Deep in sleep, Yue Suran was startled awake by a wet, crunching chewing sound. Terrified, she immediately grabbed the baseball bat she had set by her bedside before going to sleep.
Although Yue Suran was still a relative novice to the end of the world, she had diligently copied the survival hacks from apocalyptic web novels to protect her life, making sure to place the bat within arm’s reach before turning in.
And that was how this absurd scene came to be.
Dazed and groggy, Yue Suran snapped awake at the sounds of crunching and immediately raised her weapon, ready to ruthlessly strike down Mu Li, who was sitting nearby eating.
“Wait… hang on, it’s me! Lili!”
Mu Li had woken up starving that morning. Seeing a steak resting on the table, she grabbed it without a second thought and stuffed it into her mouth. Given their current conditions, having anything to eat at all was a luxury, let alone real steak.
Just as Mu Li was savoring the meal with an expression of pure bliss, a chilling motion behind her made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Sensing a sudden gust of cold air sweeping past, her peripheral vision caught sight of Yue Suran bringing down that same brutal, zombie-killing force—straight toward her head!
Her mind going entirely blank, Mu Li broke down into a flurry of tears and snot. She screamed for mercy while scrambling forward on all fours, completely abandoning any sense of composure.
Oh God, I didn’t die at the hands of a zombie! I’m going to become a ghost under my best friend’s bat instead!
What’s even more humiliating is that I won’t even get the chance to turn into a zombie!
“Wait, hold on, Host! That’s Mu Li!”
Even before Mu Li could cry out in horror, Xiao-Ou screamed inside Yue Suran’s head. Had it not witnessed the scene with its own eyes, Xiao-Ou would never have believed in a million years that its host possessed such lightning-fast reflexes!
Xiao-Ou’s panicked screech startled Yue Suran, followed closely by Mu Li’s petrified cries.
Rattled by the sudden barrage of noises, Yue Suran froze in shock, her baseball bat missing Mu Li’s head by a hair and slamming hard into the exact spot where her friend had been sitting a second prior.
“That scared me to death! I almost executed my best friend with my own hands!”
Having narrowly survived the ordeal with the steak still dangling from her lips, Mu Li stared in lingering terror at the bat resting half an inch away from her face, swallowing hard.
She then fixed a gaze full of silent accusation on the best friend who had almost taken her life. After a moment’s hesitation, she pulled the steak from her mouth and offered it to Yue Suran.
“Is it really that serious? It was just one piece… no, just one bite of steak! I’m giving it back to you, alright?”
Yue Suran glanced at the drool-covered steak with a look of mild disgust and turned her gaze away.
You can’t really blame me for this! Who told her to eat right next to my ear while I was asleep? I was just acting out of self-defense—pure self-defense!
“Lili… um… are you alright?”
Mu Li stuffed the ragged, heavily chewed piece of steak back into her mouth, measured the distance between herself and the bat with her hands, and shook her head.
“I’m fine. My little life is still intact.”
“I’m so sorry! I’ve probably been reading way too many apocalypse novels lately—I genuinely thought you were a zombie.”
Setting the baseball bat aside, Yue Suran looked at Mu Li with a deeply apologetic expression. It was all her fault for being overly tense; she had almost hurt her best friend.
“I don’t blame you. It’s all because this rental apartment is way too small.”
Mu Li’s legs were still shaking uncontrollably—it had been utterly terrifying. Even if someone paid her, she would never dare eat anything near Yue Suran while she was sleeping ever again.
“What time is it? I wonder what the Boss is doing right now?”
Feeling awkward and unsure of how to break the tension, Yue Suran quickly steered the conversation toward Ye Liangfeng.
“Didn’t you say we have to wait twenty-four hours to know the result? Let’s wait a bit longer.”
At the mention of Ye Liangfeng, Mu Li couldn’t help but offer a silent prayer, hoping he would pull through.
Before the apocalypse, they had all witnessed his sheer capability and authority firsthand. And after the world fell apart, he had demonstrated absolute reliability and strength. If Ye Liangfeng stayed alive, she and Yue Suran would undoubtedly have a much better chance at surviving this ruined world.
“Yeah. Is that steak enough? I’ll go sear a couple more—if we don’t eat them soon, they’ll just spoil.”
Judging from what they had observed outside yesterday, most areas were likely already suffering from complete power and water outages. Fresh, unpackaged food would rot quickly; eating it now was the best way to save their shelf-stable rations for later.
“Let’s sear them all. I’ll help you.”
Having traveled here from another part of the city, Mu Li understood the current situation far better than Yue Suran did. The zombie virus had exploded in an instant, followed by a terrifying domino effect of human biting human. By the time people realized what was happening, it was already too late.
Hospitals, movie theaters, shopping malls, train stations—places with dense crowds had become the fastest grounds for the outbreak to spread.
At the thought, a heavy mood settled over Mu Li. In these early days of the apocalypse, the zombie swarms hadn’t fully dispersed yet, leaving some narrow back alleys passable. But if a few more days went by and the undead scattered across the city following the scent of living flesh, who knew what kind of nightmare the streets would become?
Noticing the dark expression on Mu Li’s face, Yue Suran lapsed into silence. For those left alive, “apocalypse” was a heavy word to carry.
In quiet coordination, the two used the blowtorch to sear the remaining cuts of steak, preparing them as their meals for the next two days.
Once everything was taken care of, Yue Suran picked up her trusty baseball bat and stepped out the door.
Following close behind her, Mu Li wore an equally solemn expression. Neither of them wanted to be greeted by a zombie version of Ye Liangfeng.
Knock, knock. Knock, knock.
Refusing to give up hope, Yue Suran rapped on the door, praying for a response from inside. Yet no matter how long she knocked, the apartment remained dead quiet.
After waiting at the threshold for a few moments, Yue Suran found herself unable to endure the torturous suspense any longer. Pulling out her thin steel wire, she went to work on the lock once again.
As the lock gave a sharp click, Yue Suran could distinctly hear herself swallowing hard against her dry throat.
Pushing the door open gently, they weren’t greeted by a zombie Ye Liangfeng—nor were they greeted by human Boss Ye Liangfeng.
Looking at the quiet living room separated only by the inner metal security gate, an absurd thought suddenly popped into Yue Suran’s mind: Could Ye Liangfeng have run away because he was worried my head-smashing skills weren’t up to par?
“Boss? Boss, are you in there? Say something if you are!”
Lacking Yue Suran’s wild imagination, Mu Li lightly shook the metal security gate. The iron bars instantly produced a loud, metallic clatter.
“Alright, let’s just step inside and see.”
With all the racket Mu Li had just made, if there were a zombie inside, it would have definitely made a scene rather than staying as quiet as it was now.
The metal security gate posed zero challenge to Yue Suran; in a matter of seconds, she had it picked open.
Taking just a couple of steps into the apartment, they were met with the sight of Ye Liangfeng staring back at them with a thoroughly foul expression.
Yue Suran’s instincts kicked in, and she immediately took two steps back, shoving the unsuspecting Mu Li out front to take the brunt of Ye Liangfeng’s wrath.
Mu Li was no fool. The moment she realized what Yue Suran had done, a cold sweat broke out across her back.
Who was Ye Liangfeng? He was notoriously petty and held grudges like a man possessed; “an eye for an eye” was practically his personal motto! Dancing on his raw nerves at a time like this, would she even live to see tomorrow’s sun?
This isn’t just looking for trouble—this is guaranteed, unadulterated self-destruction!
“What’s all the racket?! Are you two really that impatient to collect my corpse?!”
Having finally overcome the excruciating torment of alternating fevers and chills, Ye Liangfeng had just drifted into a deep sleep when he was rudely yanked awake by these two. How could he not be furious?