"Save me, save me..."
Chen Fei stretched out his hand, reaching towards the second floor in the distance. He saw several figures stealthily peering from there. Overwhelmed with despair, he could only hope those people would extend a helping hand seeing that he was a compatriot.
But...
The ground shook.
A giant zombie appeared before him. Facing the monstrous giant zombie, Chen Fei felt an indescribable terror.
The giant zombie grasped Chen Fei, opened its gaping maw, and bit into his neck, tearing off a chunk of flesh and brutally ripping his limbs apart. Blood splattered everywhere.
"Ah..."
A scream erupted.
Chen Fei, ravaged by the giant zombie, screamed in agonizing pain, his cries echoing through the entire street.
Some of the hidden survivors heard such ghastly screams, quivering in fear, terrified by the noises outside.
Hiding on the second floor.
Xu Zeyang said, "What kind of monster is that? It's no ordinary zombie."
Old Mao said, "Have you seen those zombie movies? It wouldn't be evolving, would it?"
The short-haired woman said, "Keep it down, don't make a sound. If we're discovered, it will be hard to escape."
They watched as Chen Fei was torn into pieces by the giant zombie.
What terrified them even more was the strength of the giant zombie. With a casual flip of its hand, it overturned a sedan blocking its way. Even if one were hiding inside the car, meeting this creature would mean instant death.
Gradually...
As Chen Fei's flesh flew about, the street grew quiet.
The giant zombie roared ferociously, as if declaring its dominance.
Then it turned and left.
"This kind of zombie seems to have its own thoughts. It's different from other zombies. Those nearby zombies cluster around it. If that's true, it's really unfriendly for us survivors," Xu Zeyang said with trembling courage.
Song Qian, the short-haired woman, frowned and said, "It might be some condition that created this kind of zombie. Its size and strength are extraordinary; a normal sedan can't stop it. If we encounter it, we'd definitely be flipped over. The apocalypse is more dangerous than we imagined. Meeting this kind of zombie, we can only hide."
Old Mao sighed, "This apocalypse... It really drives people to despair. If zombies can truly evolve, without powerful weapons, we are nothing but street rats, constantly hiding and facing unpredictable human nature. Ah... It's truly hell mode."
Hearing Old Mao's words.
Everyone fell silent.
Yes.
It's just as he said, it's hard. Zombies are hard to deal with, and encountering other survivors is even harder.
In such an environment, encountering other survivors should make one feel relieved to see fellow compatriots, a feeling that having more people warms the heart. But who could anticipate that in this environment, human nature could be more terrifying than zombies?
At night.
Lin Fan lay in bed, looking at the interface.
The appearance of "Little Helper."
Gave him the strength to kill zombies and earn points, with points he could upgrade his attributes.
It felt quite interesting, one of the few pleasures in this apocalyptic environment.
"Add points, add strength, add stamina, add speed..."
Lin Fan looked at the interface, laughing as he tapped away.
[Name]: Lin Fan.
[Strength]: 80. (Limit)
[Stamina]: 45. (Super Strong)
[Speed]: 40. (Super Strong)
[Points]: 0.
With each addition of points, his body slightly changed, as if the entire person was being sublimated.
Yeah... Should be able to punch two cows to death.
Turning his head, he glanced at the pitch-black night, hugged a teddy bear, and drifted into a wonderful sleep.
In his dreams, he saw the city restored to its former bustling glory.
Everyone was friendly.
After bumping into each other, they would apologize kindly.
"Sorry, I bumped into you."
Seeing an old person struggling with items.
"I'll help you."
Seeing a thief stealing.
"Stop, what are you doing?"
Seeing a poor family, a child suffering from a terminal illness.
Even if not much money was in their pockets, they would donate twenty, to help the child afford medical treatment.
Seeing a child drowning.
They would jump in to rescue without a second thought.
Seeing a child hanging from a balcony.
They would use their flesh and blood to embrace the future of their country, never regretting even if shattered to pieces, for it was a living spirit.
All these were hope. As long as hope persisted, there was nothing that could not be overcome.
But now...
It's just that hope was shrouded in darkness, it would come back, everything would emerge singing joyous songs from the dark, dispel the darkness, and embrace the light.
Morning.
A sliver of sunlight playfully sneaked in.
Lin Fan yawned as he got out of bed, went to the water dispenser, and poured a glass of water, drinking it with a gulp. Drinking water in the morning is beneficial for the body, helping effectively detoxify.
Holding the water glass, he washed up.
Even though it's the apocalypse.
Brushing teeth and washing the face are still commonplace, getting oneself tidy makes one look sharper and more handsome.
Boiling eggs and milk.
That was his breakfast for the morning.
This lifestyle was quite decent in the apocalyptic world.
He opened the door, arrived on the sixth floor, and knocked on the doors of four elderly people. The elderly usually woke up early in the morning, had supplies, and although their breakfast was simple, it was very nutritious.
Arriving on the eighth floor, Li Mei had already woken up Feifei early, brought her breakfast, and was organizing the textbooks in her school bag, as she needed to go study at Grandma Liang's later.
Feifei, getting out of bed, rubbed her eyes.
She really hadn't expected that, with the apocalypse having arrived, she wouldn't be able to sleep in but still had to carry a backpack to learn; this was something she hadn't thought of at all.
It was truly terrifying.
In Lin Fan's view, such a life was the real deal—there were people, communication, and things to do.
Room 603.
Feifei, carrying her backpack, entered the room, politely greeted Grandma Liang Yan, then took out her books. Grandma Liang Yan was much happier being able to teach the children, not gloomy despite the apocalypse.
"Grandma, can we learn English?" Feifei, who was best at English, felt it would not be too difficult, simple, and relaxing.
A smile appeared on Liang Yan's kind face, "Child, English is of no use. We'll study physics, mathematics, chemistry, history, geography—these are the real knowledge."
"Okay then." Feifei felt that one-on-one teaching was really scary; the teacher's focus was always on her, and she couldn't afford even a small mistake.
Downstairs, the quiet district.
Lin Fan spread his arms and took a deep breath of fresh air.
"Exercising for thirty minutes every morning keeps the body healthy. Let's exercise together."
One-two-one... one-two-one...
Having lived in the district for a long time, he was very familiar with the equipment and always felt spirited after exercising.
The three elderly people and Li Mei watched Lin Fan as he exercised.
They didn't think too much about it.
And joined in the exercise action.
Living here felt very reassuring to them, as if the apocalypse outside didn't really exist.
If there were any survivors to see this scene,
They would definitely exclaim.
Do you even take the apocalypse outside seriously at all?
Shouldn't you show the apocalypse some respect?
The three elderly people, at their age, needed exercise to keep a good, healthy mood that could prolong life and maintain health.
Li Mei, who had been hiding at home enduring mental torment, now had this chance to relax. Touching the equipment felt unreal to her.
She knew this was real, that everything was real.
Looking around, gazing at the sky, everything was quiet and good, just like before the apocalypse, thinking... a tear appeared at the corner of her eye.
She wiped away the tear, unwilling to let them see it.
After finishing the exercise, Lin Fan led them around the district, stopping in front of a plot of land that needed tilling.
"I plan to plant some vegetables here. I have already talked to the homeowners in the district, and they agree to plant here," Lin Fan said with a smile.
He didn't mind; what he had just said might sound somewhat off to others.
Li Mei also wanted to do something.
She was really thankful to Lin Fan for bringing such a life to her and took the initiative to step forward.
"I'm from a rural background. I've learned farming from my family since I was young. You can leave this work to me," said Li Mei.
"Sister Li, can you manage it by yourself?"
Lin Fan felt a bit embarrassed; he could sense that Sister Li wanted to do something to thank him, but it really wasn't necessary; helping each other was normal and within his capabilities.
Li Mei smiled, "No worries, I'm very familiar with this. It might seem easy to grow vegetables, but it actually requires some skills; it's not something you can do carelessly."
Hearing this reason,
Lin Fan did not say more. He understood that some things shouldn't be forced; otherwise, it would only cause trouble for others.
The tools are right here.
Li Mei took the tools and began hoeing and tilling the soil, her movements smooth and fluid. In Lin Fan's view, she was really impressive, much better than when he did it.
She was indeed a professional.
"Sister Li, that will be hard on you," Lin Fan said.
Li Mei smiled, "It's should be."
Though, in Li Mei's eyes, Lin Fan, who had helped them, seemed a bit odd, but upon reflection, she didn't find it strange at all. Instead, he seemed gentle, friendly, and kind.
During the apocalypse, she felt that society had lost all moral standards and hope.
But now, her hope had reignited.
All of this was given to her by Lin Fan in front of her.
"As an old lady, there's not much I can do, but I can still help out," Guifen joined Li Mei's team. While Li Mei hoed and tilled the soil, she picked up the weeds and packed them away. The elderly had come through eras of poverty, and even though they were aged, their work capacity was not inferior to younger people's, perhaps even better.
The life before him filled Lin Fan with hope for the future.
He believed that the city they once knew could indeed come back.
The district no longer had just him.
But them.
Life was like that, slowly transforming from one person to many people.
Bang!
Bang!
At that moment, a noise came from the district gate.
Apart from Lin Fan, they all felt a bit nervous. The noise at this time definitely meant zombies were around.
"Don't be afraid. I'll check it out."
Lin Fan soothed their emotions, then turned and walked towards the district gate.
Old Man Wang and Old Man Zhou followed behind Lin Fan.
Seeing a mop, they all picked one up.
If they encountered danger,
They were ready to fight the zombies desperately.
They might strain their backs,
But they had to do it.