Chapter 24: Mushroom Jiang

"This wasn't scratched by a zombie; otherwise, I would have mutated long ago," Jiang Qiqi said, looking at her wound with no recollection of it. Even during the adrenaline rush of escaping, she didn't feel any pain in her leg. Now that she noticed it, the wound felt hot and painful, but it was overshadowed by the panic from the fear.

Jiang Qiqi didn't dare to look at Tan Xinger and her group, afraid of seeing fear and disgust. She didn't want to be thrown out, but she also didn't want to harm her friends.

Tan Xinger looked at the wound on Jiang Qiqi's leg and decided to step forward to check it, but she was unexpectedly pulled back by Gu Jingyong.

Jiang Qiqi realized what Gu Jingyong's action meant and slowly backed away, increasing the distance between her and Tan Xinger.

Tan Xinger looked at Gu Jingyong with a puzzled expression, seeing disapproval in his eyes.

The wound on Jiang Qiqi's leg was suspicious, but she hadn't mutated.

"Xin-ge, I didn't mutate. This should be just a wound I accidentally scraped," Jiang Qiqi said to Gao Xin, thinking about how she had fallen several times on the way upstairs. Maybe she had bumped into something accidentally then.

Thinking of this, Jiang Qiqi's dim eyes slowly regained their brilliance, but they were quickly dashed by Song Qing's words.

"The zombies have mutated to be practically immortal. Who knows what kind of reaction an infected person might have? Maybe there's an incubation period. Anyway, you can't stay here," Song Qing said, her gaze flicking to something, then she shouted, "There's still blood on the ground! You must leave immediately!"

Following Song Qing's pointed finger, everyone saw a clear trail of blood on the ground, extending from the doorway into the room. Jiang Qiqi stared blankly at the trail of blood, and the final position was exactly where she had been standing just now.

"Wuwu, Xing Zi," Jiang Qiqi felt a bit overwhelmed, looking at Tan Xinger and bursting into tears.

Tan Xinger felt her thoughts in chaos, never expecting Jiang Qiqi to get injured.

But the next second, she seemed to be shocked as well, quickly running to Gu Jingyong's side, grabbing his arm and hiding behind him.

Gu Jingyong noticed her movement, so he followed her hand and hid his right arm behind him, tidying up his sleeve to cover the wound on his wrist.

Seeing Gu Jingyong understand her intentions, Tan Xinger relaxed and let go of him.

Just now, she noticed that there were also two wounds on Gu Jingyong's arm, clearly scratched by zombies. In the current situation, they couldn't afford to have another suspected infected person.

Originally worried about being infected by zombies herself, Tan Xinger never expected Jiang Qiqi to be the first one to suffer.

"Qiqi, it's okay," Tan Xinger said, turning around to search for the sterile bandages in her bag, but she couldn't find them no matter how hard she tried.

Seeing Tan Xinger visibly distracted, Gu Jingyong couldn't bear it and pulled her aside, finding the sterile bandages in his own bag and handing them to her.

"To ensure your safety, I need to tie up your hands and feet first," Gu Jingyong said, turning to look at Jiang Qiqi. His tone was not up for negotiation, making Jiang Qiqi feel even colder in her heart, but she also knew that this was Gu Jingyong's last resort.

Gao Xin stood by observing Jiang Qiqi, feeling a wave of relief. They had all been praying that Jiang Qiqi had injured herself and not been scratched by a zombie, but they couldn't rule out the possibility of being contaminated by zombie blood or fluids.

So he took the initiative to step forward and said, "Let me do the tying."

Gu Jingyong had no objections, so he stepped back to give Gao Xin space.

Jiang Qiqi frowned and cooperatively extended her hand for Gao Xin to tie up with the cloth strips.

Seeing their harmonious actions, Song Qing couldn't let it go.

"She can't stay here. We've all seen the power of the zombies. A piece of rope won't restrain her. She must leave. This isn't just your territory," she insisted.

This statement caught the attention of Xiaowu and Li Jie, who looked visibly shaken.

Meanwhile, Tan Xinger was treating Jiang Qiqi's wound. When she noticed the white powder near the wound, she pondered.

This wound was probably indeed caused by Jiang Qiqi herself. If it had been scratched by a zombie, it wouldn't have been contaminated by falling wall dust, and there would have been signs of corrosion around the wound.

The hesitation of Xiaowu and Li Jie seemed to give Song Qing more confidence, so she once again demanded that Jiang Qiqi leave.

Hu San watched Jiang Qiqi with calm amusement, his face filled with satisfaction and the expression of someone watching a drama. Jiang Qiqi hated him to the point of gritting her teeth.

After bandaging Jiang Qiqi's wound, Tan Xinger stood up and rolled her eyes at Song Qing.

Internally, she muttered, "You think a piece of rope can't restrain a zombie? Was I playing jump rope with zombies earlier?"

"While this isn't our place, anyone who doesn't want to stay here can leave," she added.

Tan xinger glanced at the doorway, then shot a disdainful look at Song Qing before retreating back to Gu Jingyong's side.

Song Qing felt stifled, almost steam coming out of her head, but seeing Gu Jingyong and Si Qiao standing next to her, she didn't dare to act rashly.

She tried to sway Xiaowu and Li Jie, but they immediately turned away, just distancing themselves from Jiang Qiqi without showing any intention of intervening.

Seeing her efforts failing, Tan xinger couldn't help but enjoy the show, but it was accompanied by a sense of powerlessness.

Jiang Qiqi was tied up against the wall, staring blankly at her clothes, completely immersed in despair.

Tan xinger sighed and walked a few steps away before squatting down, making Jiang Qiqi look at her.

"Qiqi, as long as you leave the instance before midnight tonight, everything will be fine. Don't be too sad," Tan xinger said, trying to console her.

Jiang Qiqi felt a bit relieved by Tan xinger's words. There were less than twelve hours left until the end of the instance, and her wound would have no effect once they left.

"Heh. Acting like a good person," Song Qing sneered upon hearing her words, making Tan xinger itch to give her a slap.

After giving Jiang Qiqi some water, Tan xinger sat down next to her, keeping watch. Gu Jingyong was discussing the next plan with Si Qiao and Gao Xin.

Normally, Tan xinger had a habit of taking a nap around this time, and coupled with the exhaustion of the past few days, drowsiness slowly crept over her. Leaning against the wall, she slowly closed her eyes.

Gu Jingyong had been paying attention to the situation here. When Tan xinger fell asleep, he lowered his voice, and Gao Xin and Si Qiao also lowered theirs, carefully discussing their plans.

After sleeping for who knows how long, Tan xinger felt a bit sore as she slowly woke up. Her eyelids felt heavy as if they were glued shut.

She was still in a dazed state, but she somehow felt that something bad was going to happen.

Tan xinger woke up abruptly, but when her eyes fell on the area, she didn't see Jiang Qiqi. She was startled and jumped up, spinning around before finally spotting Jiang Qiqi nibbling on a piece of bread.

"What's wrong?" Gu Jingyong asked, looking at Tan xinger's terrified face with concern.

Jiang Qiqi also stared at her, but her mouth was stuffed with bread, rendering her unable to speak.

"It's nothing, just thought you turned into a zombie," Tan xinger said, scaring herself. Seeing everyone looking at her nervously, she waved her hand to indicate that everything was fine.

Tan xinger looked at Jiang Qiqi, who could only move one hand, with amusement. The other hand was tied to the windowsill with a rope, making her look like a little dog. It was quite amusing.

"Why are you still eating?" Tan xinger asked.

"I'm too hungry," Jiang Qiqi said awkwardly, smiling.

Tan xinger sat down beside her and absentmindedly grabbed a piece of bread. Just as she was about to take a bite, she heard a sharp sound.

"Ah—"

The scream was piercing. Tan xinger had just taken a bite of bread and was almost scared enough to bite her own tongue. She quickly looked towards the source of the sound.

Turning around, she saw Song Qing's pale face. A man was biting her neck from behind, and fresh blood soaked her collar instantly.

Her eyes were filled with disbelief. Her bulging eyes slowly turned bloodshot under everyone's gaze, as if they were about to burst out with force.

No one had expected this to happen. Everyone stood up in shock, holding their weapons and watching their every move.

Hu San had already grasped his knife and stood to the side, watching Song Qing's gradual mutation process with cold eyes.

The zombie that bit Song Qing had entered with them just now. He didn't stand out much, but Hu San never expected him to stay with them in the instance for so long, let alone nearly deliver a fatal blow.

If he hadn't reacted quickly and pushed Song Qing away to block the zombie, he would be the one dead now.

Song Qing's originally somewhat angry eyes gradually turned gray, and finally blood dripped from her eyes.

Her once plump skin also shriveled rapidly, like a corpse, and all of this happened in an instant.

"How could this happen?" Jiang Qiqi, who was still sitting on the ground, shivered as she watched the scene.

Soon, Song Qing completed her mutation. Her whole body resembled a lifeless dried wood, with skin tightly wrapped around bones, elongated teeth exposed, and her eyes locked onto them, rushing towards them with the man who had bitten her.

Tan xinger calmed herself down, gripping the dagger in her hands, ready to stab Song Qing in the heart as soon as she got close.

Gu Jingyong naturally wouldn't give Song Qing a chance to attack. He snatched the steel pipe from Si Qiao's hand and threw it with force.

Song Qing, with her distorted face and eyes wide open, was a stark contrast to her previous self, as if she had transformed into a different person in an instant.

In the next moment, the steel pipe pierced through Song Qing's shriveled body, sending her tumbling to the ground.

Tan xinger pulled Jiang Qiqi away, and Gu Jingyong quickly stepped forward, lifting Song Qing and tossing her out of the window.

The other zombie was also thrown out by Xiaowu and Li Jie, resolving the chaos. Everyone felt a lingering fear.

"The blood on the ground should belong to that man just now. I saw bite marks from the zombie on his calf," Xiaowu clapped his hands and glanced at Jiang Qiqi before saying, "I don't know why it took him so long to show symptoms, but for the sake of everyone's safety..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood his meaning. Jiang Qiqi ran to the side and reattached the rope that had been cut earlier, gesturing for Tan xinger to help her tie it up.

As Tan xinger tied the rope, she thought about Song Qing's death, feeling a sense of lamentation. Life was full of variables; one moment you could be laughing and joking, and the next moment, everything could change.

"Sigh!"

Tan xinger sighed, feeling the weight of her thoughts. She noticed everyone's eyes on her.

"Um, I just feel like the air isn't very fresh," Tan xinger said, feeling Gu Jingyong's gaze on her change slightly. Thinking about what happened before, she swore this time it really had nothing to do with him.

Jiang Qiqi, unaware of the situation between the two, saw Tan xinger finishing tying her up and curled back into the corner against the wall, quiet like a mushroom.

But this mushroom didn't stay quiet for long.

"There's someone outside!"

Jiang Qiqi looked outside in shock. To make sure she wasn't seeing things, she was about to rub her eyes when she realized her hands were tied.

"Jiang Nan?"

Tan xinger instinctively called out his name when she saw the person clearly.