After Marking the Villain Professor (ABO, GL) - Chapter 42

Chapter 42

The next day, as dawn was just breaking, a scream jolted everyone awake who had only closed their eyes a short while before.

They had listened to such screams all night long.

There were many residential buildings near Qingshan Hospital, so from time to time, they could see survivors being gnawed by zombies. That day, no one had been able to rest properly.

Looking out through the windows and door cracks, they could see a young man who, in order to protect a woman holding a child, had his neck bitten by a zombie. The scream just now had come from him.

And that woman was running toward the small shop.

The woman also spotted people inside the small shop, and a glimmer of hope rose in her eyes.

She knocked on the door. “Open up, save me and the child, please.”

The two camouflage-clad men guarding the door exchanged a glance and opened the door halfway.

The joy on the woman’s face froze, turning into despair and unwillingness.

She was kicked into the zombie horde by the camouflage-clad man, and even the child in her arms, not yet three months old, ended up in the zombies’ mouths.

“Pah, you cheap woman, you almost led the zombies right here. This death is too easy for you.”

The camouflage-clad man who kicked her cursed under his breath and moved the shelves back to block the door.

Tan Juan, who had thought these two camouflage-clad men were opening the door to save someone and thus still had some conscience left, silently took a step back. She tugged at Xu Man’s sleeve and said softly.

“We should not stay with them anymore. Little Manman, didn’t you notice? Qi Lin and her bunch of subordinates are not human.”

“I think they are even more terrifying than the zombies.”

“Really, let’s run away later. This place is not safe.”

Xu Man did not say anything.

Of course she knew these people were not good and could not be trusted. It was merely mutual exploitation.

Qi Lin, standing right behind Tan Juan, darkened her face. She grabbed Tan Juan’s hand and yanked her forcefully into her own arms, smiling sinisterly. “It’s good that you know I am not human. Miss Big Banana, do not provoke me, or else your fate will be the same as that woman outside.”

Tan Juan trembled and cast a pleading glance at Xu Man, but it was blocked impassively by Zhou Yutao.

Then, Big Banana was pinched until tears streamed down her face.

The camouflage-clad man who kicked her noticed the commotion behind him and glared viciously at Tan Juan. “If she led the zombies in, we would all die. I was saving everyone.”

“Besides, did you not notice the wound on that woman’s head? If you want to play saint in the apocalypse, I will slaughter you first.”

The other camouflage-clad men nodded in agreement, their gazes toward Tan Juan turning somewhat hostile.

Tan Juan fell silent.

She was not trying to play saint in the apocalypse, or else she would not have survived until now.

Tan Juan simply thought that they could clearly have saved that woman and child. As long as one was not blind, anyone could see that the wound on the woman’s head was not a zombie bite.

Even if they did not open the door, they should not have kicked the woman into the zombie horde.

These camouflage-clad men had already lost all humanity. She just felt that they could no longer stay with these people, or else once they ran out of food, she might very well become food herself.

It was not Tan Juan overthinking things; cannibalism events existed in the original novel.

Heaven knew that Qi Lin, this villainous b1tch of a woman, had such sharp ears and actually heard what she said.

Tan Juan tried to break free from Qi Lin, but she was gripped tightly and even threatened. “Do not move, or I will dislocate both your arms.”

Seeing that Xu Man was completely captivated by the future major villain Zhou Yutao and had no attention to spare for her, Tan Juan could only give up struggling.

As expected, her roommate’s claim of dating Zhou Yutao was false. When Zhou Yutao had called her into the rest room alone earlier, it had been to threaten her.

Little Manman’s situation was surely not good either.

They were a pair of sisters in misfortune, controlled by villains right after transmigrating.

As Tan Juan silently mourned her and Xu Man’s plight, the sounds outside gradually died down. After the zombies finished gnawing on that woman and child, they wandered in front of the small shop for a while before being lured away by other survivors.

Inside the small shop, some people sighed in relief, while others pointed their guns at Qi Lin.

“Sorry, Dr. Qi.” The camouflage-clad man who kicked earlier said as he approached Qi Lin.

Qi Lin’s expression did not change. “What do you mean? Do you not want the antidote anymore?”

Another camouflage-clad man stepped forward, holding a small glass bottle in his hand. “We already have the antidote, Dr. Qi. It is all because of your stubbornness that everyone almost died here. Very sorry, but we have to deal with you first.”

“Brothers, kill Qi Lin, and this place will be under our control. You can play with whichever Omega you want.”

“The antidote can go to you first. This is the antidote formulated by Professor Zhou Yutao. As everyone knows, Qi Lin is a failure in front of Professor Zhou.”

The camouflage-clad man betrayed Zhou Yutao without hesitation and distributed the medicine from the bottle.

The remaining camouflage-clad men took the medicine, hesitated for a moment, then swallowed it. After waiting a bit, they rolled up their sleeves and saw the black veins on their wrists gradually fading. They were all ecstatic.

They no longer hesitated and raised their guns, aiming at Qi Lin.

All the camouflage-clad men stood on the same front.

But they did not plan to use guns. Two camouflage-clad men drew their knives and approached her step by step.

From beginning to end, Zhou Yutao did not say a word. She simply ate compressed biscuits unhurriedly, not only eating herself but also supervising Xu Man to eat. “Eat more. Do not go hungry.”

“Okay.”

Xu Man obediently ate them without asking where the biscuits came from.

Early that morning, Zhou Yutao had distributed biscuits and water to Lin Sha and Xin’er, but none to Tan Juan. She did not know if it was forgotten or…

It should not have been intentional. Zhou Yutao already knew Tan Juan was her friend.

This development was something Tan Juan had not expected.

She had not expected Qi Lin to be betrayed by all her subordinates.

Tan Juan made a snap decision. “Brothers, you saw it. I have a grudge against Qi Lin. If you kill her, you cannot kill me.”

“I am Professor Zhou’s person. Let us talk things out nicely.”

Dogs biting dogs, one mouthful of fur. None of them were good things anyway.

The camouflage-clad men’s eyes flickered.

They did not plan to let Professor Zhou go either.

But she was so beautiful. Play with her first, then kill her once they had enough.

Qi Lin laughed in anger. “Guess who dies first, you or me, Miss Big Banana.”

Tan Juan thought that anyway, they could not die together. As she spoke, she quickly spat a mouthful of saliva onto the hand Qi Lin was using to grip her, hoping to run away when Qi Lin let go.

The imagination was beautiful, but reality was cruel.

Qi Lin’s hand that was spat on trembled, but it did not let go of Tan Juan. Instead, it gripped tighter, and Tan Juan’s eyes reddened from the pain.

This b1tch woman wanted to drag her down to death with her.

Xu Man could not bear to look and turned her head away. “Big Banana, you… had better not say anything.”

Last night, when she and Zhou Yutao were alone in the rest room resting, she knew someone had come looking for Zhou Yutao. Although Zhou Yutao gave that person a bottle of medicine, Xu Man did not believe that Zhou Yutao, as a major villain, would so easily trust that person’s words and give them the antidote.

Moreover, Tan Juan had not noticed that, under the watchful eyes of so many people, Qi Lin was a bit too calm?

If she kept making trouble, Qi Lin might not die, but Tan Juan would be first on Qi Lin’s death list.

Hearing Xu Man’s words, Tan Juan turned her head and saw that she was still eating. She was instantly furious. “Xu Man, are you even human? We are done. We are absolutely done.”

She was about to be killed, and her roommate was sneaking food ahead?

The most outrageous part was that whenever she had food, she always thought of Xu Man, but when Xu Man had food, she kept it from her. It really made one feel a chill in the palace.

Xu Man: “…”

Xu Man turned her back and continued eating biscuits toward Tan Juan.

Of course she was human. If she were not, she would not have kindly reminded Tan Juan.

But right now, it was more important to finish the biscuits quickly. That was the task Yutao had given her.

Zhou Yutao was very satisfied with this and, unusually, a smile curved her lips. “Good. Manman is very obedient. Only with a full stomach will you have the energy to work.”

For some reason, Xu Man felt something odd about that sentence.

As if possessed, she asked, “Is there a reward?”

Zhou Yutao was slightly stunned, her smile deepening. “Of course.”

The obedient puppy was even asking for rewards now. Not bad.

Xu Man flushed red under her gaze.

Pink bubbles floated on this side, while the air of death permeated that side. Tan Juan felt a bit hopeless.

The camouflage-clad men did not plan to waste time and quickly approached Qi Lin with their knives.

Just as the knife was about to touch Qi Lin’s neck, the camouflage-clad man’s face changed, and the knife dropped from his hand.

With a thud, he clutched his chest and fell down.

“You…”

The camouflage-clad man who held the medicine bottle pointed at Zhou Yutao, his face full of ferocity. “The medicine you gave us…”

The two writhed in pain, sweat pouring down their faces, their words unclear.

Zhou Yutao watched Xu Man finish the biscuits and finally shifted her gaze to the camouflage-clad men. “What I gave you was the antidote.”

“But I forgot to tell you that it was mixed with the poison I recently developed.”

She paused, looking pityingly at the two on the ground. “Unfortunately, the poison has taken effect. Eating the antidote now is useless. But do not worry. After two hours of pain, you will be free.”

Before her words finished falling, the two camouflage-clad men began vomiting bl00d in large mouthfuls, their faces twisted in agony and looking quite eerie.

The remaining standing camouflage-clad men’s legs turned to jelly.

Zhou Yutao tilted her head and smiled at them. “You are comparatively lucky. The medicine you just took will not take effect for another four hours.”

The camouflage-clad men knelt on the ground at once, dropping their guns. “Please, Professor Zhou, give us the antidote. We will do anything you say.”

It was merely returning to the previous state.

As long as they lived, there was a chance. Once they truly got the antidote, they could take revenge later, they thought.

Zhou Yutao turned to Xu Man. “Pack up all the food on them.”

Xu Man nodded, a bit disappointed in her heart.

So the so-called work meant this. She had thought… Thinking of certain indescribable scenes, Xu Man’s face reddened further.

It was all because of that USB drive Xu Si gave her. After watching it, she had become impure.

She remembered there was a line in it about eating your fill to work.

Xu Man hurriedly shook off the improper thoughts in her mind, took the bags the camouflage-clad men carried, and carefully packed all the food.

Zhou Yutao picked up the gun from the ground and tossed it toward Qi Lin.

Qi Lin caught the gun, surprise flashing in her eyes. “How did you know I could use a gun?”

Because she always had someone protecting her by her side, she had never used a gun in front of people.

“A guess.”

Zhou Yutao answered lazily. Seeing that Xu Man had almost finished packing the food, she said to the kneeling camouflage-clad men, “I will throw the antidote to the left later. You few, take the remaining guns and go out to lure the zombies away.”

The camouflage-clad men’s faces turned terrified at once.

This Omega actually wanted to use them to lure the zombies and abandon them completely.

“How can we be sure what you throw is the antidote?” one camouflage-clad man asked boldly.

Zhou Yutao’s lips curved. “You can choose not to believe. Go or not, up to you.”

If they went, there was a slim chance of survival. If not, they could only wait for death, and in such a painful way.

They sneaked a glance at their two brothers who were still clinging to life, struggling bitterly. A chill ran through the camouflage-clad men’s hearts.

Zhou Yutao’s poison was indeed more potent than Qi Lin’s.

Even if they wanted to go down with Zhou Yutao now, it was too late.

The camouflage-clad men nodded with ashen faces.

Only at this moment did Tan Juan finally come to her senses. The camouflage-clad men had betrayed Qi Lin, but Qi Lin and Zhou Yutao were still together for now.

With Little Manman here, she would not die.

No wonder Little Manman had been so calm eating biscuits earlier.

Tan Juan revived at full health in an instant. She struggled to pry open Qi Lin’s hand that still gripped her and said, “I can too. I know how to use a gun. Leave one for me.”

Zhou Yutao raised an eyebrow slightly, picked up another gun, and tossed it to Tan Juan.

Qi Lin and Xu Man looked at her in surprise.

Even she, as Tan Juan’s former university roommate, had not known Tan Juan had this skill hidden.

Tan Juan finally broke free from Qi Lin and quickly ran to Xu Man’s side, saying softly, “I used a hunting rifle when I was young, and my aim is still decent. Never mind that for now. I feel like I offended Qi Lin. Little Manman, remember to help me out.”

“Now, give me something to eat first. I was scared to death earlier, and you were eating alone on the side. That is so unfair. You have to make it up to me. Quick, give me food. I am starving since early morning.”

Xu Man did not know where to start retorting Tan Juan. Just as she was about to take food from the backpack for Tan Juan, Zhou Yutao pressed her hand down. “This full bag is ours.”

“Miss Big Banana is so capable, so she surely does not lack food. Yours and Qi Lin’s food are with her.”

Xu Man had packed all the food into two backpacks: one full, the other only half full.

Hearing this, Tan Juan looked toward Qi Lin and discovered that Qi Lin had somehow shouldered the backpack with half the food.

Qi Lin was sneering coldly at her. “Want food? Simple. Lick clean all the saliva you spat.”

She even extended that hand still wet with saliva toward her.

Tan Juan: “…”

Her face turned green.

Why this distribution? She felt like Professor Zhou seemed to have a big grudge against her.

It must be an illusion. As a villain, she surely had no good face for anyone.

Sigh, even Manman was being ordered around by Zhou Yutao to do things.

Fine, under someone else’s roof, one had to bow. Anyway, it was her own saliva.

Tan Juan quickly adjusted her mood, squeezed out a smile, and walked toward Qi Lin. “Sister, what are you saying? Your hand is so beautiful. Even without saliva, I would be willing.”

She took Qi Lin’s extended hand into her mouth and even did not spare the other hand that had no saliva.

Tan Juan blinked twice. “Buy one get one free, so besides giving me food, you have to give me some water too.”

Qi Lin: “…”

Qi Lin even took a step back.

Even though she was prepared, she had not expected Tan Juan to be so shameless.

Was this person even an Omega?

Dirty. Her two hands were dirty, all stinky saliva. She did not want them anymore…

Qi Lin felt uncomfortable all over, her face full of disgust. She wiped her hands repeatedly on the clothes of a nearby camouflage-clad man and finally conceded, giving food and drink to Tan Juan.

For the sake of this Omega being somewhat useful, and for Zhou Yutao’s and Xu Man’s sake, she would spare her life for now.

Once they got out and had a chance, she would definitely kill her. Best to push her into the zombie horde, let the zombies bite her to death, then drag her back for research.

Qi Lin thought viciously.

The camouflage-clad man: “…”

Was not it? If she hated her so much, just kill the person directly, right?

Omegas who died because of Qi Lin in the past were not few.

Tan Juan got the food and drink as wished and did not mind what happened earlier. She just sighed a little that Qi Lin, this villain who should have died early, did not seem so hard to deal with. Anyway, she got what she wanted.

Of course, this was because she knew she had a chance to live and would not be killed by Qi Lin.

Tan Juan was not really stupid.

No one noticed that Qi Lin’s ears, hidden in her long hair, had turned completely red.

Everything was ready. Zhou Yutao took out two bottles of powder, mixed them on the spot, and threw them out the window to the left.

“The two antidotes will only take effect after mixing for one hour, so you had better obey me obediently if you want a slim chance of survival.”

Hearing Zhou Yutao’s words, the camouflage-clad men immediately dropped all their little schemes, took the remaining weapons, and left the small shop.

Whether what Zhou Yutao said was true or not, they dared not gamble anymore.

The camouflage-clad men’s luck today was not good. The zombies wandering nearby were even more numerous than yesterday.

Several of them ran while firing guns, the gunshots attracting more zombies toward them.

Ten minutes later, there were basically no zombies around the small shop.

Zhou Yutao called to everyone. “We go to the bookstore on the right.”

She had observed it. Few zombies went that way, and it had a clear view of the situation at Qingshan Hospital. Before Xu Yi and Qi Rui found them, it was the most suitable place.

No one opposed Zhou Yutao’s words.

As soon as Tan Juan and Qi Lin finished eating, the group left the small shop and moved toward the bookstore.

Qi Lin and Tan Juan walked at the front, Lin Sha pulling Xin’er in the middle, and Xu Man and Zhou Yutao at the rear.

The small shop and bookstore were several hundred meters apart, not far.

The first half of the journey went smoothly, but just as they neared the bookstore, a zombie fell from the neighboring residential building, nearly smashing onto Zhou Yutao’s head and scaring Xu Man half to death.

Fortunately, it was a false alarm.

After dealing with the zombie, they reached the bookstore door. The sun shone on their faces, already starting to feel scorching.

This meant their time was running out.

If they delayed any longer, once the drought came and the temperature rose very high, they would not be able to leave even if they wanted to.

Xu Man was very anxious.

Not just for this reason; normal people infected with the zombie virus had increasingly shorter incubation periods.

One could see it from the woman the camouflage-clad man kicked into the zombie horde this morning. She had basically turned into a zombie within three minutes of being bitten.

Everyone could see this point even without Zhou Yutao saying it.

The plot had developed too fast, even differing a bit from the novel’s description. Xu Man was unsure if it was the butterfly effect she and Tan Juan brought.

Xu Yi and the others’ delay in arriving also made her uneasy.

But now, they could only wait. Xu Man knew she did not have the ability to safely escort Zhou Yutao to South City.

The bookstore door was tightly shut, but the windows were open. Sunlight shone into the bookstore, and through the window, Xu Man discovered survivors inside: men, women, elderly, and children, about a dozen people.

Their faces showed fear, but not despair.

“Could you open the door and let us in?”

Normal means could not open the door. Afraid of damaging it or making too much noise to attract zombies, Xu Man could only ask the people inside for help.

This time, it was their turn to beg others to open the door.

The answer was certain. Everyone inside looked numb. A young girl stood up wanting to open the door for them but was pulled back by the others.

Some even yelled viciously at Xu Man and the others to get lost.

Finally, Qi Lin fired a shot into the bookstore and threatened that if they did not open, she would kill everyone inside. Only then did someone reluctantly open the door.

But after opening, seeing the two big bags Xu Man and Qi Lin carried, some eyes lit up. However, because they had guns, no one dared to act rashly.

“Is there food in your bags?”

A teenage boy asked boldly, while the others eyed Xu Man and Qi Lin eagerly.

Qi Lin shot them a cold glance. “What business is it of yours?”

The boy’s father’s face looked very ugly. “What is wrong with asking? He is just a child. I do not believe you dare shoot in front of so many people. If you shoot and attract all the zombies, worst case, we all die together.”

Qi Lin sneered, said nothing, raised her gun at the boy’s father, and was about to pull the trigger.

At the critical moment, Tan Juan pulled at Qi Lin. “Sister, forget it. You have already killed eighteen people today. Killing one more would make it odd, bad luck. You are tired too, right? Let us find a place to rest first.”

These people did not know that the villain Qi Lin dared to kill, but she did.

The boy’s father turned pale with fright at once, cold sweat pouring down, and the others were also terrified by her words, curling up and not daring to look at them.

Qi Lin’s eye twitched, she put away the gun, and walked toward the reading area nearby.

Tan Juan followed behind and muttered softly to Xu Man. “It takes a villain to grind down another villain. These idiots only submit to a fierce one like Qi Lin. Tsk tsk.”

Qi Lin’s steps paused.

Xu Man: “… Why do I feel like what you just said sounds familiar?”

Tan Juan lowered her voice even more. “Of course it sounds familiar. I said it just like in the novel’s description. Do not many Omegas say Qi Lin kills eighteen people a day, and always in pairs, not singles?”

She said it deliberately to scare those people, lest any fools cause trouble.

Xu Man started suddenly, looked at Tan Juan, then at Qi Lin, then back at Tan Juan.

Tan Juan was unnerved by her stare. “What?”

She had not said anything wrong.

Even if she had, what could Qi Lin do, kill her right in front of Zhou Yutao and Xu Man?

Xu Man shook her head. “Nothing.”

She was just thinking if there was a possibility that Qi Lin’s negative description was related to Tan Juan.

Had Qi Lin really killed eighteen people in one day?

And the previous flat-chested thing, not interested in Omegas, and such.

The book did say that, but now they had become people in the book. Was there some causal connection…

Xu Man thought more and grew more alarmed, more and more headache-inducing, so she simply stopped thinking.

Only upon entering the reading area did she discover it was already full of people sitting there.

Everyone was tense because of their arrival.

Only one young woman in her twenties sat quietly reading a book, as if unconcerned by them holding weapons.

Her gentle and refined appearance made her temperament stand out from those around her. Xu Man could not help but look twice more.

So, in truth, the survivors in this bookstore numbered more than a dozen.

Zhou Yutao’s judgment was correct; there were indeed fewer zombies this side, or else there would not be so many survivors.

But they had not expected so many survivors inside.

Xu Man now found seeing people more of a headache than seeing zombies.

But they had come, and who knew how long the camouflage-clad men could lure the zombies away. For now, there was no better place with a clear view of Qingshan Hospital. They could only stay and plan later.

If Xu Yi and Qi Rui arrived soon, that would be perfect.

Seeing no seats in the reading area, Qi Lin did nothing but found a spot by the window and sat on the floor.

Tan Juan did not want to sit next to her and was about to go to the other side.

Qi Lin set down her bag and spoke. “What, Big Banana sister not coming over? Not afraid I will kill the nineteenth person today?”

Her gun was still by her hand.

This made everyone in the reading area even more tense.

The girl reading the book also lifted her head to glance at Qi Lin.

Tan Juan gave an awkward laugh and sat beside Qi Lin. “How could that be? Our sister is so beautiful. One look and you know she is not the type to kill innocents randomly.”

Qi Lin heh.

She had just secretly cursed her as a fierce b1tch.

Tan Juan did not understand Qi Lin’s meaning and looked out the window.

This position was indeed good, with a clear view of Qingshan Hospital’s main gate.

Xu Man and Zhou Yutao also walked over.

Passing by the young woman reading, Xu Man paused for a moment.

This person had two scents on her.

Mango and wine fragrance, somewhat special. They seemed like pheromones…

“What, Manman thinks that little sister is pretty?”

Zhou Yutao’s voice suddenly appeared by her ear.

Xu Man, lost in thought, jumped and shook her head repeatedly.

“No, Yutao is the prettiest.”

At this moment, her survival instinct was extremely strong.

Zhou Yutao chuckled lightly. “Oh, no wonder the first time we met, Manman kept staring at me, even staring unblinkingly at my isolation patch. Little pervert.”

That inexplicable chill dissipated somewhat.

Xu Man’s face flushed bright red.

She wanted to say that back then she had just transmigrated and did not understand the situation, so her offense toward Zhou Yutao was completely unintentional. She was not some little pervert.

But in the end, Xu Man said nothing and silently accepted it.

“If you think she is pretty, look more. Anyway, Manman has seen everywhere on me.” Zhou Yutao still did not let Xu Man off in the end.

Xu Man was so tempted that she wanted to hug her immediately and get close, but this place was utterly unsuitable.

“Rest a bit first.”

Xu Man moved a few books over to cushion for Zhou Yutao to sit.

Distracted by Zhou Yutao like this, Xu Man forgot about the two scents on the young woman.

Zhou Yutao did not sit. Instead, she picked up the book Xu Man had brought, raising an eyebrow slightly. “My Domineering Professor O?”

The flush that had just faded from Xu Man’s face rose again, and she explained very awkwardly. “I grabbed it randomly.”

She really had grabbed it randomly; she had not even looked at what book it was.

Oh god, she had taken three books in total, and the other two were actually something like “Pure Little A, Do not Run” and “Pure Little A Training Plan.” The titles were quite straightforward; one listen and you understood the general content.

Zhou Yutao sat directly on the ground, flipping open the book in her hand with interest and reading it. “I did not say you did it on purpose. Right, Manman?”

It was hard to imagine the professor who always stayed in the lab sitting on the ground reading this kind of novel one day.

Xu Man felt a wave of embarrassment.

At this moment, Tan Juan even said, “What? There is even this kind of novel? It is my and Manman’s favorite. I want to read too. Manman, where did you get these books from?”

Xu Man felt utterly powerless, pointing lifelessly at the opposite bookshelf. “Over there, second shelf from the top down.”

She used to like reading novels and read basically every type.

If not for reading novels, she would not have transmigrated into this apocalyptic novel.

Could she say now that she did not like reading anymore?

Tan Juan wanted to read, so let her read. Why drag her into it at this time.

Xu Man sneaked a glance at Zhou Yutao.

Zhou Yutao was looking at her, eyes smiling. “If Manman likes it, let us read together.”

Xu Man was bewitched by this smile, sat beside Zhou Yutao, and read the novel with her.

Do not say, it was pretty good. It was her type. The domineering professor in the book had a personality a bit like Zhou Yutao’s.

But this was just a pure urban novel, not apocalyptic theme.

Tan Juan took a book and sat back beside Qi Lin, waving the book in her hand. “Read together?”

Qi Lin glanced at her and directly closed her eyes.

Tch, if she did not want to read, fine. She did not want to read with her anyway.

Tan Juan opened the book.

Lin Sha also found a picture book fairy tale for Xin’er and patiently soothed her emotions.

Everything that happened earlier, Lin Sha had covered Xin’er’s eyes in time, but Xin’er was still a bit frightened. Though she did not cry or fuss, her small body trembled, which was heartbreaking.

The group sat like this, sitting continuously for several hours.

If not for the few zombies still wandering outside, this scene would have been so beautiful.

Xu Man did not know that while she and Zhou Yutao read the novel together, the girl she had glanced at twice earlier had looked toward them several times.

Right at the key moment when the domineering professor was about to get intimate with the little lover in the novel, Zhou Yutao suddenly closed the book. Xu Man had not reacted yet and felt a bit unsatisfied, her gaze still on the novel.

Zhou Yutao looked toward that girl.

The girl’s eyes flickered slightly, as if hesitating, but in the end, she stood up and walked to Zhou Yutao. “Hello, I am Fang Lingyun. I overheard earlier that, miss, you know medicine, right?”

Fang Lingyun?

Xu Man’s brain, still immersed in the novel, was a bit slow, only feeling that this name seemed somewhat familiar.

Tan Juan, sitting by the window, had already put down her book and quickly ran to Fang Lingyun’s front, eyes shining, gripping her hand and not letting go. “You are Fang Lingyun? No wonder when I first saw you, pretty sister, I felt so familiar.”

Fang Lingyun was stunned by her enthusiasm. “You… know me?”

Tan Juan’s eyes were starry. “I have heard of you. I like you a lot.”

Yes, when reading the novel, she really liked the female protagonist. The only regret was that this person ended up with that stinky man Chen Xing.

Actually, she felt Fang Lingyun was more suited to being a lone ranger. Simply put, such a wonderful female lead should be suited to being single.

Fang Lingyun was slightly embarrassed. “This… is that so? You might have misunderstood. I am not a true alpha in the full sense, nor an Omega.”

It was not the first time a girl confessed to her, but after the apocalypse, being so bluntly said to be liked was a first.

But because of her body’s condition, she had never thought of being with anyone.

Tan Juan did not care. “I know. I…”

Just as she wanted to say more, a familiar pain came to Tan Juan’s face, stinging badly.

Who else but that b1tch woman Qi Lin pinching her.

Tan Juan was furious. “What are you doing?”

Because her face was pinched, her words were unclear.

Qi Lin’s sullen face instead smiled. “Seeing another pretty sister, and you do not call me pretty sister anymore?”

“I will pinch you to death. Did you not see?”

She had seen it, not only seen but personally experienced it. Qi Lin really wanted to pinch her to death.

It hurt so much. Her face must be swollen again.

Dead villain, rotten villain. Once I find a way back on the female lead, I will hire three thousand water army to curse you this villain to death under the book.

So angry, but she still had to save herself.

“Pretty sister, let go of me, please. If you ruin my face by pinching, you will have nothing left to pinch next time.”

Tan Juan’s eyes teared up, no longer minding talking to Fang Lingyun.

Fang Lingyun glanced at the two, momentarily dazed.

At the beginning, she had come to seek medical help. What was this…

Smelling the two pheromone scents on Fang Lingyun, Xu Man’s sluggish brain cleared at once and finally reacted. This was the original book’s female lead.

Fang Lingyun, a third-year student from the neighboring sports school, originally a beta, but after the apocalypse, she was injured a bit and differentiated into a monster that was neither A nor O. Accurately speaking, she had both alpha pheromone scent and Omega pheromone scent.

Actually, it was just incomplete differentiation, a relatively rare condition.

She remembered that Fang Lingyun and Chen Xing got together, and a key point was that Chen Xing cured Fang Lingyun’s strange condition.

But what Fang Lingyun did not know was that the medicine Chen Xing gave her came from Zhou Yutao, the AO conversion agent.

Due to her special constitution, after using the AO conversion agent, Fang Lingyun had a fifty percent chance to differentiate into alpha or Omega. But at that time, Chen Xing was right by her side, so she naturally differentiated into Omega.

In the original book, Zhou Yutao did not meet her and did not come to Qingshan Hospital with her, so naturally did not meet Fang Lingyun. Unexpectedly, this time, they met Fang Lingyun before Chen Xing.

Do not look at Fang Lingyun’s soft and weak bookish air; actually, she had great strength and abs.

Xu Man subtly touched her own soft belly.

After running around so much this time, she still had no abs.

Fortunately, Zhou Yutao said she liked her fragrant and soft self and did not disdain her for this.

Thinking that Fang Lingyun was the book’s protagonist after all, with many important plots revolving around her, and she did not dislike Fang Lingyun—at least, not currently.

Xu Man quickly said, “Hello.”

Fang Lingyun politely replied, “Hello.”

Tan Juan and Qi Lin returned to the window.

Zhou Yutao smiled at Fang Lingyun. “I would not call it medical skill. I just know how to make some medicine.”

Hearing this, Fang Lingyun was not disappointed but lowered her voice. “Actually, I want to ask you to check my body. I know where to get food. I can exchange it with food for you all.”

She briefly explained her body’s condition.

Zhou Yutao frowned.

No wonder, when they first entered, she felt this girl’s body was a bit odd. So that was it.

It was the first time she encountered such a difficult and complicated condition. Her self-developed AO conversion agent was not mature yet and could not be used on this person.

Zhou Yutao became interested in Fang Lingyun, or rather, she was very interested in such rare patients, so she was reluctant to kill her outright. Naturally, she would not use half-finished medicine on her.

Zhou Yutao nodded. “Alright, I can take a look for you, but I do not guarantee I can cure it.”

She did not feel there was anything to hide from Fang Lingyun.

Fang Lingyun immediately said joyfully, “No problem. As long as you are willing to look, it is fine.”

After the apocalypse, doctors were even harder to find. Someone willing to check her was already good. In her current state, she did not even know if she could escape this bookstore. Treat a dead horse as a live one.

Actually, even before the apocalypse, she had vaguely felt her body was uncomfortable. Originally, Fang Lingyun had run from school to Qingshan Hospital to see a doctor, but who knew the illness was not seen, and instead she got trapped in this bookstore.

Zhou Yutao gestured for Fang Lingyun to follow her to a corner, then checked her nape.

From Xu Man’s angle, their actions looked very intimate.

Xu Man immediately felt a bit regretful. Although she did not dislike Fang Lingyun, seeing Zhou Yutao so close to another woman still made her heart ache.

Um, she kind of wanted to step forward and pull Zhou Yutao back to her side.

Xu Man involuntarily lifted her foot forward a bit.

At this moment, Tan Juan finally broke free from Qi Lin’s clutches. She quickly ran to Xu Man’s side. “Little Manman, the female lead is right in front of you. Do you not feel moved?”

Moved or not moved?

Xu Man glared at Tan Juan.

Tan Juan continued. “I mean, the hope of going home is right in front of you. Do you not feel moved?”

Once they went back, they would not have to live in fear every day, not eating their fill or wearing warm clothes, and not be threatened by villains. When not in class, they could read novels and flirt with handsome guys and beauties. Compared to now, that life was simply like being in heaven.

Anyway, she could not wait to go back.

Xu Man’s heart skipped a beat.

Go home?

If she went back, what about Zhou Yutao? Zhou Yutao had just said she liked her… No, she could not bear to leave her, and if she left now, Zhou Yutao would be in even more danger.

But in the original world, there were also people she cared about.

Xu Man looked dazedly at Zhou Yutao, who was still talking with Fang Lingyun.

Tan Juan frowned, her voice a bit loud. “Why are you looking at her? If we really go home, can she stop us?”

What if she was the book’s major villain? Could she interfere in another world’s affairs?

Anyway, she did not believe it.

“Manman, our top priority is to build a good relationship with Fang Lingyun. I think…”

She thought their chance to go home lay with the male and female leads.

She had not seen the male lead yet, so she could only start with the female lead.

Tan Juan’s words did not finish.

Because Qi Lin came over again to pinch her face. “Go home? Go home where? Not going to South City anymore?”

Tan Juan’s face changed in an instant. “Ah, I meant South City. Our home is near South City, haha.”

It was not fear of Qi Lin; her face-pinching really hurt a lot.

Tan Juan felt her perfectly good oval face was about to be twisted into a bun face.

“Anyway, remember what I said. If we work together, we can definitely go home early.”

Before being dragged away by Qi Lin again, Tan Juan said solemnly to Xu Man.

No choice, she felt like she had been targeted by this pervert Qi Lin.

It was as if she could not live without pinching her face every moment, like she was sick.

With Qi Lin there, Tan Juan could not say too much.

Although she had already exposed many flaws in front of Zhou Yutao before, as long as she and Xu Man did not say it outright, who could think this was a book’s world, and they came from another world?

On this point, Tan Juan was quite confident.

Xu Man hesitated for a moment but finally stepped toward Zhou Yutao.

Zhou Yutao spotted her at once and immediately stopped talking with Fang Lingyun. “Why did Manman come over?”

Xu Man felt guilty. “You two chatted for a bit long. I came to see.”

Anyway, she just did not want to watch Zhou Yutao alone with another woman from the side.

Zhou Yutao raised an eyebrow, took Xu Man’s hand. “Come see then. Manman just needs to look at me.”

With that, she turned back to Fang Lingyun. “Miss Fang, I have said what needed saying. If you believe me, come with us. If not, do as you please.”

Fang Lingyun quickly said, “I believe.”

This was Zhou Yutao, after all. If even the legendary Professor Zhou who once only lived in rumors had no way, who else could she find?

Moreover, Zhou Yutao only asked her to wait a while.

Her body had been uncomfortable for so long; waiting a bit more was nothing.

Fang Lingyun had not known Zhou Yutao’s name at first. Only when she introduced herself earlier did she realize her luck was so good.

In the afternoon, everyone started feeling hungry. Xin’er’s stomach growled first, but she did not open her mouth to ask for food again. She just looked longingly at Xu Man’s backpack.

Xu Man quickly took some food from the backpack and distributed it to Lin Sha, Zhou Yutao, and Xin’er.

Qi Lin and Tan Juan had their own, and Fang Lingyun said she still had some crispy noodles, so she did not give to them. As for the others, even that five-year-old child who was crying, it had nothing to do with Xu Man.

Giving to one meant giving to all.

She still did not know how many days they would stay here. They did not have enough for themselves, so naturally they could not distribute all food to others.

Although Fang Lingyun promised to take them to find food, it carried risks. Until they were desperate, Xu Man did not want to take the risk.

She did not want to kill, but she was not saintly enough to sacrifice herself and selflessly dedicate to others.

The people around saw Xu Man take food from the backpack, their eyes turning red at once.

But because of the guns in Qi Lin and Tan Juan’s hands, no one dared to act rashly. They just eyed them secretly, and some even whispered among themselves, who knew what they were planning.

Xu Man could affirm that they were temporarily safe.

Yes, temporarily.

It was still daytime now, still relatively safe. By night, who knew what demons and ghosts would all jump out.

Xu Man always felt that some people looked at them with very malicious eyes.