Pan Di chuckled and rubbed his hands. He was just about to walk up to their seats when Lin Qianqian yanked him back.
Pan Di said with annoyance, "What are you on about still? You even threw up the ramen. Are you not going to eat now?" As he spoke, he dragged Lin Qianqian to her seat.
At that point, ten people were sitting at the dining table. One seat remained empty.
Guo Yuan took a long look at Shen Chen, then another glance at Pan Di and Lin Qianqian. He knew that what Shen Chen did had already conquered everyone. Oh… except for Zhao Ze!
Everyone realized something. They hesitantly put down the chopsticks in their hands, each person looking somewhat uneasy. They all looked toward Shen Chen. Seeing this, Shen Chen smiled calmly.
Zhao Ze had now become an important figure. His existence indicated how the new boss, Shen Chen, handled matters. If Shen Chen was strict and didn't let Zhao Ze eat, it would establish his authority, but at the same time, it would leave an unkind impression on the others. It might even establish an impression that those who obeyed him would live, and those who disobeyed him would die. It wasn't a good thing for a team. But if he let Zhao Ze come eat so easily, then he would appear weak and easy to bully.
How he handled Zhao Ze was a troublesome matter. In other words, Zhao Ze had become a way for others to gauge his attitude. But Shen Chen didn't mind at all. He took the chopsticks in his hands and calmly picked up some food. "Not bad."
Li Jing forced a smile on her face. No one made a sound. Watching Shen Chen calmly hold his chopsticks, they each had an overcast expression. As time went on, everyone looked more and more disappointed.
Shen Chen smiled. His chopsticks paused in the air. Then he put them down. He spoke in a steady and powerful tone, "After we eat, the men will go out to clear the zombies in the hotel. Zhao Ze, if you plan to escape combat by not eating, I don't mind kicking you out right now!"
Instantly, everyone looked pleasantly surprised. Zhao Ze couldn't believe what he heard. He gazed at Shen Chen in doubt, then nodded his head blankly.
Watching Zhao Ze join them with swaying steps, everyone suddenly felt like they were about to burst into tears from joy! A leader who had incredible strength. A leader who had a heart that could tolerate those who opposed them. What a happy thing this was in the apocalypse.
…
After eating breakfast, Shen Chen returned to his room to rest per everyone's urging. Since he had just absorbed a syringe of evolution fluid, he didn't really feel tired. But after seeing everyone's hopeful gazes, he felt like he should accept their good will.
Sitting on the bed with crossed legs, Shen Chen secretly perceived the changes in his body. The absorption from last night had brought about some signs of evolution in his body, especially when he had killed that zombie earlier. He clearly had much greater speed than before.
Shen Chen swung his fists. It looked like he had to expedite the process of obtaining evolution fluid. He turned and opened a cardboard box. It was filled with single-use syringes and sealed reagent bottles.
There were only twenty-four tubes. Shen Chen considered. Based on his experience from the previous life, he would reach the standard of a First Tier neo-human after absorbing twenty tubes of evolution fluid. In this life, he might not need as much. Then, the extra medicine could be distributed to Guo Yuan, Pan Di, and Zhao Zhen. But Zhao Ze and Li Qi weren't companions he trusted, so he couldn't expose the existence of the evolution fluid just yet.
That day, everyone got to enjoy a rare day of peace. Just like before Doomsday, the men played poker and the women gossiped. Every now and then they would laugh heartily, but no one truly relaxed.
After eating dinner, everyone sat together and watched TV. All the shows on TV had stopped playing. Only a female broadcaster made the same announcement over and over again in a stiff voice. "A large-scale terror attack happened in our city yesterday. We ask all citizens to stay in their residences, close their doors, and not go outside…"
The broadcast on TV didn't say anything about zombie attacks. They didn't even mention the military or rescue. That meant what Shen Chen said was correct. The government might not have a way to rescue them right now. It was possible that the entire country—the entire world—had fallen…
All of them lowered their heads in dismay and turned off the TV. Suddenly, Li Jing said, melancholy, "I wonder how my dad and mom are…"
The moment she said this, all the girls' eyes reddened. Even Lin Qianqian, who was so fierce, lowered her head. Suddenly, she raised her head and yelled in despair, "This world is over with. We're no match for those zombies. We're all going to die!"
Her words shook everyone's hearts. A feeling of suffocating horror crept over their bodies. The miserable condition outside, the still-wandering zombies on the seventeenth floor, made everyone fall into deep fear and despair about the future.
"Why did it turn out this way?!"
"I don't want to die! But when I see those zombies, I think, I might as well just die now! It would be better than being eaten alive by them!"
"Die… Let's all die together!"
Boom! Shen Chen forcefully slammed the table. His gaze was ice cold, and he shouted angrily, "You want to die? Who the hell wants to die?!"
His shouting shocked everyone. They all turned to look at the infuriated young man.
"You? Or is it you?" Shen Chen turned his gaze toward Lin Qianqian and Li Qi. He drew out Black Blade. The blade gave off an intimidating cold glint under the light.
"If you want to die, it's very easy! I'll grant your wish!" Shen Chen reprimanded. "With a single cut, it would be completely painless. Which of you wants to go first?"
Everyone was shocked by his powerful aura. They all watched this mature and prudent man in astonishment and wondered what had provoked him.
"The apocalypse has come. In the future, even children must pick up weapons and kill the enemy for a chance of survival, all just to live on! Yet you, sitting in a safe room, eating a table of warm food, dare to say that you want to die?"
Shen Chen watched the dismayed people in exasperation. Were these his reborn companions? These were just a bunch of cowards!
"Look at those people who turned into zombies. They wanted to keep living during the last moment before their deaths. And you, you're just all despicably trying to seek death? What can death bring you? After you die, you will stand up again and go attack other people like those hideous zombies! If you don't live well and make use of yourselves while you're still living, when you die, you'll harm even more people who crave survival! Among them could be your friends, your family! And they could have lived if it weren't for you! They could have lived to see the day that zombies disappeared!"
Everyone lowered their heads. They were extremely ashamed. Yes, what right did they have to say they wanted to die? They were all saved by Shen Chen. They lived in such a safe place, yet they weren't thinking of how to survive.
Finally, Zhao Zhen spoke hesitantly, "Boss, I don't want to die."
Then Guo Yuan and Pan Di said too, "Boss, we must live on. We still have to find our families!"
Soon, everyone raised their heads, all gazing at Shen Chen with tears in their eyes. In that moment, Shen Chen was their backbone, their psychological pillar! Without knowing it, everyone changed their minds.
Shen Chen scanned everyone with a determined gaze and said with incredible confidence, "Remember, there will only be hope if you live on!"
Yes, there would only be hope if they lived on!
Everyone spent that night in contemplation and unease.
…
The next day, after eating breakfast, Shen Chen and Guo Yuan got dressed and picked up their weapons under Pan Di's and Zhao Zhen's stares of admiration.
Pan Di punched Guo Yuan with envy. "You got it lucky, Fourth. If we went in order, these things would be mine since I'm Third!"
Shen Chen laughed and shook his head. "Don't be envious. We'll get each of you a weapon soon. There's a fire axe on every floor. As for armguards, just ask the girls to make them at home."
Pan Di looked at Shen Chen and nodded firmly.
Zhao Ze screamed in fear. "Shen… Shen Chen? We're not really going to kill zombies, are we?"
"What? You don't want to participate? Then you can leave," Shen Chen said coolly." You're welcome to go."
"No, no. It's not that I don't want to participate. It's just… why are we killing zombies? Isn't it very safe here?"
Shen Chen scoffed and said, "It's only safe in relation to other places. If we want to survive, we have to find the zombies on the other floors and kill them while they're still weak."
Off to the side, Zhao Ze had a downcast face. Right now, no one thought of Shen Chen as a young man who was not even twenty years old. He could only nod. "Fine, then."
Li Qi nodded honestly. To him, having an axe to protect himself was definitely better self-defense.
They took the elevator down to the hotel lobby. Since the sixteenth floor that Shen Chen lived on had an exclusive passage, if he wanted to clear the other floors, he had to go down to the hotel lobby, then reach the other floors through the public passages. Right now, the hotel lobby, which had been cleared last night, was stinking. The six of them covered their noses and searched for a long time in the lobby, until they finally found the extinguisher window, which was covered in zombie blood.
Shen Chen shattered the glass with a kick, then tossed the fire axe to Pan Di. The heavy fire axe made Pan Di's arms sink. He swayed a bit in place.
Pan Di said through gritted teeth, "I saw boss raise it so easily, so why is this fire axe so heavy?"
Guo Yuan was a little proud. "Of course it's heavy! How else could he be the captain?"
Shen Chen couldn't help but smile. "Why are you still chattering? Hurry up and find the other ones. We have to find one for each of them, too!"
They looked around the hotel lobby for a long time but couldn't find another fire axe. Shen Chen took a look at Zhao Ze and said, "Looks like we have to search the second floor."
Zhao Ze hurriedly said, "How about I don't participate in the fighting? I can lead the girls in making some clothes!"
"Bah! And you're a man?" Pan Di said with disdain. His conviction in Zhao Ze yesterday had already turned into spite.
Zhao Ze no longer had any signs of the arrogance from yesterday. He was nearly in tears. "I can't do it. I don't have a weapon. What if there are zombies…"