The next day, the leaders of the safe zone officially announced the emergence of mutant zombies, then encouraged more people to go out on missions. However, very few were actually willing to leave the safe zone and face the terrifying zombies. Just like Gu Jiabao, as long as he could survive, he chose work like helping build walls and houses.
Still, even though most people didn’t want to leave the city, Zhang Yi managed to recruit two new team members, one was a quiet middle-aged man, and the other was a woman.
That middle-aged man had five children. They were lucky, their family had been living in the safe zone, so they all survived. But once the initial wave of zombies was eliminated, he realized that their family was on the brink of starvation.
Five kids, the oldest, at fourteen, had already started working to support himself. But what about the rest? On top of that, his wife had just given birth to their fifth child and was in no condition to work. With no other option, the man decided to take a gamble and join an expedition outside the city.
The woman was plain-looking and a bit chubby. Like the man, she had family to support. Her elderly parents were in poor health and unable to work, and her younger brother, though already eighteen, had never even washed a single dish, let alone do any real labor.
This mission was to head to a nearby residential community to rescue any survivors and bring back supplies, so they took two trucks.
Ling Qingyun got into the back of one of the trucks and saw Zhang Yi speaking with the two new recruits.
The middle-aged man looked a bit impatient, but the woman remained silent. These days, most people going out on missions were former soldiers, those who joined later were mostly men. It was rare to see a woman on the team, so Zhang Yi couldn’t help but offer extra warnings, he didn’t want to take out a team member only to end up dragging along a liability.
After finishing his speech, Zhang Yi handed each of them a long-handled knife, these types of weapons were especially effective against zombies. Of course, Zhang Yi probably wasn’t expecting much contribution from these two rookies this time.
Once the new member issues were settled, Zhang Yi distributed two rice balls to each person: “These are rations from the safe zone, you’ll need the energy to work! If we’re lucky today, we might even enjoy a proper feast outside!”
Everyone started eating. Zhang Yi was right, they couldn’t fight on an empty stomach. Just the thought of possibly getting some decent food made the two younger soldiers gulp with anticipation.
The truck sped along quickly, but the road conditions were terrible. Many vehicles had broken down or crashed, blocking the roads. Although the safe zone had dispatched numerous cranes to help clear the way, there were just too many roads to cover, and they couldn’t get to everything.
However, by noon, after crashing into several luxury cars and stopping to collect gasoline and useful items from those cars, the two trucks finally arrived at the residential complex.
This neighborhood was quite upscale and strictly managed. Since the outbreak happened at night, the upper management of the safe zone estimated that there should be quite a few survivors here.
As for various supplies, residents usually had stored food at home!
When they arrived at the community, they saw many zombies gathered outside the security guard’s booth at the entrance. Not far from there, inside the guard room, someone was calling for help.
Everyone on the truck opened fire together and finally cleared the zombies outside the gate. The people inside the guard room hesitated for a moment, then bravely ran out: “We’re veterans and know how to use guns! Can we join you?” They had been trapped here, confronting zombies through the window, without proper food or sleep for seven or eight days. Seeing rescuers finally arrive, they were naturally excited.
Zhang Yi was more than happy to have such experienced people, immediately handing them sticks and knives. If he had time to chat, he probably would have persuaded them to join their squad.
The two trucks drove into the community. There were more than a dozen buildings inside, each equipped with security doors at the building entrances and anti-theft doors on every apartment, so there should be quite a few survivors.
“How are the residents here?” Zhang Yi asked the two guards.
“There are some zombies wandering inside the community, several of which used to be patrolling guards… Some residents tried to escape from the buildings, and some opened their doors and ran out because zombies appeared in their homes. But most residents stayed inside,” one guard replied.
“We saw quite a few zombies, and some buildings even had screams coming from inside…” the other added quickly.
“The zombies seem to be scattered, which actually makes it safer for us. Let’s head to Building 1 first!” Zhang Yi decided quickly.
There were no mutant zombies in this community, so their operation went smoothly. They quickly killed several wandering zombies in Building 1. In some homes, zombies had already taken over entirely, but using spare property keys, they entered these homes. Since the safe zone was short on food and usable supplies, collecting as much as possible was crucial! As for the zombies, Zhang Yi killed them to prevent evolution, while Ling Qingyun simply killed zombies for the sake of killing zombies.
In places like residential buildings, guns were sometimes not very effective. Zombies that suddenly rushed out were easier to deal with using melee weapons. Ling Qingyun led the way, smashing all the zombies that came out with his spiked club, hitting them right in the head.
Zombies must have their brains destroyed to be truly killed. Among melee weapons, while knives are commonly used, they don’t always split open the skull, but a spiked club is a different story. Its weight and the spikes on it can instantly smash a skull open.
At first, killing zombies had made Ling Qingyun feel a bit uncomfortable, but now, driven by his obsession with avenging Zhuang Cheng, he had started to somewhat enjoy the sensation of smashing open a zombie’s head.
The survivors living in the building were generally very cautious. They had followed advice found online, storing water at home and rationing their food, so they were doing fairly well. When they saw rescuers arrive and learned that the zombies downstairs had been cleared, they all expressed their thanks. However, there were still a few who didn’t trust them, thinking they were there to steal food. Zhang Yi, being a kind person, had to spend extra effort explaining things.
“We’ll probably have to stay here overnight and return tomorrow,” Zhang Yi said after clearing several buildings, though a few still remained. He also informed the survivors and told them to stay inside their rooms.
“Stay overnight?” The newly joined middle-aged man looked a little reluctant.
“You received the allowance when you joined the team, right?” Zhang Yi asked. He knew the man’s family was struggling, but being out for just one day shouldn’t leave them hungry.
“It’s fine, it’s fine,” the man replied. He knew his family wouldn’t go hungry, he was just worried about whether the more aggressive nighttime zombies might pose a danger.
The woman who had joined them stayed silent for a long time, then pulled out her phone and made a call. After explaining the situation, she stayed quiet again and didn’t hang up until much later.
The group found a room that had only had one male zombie inside, already dealt with earlier. Several days had passed, and the zombies’ appearances were even more grotesque now, though oddly enough, their bodies hadn’t decayed or started to stink like those of people who were eaten. The room was previously occupied by a zombie, but after it was killed, the place looked fairly clean.
Their team, along with the two veteran security guards Zhang Yi was trying to recruit, all found places to wash up, then used the food the apartment owner had stored as their dinner.
Inside the fridge were some frozen dumplings and eggs. In the room, there were two boxes of instant noodles and several packs of sausages, normal stockpiling for a single man, but a luxury for them.
Everyone had a cup of instant noodles, and they cooked all the frozen dumplings too. The newly joined woman used the tomatoes and eggs in the fridge to make soup, stir-fried tomato and egg, and even fried up some sunny-side-up eggs. It had to be said, the guy who lived there had quite a few eggs in his fridge.
Instant noodles and sausages, once considered junk food before the apocalypse, had now become a rare delicacy for people who had eaten bland rations for days. And the frozen dumplings, which even had meat in them, made the group eat with great satisfaction.
While the others were busy scrambling for food, Ling Qingyun didn’t fight over anything. He simply ate two packs of instant noodles along with the sausage and fried egg he was given, then sat quietly in a corner.
It wasn’t dark yet, and the zombies in the neighborhood were scattered…
“Captain Zhang, I’m going out for a walk. I’ll call you when I need you to open the door,” Ling Qingyun said as he stood up.
“What are you going to do?” Zhang Yi asked immediately.
“Going to hunt a few zombies,” Ling Qingyun replied.
“Kill zombies? You’re not thinking of stealing something, are you?” the recently recruited middle-aged man muttered quietly. He had been hiding at the back throughout the mission and had seen Ling Qingyun charge ahead fearlessly. But this was a high-end residential area, the homes here probably had a lot of valuables and food. Zhang Yi, as team leader, kept a strict watch on them. Wouldn’t he also watch Ling Qingyun? Feeling indignant, the man finally dared to speak up.
Ling Qingyun didn’t even spare him a glance. When he saw Zhang Yi nod in agreement, he picked up his spiked club and left. If this had been seven or eight years ago, he would’ve beaten that guy up, but now, he didn’t even feel like bothering with someone like that.
Steal things? From what he could tell, that middle-aged man was the one eyeing everything he saw, even secretly stashing a few pieces of gold jewelry. But in the apocalypse, what use is gold?
The door quickly shut behind him. Ling Qingyun, holding his spiked club, headed toward a nearby building that hadn’t yet been cleared. The anti-theft door at the stairwell entrance was still closed. Inside, two zombies were wandering. As soon as they saw him appear outside, they became excited, clawing at the door, trying to grab him.
Ling Qingyun observed the situation, then used his club to push one of the zombies down. He did the same with the second one and, as they were trying to get back up, quickly entered the access code and opened the door.
Non-mutated zombies weren’t that difficult to deal with. Ling Qingyun had always known how to fight, and over the past few days, he had come to understand zombie behavior very well. After dispatching the two zombies, he closed the door behind him and started making his way upstairs. Some rooms emitted rhythmic knocking sounds, likely zombies inside, but he ignored those for now. Other doors had people shouting from within, so he left a quick, “We’ll come back tomorrow,” and kept moving upward.
There weren’t many zombies in the stairwell. When he reached the seventh floor, he spotted a male zombie loitering in front of a door and quickly took it down. He continued climbing until he reached the rooftop, where he suddenly discovered that the door leading to the rooftop was wide open.
Gripping his spiked club tightly, he cautiously moved forward. The door downstairs had already been closed by him, as long as he could confirm that the rooftop was clear, he wouldn’t have to worry about getting ambushed from behind while entering those rooms with zombies inside.
Climbing the stairs, Ling Qingyun had just poked his head around the corner when a decayed hand suddenly reached out to grab him. He swung his spiked club and struck the hand, then quickly stepped forward a few paces and aimed a heavy blow at the blurry figure’s head.
But the zombie blocked his club with its other hand and started retreating rapidly.
A mutated zombie!
Ling Qingyun thought his luck was really something. Earlier that day, their group had killed over a hundred zombies without encountering a single mutated one. And now, he came out alone and immediately ran into a mutated zombie!
The zombie wasn’t particularly fast, but it was very strong. Ling Qingyun struck it several times, but without smashing its skull, the zombie was completely unaffected!
To avoid its attacks, he had to keep stepping backward, but unexpectedly, his foot caught on something, and he fell!
Could it be that he would die here today? No, he hadn’t yet gone back to the construction site to check on Zhuang Cheng. He had only killed a few zombies so far. He couldn’t die now!
“Ah!” Ling Qingyun shouted and slammed his club down onto the zombie’s head. With a loud “crack,” the zombie’s skull was crushed.
The spiked club had a long handle. On this mission, they had found a few broken motorcycles and even managed to get helmets. Ling Qingyun was fine, not a drop of flying brain matter touched him. But when he recovered and looked down at what had tripped him, even though he had seen many gruesome scenes before, he couldn’t help but be shocked!
It was a pile of human bones! Two of the skulls still had some flesh left uneaten, and they seemed mutated, they even opened their mouths toward him!
Ling Qingyun flipped up and smashed those two skulls with his club, finally calming his racing heart.
The rooftop had no cover, the sky hadn’t fully darkened yet, so everything was clearly visible. There were no other threats around.
Ling Qingyun had originally planned to kill the zombies inside those rooms, but after encountering the mutated zombie and nearly losing his life, he abandoned that idea. He closed the rooftop door and sat down by the edge.
The entire city used to be brightly lit, those twinkling lights at night brought a feeling of warmth. But now, as darkness gradually fell, only a few lights remained.
The government had done its best to maintain water, electricity, and communication lines to increase survivors’ chances, but many areas still had power outages due to things like utility poles knocked down by vehicles. The neighborhood they were in still had power, which was very rare, and having electricity made their movements much easier.
It was December now, bitterly cold with strong winds, and being on an exposed rooftop made it feel even colder. Ling Qingyun took off his helmet, and the sharp sting of the north wind hitting his face surprisingly felt quite soothing.
He wanted to shout down at the streets below, to vent all the resentment in his chest! Those damn zombies, from now on, his days would be spent battling them!
Quietly watching below, he remembered how Zhuang Cheng once made him watch the stars together. Ling Qingyun thought it was a bother and went to sleep early, but the next morning, Zhuang Cheng was still sitting by the window looking at the sky…
A faint streak crossed the horizon, if a couple watching stars on the rooftop saw it, they’d surely make a sweet wish. But now, Ling Qingyun was the only one there, lost in thought.
Suddenly, a sharp pain struck his head with a “pop!” He had no time to react before collapsing backward and hitting the rooftop railing. His vision went completely black.