Doomsday Awakening GL - Chapter 28

An Yimu frowned and considered the situation. She had assumed the place they had fled from was that production factory, given the congregation of thousands of zombies. But apparently, it was not? She took a deep breath, feeling that the road ahead was fraught with difficulty.

Even the usually sharp-tongued Qin Yumo remained silent.

“We need to seriously consider what to do next. It’s too dangerous with just the few of us,” An Yimu said solemnly.

Xu Zhili frowned and said, “I think we should find a place to rest first, like I suggested before, and wait until we have enough people before setting out. Safety should be the priority.”

Everyone agreed without objection.

The sky was still dark when the few of them set off. An Yimu’s injuries had healed quite a bit, but her chest still felt heavy and sore. She endured the discomfort, carrying the still-unconscious Lan Shang on her back, and followed at the rear of the group.

It wasn’t until nearly noon that they found a suitable place to rest: a small hut used to guard an orchard.

The fruit trees had all withered, and there were no large objects blocking the view around the hut.

It was then that Lan Shang slowly woke up.

An Yimu had been watching over Lan Shang by the bed. Seeing her wake up, she asked worriedly, “Are you feeling more comfortable?”

Lan Shang looked placidly at An Yimu, rubbed her eyes, and seemed to clear her head, then gazed eagerly at An Yimu.

An Yimu was speechless, but understood, and took out a piece of chocolate for her.

Xu Zhili, who had been wanting to ask a question, laughed upon seeing this: “Is this young lady a foreigner?”

An Yimu had entertained that thought before, but other than her golden hair color, Lan Shang’s eyebrows and facial contours were typically Chinese. A mixed-race person should be easier to recognize.

Lan Shang shook her head and said, “No.”

Xu Zhili choked. Shouldn’t a normal person offer some explanation about their situation?

Qin Yumo immediately sneered, “Butter up to her and get a cold shoulder, huh? Worry about your own business first.”

Xu Zhili’s face darkened. He turned away from Qin Yumo and mumbled to himself.

An Yimu was speechless. Couldn’t these two ever stop bickering? However, it seemed like one was willing to take it and the other was willing to dish it out—a perfect match, though they didn’t look like a couple.

Everyone pooled the food they had brought and distributed it, eating a simple meal.

When Qin Yumo handed the allocated food to Lan Shang, Lan Shang sweetly said, “Thank you.”

An Yimu felt very sad. She leaned close to Lan Shang’s ear and asked, “Why don’t you say thank you to me?”

Lan Shang paused, a sly look flashing in her eyes, before she said softly, “Why should I say thank you to you?”

“…” Communication was not going smoothly.

“Lan Shang, that day, you…” An Yimu didn’t know how to ask. “Did you… use some kind of ability?”

Lan Shang’s eyes darkened. After observing An Yimu’s face for a moment, she said, “I can manipulate molecules.”

Manipulate molecules? An Yimu was stunned.

Just as she was about to ask for more details, Gao Xiaolu interrupted their conversation.

“Miss An, we have to find a way to bypass that factory. Xu Zhili’s idea has some flaws. I just scouted the area and found that we are surrounded by two groups of zombies. The mutated spiders and zombies fought last night, and the zombies gained the upper hand. I saw from a distance that they have blocked that road again. It’s likely no one will be able to pass through for a while, and we don’t have much food. If we get surrounded by the two groups of zombies, we’re finished.”

An Yimu’s expression tightened. She had thought the mutated spiders and the zombies would both be severely damaged, but she hadn’t expected the zombies to take the upper hand. In that case, they could only try to bypass the area.

An Yimu contemplated, “I’ll scout the situation ahead first, and then we’ll leave.” She took a couple more looks at Gao Xiaolu. This man had a delicate appearance, his brow shrouded in melancholy. He usually didn’t speak, but when he did, it was certainly about important matters. Moreover, the man was very meticulous; he had thought to go back and check the situation, while she hadn’t considered it.

Lan Shang finished her chocolate and let out a comfortable sigh, her long eyelashes casting a shadow beneath her eyes.

Xu Zhili also heard what Gao Xiaolu said, feeling a slight discomfort that his suggestion had been overturned. However, he didn’t say anything; they were all in this together now.

The experiences of the past few days increasingly made her feel her own weakness, the helplessness when facing a four-tier zombie. A thought vaguely formed in An Yimu’s mind: to brave a path through that factory. If she encountered danger, she would slip away, trying to avoid the three- and four-tier zombies. She needed power; she needed to become stronger.

With the current commotion, she lost the inclination to question Lan Shang further about her ability, but she still needed to give a warning.

“Lan Shang, I am very grateful that you saved me twice before, but please try not to use your ability again. The side effects are too severe. It’s fine while I’m with you, but if you were alone, it would be dangerous.” Seeing that the other three had gone out, An Yimu returned her gaze and spoke earnestly to Lan Shang.

Lan Shang narrowed her eyes and said, “Are you worrying about me?” Her voice was soft and gentle, very pleasant to listen to.

An Yimu smiled, “Of course I’m worrying about you.”

Lan Shang stared at An Yimu, her eyes fluctuating, wondering what she was thinking.

An Yimu gave an awkward laugh. She had only known Lan Shang for a few days; doing this seemed a bit presumptuous, or perhaps meddlesome?

While An Yimu was lost in thought, Lan Shang said placidly, “Okay, I will try not to use it in the future.”

After giving her warning, An Yimu used the excuse of scouting the factory for a potential breakthrough point, and she entrusted Lan Shang to Qin Yumo’s care.

Then, carrying the bone-blade she always kept with her, she set off.

This factory was built ten years ago, specifically to supply agricultural products to Chongming City. The entire factory area was vast, including the high-rise management office, the production department, the staff accommodation area, the finished product inspection department, and the dispatch and storage area.

Bypassing it would take several days of travel. The fastest way was to cut straight through the middle.

She didn’t tell Gao Xiaolu that the two groups of zombies couldn’t possibly surround them. Through her observation over this period, she noticed that zombies had a strong sense of discipline and territory. Usually, a group of zombies had a high-tier zombie leader, and they kept to their own territory, rarely encroaching on others’ ground. The Skeletal Zombie she fought the other day should have been the leader of that area. Before a new leader emerged, they should not be in danger.

And that group of zombies seemed to be the reanimated corpses of the local farmers.

An Yimu surveyed the area and decided to start with the staff accommodation area. The apocalypse struck during the day, so most people should have been at work. That area should have the fewest number of zombies.

However, the factory employed over two thousand people; there should still be survivors. It was unlikely that everyone had turned into a zombie.

An Yimu tried her best to approach the accommodation area discreetly, holding her breath and tiptoeing carefully. She slipped in through a side door. Indeed, there were very few zombies here—only a few scattered initial-tier zombies, and An Yimu easily dealt with them.

She had another purpose for coming here: food. She had to be fully prepared for long-term survival, and food was essential at this time.

After eliminating the zombies wandering downstairs, An Yimu entered the staff building. She could hear the zombies’ roars and the loud banging on the doors from inside some of the rooms on the corridor.

An Yimu chose a room that was quiet and kicked the door open.

The staff dormitory was small, about 30 square meters, housing two people, with a bathroom and a small kitchen. Aside from being a bit old, it looked decent.

An Yimu first rummaged through the kitchen. There was rice and flour, but she couldn’t carry it away, and how would she cook it anyway? An Yimu hesitated and then gave up. Fortunately, she found a jar of jam and some hard bread in the small refrigerator. Since the apocalypse, power had been cut off in most places she visited, and this place was no exception. So, there was a smell of decaying food in the fridge, and a box of what appeared to be homemade yuanxiao (sweet rice dumplings) was already moldy.

She found a relatively sturdy and spacious bag in the room and put the jam and bread inside. Seeing no other useful items, she left the room.

Going upstairs, she kicked open another door. Although her strength was four times that of an ordinary person, the kick still hurt quite a bit…

Upon entering the room, An Yimu was startled at first. A woman was sitting right in the center of the small living room, her long black hair spread on the floor.

An Yimu instinctively pulled out her bone-blade and held it in front of her, staring intently at the woman.

“H-hello, are you living here…”

An Yimu hadn’t finished speaking when the woman turned around, and her words caught in her throat.

The woman’s entire face was rotten. Her fingers had become long and thin, reduced to just skin and bone.

An Yimu was stunned when the woman turned around, but she quickly reacted. This was no longer her compatriot. She shouted and rushed forward with the bone-blade.

When facing the unknown, it was best to strike first.

An Yimu’s bone-blade was a product of a four-tier zombie. When the zombie tried to block with its claws, one of its arms was severed by the bone-blade.

What shocked An Yimu was that red bl00d spurted out from the severed arm!

In the past, the zombies she killed had rotten flesh and dark black bl00d. Could this be a human? An Yimu was terrified by her own thought.

She immediately stopped attacking and retreated continuously. “Are you human?”

The zombie’s roar was her answer.

An Yimu’s heart trembled. She no longer hesitated and killed the zombie. She felt the energy she gained: it was the energy of a two-tier zombie.

However, this zombie clearly hadn’t been outside. How did it level up to a two-tier zombie? She thought that the process of leveling up for zombies and humans must have some similarities. For example, killing enemies, or perhaps, killing its own kind.