The Giant Gorilla

Around noon, Ren Tingting and Qiusheng appeared together in the main hall of Ren Mansion.

The hall was already crowded with people. Uncle Nine, Taoist Four Eyes, Wencai, and Ren Wei were in the middle of discussing something.

When they saw Qiusheng and Ren Tingting arrive, they immediately drew the two of them into the conversation.

"Everyone, after what's happened these past two days, I'm sure you all understand how terrifying zombies can be."

"Right now, there's still an extremely dangerous zombie active in Ren Family Town."

"And since its blood relative is still alive, its next target will definitely be Miss Ren."

Uncle Nine looked around at everyone and spoke first.

"Uncle Nine, didn't you badly injure that zombie last time?"

"Why don't we find it while it's still recovering and finish it off?"

Ren Wei looked at Uncle Nine and couldn't help asking.

"Finding that zombie would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. Besides, if all of us go looking for it and it comes back to attack, who among you can subdue it?"

Uncle Nine glanced sideways at Ren Wei, leaving him at a loss for words.

"So, all we can do for now is stay put and wait for the zombie to come to us."

"Of course, if Captain Ren wants to take the initiative, that's also an option."

"Qiusheng, starting this afternoon, stay with Captain Ren and help him search for traces of the zombie."

"Yes, Master."

Qiusheng naturally didn't refuse his master's instructions. After accepting the assignment, he continued, "Master, I'd like Tingting to stay at our public mortuary for a couple of days."

"After all, if the zombie has recovered, its first target will definitely be Tingting."

"If she runs into other townspeople during that time, they could easily get hurt by mistake. It'd be better for her to stay at our public mortuary."

"That way, Master can protect her nearby, and the people in town will be safer."

Uncle Nine nodded as soon as Qiusheng finished speaking.

Qiusheng's idea happened to match his own. He'd been thinking the same thing; he just hadn't known whether Miss Ren would agree.

"Miss Ren, would you...?"

"Uncle Nine, please just call me Tingting. I'll do whatever Brother Sheng thinks is best."

At Tingting's reply, Uncle Nine's old face broke into a smile. He gave his disciple a teasing look.

He had to admit, his eldest disciple was quite something. It seemed he'd completely won over the young lady of the Ren family.

But while Uncle Nine and the others were all smiles, Ren Wei was as sour as if someone had tipped over a jar of vinegar.

There was no helping it. The woman he liked was now nestled in another man's arms. He'd have been a ghost if he'd been in a good mood.

Still, having witnessed Uncle Nine and his disciples' abilities with his own eyes, Ren Wei decided that if he had to give up the woman he loved, then so be it. It wasn't that hard to accept.

With the decision made for Ren Tingting to stay at the public mortuary, Uncle Nine and the others began making preparations.

After grabbing a quick bite, Qiusheng set out with Ren Wei and his men.

The first place they planned to search was where Uncle Nine had fought the Zombie King the night before.

When Qiusheng and the others arrived, Ren Wei and his men stared at the enormous, terrifying crater in the ground and all shrank back a little.

"Qiusheng, do you know how this crater got here?"

"I don't remember seeing it before."

Ren Wei looked at the scene before him, then moved closer to Qiusheng and asked in a low voice.

"Heh, this crater was left behind after an eminent senior fought a zombie."

"It happened last night. You should've seen the strange sights around here, right?"

Qiusheng said casually, drawing everyone's attention.

"Oh, I get it. Was that lightning last night coming from here?"

"Captain, I came out to relieve myself late last night and vaguely saw countless bolts of lightning dancing around this place. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me."

"Yeah, I saw the lightning and thunder last night too."

Hearing what his men said, Ren Wei couldn't help but think even more highly of Qiusheng.

He'd never known that people who cultivated like Uncle Nine and his disciples could wield such terrifying power.

"All right, stop standing around gossiping. Let's get to work."

"Search the area around here and look for any traces the zombie might have left behind. The sooner we find it, the safer we'll all be."

At Qiusheng's call, everyone quickly spread out and began searching the surrounding area.

Qiusheng stayed behind to rest with Ren Wei.

"Qiusheng, do you think I could join Maoshan?"

"Hm?"

Qiusheng glanced sideways at Captain Ren, put a hand on his shoulder, and gave him a slight lift. Then he sent his spiritual energy into Ren Wei's body. The feedback he sensed made his eyebrows rise.

Captain Ren was actually suited to cultivation. What was more, unless Qiusheng had sensed wrong, Ren Wei had a spiritual physique. That surprised him greatly.

"You've got decent talent for cultivation. But you're already past the best age to begin. If you want to achieve anything, you'll need to put in a great deal of time and effort. Are you sure you want to join Maoshan?"

Qiusheng had barely finished speaking when a sudden cry reached them before Ren Wei could answer.

"Help! Save me!"

The cry was followed by a burst of gunfire, making Qiusheng and Ren Wei both jump.

They looked toward the sound and saw a huge gorilla, terrifyingly tall, chasing after one of Ren Wei's men.

Qiusheng's expression changed at once.

The moment he saw the gorilla, he knew it wasn't an ordinary animal.

At nearly two meters tall, with blood-red eyes, it was clearly a demon beast—and one that had eaten humans.

With that realization, Qiusheng darted forward, closing in on the gorilla.

As he ran, he shouted, "Everyone, stop shooting and get out of here! That gorilla is a demon. Your guns won't work on it!"

Ren Wei was the first to react. He bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Everyone, stop firing! Run! All of you, get moving!"