"Wh-what...?"
Ahead of them was a massive crowd of zombies, so dense it made Hu Ge's eyes go wide. The cigarette he had just lit fell from his hand, landing on his thick pants, emitting white smoke, but Hu Ge didn't have time to brush it off.
"Let's get out of the car and run!" Hu Ge said, realizing that since the zombie horde was still a good distance away, they might have a chance to escape if they acted quickly.
But Dao Ba didn't think so. He didn't believe that running would work in a place filled with zombies. Who knows how many zombies there could be lurking in the unseen dark corners and behind obstacles?
He scanned the area quickly and then fixed his gaze on a spot ahead with fewer zombies. It seemed to be a gap in the horde, a potential way through.
"Crash through it!" Dao Ba ordered.
Without hesitation, he slammed his foot on the gas, and the car roared forward.
"Bang!!"
The car plowed into the zombies ahead, sending several of them flying. Luckily, the car wasn't stopped and continued forward.
The others in the car couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. But just as they relaxed, their moment of calm was shattered.
"Boom!!!"
The car crashed. It slammed into a pile of rocks and flipped over onto its side.
Why? The reason? The zombies that had been scattered on the road had blocked it with their bodies, creating an impromptu barrier.
Dao Ba and the others didn't know that when they broke through the zombie wall, they'd be blindsided by the rocks ahead. Even if they had seen it, the speed at which they were going, combined with the full-throttle acceleration, left no time to slow down.
The car collided with the roadblock and flipped over, and tragedy struck.
The car was overturned, and the fate of those inside was unclear. Hu Ge was injured and crying out in pain. Dao Ba struggled to open the door, desperately trying to escape.
However, just as he finally managed to push the door open with great effort...
"Aoo!!!"
A zombie's face suddenly appeared in front of him. Without hesitation, it opened its mouth wide and lunged to bite.
"Ah!!!!!!"
The horrified scream echoed through the air. At that moment, the entire group in the car became nothing but zombie fodder.
The shelter was finished. The so-called upper management was all dead. Zhang Lei had finally gotten his revenge. Though the cost had been high, he felt it was worth it.
Outside the shelter, in a garden. In the center of the garden was a lawn. There was a metal sign on the lawn, with the words "Don't Step" written in big black letters.
But in the apocalypse, people no longer followed the peaceful rules of the past. There, sitting on the lawn, was a man covered in wounds. In front of him was a freshly dug grave, where his first love was buried.
This man wasn't just anyone. He was the one who had caused the destruction of the shelter—Zhang Lei.
Zhang Lei hadn't died. This was something he hadn't expected. After he had inflicted injuries on himself and bled heavily, he used his own blood to lure the zombies from the hidden passage into the shelter.
By all rights, he should have been killed by the zombies. But that wasn't how things played out. The zombies quickly found other prey, and Zhang Lei's allure decreased dramatically. Especially after the first unfortunate soul was devoured, spilling even more blood and releasing a stronger scent of blood.
Zhang Lei's attraction to the zombies was further diminished.
Especially since he was wearing a zombie suit. Perhaps the zombies at that moment had mistaken him for one of their own.
As for the blood on him? That had been spilled when he had inadvertently gotten it on his clothes during the feeding frenzy. Or maybe, because Zhang Lei had kept a certain distance from the zombies and there were more enticing targets, the zombies had focused on other prey, allowing him to escape.
In any case, Zhang Lei had made it out. He had fled.
Zhang Lei ran out of the shelter through the front gate. When the gatekeeper opened the door, the shelter had been mostly deserted, with no zombies outside.
With no place to go, Zhang Lei had ended up in the secluded garden where his girlfriend was buried.
The garden had only one entrance and no zombies, so it was relatively safe. In fact, it was because there were no zombies here that Zhang Lei had been able to bury his girlfriend here last time.
He sat in front of her grave, listening quietly to the noises coming from the shelter in the distance. He instinctively looked up at the sky and saw that the dawn was breaking, the first light of day appearing in the far-off horizon.
Zhang Lei thought to himself:
"Probably once the sun rises fully, the zombies will find me."
Although this place was still safe for now, his body was covered in blood, and there were blood trails leading behind him. It was only a matter of time before the zombies followed the scent and found him.
But now, none of that mattered. He had avenged his girlfriend. His mission was accomplished, and it was time for him to join her.
"If there really is an underworld...," he murmured, harboring a small hope.
Zhang Lei had always considered himself a staunch atheist. But as death approached, he found himself starting to yearn for the supernatural. If there really was an underworld, perhaps he would be able to find Xia He again, and they could be together once more.
Of course, that was just a beautiful thought.
"Drip... drip..."
The sound of water dripping from Zhang Lei's body echoed. Blood still flowed from several wounds, but there was no attempt to dress them. For someone about to die, dressing the wounds was pointless.
He just stared at the grave in front of him. As his mind wandered, he absentmindedly looked down at the red string tied to his wrist. It was the first gift Xia He had ever given him—a couple's bracelet.
The red string made Zhang Lei feel even more sorrowful. Luckily, the torn zombie suit on his arm pulled him back to the present.
Seeing the suit reminded him of Huang Jin. He suddenly remembered their conversation that night. Huang Jin had said, "Tomorrow I turn eighteen."
And now, the "tomorrow" he had mentioned was long gone.
"I forgot to wish him a happy birthday..." Zhang Lei smiled bitterly, feeling a sense of regret.
"It's not too late to say it now."
Suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind him. He froze, quickly turning around, and there he saw Huang Jin, dressed in a zombie suit.
Huang Jin simply looked at the grave in front of him and said, "By the way, did you prepare a birthday gift for me? If not, then don't bother wishing me a happy birthday. Words are nothing compared to actual supplies."
"You're back?" Zhang Lei was overjoyed. He didn't think too much, instinctively breaking into a smile.
"Why does your voice sound so weak? Did someone take your kidney?"
Huang Jin scanned Zhang Lei's body condition and replied, "That broken-down car ran out of fuel, so I came back to find some more."