Luo Ze'en followed slowly behind Gu Qingqiu, like a bodyguard.
Occasionally, passersby would greet Gu Qingqiu, who would nod in response. Their gazes would then fall on the tall figure behind Gu Qingqiu, only to look away upon seeing the mask.
Gu Qingqiu led Luo Ze'en back to his rest pod through a maze of turns. Luo Ze'en secretly memorized the route Gu Qingqiu took along the way and discovered that the interior of the South Base was much larger than he had imagined.
Back in the rest pod, Gu Qingqiu began tidying up the scattered documents on the table while saying, "You'll stay here from now on. You're not allowed to go anywhere. I've set up a restriction program at the door, so don't even think about escaping. You'll need to wake me up every day, remind me to go to sleep and eat at the appropriate times, and help me with chores like tidying up my room. That'll be it for now. I'll remind you of anything else I think of."
Lozen clenched his fists. As the former leader of Thunder, he was now reduced to being a "servant." What a humiliation this was!
Seeing that Luo Ze'en was standing still, Gu Qingqiu thought for a moment, stepped forward and removed his mask, saying mercifully, "Of course, if you perform well, I can take off your mask when we are alone so that you can talk to me."
Unexpectedly, the next second Luo Ze'en shoved Gu Qingqiu against the wall beside her. The violent impact left Gu Qingqiu's mind blank for a moment. Before she could react, Luo Ze'en's wrist gripped her neck.
Lozen's expression was somewhat ferocious. He began to tighten his grip, and Gu Qingqiu felt an intense sense of suffocation, pain, and the fear of impending death.
Just as Gu Qingqiu thought she was about to be strangled to death, Luo Ze'en released her grip, and Gu Qingqiu fell heavily to the ground, gasping for the hard-won fresh air.
Looking at the disheveled Gu Qingqiu, Luo Ze'en couldn't believe that his first reaction was heartache and regret. He had indeed gone too far in anger and lost control of his emotions. If he had accidentally strangled Gu Qingqiu to death... not to mention anything else, he certainly wouldn't have been able to escape the South Base alive.
After recovering, Gu Qingqiu realized the gap in strength between herself and Luo Ze'en. Luo Ze'en could pose a threat to her as long as he had the chance, and she didn't even have time to reach for the controller in her pocket.
Although she could understand Lozen's dissatisfaction with her, the fear brought by the death threat also made Gu Qingqiu's heart race. She reached into her pocket with a strong desire for revenge.
Then it was Luo Ze'en's turn to fall to the ground and convulse. He felt as if his whole body was being electrocuted, and his heart felt as if it had been crushed. After Gu Qingqiu stopped the punishment, he even found himself foaming at the mouth in a pathetic state.
Gu Qingqiu angrily put the mask back on Luo Ze'en's face, forcing him to swallow his vomit.
"You'd better behave yourself." Gu Qingqiu waved the controller in her hand and glanced coldly at Luo Ze'en. "I have plenty of ways to make you wish you were dead. This thing isn't just mine; my colleagues and assistants have it too, and the warden of the South Base prison has it as well. Don't think you can resist."
Luo Ze'en glared at his wrist, hating himself for falling into a woman's trap again. His exhausted body took a long time to recover its strength. During this time, Gu Qingqiu had already turned and entered the bathroom.
Just as Luo Ze'en finally had the strength to stand up, Gu Qingqiu came out of the bathroom, still damp, and had already changed into her pajamas.
The pajamas were naturally thinner than the lab coat, so Gu Qingqiu's belly was even more noticeable. She knew she couldn't hide it sooner or later, so she didn't plan to conceal it from Luo Ze'en. But at this moment, Luo Ze'en, who was wearing a mask, was in turmoil. He felt his worldview was collapsing. He couldn't even ask anything and could only make guesses in his mind.
Gu Qingqiu is pregnant? She's married? Who's the father? Is he still alive? Or has he become a zombie's meal?
Various speculations bombarded Lozene, and he found himself subconsciously trying to think the worst of this man, hoping that he had disappeared.
Gu Qingqiu glanced at the messages on the communicator, then looked up at Luo Ze'en, who was standing motionless, and instructed, "See that recliner next to my desk? You'll sleep there from now on. Wake me up at 7:30 tomorrow morning, and don't come near me while I'm sleeping."
Luo Ze'en naturally did not respond. Gu Qingqiu turned off the light on her own, plunging the room into darkness.
Apart from the sound of Luo Ze'en lying down on the recliner, the room was silent, but Gu Qingqiu was actually suffering from insomnia.
Her reason for releasing Lozen was actually quite simple: a zombie horde was coming, and she herself was unable to protect herself, while Lozen had the ability to fight back and protect herself. Gu Qingqiu wanted to survive by using Lozen's help.
However, she seemed to have underestimated Lozen's rebellious spirit. Without the restraint of handcuffs and a mask, Lozen might not have been so obedient at all, and might even have sought revenge if necessary, potentially becoming a more dangerous threat than the zombie horde.
Perhaps the conflict between her and Lozen has reached an irreconcilable point.
Male Protagonist System: [Host, you're not going to make the most of this last opportunity to be alone with Lozen and sleep in the same room?]
You really know how to rub salt in the wound! What time is it and you're still thinking about that stupid task of yours!
Gu Qingqiu touched her stomach. "What do you think would happen for me to max out my experience bar before the zombie horde arrives? If I remember correctly, it's less than 30% right now, isn't it? It's not even as reliable as imagining that I'll have an epiphany and immediately develop a zombie vaccine."
She was only about 10% away from successfully completing the gene combination calculation for the zombie vaccine. Victory was within reach, but time was running out.
According to conservative estimates, this last 10% is the most difficult part, and if things don't go smoothly, it's possible that it will take another six months of research.
Gu Qingqiu even started thinking about her escape route. "System, you said before that if I die before I've stayed in this world long enough, time will reset. So, to which point in time will it reset?"
Male Protagonist System: [This should be random, but the error in time with the host's awakening in this world should not exceed three months.]
"Three months?" Gu Qingqiu's speechless mood reached its peak. "In other words, if I'm unlucky, even if time is reset, it's possible that it will reset to the day before the zombie horde arrives, and then we'll be wiped out again?"
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