Chapter 40: Special Transaction

Chapter 40: Special Transaction

[Sure, 100,000 crystal cores.]

The base's security chief then interjected, "The number of ability users in the base is increasing, and our defense power is growing stronger. However... it seems that plants and animals are also undergoing mutations. The teams sent out have reported that the zombies within the city appear to be evolving."

Zhong Yi and the others instantly furrowed their brows.

They had simulated such a scenario in the lab, but they hadn't expected it to happen so soon. It left no room for respite!

"Emperor, let's dispatch some ability users to bring Yu Liuqing to the base," Zhong Yi proposed. "His expertise in biology is unparalleled. Perhaps only he has the means to suppress these uncontrolled mutations in plants and animals before they get out of hand."

The Emperor fell silent for a moment.

"I'll report this matter," she said, then led the Special Abilities Bureau away.

Not long after they left, Zhong Yi's phone buzzed briefly. He took it out and saw that it was a notification from the VIP group, indicating a new announcement.

Upon tapping on it, he found that it concerned crystal cores. The first part gave a brief explanation of what crystal cores were and where they could be obtained. The second part listed the items that could be exchanged for them.

A Cooling Talisman: 100 Crystal Cores

A Golden Shell Pearl: 500 Crystal Cores

A Storage Pouch: 1000 Crystal Cores

Special Transaction: Can restore a zombie without fatal injuries within the last 24 hours back to human form. Limited to ten individuals per day, each requiring 50,000 Crystal Cores.

Zhong Yi's eyes instantly lit up.

It was actually real!

Old Buddha Xiao also saw it and immediately messaged, [Boss Chu, would you be able to help save someone?]

On the other side, Chu Chuan, upon reading his message, directly asked, [Who? Where are they?]

Xiao Old forwarded the information: [Yu Liuqing, a biology professor, in the western outskirts of Imperial Capital, Tianpeng Street, Jinyang West Road, No. 668. If he's still alive, bring him to the Northern Base.]

Chu Chuan pulled up a navigation app for a look.

No. 668 Jinyang West Road in Tianpeng Street, headed in the same direction as Yi Fei's predicament at the Nanshan Mansion. It was a convenient detour, so she agreed.

[Alright, 100,000 crystal nuclei.]

Xiao Lao choked. This demand was exorbitant.

It was outright plundering!

But if Chu Chuan wasn't involved, they'd have to send someone from the Special Abilities Bureau. Given the sudden natural disasters and meteorite crashes, not to mention the nationwide casualties, their specialized department had suffered severe losses. Most of them were recuperating in the base and there were simply no extra hands available.

Most importantly, the helicopters were under the control of higher-ups, and she couldn't request one in the short term.

"Okay! 100,000 it is!"

...

At No. 668 Jinyang West Road in Tianpeng Street – Pine Mist Hall.

The place was riddled with bloody handprints on its doors and windows. The facilities were in shambles, and scattered human limbs alongside wandering zombies hinted at a massive mutation catastrophe that had once occurred here.

Inside a room.

"Professor Yu, the message says that someone has been dispatched to pick you up. You should pack up as soon as possible," said Yang Li, a soldier, holding a submachine gun while vigilantly scanning the surroundings outside the room.

This was a secret prison run by the state, housing criminals who were exceptional geniuses in their respective fields.

Unfortunately, these geniuses had all strayed from the right path and were no good.

Yu Liuqing was one of them.

Compared to the others, Yu Liuqing was relatively young, appearing to be in his early thirties with a pair of golden-rimmed glasses perched on his nose and slender fingers that were fair and translucent, seemingly born to hold test tubes for experiments.

"Why leave?" Yu Liuqing asked, perplexed. "It's not necessarily better out there. Look at that grass outside. It should have withered in such extreme heat, but now, after being nourished by blood, it's thriving. Imagine if those plants could move. Would they be more terrifying than the zombies?"

"Professor Yu!" Yang Li's tone was sharp. "This place has already fallen! There are only two of us left alive! If we don't leave, we'll only meet our demise!"

Yu Liuqing continued to gaze at the lush green lawn outside, murmuring softly, "We're going to die anyway, aren't we?"

Hardly had she finished when Yang Li covered Yu Liuqing's mouth. At that moment, a group of zombies wandered to the window of the room where they were hiding.

"Ugh... Roar..."

Seemingly sensing something, the zombies lingered, unwilling to leave. Then, they began pounding on the window with a relentless "Bang! Bang!"

Yang Li signaled Yu Liuqing to remain silent.

Despite their silence, the zombies outside continued to relentlessly smash against the glass.

"Bang—Bang—"

The impacts grew louder and more forceful. If not for the reinforced glass, it would have already shattered.

Yang Li motioned for Yu Liuqing to retreat, but he instead nodded his chin, urging her to look where he was pointing.

She followed his gaze, her pupils constricting.

The window hadn't been latched! If not for the zombies' lack of intelligence, merely mindlessly crashing into the glass, this window would be nothing but a decorative feature!

Despite the iron mesh reinforcing the window, Yang Li couldn't take the risk. The thought of the horde of zombies outside being lured by their scent if the glass broke sent shivers down her spine. She furrowed her brow and decided to crawl over to lock the window. Just as she reached out to do so, a rigid arm punctured through the glass and grabbed hold of her.

Yang Li swiftly withdrew her arm, but not before it was slashed by the sharp claws. Her pupils constricted. Without hesitation, she drew a blade and sliced her own forearm!

"Agh—!!"

The forearm hit the ground, blood spurting from the clean cut. The pungent smell of blood instantly filled the air.

The zombie outside, whose body size exceeded ordinary ones by at least twice, howled. Excited by the scent, other zombies swarmed in. Soon, the glass shattered and the iron mesh creaked under the pressure.

Yu Liuqing, witnessing the person he had just bandaged, was indeed shocked. He knew this individual came from a "special national department" and possessed superior combat skills compared to an average soldier. However, he never imagined they would be so decisive and ruthless towards themselves.

Truly... too brutal.

"Woahhh!!"

"Roarrr!"

The zombies converged, their cacophony of guttural cries echoing relentlessly outside the window.

Yang Li's face was ashen as she said, "I'll keep them occupied. The rescue team will arrive soon. They'll take you to the base."

Yu Liuqing, observing the zombies outside the window with an air of detachment, folded his arms. He had never pinned his hopes on that so-called rescue team from the start.

In his view, these monsters before him were Earth's new overlords.

Unfatigued and impervious to pain, in some respects, they were indeed more advanced than humans.

Whether they were rescued or not made little difference.

Humanity was inevitably doomed.

"Professor Yu, they will definitely come for you," Yang Li persevered through the pain, perhaps to divert her attention or for another reason. "The base is already built. As long as humanity still has a breath left, we can overcome anything."

Yu Liuqing glanced at her.

"Do you really think, with all these zombies around, those people would dare come here? And if they did, could they leave unscathed?"

"..."

"The meteorite crash caused countless casualties. They must be short on manpower up there. There's no way they'd waste resources to save a criminal like me, Officer Yang. We're fated to be buried here together, so why subject yourself to the agony of losing an arm?"

"They will come," she replied firmly.

"Fine, even if there is a rescue team, coming here would just be a pointless suicide mission."

Yu Liuqing seemed indifferent to it all.

---

"Second Brother, we'll be reaching the western outskirts soon. Where should we head first?" Xie Shuyao asked as she drove.

Chu Chuan: "Head to Tiangong Street, No. 668 Jinyang West Road."

"Got it!"

In the sofa area, Muzhilin sat by the window, gazing at the wandering zombies, the chaotic streets, and the blood-stained limbs. His brows knitted slightly.

The world had already become like this. Even with Chu Chuan's protection now, what about later? He couldn't rely on others forever.

After a dozen minutes, Xie Shuyao slammed on the brakes as they arrived at No. 668 Jinyang West Road.

The zombies in the vicinity, hearing the noise, swarmed towards them but halted upon sensing Chu Chuan's presence.

Muzhilin, witnessing this, clenched his fists and stood up, calling out to Chu Chuan just as he was about to exit the vehicle.

"Um, I can help."

Chu Chuan paused, turning to look at him.

"Have you ever fought zombies before?"

Muzhilin nodded. "Yes, I have."

After a moment of contemplation, Chu Chuan extended his hand, revealing the crystal nucleus in his palm to Muzhilin.

"There's a crystal nucleus like this inside a zombie's head. You can get out and help me collect them."

Muzhilin nodded, then gazed at the crystal nucleus in surprise, amazed that such an object could exist within a zombie's skull.

"Can I take a look at it?"

Without hesitation, Chu Chuan tossed the crystal nucleus to him. At that moment, Xie Shuyao rushed over.

"Second Brother, I can help too!"

"Sure."

Mu Shiqi and Jiang Qiuyue also offered their assistance, so the entire carload of people got out with Chu Chuan.

Once they were all out of the vehicle, Chu Chuan handed each of them a spade for self-defense before heading towards Unit 668.

They arrived at a place called "Pineglow Pavilion," and Chu Chuan looked up at the sign on the wall indicating it was number 668.

"It looks rather dilapidated here."

Xie Shuyao walked beside Chu Chuan, eyeing the large iron gate of the "Pineglow Pavilion" that stood firmly shut. The tall iron fence and gate blocked any view from the outside, making her momentarily doubt if they had come to the right place.

The gate was rusted.

Just as she was about to reach out and push it, Chu Chuan said, "Don't touch it. It's electrified."

With a wave of his hand, a powerful gust of wind sent the iron gate creaking loudly. Eventually, the old screws securing it were blown out, and in the next moment, the entire gate lifted off the ground, crashing into the air.

"!!" Mu Zhilin and Mu Shiqi, standing nearby, watched in astonishment. What kind of technique was that?

Summoning wind out of thin air?

Chu Chuan simply said, "Let's go."

Muzhilin and Mu Shiqi were still in a state of shock. Seeing Muzhilin's reaction, Chu Chuan reached out and pulled him away forcefully. Meanwhile, Mu Shiqi snapped back to reality under Xie Shuyao's gentle pats.

"Big Sister Shiqi, let's go."

"Oh, okay!"

In the Songxia Hall, Yu Liuqing spotted Chu Chuan and the others, surprised that someone had actually shown up. His mind raced with possibilities, but his excitement was quickly extinguished when he realized who they were.

They're just a bunch of teenagers... Not a single gun among them. How are they supposed to save us? They might as well die too.

At this point, Yang Li was on the verge of exhaustion. She had lost too much blood from her wound, and with the makeshift bandage, infection was inevitable even if she survived the immediate danger.

Yu Liuqing shook her. "Officer Yang, your rescuers have arrived. Don't die now, at least take a look. We're all going to die anyway, there are too many zombies, we can't possibly escape..."

As he spoke, Yu Liuqing suddenly remembered something he had overlooked. He released Yang Li and rushed to the window, standing just one step away and staring intently at the figures in the distance.

They were indeed humans!

The zombies weren't attacking them!

As Yu Liuqing was still baffled, Chu Chuan raised his hand, and another gale rose from the ground, slicing the surrounding zombies into chunks with a series of "Swish! Swish!" sounds.

Chu Chuan: "Collect the crystal cores."

The others sprang into action, no longer bothered by the filth or disgust. Each person moved swiftly, smashing zombie heads with shovels until they were unrecognizable, while the crystal cores piled up on the ground, awaiting collection by Chu Chuan.

Inside the house, Yu Liuqing stared blankly at Chu Chuan, momentarily stunned.

Did this man just wipe out the zombies with one hand? Was he already developing presbyopia at such a young age?

Struggling to lift her gaze from the ground, Yang Li saw Chu Chuan and a hint of joy appeared on her face.

"Master Chu!"

Though she had never met Chu Chuan in person, she had seen his photo and could instantly recognize him now.

Yu Liuqing's expression turned serious. After hearing Yang Li's words, he assumed that Chu Chuan was from the Special Abilities Bureau.

He couldn't help but study Chu Chuan more closely. This man didn't look very old, yet he was an expert!

The Special Abilities Bureau is really willing to release individuals, aren't they? Don't they worry about accidents happening outside?

"Author's Note:"