“Achoo!”

Ling Mo covered his nose and sneezed, then rubbed the tip of his nose. “Is someone talking about me?”

As he pondered this, he reached out and accurately caught something above his head. Without even looking, he casually stuffed it into a preservation bag.

The bag was already half-filled with Virus Gel, all in irregular, blood-red shapes that looked bizarrely beautiful.

A strong scent of the virus wafted from the bag’s opening, making Ling Mo sniff reflexively.

Even though he was human, finding this smell appealing was quite odd. But this scent was indeed…

Delicious!

“At this rate, another two hours should be enough…”

By now, the hunt had been going on for over three hours, and the search area had expanded to the entire city center.

Ling Mo was pleasantly surprised by how much Virus Gel they had collected. This was a result of the zombies’ evolution. Half a year ago, even collecting ten gels would have been a tough task. But now, many Mutation Zombies had appeared, and there were quite a few Advanced Zombies as well.

Leader-Level zombies were still rare, but the chances of encountering them had increased significantly compared to before.

The evolution of zombies was undoubtedly a disaster for the survivors, but for Ye Lian and the others, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

As he thought about it, Ling Mo found himself feeling conflicted.

On one hand, as a human, he didn’t want to see such scenes.

On the other hand, he had grown accustomed to considering things from Ye Lian and the others’ perspectives, often unconsciously viewing these issues from their angle.

Over time, even he didn’t know which side he leaned toward more. f𝚛ee𝐰𝗲𝐛n𝐨v𝚎𝗹.com

“Stop thinking, stop thinking…”

Ling Mo shook his head and suddenly smiled.

He caught another gel that flew from who-knows-where and stuffed it into his bag.

Meanwhile, he wasn’t idle. Several Psychic Tentacles were acting as surveillance cameras in different directions, preventing any sudden danger.

Although Ling Mo felt much more at ease after the earlier probing, he couldn’t afford to let his guard down.

Looking at Ye Lian and the others, it was clear that zombies had terrifying ambush abilities.

They restrained themselves around Ling Mo, but in battles against other zombies, they became increasingly adept.

At first, they seemed somewhat less “wild,” but as time passed, their stealth and ambush skills became almost as sharp as those of the Senior Zombies who lived in constant slaughter.

This was also a form of training for them. Ling Mo, however, believed that staying with humans wasn’t necessarily bad for them.

While they might be less instinctive and their evolution slower compared to wild zombies, they were far better at using little tricks.

Often, a simple trap could give them the upper hand in an instant.

Among the female zombies, Ye Lian was an exception.

Her attacks were more primitive, closest to those of wild zombies.

Ling Mo thought this might be because of her minimal intellectual recovery…

Perhaps it was precisely because of this that she could, purely by instinct, achieve mastery in marksmanship.

Even Xu Shuhan, who had a related Superpower and tried to control it deliberately, couldn’t surpass Ye Lian.

Comparing the two, it was hard to say which method was better.

This was beyond Ling Mo’s control; he could only let things take their course.

Moreover, Ling Mo believed that the Leader-Level was more like a transitional phase for zombies truly advancing to higher levels.

The real direction of evolution would likely become clear only after they reached the Dominant Level…

“Smack!”

Another gel was thrown over, and Li Yalin’s figure flashed in the distance.

However, the quality of this gel was much lower, indicating that good prey was becoming scarce.

Among all the gels Ling Mo had received, none were from Xiao Bai.

Considering that Xiao Bai was just a Mutation Panda, this mode of operation was indeed a bit challenging for it…

It was a rare opportunity for Xiao Bai to fully unleash its instincts, and it was visibly excited.

As a Mutation Beast, its terrifying and ferocious nature was on full display. Its savage, beast-like attacks once again made Ling Mo realize that this wasn’t just a rolling furball but a fearsome white beast.

Xiao Bai grew braver with each battle, swallowing quite a few Virus Gels over the past three hours.

It even dragged out a Mutation Dog from a corner. Using its massive size advantage, after a fierce struggle, it seized an opportunity and executed a Panda Fall, crushing the unfortunate Mutation Dog to death.

However, after ingesting this Mutation Beast Gel, Xiao Bai suddenly became lethargic.

“MeGu~”

It whimpered, wobbling as it ran back to Ling Mo.

Ling Mo, who was eagerly counting the gels, was startled by the panda’s unsteady state.

“Xiao Bai?” He quickly ran over and cupped Xiao Bai’s head.

Xiao Bai lazily lifted its eyelids, then flopped down on the spot.

The alley was already narrow, and now with Xiao Bai lying down, the entire alley was blocked by a large furball.

“What’s wrong?”

Ling Mo rubbed its head, inspecting it from top to bottom.

Xiao Bai laid its head completely on the ground, its eyelids drooping, and kept making indistinct whimpering sounds.

Seeing Ling Mo find nothing after his inspection, Xiao Bai suddenly lifted a paw and covered its head before slowly letting it drop.

“Don’t tell me you have a headache?” Ling Mo’s eye twitched as he asked.

“MeGu…” Xiao Bai stared blankly ahead, its black eye circles seemingly even larger.

“Let me check.” Ling Mo held its large head and pressed his forehead against it.

After sensing for a while, Ling Mo frowned and said, “Your Psychic Fluctuation is fine. Could it be a physical issue?”

Thinking about the latent infection in its body and the large amount of Virus Gel it had just consumed, Ling Mo suddenly understood.

“Are you about to undergo a Mutation? This reaction is quite different from zombies…”

Xiao Bai still looked weak and listless. “MeGu…”

Ling Mo quickly placed his hand on Xiao Bai’s neck and felt an alternating cold and hot sensation on its skin.

He was instantly excited. Though he had seen Black Silk evolve multiple times, he had only witnessed a partial evolution.

Now, he was finally able to observe the evolution process of a Mutation Beast up close.

However, thinking about the mixed virus, Ling Mo couldn’t help but feel anxious.

With so many chaotic viruses mixed together, what kind of evolutionary direction would Xiao Bai take?

“Anything is fine, just don’t turn into a miniature version!”

Despite his thoughts, Xiao Bai’s evolution was beyond Ling Mo’s control.

Minutes later, under Ling Mo’s expectant gaze, Xiao Bai’s reactions became more intense.

It convulsed all over, emitting painful-sounding whimpers.

Ling Mo stroked its head, trying to make it feel more comfortable, while simultaneously enduring the psychic pressure brought on by Xiao Bai’s evolution.

As the Psychic Fluctuation hit him, Ling Mo felt a wave of relief.

Had he not recently received an upgrade, he might not have withstood the intensity of this impact.

Moreover, the impact came in waves, each stronger than the last, relentless like the ocean, leaving no room for respite.

The threat to the Psychic Link during the evolution of a Zombie Puppet was the biggest flaw in Puppet Control.

When one’s own abilities were weak, it was easy to become overly reliant on Zombie Puppets.

Once a Zombie Puppet evolved, the resulting psychic backlash could cause significant harm, potentially even breaking the Psychic Link.

Losing control over a Zombie Puppet in such a scenario would likely result in being torn apart.

Ling Mo, of course, did not have this problem, but the dizzying sensation was still quite unpleasant.

However, this experience also served to temper and compress his Psychic Power, contributing positively to its growth.

The intellectual enhancement of a Mutation Beast was limited, thus the benefits to Ling Mo were also limited. He cared less about how much his Psychic Power would increase and more about Xiao Bai’s evolutionary outcome.

The Mutation Panda hung its head listlessly, its plump body writhing slowly on the ground.

Ling Mo noticed patches of sweat on the ground, and Xiao Bai’s eyes, opening and closing, were so red they looked like they might drip.

“Please don’t screw this up…” Ling Mo murmured to himself.

As Xiao Bai’s convulsions grew more violent, Ling Mo’s focus intensified.

It’s coming! It’s almost here!

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