Chapter 7

Edited by: yjtc

Yan Hao grabbed the railing with a hand. “Quick! Run!”

However, Si Nan did not move. He gripped Yan Hao’s hand and yanked him up, gritting his teeth — he was about twenty kilograms lighter than Yan Hao, and this yank nearly dislocated his arm. A frightening crack was heard originating from his shoulder joint.

“T-the zombies are here!”

Si Nan panted, “Don’t state the obvious.”

Yan Hao’s feet kicked wildly in the air. He managed to find a foothold a few times, only to slip off again. Watching as those zombies blazing with flames lurched towards Si Nan, his voice sharpened, “Listen to me! Just leave me, run!”

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“How can I… leave you…”

“The zombies are right behind you!!”

Half of Si Nan’s body had been pulled over the railing. He felt a weight on his back, and the rotting breath of a zombie could be felt on his ear. At the same time, Yan Hao finally found firm footing on the windowsill, and in an instant, pulled himself up using Si Nan’s strength as leverage!

Yan Hao flipped over the railing swiftly, threw his arm around Si Nan’s waist and tumbled to the ground, rolling metres away!

“Are you alright?!”

The zombie’s teeth had missed Si Nan by millimetres, but after being knocked down and pushed around by Yan Hao he had to take a few seconds to catch his breath. “I… I’m fine.”

The weight of Yan Hao’s entire body squashed Si Nan to the ground. He used his left hand to support himself, and his right hand to grasp and turn Si Nan’s face firmly. He saw a wound on the neck below his ear, but there was no blood. It was a scrape from tumbling across the concrete ground. Instantly, all his churning emotions and anxiety settled.

“No bites.” Yan Hao buried his face in Si Nan’s neck, murmuring thankfully. “Thank goodness. You weren’t bitten.”

Because that gland which could be temporarily marked was located there, and because a heavy blow to it could be fatal, the neck was the most sensitive and crucial part of an Omega’s body. If Yan Hao was an alpha, his touch was a textbook example of sexual harassment, and so Si Nan’s instinctively shoved him away.

“You…”

Si Nan opened his mouth, only to see Yan Hao lift his head and look deeply into his eyes — Before he could identify the emotion in those eyes, Yan Hao pulled a knife out. With a swing of his arm, the head of a zombie flew off, and its body landed heavily onto the ground.

“Run!” Yan Hao pulled Si Nan up. “Get down from the roof, return to the warehouse. Hurry!”

The situation on the roof had become a bloodbath. From every direction, they could hear the screams of people on fire and the sounds of violence from the aggressive zombies. Many people were drenched in blood, crying and running like their lives depended on it, swarming towards the door of the safety passage; In the midst of the chaos, there were many who fell, and before they could get up, they were trampled to death.

“Zhou Rong!” Si Nan projected his voice.

Zhou Rong was cutting down the zombies outside the door down with a fireman’s hatchet. However, in that half second when he was pulling the axe out from a zombie’s body, another two or three infected victims who had clearly been bitten made their way into the building. Si Nan grabbed his wrist — which was dripping with rotting flesh and blood, and shouted, “Let’s go! Don’t bother with this, you can’t control the situation anymore!”

Zhou Rong’s eyes were bloodshot, the burst blood vessels startlingly obvious.

“Let’s go, Rong-ge! They’ve all been infected!” Chun Cao came running against the direction of the crowd, her voice sharp. “Hurry! Return to the warehouse—!”

With a boom, an enormous ball of flames flew up into the sky. A second explosion had occurred in the flaming wreckage of the helicopters.

Even more living dead and survivors were thrown over the building’s edge from the force of the explosion, shattering to pieces on the streets. Zhou Rong exhaled a hot, shaky breath, surveyed his team covered in blood and grime, and suddenly shouted, “The rest of you still remaining, listen up—!”

“Come with us to the south corner of Zone A in the underground garage!!”

“The south corner of Zone A in the underground garage—!!”

Zhou Rong led the pack, running into the secured passageway.

At this time, the situation in the passageway had descended into madness. Many infected victims had mutated into zombies as they ran, and started biting into people in that narrow corridor. The number of people bitten increased rapidly. The lights had been shattered some time ago, and in the dark the moans of zombies and the screams of their victims being eaten seemed to come from all directions.

Zhou Rong used the sharp axe to cleave his way through the chaos, shielding Si Nan behind him. The steps under their feet were slick with blood and meat, and in the confusion, who knew how many bodies with guts spilt all over the place had they stepped on.

It seemed like a long and endless journey, but now they were about to reach its end. With a swing of the axe, Zhou Rong hacked through the door of the stairwell, and charged into the underground garage!

“Hurry hurry hurry! Come on out!”

The group of survivors stumbled through the doorway he had exited from. Zhou Rong turned and kicked the safety gate shut, preventing the zombie horde from entering the garage with them. Turning back, he estimated the number of people with a sweep of his eyes, then decided promptly, “I’ll drive the armoured vehicle. Yan Hao, drive that medium-sized bus, go!”

This was the escape route Zhou Rong and Chun Cao had planned when she came looking for him last night — If the helicopters were unable to land on the roof, they would use this medium-sized bus they got from the streets to transport the survivors to the boarding area instead.

Yan Hao held his hand out for the key, then stopped suddenly before the medium sized bus. After panting for a short moment, he stood up and gazed at the badly shaken crowd.

“Quick! Quickly open the door and let us up the bus!”

“Don’t leave us behind!”

“They’re coming, they’re coming…”

Panicked crying and shouting resounded through the crowd, sounding extremely harsh and grating in the spacious and empty garage.

Yan Hao’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. He opened his mouth a few times, but was unable to say a word. Just at this moment, Zhou Rong strode up and patted his shoulder, then pushed him to the back.

He was very tall and well-built. As he stood up straight, the shadow he cast was heavy, and his eyes slowly swept through the crowd. The shouts and cries gradually trailed off under this oppressive pressure. Everyone stared at him in fear and bewilderment, only for Zhou Rong to finally open his mouth, his voice low yet clear. “Whoever’s been bitten, stay behind yourself.”

The crowd exploded instantly.

“I’m not!”

“Me too!”

“Quickly let us up the bus!”

“Please, please, let me up the bus!”

…

“Shut up!” Chun Cao burst out loudly. “If you all continue like this, no one’s getting up!”

The clamour stopped abruptly. In the silence, a special force soldier took the initiative to stand and roll his sleeve up. He smiled, “Rong-ge, I’ve been bitten. Are there any more bullets? Give me a shot.”

Zhou Rong stared fixedly at his already rotting wrist, and did not say a word.

Yan Hao tried his best to keep his mouth closed, but finally could not hold back a hopeless cry of despair, and fell to his knees in anguish.

Sobs were heard. Zhou Rong shut his eyes and tilted his head up. A few seconds later, he finally managed to push back his tears, and reached for the one bullet hung around his neck.

“This is…” He said hoarsely. “My last bullet, it was meant for myself.”

Zhou Rong loaded the bullet into the gun, pushed the gun barrel, walked towards that special force soldier and hugged him tightly.

Every member of the team said their farewells to him, choking with tears. Chun Cao’s shoulders shook, and that special force soldier patted her back in comfort. Like an elder brother, he kissed her on the head then pushed her away and looked at Zhou Rong with tears in his eyes.

“Rong-ge, thanks for taking care of me for all these years.” He smiled as he wiped at his eyes. “Please send me on my final mission.”

Zhou Rong shut his eyes, and with a trembling hand, he placed the muzzle of his gun on the head of that team member.

“… Goodbye,” He choked out.

Around them was dead silence. A moment later, a gunshot rang through the garage.

The restlessness of the crowd ceased swiftly, like boiling magma that had been crushed back underground before it could erupt. The survivors all looked at each other in trepidation. In no time, another girl hesitated before standing up, her eyes red and full of tears. “I… I’m a little scared.”

She paused, and forced a smile on her face. “Are there any more bullets?”

She looked fairly young, with remnants of makeup left on her face. Her hair was messy, and looked like she had just started her working life.

Zhou Rong buried his face in his palm. For a fleeting moment, from his tense shoulders, he looked like he was about to break down.

Chun Cao slowly reached to her back, about to pull out her gun. Suddenly, someone walked past her to the front.

… Si Nan? She thought, stunned.

Si Nan stopped in front of that girl and said quietly. “They don’t have any more bullets already. Can I help you instead? I promise you, it’ll be very fast.”

The girl was both scared and overwhelmed. “But I…”

“There won’t be any pain at all.” Si Nan replied.

Under the eyes of the crowd, he lifted his hand and brushed away the dust on the girl’s face, wiping away the tears from her eyes, then carefully, meticulously tidied up her hair. He straightened out her collar and patted away the dirt off her mauve skirt, just like a knight gently serving a noble princess.

Tremors were running through the girl’s body, and she was trying so hard not to cry that she could not speak. Si Nan spread his arms and hugged her, asking, “What’s your name?”

“… Zhao… Zhao Miaomiao…”

“Miaomiao,” Si Nan spoke into her ear. “Don’t be afraid. You look very pretty.”

The girl swallowed her acrid tears, and gave a small smile. “Mn!” She acknowledged firmly.

The next second — Crack! It came from her neck, quick as lightning. There was no dilly-dallying, and her body immediately sagged downwards.

Si Nan held her lifeless body and slowly placed her on the floor. He was very gentle, as though the girl had only fell into an everlasting sleep.

“… Anyone else?” Zhou Rong surveyed the crowd, asking hoarsely. “Is there anyone else? Step out by yourself.”

No one spoke, nor did they move. The tension in the air was so thick it could be sliced with a knife. After a while, Zhou Rong nodded his head at Yan Hao. Yan Hao pulled out the key to the bus, but Si Nan suddenly called out, “— Stop!”

Their eyes turned towards where he was looking at. A middle-aged man cowered as he squeezed his way towards the bus, and Si Nan went up to pull him out of the crowd. He coldly said, “You’ve been bitten as well.”

“I wasn’t! I! I…”

Si Nan wrenched his hand that was hidden behind his back to the front and tore open his sleeve. His arm had already started to rot, emitting a ghastly smell.

“It’s not the infection, I wasn’t bitten. I, I was cut by glass! The wound has just become inflamed!”

Si Nan turned a deaf ear to his words, and pushed him to a faraway corner. He told Yan Hao, “Go and open the door of the bus.”

The man flew into a rage, roaring in grief, “You’ll get your retribution! Bastard! You won’t die a peaceful death! …”

The curses echoed. Si Nan saw that all the survivors had boarded the armoured vehicle and the bus, then turned his head back and asked him, “Do you want to end it yourself, or do you want me to help you?”

The man swung his fist. Si Nan turned his head to avoid it, but unexpectedly, the man took this opportunity to break free from his hold and run away. Si Nan saw him run towards the safety gate, and his heart pounded as he came to a sudden realisation. “Stop—”

Zhou Rong threw the door to the shotgun seat open, shouting harshly, “Si Nan! Get on!”

Si Nan was like an enraged leopard, chasing after that man. At the same time, Zhou Rong slammed his foot into the accelerator, and the tires shrieked through the garage. The vehicle whipped over, and with a jam of the brakes, it stopped right in front of Si Nan!

Zhou Rong reached out and grabbed him. His hand, like an iron tong, was very strong. Grabbing around his waist, he carried him into the driver’s compartment!

“Let him go!” Zhou Rong yelled. “Come with me!”

The armoured vehicle executed a perfect turn. Accelerating with a growl, it brazenly rammed through the main entrance of the garage!

With this crash, everyone was tossed about. Si Nan glanced at the rearview mirror with the corner of his eyes, and as expected, he saw that man open the safety gate to the stairwell. All the trapped zombies swarmed forward, moaning as they stumbled towards the bus.

— But they were too late. Yan Hao had already closed the door and moved off. After grinding a few zombies under the wheels of the bus, he followed the armoured vehicle and sped towards the street!

The last thing he saw in the rearview mirror was that man drowning in the sea of zombies. Si Nan shut his eyes; he felt like there was something acidic choking his throat, and he could not make a sound.

A hand suddenly pressed against his head. Zhou Rong forcibly dragged him over, pulling him into his embrace. “Listen, don’t think about it anymore.”

Si Nan rested his head on Zhou Rong’s firm and warm shoulder, nodding his head after a moment.

“Go by the Chengbei Expressway. We must leave this place before it gets dark.” Zhou Rong turned the steering wheel all the way with a hand and said solemnly. “In 3 hours, the B Military Command will drop a nuclear bomb to clear out T City. We don’t have much time left.”