“Oops! I Prepped for the Apocalypse and Became a Zombie”

Chapter 21: The Mutant Snake-Man



 

The journey was not smooth.

After leaving the safe zone of the base, they could see scattered zombies wandering by the roadside.

Qin Luo basically drove straight through them. They weren't engaging in clearing these scattered zombies now, as they had more important matters at hand.

Bai Shu reported on the mission they had accepted, "It's a commercial district. There are an estimated 500 survivors in the mall, currently hiding on the fourth floor."

He shared the location with everyone.

Chen Xiaofei added, "The survivors on the outskirts are the real trouble. They're too scattered."

Xu Duoduo, curled up in the back, also looked at the location on her tablet, her little paws tapping and occasionally zooming in to check the map of the area.

The entire commercial district was surrounded by various pedestrian streets, with countless shops in rows.

Just before the apocalypse hit, it had been evening, with many people out for walks and shopping. It could be said that the area was now a massive zombie nest, with an incredibly high concentration of the undead.

Wang Weihu also found it headache-inducing, "Tch, these places are the most troublesome. The zombies are numerous and densely packed, and rescuing people is difficult. We can't use heavy firepower, only guns and small explosives. It'll probably take a long time to clear."

Their last mission in K City had taken them ten days. They had barely managed to clear the zombies around Qingyuan Residential Area and rescue over 90 survivors.

After that mission, each member of their team had received 3,000 points, along with some weapon rewards. The vehicle renovation was also a mission benefit.

They didn't know how long they would have to spend in this commercial district, and the scattered distribution of survivors added to the difficulty of their rescue operation.

The only advantage was that being in a commercial street, there would be no shortage of shops.

With luck, they might be able to salvage some remaining supplies, though it would take time.

Bai Shu said, "These days, everything is in short supply. Even an undamaged piece of clothing is valuable. As equipment breaks down later, there won't be enough clothes for ordinary people."

At least in the early stages of the apocalypse, it was the most awkward and embarrassing time.

That's what the Apocalypse Survival Manual said.

Hearing this, Xu Duoduo glanced at her multi-faceted magic cube space again. The small compartments weren't even close to being full yet.

But at least she had quite a few clothes, so she wouldn't end up without anything to wear.

Qin Luo remained focused on driving. He drove fast and aggressively, directly ramming into many zombies or mutant dogs. Those creatures, with their blood-red eyes and drooling mouths, clearly had no consciousness left.

They only retained the instinct to bite, so ramming into them carried no psychological burden.

Dazed little zombies like Xu Duoduo were easily distinguishable.

Qin Luo wasn't afraid of misjudging.

Bai Shu and the other two were discussing how to rescue people with minimal firepower consumption, as in the apocalypse, every resource had to be carefully calculated to survive.

As they drove, they eventually got onto the highway, as the national roads were too slow.

They had checked the route in advance, and it was currently relatively clear. Occasionally encountering zombies and small mutant animals, they simply rammed through. The vehicle's body was made of some unknown material that didn't retain water; any dirty liquid that splashed onto it would slide off, keeping the body consistently clean.

The modified wheels were huge and could crush anything, making the drive much more enjoyable than before.

The highway route was new, with few previous travelers, so there was no awkward situation of cars blocking the way, eliminating the need to get out and clear the path. However, the weather was deteriorating, getting darker as they drove.

Xu Duoduo glanced at her wristband. They had been driving for several hours, and it was now noon, but the sky looked like evening.

Dark clouds loomed ahead.

Qin Luo checked his wristband and said, "No thunderstorms, probably just heavy rain."

His teammates all indicated understanding.

They still pulled over, each getting out to take care of personal needs.

Using the restroom.

Preparing for the possibility that the upcoming storm might make it inconvenient to stop.

As a little zombie, Xu Duoduo had this advantage: apart from the small amount of blood in her body, she didn't cry, had no physiological needs, and didn't need to drink water or use the bathroom.

She chewed on a green mutation core, enjoying its fragrant grass and fruit flavor.

Delicious.

After Bai Shu and the others got back in the car, Wang Weihu took over the driver's seat this time.

Chen Xiaofei moved to the passenger seat.

Qin Luo came to the middle row, immediately filling it with his imposing presence.

Xu Duoduo silently retreated further back.

Although ability users had much better stamina than normal people, driving required concentrated attention, especially in the current apocalyptic world where anything could appear unexpectedly. It was difficult to maintain high alertness for long periods.

Taking turns driving was the best option.

Chen Xiaofei started complaining about hunger and asked Bai Shu for leftover steamed buns from the night before to munch on.

Xu Duoduo then took out eight large rice balls, filled with tuna sauce and cucumber, wrapped in seaweed. They were really big, each the size of her fist.

One was enough to fill her up for a meal, but the others probably needed two to be satisfied.

So she also brought out canned food from the factory, four meat cans and four fruit cans.

Chen Xiaofei ate a rice ball while holding another to pass to Wang Weihu. He had cans piled on his lap, looking utterly blissful. "It's so good to have Little Squad Leader. Before, we could only eat dry rations, but now we have good food for every meal. Life is so good, I could cry!"

Wang Weihu could finish a rice ball in just a few bites, feeling extremely satisfied.

Bai Shu was chewing while busy browsing the forum, currently their only channel for getting the latest world information. Whichever teammate had free time would check it, as you never knew when the latest knowledge might come in handy.

Qin Luo was eating a rice ball while turning to look at Xu Duoduo. Seeing her little paws holding the tablet, scrolling all morning, only eating a mutation core.

"You can't eat any human food now? Can't swallow or digest it?"

He was quite curious.

Xu Duoduo silently took out her tablet to type, [No taste, waste of food.]

She had tried before. Delicious food in her mouth only had a bland taste, like drinking plain water or chewing on dry paper towels.

Not interesting.

Not being able to enjoy food was one of her pains, and yet someone kept asking about it.

Xu Duoduo turned her body away, ignoring him, and continued scrolling on her tablet. She had just seen that a mutant had actually turned into a snake-man, but instead of his lower body becoming a snake, it was his upper body.

It made her feel sick and uncomfortable.

Most importantly, he had betrayed humanity, not only devouring his own kind but also eating zombies and all sorts of filthy things. Now he had become a huge fat snake with two human legs trailing behind, utterly disgusting.

This was actually a wanted notice. It was said that killing him would earn 100,000 points!

And his escape route was heading right towards C City.

Xu Duoduo: ...

Did it have to be so coincidental?! She really didn't want to encounter such a thing at all!!

Bai Shu had naturally also seen this urgent pinned red post and immediately passed it to Qin Luo to see. "A mutant wants to be his own boss. It's said he attacks anyone he sees and even tortures them. Headquarters is offering a big reward to eliminate him."


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