When I Lay Flat, the Female Lead Panicked - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Zombie Horde

Night fell. Outside, a light, intermittent rain was falling.

The light was very dim. At some point, moss had covered the stone steps in front of the inn.

The air was filled with a mix of damp rain, and a wet, decaying, moldy smell.

When the rain stopped, the heavy, lingering dark clouds showed no signs of dispersing.

Inside Wen Nanshu’s room.

It was very quiet. Perhaps sensing the danger, Luo Xiaoxiao had no intention of falling asleep.

She just stayed obediently by Wen Nanshu’s side, waiting, and constantly giving herself a mental pep talk.

“It’s okay, just don’t look, it’s okay, Wen Nanshu is here, it’s okay, it’s okay, she has lots of protective treasures…”

Her legs were trembling. Although she knew something was bound to happen tonight, when it was time for Luo Xiaoxiao to face it, she was ultimately timid.

After all, who could face those things that were neither human nor ghost with a normal heart…

She had the ability to protect herself from dying, but… she couldn’t overcome the fear in her heart…

Thinking this, she secretly glanced at the composed Wen Nanshu beside her, whose face showed no trace of fear.

She let out a sigh of relief. The sight of beauty soothed her eyes, and her fear lessened slightly. But just as Luo Xiaoxiao was wondering how much longer this torment would last, a cold wind swept in as time passed outside. The heavy clouds had dispersed at some point.

At the same time, the light of a full moon was slanting down onto the earth, bit by bit entering Wen Nanshu’s room through the window sill.

Screech, screech, screech…

A cold, white moonlight had only just begun to fall. A few strange, terrifying sounds, like claws on a bed frame, suddenly came from far away, then close.

Immediately after, moan, howl, wail…

All sorts of strange, incomprehensible roars and shrieks instantly emerged from all directions.

“…They’re here!” Goosebumps instantly rose on her body.

Swallowing slightly, Luo Xiaoxiao clenched her hands into fists. Her small arms and legs trembled, and she looked at Wen Nanshu with a sense of helplessness.

At this moment, Luo Xiaoxiao really wanted to follow her instincts and leap into the female lead’s arms for comfort.

But in the current situation, it was probably better not to cause trouble rashly.

Knock, knock, knock…

Just a few seconds after the disturbance began, the three people at Wen Nanshu’s door had knocked and taken their positions.

Qiutong: “Nanshu, it’s a corpse horde, and the situation is not good.”

Ningyu: “I’ve observed these hordes from a distance. Most of their bodies are in a state of semi-decay, and they’re covered in mud from underground. They must have been driven by some sort of strange force and crawled out from beneath the ground.”

Cangruo: “I’ve estimated the number of corpses. It’s very strange. It seems there are more than just the hundred or so villagers who died and were buried recently in An Family Village. The number might be greater, and their destination is clear: our inn!”

“Mhm, no time to lose! Let’s act.”

With a calm, cold light in her eyes, Wen Nanshu’s demeanor was composed and full of leadership as she gave her orders in sequence.

“Ningyu, set up the formation. Qiutong, break through. Cangruo, protect Miss Luo well.”

“Yes!” Upon receiving the command, everyone’s face became serious.

Swiftly summoning her life-bound magical artifact, Qiutong gracefully flipped out of the window and landed with a stylish thud. She then pulled out the long whip hidden at her waist, channeled her spiritual energy, and gave it a skillful flick.

With a snap, a group of walking corpses that had flooded into the street in front of the inn was instantly cut in half at the waist.

At the same time, Ningyu slowly unwrapped the white silk from her palm. Her slender, fair fingers moved quickly.

In just a moment, with a snap of her fingers, the zither music began to play in the center of the cleared area by Qiutong, creating waves of sound that, like a gale blowing away fallen leaves, repelled the walking corpses approaching the inn from another direction.

“Senior Sister…”

Watching Wen Nanshu’s cold brows furrow as she quietly observed the battle below, Cangruo was about to say something when she saw Wen Nanshu turn her head and say in a deep voice:

“Something’s not right. The source that caused these dead villagers to turn into zombies isn’t here. Cangruo, protect Miss Luo. I’m afraid I have to leave the inn for a while.”

“Yes!”

Trusting Wen Nanshu’s strength completely, Cangruo nodded and stood protectively beside Luo Xiaoxiao.

Just before Wen Nanshu left, she saw the girl quietly looking at her, not saying a word. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but she swallowed it down, an easily understandable expression of hesitation.

Wen Nanshu seemed to sense her worry. She reached out and gently stroked the top of Luo Xiaoxiao’s head, as if to comfort her. The coldness between her brows softened slightly.

“Don’t be afraid. Wait obediently for me to come back.”

“Okay…”

Luo Xiaoxiao obediently replied as she watched the female lead flash away from her spot and disappear.

However, before Wen Nanshu left, Luo Xiaoxiao had secretly hidden a protective talisman on her, one that could withstand a single attack at the Mahayana stage.

…

Following the teleportation formation that Qiutong and the others had set up early in the suspicious spots in the village, Wen Nanshu was quickly transported to the place with the heaviest Yin energy in the village—a dilapidated, secluded courtyard.

The moment she landed, a strong, pungent smell of bl00d hit her.

Her cold eyes surveyed the dilapidated courtyard. With her sword, Feixue, in hand, Wen Nanshu’s spiritual energy condensed. She swung her sword, easily shattering the wooden door in front of her, and strode inside.

The crumbling courtyard was eerily cold under the cold, white moonlight.

Scattered in the center of the courtyard were many paper effigies of various sizes, both new and old, which seemed incredibly bizarre.

As she walked further in and entered the room within the courtyard, there were noticeably more paper effigies dressed in different costumes.

Some were lying on the ground, others were hanging from the beams. Even more terrifying was that in between the paper effigies, there were many severed heads of various animals that were still dripping bl00d, clearly having died in a struggle not long ago.

Looking at the room’s obvious funeral-hall-like arrangement, and then seeing the half-open coffin with a strange talisman drawn on it with an unknown liquid.

Wen Nanshu’s expression grew even more solemn. She concluded, “The Yin energy here is excessively heavy. If I’m not mistaken, a corpse king has already formed…”

With that, she continued to step inside. Just as Wen Nanshu wanted to get a closer look to determine the sect behind this evil practice of corpse nurturing and find a way to break it, a hunched figure hiding behind the door in the darkness raised a dagger and slowly crept closer to her.

Just as the dagger was about to pierce Wen Nanshu’s heart from behind and kill her, clatter!

The old, wrinkled wrist was violently numbed by a surge of powerful spiritual energy.

The attacker’s hand lost its grip. The dagger fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

The next second, before anyone could react, the tip of Feixue’s sword was already pointing at the center of the person’s brow.

“I think you should know. What is the ultimate price of this evil method of nurturing and refining corpses, this wicked art of forcibly bringing the dead back to life? Village Chief An.”

Wen Nanshu’s cold, emotionless voice clearly echoed in the eerie and terrifying room.

The tip of her sword was pointed directly at An Wude’s brow. Even when the tip had already pierced his skin, causing his bl00d to run down his cheek, Wen Nanshu did not withdraw Feixue in the slightest.

“Heh, of course I know.”

There was no fear or panic in his eyes. His cloudy, aged eyes now looked deranged and stubborn.

Like a wicked person who had long been willing to fall into hell, An Wude felt no guilt for sacrificing the living people in An Family Village.

A sickly look appeared on his pale face, and he smiled bizarrely.

“I don’t regret doing this. I even think I did it too late. Otherwise, my Lu’er could have woken up and returned to my side sooner!”

The grip on her sword tightened slightly. With a cold glance at the coffin beside her, she roughly figured out the cause and effect.

Wen Nanshu’s indifferent expression grew colder. Anger reached the bottom of her eyes, and her clear tone was now distinctly tinged with fury.

“An Wude, are you crazy? Do you know what you’re doing? You’re using the lives of a whole village of innocent people to try and resurrect your son who has long been dead…”

“What nonsense are you saying! My son isn’t dead! Not dead!! Hahaha, he’s already awake. This means everything I’ve done is worth it! I’m not wrong! I’m not wrong!! What I’ve done is right. Hahaha, right!!!”

“…”

Ignoring An Wude’s manic state, Wen Nanshu’s expression was cold, and her eyes held a murderous intent.

“Harming your own villagers, being stubbornly unrepentant. Leaving this behind will only cause endless trouble. You must be killed!”

“Stubbornly unrepentant? Heh, I ask you, what do you know? What do you know!!!

All of you said my Lu’er, that he was a good-for-nothing, a scoundrel who only bullied men and women! A waste! A hooligan! That he died in the middle of a debaucherous game, that his death was well-deserved, and no loss to anyone.

But, but even so, he was still my son. I raised him myself from such a tiny infant…

I admit, I was busy with village affairs, busy providing for our family, and my indulgence without proper discipline spoiled him.

I cursed, I regretted, I resented… but I never wanted him to die. I didn’t want to…

He was my only child, my only concern in this world. At that time, for a parent to bury their child, do you know how much pain I felt? Huh?

I just wanted him to continue to be with me, for the two of us to live a good life. What have I done wrong? What have I done wrong!!!”

“That is not an excuse for you to wantonly harm the lives of others!”

Interrupting An Wude, she ignored his tragic wails and frantic pounding of his chest.

Wen Nanshu’s face was cold, and she shattered An Wude’s delusion, one word at a time.

“Even if your son is resurrected, he is no longer human… He is now just a violent, mindless, monstrous shell that is a danger to the world.”

“No! Everything you’re saying is wrong. My son didn’t die. He’s alive! I’m not wrong! I’m not wrong!! I’m no…”

Swish, a sword through the skull.

The bl00d-stained blade of Feixue clearly reflected its owner’s stunning face, which was cold and indifferent, not even blinking.

Seeing An Wude’s unrepentant delusion, she watched as his old eyes widened in horror. At this moment, he didn’t even have the strength to struggle. He took his last breath and went limp.

She pulled out her sword cleanly. Before turning around, Wen Nanshu only left a single, indifferent sentence.

“Good and evil have their rewards, and justice will prevail.”

With that, she strode away. Wen Nanshu did not look back. She went to inspect the strange coffin again.

However, in the center of the coffin, An Wude’s son, An Lu, was not lying there.

In his place was a strange paper effigy with its eyes painted a glaring crimson.