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On a midsummer night, a torrential downpour poured down relentlessly. The continuous rain washed over the ground, carrying away all the filthy traces upon it.
Inside a damaged building, Tie Zhi and Zhang Wenxi, who had successfully escaped, huddled together in an office. Part of the zombie horde that had come from the prison, having lost their prey, moved elsewhere, while the rest wandered around the vicinity, forcing the two to remain crouched here temporarily, too afraid to move.
“Tie Brother, Jie Brother is dead,” Zhang Wenxi said in a trembling voice within the darkness, attempting to move closer to Tie Zhi as he spoke.
“If you come any closer, I won’t hesitate to blow your brains out right now.” As Zhang approached, an icy gun barrel pressed against his forehead, freezing him in place. With tears and fear choking his voice, he stammered, “T-Tie Brother, w-what are you doing?”
Tie Zhi sneered, his voice icy: “You thought that with my abilities exhausted, you could take advantage of my weakness to steal my powers and kill me? Your scheme is quite clever.”
“I… I didn’t,” Zhang Wenxi stammered in defense. In the darkness, no one could see anyone else’s expression.
Tie Zhi said, “Don’t think I don’t know how Liu Neng died.”
During this operation to eradicate high-level zombies, only three members of the Flying Dragon team remained when they fled; even their leader, Feng Leijie, had perished. Liu Neng was one of the three survivors. To evade the zombie horde, they ultimately chose to enter this building.
Just before entering, Zhang Wenxi, who was lagging behind, was about to be caught by the zombies when, for some reason, Liu Neng, who had been running ahead, suddenly collapsed and became dinner for the zombie horde, buying time for the other two.
Zhang Wenxi escaped disaster and hid with Tie Zhi in an empty office.
“The only reason I haven’t killed you yet is because your special ability is still useful. You’d better behave yourself,” Tie Zhi said, his voice even colder and harsher than before.
After a moment, Zhang Wenxi timidly replied, “Brother Tie, you’ve truly misunderstood me. I’ve always been on your side… Don’t worry, I won’t come near you.”
“Besides, I know my own limits. Without you, how could I have survived and left this place?” he said sincerely, glossing over Liu Neng’s death.
Tie Zhi fell silent, seemingly weighing his words.
Zhang Wenxi pressed on, his voice turning light and slightly ingratiating: “Although we suffered heavy losses this time and gained nothing, for Brother Tie, this is actually a good thing. With Brother Jie dead, Feilong naturally belongs to you now.”
A scoff escaped Tie Zhi’s nose, and he withdrew the gun he had been pressing against Zhang Wenxi’s forehead.
Zhang Wenxi let out a sigh of relief and wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
Most of what he said was true; now only he and Tie Zhi remained. Tie Zhi was a Class C ability user, and escaping this place to return to headquarters depended entirely on him. He wasn’t a fool; killing Tie Zhi would only cut off his own path to survival.
“Brother Tie, we really should thank that Level 4 zombie and the expert who launched the surprise attack.” He emphasized the word “we.” “Without them, how could Brother Jie have died so easily? Look at the strength he revealed today. According to the original plan, even if he and Luo Yesheng had killed that Level 4 zombie together, their combat power would have been diminished. Yet, with my abilities attempting to move against him, success was far from guaranteed. Your plan simply couldn’t have been executed.”
Hearing this, Tie Zhi remained noncommittal.
He had long wanted to kill Feng Leijie and take his place, secretly plotting for a long time. Since Feng Leijie was powerful, the only way to kill him was by leveraging external forces.
The opportunity arose during this campaign to eradicate high-level zombies.
He offered Feng Leijie a strategy: have Feng Leijie and Luo Yesheng join forces to kill a level-four zombie, then, while Luo Yesheng was weakened, let Zhang Wenxi use his special ability to steal Luo Yesheng’s powers. This would make it easy to kill Luo Yesheng, allowing Feng Leijie to claim all the crystal cores for himself.
But in reality, this plan was targeted at Feng Leijie. Tie Zhi had bribed Zhang Wenxi, preparing to ambush Feng Leijie by surprise right after he killed a level-four zombie.
Once Feng Leijie lost his supernatural abilities, he would be left utterly defenseless, at the mercy of others.
As for Luo Yesheng, they simply needed to proceed according to the terms originally negotiated with Feng Leijie. From beginning to end, Tie Zhi had only one objective: to kill Feng Leijie. The crystal cores held little importance to him.
Who could have anticipated that events would unfold beyond anyone’s control? Without needing to lift a finger himself, Feng Leijie died outright, Luo Yesheng fled gravely wounded, and Tie Zhi himself barely escaped the horde of zombies, exerting every ounce of his strength to survive.
Seeing that Tie Zhi remained silent, Zhang Wenxi thought for a moment and added, “However, there’s still Zhou Yubai at the hotel. Could he harbor doubts about Brother Jie’s death and then obstruct you…?”
Zhou Yubai, like Tie Zhi, is said to be one of Feng Leijie’s trusted confidants, enjoying great trust from him. However, Zhou Yubai possesses limited strength and has remained almost exclusively at the main base, never venturing outside.
During the time Zhang Wenxi had been with the Flying Dragon, he had only heard Zhou Yubai’s name but had never actually met him.
Although Tie Zhi had holstered his gun, he kept it firmly in hand, never letting it out of his sight, his attention fixed on Zhang Wenxi.
People like Zhang Wenxi may appear cowardly and incompetent, but in reality, they harbor malicious intentions, much like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows; one moment of carelessness, and he will leap out to deliver a fatal bite.
Tie Zhi naturally would not give him that opportunity. He replied without any emotion, “There’s no need for you to worry about it.”
Zhang Wenxi awkwardly fell silent. Outside, the rain fell heavily. Just then, a strange sound suddenly echoed from outside the office—rustling and dragging, as if something were being pulled along the ground.
A flash of lightning tore through the pitch-black night, its brilliant light vanishing in an instant, yet sufficient to allow the two ability users inside to clearly see what they had just glimpsed.
The office where they stood featured glass walls; when the pair had ducked inside, they confirmed there were no zombies within, shut the office door firmly, and huddled against the corner.
As the lightning faded, both of them saw through the glass wall a grotesque tail suddenly appear in the corridor outside.
“Brother Tie…” Zhang Wenxi’s scalp tingled with numbness, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. “It’s… it’s a corpse beast…”
There’s a corpse beast in the corridor outside!
Tie Zhi hissed through clenched teeth, “Shut up!”
No one knew what kind of animal had mutated into the corpse beast outside; the eerie sounds it made while walking sliced through their nerves little by little, like a slow-acting poison.
They dared not even breathe heavily, holding their breath as they endured this inhuman torment. Meanwhile, just a few streets away in the Jinxin residential complex, the room on the third floor was filled with a soothing bustle.
The living room glowed with bright, warm light.
—Bianbian pressed the orange side of the magic orb, bathing the room in a cozy amber radiance.
Bianbian had cooked a huge pot of instant noodles; she ate one bowl herself until her stomach was round and full, while the rest went entirely into the bellies of the two zombies.
With the elderly zombie present, the Level-3 zombie, aside from occasionally letting out a howl—promptly earning a punch from the elder that instantly tamed it—behaved as obediently as could possibly be imagined.
Especially when eating, the elderly zombie could use a bowl and chopsticks; though somewhat clumsy, after Bianbian corrected a few movements, he quickly mastered the technique of picking up noodles with chopsticks, avoiding spilling soup on himself.
However, the level-three zombie was far worse in this regard.
His hand was so stiff that he couldn’t even hold the chopsticks. In his urgency, Bianbian wanted to personally guide Uncle Zhu Yuan’s fingers to teach him how to use them, but the elderly zombie stopped her.
Grandpa wouldn’t allow her to approach Uncle Zhu Yuan, and neither would he.
Bianbian puffed out her cheeks in frustration but finally gave up, letting Uncle Zhuyuan tilt the bowl and pour its contents straight into his mouth.
—The Level 3 zombie had actually tried to grab it with his hands. Helplessly, Bianbian remarked, “Uncle Zhuyuan, you’ll get your clothes dirty that way,” only to be swatted by the elderly zombie.
He had to give up on using his hands and instead poured the noodles directly into her mouth. Only then did the elderly zombie seem satisfied, continuing to clumsily pick up noodles with chopsticks.
After the man and two zombies finished eating, Bianbian swiftly cleared the dishes. Without worrying about what Grandpa or Uncle Zhu Yuan were doing, she struggled to lift the pot onto the stove, then climbed onto a small stool to move it into the sink, and began washing the utensils.
When I grow a little older and become a bit stronger, everything will be fine.
The little girl felt extremely happy at the thought that Grandpa and Uncle Zhu Yuan would accompany her in the future, her heart brimming with joy.
The elderly zombie stood at the kitchen doorway, staring at her small back. Its gray-white eyes shifted several times before it suddenly began pacing frantically, wanting to enter the kitchen yet daring not to.
Every movement it made showed restraint, holding itself back from getting too close to Bianbian.
As if drawing too near would bring terrible danger to that tiny being.
Meanwhile, the Level-Three Zombie, having finished his instant noodles, felt the soul-deep, burning hunger diminish considerably. His attention then turned to the doormat in the living room, where Bianbian had neatly stacked her Lego toys.
This thing seemed to spark his interest; the Level 3 zombie staggered over and plopped down. He extended a pale hand marked with dark veins, gave it a gentle push, and instantly knocked the Lego set over, scattering blocks across the floor.
Seeing this, the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward, emitting a “heh-heh” sound—well… let’s just call it a laugh.
Having found his toy, the Level 3 zombie began clawing through the scattered blocks, earnestly starting to piece them together.
The elderly zombie at the kitchen doorway glanced back briefly, then turned his head again, continuing to fixate on the small figure inside the kitchen.
While Bianbian washed the dishes, she would place her little bear beside the stove, talking to it as she worked and playing both roles herself.
“Huihui, will Grandpa and Uncle Zhu Yuan ever speak to each other again?”
“Of course they will,” she replied in a lowered voice, pretending to be Huihui.
Bianbian: “But Grandpa said monsters are no longer human.”
Little Bear Banban: “But Grandpa didn’t bite you; he came home with you and even stopped Uncle Zhu Yuan from biting you. He was protecting you.”
“That’s right! Maybe someday Grandpa and Uncle Zhu Yuan will turn back into humans.” Her voice brimmed with excitement. “But how can we help Grandpa and Uncle Zhu Yuan return to their human forms quickly?”
Little Bear Edition Bianbian: “When Uncle comes next time, you can ask him. He’s so capable, he must know.”
“But what if Uncle doesn’t know either?”
Speaking thus, the little girl gazed at the dirty little bear and sighed like a grown-up.
After rinsing the dishes for the first time, she began washing them a second time. Finally finished, Bianbian struggled to drag the heavy pot away. Whenever this happened, she desperately wished she could grow up quickly, so she could easily handle such tasks.
Unexpectedly, her foot slipped off the stool; one corner tipped upward, causing Bianbian to lose her balance. The pot crashed heavily back into the sink while she tumbled to the floor.
This wasn’t Bianbian’s first fall; she instinctively covered her face with practiced ease—never let your face hit the ground, that hurts the most.
The elderly zombie at the doorway instantly let out a piercing shriek. Though he himself didn’t know why, driven by instinct he rushed into the kitchen, attempting to prevent Bianbian’s fall.
But upon seeing his own outstretched hand, he froze—his nails glowed an unnatural bluish-gray, their tips sharp as icy blades.
It seemed as though some instinct was telling him that he absolutely must not touch her, lest he accidentally scratch her.
This awareness tore at his instinct to prevent her from falling, creating a tug-of-war that made him want to scream in madness.
With a loud clang, Bianbian fell to the ground, yet the impact of her body hitting the floor vanished; rather than falling, it was more like gently lying down.
It didn’t hurt at all!
Covering her face, Bianbian stood up in delight, ignoring the dust on her skirt, and quickly lifted her small face toward the elderly zombie who had rushed forward only to halt abruptly, causing his body to sway violently. “Grandpa, I’m fine. It didn’t hurt when I fell.”
The elderly zombie halted its low growl, its tall and emaciated body hunched over, grayish-white eyeballs trembling slightly as it fixed its gaze intently on Xiao Bianbian.
Bianbian trotted over, reaching out to take Grandpa’s hand; she felt he must have been frightened by her fall.
In the past, whenever she fell and got hurt, Grandpa would always hold her close and blow gently on her wounds, saying that once he blew on them, the pain would go away.
Before she could get close, the elderly zombie recoiled in fright, backing straight out of the kitchen, his body trembling uncontrollably. He hastily clasped his hands behind his back and let out an anxious roar.
No, she couldn’t get closer.
He roared again, his gums itching faintly.
Once more rejected by her grandfather, Bianbian lowered her long eyelashes, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
Fortunately, the sense of loss lasted only a few seconds, and Bianbian quickly regained her composure.
This brief distraction made her forget the strange fact that she hadn’t felt any pain when she fell earlier. Seeing Uncle Zhu Yuan playing with her Lego blocks, the little girl hurriedly ran over—
The elderly zombie followed anxiously, its eyes constantly scanning Bianbian, as if checking whether she was injured, or perhaps simply because it didn’t know what else to do.
Moving around the sofa, it prepared to stand beside the Level 3 zombie. Just as it lifted its foot to step onto the mat, it glanced at the clean mat, then down at its own dirty shoes.
The two zombies had changed their clothes, but not their shoes.
—Bianbian forgot to find shoes for them.
After a moment’s hesitation, the elderly zombie silently withdrew his foot.
“Uncle Zhu Yuan, you didn’t take off your shoes!” Seeing the Level 3 zombie stepping on the doormat with his shoes still on, the little girl’s face crumpled. Her soft, chubby cheeks scrunched up into a frown as she looked headache-inducingly at Uncle Zhu Yuan, who had piled the Lego bricks into something resembling nothing at all.
If the floor mat gets dirty, how could she possibly wash it?
Hearing the sound, the Level 3 zombie grabbed a building block, lifted his bruised and swollen face, and looked toward Bianbian along the direction of the noise.
Then he turned to Bianbian and offered what was probably… a friendly smile.
Even though Bianbian wasn’t afraid, Uncle Zhu Yuan’s smile still sent goosebumps racing up her arms.
Uncle Zhu Yuan, who hadn’t turned into a monster, was very handsome; after becoming a monster, Uncle Zhu Yuan wasn’t so good-looking anymore.
As for Grandpa… Grandpa still looked just as handsome as before!
Bianbian firmly thought this in her heart.
Grandpa and Uncle Zhu Yuan should change into clean shoes; why hadn’t she thought of that earlier? Bianbian felt somewhat annoyed. It seemed there were slippers available to change into… As Bianbian turned and ran toward the shoe cabinet by the door to search for slippers inside, the elderly zombie picked up a building block that had rolled to the edge of the doormat and hurled it at the level-three zombie sitting in the center of the mat.
The level-three zombie, struck once again, clutched its head and sluggishly turned its eyeballs toward the elderly zombie, somewhat annoyed.
Why does it always hit me!
If it weren’t for the fact that it’s one level higher… if it weren’t for… wait, what was it again? The level-three zombie fell into confusion once more.
“Heh heh!”
The elderly zombie extended a finger, pointing toward the section of floor not covered by the mat; his threatening whisper held meaning understood only by Level Three zombies.
He was ordering him to roll over there.
If he didn’t roll, the beating would continue.
The Level Three zombie’s “slightly angry” status escalated to “extremely angry.” Two seconds later, he emitted a low growl, curled his body up, and rolled clumsily out of the mat’s range.
Facts prove that even zombies can act from the heart.
She found a pair of slippers in the shoe cabinet and hurried back, only to see Zhu Yuan sitting obediently on the floor instead of on the mat.
An elderly zombie stood not far away.
Both zombies were staring at her.
It must have been Grandpa who asked Uncle Zhu Yuan to come out. Uncle Zhu Yuan is so obedient to Grandpa, the little girl mused, conveniently ignoring the image of Grandpa beating Uncle Zhu Yuan and attributing it solely to Uncle Zhu Yuan’s obedience.
She placed two pairs of adult men’s slippers on the ground, took off her own shoes, and put them on, demonstrating the action to teach the two zombies how to change footwear.
The little girl looked at her grandfather with anticipation.
However, the elderly zombie did not change his shoes right then and there.
After Bianbian took off the sandals from her feet, a scar was visible on the instep of her cute right foot; it wasn’t large, but because the little girl’s skin was so fair, the scar appeared particularly grotesque.
Bianbian had many such scars on her body, most of which she didn’t even know how she got.
The elderly zombie stared fixedly at that tiny scar, slowly reaching out a trembling hand toward the mark from afar.
“Grandpa, what do you want?” However, Bianbian misunderstood the old zombie’s gesture, thinking he was reaching out to ask her for something.
The elderly zombie blankly withdrew his hand.
He wanted to speak, but he didn’t know how to express himself; the words that escaped his lips turned into a hoarse roar…
She’ll be frightened, she’ll be frightened, she’ll be frightened… Such thoughts flashed back and forth in his blank mind.
And injuries, falls—the scar on her tiny instep pierced his heart. He wanted to check her body for wounds, yet he knew he couldn’t touch her; he might hurt her.
To him, it was a treasure of utmost importance.
A treasure more precious than his own life.
The zombie sitting on the ground thought his kind must be ill; he had understood Bianbian’s earlier “tutorial”—changing shoes was far simpler than changing clothes.
He bent down to reach for his foot, preparing to take off his dirty shoes and change into clean slippers. Unexpectedly, just as he bent over, a fist came straight at him, and immediately afterward, one of his feet went completely out of control.
The level-three zombie, completely baffled as to why it had been beaten again, stood stunned.
No, staying here will harm my baby. I should go upstairs; that’s where he belongs.
Vaguely thinking this, the elderly zombie picked up two pairs of slippers with its left hand, dragged one leg of the Level 3 zombie with its right, and headed straight outside.
The Level 3 zombie, utterly devoid of the will to live, allowed the elderly zombie to drag it along without offering any resistance.
There’s no way to win anyway.
As the elderly zombie picked up a slipper and dragged the level-three zombie away, Bianbian realized that Grandpa, just as he had done when changing clothes earlier, was about to take Uncle Zhu Yuan upstairs to change his shoes.
Although she felt they could change here, Bianbian should respect Grandpa’s choice.
Grandpa definitely didn’t want Uncle Zhu Yuan’s stinky feet to stink him out.
Bianbian, clutching the glowing magic orb, trotted along behind the two zombies with her little legs kicking. Watching Uncle Zhu Yuan being dragged away by Grandpa like a sack, she felt a mix of emotions: at one moment thinking Uncle Zhu Yuan looked rather pitiful, the next finding the scene hilarious, and then feeling a twinge of guilt—she ought to stop Grandpa from bullying Uncle Zhu Yuan.
Huh?
Why would she think Grandpa was bullying Uncle Zhu Yuan?
The little girl bit her index finger, feeling that it was absolutely wrong of her to think such things about Grandpa.
Stepping out the gate, the elderly zombie exerted force with his hand, sending the Level 3 zombie flying like a sack of hemp toward the metal wall; he then flung both pairs of slippers after him.
“…”
The Level 3 zombie straightened his crooked nose, angrily climbed up from the ground, picked up the slippers, and gestured threateningly at the back of the elderly zombie’s head.
After taking so many hits, shouldn’t he strike back?!
“Uncle Zhu Yuan, you’re not allowed to hit Grandpa!” Bianbian, standing at the doorway, saw everything clearly and protested with her tiny hands on her hips.
The elderly zombie whipped its head around sharply.
The Level 3 zombie, holding up a slipper, was startled. It locked eyes with the old zombie for a moment, then silently stuffed the slipper into its mouth.
“Oh no, that’s a slipper, you can’t eat it!” The little girl jumped up in distress.
The elderly zombie turned away with satisfaction, but upon spotting Bianbian, his tense body relaxed. He raised a stiff finger and pointed toward the door behind Bianbian.
“…Hah… shatter… hah… sleep…” He opened his mouth, forcing out different syllables amidst the labored “hah-hah” sounds.
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Zhu Yuan: It’s not that I can’t defeat him; I’m simply… sparing him for Bianbian’s sake.
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The second and third updates are posted together! Chu~