Surviving the Game as a Zombie - Chapter 96

Tang Yu didn’t think for too long. Before she could make a decision, Song Lengzhu was already on the move. The group walked towards the wire mesh fence, stepping on shattered glass, looking like they were preparing to leave the restricted area.

As they passed the stone with the inscription, Song Lengzhu suddenly stopped and turned her head to look in Tang Yu’s direction.

Xiao Qi, who was following behind, was caught off guard and almost bumped into Song Lengzhu’s shoulder.

“What’s wrong, Captain Song?” She quickly took two steps back, creating distance from her captain. Following Song Lengzhu’s gaze, she could only see a few player corpses lying on the rectangular stone, drenched by the heavy rain, with bl00d pooling on the ground.

“It’s nothing,” Song Lengzhu replied in a low voice, but her gaze didn’t move.

Tang Yu’s heart was in a turmoil. At the same time, she confirmed one thing: Song Lengzhu could truly pinpoint her location, even while she was invisible.

In that case, back in the server room of the underground lab, Song Lengzhu must have known she was hiding there during the first search.

It was so strange. The smell of bl00d was so thick here; logically, her scent should have been masked. How did Song Lengzhu locate her?

Tang Yu couldn’t help but lift her hand to sniff her arm, then brushed the tip of her ponytail over to smell it. The strong scent of bl00d was no different from other zombies. The smell of gunpowder in her hair had been mostly washed away by the heavy rain. There shouldn’t be anything special about her.

Could Song Lengzhu have planted a tracking device on her? Tang Yu quickly patted herself down all over.

In a daze, she recalled what Song Lengzhu had said to her when they killed the C-Class Zombie King: “No matter where you hide, I will find you.”

So she wasn’t just making a threat; she was serious.

While Tang Yu was feeling shocked and uncertain, Song Lengzhu suddenly spoke to her teammates: “Next, we’ll head into the city and take a look around.”

“Oh,” Xiao Qi responded. Captain Song had already given that order at the main gate. Why was she repeating it?

Strange things happen every year, but there have been especially many recently.

Then, Song Lengzhu turned her head and walked forward, not lingering for another moment.

Tang Yu pouted. She left so decisively, without even coming to formally say goodbye to me and Zhou Zhou.

She rubbed her nose, composed herself, and went to regroup with her teammates.

The farce of the real and fake trio had come to an end. There were no players left in the industrial park. The stragglers had all been killed by Tang Yu’s group, and the truly powerful players had withdrawn from the restricted area one after another. Now, only Tang Yu’s group of four was still busy.

Busy moving things.

An hour after Song Lengzhu left, Tang Yu’s group began transporting supplies. The van they drove couldn’t fit all the small medical equipment, so they “borrowed” someone else’s large truck.

Besides, those players had already quit the game. There were plenty of empty vehicles around the restricted area.

Zhou Zhou even moved a surgical table, along with the semi-circular instrument attached to it. Du Jiexu’s body was secured to the table, her face covered with a windbreaker.

After the impact of the explosion, not much of the equipment was left intact. Fortunately, Zhou Zhou had moved some of it in advance; otherwise, Li Luo would have used it all as weapons.

After clearing out the underground lab, Zhou Zhou led Tang Yu and the others to search the other buildings as well.

With no players left in the restricted area, their movements were no longer restricted. The bl00d zombies and mutated creatures were on their side. If Zhou Zhou hadn’t explicitly forbidden the bl00d zombies from contaminating the equipment and medicine, Tang Yu would have had them help move things.

The four of them were busy inside and out, happily scavenging, in a complete “who’s going to stop me now” state of mind.

As dusk fell, the four of them finally stopped, collapsing unceremoniously in the truck bed to rest.

Two days and one night had passed since they arrived at the restricted area. Aside from a few hours of rest in the server room, they had been in high-intensity combat or fleeing for their lives. Now that they finally relaxed, their muscles were trembling all over.

On this trip, they had inevitably suffered some scrapes and bruises, but thanks to their enhanced stamina and healing abilities, none of their injuries were too serious. The wounds from their earlier fight with the bl00d zombies were already starting to heal under the effect of the medicine Zhou Zhou provided. Now, it was more a matter of physical exhaustion.

After all, this equipment was really heavy.

Jin Ye leaned against the side of the truck bed, asking breathlessly, “What’s next? Are we going back to the camp?”

Zhou Zhou answered without hesitation, “Yes!” She wished she could teleport back to the camp immediately to start her research.

Tang Yu, however, hesitated. She propped herself up with one arm and looked at Jin Ye. “We’ve come all this way. Why don’t we check out the city? We might be able to scavenge some supplies.” Tang Yu blinked, looking completely innocent.

Xiao Li’s interest was piqued. “Okay! I agree.”

The two cities around the A Close and Loving Family camp, A-City and Y-City, had been pretty much picked clean by them. It was hard to find any new supplies, so it was time for them to expand their search territory.

Jin Ye thought for a moment. “That could work. But Du Jiexu’s body can’t be left out for long. How about this: Zhou Zhou, you drive the truck back to the camp first. I’ll draw you a route map to take with you. Xiao Li, Tang Yu, and I will go check out the city.”

Zhou Zhou smiled. “Okay, let’s split up. Don’t worry too much about me.”

Tang Yu teased, “We’d worry about anyone but you.”

If any other team member were to go off alone, they would definitely disapprove. But if it was Zhou Zhou…

It was fine. No problem. They could be a hundred percent at ease!

Once the plan was set, everyone relaxed even more. Jin Ye looked up at the colorful sunset clouds and suddenly added a warning, “But we need to be careful when we enter the city. If other players had the same idea and are lingering here, we’ll walk right into trouble.”

Tang Yu’s expression froze. She remembered Song Lengzhu’s plans and replied with a guilty “Okay.”

The group leaned against the equipment, lying in the truck bed. They quieted their breathing and silently admired the fleeting sunset.

The mutated creatures and bl00d zombies remained on the other side of the wire mesh fence. Tang Yu retracted her control over them, and they dispersed, wandering aimlessly.

After this incident, the environment in the restricted area had become even worse. With corpses everywhere, it wouldn’t be long before bacteria and viruses started to breed. Perhaps new mutated creatures would even emerge in such an environment.

Who knew about these things?

After the sky turned completely dark, the four of them climbed out of the truck bed. An excited Zhou Zhou started the truck, planning to drive the supplies back to the camp overnight.

Tang Yu advised, “If you’re too tired, find a secluded spot to rest. Don’t drive while fatigued.”

“No problem.”

The truck quickly disappeared into the night, its silhouette vanishing from sight.

Tang Yu, however, didn’t plan to enter the city right away. They found another inconspicuous black car, drove it to a dirt road far from the restricted area, and rested in the seats to recuperate and replenish their energy.

They took turns on watch, and by dawn, they had finally restored their stamina to its peak condition.

The province was hilly, and the suburban roads were winding. According to the road signs, the closest city to the Zone 2 Restricted Area was called Xinzhou. Jin Ye drove the car back to the highway and followed the signs until they reached a highway off-ramp in downtown Xinzhou.

Many wrecked cars were piled up near the off-ramp. It seemed a major chaotic event had occurred here during the initial virus outbreak. Now, these vehicles had been pushed to the sides, leaving a path in the middle. Some players must have used a large vehicle to forcibly clear a path, as some of the cars were crushed out of shape.

The scale of the remaining buildings in the city was quite large. Judging by its prosperity, it must have once been a major city.

A big city meant more supplies to search for, giving Tang Yu and her group plenty of room to operate. The supplies A Close and Loving Family needed were rather special, things other players wouldn’t care for. They figured there should be plenty left in the city for them to collect slowly.

But by the same token, a big city meant a dense population, and consequently, more zombies and a considerable number of players.

However, from the moment they entered the city until now, Tang Yu’s group hadn’t encountered a single team of players. They figured the nearby players had all gathered at the restricted area to watch the spectacle, and only a few had made it back alive.

The car’s windows were tinted with reflective film. Xiao Li sat in the front passenger seat, chatting and laughing with Jin Ye. Only Tang Yu sat in the back, with her backpack for company.

Bored, she would occasionally lean against the window, her eyes darting around, scanning the surroundings for any figures or moving vehicles.

It was hard to say whether she was hoping to see someone or praying not to.

And as she looked, she actually spotted something.

In front of a large shopping mall across the street, a modified vehicle was parked. The reason Tang Yu spotted it at a glance was that the vehicle was simply too conspicuous.

The vehicle’s frame was that of an SUV, but it had been modified inside and out. It had steel plates and spikes on the front and back, a hollowed-out steel mesh cage around the body, and the glass doors had been replaced with steel ones that provided defense while leaving gaps for offense. The roof had been removed, and two rows of shoulder-fired grenade launchers were mounted on top.

From a distance, it looked like an apocalyptic war machine with a rugged aesthetic.

Tang Yu quickly told Jin Ye to stop. They parked the car on the roadside, nestled among other wrecked vehicles, and observed from a distance through the windshield.

There was no one guarding the modified vehicle; they must have all gone into the mall to scavenge for supplies.

After enhancing her vision, Tang Yu realized she was wrong. Someone was standing guard. A man with his arms crossed stood at the mall entrance. His arms were covered in dark green tattoos, and he looked very burly.

The tattooed man leaned against the entrance, glancing intermittently into the mall and then at the modified vehicle, before casually lighting a cigarette.

Cigarettes were a luxury item in the apocalypse. Combined with the impressive modified vehicle, Tang Yu deduced that the other party’s camp must be well-stocked with supplies, at least not worrying about food or clothing.

There were a few zombie corpses on the ground nearby. It seemed these people had already cleared the area.

Before long, two other men came out of the mall. Both were lean and tough-looking. Each carried a black handbag that looked heavy.

Seeing his companions emerge, the tattooed man lazily reached up and grabbed the half-open rolling shutter. He pulled it down effortlessly, his feet leaving the ground, and the entrance gate shut with a clatter. Then he took out a chain and lock and carefully secured the shutter.

As if they were coming and going from their own warehouse.

Tang Yu ducked down, watching through the windshield as the three men got into the modified vehicle and drove off with a roar.

“Jin Ye, let’s follow them.” Tang Yu patted Jin Ye’s shoulder and made a “go” gesture with two fingers.

Jin Ye looked at Tang Yu in the rearview mirror. “You’ve gotten bold now.”

“I’m a Zombie King, after all.” Tang Yu said without a hint of embarrassment. A Zombie King had to do what a Zombie King had to do.

They couldn’t follow too closely. Driving on these lifeless streets was very conspicuous. Therefore, they only started their car just as the modified vehicle was turning a corner.

Using the buildings for cover, the car made seven or eight turns. The surrounding buildings gradually became older, and the houses grew sparser. It seemed they had crossed most of the city and arrived at the suburbs on the other side of Xinzhou.

After making a turn, the modified vehicle completely vanished, disappearing down a road in an industrial area.

Jin Ye didn’t dare to follow rashly, so she parked the car to the side. The three of them got out with their backpacks and proceeded on foot. They soon saw a metal frame at the corner. The letters that had been embedded in it had long since fallen off. Below the frame was an iron gate, which was locked. Several wide tire tracks were visible on the dusty road, clearly left by the thick tires of an SUV.

The nearby wall wasn’t very high. It was a concrete wall topped with hollow steel mesh. They could vaguely see piles of junk inside, mostly car frames, steel plates, or other solid waste.

It looked like a large junkyard.

Tang Yu moved away from the wall, then bent down and charged forward. After a short run-up, she easily kicked off the wall, grabbed the top edge with both hands, and with a slight push, hoisted herself onto the top of the wall.

Now she had a clearer view. The junkyard was vast, with piles of solid waste stacked inside. It didn’t have the foul smell of a household waste transfer station; it seemed less like a simple junkyard and more like a scrap metal recycling plant.

In addition, there were many large red trucks in the distance, loaded with tightly compressed metal cubes, apparently ready for transport.

Good stuff! Tang Yu’s eyes lit up. This metal would be very useful if they brought it back.

Looking more closely, she could vaguely see the modified war machine parked near a factory building, with only half of its body visible.

It seemed they had found the trio’s base.