Chapter 5

Mori walked in, and Kirk went up to him, the two nodding at each other.

"Kid, you did a good job at the intersection. Now take our loot and get out of this old folks' home!" Mori said.

Gillermo sneered, "You can go wherever you want, but leave the guns behind!"

Mori licked his wrist blade and narrowed his eyes, clearly his anger and killing intent had been aroused.

Kirk knew it was his turn to speak: "We can divide those guns. We found them first and brought them back. You took them, and considering the number of elderly people here, we can split them evenly."

Gillermo curled his lip, "Why should we split them with you? You're only two people!"

"There are three of us," Green walked over, "I'm on their side."

Mori's eyes turned cold when he saw Green, but with a major enemy ahead, he didn't say much.

In the story, Green was one of the people who locked him on the rooftop, so he naturally had no good feelings towards him.

Now, the most important thing was to get back that batch of guns and ammunition. It was good that Green supported him; he could settle old scores later.

Gillermo became impatient and was about to say something when a shout came from outside: "Zombies, a lot of them!"

Gillermo quickly gathered people to block the zombies. Kirk's heart tightened; he knew the plot had been triggered early!

Sure enough, the space gave him a mission prompt: "Contractor 4444, you have triggered a hidden branch plot: The Fall of the Old Folks' Home. Since you anticipated this plot, it has been triggered early. You now have two choices:

1. Take half of the guns and ammunition while Gillermo's group is defending against the zombies and leave.

2. Persuade Mori and Green to help Gillermo's group defend the old folks' home.

Note: Successfully defending the old folks' home will alter the original plot to some extent, earning you rich rewards. However, the number of incoming zombies is large, and your participation will cause unpredictable and temporary increases in plot difficulty! Based on your ability rating, the risk is significant, so choose carefully!"

The space did not provide more details about the benefits of the two choices. Based on Kirk's guess, the first option was definitely less risky but with fewer rewards, allowing him to get some guns and ammunition immediately. The second option was very risky but promised high rewards, which should be substantial.

If you think deeper, the space wouldn't give a boring task. This choice was about picking sides. The first choice represented survival first, while the second choice represented humanity first. The question of whether "living" or "living like a human" was more important was the theme of the story. In the original plot, the main character Rick attracted people's support because he leaned towards humanity, not just survival, but also preserving human civilization and humanity, helping others, teamwork, and not abandoning anyone. This contrasted sharply with his gradually estranged friend Shane and the selfish Mori.

Kirk looked at the elderly people with white hair, their calm eyes showing a clear understanding of life and death. For him, a young man from a peaceful era, leaving them to be torn apart by zombies was morally unacceptable. From a practical standpoint, this task seemed rare, and the mention of "hidden characters" was likely valuable, with rich rewards expected. As for the "unpredictable danger," living in this blood-soaked world was dangerous enough already.

The pressure of the 7-day survival task and the threat of zombie mutations every 48 hours weighed heavily on his mind. Kirk vaguely felt that constant avoidance might be the greatest risk. The space wouldn't give a mission that was impossible to complete, and saving people should align with the plot's theme. High risk, high opportunity, Kirk steeled himself, damn it!

"Mori, Green, we'll stay and fight the zombies!" Kirk shouted.

Green nodded, his expression softening towards Kirk. In the original plot, he liked this old folks' home, as Easterners value filial piety. So persuading him to stay wasn't difficult.

"Stupid kid, are you crazy?" Mori sneered as expected, "If you're tired of living, I'll leave first."

"Mori! Do you want to keep running forever?" Kirk yelled, "Don't you know why they don't like you? You want to be part of the group, don't you? You can..."

Before he finished, Kirk was punched by Mori, losing two teeth.

Then, he was grabbed by the enraged Mori!

"What gives you the right to lecture me, huh? Just because you're a yellow-skinned monkey? You and this Asian wimp are both useless! If you want to die, stay here and rot, I..."

"Look at these old people..." Kirk was scared, spitting out a tooth, blood flowing from his mouth, but he had to keep going. "They are very calm, but you're not. Mori, you lack security. In fact, Green and I, the cowards you call, are staying to fight, but you, the brave one, are running. Run, the farther the better..."

Kirk was punched again! This time, his head hit the wall, his scalp split, and he knelt on the ground, blood dripping, his health points dropping by 20.

Kirk regretted, "This damn space, this damn mission, forcing me into a corner. If Mori doesn't join, our chances of winning are slim... If Mori leaves, we'll lose both the battle and the guns."

Green stepped in, stopping Mori's further attack, and said firmly, "Yes, I and this Chinese guy are staying to fight the zombies. You go, brave soldier." He picked up a riot shotgun, capable of firing 8 rounds, known as a "spray gun" in CS, and walked out.

Kirk got up, pulled out his police pistol, and forced a smile. At this point, he couldn't show weakness, even if it was an act. Mori was a fierce tough guy; the more resolute you were, the more he respected you. If you wavered, he would look down on you.

Passing Mori, Kirk said arrogantly, "A man can't just live to survive, that's no different from a dead zombie!"

Mori laughed maniacally, and Kirk was punched and kicked again.

Outside, Kirk found that there were indeed many zombies. They filled the streets, surging forward. Gillermo's group, about 16 or 17 people, were all out. Fortunately, with the guns and ammunition Kirk's group provided, they could form a complete firing line, stubbornly holding the zombies back. Green had already joined the fight, leading the charge, spraying the zombies' heads with his shotgun.

Zombies had no other weakness except their heads; hitting other parts was useless. Only a fatal blow to the head, stopping the brain, would kill them. This was common knowledge.

Kirk, of course, wouldn't rush forward. He started shooting according to Mori's teachings.

Actually, he regretted the fight with Mori. Mori was a capable person, and after entering this tragic world, he had been a mentor, teaching Kirk many survival skills. If he continued to follow Mori, even without rewards, the skills alone would be worth it.

But, as he said, a man can't just live to survive. Kirk was a young man, a homebody who was still watching TV and playing games last night. He couldn't abandon these elderly people to their deaths; he would be haunted by guilt for the rest of his life.

You might say this was just a game, they were just characters, and it didn't matter if they died. Kirk used to think so, but seeing the dying humans' eyes, full of resentment, unwillingness, despair, and hope, he didn't see them as NPCs, scenery, or data. He wasn't noble enough to die for them, but he was willing to do something from the back line.

The police pistol had little recoil, and Kirk could control it well. The "Basic Small Arms Mastery" skill made it easy for him to use. When the zombies swarmed, he didn't need to aim much, just shoot at a general level, increasing his firing speed. In one minute, he changed the magazine once, using 40 bullets to kill 32 zombies, earning 64 survival points. (This weapon was Kirk's own plain pistol, so he earned all the survival points.)

Gillermo and his group were also fighting a desperate battle, with no retreat. Gillermo held an M16, a high-end weapon he somehow got, spraying blood and brains. Seeing Kirk's help, Gillermo's cold expression softened, and he gave Kirk a crooked smile, showing his white teeth.

Green was also a skilled warrior. He held the shotgun, firing continuously, one shot per zombie, and changed magazines quickly.

Others were also fighting hard. The situation was critical, even the half-grown kids were firing Uzis! A few white-haired old men, likely retired soldiers, were trembling but firing civilian rifles at the zombies.

Everyone who could fight was on the front line. There were no men or women, old or young, only humans and "them"!

In a desperate situation, there was no safe place!

However, the number of zombies was overwhelming. They came in waves, with no sense, no morale, no screams, only a desire for food and destruction!

Kirk emptied his fourth magazine and was changing it when he saw a crawling zombie bite Gillermo, who was smashing zombies' heads with his gun butt!

Kirk yelled, threw his pistol at the zombie, making it look up, then rushed with a dagger and stabbed the zombie's head.

Gillermo's face changed, "Be careful!"

Kirk turned around, and a large mouth was about to bite his shoulder!

Suddenly, the zombie's head exploded, and a cold voice said, "Stupid kid, I told you to watch your back!"

It was Mori!

Kirk almost wet his pants, now he forced a smile, uglier than a cry.

Mori kicked Kirk's butt hard, "Move your ass. I'm here because the back door is also surrounded by zombies. I'm not here to save you, just to save myself. I told you, you'd get us killed!"

Kirk and Green looked at each other, speechless.

Mori then turned and roared, "Everyone, if you want to live, listen to me! Reorganize the formation! Stand in a line, providing more shooting angles! SMG and rifle users cover 30-50 meters! Riot shotguns cover 30-10 meters! Pistols cover 10 meters! Each person covers a 45-degree shooting area! Fat black guy! Did you hear me? Your grandmother will be raped by them, did you hear me?"

Ignoring the black guy's purple face, Mori laughed maniacally, holding an automatic assault rifle, firing with both hands. The intense firepower mowed down the zombies, blood and flesh flying.

The improved firepower distribution significantly improved the battle. The defenders had better order, and the shooting became more layered. The zombies fell, and everyone had time to catch their breath and change magazines. Gillermo threw Kirk an Uzi and several magazines. Kirk picked it up, excitedly yelled, and fired at the zombies' heads.

The defense lasted a long time. With Mori, Green, and Kirk's help, plus the strong firepower and advantageous terrain, hundreds of zombies fell at the old folks' home's high walls. Kirk alone killed 125 zombies, earning 250 survival points. With his previous earnings, he now had 421 survival points. The "Zombie Hunter" title progress was 174/100.

After a flash of light, the space prompted: "Contractor 4444 has completed the Zombie Hunter title progress, earning the Zombie Hunter title. [Zombie Hunter] title, when worn, increases damage to zombies by 5%. Do you want to wear this badge now?"

5% more damage to zombies was significant, so Kirk happily wore it.

"The next title is unlocked, the Black Iron title [Zombie Hunter], continue hunting zombies, current progress 174/500."

Wealth and honor come with risk. If it were a typical new contractor, they wouldn't have the chance to participate in such intense battles and kill so many zombies. However, despite Kirk's efforts to protect himself, he was scratched by zombies several times. He only had 4 stamina points, or 40 health points, which increased to 50 with the Bronze Ring. Even with the tactical bulletproof vest, his health was down to 25. Fortunately, the old folks' home had doctors, nurses, bandages, and battlefield medical equipment, which could stop bleeding and prevent zombie infection. After bandaging, Kirk's health slowly recovered.

However, the seemingly ample ammunition was quickly depleted in the intense battle.

More terrifyingly, it was now deep into the night! The zombies' vitality, speed, and bloodlust were greatly increased. Kirk saw a zombie leap over three meters, pinning down the black guy Mori had scolded. Before everyone could shoot it, the black guy's throat was bitten open, his white flesh and blood vessels torn, and he was dead. A timid girl fainted on the spot.

The zombies kept coming.

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