ATDIWR Chapter 92

Chapter 92: Village Without Zombies – The Zombies Came From Underground!

“Since Thunder Dragon refuses, we won’t force it. We’ll use our abilities.” Ever since Thunder Dragon could clearly express its thoughts, Ji An couldn’t just treat it as an ability anymore. He felt it was important to respect the will of each dragon.

Thunder Dragon turned its big head and rubbed against Ji An’s face. “An An, you’re so kind. I like you so much, what should I do?”

Ji An’s face turned red. For some reason, when Thunder Dragon said this, it made Ji An’s face flush and heart race, as if the words weren’t coming from a Thunder Dragon manifested from an ability, but were spoken by Gu Jinsheng.

Thunder Dragon flew incredibly fast. It was like lightning, and it picked up all hundred-odd power users in just a few minutes. However, these power users didn’t receive the same treatment as Ji An. They were entangled by the ability and hung swaying in the air one by one, like they were bungee jumping.

Yet, Thunder Dragon kept forgetting that so many power users were hanging onto it. Once it started flying, it was as fast as a roller coaster. Bi Xue couldn’t help but shout, “Lord Thunder Dragon, please slow down! If you keep going this fast, I’m going to puke!”

The people hanging below Bi Xue immediately let out screams, “No, Bi Xue, you have to hold it in! Don’t puke, not even if you die!”

Thunder Dragon wagged its tail and rolled its eyes. It didn’t misunderstand; it understood perfectly. Precisely because it understood, Thunder Dragon deliberately sped up, flying high one moment and low the next, suddenly going up, then down. It wasn’t long before Bi Xue was made to puke.

You could imagine the scene. Many people who were holding back couldn’t stand it anymore and started puking profusely as well.

At this moment, Thunder Dragon was like a mischievous child who had successfully pulled a prank, letting out arrogant, triumphant laughter in the sky.

Ji An was really helpless, and Gu Jinsheng’s entire face was dark. It was clear that if Thunder Dragon weren’t the manifestation of his ability—meaning hitting it would hurt himself—Gu Jinsheng would probably have already caught the dragon and given it a good beating.

Fortunately, everyone was gathered. Thunder Dragon’s dive was very fast, delivering the people to the ground in two or three minutes. At this point, all these power users were filthy and couldn’t be looked at.

Kong Zhongcheng got up from the ground and said to the power users in the team, “Which of us are Water-type power users? Big brothers and sisters, please release some water so our brothers can take a shower. We can discuss supplies later.”

“Yeah, yeah!” He Tao quickly agreed.

Fortunately, there were a few Water-type power users in the team. Each person released some water, which was enough for everyone to wash up.

Ji An didn’t use the Water-type power users’ water. He had his own Spirit Spring water and showered with Gu Jinsheng using it. After washing, Ji An mixed the Spirit Spring water with the Water-type power users’ water and gave it to everyone to drink, as a small compensation for Thunder Dragon’s mischief.

He Tao looked at Gu Jinsheng with a mournful expression, “Boss, do you have something against us? Why did you let Thunder Dragon treat us like that?”

He Tao noticed that the power users from the command center, including Kong Zhongcheng, called Gu Jinsheng “Boss,” so he automatically started calling him that too.

Kong Zhongcheng walked over, wiping his wet hair, and explained, “The boss didn’t do it on purpose. He used to be a dual-ability user, and after one was disabled, he might have some aftereffects. His control over Thunder Dragon isn’t very good. Before, the boss even argued with Thunder Dragon. But thankfully, since Thunder Dragon is the manifestation of the boss’s ability, its strength is still very powerful.”

He Tao understood that Gu Jinsheng didn’t do it on purpose after hearing Kong Zhongcheng’s explanation, but he was still very resentful.

Kong Zhongcheng said, “Boss, is there still no signal here?”

Gu Jinsheng looked at a nearby abandoned signal tower and said, “No.”

“I wonder if Wan Xueying’s side received the distress signal we sent out and if they’ve dispatched fighter jets?” Kong Zhongcheng asked.

Gu Jinsheng said, “Before we jumped, I had the pilot send our location and a safety confirmation.”

“That’s good. But Boss, how are we going to proceed? If we drive, once Country R’s stealth fighter jets catch up, we’ll be very obvious targets.”

Gu Jinsheng looked around. There was nowhere to hide nearby. “Staying put won’t provide any cover either.”

Kong Zhongcheng looked around and confirmed this was true. The problem they faced now was that whether they moved or stayed put, they would be discovered once Country R’s stealth fighter jets caught up.

Gu Jinsheng said, “Let’s drive first. Maybe there will be a suitable place to hide ahead. We can stop there to rest and wait for Wan Xueying and their support.”

Kong Zhongcheng nodded. “There’s no signal here. We don’t know if Wan Xueying will find us first or if Country R’s stealth fighter jets will find us first. I hope Wan Xueying and the others arrive first.”

The power users led by Gu Jinsheng were high-level power users from the command center. Many of them had cars and spatial abilities. Releasing the cars now, the hundred-odd people could manage to squeeze in by spreading out.

Driving all the way to Luoshi Base from here was unrealistic. Although their direction of travel was towards Luoshi Base, they didn’t actually intend to drive there.

They just didn’t want to stay put and wait to be discovered by Country R’s stealth fighter jets. They also wanted to see if there was a suitable place to hide ahead.

Around dusk, they indeed arrived at an abandoned small village.

The small village wasn’t large and looked very desolate. It was evident that it had been abandoned not long after the Apocalypse.

“Boss, there’s a village here. Should we stop and rest?”

Gu Jinsheng looked at the sky. The sun was already setting, and the moon was starting to rise.

“This is the time when zombies are active, but we haven’t seen any zombies all the way here. Maybe there are no zombies here,” He Tao looked around.

The village certainly didn’t look like a village with zombie activity, but Ji An felt something wasn’t right. However, he couldn’t rule out that this was a lingering post-traumatic stress effect from their narrow escape.

“Everyone, don’t spread out too much. Check if there are any recent zombie activity traces nearby, and see if there are any tunnels here, if the tunnels are safe, and if they are suitable for hiding from bombing. If everything is suitable, we’ll rest here for now,” Gu Jinsheng said.

Ji An cautioned worriedly, “Be careful while checking, everyone. There are Mental-type Zombie Kings appearing now. Don’t underestimate the intelligence of Mental-type Zombie Kings. I suspect they are also evolving. When you’re checking, don’t treat them like ordinary zombies. You can treat them as intelligent humans like us.”

Everyone nodded and dispersed.

Ji An and Gu Jinsheng automatically formed a team and searched the village.

The small village wasn’t large, with only about a hundred households before the Apocalypse. Ji An and Gu Jinsheng went into many houses but found no traces of zombie activity. The place looked completely like an abandoned village.

Because the village was small and they had a lot of people, the power users returned within minutes.

“Boss, we didn’t find any suspicious traces,” Kong Zhongcheng said.

“I didn’t find any zombie tracks either. Our brothers even made a lot of noise while searching, but no zombies came out. I guess this is just an abandoned village,” He Tao reported.

“We didn’t see any zombies either. There are a few houses in the village that are collapsed from explosions; people can’t go in. It feels like they were destroyed during combat between power users and zombies before the Apocalypse,” Bi Xue said.

Gu Jinsheng nodded. “Let’s not go into the center of the village, in case we are surrounded by unexpected events and can’t escape easily. We’ll rest on the periphery.”

“Okay,” everyone responded.

Ji An looked at the sky and said, “This place isn’t far from where we crashed. Country R’s stealth fighter jets will also arrive quickly. When they see this area is suitable for resting and hiding, they might even drop a few missiles to bomb it just to be safe, even if they’d rather kill the wrong ones than let one get away. Let’s dig a bomb shelter first, dig it deep. When we hear the sound of planes, we’ll immediately hide in the shelter. If they don’t see anyone, they might think we’re not here and leave.

By the time Country R’s stealth fighter jets realize and turn back, Wan Xueying and the others should have arrived.”

They had over a hundred power users, twenty or thirty of whom were Earth-type power users. Digging a bomb shelter was quick; they finished it in about ten minutes.

After digging the bomb shelter, everyone didn’t hide in it immediately but stayed in the houses above it. This allowed for better vigilance, and they could still get into the bomb shelter in time after hearing the sound of planes.

He Tao said, “Boss, there really might not be any zombies here. We made such a big commotion just now, and not a single zombie came out.”

Ji An said, “If there’s a Mental-type Zombie King, anything is possible.”

Gu Jinsheng said, “I wonder what level of evolution the Mental-type Zombie King has reached now?”

“To be able to infiltrate Luoshi Base, I’m afraid their intelligence is not to be underestimated.”

Gu Jinsheng said to the surrounding power users, “Let’s divide into three shifts for guard duty. The other power users should rest. Even if you can’t sleep, close your eyes and rest your minds.

We don’t know the situation at Luoshi Base yet. Once we get there, I’m afraid there won’t be any chance to rest.”

“Okay.”

As the overall commander, Gu Jinsheng was responsible for the first shift. Gu Jinsheng told Ji An to rest, but Ji An shook his head, “I’ll keep watch with you. I’m a Mental-type power user, so I should be more sensitive to Mental-type Zombie Kings. I always feel uneasy inside.”

Gu Jinsheng didn’t refuse further, and the two stood by the window, chatting intermittently.

Suddenly, Ji An put his finger to his lips and shushed. He stood up and walked outside. The entire village was silent, with nothing unusual.

Bi Xue followed him out and looked left and right. She saw nothing and said, “Senior Ji, did you hear wrong?”

Ji An shook his head, closed his eyes, and released his mental power.

Ji An’s mental power seemed to have grown stronger after the last time he mentally invaded Bi Xue and manipulated her to use spatial transfer, easily covering the entire village.

Ji An’s mental power spread like a tide, seeping into each household through windows and doors.

Dilapidated houses, simple tables and chairs, furniture in disrepair, rooms that seemed to smell of mold were clearly reflected in Ji An’s mind.

Without exception, these houses were empty, with not a single zombie moving inside.

A few minutes later, Ji An opened his eyes.

Gu Jinsheng asked, “How is it?”

“No zombies, nothing at all, very quiet,” Ji An replied, but his eyes didn’t relax; instead, they showed greater worry.

Bi Xue said, “Senior Ji, maybe you should rest. Could it be that you consumed too much mental power today, which is why you’re feeling overly sensitive and jumpy?”

Mentally invading another power user’s brain and controlling their ability to fight or transfer consumes a lot of mental power for the Mental-type power user themselves.

Only because the person doing this was Ji An could he act completely normal after doing so. If it were another Mental-type power user, they might have completely disabled their ability, or more likely, they wouldn’t have been able to do those things at all.

“No,” Ji An shook his head. “My intuition shouldn’t be wrong.”

Ji An released his mental power again. This time, he searched even more carefully than before, but there were only empty houses.

“Did you find anything?” Gu Jinsheng asked as Ji An withdrew his mental power and opened his eyes.

“No,” Ji An replied.

Gu Jinsheng said, “Why don’t you go rest for a bit and recuperate your energy? I’ll watch here.”

Ji An nodded. “Okay, maybe I was overly sensitive because I overused my mental ability just now. I’ll close my eyes and rest for a while.”

Ji An had released his mental power twice without any findings, and he couldn’t help but start to doubt if he was being overly sensitive. Ji An found an empty space, took out his air mattress, and lay down, but for some reason, the longer he lay there, the more anxious he felt.

This feeling made Ji An very unsettled. He couldn’t sleep, so he sat up and couldn’t help but wonder if there was something he had missed during his search.

Suddenly, Ji An’s heart leaped violently. He rushed out of the house.

“What’s wrong?” Gu Jinsheng asked.

Ji An looked at Gu Jinsheng and said, “Underground.”

Gu Jinsheng’s eyes changed color. He instantly sent a deep surge of his ability into the ground. The ability dug three feet deep, flipping up the topsoil. Crushed rocks splattered, and after digging over a meter, something seemed to move underground. Then it broke through the earth, and a high-level zombie actually flew out from underground.

Ji An and Gu Jinsheng simultaneously launched their abilities. The high-level zombie created an ability barrier around itself and counterattacked.

At this moment, more zombies burst out from under the ground with thudding sounds, surrounding the house where Gu Jinsheng and the others were.

“Go wake up all the power users! Don’t stay in the houses, fight outside!” Gu Jinsheng ordered Bi Xue, while he joined Ji An in the battle.

Bi Xue turned around and ran into the house, shouting, “Don’t sleep! The zombies are here!”

Kong Zhongcheng had actually heard the commotion earlier and was just about to go out to check the situation when Bi Xue ran back.

“What’s going on? Our people checked before, and there were clearly no zombies?” Kong Zhongcheng couldn’t help but ask.

Bi Xue said fearfully, “The zombies… they came from underground!”