H City Survivor Base

Before Xu Duoduo could answer, a mutant core was tossed into her lap. She held it in her hands, still a little dazed. The mutant core felt ice-cold.

Meanwhile, Qin Luo faced questions from Chen Xiaofei and Bai Shu. In the end, he said, "It's just a mutant core of the lowest grade. Let her eat it. Isn't she worth more than a level-one mutant core? If headquarters questions us, I'll take responsibility."

Since their captain was willing to take responsibility, the two of them went along with him, trusting that he could handle it.

But Wang Weihu had no idea!

He hadn't been there when she stored the canned food, nor had he seen Xu Duoduo take out the porridge.

Wang Weihu was just about to ask something. His voice was loud, and there were people all around, so the sharp-eyed Chen Xiaofei hurried over and dragged him aside. After hearing the explanation, his eyes went wide with disbelief!

This little zombie, their old classmate, actually had an ability? And it was the rare space-type ability?

She could even eat mutant cores?

Wang Weihu was stunned.

After all that commotion, dawn was almost upon them. Traveling during the day would be safer.

So they packed up and set off right away.

With luck, they could reach the survivor base before dark. It wasn't actually that far away.

It was in neighboring H City.

Unfortunately, all of K City had fallen completely. It was no longer fit for anyone to live in.

Although there was no sun that day,

it was very bright.

As they drove along, ruins littered the landscape. Most were traces left behind by zombie-clearing operations, while some places had clearly seen a fierce battle.

Those were places where mutant beasts had been encountered.

Xu Duoduo stayed in the vehicle as usual. This time, she wasn't tied up. She curled up in the back seat while Qin Luo sat beside her, fiddling with his blade.

He was equally skilled with blades and guns.

But after the fierce battle the night before, all four of them, plus their one zombie, were filthy.

There was no time for them to clean up. This was the apocalypse, not the old days.

Qin Luo stole a glance at Xu Duoduo. She had been a little afraid of him since last night, which wasn't surprising. He had nearly killed her.

Part of the reason he had brought her along was duty, and part of it was the feelings he had held in his youth.

The moment she lost her reason, he would have to follow orders and kill her, just as he had to personally put down teammates or survivors who became infected.

The apocalypse was always cruel.

Thankfully, she hadn't lost her reason.

Qin Luo was honestly grateful she was alive, because this disaster had taken far, far too many people.

Bai Shu and Chen Xiaofei weren't fooling around anymore, either. After last night's mutant beast attack, everyone was exhausted.

Fortunately, the rest of the journey went smoothly. Before they even arrived, they could see an enormous wall in the distance. It was incredibly high.

At least twenty or thirty meters.

Even Xu Duoduo was awestruck. It had only been about a month since the apocalypse began, yet they had managed to build such a massive wall?

Electricity seemed to run along the top, too. Not a single bird nearby dared fly inside.

Not far from the survivor base, they finally spotted other rescue vehicles. They honked at one another in greeting.

Xu Duoduo pressed close to the window to look. The other teams' vehicles weren't in any better shape. They were all battered, with dents from impacts by unknown creatures or stains in all sorts of colors. Some even had strangely shaped mutant animal carcasses strapped to them, resembling sheep without quite being sheep.

When the vehicle stopped outside the survivor base's entrance, everyone had to get out for inspection.

Qin Luo got out, picked up the old blanket, and motioned for her to come over.

Then he waited quietly for her.

Xu Duoduo suddenly understood what he meant. If she wasn't tied up, other people would probably be frightened, because even she didn't know what she counted as now.

But mentally, she still felt more aligned with humans. She didn't want to hurt them. In the past, it had been her kind, loving grandparents who had brought her home.

She liked warmhearted people very much. Although humanity had its flaws, there were always good people.

So if she wanted to stay among humans, she would have to cooperate.

Xu Duoduo willingly moved closer and let Qin Luo wrap her up. Then he scooped her up, settling her on his arm and carrying her that way.

This position was much more comfortable.

It looked better than being slung over his shoulder, too.

The other survivors stood dazed when they arrived, staring blankly at the enormous gate.

A familiar loudspeaker announcement sounded at the entrance. "Welcome to the H City Survivor Base. All arrivals must proceed through the passage to individual compartments for twenty-four-hour quarantine. Once quarantine is complete, you must register your personal information. Anyone with wounds, please take the passage on the left..."

Everyone felt as though a lifetime had passed, but they also felt alive again.

Without Wang Weihu having to call out to them, they willingly lined up for quarantine.

Chen Xiaofei stretched after getting out of the vehicle. "Oh man, we're finally back. I'm exhausted."

Bai Shu reached up to adjust his glasses, only to find nothing there. "Once we get back, I'm taking a shower and getting some sleep. I need to find a new pair of glasses. It feels really strange without them."

The staff at the gate also opened up their vehicle and began inspecting it.

Qin Luo brought Xu Duoduo to the small office beside the gate and knocked on the window. After registering, he stepped aside to make a call on a dedicated line.

Xu Duoduo was left staring at the staff member, who stared back. She was a young woman. After signing her name, she stamped the paperwork and gently reassured Xu Duoduo, "Don't worry. Everything will get better. Now that you're at the base, you can rest easy for a while. The base will provide suitable work for you."

Unfortunately, Xu Duoduo still couldn't speak. Perhaps it was psychological.

The young staff member grew a little awkward. Just then, Qin Luo returned from his call. She seemed quite familiar with him and immediately asked, "Qin Luo, whose little girl have you brought back?"

Qin Luo clicked his tongue and told her to mind her own business, then turned and scooped up Xu Duoduo to wait for someone to collect them.

Behind him, the woman muttered something about him being rude, then called out, "Qin Luo, remember to go to the hospital for ability monitoring once you're inside!"

Qin Luo merely raised his hand and gave a perfunctory wave in farewell.

Xu Duoduo noticed that the woman's name badge read Du Chunjiang.

What a lovely name.

She glanced back at her a couple more times. How wonderful, still being able to live as a human.

Qin Luo happened to catch those little movements, too, and didn't miss the envy in her eyes. For a moment, his heart ached with a feeling he couldn't quite describe.

Xu Duoduo didn't have to wait long. Qin Luo had just brought her over to the gate when a refined-looking man in a white coat approached at a hurried pace.

"Is this the classmate Xu you mentioned? Hello, I'm Ji Yan. You can call me Teacher Ji."

Perhaps it was his gentle manner that allowed Xu Duoduo's tense heart to settle a little. She pressed her lips together and nodded, looking so well-behaved that she hardly seemed like a zombie.

Professor Ji had never seen a case like hers before, either. He gently asked whether she could walk on her own.

Xu Duoduo nodded.

Professor Ji glanced at Qin Luo, who scratched his cheek a little awkwardly.

"Since you can walk, come down. Let's take this off. I can see that you have no aggressive tendencies, Xu, but to avoid causing panic, you'll still need to wear this collar. Don't worry. As long as you don't display any aggressive tendencies, it won't hurt you."

To reassure Xu Duoduo, he also cited the recent increase in cases of mutated people. Many people had undergone physical mutations, and some even looked deformed and frightening, but they still retained human awareness and were harmless.