Chapter 657: Restraint
Ring, ring.
Leng Yebai flicked the bell on the bicycle, setting off towards the safety base with Bai Xiqin.
Bai Yifan, as before, grabbed onto the back seat of the bicycle with one hand, letting it pull him along.
The difference now was that he also carried an ugly bronze sword in his hand.
After watching the three of them leave, Zhang Yiming turned and returned to the village.
Zombie King Li Mucheng remained where he was, waiting for the Emperor’s judgment.
Seeing Zhang Yiming approaching from a distance, Zombie King Li Mucheng trembled violently, lacking any composure.
He knew he was probably going to die.
Because he had acted against the Emperor’s friend.
"Do not speak of what you saw that day."
Zhang Yiming’s gaze fell on the trembling Zombie King Li Mucheng.
Although Zombie King Li Mucheng was taller and stronger, he kept his head bowed low in front of him.
In terms of presence, Zhang Yiming firmly stood in the lead.
"Yes!"
Zombie King Li Mucheng nodded immediately, a little excited.
Unexpectedly, the Emperor did not intend to kill him?
But just now, he could still feel the Emperor’s intense killing intent. What made him change his mind?
Zombie King Li Mucheng vaguely suspected it was due to the matter of Atlantis under the sea.
To be alive was already a blessing, and he did not dare speculate further on the Emperor’s thoughts.
With just a slight neural impulse, the Emperor could perfectly sense what he was thinking.
Having narrowly survived, he definitely wouldn’t risk his life recklessly again.
Zombies seem brutal compared to humans, but they have a quality unmatched by humans—loyalty.
They are loyal to High Rank Zombies, whose neural impulses are the sole witnesses.
This is why after becoming a Zombie King, Captain Zhu always avoided Zhang Yiming.
As soon as Zhang Yiming detected him with his neural impulses, he would forever become Zhang Yiming’s loyal subordinate.
"Take care of the matters in the village, let the survivors who want to leave, leave; those who do not, let them stay."
Zhang Yiming left these words behind and then started to walk away.
Just as he took a couple of steps towards the village entrance, Zhang Yiming stopped.
He turned around and walked towards another direction out of the village.
He didn’t know why he felt the need to dawdle on purpose.
Probably just because he didn’t want to run into Xiao Niu on the way.
Feeling guilty.
He had just used Zombie King Li Mucheng’s mouth to deceive Xiao Niu.
Even though she didn’t know, Zhang Yiming felt very uncomfortable about it.
He didn’t understand how he ended up like this.
Back in school, they had such a good relationship, yet now, he had resorted to lying.
His slender fingers pressed against his slightly throbbing heart, which hurt intensely.
Took a deep breath, only barely managing to ease it a bit, yet the intense sense of helplessness continued to overwhelm him.
Zhang Yiming walked slowly along the village path, with no one in sight—no humans, no zombies.
His silhouette was cast onto the ground by the sun, leaving a pitch-black shadow.
Lonely and desolate.
Even his shadow was companionless.
He looked up at the sky; it was very blue and beautiful, yet the fresh air didn’t bring the comfort he longed for.
Instead, it felt overwhelmingly oppressive.
After becoming a zombie, Zhang Yiming’s mood was always involuntarily low.
There was a hint of bitterness on the corner of his mouth.
Even though he was the powerful Emperor of zombies, with seemingly few capable of harming him and zombies naturally protecting him under his neural influence.
Yet he truly was also at his breaking point.
This is not what he wanted.
He wasn’t longing for immense power.
Nor was he fascinated by commanding millions of zombies.
He didn’t even want to be the majestic Emperor that other zombies had to bow down to.
He simply, simply wanted to be a human.
A human with red blood flowing through their veins.
Without these raging bloodthirsty emotions in his mind, nor the zombie virus in his body, wanting nothing more than to sleep peacefully till waking up naturally, to protect someone purely and sincerely.
That’s all, that’s all...
Zhang Yiming’s fingers tightly clenched together, his nails digging into his flesh, unnoticed.
For a long time, a warm wind blew, carrying a hint of the unique flesh-and-blood scent of humans.
Zhang Yiming looked up ahead but didn’t see any human survivors.
With a zombie’s perverted sense of smell, he caught a scent from who knows how far.
The bloodthirsty impulse constantly present in his mind grew stronger, to the point he could barely restrain himself, wanting to devour that trace of flesh and blood completely.
As a Zombie Emperor, his neural impulses were far stronger than those of other zombies, and the violent, bloodthirsty emotions within also intensified accordingly.
He had never consumed flesh, and to better restrain himself from indulging in flesh, he had never even touched raw animal meat.
Even so, he daily endured the pain of wanting to devour flesh but unable to satisfy.
Perhaps due to today’s gloomy mood, upon smelling the scent of flesh, he nearly couldn’t control himself.
How he desired to have a taste.
Saliva quickly pooled in his mouth.
He felt as if he hadn’t eaten for months, with his stomach angrily roaring, the hunger threatening to drive him mad.
The scent was so enticing; it must be delicious once it’s tasted!
The flesh he detested yet obsessively desired.
Zhang Yiming took a deep breath and slowly exhaled the air from his lungs.
He glanced at his hand, the wound from his own nails still oozing black blood, appearing strikingly noticeable.
The contrast between his long, fair fingers and the black blood was stark.
Zhang Yiming’s eyes dimmed momentarily, then he lowered his hand again.
Using his other uninjured hand, he took out a slightly yellowed bookmark from the pocket near his heart inside his clothes.
The bookmark resembled a butterfly.
As his fingers gently rubbed the bookmark, Zhang Yiming’s thoughts wandered back into the past.
The library at school was truly a wonderful place.
He didn’t remember how many sections the library had.
Nor did he remember what the librarian looked like.
He only recalled those fair fingers pulling down the book "Half a Lifetime" from the shelf and reading it in a quiet corner.
Halfway through, the girl closed the book, placing a white butterfly-shaped bookmark inside.
He saw a hint of mist in those eyes.
Such a kind-hearted girl, making herself sad just by reading a book.
Later, perhaps because it was too distressing, she never opened the book again, but the bookmark ended up in his hands.
As Zhang Yiming touched the bookmark, a smile slowly spread across his lips.
Such a fool, getting so upset just from reading a book.
Zhang Yiming focused only on laughing at Bai Xiqin, seemingly unaware of his own worry back when he saw that mist, which was also a fool’s behavior.
In his deep-set eyes, besides the smile, was a piece of restraint.
To the utmost degree of restraint.
The black blood may be filthy, but his burning heart was real.
Whether it was in a parched state, or its current vibrant state.
The original intention never wavered.
Zhang Yiming slowly placed the butterfly-like bookmark back into his clothing pocket, suppressing the rampant bloodthirsty impulse in his mind into a corner once again.
Countless times, truly.
He once again restrained himself.