Chapter Twenty-Three: Saving Lives and the Half-Zombie

Another scream echoed through the air.

Lu Lu felt every pore on her body stand on end. An overwhelming sense of guilt weighed heavily on her; those students who had died, it was because she lacked the ability to save them. Alongside her self-reproach, fear gripped her deeply. Soon, she would die as well.

It seemed inevitable, but Lu Lu refused to abandon hope. To give up was to surrender.

She would not give up.

She would not give up!

“Everyone, come to this alley! I remember there’s a courtyard that’s easier to hide in!” she shouted loudly. Hope flared in everyone’s eyes, and they rushed toward the place she indicated.

They reached the alley, only to find a van blocking it completely.

“Who’s so inconsiderate?”

“Wait, something’s wrong!”

Someone instinctively scrambled over the van, stepping on its roof, only to discover that behind it, even more zombies were waiting.

Despair. Everyone was plunged into utter despair. Behind them, hordes of zombies pressed forward like a surging tide. On the other side of the van, just as many zombies blocked their way. Trapped in the middle, escape seemed impossible—unless they grew wings and flew.

“We’re going to die here.”

“We’re all going to die.”

“Does refusing to give up change nothing?” Pain filled Lu Lu’s eyes. She was powerless after all—what a pity. She had tried so hard, but it still wasn’t enough.

The zombies pressed in, their eyes filled with hunger for the dozen students. Drool streamed from their mouths, and guttural growls rumbled from their throats.

Boom! Suddenly, a thunderous sound shattered the chaos, and the zombies froze for a moment.

A creature, humanoid but walking on all fours, strode toward them. It was a monster beyond reason—enormous, over two meters tall even crouched. Standing, it would easily reach four or five meters. With a single step, it crushed several zombies and, moving faster than them, arrived beside the group.

“Humans, delicious… humans.” The monster bared its sharp fangs, its eyes gleaming with excitement. It opened its mouth and spoke—an astonishing sight.

A terrifying aura radiated from the creature. Three female students immediately wet themselves in terror…

Just as the monster prepared to devour the group, a dark figure hurtled in, kicking the creature to the ground. Another monster? Many were left bewildered.

No matter what kind of monster appeared, it seemed none of them would escape death.

Heavens, why had this world become such a nightmare? It felt like the greatest punishment ever inflicted on humanity. Why do you treat us so cruelly?

—Despair echoed in every heart.

If Qi Xi, the one who had kicked the creature over, heard their thoughts, he would surely complain: “Heaven’s just minding its own business, yet still gets blamed…”

“Hah!” Qi Xi gripped a pole as thick as a water bucket, swinging it with force. The charging zombies were instantly smashed into pulp. Yet the monstrous zombie wasn’t so easily destroyed; it was hurled against a wall, collapsing it with the impact.

Only then did the female students, male students, and Teacher Lu Lu realize that the figure before them was actually a human.

They were stunned.

Everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief.

What was going on? Was it an illusion?

“Excuse me…” Lu Lu began, realizing that in a world filled with zombies, the presence of something so extraordinary was not unreasonable.

“Stop dawdling, get your spirits up, little ones,” Qi Xi interrupted, not waiting for her to finish. He threw the pole, crushing a swath of zombies. Yet more zombies surged forward, undeterred.

“Is he Superman?”

“Savior…”

“So cool…”

“God.”

Qi Xi turned and strode toward them. Lu Lu and the others finally saw his face—a strikingly handsome man with a cold, stern expression.

“Hey!” Qi Xi grunted, then punched a wall in the alley, breaking it open to reveal a room beyond.

“Get inside. Quickly,” Qi Xi ordered, breaking their stunned silence.

Everyone rushed inside. As they entered, they saw a woman standing there, startling them before they could cry out. She spoke first: “Hurry upstairs.”

Hearing this, they realized she was with the man. They hurried upstairs.

Qi Xi entered as well. The zombies outside were innumerable. Even he, fearless as he was, found the sheer number daunting.

Qi Xi dragged the big monster—the one that walked on all fours—inside with him.

This was his true target; saving the group was merely incidental.

As Qi Xi entered, zombies began pouring in behind him.

At that moment, the woman inside—Qiu Xiaoyan—took a deep breath. The special ability she had developed as an advanced evolved human, Control of Earth and Stone, was unleashed instantly!

The broken wall rebuilt itself before their eyes, restoring itself flawlessly, sealing every gap.

…

Second floor

“Thank you for saving us,” Lu Lu said as Qi Xi entered and sat down.

Soon, the students thanked him one by one.

“No need for thanks. It was just a casual act,” Qi Xi replied, shaking his head. True to the rather pitiless description of his character, his manner with others was curt and somewhat lacking in humanity: “We’ll leave tomorrow. Take care of yourselves.”

Hearing this, everyone paled and hurriedly pleaded, “Can’t you stay and protect us?”

Though rude, their request was an earnest hope.

“Of course not,” Watermelon said, tossing Qi Xi a can of Sprite.

Qi Xi took the Sprite, extinguished his cigarette, popped the tab, and drank.

Rejected, the group wisely refrained from pressing their request. They understood—if they annoyed this group, they might be thrown out to feed the zombies. The thought made several female students shudder involuntarily, avoiding the gaze of the five people in the room.

“But don’t worry. When we leave tomorrow, we won’t take the food and water in this room with us. It should be enough to last you a month or two,” Qi Xi continued, finishing his Sprite and wiping his lips. “By then, rescue teams should arrive for survivors, and you should be able to survive until then.”

Relieved by his words, the group finally breathed easier.

Qi Xi wasted no more words with them. He stood and began examining his prize—the half-zombie.