Chapter 183: Raising a Little Zombie 1

As soon as Yunyun finished speaking, the zombie that had only been kneeling on the ground suddenly lunged forward. Terrified, he clung to his father’s leg and scrambled upward.

He climbed up on his own, wrapped his legs around Xie Hui’s waist, threw his arms around his neck, and buried his face in the crook of his father’s neck, aggrieved.

“Wuwu, Daddy, run! He’s crawling over!”

Most of the time, Xie Hui enjoyed holding his child, but this was the first time he’d encountered one who climbed up so quickly on his own. He reached out and gently patted the boy’s back.

“Don’t be scared. He’s not coming any closer.”

The little zombie clinging to him like a koala was trembling with fear, and Xie Hui could clearly feel it.

For some reason, Xie Hui suddenly recalled something the Client had said.

After turning into a zombie, Yunyun had been extremely wary of others. It was his own father who had taken him to the lab, making him a test subject.

In the end, the male and female leads became revered figures thanks to what they extracted from this child. Yet the little zombie who had given everything was remembered only as a nameless test subject.

“Daddy, don’t lock me outside again. What if a zombie comes and bites me? Wuwu…”

Hearing his pitiful complaint, Xie Hui gave a helpless smile and nodded.

“Alright, I promise it won’t happen again.”

Although, in Xie Hui’s opinion, if this little guy ever faced off against other zombies, it might be the zombies who’d end up more scared.

Holding the child in one arm, Xie Hui grabbed a kitchen knife from the house and walked over to the zombie, chopping off its head without hesitation.

Using the little one’s chest to cover his nose and mouth, he dug out a gleaming crystal core from the zombie’s skull.

Once someone turned into a zombie, their body emitted a strange, putrid stench.

After extracting the crystal core, Xie Hui was about to look for gloves when he glanced up and met Xie Yun’s aggrieved gaze.

“Wuwu, Daddy, it smells so bad. Why didn’t you cover my nose too?”

Having never raised a zombie before, Xie Hui’s first instinct upon hearing this was surprise—so zombies could still retain their sense of smell?

“I’m sorry. Daddy didn’t think of that.”

He apologized sincerely, then put on a glove, picked up the crystal core, and walked over to the sink to rinse it off.

The apocalypse had only just begun. Although most areas had lost power due to the destruction caused by zombies, the water supply was still functioning.

After washing the crystal core clean, Xie Hui handed it to Xie Yun.

“Daddy, why are you giving this to me?”

Xie Yun took it blankly, clutching it in his palm before finally asking.

“I’ll explain later, alright?”

The door had already been broken down by the zombie that barged in, and with so many zombies in the area, Xie Hui figured the most urgent task was to find a safer place.

The little zombie in his arms seemed pretty tough, but right now, he was just an ordinary person—food in the eyes of other zombies.

“Okay. But Daddy, you have to remember to tell me later!”

“Mm.”

Xie Hui pulled out the suitcase left by the original host, packed up a few essentials, and left with Yunyun in tow. One hand held a baseball bat, and he’d also tucked the kitchen knife into the bag.

They encountered quite a few zombies on the way. Since it was still early in the apocalypse, the zombies weren’t very strong. Xie Hui dealt with them without much trouble.

Not every zombie had a crystal core in its head. From Xie Hui’s observations, the more agile ones were more likely to have one.

Most zombies at this stage were stiff and slow. Aside from not feeling fatigue or pain, they weren’t much different from humans.

Xie Hui had arrived in this world in the morning. After a long day, he finally found a star-rated hotel by nightfall. When he walked in, most of the guests had already turned into zombies.

A few survivors were still there, huddled in corners and crying.

“I’ve cleared out all the zombies in this hotel. Pack up and get out while you can. Be careful out there.”

As Xie Hui passed by one corner, he spotted a girl curled up there and offered a kind reminder.

Fortunately, it was still the early days of the apocalypse. Once order completely collapsed later on, the darkest sides of human nature would be laid bare for all to see.

“Really?”

Xie Hui, holding Yunyun’s hand, heard the voice behind him but didn’t respond.

He would help when he could—but only if it didn’t put them at risk.

He found a vacant room that hadn’t been occupied before the apocalypse, used a key he’d picked up at the front desk, and pushed the door open.

After thoroughly checking the room to make sure there were no zombies, Xie Hui finally relaxed. Just as he turned to speak, he saw Xie Yun already sitting solemnly at the edge of the bed.

“Daddy, maybe you should turn yourself in.”

The sudden statement from the child left Xie Hui frozen in place.

“Hm?”

“Even if I have to go to an orphanage, I’ll be good. When I grow up, I’ll come visit you in prison!”

Tears welled up in Xie Yun’s eyes as he spoke.

He jumped off the bed, ran over, and hugged Xie Hui’s leg, his voice trembling.

“Daddy, you killed someone this afternoon. We should turn ourselves in.”

Only then did Xie Hui finally catch up with this little guy’s train of thought. He crouched down, intending to ruffle his hair, but Xie Yun quickly clamped both hands over his head.

“Daddy, the TV said if you turn yourself in, your sentence can be reduced. Don’t try to trick me. If you do, I’ll report you myself!”

No matter how Xie Hui tried to explain afterward, the little guy remained convinced he had committed murder. He thought those people just had weird makeup on.

Having never seen someone’s head cracked open before, Xie Yun didn’t question the rotting smell either.

By midnight, Xie Hui’s throat was dry from explaining, but the little one still insisted he should turn himself in.

So Xie Hui simply pulled open the curtains and let Yunyun see the scene outside for himself.

They were on a high floor, and from the window, they could see several zombies wandering under the solar-powered streetlights.

A man suddenly appeared, and the zombies pounced on him, biting him on the spot. His screams echoed sharply through the night, sending the little guy ducking back in fear.

“Daddy, does this mean… we just witnessed a murder?”

Xie Hui hadn’t expected that even now, the kid still thought it was just a regular homicide.

“No, Yunyun. Don’t you think something’s off about yourself lately?”

Hearing that, Xie Yun instinctively shook his head.

“No, Daddy.”

Xie Hui took him to the bathroom. The hotel had lost power, so he pulled out a flashlight and shone it on Yunyun’s face, letting him clearly see the change in his eye color.

“Daddy, am I sick?”

“No, you’re not sick. Just like those monsters outside, this is a natural change.”

It took a long while before Xie Yun, sitting on the hotel bed, could finally accept that the world had completely changed.

“Daddy, I always thought this was some kind of weird game…”

The moment he realized it wasn’t a game, Xie Yun instinctively climbed onto his father’s lap and leaned into his embrace. Listening to the steady rhythm of his father’s heartbeat, the panic in his chest gradually began to settle.

“Daddy, aren’t those monsters just people in costumes?”

Under his hopeful gaze, Xie Hui gently shook his head.

“No, they’re not.”

Hearing that answer, Xie Yun wrapped his arms tightly around his father.

Seeing how completely he relied on him, Xie Hui couldn’t help but recall the many things the Client had told him before he arrived in this world.

At the beginning, when the Client realized the world had changed, he never considered abandoning his child.

Even though he didn’t awaken any abilities, he waited for the national rescue team. Once they arrived, he worked hard and managed to survive in the apocalypse with his child.

At first, after the apocalypse began, the government moved quickly to restore order. Even ordinary people without abilities could survive through their own hard work.

But later, the male lead had a falling out with people at the national base. He chose to leave and went to another city, where he established his own base that only accepted Ability Users.

On one side was the national base, which took in all survivors. On the other was Dawn Base, which accepted only Ability Users. The difference in strength between the two was staggering.

Because Dawn Base treated Ability Users exceptionally well, most of the awakened individuals at the national base gradually began to side with them.

When survival became a struggle, when he couldn’t even feed himself and no one wanted him no matter how hard he worked, the Client was worn down, exhausted in both body and spirit.

It was then that the female lead approached him and told him that his son, Xie Yun, might not be a normal child.

If he refused to cooperate, she would use force. For the future of humanity, she said, it would all be worth it.

Faced with threats and temptation, the Client didn’t hold out for long. He handed his son over to the laboratory.

If it weren’t for the natural trust children have in their fathers, that clever little rascal in his arms would’ve definitely escaped on his own.

Xie Yun leaned against his father, listening to the screams and wails outside. After a long silence, he lifted his head and stared at his father, clearly hoping for a kiss to calm his nerves.

“Daddy, I’m really scared. My heart’s beating so fast. Can you kiss me and hold me? If you kiss me and hug me, I won’t be so scared that I wet the bed tonight.”

Xie Hui didn’t quite understand the connection between the two, but seeing how the boy had already grabbed his wrist with one hand, he had no intention of rejecting his child’s need for comfort.

But in the very next second, Xie Yun’s other hand, which had been resting near his own heartbeat, suddenly froze. His eyes widened in shock as he blurted out:

“Wait—Daddy, where’s my heartbeat?!”