CH 60

TL: Moonlit

There was some commotion in the civilized base. Ever since the Level 8 evolved zombie, “General,” left, they hadn’t felt the pressure of higher-level zombies for a long time. They couldn’t figure out the sudden surge of pressure.

Ji Rong and Shi Chong also felt a chill down their spines. The unfamiliar roar of the zombie made them feel the pressure as well.

Xiao Hen approached Wen Qingling and sniffed near his neck, saying, “You smell good. There’s no foul stench of zombies or the scent of humans. What are you exactly?”

Apart from Wen Qingling, all the zombies in the civilized base didn’t have the rotten smell of zombies. Instead, they had a faint scent of grass and plants, and the fragrance on Wen Qingling was even stronger.

If it weren’t for Wen Qingling being able to infect him, Xiao Hen would have doubted whether Wen Qingling was really a zombie. He didn’t look like one, and he didn’t smell like one either.

Wen Qingling looked at Xiao Hen, who was covered in the juice of the blood anemone, which looked like he had just eaten raw meat. Wen Qingling pushed him away in disgust and said, “We civilized zombies are supposed to live with dignity. Maintaining cleanliness is basic. Go wash up and change your clothes.”

Xiao Hen stood still. “Can’t we let Ji Rong and Shi Chong be themselves?”

Wen Qingling replied, “I don’t trust humans.”

Xiao Hen said, “I’m no longer human. Can you trust me now?”

Wen Qingling took a piece of gauze from the desk and wiped the blood-like juice off Xiao Hen’s face. “You still need further observation.”

Xiao Hen grabbed his wrist. “Between us, you’re the dominant one. You can suppress me. Isn’t that enough for you to feel at ease?”

Wen Qingling replied, “I can control your actions but not your thoughts.”

Wen Qingling tapped his chest. “Your heart still belongs to the human camp. I want your heart to be on my side too.”

Xiao Hen gazed at him. “My heart has long been with you.”

Pale hands pressed against Xiao Hen’s chest, and Wen Qingling slowly spoke, “That statement is true, but you still can’t let go of humans.”

Xiao Hen sighed softly. “As far as I know, zombies don’t have special abilities, right?”

Wen Qingling said, “You and I are both anomalies in the zombie world.”

Xiao Hen shook his head. “No, I’m not. It’s you who allowed me to retain my spatial ability.”

If it weren’t for Wen Qingling, Xiao Hen would definitely not have been able to keep his spatial ability. He didn’t know the role Wen Qingling played in this, but Xiao Hen could sense that the source was Wen Qingling.

Xiao Hen said, “Your mansion isn’t built yet. If you turn Shi Chong into a zombie, he will lose his earth-based ability. Do you also want to personally convert him?”

Wen Qingling replied, “Converting you is already troublesome enough. I don’t want to create another problem.”

Xiao Hen said, “So, for now, you can’t let him become one of us.”

Xiao Hen continued, “And what about Ji Rong? He has antibodies in his body and can’t be infected by the zombie virus. Will you personally do it?”

Wen Qingling crossed his arms. “I’m the leader. Have you ever seen a leader do everything themselves? If even converting a human requires the leader to do it personally, what’s the use of having subordinates?”

Xiao Hen remained silent.

Xiao Hen asked, “So, how will you infect Ji Rong then?”

Wen Qingling arrogantly said, “I don’t need to do it myself. The blood corpse can infect him.”

Xiao Hen’s expression turned serious. “You’ve subdued the blood corpse?”

Wen Qingling replied, “That’s right. He’s now my zombie underling.”

Xiao Hen said, “He’s very dangerous.”

Wen Qingling said, “He poses no threat to me.”

Xiao Hen fell silent for a moment before speaking, “Let them choose for themselves. Can we do that?”

Wen Qingling dropped the gauze from his hand. “Do you think anyone would willingly become a zombie?”

Xiao Hen sighed, “They are my soldiers. Perhaps they will make different choices.”

Wen Qingling stared at him for two seconds. “You and they are no longer the same species. They may not continue to listen to you.”

Xiao Hen had faith in his brothers who had gone through life and death with him. “They will listen.”

Wen Qingling said, “Let’s make a bet. Go and tell them now that you have become a zombie, that everyone in the civilized base is a zombie. Let’s see how they react. If they willingly become zombies, I welcome their joining. If they have any doubts, I will kill them on the spot.”

Wen Qingling added, “No one can deceive me.”

Xiao Hen asked, “So, in the end, there are only two options: death or becoming a zombie?”

Wen Qingling replied, “Of course. I’m very open-minded. The civilized zombies in the base voluntarily live with dignity. I never force zombies.”

Xiao Hen remained silent.

So, you force humans instead?

Xiao Hen didn’t clean himself up. In such a disheveled state, with a face covered in blood stains, he walked out of the clinic. Ji Rong and Shi Chong, who were still in the training area, were stunned when they saw their boss like that.

This appearance was just too much like a zombie that had just eaten a person!

Ji Rong widened his eyes. “Bo-Boss, how did you…”

Wen Qingling calmly followed behind, and all the civilized zombies looked at him. They had already known about the changes in the clinic because the scent of the three humans had dwindled down to two.

Xiao Hen said, “I’m no longer human. The entire civilized base is not human. They are all zombies.”

Ji Rong, with an expression frozen in shock, looked around and dryly said, “Bo-Boss, are you joking? How could they be zombies?”

At Wen Qingling’s command, all the civilized zombies in training let out a collective zombie roar.

Ji Rong couldn’t hold onto any last hope. His expression turned extremely grim. “Is ‘General’ turning you into a zombie? Or…”

Ji Rong’s gaze fell on Wen Qingling. “Or did he bite you?”

Wen Qingling replied, “Whether the transformation is caused by the Level 8 zombie or by being bitten by me, what’s the difference?”

Ji Rong clenched his teeth. “There’s a huge difference! How can being passive and being active be the same?!”

Xiao Hen said, “I voluntarily chose to be transformed. Now I am the same kind of zombie as Qingling.”

Ji Rong thought to himself, ‘Boss, you’re done for. You’re throwing away all principles and choosing to be a zombie instead of remaining a good person. What kind of twisted love is this?!’

Ji Rong had already seen through it. The position of the family head belongs to Wen Qingling, and their boss was nothing but a man dependent on others!

When Shi Chong, who was usually quiet, came out, he asked, “Where’s Old He? Can he also become like the people inside the base?”

Wen Qingling replied, “Come out.”

Shi Chong and Ji Rong both looked towards the clinic, where He Lin, who had turned into a red-eyed zombie, walked out unharmed.

When Wen Qingling came out, he threw a blood anemone at He Lin. Now, he was a decent civilized zombie.

He Lin put his hands in his pockets and greeted them, “Old Shi, Old Ji.”

Seeing He Lin, who had turned into a red-eyed zombie, in front of them, Shi Chong and Ji Rong’s eyes turned slightly red.

Shi Chong asked, “He Lin, how do you feel?”

He Lin smiled stiffly, his expression rigid. “I feel like I’ve stepped into a new world. My senses are as sharp as someone with psychic powers.”

Xiao Hen said, “The people inside the base were originally zombies. It was Qingling who saved them and made them live like normal humans.”

Shi Chong nodded. “Since the boss and He Lin are no longer human, it’s not interesting for us to remain human either. How can we become like you?”

Ji Rong’s gloomy mood also brightened up. “Your existence is cheating. How is it any different from being human?”

Ji Rong said, “Since we’re zombies, there must be a hierarchy among you, right? Who is the highest-ranked zombie among you? I want the highest-ranked zombie to transform me. Is it Dr. Wen? Can you transform me? I want to become stronger! Stronger!”

Wen Qingling was stunned. It was unbelievable that someone was eagerly competing to become a zombie. This was abnormal, absolutely abnormal.

Xiao Hen smiled and looked at Wen Qingling. “What do you think?”

Wen Qingling was a bit suspicious at this moment. He wondered if his mind-reading ability was malfunctioning, otherwise, how could he sense that they all genuinely wanted to become zombies?

Shi Chong’s eyes lit up suddenly, and he said seriously, “If possible, I also want the strongest zombie to transform me.”

Wen Qingling crossed his arms and said, “The teeth of this lord are precious, and I can’t just bite anyone. Only the highest-ranked ones among you are worthy of the blood corpse.”

Ji Rong and Shi Chong shook their heads, rejecting the idea decisively.

Ji Rong said, “I would rather die than become an ugly blood corpse.”

Shi Chong added, “Although I don’t care much about appearances, I can’t accept becoming a blood corpse like that either.”

Ji Rong glanced at their boss and found that the boss had no intention of helping. He was just standing there with a silly smile on his face. He truly was a soft-hearted man, wasn’t he?

Wen Qingling made a decision. “No, it’s not possible.”

Ji Rong felt aggrieved. “Why not?”

Wen Qingling replied coldly, “Dirty.”

Ji Rong: “?”

Was he being called dirty?

Disgusting!

Ji Rong refused to accept it. “Why am I considered dirty? Compared to a blood corpse, am I really that much dirtier?”

Wen Qingling’s face was expressionless. “Biting people is filthy.”

Ji Rong looked at his boss with a sense of grievance, only to find that the boss had no intention of helping at all. He was just standing there with a silly smile on his face. This guy was truly a soft-hearted man, wasn’t he?

Wen Qingling made a decision. “Learn how to drive first. Let’s talk about it after bringing back all the armored vehicles. Shi Chong, continue building the big house.”

Xiao Hen made a valid point. Their abilities were very useful, and once they turned into zombies, they would lose their powers. That wasn’t a good deal. Wen Qingling decided to talk to the four research assistants and see if there was a way to preserve their abilities when transforming them into zombies.

With the gloom gone from his heart, Wen Qingling felt more enthusiastic about teaching. Ji Rong was like a chicken injected with adrenaline, his voice becoming several degrees louder than before. After teaching, he would always approach Wen Qingling, trying to please him.

Ji Rong asked, “Dr. Wen, can all decayed zombies be saved and transformed into civilized zombies?”

Wen Qingling had already seen through his thoughts. “Decayed zombies have to volunteer themselves, and it will cost 100 regular crystal cores per zombie.”

Ji Rong grinned like a fool. “Alright, don’t worry, I guarantee that I’ll gather those crystal cores for you.”

Ji Rong happily ran off to continue watching them practice driving.

Xiao Hen approached and asked, “Don’t you understand?”

Wen Qingling nodded. “I always thought that only decayed zombies with ideals and aspirations would actively seek to become civilized zombies. Why are even humans in such a hurry to become civilized zombies?”

Xiao Hen said, “Ji Rong and Shi Chong have no family left. For them, their brothers are everything. If their brothers change, they don’t mind changing too.”

Xiao Hen looked at the civilized zombies who were earnestly learning. “If news of the existence of civilized zombies spreads, it may be seen as a new kind of rebirth for ordinary survivors. They would be willing to become powerful civilized zombies who are not afraid of infection and can live a comfortable life because they have no choice. If they had to choose between death and becoming a civilized zombie, they would definitely choose to become a civilized zombie.”

Civilized zombies could be considered a new form of existence. Their potential dangers and future were still unknown to them. They could only take it step by step. If Wen Qingling only saved those who had turned into zombies, Xiao Hen would support him wholeheartedly.

Without being in the midst of it, one wouldn’t understand. When he truly became a civilized zombie, he would know. This group was like an enhanced version of humans. If civilized zombies could develop and reproduce like humans, would they become a new species to replace humans? No one could say for sure.

Wen Qingling glanced at him askew. “You’re wrong. Not all decayed zombies qualify to become civilized zombies, and civilized zombies are not the last resort for humans. If they want to become civilized zombies, I’m not interested in taking them in.”

Xiao Hen: “…”

He was just making an objective analysis and didn’t mean to belittle civilized zombies.