Chapter 46 – Feels Good, But a Bit Small

Ling Mo didn’t understand medicine or biology, so his research method was very straightforward and crude—dissection!

To avoid making their temporary shelter too dirty, he manipulated Ye Lian to drag the Mutation Zombie into a private room of the Teahouse. Then, Xia Na took action, using her Long Knife to make a deep cut on it.

Although Xia Na couldn’t be controlled by Ling Mo at the moment, she was still his “Zombie Puppet.” She could follow simple commands. Moreover, she had regained some rationality and could understand a bit of what Ling Mo was saying. Tasks like gutting were simple for her to accomplish.

At this moment, Xia Na’s zombie nature was evident. Her expression was very indifferent, with no emotional fluctuations, as if she wasn’t cutting into a human body at all.

When the thick scent of blood spread, a faint bloodlust flashed in her eyes.

Fortunately, her eating habits were the same as Mutation Zombies. She wasn’t very interested in the blood and internal organs, and her instincts were merely triggered.

After Xia Na finished, she looked at Ling Mo in confusion, clearly not understanding his intentions. Even if she had questions, her muddled thoughts couldn’t form them into sentences, let alone ask them. Despite this, she stood quietly to the side, closely watching Ling Mo’s every move.

Ling Mo couldn’t bear to let Ye Lian do such dirty work, so he took out a Short Knife and widened the long cut a bit. To see clearly, he also took out a flashlight. Generally, he rarely used such lighting tools that could attract zombies, but luckily, all the surrounding zombies were dead, and thick curtains provided cover, so using it temporarily wouldn’t be a problem.

Under the beam of the flashlight, Ling Mo could see the situation inside the cut clearly. Although he felt a bit nauseated, what struck him more was a sense of amazement.

Ling Mo wasn’t a medical student and had never performed a dissection before. However, with the Apocalypse, he had seen countless bodies, most of them with their guts spilled out and internal organs scattered everywhere.

So he knew that the color of normal internal organs was definitely not like those of this Mutation Zombie. Even the common zombies didn’t have this condition. The speed at which the Virus spread was indeed astonishing!

At the cut he had made, besides the flowing blood, he could vaguely see one or two organs. On the surface of these organs, there were blood-red threads similar to the Virus Gel, resembling solidified blood. Moreover, these threads could also be seen on some of the larger blood vessels. Although not densely packed, as Ling Mo observed, these threads continued to emerge.

No wonder… The Mutation Zombie’s formidable strength probably came from this… The Virus was indeed transforming the zombie’s body. Ordinary zombies likely had this too, but it wasn’t as apparent because they absorbed less of the Virus. This Mutation Zombie had just consumed so many Virus-infested brains, and the Virus was now rapidly spreading throughout its body.

Although zombies didn’t feel pain, they still had instincts. This one had already woken up. However, Ye Lian and Xia Na simultaneously stepped on its hands, pinning it down. Despite this, its body desperately twisted and struggled. With blood gushing out, Ling Mo couldn’t see much.

“Heh, don’t worry, you’ll be free soon.”

Ling Mo smiled at the frenzied zombie and then lightly slashed its throat with the Short Knife.

With the trachea cut, the Mutation Zombie’s previously faint breathing turned into a wheezing sound. It futilely exhaled its last breath, its face already turning ashen.

As the Mutation Zombie finally died, Ling Mo turned its body over. He knew he couldn’t pry open the zombie’s skull by himself, so he had Xia Na do it.

To be honest, Ling Mo had no desire to look at a fresh human brain. But when this brain was pulled out, he couldn’t help but take a glance and was immediately surprised.

This newly born Mutation Zombie’s brain didn’t yet have any Virus Gel, but its brain surface was covered with the same red threads he had seen on the internal organs and blood vessels.

Given a little more time, these threads would probably coalesce and form a Lesion, which is the Virus Gel, in its brain.

Staring blankly at the brain for a moment, Ling Mo suddenly slapped his thigh. “I get it!”

Ordinary zombies’ brains are also filled with these threads, but because the amount of Virus is too small and its purity too low, they are invisible to the naked eye. The newly born Mutation Zombie had absorbed a large amount of Virus, making these threads visible. At this stage, the influence of the Virus is at its strongest, and their simple craving for human flesh now includes a desire for the Virus. To absorb more Virus, naturally, they would kill other zombies. Going further, they would target Mutation Zombies.

Above that, there are true Mutation Zombies whose brains already contain Virus Gel. At this point, the Virus’s erosion of the brain concentrates on one point, gradually releasing other previously confined areas.

Virus Gels can devour each other, and the purer the Virus Gel, the smaller its size. Perhaps, when it reaches a certain degree, it will become a very small piece. At that point, the zombie possessing it might regain its sanity!

Xia Na’s uniqueness lies in the fact that her body originally had a very small amount of Virus. Before it completely spread to her brain, she had consumed two pieces of Virus Gel, and later, a highly pure one.

As a result, before her brain was fully eroded, a Lesion had likely already formed in her brain, which meant her cognitive abilities were the least affected.

Ling Mo wasn’t sure if his thoughts were correct, but judging from the current state of this Mutation Zombie, this was probably the closest answer!

Indeed, his direction wasn’t wrong!

For Ling Mo at this moment, nothing made him happier than this discovery. He wasn’t a medical expert… This hypothesis might have many errors, but from the results, it seemed very plausible.

Proving that this hope indeed existed, and with a high probability, the next step was to quickly turn this guess into reality!

Ling Mo was so excited for a good ten minutes before he finally realized something was off. No matter how you looked at it, standing there smiling and daydreaming in front of a grotesque corpse was a bit weird…

“Throw it in the river… Sigh, I need to find some new clothes tomorrow. This bloody smell—unless a zombie’s nose is rotten, they won’t miss it!”

“Why… are you smiling?” Xia Na asked suddenly while helping to lift the body, looking puzzled.

Finally, after a long silence, she managed to say a complete sentence. Ling Mo gave her a mischievous wink and said, “Because I remembered something. The feel of your chest is indeed nice, just a bit small.”