Chapter 175.2 – Key (18)

◎ Kill or Relocate? ◎

However, Duanmu Qi knew that the actual vote count didn’t matter. The real decision-maker was Song Ke because their team didn’t have the ability to kill the Zombie King.

“Yes,” Song Ke nodded solemnly, “I’ve decided to abandon the commission. When it gets light, we’ll leave.”

This A-level commission was completely different from what she had originally expected. They could kill the Zombie King, but the one they just encountered was clearly the leader of the Fallen from Huangyuan, likely without crystal in its brain, not really considered a zombie. Moreover, they were let go.

“Understood,” Duanmu Qi sighed, “I didn’t have much hope to begin with. So, let’s… give up.”

“Aqi…” Xiao Chen looked at him with concern.

Duanmu Qi held Xiao Chen’s shoulder, his gaze firm, “Believe me, we’ll think of another way. We’ll definitely earn enough points.”

The atmosphere fell silent. Suddenly, Song Ke spoke, “I have a question. Why is the mission description about the Zombie King?”

She pulled out the commission description, which clearly stated: “A suspected appearance of a Zombie King in Huangyuan.”

“Can the system make a mistake?” she asked.

“No,” Lu Xiaoyu said confidently.

The commission system was jointly managed by the artificial intelligence group in District B. Humans might make mistakes, and a single computer might have a chance of error, but dozens or hundreds of super AIs working together would not make such a basic mistake.

“Um, could there be another Zombie King in the Huangyuan?” Fan Peng asked whimsically.

“Not very likely,” Duanmu Qi shook his head slowly. “From the layout of the valley, these zombies live in tribal form, keeping to themselves. If there really is another zombie king, there would be a deadly battle between them until one survives.”

Duanmu Qi paused at this point. “Actually, I’ve been wanting to ask since earlier… what do you mean by ‘Fallen’ that you mentioned?”

Song Ke was startled and suddenly remembered that the Alliance had not publicly acknowledged the existence of the Fallen. Their information came from Zhuang Qingyan, an extraordinary bug. So, the platform’s definition of a “suspected zombie king” seemed somewhat understandable.

The articulate Lin Youyou explained the difference between the Fallen and zombies to Duanmu Qi and the others.

Song Ke listened quietly, still feeling strange inside. Why not use “special zombie” or “mutant zombie”? Why insist on calling it a “zombie king”? This artificially raised the threshold and excluded many qualified teams, didn’t it?

The awakeners in District B all found the mission a thankless task, but V587, strong and experienced, was willing to take on this challenging task. She was just about to ask her companions when she turned her head and saw Lu Xiaoyu focused on the screen.

“What are you looking at?” Song Ke leaned over to Lu Xiaoyu.

“When Xu Xing was negotiating, I installed a few mobile cameras,” Lu Xiaoyu replied.

On the screen, several zombies huddled together, trembling incessantly. Their skin was as thin as paper, and their grotesque internal organs were exposed. Even without sound, one could hear the painful wails. In just a few minutes, as if a balloon had been popped, the bodies of these zombies turned into a pool of pus and blood before everyone’s eyes.

The Fallen leader called “Ada,” along with other zombies, sat together, silently watching the death of their kind.

“How could this happen?” Lin Youyou exclaimed.

“Probably because the radiation in Huangyuan is too high,” Fang Zhixu, with a medical background, pointed to his isolation mask. “Even though the Fallen can endure stronger radiation than humans, there’s a limit. If it exceeds that limit and the exposure time is too long, it will inevitably cause catastrophic damage to their bodies.”

“Why don’t they leave then?” Fan Peng asked in confusion.

Qiong Mingcheng muttered to himself, “It’s not that easy. Leaving would only make it worse, right? At least here in Huangyuan, no one usually comes in, but outside, the attitude towards zombies… is merciless.”

Indeed, for the Fallen, the most suitable living environment was in remote areas away from human activity. Even though the radiation in Huangyuan was intense, outside was the territory of humans, with no place for them to belong. So, they chose to stay here quietly, waiting for death.

Song Ke looked through the screen at the leader, its slender arms embracing a few small peers, a fleeting expression of sadness on its profile.

…

When the sky was faintly bright, Qiong Mingcheng’s exclamation shattered the tranquility.

“Aqi, Captain Song, quickly look, the commission has been updated!”

Song Ke, inside the tent, sat up and quickly opened the terminal to confirm. Indeed, the content of that A-level commission had changed.

“A-level Commission: Please kill or relocate the special zombies in Huangyuan (District E172). Remaining total: 13,299.”

Depending on different choices, different branches appeared below. Song Ke clicked on the relocation option: “Alternative location: Fenak (District C26).”

She thought for a moment, not fully understanding the intricacies, and decisively lifted the tent flap, “Did you all receive the message?”

Members of V587 nodded, having encountered commission changes before, such as the side mission in the Elderly People’s Nation or the city defense mission when the Northern Base upgraded from B to A. So, they were not too surprised.

Only Lu Xiaoyu seemed thoughtful, “Isn’t it a coincidence? Captain just decided to leave, and the commission changes?”

“Not a coincidence, it was me,” Duanmu Qi admitted candidly. “I organized the information last night, uploaded it to the system, hoping to see if there’s any turning point.”

The platform could issue private commissions, and it could also collect information provided by the commission recipients, automatically making analysis and adjustments.

Lu Xiaoyu glanced at Duanmu Qi, noncommittal, still frowning and staring at the platform page, tapping his fingertips incessantly.

“Now that the commission has changed, will you still do it?” Duanmu Qi took a deep breath, looking hopefully at Song Ke.

The change from killing to relocating offered two different completion methods. The latter seemed simpler, but Fenak’s location was near the eastern coast. Leading tens of thousands of Fallen, resembling zombies, through almost half of the Alliance territory—wasn’t that too exaggerated?

Song Ke hesitated.

…

“That’s how it is,” Song Ke’s explanation came through the terminal, short of breath.

Zhuang Qingyan slightly lowered his eyes, silent.

“You’re not speaking, do you object?” Song Ke asked cautiously.

“No,” Zhuang Qingyan paused, “I’m thinking… about Fenak.”

Why was Fenak specifically chosen as the alternative location? Compared to its original name, it had another prominent title in the Alliance.

Lozan (District B25) and Fenak (District C26) were collectively known as the Loak Region. It was once prosperous, but fifteen years ago, a severe nuclear explosion occurred, forcing the area to be abandoned due to persistent radiation. It became an ignored ghost district.

Transferring the Fallen from Huangyuan to Fenak seemed reasonable. The radiation in Fenak had diluted over fifteen years, still unsuitable for human habitation but within the Fallen’s tolerance range. Compared to Huangyuan, it was practically paradise.

But for Zhuang Qingyan, Fenak held special significance. It was where the Fire Seed Project’s laboratory was located, where Ming Zhi escaped with LAK0017, and more importantly… it should be a secret forever buried.

Zhuang Qingyan regained his composure and sighed helplessly, “Song Ke, how do you plan to move tens of thousands of zombies? Will you use a starship with V587’s name printed on it to lead the way and then use a loudspeaker to announce, ‘Zombies passing through, bystanders please disperse’? Little ancestor, do you want to make a spectacle throughout the entire Alliance?”

Song Ke completely missed the sarcasm in his words and sincerely agreed, “Great idea!”

With V587 leading the way, wouldn’t that avoid conflicts? Zhuang Qingyan was truly impressive—he quickly resolved the issue that had been bothering her!

Zhuang Qingyan choked for a moment, “…”

He was defeated by Song Ke’s thought process. He loosened his collar with one hand to catch his breath, “Have you asked them? Are they willing to go with you?”

What Song Ke wanted to do couldn’t be described as anything less than mind-blowing. If someone with a weaker ability, like an owl or something, tried it, they wouldn’t be able to handle it.

“Not yet. I’ll negotiate with them later,” Song Ke replied.

“…Forget it. Regardless of whether the negotiations succeed or not, wait for me in the same spot.”

“You’re coming?!” Song Ke’s eyes sparkled.

“Yeah,” Zhuang Qingyan smiled, “If I don’t, you might pierce through the sky.”

“Where did you get that idea?! I’m consulting everyone’s opinions, it’s very fair, okay… Anyway, I can handle it with my ability.”

“Yes, yes, you can handle it with your ability. It’s my fault for being useless. I missed you,” Zhuang Qingyan interrupted her, the depth of his peach blossom eyes curved with longing.

“Song Ke, I missed you. I’m coming to find you.”

The chirping sparrows suddenly fell silent. After a while, Song Ke stammered, looking around and changing the subject, “Oh, um, I’ll go negotiate with Ada.”

Click. The terminal was hung up.

Song Ke stood still for two seconds, slowly raised her hands, and covered her cheeks.

So hot.