TL: Moonlit

Xiao Hen told Wen Qingling about Yin Cheng bringing the armored convoy and asked him to be prepared.

Wen Qingling had been waiting for Yin Cheng, but he hadn’t seen him for several days. He thought Yin Cheng had escaped, but he didn’t expect that he had gone back to bring reinforcements.

Wen Qingling: “There’s nothing to prepare. If he dares to come, I dare to kill him.”

Xiao Hen was well aware of Wen Qingling’s strength. If he said he would kill Yin Cheng, he would definitely be able to do it. If Yin Cheng died, his grandfather, Yin Jiang, would certainly not let it go. The Central Megacity and the civilization city that Wen Qingling was about to establish could become mortal enemies. This was something Xiao Hen didn’t want to see.

When Wen Qingling saw that Xiao Hen wasn’t saying anything, he raised an eyebrow and said, “You don’t want to stop me, do you?”

Xiao Hen shook his head. “I won’t stop you.”

To resolve the hatred between the Central Megacity and Wen Qingling, they could only shift the target of hatred. Xiao Hen would rather see humans fighting among themselves than become mortal enemies with Wen Qingling.

Xiao Hen said, “Can you treat me one more time? I’m going on a trip tomorrow.”

Wen Qingling glanced at his neck, and the virus hadn’t manifested yet.

Wen Qingling asked, “How long will you be gone?”

Xiao Hen replied, “I’m not sure.”

Wen Qingling warned, “If it’s more than three days, you’ll come back as a zombie.”

Xiao Hen said, “I know.”

Without confirming or denying it, Wen Qingling took Xiao Hen back to see Kui Mu and had her give Xiao Hen another session of treatment.

After a whole night of tossing and turning, it was already dawn. Xiao Hen bid farewell and left, but was stopped by Jiang Lan.

Jiang Lan packed up the braised beef and handed it to Xiao Hen. “Take it with you on the way and remember to come back early. ‘General’s’ zombie virus is no joke. Don’t really become a zombie.”

Of course, if he really became a zombie, Jiang Lan wouldn’t mind. That way, the two children could be together as a matter of course.

Xiao Hen never knew how to respond to Jiang Lan’s enthusiasm and care. He thanked her, accepted the braised beef, and left.

When Ji Rong and the others heard about Xiao Hen’s plan, they were all shocked.

Ji Rong said, “Yin Cheng, that bastard, you know what kind of temper he has. It’s impossible for him to give up. Letting him go is out of the question.”

Xiao Hen carefully wiped his knife. “Then we’ll kill him.”

Ji Rong was surprised. “Boss, are you okay?”

He Lin and Shi Chong were also surprised.

He Lin said, “If he dies by our hands, Yin Jiang will definitely fight us to the death.”

Xiao Hen carefully checked the ammunition in his storage space without looking up. “The situation in the Central Megacity won’t last long. Yin Jiang and our side have always been at odds. Even without Yin Cheng’s matter, we would eventually fight each other. Since that’s the case, I’ll be the one to collect Yin Cheng’s head.”Ji Rong fell silent. He understood Xiao Hen’s meaning. Xiao Hen wanted to shield Wen Qingling from the disaster. If Yin Cheng died at Wen Qingling’s hands, Yin Jiang would definitely see Wen Qingling as a mortal enemy. If Yin Cheng died at Xiao Hen’s hands, it would be a matter between the two factions of the Central Megacity, unrelated to Wen Qingling and Ling City.

Xiao Hen put away the counted weapons. “Old Shi, you stay and build a large house for Qingling.”

Shi Chong disagreed. “We can build the house anytime. I’ll build it when you come back.”

Xiao Hen didn’t allow any objections. “You stay.”

Shi Chong understood Xiao Hen’s intention. There were only four of them, but Yin Cheng had an armored squad. They could only resort to ambush, and the best candidate for that was Xiao Hen. They had a high chance of killing Yin Cheng, but whether they could survive and escape was another matter.

They had promised to build a large house for Wen Qingling and couldn’t go back on their word. Shi Chong was not many, and He Lin was not few in this assassination. So Xiao Hen decided to leave him behind.

Once the captain gave the order, Shi Chong had no choice but to find Wen Qingling and build the house.

Xiao Hen, Ji Rong, and He Lin, the three of them searched for the route Yin Cheng would take. None of them had psychic abilities, so they relied on He Lin’s wind power ability to scout ahead.

The Central Megacity was quite far from Ling City, and they had to take detours to avoid cities and destroyed roads. It would take about two days for an armored convoy to arrive. He Lin and Shi Chong flew over in a helicopter, which was faster. Yin Cheng had set off earlier than them, so based on the estimated time, the armored convoy should have reached the midway point. Xiao Hen and the others drove an off-road vehicle to meet them.

They set off just as the sun rose and it was almost evening when they discovered the traces of the armored convoy.

He Lin retracted his wind wings and descended from the sky, while Xiao Hen and Ji Rong were eating the braised beef.

Ji Rong held a piece of sauce beef and called out to He Lin to come and eat, “Boss, are you sure that Dr. Wen’s mother is not your real mother? She treats you even better than her own son. She specially caught mutated black chickens for you, and even prepared sauce beef for you when we went out. Even a real mother can’t do more than that, right? Pick an auspicious day and get married, will you?”

He Lin listened in confusion, “What’s going on? Who’s getting married?”

Xiao Hen cut a piece of sauce beef and handed it to He Lin, “He’s been captivated by food. Ignore him.”

Ji Rong’s mouth was full, “I can see it. Dr. Wen’s mother has already treated you like her own son. It’s really fortunate to have a mother even in the apocalypse. Just think about my zombie mother, who knows where she’s wandering now.”

Xiao Hen slowly cut the sauced beef and couldn’t help but remember a scene he had seen before. Someone in the civilized base brought back their parents who had turned into zombies to find Wen Qingling. Wen Qingling said he was keeping them under his watchful eyes. Why couldn’t Xiao Hen believe it?

Xiao Hen said, “Have you ever thought about finding your zombified relatives?”

Ji Rong took a big bite of meat, “What can we do if we find them? We can’t kill them, and we can’t let them feast on humans. We can only let them wander freely.”

Xiao Hen tapped the knife thoughtfully, “Perhaps one day, the people who turned into zombies can turn back into humans?”

Ji Rong stuffed the last bite of meat into his mouth, “If that day really comes, I’m willing to eat while standing on my head and having diarrhea.”

He Lin kicked him, “You’re disgusting.”

Ji Rong smirked and reached out to grab He Lin’s meat, “I’m not afraid of being disgusting. Give it to me, I’ll eat it for you.”

He Lin pushed him away and ate a few bites of the meat in his hand.

Xiao Hen put away the knife, “Enough playing around, let’s get to work. What’s the situation ahead?”

He Lin took a sip of water and said, “The situation is quite complicated. It’s better if we go and see for yourselves.”

Xiao Hen glanced at him, “Start the car.”

Ji Rong started the car and drove out.The situation was indeed more complicated than they thought. They only saw a fleet of armored vehicles, but there was no one in sight.

The three of them got out of the car to investigate. The armored vehicles were neatly parked on the road, without any signs of battle. It was as if Yin Cheng and his team had disappeared into thin air. The three carefully inspected each armored vehicle. This situation was highly unusual. Yin Cheng wouldn’t be crazy enough to leave the armored vehicles behind and leave his people alone.

Ji Rong opened one of the doors of an armored vehicle and found traces inside. “Boss, Old He, come take a look.”

Xiao Hen and He Lin leaned into the armored vehicle. Ji Rong picked up a handful of hair with flesh still attached from the driver’s seat. The three of them looked at each other. Yin Cheng and his team didn’t simply disappear. Something must have happened.

Ji Rong said, “Perhaps this is a good thing. If Yin Cheng died on the way, it has nothing to do with us or Dr. Wen.”

Xiao Hen’s face turned serious. “You’re mistaken. It’s better if Yin Cheng is still alive.”

Xiao Hen said, “Wen Qingling’s ability to control zombies, Yin Cheng must have told Yin Jiang. If Yin Cheng disappeared midway, the blame will definitely fall on Wen Qingling. We will also become targets of his revenge because we left the Central Mega City by helicopter. Yin Jiang will definitely think we informed Wen Qingling in advance.”

Ji Rong scratched his head, “This is really f******…”

Ji Rong’s voice abruptly stopped. His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, and Xiao Hen noticed his abnormality and turned to look, freezing in place as well.

He Lin’s exposed flesh was rapidly withering and decaying. He stammered, “How…?”

His voice was dry and harsh, only managing to say three words before losing the ability to speak.

He couldn’t believe what he saw as his hands turned dark, thin, and sharp, with pointed finger bones growing into sharp claws. His black pupils were overwhelmed by a crimson color.

He Lin trembled all over, desperately clinging to his fading human consciousness. The allure of fresh flesh and blood was too strong, and he was hungry…

“Old He…” Ji Rong called him, his voice trembling.

“Roar!” He Lin let out a roar and pounced on Ji Rong.

Ji Rong had a weapon in his hand, but he couldn’t bring himself to use it against his brother. He could only use his hand to grab He Lin’s neck and prevent him from biting. He Lin’s sharp claws tore through Ji Rong’s face and neck, the smell of blood stimulating him, driving him even more madly.

“Lao He!” Ji Rong’s eyes turned red.

Xiao Hen snapped out of his shock and appeared behind He Lin. He held a sheathed long knife to restrain He Lin and separate him from Ji Rong. He Lin had completely lost his human consciousness and had become a zombie driven by the desire for flesh and blood.

He Lin roared and lunged at Xiao Hen. Xiao Hen fought back, grappling with him. The crimson-eyed zombie He Lin possessed great strength, speed, and astonishing leaping ability. Xiao Hen exerted all his strength and finally managed to twist the long knife around He Lin’s arms, pinning him down on the ground. Xiao Hen himself also sustained injuries from the sharp claws.

Xiao Hen never drew his knife throughout the entire ordeal.

Zombies didn’t feel pain. He Lin struggled frantically as if he could tear off his own arms and continue fighting Xiao Hen. Xiao Hen pressed He Lin firmly with his knee and shouted to Ji Rong, “Find a rope!”

Ji Rong wiped the tears from his face, climbed onto the armored vehicle, cut off the seatbelt, and, together with Xiao Hen, tightly bound the frenzied He Lin. Looking at He Lin writhing and struggling on the ground, Ji Rong burst into tears. He turned around and kicked the door of the armored vehicle repeatedly, roaring and venting his inner collapse.

The situation with He Lin was all too familiar. Xiao Hen and Ji Rong had encountered these crimson-eyed zombies in Ling City Base, right in the underground parking lot. The creature that was responsible for creating these crimson-eyed zombies was the evolutionary blood anemone in Wen Qingling’s hands.

It was Wen Qingling!

Ji Rong exclaimed in despair, “Wen Qingling is not human, right? What is he exactly?!”

Xiao Hen didn’t say a word. He didn’t anticipate this unexpected turn of events either. Who would have expected that the armored vehicle would contain the toxic mist left behind by the evolutionary blood anemone? Even Wen Qingling himself, if he were here, wouldn’t have expected it.

Ji Rong shouted, “Since the blood anemone is his thing, why didn’t he get rid of it?!”

Ji Rong grabbed his own hair, “Why did I open this car door? If I didn’t open it and didn’t call you to come and see, Old He wouldn’t have been in trouble. Why is he the one in trouble and not me?!”

Both Xiao Hen and Ji Rong had wounds caused by He Lin’s scratches, and their blood was a bright red color. They had developed antibodies and couldn’t be infected. Whether it was scratches, bites, or the toxic mist, nothing could harm them. But He Lin was different. He was human, and the toxic mist had directly transformed him into a crimson-eyed zombie.

Oh no, He Lin… :<