Huo Antong and Liu Jun had seen each other before, so they could be counted as acquaintances. They didn't know each other well, though. At the very most, they greeted when they saw each other.
Now, for a level-five zombie nucleus, Huo Antong was trying very hard to get close to Liu Jun. He didn't want Liu Jun to feel strange about it, so he mentioned some moves that Zuo Chen and his people were making. He knew that even if he didn't mention it, the base would soon find out about those people. He was purely using that as an excuse to talk to Liu Jun.
He had done some background search. Liu Jun had a son, and was once hurt by an awful man. She was probably traumatized, so her son might be the only chance to win her heart.
However, her son stayed with Lin Xiaolu, the little princess of the base, all day long. Those two kids were always surrounded by a group of bodyguards. It was very difficult for anyone to get close to them without permission.
Huo Antong hadn't paid much attention to Liu Jun before. But now that he observed her closely, he found that she was actually pretty. She had a gentle presence; many men would want to marry a woman like her.
On the other side, Zuo Chen and his people learned that Shen Yujen was actually married. Her husband was Chen Yuting, a level-six superpower possessor. Chen Yuting wasn't an official Deputy Chief, but did have a special status in the base. He was basically under the Deputy Chiefs and above all the others.
Zuo Chen and his people weighed the pros and cons. They had already made moves on a Deputy Chief's little sister, so they decided to give up on Shen Yujen at last. After all, she already had a husband.
As for the information that planned to get from Shen Yujen at first, they now decided to get it from Duan Juan.
At last, Zuo Chen and Liu Wan decided to kidnap Duan Juan and make her talk.
"She served her time in a special force, so she has been trained for keeping secrets. Our plan may not work on her," someone had doubts.
"Have you forgotten that Shan has spirit power? He's breaking into level-six. He can handle Duan Juan," Liu Wan smiled carelessly and reminded that man that one of their team members had spirit power.
That man paused briefly, then had his eyes glowing. "Oh! I almost forgot about that!"
"But, she stays in the administration building every day, without going anywhere else. It's a little hard to get her."
"So, we can only do it in her dorm."
In Lin Qiao's space…
After Lin Qiao stayed at the bottom of the lake for nearly a month, something was suddenly sensed from the lake.
Lu Tianyi, Pesticide, and the other zombies were still working in the field. Lu Tianyi habitually glanced at the lake and suddenly sense the familiar pressure rising slowly from the lake. His eyes glowed as he immediately stood straight and stared at the lake.
At the bottom of the lake, the energy sphere slowly spread out, soon exposing Lin Qiao's body.
She opened her eyes, confused for a few seconds before her mind became clear again. She blinked and recalled her situation.
In the next second, she furrowed her eyebrows into a frown as she felt that something was wrong with her body. She raised both arms and swam upward until her feet felt the ground. Once she popped her head out of the water, she felt very not right.
Em…
Something was wrong indeed.
With a frown, she raised a hand from the water, then her face turned black as thunder.
She couldn't feel the energy nucleus in her brain or the energy flows in her body anymore. Her power could no longer be released from her palms.
She couldn't even release a wisp of dark mist. What was going on?
In the water, she touched her belly with the other hand. She didn't know if it was real, but she felt that her belly had grown larger than before.
It was, of course, real. She had been in the water for about a month. She just didn't know that yet.
She raised her head then awkwardly started to wonder how she was supposed to get ashore, as her power was gone.
The group of zombies near the three houses had all been staring at her! She glanced at the piles of clothes that had been folded neatly by someone and felt quite speechless.
'Turn your faces away!'
She was about two-hundred meters away from those zombies, so she surely wouldn't yell at them to tell them to turn away. She only said that in her head.
Nonetheless, Lu Tianyi and the other zombies heard that in their minds.
Lu Tianyi glanced at Lin Qiao confusedly, then automatically turned his face away. The other zombies did the same. Only after making that movement did he feel that something wasn't right.
He heard her voice from his mind, not through his ears!
What was that skill? Telepath?
Seeing all the zombies turn their backs to her simultaneously, Lin Qiao paused with surprise. She didn't know why.
No matter how surprised and confused she was, she still quickly got out of the water, grabbed her clothes, and disappeared from the lakeside. In the next second, she showed up in the woods, finding that her clothes had been washed.
Whoosh! Once she put on her clothes, a shrill swishing noise was heard from the side.
She turned and found a huge mushroom, that was as tall as an adult, rushing at her. A strong, black dog was running side by side with the mushroom.
"Owoooooo!" Bowwow instantly jumped at Lin Qiao, clearly thrilled to see her.
Lin Qiao turned to dodge the gigantic dog, then glanced at the snake which was chasing behind the dog and the mushroom. After that, she turned and headed out of the woods.
"Stop it."
Hearing her words, Bowwow clearly sensed that she wasn't in the mood to play. The dog was stunned a little, then quietly followed Lin Qiao out of the woods, leaving his little friends behind.
Lin Qiao did have no mood to play with them. She tried to feel the energy inside her body, but felt nothing. Her body was empty!
She raised both hands. No black fire nor dark mist could be released from her palms.
What the hell was happening?
Lin Qiao came out of the woods and looked at the grassland, which was no longer a grassland. The meter-tall grasses were gone, replaced by rice and wheat, melons, beans, and other vegetables. The crops were planted neatly in straight lines, and were thriving.
Seeing Lin Qiao come over with a large dog, Lu Tianyi and the other zombies stopped doing their work. Meanwhile, the mushroom and the snake didn't come out, but stayed at the edge of the woods while looking at her.
"Just now…" Lu Tianyi said. His voice was dry but clear. It didn't sound unpleasant when he talked with a low voice.
"Why did you all turn around just now? I didn't seem to say anything," Lin Qiao asked curiously.
She just said a few words in her head. But, those zombies made the movement as if they had all heard her.