Chapter 462 – Does It Matter If She’s Under ①.⑥ Meters?

The two exchanged another glance.

“No, even if she suspects something, as long as she doesn’t know I have Control, it’s impossible for her to make that connection. People habitually choose not to believe in things beyond their understanding, even actively avoiding the correct answer… Puppet Control Ability, the essence of this superpower, is already cleverly hidden under layers of tentacles. To penetrate these layers and reach the core, even a superhuman with mental ability may not be able to do it…”

Ling Mo stared at Lucy, thinking to himself.

Ling Mo had put a lot of effort into the deception and concealment of his Puppet Control Ability.

No matter how bizarre Ye Lian and the others’ behavior was, to truly uncover the truth, one must first realize that Ling Mo is the central control figure among them.

For Lucy, understanding this was the key to turning suspicion into certainty.

“The bloody smell that used to make me nauseous now feels like a dessert. And it seems like I have endless energy in my body, always in a state of excitement, and my strength feels even greater than before. It’s almost like I’m turning into a zombie… No, I can’t be infected. Even though my body is acting strange, I’m still very clear-headed! But if anyone knows I might be infected, they will definitely kill me immediately to prevent any risk…”

Companions who suddenly mutated during an escape, team members who were fine one minute and went berserk the next…

For every survivor, those memories were a nightmare.

Having survived the chaos and panic at the beginning of the disaster, thinking they were finally safe, only to find that danger was lurking among them…

Survivors feared the infected even more than zombies, and naturally, they were more ruthless towards them…

“They will definitely kill me… No, I can’t say anything! If I start to lose control, I’ll end it myself, but until then, I can’t say anything…”

Lucy made up her mind.

Silently, these two reached a strange and subtle understanding…

Ling Mo laughed heartily, “Nothing much, I just wanted to ask, how much longer until we reach F Team?”

“Walking on foot is always slower… And it looks like we took a detour again…” Lucy suddenly realized, glanced around, and sighed.

“The unreliable map…”

“The unreliable thing is clearly your sense of direction!” Lucy snatched the electronic map and said, “I’ll take over! We have to get out of here today!”

After days of wandering around the outskirts of X City, if it weren’t for the mutation panda drawing away the zombies, Ling Mo and his team would have been exhausted by now.

The mutation panda, which had been confined to the amusement park and zoo, was now released into the wild and was bursting with energy, like a tiger unleashed.

Out of Ling Mo’s sight, it had devoured a lot of zombie gel.

With the mutation beast’s ability to adapt to its environment, it would soon adjust to the urban landscape…

Although it might undergo changes similar to Black Silk, such as looking like a different creature after a few days…

At least, the current performance of the mutation panda gave Ling Mo a lot of confidence.

Its body hadn’t shrunk; instead, it became even more robust, showing signs of becoming more muscular.

Battles with zombies had made the mutation panda more agile.

Compared to the barren zoo, the complex urban environment suited the panda better. Ling Mo often found himself dizzy from watching its swift movements through shared vision.

This National Treasure, once it started jumping around, was even more energetic than Monkey. Unfortunately, its weight was a limiting factor; sometimes, when it tried to swing on a power line, it almost brought down the entire pole…

Fortunately, the city was filled with occasional thudding sounds, saving Ling Mo the trouble of explaining.

But among these thuds, how many signified the rise of stronger zombies?

Suddenly, a command from Ling Mo made the sprinting panda stop.

Its big head swiveled at the crossroads, then it chose a direction and continued running ahead…

“Whirr! Whirr! Whirr!”

Amid the loud noise of a helicopter, three figures appeared on a rooftop.

“Rat-a-tat-tat-tat!”

At the same time, the sound of gunfire rang out, mowing down the zombies that had gathered in large numbers.

Despite this, a dozen zombies still managed to get close to the trio.

One of them suddenly drew a broadsword from his back and leaped into the midst of the zombies. With a flash of cold light, the zombies around him fell to the ground.

In the midst of the blood rain, only he remained standing.

Fast, accurate, and ruthless!

The incredibly sharp blade allowed him to cut down a dozen zombies at once while keeping himself clean.

“Boom!”

The broadsword, standing at a height of 1.6 meters, was thrust heavily into the ground. Compared to the arm that wielded it, the sword seemed too large and too heavy!

But the gleaming blade and the scattered corpses made the sword-wielder look more terrifying than the zombies!

Blood continued to fall, and in the crimson light, the broadsword and its wielder stood side by side…

“Hurry up and fly away, and draw those zombies with you! I’m here to complete a mission, not to endlessly fight these zombies!”

Another man waved his hand and shouted.

Once the helicopter noise had led a large group of zombies away, the man turned to the one leaning on the broadsword: “Hey, Broadsword1, you need to pick your time and place to nap!”

Broadsword tried to straighten his slumped body but couldn’t hold it for more than two seconds before his head dropped back onto the sword hilt: “What can I do? Ever since my superpower awakened, I feel sleepy whenever there’s no fighting…”

“You’re not just short, even your superpower has a downside? Our 9th Squad really has all kinds of people…” the man grumbled.

“Dong-Ge, you’re including yourself in that,” Broadsword said weakly.

“I thought you got that broadsword for show, but now I see it’s just to help you sleep. With how much you sleep, it’s a wonder you haven’t grown taller than that sword…” Dong-Ge continued, “Not even 1.6 meters tall…”

“The height of this sword is my goal…”

Dong-Ge took out a cigarette and leaned against the wall: “It’s my bad luck to be working with you… Fortunately, Captain Li said that our main task this time is to assist Yin Jie. Our 9th Squad is newly established, and this is a great opportunity to make a name for ourselves. The food rations we get in the future will be better than others’, get it?”

Among the three, the only girl had a round face, which made her look quite innocent and cute.

She was playing with two pistols in her hands, her movements incredibly skillful: “Hehe, since we’re assisting Yin Jie, we don’t need to be too nervous.”

“The captain said we shouldn’t underestimate the enemy…” Broadsword mumbled drowsily.

“You look half-asleep all the time, but you remember what the captain says clearly.”

The round-faced girl glared at him and pouted: “With Yin Jie around, what’s there to fear? But if he’s not acting with us, how do we assist him? Besides, who knows if that Fire Base is still with those people.”

The smoking man exhaled a long puff of smoke, showing a hint of pleasure, and said, “The higher-ups have given the orders, we just follow them. Do I need to remind you how strong Captain Li’s scouting ability is? Where we landed, if we follow the road ahead, we’ll reach F City. This matter needs to be resolved before we enter F City.”

“How can Captain Li be sure…” the round-faced girl started to ask more, but the smoking man gave her a cold look.

“If you have questions, ask Captain Li. Do you think he could have established the 9th Squad and reached his position without being highly capable?”

The smoking man took a deep drag from his cigarette before reluctantly tossing the butt to the ground:

“Listen, we’re just assisting, don’t mess around. But the most important thing right now… is to catch up with them.”

After the three exchanged a few more words, they opened the iron door on the rooftop.

In this area cleared of zombies, the rooftop was the only place covered in blood and remnants…

Footnote:

1. Broadsword(大刀): In the novel, there is a character named “Broadsword,” whose weapon is also a “broadsword.”  This dual use of the term highlights both the character’s name and his primary weapon, reflecting cultural nuances from the original Chinese.