Surviving the Game as a Zombie - Chapter 115

Professor Zhou provided two types of zombie serum. To differentiate them, she added non-contaminating pigments. The red one was a serum extracted directly from Tang Yu’s bl00d. There were only ten vials, and the living corpses it converted had a closer connection to Tang Yu. She called it the first-grade serum.

The blue one was a serum extracted from the first-grade living corpses. There was a large quantity; Professor Zhou worked through the night to make over fifty vials, using almost all the syringes in the camp. The living corpses converted by this serum had a slightly weaker connection to Tang Yu, but the raw materials were abundant, so they didn’t need to be used sparingly. Tang Yu called it the second-grade serum.

There was also a yellow, third-grade serum, but because its effect was the weakest, Professor Zhou didn’t develop much of it. For this trip, she only gave Tang Yu two IV bags of it as a backup.

Tang Yu divided the second-grade serum into three portions and gave them to her teammates to carry separately. They placed some of the syringes in the mesh pockets on the sides of their backpacks for easy access. If they came across a zombie they liked the look of, they would reward it with a shot.

The zombies wandering on the road were completely unguarded against Jin Ye and Tang Yu, which gave them an advantage. They put away their weapons and walked openly among the zombies. Then, they would circle behind a zombie, pull out a syringe, quickly jab it into the black bl00d vessel on its neck, and push the plunger—all in one smooth motion.

The blue serum entered the zombie’s body. Amidst the zombie’s roars, the injection squad was officially online.

For selection purposes, Tang Yu had to pay close attention to the differences between zombies. She discovered that those with intact clothing and clearly recognizable faces were mostly newly turned. These zombies had weaker basic physical abilities; they were the interns among the zombies.

On the other hand, the zombies with tattered clothes, covered in bloodstains, and with hideous faces had higher combat power and agility. The zombie virus evolved, a fact Tang Yu and her team had learned in the restricted zone. Therefore, these seasoned veterans became Tang Yu’s chosen targets.

But these zombies stank terribly and weren’t very pleasant to look at. When Tang Yu directed them to stand in the back of the truck, the cargo bed itself started to reek of decay.

So, whenever they came across a mountain stream or creek by the roadside, Tang Yu would carry a broken bucket she’d found and make the zombies line up to fetch water and bathe. Then, they would change into old clothes scavenged from houses.

Xiao Li leaned against the car door and complained, “These zombies have never encountered such an unreasonable demand in their entire existence.”

But it had to be said, the bathed zombies were much cleaner. Although the festering wounds and mucus dirtied their clothes again, they were at least much easier on the eyes than before.

Not only that, Tang Yu also required every member of her corpse family to carry a weapon, be it a tree branch, a shovel, or a firearm snatched from a player on the road.

At this stage of the game, it was a great disadvantage for zombies to only be able to fight with their bodies instead of using weapons.

By the time the truck drove back into A-City, the cargo bed was already filled with over thirty living corpses. They were dressed in colorful clothes, sitting neatly with expressionless faces. These living corpses were special. When Tang Yu wasn’t using her control ability, they had no clear objective and would just stay put. Only when they encountered living people would they turn in unison to stare at them, and then, under Tang Yu’s command, launch an attack on any players who surrounded them.

From a distance, it was quite an intimidating sight.

Tang Yu found an old map in a stationery store. It detailed the locations, sizes, and borders of various provinces. Tang Yu compared it with the sticky note; just as Song Lengzhu had said, the borders on the note didn’t match the actual map at all. She couldn’t determine which places on the map corresponded to the other six regions.

Tang Yu put away the note and set her destination as Songming City. Songming City was the capital of a certain province. According to the map, they would need to cross two provinces to get there.

She chose a road heading west, which would take them through the center of A-City. Returning to A-City again, nothing had changed, except that the desolation and decay were even more pronounced. Perhaps because resources in A-City were dwindling, most players had moved on. They would only encounter a few reckless players who came to test them after long intervals.

Tang Yu sat in the back seat, her gaze wandering over the streets. The roads were empty; the figure she hoped to see was nowhere in sight.

Not until they had left A-City did Tang Yu retract her gaze and purse her lips.

She hadn’t run into Song Lengzhu. They didn’t have that kind of serendipitous fate.

Tang Yu was a little disappointed, and this disappointment was easily seen through by Jin Ye, who was driving.

She saw Tang Yu’s slightly downcast eyes in the rearview mirror and chuckled softly. “Did your expectations fall short?”

“Huh?” Tang Yu looked up distractedly. “What expectations?”

“Who knows.” Jin Ye gripped the steering wheel and glanced at the already sleeping Xiao Li.

“Jin Ye.” Tang Yu suddenly leaned forward, grabbing the driver’s seat and poking her head out. “Pardon my forwardness, but what is it you like about Xiao Li?”

Jin Ye’s hand on the steering wheel trembled. She turned to look at Xiao Li, and after confirming the other was fast asleep, she chided, “That is indeed very forward. Keep your voice down.”

“I’m just asking.” Tang Yu lowered her voice. “You don’t think I don’t know, do you? You’re very obvious.”

“I’ve tried my best to hide it, but this kind of thing… anyone can see it except the person involved, right?” Jin Ye suddenly lamented. It was a pity the person in question hadn’t said anything, so it was unclear if she knew or not.

“Indeed,” Tang Yu affirmed. The way Jin Ye looked at Xiao Li was clearly not innocent.

Jin Ye was silent for a moment before answering Tang Yu’s initial question. “It’s hard to explain the reasons for liking someone; you can’t just list them out one, two, three, four. We spend our days and nights together, and I don’t even know when my feelings changed. In our original team, I just had the thought of protecting her. I thought she was small and cute, and she relied on me a lot. Maybe that’s what I liked about her back then? But after returning from Ghost Valley, I discovered she doesn’t need to be protected. She has a tough, independent side too, and I find I like this version of her even more. Tell me, can you really explain the reason for that?”

Jin Ye smiled gently, her eyes filled with tenderness. She rarely confided in others. If Tang Yu hadn’t asked, she would never have said these words, especially not in front of the person concerned.

“That’s wonderful,” Tang Yu responded softly, patting Jin Ye’s shoulder. “If you two get married, I want a seat at the main table.”

Jin Ye laughed, but then her expression turned melancholic as something came to mind. “If there’s a chance, I’ll invite you.”

“Okay,” Tang Yu replied, leaning back against the seat in thought, analyzing the relevance of Jin Ye’s words.

Reasons… they really are inexplicable.

“What about you, then? Who have you fallen for?” Jin Ye changed the subject, turning it to Tang Yu.

“I haven’t, I’m not.” Tang Yu looked up and denied it repeatedly.

“How could you not? You wouldn’t ask me this question for no reason.” Jin Ye was very observant. She glanced at the rearview mirror and asked, “Is there something you can’t figure out?”

“There’s nothing I can’t figure out,” Tang Yu stammered in reply. Not only was there nothing she couldn’t figure out, she didn’t even dare to think too deeply about it. After all, if she started thinking, wouldn’t she just sink deeper? She understood such a simple principle.

Jin Ye thought of Tang Yu’s special situation and sighed deeply. “Don’t worry about your identity. Life is unpredictable; just follow your heart.”

“Okay.” Tang Yu took this advice to heart. She didn’t know about others, but her life was indeed unpredictable—so unpredictable that she didn’t know if she could leave this game alive.

“And the other person’s identity,” Jin Ye suddenly added.

“Ah…” That point did remind Tang Yu. She had never considered what kind of identity Song Lengzhu had. In the game, Song Lengzhu was a powerful figure, an excellent captain and hunter. But outside the game, what kind of person would she be, what kind of status would she have?

Someone who could cultivate such a personality and mindset couldn’t possibly be an ordinary person, right?

Thinking of this, Tang Yu suddenly felt deflated.

“If you’re ever confused, feel free to talk to me,” Jin Ye said. “Although my situation isn’t much better than yours, I can offer you some advice from an outsider’s perspective.”

Xiao Li slowly woke up, rubbing her eyes and asking drowsily, “What? Talk about what?”

Jin Ye’s grip on the steering wheel tightened. She tried her best to remain calm and soften her tone. “It’s nothing. Go back to sleep. We have a long drive ahead of us.”

Just as Jin Ye had said, the journey was very long. The scenery outside the window changed from flat plains to rolling mountains, and the types of trees also changed noticeably. As the altitude increased, the slightly stuffy, hot air cooled down considerably. By dusk, it even felt a little chilly.

The temperature was different, and it was a very noticeable difference. Tang Yu took out the sticky note and checked it against the map. They might have already reached another region.

The sky here became exceptionally high and vast. As the sun set, clusters of clouds were dyed red, a truly beautiful sight. On the winding mountain road, their truck was the only vehicle. This mountainous area was deserted; they would only see three or four zombies every hour or two.

It was getting late. Jin Ye planned to find a place to park and continue their journey the next day. She slowed down the truck, looking for a suitable place to camp.

But as she slowed down, Jin Ye suddenly spotted a small white car appearing around the bend behind them in her rearview mirror.

The other car probably hadn’t expected Jin Ye to suddenly slow down in the middle of the mountains, and its body swerved noticeably.

The three of them immediately became alert and grabbed their weapons.

Tang Yu leaned out the window, using her enhanced vision to look back. She discovered the car’s license plate was from A-City. A chill ran down her spine; it was highly likely this car had been following them ever since A-City.

This was too abnormal!

Tang Yu looked at the driver’s seat and saw a man who looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn’t recall where she had seen him. The passenger seat was also occupied by a man. Only in the back seat was there a young woman.

The woman was looking down at something. Probably alerted by the driver, she raised her head and looked in Tang Yu’s direction.

Tang Yu saw the person’s face clearly. Her grip on her knife tightened. She finally remembered who the driver was.

He was Li Luo’s teammate. Tang Yu had seen him once in the restricted zone; the man had always stood behind Li Luo.

And the woman in the back seat was none other than Li Luo.

“Jin Ye, stop the car.” Tang Yu suddenly halted the vehicle. She opened the door, jumped out with Startling Dragon in hand, and stood in the middle of the winding mountain road. Xiao Li and Jin Ye followed her out.

The small white car had no choice but to stop before hitting Tang Yu.

Li Luo got out and leaned against the car door. She glanced at Tang Yu’s truck full of zombies, then at Tang Yu, and greeted her with a smile, “We meet again.”

It was clearly a case of being followed, yet she was pretending it was a coincidence.

Xiao Li was a little angry. “What are you doing following us?”

Li Luo didn’t try to hide it and admitted it openly. “I saw you in A-City and wanted to follow along and see. I don’t have any missions on hand anyway. I just didn’t expect you to travel this far.”

Her frankness caught Xiao Li off guard. Xiao Li was stunned for a moment. “Follow us? And then what? Kill us?”

Sensing Xiao Li’s disrespect, the man who had been driving grew annoyed. “If we wanted to kill you, we would have done it long ago. Why wait until now?”

Li Luo stopped the man and replied politely, “No. I didn’t attack you in the restricted zone, and I won’t now. I’m purely curious, that’s all. You’re very interesting. Besides, we have a ‘barrel of oil’ friendship, don’t we? I have no hostile intentions.”

Good grief, another team interested in them. Is this the world of the strong? Having nothing better to do than stalk others.

But Li Luo was so sincere. Seeing that Tang Yu didn’t respond, she took the initiative to ask, “Where are you headed on this trip?”

Xiao Li said, “Nowhere in particular. Just wandering around, killing some players along the way to rack up points.”

“That’s a pity,” Li Luo said. “I thought you were going to Songming City. Miss Song is there. I was planning to drop by and see.”

She deliberately emphasized the words “Miss Song,” her words carrying several layers of meaning.

Tang Yu’s eyes narrowed, and a nameless fire ignited within her.

Li Luo must have known about the complicated relationship between Song Lengzhu and Tang Yu, which is why she brought up Song Lengzhu to test her. Yet, her words also implied that she herself had a good relationship with Song Lengzhu.

Since she knew Song Lengzhu was in Songming City, it meant they had exchanged contact information.

Now she was telling Tang Yu this news. What was this? A news sync? Or was she trying to curry a favor?

Tang Yu couldn’t understand Li Luo’s motives.

Xiao Li asked directly, “What is Song Lengzhu doing in Songming City?”

“I heard she’s looking for something, but she didn’t say what. Do you want to go together?” Li Luo asked. “If you don’t mind, we could travel together.”

She did mind. She minded a little. Tang Yu wrinkled her nose but didn’t make a decision right away.

Tang Yu’s opinion of Li Luo was complicated. This person was different from those players who enjoyed killing. She exuded an air of politeness, with proper manners and a kind, peaceful demeanor. Tang Yu had initially thought it was an act, but Li Luo seemed incredibly sincere in everything she did.

Sincere, but not easily manipulated. Like a skilled merchant who uses the most sincere attitude to win others’ favor and then get what she wants. Just like the methods she used to get close to Song Lengzhu in the restricted zone.

You couldn’t even bring yourself to dislike her.

Tang Yu’s reluctance also stemmed from another aspect. The fact that Li Luo and Song Lengzhu were on good terms made her uncomfortable. This discomfort had nothing to do with Li Luo herself—Li Luo’s behavior was very proper—but Tang Yu couldn’t help but mind.

“Xiao Li, accept her invitation, but have them drive in front.”

Xiao Li relayed Tang Yu’s words, then added on her own, “Li Jie, I can trust you, but your two teammates better not try to ambush us.”

“They won’t. They’re only responsible for my safety,” Li Luo replied to Xiao Li, her expression very kind as she looked at her, as if looking at her own little sister.

A feeling of unease also rose in Jin Ye’s heart.

Xiao Li didn’t notice at all. She was just puzzled that Li Luo’s words made it sound like the other two were bodyguards.

Xiao Li took a serious look at the other two men and noticed they stood behind Li Luo, habitually clasping their hands behind their backs, their postures ramrod straight. They really did have the air of bodyguards, just missing a pair of sunglasses.

Such disciplined posture wasn’t developed in a day or two; it was clearly a habit formed over many years.

No way, could someone really have brought bodyguards into the game?!