Moving the timestamp on the surveillance footage, Pei Huaiye watched frame by frame as Shen Shuhe, Zhou Xu, and their group ran off long before the zombies even surrounded the area.
Only afterward did the sound of explosions and agonizing screams erupt.
Which meant the zombies were drawn over by them—all with the intention of turning this entire villa district into a living hell.
In truth, the property next door had already become a living hell, with almost all of the people who arrived yesterday completely wiped out.
Swarming with zombies all around the villa, if they wanted to move about safely and freely again, clearing out the nearby horde was an absolute necessity.
Unless, of course, they chose to simply hide and play the turtling coward.
“Han Chao, take Lichuan and the others out for some target practice?” Having so many zombies shambling right under his nose was genuinely revolting.
“Got it! Just sit back and watch!” Han Chao stepped out of the basement to notify Cheng Lichuan and the rest.
The main gate of the villa opened and shut, followed by the shouts of Han Chao’s group outside—filled with pure excitement.
Two hours later, Han Chao and the crew returned, covered in grime and splattered with foul-smelling zombie blood from head to toe.
Possessing the sharpest nose, Ning Ran always sought out her favorite scent to breathe in.
Before Han Chao could even open his mouth, she had already buried her entire face straight into Pei Huaiye’s chest.
“She… she’s disgusted by us…” Han Chao stood there utterly dumbfounded.
“Isn’t it normal to be disgusted by you? Look at the state you wrecked those clothes into.” The moment those guys stepped out of the villa, it was like Sun Wukong breaking free from the Five Elements Mountain—as wild as could be, relying on their superpowers and treating their clothes like garbage.
“Go wash up before coming back down to talk.” Pei Huaiye had no desire to look at them either; the smell was simply far too terrible.
Wearing sheepish expressions, the group trotted upstairs to take showers and change clothes.
Fortunately, top-tier materials had been used when reinforcing this villa, and even the water supply was drawn from five hundred meters underground. For the time being, they wouldn’t run short on water.
The moment they left, Pei Huaiye hoisted Ning Ran up by her shirt and set her upright: “Useless at everything else, but number one at hugging people.”
The second there was even a whiff of a scent she disliked, she’d dive into his chest—making him out to be her personal human air purifier or something.
Watching this scene from the side, Xu Wei practically turned green with jealousy.
Unfortunately, she didn’t dare show the slightest bit of dissatisfaction.
Once Han Chao and the rest finished cleaning up and came downstairs, everyone looked far neater.
“Not gonna lie, slaughtering zombies gives a damn great sense of achievement,” Wu Ci spoke up, his Strength-type superpower becoming increasingly effortless to wield.
“I feel like my superpower has stepped up another level,” Xiao Jinyang chimed in as well.
“Superpowers grow sharper the more you use them. Starting today, you guys will go out every day to train and hone your abilities,” Pei Huaiye stated calmly.
“Boss, do I have to go out too?” Cheng Lichuan asked. Possessing a Fire superpower, he was a proper culinary expert, but far from skilled at killing zombies.
“Everyone with a superpower goes out. Zombies will only get stronger in the future, and if you can’t use your powers fluidly, you’ll sooner or later die at their hands.”
Pei Huaiye wasn’t trying to scare them—these were simply established facts. With Psychic zombies appearing half a year early, mutated species would inevitably emerge ahead of schedule as well.
Therefore, enhancing their superpowers was exceptionally necessary.
“Boss, Weiwei doesn’t have a superpower, she…” Xu Sui opened his mouth with careful consideration.
“Doesn’t Xu Wei have medical skills? She’ll be responsible for gathering medical supplies.” The team didn’t harbor freeloaders; even as an ordinary person, Xu Wei had to play an ordinary person’s role.
“Alright, I understand medicine. I’ll head out with you all tomorrow.” Xu Wei made up her mind to make herself stronger. Even without a superpower, she wouldn’t drag them down.
No, she wasn’t the dead weight—Ning Ran was. Capable of nothing, foolish as can be, and needing care at every turn. If only…
Early the next morning, three vehicles departed from the villa simultaneously as the property activated its highest defense protocols.
The team set off toward the largest hospital in the city.
Hospitals were packed with people before the apocalypse, and swarming with zombies after it. It served not only as target practice, but also as a goldmine for medical supplies.
Pei Huaiye had medicine stored in his space; before the apocalypse, Xu Sui had utilized his family connections to hoard stockpiles of medical supplies into the warehouse, all of which ended up inside his space.
However, after the apocalypse, ordinary people lacked the ability to extract needed supplies from a hospital flooded with zombies. It was far better to leave those goods for him instead.
Pei Huaiye didn’t consider himself a cold-blooded monster; at the very least, when facing the innocent, he would lend a helping hand—take the complete stranger Li Hongying and her sons, for instance.
Huacheng First People’s Hospital was the largest tertiary hospital in the entire country, spanning well over a thousand mu. It took a good half-day just to do a single lap around it, to say nothing of navigating its interior facilities.
The group entered through the main gate, circling around toward the medical supply warehouse at the very back. The first item on their checklist was acquiring all categories of medicine.
Supplies inside the base were limited; once exhausted down the line, sourcing raw production materials would pose a massive issue.
As the vehicles rolled across the asphalt, the trailing zombies chased like thrill-seeking youths, roaring along behind the cars in a massive crowd. Had the driving speed not been fast enough, they likely would have been surrounded long ago.
“Boss, the moment we step off the car, aren’t we completely done for?!” It was a whole crowd of zombies behind them, leaving them terrified to even pause the vehicle for a second.
Ning Ran pressed against the back seat looking outward—it was a dense wall of “people” packed shoulder to shoulder.
“Brother, they like us! Look at them running after us!” They certainly do like you—liking your flesh and blood so much that you’d have to turn into one of them to satisfy them.
An awkward smirk tugged at Han Chao’s lips as he stepped on the gas and pulled over right at the warehouse entrance.
Zombies were stationed at the warehouse entrance as well—more than just a few—forming a pincer attack with the zombie army surging over from the distance.
Pei Huaiye stored the vehicles away into his space, directing the group to fight off the incoming assault.
Forming a tight defensive circle, the men shielded Ning Ran in the center.
“Xu Sui-ge, I don’t have a superpower!” Facing such a massive swarm of zombies for the first time since the apocalypse, Xu Wei was so terrified she couldn’t even form a complete sentence.
“If you don’t have a superpower, grip the machete in your hands tight! Hack down every single one that comes, hack down every pair that approaches!” Xu Sui unleashed his superpower, ice cones raining into the zombie crowd like free candy, impaling whichever ones they hit.
Meanwhile, Pei Huaiye’s wooden vines blocked the zombies’ path of advancement, keeping them sealed outside the safety perimeter.
“Damn it all, your brother is going on a slaughter spree today!” Han Chao unleashed his Lightning superpower, blasting zombies into scattered pieces everywhere, making Xu Wei and Lin Yao nearly throw up their meals from the day before.
“Han Chao-ge, wah…” Xu Wei shrank back behind the crowd, gripping her melee weapon tightly, yet not daring to step anywhere near the zombies.
Suddenly, her back bumped into Ning Ran behind her.
Why? We’re both women—why does she get to be protected by everyone while I have to learn how to hack zombies?
Unconvinced, Xu Wei grabbed Ning Ran by the arm and shoved the weapon into her hands: “Go kill the zombies!”
Unprepared, Ning Ran was pushed out of the defensive circle, stumbling right in front of a zombie.
The snarling, struggling zombie froze the moment it saw Ning Ran, instinctively stepping back a pace before roaring and lunging forward to bite her to death.
Seeing the zombie charge straight at Ning Ran, Pei Huaiye’s eyes split wide in fury, his vines lashing out to bind the zombie’s body tight.
Swinging the blade like cutting a watermelon, Ning Ran sliced the zombie’s head clean off.
“Yay! So much fun, let’s do it again!” Unbothered by the foul blood splattered across her body, her eyes sparkled brightly as she looked at Pei Huaiye: “Let’s play one more time!”