"My grandfather is still in the provisional hospital, and he’s in danger! I have to save him!" Cynthia Grant declared, then turned and rushed out the door. Flora Bloom told Neal Wallace to follow her, "Wait for me at the hospital entrance."
Flora Bloom looked at Titan Adler, her expression grim and earnest. "Family Head Adler, these black scorpions are a type of zombie creature. They’re essentially no different from zombies. Anyone they injure has a chance of mutating. I need you to dispatch your men immediately to surround the hospital, forbid anyone from entering or leaving, and quarantine everyone inside."
"What? It’s that serious? Then wouldn’t it be better to just have my men take those seven people out and quarantine them somewhere else? There are many other patients in the hospital. If anyone mutates into a zombie, innocent people will be hurt!"
"And we should just take your word for it? That those black scorpions are zombie creatures? Flora Bloom, you think we’re just going to do what you say based on your word alone? Show us some proof!"
"Proof? I don’t have any, no. How about I go catch one of those black scorpions and have it bite you? We can see if you turn into a zombie, can’t we?"
"You!" Hector Grant raised his hand, looking as if he was about to strike. Flora tilted her head back, meeting his eyes without a trace of fear.
The moment Hector Grant saw her eyes clearly, he felt a jolt. They were filled with a palpable danger, and in their depths, he could see a profound darkness. He couldn’t fathom how a young woman’s eyes could simultaneously hold darkness, menace, and the abyss.
"If you waste any more time, someone in that hospital is going to mutate. I wonder if you can shoulder that responsibility." Flora Bloom turned to Titan Adler. "Family Head Adler, I hope you act quickly."
With that, Flora Bloom immediately headed for the hospital as well.
But when she arrived, she was a step too late. The provisional hospital wasn’t large, and any loud commotion inside was clearly audible to the ability users outside.
Flora Bloom stood alone outside the provisional hospital, clearly sensing that Neal Wallace and Cynthia Grant—a Middle-Level Fire Element user and a Middle-Level Plant Element user—had already gone inside. Moreover, their positions hadn’t moved since they entered.
’Robin Grant is in there,’ she thought. ’That impulsive girl Cynthia couldn’t hold herself back, just as I expected.’ Just as she was about to step inside herself, Titan Adler arrived with a team of ability users. Hector Grant, Liam Todd, and Simon arrived along with him.
Seeing Flora Bloom about to rush in, Titan Adler was the first to object. "Wait! Flora Bloom, you’re carrying a child of the Adler family! How can you take such a risk? I’ll send people in. You stay right here and behave!"
Flora Bloom looked at the two Level 3 Fire Ability Users who, upon being assigned by Titan Adler, were now staring at her with blatant disdain. A sudden smile touched her lips.
"Family Head Adler, this child is my own. As for whether it has anything to do with the Adler family, we’ll have to see when Lex returns. Furthermore, any ability user below Level 3 shouldn’t even attempt to venture inside. The scorpion’s poison is a mixture of the zombie virus and its own venom. Once struck, forget ordinary people—even ability users will have a hard time escaping mutation.
Besides, you must have discovered by now that the more powerful an ability user is, the more powerful the zombie they become after mutating. These two can’t handle it."
After she finished speaking, Flora Bloom calmly walked to the main entrance of the provisional hospital, went inside, and locked the large doors behind her.
Titan Adler didn’t say a word, but in their hearts, Simon and Liam Todd were moved by Flora Bloom’s simple act of locking the door.
They weren’t exactly sure how powerful Flora Bloom was, or even if she was powerful at all. But to have such a dauntless spirit in the face of this situation was something they admired.
As Family Heads, they might manage numerous ability users, but they themselves were only at the Second or Level 3. If asked to go in and clear out people who had turned into zombies, or to risk some other dangerous task, they knew in their hearts they couldn’t do it.
Zombies don’t rely on sight; they rely on smell and hearing.
The moment she entered, Flora Bloom enveloped herself in a water mist and maintained several thick, close-fitting water shields for defense. She wasn’t using the mist to fool the zombies’ sight; she was using it to mask her scent and muffle the sounds of her movement.
The hospital’s lights were bright, and the smell of disinfectant was heavy in the air. Through it, Flora Bloom detected an extremely faint smell of rotting flesh coming from the area to the left of the main entrance.
Gavin Todd’s operating room was on the left side. Robin Grant’s office was on the left side. And the fluctuations of Cynthia Grant’s and Neal Wallace’s superpowers were also coming from the left side.
「Outside the provisional hospital.」
Suddenly, a few First Level ability users, covered in wounds, came running toward the four Family Heads.
These First Level ability users were from the four families, sent out on hunting patrols. The sight of them running back, covered in injuries, filled everyone present with a terrible premonition.
"Family Heads, this is bad! There are tons of zombies outside the base!" As soon as one of the ability users spoke, a wound on the side of his head suddenly burst open. Brain matter dripped from the opening.
His face instantly turned a deathly gray, and his leg began to twist unnaturally, rotating a full 360 degrees. The wound blackened before their eyes, and a harsh, grotesque CRACKLE-CRUNCH echoed from his bones and flesh.
A guttural "Ghhh... ghhh..." sound escaped his throat.
This was no longer an ability user—it was a zombie that had just undergone a rapid mutation.