932

“Ling-Ge, look…”

A few minutes later, Ye Lian and the other two girls arrived. Compared to Xu Shuhan, who didn’t dare to act alone, these three female zombies were utterly fearless.

Judging by their new outfits, it seemed they had scoured the entire floor of the shopping mall.

Ling Mo was stunned at first glance. There was no sign of them being zombies at all from their appearances.

When did zombies’ sense of aesthetics start aligning so closely with human standards?

But as soon as he saw Xia Na beside them, covering her mouth and giggling, Ling Mo understood. It was this little rascal…

She was still holding a bag of clothes, and Ling Mo guessed they were for Yu Shiran.

Yu Shiran and Xiao Bai were resting in a hidden spot far away, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

But the fact that these female zombies still thought about her at this time gave Ling Mo the illusion that they had regained their humanity.

“This outfit looks like a cosplay, with two little transparent wings and a magic wand…” Xia Na whispered to Ling Mo.

Imagining her description, Ling Mo couldn’t help but feel a bit exasperated.

He knew she was just thinking about having fun with Yu Shiran…

“You all look so good. It’s a good thing the streets are full of zombies, or you’d attract a crowd,” Ling Mo said with a smile.

Xia Na herself was dressed in a school uniform, looking youthful and lively. With her long hair draped down her back and a book in her hand, she could easily pass as a campus goddess.

However, the mischievous gleam in her eyes created a strong contrast with her overall image. Rather than being incongruous, it made her even more eye-catching.

Ye Lian had an exceptionally attractive appearance, with a pure and slightly fragile aura. Coupled with her great figure, she looked good in anything. This time, Xia Na had picked out a set of pink clothes for her, making her look much sweeter and almost impossible for Ling Mo to take his eyes off her.

In contrast, the one dressed most provocatively among the three was Li Yalin.

Already possessing a model’s height, long legs, and a pretty face, she was wearing denim shorts this time.

On top, she had a simple black t-shirt, but on her, it perfectly highlighted her stunning figure.

Adding to her flexible waist and incredibly seductive gait, what should have been a casual outfit on Li Yalin turned heads and made eyes pop.

Ling Mo’s words were no exaggeration. If this had been before the apocalypse, three beauties, each with their unique charm, walking down the street would have undoubtedly drawn all eyes.

And Ling Mo, walking beside them, would have been the target of countless envious glares.

Xu Shuhan stood off to the side, her expression slightly dim.

She used to be very confident in her looks and figure. After the apocalypse, she even awakened a superpower, making her a highly sought-after figure at the Niepan branch.

Given her considerable strength and high rank, many harbored unrealistic fantasies about her, but few dared to approach her directly.

Xu Shuhan’s attitude was also rather haughty. After all, in these times, strength was the only language that mattered. It was straightforward and brutal, easier to understand than before the apocalypse.

Most survivors understood that staying alive was the most important thing, and fantasies were a luxury few could afford.

Especially in the semi-exiled environment of the Dongming branch, this was even more true…

But spending time with Ye Lian and the others recently, Xu Shuhan felt she was not as exceptional as she once thought.

Particularly when she noticed the way Ling Mo looked at them—a look he never gave her…

Suddenly realizing this, Xu Shuhan’s cheeks flushed.

Why should she care about how Ling Mo looked at them? She had nothing to do with him…

Besides, he was surrounded by three female zombies… he would wear himself out eventually!

Xu Shuhan lightly spat, then cleared her throat to pull Ling Mo back from his reverie, “Shouldn’t we get going? This area is all clothing stores. If we need general merchandise, it’s probably in section B.”

“Yeah.” Ling Mo didn’t feel embarrassed. Why shouldn’t he look at his own girlfriend?

However, Xu Shuhan’s disdainful glance made him feel a bit uneasy.

He shifted his gaze and looked around again, “Where’s Mu Chen? Why isn’t he back yet?”

“Hey, yeah, why is he taking so long to change a couple of clothes?” Xu Shuhan suddenly realized.

She couldn’t help it. Although Mu Chen was quite a chatterbox, she genuinely hadn’t noticed that he was gone…

Ye Lian and the others were even less likely to notice. Ling Mo, despite being absorbed in the view, was still observant enough.

Seeing Ling Mo look at her, Xia Na shook her head, “We didn’t run into him. The men’s and women’s clothing sections are separate.”

“Wait here. I’ll go look for him.”

“Should we come with you?” Xu Shuhan quickly asked.

Ling Mo waved his hand, “No, it’s too dark, and you’re too slow. More people would just make more noise.”

He recalled the direction Mu Chen had gone and started walking that way.

Xu Shuhan blushed deeply. Her fear of the dark was her biggest weakness. Although she could control herself from screaming, she couldn’t help but be cautious and slow. It wasn’t something she could overcome quickly.

Ye Lian and the others were the best help for Ling Mo, but Xu Shuhan knew her current state was unstable. Ling Mo had them stay to keep an eye on her.

Feeling like a burden made Xu Shuhan feel quite embarrassed, but she was more worried about Ling Mo going off alone…

“Maybe… Ye Lian could come with me…”

Before she could finish, Ling Mo waved without looking back and disappeared into the darkness.

“Don’t worry, Ling-Ge thinks we’re safer together. Splitting up wouldn’t be good. If anything happens, he can at least retreat safely.” Xia Na walked over to Xu Shuhan and said softly.

“I see…” Xu Shuhan blushed again, realizing she hadn’t thought it through.

Standing next to three “zombie veterans” far stronger than herself, Xu Shuhan felt the virus in her blood acting up again.

The instinctual feeling of insignificance made her feel a constant sense of fear when facing them.

“By the way, you’re afraid of the dark, right? Let me teach you a perfect way to solve this problem.” After a few seconds of awkward silence, Xia Na suddenly said mysteriously.

“What’s the method?” Xu Shuhan asked, curious.

“After you fully mutate, find a place and kill all the zombies there, bare-handed. Once you develop a habitual mindset… whether they can move or not, just tear them apart. What’s there to be afraid of?” Xia Na winked at her.

Xu Shuhan’s face turned pale instantly. What a brutal method…

“When the time comes, everything you see will be prey. Would you feel scared of a turkey served on a platter? You’d probably just drool, right?” Xia Na said, sticking out her tongue and lightly licking her lips.

Xu Shuhan felt a chill run down her spine. The image in her mind wasn’t of a turkey, but a gruesome, bloody scene…

“Ugh…” Xu Shuhan covered her mouth, unable to suppress a dry heave.

“Scared her…” Li Yalin couldn’t help but smile. freewёbnoνel.com

Xia Na’s expression turned serious as she leaned closer to Xu Shuhan and whispered, “If you want to keep your current mindset, you’ll have to endure this. Of course, it’s still uncertain whether you’ll retain your humanity… The chances are probably very low, right?”

Xu Shuhan looked up at Xia Na with a pale face, then glanced at the unchanged expressions of Li Yalin and Ye Lian.

She suddenly understood why zombies completely lost their humanity…

The conflict between human nature and zombie instincts was too sharp…

In the early stages of infection, could it be that this intense conflict caused their minds to become chaotic, leading to a complete loss of cognitive abilities?

As zombies evolved, their instincts took deeper root, gradually suppressing their humanity, and in this process, zombies slowly regained their rationality…

But wouldn’t this mean that the more they evolved, the harder it would be to regain their humanity?

In the lower stages, they didn’t even have rationality, let alone humanity…

Xu Shuhan merely speculated. If she knew Ling Mo’s goal was to help Ye Lian and the others retain their humanity, she would certainly feel for him.

The source of this c𝓸ntent is freewebnøvel.coɱ.

Such a difficult goal was incredibly challenging to achieve…

Of course, Ling Mo wouldn’t search the entire mall alone. Since the Zombie Puppet found nothing on the lower floor, he had her come up too, searching the other side of the men’s section.

With the little zombie’s sense of smell and Ling Mo’s mental detection, the search progressed quite quickly.

However, Ling Mo was still a bit puzzled. Although Mu Chen was unreliable in many ways, he was undoubtedly experienced in survival and very cautious in his actions.

Ling Mo had ensured that the zombies on this floor were cleared out before letting Mu Chen act alone. So, how could he be gone for so long?

Based on Ling Mo’s estimation, Mu Chen should have been the first to meet back up with him…

Mu Chen couldn’t keep his mouth shut for long; how could he wander off alone for this long?

“Weird…”

Ling Mo had already circled around the counters, but he hadn’t found a trace of Mu Chen.

The little zombie had just come up from the lower floor, confirming that Mu Chen hadn’t gone downstairs.

She sniffed as she walked but didn’t catch any human scent. There was a smell of blood, but it wasn’t fresh.

“And I can’t just call out…”

Ling Mo felt a bit helpless.

If a Superpower user deliberately concealed themselves, even Psychic Power detection might miss them. But given Ling Mo’s current strength, the chances of missing should be low.

Besides, why would Mu Chen hide?

“Could something have happened? That doesn’t seem right…”

Ling Mo stood still, pondering for a while, letting his thoughts wander.

If Mu Chen wasn’t here, then he must have left?

There was a main entrance nearby, which was half-closed—likely done by someone during the initial outbreak to prevent zombies from getting out.

However, the large amount of bloodstains seen earlier suggested that it hadn’t been successful.

The outside was swarming with zombies, so Mu Chen wouldn’t have gone out to court death.

That left one path going down, another leading to Area B, and the way they had come from…

Ling Mo mulled over these possibilities, trying to decide the best course of action.

“Ling-Ge, look…”

A few minutes later, Ye Lian and the other two girls arrived. Compared to Xu Shuhan, who didn’t dare to act alone, these three female zombies were utterly fearless.

Judging by their new outfits, it seemed they had scoured the entire floor of the shopping mall.

Ling Mo was stunned at first glance. There was no sign of them being zombies at all from their appearances.

When did zombies’ sense of aesthetics start aligning so closely with human standards?

But as soon as he saw Xia Na beside them, covering her mouth and giggling, Ling Mo understood. It was this little rascal…

She was still holding a bag of clothes, and Ling Mo guessed they were for Yu Shiran.

Yu Shiran and Xiao Bai were resting in a hidden spot far away, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

But the fact that these female zombies still thought about her at this time gave Ling Mo the illusion that they had regained their humanity.

“This outfit looks like a cosplay, with two little transparent wings and a magic wand…” Xia Na whispered to Ling Mo.

Imagining her description, Ling Mo couldn’t help but feel a bit exasperated.

He knew she was just thinking about having fun with Yu Shiran…

“You all look so good. It’s a good thing the streets are full of zombies, or you’d attract a crowd,” Ling Mo said with a smile.

Xia Na herself was dressed in a school uniform, looking youthful and lively. With her long hair draped down her back and a book in her hand, she could easily pass as a campus goddess.

However, the mischievous gleam in her eyes created a strong contrast with her overall image. Rather than being incongruous, it made her even more eye-catching.

Ye Lian had an exceptionally attractive appearance, with a pure and slightly fragile aura. Coupled with her great figure, she looked good in anything. This time, Xia Na had picked out a set of pink clothes for her, making her look much sweeter and almost impossible for Ling Mo to take his eyes off her.

In contrast, the one dressed most provocatively among the three was Li Yalin.

Already possessing a model’s height, long legs, and a pretty face, she was wearing denim shorts this time.

On top, she had a simple black t-shirt, but on her, it perfectly highlighted her stunning figure.

Adding to her flexible waist and incredibly seductive gait, what should have been a casual outfit on Li Yalin turned heads and made eyes pop.

Ling Mo’s words were no exaggeration. If this had been before the apocalypse, three beauties, each with their unique charm, walking down the street would have undoubtedly drawn all eyes.

And Ling Mo, walking beside them, would have been the target of countless envious glares.

Xu Shuhan stood off to the side, her expression slightly dim.

She used to be very confident in her looks and figure. After the apocalypse, she even awakened a superpower, making her a highly sought-after figure at the Niepan branch.

Given her considerable strength and high rank, many harbored unrealistic fantasies about her, but few dared to approach her directly.

Xu Shuhan’s attitude was also rather haughty. After all, in these times, strength was the only language that mattered. It was straightforward and brutal, easier to understand than before the apocalypse.

Most survivors understood that staying alive was the most important thing, and fantasies were a luxury few could afford.

Especially in the semi-exiled environment of the Dongming branch, this was even more true…

But spending time with Ye Lian and the others recently, Xu Shuhan felt she was not as exceptional as she once thought.

Particularly when she noticed the way Ling Mo looked at them—a look he never gave her…

Suddenly realizing this, Xu Shuhan’s cheeks flushed.

Why should she care about how Ling Mo looked at them? She had nothing to do with him…

Besides, he was surrounded by three female zombies… he would wear himself out eventually!

Xu Shuhan lightly spat, then cleared her throat to pull Ling Mo back from his reverie, “Shouldn’t we get going? This area is all clothing stores. If we need general merchandise, it’s probably in section B.”

“Yeah.” Ling Mo didn’t feel embarrassed. Why shouldn’t he look at his own girlfriend?

However, Xu Shuhan’s disdainful glance made him feel a bit uneasy.

He shifted his gaze and looked around again, “Where’s Mu Chen? Why isn’t he back yet?”

“Hey, yeah, why is he taking so long to change a couple of clothes?” Xu Shuhan suddenly realized.

She couldn’t help it. Although Mu Chen was quite a chatterbox, she genuinely hadn’t noticed that he was gone…

Ye Lian and the others were even less likely to notice. Ling Mo, despite being absorbed in the view, was still observant enough.

Seeing Ling Mo look at her, Xia Na shook her head, “We didn’t run into him. The men’s and women’s clothing sections are separate.”

“Wait here. I’ll go look for him.”

“Should we come with you?” Xu Shuhan quickly asked.

Ling Mo waved his hand, “No, it’s too dark, and you’re too slow. More people would just make more noise.”

He recalled the direction Mu Chen had gone and started walking that way.

Xu Shuhan blushed deeply. Her fear of the dark was her biggest weakness. Although she could control herself from screaming, she couldn’t help but be cautious and slow. It wasn’t something she could overcome quickly.

Ye Lian and the others were the best help for Ling Mo, but Xu Shuhan knew her current state was unstable. Ling Mo had them stay to keep an eye on her.

Feeling like a burden made Xu Shuhan feel quite embarrassed, but she was more worried about Ling Mo going off alone…

“Maybe… Ye Lian could come with me…”

Before she could finish, Ling Mo waved without looking back and disappeared into the darkness.

“Don’t worry, Ling-Ge thinks we’re safer together. Splitting up wouldn’t be good. If anything happens, he can at least retreat safely.” Xia Na walked over to Xu Shuhan and said softly.

“I see…” Xu Shuhan blushed again, realizing she hadn’t thought it through.

Standing next to three “zombie veterans” far stronger than herself, Xu Shuhan felt the virus in her blood acting up again.

The instinctual feeling of insignificance made her feel a constant sense of fear when facing them.

“By the way, you’re afraid of the dark, right? Let me teach you a perfect way to solve this problem.” After a few seconds of awkward silence, Xia Na suddenly said mysteriously.

“What’s the method?” Xu Shuhan asked, curious.

“After you fully mutate, find a place and kill all the zombies there, bare-handed. Once you develop a habitual mindset… whether they can move or not, just tear them apart. What’s there to be afraid of?” Xia Na winked at her.

Xu Shuhan’s face turned pale instantly. What a brutal method…

“When the time comes, everything you see will be prey. Would you feel scared of a turkey served on a platter? You’d probably just drool, right?” Xia Na said, sticking out her tongue and lightly licking her lips.

Xu Shuhan felt a chill run down her spine. The image in her mind wasn’t of a turkey, but a gruesome, bloody scene…

“Ugh…” Xu Shuhan covered her mouth, unable to suppress a dry heave.

“Scared her…” Li Yalin couldn’t help but smile. freewёbnoνel.com

Xia Na’s expression turned serious as she leaned closer to Xu Shuhan and whispered, “If you want to keep your current mindset, you’ll have to endure this. Of course, it’s still uncertain whether you’ll retain your humanity… The chances are probably very low, right?”

Xu Shuhan looked up at Xia Na with a pale face, then glanced at the unchanged expressions of Li Yalin and Ye Lian.

She suddenly understood why zombies completely lost their humanity…

The conflict between human nature and zombie instincts was too sharp…

In the early stages of infection, could it be that this intense conflict caused their minds to become chaotic, leading to a complete loss of cognitive abilities?

As zombies evolved, their instincts took deeper root, gradually suppressing their humanity, and in this process, zombies slowly regained their rationality…

But wouldn’t this mean that the more they evolved, the harder it would be to regain their humanity?

In the lower stages, they didn’t even have rationality, let alone humanity…

Xu Shuhan merely speculated. If she knew Ling Mo’s goal was to help Ye Lian and the others retain their humanity, she would certainly feel for him.

The source of this c𝓸ntent is freewebnøvel.coɱ.

Such a difficult goal was incredibly challenging to achieve…

Of course, Ling Mo wouldn’t search the entire mall alone. Since the Zombie Puppet found nothing on the lower floor, he had her come up too, searching the other side of the men’s section.

With the little zombie’s sense of smell and Ling Mo’s mental detection, the search progressed quite quickly.

However, Ling Mo was still a bit puzzled. Although Mu Chen was unreliable in many ways, he was undoubtedly experienced in survival and very cautious in his actions.

Ling Mo had ensured that the zombies on this floor were cleared out before letting Mu Chen act alone. So, how could he be gone for so long?

Based on Ling Mo’s estimation, Mu Chen should have been the first to meet back up with him…

Mu Chen couldn’t keep his mouth shut for long; how could he wander off alone for this long?

“Weird…”

Ling Mo had already circled around the counters, but he hadn’t found a trace of Mu Chen.

The little zombie had just come up from the lower floor, confirming that Mu Chen hadn’t gone downstairs.

She sniffed as she walked but didn’t catch any human scent. There was a smell of blood, but it wasn’t fresh.

“And I can’t just call out…”

Ling Mo felt a bit helpless.

If a Superpower user deliberately concealed themselves, even Psychic Power detection might miss them. But given Ling Mo’s current strength, the chances of missing should be low.

Besides, why would Mu Chen hide?

“Could something have happened? That doesn’t seem right…”

Ling Mo stood still, pondering for a while, letting his thoughts wander.

If Mu Chen wasn’t here, then he must have left?

There was a main entrance nearby, which was half-closed—likely done by someone during the initial outbreak to prevent zombies from getting out.

However, the large amount of bloodstains seen earlier suggested that it hadn’t been successful.

The outside was swarming with zombies, so Mu Chen wouldn’t have gone out to court death.

That left one path going down, another leading to Area B, and the way they had come from…

Ling Mo mulled over these possibilities, trying to decide the best course of action.