optimal satiation.]

"...So he went out to level up."

That was the moment it happened.

A faint shimmer—almost invisible at first—rolled off Yin’s body. A milky white aura, soft like mist over river water, spread outward in a ripple. It wasn’t aggressive. It wasn’t even deliberate.

It just... was.

The moment it touched my skin, I felt it.

A slow, steady surge pushing into my chest, my veins soaking into the marrow of my bones.

My breath caught in my throat as the strange feelings flowed deeper. It wasn’t painful, nor did it feel forced or foreign to me. The sensation was warm, burrowing deeper into my body, like it was taking root.

The kind of warmth you only felt beside a fire after walking days through a frozen hell.

[Sharing Yin’s Allocated Qi with Bonded Owner!]

The system message hovered in my vision, crisp, cold—but the feeling inside me wasn’t cold at all.

It was... a connection.

I staggered back half a step, holding Yin tighter against me. His body was still small compared to mine, but heavy with smooth, lean muscles along his frame now.

Soul bond.

That’s what this was.

Not a contract.

Not ownership.

Bonded.

Through blood, instinct, and that strange alchemy of trust born in a world that didn’t deserve it. Every time Yin fought, every time he killed and devoured, part of what he gained would pour into me.

Not just Qi.

Strength.

Growth.

And in return... part of my strength, my very core, would anchor him. It would let him exist without being swallowed by the madness of evolution. The corruption that devoured Zao after taking his arm.

A true companion.

Not a pet.

Not a weapon.

A partner.

My throat tightened slightly—not out of emotion, but out of something heavier. Something that all men face one day, the weight of responsibility.

"...Good boy," I whispered into his filthy fur, barely loud enough for him to hear."You’re not alone anymore. Neither am I."

Yin let out a low, contented purr and butted his head against my chin, smearing dried blood against my jawline.

The scent and feeling were sticky and a little disgusting. But right now... I didn’t give a damn.

[Added to Host Reserve]

[Titan Marrow Sutra—Stage 1: 36%] (Hardened Core)

[Bond Synchronisation Level: 14%]

’Only fourteen percent...?’ I smirked inwardly, patting his side.

’Guess we’ve got a long road ahead, huh?’

"Well, shall we go back inside? I made a special room just for you, brother."

Yin’s eyes narrowed into crescent moons as he yawned, the horrible cat breath blowing across my face, making me want to vomit. But... I loved cats, and this was the price to pay for owning them.

——

March 17th, 2025 — 8:17 PM

Zone 2A-Δ – Ninth Floor, Living Quarters

The doors to the ninth floor slid open with a soft mechanical thunk as I stepped inside, Yin still draped lazily over my shoulder like a bloody scarf.

Clean, with a warm fire crackling in the common room... along with the feeling of home.

Mu Qinglan, Jiang Roulan and Shen Yifei seemed to have started decorating and making the ninth-floor common room more comfortable and nice. But... The smell of cooked food and fresh soap hit me first, but when it mixed with the fishy and horrid stench of coagulated blood and filth, my nose hurt.

Roulan’s laughter echoed faintly from the common room, blending with the indistinct murmur of Shen Yifei’s voice, practising something. Maybe a song. Maybe cursing at a stubborn piece of furniture. Hard to tell with her.

I didn’t announce myself and just moved quietly across the polished floor, my boots leaving faint scuffs behind, so I kicked them off and walked with socks on my feet.

That’s when I spotted them.

Yifei sat cross-legged near the low table, peeling vegetables with focused, tearing the poor carrots apart with quick, violent slashes. Jiang Roulan was organising the shelves beside the group kitchen, her sleeves rolled up while lifting heavy water tanks and boxes of canned food.

Mu Qinglan sat near the balcony window with her legs draped over the arm of the sofa, flipping through a woman’s comic with a messy posture.

The three of them glanced up as I entered.

And froze.

Because of the monster on my shoulder.

"Is that..." Yifei whispered.

"Yin." I said simply, patting his bloodied side. "He’s back."

Roulan raised an eyebrow. "He grew."

"Yeah."

Understatement of the year.

What I didn’t expect was for Shen Yifei’s eyes to shimmer, like little stars in the moonlight. "Do you like cats?" I asked.

Yifei nodded and shifted closer to me as I walked to the huge table and noticed various written plans and ideas, some crossed out and others with question marks.

"You’re planning to divide things like this..."

"Yeah, do you mind?" Roulan asked, looking back at me with a slightly unease expression. She bit her lower lip and wrapped her hair around one finger. "I just thought that..."

"Mm, it’s a great idea... I don’t think I can match you and Qinglan on these kinds of things, so for business, laws and trade... should we meet other groups? I’ll leave it up to you two."

The common mistake most leaders try to do is taking on all tasks—that’s not my speciality or where my abilities lie.

Combat and the base itself are the limit of my current self.

When I looked back at the sofa, Qinglan watched me with curious blue eyes, but I noticed her smile and knew she would want to do business again one day. I wasn’t arrogant enough to think we would be the only survivors.

After this greeting, the room became quiet, and Mu Qinglan moved closer. She rose smoothly from the couch, gliding over, her bare feet silent against the floor.

Her fingers brushed lightly over Yin’s head, ignoring the gore, ignoring the dirt, just stroking once between his ears.

"Welcome home," she murmured.

Yin rumbled happily and leaned into her hand.

The tension broke.

Yifei snorted, tossing a half-peeled carrot into a bowl. "Stupid cat got stronger while we were stuck scrubbing dishes."

Roulan smiled faintly. "Some of us have to work."

I grinned and shifted Yin gently into my arms. "Yeah, well. He earned dinner. What about the rest of you?"

Qinglan’s eyes narrowed slightly.Roulan laughed softly.Yifei pouted—and secretly reached for Yin.

This was my life now, and I was growing to love it. Tonight... at least for now. I hoped we could enjoy this moment of happiness.

Because later...

I would be leaving for a dangerous mission.