Chapter 138: Conclusion

Chapter 138 Finale

Are you kidding?

Zombies and humans are natural-born enemies—one feeds on the other, while the other relies on the brain crystals of the former for advancement.

How could zombies possibly help them? They wouldn’t even dare dream something like this.

Suddenly, the screen shook violently, as if it had fallen from the wearer’s wrist, arcing through the air before crashing down. It landed somewhere unknown, but by sheer coincidence, the angle provided a full view of the room.

They really were zombies. The decently sized room was packed with dozens of high-level zombies—organized, disciplined, with formidable superpowers. They were pushing back the Y Base personnel relentlessly, forcing them into retreat.

Among these zombies, one stood out the most. While the others, regardless of their superpower levels, were disheveled and barely clothed, the last one was neatly dressed, spotless, as if he’d just stepped out of a shower. His hair, though somewhat long, wasn’t greasy and was loosely tied into a ponytail at the back of his head, giving him a rakish look. He even wore a pair of pristine white sneakers, cleaner than most humans’ shoes, white as snow.

"Look at the one at the end—is he really a zombie?" Zhou Qin and the others had all noticed this unusual zombie.

"He is," Ji An said, scrutinizing the zombie. "Though he looks cleaner than some humans, he’s definitely a zombie. Pay attention to his movements."

The zombie leaned lazily against an operating table, a pose that should’ve been effortlessly cool. But due to the stiffness of a zombie’s joints, his movements appeared rigid and mechanical, like a marionette.

By now, the group had already run out of the command center and reached the foot of the space elevator. Boarding it would take them to the artificial planet.

Owen suddenly stopped in her tracks, as if frozen in place, her gaze locked unblinkingly on the zombie in the screen.

"Owen, get on the elevator. There’s no time," Ji An urged.

But Owen seemed not to hear him. Her gaze remained locked on the screen, eyes brimming with tears.

"It’s him. It’s really him," Owen whispered, her voice shaking, fat tears streaming down her face.

"Who?" Ji An asked.

"Ruanlan—Du Ruanlan!" Owen suddenly shrieked at the screen, "Du Ruanlan! It’s you! I know it’s you! Turn around! Look at me, Du Ruanlan!"

Her gut-wrenching screams carried through the screen to the other side. The zombie, who had been facing away from them, stiffened abruptly. Even though a zombie’s body was naturally rigid, the shift was obvious.

"Boss, I get it—you miss Du Ruanlan. But even if Du Ruanlan, with his extraordinary talent, really became a zombie... zombies don’t remember their past lives. He wouldn’t understand human speech," Jiang Fuzhong said painfully. "I miss him too, but I know he can’t come back."

Owen shook her head and shoved Jiang Fuzhong away. "Bullshit! Ruanlan was special—he was one of a kind! I could never mistake him for anyone else. That zombie has to be Du Ruanlan!"

Ji An and Gu Jinsheng hadn’t spent much time with Du Ruanlan, so they couldn’t recognize him just from a glimpse of his back.

Owen continued shouting at the screen, "Du Ruanlan! Turn around! Quit acting like you don’t understand! Those messages were from you, weren’t they? Don’t deny it—no one else knew our code phrases!"

The zombie, still facing away, acted as if he truly didn’t understand. He didn’t turn around, only raising an arm to fend off an attacking superpowered human who had broken through the zombie horde.

"Du Ruanlan! Quit playing dumb! Turn around!"

No matter how desperately Owen screamed, the zombie remained unmoved.

Jiang Fuzhong said, "Boss, it can’t be Du Ruanlan. If it were him, he’d never let you suffer like this—he cared too much about you!"

Owen wiped her face roughly, her voice filled with fury. "Fine, Du Ruanlan! Keep pretending! I’m coming for you myself!"

"Boss!"

"Owen, don’t be reckless!" Ji An said.

"This isn’t a rash decision. When the apocalypse came, Du Ruanlan and I made a sacred vow to heaven and earth—to live and die together. Now, I'm just fulfilling that promise."

Owen wiped away her tears, her calm was terrifying. "You all go ahead. Don’t worry about me. Now that I know where he is, that he’s alive, I’d go through hell itself to reach him."

The figure beyond the screen stiffened further. Owen suited up in her mech.

Jiang Fuzhong shouted desperately, "Whoever you are over there, if you can truly understand human speech, please turn around and show yourself. Let my leader see you and move on. Otherwise, she will really fly over to find you."

The zombie clearly understood. Slowly, he turned around, and that face—the one Owen had been aching to see—appeared directly on the screen.

"Leader Du!"

"Du Ruanlan!"

Ji An and the others cried out together.

Tears Owen had barely held back now fell like scattered pearls.

"I knew it was you. I just knew it was you. No one else could’ve known our secrets." Owen choked out between sobs. "If you’re still alive, if you remember me, why didn’t you come find me? Do you know what I’ve been through all this time?"

Du Ruanlan slowly shook his head. He opened his mouth, letting out a guttural, inhuman snarl.

Owen’s expression froze for a moment before her tears came faster.

"How could this be? It’s impossible. No, you’re lying to me!" Owen refused to believe it. Du Ruanlan was standing right there, alive, remembering her—how could he really be one of them?

Du Ruanlan reached out, as though trying to brush away Owen’s tears through the screen, but everyone’s gaze fell on his nails.

They were long, tinged blue-black—a dead giveaway of his condition.

Du Ruanlan tried to force a twisted smile, but Ji An and the others couldn’t be sure. Zombie facial nerves were underdeveloped, incapable of subtle expressions.

From his pocket, Du Ruanlan pulled out a nail clipper. Fumbling, he clipped at his nails.

But the nails seemed to have a will of their own—the moment he cut them, they sprouted back instantly.

Owen shook her head. "Stop. Don’t cut them anymore. Just stop."

Du Ruanlan paused, his deep eyes fixed on Owen, raw with grief.

Owen cried, "It’s okay. Even if you’re a zombie now, it doesn’t matter. We made a vow—no matter what we become, we’ll never abandon each other."

This time, it was Du Ruanlan who shook his head.

"I don’t care. I’m coming to find you. Even if it means turning into one of them too."

Du Ruanlan panicked. He searched around until he spotted a terminal atop a tall machine. In one fluid motion—thanks to a zombie’s enhanced agility—he reached it.

His nails tapped rapidly on the terminal, and soon, a message appeared on Owen’s device:

"Don’t come. Promise me you’ll leave."

"No! How can I leave when I know you’re still here?"

"Leave." Du Ruanlan kept sending the same word, over and over, each repetition hammering it home.

Just then, a scream rang out behind him. Du Ruanlan turned—it was Charles.

Charles was coughing up blood, his arm torn open by a zombie, blackish blood pouring from the gash.

Charles showed no sign of nervousness, his eyes brimming with even greater madness.

He dialed a phone call and commanded, "Fire the missiles—all of you, target Jing City Base now!"

Du Ruanlan quickly sent another message to Owen: "Get out, now!"

Owen didn’t want to go, but Du Ruanlan’s pleading gaze was unbearable. Closing his eyes, Owen whispered, "I’m sorry… I lied. I can’t stay with you for the rest of my life."

Tears poured down his face, Owen stepped onto the space elevator. Ji An, Gu Jinsheng, and the others followed closely as the platform slowly ascended.

When they reached the orbital colony, Du Ruanlan’s face suddenly vanished from view. The orbital colony had no network connection to the outside world for the time being.

"Let’s board," Ji An said softly.

Owen took one last look at Earth before boarding the orbital colony.

Wan Xueying helped them aboard before asking, "Captain, what’s happening on Earth?"

"The Y Base joined forces with Charles and has already launched missiles at the Jing City Base."

"Owen, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?"

Owen choked on sobs, unable to speak.

Ji An explained, "The person secretly aiding us and sending messages to Owen… was Du Ruanlan."

Wan Xueying frowned. "Where is he? Why didn’t he come with us?"

"He’s a zombie now. Though we don’t know how he retained his human memories, he’s definitely a zombie now."

Wan Xueying froze in shock.

Jiang Fuzhong comforted Owen, "Captain, don’t grieve. From what I saw, even as a zombie, Du Ruanlan is like a Psychic Zombie King—living like royalty. He looked quite majestic, and his zombie underlings obeyed him without question."

"Psychic ability," Ji An murmured.

Du Ruanlan’s awakened zombie ability must be Psychic in nature. Only a Psychic Zombie King could command a zombie horde with such effortless control.

Ji An and Gu Jinsheng exchanged glances, both recalling how they had once given Du Ruanlan water from the Spirit Spring before Gu Jinsheng turned into a zombie. The Spirit Spring had the effect of awakening Psychic abilities—both Little Stone and Little Rose had awakened Psychic abilities after drinking it.

It made sense for Gu Jinsheng to become a Psychic zombie, but why he retained his memories remained a mystery.

Suddenly, the orbital colony shuddered violently, as if struck by an earthquake.

"What’s happening?" Wan Xueying asked.

Ji An checked the satellite monitoring system and realized the orbital colony was slowly ascending.

"Disaster—Base Y took out the space elevator! Without its support, the orbital colony is succumbing to gravity’s pull!"

Kong Zhongcheng’s voice shook. "What does that mean?"

"No idea," Ji An admitted, shaking his head.

The orbital colony continued adrift in space under the influence of gravity. After an immeasurable time, just as its inhabitants had grown accustomed to their wandering life, the planet finally locked into orbit.

By then, it was roughly 400,000 kilometers away from Earth.

Humanity carved out a new home on this orbital colony, ushering in the dawn of a new age.

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