Chapter 79 – The Mutation Zombie in the Grass

No wonder X City University, with its thirty thousand zombies, has such a terrifying number of them even in relatively less crowded areas.

Once famous for its beautiful environment, X City University has now turned into a place where walking through the green spaces and wide roads is a tremendously painful experience.

There are zombies in the buildings along the road, zombies in the bushes, zombies on the street…

It’s no surprise that Lin Luanqiu’s group suffered heavy casualties; this place is simply not somewhere ordinary people can pass through safely!

What frustrated Ling Mo the most was that, being unfamiliar with the area, he had to adopt a more conservative approach to avoid attracting more zombies from various corners.

In simple terms, it was a step-by-step process, breaking through gradually! With Lin Luanqiu leading the way, it was indeed easier than charging forward blindly, but it was still quite challenging!

Especially after Ling Mo noticed that the Mutation Zombies didn’t completely ignore the ordinary zombies, he was reluctant to let Xia Na and Ye Lian charge ahead recklessly, to avoid any mishaps.

Although this slowed their progress, it was much safer. This also put Lin Luanqiu, who initially had some doubts about Ling Mo’s group’s strength, completely at ease.

From her observations along the way, Lin Luanqiu had already noticed that not only did Ling Mo’s group possess considerable strength, but they also coordinated very well. Especially Ling Mo, as the decision-maker, demonstrated remarkable calmness and caution.

It was precisely this cautious attitude that made Lin Luanqiu increasingly confident in her judgment.

Originally, she had a mindset of trying no matter what, with some lingering doubts about the success of their mission. After all, having just escaped from X City University a few days ago, the harrowing experience of navigating through the zombie hordes was still fresh in her mind. When she met Ling Mo, his demeanor gave her an impression of being easygoing yet cautious and steady, but that was just an initial impression. You can know a person’s face but not their heart, especially when meeting for the first time.

It wasn’t until she witnessed Ling Mo’s performance in battle that Lin Luanqiu felt completely reassured. Following him, she truly believed they might find a glimmer of hope!

A particularly dangerous moment occurred at an intersection.

Initially, seeing fewer than fifty zombies, Ling Mo thought they could sneak past quietly. However, as they skirted behind one of the buildings, they unexpectedly came face-to-face with a Mutation Zombie!

A dark figure suddenly burst out from the weeds behind the house with astonishing speed. As Ling Mo quickly retreated, Lin Luanqiu reacted swiftly, pulling Shi Bin aside, and the two of them quickly stepped back.

Having stayed in a zombie nest like X City University, both Lin Luanqiu and Shi Bin had encountered Mutation Zombies before. As a superhuman, Lin Luanqiu had even fought one, though it was no easy feat.

For an ordinary person like Shi Bin, encountering a Mutation Zombie meant certain death. If a group encountered one, it could spell total annihilation.

Such Mutation Zombies were not something they could withstand. Even getting slightly close could mean instant death due to the Mutation Zombie’s unparalleled attack speed compared to regular zombies.

Although Ling Mo was startled by the Mutation Zombie hidden behind the building, his Psychic Tentacle, having been used continuously for half a day, activated almost instinctively. The Mutation Zombie’s pounce was immediately halted. As he retreated, Ye Lian rushed in from behind him, her Curved Knife slashing directly at the Mutation Zombie’s neck.

However, this Mutation Zombie seemed quite advanced, probably just a step away from becoming an Advanced Zombie, possibly on par with Ye Lian. It retreated two steps upon recovering from the attack. Nonetheless, this Mutation Zombie had a congenital defect鈥”it had a lame leg. Even so, it was not something ordinary people could confront head-on.

With zombies all around, Ling Mo had no time to get entangled with this one. If they were surrounded by over fifty zombies, their chances of escaping alive would be slim.

So, as Ye Lian pursued, Ling Mo also moved in with his Short Knife.

Xia Na, on the other hand, raised her Long Knife and attacked from the side, forming a pincer movement with Ling Mo.

The three blades struck the Mutation Zombie simultaneously. Though it tried to dodge, Ling Mo’s Psychic Tentacle caused its movements to stall momentarily. Coupled with its unsteady footing, it wobbled in place.

“Thud!”

The three knives penetrated the zombie’s flesh, instantly freezing its movements. Ye Lian swiftly withdrew her Curved Knife and, in one fluid motion, extracted the Gel from its brain, handing it to Ling Mo as she turned.

This seamless sequence of actions was executed with such fluidity that it would be nearly impossible for ordinary people to achieve such coordination, no matter how much they practiced. However, Xia Na and Ye Lian shared a Psychic Link with Ling Mo, resulting in an exceptionally high degree of synergy.

Additionally, Ling Mo had slain a significant number of Mutation Zombies by now. The fear that these zombies instilled in ordinary survivors had long since vanished from his heart.

By the time the Gel landed in Ling Mo’s hand, Lin Luanqiu and Shi Bin still hadn’t seen how the battle ended. Xia Na and Ye Lian’s attack angles had perfectly blocked their view.

Witnessing the near-perfect coordination among Ling Mo’s group, taking down a highly evolved Mutation Zombie in an instant, Lin Luanqiu was visibly shocked. Shi Bin stood there with his mouth agape, unable to utter a word.

As he regained his composure and turned to say something to Lin Luanqiu, he noticed her looking thoughtfully at Ling Mo.

This sight made Shi Bin clench his fists, a cold gleam flashing in his eyes: “Just a superhuman. Without his powers, what is he really worth?”

Lin Luanqiu didn’t notice Shi Bin’s reaction. When she snapped out of her thoughts, she asked in surprise, “You’ve fought that kind of zombie before, haven’t you? Your coordination just now was superb.”

Ling Mo thought to himself that this girl was indeed observant. It was a good thing he had intentionally blocked her line of sight earlier. He replied, “Yeah, I call these zombies ‘Mutation Zombies.’ Even among them, there are different levels. This one was highly evolved. Some are newly mutated and, besides being fast and strong, aren’t as threatening. So, they’re not invincible.”

“Mutation Zombies… that’s a fitting name,” Lin Luanqiu nodded, her eyes flickering as she added, “So you three… you’re not just lovers but also comrades in arms.”

Her comment was somewhat out of the blue, but Ling Mo immediately understood.

Seeing a man with two beautiful women and having caught them in a compromising situation earlier that morning, Lin Luanqiu likely assumed their personal lives were quite indulgent.

But fighting life-and-death battles together changed everything. The bond forged in such dire circumstances was naturally strong, and their closeness was to be expected.

Lin Luanqiu was still somewhat disapproving of Ling Mo’s relationship with the two girls. However, seeing how attentive he was to Xia Na and Ye Lian during their fights, worried about any harm coming to them, her opinion of Ling Mo began to shift.

The campus of X City University was vast. After almost half a day, Ling Mo’s group had only just reached the vicinity of the Gymnasium. They still had a long way to go to reach the C3 Teaching Building in the center.

In front of the Gymnasium was a large Square, with no places to hide on either side. Fortunately, there weren’t many zombies around. As long as they were careful, they wouldn’t be in much danger.

Continuous fighting had left Ling Mo feeling mentally exhausted. He alone had killed nearly a hundred zombies, and that was with them trying to sneak past as many as possible.

It wasn’t just a hundred heads of cabbage鈥”they were nearly a hundred zombies! Any slip-up would have dire consequences. So, during the battles, Ling Mo had to consider all aspects carefully. The high level of concentration and significant depletion of his Psychic Power had left him feeling utterly drained. Fortunately, his body had undergone several enhancements, making him much stronger than before. Otherwise, he would have collapsed by now.

Even so, by the time they reached the vicinity of the Gymnasium, Ling Mo felt dizzy and light-headed.

Even Ye Lian and Xia Na showed signs of fatigue. Despite the abundant stamina of Mutation Zombies, they couldn’t withstand prolonged fighting.

Surprisingly, the most miserable-looking person wasn’t Ling Mo, nor was it Lin Luanqiu, who had the weakest constitution, but Shi Bin.

Initially, Ling Mo had intentionally kept Shi Bin busy, giving him no chance to rest. But as the number of zombies increased, even without Ling Mo’s deliberate actions, Shi Bin had no opportunity to catch his breath.

By now, he was drenched in sweat, his hair a tangled mess stuck to his forehead and cheeks. His once pale face was flushed red, his lips trembling uncontrollably, and his arms holding the Sharpening Stick were shaking slightly. He looked utterly disheveled…

“There are too many zombies on this route, and everyone is tired now. Let’s rest inside the Gymnasium. Are there many zombies in there?” Ling Mo asked, not holding back when he needed information about X City University.

Lin Luanqiu had been very responsible throughout the journey, and her information had been mostly accurate.

“This Gymnasium usually doesn’t have many visitors. Several clubs’ activities weren’t scheduled on the day of the outbreak. Most students preferred the larger Gymnasium because it had better facilities. So, I think there should be very few zombies inside,” Lin Luanqiu analyzed confidently.

Her thorough analysis gave Ling Mo a sense of reassurance. “Alright, let’s head inside for a break.”