Shao Ming and Lambert made their way downstairs. The warehouse was filled with dozens of shelves, stacked with various items.
Since Shao Ming had left the flashlight with Feng Yusheng on the second floor, Lambert had to carry his own flashlight to illuminate the path.
"You sure you're okay with traveling across Europe and Asia with us? No regrets?" Shao Ming couldn't help but ask Lambert again.
"Of course! A train journey across the Eurasian continent," Lambert's excitement reignited at the mention of trains. "We could even modify my train to make it more suitable for surviving in the apocalypse..."
"Wait, wait," Shao Ming interrupted him. "It's our train."
Lambert looked reluctant but shrugged. "Fine, fine. Anyway, I'm the train driver now."
Lambert shined his flashlight on a nearby shelf, where most of the boxes were labeled with things like hardware parts and the like.
Shao Ming asked, "What's this warehouse for?"
Lambert scanned the shelves with his light. "I don't know, but there's a canteen nearby. We occasionally have lunch there."
"Why didn't you mention the canteen earlier?" Shao Ming felt a bit exasperated. If there was food here, why had they gone to town and risked angering so many mutants?
"The canteen always had fresh ingredients," Lambert explained. "But there's been a power outage for three or four days now. It's probably all spoiled."
Shao Ming rolled his eyes. "Even without refrigeration, a lot of food doesn't spoil after just three or four days." He felt like he might punch Lambert in the face right then and there.
"Forget it," Shao Ming sighed. "Once the zombies outside clear up, we'll check out the canteen you mentioned."
As they searched the shelves, most of the boxes were filled with items that weren't very useful as weapons.
"Gears, PVC pipes, floor tiles..." Shao Ming read the labels. "Quite a bit of construction materials."
They continued moving forward. Aside from the box where Shao Ming had grabbed the steel pipe earlier, nothing seemed remotely weapon-like.
After finishing the row of large shelves, they walked to another row.
"So, are you two a couple?" Lambert asked, his voice light, as if trying to make small talk. "You guys don't seem to be getting along too well lately."
"No, no," Shao Ming glanced up at the second floor, where Feng Yusheng's silhouette could be seen moving. "I've known her only a day longer than you."
"Oops, sorry," Lambert replied. "I thought you two were a couple. You know, two... Chinese people."
Shao Ming shot Lambert a look. "Maybe you should focus more on other things," he replied dryly. "Like, I don't know, human survival, not reproduction."
Lambert's behavior—his reactions when leaving the train, his overly familiar manner—made Shao Ming feel uncomfortable.
"Alright, alright," Lambert muttered, rolling his eyes and returning to his inspection of the shelves.
Shao Ming's eyes landed on the second row of shelves.
"Look at this," he pointed out.
The box had a single label: "Iron Pipe."
Together, they managed to lift the box down. The weight was more than Shao Ming expected, and he felt his arms strain with the effort.
Lambert pulled a pair of scissors from his waist and cut open the packaging.
Inside, neatly arranged, were dozens of half-meter-long iron pipes, each with a diameter of around five centimeters. One end of each pipe was curved.
Shao Ming picked one up and tested its weight. It was sturdy enough for a two-handed grip, and with one solid strike, he figured it could crush the head of a mutant.
Lambert also tested the pipe and seemed pleased. He tucked it into his waistband. After all, a half-meter-long iron pipe was far more useful than a short wrench.
Just as they were about to continue their search, a strange noise came from the ventilation shaft on the wall.
Both of them turned quickly. Shao Ming only saw a dark shape dart into the warehouse.
Moments later, a loud crash echoed in the otherwise silent space.
It sounded like something had fallen onto one of the shelves.
"What was that?" Lambert swung the flashlight beam in that direction, but nothing was illuminated.
"Yusheng!" Shao Ming called out. "Can you see anything coming into the warehouse?"
From the second floor, a beam of light swept over the top of the shelves.
Shao Ming pulled Lambert back a few steps, trying to get a better view of the situation atop the shelves.
"There!" Feng Yusheng's voice came from above, her flashlight landing on a spot at the top of one shelf.
Through the gaps between the shelves, Shao Ming could vaguely make out the shape of a figure.
The ventilation shaft was at least seven or eight meters high—higher than two stories. How had the mutant managed to get in?
"Close the door!" Shao Ming shouted.
Before the words were even out of his mouth, the mutant lunged straight at the second-floor window.
Feng Yusheng's scream echoed from above, but thankfully, the mutant's lack of intelligence prevented it from understanding "window glass" and it crashed straight into the window, falling heavily to the ground.
"You alright?" Shao Ming shouted.
"I'm fine! I'm fine!" Feng Yusheng's voice came from above.
Shao Ming raised his makeshift bat, nodding at Lambert. They both moved toward the spot where the mutant had fallen.
The flashlight beam illuminated the ground, but there was no sign of the mutant.
The pitch-black warehouse now served as the perfect hiding place for the mutant. With the ventilation shaft above, Shao Ming could just make out the mutant leaping and scampering atop the shelves.
"Is this normal?" Lambert asked, his voice tinged with unease.
"This isn't normal..." Shao Ming adjusted his grip on the bat.
Lambert's flashlight beam couldn't catch up to the mutant, which was using the shelves to hide and move swiftly. More than once, they lost track of its location.
By the time they spotted the mutant again, it had already dropped right in front of them.
Shao Ming swung the bat with all his strength, but the mutant nimbly dodged the blow.
The bat crashed into a nearby metal shelf, snapping in two, and the immense impact caused Shao Ming's hand to tear open at the base of his thumb.
The mutant's reflexes were faster than any Shao Ming had encountered in the past few weeks. No mutant, or even human, could have evaded a strike like that so smoothly.
The mutant darted behind another shelf, disappearing again.
Lambert was about to chase it down when Shao Ming grabbed his arm, holding him back.
The shelves were too narrow for them to swing their makeshift weapons properly.
Shao Ming gritted his teeth, ignoring the pain in his hand, and raised the bat again.
The mutant was still moving, its footsteps getting closer.
"It's coming," Shao Ming warned Lambert, readying himself to strike.
Sure enough, a few seconds later, a dark figure flew down from the top of the shelves.