Reborn with a Space: Hoarding Food and Raising My Kid

Confusion flickered in the pregnant woman’s eyes as she looked at Flora Bloom. The yellow glow in them suddenly concentrated in her pupils.

Those eyes, now with yellow pupils, slowly shifted from gentle to sharp, eventually becoming utterly savage. They seemed to pull Flora Bloom’s gaze in, as if trying to enter through her eyes and possess the very depths of her soul.

Within the vortex of her Sea of Consciousness, the deep blue Crystal Stone and the red one resonated with each other, emitting a soft glow that repelled the malevolent yellow light invading from the outside.

"Human, what is your name?"

The quiet yet seductive voice sent a numbing tingle through her as it crept into her ears.

"Let me see the child in your belly. Hehehe, I won’t harm you!"

The voice, like scattered fragments of a languid, starry sky, slowly paralyzed her nerves.

"I’m so hungry. I can sense a delicious little morsel in your belly." The pregnant woman reached out to caress Flora Bloom’s abdomen, hunger gleaming in her eyes as a long, scarlet tongue darted out to lick her lips.

Her thoughts and vision swirled, pulled down by the voice into an endless fall through a bottomless, black abyss. She wanted to break free, but a profound sense of helplessness flooded her entire being.

"But eating him would be such a waste. I quite like your body. Don’t resist. Let me become you, let our children merge into one. Let me be you from now on."

...

Flora Bloom’s eyes glazed over as if she were trapped in an illusion. She was still aware, yet she couldn’t regain control of her senses.

’No matter what level this zombie is, its spiritual power is so much stronger than mine. I can’t break free from its mental control at all.’

Flora Bloom felt her spiritual power being suppressed by a yellow light, her senses blurring with each passing moment. ’What do I do? Is it going to eat me and Polly? Or is it trying to possess me?’

’Become her? How could it become me?’ The thought sent a chill down Flora Bloom’s spine, and she had no idea how to escape this predicament.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through the back of her hand. The Golden Crow’s anxious voice rang out in their spiritual link.

"You witch, snap out of it! If you don’t wake up, this body of yours is going to have a new owner!"

"Hey! There’s no way I’m letting some creature like this control me!" the Golden Crow squawked before pecking Flora Bloom’s arm again.

The pregnant woman was completely focused on invading Flora Bloom’s Sea of Consciousness, utterly failing to notice the small, crow-like bird clinging to Flora Bloom and pecking at her skin, creating a bloody hole with every strike.

The Golden Crow’s pecks were infused with True Sun Fire. A single light peck was enough to create a bloody hole on Flora Bloom’s hand and arm. Fire Element Energy from the True Sun Fire clung to the wound, preventing it from healing.

Flora Bloom was familiar with this pain. The intense agony from the Golden Crow’s peck jolted the wounded area, restoring some of her sensation.

’Golden Crow, keep going. Peck me.’

The dim yellow light roamed through Flora Bloom’s Sea of Consciousness, surprisingly holding its own against the two Crystal Stones in the vortex. "Hahaha, I never expected you to have so many secrets! A personal space? Crystal Stone fragments? I can feel that these things can provide a great deal of energy for me and my child! Once I have them, what will my child and I have left to fear? Hahaha!"

Suddenly, Flora Bloom’s grip on the pregnant woman’s arm tightened. "The Zombie King is still just that piece of flesh in your belly, isn’t it?"

"What? How is that possible? How did you—?" Before the pregnant woman could even process what was happening, the scene shifted, and she found herself with Flora Bloom in an unfamiliar environment.

"AHH!" The pregnant woman clutched her head. After a piercing scream, the ferocious look on her face vanished, replaced by a submissive expression as she gazed at Flora Bloom.

"Master."

Sensing a faint spiritual link with the pregnant woman—no, with the zombie—Flora Bloom let out a long breath, patting her chest to calm her racing heart as she swallowed hard.

"What type of zombie are you? Why is your spiritual power so strong?"

"Master, I am a High-level zombie."

Flora Bloom frowned. "Then why did you lie and claim to be a Zombie King?"

The High-level zombie stroked her belly. "It was the one who made me say it."

Using her control over the space, Flora Bloom looked inside the zombie and saw the child in its womb.

It truly had the appearance of an infant, with features, limbs, and skin just like a normal child. The baby’s size suggested it was close to full-term. A zombie giving birth defied all logic, yet this pregnant zombie genuinely looked like she could go into labor at any moment. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Suddenly, the infant inside the pregnant zombie’s belly opened its eyes, its limbs stirring restlessly and creating bulges against the skin.

The infant’s movements caused the pregnant zombie extreme discomfort. A wave of bloodlust seemed to surge from her through the spiritual link to Flora Bloom.

Seeing her in such pain, Flora Bloom asked, "What’s wrong?"

"I... I don’t know. Every time it moves inside me, I feel this incredible hunger. Master, a Crystal Core! Master, give me a Crystal Core!"

Flora Bloom took out a Second Level Crystal Core and tossed it to her. She watched as the zombie shoved the Crystal Core directly into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed. Her pained expression eased, and the child in her belly also stopped moving and quieted down.

Flora Bloom asked curiously, "Don’t all zombies eat people? Why are you eating a Crystal Core?"

"Zombies that have reached a High-level no longer crave human flesh. The only exception would be a superpower user like you, brimming with energy. Eating you would provide a massive amount of energy for our bodies to evolve. Otherwise, consuming the Crystal Cores and brains of our own kind is the fastest way for us to absorb energy and evolve."

"If I gave you enough Crystal Cores, could you evolve into a true Zombie King?"

"Not right now. All the energy I’m absorbing is for my child."

"He can absorb energy from Crystal Cores too? I’m curious, you were pregnant with this child before the apocalypse, right? Now that you’re a zombie, what about your child? Is he human, or a zombie like you?" ’Or maybe a superpower user who started cultivating with Crystal Cores before he was even born?’

"I don’t know. I only know that my child needs the energy from Crystal Cores, and he needs more and more of it. Master, I don’t care if he’s human or a zombie—he’s my child."

Flora Bloom nodded. "Rest assured, now that you’re in my space, you’re under my protection. I won’t harm you. But from now on, you must follow me and pass as a human. You absolutely cannot reveal your identity as a High-level zombie. Understand?"

"Understood, Master!"

Outside the space, the Middle Level zombie that had fled suddenly turned back, sniffing the air on the second-floor landing.

There had been a human here just a moment ago. How had the human and the other zombie both vanished at the same time?

Suddenly, Flora Bloom and Isla Preston materialized out of thin air right in front of the Middle Level zombie, nearly face-to-face. Startled, Flora Bloom stumbled back. The Middle Level zombie, however, turned pale with fright at the sight of the heavily pregnant Isla Preston and tried to flee, but she grabbed it by the neck. With a surge of strength, she tore its head clean from its shoulders.

Flora Bloom couldn’t dodge in time. A spray of blackish-green blood splattered onto her clothes, and the sight and smell made her double over, dry-heaving uncontrollably.

Isla Preston was the pregnant High-level zombie’s name before the apocalypse. According to her, she only began to recall fragments of her human memories after becoming a High-level zombie. Though her memory was incomplete, she at least remembered her name.