Chapter 43: Fourth Day, Noon
It was already past ten in the morning, nearing noon, when I left my room.
And when I came out of Lianbing’s room, I coincidentally ran into Lily. She obviously knew what had happened. Three people skipping activities, and then me walking out of their room… there was no need for an explanation, it was incredibly awkward.
“Remember to submit your report before the end of the week.”
Then, Lily, looking like she had more to say, finally uttered that one sentence about her teaching duties.
“Oh! I got it!”
Lily then walked past me, preparing to enter Lianbing’s room.
“Wait, wait—”
I quickly blocked the door, stammering in a panic.
“Th-they… they’re still not dressed and sleeping together!”
“So, until just now, it’s been… no matter what, going this far for the first time is already… insane.”
She seemed to be about to say “insane,” and I agreed. I had thought that I might have my first experience during this vacation, but I never imagined it would happen on the second day, and with two people at once!
I had to admit, no one could resist such temptation. Being able to walk out of that door was already a great feat.
“Um, I…”
“I know, it definitely wasn’t your idea. Those two together are more seductive than any siren, and you’ve already taken care of them. They should still be sleeping. I’m just going in to check on their physical condition.”
Everything was predicted. Was my personality that easy to guess?
“Yeah.”
Lily’s words should be fine. And I guessed it was her responsibility as a teacher to check on them, which was why she was going in. It was surprising that she accepted this so readily. Although I had done a rough cleanup, there were still some traces left. I should have stopped her.
“Juncheng, you should relax too. All activities end this morning. Starting this afternoon, it’ll be free time. Oh, and open this door before you go. You must have the key, right?”
Under her gaze, I had no choice but to take out my key card and open the door for her.
“—Jun, Jun, Juncheng, you…”
After Lily walked in, she exclaimed, her voice stammering even when saying my name.
I silently prayed and closed the door. Before the door closed, I thought I heard Lianbing say, “Oh? Hehehehe, isn’t this Teacher Lily? Come to check on us? Then I’ll have to make you shut up—”
Right, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear anything.
Ignoring the heavy knocking, I walked out. After wandering around for a bit, everyone else returned for lunch.
“Yo~ Juncheng~ I didn’t see you yesterday, where did you go~”
It didn’t seem quite right. The first part might be true, but the latter part was that I was the one being played.
“No way, no way~ You went to skip class and play, and didn’t even take me! You’re not a good friend!”
“Forget it, forget it! Starting this afternoon, it’s free time! Let’s go surfing together after we eat!”
Li Nai appeared energetic. I thought I really needed to distract myself with other things. Otherwise, whenever I was idle, I’d keep thinking about what happened, almost like I was possessed.
So, after lunch, I went to the beach with Li Nai and the others in the afternoon. Most people chose the same. My sisters, whom I hadn’t seen for a few days, and Yu Hui also appeared on the beach in swimsuits. They had probably known when our vacation started and came just in time.
Xinran and Keling were as usual. If anything, they were just a bit excited about being at the beach. But Yu Hui, like Lily, whom I had seen that morning, had a complicated expression. So she knew too. Feeling like I had done something wrong, I couldn’t stay there any longer, so I quickly escaped, using the excuse that I had already made plans to surf with Li Nai. I had only intended to find an excuse to leave, but it turned out surfing was quite fun.
“Whoa~ The beach is so different~ I’ve always wanted to play like this to my heart’s content~”
After one session, Li Nai said to me, placing her hand on the surfboard.
“What, don’t you have swimming pools in the Underworld?”
I remembered seeing them a few times. The facilities seemed quite complete, so there should be swimming pools, right?
“There are ‘Zombie Swimming Pools,’ but I really don’t want to go.”
“The main reason is that it’s suffocatingly hot in the Underworld. If it’s too dry, your body might even spontaneously combust! It’s very dangerous.”
“Spontaneous human combustion!”
That’s horrifying.
“So, during summer, there are frequent high-temperature alerts. When the alert sounds, everyone rushes to the swimming pool.”
Oh, indeed, water would be very nice at a time like this.
“But because corpses swell easily in water, and everyone doesn’t want to move in the heat, they end up floating in the swimming pool like actual corpses. Sometimes, there’s no room to even get into the pool.”
“And one time, the administrator, out of habit from before he died, disinfected the pool with chlorine. It caused a reaction with the viruses in the zombies in the pool, and they instantly ignited! Hahaha~ It was like gasoline on the sea being ignited, wow~ So spectacular! Hehe!”
You’re still laughing! Sometimes being so carefree is truly frightening.
“It was also thanks to Mama arriving in time that the accident was prevented from spreading. Although some zombies’ skin was burned off.”
As expected of a city of the undead, it was truly filled with the unreal everywhere.
However, even more incredible things were yet to come.
“So, instead of foolishly crowding in the pool, it’s better to catch a ghost.”
“Huh? A ghost?”
“Yeah, there’s a cold aura around ghosts, they’re basically natural air conditioners!”
“Wait, catch a ghost?! How do you catch them!”
“You go to the Organization and get a talisman. Catch a ghost and put it into a blessed bottle. Then, seal the bottle cap with a piece of scripture, and put a little holy water at the bottom. The ghost will be so scared that it shivers and releases cold air!”
Are you a demon?! You scoundrel!
“Hee hee, it’s super convenient~ Not only is it cool, but it can also be used as a portable refrigerator! Let’s go catch ghosts together when we get back.”
Li Nai, ignoring my attitude, just continued talking to herself.
“But lately, there are fewer and fewer ghosts.”
Since the conversation had started, I could only continue listening to her chatter. This time, however, she didn’t spout as much nonsense or make lewd jokes. It was quite nice to hear her talk about the Underworld.
I actively cooperated, wanting to get into the Light Novel—
“Why?”
“Because the Crown of the Dead and the Heart of the Undead have already been given to Lianbing. Therefore, this land will no longer produce such large numbers of zombies and other undead beings like skeletons or ghosts.”
“Oh… so that’s the source.” I had been wondering why our city had so many undead. Was it because of that Heart of the Undead?
“That’s right. And during the last ghoul incident, the awakened Ji Lianbing took most of the unawakened undead in the outer wild areas to her ‘Abyss of Death.’ It’s a paradise for the dead. I think it’s better than wandering aimlessly in the outer wild areas.” Ah, it was when she wanted to revive me, wasn’t it? In the end, Lianbing involved almost all the undead present. It was a time of pure happiness, fulfilling desires. Whether it was ascending to heaven or decomposing, that was the ending for the awakened undead: dust to dust. Eventually, everyone would disappear, and the Underworld would turn into ruins.
The topic seemed to have become a bit heavy, and even Li Nai looked dejected. I thought I should change the subject to lighten the mood. But before I could think of anything, Li Nai perked up and said,
“By then, other zombies will just have to work for the Organization~ We can establish a new department, the Zombie Department! Ahaha~”
“Huh? Zombies? Won’t zombies disappear too?”
“Of course not. We are zombies, not ghouls. Mama said ghouls are the dead. When the original corpses can move, they are no longer considered human, but monsters. Zombies are also monsters, but they are not dead, are they?”
“Huh? I don’t understand.”
“How about this! Let’s go back to the beach first. I’ll draw a picture and explain it to you there!”
So, we swam back to the beach. After putting down the surfboard, Li Nai sat down and started explaining.
“Originally, when ordinary people die, they directly become corpses, and their souls drift away. But zombies are in this place.”
“Like this, zombies haven’t truly reached death. Due to external factors, meaning the virus, they are long delayed in the process of dying, to put it bluntly, they are in a state of half-life.”
“Yeah, it’s very ambiguous. If you really want to count, we zombies are not undead at all. We are just a group of guys who haven’t died yet. But as long as we haven’t reached death, we won’t turn to dust like the undead. Since we haven’t died, how can we become mere dust?”
“Then why do some zombies lose their minds, while others, like you and me, have normal thoughts?”
“What is the so-called awakening all about?”
“It’s simple. You see, when people die, they lose consciousness, right? Zombies are half-dead, so their consciousness is also in a state of loss. Their bodies act on instinct. If they’re hungry, they look for food. If they hear something, they go together. The behavior of increasing companions comes from the virus’s nature of spreading. The zombie virus is very unruly, always wanting to spread and increase… Speaking of which, heh heh, maybe that’s why I wanted to turn Juncheng into a zombie back then.”
“The result of awakening is like ‘waking up from a dream.’”
“Ah, but because the brain function is also partially lost when dying, some zombies are in a state of semi-awakening and can’t speak human language.”
“Oh, oh, so they speak zombie language like ‘oh oh ah ah,’ which is practically moaning… ugh, bad, I remembered yesterday again. Evil thoughts, begone!”
“By then, the zombies in the inner city will probably join the Organization like us. No need for sleep, no need for food, tireless. zombies are ultimate labor! And with antidotes available, as long as management is not an issue, zombies can even integrate into human society. Ah, of course, I mean awakened zombies.”
“Incredible! Absolutely incredible!”
I actually found Li Nai to be so knowledgeable and smart. This must be an anomaly!
So – hmm – is Mama managing such a city?
Uh, I still can’t call her that, so I’ll just call her Mama like Li Nai.
Thinking about this, I suddenly remembered a very important matter and quickly asked.
“By the way, what about Mama?”
“Hmm, Mama won’t be. She’ll also join the Organization, probably becoming a section chief like Miss Akiko.”
“Huh? Why only Mama?”
Hearing my question, Li Nai didn’t answer directly this time. Instead, she crossed her arms and tilted her head in thought for a moment, then blurted out.
“I don’t think I can tell you the reason, Juncheng!”
“Why?”
“Because it might make you sad.”
Make me sad. Does that mean the reason is related to me?
“Since you’ve already said it, it’s like giving me a preemptive strike. Tell me.”
“Mhmm, mhmm, mhmm… Hmmm.”
“Please! If you tell me, I promise I won’t ignore you anymore!”
“Ugh, fine then.”
She actually agreed. Hey, how much do you want me to pay attention to you?
“Juncheng, do you know how Mama died?”
“Uh, she died in childbirth.”
“To give birth to me and Xinran…”
“Yes, and her corpse would undergo transformation, becoming a malevolent flesh. It was precisely because she gave birth to you two.”
Because she gave birth to us?!
I looked at Li Nai with a look of astonishment, and Li Nai continued under my intense gaze.
“I heard it was because the Destiny Power of the child she was carrying—that is, you and your younger sister—was too strong, and it was not accepted by the world, so it was…”
This is absurd! The world would interfere with such things…
How could this be possible?
“Nothing is impossible. Just like in many novels, powerful individuals are not accepted by ‘heaven’ when they are born, hence the lightning tribulations, right? I think it’s similar to that.”
“Xinran and I haven’t done anything special. Wait, Destiny Power? What is that?”
Because our Destiny Power was too strong? What is Destiny Power?
“I don’t know.”
You don’t know!
“I only overheard Mama and the Principal talking. I have no idea what it means. Tribulation, unable to rest in peace, her corpse turned into Yin Sha Flesh due to a curse, sealing her soul. And to prevent her soul from being devoured by the Sha Flesh, she had to drink blood, eventually becoming a Blood Corpse King. For Mama, true death would be liberation.”
She turned into that… because of me and Xinran?
She died because of us.
I found it hard to accept this fact and slumped onto the sandpowerlessly, stunned.
Not far away, I could see Xinran and the others approaching. Xinran… I absolutely cannot let her know about this! I had originally wanted to take Xinran to see her. How could I let her know such a truth…
“It’s okay, it’s okay. Mama never complained. As a mother, she was happy to die for you, wasn’t she?”
“How could that be… Happiness turned into that blood-drinking…”
I bit my lower lip and hit the sand, but I couldn’t fully vent the grief and indignation in my heart.
Li Nai continued to explain.
“Mama doesn’t drink much blood.”
“And it’s all provided by the Organization. Those energetic guys from the Control Department take turns every week.”
Li Nai wanted to continue comforting me. At that moment, I suddenly hugged her. It wasn’t out of improper thoughts, but because I genuinely felt that it was so good that Li Nai was here.
“Thank you for being by her side—really, thank you so much.”
“This, Mama is like family to me too…”
“I know, so— I’m sorry, I was so casual with you before.”
Li Nai is a great benefactor! I should treat her like a younger sister, just like Xinran and Keling. I used to find her annoying, but now, thinking about it, it was precisely because of her cheerful personality that she eased my burden. Suddenly, I found Li Nai a bit cute.
“Th-that, it’s okay to be casual~ Hey, hey, Juncheng, with you suddenly doing this, I’m not used to it—”
Li Nai, being hugged by me, panicked, just like when she saw Mama at my doorstep. Her words became stammered.
“I’m sorry, it was my fault before. I won’t treat you that way anymore.”
“Eh! No way! Aren’t we a comedy duo? One sets up, the other knocks down. If you don’t complain, there’s no fun! Huh? You’re deliberately saying those things to provoke me, aren’t you!”
I rolled my eyes and said.
“Brother! What are you two doing!”
At this moment, others, led by Keling, also walked over. Because my sudden hug of Li Nai had alarmed them, they immediately forcibly separated me and Li Nai as soon as they arrived. Keling and Xinran also stood in front of me, preventing others from approaching. If my sisters found out… I absolutely cannot let them know! Later, we splashed around in the water for a bit before heading back.
On the way back, Li Nai and I fell behind, some distance from the others. She seized the opportunity and said to me with utmost seriousness.
“Speaking of which, I think you should be careful, Juncheng?”
“Hmm? Careful about what?”
Speaking of which, I’ve always been careful.
“Think about it. Although you were born with Mama’s help, without Mama’s protection— perhaps there will be other…”
I’ve been encountering unlucky things lately.
So, I’m really born unlucky! Damn it! I’m going to cry!
What kind of hell is this!
