Chapter 15

Tao Yuan pulled his chair closer and asked in confusion, "What do you need the seeds for? Farming?"

Su Hao flicked the ash from his cigarette and said, "There are many usable resources in the city, but they will eventually run out. The defenses here are very weak, making it difficult to defend. We must find a more suitable base."

The people's faces showed surprise and shock. Old Song was taken aback. He swallowed the food in his mouth hastily and asked anxiously, "You mean we should leave here?"

Su Hao nodded.

"Maybe... I mean, maybe the situation isn't as bad as you think."

After a moment's hesitation, Han Ying interjected, "Although the zombies are terrifying, their movements are slow and clumsy. We can deal with them. As long as we work together, we can eliminate them with ordinary weapons. Of course, there are many of them, and they are everywhere in the city. We have already killed many of these monsters. As long as we don't encounter a large group, we can handle it."

"This house is sturdy, but the windows are a problem. We can install a layer of steel wire mesh inside."

Tao Yuan glanced at his wife, then turned his gaze to Su Hao and said sincerely, "There are many materials at the steel trading market to the west. We should use them to turn this place into a fortress."

Old Song nodded in agreement, "Yes! There is water and electricity here. It's hard to find similar living facilities elsewhere."

Su Hao sat quietly, not continuing.

He had anticipated opposition.

This was normal. Survivors who had just entered the apocalypse found it difficult to erase the imprint of civilization from their minds. They often saw only the good side of things, selectively forgetting various disadvantages and even dangers. This optimistic attitude stemmed from long-term peace, abundant living resources, and a stable environment, which made them accustomed to pushing all problems to the government and forgetting how to deal with them independently.

"The situation... will be worse than you imagine."

After a few minutes of silence, Su Hao finally spoke again. He looked at everyone in the room, his voice calm and composed, "The zombies will evolve and mutate. Like a baby growing into an adult. They are currently in their juvenile stage. In a year, or even ten months, they will evolve into new forms. Their movements will become more agile, their speed much faster, and their perception of the outside world more acute. Simple steel rods and clubs will no longer pose a threat. Especially as their physical abilities are further enhanced, they... will even begin to reproduce."

No one spoke, and the room was deathly silent.

Sweat involuntarily appeared on Tao Yuan's forehead, and Old Song's white beard twitched with his trembling mouth. Li Xiaomei and Han Ying's faces were pale, and Xin Yan tightly gripped her chopsticks, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably.

The old man rubbed his temples, looking exhausted and incredulous, "How... how is this possible? How do you know all this?"

A faint smile appeared on Su Hao's handsome face, tinged with a hint of melancholy. "As I said before: the police and the army will never appear, there will be no rescue, and no help. We can only rely on ourselves. All of this... is real."

...

The feeling of despair and fear did not last long. After the shock, the survivors began to worry about the future. Tao Yuan and Old Song did not press further, while Li Xiaomei and Xin Yan's eyes were filled with concern. They, along with the youngest Han sisters, chose to remain silent.

They all believed that Su Hao would not lie and could not be making things up. As for why he knew these things... everyone had their secrets. If they believed him, they should allow him to keep some things to himself.

The bowls and chopsticks on the dining table had been cleared away, and the city map obtained from a nearby bookstore was laid out flat. Su Hao recalled the expensive blueprint he had bought and overlaid it with the real map, finding the exact location of the "City Agricultural Supply Company" among the countless shapes and words.

"We should proceed in two steps: collect usable resources while also surveying the terrain outside the city. Finding a new base is not as simple as it sounds. The area near the living quarters must be suitable for farming and have an adequate water supply."

"We need more building materials. We are short-handed, and constructing buildings in the wild will be difficult."

"We need heavy-duty trucks with off-road capabilities. They can carry a lot of things. We should avoid using the food stored in the warehouses outside the city unless absolutely necessary. Additionally, we must collect some solar or wind power generation equipment. The installation process is actually simple, as long as we have the instructions."

"We also need gasoline and medicine..."

Everyone except the sentry on the rooftop terrace participated in the planning and discussion. The plan, though simple, was highly practical. Each item was continuously refined and supplemented, and despite the presence of differing opinions and conflicts, the most practical parts were extracted.

"Besides these, we need to continue hunting zombies."

Su Hao looked around, took a metal tube from his pocket, and poured out a silver bone, placing it flat in his palm. He said seriously, "This is very important, and I am not exaggerating. Try to collect as many as possible. Remember! The more, the better!"

...

The sky gradually turned pale.

The city remained silent, the noise and prosperity seemingly swallowed by a black hole, leaving only cold concrete ruins. The gray skyscrapers no longer symbolized the progress of civilization but stood as tombstones of death. The bodies of the dead and the uncollected garbage from the chaotic period rotted in the streets and corners, emitting an increasingly strong stench that enveloped the entire city, making it more and more like hell.

Hu He stood in front of a 24-story building, looking up at the majestic and cold structure, his face, full of scars, showing obvious excitement and ferocity.

About five meters behind him on the street, two black cars were parked. Including the drivers, there were five men and one woman in the cars.

Many people knew how to drive, and many knew how to steal cars. Even without keys, breaking the steering column and using wires to start the engine was a skill that could be mastered with a few tries.

Gouzi stood beside Hu He, touching the scar on his neck with lingering fear, and said in a flattering whisper, "Boss, this place is perfect."

The building was located east of the bank office, about 300 meters away. Using a telescope from a Russian specialty store, they could clearly see all the movements of the survivors on the other side.

Based on the reports from the scouts, Hu He had a general understanding of Su Hao's team.

They had at least five people, at most nine.

There were elderly, women, and only two strong men.

They had a car and went out every day, likely accumulating many living supplies.

In terms of numbers and strength, the other side was at a disadvantage. In other words, Hu He had a significant advantage.

The environment could change a person completely—compared to before the virus outbreak, Hu He had become a different person. He had long forgotten his role as a fitness coach, no longer being humble or cautious. Violence and despair made him truly feel the benefits of power. He could do anything he wanted, kill anyone he disliked, and indulge in women who were once out of reach. He could even raid banks and jewelry stores, taking what he wanted. He felt like an addict, unable to quit his addiction to power, and his ambition and desires continued to grow, always wanting more, robbing more, and possessing more.

The scouts, including Gouzi, discovered that the small building had water and possibly a small solar power system.

This news made Hu He itch with desire, wanting to rush in and take everything immediately.

It was only now that he realized how precious water was.

Hu He couldn't remember the last time he had taken a shower. He felt uncomfortable, hot, and greasy. The second floor of the gym always smelled of semen and body odor. Although he repeatedly ordered the use of empty bottles, paper, and plastic bags to handle feces, some waste always remained in the bathroom, making the air in the gym increasingly foul and nauseating.

Hu He and his men had lost interest in women—they were too dirty. Without water to clean, their skin was covered in dirt, and the odor from their private parts greatly affected their sexual desire. This was something that field survivors had already adapted to in the future world, but Hu He's mind still retained the various living habits of the civilized era. He found it hard to adapt and could not tolerate it.

He constantly sent his men to search for new living quarters. Due to the fear of encountering large groups of zombies, the search area was limited to the vicinity.

To prevent excessive groundwater extraction from causing ground subsidence, most wells in the city were sealed off over a decade ago. Only a few specially approved units had the right to use groundwater. Despite Hu He's strong desire to find a more comfortable living place, he had to submit to the harsh reality.

Water and electricity. Before the virus outbreak, these were conveniences that every city resident could enjoy.

Now, they were enviable and even maddeningly happy.

Hu He did not act rashly. He clearly remembered the scene at the small supermarket entrance—Su Hao and his team had guns, an absolute advantage that his side found hard to match and could not compare to.

He had to be cautious.

He needed a better vantage point to carefully and comprehensively monitor the bank office, find Su Hao's weaknesses, and choose the best time to strike. The current building was the best observation point.

Suppressing the strong impulse in his heart, Hu He glanced at Gouzi, who was standing respectfully beside him, and asked, "How is it? Everything set up?"

Gouzi bowed slightly and said timidly, "We only searched the first-floor hall. All other passages have been sealed with wood and steel bars. The zombies can only enter and exit through the main door."

This was a commercial office building. No one knew how many zombies were inside. With the situation unclear, no one dared to venture into the higher floors. Doing so would be suicide.

Hu He slowly nodded, turned around, and looked at the woman sitting in the back seat of the car, flanked by two strong men, a cruel smile on his lips.

Seeing this, Gouzi understood and walked over.

Like Cao Rui, the woman was a yoga class student at the gym. She was in her forties, overweight, and of average appearance. If not for the need to prevent food shortages, Hu He would have thrown her out long ago to feed the zombies as a snack.

She was stripped naked, her hands tied behind her back, and her mouth covered with a large piece of tape, leaving only her nostrils for breathing. Gouzi approached the car, made a gesture, and the two strong men immediately grabbed her arms and dragged her out of the car. Gouzi checked the ropes binding her wrists again, then dragged a chain from the back of the car and securely fastened it to the center of the rope.

The woman struggled desperately, her eyes wide, her cheeks puffed out, and her nose and throat emitting terrified "muffled" sounds. She writhed her body, her eyes full of tears, her expression pitiful and desperate, clearly pleading. These actions only further stimulated the men's violent desires. They laughed, kicked, punched, and beat her with sticks, driving her to stand alone on the road.

Hu He leaned against a roadside utility pole, lit a cigarette, and watched with interest.

Perhaps sensing the impending danger, the woman suddenly turned and ran, her bare feet hurting from the stones, but she did not slow down. The desire to survive made her forget everything, including the ropes on her hands and the chain.

The white, naked figure had barely run a hundred meters when she was completely restrained. The taut chain indicated the maximum distance she could escape. The woman was pulled to the ground by inertia, and the onlookers burst into mocking laughter. The only thing she could do was twist her body, using her head, feet, and shoulders to try to touch her bound hands and break free.

"What the hell is so funny?"

Hu He took a big puff of his cigarette and kicked the nearest man hard, shouting, "Bring her over, hurry up, we don't have much time, get moving—"

The men, with expressions of joy and excitement, dragged the woman back. Several strong men held her shoulders and limbs, and Gouzi took a fire axe from the car, weighed it in his hand, and with a cruel smile, raised it high and chopped down on her left knee.

The crisp sound of breaking bones shattered the gloomy silence of the city.

The woman writhed in the blood, like a mudskipper floundering out of water. Her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets, and a terrifying muffled scream came from her throat. The strong men released her, watching her roll desperately in the blood and dirt. She pressed her wound tightly, her bloodshot eyes fixed on her severed leg a few meters away. The tape on her lips was covered in dust. She lay on the ground, wriggling to shorten the distance to her severed leg, extending her bulging right hand, as if she thought she could still pick up the severed limb and reattach it.

Although it was not the first time he had killed, Gouzi was still somewhat afraid of the bloody scene. He swallowed hard and, under Hu He's cold gaze, picked up the severed leg, ran into the building entrance, and placed the fresh meat on the floor of the hall. He then dragged it out along the flowing bone marrow and blood, finally laying it flat on the steps.

Five minutes.

Ten minutes.

Heavy, slow footsteps echoed from inside the building, chaotic and dense, growing clearer.

Hu He looked at the other car at the end of the street, which had not given any signal. This meant that the direction was safe, with no zombies appearing.

Twenty seconds later, the shadows at the entrance of the building revealed the staggering figures of the zombies.

There were many, at least thirty.

They hunched over, their movements stiff, like toys with low batteries that could stop at any moment. Their clothes were tattered, barely recognizable by style to determine their gender before infection. Due to lack of water, most of their exposed muscles were atrophied, their lips curled up, revealing rows of sharp teeth. The leading zombies had blood on their lips, the bright color stimulating the followers to quicken their pace, howling as they pounced on the severed leg on the steps.

The car had already started, the chain extending from the back of the car tightly securing the woman lying in the blood on the road. Hu He stroked his stubbled chin, watching the zombies devour the severed leg and, enticed by the blood and smell, turn their hungry eyes to the nearly dead woman.

"Drive! Go slowly, let those damn things follow—"

He cursed and sat in the car, watching the swarm of zombies in the rearview mirror.

The car tires slowly turned, dragging the half-dead woman and attracting the zombies, who were desperately hungry for blood and flesh. The driver alternated between the gas and brake pedals, keeping the distance between the woman and the zombies at about ten meters. The zombies howled and lunged forward, but could not catch the food within reach. Their eyes turned red with stimulation, growing angrier, but they could never speed up, and they moved further and further away from the building...

Old Song took over the watch on the rooftop terrace at 4 a.m., replacing Han Jing. The tall buildings obstructed his view, and without the sharp cries to alert him, he could not see the tragedy unfolding hundreds of meters away, nor could he detect any conspiracy.