Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



"I can assure you, I am terrified," said Hao Jing Ya with a sarcastic smile on her face. She stared at me from across the booth's table at the flight club that I had just taken over like I was nothing but an ant beneath her boot. Ready to be crushed. 

Unfortunately for her, I was not that harmless. 

"It's okay," I answered, taking a sip of the sparkling apple juice that Liu Wei had ordered for me. "I understand that you are a bit too slow to be terrified, but I will give you a chance to catch up."

"I don't understand," she shot back, looking between me and the guys. Her eyes lingered on Wang Chao for a few moments too long. Maybe I should rip out her eyes and add them to our mantle back at the cabin. I am sure that they would make a lovely addition. 

I blinked a couple of times at my thoughts, not overly sure where they had come from. But they weren't wrong. 

"I know you don't understand," I said with a sigh as I caught her eyes and stared at her. "But ignorance is not a valid excuse anymore," I continued, raising my eyebrow. "What is mine will always be mine. If you try to take it from me, I will be more than happy to teach you the error of your ways. Hopefully, you will learn for your next life."

"Ha! Teach me a lesson? Do you know who I am?" demanded Hao Jing Ya softly. She adjusted her skirt, dusting off an invisible piece of lint. 

"I do," I assured her. "You are the head of the city. That should make you the strongest out of everyone who has challenged you so far."

"Then, if you know that much, then you know that I control everything inside this city. Including your club," she said with a nod, her voice never rising past a pleasant sound. She reminded me of a psychopath. Her emotions were always under her control, and even when she did react to me pressing her buttons and a quick brush of her skirt. Just like that, she was back under control. 

Interesting. 

"The city is yours," I agreed, but my agreement seemed to have set her off again because there was a brief flick of her wrist over her skirt. Wang Chao said that she was a fighting power user, but I was wondering if there wasn't more to it than that. "But that is only because I am too lazy to make it mine."

"Do you really think that it is that easy? To take my city from me?" she asked softly, a single, perfectly plucked eyebrow raised at me. "Is that because I am a woman and not a man? Because I can assure you… I have managed to defeat every last man that thought I was too weak to hold it."

"Which brings me back to my previous point. If you were truly strong, you would not have had to fight the others to keep control of the city. To prove your strength, it is enough to control those that are strong. It would be child's play for me to take this city from you, and I wouldn't even have to lift a finger to do it," I replied. 

No one could rule alone. Even those who thought they could quickly learned that they needed competent people at their side to help them. I had my men to act as my hands and feet. I had zombies obeying my every command. And if I had to step in even after all that, well, my opponent wouldn't live long without their flame.

"Impossible," replied Hao Jing Ya, looking at me with a completely different look on her face. Did she now find me as intriguing as I did her? 

"You don't use your men to the best of their ability. That is going to create resentment… and let's face it, a man is only as loyal as his options," I said, my gaze once again turning to the man beside Hao Jing Ya. As if he realized that I was watching him, he turned his eyes away from the object of his obsession and to me. "Or his obsessions."

He slowly blinked and nodded his head, acknowledging what I had said. Yes, he would cheerfully kill for Hao Jing Ya, and yet, she either doesn't notice him or appreciate his dedication. 

"

Are you saying that your men are only loyal because they have had no other options presented to them?" purred Hao Jing Ya, staring at Wang Chao. I watched as a black look descended on the face of the man I had been watching. Yeah… you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink.

"Not at all," I laughed, turning my attention back to the woman in front of me. "In fact, there have been more women than I can count throwing themselves at them. And did you know what happened?"

"You got jealous and killed them?" came the smirking response. 

"Some of them, in the beginning," I admitted, completely comfortable about admitting my jealousy. I mean, looking back, it was stupid of me to be jealous of strangers, but I was also insecure. Now that I am a bit older and have spent a lot more time with my men, I know that there is nothing to be insecure about. 

"But for the most part, we killed the women that attempted to overstep their bounds," growled Chen Zi Han. I watched as Hao Jing Ya jumped in her chair, startled by his sudden appearance. However, I had known that he and Liu Yu Zeng were just behind her group, waiting and watching for my order. 

"There is no one that could take them away from me," I continued, bringing her attention back to me and not the fact that she was surrounded by my men in my territory. "Not even Death."

"Not like he would try," smirked Liu Wei as he took a sip of his whiskey. "Not even he is that dumb."

"What do you want?" asked Hao Jing Ya, leaning back in her chair, the perfect woman slipping away to reveal the true ruler of City I.

"That is the million-dollar question, isn't it? What do I want," I mused with a smile. Laying my head back down on Wang Chao's shoulder, I let my mind drift to what I really wanted. But I was also smart enough to know that everything that I wanted could not be given to me by someone else.

"I want this fight club to be a separate entity inside of City I. The people in here are not under your control; they can come and go as they please, and they can add anyone to the 'employees' here that they want," I said, telling her in no uncertain terms what I was expecting for my fight club. "And most importantly, no one can take them away without permission from the head."

"And I assume that this head, is you?" scoffed Hao Jing Ya as she looked down her nose at me. 

"No. I am not planning on staying here any longer than is needed," I replied. "Mao Jing will be the head of this small sanctuary."

"I won't share my supplies with them. They will starve in a matter of days," she said, her intentions perfectly clear. She was more than willing to let people starve if it meant keeping them in line. It was a smart strategy. Hungry people were less likely to fight against authority. They had much bigger things to worry about… like food.

"I will take care of their food," I answered with a wave of my hand. "But only their food."

"And when you leave? Who is going to enforce your rules?" Hao Jing Ya looked at Mao Jing with narrowed eyes, clearly trying to intimidate the man. However, he still stood tall under her onslaught, completely unaffected by her. He was impressing me more every minute.

"I will have my own security," I answered with a shrug. I could hear my tummy let out a low growl, and I looked up at Wang Chao, a little guilty. They had asked me to take care of myself better, but I kept forgetting to eat. 

"Security? Are you sure that they would be loyal to you? I mean, they are only human, too," chuckled Hao Jin Ya, her eyes on me and Wang Chao. She really needed to stop looking at my man. I took a cookies and cream chocolate bar out of my space and started munching on it.

It wasn't the healthiest thing to eat, but it was one of the yummier ones. 

"Who said anything about the security being humans?" I asked, confused as I took another bite of sweet, sweet bliss. Swallowing the chocolate inside of my mouth, I let out a roar. 

The answering one was enough to cause the woman in front of me to go pale. 

Interesting. 

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