A Fake Holy Mother in the Zombie Apocalypse

Lu Xingchi hadn't answered yet when Du Ruo jumped in and said, “After the apocalypse began.”

Du Ruo’s tone was indignant. “Before the zombie virus emerged, after he returned to the country, he lived in my house and had no special abilities whatsoever. On the morning of the outbreak, I felt something was off. He went out for a stroll and came back with a black crossbow. I thought he’d bought it, but it turned out he’d made it himself.”

“Lu Xingchi, you had abilities then, didn't you?” Du Ruo asked.

Lu Xingchi smiled. “That’s right. That morning, I woke up and suddenly discovered I had become a person with abilities.”

Bei Nuan wouldn’t let him off the hook. “Then why did you make a crossbow first? Did you foresee the zombie virus outbreak?”

“Foresee? Of course not.”

Lu Xingchi turned to look at her.

“Isn’t it normal for any man, suddenly possessing metal abilities, to want to make a weapon first?”

He smiled again.

“But that’s because I didn’t know you then. If I had, the first thing I made with my ability would definitely have been a gift for you.”

His tone was natural, but Bei Nuan blushed at his flirting.

However, he flatly denied foreseeing the zombie outbreak.

Lu Xingchi's personality was so similar to the Lu Xingchi in the book that he shouldn't be a transmigrator.

Bei Nuan was now 99.999% certain that he was reborn and had also drawn from the ability gift bag.

But if he was reborn, why didn't he fly straight to the safe zone on the morning of the zombie outbreak, instead of struggling through hordes of zombies?

Could he have some unspeakable secret?

Bei Nuan suspected that, like her, he also had a system and tasks to complete.

But even if he had tasks, they definitely weren't as miserable as Bei Nuan’s, because he never did anything strange.

Even Bei Nuan herself admitted that in the entire team, the one and only person who did all sorts of bizarre and illogical things every day was Bei Nuan herself.

No one else was as abnormal as her, nor as busy, running around all day working for the system.

Lu Xingchi was even more so. All his actions were logical, completely lacking the feeling of being forced to operate like Bei Nuan.

Bei Nuan sighed.

Sheng Yi and Yuan Yuan didn't hide it at all and admitted to Bei Nuan that they were reborn. Why wouldn't Lu Xingchi say anything?

A guess suddenly occurred to Bei Nuan: Maybe he couldn't.

When Bei Nuan first transmigrated, Little Three solemnly warned her to keep the transmigration a secret and not reveal it to others.

“Little Three,” Bei Nuan called Little Three in her mind, “What would happen if I told Lu Xingchi that I transmigrated?”

Little Three was startled. “Of course you can’t. He’s the target of your entire Saintess mission. You have to act like a Saintess in front of him. If you tell him, wouldn’t the whole Saintess mission collapse? It would be counted as a mission failure.”

“What about hinting? Not saying it directly, but hinting, is that okay?”

Bei Nuan was like a neurotic trying to figure out how to cheat with the proctor.

Teacher Little Three seriously replied, “Of course not. You have to try hard to conceal it. Any attempt to let him know will be captured by the monitoring system.”

“What if I tell someone else? And then they tell him, is that okay?”

Little Three was speechless. “Isn't you telling someone else the same as you directly hinting to him? Of course not. Our monitoring system isn't a vegetarian.”

Bei Nuan understood.

Lu Xingchi’s situation might be the same as hers.

That’s why he resolutely wouldn't admit it to her.

Bei Nuan wondered, “Little Three, why don't Sheng Yi and the others have a ‘monitoring system’ controlling them and can tell others they are reborn?”

“You’re special, isn't that good?” Little Three asked.

Bei Nuan was speechless. She really didn't see any benefit in being this special.

The fact that Lu Xingchi was likely reborn began to torment Bei Nuan once she thought of it.

It was like finally solving a problem but being refused the correct answer, leaving one itching with frustration.

While Bei Nuan was agonizing, Little Three spoke again, his voice quite cheerful. “Bei Nuan, you completed the ‘Saintess’s Forgiveness’ mission. I promised you an additional reward besides Saintess Points. Do you want to hear it?”

Bei Nuan had long forgotten about this. “I finished the mission yesterday, and you’re just now remembering to give me the reward?”

Little Three scoffed. “Someone drank too much last night, drunk to the point of unconsciousness. Is that my fault?”

Bei Nuan immediately felt guilty.

Then she asked Little Three, “I drank too much last night. Did I do anything strange in front of Lu Xingchi?”

Little Three was the system, so he must know everything.

Little Three seriously replied, “I’m sorry, but we are required to keep the host’s private life confidential.”

Private life? Confidential?

Bei Nuan was speechless. “Isn't the host me? Why are you keeping secrets from me about myself?”

“These are the rules. It's written in the system manual. If I don't follow them, I won't get an excellent rating on my next assessment.” Little Three was cold and heartless.

“You're a system. What do you need an excellent rating for? You can't get a raise. Could it get you a better server?”

“You don’t understand. The competition between us systems is also very fierce,” Little Three said. “Several of my friends have been assigned to remote worlds, like conducting emotional experiments on bloodthirsty, heartless Va alien, things like that.”

Little Three seemed to shiver.

Bei Nuan quickly asked, “So am I a particularly cooperative host? Do you feel particularly happy having me?”

Little Three scoffed again, but this time his voice sounded gentle.

“Bei Nuan, after completing the ‘Saintess’s Forgiveness’ mission, you achieved an accomplishment—you are the host with the fastest Saintess Point growth in the history of all experimental worlds.”

Bei Nuan raised an eyebrow. “So?”

“So you get an extra reward. See for yourself.”

Really?

Bei Nuan immediately opened the mission panel.

A small gold badge appeared after “Saintess’s Forgiveness.” After clicking it, it read: Obtained automatic firearm aiming ability.

Eh?

Bei Nuan thought, why do these words look so much like a game cheat?

Bei Nuan cautiously asked Little Three, “Does this mean I can automatically aim when using a gun?”

Little Three’s voice was cheerful. “Exactly! Because among all weapons, you have the longest accumulated time using firearms, you have automatically unlocked the auto-aim ability. With this, from now on, you can hit whatever you aim at, and even hit things you don't aim at. You are Bei.Sharpshooter.Nuan!”

That good?

Bei Nuan already had a portable human auto-aimer, which was Lu Xingchi, but it wasn’t as convenient as having a real auto-aim ability.

Little Three was right. This reward was very good.

Bei Nuan really wanted to try this new cheat, but unfortunately, she didn't have a gun at hand.

Bei Nuan regretfully studied the small gold badge again, but found no other information.

Since the mission panel was open, Bei Nuan casually spun the wheel for the fun little missions.

The name of this new mission was very arrogant: “Power of the Gods.”

The mission description was: A friend's consideration, the respect of peers, a lover's passion, you are the darling of the world, and the god of the world is willing to make an exception for you.

Mysterious.

She didn't understand what it meant at all and could only force herself to do it.

The only good thing was that the items to be collected this time were all intangible, so each one was marked with (0/1) so she could know whether she had collected it or not.

Bei Nuan asked Little Three, “The mission says ‘Power of the Gods.’ What kind of ability is it? Does it make my strength increase dramatically?”

Little Three didn’t just brush Bei Nuan off with a “no comment.”

Perhaps too speechless, he replied, “What would I give you strength for? To carry rice? Of course not. It's truly a very powerful divine power.”

Hearing him say that, it should be a good ability.

Bei Nuan kept chatting with Little Three in her mind, subconsciously following Lu Xingchi forward.

Down from the pier was a large expanse of reef-covered tidal flats.

“Are these oysters?” Du Ruo suddenly said.

The tidal flats were half-submerged, revealing the large, rugged reefs below.

Bei Nuan couldn't see anything special at all.

Du Ruo had already squatted down and was touching them with her hand. Looking closely, there really were oysters, embedded in the reefs, looking completely like part of the reef at first glance.

Du Ruo asked Jiang Fei for a dagger, which Jiang Fei firmly refused. Using a dagger to dig for these would ruin the blade.

Du Ruo had no choice but to say to Lu Xingchi, “I want a pickaxe, a hammer, and a chisel.”

As if Lu Xingchi were a little fairy who could grant wishes.

Lu Xingchi indeed was. In less than a minute, he used the crowbar Bei Nuan took out to make the tools Du Ruo wanted. So everyone stopped moving forward and dug for oysters together by the sea.

The freshly dug oysters looked very fresh. Jiang Fei shucked the oysters one by one, rinsed them with clean water.

Jiang Fei asked, “Do you want them steamed or grilled?”

Bei Nuan immediately thought of the “friend’s consideration” required for “Power of the Gods” and quickly said, “Du Ruo, how do you want to eat them?”

Du Ruo immediately declared, “Grilled, grilled, grilled!”

Bei Nuan immediately said, “Then I want grilled too.”

She didn't know if this counted as “a friend’s consideration.”

However, it didn't. “A friend’s consideration” was still (0/1), completely motionless.

Bei Nuan looked at the mission description again and thought, how silly, this clearly required consideration from others towards her, the friend-type consideration.

There was no shortage of friends here, and they were all very considerate, so it shouldn't be difficult.

“Bei Nuan,” Jiang Fei interrupted Bei Nuan's train of thought, “I want a grill and charcoal, also garlic and chili peppers.”

Jiang Fei chopped garlic and chili peppers, added oyster sauce, soy sauce, and other ingredients to make a sauce, spread it on the oyster meat, set up a camping grill, and grilled them directly on the wire mesh.

They were grilled in a short while. The oyster meat was plump and juicy, and with the garlic and chili pepper seasoning, it was incredibly delicious.

The team neglected their duties and feasted together by the sea.

Lu Xingchi was always considerate. Whenever he saw that Bei Nuan had finished her oyster, he would get her a new one, and then he would dab the sauce from the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

Bei Nuan looked at the mission panel hopefully.

It didn't count.

A friend’s consideration was still stuck at (0/1), without any movement.

The system clearly didn't consider Lu Xingchi her “friend.”

Bei Nuan sighed inwardly. Why wasn't anyone else being “considerate” to her?

Immediately, there was.

Jiang Fei asked Bei Nuan, “You seem to like them lightly cooked?”

He was very observant and noticed Bei Nuan picking the lightly cooked ones.

Bei Nuan quickly replied, “That’s right, I like them tender.”

Jiang Fei smiled and put an oyster onto Bei Nuan’s plate in advance.

However, “a friend’s consideration” was still (0/1).

The system also judged Jiang Fei’s action as not “a friend’s consideration.”

Bei Nuan sighed again and stared at Du Ruo in a daze.

Du Ruo was creeped out by her stare. “Don't look at me with those pitiful eyes. On the matter of oysters, I will absolutely not give in to you.”

A new batch of oysters was ready. Bei Nuan's plan this time was to “exchange consideration for consideration.” She immediately picked the fattest, biggest, and most tempting one and put it on Du Ruo’s plate.

Du Ruo looked shocked.

“What’s wrong?” Bei Nuan said. “Shouldn't friends be united, friendly, and not fight over oysters?”

Du Ruo opened her mouth, then reached out and touched Bei Nuan’s forehead, worriedly asking, “Are you sick?”

Her tone didn't sound like she was concerned about whether she was sick, but more like she was cursing.

Tang Tang muttered, “She’s not sick, she’s been possessed.”

But the moment Du Ruo reached out to touch her forehead, Bei Nuan saw “a friend’s consideration” jump to (1/1).

Success.

Bei Nuan swiftly snatched the large oyster back from Du Ruo’s plate.

“You don't want it? You don't want it, so I'll eat it?” Before Du Ruo could reach out to grab it again, she swallowed it in one bite.

After everyone had eaten their fill, Bei Nuan put the remaining oysters into her space before continuing on their way.

After crossing the tidal flats and walking further, they suddenly heard human voices from behind the weeds.

Unlike the groans of zombies, it was the rustling sound of humans quietly moving through the grass, and someone was speaking in a low voice.

A group was coming this way, quite a few of them, about ten or so. Seeing Bei Nuan and the others, they immediately stopped.

This was a group of soldiers.

Many of them were in full combat gear, wearing combat uniforms and helmets, with an emblem on their arms that looked like a wreath twisted together in a circle.

Bei Nuan knew who they were.

Bei Nuan herself was a firm believer in the military's victory. In the eyes of a military victory supporter, it was impossible for zombies to take over the world, relying on modern mechanized troops and weapons of mass destruction.

However, the author of this "Apocalypse Rush" was a true believer in the zombies’ victory. According to the book's setting, the human society in this novel was vulnerable in the face of zombies.

Because human society had completely collapsed, the surviving humans had organized a temporary federation regardless of nationality in the safe zone.

The Federation had gathered all the remaining military forces on this continent and was fighting against the zombies.

The people Bei Nuan and the others encountered were soldiers of the Federation, a rare regular army.

Bei Nuan saw the guns in their hands at a glance.

Unlike the various armed forces Bei Nuan had encountered along the way, their weapons were very standard, enviable. Several people were holding black bullpup automatic rifles, and a few others were carrying submachine guns.

Bei Nuan couldn't take her eyes off the guns.

She really wanted to try her newly acquired ability right now.

However, if they weren't familiar with each other, they probably wouldn't lend her a gun to play with.

Even though the entire team wore helmets and tactical goggles, covering half their faces, it was still easy to see that some team members came from different ethnic backgrounds. In the face of zombies, humans rarely shared a common stance.

The officer in charge looked to be around thirty years old. Seeing Lu Xingchi and the others, he took off his goggles, revealing his handsome, sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes.

They didn't show any hostility.

This was the apocalypse. Encountering living people instead of zombies was a good thing.

The officer's name was Shao Bai. He chatted briefly with Lu Xingchi.

The area was still an infected zone, far from the gradually retreating blockade line, and there were no human bases. Shao Bai invited them to return to the team's camp.

Bei Nuan knew why.

The Federation army's casualties were too heavy. The growth rate of the zombie army was significantly faster than that of the human army. If this continued, the several layers of blockade lines wouldn't hold.

The Federation army had been trying its best to recruit soldiers, encouraging survivors to join the army.

The process of joining the army was now handled on a case-by-case basis and had become extremely simple. Usually, one only needed to register to join.

Anyway, in the fight between humans and zombies, the two sides were naturally physiologically hostile, with a clear line between them and no way to communicate. There was no need to worry about enemy spies infiltrating.

Lu Xingchi seemed a little hesitant. Bei Nuan, focused on playing with guns, earnestly suggested, “Let’s go with them for a while?”

Lu Xingchi glanced at her and, without even asking why, nodded in agreement.

So the team temporarily traveled with Shao Bai and the others.

Along the way, Shao Bai kept trying to persuade Lu Xingchi and the others to join the Federation army.

Lu Xingchi blocked him with just one sentence.

He pointed at Bei Nuan. “If we join, can she stay with us all the time?”

Shao Bai looked at Lu Xingchi, then at Bei Nuan, his face conflicted.

“I can’t make the decision on this matter. I have to ask our leader.”

The book mentioned that the new wartime Federation army, of course, separated men and women, with female soldiers having their own independent organization, not mixed.

The reason was obvious.

Because when Shao Bai and the others led Lu Xingchi and the others back to the main road and saw the jeep convoy and the remaining dozen or so people, several whistles rang out.

“Look, a woman!”

Bei Nuan: "…"

Their tone was as if they had seen a panda at the zoo.

These people had been fighting zombies and probably hadn't seen a young female human in a long time.

“So beautiful, should we take this woman with us?”

“Of course, take her. She can be our cheerleader when we kill zombies.”

A group of men burst into laughter.

Bei Nuan got into the jeep and pretended not to hear.

The jeep convoy drove forward, passing through the seaside town that had been occupied by zombies.

The sky was gloomy, and it looked like it had just rained, or maybe a typhoon had passed through. There was still accumulated water, and fallen branches and leaves from street trees were scattered all over the ground.

The convoy soon found that they couldn't go any further.

A fallen tree lay across the road.

They didn't have space abilities and couldn't do what Bei Nuan and the others often did, which was to put the jeeps into their space first, walk past the obstacle, and then take them out. If they wanted to drive the cars past, they had to get out and clear the obstacle.

Without cutting tools, it wasn't easy to move the large tree.

As Shao Bai led a group of people shouting and working hard, the lookout came over and said, “The zombie army is coming.”

Bei Nuan was also pulling on a branch with both hands to help them, and she was very puzzled when she heard this.

Zombie army?

Since when did zombies have formations?

Bei Nuan saw a large group of dark figures coming towards them from the distant end of the road.

They were advancing at the same speed, really looking like an army.

The lookout asked Shao Bai, “Boss, should we fight or retreat?”

The people next to him said one after another, “If we retreat, won’t we lose the cars? Do we walk the remaining dozens of kilometers?”

“Boss, let’s fight?”

Although they were talking all at once, they were all looking at Shao Bai, waiting for his final decision.

After considering for a moment, Shao Bai said, “Fight.”

He observed the surrounding terrain and cleanly assigned each person's position and task.

They didn't want to abandon the vehicles and planned to fight head-on against the tide of zombies.

Shao Bai returned to the car and took out two automatic rifles and a large handful of magazines.

He asked Bei Nuan and the others, “These are guns left by our fallen comrades. Do you want to use them?”

Just as she was thinking about trying out her new cheat, such a good opportunity to use a gun fell from the sky. Bei Nuan quickly answered, “Yes, yes, yes!!”

She stretched out her small hands towards the beautiful, black rifle.

Shao Bai, however, handed the gun to Lu Xingchi.

When she saw the zombies, Bei Nuan had already taken out Lu Xingchi’s crossbow. Lu Xingchi held the crossbow and refused, “No, I’ll use the crossbow.”

Bei Nuan quickly reached out to take the gun.

Shao Bai, however, handed the gun to Du Ruo.

Bei Nuan: "…"

Du Ruo looked at the gun in his hand and didn't want to take it. He frowned and sincerely asked, “I heard you say you needed a cheerleader just now. Can I be a cheerleader?”

Shao Bai paused and handed the gun to Jiang Fei.

Jiang Fei didn't take it but glanced at Bei Nuan.

This time, Bei Nuan was completely angry. “They all don’t want it, but you insist on giving it away. I really want it. You just can’t see me. Do you have gender-selective visual impairment?”

Du Ruo asked in surprise, “What kind of disease is that? It sounds very serious.”

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