The Abused Heroine Stops Pretending [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 76.2

Tang Jing nodded. “There are ten shelters set up along the highway not far ahead, but we didn’t go there for… certain reasons.”

Su Zhen replied, “A-Yuan and I didn’t go either. We wanted to find our own way to the base in the east. Rumor has it they’ve already built a stronghold there and are taking in survivors.”

There were two bases in the east, one in S City and another in B City. Tang Jing wasn’t sure which one he was referring to, but she could tell he was still wary of them. Since that was the case, she didn’t press further and simply said, “We’re heading there for the same reason.”

Hearing this, Su Zhen realized the girl had her own plans. That piqued his interest, she wasn’t stupid, after all.

Then again, it made sense. If she were truly foolish, she wouldn’t have survived this long.

The two exchanged a few more words, sharing basic information but nothing beyond that.

It was still bright outside, and Tang Jing wanted to leave the city before nightfall.

“You’re leaving today?” Su Zhen sounded surprised.

Tang Jing explained her reasoning. “This place isn’t any better than the wilderness. Even though most of the zombies have been cleared out, there are still too many survivors here.”

She didn’t need to elaborate further Su Zhen understood her implication. After a moment of thought, he turned to Ye Yuanhua and said, “We’ll leave the city before tonight too.”

Ye Yuanhua nodded. “Alright, whatever you say.”

Tang Jing couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something unusual about their relationship, though she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

Once their plans were set, both groups headed upstairs to gather supplies.

Worried that someone might sneak in while they were looting, Tang Jing had Zhou Tiantian keep watch at the second-floor stairwell, ready to alert them if anyone approached.

“Here, take this,” Su Zhen said, pulling a walkie-talkie from his pocket.

Tang Jing raised an eyebrow. “You even have these?”

“Got them from someone else.”

Pushing a shopping cart, Tang Jing quickly swept through each floor, loading up as much as she could. When it came time to go downstairs, she transferred everything into baskets since the escalators weren’t working, making it impossible to bring the cart down.

She didn’t take too much just the essentials, focusing mainly on food and water, since those were the most critical.

Once the car’s backseat and trunk were packed, and their backpacks filled with emergency supplies, she was ready to go.

Su Zhen and Ye Yuanhua had also finished gathering supplies. Their van was nearly full as well.

“Want to stick together?” While collecting supplies, Su Zhen had privately discussed with Ye Yuanhua and decided it might be better to travel with Tang Jing’s group, there was strength in numbers.

Tang Jing hesitated, concerned about her senior in the car. After a pause, she said, “My situation’s a bit complicated. Let’s talk about it once we’re out of the city. For now, we can cooperate temporarily.”

“Deal,” Su Zhen agreed without hesitation.

Tang Jing didn’t hide their next destination. “We’re heading to the police station now. You coming?”

“Was just thinking the same thing,” Su Zhen said, even more convinced that teaming up was the right call.

With that, the two vehicles, one following the other drove away from the supermarket.

Not long after they left, a group of people slipped into the supermarket, but this had no impact on them.

Tang Jing and the others communicated via walkie-talkies, which made things much easier.

When the apocalypse struck, the police station was far from peaceful. Tang Jing and Ye Yuanhua went inside while Su Zhen and Zhou Tiantian kept watch outside. For their safety, they were told to stay in the car. If anything seemed off, they were to drive away immediately and wait at the prearranged location.

Sitting in the car, Su Zhen glanced at the rearview mirror, where the Hummer behind them was clearly visible. From this angle, he could see the person sitting in the passenger seat a woman, though her face was obscured by heavy wrappings. His eyes darkened as a possibility occurred to him. After a moment of surprise, he smirked. “Interesting.”

Meanwhile, Tang Jing and Ye Yuanhua, armed with weapons, cautiously made their way toward the police station’s armory. The eerie silence along the way didn’t put them at ease instead, it heightened their vigilance.

Abnormalities always signaled danger. During the outbreak, the police station had been packed with people, yet now it was deathly quiet. Something was clearly wrong.

As they reached a corner, Tang Jing and Ye Yuanhua exchanged a glance, their expressions grim. They were thinking the same thing. Gripping their knives tightly, they stepped forward.

A guttural, beast-like growl distinctly zombified made them raise their blades instantly.

Ye Yuanhua peeked around the corner and shook his head at Tang Jing, signaling that the zombie wasn’t in sight.

Remaining alert, they turned the corner and continued forward until they reached the end of the hallway. A glance at the sign confirmed they had arrived at their destination.

“Shh.” Tang Jing raised a finger to her lips, listening intently. The door wasn’t fully closed, and from inside came the unmistakable, shuffling footsteps of a zombie.

Ye Yuanhua heard it too. After a silent exchange, Tang Jing pulled the door open while Ye Yuanhua rushed in, aiming to strike before the zombie could react.

Tang Jing followed closely behind.

The room was dim, but they could still make out the zombie’s shadow. Ye Yuanhua was already locked in combat with it.

Worried the noise might attract more zombies, Tang Jing shut the door behind her and joined the fight.

During the struggle, she noticed the zombie’s pupils had a faint pink hue, similar to the little zombie they had encountered before. It seemed this one had also consumed quite a few crystal cores recently.

When they had subdued the little zombie, they’d had the help of their senior, making it effortless. Now, it was just the two of them and this zombie was no small fry. It was a burly man, nearly as tall as Su Zhen.

“I’ll distract him. You flank him,” Ye Yuanhua said.

Tang Jing immediately understood. She maneuvered with her knife, drawing the zombie’s attention while Ye Yuanhua circled behind. The moment the zombie focused entirely on Ye Yuanhua, she struck swift and precise slashing a deep gash across the back of its neck.

The zombie, mid-swing with its claws, collapsed lifelessly to the ground. This time, it was dead for good, no chance of reanimation.

Tang Jing wiped the sweat from her forehead.

Ye Yuanhua frowned, staring at the corpse with confusion.

“He leveled up,” Tang Jing explained, seeing his puzzlement. She stepped forward with her knife and split open the zombie’s skull.

Ye Yuanhua was stunned. “What are you?” His question trailed off as she dug out a gleaming crystal from the zombie’s brain. “What is that?” he asked, intrigued.

“I call it a crystal core,” Tang Jing said as she placed it into a bag. “It can enhance a zombie’s level.”

“How do you know that?” Ye Yuanhua, though tall and sturdy, was far from slow-witted and quickly sensed something amiss.

“I’ll explain once we’re out of the city.”

This was the same line Tang Jing had used back in the supermarket, which only deepened Ye Yuanhua’s curiosity about what she was hiding.

“Let’s hurry and see if there’s anything useful here. We’ve been inside for a while now,” Tang Jing redirected his thoughts.

“Yeah.”

They encountered some minor obstacles, but overall, things went smoothly. Outside, Su Zhen and Zhou Tiantian, who were keeping watch, didn’t run into any unexpected trouble either, the best outcome they could hope for.

After gathering enough firearms and ammunition and confirming nothing was left behind, they drove out of the city.

The sky gradually darkened, and the fog thinned slightly.

The journey was uneventful, except for a group of people they passed on their way out. They didn’t stop not only did the strangers look like trouble, but the supplies in their vehicle were better kept hidden. Right now, they were like walking lambs, easy prey in a world where everyone had gone mad, and human nature was the least reliable thing.

Once on the highway, they drove a considerable distance before stopping in an open area where visibility stretched far in all directions.

The flat plains meant they could spot any approaching zombies or humans from a distance.

Tang Jing stepped out of the car, followed by Su Zhen and Ye Yuanhua, who had been leading the way. They were ready to hear what Tang Jing had to say, as well as the details of what had happened at the police station that afternoon, Ye Yuanhua had already briefed Su Zhen during the drive.

Tang Jing stopped two meters away from them, and Su Zhen tugged at Ye Yuanhua’s sleeve, halting him as well.

“I really want to work with you,” Tang Jing began, “but the person I’m with is… special. Once you learn who she is, you might be shocked.”

“A zombie?” Su Zhen cut in, defying expectations.

The response stunned not only Tang Jing but also Ye Yuanhua.

“Did you see her this afternoon?” Tang Jing couldn’t help but suspect.

“No, he was in the car the whole time,” Zhou Tiantian chimed in as she walked over.

Su Zhen grinned. “Simple guess.”

Tang Jing chuckled. “I have to admit, your mind is sharp.”

From their first meeting, Tang Jing had sensed Su Zhen’s shrewdness, it felt like nothing could stay hidden from him.

“I’d pieced most of it together this afternoon,” Su Zhen said. “After Yuan told me what happened at the police station, I was ninety percent sure.”

“Why not a hundred?”

“I wanted to see for myself.”

“Aren’t you afraid?” Tang Jing raised an eyebrow.

“Your senior is so close to you, and you’re not scared. Why should we be?” Su Zhen countered.

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