Everyone knew the value of energy points. With one hundred energy points, if used sparingly, they could eat several meals in the cafeteria.
They had originally only intended to help. After all, building a fence was not a difficult task. They had not expected the compensation to be this good, and smiles of delight appeared on their faces.
“But where are we supposed to get wood now?” After the initial excitement, a problem quickly arose.
On the wasteland, all life had vanished. Even deadwood had long since been used by survivors or weathered away on its own.
Tang Ye also asked the System in her mind whether it had any wood. The System told her to check the last page of the logistics interface.
After opening it, she indeed found wooden planks and related tools.
Tang Ye walked to a corner and exchanged them. Based on the size of the area, it cost her over two thousand energy points.
Once there was enough, Tang Ye called the eight people over to collect the tools. “These are the materials and tools. Are you starting work today?”
Looking at the wooden planks and tools that had suddenly appeared, they suppressed their shock and quickly nodded. Each of them picked out tools they found handy.
“Don’t worry, Administrator, we’ll definitely get it done,” the survivors promised, patting their chests.
Tang Ye explained her requirements. To prevent survivors from entering and leaving freely, the fence needed to be higher, and there had to be a lockable wooden gate.
After noting down her requirements, the survivors carried the planks and got to work, full of enthusiasm.
While Sunrise Shelter was bustling with the construction of the fence, in another air raid shelter not far from C City, a swarm of poisonous insects had already broken through the rock layer. They bored a small hole through the reinforced stone walls, and an endless stream of insects began pouring into the shelter.
This might have been hard to imagine before the apocalypse, but afterward, it had become commonplace.
The survivors inside had not yet noticed anything unusual. They were going about their daily routines until the first scream rang out.
A man was devoured until only a skeleton remained. The area near the entrance had already been completely overrun by poisonous insects. The survivors instantly fell into chaos, with screams and cries for help echoing endlessly.
Some survivors ran out through the entrance, many still covered in insects. Once bitten, their bodies became numb, and their movements slowed.
The smell of blood began to spread throughout the shelter. Those who survived ran outward without stopping.
Lin Yu and her brother Lin Ke were among those who managed to escape. Lin Ke had been bitten by poisonous insects, and his limbs were gradually becoming numb and weak. He could only be dragged along by Lin Yu.
“Xiao Yu, you should run on your own,” Lin Ke said between breaths. “I’ve been bitten. My strength is fading. I’ll only slow you down. If you run alone, you still have a chance to survive.”
As he spoke, more mutated beasts caught their scent and began chasing them.
Lin Yu swung her blade and beheaded a small mutated beast, then turned to support Lin Ke as they continued forward. “Brother, what are you saying? How could I abandon you?”
The two of them staggered forward, supporting each other, until they finally found an abandoned pharmacy and hid inside.
Although it was a pharmacy, all the medicine had already been looted. Only a few empty boxes remained on the shelves.
The place was well secured, and for the time being, there was no need to worry about poisonous insects getting in.
After checking the surroundings and blocking off the ventilation openings, they finally relaxed and collapsed onto the ground.
“How are you, brother?” Lin Yu asked anxiously as she examined his injury.
The bite on his arm had already turned dark and bruised. After quickly disinfecting her blade, Lin Yu cut away the affected flesh.
Lin Ke was drenched in sweat from the pain, but this was the most effective method available. It could prevent further spread of toxins. Beyond that, there was nothing else they could do.
Fortunately, only a small area had been bitten. If the affected area had been larger, this method would not have worked.
After treating the wound and bandaging it simply, Lin Yu took out some dry rations and ate with her brother.
They had only taken a few bites when movement came from the entrance. Both of them immediately became alert. A group of about a dozen survivors rushed in through the back door, quickly shutting it behind them, and crowded into the pharmacy where Lin Yu and Lin Ke were.
These survivors also seemed to have just fled in a panic. The smell of blood clung to them.
Lin Miao had just lit a small fire to disinfect her blade. In the dim but open space, the newcomers quickly spotted the siblings by the firelight.
“It’s you,” the newcomers said in relief. They had all escaped from the same shelter as Lin Miao and Lin Ke.
Lin Miao and Lin Ke also relaxed and sat back down by the fire.
In one corner of the group, Jiang Chen sat with his parents. His father quietly covered the bite wound on his arm.
A zombie bite was essentially a death sentence. He should not remain among so many people, but the thought of facing the terrifying world outside alone was something he could not accept. Besides, what if he got lucky and did not turn?
The survivors were still immersed in the relief of surviving and did not notice what was happening in the corner.
“Is everyone uninjured? If someone was bitten and transforms here, it could cause serious casualties,” someone said. The smell of blood had not dissipated, which meant someone was injured.
Monster blood had a distinct foul odor, very different from human blood.
Everyone looked at one another, but no one stepped forward.
Jiang Chen’s mother began to notice something was wrong. The man beside her was growing feverish, his breathing becoming heavy.
She did not speak up. Instead, she subtly shielded him.
Jiang Chen sat in front of them, unaware of what was happening behind him.
The survivors began checking one another for injuries, afraid that someone infected was hidden among them.
Using the dim lighting as cover, Jiang Chen’s mother quietly tended to her husband’s wound, worried about how severe it had become.
She did not care about the others’ lives. To her, this was her husband. If he died, she would lose her support and have an even harder time surviving.
Before the apocalypse, she had lived as a pampered lady. Now, she depended entirely on her husband and son.
Because of this, she was deeply afraid and would never voluntarily reveal that there was an injured person among them.
Just as everyone was searching, disaster struck. Jiang Chen’s father transformed, and the growls of a zombie echoed through the small room.
A man near Jiang Chen’s mother turned pale, shoving her aside and cursing. But Jiang Chen and his mother worked together, grabbing him and throwing him toward the newly transformed zombie.
The man was immediately bitten, letting out a scream.
The small pharmacy descended into chaos. Everyone screamed and tried to escape, but the infection spread quickly. One zombie became two, increasing the danger.
Lin Miao managed to escape the pharmacy with Lin Ke. Behind them, only screams and zombie growls remained.
The survivors who escaped were filled with hatred toward the Jiang family, but now was not the time to dwell on it. They needed to find another place to settle.
Meanwhile, Jiang Chen and his mother barely escaped by sacrificing others.
At this point, most of the survivors had already fled. The two of them glanced back once before leaving decisively.
“How did Dad turn into a zombie?” Jiang Chen’s voice still carried fear.
“It must have been when you were about to be bitten. Your father pulled you away and got bitten instead. He died because of you. A Chen, now I only have you. You must protect me,” his mother said, clutching his hand tightly as if it were her only hope.
“What does that have to do with me?” Jiang Chen shook off her hand, his expression impatient. “He was careless. Why should I be blamed? Don’t try to drag me down. Taking care of myself is already trouble enough, and now I have to take care of you too? I’m not Dad.”
“How can you say that? A Chen, your father and I always treated you the best. We even sold that illegitimate son to the laboratory to get food for you. You can’t be so ungrateful!”
“Did I ever ask you to do that? You were the ones who feared him becoming stronger and secretly sold him off. Don’t try to guilt trip me.”
Their argument attracted zombies. Just as they were on the brink of death, a flash of blade light cut through the air, and a zombie’s head fell to the ground.
“Thanks,” Jiang Chen said with a sigh of relief. As his gaze lifted, he froze.
His mother also looked up. In that instant, her expression turned to terror, as if she had seen a ghost. “Jiang… Jiang Yufeng! Y-you’re still alive?”
Jiang Yufeng stood up, tossing a mutated crystal core into the air and catching it again, as if it were striking their hearts with each motion.
“Don’t panic. He might not know it was us who sold him to the laboratory,” Jiang Chen’s mother whispered to him.
Jiang Chen’s legs felt weak, but he forced himself to stand his ground. After all, he was the legitimate young master of the Jiang family. How could he be frightened by an illegitimate son?
“Y-Yufeng,” Jiang’s mother forced out a smile. “Where have you been? We were so worried about you. Your father kept talking about you before he died.”
“Talking about me?” Jiang Yufeng let out a cold laugh. “More like wondering whether I was dead yet.”
Seeing his reaction, both of them felt a chill run down their spines. Even before the apocalypse, he had been like an emotionless monster. No matter how Jiang Chen bullied him, he would only look at them with a cold, eerie gaze, though he would always retaliate later.
As he grew older, his methods of revenge became increasingly ruthless, until they no longer dared to provoke him.
After the apocalypse, Jiang Yufeng became even more unrestrained. The Jiang family feared him even more, which was why they had secretly sold him to a laboratory in exchange for food.