Chapter 637 - 627: Zombie 22

"Something’s not right!"

Moira Lynch looked down at a plant that looked remarkably similar to rice. However, it grew five ears, and they were a mix of five different colors: cyan, yellow, red, white, and black.

’Forget everything else,’ she thought. ’Just look at those colors. Can you even eat this thing?’

A huge question mark formed in Moira Lynch’s mind regarding the mutated plant before her.

When in doubt, ask Patience.

"Patience, check the Astranet. See if there are any records of this mutated plant."

[Searching...]

After two or three minutes, Patience provided an answer.

[Beneficial mutation. Edible, but all five colors of rice must be eaten together.]

According to Patience, the plant was called five-color rice, a species that had long been extinct.

Each color of rice from the five-color rice plant was highly toxic if eaten alone, but when combined, the five were unbelievably delicious.

The description said that steamed five-color rice tasted savory, like meat.

Moreover, five-color rice was itself a medicinal ingredient, possessing properties that enhanced beauty and protected the internal organs.

After hearing Patience’s explanation, Moira Lynch’s eyes lit up, practically sparkling.

At that moment, only one thought echoed in her mind: ’Mine, mine, all mine!’

’Alright, I’ll leave some for Mark Rhodes and the others,’ she thought. ’Just a little bit.’

With that thought, and after confirming the five-color rice was ripe, Moira Lynch used her Universal Gloves to conjure a sharp sickle.

There wasn’t much of the five-color rice—only about a hundred pounds in total, and that was including the moisture content.

If she only counted the grain, there would probably only be a few dozen pounds.

Moira Lynch set aside a tenth of the five-color rice, planning to give it to Mark Rhodes later.

Once she was done, Moira Lynch rose back into the sky.

Partway back, it suddenly occurred to her. ’Wait, could the Five-Grain Rice that Mark Rhodes mentioned actually be this five-color rice?’

A part of her hoped that Five-Grain Rice and five-color rice were two different species. That way, she could have scored two types of high-yield crops in one go.

However, when she reached the second destination, she didn’t see anything that looked like rice.

She circled in the sky several times, but saw nothing new. Moira Lynch couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. ’No other choice, I guess I’ll just head back...’

Just as Moira Lynch was about to leave, her eyes were drawn to a small patch of gold below.

What a coincidence. Both wheat and rice turn a golden yellow when they’re ripe.

Her heart thumping with excitement, Moira Lynch descended slightly.

Just then, a black shadow suddenly shot out from the golden patch below.

The shadow’s target was clear. It aimed straight for Moira Lynch’s vulnerable neck, clearly intending to kill her in a single blow.

But Moira Lynch had her spiritual power. Did it really think she wouldn’t have noticed the "person" hiding below?

Of course she had noticed.

She just wasn’t sure if this "person" was actually a human or some kind of primate.

’Since it wants to ambush me, I’ll give it the chance.’

The instant the shadow closed in, Moira Lynch’s body shifted just a few centimeters to the side.

It wasn’t a large movement, but it was enough to evade the shadow’s attack.

Only then did Moira Lynch get a clear look at the shadow’s full appearance. It was actually a person.

His hair was a bit messy, but she could still tell that it had been meticulously styled before the apocalypse. Even his clothes were quite sophisticated.

"A zombie?"

Moira Lynch looked at the person who had just attacked her. Outwardly, he looked almost identical to a normal human. Aside from his disheveled clothes, even the skin on his face was the same as a normal person’s.

But she had seen the viciousness and desire that flashed in his eyes, as well as the way he couldn’t stop himself from licking the corner of his mouth.

He wanted to eat her.

’What kind of person has an appetite for other people?’

Besides mutated plants and animals, there were only zombies.

Sure enough, the next second, she heard the zombie say in a sinister voice, "After I eat you, I’ll be able to evolve again!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the zombie raised his hand, and a golden beam of light shot toward Moira Lynch.

"A Light Element... zombie?"

So they really exist!

At that moment, Moira Lynch’s heart was filled with nothing but shock.

To be honest, for a moment, she didn’t even want to kill this thing.

A Light Element zombie... if she brought it back, it would probably be valuable enough to go straight to an auction house.

"Ah, what a shame."

Moira Lynch sighed. After dodging another one of the zombie’s attacks, she summoned her Flying Wheel and sliced off the zombie’s head. A golden Crystal Core fell out.

Moira Lynch picked up the Crystal Core, intending to purify the zombie toxin within, but she couldn’t feel any toxins inside it at all.

Furthermore, she could vaguely feel the Crystal Core rejecting her, as if trying to prevent itself from being absorbed by her.

Seeing this, Moira Lynch grew annoyed. ’I defeated you, and you’re still unwilling to be absorbed by me?’ She decided to force the issue.

But the Crystal Core would rather shatter than submit; a tiny crack appeared within it.

At this, Moira Lynch was forced to admit defeat.

’Fine, don’t be absorbed. It’s not like I’m desperate for one Crystal Core,’ she thought resentfully.

After stowing the Crystal Core, Moira Lynch finally noticed that the golden patch that had caught her eye was actually a field of ripe sunflowers.

Each sunflower was half a person tall, and their seeds were ripe and plump.

Beneath the sunflowers, the ground was covered in messy footprints and signs of habitation. There were even some daily necessities and a random assortment of personal belongings.

The items were a chaotic jumble, and some were even stained with dried blood. It looked like they had been stripped from the bodies of people who had frozen to death.

’Was this that zombie’s home?’

As Moira Lynch pondered this, she swiftly began chopping the heads off the ripe sunflowers.

’Sunflower seeds this big... they would be amazing roasted with five-spice powder,’ Moira Lynch thought with delight.

After gathering all the sunflowers, she finally headed back.

"I’m back!"

Moira Lynch’s figure descended slowly from the sky.

"Miss Lynn, what did you find? Did you locate the Five-Grain Rice?" Mark Rhodes asked.

After all, finding the Five-Grain Rice was the main reason they had come out this time.

Since the beginning of the apocalypse, the zombie virus had run rampant, contaminating all the seeds on the planet. Although the resulting crops were still edible, they could no longer be planted.

That was why they had to search for new grain seeds. Otherwise, even if they dealt with the zombie threat, they would still face an even greater food crisis, eventually eating through all their reserves.