Chapter Fifty-Five: The Journey Home

Aside from the corpses, Ma Yi also requested a military vehicle and a large quantity of soul fragments. As for the prominent figures of the Southern Base, they never appeared from the very beginning. Even as Ma Yi drove away, he had not once seen any of them, nor did he care to. Nevertheless, his appearance was deeply imprinted in the minds of the upper echelons of the Southern Base.

“All right, that’s enough. Kill him,” Ma Yi said, glancing at Li Li, who was covered in filthy blood. Xu Qiang lay on the ground, barely breathing. Ma Yi approached, crouched down, and patted Li Li on the back to calm her down. Her current state was far from good—she seemed almost deranged. Were it not for Ma Yi’s intervention, she might have lost her mind entirely.

“I’ve avenged myself,” Li Li looked up at Ma Yi, tears cutting two clear tracks through the blood on her cheeks. Now, reminded by Ma Yi, her face was filled with pain, but as he continued to gently pat her back, her expression gradually eased.

“Yes, you have your revenge,” Ma Yi nodded, then wiped the blood from her face with his hand. After a closer look, her pupils seemed normal enough; it appeared there was no lasting harm.

“Thank you,” Li Li whispered. After years of hardship and suffering, she had finally fulfilled her dream—yes, a dream. Unlike others who only wished to survive, Li Li was driven by hatred. Without it, she might have long since perished—devoured by some zombie or fallen prey to an evolved beast while venturing outside. It was her memory of vengeance that made her so meticulous and cautious, all in service of living long enough to see her revenge fulfilled.

“There’s no need for thanks. I promised you, and I keep my word,” Ma Yi smiled. Compared to the expressionless, cold-blooded figure he had been in front of his enemies, he was now a different man entirely.

Once Li Li was soothed, Ma Yi walked over to Wu Jiang.

“Sir, why not rest inside the base for a while?” Wu Jiang hurried forward as Ma Yi approached, feeling it was only right to play host to such a powerful evolved being—an alliance that could only benefit the base in the future. Moreover, Wu Jiang had the sense that he would cross paths with Ma Yi again. Making a personal connection could be a lifeline one day, even if the base were eventually overrun; so long as he survived, he might find support in Ma Yi.

“No need, but I appreciate the offer. I’ll rest out here. Without my watchful eye, these zombies might not behave, and who knows what trouble could arise,” Ma Yi said, glancing at Wu Jiang and then at the massive horde of zombies drawing closer. Tens of thousands of zombies were no small number, a dark mass swarming everywhere. Right now, they were cleaning up the battlefield.

In truth, “cleaning up” meant devouring the corpses of both zombies and humans that hadn’t been charred—these were the zombies’ energy source, the key to their evolution.

“All right, I’ll have someone bring you a military tent,” Wu Jiang nodded. So long as the gesture was appreciated, the rest was up to fate. Overdoing it might only make a bad impression.

Ma Yi placed the Zombie Queen in the center of the tent, with Li Li keeping watch. He stepped out to observe the battlefield as tens of thousands of zombies devoured the remains—both human and zombie. Even the three little mice were busy. As corpse beasts, they weren’t picky; with so much fresh blood and meat, they feasted to their hearts’ content.

At mealtime, Wu Jiang personally delivered a meal—meat and vegetables, the flavors quite decent. Ma Yi felt a certain fondness for Wu Jiang, who, as one of the base’s senior staff, showed clear judgment and tact.

The Zombie Queen developed a fever, which Ma Yi considered normal—each of his own evolutions had been accompanied by fever and unconsciousness. As expected, her body grew stronger, her power advancing another step. Once at the Reversion level, she was now approaching the Transcendent tier. Her once-tall frame had shrunk quite a bit, though not to the size Ma Yi had been during his own transformation. Now, the Zombie Queen resembled a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old girl.

“She’ll wake soon.” Ma Yi could sense the increasingly strong breath of the Zombie Queen. She was still his first test subject for his abilities; as he perceived it, should he wish to kill her, a mere thought would trigger the seed he’d planted in her body to rampage through her organs until she was utterly destroyed.

Wu Jiang delivered the military off-road vehicle Ma Yi had requested—a Brave Warrior model—with enough gasoline in the trunk to travel over a thousand kilometers, a large supply of soul fragments, and some vacuum-packed food.

“Sir, as for maps, I doubt any are accurate now. This is our military’s Beidou map. The satellites are destroyed and unusable, but this device can triangulate your position using underground base stations scattered across the country and display your exact location. You can correct your route according to where you are and where you want to go,” Wu Jiang explained, placing a thick tablet before Ma Yi and arranging for a power port to be installed in the driver’s cabin for charging the navigation system.

“Thank you. If we meet again and you need my help, I’ll do what I can,” Ma Yi replied, well aware that Wu Jiang’s hands-on approach was not without purpose—he was simply doing his best to earn Ma Yi’s goodwill.

“Then I thank you in advance, sir,” Wu Jiang smiled. The environment was growing ever more unpredictable; keeping a line of retreat was a matter of survival. Better to have one and not need it than need one and not have it.

The Zombie Queen finally woke. She was delighted by the growth in her strength, but saddened to hear that J5, who had always accompanied her, had perished to protect her. From her earliest memories, J5 had always been with her, and now he was gone.

When Ma Yi invited her to return with him, she hesitated but ultimately declined. Learning from him that her enemy had perished in the explosion, she felt no joy in revenge, only a deep sense of loss—not just for J5, but also from a newfound understanding of her own power. Even after her recent breakthrough, she still felt dwarfed by Ma Yi’s strength, which stung her pride.

Despite her melancholy, the Zombie Queen was deeply interested in Ma Yi’s three little mice—just as she’d once been fascinated to learn that evolved beasts could become zombies.

“Give me one, please?” The Zombie Queen, now appearing as a young girl, clung to Ma Yi’s arm, shaking it. She loved the little mice, perhaps because they now resembled hamsters. Their once-long tails had evolved to retract, and each mouse had shrunk to about thirty centimeters—indeed, they looked like oversized hamsters. Since following Ma Yi, their strength had soared; they were now at the Dark Gold level, nearly at the Reversion stage, on par with J5, while the Zombie Queen herself was only at the late Reversion stage, preparing for the next transformation.

“I’m afraid you won’t be able to control it. Didn’t you notice these three are as strong as you?” Ma Yi said with a hint of exasperation. On a whim, he had fed his blood to the mice, and they’d evolved rapidly, transforming into adorable creatures—nothing like the menacing beasts they’d once been. Now, they looked every bit the lovable pets.

“Just one, please? They listen to you, right? You can tell it to obey me,” the Zombie Queen pleaded, hugging his arm. In this moment, she seemed nothing more than an innocent girl. Who would believe this same girl had once led a million zombies to assault the Southern Base as their fearsome queen?

Ma Yi felt a headache coming on. Perhaps all Zombie Queens matured well; little girls with cherubic faces and voluptuous figures could be lethal. Though he was much more composed than before and far less susceptible to feminine wiles, he still found it hard to resist her persistent entreaties. Her thin vest did little to hide her form, and the sensation against his arm made even this grown man blush.

“All right, all right,” Ma Yi conceded at last. This was not out of lust but out of friendship. After all, chance meetings could lead to bonds, and the Zombie Queen was now, unbeknownst to her, his own descendant. For her sake, giving her a mouse for protection was only right.

“Yes! Wonderful!” Although she was nearly at the Transformation stage, the Zombie Queen celebrated like a jubilant child, dancing about with delight every time her new prize was revealed. Ma Yi could not help but feast his eyes on such a display.

“Choose one,” Ma Yi called the three mice over, watching as the Zombie Queen began to select with great seriousness.

“This one, this one—it’s the cutest,” she said, pointing to the little mouse with a tuft of golden fur on its head.

“Very well, as you like,” Ma Yi replied, stroking the mouse’s head. It seemed to melt with pleasure. He picked it up and placed it in her arms, then gave it a serious set of instructions. The little mouse, startled at first, soon nodded cutely in understanding.

“I’ve made things clear to it. Are you sure you don’t want to come with me?” Ma Yi looked at the Zombie Queen. He had invited her to leave with him, not out of some desire for her beauty, but because he valued talent. She was, after all, his first descendant, already close to the Transformation stage—a waste not to have her as a subordinate, a loss of a great general.

“I want to travel, to see the world. Perhaps we’ll meet again someday,” the Zombie Queen replied cheerfully. Though tempted by Ma Yi’s invitation, her newly expanded intellect urged her to explore the wider world.

Ma Yi nodded, letting her lead the remaining zombies away. These tens of thousands of zombies had clearly grown stronger; with ample blood and flesh, they were well fed and full of hope for further evolution. That was the advantage of zombies—so long as there was enough flesh and blood, their strength could keep increasing.

After enjoying a thorough bath under Li Li’s care, Ma Yi donned a clean black combat suit and fastened his weapons belt around his waist. He now exuded a formidable aura; his body, having undergone repeated transformations, was now even more refined and handsome than before the catastrophe, though what truly set him apart was the bearing of a superior—a sense of aloof authority.

From an orphaned nobody, Ma Yi had survived one bizarre ordeal after another. In just over half a year, he had attained strength far beyond the reach of ordinary men. His perspective was necessarily higher than most, and his calm demeanor inspired awe.

Li Li also changed into a combat suit. As the height of human evolvers increased, many high-quality special operations suits had been abandoned in the warehouse for being too small. Since Ma Yi admired such gear—and cherished his past military aspirations—he took several more.

Wu Jiang was happy to fulfill Ma Yi’s requests. Different models and colors, all brand new, were neatly stacked in the trunk—over a hundred in total. Had Ma Yi not insisted it was enough, Wu Jiang would have filled every last inch of space.

“Take care. Fate will bring us together again,” Ma Yi said, shaking Wu Jiang’s hand for the first time. Such a simple gesture left Wu Jiang feeling honored; here was a being of incredible power, now bidding him farewell with warmth.

“Let’s go.” Ma Yi’s heart had never been so stirred—he was finally going home. After all his journeys, he was at last returning. The vehicle shot forward, raising a cloud of dust, and soon disappeared from view amid the smoke and ruin.

He had been away for months; Ma Yi could barely even recall Liu Wen’s face. Yet, in his heart, this woman—whose features he could no longer picture—remained the most important person in his life. Ma Yi was excited; he had finally completed his transformation, his body restored to the level of a normal human being.