After the shock, Ling Mo felt an overwhelming ecstasy!
Since his eyes could return to normal, it implied that his guess could indeed become reality! Perhaps with the evolution of the virus, Ye Lian might gradually regain her sanity...
However, after her eyes returned to normal, the virus's evolution rate inside Ye Lian evidently slowed down considerably. Three days had passed, and after hunting hundreds of zombies, Ye Lian's strength only increased slightly, but the mental changes Ling Mo was hoping for hadn't appeared at all.
What was worth joy, on the other hand, was Ling Mo's own transformations. As his spiritual power grew stronger, Ling Mo tried to control other zombies while semi-controlling Ye Lian, and after several failures, he actually succeeded. The more he practiced, the more skilled he became at Puppet Control Ability.
Not only that, his own combat power was also getting stronger. Though his movements were not as rapid as Ye Lian's, in situations that required intellect, he could adapt more flexibly than Ye Lian. Now he felt confident that he could keep himself safe even if Ye Lian broke free from his control.
But at this moment, Ling Mo discovered a very annoying issue. He had run out of food reserves...
Previously relying entirely on controlling Corpse Puppets for fighting and food retrieval, Ling Mo's own consumption had not been great. However, as he became more involved in battles, his physical exertion significantly increased, and so did his food intake.
Originally this area was a suburb. When the apocalypse erupted, much of the food had been looted clean and what was left was very limited. After numerous searches by other survivors, there was very little food left in this area now.
After finding nothing in two small supermarkets, Ling Mo finally decided to head to the city center with Ye Lian.
Compared to the suburban areas, resources at the city center were much more plentiful. But due to a huge population base, the number of zombies there was daunting...
If not for Ye Lian, Ling Mo would have chosen to retreat to the countryside or mountains. But such a move would probably starve Ye Lian to death.
A city crowded with zombies was the perfect place for both Ye Lian and Ling Mo themselves to evolve continuously.
However, heading to the city center still required ample preparation. Suitable transportation, portable food, and weapons...
Ling Mo had prepared food and transport—a bicycle—but finding weapons was a headache.
Ordinary household knives became nicked or blunt quickly, which were quite inconvenient to use; a suitable knife was clearly very necessary.
"Right, doesn't Wang Lin's family make handcrafted knives?"
Wang Lin was a young girl who lived in the same building as Ling Mo, with a pretty face. Occasionally when they met, Ling Mo couldn't help but take a few more glances at her. However, he hadn't seen her since the apocalypse erupted. Suddenly remembering her now, his heart also felt somewhat heavy. For such a frail girl, even if she didn't mutate and was lucky enough to survive, her life must be very tough...
Early in the morning, Ling Mo packed up his luggage, took Ye Lian, and headed for Wang Lin's family's knife store.
Even though Ling Mo deliberately picked safer routes, he still had to kill over a dozen zombies along the way before finally reaching the now completely desolate store.
The blood splattered all over the glass windows, the shattered glass door, and the dark interior of the store were somewhat frightening to behold. However, in the apocalypse, this was the most common scene.
Under such circumstances, it was natural to let Ye Lian enter first; she might attack zombies, but the zombies wouldn't attack her.
However, there weren't any zombies inside the store, and both Ye Lian and Ling Mo entered without any trouble.
There were many knives inside the shop, but they were all for collection purposes and unsharpened. However, Ling Mo had previously bought here on behalf of a friend and knew that the shop actually had sharpened knives, just not displayed openly for sale.
"I remember the workshop should be behind here…"
Ling Mo went behind the counter to a security door. After grabbing the doorknob and twisting it, he found something was off.
Normally, such doors could be opened just by pulling, but when Ling Mo tried turning it, he discovered it was locked.
Could it be that the people here had escaped into the workshop when the outbreak occurred? If so, there might be living people inside! Perhaps Wang Lin was still alive, right inside here!
Thinking this, Ling Mo suddenly got excited. He gently knocked on the door, then whispered, "Is anyone there?"
"Bang!"
After a brief silence, a muffled sound suddenly came from inside, as if something had been knocked over.
"There really is someone in there!"
Momentarily stunned, Ling Mo knocked on the door again, but only a clanging noise came from inside, without any sign of the door opening.
Could it be that they are too weak from hunger? However, hearing the noise inside, Ling Mo had a bad premonition. Nonetheless, in order to obtain the knives inside, it was necessary to open the door.
With Ling Mo's strength alone, it was not enough to kick open the security door, but with Ye Lian's help, it was not difficult.
Following a loud "bang," the door was directly knocked open a crack, and before Ling Mo could fully open it, a hand stretched out from inside.
At first glance, the hand seemed normal, but the faintly red nails and the "creak" sound when they scratched the iron sheet of the security door were exactly like Ye Lian's!
Could it be that there was a Mutated Zombie inside as well?!
Although he had suspected it, seeing a Mutated Zombie other than Ye Lian still greatly surprised Ling Mo.
And judging by the size of the hand, it probably belonged to a man; this did not bode well for Wang Lin…
Thinking that the owner of the hand might have torn Wang Lin into pieces and stuffed him into his stomach, rage surged within Ling Mo. He swung the sharp knife in his hand and with a "clang," directly chopped down, severing half a palm and sending blood splattering everywhere as the security door was completely kicked open.
What appeared behind the door was an extremely bloody scene.
In the not so large studio, bloodstains and fragments of clothing, along with scattered human bones, covered almost every surface including the walls and the floor. There were also two complete corpses, both face down, revealing their hollowed-out skulls.
The only living person was a young man who had been knocked down by the door. As soon as he hit the ground, he jumped up like lightning, transforming into a dark shadow and pounced straight at Ling Mo.
This was the first time Ling Mo had directly faced an attack from a Mutated Zombie; the speed of the attack hardly allowed any time for reaction. Had it been the Ling Mo from before, he might have been knocked down in that instant and met a grisly end. However, having enhanced himself, Ling Mo was unusually calm at this moment.
Although the Mutated Zombie was extremely fast, Ling Mo's reaction was not slow. Almost at the instant the Mutated Zombie made its move, Ling Mo reacted.
He stepped half a step backward and leaned slightly to the side, swinging the arm holding the sharp knife towards the direction of the Mutated Zombie.
"Thud!"
A large splash of fresh blood exploded in the instant they crossed paths, and in this process, Ling Mo completed a ninety-degree turn, slashing the Mutant Zombie's abdomen with the sharp knife, vigorously lifting it up and then fiercely chopping downward.
If it had been a regular zombie, it would definitely have been cleanly hit by Ling Mo's seamless attack, but the Mutated Zombie was indeed fast; as soon as Ling Mo turned around, it had already ducked, not only avoiding Ling Mo's downward chop but also charging directly towards him, reaching for his chest.
If caught by the powerful fingers of this Mutated Zombie, it would be more than just a superficial wound, and from this angle, Ye Lian couldn't step in to assist.
"Seeking death!"
At the critical moment of life and death, the intense fierceness inside Ling Mo was also evoked. He not only did not dodge but rotated his wrist and slashed down again. At the same time, he forcefully raised his knee, striking the lower jaw of the Mutated Zombie, causing its movements to stagnate momentarily.
Even a mere fraction of a second's vulnerability in a fight could lead to fatal consequences, and in that brief moment, Ling Mo's sharp knife had already forcefully pierced into the back of the Mutated Zombie's neck.
"Crack!"
A light sound was heard, and the actions of the Mutated Zombie suddenly paused, while Ling Mo, gritting his teeth, forcefully twisted the knife.
"Snap!"
With a crisp sound, the blade of the sharp knife was directly broken, and the part left inside the body of the Mutated Zombie decisively ended its life.
Holding the half of the broken knife, Ling Mo finally felt as if all the strength in his body had been drained, and he couldn't help but gasp for breath heavily.