The Mad Scientist’s Domesticated Little Zombie 36

Chapter 36: Auntie Man, I’m Back!…

Shi Changyuan never refuted Lin Ling’s words, only smiling and agreeing, “Yes, I’m a love-struck fool.”

His tone and expression even carried a hint of pride.

“But if Lingling wants to interact like before, I have a way.”

Looking at the young man whose eyes suddenly lit up, Shi Changyuan’s throat bobbed. He said with a straight face, “Actually, I also like it when Lingling is clingy to me. I don’t mind. But after this has been said out loud, many things are hard to hide and control. Lingling will have to bear with me.”

The little zombie didn’t quite understand. “Can you give me an example? Like what?”

“For example, Lingling wants to sit next to me, but won’t let me look at you.”

Shi Changyuan lowered his gaze, his voice very soft, as if he were talking to Lingling or to himself. “When you’re with someone you like, some things are uncontrollable.”

“You only allow Lingling to get close to me, but I’m not even allowed to get close to you with my gaze. Isn’t that too cruel to me?”

Hiss, that seems to make sense.

The innocent little zombie didn’t hear the fighting, snatching, and wanting it all in these words. He only felt that this was like a transaction. A transaction is equal, and if it’s equal, it’s feasible, and if it’s feasible, he can agree.

“Then am I still being a hooligan and taking advantage of you?”

This was the little zombie’s biggest concern.

He was the Zombie Emperor. If word got out that the Zombie Emperor was a hooligan, how could he still make a name for himself in the world?

“No.”

Shi Changyuan answered with a straight face.

“Really?”

The little zombie confirmed again and again, looking at the human in front of him with a serious and solemn expression, as if they were discussing something important. “Then we have a deal?”

“Alright.”

With Shi Changyuan’s nod, the little zombie’s eyes immediately curved, and he became even more righteously clingy.

He squatted on the ground and held out his hand to Shi Changyuan. “Carry me. My legs are numb from squatting.”

Seeing the little zombie so skillfully acting cute and spoiled, Shi Changyuan smiled helplessly, reached out and steadily lifted Lin Ling, placing him in the passenger seat.

He even thoughtfully massaged the little zombie’s calves to speed up blood circulation.

“Lingling can rest for a while. I’ll go and pack up. It’ll be quick.”

Shi Changyuan packed up the tent on the ground, stuffed it back into the corner of the car roof, and reconnected the single sleeping bag with Lin Ling’s.

“About what time can we get to City B today?”

The little zombie asked while watching Shi Changyuan busy himself.

“Before noon.”

From here to the entrance of City B, it would only take two hours without any zombie horde interference. But every time he had passed by here before, he would have experienced attacks or sieges of varying sizes. The fastest it would take was a day, and sometimes he would be separated from his teammates or forced to retreat.

Shi Changyuan had originally thought that the closer they got to City B, the less intimidating Lin Ling would be to other zombies. After all, this was the place where survival of the fittest was most prevalent. He had already prepared for all sorts of emergencies.

But so far, all his preparations had been useless.

The moment the vehicle reached the entrance of the city, Shi Changyuan felt the gazes from all directions.

They were all high-tier zombies who had sensed the human’s presence, watching from every corner of the city. And on the road, a large number of zombie hordes had gathered, pacing back and forth and trying to launch an attack.

Being so openly exposed under the eyes of all the zombies, like being surrounded by a pack of wolves, was also a first for Shi Changyuan.

“Oh my, I see a familiar zombie.”

Lin Ling blinked, quickly opened the car window, stuck his head and hand out, and waved at the building in the front left, shouting, “Li Tian, I’m back from the human base! Long time no see!”

“Li Tian, Li Tian, why are you here? Aren’t you from the west district? Li Tian, come to my place to play. I’ve brought a new friend back—”

“This is my friend. Don’t you bully him!”

The little zombie’s shout instantly scattered all the zombies within a few miles.

Some newly promoted high-tier zombies didn’t know Lin Ling, but they were familiar with this high-tier zombie named “Li Tian.” A high-tier zombie with an ability, he was ruthless when he fought.

Seeing that even “Li Tian” was so wary of this little zombie and turned a blind eye, they were even less willing to look for trouble.

Since this human was being kept by a higher-tier zombie, they couldn’t touch him, so they all scattered.

“Why isn’t he answering me? I’ve been away for so long, is his brain still not working?”

The little zombie was a bit depressed.

Seeing this scene, Shi Changyuan had a deeper understanding of the young man’s destructive power. He thought for a moment and asked casually, “How does Lingling know his name is Li Tian? Did you know him before the apocalypse?”

Lin Ling shook his head and said honestly, “No. He’s one of the first batch of high-tier zombies after the apocalypse. I looked for him in the city for a long time, wanting him to join me and rule the world with me.”

“As for knowing his name, it’s because I found his ID card.”

The little zombie looked innocent.

“He was probably going to stay at a hotel at that time, but then the virus broke out, and his ID card fell on the ground. I helped him look for it for a long time.”

“Then did he join Lingling?”

“No.” The little zombie was a bit dejected, his eyes drooping.

“I said that to join my empire, you must have a certain talent. I asked him to submit three versions of a world domination plan and proposal, and then he stopped talking to me.”

Shi Changyuan: “…”

He looked at the young man beside him in surprise.

It had to be said, for a little zombie who had been to school for a few years, did he even know what a proposal was?

Shi Changyuan saw the little zombie’s face full of depression and tried to comfort him. “Maybe… this Li Tian doesn’t know how to write a proposal.”

“Of course he does.”

The little zombie tilted his head and recalled.

“When I found him, he was still holding his laptop, which was full of proposals. The most numerous one had 16 versions.”

Shi Changyuan: “…Then I probably know why he refused.”

No one wanted to be a beast of burden like before the apocalypse after the apocalypse came. Such a beast of burden would only want to destroy the world, not rule it.

“Is that so?”

The little zombie was stunned. He suddenly felt a trace of guilt towards Li Tian. “I thought it was called professional specialization.”

Shi Changyuan smiled and continued to drive deeper into City B, following Lin Ling’s navigation.

The previous convoy had only stopped on the outskirts of the city, several streets away from where Lin Ling lived, at least four or five kilometers.

This distance of four or five kilometers, every hundred meters deeper, every alley passed, was a completely different scene.

At first, it was no different from other city ruins, except that there were no later human traces, only the traces of the beginning of the apocalypse from two years ago.

The deeper they went, the fewer low-tier zombie hordes there were, and the more mutated plants and animals there were on the road. Strange vines wrapped around streetlights and shops, bearing strange-shaped fruits, exuding the word “danger” from the inside out.

This was an area that humans had not yet been able to enter. Even a top-tier ability user would probably be in for a bad time.

The vehicle finally stopped in front of a huge tree.

This tree had almost destroyed the entire road. Its huge branches had pierced through the buildings on both sides, causing half of them to collapse.

“Huh, when did this old tree grow here?”

The little zombie stuck his head out again and shouted at the big tree in front of him, “Grandpa Tree, you’re blocking the way.”

The moment he finished speaking, the old tree began to pull its roots out of the ground. The entire cement road was destroyed, and the houses on both sides began to tilt and collapse.

The old tree stretched out a branch and quickly propped up the tilting houses.

After a cloud of dust, the entire tree had pulled itself up two or three meters, its intertwined roots arching high, revealing a gap underneath large enough for a vehicle to pass through.

“Thank you, Grandpa Tree.”

“Alright, we can go now.”

The little zombie pulled his head back and explained to Shi Changyuan.

“Don’t be afraid. This is a mutated hundred-year-old tree. When the city was being planned before, they didn’t cut it down but made it a key protected object.”

“So the old tree doesn’t hate humans. Before, many unmutated humans lived in the old tree’s hollow for a long time.”

“But at that time, the old tree couldn’t move. It could only watch those humans go out and never come back.”

“The old tree was so sad at that time, its leaves all turned yellow. But then it met me. I told the old tree that they would come back after they evolved into high-tier zombies, and the old tree became happy.”

Ever since Lin Ling entered City B, he would enthusiastically share with Shi Changyuan about every zombie, every tree, and every street he encountered.

Whether it was before or after the apocalypse, Shi Changyuan listened very carefully.

“This is my old school.”

“This used to be a very delicious snack shop, but unfortunately the owner turned into a zombie and ran away. I haven’t found him yet.”

“After we enter the street ahead and pass through an alley, that’s where I live!”

The little zombie excitedly pointed at the street corner ahead and proudly showed off, “How about it? Isn’t this street very clean? We cleaned it!”

Shi Changyuan looked at the street, which was free of any bloodstains or broken bricks and glass. He remembered what the little zombie had said before and let out a low laugh.

Then he got out of the car with Lin Ling, held his hand, and walked through the dim alley.

At the end of the alley was a bluestone path wide enough for two people, and a large, rusty iron gate.

The iron gate had not been taken care of for a long time and was now covered with plants.

The little zombie took out his key and grumbled to Shi Changyuan, “I haven’t been back for too long. I’ll go and catch a zombie tomorrow to clean the yard.”

The two keys on Lin Ling’s lanyard collided, making a crisp sound.

Lin Ling skillfully opened the courtyard gate and, while pulling Shi Changyuan and skipping inside, he shouted, “Auntie Man, I’m back!!!”

A faint, rustling sound immediately came from the house, like the sound of a wind chime, very gentle, as if welcoming Lin Ling home.

***

Author’s Note:

Here! [Bunny ears] Does this count as meeting the parents?