The sudden tremor in the dead of night startled Ling Mo fully awake.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Ye Lian who had been sitting in the corner.
Ye Lian, who had cleaned herself and changed into clean clothes, looked just like before... The only difference were those eyes flickering with a sinister red light...
The abnormal sensation that Ling Mo had just felt was coming from Ye Lian's instinctual craving. If Ye Lian could speak, her first words would probably be: "I'm hungry."
Moreover, the food she required was a special kind of gel found in zombie brains.
From Ye Lian's behavior, that special gel appeared to enhance the virus within her body, causing further mutations, and the effects were significant. Since she had a craving, he naturally had to fulfill it.
The situation was indeed complex. Ordinary survivors would avoid zombies at all costs, yet he was actively seeking them out. What's more critical was that a Mutated Zombie was following him.
After packing some food, Ling Mo took a brand-new sharp knife from his backpack. His boning knife was somewhat worn and would impact the fight negatively, so naturally, he couldn't use it anymore.
He tried feeding a stick of sausage to Ye Lian, but she showed no interest in it. It seemed the only food she needed was that gel.
"Let's go, I'll take you out for food." After pulling Ye Lian up, Ling Mo took her downstairs.
The city was now completely lifeless, wanting everything but lacking none in zombies. Nonetheless, the places swarming with zombies posed great danger to Ling Mo, so he could only take Ye Lian to find the "lone" ones.
During the cautious search, Ling Mo also found himself involuntarily pondering a question. For those wandering zombies outside, their only food source were the survivors risking their lives in search for nourishment. And while most survivors could manage to stay alive with enough caution, even if they couldn't gather much food.
Would these zombies start to cannibalize each other when food wasn't available, just like Ye Lian? Maybe in some places, there were already Mutated Zombies like Ye Lian who had emerged.
This was truly adding insult to injury for the survivors...
With the strengthened Spiritual Connection, Ling Mo found controlling Ye Lian much easier than the day before. Moreover, after a night of experimentation, he had mastered the knack of controlling her.
Unlike an ordinary zombie, Ye Lian, besides her instincts, had a strong desire to attack and could convey her needs to Ling Mo. Combined with her considerable strength, complete control would only hinder her ability and provoke her resistance. Therefore, Ling Mo was merely maintaining the Spiritual Connection with Ye Lian at the moment, ensuring she wouldn't attack him without restricting her freedom of movement.
Because of their Spiritual Connection, even though Ye Lian could act independently, she still didn't stray from Ling Mo's sight and kept close to him.
Fortunately, they were in the suburbs where the population was inherently sparse, and Ling Mo quickly found a few zombies wandering at a crossroads.
Upon seeing these zombies, Ye Lian couldn't wait to pounce on them, her movements swift and her attacks fierce. After a moment's pause, Ling Mo also rushed in with the sharp knife in hand.
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Just one minute later, these zombies were taken care of, and Ye Lian, who had devoured the Gel, had eyes that became even more expressive.
Meanwhile, Ling Mo also felt his spiritual power grow stronger and his strength enhanced. Although the changes were not obvious, it was a satisfying progress for Ling Mo.
While Ye Lian was fighting, the sense of rage he felt grew more and more vivid.
After hunting with Ye Lian in the vicinity for the entire morning, slaughtering dozens of zombies, her appetite was finally satisfied.
However, to Ling Mo's surprise, after consuming the brain Gels of several dozen zombies, Ye Lian seemed very exhausted, and her mood became extremely unstable. If not for the Spiritual Connection between her and Ling Mo becoming increasingly tight during the process, she might have broken free from his control.
Seeing the situation turning dire, Ling Mo quickly found an apartment building and took Ye Lian to an uninhabited room.
By then, Ye Lian was irritably clenching her fists, but her body seemed to lack the strength to exert force; she completely collapsed. Ling Mo held her in his arms and put her on the bed, only then noticing that her body seemed about to ignite, frighteningly hot to the touch.
Could it be that consuming too much at once had made the virus unstable?
While Ling Mo was worried, a surge of rage swept through him, and the world in front of his eyes seemed to be veiled in a layer of blood.
Clearly, the changes in Ye Lian's body's virus also affected him through their Spiritual Connection.
So painful... At this moment, if he broke off the Spiritual Connection, he could relieve himself from the rage, but the uncontrollable Ye Lian might turn violent and harm others. Ling Mo could only grit his teeth and endure.
His body felt hotter and hotter, drenched in cold sweat, as if about to explode. Especially in his head, a throbbing pressure felt as if something was about to burst out. If not for his Willpower being tremendously strengthened over time from controlling Corpse Puppets, he might have already fainted from the agony.
Ye Lian, on the other hand, was gasping for air with her mouth wide open. Her originally pale cheeks flushed with an abnormal rosy hue, and the bloody color in her eyes grew brighter. Under Ling Mo's gaze, she finally closed her eyes without a word and fell onto the bed.
Ling Mo was startled at first, then calmed down. He had no understanding of this special virus, let alone its mutations. Worrying would not help. At least through the Spiritual Sensing between him and Ye Lian, he could feel her vital signs were still normal. It was just that the power brewing inside her was becoming too strong for her to bear, prompting her body to activate a self-protection mechanism, making her faint temporarily.
As he waited for Ye Lian to wake up, Ling Mo continued to endure the torment on his body...
Only after several hours did Ling Mo finally feel the heat spread throughout his body and then calm down. The power that remained in his body seemed to soak into every cell, making him feel rejuvenated. Ling Mo clenched his fists, sensing his strength was much greater than before. As for other changes, they would probably be realized during combat.
At this time, Ye Lian slowly opened her eyes, but what stunned Ling Mo was that after this mutation, Ye Lian's eyes had reverted to the appearance of a normal person's!
To be exact, they had changed from that eerie blood-red color to a clear black, not only deeper but also making her look much colder. However, the dangerous aura was now concealed. If someone unaware of her strength saw her, they would probably think she was just an ordinary survivor girl, never guessing she could be a Mutated Zombie!
The viral mutation occurring in her seemed more like an Evolution of the virus! An Evolution gained through the Devouring of their own kind!
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