Chapter 86

Tao Shushu purchased numerous protective medicines from the game store and thoroughly disinfected everyone before allowing Nan Yuan back onto the spacecraft.
In the deathly silence of Deepwater Planet, only the mechanical sound of the ship's air filtration system could be heard.
Tao Shushu knew that artificial intelligence had previously released viruses that infected many humans with the zombie pathogen.
But they hadn't encountered any infected individuals yet, not from the barren planet to the Trash Planet.
The possibility hadn't immediately occurred to her.
After a long silence, Zhou Yan spoke up. "I've fought zombies before. They retain some level of rationality, show photophobia, have degraded vision, and can transmit the infection."
Tao Shushu remembered that Nan Yuan's brother had also been infected with the zombie virus.
She squeezed Nan Yuan's hand. "Nan Yuan, since the survivor map marks Deepwater Planet as a planet with human presence, we should be able to find a way to restore them to humanity."
"Mm," Nan Yuan responded.
Most people from the Trash Planet had some degree of contact with zombies.
Zhou Yan gathered with a group to discuss the characteristics of the undead.
Nan Yuan operated the control console, dividing the robots into three teams: one to explore and detect signs of life, one to assess Deepwater Planet's habitability, and the third to venture outward.
There were still a few hours until nightfall. The most terrifying thing was the unknown, after prolonged evolution, no one knew what state the zombies would be in after dark.
The Bloodsucking Grass had some resistance to toxicity and, with soil available, was growing wildly.
Everyone had thought that upon reaching Deepwater Planet, they would find more food and live as they had before the apocalypse. But upon arrival, they were met with the horrifying sight of their fellow humans turned into zombies.
The mood among the group was somber.
Nan Yuan frowned. Everyone was trapped on the spaceship, and their supplies wouldn't last long. Moreover, crammed into the limited space of the spacecraft, the survivors' mental states would inevitably deteriorate over time.
After a moment's thought, Nan Yuan said, "Let's first check the condition of the battleship."
Though harsh, if Deepwater Planet truly was no longer suitable for human survival, they would have no choice but to evacuate.
Nan Yuan made the necessary preparations and moved from the spacecraft to the battleship.
He had completely overcome the initial control system, establishing a connection between the battleship and the spacecraft.
Inside the battleship, only one psychic ability user had survived. He was trembling uncontrollably.
The Bloodsucking Grass had bound him.
Nan Yuan fed him some Health Potion and said, "Let Zhou Yan handle the interrogation."
Tao Shushu agreed, specialized tasks were best left to the experts.
Tao Shushu followed Nan Yuan to observe the battleship's functions.
This battleship was a marvel of technology, with ample space, a rich arsenal of weapons, and an advanced defense system.
Fortunately, Nan Yuan had managed to sow discord between Dr. Xie and Chu in time, causing both sides to underestimate their opponents, and he had created a control system that surpassed Chu's. Otherwise, their success would have been unlikely.
Nan Yuan was repairing the control console components that had been corroded and damaged by the Bloodsucking Grass.
Tao Shushu sighed, "Nan Yuan, I originally wanted to give you an amazing battleship."
Long ago, when she saw that artificial intelligences were equipped with the finest weapons, while Nan Yuan only had a dilapidated spacecraft, she felt envious and resolved to ensure that Nan Yuan would also have the best battleship.
But she never expected that the day it finally happened would also be the day they confronted the harsh reality of the apocalypse.
Nan Yuan paused his work and looked seriously at Tao Shushu. "Shushu, the apocalypse is the fault of artificial intelligence. Perhaps the so-called system behind it also played a role in fueling the chaos."
"Thank you for helping me obtain this battleship."
"You've done so much for this world, so don't blame yourself."
Nan Yuan's bright pupils focused intently on Tao Shushu.
Tao Shushu felt her face grow warm, she had merely been reminded of the post-apocalyptic world she experienced in her previous life and spoke from emotion.
But Nan Yuan could always detect all her feelings and see through her thoughts.
"Nan Yuan, do you know about the system now?" Tao Shushu asked.
Nan Yuan nodded. "Dr. Xie and Chu mentioned a bit about it."
"Chu" had identified Nan Yuan as the top candidate among preferred humans and strongly urged him to become humanity's leader for mutual benefit, just like how the Academic Genius System initially wanted to ensure no anomalies among protagonists and supporting characters in Tao Shushu's world.
Therefore, Nan Yuan would never believe Chu's words.
Tao Shushu and Nan Yuan exchanged more clues and could now almost confirm that "Chu" was this galaxy's "Academic Genius System."
Dr. Xie was the person chosen by Chu to collaborate with. But now, Dr. Xie and the Academic Genius System had fallen out, each holding leverage over the other.
Tao Shushu shook her head. "Nan Yuan, other protagonists have smooth sailing, but you're always on the brink of life and death."
Even Qin Rui and Su Momo had the Academic Genius System's assistance. Yet Nan Yuan faced nothing but perilous situations in the post-apocalyptic world.
Nan Yuan chuckled softly. "Shushu, I often wonder if being the male protagonist grants me the privilege of meeting you."
He dared not relax for a moment, fearing he might lose the right to see her.
Tao Shushu was taken aback.
Then she heard Nan Yuan continue, "There are so many people in the C1 Star System, I'm lucky to have been seen by you. No matter what I have to go through, meeting you makes it all worthwhile."
Tao Shushu paused, thinking of Qin Rui and Su Momo, who were also protagonists. Yet under the Academic Genius System's temptation, they had become unreasonable.
But Nan Yuan, he always shone brightly.
Tao Shushu ruffled Nan Yuan's hair. "I'm also very glad to have met you."
Glad that among so many people on Aqua Star, only she had downloaded the game featuring Nan Yuan, and fortunate that she and Nan Yuan were compatible.
Tao Shushu stayed with Nan Yuan to repair the battleship and take inventory of its weapons before returning to the spacecraft.
The sky gradually darkened.
The small robot also transmitted the latest footage.
In the base beneath the port, zombified humans lay together, deep in slumber.
The small robot moved quietly, not disturbing any of the zombies.
The footage clearly showed their pale skin, protruding swollen blood vessels, overgrown nails, and whitened hair.
Tao Shushu couldn't find any serum or formula in the game store and could only shake her head regretfully.
Nan Yuan reviewed the statistics provided by the small robot, just in the port base alone, there were over a thousand zombies.
Zhou Yan observed the zombies. "These zombies have a high degree of whitening and should be severely photophobic, which is why they sleep during the day."
Based on Zhou Yan's previous observations, the higher the mutation level of zombies, the more they lost human characteristics.
The sky grew darker.
Nan Yuan estimated the time. "We plan to stay on Deepwater Planet for three days. If we still can't communicate with the zombies after three days, we'll leave temporarily."
Both the spacecraft and the battleship had air filtration systems, but the filters and energy were limited. Lasting three days was already the best outcome.
Over these three days, the surviving humans needed to observe the characteristics of the zombies, attempt to communicate with them, and strive to find a way to restore the zombified humans to normal.
They also needed to retrieve the weapons stored by the Second Army.
Lastly, they had to set up the communication system.
Nan Yuan assigned tasks to everyone and then ordered the spacecraft and warships to withdraw from the port area, waiting for the zombies to awaken.
Nan Yuan and the others still had some food reserves. After everyone had a simple meal, they began to conserve their energy and prepare for the night.
Nan Yuan heightened the alert and wrote a program to continuously monitor the concentration of toxins in the air.
Tao Shushu accompanied Nan Yuan in the lab, testing the communication system.
Nearby, a medical robot was analyzing the zombie blood samples collected by the small robots.
As the "Bad-guy Catcher" set off small fireworks, Tao Shushu said, "Nan Yuan, I noticed you never let my substitute robot go to the battlefield."
Back then, Nan Yuan had created a small robot that closely resembled Tao Shushu, claiming it was to let her participate in the C1 star system as well.
Nan Yuan pressed a button, and immediately, the Bad-guy Catcher projected a map of the C1 star system, marking the situation on each planet.
After seeing the situation on Deepwater Planet, all the planets labeled as "only inhabited by humans" were now marked as zombie planets.
Based on the changes in the map of surviving humans, Nan Yuan tracked the population changes on each planet.
Now, this entire set of data was being used to simulate the progression of each apocalyptic scenario.
Nan Yuan looked at the map and said, "It's doing the most important work."
Moreover, he had been mistaken. Now that he could see Tao Shushu in person, as long as the battle wasn't urgent, his gaze would unconsciously drift toward her, making it difficult to focus on protecting a small robot from stray bullets.
Tao Shushu repeatedly watched the model simulations and said, "Nan Yuan, when did you finish this? You're so capable."
He paid attention to every big and small matter in the base and quickly implemented solutions.
Having such a leader must be very reassuring.
Tao Shushu recalled that in her previous life, she had also felt this sense of security and ease, but she still couldn't remember who had given her that feeling.
After chatting with Nan Yuan for a while, Tao Shushu's mood completely relaxed.
She believed that with Nan Yuan around, they would surely find a solution.
Nan Yuan had that kind of magic.
Night finally fell, and Deepwater Planet gradually began to stir.