Chapter 65 – The Heart That Was Crushed

It appeared that the Bald Man was indeed a ruthless individual. Realizing he couldn’t defeat Ling Mo, he decided that if he had to die, he’d drag someone down with him.

His plan wasn’t bad. Seeing Ling Mo’s agile movements, he likely knew he couldn’t launch a successful sneak attack on him. So, he set his sights on Xia Na and Ye Lian.

However, the moment he threw his axe, Ling Mo noticed. He immediately maneuvered Ye Lian to step aside, while Xia Na, remaining remarkably calm, swung her Long Knife.

As a Mutation Zombie, she lacked the instinct to retreat. As the axe flew towards her, she instinctively sensed a hint of danger.

With a swift motion, her Long Knife collided heavily with the axe, producing a sharp “clang.” The immense force caused Xia Na’s arm to tremble, and a small piece of the Long Knife chipped off.

Although she successfully blocked the axe, Xia Na’s arm went limp, seemingly unable to muster any strength for a while.

Fortunately, zombies have a strong self-repair ability. While ordinary people can also regenerate and heal, the speed and extent of this process are vastly inferior to that of zombies. Although zombies can’t achieve miraculous feats like limb regeneration, minor external injuries hardly affect them.

Despite this, seeing Xia Na injured ignited a furious rage in Ling Mo’s heart. He gritted his teeth and leaped forward. In an instant, he was in front of the Bald Man and swung his Short Knife fiercely!

Although the Bald Man tried to dodge, his shoulder was struck. The blade lodged into his bone, causing him to let out a horrific scream.

Before he could break free, Ling Mo’s other hand swiftly drew a Dagger from his waist. With a cold, piercing gaze, he stabbed the Bald Man in the abdomen and slowly twisted his wrist.

The excruciating pain drained the color from the Bald Man’s face. His mouth hung open, and every inch of his flabby face quivered, his beady eyes filled with despair…

This agonizing process lasted a full minute. Throughout, the Bald Man’s screams persisted. If it weren’t for the torrential rain outside, his cries would have likely attracted more zombies.

Ling Mo never let go, not even for a second. His expression remained unchanged throughout. This scene terrified the black-faced man holding a weapon, leaving him too scared to even think about rescuing his comrade.

It wasn’t until the Bald Man’s eyes rolled back that Ling Mo gave the Dagger one final thrust, ending his life.

When Ling Mo pulled out the Short Knife and kicked the Bald Man’s corpse aside, then turned to face the black-faced man, the latter had already lost all will to fight. His weapon clattered to the ground with a resounding “clang.”

“Don’t kill me… don’t kill me…”

As Ling Mo slowly approached the black-faced man with his knife in hand, he gradually regained his composure from the life-and-death struggle moments earlier.

He steadied his breathing, suppressing the Frenzy that had been stirred within him. His eyes, which had a faint red tint, began to clear.

Starting with Lu Xin, who had harmed Xia Na, Ling Mo had already killed several people. But this black-faced man was the first to beg him for mercy.

When he killed the Bald Man and his group, Ling Mo was completely under the influence of the Frenzy. But now, facing the black-faced man, he had snapped out of his impulsive state.

He coldly stared at the black-faced man, whose incessant pleas for mercy did nothing to lessen the killing intent in Ling Mo’s heart.

These people deserved to die! Just moments ago, that woman surely begged them for mercy in the same way. Did they spare her?

Perhaps sensing the murderous intent in Ling Mo’s eyes, the black-faced man suddenly let out a desperate shout and made a frantic dash for the door. Despite Xia Na’s earlier display of prowess, he believed there was no way these two girls could stop him.

All he needed to do was make it out alive!

But to his astonishment, just as he reached the door, Ye Lian appeared in front of him with almost imperceptible speed, her hand shooting out like lightning.

With her powerful fingers and sharp nails, she instantly pierced the black-faced man’s chest.

In his eyes filled with disbelief, Ye Lian’s five fingers closed around his heart with deadly precision.

“Thump!”

“Thump!”

In an instant, the black-faced man’s ears were filled only with the sound of his own heartbeat. His eyes, filled with despair, were fixed intently on Ye Lian, seemingly unable to believe that the seemingly delicate girl before him could be so terrifying…

All he could see were Ye Lian’s eyes, which had suddenly turned red…

“Z-zombie…” the black-faced man managed to stammer out just as Ye Lian’s expressionless face tightened her five fingers.

His heart was crushed. A hint of death flashed across his face, and he immediately went limp.

Ye Lian quickly withdrew her hand, now covered in blood. Thick, crimson drops dripped from her slender fingertips.

Even Ling Mo was momentarily stunned. It was moments like these that reminded him that Ye Lian was a Mutation Zombie with astonishing combat abilities and a ruthless streak.

This was the real Ye Lian, capable of tearing through human bodies with her bare hands and effortlessly crushing ordinary zombies.

Ye Lian’s attack just now had been purely instinctual. Given that she had developed her own consciousness, Ling Mo had eased his control over her significantly.

Fortunately, Ye Lian had merely killed the man without showing any interest in his flesh, unlike a typical zombie.

In the blink of an eye, five corpses lay scattered around the room, the air thick with the stench of blood. Even the man who had been slashed in the buttocks had succumbed, his body twitching and his screams dying out.

“Xia Na, are you okay?”

Ling Mo exhaled deeply and walked over to grab Xia Na’s hand, inspecting it carefully. “Good, no serious issues.”

Xia Na’s expression showed no sign of pain. She slowly shook her head. Her gaze shifted past Ling Mo, curiously landing on the woman on the bed.

Following her gaze, Ling Mo couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

To be honest, even though he had killed these beasts, he didn’t really want to face this woman.

Judging by her condition, she was beyond saving. Even if he managed to rescue her now, it wouldn’t change her fate.

“No, I can’t save everyone in this world…” Ling Mo’s emotions were complicated.

He knew he was never a great savior. He could only help within his capabilities, without compromising his own interests. After all, they were all human beings.

But this world was full of beasts like the Bald Man and his gang. Driven mad by the Apocalypse, they found joy in destruction and alleviated their deep-seated fear and despair by tormenting the weak.

Could he save everyone? Of course not. For Ling Mo, it was enough to survive with Ye Lian and Xia Na.

While he directed Ye Lian to the window to wash her hands in the rain, Ling Mo slowly walked over to the woman.

“Ugh…” The woman’s gaze shifted to Ling Mo, and a sudden glimmer of light appeared in her deathly eyes.

A final burst of energy? Ling Mo quickly removed the dirty sock from her mouth and cut the ropes binding her hands.

The woman stared intently at Ling Mo but couldn’t catch her breath. Ling Mo could tell she wasn’t going to make it.

She moved her lips and weakly uttered two words, “Thank you…”

“…I didn’t really help you. There’s no need to thank me…”

The woman slowly shook her head, and tears immediately welled up in her eyes. “No, thank you. I never thought… I’d be saved.”

She struggled to lift her hand, but it had been bound for too long and couldn’t move.

Just as Ling Mo reached out, the woman stopped moving.

Her eyes remained open, but her expression had frozen. She had died in this state of extreme humiliation…

“Sigh, rest in peace.”

Ling Mo sighed, gently closing the woman’s eyes and pulling the tattered blanket from the side to cover her body.