Apocalypse: the Most Ruthless Person

At the end of the corridor, Qiu Hui lay quietly, the sedatives continually releasing their effects in her body. Her headache hadn’t completely gone away, still throbbing slightly, but she could think about the past, the present, and the possibly nonexistent future, which made her shed tears.

In her sorrow, she heard the sound of the door lock turning. She quickly turned her head to wipe the tears from her pillow. Before she could speak, she heard the howling noises, which made her heart tighten.

”Qiu Hui, how’s the headache feeling?”

Zhang Su put the zombie on the floor and asked naturally. He could tell at a glance that Qiu Hui had been crying, but couldn’t offer any comfort, so he pretended not to see it, which was the best way to avoid it.

Qiu Hui looked at the zombie on the floor with some fear and nodded slightly, ”It’s okay for now, Brother Zhang, what is this for?”

”Oh, just to see the zombie’s reaction to you. Don’t be nervous.”

Zhang Su said with a relaxed smile.

Don’t be nervous, what a joke. Well, since you said not to be nervous, then I won’t be nervous, Qiu Hui thought with a baffling feeling in her heart.

”I’ll just leave the zombie here. It can’t move, so you don’t have to be afraid. After Dr. Xie and I leave, observe the zombie’s behavior, then tell us the situation later. During this time, you need to use your voice to attract and stimulate it, understand?”

Zhang Su told Qiu Hui the method. It was a very simple test, not requiring instruments or equipment—intuitive and direct.

”Okay, okay, I’ll try.”

Qiu Hui hesitantly agreed.

”There will be no danger, rest assured.”

Zhang Su pressed heavily on Qiu Hui’s shoulder, giving her a reassuring look. The conveyed emotion was very intense, and not just Qiu Hui, even Xie Yanshan standing behind them felt a sense of peace.

”Once we close the door, you can start.”

With that, Zhang Su and Xie Yanshan left the room, leaving behind the howling zombie and Qiu Hui full of worry.

Gently closing the door, Zhang Su took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled out two, handed one to Xie Yanshan, lit his own, and slowly exhaled smoke. Though he said Qiu Hui would report the situation, he himself would listen. The movements inside the room couldn’t escape his ears.

Xie Yanshan wanted to chat a bit, but seeing Zhang Su deep in thought with no intention of talking, he found it hard to say anything, smoking dully while pondering the issue of the pale golden thalamus in his mind.

Inside the room, the zombie was continuously twisting and growling on the floor, in an unstable state, its head turning left and right, wanting to bite but unable to do so.

”Hey, you ghoul, why are you lying on the floor? Get up, come eat me...”

Qiu Hui turned her head to look at the zombie on the floor, beginning the provocation as Zhang Su required.

Outside, Zhang Su clearly heard Qiu Hui’s voice, along with the zombie’s howls, but for now, nothing could be determined; he needed to continue waiting.

This waiting lasted three to four minutes, and just as he extinguished his cigarette, Zhang Su’s eyes suddenly lit up. There was a change in the room; the zombie’s shouting stopped, leaving only Qiu Hui’s sporadic cursing!

Xie Yanshan crouched by the wall, resting his hand on his chin, completely unreactive. Due to good soundproofing, he couldn’t hear any obvious noises, just quietly contemplating matters.

Inside, the words stimulating the zombie continued, but the zombie became completely silent.

Qiu Hui muttered while watching the zombie transition from agitation to calmness, feeling a sudden chill in her heart.

”Hey, you ghoul, aren’t you going to move? What the hell is wrong with you, aren’t you quite capable? Get up and bite me, hey...”

Seeing the zombie really remain motionless, Qiu Hui panicked, as this indicated that she had already become one of the zombies!

The increased cursing had no effect. The zombie slowly turned its head, completely ignoring her, treating her like air.

Qiu Hui forcefully shook the stretcher bed, making rattling noises, trying to move towards the zombie, but she couldn’t do it, and all these efforts were in vain—the zombie seemed to have entered a trance-like state, dumb and foolish.

”Boohoo... move, bite me, you...”

Qiu Hui finally couldn’t hold it together and cried. She didn’t know what she was anymore—a human or a zombie. It was too tragic.

The zombie seemed to understand showing mercy to the fairer sex. Seeing Qiu Hui cry, it continued to maintain its silence, for when women are sad, they like to be left alone quietly.

Click.

The sound of the door lock interrupted Qiu Hui’s sobbing, and the zombie on the floor froze.

Zhang Su and Xie Yanshan walked into the room, and the zombie on the ground immediately sensed the scent of blood, turning its head to gnaw and bite in their direction. Even with just a tiny piece of arm left, it made a touching effort towards them.

”What’s the situation?”

Zhang Su asked, pretending, even though he already knew the result.

”Boohoo...” Qiu Hui cried, sobbing uncontrollably, ”I-it has no reaction to me. Mr. Zhang, have I become a zombie too? I don’t want to be a zombie, I... I’d rather die, just let me die!”

Thinking about her situation, Qiu Hui was extremely upset, but she didn’t notice that Zhang Su’s eyes were shining as he looked at her, and even Xie Yanshan seemed to have discovered a new world.

”Qiu Hui, do you smoke?”

Zhang Su suddenly asked an irrelevant question.

Both Qiu Hui and Xie Yanshan were stunned, what kind of question was this?

Before she could react, a cigarette was pushed to her lips, and with a snap, a flame was lit.

”Have a smoke, it’s very effective in calming the mind.”

After lighting a cigarette for Qiu Hui, Zhang Su turned to look at Xie Yanshan, ”Old Xie, how do you explain this situation?

Xie Yanshan rubbed his chin, hesitantly, ”This should be related to Ms. Qiu’s physical condition. The concentration of the zombie robots in her body has reached a very delicate balance, placing her between human and zombie, possessing traits of both species. It’s a highly improbable coincidence!”

”Cough, cough, cough...”

A fit of coughing erupted. Although Qiu Hui occasionally smoked, she wasn’t prone to choking. It was mainly due to being frightened by what Xie Yanshan said.

”Cough, cough... Mr. Zhang, does my situation mean I won’t live long?”

Zhang Su flashed a bright smile and said, ”Why wouldn’t you live long? Now that we know how to control it, as long as we suppress the headache, you won’t lose your rationality. Right, your body still feels numb, right? This can probably also be suppressed with medication. I’ll ask Xiaoshan later.

Today, several hundred people came to the camp, all survivors from Qin City. Among them, there might be doctors related to this issue. Solving these problems won’t be difficult at all, and then you can return to a normal life.”

”R-really?”

Qiu Hui, with a cigarette in her mouth, bore a slight resemblance to a landlady, her face full of disbelief at the rapidity of this change.

”Well, not entirely!”

”I knew it...”

Zhang Su suddenly shifted his tone, and before he could continue, Qiu Hui interrupted him, ”Brother Zhang, I have to say something now. I’m afraid I won’t have the chance later.”

???

Xie Yanshan’s eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly, what explosive news was this?

That wouldn’t be appropriate to hear here. Just as he was about to step aside, he heard Zhang Su speak.

”If there’s something you want to say, go ahead.”

Zhang Su did not stop her. He understood Qiu Hui’s current mindset; it was like leaving a last testament, maybe there was some important information.

”Brother Zhang, you need to pay more attention to Liu Lan!”

”Huh?” Zhang Su was stunned. That didn’t sound like a dying wish, and who was Liu Lan anyway?

Seeing Zhang Su’s confusion, Qiu Hui explained, ”You have so many important people, of course you don’t remember Liu Lan. She’s also one of the Amazons. She came with us from Kuanzhuang, short hair, single eyelid, very ordinary and unobtrusive.”

”Hmm, now that you mention it, I remember her slightly. You want me to be careful of her, but she seems... does she have relatives who went with Lei Youliang to join the Cyan Dragon Corps?”

A barely noticeable figure emerged in Zhang Su’s mind.

There was quite a grievance and entanglement between Celestial Horse Island and Kuanzhuang. Back then, the fighting forces from both sides clashed in the Cyan Dragon Corps. More than a dozen people from Kuanzhuang, including the leader, were killed, and a few of their families were left in Kuanzhuang. Later, Zhang Su won them over and brought them to Celestial Horse Island.

Zhang Su had carefully explained the sequence of events to the people from Kuanzhuang. Everyone understood that the initiator of the conflict was Lei Youliang. Some people who harbored resentment at that time gradually let it go, but there were still some who held a grudge.

Just like the Liu Lan whom Qiu Hui mentioned.

”No, Liu Lan has no relatives. She likes Lei Youliang. I also accidentally found out about this. One night more than half a month ago, I accidentally heard Liu Lan talking about Lei Youliang. Through the window, I saw her looking at her phone, muttering about dying unjustly, going down to accompany you and whatnot...”

Talking about gossip, Qiu Hui’s condition surprisingly improved slightly compared to before.