Zuo Tiantian held her steel rod ready to strike, but when she swung, she missed. The zombie dodged and changed direction.
Shen Qingqiu grabbed Zuo Tiantian and Xiao Muyu, then kicked the zombie squarely in the face, disfiguring its nose and mouth.
As the zombie hit the ground, Shen Qingqiu quickly wrapped a strip of cloth around her dagger, securing it to the end of the steel rod. She moved fluidly around the half-zombie, effortlessly avoiding its claws with precise, leisurely steps, often kicking it away.
With Xiao Muyu and Zuo Tiantian helping, they managed to avoid injury while Shen Qingqiu secured the dagger tightly. Once it was secured, a cold glint appeared in Shen Qingqiu’s eyes. “Enough playing around. Time to end this.”
She gripped the rod with both hands, flipped it around, and deftly pierced the zombie’s neck, rendering it immobile with a single strike.
The zombie’s upper body, once clothed in white, was now completely stained with brown fluids. As it lay still, Xiao Muyu noticed a name tag on its shirt pocket, identifying it as an employee of the Nuo Group.
“This zombie is odd,” Xiao Muyu said gravely.
“What’s odd about it?” Zuo Tiantian asked, puzzled. “Is it its speed?” It seemed normal for a mutated zombie to be fast.
“Its lower body is entirely missing. If it had been eaten, it wouldn’t be this clean. Judging by the condition of other zombies here, it was cut in half by someone,” Shen Qingqiu explained, crouching down to examine the body.
“Right, but not everyone has Qingqiu’s speed and skills. Who could cut a mutated zombie in half? Even if someone used a tool to injure it, they wouldn’t leave such a nimble half-body in the research institute. It’s too dangerous.”
Xiao Muyu checked the first floor, finding most rooms locked. The accessible ones contained only lab equipment and specimens, nothing unusual. However, near the elevator, she spotted several black arcs on the floor, crisscrossed in a chaotic pattern. She wiped the floor with a tissue, lightening the black marks slightly.
“Something was dragged out of the elevator, and though chaotic, the marks are evenly spaced. These marks indicate something heavy,” Shen Qingqiu said, standing up and pressing the elevator button.
With no one inside, the elevator automatically stopped on the first floor. The door opened to reveal a spacious freight elevator.
“Heavy items in a freight elevator are common, but they wouldn’t usually damage the floor,” Zuo Tiantian reasoned, finding it illogical.
Xiao Muyu glanced at Zuo Tiantian, her eyes assessing. Zuo Tiantian felt uneasy. “Did I say something wrong?”
Xiao Muyu smiled slightly. “No, you’re right. But the fact that they left such obvious marks means what?”
“It means they were in a hurry and didn’t have time to care about the floor,” Shen Qingqiu replied, stepping into the elevator, followed by Xiao Muyu and Zuo Tiantian. As the door closed, Xiao Muyu’s nose twitched, and she frowned.
“What’s wrong?” Shen Qingqiu noticed her expression.
“Do you smell bitter almonds?” Xiao Muyu had committed this scent to memory, having encountered it twice before.
Shen Qingqiu sniffed around, her sense of smell not as sharp as Xiao Muyu’s. She could vaguely detect it but wasn’t sure.
Finally, Xiao Muyu found a small, faint trace in the elevator’s corner, resembling dried blood but lighter.
“Is this the rusty color you mentioned?” Shen Qingqiu leaned in to look and reached out to touch it, but Xiao Muyu stopped her. “Don’t touch it.”
Shen Qingqiu paused, recalling Xiao Muyu’s earlier warning, her brows knitting. “If this is the same substance you saw in the hospital, things are more complicated. Nuo Biopharmaceuticals’ drug was in the hospital, intended for you. What does that imply?”
Xiao Muyu’s face turned serious, and a sudden thought sent chills down her spine. Her reaction confirmed Shen Qingqiu’s suspicions, making the atmosphere tense.
Shen Qingqiu, feeling a bit panicked, quickly asked, “Are you sure you haven’t felt unwell recently?”
Seeing Shen Qingqiu’s anxiety, Zuo Tiantian, who still didn’t fully understand the situation, started to feel nervous too.
Xiao Muyu shook her head. “I’m really fine. If something was wrong with my body, I would have noticed it earlier.”
Shen Qingqiu frowned deeply. Xiao Muyu squeezed her hand and reassured her, “I’m really okay. Even if there’s something unusual about my body, it seems beneficial. Remember what Lin Jian said? My body healed unusually fast, without any visible bleeding despite internal injuries. However, he also mentioned that I had a high fever after the surgery. These symptoms match, making it highly likely.”
Zuo Tiantian, still confused, finally connected the current situation with Xiao Muyu’s hospital encounter. Xiao Muyu had inexplicably recovered, and a nurse had attempted to inject her with a rust-colored agent. Now, it seemed likely that the same agent was in Nuo Biopharmaceuticals’ research institute.
From what they knew, Nuo Biopharmaceuticals was likely researching the zombie virus. This implied that the special reagent could be related to the virus. If Xiao Muyu encountered this in the hospital, it meant she might be connected to the zombie virus, exhibiting strong healing abilities and high fever symptoms.
“Xiao, are you saying you might have been infected with this virus but recovered?” Zuo Tiantian’s voice was filled with disbelief, her heart racing.
“Maybe I didn’t get infected because I have antibodies?” Xiao Muyu said, feeling a cold shiver herself.
“Ding! Congratulations to player Xiao Muyu for successfully activating the ultimate hidden mission No. 005—‘I Am Legend.’ Team points reward: 30 points. You will understand my meaning.
Additionally, Xiao Muyu has unlocked the title of the Chosen One. As the Chosen One among players, the team’s instance mission is upgraded, giving Xiao Muyu’s team a chance for a perfect clearance. There will be a surprise upon perfect clearance, so seize this rare opportunity.
As the Chosen One, the system will bestow her with supreme glory. The Chosen One does not need a pass.”
A series of messages bombarded them, leaving them shocked and uneasy. The system’s enthusiasm was a bad omen.
“The Chosen One, could you be more shameless? This is obviously a trap. And the mission name, ‘I Am Legend,’ does it mean Xiao has to save G City?” Zuo Tiantian, familiar with the system’s tricks, knew the more it praised something, the bigger the trap.
“I Am Legend” was a well-known post-apocalyptic movie. Even after many years, it remained a classic. The protagonist’s experiences mirrored Xiao Muyu’s current situation, but the movie’s ending wasn’t entirely happy. Whether this was a simple reference or had a deeper meaning, Xiao Muyu couldn’t be sure.
However, one thing was clear: in an apocalypse where everyone feared infection, someone with possible antibodies would become a target. Everyone, players and NPCs alike, would stop at nothing to possess her.
“Tell me this is random. It seems you’re targeting her. In every instance, she gets chosen to do bizarre tasks. Are you trying to make your intentions more obvious?” Shen Qingqiu’s eyes burned with anger as she stared ahead, as if she could pierce through the air to confront the elusive system.
Her sharp words made Xiao Muyu’s expression change. She was about to stop Shen Qingqiu when Shen suddenly wavered, biting her lip, her face turning pale.
“Qingqiu, stop it.” Xiao Muyu’s eyes filled with urgency. Her suspicions were confirmed: the system could secretly punish Shen Qingqiu.
Shen Qingqiu, filled with rage, gritted her teeth. Seeing Xiao Muyu’s anxious expression and constant head shaking, she held back.
“Vice-Captain, what’s wrong?” Zuo Tiantian quickly supported Shen Qingqiu as they reached the third floor of the research institute.
Shen Qingqiu took a few deep breaths and shook her head. “I’m fine, just give me a moment.”
Now wasn’t the time to dwell on this. After calming herself, Shen Qingqiu said, “Let’s figure out what’s going on here first.”
Xiao Muyu still looked concerned. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
Shen Qingqiu, now composed, smiled slightly at Xiao Muyu. “Really, I’m fine. It won’t be too blatant. It’ll just make me uncomfortable for a moment. I haven’t done anything against the rules, so it won’t go too far. Let’s see what we can find here.”
Xiao Muyu examined her closely. Shen Qingqiu’s expression had returned to normal, without the intense pain from before, easing her worries slightly.
She then turned to the worried Zuo Tiantian. “Xiao Zuo, stay alert.”
Zuo Tiantian nodded, understanding her implication.
The left side of the third floor consisted of ordinary labs. Xiao Muyu noted the signs indicating cell research and genetic material research. The lab doors were open, their contents thoroughly ransacked.
This was expected. The previous teams had likely been through here.
People varied greatly, and there would always be those who kept important information to themselves. Xiao Muyu didn’t expect to find much, but with their unique knowledge, they might still discover something useful.
Zuo Tiantian, searching the lab, finally found a test tube. Wearing gloves, she held it up. Inside was a rust-colored reagent.
Xiao Muyu took the test tube, sniffed it, and confirmed, “This is it. Xiao Zuo, seal it up properly; it might come in handy.”
The three of them continued walking to the right. After turning a corner, they encountered a heavy door in the third-floor hallway.
The door was equipped with a keypad lock, several surveillance cameras, and was covered in impact marks and even bullet holes.
Xiao Muyu tried pushing it, but it didn’t budge. “This door is highly secure. We can’t open it by force. It needs a password or facial recognition,” Shen Qingqiu said after inspecting it thoroughly.
“It uses facial recognition and a password but not a card system,” Xiao Muyu pondered.
“Perhaps the security level is very high,” Zuo Tiantian said. Anyone could see that this place was significant; otherwise, the door wouldn’t have been attacked.
“Is there any way to check the password lock through the surveillance cameras?” Zuo Tiantian suggested.
“Unlikely. They would have accounted for that. They wouldn’t make it easy to hack,” Xiao Muyu responded.
Xiao Muyu wasn’t too worried about what was behind the door. She assumed that whatever information was here could also be found at the North Suburb Base.
“The cameras are damaged. The surveillance footage is probably gone too. Let’s check the computers,” Xiao Muyu proposed, highlighting one of their main objectives.
On the second floor, the door to the director’s office was destroyed, with documents scattered everywhere. On the door’s nameplate was a photo and bio of Sun Qinian.
Xiao Muyu took down the photo and entered the office. She tried to boot up Sun Qinian’s computer, but before it could fully start, the power went out.
Power outages were inevitable in the post-apocalyptic world with no maintenance. Xiao Muyu had been lulled into a false sense of security by the recent stable power supply, but now reality was catching up. The days ahead would be tough without electricity or water.
Author’s Note: Sorry for the delay. Also, you might want to revisit the previous chapter. I missed mentioning something crucial: the issue of the zombie child. Muyu wouldn’t overlook something so important. I realized I forgot to include their thoughts on this matter when you commented about it.
