Chapter 54
TL: Moonlit
When they arrived, a fight was about to break out at the entrance. A mutated bull lay on the ground, blood pooling around it.
Wen Bo pointed at a person who also had a gun in his hand, but it was a smaller one. They were confronting Wen Bo.
Mo Jing felt annoyed when he saw them. Although these people were also part of the base, they were the original residents of the small town and had formed their own group. They always clashed with the survivors from outside, constantly engaging in minor conflicts. They just lacked an opportunity to completely break out into a full-blown confrontation.
Mo Jing and his group were young and powerful, serving as the leaders among the survivors from outside. For the sake of their own interests, he had to fight back.
Mo Jing said, “He San, what are you up to again?”
He San was originally a troublemaker in the small town, spending his days idly and making a living by running gambling dens. He associated with people like him, who were not well-liked during peaceful times but thrived in the post-apocalyptic world.
He San stood there, circling his hand with the wooden barn, and peered at Mo Jing with a raised neck. “Kid, I heard these two big carts of mutated livestock are your friends’ goods?”
Mo Jing glanced at Wen Qingling and said, “Yes, what about it?”
He San suddenly became furious. “What about it?! Are you blind?! The entire town and all the mutated livestock near the town are the property of our base! Who do they think they are, daring to come to our base and snatch things? Aren’t they tired of living?!”
He San pointed the gun at the two carts of mutated livestock and declared, “I’m telling you right here, these two carts are all belongings of our base. They won’t take a single one away!”
Mo Jing angrily retorted, “He San! You’re going too far! They caught these, and if they want to take them, let them. If you want them, go and catch your own. As long as you can catch them, I won’t say a word!”
“To hell with catching them! I already have them in my hands. Why should I go and catch them myself?!” He San cursed loudly.
He San was originally a troublemaker and a scoundrel, so there was no reasoning with him. Wen Qingling extended his hand, Ning Ning handed him her own hand weapon, and Wen Qingling swiftly loaded it. With a loud bang, the bullet pierced through He San’s shoulder blade.
Target hit, a lucky shot.
The sudden sound of the gun startled everyone. When they saw the arrogant He San lying on the ground, clutching his shoulder and wailing in pain, they were all stunned.
Mo Jing: “…”
Classmates: “…”
Damn… This person is merciless and speaks few words. Without saying a word, they disabled him before even talking.
He San wailed as he crawled over to retrieve his gun, but Wen Qingling reached out and grabbed it in mid-air. Wen Qingling opened the gun again, disabling He San’s other shoulder.
Lucky shot +1, another hit, how fortunate.
He San let out a scream like a slaughtered pig.
Everyone was shocked by Wen Qingling’s ability to manipulate the gun from a distance. What kind of supernatural power was this? Telekinesis?!
Wen Qingling threw He San’s old handgun to Mo Jing, who hurriedly caught it, looking dumbfounded.
Wen Qingling walked toward the mutated bull that was already dead. He stood in the pool of blood for a moment and then returned.
Wen Qingling pointed at He San’s dumbfounded companions one by one with the gun. “One kill, ten compensations. You killed one of my bulls, so you owe me ten bulls. Understand?”
He San roared, “I’ll curse your ancestors!”
Wen Qingling opened the gun again, and this time, it was a headshot.
Wen Qingling’s accuracy with the gun was astonishing, even scaring Wen Qingling. He had never imagined that he had the potential to become a divine gun handler. The accuracy was so terrifying that it even frightened him.
The onlookers of survivors retreated in fear, not daring to speak, holding their breath, afraid to make a sound.
What kind of devil was this? The base mustn’t have someone like this. They needed to get rid of them quickly, quickly!
Wen Qingling said, “I gave you a chance. Since you don’t want it, then die.”
Wen Qingling pointed the wooden barn at He San’s dumbfounded companions again. “One kill, ten compensation. Understand clearly?”
A thug stammered, “B-boss, the mutated bull runs too fast and is very ferocious. W-we can’t catch it!”
The gun was pointed at the thug, and he dropped to his knees, crying with snot and tears, “B-boss, spare us. It was our mistake for being blind. Spare us, please!”
Xiao Hen restrained Wen Qingling’s hand with the gun and said, “Indeed, it’s difficult to catch the mutated bull. Ordinary people would only become its food. Without the mutated bull, let them compensate with crystal nuclei.”
Wen Qingling looked at him and nodded. He tossed the gun to Ning Ning and said, “100 ordinary crystal nuclei to buy your lives.”
The thug cried even harder, “Boss, we don’t have so many crystal nuclei.”
Another thug trembled and said, “We don’t have them, but Uncle Xiong definitely has. Let us go ask Uncle Xiong. He will surely lend us some crystal nuclei.”
Several thugs nodded in agreement, “Yes, yes, Uncle Xiong has crystal nuclei. He will definitely help us.”
Wen Qingling asked, “Where is he?”
Thug: “He’s… in the town.”
Wen Qingling nodded. “You go get them, the rest stay here.”
“We can’t let him go find Uncle Xiong!” Mo Jing just spoke up when the thug ran away.
Wen Qingling looked at him, puzzled.
Mo Jing sighed in annoyance and said, “Xiong Shu was originally slaughtering pigs in the town. He is selfish and vicious, and He San and the others follow him. Xiong Shu’s awakened ability is very strong and difficult to deal with. He acts tyrannically in the base, oppressing us survivors from outside with the help of the local survivors. He’s not easy to deal with. Now that you’ve killed his men, he will definitely seek revenge on you.”
Wen Qingling’s face showed no expression. “If he wants revenge, let him come. As long as he doesn’t die, he will have to bear the consequences of my losses.”
Mo Jing: “…”
Everyone: “…”
Mo Jing anxiously suggested, “Why don’t you go ahead and leave? We’ll meet again if there’s a chance.”
Someone disagreed, “Boss, if they leave and Xiong Shu comes back and can’t find them, won’t he come after us?”
Feng Hui and Sang Qin among the crowd were secretly praying for Uncle Xiong to arrive quickly. If he could take care of them all, it would be a great joy. Sang Qin nudged Feng Yi, urging him to speak up and not let Wen Qingling and Jiang Lan escape.
Feng Yi shook his head at them, gesturing for them not to interfere. Wen Qingling’s aura was too terrifying, his strength unfathomable. He didn’t even blink his eyes while killing people. Such a person would not be easily killed by anyone.
Wen Qingling calmly said, “No rush, I’ll wait here.”
They didn’t have to wait long before Wen Qingling spoke again, “They’re here.”
Everyone tensed up, thinking that Xiong Shu and his group had come to fight them, but it turned out to be a few people rushing over, including Teacher Gao.
Mo Jing immediately knew something was wrong as he saw the bloodstains on their clothes. He hurriedly walked over, taking quick steps. “What happened? Your injuries…”
There was no need to ask further because the wounds around their injuries were already turning dark, indicating zombie bites.
Mo Jing couldn’t believe it. “You… got infected?!”
These people were all Mo Jing’s people, suddenly getting infected, which made him suspect that someone intentionally plotted against them.
Mo Jing anxiously asked, “What exactly happened?!”
Teacher Gao gasped for breath, taking a while before speaking, “We went to the supermarket to get some things, but when we came out, we were attacked by a horde of zombies. There were over a dozen of them, and we barely managed to escape.”
Mo Jing exclaimed, “Even if you managed to escape, what does it matter? You got infected!”
Although the town had a small population, there were still seventy to eighty thousand people. If all these people turned into zombies, it would be a considerable number. However, the majority of the zombies were concentrated in the town, and there were not many wandering around the outskirts.
They had been living here for quite some time, and they had a good grasp of the town’s geography. Even when encountering zombie attacks, they could usually escape safely. But today’s situation was quite rare.
Teacher Gao, who had been bitten by a zombie, seemed composed. “All my loved ones are already dead. I have nothing to lose and have already prepared myself for death. Being able to survive until now is already satisfying.”
The eyes of several students immediately turned red.
They should have been accustomed to scenes like this. They had seen their loved ones turn into zombies, seen friends and classmates turn into zombies. In theory, they should have been accustomed to it, but they couldn’t help shedding tears.
Wen Qingling walked over. “Teacher Gao.”
Teacher Gao froze and exclaimed with joy, “Wen Qingling, why are you here?”
“Teacher Gao.” Feng Yi and Yang Mengyu also walked over.
Teacher Gao saw the three students and was extremely delighted. “You are all still alive. That’s wonderful.”
Yang Mengyu couldn’t hold back her tears. “But you’re not okay. You’ve been infected.”
Teacher Gao waved his hand. “In this era, no one can be certain how long they will live. I have already prepared myself. But I don’t want to become a monster. When I turn into a zombie, I hope you can kill me.”
Wen Qingling said, “With me here, you might not turn into a zombie.”
Everyone looked at Wen Qingling, wondering what he meant.
Wen Qingling’s clinic had been closed for several days. It used to have good business, but it was destroyed by “General.” There were no living people near Ling City, so what business could they talk about?
Of course, there was no business with living people, but there were still plenty of opportunities with zombies.
Jiang Lan approached. “Teacher Gao, do you remember me?”
Teacher Gao remembered Jiang Lan, the straightforward and hot-tempered mother who left a deep impression.
Teacher Gao hurriedly reached out his hand, and they shook hands. “Wen Qingling’s mother, you’re all alive. That’s wonderful.”
Jiang Lan smiled and said, “Our Qingling opened a clinic in Ling City specifically for treating infected individuals. With Qingling here, you don’t have to worry about turning into a zombie. Moreover, after this infection, you can turn misfortune into a blessing. Once you’re cured, you’ll have antibodies, and you won’t get infected even if zombies bite you.”
Everyone was shocked!
Mo Jing and several students couldn’t believe what they were hearing. “Is this… is this true?”
As someone who had experienced it, Ji Rong spoke up to confirm, “It’s true. I was bitten by a zombie a while ago, and Dr. Wen detoxified me. Now I’m still lively and energetic.”
Everyone became excited, and someone asked loudly, “So if we get infected once and then get cured, we’ll have antibodies inside us? We won’t get infected anymore?”
Ji Rong grinned, “That’s right, but don’t intentionally get infected. Each treatment costs 100 ordinary crystal cores, and Dr. Wen doesn’t do charity for free. If you don’t have the cores or don’t have enough, it’s better to protect yourselves. Dr. Wen doesn’t do charity.”
The excited survivors were instantly doused with cold water.
100 ordinary crystal cores meant killing 100 ordinary zombies, which was an impossible task for ordinary people like them.
Sang Qin and Feng Hui still had doubts.
Feng Hui was skeptical. “Is it true? If infected individuals can be cured, why haven’t we heard about such a significant matter?”
Ji Rong snorted, “Maybe it’s because the base you used to be in was too small. Many survivors in Ling City have received Dr. Wen’s help, and they should all know. But unfortunately, the base was destroyed by the zombie tide.”
Teacher Gao had been silent all this time. If there was a chance to live, of course, he wanted to live, but he didn’t have enough crystal cores, and he couldn’t ask his students to provide free treatment.
When they didn’t know what to do, Mo Jing spoke up, “We’ll cover the treatment cost for Teacher Gao.”
They pooled their resources, and they could still gather the clinic fees.
Wen Qingling turned and walked towards the large truck. “Come on the truck for treatment.”
Teacher Gao hesitated for a moment before following.
The others also wanted to follow and watch, but Jiang Lan stopped them. “Exclusive recipe, not to be shared. Everyone, stay back and wait here.”
Teacher Gao’s injuries were not severe, and after the little blood anemone sucked the virus, its size didn’t change.
Teacher Gao stared at the small creature for a moment, not asking further questions. After expressing his gratitude to Wen Qingling, he got off the driver’s seat of the truck. The zombie virus on his hand had disappeared, and even the wounds were gone as if he had never been injured.
Everyone gathered around, discussing animatedly.