7:00 a.m. The first rays of morning sunlight were just beginning to appear.
The people in the rest lounge were relaxing, most of them fast asleep with their upper bodies resting on the tables.
Just then, two black off-road vehicles drove into the service station.
The vehicles stopped not far from the entrance of the rest lounge. The zombies wandering nearby let out loud growls and immediately charged toward them.
The zombies’ roars instantly woke everyone inside the lounge.
Bai Zixi jolted awake and looked up through the glass window. Outside, a group of people were fighting desperately against the zombies.
The people in the rest lounge exchanged nervous glances, panic written all over their faces. Only Yan Shaoyu’s group remained relatively calm.
A moment later, the group outside finished off more than a dozen zombies and began swaggering toward the rest lounge.
“What do we do? They’re coming over!” the pretty, delicate-looking young woman exclaimed.
Zhang Jiada’s mother hurriedly spoke up. “Don’t let them in! Hurry and go hold the door shut!”
It was obvious that this group wasn’t made up of decent people. They were all dressed in black, with brightly dyed hair in various colors. They looked like members of some criminal gang.
The few men sitting near the entrance weren’t stupid either. Who would actually listen to that middle-aged woman’s orders?
There were at least seven or eight of those people, and every one of them was carrying a long blade. Who would dare provoke them?
Soon, a series of loud banging sounds came from the door, accompanied by an impatient male voice.
“Open the damn door!”
Seeing how aggressively the newcomers were acting, the people inside the rest lounge became even more afraid to approach the entrance.
Bai Zixi felt a little nervous. Something involving the strong bullying the weak was probably about to happen. In the novel, this incident had only been briefly mentioned.
Just as Han Shuo was about to get up and open the door, the entrance was suddenly smashed open.
Seven men and one woman barged straight inside.
A thuggish-looking young man holding a long blade pointed it at the people in the lounge and shouted fiercely, “Are you people looking for death?”
Nobody answered. Everyone remained seated, their faces tense with fear.
Several sleazy-looking men quickly shifted their attention toward Bai Zixi and Lin Jiao.
One was stunningly beautiful, while the other had a sweet and adorable appearance. They were two completely different types of beauties.
One of the yellow-haired young men excitedly called out, “Brother Qiang, there are two beauties over there!”
His voice was loud enough for everyone in the lounge to hear. Instantly, their eyes filled with wariness.
Li Daqiang was a repulsive-looking, overweight man who appeared to be around forty years old. He had already looked over every woman in the place.
Before the apocalypse, he had run a nightclub in Dark City. He had been involved in all sorts of shady activities, including drug trafficking and luring young girls into prostitution. After all, what kind of decent person would make a living in a place like that?
Anyone who survived in such an environment would naturally develop a sharp eye for people. He could tell that the person sitting beside the beautiful woman in the corner was not someone to be easily provoked.
Therefore, he shifted his attention to Lin Jiao and two other reasonably attractive young women.
Li Daqiang gave the yellow-haired subordinate beside him a look, and the latter immediately understood what he wanted.
In the past, they might have shown some restraint and avoided openly snatching women by force. But now, with the apocalypse upon them, they had completely abandoned all inhibitions.
The yellow-haired man headed straight toward Lin Jiao.
Lin Jiao’s expression changed. She stood up and took several steps backward.
Zhang Jiada spoke in a trembling voice. “Y-You… What do you want? She’s my wife!”
His mother immediately tugged at his sleeve and whispered into his ear, “Don’t try to be a hero. Do you think you can beat them?”
After hearing his mother’s warning, he finally began to feel afraid and didn’t dare say another word.
Lin Jiao let out a cold laugh from the side.
What a useless boyfriend! He was utterly spineless.
She had truly been blind to fall for him in the first place. She had thought he was an honest and dependable man, but he was actually nothing more than a fence-sitter who lacked even the slightest courage.
Bai Zixi felt a little sorry for the female protagonist. What kind of ridiculous boyfriend was this?
Thankfully, she only knew how to flirt with men and had never actually dated anyone. She would rather remain single than get involved in a relationship with the wrong person.
“Sweetheart, my big brother has taken a liking to you. Come with us.”
The yellow-haired man stopped beside Lin Jiao and spoke with a lecherous grin, his eyes shamelessly roaming over her body.
Lin Jiao looked extremely nervous. She instinctively stepped backward, her face clearly showing her resistance.
She would rather die than go with them.
The people in this group reeked of blood. If she fell into their hands, she could only imagine how horrible her fate would be.