Chapter 359: Chapter 359: Worried About Attracting Disaster
After the two carried the bucket of water away, Nina Jacobs patted Lexy’s head and opened two cans of cat food, placing them on the table.
This was Lexy’s reward.
Hearing Lexy’s contented purrs as it ate, Nina Jacobs decided to head out alone for a while.
"Wait here with Lexy. I’ll be back soon."
She planned to complete the mission at the food factory as soon as possible.
That way, she could leave sooner.
Veridia Town wasn’t large.
And the Veridia Food Factory wasn’t hard to find.
Nina Jacobs reached the factory gates in less than half an hour.
’Strange. Not a single zombie in sight.’
’Is this another trap?’
Nina Jacobs recalled what Cordelia had said about a Thunder and Water Dual Element zombie.
’Logically, if there really was a Mutated Zombie here, it should have attacked me on sight.’
She released her Little Zombie Rats. Through their eyes, Nina Jacobs observed the situation inside the factory.
There were no zombies—at least, not inside the factory.
She decided to enter the factory and complete her mission first.
The Veridia Food Factory produced all sorts of pastries, cookies, and candy.
The supplies inside were surprisingly well-preserved.
Just as Nina Jacobs finished gathering supplies in the warehouse and was preparing to leave, she sensed that something was wrong.
Footsteps.
And the roars of zombies.
The sounds weren’t coming from one direction, but from all around her.
’I’m surrounded by zombies?!’
Nina Jacobs stepped out of the warehouse and saw that it was true.
There were at least four or five hundred zombies before her, with a good number of Mutated Zombies among them.
’So that’s it. Luring people in for the kill.’
’No wonder the supplies here were still intact.’
’And no wonder the ground inside the factory was covered in dried bloodstains.’
’This place is a trap, and the supplies are the bait.’
’And many people have died here before...’
’It’s a Spiritual Element Mutated Zombie.’
’Zombies couldn’t possibly hide in such an organized fashion and then appear all at once, especially not with ordinary zombies in the mix.’
’In my past life, there were definitely Spiritual Element Mutated Zombies that could control other zombies.’
’But that wasn’t until two years into the apocalypse. After all, controlling so many zombies requires immense spiritual power and a powerful Superpower.’
’I just don’t know if that Spiritual Element zombie is among this horde.’
Nina Jacobs stared at the zombies before her.
Two of the Mutated Zombies were already attacking, one launching a Thunder Ball and the other a Water Needle at her.
At the same time, the remaining zombies, which had been standing still, swarmed toward her as if a restraining order had been lifted.
BOOM!
Several Fire Serpents shot out in all directions as Nina Jacobs drew her Fire Roaring Blade. She swept the tip horizontally before her, raising waves of rolling fire.
Nina Jacobs realized the Thunder Element zombie and the Water Element zombie were coordinating their attacks.
’In other words, they’re following some kind of command.’
The other zombies, however, were just acting on their instinctual hunger.
’It can only control two at once?’
Nina Jacobs understood.
’My opponent can control a maximum of two Mutated Zombies to attack simultaneously.’
’As for the rest, it can only restrain their movements.’
’So the "Thunder and Water Dual System" zombie Cordelia mentioned must have been these two Mutated Zombies working in tandem.’
’Then I’ll take care of you two first!’
In just two strikes, both the Thunder and Water Element Mutated Zombies collapsed.
But with hundreds of zombies still remaining, Nina Jacobs quickly vaulted off a nearby abandoned forklift and onto a second-floor platform.
From her high vantage point, Nina Jacobs observed the zombies below.
Ultimately, she concluded, ’That main zombie isn’t among them.’
By coordinating her Fire Element and Earth Element Superpowers, she quickly eliminated more than half of the hundreds of zombies below.
In the midst of her slaughter, some of the zombies stopped attacking and began to retreat.
Nina Jacobs pretended not to notice, instead releasing a Little Zombie Rat that scurried into the pocket of one of the retreating zombies.
’Let’s see just where these zombies are hiding.’
’Most importantly, I need to get rid of that Spiritual Element Mutated Zombie as soon as possible.’
’I have to pass through here on my way back, and Mutated Zombies tend to evolve quickly.’
When Nina Jacobs returned, she found the room filled with containers brimming with water.
They had even used pots, pans, and basins.
Seeing Nina Jacobs return, Cordelia quickly explained, "We didn’t make Lexy do it! It started releasing water on its own, and I figured it would be a waste not to collect it, so..."
She was worried Nina Jacobs would think they were mistreating Lexy.
Just then, Lexy trotted over with an empty cat food can in its mouth and dropped it at Nina Jacobs’s feet.
MEOW—
Lexy looked up at Nina Jacobs with its azure eyes.
Nina Jacobs didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Lexy probably thought producing water would earn it another can of cat food.
That was why it had made so much water after she left.
"It’s fine. Take the water and use it as you wish."
Nina Jacobs replied, picking up Lexy.
Lexy was a Chinese desert cat. Although its frame was larger than a domestic cat’s, the harsh conditions of the past few months had left it with barely any meat on its bones.
It felt surprisingly light in her arms.
"Really? Thank you!
Thank you, Master Cat!"
Cordelia said, overjoyed.
Her greatest wish right now was to take a bath.
Having not bathed in months, she felt she probably smelled no different from a zombie.
Nina Jacobs nodded and returned to her room with Lexy.
She didn’t give Lexy another can of wet food, just its usual kibble.
"From now on, you can’t just go making water whenever you feel like it when we’re outside, understand?"
’Cordelia and her group are one thing.’
’But if we were inside Lornwood Base, it would surely bring disaster.’
’Wait a minute.’
An idea suddenly struck Nina Jacobs.
’Why do I have to go to Lornwood Base?’
’Lornwood Base is already a dictator’s territory.’
’To fight a dictator, or even to try and usurp them... the best way is to become an even stronger opponent.’
’Instead of being tied down in Lornwood Base, I could grow unchecked somewhere else. It would be best to build my own power base.’
With this in mind, Nina Jacobs knocked on the door across from hers.
"You’re here!"
A young woman with delicate features opened the door. If it weren’t for her voice, Nina Jacobs wouldn’t have recognized the formerly dirt-caked Cordelia.
"Yes. I came to ask..."
Cordelia had just pulled Nina Jacobs inside when she saw a shirtless man leaning on a table, practicing how to walk.
The man looked very familiar.
Nina Jacobs tried to recall if she had ever seen him before.
"You couldn’t tell yesterday, could you? He’s *the* Silas Crowley."
Cordelia said.
"Silas Crowley?"
When Reginald Sutton had called out the name yesterday, it had indeed sounded vaguely familiar to her.
"You don’t even know who Silas Crowley is?
He’s a huge celebrity! You know, the one from *Have you ever loved me*? He was super famous last year!"
Cordelia explained eagerly.
"..."
Nina Jacobs finally understood.
No wonder he looked and sounded familiar. Silas Crowley’s face and name had been all over the big-screen ads in the malls.
But celebrities and the like felt like a lifetime ago to her now.
"Hello. Your medicine worked wonders. Thank you for saving my life."
Silas Crowley walked over to Nina Jacobs.
He had been injured in the thigh. He’d thought he was going to die, or at the very least, have his leg amputated.
But to his surprise, he’d regained some feeling in his leg that morning.
Nina Jacobs nodded, her expression calm. She glanced over at Rhonda Rowan and saw her sitting up, her complexion much improved.
"And we are, too. We’re so grateful to you,"
Tobin said, slowly getting to his feet. With medicine and water, it was as if they had been given a new lease on life.
"You’re welcome," Nina Jacobs said. "I came to ask you all a few questions."
