Late at night, in a suburban house on the outskirts of Cuihu.
In a dimly lit room on the second floor, two figures sat in opposite corners.
Xu Shuhan was curled up in a corner, hugging a blanket, with her eyes closed in a light sleep.
At this point, she was half a zombie, able to recover her strength through the virus in her body. Sleeping two or three hours a day was enough for her.
Mu Chen, on the other hand, was leaning by the window, lifting the curtain to stare at the street outside.
There were almost no zombies here, but the occasional piercing howl could still be heard from afar.
Thinking of the corpse-strewn Mall, Xu Shuhan couldnât help but shrink back a bit.
Tonight, that place was destined to be a bloody feastâ¦
Compared to Xu Shuhan, Mu Chenâs expression was much simpler.
Frustration!
Mu Chen couldnât help but feel frustrated⦠He had only just woken up, only to find himself dragged to this place after opening his eyes. He had no idea what had happened in the few hours of blank time. Just as he was about to ask Ling Mo a few questions, he was assigned to keep watch hereâ¦
Keeping watch was one thing, but he also had to look after Xu Shuhan.
This was too much of a mess!
âXuâ¦â
âShut up,â Xu Shuhan quickly interrupted Mu Chen.
âDamn, you guys are too heartless!â Mu Chen said angrily.
Xu Shuhan, however, puckered her lips in annoyance. Heartless? How was that fair? She didnât know anything either!
To be honest, she already felt something was off when Ling Mo insisted on coming to Cuihu.
Collecting supplies? What kind of supplies required a detour to Cuihu? There wasnât any armory hereâ¦
As soon as they reached Cuihuâs central area, a sudden change occurred. Xu Shuhan definitely didnât believe there was no connection between the two events.
Ling Moâs subsequent arrangements also clearly intended to leave her on the outskirts. On one hand, it was certainly to protect her, but on the other hand, it completely excluded her.
When she reunited with Ling Mo, he brushed it off casually, insisting that nothing major had happenedâ¦
If nothing major happened, why was he smiling so happily?
When they got here, Ling Mo couldnât wait to rush upstairs with the female zombiesâ¦
Xu Shuhan looked up at the ceiling, feeling quite frustrated. What on earth were Ling Mo and the others doing upstairs?
Ling Moâs actions must have some reason behind them, right?
âThis one is for Xia Na.â
Ling Mo first handed the viral hive from bighead to Xia Na. The transparent âamethystâ in her hands made Xia Naâs face light up with a hint of excitement.
For a zombie driven by the instinct to pursue continuous evolution, a Senior Zombieâs viral hive was the most coveted treasure. Even a tiny piece of this hive, if taken outside and waved around, could lure half the zombies in Cuihu out of hiding.
Even though Low-Level Zombies didnât have the ability to devour, they would still mindlessly throw themselves at it.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
A zombieâs pursuit of the virus was as natural as breathing, driven by instinct.
Even though Ye Lian and the others followed Ling Mo, their zombie instincts hadnât been completely eradicated; it was only suppressed somewhat under Ling Moâs continuous influence and initial control.
But now, looking at the viral hive of the King level Zombie, not only Xia Na but also Ye Lian and Li Yalin couldnât take their eyes off it, their gazes even starting to change color.
âIf it werenât for our teamwork, we couldnât have obtained this viral hive. Judging by bigheadâs evolutionary mutation, this is the most suitable for Xia Na. Xia Na now has a mutation direction, but the final mutation result is hard to say. Although bighead said the mutation direction is influenced by the subconscious, the virus devoured also has a certain impactâ¦â
While speaking, Ling Mo took out the viral hive from âWig.â
Even at the King level, the color of mutation creaturesâ viral hives didnât change much, but the value of these two hives was comparable.
âThe most suitable one for Yalin would definitely be the viral hive from the mutation snake, but mutation beasts are too hard to find. The viral hive from mutation creatures can also suffice. Although Black Silk and Xiao Bai could use them, Black Silk evolves too quickly, making it harder for me to control. As for Xiao Bai⦠its mutation direction hasnât revealed itself yet, and Iâm worried it might lead to some strange changes if it consumes itâ¦â
Ling Mo rubbed his nose and handed the mutation creature mother hive to Li Yalin. âSo this one goes to Yalin. âWigâ was a virus-secreting type, and among the two King level Zombies it produced, one was like this as wellâ¦â
Li Yalin stared at the mutation creature mother hive and lightly licked her lips. âSo, maybe what I secrete⦠can also have various effectsâ¦â
âDo not compare it to yourself; it makes it even weirderâ¦â Ling Moâs eye twitched.
âSecretions?â Xia Na suggested.
âThatâs not helping at allâ¦â Ling Mo felt that the serious atmosphere he had just created was completely wasted. It seemed impossible to stay serious with zombies around!
However, after Xia Na opened the preservation bag and took a sniff, she said, âYou canât devour this all at once. It actually works better if youâre at the dominant level; eating it then gives the best effect with the least impact. But if itâs for breaking through to the dominant level, it requires slow, gradual consumption over time.â
Since that was Xia Naâs advice, Li Yalin would definitely be the same.
Ling Mo nodded. Hastily devouring it would disrupt the virus balance in their bodies, causing significant harm.
Zombies could also suffer from infections, particularly from other mutated zombies, or they might even collapse and rot if they couldnât bear itâ¦
With a certain level of intelligence, zombies had developed a set of judgments and wouldnât recklessly pursue power.
In comparison, human superhumans could only progress through constant effort, and their evolution was almost indistinguishable from that of zombies.
âThatâs settled then. Letâs get some sleep. Tomorrow we head to Heishui City. According to the navigation records, the Niepan headquarters should be near thereâ¦â
â¦
Heishui City.
As a gateway city to the largest province in the West, this prefecture-level city had a population roughly half that of X City, but its area was only about a quarter of X Cityâs.
To accommodate such a large population in such a small area, Heishui City was an extremely prosperous modern city before the Cataclysm.
But now, a large population meant a high number of zombies.
Places like Heishui City could definitely be considered highly dangerous zones.
However, the numerous Industrial Parks built around Heishui City made it resource-rich. Its status as a central-western transportation hub also indicated abundant supplies and convenient transportation.
But the main routes to the city, such as highways, were absolutely out of the question. Instead, itâs these old roads, which were replaced during the cityâs rapid development, that could still be utilized.
These types of roads are quite common in the country and are often well-connected.
However, that doesnât mean there wonât be zombies on the old roads. In fact, many vehicles also travel these roads, and there are often numerous buildings along the way, so the number of zombies is still significant.
But for survivors, itâs quite obvious which route has a higher survival rate.
At this moment, on an old road leading to Heishui City, a white blur was moving forward.
As zombies on the roadside lunged, they were quickly entangled by silver threads and flung away before they could get close.
Zombies attacking head-on were swiped down by a giant, sharp claw the moment they leapt.
âCrunch!â
The sound of bones breaking echoed, and the zombie burst like a popped, bloody sackâ¦
âI didnât expect this journey to be quite so easy,â Mu Chen said.
Ever since leaving Cuihu City, Mu Chen had been in a foul mood, but the ease of this trip had improved it considerably.
Although they still encountered some zombies, not being in constant battle was a delightful surprise for him.
Xu Shuhan glanced at him, showing disapproval, but she too was in a good mood.
In bloody situations, she had a harder time maintaining controlâ¦
Ling Mo gazed into the distance, feeling a sense of satisfaction.
After Black Silk and Xiao Bai evolved, their strength had indeed increased significantly.
They were perfect for leading the way, whereas having them follow behind felt like a waste.
Especially Xiao Bai, with the ability to instantly enlarge its body, could easily handle a large number of zombies.
Ling Mo estimated that Xiao Baiâs strength was comparable to the latter stages of the Leader-Level, although it was hard to pin down an exact level since mutation beasts varied so much in their combat abilities.