Chapter 1097: Troublesome Zombie Emperor

"Adrenal what?"

"What's that thing for?"

"While comforting the children, Xiong Hanzi heard the sound and froze for a moment, curiously turning his head. He had indeed seen the priest's bloodletting ritual. In his view, such behavior was nothing short of beastly. Isn't this just treating people like pigs for slaughter? Even pigs are electrocuted first before being killed!"

"Adrenaline"

"Lin An hesitated for a moment, then quickly searched the memory fragments for relevant information. As expected, he soon found the information in the Second Will's memory."

"A mixture of adrenal hormones found only in children's blood. (cas-06-8)"

"It is normally secreted only under intense fear."

"Many people think this is the secret of immortality, but in fact it's meaningless and can be artificially synthesized."

"Saying this, Lin An furrowed his brow slightly."

"Fear.."

"Logically, such a thing would have been proposed before the apocalypse, belonging to a kind of conspiracy theory. However, upon thinking of the pyramid structure, Lin An couldn't help but associate many ideas."

"It's not fake! It's real!"

"Before Lin An could think further, Li Yao, who was like a wooden puppet, suddenly interjected:"

"That zombie wants this! I saw it drink it myself! Think about it! Why do mutant zombies level up? Aren't they all mutated after eating large numbers of humans?"

"But actually, it's not that eating people makes them strong; it's this thing!"

"That zombie becomes smarter after eating this! Especially children!"

"The more people there are, the more collective fear spreads! To them, this thing is a treasure!"

"His gaze suddenly hardened."

"In an instant, under super-effective thinking, Lin An immediately realized what Li Yao wanted to express."

"Children, intelligence, fear, blood, evolution!"

"The... zombie doctor in the hospital!"

"Fragments flashed by quickly, and Lin An's mind conjured the hospital where he obtained his first piece of blue equipment, the Skullcrusher's Hand! That talking zombie doctor."

"Just like him. Even Zhang Tie, who doesn't like to use his brain much, froze upon hearing it."

"If you ask what the most perverse thing he's ever witnessed is, it's none other than the zombie doctor devouring an entire cabinet of children's brains!"

"He recalled that back then he even felt soft-hearted toward the zombie doctor! He thought the other wasn't really a zombie!"

"Keep going."

"His expression turned cold, and Lin An directly told Li Yao to keep speaking."

"Seeing Lin An show interest, Li Yao swallowed nervously and had no choice but to continue speaking:"

"I really didn't lie to you."

"In the first month after the apocalypse broke out, I accidentally encountered that zombie at a children's amusement park."

"That is, the god spoken of by these believers."

"Back then I was only Rank 0, but that monster was already a First-Level Mutant. Moreover, she was wearing the amusement park's uniform, and I and my companions initially even took her for a human."

"Due to carelessness, I was seized by her when I was leaving. But she... didn't eat me."

"Without a shred of respect, Li Yao showed no reverence when mentioning that Corpse Emperor; it was obvious he clearly understood why he 'followed' her."

"His face turned pale, he gasped:"

"When she caught me, she seemed to have only low-level intelligence, but she knew what she wanted."

"Afterwards, I was forced to have no choice but to continually help her lure humans over."

"After a period of time, she became a Second-Level Mutant. At that point, she could already express simple meanings..."

"Afterwards, under her coercion, we could only continually capture humans, especially children."

"But you, sir, also know that in the apocalypse, it's hard for children to survive; those who do survive are basically brought by Awakened Ones.."

"He showed a bitter smile:"

"There was no way; at that time she had us establish a religion to gain those people's trust..."

"Later on, it became what you see now."

"Having said that, Li Yao's eyes pleaded, as if he wanted to say he too was forced."

"Ignoring the man's pleading gaze, Lin An's heart filled with icy cold."

"Forced?"

"According to Li Yao's words, perhaps the first time he was forced, but afterward he definitely had ample opportunity to escape."

"Especially establishing the sect—this was clearly his own intention."

"But the problem arose."

"Why would Li Yao devote himself wholeheartedly to 'assisting' her?"

"Having said that, don't play any petty tricks."

"Fine, I'll assume you were forced. But what about your subordinates? Is it because the Corpse Emperor protects you from zombie attacks, or does it grant you the ability to control zombies?"

"If there's no benefit, why would you risk your lives like this? Don't tell me the word 'divine grace' means nothing!"

"Seeing that Lin An wasn't so easily fooled, the man's heart skipped a beat."

"In his hesitation, he suddenly noticed Lin An's right hand once again resting on his head."

"I'll speak! I'll speak!"

"His liver and gall felt like they were bursting; this kind of agonizing brain-crushing pain, he really didn't want to experience again!"

"That zombie... she..."

"She can conjure things! She can conjure equipment, even things that boost our strength!"

"As long as we give her this blood, she will bestow things upon us!"

Huh!?

Hearing the sound, he froze; this time it was Lin An who was stunned.

Produce things? What does that mean?

Afraid Lin An wouldn't believe him, the man took a deep breath and quickly said:

"Skills, equipment! Props!"

"That monster is just like another system—it can produce anything!"

"My strength is all from her!"

As if laying it all bare, Li Yao quickly finished speaking, as if defending himself:

"Sir! What do you say we should do!"

"That monster keeps telling us she can let some survivors live on as administrators of the new world!"

"We're trapped in the Qing Shan war zone—no one cares, no one rescues us—I just want to survive!"

"Don't think we caught so many people just to eat them!"

His face flushed red.

He knew he had said all he could; whether he lives depends on how guilty he appears in Lin An's eyes.

"I admit the captured kids have suffered, but we hardly ever kill them!"

"Many kids were even sent by their parents—just because we can feed them."

"These kids just have a little blood drawn, get a fright, but they're still alive!"

"If left outside, they'd starve to death!"

He desperately tried to prove he was a good person, but as soon as he finished speaking, he provoked Zhang Tie's fury.

"Shut your mother's bullshit!"

"You damn well work for zombies and still think you're doing good, huh!"

Grabbing the boy's arm that had just been bandaged, Xiong Hanzi kicked Li Yao, who was like a stick.

Half an hour later, outside the mountain hollow.

"Captain Lin, what should we do now?"

"Do we really have to believe what that kid said?"

After tying a timed bomb to Li Yao, Lin An took him straight out, heading straight for the Zombie Emperor's hiding place.

With a solemn expression, hearing Xiong Hanzi's question, Lin An merely shook his head and quickly contacted the Long An faction and the Soviet war zone.