Shen Qingqiu, clutching Xiao Muyu, fell to the ground and saw what the zombie dog had in its mouth—it was a deflated basketball.
It was Zuo Tiantian who, in that critical moment, activated the card she had obtained earlier and threw the infallible basketball.
The basketball curved perfectly and wedged itself in the zombie dog’s open mouth, preventing Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu from being bitten.
Though they avoided its fangs, its claw still came down. Chen Kaijie, who had already moved, swung his Tang knife forcefully from bottom to top, blocking in front of Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu.
Su Jin rushed over and pulled Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu up, swinging her steel rod as well.
No matter how formidable the zombie dog was, it didn’t dare to confront them head-on. It leaped up, stepping on the wall and bounding to the ceiling before landing opposite the living room, glaring at them.
Shen Qingqiu tightly held Xiao Muyu’s hand and looked at her. Her chest heaved, clearly scared by the close call. When she turned her gaze back to the zombie dog, her eyes were filled with a resolute killing intent. The zombie dog was enormous, with thick limbs and fur standing up like steel needles, resembling a leopard in size.
Shen Qingqiu lowered her center of gravity, handed the gun to Xiao Muyu, and flipped the dagger in her hand, staring intently at the beast.
Xiao Muyu discreetly disengaged the safety, glanced at Shen Qingqiu, then looked at Zuo Tiantian, signaling her with a gesture behind her back.
Zuo Tiantian understood. As soon as she nodded, Xiao Muyu suddenly moved, charging towards the door. Alone, she became the target.
The zombie dog, enraged, lunged at her. Its massive body seemed even larger in the confined room. On the side, Sun Xi and Liu Jia were huddled with Wu An, pale with fear. Sun Xi almost screamed.
“Xiao Zuo!” Shen Qingqiu’s heartbeat quickened, her eyes locked on Xiao Muyu, calling out to Zuo Tiantian.
Zuo Tiantian spread her hands wide and suddenly swung down, making a wall appear in front of Xiao Muyu. The zombie dog, not expecting a wall to appear, crashed into it.
At that moment, Shen Qingqiu leaped up, hands on the wall, vaulting over it. Without pausing, she pushed off the wall edge with her left foot like an arrow, pouncing towards the zombie dog.
Everyone held their breath. Shen Qingqiu moved fast and fiercely, but the zombie dog wasn’t to be underestimated. It raised its front legs to grab Shen Qingqiu, but she was quicker. She grabbed its neck fur, swung around, and landed on its back.
Xiao Muyu decisively raised the gun with both hands and fired a controlled shot at the zombie dog’s head.
As an ordinary person, it was likely her first time handling a gun. Predicting the movement of both the zombie dog and Shen Qingqiu would be difficult even for an experienced shooter. Yet, Xiao Muyu handled it as if it were second nature.
The bullet precisely avoided Shen Qingqiu and entered the zombie dog’s left eye, disrupting its movements. Shen Qingqiu seized the moment, gripping the dagger tightly and stabbing down with all her might. Her expression was cold as she slashed downwards, slicing two-thirds of the zombie dog’s head off, leaving it connected only by some skin and flesh, before it collapsed.
Covered in blood and filth, Shen Qingqiu stood beside the giant dog, like a vengeful spirit, coldly saying, “This is what happens when you mess with us.”
Wu An, Sun Xi, and Liu Jia stared wide-eyed in fear, their terror of the zombie dog turning into terror of their rescuers. Wu An muttered, “What are you people… That wall, you…”
“Big deal. The apocalypse has brought zombies; why not some superpowers?” Shen Qingqiu glanced at Wu An, then walked towards Xiao Muyu. She stopped after two steps, her fierce expression softening as she backed away, frowning. “I need to change; I’m filthy.”
Xiao Muyu looked at Chen Kaijie, who quickly handed over a backpack. “Deputy team leader, go clean up. We’ll handle things here.”
Without a word, Xiao Muyu handed her a change of clothes.
Before leaving, Shen Qingqiu looked at Zuo Tiantian and softly said, “Thank you.”
Zuo Tiantian blushed, waving her hands. “It was nothing, really… It was what I should do.”
She always felt she was useless, relying on the two team leaders in every mission. Being able to help them was a surprise to herself.
Su Jin winked at her and laughed. “Your moment to shine, well deserved. You did great.” Zuo Tiantian blushed even more.
When Shen Qingqiu returned after washing up, she saw Xiao Muyu standing at the door, hesitating. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
Xiao Muyu didn’t answer immediately, her gaze scanning Shen Qingqiu.
Seeing this, Shen Qingqiu laughed. “I’m fine, not a scratch on me. If I weren’t, I’d be hugging you and biting you right now.”
Xiao Muyu rolled her eyes. “Nonsense.”
Shen Qingqiu looked at her, slowly dropping her smile, eyes still showing lingering fear. She grabbed Xiao Muyu’s hand, murmuring, “Thank goodness you’re okay. I’m okay too.” Simple words, but Xiao Muyu felt the relief and fear behind them.
The room had been cleaned of the bodies, and Chen Kaijie and the others were cooking.
With so many people, dinner took longer. After eating, Xiao Muyu focused on Sun Xi and the others. Before she could speak, Shen Qingqiu said to them, “We need to discuss something. You three, step out for a bit.”
Sun Xi and Liu Jia exchanged looks before following Wu An into another room.
“Leader Xiao, is Wu An the target? He doesn’t seem right.” Chen Kaijie recalled the system’s explosion message. He had thought it significant, but Wu An didn’t seem special, unlike Sun Xi.
Xiao Muyu shook her head, not explaining directly, her eyes distant. “The system broadcasted when he was present, along with a zombie.”
Chen Kaijie was puzzled. “Then it must be him. Is it because he knows Professor Sun, who can supposedly cure the zombie virus?”
Shen Qingqiu, recalling the scene, sensed Xiao Muyu had figured something out.
“That zombie was highly mutated, fast, and seemingly conscious. The strangest thing was her tattered clothes showed no bite or scratch marks. During the fight with Wu An, she made a move that shocked me.”
Xiao Muyu believed her thoughts were correct and needed to share them quickly.
“She tied a knot in her clothes to secure the child to her body,” Shen Qingqiu observed, adding, “And in the end, she chose to back off and disappeared.”
These points made Su Jin and the others realize the crux of the matter. “She has a consciousness, can control her predatory instincts, and didn’t scratch or bite anyone. This likely means the virus entered her body in some other way. She is one of the first zombies.”
As soon as Su Jin said this, he immediately thought of the two people outside and realized, “So, the man and woman outside might be the sources of infection?”
“Very likely. It appears there are multiple sources of infection, probably a group of people. Understanding how they became infection sources is likely the key to the second task of this scenario. If we trace it to the source, the outbreak of the zombie virus in the apocalypse will become clear.”
“So, Mu Yu, you mean our target to protect is that zombie fighting with Wu An?”
Shen Qingqiu had actually suspected this all along; otherwise, Xiao Muyu wouldn’t have let that zombie go for no reason.
When Shen Qingqiu said this, both Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian were stunned but quickly became excited. Su Jin gritted his teeth and said, “Considering the system’s notorious nature and frustrating preferences, Xiao’s guess is probably correct. But protecting a zombie? What kind of task is this? Why would we need to protect a zombie in the apocalypse? What danger could a zombie face?”
“Protect her from going hungry,” Shen Qingqiu casually added, though her eyes showed she was deep in thought. She tapped her fingers on the table, then suddenly stopped and frowned. “No, in the apocalypse, our greatest danger comes from zombies. What is the greatest danger to zombies?”
Xiao Muyu’s eyes narrowed, and Su Jin, Zuo Tiantian, and Chen Kaijie were also stunned. Xiao Muyu quickly stood up and said hurriedly, “We can’t wait any longer. We must find her immediately. Since there are multiple sources of infection and she’s our target, she must have special significance. It’s likely someone has already targeted her. And if players encounter her, they won’t show any mercy.”
“What about the three from Wu An?” Chen Kaijie asked while helping to pack up, concerned about the NPCs.
“Let them stay for now. If Wu An wants to take them, let him. It’s not necessarily safe for him to take us to that so-called base. Let’s handle this first, then we’ll go ourselves.”
Xiao Muyu quickly made a decision and then pondered, “I remember Sun Xi said she has three sisters?”
“Yes, three sisters, which means four daughters in total. If this setup isn’t significant, I wouldn’t believe it.”
Shen Qingqiu showed a disdainful expression. It’s remarkable how the system thought this through: four teams, each with one daughter. It’s uncertain how many teams picked up this hidden mission.
“This is ridiculous but makes sense. Could there be four such zombies? If other players assume zombies are just enemies and kill them, wouldn’t those teams be in for a hellish experience?”
“That Jiang Wei guy seems suspicious. He’s probably beyond saving, and likely didn’t even trigger the target.”
“Enough speculation. Our main task now is to find that zombie and prevent her from being hunted. Then, find Norovirus Biopharma’s secret base.”
Xiao Muyu outlined their current objectives and explained their plan to Sun Xi and Liu Jia.
“Stay or leave, it’s your choice. We’ll check back here. We’ve cleared most zombies around, so staying here is relatively safe.”
After that, Xiao Muyu glanced at the gun in her hand, “To be safe, we’ll take this.”
Better safe than sorry. If Wu An forcibly takes Sun Xi away, having the gun would be dangerous. Sun Xi is an important character and mustn’t be harmed.
Xiao Muyu’s team descended the stairs and whispered, “This zombie dog’s appearance is a bad omen, so be cautious and watch your cards’ cooldown times.”
Remembering how helpless she felt during the cooldown period when Shen Qingqiu was in danger, Xiao Muyu added, “Understood.”
Their teamwork had become increasingly seamless and effective.
Since Xiao Muyu suspected the zombie was their true target, she paid attention to the direction it left.
Though the zombie had some consciousness, it still behaved primarily as a zombie, driven by hunger, unlike a fully aware human who would hide. Zombies, like wild animals, have their activity areas. Following the direction it left, the five of them cleared the zombies along the way.
So far, their team points were at 35, with individual points at Xiao Muyu: 59.2, Su Jin: 39.6, Zuo Tiantian: 41.5, Chen Kaijie: 42.7, and Shen Qingqiu: 196.3, far ahead.
“That dog added three points; it must have been tough,” Xiao Muyu noted. Despite not participating in the kill, she got 3 points. Chen Kaijie also got 3 points, Zuo Tiantian 5 points, Su Jin 2 points, and Shen Qingqiu 10 points.
“It seems using cards to kill zombies results in a penalty, losing 0.2 points per kill. Killing five zombies earns just 1 point.”
Xiao Muyu confirmed this as her masked kills didn’t add many points.
This realization weighed on Xiao Muyu. Clearing the dungeon by just killing zombies was too challenging.
They spent the night in a commercial building, taking turns on watch. The night was filled with zombie howls and chewing sounds. The desperate hunger drove zombies to cannibalize each other, making the streets a slaughterhouse. Despite the grim second night, Xiao Muyu and Chen Kaijie took the first watch while Zuo Tiantian and Su Jin slept soundly.
Shen Qingqiu stayed awake, joining Xiao Muyu by the window, watching zombies tear into each other under the dim moonlight.
The city seemed lifeless after just two days of the apocalypse, but the moonlight, once drowned by city lights, now shone brightly on this desolate place.
The gentle moonlight contrasted starkly with the brutal scenes below.
“Why aren’t you sleeping? You must be tired,” Xiao Muyu whispered, glancing at Shen Qingqiu.
Shen Qingqiu shook her head, “I couldn’t sleep knowing you weren’t.”
Xiao Muyu chuckled, having intentionally separated them to avoid issues.
“When it’s your turn to watch, I’ll sleep soundly without interruptions,” she said casually, her lowered voice sounding softer.
Shen Qingqiu laughed, pointing at the cramped sofa, “You said I’m pampered, but that sofa isn’t comfortable.”
Xiao Muyu looked at the narrow sofa, indeed too small for Shen Qingqiu, “It’s the apocalypse; bear with it.”
Shen Qingqiu leaned on Xiao Muyu’s shoulder, “Let me lean on you.”
Xiao Muyu was about to retort but, seeing Shen Qingqiu’s tired expression, sighed. She nudged Shen Qingqiu’s shoulder, signaling her to sit up, then bent one leg and patted it.
Shen Qingqiu was surprised. Xiao Muyu glanced at her, “Before I change my mind, your choice.”
In the next moment, Shen Qingqiu quickly lay down, resting her head on Xiao Muyu’s lap.
Author’s note: Remember, the basketball is always accurate and saves a life.
