"Biomedical Ph.D.?"

Zhang Su's eyebrow twitched; he hadn't expected the person in the car to have such a remarkable background. He exclaimed, "There are such incredible people in Qin City, impressive! How's the research on zombies going?"

"I don't know much about the research; you need to talk to Fu Weijun about that... However, he isn't from Qin City."

Duan Wuhu pointed to the east, "Fu Weijun is from Beijing. I heard his family's circumstances are quite incredible, and he established a laboratory himself, specialized in marine biology topics, with a branch over by Beihai in Qin City."

Zhang Su nodded in understanding; it truly seemed the Imperial Capital produced talent. There's no denying that. The data shows that the more economically advanced and developed a place is, the higher the proportion of high-end talent there is.

Then he thought about it again and frowned, "Beihai is more than twenty kilometers from Qin City. How did he get to Qin City when he's not so mobile? Did the Survivor Alliance go to Beihai to search for survivors?"

The distances between the three districts of Qin City are not close. Previously, it wasn't an obstacle, but now, that's debatable. Based on Zhang Su's experience coming from the city, not to mention being blocked by zombies, just the Survivor Forces along the way could make travelers suffer.

Duan Wuhu pouted, "He has a life of his own. I heard that a research project he was working on hit a bottleneck, so his girlfriend brought him to watch a movie and shop in Qin City. They stayed at Junyue Hotel late and caught up with that thing the next day..."

Zhang Su knew what that thing meant, so he naturally asked, "What about Fu Weijun's girlfriend?"

"I heard she turned into a zombie. Fu Weijun stayed hidden in the hotel until Survivor Alliance people found him and saved him." Duan Wuhu wasn't too clear about that matter; it was all hearsay.

"According to you, the Survivor Alliance is quite righteous, saving even people with disabilities when they likely didn't know his identity and ability back then?"

Zhang Su felt curious about this. In the current situation, unless someone has remarkable abilities, people with mobility issues don't usually get much care, as everyone is preoccupied with their survival.

"I don't know what happened back then." Duan Wuhu shrugged.

"By the way, why did you two run away from the Survivor Alliance?"

After talking for a long time, Zhang Su realized he hadn't discussed the main issue yet.

Duan Wuhu let out a long breath, "Researching zombies is normal, but if they use live humans for zombie transformation research, Brother Zhang, do you think that's understandable?"

"What specifically happened? Tell me about it."

Zhang Su felt a sinking feeling in his heart, thinking the Survivor Alliance might be up to something sinister!

"In the beginning, the research lab of the Survivor Alliance only captured zombies for various aspects of research. But a few days ago, while in the restroom, Fu Weijun told me that the alliance head wanted them to start researching the process of living human zombification, attempting to find a reversal method from it!"

"The process of living human zombification!?" Zhang Su instinctively asked, suddenly realizing it meant watching bitten people turn into zombies?

"Publicly, they claimed that those survivors who were bitten volunteered for experiments and provided generous rewards to their family and friends. But the truth was that they tied non-compliant survivors to the experiment table and tried various methods to infect them—it's absurd! Fu Weijun couldn't accept such a horrible act, and I thought it was too crazy too, so we decided to find an opportunity and ran away!"

Duan Wuhu outlined the situation for Zhang Su, his face showing anger.

After Zhang Su and Zheng Xinyu listened, they exchanged a look. He said, "Isn't your alliance leader a mad scientist? The research topics are too wild!"

"Pah!" Duan Wuhu spat out the door, "Mad scientist my ass, I just found out yesterday why they use live humans for research!"

About five or six days ago, several survivors joined the alliance. One of the women, who was quite beautiful, caught the eye of the alliance leader's son. Then, you know, that thing happened, and she turned into a zombie somehow, making them eager to find a rescue method!"

"Damn... your alliance recruits survivors so casually, without checking injuries?" Zhang Su was shocked.

"Of course they checked, all stripped down for injury inspection—stricter than a damn prison... Someone speculated that the girl acted out of resentment, using a weapon tainted with zombie virus, but she was killed before the exact method was found..."

"It's so fucking tragic... Did they find a reversal method?" Zhang Su was full of curiosity.

Duan Wuhu's expression was strange as he shook his head, "According to Weijun, there's absolutely no clue..."

Zhang Su hoped for good news. However, he was not surprised by this answer. If reversing the process was easy, the scale of this disaster might not be so overwhelming.

"So, where are you and the biology Ph.D. planning to go?"

Duan Wuhu shook his head in confusion, "I don't know either. Fu Weijun is very important to the alliance; if they know he ran away, they'll probably search everywhere. I'll find a place outside the city to settle down and then think about the next step. There's no clear goal. Brother Zhang, so, are you living here in this village?"

Zhang Su could obviously see that Duan Wuhu wanted to join his camp. If it had been when he was leaving Sheng Qin Home, he would have gladly accepted. However, after more than two months, especially the two months that upended human nature and reshaped worldviews, some things need to be reassessed.

However, he was very interested in that biology Ph.D.'s research.

"I don't live here, but I have a safe camp to the north."

"That's great!" Duan Wuhu was very delighted and excitedly patted the armrest of the couch, "Brother Zhang, can I join your camp? Killing zombies and doing work is no problem, including Fu Weijun's share, I'll earn it all!"

Because of the Survivor Alliance's system, Duan Wuhu was accustomed to using abilities to earn all resources.

"There's still room in the camp; it can accommodate the two of you, but..." Zhang Su paused, "I must talk to Fu Weijun first!"

"Sure, no problem! His legs are not very convenient, Brother Zhang, feel free to go up to the car to find him. He's twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, about the same age as you, and he's quite easygoing."

Duan Wuhu thought Zhang Su didn't trust Fu Weijun, so he quickly arranged for them to meet and talk.

"Let's go!"

The two got off the bus together, opened the door of the van, and got in. Zheng Xinyu, who loved joining in the fun and was worried about Zhang Su going alone, also sat in the front passenger seat of the van.

Fu Weijun, who was holding a book, was startled by the sudden movement. When he saw Duan Wuhu and a man sitting in the car, he quickly put down the book.

"Hello, I'm Zhang Su. I just heard Teacher Duan talk about your story."

Zhang Su very courteously extended his hand. Researchers are quite rare roles these days. Whether anything can be discovered about the new species of zombies relies on such talents. As for the so-called reversal, he's not too hopeful.

"Brother Zhang, hello, I've heard a lot about you."

Fu Weijun politely extended his hand to shake Zhang Su's, but his words were somewhat unclear.

"Heard a lot about me... Dr. Fu knows of me?"

Zhang Su glanced at Duan Wuhu; this statement seemed normal, just ordinary small talk, but at this moment, it seemed a bit sensitive. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Duan Wuhu also looked strangely at Fu Weijun, spreading his hands, indicating he hadn't said anything.

Fu Weijun smiled faintly and pushed up his glasses, "Once, while passing by when Yu Nuo was chatting with someone, she mentioned your name, Zhang Su. I didn't expect to meet you one day, quite a feeling."

"Damn, that gossip Yu Nuo. Brother Zhang, don't worry, whatever she says is definitely not good!" Duan Wuhu clenched his fist, making a crunching sound.

"I want to hear what Yu Nuo said about me. Does Dr. Fu remember?"

Zhang Su asked playfully, finding understanding how others see him quite interesting.

"Well..." Fu Weijun showed a slightly awkward expression, "She just said she encountered you when leaving Sheng Qin International. She didn't say much else. It was just women chatting idly, and I was passing by, not paying much attention."

From Fu Weijun's expression, Zhang Su could see the nuances. Indeed, as Duan Wuhu said, Yu Nuo didn't have anything good to say about him, which is normal.

"Let's not talk about her. Dr. Fu, I'd like to learn more about your findings in researching zombies."

"Hmm..." Fu Weijun looked at Duan Wuhu, evidently not strong in social interactions.

"Go ahead, no problem. We need to join Brother Zhang's camp anyway; he's now a local warlord, haha!" Duan Wuhu joked in a flattering way.

Zhang Su smiled helplessly, waving his hands, "Not that exaggerated, just a few guns."

"Ahem. Due to limited conditions, the research progress is very slow, but some very critical aspects have been discovered. First, I think we need to redefine zombification because, in my research, I found that zombification is not caused by a virus, at least not the kind of virus we know."

"What?"

The first sentence shocked Zhang Su and the others tremendously.

Duan Wuhu also didn't know about this; he and Fu Weijun mostly chatted idly, occasionally talking about some secrets of the Survivor Alliance. Hearing such explosive news, he was very shocked, looking at Fu Weijun with wide eyes.

"It seems you all are very skeptical, and indeed, I couldn't believe it initially either, but after a verification process, it was confirmed to be true."

Fu Weijun spread his hands, showing a 'that's just how it is' expression.