Ch 43: Opening a Survival School Before the Zombie Outbreak

When Skull regained consciousness, he looked through swollen, narrowed eyes and saw the old house once again filled with light.

Pain throbbed across the back of his head and neck. It was easy to imagine how ruthlessly the woman in the gas mask had struck him.

An indescribably nauseating smell lingered in his mouth. Skull ran his tongue over his teeth and nearly gagged.

He did not dare reveal that he was awake. Closing his eyes again, he tried to gather information through hearing first.

People were talking inside the room.

It took little effort for Skull to recognize the voice of the woman who had fought him.

The sound came from some distance away. After a moment’s thought, he quietly opened his eyes a sliver.

Not far off, Fu Qing stood with her back to him, saying something to the five people wearing ridiculous masks.

The one in the screaming-chicken mask had her head lowered deeply, and Fu Qing’s gaze rested on her.

“…Next time remember, don’t use anything with a scent before going into combat.”

“Not just zombies. There are plenty of humans with extremely sharp senses too.”

For example, herself.

In a calm, instructional tone, Fu Qing added, “This time you escaped only because preparations were made in advance and your opponent wasn’t very bright. If you expose yourself while fleeing next time, no one will be able to save you.”

The “not very bright” Skull: “…”

Clearly it had been the baseball cap guy chasing the screaming chicken. Why did he still feel personally insulted?

Su Huaijin, wearing the screaming-chicken mask, listened with utmost seriousness, nodding from time to time, not daring to be careless.

Not everyone could receive direct guidance from the principal. She had to cherish this opportunity.

And she finally understood why she had been exposed.

Back during the lesson explaining that “zombies rely mainly on smell and hearing in darkness,” Zhao Yunxiao had reminded everyone to switch to fragrance-free shampoo and detergent. Su Huaijin had done exactly that.

But before leaving today, she had used hand cream, and that particular cream had a scent.

She had overlooked it.

It was that very hand cream that allowed Skull to detect her position even while she lay silently at the stairwell without making a sound.

Su Huaijin sniffed her wrist. Sure enough, a faint lingering fragrance remained. She felt deeply annoyed with herself.

“I’m sorry. I won’t forget again. I’ll remember to double-check… no, wait, I’ll write it down now. Some lessons really can only be learned through real combat.”

She quickly opened the floating screen of her student watch, pulled up her notes, and began writing intensely.

One person started studying at the slightest cue, and the others, question marks practically appearing above their heads, had no choice but to follow and take notes as well.

For a moment, the room was filled only with rapid tapping sounds.

Unable to see their advanced devices, Skull could only infer what they were doing from their conversation. He stared at Fu Qing in utter disbelief.

If looks could bite, she would already be riddled with holes.

This woman… she was actually using him as a teaching aid.

“Oh? Awake already?”

As if she had eyes in the back of her head, Fu Qing suddenly turned, her gaze colliding with his resentful stare. She even curved her lips slightly and greeted him.

The sound of note-taking stopped instantly.

Following their principal’s lead, the five members of the publicity team turned together to look at the “Skull,” firmly tied to a chair.

The meme-like masks they wore were absurd and comical, yet when they all stared silently at someone, an inexplicable chill crept over the target.

The air in the room thickened. After Fu Qing spoke, no one said anything for a while.

The five students’ emotions were complicated.

They had never imagined that coming out with the principal tonight would expose them to such a shocking secret.

First, they learned of the zombie believers, a group that worshipped zombies during a peaceful era before any outbreak, dedicating themselves to feeding both themselves and others to zombies, even carrying out multiple live human sacrifices in different places.

Then, while helping the principal subdue the believers who had come looking for trouble, they unexpectedly saw Skull’s true face.

A person already zombified, yet still capable of thinking and communicating.

What did that mean?

They did not know whether to be more shocked that the zombie virus might already exist in this world, or that a half-zombified being like Skull could exist at all.

The sheer volume of information was overwhelming. Zhuo Xiaoliang and Yue Yuxuan, convinced their brains could not process it all, gave up trying to analyze anything further and simply struggled to absorb what they had learned.

Su Huaijin, meanwhile, did not dare think too deeply. She feared her entire worldview might collapse if she did.

Amid the confusion, all of them instinctively turned once more toward Fu Qing, hoping she would give them answers and help them make sense of the situation.

Fu Qing did not seem to notice everyone’s gaze, or perhaps she did and simply felt no pressure at all. She calmly straightened the hem of her clothes before walking toward Skull.

That casual “You’re awake” sounded almost like a warm morning greeting between friends or family.

But the moment Skull met her eyes, he suddenly understood.

In that light, effortless manner, she had already decided his fate.

Only one path awaited him.

Death.

There was no fear in Skull’s heart, only fervent, burning devotion.

Fanatical light flickered in his eyes. His throat, scorched by chili powder, sounded even hoarser, rasping like sandpaper as he spoke in a low voice:

“You… won’t get a single piece of information from me.”

“I will never betray our Lord.”

The five students frowned at his words.

Skull was tied tightly to an armchair in the center of the living room. A table had been placed not far in front of him, its dust already wiped clean. Fu Qing sat casually on the table, hands folded, looking completely at ease.

She studied his defiant posture for two seconds, then suddenly smiled.

“Who said I needed information from your mouth? I don’t.”

She tapped lightly at his chest.

“You’re already here. A living, controllable half-zombie. That alone is our greatest gain.”

The corner of Skull’s eye twitched. Realization dawned, and his breathing grew heavy.

Fu Qing’s voice was soft, yet impossible to ignore.

Unhurried, chillingly calm, she continued:

“From now on, you can remain silent.”

“But every inch of your bones, every piece of your skin, every drop of your blood… is information.”

“When everything is over, humanity will remember your contribution.”

As the final word fell lightly into the air, Skull suddenly lunged forward like a maddened beast, as if trying to tear out her throat through sheer will, only to be violently yanked back by the coarse rope binding him.

The five students jumped in fright.

Fu Qing, closest to him, did not move at all. She watched his desperate struggle with something almost resembling pity.

When Skull finally exhausted himself, panting heavily and glaring at her with murderous hatred, she rose calmly to her feet.

Looking toward the air above his head, Fu Qing made a small sound of realization, as if recalling something forgotten.

“Oh right. You just said you’d never betray your ‘Lord’…”

With a teasing smile, she mocked lightly, “That’s new information. Thank you. So zombies actually have a ‘Lord,’ huh…”

Her voice faded into thoughtful murmuring at the end.

Skull froze.

His pupils trembled. Strength drained from him as if pulled away entirely, and he slumped back into the chair in despair.

His tall frame suddenly looked gaunt, like a walking corpse.

Fu Qing turned away. The smile lingering at her lips vanished as she moved, half her face sinking into shadow, her entire presence sharpening with pressure.

A Lord…

The Zombie King.

Was that the existence hiding behind the believers?

Of course.

Ever since learning of the believers, Fu Qing had felt something missing.

Throughout history, human faith always required a tangible anchor. Even vast oceans or the endless cosmos were personified into sea gods or heavenly emperors before people could worship them.

The zombie believers were cultists, not fools. Why would they worship something as ugly and mindless as ordinary zombies?

There had to be something, or someone, who demonstrated a power worthy of devotion.

And Skull’s half-zombification was likely proof of that power.

The only question was whether this “Zombie King” truly existed, or was merely symbolic.

Fu Qing’s expression darkened unconsciously.

She recalled Skull’s earlier words.

“Is there really a difference between humans and zombies?”

Now she finally understood the believers’ logic.

If a zombie capable of speech and thought, indistinguishable from humans, stood before people… would humanity still be so determined to kill zombies?

If that zombie happened to be your family, your lover, your lifelong friend… could you still strike them down?

If…

Familiar faces flashed before Fu Qing’s eyes.

Liu Yong’s shouts before his arrest, the cries of zombie devotees rushing toward hordes in her previous life, echoed once again in her ears.

This time, their voices seemed louder.

“This isn’t death. It’s rebirth.”

If zombies could truly think and communicate, then death, to humanity, would merely become another form of immortality.

The immortality humanity had pursued for thousands of years.

Fu Qing felt as though a tidal wave of change was rushing toward her, battering the lone stone trying to resist the current.

At that moment Zhuo Xiaoliang spoke softly, cautiously:

“…So this is what the believers accept? That by worshipping the Zombie King, they can keep their reason, gain enhanced senses and strength, and become immortal zombies?”

Honestly… that sounded more believable than waiting for aliens to rescue humanity.

Freckles snorted.

“In the end, it’s just people wanting to climb over others. Most zombies wander mindlessly and can be killed easily by ordinary people with weapons. Only a few gain power above both humans and other zombies. Human society spent thousands of years struggling toward imperfect equality, and they want to drag inequality back into the world. Becoming a zombie isn’t evolution. It’s regression.”

“Their so-called evolution is built on countless sacrifices.”

Skull continued staring in their direction, but Freckles no longer seemed afraid. She spoke with open contempt.

“You’re right,” Zhuo Xiaoliang agreed immediately, then hesitated. “I’m just worried…”

He was not tempted by immortality himself, but he suspected that once such beliefs spread during an apocalypse, countless people would kneel and worship the Zombie King for a chance at survival.

Even in peaceful times, people like Liu Yong and Skull already existed, willing to step over others’ corpses.

“It’s the source of disaster, yet people worship it as a savior. That’s absurd,” Sun Wei said with disgust.

“I couldn’t trade millions of lives just so I could survive,” Yue Yuxuan lowered her eyes. “I’m just an ordinary person, like countless others trying to live ordinary lives.”

“So between a small elite and billions of ordinary people—”

The five exchanged looks and reached a silent agreement.

Su Huaijin finished the thought carefully, word by word:

“I will always stand with the latter.”

Amid the surging tide, more small stones gathered beside the great rock, forming an anchor strong enough to hold fast.

The tension in Fu Qing’s shoulders slowly eased.

The crisis was approaching, yet without realizing it, others had stepped beside her, building a human wall together to face the storm.

“And besides, zombies are carbon-based life. How could they truly be immortal? Isn’t this just a scam?”

Having reached consensus, the group’s whispered discussion suddenly shifted tone.

“Yeah, hard to kill isn’t the same as unkillable. Let them try fighting the principal once.”

“Shh, quieter.”

“And zombies don’t even eat. How do they survive, photosynthesis? After a few years of wind and rain they’d just rot. Totally unscientific. People actually believe this is evolution?”

“Sigh. That’s why people need more education. Learn a little biology and you wouldn’t fall for cult brainwashing…”

They had no idea their “quiet” conversation was perfectly audible to both Fu Qing and Skull. Heads leaned together, masks bumping as they whispered nonstop, an endless stream of chatter like noise drilling into the ears.

Tied in the middle of the living room, Skull’s face turned green. He began violently slamming himself against the chair again, producing loud clattering noises.

“Stop struggling. Save your strength.”

Fu Qing strolled over with arms folded, having let the students talk freely. She patted Skull’s shoulder kindly.

“There’s still plenty for you to do tonight.”

Precious experimental subject, Skull: “…”

His expression darkened completely.

₊˚.🎧📓✩

Sandy: so become immortal = impossibly ugly? No, thank you 💅