The Zombie I Flirted With After Losing My Memory, Who Was Pretending to be an Alpha, Is Actually My Ex - Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Encounter

The backup power only ensured the operation of essential instruments and the elevator. The laboratory lighting was reduced to a single green, flickering emergency light above the elevator door.

“Let’s go.” Teng Xi tucked in Xie Jinbing’s collar. The air conditioning had stopped, but the indoor temperature hadn’t dropped yet; she was simply worrying for no reason.

Xie Jinbing pressed the elevator button and said, “Shi Yun’s office is on the 15th floor, but the elevator only stops at even-numbered floors.”

“Go to the 16th then, and we’ll work our way down.” Teng Xi nodded. The 16th floor was the top floor; starting from there meant they wouldn’t have to worry about being flanked from above.

They were currently on the 2nd floor, and the elevator was stopped on the 14th. It descended quickly. Both women stood ready.

“Hello. The elevator has arrived at the 2nd floor.”

Inside the elevator, a mechanical voice announced the arrival. As the doors slid open, the zombies inside turned their heads mechanically. There were five of them, all wearing white lab coats.

Upon spotting the pair, they lunged forward with roars.

Teng Xi slashed off a set of reaching claws and swung for a skull. A zombie lunged from the side, but before it could even touch her clothes, Xie Jinbing kicked it back into the elevator with such force that a dent appeared in the metal wall.

The sight of the zombie flying past made Teng Xi narrow her eyes. She feigned difficulty in pulling her Miaodao out of a zombie’s skull and looked at Xie Jinbing nervously.

“Sister Xie, the blade is getting dull.”

Before she could finish, another zombie lunged at her face. Teng Xi swung her blade, but only half the metal bit into the zombie’s shoulder. The creature was only hindered for half a second before swinging its claws again.

Xie Jinbing frowned at the sight. Just a second before the claws could reach Teng Xi, she swung her palm down with enough force to cave in the zombie’s facial bones.

“Sister is so amazing!” Teng Xi looked at Xie Jinbing, practically wagging an invisible tail.

Over the next few minutes—with Teng Xi alternating between a “useless slacker” and a “god of war”—they quickly cleared the remaining zombies. Finally, under Xie Jinbing’s suspicious gaze, Teng Xi brazenly held her blade up to her, pointing at the slightly notched edge and saying pitifully, “It’s really notched. And I don’t know any other moves.”

Xie Jinbing looked at her half-doubtingly, but ultimately accepted her role as the protector of this pitiful follower.

They entered the elevator. Xie Jinbing swiped her access card before she could successfully press the 16th floor. The elevator moved at a steady 1m/s. Teng Xi stared unblinkingly at the floor display, her hands tight on her Miaodao; a well-timed “hero saves the beauty” moment might be just what they needed to improve their relationship.

But Fate did not grant her that chance.

“Not a single person?” The moment the elevator doors opened, she was ready for battle, but there wasn’t a single zombie in the lab.

Xie Jinbing shrugged. “This is Shi Yun’s private lab. Usually, no one else is allowed here.” This was exactly why she had chosen this floor first.

Teng Xi nodded, but then a realization hit her. She snapped her head up to look at her, her expression saying I knew it! “She really was chasing you, wasn’t she? Otherwise, why would you have access to her private lab?”

Right, why do I have access? Xie Jinbing narrowed her eyes. She had never been to Shi Yun’s lab before. If not for this crisis, she wouldn’t have known she had clearance here.

They hit the emergency switch for the air shower and entered the outer ring of the lab. Xie Jinbing pressed the intercom to pull up the surveillance footage.

There wasn’t a ghost of a soul outside, let alone a zombie.

“Does no one come to this floor either?” Teng Xi arched an eyebrow.

Xie Jinbing shook her head uneasily. They waited another three minutes, but still, nothing appeared on the monitor. She tentatively pressed the door release button.

“Beep—Beep—Beep—“

The two stepped back as the lab doors slowly opened. A thick stench of rot rushed out, making them gag. Teng Xi poked her head out first, scanned left and right, then stepped out fully. She lowered her cautiously raised blade. “Nothing… living.”

Nothing living. Aside from a few zombies lying scattered on the floor, all had their skulls pierced by sharp weapons. Blackened blood was splattered across the floor and walls.

A breeze blew from an open window into the empty corridor, the chill raising goosebumps. Xie Jinbing stood beside Teng Xi, her gaze unreadable as she surveyed the scene.

Teng Xi knelt down and used the tip of her blade to poke at an unidentified fluid leaking from a zombie; it was still viscous and hadn’t completely dried.

“They haven’t been dead long. No more than half a day.”

Xie Jinbing also knelt, using a scalpel to push aside a zombie lying on its side. A 4cm-long incision was clearly visible on its forehead. “A blade wound.”

The two exchanged a look. An uncertain answer began to surface in their minds.

The hallway was deathly quiet. Both walked with extreme caution; only the birds outside the window chirped happily, ignorant of the horror.

The Section A building was triangular, with an elevator on each side and only one stairwell, which was quite far from the lab.

As they slowly made their way toward the stairs, the number of corpses increased, and the signs of battle became more obvious. Near one elevator bank, Teng Xi noticed black scorch marks scattered around, looking like they had been hit by explosives.

Teng Xi knelt and rubbed the black powder between her fingers, bringing it to her nose. The pungent smell of saltpeter made her frown, and suspicion grew. If it really was them, then it seemed the person they were “paid to rescue” was on one of these floors. But it also seemed the group had been hiding things from her.

“Explosives?” Xie Jinbing noticed her dark expression and guessed the truth.

“Yeah,” Teng Xi nodded coldly.

They didn’t linger and headed for the stairs. They didn’t encounter a single living zombie along the way. The corpses became more frequent, and occasionally they saw scattered shell casings, making their expressions even grimmer.

They entered the stairwell cautiously. Teng Xi peered over the railing into the stairwell. Zombie heads were packed densely below, twitching slightly. The path to the 15th floor was clear, but the floor below that was swarming. A bad feeling settled in her gut.

Teng Xi gave Xie Jinbing the hand signal for [Wait]. She crept down the stairs and gave the 14th-floor door a push. It didn’t budge. A faint metallic clinking came from behind the door, and the zombies below looked up at the sound.

She dropped into a low crouch and backed away slowly, out of the zombies’ line of sight.

As expected, the door had been locked.

Returning to the 16th floor, they decided to risk the elevator. If they were lucky, the zombies on the 15th floor had already been cleared, and they wouldn’t be trapped.

When the elevator opened on the 15th floor, it was exactly as they hoped—not a zombie in sight. It was eerily quiet.

The string of “coincidences” was becoming too frequent to ignore.

Xie Jinbing led the way to Shi Yun’s office. Since many days had passed since the start of the crisis, neither was sure if Shi Yun would still be there.

With a nervous heart, Teng Xi politely raised her hand and knocked: “Knock knock.”

She didn’t actually expect an answer. While knocking, she pouted at Xie Jinbing. “Sister Xie, surely your access card doesn’t have clearance here too?”

Xie Jinbing shrugged and, under Teng Xi’s gaze, swiped her card.

“Beep—“

“…”

Teng Xi looked at her with an expression that said I’ve been cheated on.

“I really don’t have a thing with her!” Xie Jinbing rubbed her forehead, but then realized—why was she explaining herself to the person who cheated first? She shut her mouth, gave Teng Xi a cold snort, and pushed the door open.

Teng Xi, suspecting her “wall” was being undermined, felt wounded. She interpreted Xie Jinbing’s cold snort as disappointment (“Why don’t you trust me?”). Thus, Teng Xi—having learned the art of self-gaslighting in love—transferred all her resentment onto the yet-unseen Shi Yun.

The moment the door opened, they were met with three pairs of eyes. Both parties stared in a daze before recovering from their combat-ready stances.

When Teng Xi saw the disheveled, exhausted state of Yao Zhi and the others, she kindly put their deception out of her mind for a moment.

“Master!”

“Master’s good apprentice!”

“?”

Inside the office, upon hearing Teng Xi acknowledge the title of “Master,” the surprised looks on the faces of Yao Zhi’s group turned to horror. They looked at Teng Xi as if she had been possessed.

Feng Sisi raised her Miaodao and pointed it aggressively at the two in the doorway. “Where have you hidden my Master?”

Teng Xi’s figure blurred, moving so fast she left afterimages. With a “Clang,” Feng Sisi’s blade was flicked aside. Teng Xi gripped her scabbard and smacked the hilt against Feng Sisi’s head. Feng Sisi clutched her head in pain, but that confirmed the person before her was indeed Teng Xi.

Ignoring the bump on her head, Feng Sisi’s eyes lit up. “Master! You’re finally willing to accept me! My sincere attitude must have moved you!”

“Watch your manners,” Teng Xi snorted, lecturing Feng Sisi like an elder. How dare she point a blade at my woman!

Si Qinghan’s gaze flickered between them, her fox-like eyes narrowing. She thought to herself: When people are unusually kind, they’re either up to no good or want something.

Sure enough, Teng Xi grabbed Feng Sisi’s arm, leaned into her ear, and whispered at a volume only they could hear: “Good apprentice, let me ask you a question. If your wife is angry, how do you coax her?”

“? You guys?” Feng Sisi’s eyes darted frantically between Teng Xi and Xie Jinbing. If not for her severe rhinitis, she probably would have leaned in to sniff Xie Jinbing for clues.

Feng Sisi gave Teng Xi a thumbs up. “As expected of my Master.” She then leaned in and whispered something back.

Xie Jinbing closed the door behind them and surveyed the room. She had only been here once, and the layout was exactly as she remembered. It was definitely Shi Yun’s office, but Shi Yun was nowhere to be seen.

“Why are you here?” Xie Jinbing asked, her voice still very hoarse.

“Was all that handiwork along the way yours?” Teng Xi gave Feng Sisi a threatening smile that made her skin crawl.

“Master, don’t look at me like that, I’m scared.” Feng Sisi couldn’t take the pressure and scrambled behind Yao Zhi, muttering, “Mother Yao, save me.”

Yao Zhi gave a light laugh, selectively avoiding the previous question. “The person we are looking for was supposed to be here.”

“Shi Yun?”

“You know her?” Yao Zhi and the others asked in unison.

Teng Xi didn’t answer. Instead, she said, “She’s the one we’re looking for too. But how did you get in?”

She and Sister Xie relied on an access card. What about them? How much more were they hiding?

Yao Zhi and the others caught the look in Teng Xi’s eyes. Si Qinghan pulled a card from her pocket and waved it smugly. “Cracking a small access lock shouldn’t take much effort.”

As they spoke, Xie Jinbing began searching the room, her gaze finally landing on the computer on the desk.