To ease the suffocating atmosphere that made me want to vomit, I decided to change the subject.
"By the way, I passed by Room 3018 next door on my way back."
As I spoke, I tilted my head back and took a gulp of AD Calcium Milk.
"3018?" Li Wenli raised her head, a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
"Yes." I wiped my mouth. "There are five girls in there, all still alive."
The image of the dark-skinned girl pointing a chair leg at my forehead flashed in my mind, and I couldn't help but chuckle:
"When I first jumped over, I hadn't even steadied myself when a chair leg was already pressed against my head. The girl leading them was tall, with a healthy tan. And how should I put it, the lines on her arms were quite pronounced, a bit muscular, giving off a strong sense of power. Her gaze was as fierce as a mother leopard's, almost cracking my skull open on the spot."
Li Wenli listened to my description, thoughtfully furrowing her brows, chewing on a piece of beef jerky as she mumbled, "Dark skin, muscular, tall... does she have short hair? A pretty fierce look?"
"Yes, short hair." I nodded. "Do you know her?"
Li Wenli swallowed the jerky, showing a "just as I thought" expression, nodding as she said, "I know her. Her name is Gan Luting, the star of our school's School of Physical Education. Last year's Campus Games and the city's University Games, she represented our school in sprinting, winning both the women's 100m and 200m championships. I've heard her explosive power is incredible, running the 100m in just over 11 seconds, which is at a national athlete's level."
"No wonder."
I suddenly understood, unable to help but sigh, "I thought that girl didn't seem ordinary. Her reaction speed was something else; I had just landed, and she could already block me. She's got skills."
Li Wenli sighed, a hint of envy in her eyes: "In times like these, having a good physique is the greatest asset. She's good-looking, famous, and capable. If we were writing some apocalypse web novel now, she'd definitely be the kind of strong ally you'd have to recruit. If we were to form some 'Apocalypse Survival Squad,' she'd be the perfect choice for an assault role."
After hearing this, I glanced at Li Wenli's frail arms and legs, then looked down at my own brick-laying muscles, shaking my head helplessly.
"Forget it." I discouraged, "There are five of them in that dorm, sticking together, and while they might not have much in terms of supplies, their combat power is definitely stronger than ours. If we try to recruit them now, they'll probably think we're just there for a free meal. Besides, it's just the two of us here, and our supplies are only enough for two weeks. Add five more mouths, and we'll starve in two days."
Li Wenli rolled her eyes at me, clearly understanding this logic, and said nothing more, continuing to battle with the chips in her hand.
The dorm fell silent again, with only the occasional low growl of zombies outside the window and the crisp sound of Li Wenli chewing.
I sighed, feeling the ache in every joint of my body. This morning's experiences were more thrilling than the past twenty years combined.
I walked over to Wang Yanli's chair and sat down; it had become my exclusive throne.
From my pocket, I pulled out a crumpled pack of Hongtashan, took out a cigarette, and put it in my mouth, searching my body for the nearly empty lighter.
"Click."
A weak flame flickered, igniting the tobacco.
I took a deep drag, the spicy smoke swirling in my lungs before I exhaled slowly, feeling my soul lighten by a few ounces.
"Ah..."
Amidst the swirling smoke, I took out my phone.
The screen had a crack, the battery was at 45%, and the signal bar showed a weak, flickering "3G/4G," extremely unstable.
"Let's see what the outside world has become."
I muttered, my fingers trembling slightly as I opened Weibo and Toutiao.
I wanted to see if there were any official announcements, any news of the army entering the city, or... if there were any sanctuaries that were safe zones.
However, the top trending topic was about some female internet celebrity who had slept with over a hundred popular male stars, leaving me dumbfounded, as if the world was still a place of song and dance.
But I knew it was just an illusion.
I tried searching for keywords: "zombie," "biting," "Jingyang University," "riot."
All I got were messages like "According to relevant laws and regulations, search results are not displayed," or "This content has been deleted by the publisher."
I cursed, a chill running through my heart.
It seemed the control mechanisms were still in operation, even more efficiently than usual. This indicated that the higher-ups hadn't completely collapsed, but it also meant the situation was severe enough to warrant a total information lockdown.
I refreshed a few times, occasionally finding blurry images, like burning cars on the street or the backs of fleeing crowds, but as soon as I clicked on them, the page turned into "404 Not Found."
"Stop browsing those big platforms." Li Wenli had somehow come over, her head almost touching my shoulder, "At times like this, public domain traffic has long been cut off. Check our school's internal forum or Tieba; that's the real disaster zone, and the review process can't keep up with deleting posts."
"True."
I nodded, exiting those news apps filled with whitewashed peace, and opened Jingyang University's internal Tieba.
Sure enough, it was like another world here.
No entertainment news, no ads, the pinned posts were still old academic notices, but the real-time hot posts below had exploded.
[Help! Can anyone tell me what's happening outside? My roommate suddenly went crazy and bit off the dorm supervisor's neck!]
[This isn't the flu! It's Resident Evil! I'm in the library, and downstairs is full of those monsters! They're eating people!]
[Is anyone in the First Cafeteria? We're trapped in the kitchen, and there are hundreds of zombies outside. Someone save us!]
[Don't go out! Whatever you do, don't go out! If you're bitten, you'll mutate! Even contact with blood causes mutation! I saw it with my own eyes!]
[Does anyone have water? I have two packs of Zhonghua, willing to trade for a bottle of water! Urgent!]
Looking at these shocking titles, I felt my phone becoming hot to the touch.
Behind every post was a living, breathing life, or one that was fading away.
The comment sections were even more unbearable, filled with cries for help, curses, farewell messages, and even people still indulging in lewdness, asking if any schoolgirls wanted to have one last fling before dying.
"Crazy... everyone's gone mad." Li Wenli looked at the screen, her voice trembling.
I continued scrolling down, my finger moving mechanically on the screen.
Suddenly, a familiar number caught my eye.
[3018 SOS! The hallway is full of monsters, is anyone coming to help?!]
The post was by a user named "Refuse to Die Hungry," with an avatar of a cute little cat.
3018?
Isn't that the dorm full of girls where I just delivered supplies?
My heart skipped a beat, and I quickly clicked in.
The post was made ten minutes ago, the content brief and filled with a strong sense of fear:
"We're in Girls' Dormitory Building 2, Room 3018, and the hallway outside is full of those monsters, constantly banging on the door. There are five of us in the dorm, and while we're safe for now, we don't have much to eat. A kind guy just threw us some food, but we're too scared to go out for more. Is there anyone nearby who can help? Or tell us what's really happening outside? There will be a great reward for saving us!"
There were already quite a few replies below the post.
1st Floor [Jingyang's Most Devoted]: Don't worry, beauties, your brother is coming to save you... just kidding! I'm about to be eaten myself in the men's dorm!
2nd Floor [Want Roast Duck]: Building 2? That's the old dorm area, right? You're on your own.
3rd Floor [Anonymous User]: Sisters in 3018, lock your door and stay silent. Who's that guy who threw you stuff? He's got guts to be running around at a time like this.
4th Floor [Lin Li (OP)]: I want to know who he is too! He jumped over from the balcony like a superhero! If only he could see this post... sob sob.
Seeing this, I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"Lin Li?" I looked at the name and turned to ask Li Wenli, "Do you know her?"
Li Wenli stared at the screen for two seconds, then shook her head, "Don't know her." Find the original chapter at novelping.com.
I nodded.
This Lin Li was probably the girl clutching the teddy bear, shivering, or the one wearing glasses.
"Seems like quite a few people are still alive." I sighed, "Just the number of active users in this forum is in the hundreds, which means among the tens of thousands of students and staff at our school, the number of survivors is still quite large."
"So what?" Li Wenli said coldly, "A large number of survivors means a large number of zombies. And as time goes on, these hundreds of active accounts will dwindle until they all turn into gray avatars."
Her words were harsh, but they were true.
I looked at the phone screen, the avatar of "Refuse to Die Hungry" still flickering.
With Li Wenli's consent, or rather her "nothing better to do" tacit approval, I clicked on Lin Li's avatar and chose to "send a private message."
Since we're neighbors, and I could be considered their "benefactor," establishing some connection couldn't hurt. If we ever needed support, Gan Luting would be a valuable asset.
My fingers tapped on the screen, and I typed a line:
"Hello, I'm the one who just passed by your dorm."
I clicked send.
The spinning icon turned for several seconds, making me think the network was down, but finally, it turned into a small checkmark.
Not even five seconds later.
Ding.
The phone vibrated sharply.
The reply came almost instantly:
"!!!!" "Is it you?! The guy with the big black bag?!"
"Hero! Savior! Are you still nearby?!"
Seeing the string of exclamation marks, I could almost picture the girl on the other end of the phone, excited.
I smiled, took another drag of my cigarette, and replied:
"It's me. I'm not far from you. How are you guys doing now?"
Another instant reply:
"We're okay! Thank you for the snacks! Really, thank you so much! How did you do it? The outside is full of zombies, aren't you scared?"
Am I not scared?
If I said I almost peed my pants earlier, the hero filter would shatter.
I thought for a moment and replied:
"Just lucky. Ration your food, and don't think about going out now. The hallway is full of blood, and it's even more chaotic outside."
After sending this, I put down the phone and exhaled a long plume of smoke.
Li Wenli watched from the side, suddenly saying in a sarcastic tone:
"Oh, hero, savior. Already chatting it up in no time? Feeling accomplished? Want to go over and confront them in person, maybe have those five beauties offer themselves to you?"
I shot her a sideways glance, extinguishing the cigarette butt on the chair leg:
"Offer yourself. I'm conducting diplomacy here. More friends, more paths. If we get overrun here, we'll need Gan Luting's chair leg."
Li Wenli snorted, her mouth stubborn but not arguing. She knew that in this isolated and helpless situation, establishing a connection with the survivors next door was indeed a somewhat reassuring thing.