DDT - Chapter 23
Chapter 23: Zombie King × Little White Flower (22)
Chi Junluo: Heavenly Dao, Heavenly Dao, I'm getting cold feet. All these guns… they're going to turn me into Swiss cheese, aren't they?!
The Heavenly Dao, never one to pass up good drama: No problem, no problem, Chi Chi! Go on, be brave! I'll be cheering you on from the sidelines!
And then the damn thing actually started singing.
Ignoring the unhelpful Heavenly Dao, Chi Junluo floated forward and landed on the city wall.
The soldiers and Ability Users reacted as if facing a great enemy. At their leader's command, countless bullets and abilities flew toward her.
For a moment, the air was filled with a cacophony of bangs and explosions.
The multicolored abilities obscured everyone's vision. After a long while, the commander finally ordered them to cease their attack.
As the smoke cleared, what made everyone's jaws drop was that the female Zombie King was completely unharmed. Not even the hem of her clothes was dirty.
Chi Junluo: Hmm, psychic power is really useful.
The Zombie King stood motionless. Unsure of her intentions, the base leaders hastily convened an emergency meeting.
In reality, Chi Junluo was communicating with the Heavenly Dao in her sea of consciousness.
Chi Junluo: Heavenly Dao, all that's left is to contract the soul fragment, right? Do you have a recommended method for forming the bond?
Heavenly Dao: I thought you already had a plan.
Chi Junluo: My identity as the Zombie King should be a pretty big blow to her, right?
Heavenly Dao: No, that's not enough. Have you forgotten? What was the deepest impression the heroine's soul fragment has of you? What almost destroyed her?
Chi Junluo: …Are you talking about jumping off the building???
The Heavenly Dao's tone turned cold. "The contract has to be formed the same way you caused her death in the first place. After all, the soul fragment's deepest connection to the day it shattered is the fall. Now…"
In her sea of consciousness, the Heavenly Dao licked its lips with a wicked grin and continued, "Now, as long as you throw yourself off in front of her, you'll trigger the deepest bond in the heroine's soul. You'll trigger the contract. If the heroine's emotions are at their peak when you land, you'll have succeeded!"
Chi Junluo: I'm afraid of heights! I hate the feeling of falling! I'm scared!
The Heavenly Dao said disdainfully, "Afraid of heights, yet you still jumped off a building to kill yourself and crushed my heroine! Damn it! Now get your ass over there and jump!"
Chi Junluo: …
When she came back to her senses, the leaders' meeting was still ongoing. Chi Junluo hadn't seen the heroine anywhere and figured she must have been taken somewhere for protection.
The soldiers and their captains watched her warily from a distance.
Chi Junluo thought for a moment, then spoke. "Tell your base commander I want to see Yi Shuhan. Have her come out to meet me."
Yi Shuhan???
Everyone was shocked. Wasn't that the genius girl who developed the "Hope" reagent? This Zombie King probably meant to harm Yi Shuhan!
"No way! I'm telling you, not a chance! She is our salvation, you won't lay a single finger on her!" a captain at the front shouted, solidifying his stance.
However, a captain was, in the end, just a captain.
A few high-ranking officials overheard Chi Junluo's words through their surveillance. They exchanged glances, each understanding the meaning in the other's eyes.
In this war, someone had to be sacrificed. And that person would likely become a hero praised by all!
See how benevolent they were? They were giving the position of hero to Yi Shuhan.
After all, in their eyes, Yi Shuhan had already served her purpose. The formula for "Hope" was out. It seemed Yi Shuhan was no longer of any use.
"Vice-Commander Li, go get Yi Shuhan. Tell her the Zombie King has requested to see her by name. Have her take a tube of 'Hope' with her. It can be considered a means of self-defense," the leader of the H City Base instructed.
"Yes, sir." Vice-Commander Li acknowledged the order and turned to leave.
Yi Shuhan was sitting in the research center, feeling restless. For some reason, she had a deep sense of foreboding, as if something terrible was about to happen.
Knock, knock, knock. A rhythmic knock sounded at the door.
"Come in," Yi Shuhan answered.
Receiving a response, the person outside pushed the door open and entered. It was Vice-Commander Li.
"Vice-Commander Li? Is something wrong? This is a sudden visit." Yi Shuhan looked strangely at the stern-faced soldier.
She recognized Vice-Commander Li, but they had only met twice briefly during previous leadership meetings. They had no real connection. For him to visit at such a critical juncture, Yi Shuhan didn't think he was bringing good news.
"Miss Yi, the base commander sent me to deliver a message. Please prepare yourself to receive it," Vice-Commander Li said stiffly.
See? She knew it. It was definitely not good news.
Yi Shuhan frowned. "Go on, what is it?" She straightened her back, assuming a posture of listening intently.
Seeing Yi Shuhan's well-behaved demeanor, Vice-Commander Li was suddenly reminded of his own adorable little child, who would look just as obedient when listening to him. Vice-Commander Li's heart suddenly softened.
Looking at Yi Shuhan, he found he couldn't get the words out. He was sending her to her death! This child, who had just made an outstanding contribution to humanity, was about to be pushed out by the higher-ups to become a sacrifice to the Zombie King!
Honestly, he couldn't bear it.
Seeing Vice-Commander Li's hesitation, Yi Shuhan became even more certain of her thoughts. Today was definitely not going to be a good day.
Vice-Commander Li was in the midst of a great internal conflict. As a soldier, he could not disobey the orders of his superiors. If Yi Shuhan didn't go out to face the Zombie King today, perhaps even more people would be sacrificed!
"Miss Yi Shuhan, I'm sorry!" Vice-Commander Li bowed deeply, apologizing to Yi Shuhan for the leaders' decision. "The Zombie King has asked to see you by name. The base commander wants you to take 'Hope' with you. If you get a chance, use it." After speaking, Vice-Commander Li turned away, unable to look at Yi Shuhan any longer. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to stop himself from holding her back.
"The Zombie King???" Yi Shuhan was stunned. She didn't understand why a heaven-defying creature like the Zombie King would seek her out. And besides, did zombies have intelligence now?
If zombies possessed intelligence, then they were no longer just corpses or the living dead. Perhaps they had become a new species, a new life form—an entirely new intelligent species.
Suddenly, Yi Shuhan felt uncertain. Was her participation in developing "Hope" right or wrong?
Perhaps the Zombie King wanted to discuss this with her? However, zombies ate human flesh and drank human blood; they were ultimately enemies of humanity. Even if the Zombie King had intelligence, it was only a rare exception. Those ordinary zombies had long lost their souls, lost their reason for existing!
Right! Yi Shuhan solidified her thoughts. After ensuring she would no longer waver, she picked up a tube of "Hope" and said to Vice-Commander Li, "Vice-Commander Li, I'm ready. Let's go."
Vice-Commander Li, his back still to her, nodded and hurriedly led the way.
Yi Shuhan didn't see the redness in Vice-Commander Li's eyes.
On the city wall, the captain was still shouting that he wouldn't let Yi Shuhan come, when he heard a ding from behind him. The elevator doors opened.
A red-eyed Vice-Commander Li was the first to step out. Chi Junluo watched expectantly, but it wasn't the figure she was hoping for. Was the H City Base trying to use someone else as a substitute for Yi Shuhan?
Just as Chi Junluo was about to make a scene, she saw Yi Shuhan emerge, head lowered, following behind the man.
Chi Junluo reflexively took a step forward. The soldiers also reflexively opened fire.
Chi Junluo: …
The sound of gunfire pulled Yi Shuhan back to reality. She saw smoke swirling ahead.
After a moment, the gunfire ceased. The smoke gradually dispersed, revealing a slender, familiar figure.
Yi Shuhan's eyes widened in shock, staring at the Zombie King before her in disbelief.
"Sister Chi? How can it be you?" Yi Shuhan asked, her voice trembling.
That's right, she should have realized it sooner! Chi Junluo, who could repel zombies, who could fly, who was so powerful it defied common sense—of course she had to be the Zombie King.
"Shuhan, long time no see." If Chi Junluo hadn't spoken, Yi Shuhan might have still thought this was just a Zombie King mimicking Chi Junluo's appearance. But reality slapped her hard across the face.
"…" Yi Shuhan's mind was a storm of curses right now; she had no idea how to respond.
Chi Junluo's gaze fell on the inconspicuous, transparent reagent in Yi Shuhan's hand.
"This is 'Hope,' isn't it?" Chi Junluo stated with certainty. "You were planning to use this on me, weren't you?"
"Sister Chi…" Yi Shuhan murmured. "Why is it you? How could this happen?"
She knew how good Chi Junluo had been to her, not to mention the fact that Chi Junluo had saved her time and time again. All of that was real, none of it fake. But why? Why did the Zombie King have to be Chi Junluo?
"I didn't want this either," Chi Junluo said, putting on a sorrowful expression.
Seeing this, Yi Shuhan's heart ached even more. "Sister Chi, maybe… maybe there's a way! I can do research, run experiments, I can find a way to change you back!" Yi Shuhan's words were a jumbled mess.
She had complex feelings for Chi Junluo. She didn't want Chi Junluo to become like this, didn't want to see her delicate frame standing against all of humanity alone.
She didn't want this for Chi Junluo!
Chi Junluo began to walk forward, step by step. The soldiers knew their firepower was no threat to her and were afraid of harming Yi Shuhan, so they held their fire. Seeing that the Zombie King actually knew Yi Shuhan, everyone on the wall and the big shots in the meeting room started to watch the drama unfold.
She watched as Chi Junluo slowly approached. The wind blew through Chi Junluo's short hair, her clothes rustling, making her look so heroic and dashing.
Yi Shuhan's heart pounded rapidly in her chest. She didn't know what she was nervous about, or perhaps, what she was anticipating.
Finally, Chi Junluo stopped in front of Yi Shuhan. Her own reflection was mirrored in Chi Junluo's azure eyes.
"Chi…" Before Yi Shuhan could finish, Chi Junluo gently pressed an index finger to her lips.
"Shh," Chi Junluo hushed. "Be good. Don't speak."
As Chi Junluo withdrew her hand, she seamlessly plucked the reagent from Yi Shuhan's grasp.
"?!" Watching the reagent get taken, the higher-ups instantly grew anxious.
However, what happened in the next second made everyone shut their mouths.
Chi Junluo let down her guard, inserted the needle into her own blood vessel, and pushed the plunger, injecting "Hope" into her body.
It all happened too fast for Yi Shuhan to stop her. Yi Shuhan had originally wanted to ask Chi Junluo to take her away from here; she was willing to develop an antidote for Chi Junluo, to restore her to normal. But Chi Junluo had snatched "Hope" first!
The "Hope" reagent was developed to kill the zombie virus. Its effects were irreversible!
By injecting "Hope," Chi Junluo had chosen certain death!
Sure enough, purple blood began to pour from Chi Junluo's mouth.
"Sister Chi!" Yi Shuhan cried out.
"Shuhan, say my name. Remember my name, so that after I'm gone, someone will still remember me."
"I grew tired of being like this long ago. In the future, you won't be alone. You must walk on with everyone else."
As Chi Junluo spoke, she began to back away.
The wind had grown stronger at some point, howling fiercely. Yi Shuhan's eyes were filled with shock and unwillingness.
Chi Junluo swayed as she retreated to the edge of the city wall. "Shuhan, I've prepared a gift for you in the RV down below. I hope you'll like it."
"Shuhan, call my name," Chi Junluo pleaded, looking at Yi Shuhan.
"Chi Junluo…" Yi Shuhan started walking forward. "No, there has to be another way, don't go!"
"Goodbye." Having gotten the answer she wanted, Chi Junluo leaned back and fell from the edge of the wall.
"NO!!!!" Yi Shuhan screamed, lunging to the edge of the wall and looking down.
"Chi Junluo! You bastard!" Fat tears rolled from Yi Shuhan's eyes.
Chi Junluo's mind was full of FFS: Aaaah! Jumping off a building is something you should only have to do once!!!
The next second, pain shot through her entire body.
"Congratulations, Chi Chi, the contract is a success!" the Heavenly Dao shouted excitedly to Chi Junluo.
Before Chi Junluo could even recover from the pain, they had already left that world, floating in a vast emptiness.
A thin, golden pattern had appeared on her left wrist, like a tattoo, fitting naturally against her skin.
"Hurry up and get your emotions in check, we're going to the next world! Quick, get your ass to the next world and pay off your debt to This Deity!!" the Heavenly Dao chattered excitedly. Spacetime twisted, and Chi Junluo's figure vanished from the void once more.
Leaving only the howling wind behind.
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