261 City of the Zombies (Part 3)

◎Zombies evolved?◎

Zhu Ning didn't blink. It seemed like she had some sequelae after encountering the cockroach man. The more bizarre the things she encountered, the more she dared not blink. She was afraid that if she blinked, the pair of feet would stick to her heels.

Zhu Ning's brain was clearly like a computer. She only needed to flip through the memory stick in her mind and rewind the previous scene like rewinding a tape to determine exactly where the corpse's feet were.

But when she tried to "recall", she found that she couldn't do it. The memory was blocked by a black and hazy stain, making it impossible for her to see it clearly.

The more she "recalled", the blurrier the picture became, and she even saw a snowy screen on a TV in her mind.

If Zhu Ning continued to recall the past, his entire brain might get burned out.

What's going on? Is pollution invading the brain?

This is more terrifying than encountering a ghost, which means that this haunted place can either change your memory or your brain. If even your memory is uncertain, what else can be certain?

It was indeed outside the wall. Zhu Ning suddenly understood what Pei Shu meant when he said that space and time outside the wall were unreliable.

This wasn't just a zombie world, at least not the one Zhu Ning knew. In the zombie world, most attacks were physical, with zombies biting people. Based on Zhu Ning's experience in his previous life, there were usually two situations. The first was being used as a vector for spreading the virus, and developing their own downline to turn humans into their own kind.

The second type is to treat humans as simple food, and the zombies will eat them until only bones are left.

Zhu Ning stared at the reflection on the glass cabinet door. The red school uniform trouser legs were too eye-catching. What was going on with this body?

If it was being used as food, why hadn't it been eaten clean? If it was being developed as a subordinate, why hadn't it turned into a zombie? Zhu Ning hadn't even realized this before.

Zombies evolved?

Or...are there other strange creatures here?

Under Zhu Ning's gaze, the feet did not move. She didn't know what to do in this situation. She couldn't attack a motionless corpse, right?

Zhu Ning slowly moved her feet and turned her toes in another direction, this time facing the corpse.

She was not mistaken, the corpse was really approaching her and suddenly appeared in the third row.

Zhu Ning stared silently at the corpse. She clenched the gun in her hand and walked forward. The green table was like trees in the forest, blocking her view. She walked very slowly for the short five meters.

Zhu Ning raised his gun and pointed it at the corpse.

But she didn't pull the trigger, and the body changed.

Not only the direction, but the corpse itself has changed. Originally, it was just the headless, but now even the neck is gone. The wound is very rugged, and blood is slowly flowing out, forming a glaring bloodstain on the ground.

Fresh.

It seemed like a monster had just bitten him, and the food had gone all the way to his shoulder. Next time, it might bite off his chest.

What the hell is this?

Zhu Ning had been in the room for no more than three minutes. When she went to check the chemicals, did an invisible monster eat the body and move it to another place?

This is weird no matter how you think about it.

Zhu Ning always felt that there was an invisible vortex behind him, silently swallowing everything and completely distorting reality.

Zhu Ning couldn't help but look back. There was no whirlpool. The chemistry lab was empty. Apart from Zhu Ning and a corpse, there were identical green tables all around. A faucet somewhere seemed to be broken, making a dripping sound.

Now that voice is amplified.

Tick-tick-tick-tick-

Zhu Ning's mind was full of this sound. She couldn't even hear the zombies wandering downstairs. It was as if there was a faucet in her head, leaking water continuously and making noise. She tried to turn off the faucet but couldn't find the switch.

It was so noisy that Zhu Ning became uncontrollably irritated. He couldn't resist the urge to find the broken faucet and shoot it.

She immediately realized that she seemed not to be calm, as if something was contaminating her. More and more snowflakes appeared in Zhu Ning's mind. If human memory was a standard timeline, then now it had contaminated memories further ahead.

Suddenly, Zhu Ning not only couldn't remember which direction the corpse's feet were facing, she even forgot how she entered the classroom. The last memory she could think of was that she jumped onto the roof of the teaching building.

If this continues, will she completely lose her memory and become a walking corpse?

Zhu Ning stopped imagining, wondering if this contamination was reversible. Was she going to lose a certain memory for the rest of her life?

This is a bit troublesome. I lost my memory and cannot retain key information. I don’t even know that a certain memory I have seen is crucial.

Zhu Ning's previous attempts to decipher contaminated areas had all been focused on finding the source of the pollution, but how could he find it without any memory? Human thinking is often chaotic.

And it may be equivalent to losing ability. Zhu Ning will slowly forget his special ability, forget the system, and even forget the shooting skills. At that time, he will lose all functions, return to his childhood state, be trapped in the spider web, and become a meal for the pollution source.

Even if the source of pollution was right in front of him, Zhu Ning probably wouldn't be able to fight back.

Wait, Zhu Ning's heart suddenly beat faster, and he thought of a guess: the zombies' weakness is the brain. They will eat the brain and spread the virus.

The zombie virus turns humans into the walking dead, and there is a TV series called this name.

If zombies evolve...is it possible to eat people's brains by contaminating their memories?

Wouldn’t it be like being a walking corpse if you have no memory?

Zhu Ning felt a little scared because of this guess. It was indeed a polluted world. The zombies were more advanced than the ones she knew. They must have been updated for many generations.

We need to leave quickly; staying any longer could lead to unpredictable consequences. Zhu Ning squatted down, wanting to feel the pockets of the headless corpse. The school uniform pants had four pockets, so there should be some clues.

But when Zhu Ning touched the left pocket of her shirt, she was stunned. The body was actually warm. When she first saw it, she thought the body had been dead for a long time and the bloodstains had dried up.

Zhu Ning's hand remained fixed on the spot. She always felt that the corpse seemed... alive?

Could this be a living person?

Zhu Ning gritted his teeth and groped the body, and found a school badge in the left trouser pocket. It said Class 1, Grade 3, student number 19030114, and name An Shi.

There is a one-inch photo with a blue background on the school nameplate. A student with a ponytail and bangs is smiling at the camera. She is wearing this red school uniform with white stripes.

The girl's bangs were particularly long, covering most of her eyes and casting shadows that completely blocked her vision. Zhu Ning could actually understand this. In her era, adolescent boys and girls liked to use bangs to cover themselves. She also had this hairstyle when she was in her middle school years, and later she felt ashamed when looking at old photos.

But now Anshi's thick bangs are like a door curtain, causing the blocked eyes to look unlike human eyes, and even the girl's smile looks weird.

The photos were faded, and judging by the school sign it looked like many years had passed, but judging by the body, he had probably been dead for less than an hour.

An Shi, Zhu Ning silently recited the girl's name, why did she appear here?

Zhu Ning blinked, and when he opened his eyes again, his hands trembled and he almost wanted to throw away the school badge. An Shi on the school badge was smiling, and her smile was even bigger, as if she was staring at Zhu Ning sinisterly through her thick bangs.

Has she changed again?

The body has no head, and the one-inch photo on the school badge only shows the head and neck, which together form a complete person.

Zhu Ning seemed to be holding a bloody head instead of a school badge. She wanted to search her memory again to see if the smile in the photo had gotten bigger, but she soon discovered that another piece of her memory had been contaminated.

Zhu Ning could only recall that he said on the speeding car that he wanted to come to the school to visit, and the memories in between were blocked.

This is instinct. It is difficult for people to control when their memories are accurately retrieved. Once they relax or get nervous, all kinds of memories may emerge in their minds.

Zhu Ning really couldn't stay here any longer. He felt more and more that this was a trap. He had sensed something was wrong before, but the bait given was too tempting. There was a landmine ahead. Zhu Ning still wanted to find Zhu Yao.

If it was a trap, who set it, Eternal Life Pharmaceuticals or Prometheus?

Bai Cheng had chosen this location. She had sent a message saying they would meet there. Bai Cheng was the guide, so Zhu Ning had no objections. It was Bai Cheng who had provided a list, and Pei Shu's name was on it. If they were to rig the place, Bai Cheng would be a good fit.

Zhu Ning recalled the scene in the rainy night when Bai Cheng walked towards him wearing a raincoat. It was really not normal.

Huo Wenxi said Bai Cheng is useful, what exactly is it useful for?

It would be fine if Zhu Ning was alone, but she brought Lin Xiaofeng with her, so she had to go back to find Lin Xiaofeng first. She was not very comfortable with Lin Xiaofeng staying with Bai Cheng, so she hoped Pei Shu would be reliable and could hold on until Zhu Ning returned.

As long as Zhu Ning has teammates around him, they can remind each other and alleviate his amnesia.

Zhu Ning took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind. She was sure that the body was in the third row and had not moved.

Zhu Ning seemed like a patient prone to forgetfulness. He even wanted to do a set of radio gymnastics on the spot to remind himself. Now his brain and system panel were unreliable. Zhu Ning rummaged through the table and found a pen and paper left by a student.

Zhu Ning quickly wrote down: Corpses, third row.

She wanted to use this line of words to remind herself of the final location of her body. After writing these words, Zhu Ning paused and wrote another line: My name is Zhu Ning, and my mother's name is Zhu Yao.

She didn't want to forget this information. If her memory was really to be erased, she hoped she would remember that her mother's name was Zhu Yao.

Then Zhu Ning tore off the paper and put it in his pocket. He turned back to confirm the location of the body again before leaving.

The male teacher who fell down earlier had limited appeal to the zombies, and they soon began to wander around. The zombies were surprisingly friendly compared to the corpses inside.

Zhu Ning opened the door of the laboratory, and there was a very slight creaking sound. The zombie downstairs raised its head sharply, and its pair of rotten eyes were about to fall out of its sockets. It was an infected obese male classmate, also wearing a red school uniform with white stripes.

Zhu Ning's movements were very careful, alternating between relaxation and retraction. After attracting the other person's attention, he would stop and wait for the other person to shift their attention before moving again.

Zhu Ning saw that some zombies were already wandering upstairs. This little trick would definitely not delay them for long, so she might as well end it quickly.

Zhu Ning stepped out of the door with one foot, not noticing that there was a thin red line on the threshold, hidden in the cracks between the bricks and easily overlooked. Zhu Ning had just stepped over the line to come in, and now he stepped out with his right foot again, wanting to go out.

Zhu Ning's quick and decisive movements suddenly stopped, as if an invisible hand had forcibly grabbed his heels.

Zhu Ning was stunned, looking ahead blankly. What did she want to do?

How come she has lost all her memory?

…

Lin Xiaofeng held the steering wheel, the black car was suspended in the air, and her heart seemed to be suspended in the air as well.

Pei Shu just opened the car door and jumped out, like a parachutist, leaping from mid-air. His action attracted the attention of the zombies, but Pei Shu was not panicked at all and moved quickly. Lin Xiaofeng saw flames burning on the ground from mid-air, and Pei Shu had disappeared.

Lin Xiaofeng kept looking down. She hoped to see something other than zombies, and also hoped that Zhu Ning would come back soon.

She paradoxically wanted to be an adult, to prove that she was reliable and not a weak person who needed to be remembered by others, so Lin Xiaofeng gripped the steering wheel tightly and said nothing.

There were still forty minutes left before Zhu Ning agreed to return, and the second hand of the electronic mechanical watch was ticking.

Tick-tick-tick-

The pointer was like a drumbeat, making the people waiting anxious. Lin Xiaofeng had made up her mind to go to the rooftop to pick up Zhu Ning when there were only five minutes left. She wanted Zhu Ning to be picked up immediately.

Because of anxiety, Lin Xiaofeng's eyeballs moved faster than usual. When his eyeballs stopped moving, he suddenly saw Bai Cheng in the rearview mirror.

After Pei Shu left, the back seat became a little more spacious. Bai Cheng was still wearing her raincoat. She hadn't taken it off at the time, so she brought rainwater into the car, which hasn't dried up yet. The water stains left a trace of a human figure on the chair, which looked like a thick black shadow.

Lin Xiaofeng swallowed silently. She was a transparent person and was usually used to moving quietly. It was basically impossible for others to detect any traces of her movements, which made her very suitable for observing people.

No one would notice if she turned around, and no one would see her gaze, but this was the first time that Lin Xiaofeng didn't dare to look back, and could only roll her eyeballs hard.

There was a black "body bag" on Pei Shu's position, half of it was placed on Bai Cheng's legs, and the other half was lying on the empty seat, like a corpse. From the outline, one could even see that the corpse had its hands and feet folded and tied into this shape, with its head nestled in Bai Cheng's arms.

This posture inexplicably reminds people of lovers, and Bai Cheng seems to be holding the person he loves most in the world in his arms.

What on earth was that thing? When did Bai Cheng take it off?

What is she, she, she going to do?

Lin Xiaofeng felt a chill down her spine. In the rearview mirror, Bai Cheng was looking at her, and then he slowly smiled, mechanically, without any emotion, like the smile of a dead person.

The author has something to say:

Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2023-06-10 20:39:58 and 2023-06-11 20:29:50~

Thanks to the little angels who threw the grenade: I don’t want to be a wage earner anymore, Cabbage and Pork Stuffing Lee Min Hyuk, I care about the fun of the universe, Shan Hua Mi 1;

Thanks to the little angels who cast mines: Shan Hua Mi 4; Tang Li 2; 67133971, AAAP, lakuyu, Feather Piaopiao, Jianghu Zhujiu, 66145425 1;

Thanks to the little angels who provided the nutrient solution: Ruyan Suige (169 bottles); Ershi (156 bottles); Xiasang Wan (68 bottles); Yuzhou De Youqu I Care (60 bottles); Tianxuan Dagongren (58 bottles); Langweixian Ai Chi Chi (54 bottles); 66252955 50 bottles; Lian'er 40 bottles; Muyun 31 bottles; Jingjingbao, Sese 30 bottles; Yinfeng 25 bottles; Leah, Xinjie Cat Team, Heibaizi 1412, Lala La, Linglingya, (/ω＼*), Hibiscus, Musashino Sayuri, Xiaoni's head is about to be bald 20 bottles; Liang Pengyou 18 bottles; Lin Qingrong 17 bottles; Tangchaolizi 15 bottles; He is too sweet 14 bottles; OniRin, Qingpan, Z_Y_, Li Bao, Fengguo, 64327921, Benrun, Official Passerby, Peach Oolong Jelly, Syso, iblaaseill, Wangchen Ruxian 10 bottles; Chun 8 bottles; White Peach Oolong 7 bottles; XXRR Guo, Mulin, Wuer Meng, Shallow Water plzzzzz 5 bottles; Chuyu, Ersansan, Irene, Yuling 3 bottles; Cen, Shiqi Buruan 2 bottles; Jianghu Zhujiu, String Theory Kunnie, URBETNG, Boda, Diwu, Younian, Yikeyuanyuan, Xiaoxiao Althea, No. 7, Xilan, British Principal and German Boyfriend, 41780422, Ye Zang, ree886, jial6836, Xixi, BUDDYt, and Never Chase the Serial 1 bottle;

Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!