Chapter 82

Chapter 82

"What, why did it suddenly explode?" Xu Fang was startled, stammering in shock.

Shen Xiuzhe quickly snatched the meteorite that Lin An was holding: "Don’t eat it yet, wait until we get to Baize City and study it."

Lin An, on the verge of tears, stared at the meteorite being taken away: "But, but I've already eaten it before."

Last time there were no problems!

"Don't be complacent, last time might have been an accident. Your body was probably lacking energy, so eating the meteorite replenished it without causing an explosion due to excess energy. It's also possible that each meteorite has different components, so you can't eat it," Shen Xiuzhe remained unmoved by Lin An’s pitiful expression.

The others also persuaded him one by one, as if Lin An would explode if he ate the meteorite, leaving them nowhere to cry.

Lin An reluctantly watched the meteorite being handed over to Wu Duo, then stored in a space where its aura vanished completely.

He knew everyone was looking out for him, but seeing the meteorite, he felt like a starving person eyeing a roast chicken, knowing it would cause stomach upset but still wanting to nibble on it when hungry.

Shen Xiuzhe felt sorry, but he wouldn’t take the risk.

Because of this, Lin An was dispirited all morning. After discussing, they decided to let Lin An hold the head-sized meteorite temporarily after leaving the Eye of the Desert.

Not for him to eat, just to hold.

"Such a large meteorite would take Lin An ages to nibble, so they stood guard, ready to whisk it away if he lost control and tried to bite."

So, if Lin An wanted to keep holding the meteorite, he had to restrain himself.

The energy emanating from the meteorite was beneficial to both zombies and those with special abilities, thus everyone’s abilities could be enhanced.

Lin An agreed, since he couldn't eat it, just holding and looking at it was enough to satisfy his craving.

The hungry little zombie had no choice but to satiate his hunger by holding the stone.

The next day, all weapons were put into Wu Duo's space, and they got their luggage ready to set off.

Today was still a cloudless day, with the temperature slowly rising. Lu Li, wearing a mask, stood there indifferently.

Ouyang Dong glanced at him over and over again. It was already hot, and seeing Lu Li fully armed made him feel even hotter, wondering what was wrong with him dressing like that in such heat, not fearing heat rash.

When everyone got into the car, Shen Xiuzhe coldly said towards the window: "Let's go, no need to see us off."

"It’s not like we’re seeing you off." Lu Li’s muffled voice came from under the mask. He had been hit by Shen Xiuzhe again, specifically in the face, and finally understood. Shen Xiuzhe was pretending to be a pig to eat the tiger; what kind of A-level ability user could beat an S-level without any effort?

He suspected this guy was doing it on purpose, pretending to be a Level A just to beat him up.

It must be jealousy over his looks!

His ash-gray eyes glared resentfully at Shen Xiuzhe several times, then softened as he looked at Lin An in the back seat. These past days, Shen Xiuzhe had been too vigilant, preventing him from finding a chance to talk to Lin An again.

He had inquired about the situation from his teammates and was now sure that it was indeed Lin An he had seen. He was just too late. How lucky was this Shen Xiuzhe, better than him in almost everything except height.

He felt a bit sad, his budding love hadn't even been voiced before it was nipped in the bud. Although the window was only slightly open, he knew Lin An inside could hear him.

"Lin An, the Eye of the Desert is really nice. The people here are as warm and hospitable as me. If you want to stay..."

Before he could finish, the SUV suddenly accelerated, sending a cloud of dust towards Lu Li.

Lu Li: ...Despicable Shen Xiuzhe.

Watching the dust kicked up by the departing vehicle, Luo Yuan, standing behind Lu Li, hesitated to speak to his captain. He had discovered something over these days but hesitated to speak up due to his captain's good relationship with Shen Xiuzhe.

"Captain, I’ve noticed something unusual about Lin An from Shen Xiuzhe's team these past few days."

The only team member who knew Lu Li's true nature was Luo Yuan. Lu Li didn’t pretend in front of him, but his innate aloofness was especially pronounced in front of his teammates: "What's unusual?"

He thought everything was normal, except for the poor choice in men.

Luo Yuan looked serious, initially thinking Lin An was out of place in the team, timid and weak. But in the Sand Dune Town, he realized Lin An's powers were strong, to the point that he felt even their captain might not win against him.

So after leaving the Sand Dune Town, he had been observing Lin An and noticed many issues.

"He never eats or drinks, and I've seen his eyes... they're red."

This was a hue unique to zombies, and his behaviors and anomalies were very zombie-like. If it wasn’t for Lin An’s calm behavior, mostly staying inside the tent and only following Shen Xiuzhe when he did come out, Luo Yuan would have acted sooner.

"So what?" Lu Li looked indifferent, unconcerned.

"Captain, don’t you see? He might be a zombie," Luo Yuan couldn’t believe the captain hadn’t noticed anything.

Lu Li raised his head, his ash-gray eyes calm and firm: "Luo Yuan, zombies are humans too, our kin, parents, and siblings, before they lose their sanity. Becoming a zombie isn’t their choice. Lin An is the same; he hasn’t harmed anyone at the base. To me, he’s one of us, no different. Moreover, we owe our lives to him. I am grateful for their arrival."

How could Lu Li not know? Once he realized the person was Lin An, those crimson eyes had already indicated something unusual. He retained his sanity and memory, controlled his urges, saved people in danger, relied on his teammates, showed fear and timidity, and even cared for a lively dog. How different was such a zombie from a human?

Luo Yuan knew this truth in his heart, so he hadn't told anyone about Lin An's identity after discovering it.

"Let's go back. If it weren’t for their passing through here, the Zombie Emperor and the special zombies would have attacked the Eye of the Desert someday, and then no one would survive. Don't mention Lin An's matter again, and don't talk about it to others," Lu Li took one last look in the direction they had left, then turned and walked away.

He seemed to revert to the decisive and calm captain, the strategist behind the scenes, or maybe he only relaxed when he was around Shen Xiuzhe and his group, not having to bear the burden of his responsibilities.

Luo Yuan hummed in agreement, following his captain back towards the Eye of the Desert, their home and the place they needed to protect. Even though the zombie crisis had largely been resolved, there was still much to do to return to the standard of living they had over a year ago. It would require everyone's effort.

“Luo Yuan, I feel a bit unwell.”

“What’s wrong, Captain? Has your injury not healed?”

“You know, I just got my heart broken.”

“Captain, weren’t you always single?”

"…Forget it, let’s go back."

“Oh.”

*

Lin An sat in the car, blissfully hugging the meteorite as big as his head, his eyes comfortably squinting.

On either side of him were the watchful eyes of Wu Duo and Grandma Wu, and in the front seat was Shen Xiuzhe, who occasionally looked back to ensure Lin An didn't sneak a bite.

Being closely watched by three pairs of eyes, even Lin An, who was super happy hugging the meteorite, felt a bit uneasy. But the temptation of the meteorite was too great, overcoming his social anxiety. He hugged the meteorite, bowed his head, closed his eyes, and pretended not to notice everyone’s gazes.

Along the way, they encountered zombies attracted by the meteorite, scattered but numerous in total, all taken care of by Xu Fang and Ouyang Dong in another vehicle.

Afterwards, passing through a deserted area, they almost completely lost sight of zombies.

Lin An could hug the meteorite all day, just that his arms were a bit tired. He wasn’t very strong and holding such a big stone would have exhausted him if he weren’t sitting in the car.

Grandma Wu kindly found a piece of cloth from her space and sewed a strap for him, tying it around his front so he didn't have to hold it with his hands.

Shen Xiuzhe felt like he had seen the style of that strap somewhere before but couldn’t quite remember.

"Hahaha, I used a self-sewn strap like this when I carried children over a decade ago,” Grandma Wu said as she looked at Lin An with the stone tied to his front, resembling a dad carrying a child, and burst into hearty laughter.

Carried children over a decade ago? Wasn't she referring to herself? Wu Duo was speechless.

Shen Xiuzhe couldn't help but look back several times, even driving into a ditch: no wonder, he knew it looked familiar.

Lin An: "..."

Lin An's face reddened from the teasing, but even so, he didn't put down the meteorite.

After three days of driving, they finally arrived at the canyon mentioned by Lu Li.

Described as a canyon, it more closely resembled the earth split in two, with a crevice running from north to south, bottomless and seemingly endless.

This gap was about ten meters wide, impossible to cross without a stone bridge.

But that was only for ordinary people.

Before anyone else could act, Lin An, holding the meteorite, stood at the edge of the cliff, and an ice bridge extended from his feet to the other side.

The ice bridge was wide enough for two vehicles to travel side by side, thickened for added durability, and even thoughtfully lined with railings on both sides, looking quite luxurious.

"Has An's ability become even more powerful?" Xu Fang remarked, observing the exceptionally sturdy and exquisite ice bridge, which was constructed in just a minute, a significant improvement from his earlier simple ice blocks.

It must be the energy from that meteorite.

Even if they couldn't consume it, the energy emanating from the meteorite seemed to enhance their special abilities, which was good; it meant an increase in everyone’s strength and a higher chance of survival in dangerous situations.

Grandma Wu cheerfully looked at the ice bridge: "Once we cross the bridge, everyone should dress warmly; it's going to get colder."

Xu Fang looked up at the still blazing sun overhead. Isn't it August? How cold could it possibly get?

The two vehicles crossed the ice bridge one after the other, and indeed, the bridge's load-bearing capacity was excellent, allowing for a smooth passage across the canyon.

Xu Fang, sitting in the passenger seat, chatted with Ouyang Dong, who was driving: "Has Grandma Wu recovered from her illness? She seems much more spirited these last few days, just like when we first left Chuxi City, always so energetic."

"Ouyang Dong drove attentively; the stone bridge was sturdy, but a slip from the ice bridge would be quite the embarrassment."

He responded with a hum only after they had crossed the bridge.

In truth, he felt uneasy. Alzheimer's disease doesn't heal itself, and until Shen Xiuzhe mentioned a cure in Baize City, there hadn’t been an effective treatment, and the condition only worsened over time.

Grandma Wu, who previously couldn't even recognize her granddaughter, had suddenly regained her spirits, which seemed quite unusual. He didn’t feel it was his place to comment, though he guessed that everyone, except perhaps Xu Fang, had noticed.

After the canyon, the road slowly turned into a Gobi desert, and their driving speed increased. The Gobi gradually vanished, and the continuous mountain ranges began to show snow. Soon, the snow-covered areas grew larger and larger.

Ten days later, Xu Fang finally understood why Granny Wu had told him to dress warmly. It was so cold, incredibly cold!

He might actually freeze to death here.