C2 Chapter 2

Her body felt as though it was being ripped apart and pieced back together, the agony was unbearable. Jiang Ruan's limbs had stiffened, and even the slightest movement of her fingers required a herculean effort.

Yet, the zombies around her remained motionless, eerily still. They shuffled past her, their drooling mouths hanging open, seemingly blind to her presence as they meandered away.

In disbelief, she lifted her hands, recalling the zombies that had bitten and devoured her. But there was no sign of torn flesh, only her arms were marred with an eerie purple bruise.

Initially rigid, her body slowly regained some flexibility. She attempted to call out, only to discover her voice was gone. Struggling to utter even a single word resulted in nothing but a raspy whisper.

At that moment, Jiang Ruan ventured a daring hypothesis: she had become one of the reviled zombies herself!

But zombies were supposed to be mindless creatures, driven solely by the scent of fresh blood. So why did she still possess thoughts and feelings of sorrow?

As countless zombies ambled by, their behavior seemed to validate Jiang Ruan's suspicion. She had indeed become one of those monsters. She scoffed to herself; after surviving the apocalypse, what was there left to disbelieve?

She couldn't tell how long she had been unconscious, but her innate zombie senses told her there were no living humans nearby, which filled her with a sense of loss.

Struggling to rise from the ground was a challenge due to her stiffness, but she finally managed to stand, only to accidentally drop a glowing ring from her grasp.

Unaware, Jiang Ruan stepped forward and trod on the ring. "Ouch," she winced as a sharp pain shot through her foot. Looking down, she saw a luminous object drawing blood from her foot.

What was happening? Filled with curiosity, Jiang Ruan picked up the ring and held it in her hand. A wave of coolness washed over her, and she could feel her body softening, the stiffness and weakness dissipating.

To her astonishment, the pain in her foot vanished, and upon closer inspection, the wound had completely disappeared.

She examined the ring in her palm, which glowed softly. It was the same ring she had casually pocketed from a nearby villa, and now it had truly come to life.

Jiang Ruan slipped the ring onto her left ring finger and within moments, it began to merge with her skin at a rate visible to the naked eye.

It was as if the ring had become a tattoo, permanently etched onto her finger. Could it be some kind of space? Pondering this, Jiang Ruan focused her thoughts and silently commanded, "Enter!" But upon opening her eyes, she was still in the same spot. Was there a special trigger needed to access this space?

Her stomach rumbled loudly, interrupting her thoughts. As she navigated through the throng of zombies, she noticed they were deliberately avoiding her. She could sense their fear. But what were they afraid of? Her? And why?

The woods were crawling with zombies, yet Jiang Ruan found it strangely easy to make her way out this time. A few zombies roamed outside the forest, but the surrounding villas were eerily empty. Where had all the survivors gone so suddenly? Confused but relieved, Jiang Ruan realized she now had the freedom to roam as she pleased.

She chose a villa at random, one that appeared untouched by other survivors. Inside, the disarray was evident, but it wasn't filthy. Her vision was exceptionally sharp, even in the darkness; she could see clearly for hundreds of meters.

In the kitchen, she found only potatoes and sweet potatoes, and a pot with half a pot of water on the stove. The rice in the cooker, however, had long since turned sour.