After Marking the Villain Professor (ABO, GL) - Chapter 63

Chapter 63

Xu Man had already run off before Lin Sha could even react. “Peach, is Boss Xu still that shy?” she asked Zhou Yutao.

If she hadn’t seen it wrong, Xu Man’s face was still red when she left. It was just a casual comment from a kid—nothing serious. Besides, hadn’t she and Zhou Yutao done everything already? She’d never seen an alpha act like this. Plenty of couples made out on the street until their lips were chapped, and no one batted an eye. How did Xu Man, so easily embarrassed, end up friends with Big Banana, an omega with skin thicker than a city wall? It was like they’d swapped genders or something.

Lin Sha had thought Xu Man had grown a lot after these past few days of trials, but now it seemed her personality hadn’t changed much from the start. In terms of ability, though, she’d made huge strides—at least she could take on two zombies single-handedly without a problem.

Zhou Yutao handed the checkers game back to Lin Sha with a smile. “Our Manman is very innocent, but that’s okay. She’ll get used to it the longer she’s with me.”

“Don’t worry about her. She’ll be back soon.”

She would, bit by bit, shape Xu Man into the person she wanted her to be. For now, it was already nice—she enjoyed guiding her.

Zhou Yutao was right. Xu Man only took a short walk before returning to her side. Part of the reason she’d left was Xin’er’s words, but more than that, she had things to discuss with Xu Yi and the others. She also wanted to check on Tan Juan and Qi Lin in case they got into a fight—she could mediate if needed. Luckily, Tan Juan was just making a fuss and didn’t actually start anything.

So, Xu Man quickly returned to Zhou Yutao’s side.

“Sister, where are Xin’er and Lin Sha?” Xu Man asked, noticing only Zhou Yutao was left in the vehicle.

Zhou Yutao gestured for her to sit closer, then pulled her into an embrace, whispering softly, “They went upstairs to sleep. So, Manman, if you want to kiss me now, you can.”

In truth, Xu Man’s mind was full of serious matters—she hadn’t even thought about that. Besides, before she left, it was clearly Zhou Yutao who wanted to kiss her. But with her girlfriend offering her lips like that, who could resist?

Their lips met, and as Xu Man kissed her, she couldn’t help but press Zhou Yutao into the sofa. Just as she was about to kiss the back of Zhou Yutao’s neck, two sharp slaps brought her foggy mind back to clarity.

Xu Man looked at her, confused.

Zhou Yutao’s lips curved into a slow smile. “Not enough time—this is just interest. More importantly, we need to get going, Manman. Whatever you want to do, save it for next time.”

Wait, she had to pay this “interest” multiple times? Tan Juan’s suggestion probably suited Zhou Yutao perfectly—she’d likely use any excuse to tease her from now on. Maybe Zhou Yutao even liked being treated this way. It was kind of shameless for Xu Man to think about, but for some reason, the possibility sent a thrill through her that she couldn’t hide.

Still, now wasn’t the time for that.

At exactly noon, the convoy left the service area again. This time, Zheng Rong and Xu San led the way, with Xu Man, Zhou Yutao, Tan Juan, and Qi Lin following closely. Wang Kang and John brought up the rear.

The journey wasn’t as quiet as before. They encountered zombies here and there, but none posed a significant threat. Those they could take out, they did; those they couldn’t, they avoided. Still, seeing familiar faces among the zombie hordes weighed heavily on everyone’s hearts. No one knew if they’d end up like that someday, or if their families already had.

John felt it most acutely. One of the familiar faces in the horde was his brother, who’d turned after luring zombies away to save him and Wang Kang. Now, he had no choice but to fight his former brother.

“I’m sorry. I let them down,” Wang Kang’s voice came from behind.

He’d woken up half an hour earlier. John cleared a zombie from the car window and turned to look at Wang Kang, his eyes red. “Young Master Kang, it’s not your fault. Blame this damned virus.”

The zombie virus ravaged the world, and no one could guarantee they’d survive to the end. They’d followed Young Master Kang knowing death was a possibility, but watching brother after brother fall first was hard to bear. For now, sticking with Zhou Yutao seemed the best choice. At least if they were gravely injured, there was a sliver of hope.

John genuinely didn’t think Wang Kang’s decision was wrong, even if there was a bit of selfishness in it. Just being alive now was enough.

Wang Kang said nothing more. This brush with death had hit him hard. When John told him Zhou Yutao and Qi Lin had saved his life, he didn’t know how to feel. He still liked Xu Man, making Zhou Yutao his rival, but now she was his savior. He couldn’t act against someone who’d saved him, leaving him deeply conflicted.

There was no time for melancholy. The closer they got to the city, the more zombies came at them. Xu San slowed the car, and the others inside worked together to clear zombies climbing onto the vehicle, trying to break the windows and tires with tools.

Finally, the convoy entered the city. They immediately saw the wreckage of an off-road vehicle that had been blown up—no one needed to look closely to know there were no survivors.

“Professor Zhou, Boss Xu, there’s a crater ahead, and obstacles on both sides. Our cars can’t get through,” Qi Rui reported to Xu Man and Zhou Yutao. “More zombies are coming our way. We can’t stay here too long.”

They didn’t need him to say it—they could see it. As Xu Man had thought, the city was relatively safer than before. Their cars hadn’t been blown up, but that didn’t mean they were out of danger. If more zombies surrounded them, they’d all be trapped.

Zhou Yutao was decisive. “Qi Rui, you and Xu Yi’s group get out and clear the obstacles. The rest will cover you. Can you finish in half an hour?”

Qi Rui gritted his teeth and nodded. No one objected to Zhou Yutao’s orders.

So, Qi Rui led Xu Yi and a few others with strong physical skills to clear the obstacles with tools. Xu Man, Zhou Yutao, Tan Juan, Qi Lin, and others who could use guns climbed onto the car roofs to draw the zombies’ attention.

At first, things went smoothly, but as more zombies noticed Qi Rui’s group, the pressure mounted. They had to clear obstacles while fending off zombies. Xu Si and Xu Wu were injured, though thankfully by tools, not zombie bites.

Xu Man’s side faced even more pressure. To protect Zhou Yutao, she got careless and was slashed twice by a zombie wielding a knife—one cut on her hand, another on her back. Then a zombie with a hammer climbed up and hit her in the butt, nearly knocking her off the roof. She hadn’t expected zombies to be so despicable, attacking such a place.

“Manman, be careful!” Zhou Yutao grabbed her just in time.

Looking down, all they saw were zombies with gaping, bloody mouths. The old Xu Man would’ve frozen in fear. Now, she stood firm, protecting Zhou Yutao, despite the fear in her eyes—not of death, but of losing her.

Zhou Yutao’s face darkened like never before. Her medicine was useless against these zombies, and she had no other solutions for now. They could only hope Qi Rui’s group cleared the obstacles quickly.

“Protect yourself first. Don’t worry about me,” Zhou Yutao said, pained and frustrated seeing Xu Man’s wounds.

Then Liu Ming’s annoying voice cut in. “Boss Xu, I’ll protect Professor Zhou. You all know, even if a zombie bites me, I won’t die.”

Of course, it still hurt. Despite knowing Zhou Yutao was using her bl00d to develop a cure for the zombie virus, Liu Ming couldn’t suppress her feelings. Lately, Zhou Yutao hadn’t even drawn her bl00d herself, leaving Liu Ming no chance to prove herself. Now that she had an opportunity, she seized it.

Xu Man didn’t even want to respond, just nodding to Zhou Yutao to show she understood. But how could she really ignore her? When more zombies rushed over, Xu Man stepped in front again.

Zhou Yutao’s eyes darkened like an abyss, but she said nothing more, afraid Xu Man would get distracted and hurt worse. Now wasn’t the time to lecture her alpha—she’d deal with it after the crisis. As for Liu Ming, she didn’t care as long as she stayed alive.

The zombies were so numerous that Tan Juan nearly ran out of time to reload. She was almost in tears. “What do we do? I don’t want to die!”

In this story, she wasn’t a protagonist, antagonist, or even cannon fodder. If the zombies overwhelmed them, Tan Juan had a sinking feeling she’d be the first to go.

Qi Lin took out two zombies near Tan Juan and said coldly, “If you don’t want to die, shut up. Otherwise, I’ll throw you down first.”

Tan Juan shot a zombie behind Qi Lin. “…No, I want to live.”

Talking was just her way of relieving stress—she didn’t actually want to die. Who’d want to become an ugly, stinking zombie?

Just as Xu Man’s group was getting overwhelmed, Qi Rui’s team finally cleared one side of the obstacles. With good driving skills, they could avoid the crater and pass through.

Qi Rui saw they couldn’t hold out much longer and signaled for them to get back in the cars.

“Big Banana, everyone, be careful!” Xu Man didn’t hesitate, immediately shielding Zhou Yutao as they retreated to the car. Injured as she was, she could only focus on Zhou Yutao.

Tan Juan cursed her for prioritizing her girlfriend, but in her distraction, zombies seized the chance to surround her, making it impossible to get back to the car. Someone had to stay behind to hold them off.

Qi Lin frowned, turned back, and pulled Tan Juan with her, falling to the rear. Luckily, Qi Rui and the others arrived in time, and they made it back to the car safely.

Tan Juan hadn’t expected Qi Lin’s move, and a rare wave of gratitude rose in her heart. “Big Sister Qi, you’re the only one who couldn’t bear to leave me. You looked so beautiful turning back just now.”

“You’re overthinking it, Miss Big Banana. I just enjoy hitting you,” Qi Lin replied without even a glance, tending to her wounds.

Tan Juan: “…”

Damn, was this pervert eyeing her perky butt? She knew Qi Lin wasn’t that kind.