The unusual behavior of Yun Huacen and his group caught Li Hailing’s attention, prompting him to lead his team in pursuit. However, shortly after giving chase, they noticed that the number of zombies on the streets had suddenly increased, and they were moving rapidly.
“Captain, the zombies are getting more and more!”
Li Hailing had naturally noticed this as well. The further they pursued, the more zombies they encountered. Their vehicle had also sustained damage from repeated collisions. If they continued like this, they were bound to run into serious trouble.
“Captain, let’s change our route. Otherwise, we’ll all be finished here.”
Li Hailing glanced at the car that had already driven far ahead, pondered for a moment, then turned the vehicle around and steered into an alley. Although the alley was narrow, there were few zombies. With their fast speed, they quickly shook off the zombies chasing behind them.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and asked, “Captain, where do we go next?”
After a brief silence, Li Hailing replied, “Let’s head back and regroup with Jin first.”
“What about those people from earlier?”
Ling Yun, sitting in the passenger seat, spoke up, “The town has lost power, so surveillance cameras are unusable. That car also had no license plate, making it difficult to trace their information. Rather than wasting time and resources, we should continue with the rescue mission.”
“I can’t shake the feeling that something’s off. They got away too easily.” Li Hailing paused briefly before continuing, “My intuition tells me they’re important to us.”
“Then report it and wait for instructions from higher-ups. Don’t forget, our mission is rescue.”
“That car is an LH, and it’s a new model, worth at least several million. Not many people in Yunan Town can afford such a vehicle. Finding out who he is shouldn’t be too difficult.”
Ling Yun frowned and said, “Our squad only has seven people left, and ammunition is scarce. We don’t have the extra energy to investigate this further. If you suspect them, report it. We’ll follow whatever arrangements our superiors make. Don’t act recklessly!”
Noticing the tense atmosphere, Xu Chao chimed in, “Captain, I think the deputy captain is right. Our manpower is limited, and we’re surrounded by danger. Let’s report it and request reinforcements.”
Li Hailing glanced at the rearview mirror and said, “Since everyone feels this way, we’ll report it.”
After shaking off their pursuers, Yun Huacen did not leave Yunan Town. Instead, he headed to a nearby commercial street to gather supplies according to Sun Qi’s list, filling the car to the brim.
“Woof woof…”
Just as Yun Huacen was about to get into the car, he heard a strange whimpering sound. Listening carefully, he realized it was coming from under the vehicle. Curious, he crouched down to look underneath and discovered a Samoyed puppy. In his previous life, his parents had once bought him one as a birthday gift. Later, when he fell ill and his parents had no time to care for it, they gave it away.
Just as Yun Huacen reached out to grab it, the cat let out a low growl, causing him to instinctively pull his hand back. The cat stared warily at the puppy under the car, its front paws extended and its back slightly arched, before suddenly pouncing. The Samoyed nimbly dodged and immediately counterattacked, only for the cat to deftly evade.
Yun Huacen finally got a clear look at the Samoyed’s face. Its eyes were a pale gray, just like those of the zombies. From its fluffy tail, a long tongue extended, split into two parts, covered in dense barbs and oozing a white, viscous fluid that looked utterly disgusting.
Yun Huacen drew his pistol, wanting to lend the cat a hand, but their movements were too fast. With his mediocre marksmanship, he simply couldn’t get a clear shot. Watching the cat get ensnared by the disgusting tongue, Yun Huacen’s heart tightened. Suddenly remembering his awakened ability, he shouted loudly, “Samoyed, let it go! Bite off your own tongue!”
The Samoyed paused, its grayish-white eyes flickering, then released the cat and bit down on its own tongue. With two wet thwacks, the tongue was severed and fell to the ground. Seizing the opportunity, the cat spat a stream of black liquid at the Samoyed. Corrosion set in immediately, and the Samoyed let out a loud, mournful howl. Before long, it dissolved into a puddle of black water.
The cat fished out a black crystal from the black water, lowered its head to hold it in its mouth, then walked over to Yun Huacen and spat the crystal out again. “Meow.”
Yun Huacen was taken aback for a moment before tentatively asking, “You don’t expect me to eat this, do you?”
The cat nodded.
“This is a crystal from a mutated zombie. If I eat it, won’t I turn into a zombie too?” Yun Huacen took a step back. “You should eat it quickly. I don’t want to become a zombie.”
The cat fell silent for a while, then picked the crystal back up with its mouth. Yun Huacen breathed a sigh of relief, opened the car door, got in, and started the engine to head back to the villa. Perhaps due to using his ability, he felt a slight headache, as if someone had pressed hard on his temples.
“Uncle, why didn’t those zombies bite us?” Yu Lei had held back the question the whole way and finally asked just before reaching the villa.
Yun Huacen glanced in the rearview mirror and said, “That’s a secret.”
Yu Lei and Wu Xiaoming exchanged a look. Though curious, they didn’t press further.
The car drove into the villa, and everyone came out to unload the goods, quilts, cotton-padded jackets, wool sweaters, wool pants, autumn shirts, and autumn pants. Each person took two sets. There would be no heating this winter, and turning on the air conditioning was out of the question, so they could only rely on these items to keep warm.
Looking at the unloaded supplies, Yun Huacen remarked, “We still need to figure out a way to get some charcoal. The mountains in winter can be bitterly cold.”
Sun Qi chimed in, “The orphanage didn’t have heating either. The headmistress would have the older kids gather branches to burn in the kang during winter.”
“Charcoal would be best, less smoke, less likely to draw attention. If we really can’t find any, we’ll have to get a chainsaw and cut down trees.”
“Uncle, didn’t you find any food on this trip?”
“I’ll head out again later to bring back the remaining food from the cellar.”
Sun Qi volunteered, “I’ll go with you this time, Uncle.”
“It’ll be dark soon. All of you stay here. I’ll go alone.”
“Then be careful, Uncle.”
Yun Huacen nodded, got back in the car, and drove out of the villa again, the cat still perched on the roof. With it there, the zombies didn’t dare approach. Yun Huacen drove to the cellar entrance, got out, and saw that the lock on the outer door had been smashed. He pushed the door but found it wouldn’t budge, guessing someone must be sheltering inside. Instead of forcing it open, he drove away and headed to the nearest fresh produce supermarket. Compared to ordinary people, he had far more options and didn’t need to compete with them.
The supermarket still had plenty of stock, though some of the meat had spoiled due to the power outage. Fortunately, there was still a lot of edible food, especially eggs, ten full crates of them. He filled the trunk, then loaded the back seat until the car was packed. It was enough to last them a long time.
After unloading the truck and moving the eggs and meat into the cold storage room, it was already 7:30 in the evening. Yun Huacen had just reached the first floor when he saw the children gathered around the dining table, yet none of them had touched their chopsticks.
“Why aren’t you eating? I told you to start without me.”
“We wanted to wait for Uncle to eat together.”
“You go ahead. I need to take a shower. Later, Qiqi can bring my meal upstairs. I’ll eat in my bedroom.”
“Okay.” Sun Qi replied.
Yun Huacen took a comfortable hot shower, easing the fatigue from his body. After eating the steaming hot meal, he suddenly felt a sense of disorientation, it didn’t feel like the apocalypse, but rather like an ordinary evening. Noticing the cat using a tablet, he leaned over to take a look. It had typed a line of text, roughly explaining that the crystal core of a mutated zombie was an energy entity and did not carry the zombie virus, meaning even humans could consume it.
“But this is something that appears in a zombie’s brain after mutation. How could it not carry the zombie virus?”
“I am a zombie and have a special connection with the zombie virus. I’m certain there’s no zombie virus on the crystal. If you’re skeptical, you can soak it in a prepared reagent later to confirm it’s safe before consuming it.”
“Even if it doesn’t carry the zombie virus, it’s still a rock. With your digestive system, can you even process it?”
“No problem.”
Hearing this, Yun Huacen’s expression froze for a moment before he smiled wryly. “So why exactly do you want me to eat it?”
“Consuming it can help advance your abilities. That way, even if I’m not by your side, you’ll have the power to protect yourself.”
Yun Huacen felt a flicker of temptation at these words. “Wouldn’t it help you advance too if you ate it?”
“Low-grade crystals don’t have much effect on me.”
Yun Huacen nodded. “Then let’s set it aside for now. Once I prepare the reagent, we can use it for experiments.”
The cat had no objections and helped him store the crystal in a glass bottle.
“By the way, where is Yue Zirui now?”
Yun Huacen hadn’t heard from him in a week and had no idea about his current situation.
“He’s hiding in the orphanage’s cellar.”
Yun Huacen was taken aback. “Why didn’t you mention this earlier?”
“I wasn’t aware before.”
Suddenly realizing something, Yun Huacen said, “So when you went out last night and didn’t return until this afternoon, you weren’t looking for him?”
“Why would I go looking for him?”
“We need the antibodies in his blood for clinical trials. Shouldn’t you be protecting him?”
“He won’t die.”
Yun Huacen stared at these words. Though they weren’t spoken aloud, they carried an overly confident tone. He asked skeptically, “This is the apocalypse. Zombies are everywhere. Who can guarantee that someone won’t die?”
“He has antibodies in his system. Even if infected with the zombie virus, he won’t turn into a zombie.”
Yun Huacen looked into its eyes. “Not turning into a zombie doesn’t guarantee he won’t die.”
“Aren’t you tired?”
Yun Huacen paused, then chuckled. “If you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to. There’s no need to change the topic so awkwardly. It’s hard for me to pretend I didn’t notice.”
The cat awkwardly averted its gaze, leaped onto the chair, and settled down as usual. During this outing, Yun Huacen had specially prepared a cat bed for it, but the cat refused to use it, preferring this hard, uncomfortable chair instead. Yun Huacen didn’t press further and climbed into the soft, large bed, quickly drifting off to sleep. Listening to his steady breathing, the cat turned its head to look at him, its eyes dark and unreadable.
In the orphanage cellar, Yue Zirui huddled in a dark corner, his brow furrowed, breathing labored, his face twisted in agony. His right hand pressed tightly against his left arm, and if one looked closely, the bulging veins on his hand had turned an unsettling shade of black.
Just yesterday, he had sneaked out to fetch some water and accidentally alerted the zombies, narrowly escaping with his life. When he returned to the cellar, he realized he had been bitten. The zombie virus spread through his body, bringing unbearable pain, exactly as he remembered from his past experiences. Yet why was everything unfolding differently this time?