Yu Qingxian's next stop was a place she had long anticipated.
It was also the place where she had previously expressed a desire to see snow.
However, it now appeared that there was no more snow there, so she would be seeing flowers instead.
But was it even possible to see flowers in a place that was typically covered in heavy snow year-round?
She decided to visit a flower shop.
If there were no flowers, then she would simply scatter seeds along her path.
Surely, by next spring, the flowers would bloom.
Even after a harsh winter, spring would eventually bring forth blossoms, wouldn't it?
Yu Qingxian intended to select flower seeds, but upon seeing the vast array of seeds available, she found herself puzzled.
Which seeds would be able to grow in the northern region?
Yet, as she glanced at the radiant sunshine outside, she felt that she was perhaps overthinking the matter.
Yu Qingxian abandoned the store-bought seeds and instead sought out mutated flower varieties.
Such flowers were abundant, even growing along the roadsides.
These flowers were beautiful, and although some had not yet been pollinated, others had already produced seeds.
Gazing at the plants in the fields, Yu Qingxian set down her luggage and backpack at the edge of the road.
Of course, she did this cautiously, worried that any surviving humans passing by might discover her belongings.
Then again, in a place like this, it was possible that days could go by without encountering a single living soul, so she had no real cause for concern.
Yu Qingxian stepped over a small canal and ventured into the thicket of thorns.
But after just a few steps, she seemed to have become entangled in something.
It wasn't that she had a feeling of being caught; rather, by the time she realized what was happening, she had already been hoisted upside down.
Her long dress had fallen over her face, completely obstructing her view.
Yu Qingxian reached up and pushed the dress down, revealing a stunning morning glory vine amidst the thorns.
It was this vine that had coiled itself around her leg.
Yu Qingxian could barely make out the vine wrapped around her leg, with its green leaves and beautiful morning glory blossoms.
Staring at the flowers, she exclaimed, "I've blossomed!"
But...
She could not remain suspended in this position indefinitely.
Though it was nearing evening now, the sun would rise again tomorrow morning.
If she stayed hanging there, she would undoubtedly become a dried-up corpse under the scorching sun.
Yu Qingxian reached out and grasped at the air.
But the morning glory vine seemed to sense her intentions and raised her up several more meters.
At this point, she was at least ten meters above the ground, still hanging upside down.
She could no longer worry about what was in front of her, as she now had a clear view of her surroundings from this vantage point.
This area appeared to be someone's vegetable garden, but it was now overgrown with various vines and creepers.
The morning glory vine had previously needed to cling to other plants or trellises to grow, yet now it was somehow capable of lifting her ninety-pound weight.
Truly impressive.
The apocalypse had indeed made many things extraordinarily formidable.
Even she, a socially anxious introvert who had been unwilling to leave her room, was now embarking on a walking journey.
So, no matter what happened in this world, Yu Qingxian would no longer find it strange.
But could this vine please put her down first?
However, the morning glory could not understand her words, and instead of lowering her, it began swinging her back and forth like a windmill.
Yu Qingxian wrapped her arms around herself as the vine flung her around wildly.
Fortunately, being a zombie had its advantages, as she did not experience any dizziness or nausea.
Apparently dissatisfied with Yu Qingxian's sudden silence, the morning glory vine abruptly flung her outward.
Yu Qingxian tumbled across the ground, rolling over a few times before coming to rest in a spread-eagle position.
As she sat up, she found herself meeting the gaze of a pair of beautiful eyes.
Of course, these did not belong to a zombie or a human, but rather to a large white dog.
From its appearance, it was larger than any dog Yu Qingxian had ever seen.
After exchanging glances with the dog for three minutes, Yu Qingxian finally realized that it was a mutated canine.
Similar to the massive wolf-like dog that accompanied Gu Wanqing.
However, Yu Qingxian had never owned a dog or a cat.
Oh, that wasn't entirely accurate.
It was just that her pets had passed away.
She, who did not grieve over the loss of humans, had cried profusely when her pets died.
There was a civet cat that had grown up with her.
But when she was around ten years old, the cat passed away.
Looking back, that was the most severe emotional outburst she had ever experienced.
And it was over a cat, not her parents' deaths.
Yu Qingxian once again felt the coldness within herself.
This dog was massive, and the collar around its neck seemed impossible to remove, as it had tightened severely, strangling the animal.
The sense of security the collar once provided had now become a threat to the dog's life.
Yu Qingxian realized that the dog must have mistaken her for a human and was seeking her help.
If she had been a zombie, she might have already pounced on the dog by now.
Yu Qingxian approached and stood before the large white dog, which did not retreat.
"I don't know if I can break it since I don't have a knife," Yu Qingxian said as she grasped the collar.
Immediately, a strong fragrance enveloped her.
Indeed, the collar had deeply embedded itself into the dog's neck.
Yu Qingxian gripped both sides of the collar with her hands and pulled with force, causing the collar to snap.
The collar was actually quite loose and was not meant to restrain the dog.
That's why this mutated canine had been able to grow to such a massive size without being strangled to death by the collar.
It had simply remained around its neck for the past six months.
Yu Qingxian glanced at the name on the dog tag: Tyrannosaurus Rex.
"Is that your name? You're called Tyrannosaurus Rex?" Yu Qingxian widened her bean-like eyes as she looked at the massive dog before her.
At that moment, the dog lay down on the ground, its nerves finally relaxing after the sudden relief of having the collar removed.
The area where it had been bleeding had already stopped.
Yu Qingxian glanced over and noticed its impressive healing ability.
It was likely this regenerative power that had saved the dog's life.
Yu Qingxian examined the collar in her hand, which had already been nearly scratched through.
There were numerous marks on it.
However, since the collar had been embedded in the flesh, even with the dog's immense strength, it could not scratch through the collar directly without cutting into its own skin.
She stood up and carried the collar to the edge of the canal.
Water flowed through the canal, and Yu Qingxian crouched down to wash away the blood stains from her hands and the collar.
Afterward, she placed the collar beside the canal.
Tyrannosaurus Rex also wobbled over, following her.
However, it appeared the dog had not eaten in a long time, as despite its massive size, it seemed to have little meat on its bones, likely due to its thick fur coat.
Assisting the dog by removing the collar was the extent of what Yu Qingxian could do for it.
...
Yu Qingxian had never imagined that catching a bird would be so difficult.
These birds had already undergone mutations, making them even more agile than before.
Fortunately, her perseverance paid off.
Finally, in the middle of the night, she managed to find a nest of bird eggs.
She even took the entire nest.
The two parent birds pursued her, pecking relentlessly.
By the time she had shaken off the birds and returned to her shelter, Yu Qingxian found that Tyrannosaurus Rex had fallen asleep.
This left her feeling rather exasperated.
So why had she gone to such lengths for a dog that didn't even belong to anyone?
Never mind, this would be a one-time occurrence.
After all, once this mutated dog regained its strength, its combat abilities would undoubtedly surpass her own.
She had no need to worry.
Oh, and to the dog's owner, if there is one, your Tyrannosaurus Rex is still alive!
