It's Hard to Be the Female Lead's Best Friend (Apocalypse) GL - Chapter 22

The moment she was pushed down, Cheng Ziyu felt a deep sense of powerlessness, a feeling of being led by fate, no matter how much she resisted, it was useless.

The zombies shrieked, their fingertips just a dozen centimeters from Cheng Ziyu. As they continued to press, the roots dented further. She feared that in a moment more, she would be scratched open by the zombies.

Cheng Ziyu pursed her lips, clutching the dagger in her left hand, unable to help but scorn herself. Since she was an ability user, she naturally wouldn’t be infected. And now, in the apocalypse, there was no thought of surviving without getting hurt.

Cheng Ziyu raised her dagger, aiming at one of the most frantic zombies. Its mouth was gaping widest. In its attempt to squeeze into the cage, the flesh on its cheeks was torn away.

With the swiftness of a praying mantis, she quickly plunged a knife into its forehead. The angle was tricky, piercing the zombie’s weakest point, its temple, with the sharpest tip of the dagger, killing it with one blow.

The zombie slid down, and another zombie replaced it, trampling the deceased zombie beyond recognition. Cheng Ziyu stabbed again, and black bl00d flowed from the zombie’s head, splattering onto her face.

One stab after another.

Like a machine, she was tireless, her dull expression as if she had become a different person. Her face was covered in black bl00d, and her clothes were a gruesome sight, like a female Asura from hell, both terrifying and captivating in her appearance.

The few people on the rooftop exchanged glances.

Gu Qingli put away her pistol, gripped her dagger, and leaped down. Her graceful figure was like a giant wave in the ocean, destroying everything in its path. The zombies could hardly resist.

Cheng Ziyu’s method of killing zombies was certainly convenient, but she was more or less scratched by their fingernails. After a while, when she was exhausted, she realized her arms were covered in scratches, and even her pale cheeks bore two marks.

The pain was real; but she didn’t want to rely on others anymore. Otherwise, she’d be no different from those who meekly sought protection, and if that protection ever crumbled, she would become prey herself.

Cheng Ziyu looked up, scanning Gu Qingli.

She floated among the zombies, each close encounter accompanied by a zombie falling. Yet, her expression remained calm, as if she saw nothing wrong with her actions.

Cheng Ziyu smiled. With her as the lure, the few of them easily dispatched all the zombies without wasting a single bullet. Soon, the ground was littered with a pile of corpses.

Qin Qingyan collapsed onto the ground, exhausted. The air was thick with a rotten, fishy smell. She fanned her hand towards her nose: “Cheng Ziyu, you’re not crazy, are you?”

Cheng Ziyu’s heavily scarred left hand trembled slightly. Looking at the corpses scattered around, a feeling of lingering fear gradually emerged. If they had truly left her, even if she had survived one encounter with her ability, countless more would have followed.

This situation was not the time for impulsive actions.

“Thank you,” she said sincerely.

“No need for thanks.” Qin Qingyan recovered a bit, then stood up, “Sister Qing was a bit much just now, but you should also give us more trust.”

Cheng Ziyu’s lips twitched: “Mm.”

Gu Qingli detected a hint of perfunctoriness, unconsciously tightened her grip on the dagger, and approached her. Her lips moved: “Step back a little.”

Cheng Ziyu obediently stepped back half a pace.

Gu Qingli brought her knife down, stabbing into the roots, but it was difficult to cut through. She tried a few more times, but the dagger was too short, and the wounds it inflicted on the roots were not enough to sever them.

Gu Qingli then resorted to her pistol, firing a few shots at one spot, and only then did the roots finally break. Cheng Ziyu squeezed out from the narrow gap.

Her disfigured left hand was heartbreaking, as if air had been drawn away, leaving her suffocated and uncomfortable.

Gu Qingli gently lifted her hand, but Cheng Ziyu quickly pulled it away, an expression of not wanting to be touched, of wanting to break ties, which caught Gu Qingli off guard for a moment.

She opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing.

The dangerous environment was somehow tinged with an awkward and silent atmosphere. Qin Qingyan was the first to break the silence: “Sister Qing, should we find a place to rest for a while?”

Gu Qingli nodded in silence.

Because all the nearby zombies had been attracted to the factory, the group chose a nearby civilian house. The house had three rooms and a separate small kitchen, surrounded by an iron fence.

Qin Qingyan locked the iron gate.

Gu Qingli followed Cheng Ziyu into the living room. The living room had two tables, a cabinet, and a large mirror in the center, reflecting both their expressions.

Through the mirror, Gu Qingli saw her big eyes darting around. She gently raised her hand again and took out the medicine box: “I’ll clean your wounds for you.”

This time, Cheng Ziyu did not refuse.

The medicine in the box was already scarce.

Gu Qingli dipped a cotton swab in iodine and gently dabbed her wounds. Each touch brought a stinging pain, a sensation like the moment she was pushed into the zombie’s mouth, like a gripping pain in her chest—a pain only felt when hurt by someone you care about.

The moment she was pushed, she was indeed terrified.

She shouldn’t have felt this gripping pain, because deep down, she knew that although she said she wanted to be friends with the other person, in reality, she was only seeking protection.

Cheng Ziyu stared at Gu Qingli. Her gaze was neither cold nor warm, and her movements were incredibly gentle, as if touching a precious piece of porcelain, afraid to use too much force and break it.

“There’s no more gauze. Don’t let your left hand get wet these two days.” The medicine in the box was mostly used up, so Gu Qingli didn’t put it back into her space.

“Mm!” Cheng Ziyu responded faintly.

Gu Qingli lowered her eyelids, hiding a fleeting flicker of annoyance. Only the two of them were in the living room, and the silent atmosphere made her restless: “I’ll go check on the others.”

Cheng Ziyu watched her retreating back, feeling as if she were fleeing in disarray. She stroked her chin: “Slap me then offer a sweet date, do they really think I’m a fool?”

According to the author’s description, before the female lead destroyed the world, she was instigated and provoked by the villain. The female lead didn’t trust the male lead, and the male lead then left Earth with two supporting female characters.

The female lead harbored hatred, unleashing terrifying destructive power, devouring space, destroying the world and herself.

She was still very weak now, and couldn’t really leave the female lead to fend for herself. And the female lead currently showed no signs of world-destroying intent. Perhaps she should get to know the female lead better, to prevent the villain from instigating discord again, and also ensure the male lead wasn’t snatched away by some little b1tch.

Instead of blindly relying on the female lead for protection; losing her own direction, she for the first time desperately wanted to become stronger. Cheng Ziyu looked down at her bandaged hands and smiled: “Actually, it doesn’t hurt that much. Why was I so scared?”

Scared of being bitten by zombies, why!

••••

In the Kitchen

Qin Qingyan was tinkering with firewood. Because the kitchen had a built-in stove, it needed to be lit to heat the iron pot. Next to the stove was a large jar filled with water, and Shu Jingyun was washing the iron pot with water.

“Don’t use the stove; they’ll discover our whereabouts.” Gu Qingli entered the door and took the firewood from Qin Qingyan’s hand.

Shu Jingyun stopped what she was doing: “Those people aren’t all dead yet?”

“No, the sniper wasn’t the same person. I let the sniper go, and he probably went back to inform the mastermind.”

Qin Qingyan exclaimed, “So, more people will come to hunt us down? Why did Sister Qing let him go?”

“Because I don’t want to be watched all the way. If we’re not careful, that person will turn us into a hornet’s nest.” Gu Qingli took out a small pot. “We’ll eat inside. Jingyun, you can hold on for a bit longer and use your ability to boil water.”

“Okay.”

Using an ability to boil water wouldn’t produce thick smoke. The three of them propped up the small pot with bricks. The flame burned at a higher temperature than a normal fire, and in no time, the water was bubbling.

Gu Qingli opened several packets of instant noodles, added eggs and ham. Soon, a fragrant pot of egg and ham noodles was ready.

Gu Qingli’s spatial ability had a complete set of bowls and chopsticks. It was extremely rare to be able to eat a hot meal so comfortably in the apocalypse.

“We’ll rest here for two days. Once your wounds are mostly healed, we’ll go to the suburban hospital.” Gu Qingli carried one of the bowls of noodles. “Save a little for me.”

“Oh!” Qin Qingyan blinked. Seeing her carefully carrying the bowl away, she felt a little jealous, “Sister Qing’s attention is all on Cheng Ziyu now. My position is in danger.”

“Your position was always tenuous.”

“Shu Jingyun, doesn’t your skin hurt anymore?”

“Even if I’m injured, you still can’t beat me.”

“Damn it!”

Cheng Ziyu’s right hand had a severe wound. Although her left hand had many injuries, they weren’t very serious. But her right hand had a large gash that might leave a scar.

The recovery abilities of ability users would increase several times in the later stages. Even more so, wood-element healers could recover instantly. One of the cannon fodder female supporting characters, Yun Huixi, was the strongest wood-element ability user, capable of limb regeneration.

But no matter how abnormal the recovery ability, without the assistance of a wood-element ability user for healing, once injured, scars would be left.

“Have some noodles.” Gu Qingli brought the noodles to her. Noticing her bitter eyes staring at the wound, she roughly guessed her thoughts. “Do you want me to feed you?”

Cheng Ziyu’s heart stirred. Since she had decided to change, she shouldn’t be so meek: “My hands are like this because of you. It’s your responsibility to take care of me now.”

Gu Qingli paused, a smile escaping her lips. She gently blew on the noodles, her tender brows appearing affectionate. She brought the noodles to Cheng Ziyu’s lips and softly said: “Okay!”

Cheng Ziyu’s goosebumps instantly rose. She was already terrified of the female lead’s gentleness and couldn’t help but suspect the noodles were poisoned, or that she was planning another small experiment.

Gu Qingli saw her delaying opening her mouth and brought the spoon closer: “Eat it, it won’t taste good when it’s cold.”

Cheng Ziyu’s eyes darted around: “You should try the temperature first. What if it’s too hot for me?”

Gu Qingli frowned, but still patiently took a small taste first. Feeling the temperature was just right, she brought it to Cheng Ziyu’s lips again: “It’s not hot.”

Cheng Ziyu ate it heartily!

••••

The man only had his sniper rifle left. He carefully dodged zombies along the way, but he was still blocked by zombies at the intersection ahead.

If his team were still here, these zombies would be nothing. But now, with only himself left, facing one gaping maw after another, he panicked.

Zombies chased after him.

The man turned and ran wildly, abandoning his clumsy weapon. Using the momentum of his sprint and a water pipe, he climbed onto a building in front of him and hid for a while on the second floor.

Zombies roamed the hallway. The man tiptoed to the back door. The moment he opened it, a zombie lunged at him, biting his arm.

The man endured the pain, not daring to cry out. He twisted the zombie’s head with a backhand, and the zombie, its neck broken, stopped moving; but its mouth remained firmly clamped on his arm.

The man pried open the zombie’s mouth and left.

He was infected and dared not go back.

Because going back meant certain death.

He knew there was a slim chance of becoming an ability user after being infected. He had overheard Jimi and Young Master Xie talking about it. He needed to find a safe place to wait quietly.

“Bang—” A bullet went straight through his head.

The man only felt his body uncontrollably fall to the ground, and then his eyes plunged into darkness.

In the distant high-rise, Jimi lit a cigarette and took a gentle puff, exhaling a cloud of murky smoke: “Not everyone is lucky enough to become an ability user.”

“Big Brother’s marksmanship has gotten much better.”

Jimi scratched the back of his head irritably: “What’s the good of being accurate? Gu Qingli went to the lab with Young Master Xie. She must have come into contact with meteorites. She might be an ability user, like those two beauties, and not easy to deal with.”

“Then what should we do?”

Jimi was silent for a moment: “You all go and destroy the other gas stations, leave only this one. I don’t believe they can leave the city without gasoline.”

“Yes.”