Chapter 30 – Salvation or Abandonment?

For safety, Ling Mo left Ye Lian inside to watch over Xia Na. If Xia Na were to fully mutate, Ye Lian could immediately restrain her, unlike Ling Mo, who would need to be constantly on high alert. As a zombie, Ye Lian was much more sensitive to her kind. The moment Xia Na woke up, Ye Lian would notice it instantly, without needing to keep a close watch like Ling Mo.

As soon as Ling Mo stepped out of the room, Liu Yuhao anxiously asked, “Ling Mo, how’s Xia Na?”

“It’s still unclear,” Ling Mo replied vaguely. Xia Na’s condition was too bizarre for him to understand.

Seeing Liu Yuhao’s unease, an idea struck Ling Mo. He asked, “What will you do if Xia Na mutates?”

“Huh?” Liu Yuhao was taken aback. The question had been on his mind throughout their journey. If Xia Na mutated, should he kill her to free her, or abandon her like they did with Lu Xin? But now that Ling Mo asked him directly, Liu Yuhao painfully realized he still didn’t know what to do.

“Forget it, don’t think about it now. We’ll deal with it when she wakes up,” Ling Mo said, noticing Liu Yuhao’s complicated expression and dazed demeanor. He couldn’t help but sigh and patted Liu Yuhao on the shoulder. As he walked past him, Ling Mo added calmly, “If it were me, I wouldn’t abandon the girl I like, even if she turned into a zombie.”

Liu Yuhao was stunned! Even if she became a zombie, he wouldn’t abandon her…

It was just a simple statement, but Liu Yuhao stood there in a daze for a long time. In his mind, the only options were to kill Xia Na or abandon her. He never considered continuing to fight for her. Indeed, his understanding was that once someone became a zombie, they were beyond saving. This disaster, which had spiraled out of control and destroyed human society, started with that very notion.

Having no hope was one thing, but realizing he had never even considered fighting for her was the most terrifying part for Liu Yuhao.

Liu Yuhao instinctively raised his hand and slapped himself twice, hard. But the pain on his face did nothing to alleviate the heaviness in his heart.

Meanwhile, Ling Mo had already walked to the balcony and was looking outside through the window. In the distance, he could see many zombies wandering around the No. 3 High School campus, likely drawn there by the fresh corpses. There were also a few zombies within the residential area, but their numbers were sparse. Ling Mo knew that even though the visible zombies were few, any noise would attract at least a hundred more.

In this apartment building alone, who knew how many zombies were lurking? There might even be Mutation Zombies. This place was truly a zombie nest.

Ling Mo touched the Gel in his pocket but had to suppress his urge to use it immediately. With Xia Na’s condition unclear, he and Ye Lian needed to stay alert and conserve their strength. If they fainted now, who knew what might happen during that time?

Xia Na’s intense craving for the Gel was baffling to Ling Mo. She still had her wits about her and hadn’t fully turned into a zombie; she was merely in the process of mutation. Why, then, was she so interested in the Gel? As a normal human, Ling Mo had almost choked just from smelling it, let alone consuming it.

Even Ye Lian, a Mutation Zombie who had evolved further, wouldn’t swallow two pieces of Gel in quick succession. She needed a long time to digest even one piece before craving more. Although as her strength grew, the time between her cravings shortened, it still didn’t compare to Xia Na’s rapid consumption of two pieces in less than half an hour.

What unknown changes were happening to Xia Na? Through Ye Lian’s perspective, Ling Mo could observe Xia Na’s current state even from the living room. She remained as still as when he had left, seemingly in a deep sleep with no movement at all.

This situation left Ling Mo feeling frustrated; time seemed to pass too slowly.

While Ling Mo and Liu Yuhao were lost in their thoughts and remained silent, Wang Cheng was sitting on pins and needles. He was anxious, not for Xia Na, but for his uncertain future.

He, too, wanted to slap himself hard. Things had indeed gone as he had predicted, and he was the last one standing. But that damn Lu Xin had taken away his biggest support!

Trying to curry favor with Ling Mo? It was clear from Ling Mo’s attitude that there was no way he would be able to get anything from him.

Wang Cheng, feeling conflicted, knew he had no other options. With his limited abilities, he could only take things one step at a time. However, he also knew that it was best not to anger Ling Mo at this moment.

Resolving to stay on Ling Mo’s good side, Wang Cheng diligently began tidying up the apartment. Although there were no zombies or corpses, there were plenty of bloodstains. While it wasn’t possible to clean everything, he made the environment as presentable as he could.

His hard work paid off. As the sun began to set, Ling Mo tossed him a pack of crackers and a bottle of water.

This was much more substantial than regular snacks! Wang Cheng accepted them with a look of surprise, then glanced deeply at Ling Mo. No wonder Ling Mo didn’t care about the food Liu Yuhao had offered; he had his own supplies. Judging by the size and bulge of his backpack, there was enough food to last at least a week.

Indeed, in the Apocalypse, strength was paramount. Ordinary people wouldn’t be able to find this much food, let alone food that hadn’t already been picked over.

Liu Yuhao initially wanted to refuse, claiming he wasn’t hungry. But Ling Mo shot him a disdainful look and said, “We’ll be taking turns keeping watch tonight. If you don’t eat or sleep and something happens during your shift, what then?”

“Uh…” Liu Yuhao was left speechless. After a long pause, he snatched the food from Ling Mo’s hand. “I’m sorry, I’ll eat.”

He chewed slowly and carefully, just like Wang Cheng. In fact, before mastering his Zombie Puppet skills, Ling Mo had eaten this way too.

Eating slowly maximized the feeling of fullness from a small amount of food.

“By the way, doesn’t Ye Lian eat?” Liu Yuhao asked, still feeling gloomy but not forgetting his role as the all-around caretaker.

Ye Lian’s cravings, aside from Gel, probably included the flesh and blood of people like you… Ling Mo thought, his lips curling slightly. He stood up and headed toward the bedroom. “I’ll bring her something to eat and check on Xia Na’s condition.”