Chapter 10 - Sleepless Night

Tianhang City is situated near FZ-HOPE City and, like FZ-HOPE City, is a massive city with a population of over ten million. Following the outbreak of the Resident Evil in FZ-HOPE City, all traffic entering Tianhang City has been completely blocked by the police to prevent chaos.

One of the main access points to the city-Tianhang Bridge-is currently crowded with thousands of refugees fleeing from FZ-HOPE City or CCL City. At the end of the bridge are numerous police officers, while many zombies wander the shallows beneath the bridge.

“Please stay away from anyone who might attack you, even if it’s your family!”

“Please avoid injured people. Injured individuals and those who might attack others are not allowed to pass through!”

At the bridgehead, loudspeakers are continuously broadcasting these precautions. Besides the police, the bridge is naturally not short of enthusiastic media:

“This is Tianhang TV reporting live. Although the traffic lockdown in Tianhang City is still ongoing, the virus is not only spreading throughout Tian Chao but is also infecting the entire world. Criticisms questioning the purpose of these measures have also emerged.”

Although the police are trying to control the situation on Tianhang Bridge, some disturbances have already occurred due to the increasing number of people and the agitation by some malicious individuals.

A police chief calling for backup shouted into the communicator, “Figure it out yourself? What do you mean by that? Why is there no backup?! You’re saying communications are down?! Damn it!” Frustrated by not receiving the requested support, the chief angrily tossed the communicator aside.

At this moment, an officer rushed over in a panic, “If this continues, the barricades won’t hold, and more people are arriving. There are also protests over there!”

“We can use any means necessary to maintain order. The department is also in a tough spot right now, and the final order is to sacrifice a few for the sake of the majority. Damn it, our duty is to protect the citizens, but now…”

In the distance, a voice suddenly blared over a loudspeaker: “No police brutality allowed! Protest against the Resident Evil crisis!” It seemed that some citizens, incited by malicious individuals, were staging a protest march. However, within minutes of the protest beginning, some of the injured citizens started to undergo zombification! The police began shooting at these zombies!

A mother holding the body of her child pleaded with the officers not to shoot: “Please don’t shoot! This child is still alive, just like me!” Before she could finish, the child in her arms, who had appeared unconscious, suddenly opened its eyes. But those eyes were no longer clear-they were clouded, and an oppressive, hoarse growl escaped its throat. The child suddenly lunged forward, biting into its mother’s neck! Blood splattered everywhere!

Everyone witnessing the scene was stunned, but the leader of the protest quickly regained composure and incited the crowd, yelling: “The bureaucrats we’ve always hated have finally turned their indiscriminate violence on the citizens!!”

The protests grew louder and louder. One officer, passing his loudspeaker to a colleague, approached the lead protester, a man who didn’t look like a virtuous figure, urging, “Please leave this area. If you stay, you’ll be in danger too.” Yet the leader arrogantly retorted, “You cops are just making excuses! You’re hiding the government’s conspiracy! Protest! Protest!”

After a few moments of silence, the officer pulled out his pistol and pointed it at the instigator, speaking coldly, “Say that again. The government and police station have issued a final order allowing all necessary means to maintain order. It might be legally questionable, but an order is an order.”

“Bang-!”

The gunshot rang out, but on the bridge, it simply resulted in one more dead body.

Soon, the number of zombies on Tianhang Bridge increased dramatically, and the situation was completely out of control. A large road clearing machine had somehow arrived at the edge of the bridge. The officer in charge of directing the scene climbed into the cab and spoke with the driver for a few moments. The driver wore a look of shock: “Are you sure you really want to do this?!” But the officer replied, “We’ll take full responsibility. Please start the machine!”

Once the officer jumped off the road clearing machine, the driver, trembling, pressed the accelerator, crashing into the already chaotic crowd! The smaller vehicles were no match for the massive road clearing machine and were flattened into metal pancakes, let alone the flesh and blood bodies. In an instant, blood splattered everywhere, severed limbs were strewn all over, and the air was filled with screams, wails, the sound of breaking bones, and the growls of zombies, echoing across Tianhang Bridge. Curses and shoutings were incessantly heard:

“Beasts, are those people over there really abandoning us?”

“Run, if we go back, we’ll be crushed!”

On the other side of the bridge, all the police officers stood silently with their heads down. They were all human, after all-who could bear to watch such a scene?

The previous officer continued to negotiate with his superiors over the communicator: “What? Anyone who approaches can be shot without a warning?” But before he finished speaking, a gunshot rang out next to him. One of his subordinates, overwhelmed by the immense pressure, shot himself in the head! His white brain matter splattered all over the ground, and his blood stained the photograph in his hand, a picture of his family of three.

At the same time.

I gently pushed Qimeng, who was still lost in a deep kiss, aside, turning my head with a flushed face, saying, “If we keep this up, it’ll be bad.”

Qimeng chuckled and said, “Seems like someone reacted.”

If there was no reaction, then I’d be a eunuch. But just then, the continuous barking of a dog reached Qimeng and my ears. The dog’s bark was so loud that if it continued, it would probably attract all the zombies in this villa area! I quickly climbed up from the stairs and said to Qimeng, “Come with me to check it out.” I then grabbed Qimeng’s hand and ran towards the second-floor balcony. Liu Yonglin was probably already on the balcony with his gun, checking the situation.

When I reached the balcony, Xueqi and Ye Xiang were already there. Liu Yonglin was intently surveying the situation outside the villa through the scope of his Type 99 Sniper Rifle, while Xueqi held a pair of military binoculars.

Seeing the furrowed brows on Liu Yonglin, I quickly asked, “Liu Yonglin, what’s the situation outside?” Still peering through his sniper rifle, he simply replied, “This is trouble.”

A sense of dread settled over me as I picked up the steel spike that Qimeng silently passed to me. Feeling its coldness, I recognized the sensation rising within me-it was the urge to kill.

Watching the shadows sway under the sensor lights, I knew that another sleepless night had begun.

Amidst the hordes of zombies roaming the streets, a dozen or so survivors were desperately fighting back. One of them even managed to blast the head off a pretty female zombie with a shotgun, but soon ran out of bullets and was quickly torn apart by the swarming zombies.

“Damn it, this is too much.” I grabbed the steel spike, ready to head downstairs to help those trapped people, but Liu Yonglin stopped me. “What can we do?”

“Isn’t it obvious? We lure the zombies over here…” I started to say, but Xueqi cut me off. “Tiankuang, don’t forget how these zombies react to sound. If those survivors see us, they’ll flock to us like they’ve seen the dawn. We can’t save everyone. They have to rely on their own strength to survive, just like we have. You faced what happened over the past three days like a man, but now you need to watch carefully.”

Xueqi handed me the binoculars. “Get used to it. The world is quickly becoming one where only the strong survive.”

Taking the binoculars, I said, “I think you might be slightly mistaken, Xueqi.”

Xueqi just gave a small smile and said, “You’re right. I was just stating reality, that’s all. I wish it weren’t that way, too.”

I grabbed the binoculars and moved to the edge of the balcony, preparing to lift them up. But Liu Yonglin pulled me back and whispered, “Be sure to stay hidden while you look. Whether it’s zombies or survivors that spot us, it could mean trouble.” I nodded in agreement, crouching down to peer through the gaps between the balcony railing.

What I saw through the binoculars was nothing short of a vision of hell. Although these were scenes I had already witnessed back at school, I never wanted to take a closer look at them. There was someone pounding desperately on the door of our villa, hoping to be rescued, only to be overwhelmed and devoured by zombies from behind. Another person stood in the middle of the road, surrounded by zombies, their raised hands slowly sinking until they were swallowed by the horde.

But it was a fleeing father-daughter pair in the binoculars that truly caught my attention.

The little girl, around twelve or thirteen years old, asked her father, “Dad, where’s Mom?” The middle-aged man holding a wrench smiled at her and said, “Mom will be right behind us.”

After running for a while, he noticed a faint light coming from a villa ahead (not the one I was in). Realizing there might be people inside, he immediately used the wrench to smash the lock on the iron gate, pulled his daughter along, and pounded on the villa’s door. “Please! Open up! Let us in! I can’t escape with a child on my own!”

But a voice from inside shouted back, “Go somewhere else!”

“Please! I don’t care what happens to me! Just let my daughter in! Please help my daughter!”

Despite his pleas, there was no further response from inside. The little girl clutched tightly onto the man’s sleeve as he looked at her with eyes full of fear. In desperation, he raised his wrench and struck the door with force. “Open up! Or I’ll smash this door open!”

The voice inside the villa finally gave in, sounding terrified: “Wait, stop hitting the door! I’ll open it now.” The door slowly began to open.

“Thank-”

But the man’s thanks were cut short by a kitchen knife that darted out from the door. “I’m sorry, forgive me, forgive me,” the voice inside pleaded as the door slammed shut again, utterly unforgiving.

The man fell to the ground like a withered leaf. “Dad! Dad!” the little girl crouched beside him, her eyes red from crying as she kept calling out. The man gently patted her head with affection and said, “Daddy’s fine. Go and hide, let’s play hide and seek one more time. Hide well and don’t let anyone find you, don’t let anyone find you,” he instructed before closing his eyes for the last time, no longer able to hear his daughter’s cries. “No, no, I want to stay with Daddy forever!”

But the zombies wouldn’t understand the little girl’s feelings; they only knew to devour flesh. Her cries acted as their dinner bell. The zombies were less than 10 meters away from her!

I couldn’t bear to watch any longer. Standing by as a spectator was not an option for me! But rushing down there wouldn’t save her in time. One zombie was already lunging for the little girl! In despair, I closed my eyes. “Pfft-!” A soft sound reached my ears. I opened my eyes to see that Liu Yonglin had pulled the trigger on his Type 99 Sniper Rifle, which was now fitted with a silencer. This way, the zombies wouldn’t be alerted to our presence by the gunshot. Liu Yonglin had already blown the head off the zombie lunging at the girl! Smugly, he licked his lips and said, “Haha, using someone else’s sniper rifle for the first time and landing a headshot, I am a genius! Even if it’s from less than a hundred meters.”

Although one zombie was down, the others paid no mind and continued advancing toward the girl. “Pfft-pfft-pfft-!” Liu Yonglin rapidly fired three more shots, taking out three more zombies, but the little girl, confused by what was happening, crouched beside her father’s corpse, sobbing in fear. It was enough to stir anyone’s heart.

I grinned mischievously at Liu Yonglin and teased, “Weren’t you the one who said not to fire? Weren’t you the one who said to leave others behind for survival?”

Liu Yonglin just laughed and replied, “But she’s just a little girl! How could you stand by and do nothing?” By then, Shen Wei, who had been asleep, stood behind us and remarked with skepticism, “Are you really that kind?”

Ignoring Shen Wei’s comment, Liu Yonglin continued shooting at the zombies trying to approach the girl, then turned to me and said, “Tiankuang, you want to save her too, right? I’ll cover you! Xueqi, fetch the magazines from the boys’ dormitory that have been prepped!” Seeing Liu Yonglin reloading his rifle made my mouth curl into a smile. Indeed, it’s true that like-minded people will always find each other. Being mere spectators is just not something we can do!

No more words were needed; rescuing the girl was the priority!

Ye Xiang wanted to come with me, but I stopped him, asking him to stay by the door to support me. Just as I was about to head out to the balcony, Liu Yonglin called out, “Tiankuang, are you seriously planning to go out like that? A steel spike is all you’ve got? At least take a shotgun!”

I chuckled and replied, “I don’t know how to use that thing!” Then I dashed downstairs. Qimeng seemed worried and said, “Tiankuang, let me go with you.”

“No, you and Ye Xiang should stay by the front door to back me up. I’ll take the motorcycle from there.”

“But-” Qimeng began to protest, but Xueqi, who had already grabbed her own wooden sword, stopped her. “Qimeng, let him go. This is a man’s promise.” I gave Xueqi a wry smile and said, “Sorry, Xueqi, that’s just how I am.” She smiled back and said, “I know. No matter what, I’ll hold the fort here, so go without worries.”

Qimeng then handed me a Type 54 pistol she had found on a police officer’s corpse and smiled gently, “At least take this with you, okay?” She looked just like a devoted wife seeing her husband off. Her smile was beautiful, and I was momentarily stunned before taking the pistol. I threw on my jacket but left it unbuttoned, so if a zombie grabbed my sleeve, I could easily slip out of it. Xueqi added, “Don’t rely too much on the pistol. Firing it will attract the zombies to you.”

“The motorcycle will make noise too, won’t it?”

“True, but the motorcycle makes noise to help you move. You can’t move while you’re shooting.”

“I understand.”

I hopped onto the dirt bike as Qimeng and Ye Xiang stood ready at the villa’s gate to open it quickly when needed. “Tiankuang, are you ready?” Qimeng asked. I nodded slightly, and they worked together to remove the wooden post that barred the gate, swinging it open. The zombies outside were drawn by the roar of my bike’s engine and began moving toward the villa. I gunned the throttle, charging directly at the horde. With the momentum, I lifted the front of the bike and leaped right over the zombies’ heads! Performing such an advanced maneuver would have been impossible for me before, but now, for some reason, all my physical abilities have improved exponentially. So, executing this wasn’t difficult at all.

Ye Ling, drawn by the commotion, ran out of the villa, asking anxiously, “Qimeng, what’s going on outside? What happened?” Qimeng replied with a cheerful smile, “Something good is happening.” Ye Ling was left puzzled. “What do you mean?”

Meanwhile, Liu Yonglin, who was still on the second-floor balcony, continued to shoot at the zombies trying to get close to the little girl with incredible speed. His skill in reloading was also astonishingly fast, taking no more than three seconds, while an average police officer usually takes at least five. All the while, he was muttering things like, “We’re all human,” and other strange phrases.

I navigated through the streets, weaving through the zombie horde, occasionally hitting a few unfortunate ones, and finally made it close to where the little girl was stranded. A group of seven or eight zombies was still gathered at the gate. Charging straight into them would be suicide, so I attempted another jump with the bike. But I underestimated myself slightly. Mid-air, the bike’s wheel was grabbed by a zombie hand, causing me to lose balance. “Damn it!” I cursed as I was thrown from the bike, landing hard on my backside. Fortunately, the dirt bike crushed the zombies’ heads beneath its wheels!

“Wow, just like a movie!” I groaned, rubbing my sore backside, and jumped back up. The little girl was cornered by two zombies, with a small dog that had barked earlier now standing protectively in front of her, growling at the approaching zombies. Liu Yonglin was pacing frantically on the balcony, unable to get a clear shot because the wall blocked his line of sight to the girl!