Meng Shiwan glanced at her and recognized her as the female staffer who’d helped load the RV that morning.
“I’m not taking you with me.”
She forcefully shook the shelf twice, sending the liquor bottles on it crashing to the floor.
Then she grabbed the shelf with both hands and dragged it toward the mouth of the passage.
After three years in the apocalypse, having witnessed every kind of human nature, she could see through exactly what this girl was thinking at a glance.
Lin Qian hesitated for a moment. The smile vanished from her face, tears welling in her eyes, but she still helped push the shelf.
She’d seen that Meng Shiwan had an RV and, risking danger to come out, she’d hoped to leave a good impression and get taken along.
But before she’d even done anything, the other had seen through her intentions and rejected her so decisively.
As the zombies inside drew closer, baring their fangs and claws, she felt fear, helplessness, and confusion.
All she could do was help with the work, hoping Meng Shiwan might change her mind.
Together they dragged two or three shelves to block the passage, leaving only a one-meter gap.
Dozens of zombies craned their necks and lunged, almost knocking the shelves over.
The scent of two living humans was far too tempting, they crammed forward frantically.
Lin Qian stumbled back two steps in fear, pressing tight against the wall as she trembled, occasionally glancing at the pink RV outside the passage, her mind spinning with certain thoughts.
Meng Shiwan guarded the gap. Whenever a zombie squeezed through, she smashed its head with the trowel and checked for a crystal core inside.
Without even turning to look at the girl, she said flatly, “You can’t drive my RV away. There are zombies everywhere out there, nowhere is safe.
“If you want to survive, find a room, stock up on food and water, barricade the door tight, don’t open it no matter who calls, and wait for the rescue teams.”
Lin Qian watched Meng Shiwan chop down zombies like slicing watermelons. In the end she gave up the idea of stealing or following the RV.
Not because she didn’t want to, but because she didn’t know how to drive a truck.
Even sitting in the driver’s seat, she still couldn’t get it away.
“You… aren’t you afraid?”
Everyone else was screaming, panicking, even dying, yet this girl, who didn’t look much older than her, stayed terrifyingly calm in the face of zombies.
Her movements were fast, ruthless, and precise, her expression unchanging, as if she were simply chopping wood.
Several zombie corpses had already piled up before her. She used the trowel to dig a translucent core from one of their heads, clearly in a good mood.
She smiled. “Fear is useless. Staying calm and finding their weaknesses will help you live a little longer.”
Lin Qian glanced at the pile of zombies before Meng Shiwan, heads split open, white brain matter and blood splattered everywhere.
The scene was so bloody it turned her stomach.
Just that morning, they’d still been living people, chatting and greeting each other.
Now they’d become mangled, unrecognizable corpses.
Looking again at Meng Shiwan, standing there covered in blood yet smiling faintly, Lin Qian only felt the scene was terrifying and surreal.
The only thought in her mind now was:
Don’t provoke this woman, or it won’t end well.
She followed Meng Shiwan’s instructions and found a small office inside the supermarket. While the zombies were being drawn toward Meng Shiwan, she began moving supplies inside.
Water, food, she moved as much as she could.
She had a bit of sense, instead of hiding in the warehouse, she chose a small office.
Everyone knew the warehouse stored supplies, and later many people would target it. It wasn’t a safe place to hide.
Meng Shiwan dealt with all the approaching zombies but found only one core.
The narrow gap was blocked by zombie corpses, so she pushed aside a shelf at the edge and entered the supermarket.
She slowed her pace, scanning around. Whenever she met two or three stray zombies, she killed them outright.
She also locked all the other entrances to keep zombies from other areas out.
That done, she went to the seafood section, turned on a water hose to wash the blood off, then began gathering supplies.
She pulled out two carts and first swept the prepared-foods section.
Orleans roast chicken, roast duck, fried chicken, braised meats, chicken feet, crayfish, and all kinds of marinated dishes, everything she loved.
The packaging took up too much space, so she repackaged it all into sealed bags and placed them into the carts one by one.
Once both carts were full, Meng Shiwan dragged them back toward the RV.
Just as she entered the passage, she saw several men in supermarket uniforms trying to pry open the RV’s side door.
Taxue stood on the shoe cabinet, baring its teeth and bristling as it hissed at them through the window.
One man had already bent his wrench, yet the RV door hadn’t moved at all.
He cursed in frustration and smashed the handle a few times, but not even the paint chipped.
“What is this RV made of? How is it this sturdy?”
Another looked close to breaking down. “Even steel plates should’ve left marks by now. This thing didn’t even get a scratch. I’ve smashed the glass several times and there isn’t a mark. Don’t tell me it’s bulletproof glass.”
“This just proves how safe this RV is. If we get it, it’s fully furnished inside, we’ll never have to worry about zombies suddenly jumping out and killing us again.”
After messing with it for a long time and still failing to open the door, the men grew more and more irritated.
“I’m going to find a metal cutter. I refuse to believe this.”
He turned and saw a young woman standing not far off, dragging two shopping carts, staring at them coldly.
Startled, he took a step back and sized her up.
“You’re the owner? A young girl alone out here is dangerous. How about this, bring us along. There’s strength in numbers. We’ll protect you. Just take us somewhere safe, and we can pay you.”
The other men turned too. Seeing she was just a young girl, they visibly relaxed.
Their eyes held a hint of confidence, as if the RV were already theirs.
Meng Shiwan gave a cold laugh.
“Get away from my RV. Now. Otherwise you’ll regret it.”
Among them, a man in a security uniform glanced at the carts behind her.
“Did you pay for those? You stole goods from the supermarket. I suspect there are stolen items in your RV too. You’d better open the door and let us inspect it.”
He smiled smugly, as if he’d seized her weak point.
As long as he tricked the girl into opening the door, the RV and all the supplies inside would be theirs.
A hint of mockery flashed in Meng Shiwan’s eyes. Stupid and greedy.
“I’ll count to three. Step back ten paces from the RV. One…”
The man laughed, not taking her seriously at all. “Enough nonsense. Hurry up and open the door so we can check it.”
“Two.”
“Who are you trying to scare? Just a little girl acting tough—”
“Three.”
Meng Shiwan moved instantly.
The next second, she’d closed the distance. The sharp edge of her trowel sliced across the guard’s throat.
Blood gushed out in thick spurts. Before collapsing, the man’s eyes filled with disbelief, he died with his eyes wide open.
The others were terrified and immediately backed away.
“She, she killed someone!”
“How could she dare to kill?”
They looked at Meng Shiwan as if she were a demon.
How could someone kill without hesitation, without even a change in expression or a skipped heartbeat? This woman was terrifying.
Meng Shiwan gave a cold laugh.
“It’s the apocalypse, who’s still going to reason with you? If you don’t have the ability, don’t try to play bandit. You’re only embarrassing yourselves.”