After much thought, the two decided to go out and scavenge while the sun was still up.
Firstly, although the government was still operational, whether it could truly control the situation was still uncertain. They couldn't just sit back and wait.
Secondly, even if the government was still functioning, it seemed like it was barely holding on. If the military was to step in and carry out a full lockdown of the city, there was no telling whether there would be adequate provisions.
The sound of sirens never stopped since the plane crash, and the city's rescue and law enforcement resources were on the brink of collapse.
Similar to the start of the pandemic, public order would be crushed within 72 hours.
However, unlike the initial days of the pandemic, people weren't just afraid of getting infected; now, they were afraid that they might suddenly experience the symptoms of the recurring side effects.
If this situation continued, there would be more and more mutated individuals every day, and eventually, the government would lock down the city, and those who mutated would be stuck in their homes.
Moreover, since it was getting late, many people who had been looting supplies had already gone home, and they could avoid the violent crowds.
Both of them put on backpacks, and just before leaving, Li Long grabbed the baseball bat, and Shao Ming tucked a kitchen knife behind his waist.
Li Long glanced at Shao Ming, then opened the door and stepped out.
They descended the stairs to the street, where some people were still rushing by with large bags. Aside from the black smoke rising from the distance and a few bloodstains that hadn't been cleaned off the road, it felt almost like a normal day.
Not far from their apartment, there was a fresh food supermarket. They decided to check it out first. The store was still open, but the shelves were already a mess. An employee was sweeping the floor at the entrance.
When they approached, the employee waved his hand and said, "There's nothing left."
"You're not going home?" Shao Ming asked.
"I'm working," the employee glanced at them and continued sweeping the floor.
Shao Ming didn't know what to say and left with Li Long.
Most of the shops downstairs had already been emptied or locked up, so they had to head further out.
"Roaaar!"
A loud growl came from the building on the side, followed by a woman's scream and a child crying.
The healthy people on the street who were carrying supplies heard the noise and quickly ran the other way.
Shao Ming glanced at Li Long, who looked terrified.
"You okay?" Shao Ming asked.
"No, no, I'm fine…" Li Long stammered, "I haven't had any symptoms of the side effects, I'm fine, I'm fine."
"If you do get symptoms, tell me, okay?" Shao Ming placed his hand on Li Long's shoulder.
"If I change, promise me you'll hit me in the head. Tell my mom I love her." Li Long's voice was breaking, almost on the verge of crying.
Shao Ming shook Li Long's shoulder gently and said, "At least you're still alive. Don't forget what you always say to me. Your life attitude? Even if we have to die tomorrow, we should live today to the fullest."
Li Long couldn't hide his fear but nodded and said, "Right, live today to the fullest."
They made it to the main road, where cars were blocked because of traffic control.
Many people had abandoned their cars and were walking away.
At least, for now, the number of living people seemed to be holding steady.
"If we continue along the main road, we'll reach a commercial district," Shao Ming said.
Li Long nodded. That area had a lot of bars, nightclubs, and shops.
"We better hurry," Li Long glanced around, noticing many others with backpacks were also heading toward the city center.
The further they walked, the more chaotic it became—people running, car horns blaring, and shop windows smashed.
When they reached the commercial district, the situation was beyond chaotic. Hundreds, even thousands of people were looting the stores, some even smashing police cars to drag the officers out.
The two took a detour and decided to enter through a small alley behind the commercial street, the delivery side of the shops where most of the warehouses were located.
Shao Ming tried pulling open a metal gate, but it was locked.
Li Long looked at both sides of the gate and judged it to be about 1.9 meters high. He tapped Shao Ming and said, "It's not too high, we can probably climb over."
After searching for a while, they found a shop's warehouse door slightly ajar.
With a sense of uncertainty, they walked into the warehouse.
A few people were crouching by the shelves, unpacking boxes and stuffing the packaged food into their bags.
When they saw Shao Ming and Li Long, they merely glanced at them before continuing to pack their bags. The two quickly joined in and started packing the food from the shelves into their backpacks.
Outside, they could hear the noise from the front door of the warehouse, followed by people starting to bang on the warehouse door. Several people who had entered before had already run off, and the remaining ones were preparing to leave as well.
This warehouse wasn't very big, and if the people outside rushed in, they might not be able to keep what they'd collected.
"How much did you get?" Shao Ming asked.
"About enough," Li Long slung his bag over his shoulder and pulled a box of biscuits from the shelf, hugging it to his chest.
Shao Ming saw this and grabbed the nearest box in front of him.
The two hurried out of the warehouse, climbing over the metal gate to return to the main street.
"Look there," Shao Ming gestured to the hardware store across the street. "Let's grab some weapons."
Just as they were about to head over, they saw the hardware store owner pulling down the roller door.
Shao Ming rushed over and propped up the door with his hand, while Li Long came up beside him, helping hold it.
"No, it's closed. No more sales," the owner said, trying to shut the door.
Shao Ming quickly said, "We'll trade with you. We need a chainsaw."
The owner hesitated and asked, "What do you have to trade?"
Shao Ming noticed the door was loosening and signaled to Li Long to push. They managed to open the door just enough for them to squeeze through.
Shao Ming kicked his box of food to the owner and said, "Is this enough?"
The owner looked at the two of them, then at the other box behind Li Long. "300 pounds for both boxes, and I'll give you the chainsaw."
Shao Ming was about to turn around and ask Li Long's opinion when he saw Li Long raise the baseball bat.
The next moment, the owner collapsed with a bloodied head.
"Ah?"