CHAPTER 5

Tang Yu didn't descend the mountain the same way she came up. Instead, she searched for a new direction, maneuvering through the woods with twists and turns.

Along the way, she checked the contents of Jin Ye's large backpack. Besides the supplies that had been taken by herself, she unexpectedly found some clean clothes and a small pot. It seemed that Jin Ye's group didn't have a fixed residence and constantly roamed around.

Furthermore, the backpack contained some medicine and basic tools like a wrench, all neatly organized and utilizing every inch of space. Tang Yu quickly skimmed through the items but still took some time to rearrange everything.

Tang Yu looked at Jin Ye with admiration. This little follower must have strong wilderness survival skills. It was a pity that she had lost consciousness and turned into a zombie, otherwise, Tang Yu would have held onto her as a valuable companion.

After descending for two hours, the pair arrived at a gorge where a turbulent river rushed through, dividing the mountain into two parts. Tang Yu glanced at the green mountains on the other side. The river was too wide, and the current too strong to cross solely by manpower. She gave up on crossing and sat on a large rock to rest, contemplating the next step.

Honestly, Tang Yu didn't have many thoughts. This game didn't have a designated main quest, and the basic objective displayed on the screen was simply "survive." So far, there hadn't been any new hints, indicating that she needed to trigger something actively.

She checked her score briefly, she was still 10 points away from unlocking a skill. How could she obtain those 10 points? So far, she had encountered human players in groups while she was alone, which posed some risks.

After pondering for a while, Tang Yu suddenly noticed that Jin Ye had been staring at the opposite side of the river without moving for a long time. She walked over to Jin Ye with curiosity, waving her hand in front of her eyes, but Jin Ye remained motionless.

Following Jin Ye's line of sight, Tang Yu finally discovered a beam of light at the halfway point of the opposite mountain, as if it was reflecting off some metal. Tang Yu exclaimed softly, took a few steps forward, changed her angle, and then realized that beneath the cover of trees, there seemed to be a building.

Interesting. Tang Yu's curiosity was piqued. Although Jin Ye had become an NPC, she was still exhibiting unusual behavior. It must be related to this building, and there must be some connection between the two. Tang Yu pondered for a moment, if there were people in the building, she could try to acquire the remaining points. Thus, she quickly made a decision.

Tang Yu followed the upstream of the river, expecting that the river channel would become narrower and more convenient for them to pass through. She took a few steps but didn't hear the familiar sound of footsteps behind her. Curiously, she turned around and saw Jin Ye still standing in the same place, gazing towards the opposite side of the river.

Tang Yu had no choice but to turn back and joked, "What are you doing? Waiting for your husband?" As expected, there was no response. She sighed twice and reluctantly grabbed Jin Ye's wrist, forcibly dragging her along.

Indeed, the upstream river channel became much narrower, and even a bridge made of collapsed tree trunks appeared. There were obvious marks of chopping on the wooden stakes, indicating that humans were active in this area year-round. They had to be cautious in their movements.

After crossing the wooden bridge and reaching the other side, the two quickly made their way up the mountainside. Tang Yu hid in a cluster of bushes, surveying the area ahead. To her surprise, it wasn't just one building here. Five or six identical single-story houses were scattered on the hillside, surrounded by wire mesh and wooden frames. Two muscular men were patrolling the area.

This turned out to be a fairly large survivor camp.

The reflecting light was coming from a metal pole erected in front of one of the houses. It seemed to have been used to hold a flag, but at the moment, it stood bare, serving no purpose.

Tang Yu observed for a while and lost confidence in launching a direct attack. If she were to alert even a single person, it would be the same as alerting the whole camp. She decided to retreat back to the riverbank and rethink her plan.

As she was about to retreat, Tang Yu noticed people passing by from behind. Fortunately, they were concealed in the tall bushes, and the passersby didn't notice them.

It was a thin young man carrying two rabbits. He was humming a tune softly. He appeared to be around eighteen years old and seemed exceptionally relaxed, probably because he was close to the camp and had let his guard down completely.

A glint of excitement flashed in Tang Yu's eyes. This was a perfect opportunity.

By this time, he had passed through the bushes, and Tang Yu quietly shifted her position, hunching her back, swiftly and lightly appearing behind him, drawing her blade, Jing Long. By the time he realized something was wrong, Tang Yu's Jing Long had already pressed against his neck, making a swift, silent cut that severed his throat.

Tang Yu thought for a moment, using her hand to cover the man's neck. She dragged him in front of the bushes and whispered to Jin Ye, "Quick, bite him while he's not dead yet."

Jin Ye: ?

Tang Yu continued to mutter quietly, "As my follower, you have to do your job. Help me bite him." Regardless of whether the other understood or not, she held the boy's arm up in front of Jin Ye.

After spending time together, Tang Yu was certain that Jin Ye was different from other zombies. Tang Yu speculated that it was because she had bitten her. Now she wanted Jin Ye to bite someone else to see if the same transformation would occur.

Although Jin Ye had always behaved differently from other zombies and rarely initiated attacks, she was still a zombie. Faced with the meat presented before her, although she hesitated, she couldn't resist the temptation and took a bite.

A moment later, Tang Yu's wrist emitted a "ding" sound. The boy had been successfully assimilated. However, unlike Jin Ye, when he saw people in the distance, he bared his teeth and made threatening gestures, as blood continued to trickle from his neck, creating a chilling scene.

Startled, Tang Yu covered his mouth and had no choice but to grab him and drag him away from the camp. They were now far enough that the buildings were no longer visible, and the player finally quieted down.

Only then did Tang Yu have time to look at the information on the electronic screen. The eliminated player's name was Jian Wu, and his score had successfully accumulated to 100. It seemed that the zombies assimilated by her followers could also earn her points. Tang Yu's heart filled with joy. If she recruited more followers, wouldn't she earn even more in the future? She would definitely profit greatly!

The rest of the basic information remained unchanged, but the newly unlocked section on basic skills made Tang Yu furrow her brows. It had a few big characters written on it: "Basic Skill 1: Alliance."

Apart from that, there was no other information.

From a literal perspective, it meant finding teammates, but how to form an alliance and the conditions for it were not explained at all in the game. Tang Yu felt the malice the game had towards her.

She glanced at Jin Ye, who had been following beside her the whole time, and suddenly noticed a change in her expression. She was staring at her with a look of confusion.

"Huh?" Tang Yu was also puzzled. Upon closer inspection, Jin Ye's face remained expressionless, but Tang Yu realized that she could actually understand her emotions. Could this be the effect of "alliance"?

Unable to resist her curiosity, Tang Yu reached out and pinched Jin Ye's cheek, wanting to see if there was any secret behind it. As a result, Jin Ye let out a low growl, leaving Tang Yu stunned in place because she clearly understood what Jin Ye was saying: "Don't touch me."

"Ah, well..." Tang Yu reluctantly withdrew her hand, thought for a moment, and then tentatively asked on the verge of being beaten: "Little follower, have you become smarter?"

Jin Ye gave her a disdainful look, wiped away the bloodstains remaining at the corner of his mouth in disgust, and turned to look at the camp that was no longer visible.

Seeing this, Tang Yu put away her playful thoughts and went to check on Jian Wu's condition. If the alliance state allowed zombies to communicate with each other, Jian Wu should have formed an alliance with her, but he still had an expressionless face, showing no emotions.

Tang Yu asked, "Can you understand what I'm saying?"

Jian Wu's eyes finally regained some liveliness upon seeing her. He looked at Tang Yu resentfully and took a long time before saying, "Leave me alone, I made a mistake."

Tang Yu asked in confusion, "Huh? What do you mean? I don't understand."

Jian Wu seemed to recall something sad and opened up, sobbing, "After I was eliminated, a screen popped up in front of me, asking if I wanted to continue staying in the game as a zombie. Is this a new feature? I've never heard of this option before."

He paused for a moment and continued to ramble, "But the cost of staying is that all my points are reset to zero, and my appearance and habits will become like that of a zombie. Of course, I chose 'no'! But I accidentally touched 'yes'. Why doesn't this stupid game have a second confirmation?"

Tang Yu furrowed her brows and looked at him strangely. "Is it really that bad to become a zombie?"

Jian Wu retorted, "Then what? Are you saying you willingly became a zombie?"

Tang Yu scratched her head. "Well, not really. I entered the game as a zombie." Then she asked, "It's just resetting the points, why are you so upset about it?"

Jian Wu listened to her response, his pupils trembling. He glanced at her with confusion and said, "Didn't you understand before entering the game? The points here can be exchanged for real money in the real world. It's very valuable, with a ratio of 1:50. I have several hundred points."

Tang Yu was amazed, she really didn't know about this. She had no memory, and she didn't voluntarily join the game.

From Jian Wu's words, Tang Yu deduced that the game had added a new feature for balance. If human players choose to continue staying in the game after being eliminated, they would become zombies like Jian Wu and Jin Ye, capable of communication and forming alliances, even though their communication appeared as groans to outsiders.

But what if players choose not to stay? Would they become unconscious NPCs? Tang Yu thought of Du Xiao, but at this moment, there was no way to confirm it.

Tang Yu turned to look at Jin Ye and asked, "Did you choose to stay voluntarily?"

"Yes." Jin Ye didn't hide it.

"Why?" Tang Yu asked.

Jin Ye pointed in the direction of the camp and said, "The person I'm looking for might be there."

Tang Yu looked curious as she leaned closer to Jin Ye and asked, "What kind of person?"

Jin Ye gave her a disdainful look and said, "You're really nosy."

"Yes, I'm nosy." Tang Yu admitted shamelessly, and continued to inquire, "You've been concerned about that camp. Tell me what's going on, and I'll help you find the person."

Jin Ye hesitated for a moment before saying, "Our previous team consisted of four people, including the sister of the person whose clothes you ripped off, a seventeen-year-old girl. Initially, we only operated in the mountains around that area."

Jin Ye pointed to the distant range of continuous mountains and continued, "But not long ago, this little girl disappeared without a trace. We've been searching all the way to this place." Jin Ye took out two pieces of torn cloth from his pocket. They had light bamboo leaf patterns on them, clearly cut from the same fabric.

"These are fragments of her clothes. One of them was found on a branch by the riverbank just now. It's likely related to this camp."

"Do you think she's still alive?" Tang Yu asked.

"Of course, she must still be alive." Jin Ye replied firmly.

Jian Wu's mood calmed down, and he also approached them. After thinking for a moment, he said, "The little girl you mentioned, does she have blonde hair?"

Upon hearing this, Jin Ye stared at Jian Wu and nodded, "Have you seen her?"

"I heard from the cook that they captured a prisoner from another team and planned to use them as bait to capture the Zombie King."

"What's a Zombie King?" Tang Yu interrupted and asked.

"It's a super zombie that recently appeared in the neighboring city. It seems to have evolved. Our vanguard troops in the camp have clashed with it. It's said that it can control zombies and make them fight. But I haven't seen it myself, I'm part of the logistics team."

"How many people are in your camp?" Tang Yu continued to inquire.

"Why? Do you want me to betray the camp? You won't get any information from me. You two can't possibly defeat us." Jian Wu said smugly.

Tang Yu tapped Jian Wu's head and said, "Figure out your own position. You are now a zombie, and you are no longer on the same side as the camp."

Upon hearing this, Jian Wu's face turned red, but he couldn't come up with a rebuttal.

Tang Yu added, "It's okay. Just tell us the truth. We won't kill anyone, we'll only save people."

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