Shao Ming said, "Pull yourself together. It's still early, and it's not completely hopeless."
Li Long almost shouted with a sobbing tone, "Hopeless? You go ask the dozens of zombies downstairs if there's any hope!"
Shao Ming glanced at the time—it was only 6:30 AM.
"Maybe they'll disperse soon?" Shao Ming suggested.
"Impossible..." Li Long muttered to himself, lowering his head. "I don't want to die... We can't go back... I don't want to die..."
"There are so many international students around the school—what about those inside? The Ministry of Foreign Affairs won't abandon us, right? The embassy will find a way, right...?"
Li Long suddenly lifted his head and yelled at Shao Ming, "Do you not understand the situation yet? Even if the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had the best resources, do you think they can send an army to escort us out?"
"If the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can't do anything, we'll have to rely on ourselves. There's always a way," Shao Ming said firmly.
Li Long suddenly stood up and shouted, "The police have sealed off our entire area, you saw that. Even if we manage to get past hundreds of zombies, how are we going to climb over the walls the police have built?"
Shao Ming was startled but continued, "There must be a gap, there has to be... There are so many alleyways nearby. How can the police seal every single one? In one night? I don't believe it."
Shao Ming added, "If you don't want to die, find a way. If you want to go home, find a way. Sitting here being negative won't help anything."
"Bang, bang, bang." The door was violently knocked on. The two fell silent. Shao Ming cautiously approached the door, crouching behind the sofa to peer through the peephole.
It wasn't a zombie outside—it was their neighbor, Blieden.
"You Asian pigs, open the door! What trouble did you cause? I know it was you!" Blieden shouted angrily, banging on the door.
Shao Ming saw him take two steps back and pull something black from his waist.
Shao Ming stared closely—it was a gun.
"He's got a gun," Shao Ming said to Li Long.
Blieden shouted again, "Open the door! I know you're in there. Stop hiding, you can summon zombies, but can't even open the door?"
Shao Ming saw Blieden raise his gun and aim at the door. He quickly stepped back, moving away from the door.
"Open the door! I'll throw you to the zombies!" Blieden yelled.
"Bang!" A gunshot rang out, and a bullet pierced through the wooden door, striking inside.
Both of them jumped in surprise—they hadn't expected Blieden to actually fire.
"Stay calm! Stay calm!" Shao Ming shouted at the door. "Let's talk this through!"
"What's there to talk about? I want you two to go clean up the zombies downstairs right now!" Blieden responded. "Otherwise, I'll come in and force you out myself!"
With that, he charged at the door again. The old, worn-out door couldn't withstand the continuous battering and gunshots. At this rate, it would be broken down within minutes.
"Put the gun down first!" Shao Ming shouted. "Put it down and we'll talk!"
"Open the door!" Blieden pounded the door again. "If I don't force you out, you'll just stay hiding here!"
As soon as he finished speaking, another bullet flew through the door.
"You better open the door and come out, or I'll guarantee I'll smash this damn door!"
Meanwhile, the growls of mutated creatures outside grew louder, as more of them began to gather around the building, drawn by the sound of gunfire.
"Hey, hey, I'm going to open the door," Shao Ming said to Li Long.
"Are you insane?" Li Long shouted at Shao Ming. "Open the door and let him in to kill us?"
"If we don't open the door, he'll just keep firing and attract more zombies," Shao Ming retorted. "Opening it gives us a chance; if we don't, this madman will keep shooting, and we'll be done for."
As if to prove Shao Ming's point, two more bullets tore through the door.
At that moment, Shao Ming could think of only one thing—face-to-face contact was their only chance.
"What do you want to do?" Li Long asked.
"I don't know," Shao Ming replied. "But I don't think he wants to kill us—if he did, the zombies downstairs would still be there. If he doesn't kill us, then we can go clean up the zombies downstairs."
"How do you know?" Li Long asked. "You open the door, he fires, and we're all dead."
"Listen," Shao Ming said, "There's no other way. Open the door, and you hide in the shadows. You can take him down. If we don't open the door, he'll break it down or bring more zombies. Everyone's dead."
The two looked at the old, shaky door, and the distant growls of the mutated creatures growing louder in their ears.
It seemed there was no other choice but to open the door and try to gain some advantage.
Li Long shook his head in disbelief, grabbed the baseball bat, and stood behind the door.
"Hey!" Shao Ming yelled at the door. "Stop shooting. I'll open the door, and we'll go clean up the problem downstairs!"
"Then hurry up and open it!" Blieden yelled. "Then go downstairs and clean up the zombies! After that, get out of the apartment!"
The gunshots outside stopped. Shao Ming looked at Li Long, pushed the sofa away from the door, and opened it.
His mind went blank; he hadn't prepared himself for what was about to happen.
Shao Ming held his breath and opened the door. Blieden immediately raised his gun and aimed at Shao Ming.
Seeing the dark muzzle of the gun, Shao Ming felt his legs shaking.
"Now," Blieden swung his gun and said, "Go with your friend and take care of the zombies downstairs."
"Okay, okay," Shao Ming said, raising his hands and taking two steps back. "You've got to let us take some weapons."
Seeing Shao Ming step back, Blieden also took two steps forward, his hand reaching into the apartment.
Li Long seized the opportunity and swung the baseball bat.
"You bastard!" Li Long yelled as he struck.
Blieden was stunned by the sudden blow, but since it hit him in the back, the pain didn't make him drop the gun.
Shao Ming's mind flashed with images of countless action movies. His instinctive reaction wasn't to dodge, but to rush forward and grab the gun from Blieden.
Blieden was momentarily dazed, and since the two were close, by the time he recovered, Shao Ming had already wrested the gun from his hand.
Blieden, gritting his teeth through the pain, gripped the gun tightly. Shao Ming yanked back hard, pulling Blieden into the apartment.
Li Long, seeing this, raised the baseball bat and swung it toward Blieden's head.
Blieden was struck hard on the head, and instinctively pulled the trigger. A bullet ripped through the air and hit the wall.
The bullet shattered, and a piece of shrapnel ricocheted off, striking Li Long directly in the thigh.