Chen Chao touched his chin, staring at the densely packed horde of zombies in the street. There were at least a hundred of them. While he could potentially kill them all, doing so would undoubtedly expose all his trump cards.
After some thought, he pointed toward the roadside greenery and said, "I'll lure them away. You take this chance to move forward and regroup at the end of the street."
Hearing his words, Chu Shanhe and the others were stunned. The two doctors and the female nurse immediately showed expressions of relief. If someone could divert these creatures, their chances of survival would significantly increase.
"This won't do!" Chu Shanhe protested. "Chen Chao, you may be skilled, but the number of these creatures is overwhelming. If they surround you, the consequences will be disastrous!"
Chen Chao responded coldly, "Do as I say and stop wasting time."
Chu Shanhe hesitated, biting his lip. Finally, he said, "I'll stay and help you. Two people working together will have a better chance. Xiao Song, you lead them across first."
Xiao Song, the young officer, gave Chen Chao an admiring glance. Upon hearing Chu Shanhe's suggestion, he quickly interjected, "Chen Chao is just a civilian, yet he's willing to make such a sacrifice. How can I, a soldier, back down? I'll stay and cover the rear with you!"
The two doctors and the nurse became anxious as they watched the three men argue. However, after being scolded earlier by Xiao Song, the former vice dean didn't dare to speak up again. He could only curse silently in his heart: "Three idiots fighting over a death sentence!"
"Xiao Song, follow orders!" Chu Shanhe barked.
"But..." Xiao Song protested, his voice tinged with urgency.
Chu Shanhe's face darkened. "No buts. Are you disobeying orders?"
Xiao Song forced a bitter smile. "Alright, Chu, I'll listen to you."
Only then did Chu Shanhe's expression soften. He turned to Chen Chao and asked, "Let's do this together. Which side should we start with?"
Chen Chao shot him a glance and said coldly, "I told you to go with them. With your level of skill, you'd only slow me down."
Chu Shanhe froze, his face flushing with embarrassment. "I know I'm not as skilled as you, but I can at least help a little. Letting you handle this alone—I just can't do it."
Chen Chao raised his gun, aiming it at Chu Shanhe's forehead. "If you're so eager to die, I can grant your wish."
Chu Shanhe flinched and hurriedly said, "Chen... Chen Chao, calm down! I get it. I'll go with them, alright? Just put the gun down—it might go off accidentally."
Chen Chao lowered the gun and said in a chilling tone, "Move quickly. And try not to sweat too much; their sense of smell is sharp and might attract them."
Chu Shanhe, now wary, asked in surprise, "Chen Chao, you seem to know a lot about these creatures?"
Chen Chao shot him another cold glance and raised his gun again.
"No, no, I won't say another word," Chu Shanhe stammered, backing away with a bitter smile.
Xiao Song, standing to the side, couldn't help but chuckle. He had never seen Chu Shanhe so thoroughly silenced. Usually, it was Chu Shanhe who intimidated others; today, the tables had turned.
Chen Chao led the group to the intersection. After calculating the distances between the zombies, he grabbed a discarded shoe from the ground and hurled it toward a shattered car window.
The shoe flew over a hundred meters and crashed through the glass!
Such astonishing strength left Chu Shanhe and the others in awe. They could barely throw something fifty meters, let alone over a hundred. Only a strongman could achieve such a feat, and even then, accuracy would be a challenge.
The sound of shattering glass immediately drew the scattered zombies toward the abandoned car. However, without finding any prey, they began to disperse again.
Chen Chao gestured for Chu Shanhe and the others to move along the greenery while he sprinted toward a damaged car.
The car door hung ajar, its windows shattered. A half-decayed skeleton lay on the ground, with only traces of flesh clinging to it. Chen Chao stepped over the remains and climbed inside.
He started the engine.
The exhaust pipe let out a deafening roar, breaking the eerie silence of the street.
Chu Shanhe and the others watched Chen Chao's actions, nearly biting their tongues in shock.
What the hell?
This was practically a death sentence!
They had thought about escaping by car, but the streets were clogged with abandoned vehicles, making it impossible to speed up. Moreover, the sound of the engine would attract the zombies. The creatures were fast, and no matter how many they ran over, they would keep coming, some even jumping onto the tires or getting crushed under them, causing the car's speed to drop or even flip. So, driving was a suicide move!
They never imagined that Chen Chao, someone who appeared so intelligent, would choose such a foolish method to draw away the monsters. While it was effective, it was undoubtedly suicidal!
For a moment, the group's faces were full of complex emotions. In this post-apocalyptic world, even in peacetime, how many people would be willing to risk their lives for others?
The two doctors and the nurse were overwhelmed with mixed feelings—gratitude, shame, and guilt. But these feelings were fleeting. As soon as the zombies were diverted, their only thought was to escape! To live!
Even if they were to die, they'd rather not be eaten alive by those disgusting creatures!
In truth, humans weren't always afraid of death. Many people, despite living in comfort, chose to end their own lives. Humans were sometimes incredibly strong, capable of immense resilience, yet also fragile, with a little bit of pain or setback making them feel that death was better than life.
However, when faced with the horrific sight of these zombies, even those who weren't afraid of death began to fear it.
Because this kind of death was far too terrifying!
A quick shot to the head might be painful, but at least it was fast. Being slowly eaten alive—that was pure torture.
Chen Chao saw that Chu Shanhe and the others had started moving along the greenery. He breathed a sigh of relief and pressed the accelerator, bringing the car to the same speed as them on the parallel street, using the roar of the exhaust to draw the zombies away from their path.
With the shadow of the car windows, Chen Chao wasn't worried about Chu Shanhe and the others seeing what was inside. His eyes flashed with a glint of light, and the surroundings seemed to distort as if the very light itself bent and shifted. If Chu Shanhe and the others were inside the car, they would have been horrified to see that the driver's seat was empty, with only the steering wheel turning on its own.
Invisible!
This was the effect of bending light!