Category: Sickly Girl Doesn’t Die in Zombie Simulator

Chapter 96: Curing Burnout Part 1

(Actual Chapter Title: Two Seconds of Consciousness Switching, and Sister’s ○○ Cured My Mental Burnout)

“Does it still hurt?”

Steam rose from the surface of the bath. After about three minutes of comfortable silence, Lin Xiwan leaned closer and whispered in her sister’s ear.

Perhaps because of the steam, both their faces were flushed. Lin Jiayao shook her head. “No,” she whispered back.

As more people entered the bathhouse, their voices instinctively lowered.

The two sisters, sitting side-by-side, attracted curious glances. The other women, washing themselves in the shower area, openly observed them.

After half a day of brewing, the rumor mill in the close-knit Qingzhou University camp was in full swing. Most people had heard about the new arrivals.

And their… relationship.

“Who are they?”

“Shh… keep your voice down… Didn’t you hear? They’re the new Awakened, a pair of sisters, and they’re… lesbians…”

“Wow, I think I saw them this afternoon.”

“Really? Lesbians? They’re so pretty…”

“Definitely. See how close they are?”

“I saw the younger sister this afternoon… so beautiful… like a doll. I want one…”

“Liking the younger sister just means you have low standards. Don’t you think the older sister is better?”

“Why?”

“A beautiful older sister taking care of you in the apocalypse, protecting you from all the zombies, and she has abs…”

“True!”

“…”

No one had entered the bath yet, but both sisters lowered their heads, Lin Xiwan’s face burning crimson.

Normally, whispered conversations from such a distance wouldn’t be audible.

But one sister was an Awakened with enhanced senses, the other had Bone Spike Lurker almost constantly activated. They heard everything.

They knew the rumors were spreading; no wonder people had been giving them strange looks earlier.

Thankfully, my sister probably can’t hear them…

Lin Xiwan pursed her lips, gently squeezed her sister’s hand, and whispered, “Did you hear what they’re saying?”

“Huh?” Startled by the squeeze, Lin Jiayao blinked and turned to her sister. “What sounds?”

She knew what she was “supposed” to hear and what she wasn’t.

A glass door and the sound of running water separated the bath from the shower area; she definitely couldn’t hear them.

She looked at her sister’s red ears and smiled, whispering, “Are they talking about us?”

A little prank for her sister, who loved to tease her.

“Uh… no, they’re not talking about us.” Lin Xiwan shook her head and then, changing the subject, said, “It’s been a while, let’s give up our spot. They’re all too afraid to come in…”

“Okay.” Lin Jiayao extended her hands towards her sister.

Lin Xiwan lifted her and carried her to the changing room.

There were a few people inside.

Lin Xiwan found their belongings, grabbed a towel, placed her sister on a table, helped her dry off, and then dressed her.

After settling her sister in the wheelchair, she dried herself.

After changing into clean clothes, Lin Xiwan pushed her sister’s wheelchair towards the exit.

They left their dirty clothes in the designated baskets; someone would collect, wash, and return them later.

Outside, the sky was darkening. To conserve electricity, the Qingzhou University camp didn’t have streetlights.

But the last vestiges of twilight illuminated the path.

Leaving the bathhouse, the cool evening breeze was a welcome relief, like air conditioning.

It helped cool Lin Xiwan’s flushed face. After pushing the wheelchair for a while, she suddenly remembered something and turned back, heading towards the bathhouse again.

“What’s wrong, Sis?” Lin Jiayao asked, curious. “Did you forget something?”

“No, just… something I need to do…” Reaching the bathhouse entrance, Lin Xiwan stopped the wheelchair, leaned down, and whispered, “Wait here, just ten seconds…”

Before Lin Jiayao could reply, she rushed back inside.

Lin Jiayao sighed, activated both Bone Spike Lurker and Blood Crystal Vision, the terrain map and the red highlights merging in her mind, revealing any potential dangers.

Only Sister inside, no other Awakened… good.

Seeing no threats, she maintained Blood Crystal Vision and waited patiently.

Then, she heard her sister’s voice, along with several others.

“…Let me explain… my sister and I… we’re not… like that… it’s just a rumor…”

“Mm-hmm…”

“Yes, yes, yes…”

Limited by time, her sister’s explanations were hurried. She quickly returned, looking slightly annoyed.

“What’s wrong, Sister?” Lin Jiayao asked, discreetly covering a smile with her hand.

“I just overheard some rumors… and went to… clarify things,” Lin Xiwan muttered, pushing the wheelchair again.

“Did you clear things up?”

“Uh… hopefully…?”

Lin Jiayao, no longer teasing her sister, leaned her head against her sister’s hand, which was gripping the wheelchair’s push handle.

“Yao, are you sleepy now?”

“Not really, why?”

“Then… should we go choose a car tonight?”

“So soon?”

“Just… preparing in advance… never mind…”

Lin Xiwan realized she was being too hasty. They didn’t know the situation outside; it wasn’t a good time to be out and about.

The ridiculous rumors spreading in the camp made her want to crawl into a hole and hide.

What if her sister overheard them? She wouldn’t know how to explain.

Before the apocalypse, her sister had been only ten years old, a pure, innocent child who wouldn’t understand what “lesbian” or “yuri” meant.

And what if, in explaining those terms, she accidentally… made her sister uncomfortable?

What if her sister started thinking, “No wonder Sister always wants to hug and touch me… she’s a pervert!”? That would break her heart.

It would mean never seeing her adorable sister’s look of adoration and dependence again. Life would lose much of its joy.

Despite her apprehension, she still took Lin Jiayao to discuss buying a vehicle with Wan Zi.

Hearing they wanted to buy a car, Wan Zi readily agreed. The Qingzhou camp often used modified jeeps for their scavenging missions.

Selling one wouldn’t weaken their combat strength; they could easily modify another – they controlled all the resources in Qingzhou City.

They quickly agreed on a price of 450g of blood crystals, a fair price for both sides. Wan Zi even gave them a 50g discount for bringing the Awakened little girl.

Lin Xiwan still had the two blood crystals from the Corpse Bird. Even after spending 450g, she would still have enough.

After purchasing the vehicle, Lin Xiwan took her sister back to their dorm.

Her sister didn’t like the camp’s staple food, corn, so they ate bread instead.

After dinner, feeling pleasantly full and sleepy, Lin Xiwan decided to take a short nap.

Asking Lin Jiayao if she was also tired, and receiving a sleepy nod, she carried her sister to bed, tucked her in, wrapped her legs around hers, like hugging a body pillow, and drifted off.

Lin Jiayao was waiting for the second zombie’s cooldown timer to end.

She had logged into An Xiaoxi earlier that morning to… dispose of the body. It had been about ten hours now; in a little over an hour, the twelve-hour cooldown would be over.

She wouldn’t waste this time. She would use Goldie to confront the “giant corn cob.”

She had simulated the battle many times in the Training Grounds. With grenades and firearms, even with injuries, her chances of winning were high.

The most important factor was weaponry, and the unknown: Goldie’s evolved ability.

Goldie had been in an evolution state before she extracted; if she hadn’t died, she would now be in her evolved form.

A stronger ability would make the fight even easier.

Lin Jiayao opened the system, checked the Hideout – nothing new to unlock – and then opened the Medical Station, spending 400g of blood crystals on two Blood Crystal Combat Stimulants.

She hadn’t used them before and wasn’t sure of their effects, so she only bought two.

Like stocking up on potions and buffs before a boss fight in a game.

Fully prepared, she opened the [Login] interface.

「No.1: [Mask] (Available for login)」
「No.2: ❌ (2:27:33)」
「No.3: [Goldie] (Available for login)」
「No.4: [Unnamed] (Available for login)」

She’d never named the fourth zombie.

Lin Jiayao wasn’t good with names, but leaving it unnamed didn’t feel right.

Since it was number four, and its abilities were similar to an A-rank Awakened, she would call it A4.

Like a blank sheet of paper, ready to be filled.

As Lin Jiayao willed it, the name in the fourth zombie’s slot changed from “Unnamed” to “A4.”

“Mm…”

Seemingly satisfied with her naming skills, she selected the third zombie, Goldie, and her consciousness plunged into darkness.

Before her eyes opened, a chilling cold enveloped her, almost freezing her mind.

“Gasp—”

She instinctively inhaled and choked on water.

Hive Zombies didn’t need lungs to breathe; even with her mouth and nose full of water, she felt no discomfort.

I survived?

She pushed herself up from the bottom of the sewer.

“Buzz—”

A single insect, the last remaining one, emerged from Goldie’s eye socket, shaking the water from its wings.

Was it just her imagination, or was it… faster?

In the faint sunlight filtering through the opening above, she saw two red objects.

Blood crystals?

Instinctively, without even checking her new abilities, she extended her left tentacles, grabbed the two blood crystal stones from the murky water, and put them in the safehouse.

Good, no losses.

Even if she failed this time, two blood crystals was a decent profit.

The safehouse was now full:

Two Blood Crystal Combat Stimulants in one slot, two blood crystals, and the remaining 100g from buying the stimulants.

She had brought the 100g to generate insects for Goldie, but now, with the larger hidden blood crystal reserve, she felt more confident.

Lin Jiayao had the insect fly around her, examining her own body.

But before it could even complete a full circle, she lost control, and it fell into the water below.

Her vision went dark.

Only then did she notice her own weakness.

No, not weakness… emptiness?

She felt a desperate need for blood crystals to fill this void.

And yet, her strength and speed seemed to be about the same as before.

What was going on?

Not enough blood crystals for the evolution?

Perhaps the evolution had raised her baseline, now requiring more blood crystals to reach her previous capacity?

 

Chapter 95: Fingers Intertwined p2

The direction of the Voodoo Cult sweep team’s annihilation was almost the opposite of the extraction point.

Considering the round trip, searching for the diary, and then the run back, even if she skimmed the diary while running, she wouldn’t have much time to spare.

But first, she had to test if the spores had been successfully transported through the safehouse.

Earlier, while her sister was exercising, she’d pretended to yawn, exhaled some spores onto her hand, taken a blood crystal from the warehouse, coated it with the spores, and put it in the safehouse.

She retrieved the potentially spore-covered crystal to see if the spores were still there.

But then she realized a problem.

Blood Orb spores were practically invisible to the naked eye, only highlighted in her main body’s vision, a unique visual ability.

And the fourth zombie didn’t have that ability.

Even with Blood Crystal Vision activated, the crystal just glowed red; she couldn’t see any spores.

Whatever… I’ll just try…

She put the blood crystal in her mouth and licked it, turning it over and over, ensuring every surface was covered.

Then she put the crystal back in the safehouse and waited.

Soon, she felt a burning sensation in her throat.

There it is…

The spores had successfully been transported!

This familiar burning, she’d felt it before, during her first spore-related evolution; the memory of that sensation was still vivid.

But this time, perhaps because of the small number of spores, the burning was brief and localized.

But she knew the fourth zombie had successfully absorbed the spores.

Perhaps because of this new body’s unique absorption ability, it didn’t fully mimic the consumed entity but only integrated beneficial traits.

She could sense that the ability to infect with spores hadn’t been inherited, but her own devouring ability had evolved.

“Haa…”

Lin Jiayao opened her mouth, extending her tongue and revealing the dark depths of her throat.

Something was forming within.

“Shhh—”

A blood-red mass emerged from her mouth…

Or rather, partially emerged.

The “blood mass” unfolded into a net-like structure of tendrils, still connected to her throat, seemingly a sort of prehensile tongue for consuming larger prey.

Anything caught in this tendril net would be trapped, its life force drained.

Lin Jiayao retracted the tendrils and sighed softly.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t gained the infection ability; she couldn’t access memories that way.

As for consuming them directly?

She wasn’t eager to try that again unless absolutely necessary.

Better find that diary.

The Voodoo Cult’s crash site was 21 kilometers away. She had to hurry.

It took about half an hour to reach the crash site.

This speed was equivalent to a world-class sprinter maintaining a 100-meter dash pace for 21 kilometers.

Thankfully, this was a zombie body; a human, even an Awakened, would have collapsed from exhaustion.

The strong scent of blood and flesh, lingering after half a day, had attracted numerous Hunters, who were now feasting on the remains, their bodies unaffected by the sunlight.

Lin Jiayao ignored them, heading straight for the wrecked vehicles, thankful they hadn’t exploded.

After about two minutes of searching, she found two notebooks in the glove compartment of a jeep.

The handwriting was neat and elegant, clearly someone who had practiced calligraphy before the apocalypse.

Both were logbooks, even the handwriting was the same, but the writing styles differed, each entry from a different perspective.

Like someone doing homework for multiple people.

Finding what she needed, Lin Jiayao didn’t waste any time. She ran towards the extraction point, skimming the notebooks as she ran.

Reaching a certain page, she stopped abruptly.

“Holy… shit…”

Reading the entry, she felt a wave of revulsion, goosebumps erupting on her skin, a rare curse escaping her usually calm and polite demeanor.

Those Voodoo Cult soaps… they were made from zombie and human fat…

“Hoo…”

She exhaled shakily, forcing herself to continue running.

Don’t think about it… don’t think about it… I’ll just throw them away when I get back…

I’ll tell Sister they were probably laced with drugs or something… I’m not telling her the truth…

If she knew the soap she’d been using… it would probably scar her for life…

Lin Jiayao continued running and reading, quickly finishing the first notebook.

Besides numerous inhumane inventions and recipes, nothing useful.

But shortly after opening the second notebook, she found what she was looking for.

A name signed in red ink, in a different handwriting, followed by a note.

“Fucking hell, can’t find a single pack of hot pot base in all of Chongyu. I don’t want to stay here anymore, Boss, please send me to Chengzhou, I beg you.”

Chongyu City… Chongyu City?!

The Voodoo Cult’s headquarters was in Chongyu City?

Chongyu was almost as far as Donghai City; why had the Voodoo Cult traveled so far to Guangdong Province?

Just because of the Boss’s strange dream?

These two diaries, combined with the one she’d found in Fuzhou, gave Lin Jiayao a new understanding of the Voodoo Cult.

No, not understanding; it was still incomprehensible. She couldn’t understand their motives, their logic.

With nothing else in the safehouse, she put both diaries inside.

Each book occupied a single grid, leaving only one slot free.

Unburdened, Lin Jiayao increased her speed, entering a monotonous rhythm of running.

And as she ran, she experimented with her new abilities.

Trying to generate tendrils from other parts of her body.

After several attempts, she finally managed to extend blood-red tendrils from her feet.

These tendrils, though not for combat, provided better grip and stability while running.

She could even use them to climb buildings vertically, running across the glass in any direction, as if defying gravity.

Being able to use the tendrils this way satisfied Lin Jiayao.

She was subconsciously developing this fourth zombie’s abilities towards an A-rank style.

Stylish and practical.

The extraction point was on the rooftop of a skyscraper. Lin Jiayao ran towards the building, her tendrils gripping the walls like bloody vines, pulling her upwards.

Nearing the top, however, she could feel the tendrils weakening, about to give way.

She was still about ten meters from the roof.

“Slash—”

Before losing her grip, her right hand transformed into a blade, shattering the glass window ahead, and she climbed inside.

Better take the stairs.

Reaching the rooftop, she arrived at the extraction point twenty minutes before the deadline. Besides the information about the Voodoo Cult’s headquarters, she hadn’t gained anything this time.

But the information alone was valuable.

And she was running out of zombie slots.

She needed one for Kun City, one for Chongyu City to investigate the Voodoo Cult.

And now, only her second slot was available, the extraction points of the other zombies unpredictable.

Either increase her Vigor and upgrade the Control Center, or “sacrifice” another zombie.

Deleting a zombie and restarting was painful. Mask had been with her the longest, Goldie was incredibly lucky, and the fourth had great potential and strong combat abilities; none were expendable.

She would log into Goldie a few more times and try to evolve her Vigor, hoping to meet the requirements for upgrading the Control Center.

[Extracting: 7.9]

On the rooftop helipad, after the countdown ended, Lin Jiayao returned to the small dormitory room.

The sky outside was a dusky yellow. Opening her eyes, she heard heavy breathing beside her.

She turned and saw her sister lying on the floor, her legs propped up against the bunk bed, using it for resistance training.

Her sister was drenched in sweat, the floor beneath her damp.

“Yao?” Seemingly hearing her sister stir, Lin Xiwan lowered her legs, carefully placed the bed back on the floor, and stood up.

“Did you sleep well?” She reached out to pinch her sister’s cheek, as usual, but then, seeing her sweaty, dirty hands, hesitated and pulled back.

But Lin Jiayao seemed unconcerned. She sat up, grabbed her sister’s hand, and placed it against her cheek.

“It’s fine, we’re going to shower anyway,” she said casually.

“Hmph…” Seeing her sister’s initiative, Lin Xiwan didn’t hold back, using both hands now to playfully rub her sister’s cheeks.

After smearing dirt on her sister’s face, she finally stopped, patted her shoulder, and said with a smile, “Alright, bath time~”

She lifted Lin Jiayao, placed her in the wheelchair, and pushed her towards the door.

Her sister had also worked up a sweat; a shower would do them both good, washing away the grime and fatigue.

“I asked earlier. They have a bathhouse here, like the resort camp, but it’s not separated by Awakened status, just male and female sections…”

Lin Xiwan explained as she pushed the wheelchair out of the dorm.

Lin Jiayao listened attentively, nodding occasionally, but her mind was still on the zombies.

Goldie…

Before even reaching the bathhouse, she had already chosen her next zombie.

She now knew the “giant corn cob’s” territory; just getting close would be enough to lure it out.

After the simulations in the Training Grounds, she was no longer as afraid of it.

As long as she could resist its mental attacks, it was just a larger version of the “green fatty,” and its insects weren’t that fast.

After a few more practice sessions, she would attempt a decapitation strike. In fact, she had already figured out how to kill it in the Training Grounds.

By eating it.

She had disabled her sense of taste and pain receptors in the simulation, broken through the corn cob’s outer layer, and burrowed inside.

The insects and other zombies couldn’t penetrate the dense layers of brains; as long as she could stomach it, she could grind it down from the inside.

It couldn’t possibly taste worse than that Lurker… and Goldie didn’t have a sense of taste anyway.

But it was still… so disgusting… Was there a better way…?

Perhaps she could revisit the battlefield and find a rocket launcher or some grenades… that would make things much easier…

Lost in thought, Lin Jiayao looked at the evolution retention interface.

「Please retain your evolution」
「1、【Hunting Rhythm Lv.1 (Gold): You are always in optimal hunting condition】」
「2、【Safehouse Lv.2 (Red): Upgrades your 2×2 Safehouse to 3×3】」
「3、【Blood Rage Lv.2 (Blue): Rage consumes your mind, doubling strength and speed, granting temporary immunity to ultraviolet light, duration 20s, with moderate side effects】」

A Lv.2 Safehouse?

From 2×2 to 3×3?

This was a rare system upgrade; there was no reason not to choose it.

The larger the safehouse, the more she could carry.

Zombies could die unexpectedly, but the safehouse wouldn’t; it was, as its name suggested, safe.

After selecting the upgrade, her 2×2 safehouse expanded to 3×3, more than doubling its capacity.

She wondered if the next level was 4×4.

If so, she could store a short-barreled rifle or a submachine gun inside.

The thought of a zombie suddenly pulling out a rifle was… amusing.

“Hey… hey!”

A hand waving in front of her face snapped Lin Jiayao out of her thoughts.

“Why are you so distracted?” Lin Xiwan, crouching in front of her, asked, a puzzled frown on her face.

Lin Jiayao blinked and looked around.

She was in the women’s bathhouse changing room. Her sister, already in a bathrobe, was about to help her change.

“Mm.”

Lin Jiayao raised her arms, and her sister helped her remove her shirt and bra.

After undressing her, Lin Xiwan wrapped her in a clean bathrobe, lifted her, and carried her into the bathhouse.

Universities in southern China usually didn’t have bathhouses; this one had been converted by the camp.

Inside, she rinsed the sweat from Lin Jiayao’s body with clean water, washed her with the camp’s soap, and then, carrying her naked sister, walked towards the large bath.

“We can even take a bath here.” Lin Xiwan’s eyes lit up at the sight of the steaming bath. It wasn’t quite time for the camp residents to finish work yet; the bathhouse was empty. They had the entire place to themselves.

In her excitement, she didn’t notice the bar of soap on the wet floor until she stepped on it.

“Ah—!”

She slipped, losing her balance.

But her Awakened reflexes kicked in.

Twisting her body mid-fall, she regained her footing, her right leg shooting out, her toes landing on… the same soap, which seemed to be… stuck to the floor.

“Thump—”

She couldn’t fully recover her balance and fell backwards, her head hitting the floor with a thud.

Thankfully, her Awakened physique protected her, and Lin Jiayao, who had been in her arms, landed on top of her, unharmed.

“Who… who put soap here…?” Lin Xiwan rubbed her head, looking at her sister lying on top of her. “Yao… are you okay?”

“I’m fine…” Lin Jiayao, startled by the sudden fall, hadn’t yet realized her legs were still immobile. She instinctively placed her left hand on the tiled floor, trying to push herself up.

Their current position was… compromising.

And, as luck would have it, her hand landed on the same bar of soap.

But this time, the soap didn’t hold; it slid away.

Losing her support, and her legs failing to respond, she fell, her lips colliding with her sister’s. A faint click of teeth, and blood welled up on Lin Jiayao’s lip.

They stared at each other, a moment of awkward silence, a thin strand of saliva and blood connecting their lips. Lin Jiayao, pulling away, this time using her sister’s shoulders for support, looked away, her face slightly flushed. “So slippery…”

“Yes…” Lin Xiwan also nodded, wiping her lips. “And… moisturizing…”

“Moisturizing?”

“Uh, I meant… the floor is wet…”

Lin Xiwan’s quick explanation only betrayed her embarrassment.

Hearing the sliding door of the bathhouse entrance open, she quickly sat up, still holding her sister, and then, carrying her, walked towards the steaming bath.

Only after settling her sister in the hot water did Lin Xiwan relax slightly.

Good thing no one saw that…

Other women were entering the bathhouse now. She carefully placed her sister beside her.

“Does it still hurt?” Lin Xiwan asked, touching her sister’s bleeding lip. “Should I get you some medicine?”

“It’s fine, just a small cut…” Lin Jiayao said, touching her lip.

With two levels of Robust, it would heal quickly.

They sat side-by-side, silent, the atmosphere slightly awkward.

Then, without conscious thought, their hands, beneath the water’s surface, found each other, their fingers intertwining.

These small accidents, these awkward moments, didn’t weaken their bond, but strengthened it, drawing them closer.

 

Chapter 95: Fingers Intertwined p1

“Gurgle—”
“Squish—”

Inside a dim, cramped basement in Chongyu City, a sickening, viscous sound echoed.

Like a large slug crawling across a damp floor.

Spray nozzles in each corner of the basement emitted a fine mist, filling the space with moisture.

A deliberately humidified environment.

“Click—”

Suddenly, the overhead lights flickered on, illuminating the previously dim basement.

“Thud—Thud—Thud—”

Slow footsteps approached from outside, stopping at the door.

“Beep—”

A button was pressed, and the spray nozzles stopped.

“Click—”
“Clack—”
“Click—”

Several locks disengaged, and the basement door creaked open.

A tall, thin figure in a hazmat suit entered and closed the door.

“Mian…”

A muffled voice from within the suit. A fungal mass, draped in a woman’s dress, lying in the center of the basement, twitched.

“Squish—”

As if sensing fresh meat, the dark green fungal mass extended several tendrils, wrapping them around the figure in the hazmat suit.

Barbs formed on the tendrils, attempting to pierce the suit, to reach the flesh and blood within.

If Lin Jiayao had been present, she would have recognized it.

A mindless, fully fungalized, horrifying zombie.

But it was far too weak; even with all its strength, it couldn’t penetrate the hazmat suit.

The figure in the suit, its arm now bound by tendrils, showed no fear.

It even smiled faintly.

“I know you missed me… I’ve been busy these past few days and haven’t been able to visit. I’m sorry…”

A clear, yet raspy, female voice, deliberately gentle, came from within the suit.

She sat down cross-legged, gently lifted the writhing fungal mass from the floor, and cradled it in her arms.

“It’s alright… we don’t have to cultivate it ourselves anymore… we found a stronger fungal zombie…”

“I saw it… humanoid, sentient, capable of laughing and crying… I saw it all…”

“There’s hope for you now, Mian… if you consume its blood crystals, you can become an Awakened again…”

The woman in the hazmat suit hugged the dress-clad fungal mass, rubbing her masked face against it.

Suddenly, she froze, then violently tore away the tendrils that had wrapped around her, pulling a few grams of blood crystals from her suit pocket.

“Monster… monster! Zombie! You’re not Mian! You’re a zombie!”

Clutching her masked head, she scrambled towards the basement door, flung it open, rushed out, and then slammed it shut.

“Thump—”

The locks automatically engaged, and the spray nozzles reactivated.

She ran through the water-filled corridor, her hazmat suit soaked by the time she reached the stairs.

Water dripped from the suit as she climbed the stairs and emerged onto the ground floor.

Reaching the ground floor, she stopped, her hand reaching into her suit pocket; the “snack” she had placed there was gone.

“Sigh…”

She sighed heavily, removed the hazmat suit, keeping only the full-face mask, and walked out of the villa.

“Boss?” A young woman, guarding the entrance, turned and bowed respectfully.

“Tell the communications team to stop transmitting. Two teams have been wiped out… Recall all the other sweep teams.”

Hearing the Boss’s command, the young woman, noticing the lack of humor in her pale face, felt a chill.

Two sweep teams… three C-rank Voodoo Cult warriors… all dead?

Sister Yun’s team, renowned for their precise firepower, had been annihilated? Had they encountered something they couldn’t handle with just guns?

“Yes, Boss.”

The guard turned and ran towards the communications center, a sense of foreboding washing over her.

Something big… was about to happen…

…

Qingzhou University Camp.

Lin Xiwan pushed her sister’s wheelchair, the two of them observing the unusual “campus scenery” of Qingzhou University.

Large sections of concrete had been removed, replaced with soil, only a few pathways remaining.

Especially the sports field.

It was divided into two sections: one planted with tall corn stalks, the other with various vegetables.

The two little girls followed them, their eyes wide with curiosity. Beside Lin Xiwan was Wan Zi, patiently explaining things.

“This corn, although slightly pale due to the mutation, is easier to grow and has no unusual side effects…”

“The other section is for experimental crops, testing different seeds to find the most suitable high-yield varieties for this area…”

“Those people over there are former Qingzhou University students, all agriculture majors. They’re in charge of the fields now, valuable assets…”

Lin Xiwan and Lin Jiayao listened, nodding occasionally.

They had just visited the camp’s artificial reservoir.

The reservoir was fed by a stream from the mountains behind the university. Streams, unlike large rivers, didn’t attract massive aquatic zombies.

Occasionally, a few zombie frogs or fish would come down the stream, but they would be caught in the layered filters, and the drainage channels were patrolled daily by Awakened.

It was like a modernized pre-apocalypse village, lacking only entertainment like television and internet, but otherwise self-sufficient.

However, Wan Zi also admitted that maintaining this “apocalyptic utopia” wasn’t easy.

Daily patrols, weekly water source inspections, and monthly sweeps of Tianzhou District were all necessary, requiring dedicated exploration teams.

“Zombies only get stronger over time, like breeding gu worms. To truly survive, we have to completely clear Qingzhou City… before something unstoppable emerges.”

These were Wan Zi’s words.

After the tour, Wan Zi stopped in front of Lin Xiwan.

Taking a deep breath, she said, “Although we’re not lacking in combat power right now, I have to prepare for the future. I want to create a truly safe, sustainable environment for us to live in.”

“And for that, I need more people to join us, to build this ‘utopia’ together in this apocalyptic world.”

“Our goals are simple. A safe place to live, a decent life. That’s all.”

Wan Zi extended her right hand. “Will you join us? Starting from this very ground, let’s build a haven where even ordinary people can live safely.”

Her words touched Lin Xiwan; this camp was far superior to the one in Yangzhou City.

Self-sufficient, a fundamental difference.

The Yangzhou camp, relying entirely on scavenging and trading, had barely survived for five years.

To sustain ordinary people, they’d needed the constant efforts of Awakened and exploration teams.

One explorer for every n number of ordinary people. Losing even a single explorer meant someone would go hungry.

And losing an Awakened meant expelling people from the camp, the loss of a major source of supplies unsustainable.

To camps without self-sufficiency, Awakened were like houses in a city-building game, increasing the population limit, a simple but harsh reality.

But the Qingzhou University camp didn’t have this problem.

Even if an Awakened died during a mission, as long as their family members could contribute, watering crops, tending the fields, even just sweeping the floors, they would be provided for.

Staying here… it would be good…

Thinking this, Lin Xiwan looked down at her sister and gently tugged at her hair.

“Let us… think about it,” Lin Jiayao said, looking at Wan Zi. “Sister Wanzi, can I ask you a question?”

“My name is Wan…” Wan Zi took a deep breath. “Fine, ask away.”

A mere name… if they joined the camp, she would gladly change her name to Wanzi.

Four women, three of them Awakened!

Even if two of them had just Awakened, they were still valuable assets.

Wan Zi bent down, her hands on her knees, and looked at the beautiful girl in the wheelchair, smiling, waiting for her question.

Any questions about the camp, she could answer confidently.

“If an overwhelmingly powerful organization were to attack this place, what would you do?” Lin Jiayao asked.

Wan Zi’s smile froze.

In post-apocalyptic China, an overwhelmingly powerful organization, known for its flamboyant actions, could only be…

The Voodoo Cult.

“What do you mean?” Wan Zi frowned. “Are you saying… the Voodoo Cult might come here?”

“They never appeared in Guangdong Province before. Now, for some reason, they’re planning a large-scale sweep of Fuzhou City…” Lin Jiayao shook her head. “I don’t know what to make of it.”

“…I’ll be prepared,” Wan Zi said after a moment of silence.

“We’re far from Fuzhou City, and we’ve stopped broadcasting. They shouldn’t be able to find us,” she added, seemingly trying to reassure herself as much as Lin Jiayao.

“Oh, and Sister Wanzi, there’s one more thing.”

“What is it?” Wan Zi’s mind was racing, thinking about how to defend against the Voodoo Cult; her response was slightly distracted.

“These two little girls, we rescued them from the Fuzhou camp… can your camp take them in?” Lin Jiayao said, gesturing towards the girls. “They’re too young… we can’t properly care for them, whether we stay or leave.”

“These two?” Wan Zi, finally snapping out of her thoughts, looked at the two girls hiding behind Lin Xiwan.

Hearing they might be left behind, their faces filled with anxiety, they clung to Lin Xiwan’s clothes, trying to hide.

Like two fawns hiding behind a tree.

Wan Zi looked at the two girls, her mind racing.

They looked about four or five years old. Even if the older one was Awakened, they were too young to travel.

They couldn’t even take care of themselves; bringing them along would be a burden.

And with the pretty girl in the wheelchair, it meant the older sister would be responsible for three people… that was impractical.

But in the camp… they had resources, books, everything they needed to provide the girls with a good life and nurture the older girl’s abilities.

They would gain a future Awakened, at the cost of a little food and water. A worthwhile investment.

“If you want the camp to care for them, I can find someone suitable,” Wan Zi said, looking at Lin Jiayao.

She’d noticed that the younger sister seemed to be the decision-maker.

Lin Jiayao looked at her sister, the two exchanging glances, and then turned back to Wan Zi.

“Alright, we’ll leave them in your care,” she said.

Lin Xiwan stroked the girls’ heads. “Be good and stay here with Sister Wanzi, okay?”

She’d been prepared to spend some time comforting them, but they had readily gone to Wan Zi’s side.

“Uh…” Wan Zi was taken aback, then gently stroked their heads. “Sister will take you to your new home… stay close to me, so I can look after you.”

“You can go. We know the way back; we want to look around a bit more.”

“Okay… then I’ll take them and get them settled, and introduce them to everyone.”

Wan Zi knew they weren’t staying and didn’t try to persuade them.

Although she wouldn’t have the two Awakened sisters, gaining a young Awakened wasn’t a bad outcome.

“Want to continue exploring? We can visit the library.” Lin Xiwan asked, ruffling her sister’s hair, after Wan Zi and the two little girls had left.

She wanted to relax and unwind in the camp, to help her sister de-stress.

“No… I want to go back and rest,” Lin Jiayao said. “For some reason, using my ability earlier made me… tired…”

“Oh, right… you did use it for quite a while.” Lin Xiwan nuzzled her sister’s cheek. “Let’s go back to the dorm then.”

After taking her sister back, Lin Xiwan asked Auntie Lan to bring her some dumbbells and began exercising in the dorm.

There was a gym in the university, but she didn’t want to leave her sister alone.

A mechanic had already inspected the jeep, concluding that it was beyond repair and recommending they get a new one.

She would wait until her sister was feeling better and then they could choose a new vehicle together.

Lin Jiayao lay on the bed, covered with blankets and pillows, while Lin Xiwan exercised.

Lin Jiayao was browsing the available zombies.

She’d been planning to log into Mask and leave Xin City, or log into the fourth zombie and deal with the “corn cob” monster.

But after her last experience with the fourth zombie, she wanted to try having it consume some spores.

If it could absorb them, she could use the Voodoo Cult corpses to test if she could extract their memories.

After all, there were quite a few Voodoo Cult corpses there; it wouldn’t take long to get back.

And even if she couldn’t extract memories, she could search their vehicles for logbooks.

She’d been too focused on collecting blood crystals earlier, Blood Crystal Vision activated, seeing only the red glow.

She’d completely forgotten about the possibility of logbooks in their vehicles.

The Voodoo Cult probably hadn’t considered that their mandatory logs could be used against them.

They didn’t care about being discovered.

But who would have thought someone would actually track them down? Even Survivor’s Light, at its peak, would have hesitated.

In the apocalypse, those who embraced chaos far outnumbered those who sought order.

Lin Jiayao opened her eyes. The garage door was ajar.

The fourth zombie had extracted there, after sliding into the villa’s garage.

Logging into the fourth zombie, she first checked the extraction point.

「Extraction Time 2:59:56」
【Extraction Point: 30km】

30km?

That’s outside the city limits.

Three hours was plenty of time. Lin Jiayao peered out of the garage, assessing the direction, and sighed.

Chapter 94: Is Yibai Coming?

They’re all going to die… they’re all going to die!!!

Amidst the tendril-covered vehicles, a new cocoon was forming.

But as soon as it formed, a small figure burst out, its skin incomplete, tendrils still attached and snapping as it ran towards the burning wreckage on the opposite lane.

It seemed unconcerned by the rumbling of the approaching fuel tanker, dragging its mangled body over the guardrail and into the scorched earth.

The intense heat made it pause, the still-writhing tendrils on its body recoiling instinctively.

This made its appearance even more grotesque.

It entered the burning wreckage, drawn by the scent of blood crystals, its vision fixed on the glittering red fragments. It couldn’t see through the flames, using the scattered crystals as markers.

Reaching the area with the highest concentration of blood crystals, its charred face contorted, a single, crystal-like eye emerging.

It looked down. Besides the blood crystal fragments, there was a charred, fragmented notebook, its cover almost completely burned.

It picked up the remnants of the notebook, ignoring the blood crystals.

But the moment it touched it, the fragile book crumbled to ash in its hand.

It stared at the ashes, confused, then the flames engulfed it, and it finally registered the burning pain.

Its body quickly dried and ignited, falling onto the ashes of the notebook.

Meanwhile, at the center of the tendril-covered convoy, where the blood crystal concentration was highest, a new, blood-red cocoon was forming.

It pulsed like a beating heart, the surrounding tendrils converging, feeding it liquefied blood crystals.

The cocoon continued to grow, even as the fuel tanker, smashing through the vehicles and tearing apart the tendril network with its massive weight, reached the center of the convoy.

The cocoon, seemingly oblivious to the approaching tanker, continued to absorb nutrients, growing rapidly.

From the black sports car at the back of the convoy, a woman in a tactical vest tumbled out, pulling the driver with her, retreating from the scene.

“Sister Yun? Sister Yun?! Help! Sister Yun!!!”

A Voodoo Cult driver, trapped inside his car by the tendril network but safe behind the closed windows, frantically honked his horn, watching the retreating woman in desperation.

The honking didn’t make her turn back. Instead, tendrils, like a thin film, began to cover his car, searching for any openings.

“No!!! Stay away!!!”

He had been with the Voodoo Cult for two years and had seen many things, but nothing like this.

During his time with the Cult, they hadn’t faced any real threats, always overpowering both zombies and other survivor camps.

Although the Voodoo Cult seemed… disorganized, under the eccentric Boss’s leadership, they always won, always crushed their opponents.

So, facing this situation, he was truly terrified.

He drew his pistol, but didn’t know where to shoot, and his own ability was just basic physical enhancement.

The car… he could drive… the fuel tanker had cleared a path!

“Vroom—”

He expertly started the engine, turned the steering wheel sharply, and pressed the accelerator.

“Screech—”

“Whirr—”

The car moved slightly, and then stopped, the tires seemingly caught on something.

The engine roared, but the wheels wouldn’t budge.

He suddenly noticed that Sister Yun, who had run quite a distance, had stopped.

“Sister Yun! Sister Yun!!! Help me!!! Help…”

Frantically honking, he suddenly realized he couldn’t speak.

What’s going on… Sister Yun?!

Sister Yun?!

Realization dawned. It was Sister Yun’s ability… she was controlling him!!!

No… no…

Sister Yun… I’ve served the Cult faithfully… I’ve never done anything against the Cult…

The words were trapped in his throat.

He watched in horror as his hand, no longer under his control, chambered a round in his pistol.

Then, his hand moved the gun to his mouth, his thumb on the hammer, static coming from the walkie-talkie.

“Zzz… where’s your lighter?”

Sister Yun’s voice.

Then he regained control of his body.

Trembling, gasping for breath, the struggle for control having exhausted him, he lunged for the walkie-talkie.

“Sister Yun… Sister Yun… I want to live, I don’t want to die… Sister Yun!”

“Sister Yun… please… please…”

“You fucking bitch! Answer me!!!”

His pleas quickly turned to anger and despair.

He raised his pistol, not caring if he could even hit her, not caring about the shattered window, and fired.

“Bang—”

“Shatter—”

“Fucking answer me!”

He gripped the pistol, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

“Zzz…”

Finally, a voice from the walkie-talkie.

“Zzz… so you do have a gun…”

Before she finished, he lost control again, his two-handed grip on the pistol shifting to one.

His head turned, his left hand fumbling, opening the car door.

“Click—”
“Thump—”

He kicked the door open, tearing through the tendrils clinging to it, some now wrapping around his legs.

But he seemed oblivious to the danger, running towards the fuel tanker, pistol in hand.

The fuel tanker had cleared a path, free of tendrils, and he reached it without much resistance, not even stopping when the tendrils reached his legs.

He aimed his pistol at the tanker and fired rapidly.

“Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang—”

“Clang, clang, clang—”

He emptied the magazine, all bullets hitting the same spot.

Sparks flew as the bullets struck the metal, piercing the tanker, gasoline leaking out.

The bullets had only created a few small holes; the sparks weren’t hot enough to ignite the fuel.

And the tendrils had caught up, spreading across his back.

He paused, as if momentarily regaining awareness.

Turning towards Sister Yun, he saw a grenade flying towards him.

The leaking gasoline had soaked his clothes, a chilling sensation against his skin.

But he didn’t have time to react. Just as he was about to move, he lost control again.

His right hand caught the grenade, his left pulled the pin.

Then, he held the grenade, its ring pull removed, against the bullet holes in the tanker.

Not far from the tanker, the man-sized cocoon was slowly withering, its contents about to emerge.

“Boom—”

The grenade exploded, igniting the leaking gasoline and ripping a large hole in the tanker.

Flames surged into the tanker.

“BOOM—”

A massive explosion, flames and black smoke rising into the sky.

The blast sent burning gasoline spraying outwards, igniting the surrounding vehicles.

Within seconds, the entire lane was engulfed in flames. And from the inferno, a figure, completely on fire, emerged.

It didn’t try to extinguish the flames but extended its right hand towards Sister Yun, who was watching from a distance.

The burning tendrils intertwined, expanding rapidly, like a growing tentacle, reaching for her.

“Shit!”

Sister Yun cursed, grabbed the driver beside her, and threw him towards the fiery tendrils, then turned and ran.

But she’d only taken a few steps when tendrils wrapped around her ankles, dragging her towards the small, burning figure.

“Wait! Wait!” Ignoring the searing pain as her abdomen scraped against the ground, she screamed as she was dragged towards the zombie.

The frenzied little zombie ignored her pleas, its tendrils tightening around her throat.

“Die…”

It hissed.

Burning gasoline dripped from its arm onto Sister Yun, igniting her clothes.

“Ugh—!”

She thrashed and struggled, but the tendrils, having already burrowed into her skin, held her fast.

She could only feel the searing pain of the flames and the suffocating grip of the tendrils, helpless.

She couldn’t even use her ability; her mind was a chaotic mess.

Feeling her life fading, the zombie’s tendrils began to absorb her blood crystals.

Fueled by the blood crystals, even engulfed in flames, it didn’t die, its burning flesh regenerating, an agonizing torment.

Its head split open, and a thick fungal stalk, fueled by the absorbed blood crystals, emerged, its tip unfolding into an umbrella-like cap.

The cap swayed gently, releasing a shower of blood-red spores, which covered its body, extinguishing the flames. Then the cap retracted.

It shook off the spores, like red powder, and severed the tendrils connecting it to the burning corpse, preventing the flames from spreading.

Then, after a moment, it shuffled away from the intense heat, turned, and looked at the burning convoy fifty meters away.

The books Mommy gave me…

My notebook…

The happy sentences I copied for Mommy, the questions I wanted to ask… all gone…

The road was blocked by fire, the car… gone…

I was just… driving…

Its body was covered in burns, and it didn’t have enough blood crystals to heal.

Feeling the pain, looking at the raging inferno, its small mouth trembled, tears welling up in its eyes before being absorbed back into its skin.

“Waaah…”

“WAAAAH—”

Finally, it couldn’t hold back any longer and burst into tears.

Its fear of fire, suppressed until now, finally erupted.

Unbeknownst to it, it had just eliminated a major threat for its Mommy.

…

Qingzhou City, Qingzhou University Camp, Building 17, room 111.

Lin Jiayao was testing the wheels of her new wheelchair.

“Hmm… a little rusty, but it moves smoothly enough.”

After a few laps around the small room, she gave it a satisfactory assessment.

“I’ll have someone remove the rust from another wheelchair and bring it to you later,” Auntie Lan said, smiling from the doorway.

She had just delivered some boiled vegetables and new bedding, along with the wheelchair.

Wan Zi had instructed her to treat these new arrivals well, and Auntie Lan was doing her best.

After all, according to Wan Zi, they were likely to stay and become the camp’s new protectors.

“Eat first. If you need anything, just call me. And if you want to tour the camp, feel free to do so; I can keep an eye on your car for you.”

After these cheerful instructions, Auntie Lan closed the door and returned to her own room, 101, next door.

Lin Xiwan grabbed an ear of corn from the stainless-steel plate and started eating.

Her enhanced Awakened physique gave her a high resistance to toxins; this was also a way to test the food for her sister.

After finishing one ear without any ill effects, she gave two to the little girls and then looked at her sister.

“Why aren’t you eating? Aren’t you hungry? It’s quite sweet,” she asked, seeing Lin Jiayao’s lack of interest in the corn.

“I… don’t have much of an appetite,” Lin Jiayao said, glancing at the boiled corn, a wave of nausea rising.

It reminded her of the giant Hive Zombie.

The image of the brains stacked inside its translucent, gelatinous body… She took a deep breath.

“How do you like this place?” Lin Xiwan suddenly asked.

“Uh… it’s okay,” Lin Jiayao nodded.

The camp residents were friendly, and the atmosphere wasn’t bad, except for the guard’s initial leer at the gate.

But being so close to Fuzhou City… she was worried about the Voodoo Cult finding them.

Without that threat, this self-sufficient Qingzhou University camp would be an ideal place to settle down.

The cautious sisters wouldn’t stay here permanently, they would eventually move further away from Fuzhou.

But it was a good place for the two little girls, who couldn’t travel long distances.

Lin Xiwan planned to sound out Wan Zi later and see if they would accept the girls.

Judging by the cheerful demeanor of the girl who had greeted them, the girls would likely have a good life here.

The Awakened little girl had a bright future, potentially becoming the camp’s mascot.

“Let’s explore the camp later?” Lin Xiwan suggested. “And ask around about mechanics or where we can get a new car… and we can also ask about the two little girls.”

“Okay.” Lin Jiayao, who’d been planning to rest anyway, nodded.

She wasn’t in a hurry to leave; the second zombie’s slot was still on cooldown, and she hadn’t explored Kun City yet.

She needed to conserve her mental strength and wait until tonight, when the cooldown was over.

And just now, she had felt a sudden unease, a tingling sensation, and a strange pull towards… somewhere.

The few spores within her body were agitated, as if sensing something approaching.

Could it be… Huayibai?

No, that’s impossible. It had only been a few days. Even driving non-stop, it would take at least 24 hours to get here from Donghai City.

Fungal zombies couldn’t drive, and they didn’t have access to vehicles… How had Huayibai gotten here?

And if it arrived, how would she explain this pretty little girl who called her “Mommy” to her sister?

She hadn’t discussed this with Huayibai!

The unexpected arrival worried Lin Jiayao; she rubbed her temples.

Well… I’ll deal with it when it gets here.

Although this camp had heard about the fungal zombies from the radio, they didn’t have the means to detect them; they probably wouldn’t be able to see through Huayibai’s disguise.

As long as Huayibai didn’t spread its spores, it should be fine.

“Yao… do you think the Voodoo Cult will find us here?” Lin Xiwan asked, having finished her corn.

“Hard to say…” Lin Jiayao shook her head. A new idea was forming.

She needed to test transporting spores through the safehouse.

She planned to give the fourth zombie some fungal abilities by having it consume spores, like accessing memories.

If they encountered the Voodoo Cult again, the fourth zombie could access their memories and find out the location of their headquarters.

According to the system map, she could log into any location on Earth.

This meant there were definitely zombies in the Voodoo Cult’s headquarters.

If she could find their headquarters and control the zombies there, she might be able to cripple the Voodoo Cult from within.

Eliminate the Voodoo Cult, and most of their problems would be solved.

“What are you thinking about? So deep in thought?” Lin Xiwan waved her hand in front of her sister’s face.

“Nothing, just… thinking about what to do next…” Lin Jiayao said.

“That too…” Lin Xiwan nodded, hearing her sister’s concern.

Unlike her earlier, somewhat naive, heroic aspirations, now she just wanted to find a safe place to live with her sister.

But fate seemed to be against them.

“Come on, don’t think about it,” she said, ruffling her sister’s hair. “If you’re not hungry, let’s go explore the camp. Don’t worry too much.”

“We’re quite far from Fuzhou City, and they’ve turned off their broadcasts. Finding this camp would be like finding a needle in a haystack for the Voodoo Cult.”

Lin Jiayao knew her sister was trying to reassure her. She smiled. “Mm.”

Even starting from Fuzhou, finding Qingzhou would take a long time.

It’s not like they could just magically know where we are, right?

That’s… highly improbable.

Thinking this, Lin Jiayao relaxed slightly.

Chapter 93: Your Mother’s Dead

“Hng! Aaaaaagh!”

The tattooed man sounded as if his nose and throat were blocked. He snorted forcefully, then resumed screaming.

“What the fuck! What are you doing?!” The woman next to him, holding the RPG, frowned and glanced at him, her eyes then widening in horror.

In the blink of an eye, the man’s body had shriveled, his skin clinging to his bones.

What he had snorted out wasn’t mucus or a blockage, but a bloody, yellowish-white fluid.

His eyeballs bulged, hanging precariously by their optic nerves, swaying with his movements.

And in stark contrast to his shrunken body, his head swelled grotesquely, splitting open down the middle.

She could even see the fungal tendrils connecting the two halves of his face.

A thick, white stem erupted from his throat, pushing through his cracked skull, its tip a blood-red, disc-shaped mushroom cap, which swayed as it turned towards the woman.

“Help… help me…” he gurgled, reaching out with a trembling hand.

“Save me…”

“Scatter! Get away from the pancake!”

A voice blared from a car’s loudspeaker, a woman’s voice, sharp and commanding, loud enough for the entire convoy to hear.

The woman near the… pancake, jolted back to reality by the warning, ran towards the convoy.

What the fuck… what just happened?

He was fine just a moment ago… and now…

And that thing growing out of his head… it looked like a mushroom…

“Whoosh—”

Before she could process it, a rocket whizzed past her, its fiery trail scorching her hair and blistering the skin on her face.

“Boom—”

The explosion behind her threw her forward, and she crashed to the ground.

Disoriented, she looked up and saw a woman in a full-face gas mask, her head shaved for a better fit, crouching beside her. The woman wore a leather jacket and pants, her waist and abdomen exposed.

“Sister… Sister Yun…” the woman on the ground stammered.

The woman, called Sister Yun, had already drawn and cocked her pistol.

“Where’s your mask?” Her voice, cold and emotionless, was muffled by the gas mask.

“I… I…” The woman on the ground touched her face; the explosion had blown it away.

“Click—”

Sister Yun tossed the pistol at her feet, stood up, stepped over her, and walked towards the front of the convoy.

Tendrils… parasitic… mushrooms…

Just like the Boss’s ramblings during her episodes, this… must be one of the “mushroom people” the Boss had talked about.

They had all laughed at the term “mushroom people” when they first heard it.

Mushroom people? Had the Boss been dreaming about Ultraman or something?

But now, seeing this, she couldn’t dismiss the Boss’s words so easily.

Her reinforcements, driving normally along the highway, about to bypass Qingzhou City and head towards Fuzhou, had heard a commotion from the exit ramp ahead.

A vehicle, moving against the flow of traffic, heading towards Qingzhou City.

A vehicle pulled by zombies.

At first, she had thought it was just an Awakened with a special control ability, perhaps with some eccentric hobby for using zombies to pull his vehicle.

But after the snipers had taken out the zombies pulling the vehicle, her subordinates, letting their guard down, had approached to scavenge.

And then… that had happened.

Her subordinate, suddenly drained of life, a blood mushroom sprouting from his head. She’d instantly remembered the Boss’s warnings and ordered everyone to scatter.

Now, standing at the front of the convoy, all she had to do was raise her right hand, and her team would unleash a barrage of rockets and grenades at that little zombie girl.

But she hesitated. She’d heard that little zombie… curse?

A cursing zombie? It was so absurd she didn’t quite believe it.

“What did you say?”

She asked tentatively, then mentally scolded herself.

Why was she trying to communicate with a zombie?

And one of the “mushroom people” the Boss had warned them about, the ones that could bring about the downfall of the Voodoo Cult.

But to her surprise, she received an answer.

The little zombie girl stomped her foot angrily, her small fists clenched, her eyes squeezed shut, and shouted, “Your mother is dead!!!”

So it was cursing.

Sister Yun waved her right hand downwards and then turned, walking back towards the convoy.

“Whoosh—”
“Hiss—”
“Whoosh—”

Rockets and grenades, trailing smoke and fire, arced through the air towards the little zombie girl.

If it survived that, then they could talk. Maybe even offer it a cigarette.

As she walked back, she saw the female Voodoo Cult warrior sitting on the ground.

Her burned face was etched with terror, her hand clutching her pistol, the barrel in her mouth, but she wasn’t pulling the trigger.

And unbeknownst to her, the back of her head had split open, fungal tendrils writhing within.

Sister Yun looked at the woman and then, raising her right hand, mimed a pistol, pointing it at her own temple and pulling the trigger.

“Bang—”

As if controlled by an invisible force, the woman on the ground mirrored her actions and pulled the trigger.

Sister Yun could briefly force blood crystal entities to mimic her actions, but only within a limited range and for a short time.

She didn’t look at the corpse but walked past it, towards the convoy.

The deafening roar of explosions echoed behind her, the heat on her back. The highway on the other side was a chaotic mess of debris and flames.

No zombie could survive that.

Back in her vehicle, Sister Yun looked at the devastation.

Was the mission complete?

There had been no word from the team in Fuzhou City; she didn’t know how their sweep was progressing.

She had to record this encounter with the fungal zombie and report it to headquarters.

Just as she was reaching for a pen, a bad feeling washed over her.

She looked up and saw the corpse of the Voodoo Cult warrior, the one she had just seen shoot herself, slowly stand up.

The bullet through her brain hadn’t killed her, only drained her of life.

But this time, no mushroom sprouted from her head.

Tendrils erupted from her body, engulfing her in a blood-red cocoon.

The tendrils spread outwards from the base of the cocoon, like a net, searching for nutrients.

“What… the hell…?” Even Sister Yun, a veteran of the Voodoo Cult’s “purification squads,” was stunned.

She watched as the cocoon split open, revealing the little girl in the white dress, white stockings, and white twintails, standing where the Voodoo Cult warrior had been.

It… it had replaced her dead subordinate?

Then what about the one they had just bombed…?

Sister Yun quickly looked towards the bombed area; it was a smoldering wasteland, a dead zone.

“Reverse! Reverse!” She slapped the driver’s head and grabbed the walkie-talkie. “Front of the convoy! Fire at will!”

Despite being a woman, having grown up in Chongyu City, she still spoke like a man.

“Screech—”

The driver spun the steering wheel, the modified BMW M4 drifting expertly as it sped into the emergency lane, reversing away from the scene.

“Sister Yun! It’s too fast, it’s right behind us, we can’t lock on!”

The voices from the walkie-talkie made her frown.

Too fast? Faster than her modified sports car?

She looked back and gasped.

The rear window was covered in a web of tendrils. Through the gaps, she could see a thick tendril extending from the web, its other end attached to the little zombie girl’s hand.

The little girl was being dragged behind their car, but the tendril was rapidly shortening, pulling her closer and closer.

She had… led it right into the center of the convoy.

“Snap—”

The tendrils on the rear window suddenly detached, leaving a sticky residue. Sister Yun, who was about to pry open the window, felt a surge of dread.

It could have kept pulling itself closer, why detach now, right in the middle of the convoy?

“Stop!” she shouted at the driver and then, grabbing an ammo vest filled with grenades, climbed into the back seat.

No wonder the Boss had ordered them to fire on sight… She was paying the price for her carelessness.

By hesitating to destroy that strange van earlier, from the moment her first subordinate had been infected, that terrifying little girl zombie had been clinging to them like a shadow.

Climbing out of the window, she saw the little zombie girl, no longer being dragged, kneeling on the ground, staring intently at the weapons in their hands.

“YAAAA—”

A piercing scream from the little girl, and then, her body rapidly expanding like a balloon.

No!

Sister Yun dove back into the car and slammed the door shut.

Just as the door closed, the zombie reached its limit and exploded.

“Boom—”

Countless thin tendrils erupted outwards, like shrapnel.

The tendrils pierced the exposed skin of anyone nearby, burrowing into their bodies.

Those infected also began to swell, their bodies exploding, spraying more blood-red tendrils, a chain reaction of fleshy detonations.

Within seconds, almost everyone outside the vehicles, or with open windows, had exploded.

All that remained of the convoy were the webs of tendrils connecting the vehicles, pulsing ominously.

What… the hell… was that?

Sister Yun, safe inside the car, stared at the carnage in disbelief.

Their twenty-vehicle reinforcement team was practically wiped out, only a few drivers, who had been inside their vehicles with the windows closed, surviving.

“Gulp—”

She took a grenade from her vest and then put it back.

Grenades were useless… This “mushroom person” seemed to have no weaknesses. How could they possibly fight it?

“Vroom—”

Suddenly, one of the monster trucks in the convoy roared to life, smashing into the nearby vehicles, driving over the smaller ones, trying to escape.

She wasn’t concerned about the attempted escape; she’d noticed that the flames from the monster truck’s exhaust pipes had parted the tendrils as it drove through them.

Fire!

Its weakness is fire!

Without hesitation, she looked at the fuel tanker in the convoy.

She could see the terrified expression of the driver inside, ready to flee.

Thankfully, all their drivers were at least E-rank Awakened, not ordinary people.

Sister Yun took a deep breath, pulled out her car keys, her eyes glowing red, and then, her hands gripping the empty air, mimed turning the steering wheel.

The other drivers, the monster truck driver, and the fuel tanker driver, simultaneously mirrored her actions.

But only the monster truck’s engine started; the others were stalled, their drivers simply miming.

Like the dual-pilot system in Pacific Rim.

Sister Yun’s foot pressed down on the imaginary accelerator.

“Vroom—” The monster truck roared to life, driving towards the guardrail.

And the fuel tanker at the back of the convoy… charged towards the tendril-covered vehicles.

Chapter 92: Childhood’s End

“Yao? Are you alright? Yao? Your eyes…”

Lin Xiwan held her sister close, gently shaking her.

Her hand trembled as she noticed something blood-red writhing beneath the skin around Lin Jiayao’s eyes.

And a faint pull, a familiar sensation…

Only two possibilities.

A zombie or an Awakened.

Either way, it meant Lin Jiayao had absorbed blood crystals, and they had fused with her blood.

But when…?

Lin Xiwan had always protected her sister, even shielding her from zombie scratches with her own body in the early days of the apocalypse.

But now… somehow… she had absorbed blood crystals…

Could it be… that Corpse Bird last night?!

She remembered being covered in blood after the attack… Could her sister have accidentally ingested some then?

Actively consuming blood crystals was different from passive exposure; it carried a high risk of infection.

Passive awakening, like the little girl Awakened, involved minuscule amounts of blood crystals, slowly modifying the body.

But active consumption… that was on a completely different scale, far too much for an ordinary person.

And judging by the pull she felt, her sister had absorbed several grams.

Before the fusion, she hadn’t even sensed the blood crystals in her sister’s body.

No wonder she’d been so sleepy since last night… the blood crystals were taking effect…

Her frail sister might not be able to withstand the process and could turn into a zombie.

“No… no…” The thought terrified Lin Xiwan.

She pried open her sister’s mouth, her fingers reaching down her throat.

Although she knew it was futile, she couldn’t think of anything else.

Maybe… just maybe… she could get the undigested crystals out?

Lin Jiayao gagged, struggling.

“Mmm—”

Her mouth was held shut; she couldn’t speak, couldn’t push her sister’s hand away.

Feeling her sister’s cold fingers probing her throat, she tried to push them back with her tongue, but it was more like a lick.

Finally, unable to breathe, she opened her eyes, her “awakening” interrupted.

Her eyes were completely red, the whites gone, only glowing red pupils.

A chilling sight.

Seeing her open her eyes, Lin Xiwan stopped.

She… she’s awake?

She hesitantly withdrew her hand, covered in her sister’s saliva.

“S-Sister…?” Lin Jiayao asked weakly, her voice hoarse.

“Yao? How are you feeling? Are you alright?” Lin Xiwan asked quickly.

Her sister was still conscious! Relief washed over her.

But she also noticed a blood-red line extending from her sister’s collar, up her neck, and towards her eyes.

Could it be… that she…

“Sister… I can’t see… I can’t see anything… Sister, where are you…?” Lin Jiayao reached out blindly, as if truly blind.

She was right there, in her arms, but her sister couldn’t see her, her unfocused, crimson eyes darting around.

This wasn’t an act; it was too realistic.

And indeed, Lin Jiayao couldn’t see anything; the simulation was perfect.

Her sister’s panic made Lin Xiwan’s heart ache. She held her close, gently patting her back. “Don’t be afraid, Sister is here, right beside you…”

She now had a strong suspicion.

Her sister… had likely Awakened.

And she hadn’t yet learned to control her ability.

Comforting her sister, she shifted her position, leaning against the wall, her legs bent, supporting Lin Jiayao’s back.

She gently parted her sister’s legs and placed them on either side of her waist, then looked into her eyes.

This position should make her feel safer.

“Yao, you can’t see anything at all? Can you describe what you see?” Lin Xiwan gently bounced her legs, letting her sister feel her presence. “It’s okay, Sister is right here.”

“I…”

Lin Jiayao’s panic subsided slightly. She placed her hands on Lin Xiwan’s shoulders, her voice hesitant.

“I… I see a red light… right in front of me… and everything else is black… I’m scared…”

Red light?

The only thing in front of her was herself… the red light was her.

A detection-type ability?

Lin Xiwan instantly understood. Her former vice-captain had a similar ability: seeing through walls and detecting blood crystals.

“It’s okay… Yao, relax… just relax…” Lin Xiwan gently bounced her legs, comforting her sister, a smile playing on her lips.

She was almost certain now; her sister was an Awakened. Her behavior, her reaction, it was all typical of a newly Awakened individual.

This realization brought immense relief. And with the relief came… amusement.

Seeing her sister this scared and confused was rare; she didn’t even flinch at the sight of zombies.

But now, seeing the tears in her eyes, her reaching out blindly, her helplessness… it filled Lin Xiwan with a sense of satisfaction.

This is what it feels like to be relied upon!

After a moment of quiet enjoyment, Lin Xiwan returned to the task at hand: teaching her sister how to control her ability.

“Relax… feel your heartbeat…” she said, taking her sister’s hand and placing it on her chest, guiding her.

“Can you feel it? Your heart is beating too fast. Try to slow it down… you’ll feel a warmth flowing back to your heart…”

She spoke softly, patiently guiding her sister. The satisfaction of teaching, of being needed, made her smile.

When the blackness in her sister’s eyes receded, her gaze focusing on her, Lin Xiwan cupped her face in her hands.

“Congratulations, Lin Jiayao,” she said with a smile. “Starting today, you’re an Awakened.”

“I… an Awakened?”

Lin Jiayao repeated the words, still in disbelief.

“Yes! Really!” Lin Xiwan hugged her sister, her excitement bubbling over. “You can be as strong as Sister now!”

Just as she was anticipating her sister’s reaction, the door suddenly burst open.

“The doctor is here! Where’s the patient?”

The little girls, the camp doctor, Auntie Lan, Wan Zi, and several helpers crowded into the room, then froze, staring at the two sisters on the bed.

Was… was this… something they were allowed to see?

A slender, beautiful young woman, straddling a slightly older, equally beautiful woman, her legs wrapped around the older woman’s waist, the older woman’s hands cupping the younger woman’s face, their foreheads touching.

And the older woman’s legs were bouncing rhythmically, her movements causing the younger woman’s body to move up and down…

Wait… where’s the patient?

Wan Zi was the first to react. She sensed a faint pull from the younger woman, who hadn’t had any Awakened aura before.

And seeing the older woman’s delighted expression, she instantly understood.

“Congratulations! I didn’t expect to witness the birth of a new Awakened in our camp! Haha, this place truly is blessed!”

She clapped her hands and turned to the helpers. “Alright, everyone, nothing to see here, back to work.”

The others, ordinary people, hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

But a new rumor would likely spread through the camp tonight.

[Two beautiful sisters arrived today, incredibly gorgeous, but they’re… lesbians!]

In the monotony of camp life, such gossip was far more interesting than the usual scavenging reports.

Wan Zi leaned against the door frame, smiling. “Anything else I can help with?”

The little girls had returned to their bed and were now looking curiously at the two sisters before glancing at their still-sleeping sibling, lost in their own thoughts.

“No, thank you,” Lin Xiwan replied, smiling back at Wan Zi, oblivious to how compromising their position looked.

And Lin Jiayao didn’t move; she didn’t care what others thought, only her sister.

“Congratulations. I’ll leave you two alone then. I’ll have someone bring over some blankets later.”

Wan Zi closed the door and left, still smiling.

Not because she enjoyed… that… but because the younger girl’s awakening increased the probability of them staying.

Seeing how happy the older sister was, if she gave them a tour of the camp and then suggested they stay, they would likely agree.

And she had also made another observation.

She now understood why they hadn’t accepted the bone fracture rings.

It wasn’t a fracture; it was likely paralysis.

She hadn’t seen the younger girl move her legs at all.

They didn’t need bone fracture rings; they needed a wheelchair or crutches.

Wan Zi remembered a few unused folding wheelchairs in the medical center. She would go and see if she could find one, clean it, and bring it to them.

This gesture, if she was right, would seal the deal.

Meanwhile, in room 111, Lin Xiwan was teaching Lin Jiayao how to control her new ability.

She had cleaned the stool and placed it beside the bed, helping her sister sit there, then sat on the stool herself, facing her.

“Now breathe deeply… and feel your heartbeat, the flow of blood… Yes… yes! That’s it!”

Lin Jiayao learned quickly, much to Lin Xiwan’s delight and satisfaction.

Within five minutes, under her expert tutelage, her sister had learned to activate and deactivate her Awakened vision.

And through her questioning, Lin Xiwan had a better understanding of her sister’s ability.

Unlike her former vice-captain, her sister couldn’t see through walls – she couldn’t see walls at all.

Activating her ability plunged her vision into darkness, only blood-red lights visible, unlike her vice-captain, whose normal vision wasn’t affected.

But her vice-captain’s ability only had a range of 50 meters, which he could maintain almost constantly.

Her sister’s ability, while able to detect all blood crystals within her field of vision, couldn’t be maintained for long; she would be unable to see obstacles.

This was an incredibly useful ability for them.

They could detect enemies from hundreds of meters away and avoid them, preventing another incident like last night.

Even now, looking at her sister, still experimenting with her new ability, Lin Xiwan felt like she was dreaming.

She’d found a seemingly decent camp, and her sister had Awakened. Two joyous occasions, double the happiness.

What Lin Xiwan didn’t know was that her sister, while ostensibly testing her new ability, was also experimenting with something else.

With Blood Crystal Vision activated, Lin Jiayao’s world was shrouded in darkness, only red lights visible.

But when she touched the bed frame with her fingernail, activating Bone Spike Lurker, her vision changed.

The terrain simulated by Bone Spike Lurker overlapped with the darkness.

Now, besides the darkness, she could also see white lines outlining the objects within a fifty-meter radius.

The combination of the two abilities allowed her to see both blood crystal entities and the surrounding terrain.

The weakness of Blood Crystal Vision had been compensated for by a simple gray evolution.

This realization excited her.

As she gained more evolutions, they could complement each other, creating synergistic effects greater than the sum of their parts.

Continuing down this path, she might truly become… the perfect ultimate being…

“Hoo…” Lin Jiayao exhaled slowly, deciding to avoid mental-affecting evolutions from now on, no matter how powerful they seemed.

As long as she remained in control, what did it matter how she evolved? It only meant she could protect her sister more effectively.

I’ll rest for a bit, take a shower, and then check on Goldie.

The last extraction had been dangerous; she didn’t know if Goldie had survived in that sewer.

If she had, she would have to retrieve the two blood crystals that had fallen in.

…

“Clank, clank…”
“Screech…”

On the highway, four Sprinters, their bodies connected by fungal tendrils, pulled a Wuling Hongguang van, its tires worn down to the rims, sparks flying as the chassis scraped against the asphalt.

A surprisingly cool sight.

The four Sprinters pulling the van were different from before; she’d clearly gone through a few sets.

Inside the van, the little girl with white hair knelt on the driver’s seat, clutching a notebook, her other hand on the window, her eyes wide with fascination as she watched the sparks fly, her stocking-clad feet dangling.

So pretty… but so dangerous…

She was both fascinated and scared by the sparks.

She was afraid they might burn her.

“Driving is dangerous…” she murmured, watching the sparks.

“Screech—Thump—”

One of the Sprinters pulling the van suddenly stumbled, its head snapping back as it crashed into the front of the van, denting the hood.

The little girl looked at the Sprinter’s corpse, now covering the windshield, and ordered the other three to stop.

Dead?

What happened?

Then, she felt herself losing control of the other Sprinters, one by one.

She put down her notebook, sat down properly, put on her shoes, and was about to put on the other shoe when she heard the car door open.

Still bending down, she looked towards the open door.

A muscular man with tattoos, wearing a black gas mask and green goggles.

A human?

Just as she reached for her notebook, about to greet him politely, she was lifted off the ground by the back of her shirt.

“Boss—There’s a kid inside—Nothing else—” the man shouted towards the front.

Before he could finish, a shout came from ahead: “That’s a fucking zombie, you idiot—!”

“Holy shit!”

The man dropped the little girl as if she were a hot potato and ran towards the convoy.

He didn’t notice the slimy tendrils clinging to his hand.

The little girl stood up, clutching her notebook, looked at the men holding strange cylindrical objects, and said in a childish voice, “Hello, my name is Huayibai. My mom is—”

“Boom—”

A rocket, trailing flames, slammed into the wheel-less van beside her, exploding.

The blast threw Huayibai across the median and onto the opposite lane.

Its body was torn, the right side of its face mangled, only a few tendrils holding it together.

Its tendrils writhed, rapidly repairing the damage, but, ignoring the pain, it struggled to its feet and looked towards the burning van.

The van was engulfed in flames, everything inside charred.

Including the twenty books Lin Jiayao had given her.

Huayibai looked down at the scorched notebook in its hand, its belly splitting open, stuffed the book inside, and stood up unsteadily.

Its eyes glowed red, its mind filled with rage.

Searching its memories for the most potent curse it could find, it stared at the men and said in a raspy voice, “Your mother is dead…”

“Whoosh—”

Another rocket streaked towards its head.

But just as it was about to hit, Huayibai’s face split open, the rocket passing harmlessly through.

It glared at the woman holding the strange cylindrical object and slowly raised its right hand.

The tendrils that had clung to the tattooed man’s hand had crawled into his ear, pushing aside his useless Bluetooth earpiece and burrowing inside.

“AAAAAH—”

His scream echoed through the convoy.

Chapter 91: Sister’s Awakening?!

Lin Jiayao, like a child with a new toy, experimented with her new abilities.

But she was soon interrupted by a vibrating notification from the system window in the upper left corner.

Then she remembered asking the Awakened little girl to wake her up.

The vibration must be the little girl shaking her.

Lin Jiayao reluctantly put aside her exploration of her new abilities and switched back to her main body.

Opening her eyes, she saw the little girl kneeling beside her, gently shaking her shoulder.

“Go back to sleep…” Lin Jiayao said, canceling the synergistic pheromone control over the little girl, watching her climb back into bed before closing her eyes again.

There was no time to waste!

According to the system, there should be a lot of blood crystals at the site of the battle; she had to get there before the Biters scavenged everything.

Back in the fourth zombie’s body, Lin Jiayao extended her left arm into the sunlight.

Hmm…

Although she felt a slight instinctive aversion, the sunlight didn’t burn her skin.

This new body wasn’t vulnerable to UV light either, which would make daytime travel easier.

She left the basement, following the incline upwards.

Nearing the surface, she saw a long chain.

“Huh… an exploration team? Local to Fuzhou?” Lin Jiayao wasn’t sure if there were any other camps left in Fuzhou City besides the cannery.

No, the cannery wasn’t even a camp anymore.

It seemed that every camp she visited, or planned to visit, ended up destroyed after the system appeared.

Perhaps it was bad luck brought on by the system.

Thinking this, she bent her knees, leaped, and tried to jump over the chain.

But mid-air, she froze, staring at the scene before her.

A shattered machine gun, mangled corpses, crushed SUVs, and swarms of Biters feasting on the remains…

And those car logos…

All the vehicles, both SUVs and pickup trucks, had their logos replaced with metal “V” symbols, their bodies covered in graffiti and “V” markings.

Was this… a Voodoo Cult convoy?

Had the system’s autopilot wiped out an entire Voodoo Cult sweep team?

“Thump—” She landed on a car, denting the hood, the impact snapping her out of her stupor.

Holy shit… did my system actually do this…?

Lin Jiayao took a deep breath and activated Lv.1 Blood Crystal Vision.

A black film covered her eyes, only her pupils glowing red.

Good, this ability had been retained in this new body.

Quickly scanning her surroundings, besides the faint glow of blood crystals within the Biters and the scattered crystals on the ground, there weren’t any larger concentrations.

A few Biters, having consumed some blood crystals, were curled up on the ground, evolving.

Lin Jiayao glanced at the extraction point and time.

「Extraction Time 2:29:33」
【Extraction Point: 21km】

A long distance, but with her tireless body, she could easily reach it within the allotted time.

“Shhh—”

Red and green veins pulsed on her right arm as tendrils extended, wrapping around the large bone blade.

She crouched and charged towards the evolving Biters.

“Slash—”
“Swish—”

Swift, clean cuts, ending their lives.

Such strength… such speed!

This was the most powerful body she’d ever controlled… like a physically enhanced Awakened!

She’d never experienced such fluidity of movement before, not with An Xiaoxi, Goldie, or any other humanoid zombie.

With An Xiaoxi, she’d mostly felt the tendrils moving within her, not natural movement; she’d been controlling the fungus, not the body.

And Goldie… small and frail, its joints stiff, slow.

But this body… she felt like a normal person again, running and jumping.

This made her long for the use of her own legs.

If her legs recovered, she wouldn’t have to rely on her sister for everything.

Her figure weaved through the horde, quickly and efficiently killing Biters.

The Biters seemed unconcerned by the presence of a “high-level zombie” in their midst, continuing to scavenge for blood crystals, gnawing on corpses.

The slaughter continued for half an hour. Lin Jiayao was almost numb to it.

Although this new body was powerful, it wasn’t as efficient at killing as her previous, slender form.

There were no more moving targets within her Blood Crystal Vision, only a sea of red on the ground.

Looking at the scattered crystals, Lin Jiayao felt a headache coming on.

When Goldie scavenged for blood crystals, she had the insects to collect and fuse them.

But now, she had to bend down and pick them up one by one.

She finally realized how useful those insects were… at least for scavenging.

Finding the mostly skeletal remains of a few Voodoo Cult warriors with distinctive flattop haircuts, she tied their legs together, grabbed them by their hair, and started sweeping the battlefield.

Sweeping and kicking aside corpses, clearing an open space.

After removing the bodies, only the blood crystals remained.

It took her another thirty minutes to sweep them all into a pile.

The crystals, mixed with blood and gore, slowly fused together.

Lin Jiayao picked up the fully formed stones and put them in the safehouse.

After filling all four slots, she found a backpack in one of the smoking Voodoo Cult vehicles, emptied it, and filled it with blood crystals.

Including the four in the safehouse, the crystals from the Voodoo Cult vehicles and the scattered ones on the ground added up to eleven.

Mostly from the Voodoo Cult convoy; the Biters themselves hadn’t yielded much.

Lin Jiayao took a deep breath, forced herself to look away from the backpack, zipped it closed, and slung it over her shoulder.

Immediately, she felt uneasy and took it off, holding it in her arms instead.

This felt safer.

She could understand now why Huayibai liked to store valuable things inside its body; she wanted to swallow this backpack whole and run.

After checking the backpack for any holes or tears, she looked towards the extraction point and ran.

Extract!

Extract now!

Eleven blood crystal stones!

The Voodoo Cult was rich… too bad they were also dangerous. She probably wouldn’t have another chance to encounter them.

Lin Jiayao ran straight towards the extraction point, leaping over low walls, her feet pounding the concrete, wanting to reach it as quickly as possible.

Hopefully, there wouldn’t be any more surprises.

And as she ran, she occasionally activated Blood Crystal Vision to check for any high-density blood crystal entities nearby.

Just in case.

She was starting to see the limitations of Blood Crystal Vision.

To detect blood crystals, she had to keep it activated, but to see the terrain, she had to deactivate it.

She had an idea for a workaround, but she would have to test it with her main body.

Luckily, she encountered no obstacles and reached the extraction point, a villa garage, sliding inside.

[Extracting: 6.6]

The timer counted down. As the last few seconds ticked by, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Extracted!

Looking at the black settlement screen, she quickly transferred the backpack and the four blood crystals from the safehouse to the warehouse, arranging them neatly.

1, 2, 3, 4… 20!!!

Besides the 150g of crystal fragments, there were now twenty blood crystal stones in her warehouse!

Looking at the two full rows of crystals, Lin Jiayao’s illusory form smiled.

She looked at the extra 150g of fragments in the third row, hesitated, and then placed them in the fourth zombie’s mouth.

The fourth zombie had done a good job and deserved a reward.

After one last look at the neatly arranged crystals, Lin Jiayao nodded, exited the settlement space, and returned to her body.

Before even opening her eyes, she felt a cool breeze on her face.

Opening her eyes slightly, she saw a fan waving in front of her.

She turned her head and saw her sister lying beside her.

Her head was resting on her sister’s right arm, and her sister’s left hand held a makeshift fan, gently fanning her.

“Awake?” Lin Xiwan smiled, putting down the fan and pinching her sister’s cheek.

“Mm…” Lin Jiayao sat up with her sister’s help.

“You were sweating in your sleep, so I went and got you a fan,” she explained, seeing her sister looking at the fan.

“Oh…”

It’s because you were cuddling me… and your legs were wrapped around mine… of course I was sweating…

Lin Jiayao complained mentally, then glanced at the evolution retention interface, her eyes widening at one of the options.

「Please retain your evolution」
「1、【Liquid Blood Crystal Veins Lv.1 (Purple): Liquefies and stores blood crystals within your body, allowing you to mimic blood crystal intensity to deceive enemies】」
「2、【Trait Fusion Lv.1 (Gold): Allows your body to be compatible with different blood crystal abilities and perform targeted evolution】」
「3、【Hunting Rhythm Lv.1 (Gold): You are always in optimal hunting condition】」

Two gold and one purple!

What surprised Lin Jiayao wasn’t the two gold evolutions without negative side effects, but the first, a purple evolution.

Was this the fourth zombie’s ability to hide blood crystals?

And the description… mimic blood crystal intensity to deceive enemies…?

Mimic blood crystal intensity…

“System?! Can this evolution make me… mimic an Awakened? Have blood crystals flowing in my blood?”

Lin Jiayao asked mentally, her heart pounding.

The system’s answer was immediate.

「Yes」

Without hesitation, she chose the first evolution, ignoring the two gold options.

Even with more time, she would have still chosen the first.

Although she might not be able to get those gold evolutions if the fourth zombie died during its next extraction, this was what she needed most right now.

With this, she could disguise herself as an Awakened.

She could “charge” herself with blood crystals, E-rank, D-rank, C-rank, depending on how much she absorbed.

With enough blood crystals, she could even mimic a B-rank.

She could finally reveal some less… monstrous abilities in front of her sister, like Blood Crystal Vision.

She could pretend to be a reconnaissance-type Awakened.

And then gradually increase her “power level” by absorbing more blood crystals over time.

Just like a real Awakened.

Only her progress would be much faster. After all, she wanted to surpass her sister’s strength quickly, so her sister would also learn to rely on her.

“Yao? Yao? What’s wrong? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Seeing her sister sitting motionless, lost in thought, Lin Xiwan panicked.

Had her sister become… brain-damaged from all that sleep?

Seeing her sister’s worried expression, Lin Jiayao decided to put on an Oscar-worthy performance.

An Awakened suddenly developing her abilities in her sleep… it wasn’t that implausible, was it?

“Sister…” Lin Jiayao frowned, clutching her eyes. “My eyes… they hurt… so much… it hurts…”

“What? Your eyes hurt?” Lin Xiwan panicked and turned to the two little girls, who were now awake. “Go to room 101 across the courtyard, find Auntie Lan, and tell her to get a doctor! Now!”

While her sister was distracted, Lin Jiayao quickly took about 5g of blood crystals from the warehouse and put them in her mouth.

The crystals instantly dissolved, following the evolution’s guidance, spreading throughout her bloodstream.

Chapter 90: This is Evolution?

“Gulp—”

The mutated zombie swallowed the green “goo.” Alian could even see what it was.

Wei’s head, not yet fully dissolved, sliding down the translucent esophagus, reaching the zombie’s stomach, dissolving, becoming a part of it.

Like a game of Snake.

“Motherfucker…” A wave of rage washed over Alian, the zombie’s casual, almost mocking act of consumption igniting her fury.

Fueled by the “stamps” and her desire for revenge, her heart pounded, her eyes bloodshot.

Ignoring the three vials she had already consumed, she ripped open her waist pouch, grabbed the remaining seven or eight vials, and poured them into her mouth.

“Crack—Crack, crack—”

The bones in her body snapped and reformed, her form shifting constantly as the different bone powders battled for dominance, each vying for control over her mutation.

Her frenzied transformation forced the caterpillar-like zombie to take her seriously.

It turned to face her, its thin bone spikes supporting its fleshy body as it crawled out from under the car.

“RAAAAAH—”

Seeing the approaching zombie, Alian clenched her fists, the skin on her hands tearing, revealing the grayish scales beneath.

“Boom—”

She slammed her fists together into the hood of the SUV.

The force of the impact shattered the axles, the vehicle splitting in two, the front half crushing the caterpillar zombie.

“Gurgle—”

A squelching sound from beneath the wreckage, green fluid splattering onto Alian’s feet.

And then the fluid began to sizzle.

It was corroding her skin.

Even her scales couldn’t protect her. A normal person would have retreated from the pain.

But Alian, consumed by rage, her body swelling, bone spikes erupting from her joints, a pair of bull-like horns sprouting from her head, didn’t flinch.

She bent down, gripped the front bumper of the car, and, with a mighty heave, lifted it.

The two-ton SUV flipped over, revealing the crushed zombie beneath.

Ignoring the green blood, she reached for the zombie’s head.

The crushed zombie, its body riddled with bullet holes, couldn’t stand.

As Alian grabbed its jaws, pulling them apart, the zombie, sensing the danger, thrashed, its body coiling around her like a snake.

“Sizzle…”

The zombie, its dissolving body twisting and writhing, tried to melt through her neck.

But Alian, oblivious to the danger, roared, drool dripping from her distorted, blackened mouth.

“Crack—Crack, crack—”

Consumed by madness, her strength increased. She tore at the zombie’s recently regenerated jaw, ripping it open.

A desperate struggle, a battle to the death. Either she would be burned through, her body severed, or it would be decapitated, its brains splattered.

The zombie’s body had completely coiled around Alian’s scaled and increasingly hairy neck.

And Alian’s hands, having ripped off the zombie’s lower jaw, gripped the upper jaw and pulled.

“Crack—”

A crack appeared in the zombie’s skull, between its teeth and its nose, spreading towards its forehead as Alian pulled harder.

If the crack reached the top of its head, the skull would split open like a Poké Ball, revealing the brain within.

“Gasp—”

Just as the crack was about to reach the top, Alian choked, her legs giving way, and she fell to her knees.

On the verge of victory, the flesh, scales, and fur on the back of her neck had been burned through, the green blood seeping into her spine, creating charred holes.

“Thump, thump, thump—”

“Boom—”

The other Voodoo Cult members were still fighting the growing horde, the gunfire and explosions fueling their adrenaline; no one noticed what was happening behind them.

Even if they had, it would have been too late.

Alian’s body had been dragged under the SUV by the zombie head, her grotesque, inhuman form oozing blood crystals from its neck.

The blood, pooling on the ground, the crystals fusing together, forming blood crystal stones.

Three blood crystals materialized in front of the dying zombie, their surfaces cloudy and dark, as if aged for centuries.

The mutated zombie, with effort, moved its head, its jaw touching the blood crystals, the blood and mucus on the ground clinging to it.

The blood crystals melted upon contact, seeping into its skin, rapidly rebuilding its body.

Having consumed two human blood crystals, it could now evolve towards a human form.

Reverting to its Hunter form would have been more efficient.

But after a moment of hesitation, it chose the human path.

Its newly formed bones, organs, skin color, and overall shape were all shifting towards a human form.

To impress a certain someone.

The fusion of two devouring abilities had given it an incredible regeneration rate.

Within ten seconds, its skeleton and internal organs had regenerated, and muscle was forming.

Ten seconds later, it could breathe again, its heart beating, like a skinless anatomical model, lying on the ground, gasping for air.

Its grotesque head also began to reshape itself, becoming more human.

Compared to its initial Hunter form, this was a regression, but compared to its recent insect form, it was an evolution.

And most importantly, its core ability had fused with Alian’s, creating a new, evolved ability.

“Hoo—”

Another ten seconds, and the mutated zombie, lying under the SUV, exhaled deeply, as if clearing its lungs.

And then it didn’t inhale again.

Long, golden hair sprouted from its bald head, falling around it, the soft strands matted with blood.

“Rustle—Rustle—”

It slowly crawled out from under the car, its crimson eyes fixed on the Voodoo Cult warriors fighting the horde, their backs to it.

Small, yellowish scales spread from its chest, covering the most vulnerable parts of its body.

And its right hand slowly rose, green and red veins intertwined, the stark contrast unsettling.

“Shhh—”

The veins pulsed beneath its skin, and a long, sharp bone blade, almost as long as its arm, erupted from its hand, the bone slicing through the flesh, as if replacing its hand with a crescent-shaped blade.

If Lin Jiayao could have seen this, she would have exclaimed, “Holy shit! An A-rank!”

It tilted its head, flexed its shoulders, getting used to its new body.

Looking at the backs of the Voodoo Cult members, it crouched down, its left hand forward, the curved blade in its right hand held back.

“Crack—Boom!”

Suddenly, it kicked off the ground with its right leg, the concrete shattering beneath the force.

It blurred into motion, a gust of wind as it lunged towards a nearby pickup truck.

“Huh?”

The machine gunner on the pickup truck turned and saw a pair of crimson eyes and a long, slender leg.

What is…?

“Boom—”
“Screech—”

The mutated zombie kicked the front of the pickup truck. The tires screeched, and the vehicle, carrying a stunned Voodoo Cult warrior, slid towards the horde.

“Rumble—”

The pickup truck crashed into the horde and stopped, the machine gunner thrown from the vehicle.

“AAAAH!!!”

“Shit!”

“What happened?!”

“Where’s Wei?!”

“Where’s Sister Lian?!”

They stopped firing their overheating weapons and stared at the tall, unfamiliar woman standing amidst the chaos.

Although her figure and appearance were captivating, the blade in her right hand and the crimson glow in her eyes warned them – this wasn’t human.

“A mutated zombie! It’s attacking!”

“Bang, bang—Bang—”

The man who shouted had his rifle explode in his hands, the plastic fragments slicing his throat, silencing him.

But his warning had alerted the others, who scrambled to reload.

But the horde was closing in, and they were now caught between two threats.

“Boom—”

The mutated zombie, while they were reloading, kicked another pickup truck.

“Rumble—Rumble—Rumble—”

The truck flew through the air, crashing into the others like dominoes.

As the Voodoo Cult members struggled to get out of the wrecked vehicles, the mutated zombie leaped into the air, its bladed hand slashing down at the crowd.

“Boom—”

…

So this is what modification does?

Lin Jiayao slightly lifted her shirt, exposing her flat stomach, and fanned herself with the hem.

She was operating the system’s modification interface, a slight frown on her face.

Being cuddled while sleeping was too hot, she was sweating, but she didn’t want to disturb her sister, who had been up all night.

She had just spent 100g of blood crystals, three modifications, experimenting with the Workbench.

It was like evolving a weapon. Perhaps because of the switchblade’s simple design and small size, each modification only cost 10g.

A small price to pay, even for her, with only 9.5 blood crystals remaining.

After ten modifications, she looked at the switchblade and paused.

Was it even a switchblade anymore?

The original wooden handle was now blood-red, like a ruby, gleaming in the light of the Workbench.

She mentally pressed the button, and the blade sprang out with a click, a smooth, off-white surface with blood-red speckles, gleaming coldly.

A system prompt appeared above it.

「Switchblade +10」
「Modification effects: Cutting Lv.3, Hemolysis Lv.4, Ergonomics Lv.3」

Cutting, as the name suggested, increased sharpness.

Hemolysis, like certain snake venoms, caused uncontrolled bleeding and tissue damage.

And Ergonomics seemed to improve the grip, weight, and overall design, making it more comfortable for Lin Jiayao to use.

But that “+10” gave it a distinct… MMORPG feel.

“System, can I… break a weapon… by over-modifying it?”

She asked mentally.

No response.

The system was becoming increasingly unreliable.

Having figured out the modification function, Lin Jiayao dismissed the Workbench and opened the Training Grounds.

Her sister would probably sleep for another two or three hours; she could use this time to practice Mask’s new abilities and prepare for her next login.

She didn’t want to lose either Mask or Goldie; they were her main sources of combat power now.

The second zombie had been remade, and the fourth was unlikely to survive. She had to hone Mask’s abilities.

Thorough preparation meant a higher chance of survival.

Inside the Training Grounds, Lin Jiayao controlled Mask, simulating battles against various enemies.

She even simulated a tank, but Mask was no match for it, easily destroyed. Its speed was no match for a tank shell.

And even if it managed to dodge and reach the tank, it couldn’t penetrate the armor.

Just as she dismissed the tank simulation and was about to exit the Training Grounds, she saw a “①” on the login screen.

What happened? Had the fourth zombie died?

Curious, she opened the login interface.

「No.1: [Mask] (Available for login)」
「No.2: 【❌ (23:27:33)】」
「No.3: [Goldie] (Available for login)」
「No.4: [Unnamed] (Available for login)」

Huh?

She stared at the fourth slot.

It… it had survived?

“System, did the autopilot succeed?” she asked mentally.

「Barely」

Just two words, but Lin Jiayao sensed a hint of… disdain?

“Oh… so it wasn’t anything major.” She was about to select Mask when another prompt appeared.

「The system recommends checking on No.4’s status. Autopilot mode does not automatically store loot.」

“Oh, right…” After a moment of thought, she moved her cursor from Mask to the fourth zombie.

But just as she was about to click, she stopped.

“No, the fourth zombie would just consume any blood crystals and hide them somehow. There might not be anything left.” She sighed inwardly, her cursor hovering over Mask again.

「During autopilot, a large amount of blood crystals and equipment were scattered around, along with a group of ordinary Biters. The system deemed them non-threatening and entered sleep mode…」

Before the system could finish, Lin Jiayao quickly selected the fourth zombie.

Blood crystals? Why didn’t you say so earlier?!

Before logging in, she used her pheromones to control the older of the two little girls.

The description said it affected any creature with blood crystals, so it should work on humans, right?

She issued a simple command: wake her up.

If it worked, she would have the tendrils withdraw; they weren’t good for the human body.

Then, Lin Jiayao’s consciousness plunged into darkness, waiting to be woken up and then letting the fourth zombie run on autopilot while she slept.

Perhaps it would collect more blood crystals than it could consume, and she could scavenge the leftovers?

Lin Jiayao slowly opened her eyes and then froze.

She… she had opened her eyes?

She blinked, realizing she was in a basement, sunlight streaming in from above.

She looked down, examining her body in the sunlight.

AAAAH, I’m…

Naked?

Wait, that wasn’t the main issue. Why was she in a human body?

A familiar urge to hunt surged through her, but it stopped short of consuming her, just a heightened sense of excitement.

The fourth zombie had… changed?

Was this evolution, or devolution?

She closed her eyes, focusing on her body’s abilities.

As she focused, yellowish scales shimmered on her skin in… certain areas.

---

Concept sketch of 4th zombie, Sister A:

Chapter 89: Wei’s Demise

“Whoosh—”

Alian’s right fist whistled through the air, stopping just short of the mutated zombie’s maw. She leaned in, delivering a vicious elbow strike to the side of its head.

“Crack—”

The bone-spiked elbow connected.

The zombie’s jaw dislocated with a sickening crack, blood and teeth spraying, but the upper half of its face, still firmly attached to its neck, remained unmoved.

“Whirr…”

A whirring sound from beside her, and a spray of blood splattered her face.

Startled, Alian jumped back, rolled, and crouched down, touching her swollen cheek.

Blood… not mine?

She then noticed the mutated zombie’s hands; the grotesque chainsaw blades were spinning rapidly.

And the blood… had come from the zombie itself, the spinning blades having torn through the flesh and muscle at its elbows.

Seeing the whirring chainsaws, Alian instantly abandoned the idea of close combat. She would need weapons that could withstand those blades.

“Rat-tat-tat-tat—”

The Voodoo Cult warriors, having reloaded behind cover, emerged and fired at the mutated zombie’s head.

“Click—”
“Click—”

The first few bullets embedded themselves in the zombie’s bald head, but then it ducked and leaped towards the nearest shooter.

Its speed and agility were too much; they couldn’t track it with their rifles.

“Wei! Poison!” Alian shouted, after her men had bought her some time with their lives.

“Here!” Amidst the hail of bullets, Wei yelled, throwing a severed, green, bloody leg from behind his tire barricade.

As the leg flew through the air, Alian, flapping her vestigial bone wings, leaped and caught it. It was already starting to melt and soften like a green popsicle.

She shoved the entire leg into her distended mouth.

“Gulp—”

The moment her teeth pierced the skin, the leg exploded inside her mouth, the green pus and gore expanding her already swollen face and neck.

She looked at the mutated zombie, its chainsaws tearing apart one of her men, and charged.

The mutated zombie seemed to notice her heavy footsteps, but before it could turn, Alian opened her mouth slightly.

“Gulp—retch—”

A stream of green vomit erupted from her mouth, splattering the mutated zombie, which was still feasting on the corpse.

“Sizzle…”

Like concentrated sulfuric acid on tissue paper, the green vomit began to dissolve the zombie’s flesh and bone.

Yes!

Although Alian was thrilled, she couldn’t show it.

The force of her vomit had splattered some of the green blood onto her own face and chin.

It was burning her skin; she quickly ripped off her shirt, trying to wipe it away.

She hadn’t touched Wei’s severed arm directly. Consuming it earlier had not only healed her wounds but also coated her mouth and esophagus with a protective layer of green mucus, preventing the toxic blood from harming her.

But she still had some on her face. She could buy one of Wei’s fingers after the battle to heal it; she wouldn’t be disfigured.

She would just have to get the skin re-tattooed.

The bone wings and claws that had sprouted earlier were starting to recede; their duration was over.

But she didn’t care; the moment the toxic blood had connected, the battle was over.

Such a large amount of toxic blood would incapacitate even an Armored zombie, let alone this strange, Hunter-like mutated zombie.

As expected, the zombie’s flesh and bone began to rapidly dissolve, even its skull.

But it didn’t fall, its liquefied blood crystals working frantically to repair the damage, preventing the green blood from reaching its brain and spine.

“Whirr—”

One of the drivers, having recovered, had climbed into a pickup truck and started the engine.

The sound alerted the others. The survivors scrambled into the remaining two pickup trucks and manned the machine guns.

“Screech—”

The green pickup truck executed a perfect drift, its back now facing the mutated zombie, which was struggling to stand, and honked its horn.

“Beep, beep—”

“Hurry!!! That noise attracted the horde!” one of the Voodoo Cult members shouted.

The Biters, drawn by the earlier commotion, were shuffling towards them.

The faster ones had already been killed; the remaining ones were mostly smaller or had damaged legs.

But even the slowest had finally arrived.

And there were a lot of them, attracted by the dispersed teams. Normally, these slow, sun-weakened Biters would be easy targets.

But now they had a bigger problem to deal with.

“Rat-tat-tat-tat—Rat-tat-tat—Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat—”

“Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang—”

The heavy machine gun mounted on the pickup truck roared, the spent casings clattering against the metal.

The barrage tore through the zombie’s three-meter-tall body, severing its neck and sending its head flying.

“Thump, thump!”

Alian slammed her fists against the side of the truck. After the gunfire stopped, she said, “Enough with the overkill, let’s deal with the newcomers!”

“Vroom—”

Following her command, the pickup truck reversed, heading towards the approaching horde.

The remaining Voodoo Cult warriors also grabbed their weapons and joined the fight.

If they could eliminate them all, they would get at least a dozen blood crystals, not counting the ones from the mutated zombie.

Alian, leaning against the car door, wincing slightly, watched the zombie’s mangled remains until she saw the telltale glint of blood crystals, then breathed a sigh of relief.

“Fucking hell… it’s finally dead…”

Although there weren’t as many crystals as she’d expected, their presence meant the zombie was truly dead.

She rested for a bit, the swelling on her face subsiding, the other mutations receding.

Except for a few bumps on her face where the green blood had burned her skin, she was almost back to her normal human appearance.

Glancing at her subordinates, who were efficiently dispatching the Biters, she wiped the blood from her lips and decided to check on Wei.

He was valuable to the Boss; they couldn’t afford to lose him… He had, after all, paid a heavy price for this battle, literally.

Reaching the SUV, she saw Wei struggling to stand, leaning against a tire.

His right arm and leg were missing, green, gel-like blood oozing from the wounds, slowly regenerating.

She envied his ability.

With enough blood crystals, he could keep tearing off his limbs, and the zombies would ignore him.

To them, he was probably like… human waste, highly corrosive waste.

She reached out to help him, but he flinched away.

“Lay off the drugs, you’re practically useless now,” he said calmly, his expression not betraying the agony of having his limbs torn off.

Hearing his words, Alian clenched and unclenched her fists.

“My fault, Brother Wei.” She lowered her head slightly and, after confirming he was alright, turned and walked towards the horde.

She couldn’t bear to face him.

They were both C-rank Awakened, but her mind had been ravaged by drugs, unable to fully utilize her abilities.

Although she could develop immunity to the physical effects of the drugs through evolution, the mental damage was unavoidable, except for a few mind-control type Awakened.

She had C-rank abilities, but to access them, she needed the drugs, a vicious cycle of dependence and increasing mental damage.

And she was addicted.

Wei’s green blood and flesh could restore some mental strength, a small amount, but even so, the Boss often had him accompany her on missions, hoping to help her recover.

If she hadn’t been impaired, if she’d been at full strength, she wouldn’t have needed Wei to sacrifice his leg. She could have easily taken down that mutated zombie with a few more doses of bone powder.

Sadly, even consuming a dozen Weis wouldn’t restore her now.

Perhaps reaching A-rank would offer some hope.

But she’d barely even seen a B-rank Awakened, let alone an A-rank. Those higher ranks were just theoretical.

“Sigh…”

Alian sighed, jumped onto the pickup truck, pushed aside the Voodoo Cult warrior manning the machine gun, took over, and started firing.

Another warrior beside her constantly poured water on the barrel to cool it down, the metal sizzling and steaming.

After firing for a while, Alian realized something was wrong.

Where was Wei?

He should have been here by now, directing the scavenging operation, but she hadn’t seen him since he’d stood up.

She jumped down from the pickup truck and ran back to where Wei had been, searching frantically among the vehicles.

She couldn’t find him… He couldn’t have been attacked by zombies; no zombie could sneak up on a C-rank Awakened undetected.

“Brother Wei!” she shouted, but there was no response.

Suddenly, a chilling thought, and goosebumps erupted on her skin.

She took a few vials of powder from her waist pouch and ran towards the mutated zombie’s remains.

The blood crystals… were gone…

The glittering crystals that had precipitated from the corpse had vanished. And as she approached, she heard another faint, sickening sound, besides the gunfire.

“Gurgle—”

“Crack—”

Like the sounds Wei made when using his ability, but that “crack” sounded like… chewing.

The sound came from behind an SUV, near the mutated zombie’s corpse.

“Brother Wei?”

She called out tentatively, but there was no response.

She took out three vials from her pouch and uncapped them.

Holding them in her mouth, ready to swallow, she cautiously peered under the SUV.

Her eyes widened.

What… what was she seeing?

The mutated zombie’s head, now with several half-meter-long bone spikes extending from it, was perched on a body, gnawing on a green, bloody figure.

Wei’s body. He hadn’t even had time to turn his green blood into its toxic form before being devoured.

And, fueled by Wei’s blood crystals, a thick, segmented, green, caterpillar-like body was growing from the head’s neck.

The grotesque, gelatinous green body pulsed, its vertebrae and the bone spikes within clearly visible.

Like a giant, fleshy caterpillar with a human head.

If Alian had to describe it with food, it would be a melting, moldy green popsicle, lying limply on the ground, the wooden stick replaced by a human head.

Suddenly, the head stopped eating, turned, and looked at her.

Its face, covered in green veins, was far more grotesque and terrifying than before.

Alian’s heart nearly stopped. She swallowed the bone powder and blood crystals, then took out several postage stamp-sized pieces of paper from her other pocket and stuffed them into her mouth.

This was no time for restraint.

She finally understood why the Boss had contacted them via radio code, demanding reinforcements, specifically those with explosives.

The Boss had known there was something dangerous in Fuzhou City, something that could survive with just a head…

Chapter 88: A Perfect Body

“Go, go, go!”

The woman quickly retreated, ignoring the pursuing Biters, and climbed back into the SUV.

Both drivers, without a word, started their engines and sped towards the source of the signal flare.

Under the harsh sunlight, the already slow Biters were even slower, unable to keep up with the modified SUVs, left in their dust.

The convoy hadn’t dispersed far, and soon, the scattered vehicles regrouped.

“Faster! Faster!” The mohawked woman, perhaps due to the bone fragments she had consumed, was even more agitated.

She tugged at the driver’s braid, urging him to accelerate.

“Screech—”

The SUV stopped in front of an underground parking lot beneath a large shopping mall.

The underground parking lot was pitch black, but a single green glow stick, a Voodoo Cult item, was visible.

The woman jumped out and was about to enter the parking lot when the other vehicles arrived.

“Wait, Alian,” Wei’s voice called out from the second vehicle. “Don’t rush. Turn off the music and the engines.”

His orders were relayed quickly, and even the arrogant mohawked woman stopped.

It seemed that in situations like this, Wei was in charge.

With the music silenced and the engines off, an eerie quiet settled over the area.

“Crunch, crunch—”

“Growl… gurgle…”

The chilling sounds of chewing and guttural growls echoed from the dark parking lot.

It seemed the Voodoo Cult members who had foolishly driven into the basement hadn’t fared well.

“Start your engines, set the traps, prepare the machine guns and grenades! Move! Move! Move!”

“Whirr—”

The engines roared to life. Following their practiced routine, four men carried two large coils of barbed wire, each attached to a pickup truck, and laid the wire across the parking lot entrance.

If any zombies came running out, they would be tripped and then dragged down by the trucks.

This was just their last line of defense. The other combat vehicles had already formed a semi-circle around the entrance.

Any zombie emerging would first face six light machine guns.

“Damn it… is all this really necessary…?” the woman muttered, looking at the preparations.

In her opinion, this city barely had any mutated zombies; it was too easy.

She was a C-rank physical enhancement Awakened. Upon reaching C-rank, she had also gained the ability to temporarily absorb the bone structures of other creatures, further enhancing her strength.

And there was another C-rank Awakened in their team. Even without him, she alone could probably handle most mutated zombies.

So, she was impatient with Wei’s caution; it seemed excessive.

But all the members were diligently preparing; she couldn’t complain openly.

When everything was ready, one of the men near the parking lot entrance looked at Wei.

Seeing Wei nod, he took out a flashbang grenade.

To the Voodoo Cult, flashbangs were the perfect zombie lure.

Both the bright flash and the loud bang would drive them straight into their traps.

“Whoosh—”

Pulling the pin, he tossed the grenade into the dark parking lot.

It bounced off a wall, rolled down a slope, and then exploded with a loud “BOOM.”

The man who had thrown it had already retreated behind the convoy.

Now, everyone stared intently at the parking lot entrance, not daring to move.

But strangely, after the initial explosion, there was no sound from the parking lot.

Even the earlier chewing and growls had stopped; it was as if there were no zombies inside.

Normally, zombies would have charged out at the sound of the flashbang. This was the first time they’d encountered such silence.

After waiting for about thirty seconds, the mohawked woman, Alian, said, “Did… did the flashbang kill them all?”

“Uh…” Even Wei was puzzled. He’d never encountered this in all his years in the apocalypse.

It didn’t fit the usual zombie behavior patterns.

Ignoring Alian’s absurd question, a flashbang couldn’t kill zombies, not unless it was Russian-made.

And any zombie capable of taking down a Voodoo Cult team wouldn’t be killed by a flashbang.

Perhaps because his years of experience seemed useless now, Wei felt a surge of irritation.

He loosened his black polo shirt collar, took a deep breath, and tried to calm down.

As he looked up, something flickered in the corner of his eye, seemingly a reflection from the shopping mall’s windows above…

No! There was something up there!

“Above!” Wei shouted, slapping the driver’s head and diving into the back seat, grabbing his rifle.

“Roar—”

“Crash—”

From the shopping mall above, a roar and the sound of shattering glass, followed by a slender figure, lunging downwards like a praying mantis.

A mutated zombie!

Likely the one from the basement!

Wei didn’t even have time to chamber a round before tumbling out of the car.

The driver, still inside, was instantly killed, his head bitten off by the falling zombie.

“Fuck! It’s Awakened-controlled! It’s from a camp!” Alian was the first to react, besides Wei.

The machine guns on the pickup trucks were aimed at the basement entrance; they couldn’t turn them around in time, they had to turn the vehicles.

“Fire!” She snatched the rifle from the driver beside her and fired a burst at the mutated zombie.

Only then did she see it clearly.

What… what the hell was that? A Lurker-Hunter-Sprinter-Biter hybrid?

And it seemed to be growing skin, the thin layer covering its exposed muscles, seemingly no longer vulnerable to sunlight.

It was evolving… right after feeding…

What kind of monster was this?!

Seeing the zombie, both of them remembered the Boss’s words.

Something’s wrong in Fuzhou… something’s trying to kill me…

“Crack—”

Another sickening crunch of bone snapped them out of their stupor.

“Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang—”

“Rat-tat-tat-tat—”

Recovering from their initial shock, everyone opened fire.

Even Wei, still on the ground, rolled away from the car, chambered a round, and fired at the mutated zombie from a half-lying position.

“Thud—”
“Roar—”

Bullets hit the zombie, splattering blood, but it simply roared, seemingly unaffected, its increased weight from the embedded bullets the only sign of damage.

Before the Voodoo Cult warriors could deploy their RPG, the mutated zombie threw the corpse it held towards them and then, leaping from the car roof, lunged at Wei, who was reloading on the ground.

“Fuck… Alian!!!”

Wei threw his rifle, still without a magazine, at the zombie’s face, then rolled out of the way.

It’s targeting me! It’s trying to kill me!

Instantly understanding, Wei called for backup.

Alian, hearing her name, had already taken a test tube from her special pouch.

It contained a powder and a 10g blood crystal, a “Wow” written on the glass.

She quickly uncapped it and swallowed the contents.

“Ugh—”

She gagged but swallowed it all.

Her jaw and neck swelled grotesquely. She opened her distended mouth and, extending an abnormally long tongue towards Wei, wrapped it around his throat and yanked him towards her.

The mutated zombie, instead of being pinned down by the gunfire, rolled expertly, its bone spikes hooking onto Wei’s discarded rifle and magazine, reloading and chambering a round mid-roll.

When it stopped rolling, now in a half-kneeling position, it held the rifle with its bone spikes, its posture perfect.

Don’t tell me it’s going to…

“Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang…”

Short, controlled bursts. With each shot, a Voodoo Cult member fell, a bloody hole in their forehead.

Holy shit!

Wei stared in disbelief.

Perfect headshots, every single one!

Did this zombie have fucking aimbot?

“Take cover!” Wei shouted, rolling under a car, his back against a tire, and quickly taking out a blood crystal from his pocket.

The other Voodoo Cult members also scrambled for cover. The mutated zombie’s field of vision was now clear.

The only one remaining in the open was Alian, four small test tubes clutched in her hand.

Without time to uncap them, she shoved them all into her mouth and bit down.

“Crack—”

The glass shattered in her mouth, and her body began to transform even more drastically.

A horn sprouted from her forehead, fangs erupted from her mouth, piercing her lips, and her skin was now covered in gleaming scales.

Seemingly noticing the commotion, the mutated zombie instantly turned, its rifle aimed at Alian’s head.

“Bang—”

A single shot, the moment it acquired its target.

The bullet hit the horn on her forehead, chipping off a small piece of bone, then ricocheted off a scale on her face with a “ding” and fell to the ground.

Wei, hidden behind the tire, closed his eyes, the blood crystal in his hand.

He didn’t want to use this life-shortening ability unless absolutely necessary.

“Gulp—”

He swallowed the thumb-sized, 50g blood crystal.

His vision turned a sickly green.

“AAAAAH—”

He grabbed his right arm and ripped it off. The arm, stretching like rubber, came off easily, viscous green blood dripping from the wound.

A green gel-like substance oozed from the stump, forming a new arm.

He threw the severed arm towards the green-haired woman.

“Alian!!!”

Hearing him, Alian quickly caught the now completely green arm and bit into the severed end.

“Chomp—”

Green blood and bone fragments sprayed.

Her strength and injuries rapidly recovered. She swallowed the limb and charged towards the mutated zombie.

The mutated zombie discarded the empty rifle. The liquefied blood crystals within its body, its reserve for emergencies, were rapidly repairing its flesh and bones.

“Roar—”

Looking at the approaching woman, a perfect match for its newly acquired abilities, it grinned, a grotesque, almost inhuman expression, and then, catching her punch with its face, opened its maw, revealing the spiraling bone teeth within.

It knew that after absorbing this body, gaining her abilities, its own incomplete evolution would be complete.

It would surprise that system-reliant weakling, make her regret underestimating it.