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墨書 Inktalez
The situation in the city is worse than yesterday. I have tried to prepare for the worst, but it still doesn't compare to the reality. In areas where crowds are already dense, I can't imagine what kind of disaster it must be.
With my heart hanging high, I feel somewhat distracted. Shang Yi stopped me as I was about to head inside and said, "I should go check it out; if there are no infected people, what if there is someone?" I paused and didn't refuse his good intentions.
Shang Yi gives me a feeling that can even be described as somewhat unfathomable. Once outside, he showed no signs of panic from start to finish, facing our zombified companions and the unusual Huang Di without any surprise. If he told me he had researched the apocalypse virus, I would believe him; he doesn’t seem like someone who needs to gather information at all. To be precise, it feels like he just casually came out to see what the world has turned into.
Standing in the yard, I briefly asked the woman and boy for their basic information. The boy's name is Chen Zhong, 16 years old, a high school student. The girl’s name is Fang Xiang, 25 years old, a recent master's graduate and Chen Zhong's tutor. They were having a class when the disaster struck; Chen Zhong's father is abroad, and his mother went shopping.
How tragic; just before the apocalypse hit, they were still in tutoring sessions. At this point, Shang Yi waved at us from by the window, signaling us to come inside. It seems there’s no problem inside the house; Chen Zhong's scouting ability is quite handy. If he wants to go into the city to find his mother, he can come along with us.
This is an opulent house; as soon as you enter, the oversized crystal chandelier hanging from the high ceiling catches your eye. The room has an elegant and luxurious feel to it. When Shang Yi didn’t turn on the lights, I had a bad premonition; trying to turn them on yielded no response—sure enough, there was a power outage.
Even with some psychological preparation, seeing society regress still weighs heavily on my heart. This means that survival for those who manage to stay hidden will become even more difficult. I need to hurry up and find Huazhang.
Everyone scattered to look for useful items while I took Huang Di to the storage room here. The storage room has everything; it's like a medium-sized supermarket, with a dedicated cold storage room nearby. Indeed, wealthy families have reserves; now it's ours.
"Be good, kid; wait until we leave this house before you come back to collect things."
After instructing Huang Di, I called Shang Yi and the others over. Shang Yi was pleasantly surprised by all the items. Unfortunately, there were limits to what everyone could carry away. Chen Zhong and Fang Xiang were both hungry and scared; after filling their backpacks, they continued to eat.
Fang Xiang said, "The aunt who was taking care of us has mutated; we locked her in the kitchen and have only eaten some snacks since yesterday." She must be starving. It might be due to the effects of physical mutation; when not eating it's fine, but today during meals saying their appetite increased tenfold wouldn't be an exaggeration.
I pulled Huang Di and planned to check other places. Turning back, I saw Shang Yi leaning against the doorframe and pointedly said to me, "There are clothes he can wear in the walk-in closet connected to the upstairs bedroom." I know Shang Yi must have doubts about Huang Di's identity, but I don’t care. The fact that someone can see through lies at a glance implies another layer of meaning—secrets.
I didn’t respond and led Huang Di outside. As we brushed past each other, he asked, "By the way, where's your dog?"
"Staying at home."
On the vanity in the cloakroom, there is a photo of a young woman with a cool and gentle beauty. Judging by her clothes, she should be the owner of the house.
There is also a cloakroom in the adjacent bedroom, filled with men's clothing. However, it doesn't seem to belong to just one person; there are various sizes and styles. Most of them could fit Huang Di.
If my assumptions are correct, then Wealthy Sister is indeed stylish and has good taste.
Thanks to the beautiful sister's gift, I have saved a handsome dog.
"Good boy, put away your clothes; let's go check the rooftop for our next route," I called to Huang Di.
"Coming!" Huang Di replied loudly, dressed in his new stylish outfit, full of excitement. Even though he currently has no tail, I feel as if I can see an invisible propeller behind him.
I ruffled his hair; today I hadn't paid much attention to him. After he dealt with the Zombie, I didn't reward him in time.
"You did especially well today."
He rubbed his face against mine and said, "I protect you."
To be honest, human skin without fur feels a bit too smooth; it gave me goosebumps. My raised arm was also getting sore, so I patted Huang Di to indicate that his cuddling quota was full and it was time to get serious.
From here, several paths are scattered with Zombies. A few are still lingering at the door; they seem to have sensed us and gathered at the entrance.
It's easy to imagine that if we walked over, those gathered behind would close in while those in front would surround us, leaving us trapped with no way out.
Plan 1: I could transform into a Zombie and walk along the wall. The risk is that I might be targeted by those hiding nearby.
Plan 2: I could transform into a Zombie and walk through the middle of the road. The risk here is that survivors hiding inside might notice something unusual and capture me for research.
Or could my Ability work on others as well?
I took Huang Di's hand and focused on his transformation, trying to see if I could turn him into a Zombie too. Huang Di looked at me with his innocent dog eyes, confused but willing to play along.
I felt as if I was transferring some power to him; after a minute passed, there was no change in Huang Di. So perhaps the transfer was just my illusion. Is this just a solo combat skill?
No, the Zombies gathered at the door have dispersed! This means I can confuse Huang Di's scent.
I, a lone warrior, have found a partner. Huang Di has strength and space; I have the survival guide principles based on just getting by in this post-apocalyptic world—this is solid.
I excitedly spun around several times, grabbing the silly dog that was following me in circles, and told him, "The plan has changed. When we go downstairs, if it's just the two of us, only take the backpacks. If everyone goes together, you collect the supplies from the storage room last."
Although it felt a bit like burning bridges, it seemed that acting alone with Huang Di would allow us to reach our destination faster and more safely. Huang Di didn't ask anything and nodded obediently.
Shang Yi leaned against the window, tilting his head back to look at the sky through the gap in the curtains. When he saw us come down, he fixed his gaze on me and paused for a moment before saying, "The apocalypse really couldn't have come at a worse time. I bought a telescope, thinking about meeting you recently..."
Emmmmm... this caught me off guard.
"There will be opportunities."
"You'll have to walk the road below by yourselves, right?" Shang Yi pointed to the door. "I saw a group of Zombies gather at the entrance for a while and then disperse."
To be honest, under normal circumstances, it would be hard not to be moved by Shang Yi. But given the current situation, he seemed to have incomplete information yet appeared to see through everything easily and could manipulate people's hearts effortlessly, which was quite frightening.
I changed the subject and shouted, "Chen Zhong, Fang Xiang, what are your plans next? Where do you intend to go?" The communication system was completely down; everything was pitch black. I didn't know if the virus had broken out everywhere or just in this city.
Fang Xiang's parents were abroad. Chen Zhong wanted to go into the city to find his mother. Everyone knew the population density in commercial areas; the chances of survival were slim.
Shang Yi: "My home is in the outskirts at Zijing Garden. If you have nowhere else to go, you can come with me."
I replied, "We're going into the city; let's part ways here."
Chen Zhong was young but understood that I meant for him not to follow. He clenched his fists and said, "I'll go find her myself." Turning to Fang Xiang, he added, "Fang Xiang, you shouldn't go either."
He rushed out without regard for anything, only to be pinned down by Fang Xiang in a flash.
"Chen Zhong, don't be impulsive."
Fang Xiang didn't mention how small his chances of saving his mother were; instead, she said, "Are you asking me to follow strangers?"
Tears welled up in the young man's eyes. In the end, they decided to leave with Shang Yi. I took a photo of them together on their phones.
"If I see her and have the means, I'll bring her back."
"Thank you," Chen Zhong said earnestly and added, "I'm not a burden; I'll repay you later."
Fang Xiang pulled me aside and told me that Chen Zhong's father treated them as burdens and rarely came home. His mother would vent her emotions on Chen Zhong after fighting with her husband, calling him her burden. She apologized on behalf of Chen Zhong, showing me a photo of Ms. Song Yangyang on her phone.
In the photo, Ms. Song looked completely unremarkable, just an ordinary face among many.
Fang Xiang frowned as he looked at the photo, trying to deepen the impression, and gave me a shortcut.
“Sister Yangyang posted a fluorescent pink dress and a black fishnet jacket today.”
Alright, that face suddenly came to life.
The five of us split up at the door, and Fang Xiang and Chen Zhong could ride our motorcycle back.
I thought for a moment and said something unnecessary to the awkward Chen Zhong: “You are very brave.”
Chen Zhong replied in a particularly dramatic way: “The song of humanity is the song of courage.” (From JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
Huang Di and I found a new mode of transportation—a bicycle that didn’t require a key to start. Since I needed to have contact with Huang Di, my Ability could take effect.
This meant we had to ride the same bike.
It was quite a challenge to have a small dog ride a bicycle, so I had to carry him instead.
Logically speaking, as someone who has been sitting in front of a computer for years, carrying someone who weighs nearly two hundred pounds for dozens of kilometers was simply absurd.
Yet now, combining cycling and walking, I surprisingly managed to endure it over such a distance. Thanks to nature for leveling me up.
This area is the city center with the highest population density. Huang Di and I walked through the bustling Zombie crowd into the building. This building has fifteen floors above ground and one below, covering a large area, housing many companies.
I remembered that Huazhang's company was on the eighth floor. She is an excellent interior designer and has long had plans to start her own business. I told her right away when I won the lottery, and only her.
However, with the funds, she said she still wanted to settle down and accumulate more experience before growing further. She planned to work on two more projects before coming out to work for me.
Her cautiousness was understandable; if only I could hold on a bit longer. Losing money was fine; after all, it wasn’t like we couldn’t afford it. If she also resigned, we would most likely be together when the apocalypse came. It was better than my voice trembling as I called her name while going upstairs now.
Huang Di and I checked every floor, every room, even every Zombie.
Before we knew it, night had fallen, and Huang Di and I had just finished searching the second floor. There were no survivors on the first or second floors; they probably all ran out when things got bad due to being on lower floors. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a single Zombie in the stairwell either.
Just as we finished the last step of the third floor, Huang Di grabbed me.
“There’s someone up there.” Huang Di pulled me behind him for protection.
The darkness was too thick; the flashlight’s beam was limited in range. Following its light, there indeed was a shadowy figure clinging to the ceiling like a gecko.
Even though Huang Di was shielding me in front, I still felt a chill run down my spine from fear. He remained silent and still, just crouching there on the ceiling. Cold sweat broke out on my back.
He was an expressionless man, probably in his thirties. When he saw me looking at him, he released his grip and stood relaxed on the ceiling.
I could feel Huang Di tense all over, poised to spring into action at my command, ready to pin him against the wall. In the cold atmosphere, I spoke first: "Have you seen a tall black-skinned beauty? About 1.8 meters tall, very noticeable, named Hua Zhang?" He extended one hand, crossing his index finger in front of his middle finger.
"Eleventh floor?" How did Hua Zhang, who worked on the eighth floor, end up on the eleventh? I hoped nothing had happened to her.
He nodded and leaned back against the wall. I tightly gripped Huang Di and kept my eyes on this strange man as I backed up the stairs. In this environment, everyone had truly shed their disguises; if they wanted to be a gecko, they would be a gecko.
The stairwell door on the eleventh floor was locked from the outside; this was not something a Zombie could manage.
Huang Di violently broke down the door, revealing a familiar hellish scene inside. Crowded Zombies and scattered limbs filled the space. The eleventh floor only housed one company, mostly with semi-open glass partitions; only one room deep inside could provide cover. However, with the current density of Zombies, anyone hiding inside would be overwhelmed and devoured the moment they opened the door.
I transformed into a human at the stairway entrance with Huang Di and waited for the Zombies to approach before changing back, repeatedly drawing them to the tenth floor and securely closing its door. Only then did I return to the eleventh floor.
I knocked on the door. "Hua Zhang, it's Wen Bie. Are you in there? There are no Zombies outside anymore." After waiting for a while, there was still no response from the eleventh floor; it felt as if we were the only two alive.
I signaled Huang Di to open the door. It was tightly blocked inside; Huang Di couldn't smell Hua Zhang's presence and had no choice but to kick the door open with both feet.
Inside the cramped space were three people: Hua Zhang lay on the ground with her eyes closed. A Bun Head Girl sat in the corner with a terrified expression, biting her hand to stifle her cries. There was also a middle-aged woman who looked to be in her forties, her mouth stuffed with cloth, hands and feet bound, eyes vacant as she sat in her own excrement.
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