I am Jinshan Youxia

Zhang Chengyi tried to look into the distance but to no avail, and said, "Let's go."

A man, a zombie, and an experimental subject quickly arrived at the riverbank. As expected, the bridge was under traffic control, and the area in front of the Gobetsu Bridge was packed with people and vehicles.

Long Yi looked through the binoculars for a while and determined that at the current speed of traffic, if they went to queue up now, they might have to wait until tomorrow.

Highschool of the Dead has a clear timeline. The main characters leave the school on the day the zombie crisis breaks out. The next day, they are unable to cross the river and spend the night in Nanri Kaori. They finally cross the river to the other side on the morning of the third day.

Yesterday, Zhang Chengyi logged in on the very first day of the zombie crisis. Long Yi had never heard of zombies before.

If those two were the male and female leads, it would fit the timeline of the story.

[Speaking of which, why did I log in just as the story was starting, and why was I in a zombie body?]

He noticed something interesting. Was it a coincidence? He didn't think it was a coincidence; there were just too few cases to summarize a pattern.

Back to the troublesome river crossing, forcing your way across the bridge is a bit unnecessary; crossing the river directly would be better...

Never mind, I'm determined to break into the Patriotic Society today.

Zhang Chengyi set his sights on today's goal. With his strength, he could easily paddle across on a tire, so how could a mere river stop the Golden Mountain Ranger?

Chapter 68 Oh no, zombies really don't feel pain!

"Tick tock~"

Under the midday sun, ripples danced on the shimmering river surface. Long Yi stood on the bank, wringing out his wet sleeves, his eyes fixed on Zhang Chengyi, who was squatting beside Huang Mao, seemingly lost in thought. He asked:

Why did you go to the Gao family's house?

He regretted asking the question as soon as it left his mouth; as the 'eyes' in the deal, he shouldn't have said anything.

"If I had to say why, it's probably because I'd be really annoyed by someone who's solely concerned with the country."

Zhang Chengyi casually replied, while seriously 'looking' at Huang Mao.

When he crossed the river by hand using the airbag and metal plate, he exerted too much force, so the unconscious test subject and Long Yi were mostly submerged in the water.

I don’t know if it was because of the water, but Huang Mao suddenly had a very subtle sense of 'harmlessness'.

This was the feeling he had when he looked at zombies before, but since the blond guy hadn't died, he couldn't be considered a zombie.

Long Yi hesitated for a moment, then said, "They have guns."

"Moreover, the president of the Patriotism Society, Takashiro Soichiro, is the commander-in-chief of the Tendo Shogen-ryu school."

He bit his lip in frustration, realizing he had mistaken a zombie for a human.

Zhang Chengyi looked back, and although he couldn't see clearly, he could sense the cautious worry in the tone of his voice.

Is it because the child feels dependent on the system for security?

He was unsure, but his tone softened slightly as he said, "Don't worry, I'm confident."

The firepower displayed by the Patriotic Society in comics and anime is really weak; they couldn't even deal with hordes of slow-moving zombies. Their secret weapon is just a bomb with relatively low power.

Even if he can't see clearly, he won't feel that he is in any danger.

The increase in speed is not just about movement speed, but also includes something like nerve reflexes. He didn't know whether zombies had nerve reactions or not, but it was definitely improved after adding points.

While a zombie loses its sight, it gains enhanced hearing. The sound of gunfire is so distinct that it can immediately pinpoint the trajectory of bullets and evade them. Unless it's a wide-area bombing like a missile, ordinary firearms are no match for this super zombie.

Moreover, since zombies have no sense of pain, even if their heads are broken, as long as the brain doesn't explode and the body isn't severely damaged, it won't affect their movement at all.

Oh no, Ace, zombies really don't feel pain.

Zhang Chengyi thought to himself, wondering why Long Yi didn't react. He nodded and didn't say anything more.

"Keep a close eye on the test subject, and tell me immediately if anything seems amiss."

"Slap!" With that, he looked up and slapped the unconscious blond-haired man across the face.

The force was just right, leaving you dazed but not brain-damaged.

The blond-haired man's eyelids twitched, and he opened his eyes blankly. When he saw the strangely dressed man in front of him, the lingering blankness in his eyes quickly faded, and he showed a fearful expression, shrinking back.

"Didn't you turn into a zombie?"

Zhang Chengyi deliberately spoke aloud, then asked, "How have you felt since I bit you?"

"If you pretend to be dead, I'll kill you right now."

The blond-haired man's hair stood on end. His tone, actions, and the torture he had suffered were enough to make him feel the so-called 'killer aura,' so he stammered out his feelings.

His voice has changed a lot; it used to be a slightly shrill young voice, but now it sounds much hoarse.

I didn't feel much, just hot, sleepy, tired, weak all over, and fell asleep. In my hazy state, I kept feeling pain all over my body until just now when it felt like I was soaking in cold water, chilled to the bone, and then I was slapped and woke up.

"Well said. Get up. I have a small experiment that I need your help with."

Zhang Chengyi smiled and nodded.

Huang Mao slowly stood up. The feeling of weakness in his body subsided, replaced by an inexplicable surge of power. He felt as if he could kill a bull with a single punch.

Am I terrifyingly strong?

A look of extraordinary wisdom flashed in his eyes, then he saw Zhang Chengyi casually pry the iron bars off with his hands, crumple one end into a ball, and his eyes cleared instantly, revealing a harmless smile: "My lord, what do you want me to do?"

"Oh, I see." Zhang Chengyi tapped the railing for a while with the hammer he had made by hand. A zombie with a piece missing from its abdomen slowly walked over. He pointed at the zombie and said, "You, go over there."

Huang Mao wanted to refuse, but he didn't dare. He walked forward timidly, guessing that he would run away if the zombie made the slightest move.

Zhang Chengyi simply took two steps forward, grabbed him, and dragged him to the zombie's face. The blond-haired man was almost paralyzed; he felt like he might be fed to the zombie at any moment.

As a result, the zombie staggered past them, completely ignoring them.

"Did you see that?"

Zhang Chengyi released his grip and said, "Try making a sound to attract it."

The blond-haired man shuddered, then licked his lips after regaining his balance. His mind was filled with surprise and confusion, and he tentatively uttered a sound: "Yo!"

The zombie stopped, turned around, and then walked back past the blond-haired man with an air of indifference.

"It, it, it?" The blond-haired man was dumbfounded.

"As expected." Zhang Chengyi laughed. He had just sensed that the blond guy had the 'harmlessness' that zombies have, and realized that his infection ability might be too weak, and he might not even be able to quickly infect humans into zombies.

This gives the body's defense mechanisms room to operate.

Since becoming a zombie requires dying once first, if a person survives with a weak infection capacity, could they become a carrier of the zombie virus or something similar?

So far, the experiment has been a great success.

[Perhaps water is also useful. In the comics, zombies don't want to go near water, maybe it's instinct? Anyway, it's quite effective. If you're infected while still alive, the zombies will ignore you, and this guy seems to gain a significant power boost...]

As Zhang Chengyi dragged the blond guy forward, the guy's instinctive struggle revealed a strength comparable to that of a zombie.

Perhaps, this can be considered a form of evolution?

A single case is not conclusive evidence. We need to find more test subjects, including those with varying infectivity from high to low.

The zombies in this world are very interesting. The first game I can control will leave this world and I will definitely come back to take the zombies away and study them carefully. The ability to unleash power and speed alone is very valuable.

Moreover, humans who have acquired zombie-like characteristics are not dead like zombies. If they can gain the ability to 'rot' by consuming body tissue to repair injuries, then their physical limits might not be low if they train like crazy.

Whether it interacts with the various technologies available in modern society is unknown, and there is huge potential for development.

Seeing the mysterious man beside him lost in thought, the blond-haired man felt a strange emotion rise within him. His eyes unconsciously drifted towards Long Yi standing not far away, he swallowed hard, and a malicious expression appeared on his face. Possessing such superpowers…

The next second, he lunged forward, shouting, "Let me go, or else—"

Chapter 69 The World is Withering

"Or what will you do?"

Zhang Chengyi's whisper reached Huang Mao's ear.

Long Yi took two steps back, looking at the two rushing towards him with a bit of lingering fear; he had almost become a hostage.

"cluck"

The blond-haired man's teeth were chattering, and his calves were trembling. Having witnessed Zhang Chengyi's brutal killing of zombies, he could already see his own fate.

"My lord, I...I..."

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

Zhang Chengyi's hammer smashed the yellow-haired man's arm, and the screams attracted the zombie that had been staggering past back.

Long Yi retreated to the riverbank and watched quietly.

Zhang Chengyi casually blew the heads off nearby zombies, then began creating wounds on the blond-haired man to test whether his regenerative abilities had improved.

The blond-haired man didn't last long before fainting from the pain, clearly still capable of feeling pain, a stark contrast to the zombie.

The bleeding stopped quickly, and the bruising from the ruptured subcutaneous capillaries also disappeared rapidly. The wound did not heal quickly and did not reach a level of severe necrosis.

Zhang Chengyi did not conduct any destructive tests that could cause significant harm, and planned to take the unconscious blond-haired man directly to Gao Cheng's house.

Since we're going to bring Long Yi along anyway, bringing one more won't make a difference.

His eyesight is so poor that without his "eyes" following him, he probably wouldn't be able to find his way around.

However, as long as he can replicate the 'evolution' on the blond guy in the future, he plans to kill him.

At first, he really didn't intend to kill the precious experimental subject. After all, he was the first new human and had value for continued observation. If he knew what was good for him, he could accept having a few less loyal subordinates. But before he could even speak, this guy wanted to cause trouble.

Being bad is acceptable, but being stupid is truly beyond redemption.

"Let's go," Zhang Chengyi said, picking up the blond-haired man.

Long Yi consciously stepped forward to lead the way, and the two of them, one big and one small, walked on the empty road, just like they had done the previous day.

The once bustling city and streets are now eerily quiet.

Occasionally, stray cats would wander under the scorching sun. Leaving the riverbank, before even reaching Higashisaka Town, there was an entire road lined with falling cherry blossoms. When the wind blew, the faint fragrance of cherry blossoms mingled with the stench of blood, creating a sense of desolation and apocalypse along the roadside, giving one the feeling that the world was also decaying.

A emaciated zombie, terrifyingly thin, swayed and wandered aimlessly with its hands hanging down in front of it.

Long Yi's resilient spirit, forged through rigorous training, allowed him to completely ignore the zombies roaming just two meters away. His steps and breathing remained perfectly calm, and he looked at the absurd world before him, somewhat dazed.

Since neither the person, the corpse, nor the experimental subject made any sound, naturally no zombies came to cause trouble, and Zhang Chengyi was too lazy to pay attention to these fellow zombies.

However, the closer you get to Higashisaka Town, the more numerous and densely packed the zombies become. By the time you reach Higashisaka Town, the zombies are practically crammed together on the roadside.