PTYS Chapter 124

Xiao Muyu took the canned food to the kitchen and returned to her room with a pair of chopsticks. Shen Qingqiu was sitting lazily at the desk, seemingly lost in thought. When she saw Xiao Muyu, her eyes automatically focused on the chopsticks and the canned food in her hands.

A smile flickered in Shen Qingqiu’s eyes as she pretended not to know and asked in confusion, “Didn’t you eat enough dinner?”

Xiao Muyu sat down and opened the canned food, helping herself to a piece and popping it into her mouth. She casually responded with a soft “mm.”

Although it was just canned food, the taste was surprisingly good—salty and savory, not like the typical synthetic meat. It was quite appetizing.

Xiao Muyu leisurely ate the beef without asking Shen Qingqiu if she wanted any. Shen Qingqiu paused for a moment, then leaned over eagerly, “Aren’t you going to ask if I want some?”

She sounded a bit aggrieved.

Without lifting her head, Xiao Muyu replied, “I know you’re picky. This taste is average, you won’t like it.”

“But I’m still hungry.”

“If you’re hungry, everything tastes good. Besides, being picky is your thing.” Xiao Muyu didn’t mince her words.

Shen Qingqiu hesitated for a moment, then leaned closer, “But seeing you eat, I feel like it’s delicious. Whether I like it or not, as long as you feed me, I… um, I don’t dislike it.”

Before she could finish, Xiao Muyu fed her a large piece of beef, causing her words to become muffled.

Seeing Shen Qingqiu chew with her cheeks bulging, Xiao Muyu couldn’t help but laugh. After she finished eating most of it, she wiped the soup from the corners of Shen Qingqiu’s mouth with a tissue in a leisurely manner, asking, “So, did I feed you well? Is it delicious?”

Shen Qingqiu smacked her lips. Originally, she tasted it because Xiao Muyu brought it over, whether it was good or not. But after tasting it, it was indeed not bad.

“It’s quite good, better than I imagined.” Before she finished speaking, Xiao Muyu fed her another piece, then handed her the chopsticks, saying, “Eat by yourself.”

Shen Qingqiu wasn’t one to be stubborn, so she obediently took them and fed Xiao Muyu a piece in return.

“Are you afraid I’ll starve, so you brought it specially for me?” Shen Qingqiu happily took another bite, squinting and smiling.

Xiao Muyu didn’t look at her. “No, Chen Kaijie brought it over.” This was the truth.

Shen Qingqiu was at her wits’ end; no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t break Xiao Muyu’s silent demeanor.

She finally settled down and quietly ate, but Xiao Muyu couldn’t sit still and snuck a glance at her.

After a while, she softly said, “You should eat moderately in the evening, don’t overeat. We still don’t know the situation. For now, bear with it a bit. If we can get some vegetables tomorrow, I’ll cook for you.”

As soon as Xiao Muyu finished speaking, Shen Qingqiu’s ears perked up. She put down her can and looked at her with a smile, “Really?”

This time, Xiao Muyu didn’t argue and nodded, “Really.”

Shen Qingqiu put down her can, leaned on her like a boneless creature, and then shook her head, “Forget it. Cooking for so many people is tiring. Cook for me when we get out, don’t cook for them.”

Xiao Muyu raised her hand to lightly hold her and couldn’t help but laugh, “Are you an ancestor that we have to worship?”

Shen Qingqiu just smiled, “Not an ancestor, but a wife.”

Xiao Muyu was stunned, looked down at her, and then a smile spread across her face, “What wife? I feel like I’m your servant.”

Shen Qingqiu turned to look at her, “Nonsense. How could I be so lucky to have such a beautiful servant?”

They laughed and joked, but Shen Qingqiu thought of the news she got from Lin Jian, then reached to lift Xiao Muyu’s shirt.

Xiao Muyu was startled and quickly pressed down, “What are you doing?”

“Let me see your wound. Is it really healed?” Shen Qingqiu was worried.

“Really, it’s nothing.” Xiao Muyu couldn’t resist her, so she let her check.

There were two scars on her abdomen, the wounds still pink, just closed. Shen Qingqiu frowned, “It looks freshly healed. It really doesn’t hurt?”

“Really doesn’t hurt. According to Dr. Lin, my constitution is very special. Even a ruptured liver can heal, let alone a wound.”

Xiao Muyu didn’t want her to worry. This person herself had a broken arm and a large cut on her abdomen without a word. How could she make such a fuss here?

Hearing this, Shen Qingqiu frowned, “According to Lin Jian, there are many doubts about your body. Currently, in a game instance, players having abilities is very unlikely. But surgery found your internal bleeding was real. It shouldn’t have no bleeding points; it should have healed.” This way, Xiao Muyu must have encountered something at that time.

“Yes, I’m just a player. The system wouldn’t give me a rapid healing ability, that would be like cheating.” Xiao Muyu thought for a moment, her eyes slightly narrowing.

Seeing this, Shen Qingqiu frowned, “Don’t mess around.”

Xiao Muyu was startled, “Just a small cut, it should be fine. These uncertainties should be eliminated.”

“Even if confirmed, it won’t help, it only proves your constitution is special. And this is the apocalypse, you always need to face zombies. But if it’s useless, having wounds only increases infection risk.”

Shen Qingqiu definitely didn’t want Xiao Muyu to hurt herself, and her words indeed dispelled the idea. It was useless anyway.

“But Lin Jian also mentioned something. The first case at Yaxiang Shui Pavilion was admitted to the hospital on the same day as my car accident, that second hospital. I think there should be clues.” Xiao Muyu said, worried.

The most dangerous place in the apocalypse is the hospital, closed spaces, and crowded.

The hardest part is between spaces, either needing a main door access card or unable to lock the ward door, with no hiding place, it’s too dangerous.

“Let’s ask Lin Jian about the second hospital later. The situation is unclear now, let’s not go there yet. We can explore other places first, maybe we’ll find new clues.” Shen Qingqiu understood her concerns and spoke.

That night, no one slept well. The first night, zombies howled outside, and things banged against the iron door in the hallway, especially clear in the quiet night.

Xiao Muyu, with her mind occupied, didn’t sleep at all.

The next day, Shen Qingqiu was the first to get up. She was already exercising on the balcony.

Xiao Muyu looked at the woman in a black sports vest and couldn’t help but think of her in the first instance, but remembering the other men in the house, she quickly coughed, “Go wash up and change clothes, get ready for breakfast.”

Shen Qingqiu had just exercised for an hour, her body covered in a light sweat. Hearing this, she glanced at the people avoiding this side, and obediently went to change clothes.

“Captain Xiao, where are we going today?” The group, eating simple toasted bread, gathered to discuss the itinerary.

Breakfast was made by Xiao Muyu. Although it was just plain bread, it was topped with fried eggs and bacon.

The bacon was slightly oily, the fried eggs tender, just how Shen Qingqiu liked them, seven-tenths cooked, very much to her taste. She even ate an extra piece.

Xiao Muyu looked at Shen Qingqiu leaning against her, eating slowly, her eyes warm, and finally drew a circle on the notebook.

“Let’s go to Noru Pharmaceuticals first. If the situation is bad or we find nothing, then we’ll go to the research institute Chen Kaijie mentioned.”

Xiao Muyu had thought it through last night. The player’s birthplace should have clues, as it was the only known place after entering this world.

Outside was dangerous. The five of them had cards, honestly, more capable than Dr. Lin in the hospital.

Besides, they couldn’t let Dr. Lin know about the cards, so they decided to leave him at home.

Lin Jian hesitated but eventually accepted. He wasn’t stupid; he knew Xiao Muyu and the others weren’t ordinary. Normal people wouldn’t handle zombies so calmly, lifting headless corpses outside without a change in expression.

And Shen Qingqiu’s way of killing zombies made him, a surgeon, sigh in admiration.

“I know you have things to do, I won’t ask much. I just think you’re not bad people, your captain saved my life, so I hope you stay safe. I’ll wait for you at home.” Lin Jian was actually very confused. Phones didn’t work, the internet was down, TV had no signal, all information channels reverted to primitive times, he had no idea what to do.

“Thank you. We have a mission, but it’s beneficial for you, so don’t worry. Just remember, don’t open the door for anyone, especially strangers.

You’ve seen how vicious people can be. Be vigilant, even if you want to help, wait for us to come back. Stories of the farmer and the snake are not rare.”

Xiao Muyu meant no harm to Lin Jian; this doctor had been kind to them, so she gave him more advice.

“I understand.”

Lin Jian’s community had few people, and killing zombies seemed to earn points, so the group didn’t talk much. They dealt with zombies completely lost to humanity along the way.

Five people could fit in one car. To minimize noise and save fuel, Shen Qingqiu drove. Following Lin Jian’s map, they drove to Noru Pharmaceuticals’ building.

“It’s strange, why did it break out simultaneously everywhere? Both remote areas and city centers fell. Could it have overrun G City in just a few days since the 3rd? Something feels off.” Chen Kaijie looked at the devastated city outside, puzzled.

“That means it had already been lurking, just without symptoms.” Su Jin chimed in, but then thought of their conclusion from yesterday.

“If it was man-made, how did they do it? Why do some people get sick and others don’t?” Zuo Tiantian couldn’t understand.

“Everything’s a mess now. We have too little information. Let’s investigate and sort it out later.” Xiao Muyu, worried about them getting too confused, comforted them.

On the way, zombies were drawn to the car’s noise, but Shen Qingqiu drove fast, hitting them without hesitation. The five inside clung to the handles, mentally calling Shen Qingqiu a maniac.

Xiao Muyu directed, and Shen Qingqiu drove. They soon arrived safely.

As soon as they got out, Shen Qingqiu opened the door quickly, and the five got out.

Among them, Shen Qingqiu wielded a dagger, Chen Kaijie had a tang sword, and Zuo Tiantian, Su Jin, and Xiao Muyu held iron rods found in the community.

“Stay close to me, Muyu. Without a sharp weapon, your attack power is lower. Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian, follow Chen Kaijie. Don’t aim to kill, just avoid getting hurt.”

“Understood.”

After clearing the zombies around, Xiao Muyu led them to the building. The Noru Pharmaceuticals sign was prominent.

The front door was wide open, the lobby inside empty, bloodstained, and chaotic.

Shen Qingqiu entered first, followed closely by the others. Keeping their voices low and with zombies cleared outside, it was eerily quiet.

“Stairs or elevator?” Su Jin whispered.

Xiao Muyu thought, “What floor is your office?”

“Ninth, with the R&D and finance departments,” Su Jin quickly replied.

“Then the elevator.” Given the situation, many people must have used the stairs to escape, likely more zombies there.

In the elevator, even if there were zombies, in the confined space, it was easier to manage.

Chen Kaijie pressed the elevator button sideways, the doors opened with a ding.

As soon as the doors cracked open, a commotion erupted inside, chilling everyone.

A roar sounded, and a suited man slammed into the barely open doors.

His face, already torn and rotting, poked through, baring sharp teeth, bits of flesh hanging, charging out.

The stench was overwhelming. Shen Qingqiu grabbed Chen Kaijie’s tang sword and, with one hand, swung it down, severing the man’s head and arm.

She gave the packed zombies no chance, her single tang sword slicing like an ancient warrior.

The doors fully opened, but any extending hand or head was swiftly decapitated by Shen Qingqiu.

A female zombie roared, Shen Qingqiu gripped the sword with both hands, piercing through its mouth, destroying its brainstem.

With a reverse swing, she beheaded another zombie lunging at Xiao Muyu.

They had known Shen Qingqiu was formidable, but seeing her handle zombies, they fully realized her fearsome capabilities.

Every strike, every movement, perfect and swift, without needing to look back, as if she had fought this countless times, every action precise.

“Can a normal person be this fast? The deputy captain is inhuman.”

The elevator, designed for eighteen people, was packed with about a dozen. At the elevator door, Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian each struck three times, while Shen Qingqiu finished the rest alone.

Corpses piled up, even Xiao Muyu was stunned. After a while, she softly said, “Let’s take the stairs.”

Shen Qingqiu wiped the tang sword on a zombie, tossed it to Chen Kaijie, and helplessly shrugged, “Releasing them is too dangerous.”

“Deputy, aren’t you using it?”

“You need it more.” A casual remark left Chen Kaijie speechless.

But as they all took the stairs, the system chimed.

“Welcome, Xiao Muyu team, for activating the second 005 instance side mission—explore Noru Pharmaceuticals, one-hour limit.”