Chapter 516: Worrisome Changes

"Mutant zombies… Su-ge, should we just kill them outright?"

Chen Hanzhou and the others spread out in position, quietly gathering near Zhang Su and asking in a tone heavy with regret.

Zhang Su glanced at Chen Hanzhou thoughtfully and said, "You've been spending so much time with Dr. Fu, you've picked up his habits too?"

Chen Hanzhou scratched his head sheepishly: "Heh, I just think every kind of mutant zombie is rare. Look at the flame zombie—how useful it is. If it dies, it's not completely useless, but its value drops drastically, right? So I think we should try capturing mutant zombies."

Zhang Su exhaled slowly, gazing toward the office building, his voice tinged with melancholy: "I know exploiting zombies is important, but people's lives are precious too. We don't even know what abilities these mutant zombies have—how can we risk keeping them alive?"

"Exactly!" Zheng Xinyu pouted from beside him: "Black mist drifting around—just thinking about it makes me sick. How many days without a bath to produce black mist? Could it even kill you from the stench?"

"Sister Zheng's right. Turned black? Too dangerous. Kill it and be done with it. Look at the venom zombie—it's only useful after it's dead, isn't it?"

Wang Xin returned to the front line. He had no curiosity about the black-mist zombie; whether it could be exploited for value was unknown, but the danger was real.

Chen Hanzhou lowered his head slightly; unnoticed by everyone, a flicker of red light flashed in his eyes, then he raised his head and shrugged: "Fine. Even dead, it's still useful for research. You're right."

"You're quite the guy—getting stronger in battle and still sharpening your mind. You'll be on the front lines and in the lab. Can you handle it all?"

Zhang Su playfully slapped Chen Hanzhou's arm; the solid muscle blocks were proof of his hard work.

Chen Hanzhou smiled slightly, embarrassed: "I hate being idle. When I'm not busy, I get restless. Uh, I'll head to my post now."

Saying this, he walked toward his assigned position.

As soon as Chen Hanzhou left, Ju Wuying glided over to Zhang Su like a ghost, startling Zheng Xinyu, who shot her a strange, narrowed look.

"Sorry, I have official business to discuss with Su-ge. Don't take it the wrong way."

To everyone's surprise, Ju Wuying volunteered an explanation to Zheng Xinyu—she sensed a jealous hostility and felt this misunderstanding must be cleared immediately.

Ju Wuying's voice was soft, but Zhang Su heard it clearly; he couldn't help but smirk.

Zheng Xinyu felt deeply embarrassed. She wanted to explain, but knew her feelings had been read through—any excuse would be pointless. She simply huffed and turned away.

"What is it?"

Zhang Su looked at Ju Wuying with an inquiring gaze.

"I sensed something strange from Chen Sang."

Ju Wuying spoke softly, but her tone was grave, and she used the formal address.

Zhang Su frowned, instinctively glancing toward Chen Hanzhou, then restrained himself, frowning in thought: Chen Hanzhou does have unusual traits, but if it were just wound healing, Ju Wuying would've noticed it long ago—she wouldn't find it strange now.

"Could this snow be affecting Chen Hanzhou?!"

The thought struck Zhang Su like lightning. He rushed to recall past events: Chen Hanzhou was bitten after the first heavy rain, and only after the first snow—the second rainfall—did he discover his rapid wound-healing ability. Now, with the third precipitation…

The answer was obvious: precipitation strengthens zombies—and it's also affecting Chen Hanzhou. In other words, there truly is a "zombie robot" lurking inside him, and he's benefiting from it to some degree. Either he becomes the master of this power, or its puppet—there seem to be only two possible paths ahead. "I understand. Thank you for your vigilance."

Zhang Su nodded to Ju Wuying. This cherry blossom woman had done more than enough for Tianma Island. He'd expected her to be arrogant and hard to get along with because of her strength, but while she was indeed difficult with others, she was efficient and never slacked off—this pleased him deeply.

"It's my duty. If possible…" Ju Wuying fixed her bright gaze on Zhang Su, her tone pleading: "I'd like to return to Tianma Island before nightfall. I'm worried Xiao Ling will be frightened. Please allow it."

Hearing this, Zheng Xinyu, still staring at the dim street, made a face. So this woman really only cared about her little sweetheart, Yi Xiao Ling…

Zhang Su glanced at his wristwatch: just past four in the afternoon. Winter days ended early, and with the thick clouds lingering, the outside already looked like night—he'd grown used to night vision and hadn't noticed.

"Alright. Once we handle this, drive back. Tianma Island is surely fine—if there were trouble, someone would've come to report. We won't be able to return until tomorrow at the earliest. The longer we wait, the more risks grow. Your return will ease my mind." Zhang Su approved Ju Wuying's request. Tianma Island now had a group of people who, in the past, would've been formidable fighters, capable of handling most threats—even thousands of zombies storming the gates wouldn't have fazed them. But times had changed. Even a thousand zombies charging the camp could cause unimaginable disaster. After settling the matter, Ju Wuying visibly relaxed, returning to her post and holding her ground—but she stuck to her principle, refusing to carry a gun. Instead, she clutched a steel rod in one hand and drew a finely crafted long dagger from Gong Chengming's house, silently watching the street ahead.

"Are you two studying Xiao Zhouzhou?"

Zheng Xinyu asked softly as Zhang Su stepped beside her.

"Yes. Did you notice something too?"

Zhang Su nodded without hiding it.

"A little…" Zheng Xinyu lowered her weapon and glanced toward Chen Hanzhou's direction, then said: "Xiao Zhouzhou kept staring at the cargo truck. I felt he was unusually interested in the flame zombie."

"When did this start?"

Zhang Su frowned. He hadn't noticed these details—too many things happening. He'd heard gossip, but Chen Hanzhou's odd behavior was easy to overlook.

"Earlier. Since outside Yujing Garden."

"Looks like he's definitely got an issue. We'll take it one step at a time—for now, we don't know if it's good or bad."

Zhang Su had no intention of sentencing Chen Hanzhou to death.

Time ticked away. Zhang Su kept checking his watch. It had been ten minutes since his last contact with Qi Xiaoshuai! Even under ideal conditions, driving from Lègòu Mall to the kindergarten took five minutes. Qi Xiaoshuai's running speed should've been faster than ordinary zombies—why hadn't he arrived yet? Not a single shadow, not a sound.

"Su-ge, this is taking too long. Should I go check?"

Wang Xin licked his dry lips—mainly because the flame zombie stood nearby, radiating intense heat.

Zhang Su tapped his fingers lightly on the radio, took a deep breath, and said: "If there's danger, Qi Xiaoshuai would've called for help. Wait two more minutes."

The sky's dark clouds remained utterly still—not a breath of wind, just pressing heavily down, weighing on every heart.

Two minutes weren't long—but to those waiting, they felt endless.

Since Zhang Su's group descended, the atmosphere upstairs had grown increasingly tense.

Everyone knew what they were doing. Those who wanted to help peered out windows; those who couldn't help still grew anxious and uneasy…

Aaao… Aaow.

As everyone worried about the outside, a middle-aged man, bound and lying in the corner, suddenly turned. He'd been bitten on the thigh and refused amputation—his fate was inevitable.

"Old An…"

Some from Lègòu Branch stared at the figure on the ground—or what was left of him. He was fully zombified now, eyes cold with killing instinct, devoid of all emotion.

"I'll go."

Zhao Dezhu rose to speak to Zhang Ya, but before he could move, Zhang Xin stepped forward with a dagger and swiftly ended their former comrade's suffering.

Zhang Su faintly heard the commotion upstairs, but he had no time to attend to it—he was focused on his watch. Just seconds before the two-minute mark, his ears twitched. He tensed, raised his rifle, and said: "Prepare yourselves—he's back!"

Before anyone could process his words, a clear, echoing shout came from across the street.

"Brat, keep up! Follow Grandpa! Damn it…"

Soon, Qi Xiaoshuai's agile figure sprinted out from beside the office building, glanced back once, dashed onto the double yellow line, paused briefly, then turned and ran straight toward Lègòu Mall.

(End of Chapter)