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墨書 Inktalez
The convoy returning from the Strawberry Farm didn't arrive until nightfall. The bright headlights pierced through the drizzling rain, casting a pale glow on the remaining steel frame of the Vegetable Greenhouse. The guards opened the iron gate to welcome the team back, their expressions a mix of joy and concern.
"Why did you take so long? Did you run into trouble?" Yinuo turned on the lights in the bar and lifted the lid off a large pot warming on the stove, steam rising from the food inside.
"We encountered Zombies," Luci replied, taking a towel to dry her hair and letting out a sigh. "How about Roundabout? Is everything okay?"
"Yes, but it's a big deal," Yinuo said with a grimace, glancing at the group gathered around the pot serving themselves. Another sigh escaped her lips. "Let's eat first; we can talk later."
Dream Fan had become much more diligent, serving rice to Song Jiu and others. Noticing their somber expressions, she asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Song Jiu said with a forced smile, scooping rice into his bowl. Seeing his messy eating habits, Song Yao chuckled and pushed some of her food toward him. "Take your time; no one is going to steal it."
"Why does everyone look so strange?" Dream Fan adjusted her long hair as she sat across from them, worry etched on her face. "Is Brother Jiu really okay?"
"He's fine; your Brother Jiu made quite an impression today," Song Yao replied with a slight smile, recalling how her younger brother had swiftly dealt with two foes at the Strawberry Farm, feeling both proud and apprehensive.
"Of course!" Dream Fan was uninterested in the specifics of what Song Jiu had done; in her eyes, even if he were squatting in a corner, he would still look cool.
Luo Yu maintained his usual elegant demeanor while eating slowly and quietly. Noticing Dream Fan was about to ask again, he set down his bowl and recounted what had happened that afternoon: "So, Ming Ge was in a bit of a bind, and Brother Jiu stepped in. Those Foreigners initially wanted to watch a show but ended up splattered with blood; they stopped underestimating us."
"Those bear-like humans only think about eating or killing," Dream Fan playfully stuck out her tongue. "But that's not such a big deal; why did you come back so late?"
"We ran into a Horde on the way back. Luckily, there were enough of us; otherwise, it could have been trouble," Luo Yu said as he wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Zombies aren't really the issue; the key point is that those people at Strawberry Farm have also changed."
"What do you mean?" Dream Fan blinked in confusion.
"We were about to head back when Brother Jiu remembered something from the hospital and suggested we wait to see if those people would turn into corpses," Luo Yu explained, his eyes reflecting lingering fear. He clicked his tongue. "Those people weren't bitten; they were shot instead. And guess what happened next?"
"They got back up?" Dream Fan's eyes widened in shock. "Are you serious?"
"Seeing is believing," Song Yao chimed in. Although she had witnessed her fair share of chaos, the scene of the corpses rising at Strawberry Farm that afternoon was still hard for her to digest. The amount of information contained within was overwhelming, and she didn't even know where to begin.
"And then what?" Dream Fan expressed some regret for not having gone along, missing out on a thrilling spectacle.
"Nothing much after that. Brother Jiu locked the gates of Strawberry Farm, and we just came back," Luo Yu shrugged and said helplessly. "Wu Wentao originally planned to clear out the zombies at Strawberry Farm, but Brother Jiu stopped him, saying he wanted to leave a surprise for that Blonde Woman."
Dream Fan chuckled lightly, amused. "A naked provocation."
"That's not even the point." Song Jiu, who had been focused on his meal, finally paused. He shook his hand, still wrapped in gauze, and cursed, "That woman still owes me a finger."
Song Yao gently touched his injured hand with concern and looked around before asking, "Is everything okay at home?"
"I don't know. I was busy with Sister Jia all afternoon. Yinuo and the others went to the hospital for some reason; they said there would be an announcement later," Dream Fan replied with a shrug as she began to clear the dishes from the table. Just as she left, Dr. Zhong entered with several graduate students and Yuan An. Their expressions looked worse than those who had just returned from battle.
Once everyone finished eating and drinking, they found places to sit down, sensing that something important was about to be discussed and not in a hurry to leave.
Feeling a bit drowsy after finishing his meal, Song Jiu initially planned to go back to his room and spend some time with Dream Fan. However, he lifted his head only to see Dream Fan hurrying back in, so he reluctantly stayed to listen to the announcement. A graduate student leaned over to whisper something in Ming Junwei's ear; his expression shifted slightly as he sighed and nodded for him to proceed.
Outside, dark clouds still loomed overhead, and the atmosphere inside was heavy with tension. Despite having returned victoriously, it felt as if a storm was brewing, creating an oppressive environment that made it hard to breathe.
The bar was brightly lit, but some people could no longer withstand their fatigue and left early. In the end, only about ten leaders remained behind. Dr. Zhong and the researchers brought many laboratory records and laid them out in the center of the dance floor as before. They whispered among themselves for a moment before the graduate student patted Dr. Zhong on the shoulder, passing the stage over to him.
Dr. Zhong felt a bit nervous; his boss sat nearby smoking a cigarette, clearly distracted from what was happening. Facing a group of individuals who had been enemies just moments ago made him uneasy.
"Ahem, everyone," Dr. Zhong began awkwardly, scratching his head as he picked up one of the forms from the table and glanced at it. His expression grew more serious as he continued, "I have good news and bad news."
The crowd below fell silent, straining their necks in anticipation of what he would say next.
Dr. Zhong forced a smile, his gaze sweeping over the chart before settling on Ming Junwei. "The good news is that Mr. Wei's condition has improved. I've treated him, and his temperature has returned to normal. With a few more days of rest, he should be able to get up."
"Thank you for your efforts," Ming Junwei replied with a faint smile, gesturing for him to continue.
"As for the bad news..." Dr. Zhong licked his lips, hesitating for a moment before continuing, "Mr. Wei has been infected."
The faces of Ming Junwei and the others changed instantly. Before they could ask any questions, Dr. Zhong dropped another bombshell: "Based on Mr. Wei's situation, I conducted a sampling survey among the crowd at Roundabout, and the results showed that ten randomly selected individuals were also infected."
A collective gasp echoed through the bar, as if someone had turned on a giant vacuum cleaner, nearly sucking all the air out of the room.
Dr. Zhong gradually settled into his explanation. "I have examined these individuals; they show no signs of having been bitten by a Zombie, and their physical conditions are normal without any unusual symptoms. The sampling included both Field Combat Personnel and Non-Combat Personnel in equal proportions, including two children, and the results were consistent across the board. Therefore, I need to conduct examinations for everyone at Roundabout tomorrow because statistically speaking, each of you may have already been infected."
The hall fell silent, with only the sound of rain pattering softly in the background.
"Oh, right, there's one more thing." Dr. Zhong recalled something he had overlooked after being reminded by a graduate student. "The blood sample from Chef Jia has been analyzed as well; she is the only one who has not been infected."
"And then?" After a long pause, Ming Junwei frowned and asked, "What did you find?"
"Nothing yet," Dr. Zhong shook his head regretfully. "I need to know how many Level Two infected individuals there are at Roundabout—oh, you mean Zombies."
"Four," Ming Junwei said thoughtfully after considering it for a moment. Song Yao, Luci, Liu Yan, and Chef Jia seemed to be the only ones.
"Five," Song Jiu suddenly spoke up from the corner. Seeing the strange expressions on everyone's faces, he quickly added, "Ziqian—Jiao Ziqian—counts as one too."
"Ah?" Luo Yu and the others exclaimed in surprise. "How does he count?"
"Liu Yan and Sister Jia gave him a blood transfusion," Song Jiu explained while flipping through his mental notes. "A few days ago, I asked him to keep an eye on himself. He told me he felt some changes in his body; it seems he doesn't have the same self-healing ability as you all do, but there are indeed some signs."
“Zombie can also be transmitted through bodily fluids,” Yinuo said, looking quite surprised. “We’ve been together for so long, eating and drinking together, and we haven’t been infected.”
“I’m not sure about that. Do you want me to bring Ziqian over for you to see?” Song Jiu shrugged, indicating that this was all he knew.
“Let’s do it tomorrow,” Ming Junwei sighed, glancing at Wu Wentao. “What about you guys?”
“Seven,” Wu Wentao flicked the ash off his cigarette nonchalantly. “We have blood samples from Dr. Zhong.”
“And then what? Do we need to take any protective measures or anything else?” Luci struggled to lift the small Kittens off her lap and asked, “What about those who have already been infected?”
“Currently, it seems there’s no need,” Dr. Zhong said with a wry smile as he shrugged. “If nothing unexpected happens, the entire camp consists of either level two or level one infected individuals, so there’s no need for isolation. I’ve tested my own blood sample as well; I’m also infected, but I can’t determine when it happened, so it’s unclear where the problem lies.”
The graduate student chimed in at the right moment. “Team Leader Wu and their boiler and turbine have been brought back. If we start installing them tomorrow, we should have power in about a week.”
“What else do we need?” Ming Junwei asked.
“Coal-fired,” the graduate student looked down at his notes. “The amount provided by Team Leader Wu is only enough for about two days. We need to get more before the boiler is installed.”
“Is there a Power Plant or coal yard nearby?” Wu Wentao extinguished his cigarette and joined the discussion.
“I haven’t found a coal yard, but we’ve searched most of the coal supply in the city,” the graduate student paused, his expression becoming somewhat strange. “I do know of a Power Plant, and it’s not very far.”
Both Ming Junwei and Song Yao perked up simultaneously, shaking their heads with wry smiles. Ming Junwei sighed, “Tomorrow, I’ll take people to get coal.”
“I’ll go,” Wu Wentao volunteered for the task. “My people can’t do anything else; they might as well be useful. Where’s the power plant?”
Ming Junwei and Song Yao exchanged odd looks before casually mentioning a location. Wu Wentao paused for a moment, then suddenly realized, his expression turning strange as he chuckled bitterly, leaving everyone around him confused.
"Is everything alright? If so, let's call it a night. Everyone can go rest now." Ming Junwei took a couple of swigs from the bottle, stretched his aching back, and added, "We need to get a big truck tomorrow. Let's gather the gasoline first."
After a long day of work, everyone was exhausted. Upon hearing his words, they all got up to tidy up and left the bar.
Song Jiu had intended to say something but forgot as soon as he was interrupted. After thinking for a while without recalling what it was, he bid goodnight to Song Yao and the others, then wrapped an arm around Dream Fan as they headed back to the budget hotel.
Luo Yu watched the two depart, a hint of loneliness in her eyes. Song Yao noticed this and felt helpless; he linked arms with her and Yuan An as they left together.
The wind and rain gradually subsided, with arcs of lightning flickering through the sky.
In the Strawberry Farm, where rain fell like sludge, ghostly Zombies wandered aimlessly. They had not been able to leave in life and remained trapped here even in death, an indescribable desolation surrounding them.
Old Five crouched before a corpse, its grayish face smeared with blood. He clawed at an arm, gnawing ravenously as his white teeth tore through tendons, laboriously chewing on the flesh of a former companion. Blood mixed with rainwater flowed steadily, soaking into the ground. The body being devoured seemed to twitch slightly; bloodied fingers made a faint curling motion, exerting a bit of strength as they pulled away from Old Five's mouth. The flesh on that hand was torn beyond recognition, exposing stark white bone at the wrist. Bits of chewed meat hung from the palm, mingled with saliva and blood from an old friend, dripping onto Gaoyang's pale face.
"Hah."
..
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