Chapter Thirty-Five: I Want to Go With You

Hearing this question, the girl hesitated. However, she knew that this woman was not someone easily fooled, so she steeled herself and stated her purpose directly.

"I want to follow you and join your team!"

"Why?"

Lin Qingqing found it strange. Proposing to join forces with a stranger she had only met once was, by any measure, an unreasonable request. Was it simply because she had saved her? If so, this girl was far too naive.

Pressed for a reason, the girl looked conflicted. This was not a decision made on impulse. She had thought about it all night, from the moment she was rescued to all the things she had observed since. She had made this choice after careful deliberation.

She saved people without hesitation, killed traitors without mercy, and on top of that, she was a Tier 2 Ice-type ability user. Furthermore, after discovering the cause of her cousin’s death, she had gently comforted her, taken her to a safe place, provided medicine, and shared food. Although she had barely spoken a few words from start to finish and maintained a cold demeanor—not even revealing her name—it did not change the girl’s mind.

This woman possessed ability, resourcefulness, character, and intellect; what was even rarer was that she had a moral bottom line. Though the woman claimed that saving her was just a matter of convenience, the girl knew better: it would have been much more convenient to simply leave her behind. With her own abilities, the woman could have easily dispatched the zombies without using her as bait or luring them back.

Having struggled to survive in the apocalypse for so long, she knew how difficult it was to encounter someone like this. The reason for her hesitation was that she had originally intended to get to know her better before making the request, but she never expected that the woman would be ready to leave at the crack of dawn. As a result, she had made the request rashly. She couldn’t blame the woman for being suspicious; even she felt it was presumptuous.

Should she just say, "I've taken a liking to you"? No, she couldn’t bring herself to say that.

"Big sister, I am a rare Lightning-type user. Although I am only Tier 1, I have killed quite a few zombies. I definitely won't hold you back."

It was somewhat amusing to think that as a rare Lightning-type, she was usually the object of envy and jealousy wherever she went, yet this was the first time she had been so cautious in making a request.

"But I have no intention of forming a team," Lin Qingqing said seriously after a moment of thought.

Although the girl had decent talent and character, Lin had long since decided to walk her own path and had never considered teaming up.

"Isn't it better to team up? We can coordinate, take turns driving and keeping watch. Plus, we could take down higher-tier zombies together. Won't you reconsider?"

She listed the benefits one by one, hoping to sway her. Lin Qingqing didn't deny that the conditions were tempting, and the girl's own capabilities were quite good, but thinking of her meditation techniques, she still refused.

"Sorry, I'm used to being alone."

Seeing that she still hadn't persuaded her, the girl became anxious. "Then let's not call it a team. How about we just try staying together for a while?"

But it wasn't a question of staying together or not, Lin Qingqing sighed inwardly.

"I don't think we'll get along."

Lin Qingqing finally gave a blunt refusal, shoved the food she was holding into the girl's hands, turned around, and walked downstairs.

"Hey! Big sister, wait for me!"

Seeing the woman walk away without another word, the girl quickly grabbed her bag and followed. Just as Lin Qingqing buckled her seatbelt, she turned to see the girl pull the door open and climb right into the passenger seat.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her brow furrowing, her tone clearly showing growing impatience.

"I just want to follow you!"

"Get out! I told you I won't form a team!" Lin Qingqing turned to look at the girl in the passenger seat, her expression icy.

"Please, just let me follow you. I can kill zombies, I promise I won't hold you back," the girl said, holding up her hands with a determined look in her eyes, sounding utterly sincere.

Lin Qingqing was speechless. She had never met someone so thick-skinned; she had saved a life only to end up with a burden.

"If you want to join a team, go find someone else. Don't follow me!"

"There's no one else here," the girl muttered softly.

Lin Qingqing stared at her for a long time. Seeing that the girl refused to leave, she suddenly felt foolish. Why waste her breath on someone so shameless? Couldn't she just head out to a place with people and drop her off there?

Having thought of a way to deal with the tagalong, Lin Qingqing ignored her and turned the car around, preparing to leave the wetland park. She had decided: the first thing she would do was look for a base. The apocalypse had been going on for so long that there were surely many bases of various sizes around the cities. With this girl's abilities, no matter where they went, there would be someone willing to take her in.

Seeing that the woman didn't kick her out again, the girl assumed she had agreed to let her travel along and was filled with excitement.

"What's your name, big sister?" she asked happily.

"Lin Qingqing."

"My name is Lei Min. Nice to meet you, Sister Lin!"

"Mm."

Watching the right hand extended toward her, Lin Qingqing hesitated for a moment before giving it a perfunctory shake as a gesture of acknowledgment. Lei Min didn't mind; she was in high spirits and began chattering away, introducing the park's facilities and scenery.

Lin Qingqing didn't find her annoying. She listened to the girl talk to herself while she drove, and Lei Min didn't care about Lin Qingqing's indifference—even when the woman didn't respond, she could still talk happily for a long time. For a moment, the atmosphere in the car was surprisingly harmonious.

...

"Sister Lin, do you see those red-roofed buildings over there? That’s the commercial street of this wetland park. Don't let its size fool you; there are many specialty shops inside."

"Specialties? Is there food?" Lin Qingqing suddenly asked.

"There's food, and some other souvenirs. Besides local specialties, there are also a few bubble tea shops and snack stalls!"

"Oh? Let's go take a look!"

Lin Qingqing turned the car toward the commercial street; she wasn't about to pass up on food. After circling twice, they finally approached the cluster of quaint red-roofed wooden cabins.

"It looks like someone has been here!"

Through the car window, Lin Qingqing saw a few zombie corpses scattered on the road in front of the cabins, and the ground was littered with shattered glass.

"But all the shop doors are closed," Lei Min said, sounding puzzled.

It was indeed strange. The window glass was shattered, yet the doors were firmly shut, and the surroundings were eerily quiet. They had been there for quite a while, yet not a single active zombie had appeared. Looking at the signs for the snack shops in the distance, Lin Qingqing decided to take a look anyway.

"Do you have a weapon?"

Lei Min shook her head.

"Then stay in the car." With that, Lin Qingqing grabbed her ice blade and stepped out.

"Sister Lin, wait for me! Let me find something handy." She jumped out of the car, looked around, and pulled a metal pipe from a dilapidated billboard on the side of the road.

A petite girl holding a metal pipe over a meter long looked completely out of place, but when she insisted on coming along, Lin Qingqing didn't refuse.

"Be careful."

With that warning, she took the lead and walked into the commercial street lined with red-roofed houses.