Cao Chengping staggered to his feet, taking off his clothes as he stared at Li Fang, "If we don't die of thirst, we'll starve. Even if we don't starve, we don't know when we'll get carbon monoxide poisoning... Outside, besides monsters, there's a madman guarding the door. We won't survive... Won't survive..."
Saying this, Cao Chengping swallowed. "Li Fang... I have water..."
"You have water?!" Hope lit up in Li Fang's eyes.
"Wash... You have water?!" Li Kai's spirit instantly perked up.
Cao Chengping's face grew increasingly ferocious. "Yes, I have water! I collected it the day the rain stopped, and I even drank it! Nothing happened! I won't hide anything anymore. With so little water left, drinking it is useless! Li Fang, I'll give you the water..."
"Where's the water? Where's the water? I want to drink..." Li Kai crawled and grabbed Cao Chengping's pants leg, only to be lightly kicked away.
"Get lost!" Cao Chengping's eyes turned red, and he stared at Li Fang. "I'll give you the water, and before we die, how about we..."
"What are you talking about? Have you gone mad, Chengping?"
Li Fang's eyes welled up with tears, and she shook her head, retreating with a sob.
"I'm not mad... We're all going to die anyway, so why die miserably," Cao Chengping said hoarsely. "Li Fang, I'll give you the water, aren't you moved?"
After shouting, Cao Chengping moved his dry lips, his eyes becoming more terrifying.
"Chengping... Chengping, don't be like this. Your mind isn't clear, calm down. Didn't you say you always treated me like a sister?"
"Yes, I always treated you like a step-sister!"
"Li Kai... Li... Kai, save me... Didn't you say... you liked me? Save... save me." Li Fang's plea for help turned to Li Kai.
Hearing this, Li Kai forced himself to stand, leaning against the wall. At this moment, as if a last burst of energy, he let out a roar: "Cao Chengping!!"
"What is it! You want to stop me when we're all going to die!?" Cao Chengping's red eyes turned to Li Kai.
Li Kai's facial muscles twitched a few times, and he spoke with great anger.
"You despicable scoundrel, taking advantage of someone's distress!!"
"Heh, playing the hero? I'm telling you, Li Kai, you're just a simp! Still letting her boss you around, you'll always be a simp! Chapter 37: Moral Decay, Human Nature Collapse
He shot the lock on door 301 open. Su Jin's gaze was like an eagle's as he stood holding the gun. Soon, the door was pushed open, and as a lifeless face appeared from behind the door, it immediately fell down. With two consecutive shots, two zombies inside fell to the ground, their hearts hit. Although he had little experience with guns, within five meters, he believed he could accurately shoot the heart. After waiting for a while with no response, Su Jin squatted down, ready to dissect the heart. But as soon as he squatted, a child about 1.3 meters tall suddenly darted out from the side. In the dim environment, Su Jin's agility was significantly enhanced. Feeling an attack coming, he directly rolled backward into the corridor. While still in a squatting position, he immediately pushed off with his legs, using his shoulder to push the door. With a muffled thud, the child's head was crushed by the door, its eyeballs falling out. The muzzle of the gun simultaneously extended through the door crack, and he fired another shot into its back. The entire family of three was accounted for. Su Jin opened the door and looked at the bodies on the ground with a bitter expression... No, he had overlooked a problem. The flesh ball was behind the heart. He always shot the heart. What if the flesh ball was destroyed? Wouldn't that be a waste? The zombie's fatal spot and the treasure were in the same place, making it too difficult to obtain the flesh ball. Using a knife would be more reliable. But it was too late for regrets. Su Jin squatted and dissected the hearts, but unfortunately, the three zombies still showed no trace of a flesh ball. Shaking his head helplessly, he took off his gloves. He had to save people first. He would collect the supplies in this house later. Turning to face 302, Su Jin knocked on the door. He knocked for half a minute and shouted a few times, but there was no response. He still shot the lock open. He stood in the corridor and waited for three minutes with no movement from the door, so Su Jin pushed the door open and entered. The living room was empty. The room should have been heated, as it was a bit hot, and there was a stench... It wasn't until he entered the master bedroom that Su Jin helplessly put down his gun. Inside, three young men and a woman were in bed, her upper body's clothes disheveled, as if torn, and she only had a sock on one foot. Two men were slumped in the corners of the room, wearing only their shorts, both with half-dead expressions. Judging by their chests, both seemed to have just vomited. The two men glanced at him; one cowered into a ball, the other remained dazed. Su Jin shifted his gaze back to the bed... The bed was covered in mud streaks... Taking a deep breath, Su Jin wiped his face and asked blankly, "Did you three take a bath on the bed?"
"Woooooh!!!!" Li Fang wailed.
"Just do it! What's the point of talking so much nonsense!" Cao Chengping closed his eyes tightly, his voice filled with fear. The madman had entered the room... He hadn't expected that before dying, he still wouldn't have become a man. But it wasn't his fault; it was too smelly, and he really couldn't get aroused. Su Jin scratched his temple with his little finger, unsure what to say. He didn't quite understand what was happening; the reactions of these three were abnormal. Even if they misunderstood him as someone here to kill, how could they explain this scene? Their reactions were too indifferent. Looking at the woman, Su Jin said coldly, "Hey, what's going on? Explain it, or I'll shoot you if you keep crying!" Li Fang remained silent, only sobbing continuously. Su Jin was displeased, his voice becoming even colder: "Answer me!" "Tch." Cao Chengping dismissively turned his head. Su Jin turned to look at Cao Chengping, his brow furrowed. It felt even more chaotic; he needed to sort things out... What was the situation? Just as Su Jin was frantically analyzing the situation, Li Fang finally stopped crying, turned around, and looked at Cao Chengping and Li Kai with hatred. She pointed at them and said hatefully, "They!! They've all gone mad and suddenly tried to assault me! Kill them! If you kill them, you can do whatever you want to me!" "Did I succeed! Did I succeed!" Cao Chengping craned his neck and retorted, "I feel disgusted seeing you now! Ptooey!!" After a barrage of insults, Cao Chengping turned to Su Jin and sneered, "Go ahead, a bitch and a dog are a pair, and the dog eats shit. You two are perfect for each other!" Su Jin stood frozen, his expression changing rapidly. He understood. He hadn't expected something so simple to be so convoluted. He came to save people and inexplicably got cursed; he was completely out of ideas. He sighed, hands on his hips, and walked towards Li Kai, who was closest. Just as he was about to ask a question, his eyes swept over two used tissues on the ground, and he fell into confusion again. He kicked Li Kai with his foot. Su Jin said, "You were involved too, right?" Li Kai didn't reply, but straightened up as if ready to die, leaning against the wall in a posture of accepting his fate. "Wasn't it an assault? Why didn't you go through with it?" Su Jin asked, leaning forward. Although it was uncouth, boring, immoral, and the victim was present. He really couldn't help but ask... It had the allure of exploring a UFO. Li Kai's eyes flickered towards Li Fang, and listening to Cao Chengping's full-throated mockery, his heart felt like it was being cut. He couldn't hold back his breath in that situation... but he was really worked up at the time, and he didn't want any regrets after death. Now, all he felt was regret; he couldn't hurt Li Fang anymore, after all, she was the woman he once loved. But he couldn't lose face as a man before dying... Li Kai turned his head, his face expressionless: "I get motion sickness. I can't play first-person games." "Get lost!" Su Jin laughed in anger and kicked Li Kai over. He then turned and cursed at Cao Chengping: "You two scums, even in this state, you have the leisure to talk about other things. You really don't have brains." He then took two steps back and said in a deep voice, "I don't have the mood to listen to your nonsense anymore! You might misunderstand me, but I can clearly tell you that I'm here to save you, not harm you!" At these words, all three looked at Su Jin in shock. Su Jin continued, "Originally, I should have helped you relocate to a safe place, but given your previous behavior, I've decided to postpone it for now. I'll bring you food and water later. Stay in your room and wait to be dealt with!" The condition of these three people was really bad: lacking morals, lacking hygiene, and not mentally sound! Bringing them back in a hurry might have a negative impact on the current team. He would have to discuss how to handle them with Elder Sūn and Old Wei. In any case, they wouldn't be part of the core team. Turning to walk out the door, Su Jin said as he walked, "I warn you, if anyone dares to step outside this door, I'll chop them up!" As soon as he finished speaking, Cao Chengping flashed forward and knelt before Su Jin, pleading, "Brother, I was wrong! I'm truly sorry for cursing at you earlier... From now on, if you tell me to go east, I won't go west." "Do as I say, and you won't suffer. Get back!" Su Jin kicked Cao Chengping away and went straight out the door. Just as he was about to go upstairs, he glanced back at the unlocked door and changed direction to the opposite room. He dragged a sofa to block the door of the three rooms securely before going upstairs with peace of mind. He hadn't asked the three if they had come into contact with rainwater... It was better to be safe. Chapter 38: Future Strategic Plan The main door was sealed again, and Li Fang inside 302 stopped crying and sat weakly on the bed, resting. Cao Chengping felt uneasy, his eyes darting around. He hadn't expected that the madman who had just come wasn't a madman at all; he was here to save people. He could survive now. But he had also offended the leader. What should he do? He had no leverage. If he retaliated, he would be killed without anyone noticing in this world. The more he thought about it, the more flustered he became, his face gradually turning pale, and his eyes began to look dazed. Li Kai, who was beside him, was already putting on his pants and walked towards Li Fang with deep guilt. Seeing this, Li Fang quickly recoiled: "What are you trying to do? I'm telling you, that big brother said you can't mess around! If you dare to touch me, I'll tell him." Li Kai's throat bobbed, and he hesitated before reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a damp, yellowish, hard-shelled sock and offered it to Li Fang. "Li Fang... I was impulsive earlier. Please put on the sock quickly, don't catch a cold." Li Fang's face immediately contorted in pain: "Get lost!!" Li Kai stood there, his hand holding the sock frozen in mid-air, unable to move forward or backward. Finally, he put it back in his pocket and sat back in his original spot. He turned his head, and Cao Chengping, who was huddled in the other corner, had already shrunk into a ball, trembling uncontrollably. Li Kai weakly waved at him: "Hey, what's wrong with you?" Li Fang glanced over and said hatefully, "You only know to be scared now. It's good if he dies!" ..... On the sixth floor, at Sūn Yá's home. Zhāng Wǎn stopped sewing the makeshift armor and was cooking in the kitchen. Fú Hǔ was doing squats, lifting stones with both hands. Fú Qīngdài was holding two bricks, and after only a few squats, her slender legs began to tremble uncontrollably. After a few more repetitions, the exercise ended. She walked to the pig feed bag, picked up the spoon on the bag, and dug out a spoonful of protein powder. But as she brought the spoon to her mouth, she stopped. She turned to Sū Jìn and said with a pained expression, "Brother, can I not eat this? It smells like pig dung..." "Eat it quickly!" Fú Qīngdài, tears in her eyes, ate the feed in large mouthfuls, powder spraying from her mouth. Sū Jìn was looking at notes about a mouse experiment at the tea table, drinking hot tea with the two elders. Taking a sip of tea, Sūn Yá said, "You've seen the content. Infection has a latent period and a delay, but the samples are too few, and it could also be due to individual differences. Some individuals absorb a small amount of gray matter and do not become infected." "Considering this, I've arranged for Chéng Dōu and Liú Mǐn to stay in the opposite apartment; they aren't locked in, just sealed. Although there seems to be no risk at present, these two are in a different situation than us and are not vigilant enough about rainwater. As for you and Fú Hǔ's family, we can rest assured, and the same goes for me and Old Wei. For the sake of prudence, it's best to isolate the others for a period of observation." "As for the three people you mentioned earlier... their willpower is too weak! Plus, they lack supplies in their room. I suggest a cautious observation, letting them stay in their homes for a longer period." "Mm." Sū Jìn closed the notebook. "In two or three days, the gray matter in the outside world might dissipate automatically. Then the sources of pollution will all turn to biological. We need to prepare in advance. I want to find some vehicles to surround the residential community and then slowly arrange personnel there." "Will that be useful?" Wèi Dé said, "As the temperature warms up, the zombies' activity increases, and cars alone will be hard to stop. Moreover, making too much noise will attract more zombies. We can't just stay in the residential community; that's just waiting to die." "I've considered these points. Most people are trapped indoors, so the number of zombies on the streets should not be large. Even if we can't stop them, cars can provide some buffer." Sū Jìn continued, "The current goal is to buy time and space. That flesh ball has the ability to grant people powers. I plan to divide them into groups first, provide them with supplies one by one, and have them continue to stay indoors and wait. I will hunt the zombies trapped indoors, search for flesh balls, and collect supplies." "I believe we can find some. Then we can release the normal people from indoors, train and reorganize them. With an organized, structured team, and some people possessing special abilities, our safety will greatly increase. Then we can collect firepower, find a defensible location to establish a base, and conduct a city-wide rescue." "What do you two think?" Wèi Dé nodded in agreement. Sūn Yá waved his hand, "I agree with the reorganization part, but establishing a base in the city... I don't support that. The number of zombies is huge, and our firepower will be severely lacking." Sū Jìn listened attentively. "I suggest that after the people in the residential community are reorganized, we directly leave the city for the military district. There's no shortage of food, medicine, or fuel. With Old Wei's and my guidance, we can quickly expand our defense with heavy firepower. Your plan is too slow. The survivors in the city can't wait that long, and the long-term hidden dangers are even greater." Sū Jìn frowned, "The military district is very dangerous. You also speculated that the army might have been hit in the first wave, and there should be a dense number of zombies there. Moreover, in the suburbs, the number of wild animals will skyrocket; most of them will be infected creatures. And what about insects? We still don't know if insects are infected." Sūn Yá pressed his hand, "Infected creatures are not afraid of the cold. We haven't found any traces of insects so far, so the chance of insect infection is very small. Also, based on observations of infected samples, infected creatures do not have a tendency to gather; they wander aimlessly until they find a target to attack." "This means that the army, having been infected into zombies for so long, has likely dispersed. The original animal nature of infected wild animals has been distorted, and they won't stay in groups. Zombies wander over a large area and are generally sparse, making sound transmission difficult." "On the other hand, in the city? Once a large-scale operation is launched, the sound will attract zombies, and the zombies' sounds will stimulate more zombies... creating a high probability of a zombie tide. Without heavy firepower, all our efforts could be wiped out in one go." "It seems... too radical?" Sū Jìn hesitated. "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures." Sūn Yá's eyes held hidden worry. "Old Wei and I are already old... We could fall down the stairs just going downstairs. What will happen to you if we die? Can you find another weapons expert? Those heavy firepower weapons are different from guns; you can't just pick them up and use them." Sū Jìn lowered his head and smiled, "Don't worry too much, the two of you. I will protect you." Sūn Yá shook his head and said seriously, "Xiao Li, we admire your character very much, and I am deeply touched. But you can't protect us forever, and you might not be able to protect us." "Not to mention the distance, Old Wei has heart disease, and the medicine he has will only last for less than a month. It's all imported medicine bought from pharmacies, and now it's impossible to get him medicine." "Old Wei." Sū Jìn quickly turned to Wèi Dé, "What medicine are you lacking? Why didn't you say so? We need to find a way to solve it for you in advance." Old Wei waved his hand and smiled, "I feel better after taking the medicine. I won't necessarily die if I don't take it, so there's no need to take risks for my sake." Saying this, he slapped his knee and stood up. "Alright, it's about time. Let's go see how those mice are doing. Chapter 39: A New Type of Infection The three of them went downstairs and headed straight for the laboratory on the fifth floor. Pushing open the second bedroom, Sūn Yá and Wèi Dé entered the room first, observing the rat cages. Sū Jìn, on the other hand, unplugged his cell phone, which was getting hot, from the power bank. As he was tapping on it, Sūn Yá's voice, filled with dread, rang out: "Another one is missing! Rat number six has disappeared... The cage is fine, no gaps." Sū Jìn's brow furrowed, and he opened the video to check. "Don't worry about that for now. Let's watch the recording first." The two old men looked at the phone simultaneously, then at each other, before turning their gaze back to the phone. They opened it to high-speed playback. In the video, the rats in the cage were all normal until the thirty-fifth minute. The rat labeled number 3 began to move strangely, closely following another rat. After waiting for two minutes, its mouth opened. Su Jin and the others' hair stood on end! In the video, rat number 3's mouth initially opened normally, but its corners extended to its midsection! A bloody mouth opened... and it swallowed its own kind in one bite. After swallowing prey of the same volume, rat number 3's body swelled by more than double. It wasn't until more than ten minutes later that its body returned to its original size. Sū Jìn put down the phone, his whole body stiff. Sūn Yá and Wèi Dé simultaneously looked at rat number 3 in the cage, which was behaving normally, and a chill ran down their spines. Just as Sū Jìn was about to speak, loud banging sounds came from downstairs. They could vaguely hear someone cursing incessantly. The three were collectively startled and looked towards the door. "You two go back, I'll go see." Sū Jìn made a decisive move, picked up his handbag, and put his phone inside. He then ran downstairs. In a few leaps, he jumped directly from the fifth floor to the third floor. The sound seemed to be coming from 302, so Sū Jìn kicked open the sofa and pushed the door open with his gun.