Zhang Wenbin's death didn't even cause a ripple—on the contrary, it was Xie Lingruo's earlier sarcastic retort that aroused Lin Yiyi's suspicions.
Xie Lingruo regretted it a little, but only because it alerted the enemy. Still, she couldn't bring herself to forgive that fake white lotus in front of everyone—it wasn't like Lin Yiyi deserved it anyway.
Besides, she just couldn't stand pretending to be civil with someone like Lin Yiyi. What she wanted most was to expose all the disgusting things she'd done, to stop others from being fooled by this counterfeit saint.
Meanwhile, Zhou Yi and his men didn't go too far—they only injured Xu Ke's arm as payback.
Upon seeing this, Xie Lingruo frowned inwardly. Zhou Yi's actions were no different from letting a tiger return to the mountains.
But when she thought about his identity, it made sense. They were soldiers, so of course they'd hesitate to harm civilians—especially with the apocalypse still in its early stages. No one was prepared to kill yet.
But Xie Lingruo was different. She knew the plot, and when it came to those who hurt the original host in the previous life, she would strike without mercy—it was part of her mission.
Still, what about strangers?
After thinking it through for a while, Xie Lingruo decided she needed to harden her heart. There were still many tasks ahead, and softness would only be a fatal weakness.
As long as no one bothered her, she wouldn't make the first move.
Meanwhile, Lin Yiyi, looking at the wounded Xu Ke and her remaining pathetic teammates, had a new idea: cling to a stronger team.
She walked toward Zhou Yi's group, tears glimmering in her eyes like rain-kissed pear blossoms.
Putting on her best pitiful act, she sobbed,
"Big brothers, I had no choice but to be with Xu Ke and his group. Could you take me with you? I'm a lightning-type ability user—I can help kill zombies!"
As she spoke, she subtly puffed out her chest, hinting she had "other" uses as well.
What Lin Yiyi didn't realize, though, was that the moment she opened her mouth, Zhou Yi and the others turned around and walked off.
Compared to this suspicious woman, they clearly trusted Xie Lingruo more.
So in the end, only the zombies nearby appreciated Lin Yiyi's performance. Totally wasted effort.
Internally, though, Lin Yiyi was anything but calm. She swore: once she became powerful, she would make sure to get revenge on Xie Lingruo and these blind, ungrateful men.
While she was busy daydreaming her villain monologue, she failed to notice a zombie creeping up behind her.
Xu Ke saw it. If it had been before, he might've shouted to warn her. But now that he knew this two-faced woman had tried to abandon him, he said nothing.
As for the other underlings? They certainly weren't going to speak up, not after being bullied by Lin Yiyi just because they didn't have powers.
So, the unlucky Lin Yiyi got bitten on the hand. And even then, she froze for several seconds, forgetting she had powers, before finally reacting.
By the time she finished off the zombie, she discovered that her pinky finger had been bitten off.
This realization left Lin Yiyi in utter despair. She knew that in this post-apocalyptic world, it was impossible to recover—she was now permanently disabled.
Xie Lingruo, watching from afar, couldn't help but mentally roast her:
"This Lin Yiyi is cursed. If she hadn't caused trouble, she wouldn't have gotten hurt. Now that she's been bitten, her ability progression will slow. That just means she'll be easier to deal with later."
The system, which had been silent for a while, actually popped out in high spirits to respond:
"That's because you killed the original male lead. The Heavenly Dao will now start stripping away the protagonist's luck. This world will gradually become more balanced. But don't let your guard down—you still need to finish off Lin Yiyi sooner rather than later."
Hearing this, Xie Lingruo finally reined in the overconfidence she'd been feeling from Lin Yiyi's downfall.
"Right… nothing's over until it's over. I need to fix that mindset."
Then she glanced at the system and asked,
"Why are you suddenly back? Weren't you ghosting me?"
The system answered proudly,
"That's because your mission has finally made progress. So now I'm willing to talk to you."
Xie Lingruo didn't get mad. After all, it was true—if you lacked strength, you had no right to expect respect.
Besides, her relationship with the system was purely cooperative. She wasn't naïve enough to expect equality or rights from a machine.
Others, watching Lin Yiyi's miserable fate, secretly reminded themselves:
"In this zombie-infested world, never let your guard down. Or else you'll end up just like her."
Now that the mini zombie wave had been dealt with, everyone prepared to hit the road.
Just then, Zhou Yi came over with Coach Yu, which surprised Xie Lingruo—what did they want with her?
She soon found out: Zhou Yi hoped she could take Coach Yu to the safe base with them.
Of course, they weren't asking for a free favor. Zhou Yi handed over two pistols and 300 rounds of ammo as payment.
Seeing how straightforward Zhou Yi was—and knowing that Coach Yu was capable—Xie Lingruo agreed easily.
After all, it was only a temporary alliance, not a permanent addition. Once they reached the base, they'd go their separate ways.
Zhou Yi's team had a mission to complete, or he would've brought his master along himself.
Coach Yu, understanding that his disciple had more important things to do, was also eager to reach the base—to check if his family had made it.
So now, the Xie family's vehicle had one more passenger, and Xie Lingruo didn't mind at all—Zhou Yi's payment had hit the sweet spot.
Meanwhile, Lin Yiyi, realizing she couldn't survive on her own, shamelessly went back to beg Xu Ke and his team.
Xu Ke, thinking she was still useful, gave his underling a signal to let her in.
And so, both Xie Lingruo's group and Xu Ke's team drove off, heading toward the nearest base—while Zhou Yi's squad left to complete their mission.