Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Chilled to the bone by the incessant roars echoing through the woods, a group of people huddled together.

"Should we leave?" Lan Zi asked.

They thought they had gone far enough, but it seemed that they were still too close.

The Corpse King and zombies were vastly different entities. If it were just the zombies causing all this commotion, they wouldn't have to worry as much, but in the face of the Corpse King, they wanted to get as far away as possible.

"It's going to be dark soon," Zhang Guxian said. "And the reservoir is nearby."

At the mention of the reservoir, Lan Zi felt her throat dry and scratchy. Being discovered by the Corpse King and dying a gruesome death or perishing from dehydration were both equally grim fates.

"We'll spend the night here and head for the reservoir at first light tomorrow," Ji Yanqing decided, glancing at the bald man who was unconscious on the ground. The reservoir was at least two hours away, and navigating unfamiliar terrain in the dark would be too risky.

"Earlier, you mentioned finding a cave?" Ji Yanqing looked at Lan Zi.

"This way." Lan Zi led them towards the cave.

Ji Yanqing carried Ji'an on his back, while Xia Shenshu and Zhang Guxian helped the bald man up, and the group moved together.

The cave Lan Zi found wasn't far, but it was small—more like a gap beneath a massive boulder than an actual cave.

The entrance could barely accommodate all of them, and its low ceiling made it cramped, but it was better than nothing.

"Let's see if we can cover the area around us," Xia Shenshu suggested.

No one objected. After placing the bald man under the rock, they checked each other for any signs of infection before it got completely dark.

They considered themselves fortunate; apart from the bald man, no one else had been infected.

There were two possible reasons for this, they speculated: either the creatures couldn't survive long after leaving the flower stalks, or they needed a sufficient amount of moisture to activate, with human eyeballs containing about ninety-nine percent water.

Regardless of which possibility was true, the outcome provided temporary relief.

After checking each other, they removed and discarded any clothes that might have come into contact with the seeds, then scattered to gather branches.

By six o'clock, the forest had become pitch-black within ten minutes.

They quickly arranged the collected branches around the rock to provide some cover, then huddled beneath it.

Without lighting a fire, they distributed the remaining dates and dried mushrooms in the dark, each person eating silently.

This was their last meal. Tomorrow, after finding water, they would need to locate new sources of food, or they would starve.

Half an hour later, the cave grew quiet.

It was narrow, and when everyone lay down, their shoulders touched.

Ji Yanqing lay in the corner, with Ji'an and Ji Le beside him.

Seeing Ji Yanqing lie down, Ji'an reluctantly spat out the date pit he had been sucking on until it lost its sweetness, then snuggled next to Ji Yanqing. Ji Le, lying further inside, was already half-asleep.

Ji Yanqing felt a pang of sorrow.

In the past, children like Ji'an would have been cherished by the entire family, and they would do anything to make them happy. Now, Ji'an was content to suck on a date pit until it lost its flavor.

As the sounds of deepening breaths filled the cave, Ji Yanqing found it hard to sleep due to the cold. The near-zero temperatures caused his body to shiver uncontrollably.

They had discarded their coats that might have been contaminated with rice seeds. Some had spare clothes, but he didn't. He had left his backpack in the city, and the one he had now was previously used to carry Ji Le.

Xia Shenshu had given him a shirt earlier, which he had placed over Ji'an and Ji Le.

For a long time, the situation remained unchanged. It wasn't until the night's chill numbed his extremities that he finally began to feel drowsy.

In the silence, Lan Zi, keeping watch, turned to check on everyone, relieved to find them all there. She chuckled at herself for being so anxious.

She couldn't help but look outside the cave, her gaze settling on the twisted trees surrounding them. They seemed to be screaming in agony, as if they had come alive and were ready to pounce.

Those trees had been unsettling even during the day, but the feeling intensified at night.

Lan Zi glanced back again, reassured once more that everyone was present, gripping her knife tightly.

Just as she was about to convince herself that she was imagining things, a faint rustling sound emerged from the darkness. Something was moving.

Lan Zi immediately looked towards the source of the noise. There was only a massive tree, large enough to require ten people to encircle it, whose canopy swayed as if it had just stretched...

Her throat constricted, and a chill ran up her spine.

"It's the tree," Xia Shenshu's voice suddenly broke the silence.

Lan Zi jumped.

Xia Shenshu got up and moved next to Lan Zi, looking out through the crevice. "These trees have probably been planted for no more than a few decades. To grow this big in just half a year means they must have grown at least four to five years' worth every day."

A tree that required ten people to encircle it would typically be at least a thousand years old. For it to grow this large in just half a year defied common sense, suggesting that, in a sense, they might have truly come "alive."

Lan Zi looked again, feeling increasingly uncomfortable at the sight of the writhing, swaying canopy.

"It's your turn to rest," Xia Shenshu said.

Lan Zi moved to where Xia Shenshu had been lying, preparing to settle down, when she noticed that Ji Yanqing was awake. "Did I wake you?"

Ji Yanqing shook his head, rolled over to face Ji'an, and continued sleeping.

When he turned back, Ji Yanqing met the sight of a pair of eyes glowing faintly in the darkness—Ji'an hadn't fallen asleep either.

He and Ji Le had slept for a while in the afternoon; Ji Le, whose body hadn't fully recovered, had fallen asleep again, but he couldn't sleep at all. "Go to sleep," Ji Yanqing whispered softly. Ji'an moved his arm and grabbed Ji Yanqing's hand. Ji'an's hand was small and bony, as if it could be broken with just a little force. The night was cold, and his hand was icy. Ji Yanqing held Ji'an's hand, preparing to warm it up for him, when something small and round, wrinkled and light, appeared in his palm. Ji Yanqing sniffed the object under his nose—it was a jujube. Ji Yanqing looked at Ji'an. Ji'an gently pushed Ji Yanqing's hand, urging him to eat it. The jujube was sweet and delicious. Ji Yanqing was speechless. Because there wasn't much food left, everyone had only been given three or four jujubes and three or four dried mushrooms each. Ji'an and Ji Le had received even less—only two jujubes and two mushrooms each. That amount of food wasn't enough to fill their stomachs; it barely kept them alive, unable to even alleviate their hunger. He had assumed that Ji'an had already eaten everything, especially since Ji'an had held onto the jujube pit for a long time, reluctant to spit it out. Ji'an pushed Ji Yanqing's hand again, insisting that he eat it. He knew that Ji Yanqing had originally had the most water among everyone, but he had been very frugal with it because he had to share it with him and Ji Le, which is why it had run out early. Ji Yanqing made a gesture of putting the jujube into his mouth, and Ji'an's eyes instantly lit up. Ji Yanqing patted his head. Feeling his head being patted, Ji'an was very happy, his eyes filled with smiles. "Go to sleep," Ji Yanqing whispered softly. Ji'an yawned and closed his eyes. In the darkness, a faint roar came from the city. Ji Yanqing, Xia Shenshu, and Lan Zi all looked up. The roar soon faded away. After holding their breaths and listening for a while without hearing any other sounds, they let out a sigh of relief. They had to leave as soon as they found water the next day. In the city, under the cover of night, Feng Yimo's eyes flashed with a cold glint as he looked expressionlessly at the huge beast in front of him, which he had beaten so badly it couldn't get back up. "Where are they?" "Uh..." The massive beast shuddered, its eyes filled with fear. It really didn't know. Feng Yimo, who couldn't understand the beast's language but could roughly read its meaning, drew his sword. "Ahh... I can help you find them!" Feng Yimo frowned. "Ahh?" "What do you want to find?" The beast tried to stand up despite its unresponsive limbs, but it failed to harm Feng Yimo no matter what means it used. "Two children." Surprise appeared on the wounded and bloody face of the beast. Humans? "I fed them my blood," said Feng Yimo. When he found them, they were already dead, having been beaten to death by humans. Their small bodies were curled up, and their lifeless eyes were filled with fear. He had fed them his blood, and logically, they should have retained some of his scent. However, it had taken a lot of energy to repair their fatal injuries and bring them back to "life," and since they hadn't fully awakened yet, their scent was almost undetectable. He had sensed their presence before, but the feeling had vanished quickly, and he hadn't had time to find them before it disappeared. The beast's eyes showed surprise and complexity. It wasn't sure whether to be surprised that Feng Yimo had shared his blood with humans or that it couldn't even defeat Feng Yimo after he had shared his blood. Corpse Kings could share their blood with others, but doing so not only shared their blood but also their power. This could create absolutely loyal followers, but it would also greatly weaken themselves. Normally, Corpse Kings wouldn't do this easily. Feng Yimo had just shared his blood, and not just once, but twice, yet he still managed to defeat the beast. This meant that Feng Yimo was far beyond its level. Feng Yimo was no longer an ordinary Corpse King; his blood might be enough to allow those two children to skip the process of becoming corpses and awaken directly, perhaps even awakening as Corpse Kings. "Ahh... How did you lose them?" Feng Yimo looked coldly at the chatty big dog in front of him. Why? Wasn't it because of its meddling? The beast felt wronged as it stared back, truly believing it had done nothing. If it had known how difficult Feng Yimo was to deal with, it would have avoided him, rather than provoking him. "Find them before dawn," Feng Yimo said as he turned to leave, intending to search for them himself. The beast watched him leave until his figure disappeared around a corner, then collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Its body, which bullets couldn't easily penetrate, was now covered in wounds of various sizes, and almost all of its ribs were broken. The powerful regenerative abilities of a Corpse King continuously repaired its body, but the pain remained.

It wasn't planning to run away, for if Feng Yimo decided to kill it upon discovering its escape, there would be no way to avoid it. Right now, it only wanted to quickly mend its body and then find those two brats.

Lying on the ground, it was just about to close its eyes and concentrate on healing when footsteps approached.

It looked in the direction of the sound.

Feng Yimo, who had just left, emerged from the building behind its tail.

Seeing it, Feng Yimo's expression turned cold. "Why are you following me instead of looking for people?"

Startled by this righteous questioning, the beast paused in its attempt to tuck its large tail under its belly. Its gaze at Feng Yimo gradually became peculiar.