While complaints echoed here, the sounds of shouting never ceased from the villa district.
"Damn it, if you're scared of dying, then you're not fit to be a ghost! Let's go, we're taking that zombie!"
Unable to contain themselves, someone moved towards the villa district.
One person leads, and ten follow.
Dozens of people, without needing to be called, spontaneously headed towards the villa district—after all, they too craved that roasted chicken!
"Stop right there!"
Luther, having heard the commotion, arrived just in time to block the group.
But these people had no intention of stopping. One of them said, "Luther, they've been shouting for half an hour already. What's wrong with us going over to help?"
"Help your damn self!"
Luther viciously kicked him, cursing, "How did you manage to take my words for nonsense? Didn't I tell you no one is to enter the villa district?"
Clearly, Luther's authority was strong, and the group fell silent.
At this moment, Charles spoke up, "Luther, we're not going in. We'll just watch from the edge. Is that okay?"
Luther faltered for a moment, then growled, "Charles, do you have a death wish?"
"Luther, don't be mad…" Charles replied coolly, "We all understand you don't want us to clash with the residents, but we've never caught a zombie before. We just want to learn."
"Yeah, we've always run from zombies before, but this time we're going after one. Plus, those things are contagious—we just want to learn how to deal with them."
With their persistence, Luther found it hard to argue further.
Reluctantly, he followed them to the edge of the villa district.
"Quick! Get the rope…"
In the open space of the villa district, Anthony was immediately knocked down by the zombie.
He scrambled to his feet and shouted, "Don't let it escape!"
But the super-zombie, far smarter than the average undead, had already realized it was surrounded. After being attacked for half an hour by dozens of residents, it quickly made a break for it.
Two residents hurriedly tried to intercept it.
But fear overtook them, and they slipped, falling to the ground. The person behind them collided with them, and the two fell in a heap, looking utterly ridiculous.
"Haha!"
Outside the villa district, Luther and his group burst into laughter.
Charles, in particular, sneered with disdain, spitting as he mocked, "Pah! With skills like that, they're going after zombies? Watch them end up getting caught by one instead!"
These people, all trained in martial arts since childhood, held the utmost contempt for the weak.
The residents' clumsiness only served to fuel their sense of superiority.
One person spoke up, "Luther, with this bunch of trash, we can finish them off in five minutes. Why bother being polite?"
"Enough damn talk! No one crosses the line without my orders!"
Luther, having been scolded by Thomas, wasn't about to let his subordinates act recklessly.
But while he could impose physical boundaries, he couldn't control the hearts of men.
"If we catch that zombie, we'll get roasted chicken!"
"Yeah, why not go for it? It's a once-in-a-lifetime chance!"
Luther was tempted, but his loyalty to Thomas held him back. Without Thomas's strategies, he never would have become the leader of this group.
"Oh no, the zombie's getting away!"
Anthony's shout broke through the air.
The next second, they saw the zombie break free from the residents' encirclement and head straight towards Luther and his group.
"Damn! Luther, look—it's coming straight for us!"
The zombie moved with terrifying speed, quickly nearing the boundary of the villa district.
"Shit, get out of the way…"
Luther instinctively took a few steps back as the zombie brushed past him.
Charles, however, reacted immediately and yelled, "Brothers, grab your weapons! Surround this bastard, don't let it get away!"
Roasted chicken was practically in their hands!
With his shout, everyone quickly armed themselves with sticks, steel pipes, and whatever they could find, surrounding the zombie and beating it relentlessly.
At that moment, Anthony and his group caught up.
He stepped forward, furious, "What the hell do you think you're doing? We found that zombie!"
Luther was about to retort, but Anthony's tone was too provocative to ignore.
With a cold expression, he replied, "You idiots can't even catch a single zombie, what's it got to do with us?"
"Stop talking nonsense. Hand that zombie over!"
Anthony drew his gun without hesitation, fixing Luther with a frosty glare.
The residents, emboldened, echoed his demand.
"That's right, we found it! You've crossed the line!"
"Give it back, the chicken is ours!"
"You foreign dogs, get out!"
They would have been better off staying silent, but the moment those words left their mouths, Luther's group was enraged.
Charles cursed loudly, "Who the hell are you calling dogs?! The zombie came over here on its own… And who the hell are you calling a dog?"
The students, equally enraged, shouted back, "Who crossed the line? It's you guys who're useless, a bunch of trash!"
"Trash! You can't even protect what's yours!"
"Go back to your villa district! This is our turf now!"
The shouting from both sides grew louder and louder, but neither side dared to cross the line.
Finally, Anthony stepped forward with his gun raised, pointing it directly at Luther. "I'll say it again, hand over the zombie!"
Luther was now thoroughly enraged.
He took two furious steps forward, pressing his forehead against Anthony's gun barrel, snarling, "Who the hell do you think you're threatening? If you've got the guts, shoot!"
"Luther, let's take them on!" Charles yelled, emboldened, "It's just a gun, we've got so many people, let's kill him!"
"Kill him!"
"Kill him!"
The sheer ferocity of their cries startled Anthony, causing him to instinctively take a step back.
Seeing this, Luther sneered in disdain, his voice cold, "We made an agreement: you stay in the villa district, we stay in the high-rise. No one crosses the line. Now that the zombie's in our area, it's our territory, and that zombie's ours!"
Anthony ground his teeth, seething, "But it was found in our territory!"
"That's because you're too useless. Who else is to blame?"
Luther sneered again, "Once it's in my territory, it's mine. Even if Miles himself shows up, we're in the right!"
Dare to invoke Miles' name?
Kid, you're finished.
Anthony looked at him like he was dead, then coldly replied, "Boss Miles won't believe you. Even if you catch the zombie, don't think you'll get any roasted chicken!"
"Not your concern. If I don't get the chicken, I'll accept it."
If the conflict hadn't escalated, Luther might have been able to hold his temper.
But now, he knew better than to back down!
If he did, his subordinates would lose respect for him, and what kind of leader would he be then?
"Fine! You've got guts, kid!"
Anthony stomped his foot in frustration, unwillingly retreating.
The remaining residents protested, but Anthony's gun quickly silenced them, and they were forced to leave in defeat.
Behind them, the sound of mocking laughter echoed.