Chapter 351 – Are You Jealous?

On a broad highway in City A, a towering concrete wall abruptly bisected the road, merging with the buildings on both sides to form a formidable barrier.

“What a massive project…” Wu Pengfei whispered from behind a car, stealing a glance ahead and remarking with admiration.

Yuwen Xuan chuckled, “Actually, it’s not as exaggerated as you think. There are two rivers running through the city center of City A. Utilizing them properly, you don’t need to build too many walls like this one.”

“I see…” Wu Pengfei nodded in sudden understanding.

Ling Mo squinted, surveying the area for a moment, and said, “There are guards on the front wall, so those buildings must be sealed off. You mentioned they are patrolling, right?”

“That’s right. Twenty people, split into two groups for rotating patrols. I’m not sure about the Psychic’s schedule, though,” Yuwen Xuan confirmed with a nod.

“No worries, I’ll sense it if he appears,” Ling Mo stated vaguely.

Ronnie hesitated before interjecting, “But wouldn’t that create vulnerabilities? While it may be advantageous for us, this method of defense hardly seems foolproof for securing the Isolation Zone.”

“That’s because you’re looking at it from our perspective,” Ling Mo shook his head and explained, “But have you considered that this defense line is actually meant to keep out zombies? Zombies aren’t like us; they won’t lurk and wait for that brief moment when patrols lapse. They’ll directly attack the soldiers on guard. Even if a zombie manages to slip through during a gap, the cameras will catch them red-handed.”

Such defenses are sufficient against High-level Zombies, whose intelligence is typically low. Any more would be a waste of manpower.

“Alright, we’ve rested and eaten.”

Ling Mo shifted his gaze to Yuwen Xuan, “Take care of the cameras. When there’s a gap in the patrol, signal us.”

“What about you guys?” Yuwen Xuan asked, astonished.

“We’ll be here, spectating your performance,” Ling Mo replied with an unchanged expression.

Yuwen Xuan wanted to say more but ultimately stuck to the shadows and quickly approached the concrete wall.

He was indeed very familiar with the camera placements. Reaching the base of a building, he leapt up with a small burst of flame propelling him from behind, hovering mid-air.

As he emerged from his hiding spot, the camera conveniently turned the other way.

His timing was impeccable, and his actions decisive, giving off a brief impression of a professional secret agent.

But in the next second, he completely shattered that illusion.

While tampering with the camera, he didn’t forget to cheekily wave at Ling Mo’s direction, “Hey…”

“Was your cousin always this unreliable?” Ling Mo rolled his eyes, sat down, and asked.

Li Ya Lin pinched her chin, her lips pursed in thought.

True to her nickname as a femme fatale, even her contemplative look was filled with a stunning allure.

Li Ya Lin spoke slowly, “From the memories I’ve managed to sort through so far, he’s a completely different person now. Before the disaster, he was a thorough playboy. And he distrusted everyone, especially women. Though, he was always decent to me. After all, we’re both only children and our families were close, so he treated me like a little sister. In my memory, he was the kind of guy who would walk into a bar and women would just throw themselves at him.”

“That sounds like he was quite the catch,” Ronnie interjected, her curiosity piqued. “Is that playboy really the same guy who’s now gone mad…”

Thinking of Yuwen Xuan with flames shooting out from behind him, and then trying to reconcile that image with Li Ya Lin’s description was like trying to connect two completely unrelated dots.

Wu Pengfei frowned and quickly pulled Ronnie aside, giving her a look that said they’d talk later, then turned back to join the others with a sly smile, indicating for them to continue chatting.

“It’s been a while, but Wu Pengfei has certainly become more slippery…” Ling Mo made an “OK” sign at him and noted the change.

Xia Na was polishing her scythe, and upon hearing his comment, she smiled slightly, “That’s what you could call the art of human interaction. From what I remember, that’s how it should be. But, I never learned it, and it’s too late now.”

“To be honest, I’m not good at it either,” Ling Mo admitted with a scratch of his head and a helpless smile.

Ye Lian casually handed her Tang Dao to Xia Na for a moment, then reached out to rub Ling Mo’s head. “Tired today?”

Looking into Ye Lian’s big eyes and feeling her cold palm against his forehead, his fingers gently caressing through his hair, Ling Mo suddenly felt a wave of comfort wash over him.

“All this effort, searching for that experimental subject, it’s all for this silly girl in front of me…”

“Not tired,” Ling Mo replied with a smile, his voice unintentionally softening under her touch – though he was oblivious to the change.

At that moment, Xia Na leaned over with a mischievous look at Ye Lian, “Hey, let’s play a game. Explain what ‘tired’ means.”

“Um…”

A bad feeling suddenly washed over Ling Mo.

“It’s like… the way you feel for several days after being pinned down by your senior, struggling to get up each time,” Ye Lian explained with a blink, utterly serious.

“Though that’s certainly one kind of tired, it’s not the same as now! And for the record, I was the one who pinned her!” Ling Mo sighed, reaching out to pinch Xia Na’s cheek. But seeing Ling Mo pretend to be annoyed only made Xia Na giggle even more.

Ye Lian and Li Ya Lin looked completely clueless but smiled along anyway.

“They seem so in love…”

Wu Pengfei sat in a corner, slowly sipping water while watching Ling Mo and the others with envy as they laughed and joked together.

Ronnie, however, was hugging her knees with her chin resting on them, her face showing a clear annoyance. “Tch, just crawled out from that terrifying hell, and now they can laugh so carelessly. I really don’t get what there is to be happy about every single day…”

“To find joy amidst suffering is also a state of mind. I actually think Ling Mo’s attitude is quite good. These past couple of days have been the happiest for me in half a year, though of course, they’ve also been the most dangerous. But compared to the constant oppression, I’m actually quite enjoying this feeling. Hahaha, I suddenly understand Captain Yuwen a bit more. Although I was scared to death at the time, now when I think about it, I’m alive and out of the zombie zone! It feels awesome!”

At this point, Wu Pengfei suddenly widened his eyes and looked at Ronnie: “Your tone is so sour… could it be… jealousy?”

“Pfft!”

Ronnie immediately glared at Wu Pengfei, her face turning red as she retorted, “What are you talking about?!”

“But your face is red!”

“That’s… that’s not the point!” Ronnie quickly covered her cheeks and said, “I… I’m actually quite envious of Ye Lian and the others. They are beautiful, capable, and… and they can be with the ones they love. Although I can’t understand why they would like a guy like Ling Mo!”

“You seem to have a big problem with Ling Mo, huh?” Wu Pengfei teased with a smirk.

Ronnie snorted and said, “Of course I do!”

“So, it’s like this with little girls like you, always hard to please. Ling Mo didn’t leave you behind, did he? When you went to the bathroom for the first time, even though he knew someone was after him, he still let you go. He didn’t make a girl pee her pants. When you were in danger, Ling Mo was the first to come to your rescue… His attitude towards you might have been a bit cold, but he has a girlfriend. What, does he need to act like a playboy and toy with you for you to think he’s a good person?”

After Wu Pengfei finished speaking, he gave Ronnie a meaningful glance: “Once we enter the camp, we’ll be in contact with many more people than in our small squad before. When you’re no longer the only girl in the group, you won’t be pampered by everyone. You’ll have to start getting used to it… and start learning to be grateful.”

“You…” Ronnie’s eyes widened.

“Hmph, you think I don’t know all this? It’s not your butt that got looked at.” Ronnie thought angrily.

Although this was what she thought, the look in her eyes when she turned to Ling Mo had softened a great deal.