Chapter 709: Arrogant Bighead
As soon as his psychic power slightly recovered, Ling Mo couldn’t wait to switch perspectives.
Even though it lasted less than two seconds, Ling Mo managed to see the outcome he desired.
A Zombie that had just leapt at Ye Lian was struck away, and the Zombie behind it hesitated for a moment before charging forward…
The appearance of this instinctive fear response indicated that the influence of the rampage virus had begun to gradually weaken. It would only be a matter of minutes before Ye Lian and the others could escape.
In fact, when Ling Mo lured the “Wig” out of the Mall, the effectiveness of its influence had already started to decline. However, the real termination of this effect was due to its death; otherwise, it would have continued to secrete indefinitely until this breeding-type hunt was over.
“Huff…huff…”
Xu Shuhan leaned against the wall, her hands covering her ears, breathing rapidly with reddened eyes.
When the Zombies initially swarmed in, her main feeling was similar to that of a normal person-full of panic.
But as the slaughter continued and time passed, she gradually realized she was not afraid. On the contrary, she felt her blood boiling with excitement…
The continual sounds of bones cracking and blood splattering thrilled her. She even started to involuntarily imagine how exhilarating it would be if she were the one tearing apart these Zombies’ bodies.
The throbbing of her blood vessels under her skin became intense; she could even hear the sound of blood flowing through her carotid artery…
However, when she reached for her neck, she suddenly snapped back to reality.
The pendant around her neck…
Right, Ling Mo had taken it as a deposit…
“No, I can’t fully mutate…”
Just as Xu Shuhan snapped out of her fear, she heard Xia Na’s voice: “Stay awake, don’t forget what I told you.”
She looked up at Xia Na and was instantly startled by her unusual red and black eyes.
But as time ticked by, even though she desperately covered her ears and avoided watching the carnage, the sound of blood flowing echoed incessantly in her mind, and her heart pounded as if it were about to leap out of her throat!
However, just as Xu Shuhan felt she couldn’t hold on any longer, she suddenly realized that, unknowingly, she seemed much calmer…
She slowly turned her head to look at Ye Lian and the others.
Why had the number of Zombies decreased…
The Zombies in the distance appeared to have stopped converging…
On the contrary, they seemed wary, keeping their distance from Ye Lian and the three girls…
“What’s going on?” Xu Shuhan asked, her voice trembling.
Ye Lian and the others exchanged glances. Although they were Ling Mo’s Zombie Puppets, they were not completely under his control like little Zombies. Instead, they maintained a psychic link with him.
Within the range of the rampage virus, they had gradually started to feel its effects.
However, being Senior Zombies, the impact on them was quite limited.
When the effect began to weaken, they noticed the anomaly immediately.
“This chaotic fight broke out unusually,” Xia Na said.
Ye Lian and Li Yalin felt the same way but couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was abnormal. They just nodded in agreement.
Xia Na looked towards the direction of the Staff Passage and said, “Ling-Ge’s situation… let’s hurry!”
She abruptly said, then immediately swung her Scythe towards the Zombies in front of her.
Ye Lian and Li Yalin didn’t ask further questions, seemingly understanding completely, and charged forward as well.
Xu Shuhan, on the other hand, remained squatting in shock, and a few seconds later, she muttered, “What did she say? I didn’t understand any of that…”
“Squish.”
Ling Mo squeezed the Jellyfish in his palm, noticing that its body structure hadn’t changed much.
Having confirmed that Ye Lian and the others were out of danger, Ling Mo finally relaxed completely. As he slowly recovered, he began to observe the Jellyfish in his hand.
Held tightly in his grasp, the Jellyfish’s circle of soft tentacles gently scraped against Ling Mo’s palm. However, this movement seemed less like a struggle and more like a mild reaction to being squeezed.
“Since it actively came out to forage, it likely indicates an evolved feeding instinct…” Ling Mo turned the Jellyfish over, examining it meticulously but unable to confirm whether it showed any early signs of intelligence.
“However, it seems to remember me… Having developed a rudimentary memory, it could be considered a mutation creature.”
It was hard to imagine that this thing used to be an organ. Ling Mo thought it most likely that it was originally a relatively independent entity. Upon separating from its host, it would start self-evolving and mutating to adapt to its new environment.
Ling Mo had fed it with his mental energy several times; during its initial evolutionary stage, it might have imprinted on him in some way.
He tried holding the Jellyfish up to his face and mobilized a bit of his newly recovered psychic power.
The speed of the tentacle swipes immediately increased, but the Jellyfish remained nestled in Ling Mo’s palm.
Ling Mo decided to conjure a thin Tentacle from his psychic light cluster, dangling it in front of the Jellyfish like a decoy.
The Jellyfish began to spin, and its red body started pulsating, looking quite restless… if it had emotions, that is.
A dozen seconds passed, yet it took no further action.
“Although I don’t know what it will evolve into… it seems like I’ve got a great deal here,” Ling Mo thought, feeling quite pleased with the Jellyfish and then glanced at the burning “Wig.”
The evolution of mutation beasts was already terrifying; mysterious creatures like this evolving could yield even more astonishing results…
And being able to control it without psychic power was a first for Ling Mo.
He felt a bit curious, but the Jellyfish seemed to tire, its tentacles gradually retreating and its entire body going still in Ling Mo’s palm.
However, Ling Mo could sense its surface still quivering, as if it were digesting what it had just absorbed.
“Hopefully, its evolution won’t disappoint me,” Ling Mo muttered, flipping his hand to slip the Jellyfish into his backpack. Just as he was about to stand up, he froze suddenly.
“Now I see why there hasn’t been a major commotion. So you managed not to turn on each other? Quite strange… I don’t know what’s up with those Zombies, but they managed to resist even after being catalyzed… or perhaps you fled here?”
A peculiar, mocking voice suddenly erupted from behind Ling Mo.
Ling Mo’s expression turned grim, and he didn’t move hastily.
He gazed at the new shadow cast before him, a cold glint flickering in his eyes.
Yu Shiran and Xiao Bai had not sent any alert signals, indicating that this person had snuck past them.
To evade them… this individual must be beyond Leader-Level…
“Haha! Did you really take down this guy?” The figure’s voice grew excited, clearly referring to the burning “Wig” on the ground.
“That’s impressive! We couldn’t even fight back against it; couldn’t even locate it. Any approach was detected instantly, and it would go berserk…”
Though the figure’s tone was awkward, the excitement was evident: “I intended for you all to turn on each other and then pick up the pieces while you were busy escaping… Honestly, I didn’t expect you to even find it, let alone injure it…”
“Turns out even lowly humans can be this capable… hahaha…”
Ling Mo kept his focus on the shadow on the ground, noting the distinct, oversized head.
So this is the Zombie behind the Hallucinogen traps…
He had considered the possibility that a Zombie was behind all this. However, the intelligence of this bighead Zombie surpassed his expectations.
Using others to kill and capitalizing on chaos… these strategies were concocted by a Zombie!
Just as the Zombie couldn’t fathom “Wig” being taken down by a human, Ling Mo’s perception of Zombies was also rapidly evolving.
“Judging by its stealth abilities, it’s clear it hasn’t only evolved in intelligence…” Ling Mo thought, trying to buy more time…
“The fire’s almost out!”
The bighead suddenly shouted.
Ling Mo didn’t avert his gaze, quietly channeling his newly recovered psychic power to form a Tentacle.
He was ready to strike the moment the bighead made a move.
“Go, pick up that red thing for me.” The bighead’s next sentence nearly made Ling Mo choke.
“Don’t just stand there, lowly human.”
Ling Mo’s eyes grew cold. Great, it’s an arrogant Zombie.