After hearing Hua Wu’s account, a chill ran through Lu Ze and his group, followed quickly by a surge of fury.
Lu Muyang stepped forward, grabbed Hua Wu by the collar, and demanded angrily, "You knew this was a trap! Why did you lure us in? Why didn't you say anything before!"
In their current situation, entering the building meant certain death, yet these people had lured them here anyway. They could have shouted a warning before they even arrived. Perhaps they could have found another way to save them from the outside.
But the people here had said nothing, only revealing the truth once they were already caught in the trap. Who could stand being manipulated like this?
"Calm down, stay calm. We had no other choice. If we had told you beforehand, you definitely wouldn't have come to rescue us."
Seeing Lu Muyang about to snap again, Song Chen pulled him back, offering silent comfort.
Lu Ze asked calmly, "Even if we did come, who could possibly get out alive facing a zombie horde?"
"Don't worry, we have a plan."
"What plan?"
Hua Wu looked at them, his face filled with guilt. "There are sixty-three of us here, and twenty-seven are ability users. If we add a few more, we should... we should be able to hold our own against the zombies outside."
Lu Muyang lost it again, roaring, "Hold your ass! There are so many zombies out there, and how many of you are there? You’re just dragging innocent people here to act as meat shields!"
Hua Wu tried to explain, "It’s not like that. In the current situation, you are part of the team too. The supplies here are enough to sustain us all for a while; we just need to attract more ability users to come here..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Lu Muyang slammed a fist into him, sending him flying.
"Screw you! Why should so many people die just for the sake of ungrateful wretches like you!" Lu Muyang cursed in a fit of rage.
This time, Song Chen did not stop him from beating the man; instead, after Lu Muyang finished, he spoke in a low voice and gently rubbed his back to help him calm down.
Just as the argument reached an impasse, a man in a white lab coat with a stern expression approached. He was followed closely by two soldiers in uniform, their posture straight and imposing.
"I am very sorry that I could not obtain your consent beforehand, but if you are willing to cooperate with us, that would be the greatest help to me. As long as I am alive, I firmly believe that the apocalypse will eventually end," the man said in a firm tone.
At the sight of him, Xie Qi felt a jolt of shock and couldn't help but ask the System in his mind, "Why is he here?"
948 replied instantly, "He followed the team out, seemingly to collect samples for some research."
Lu Ze stared at the man in the dirty white lab coat, furrowing his brows. He had only ever seen research personnel at the base wear clothes like that.
"Who are you? And what did you mean by what you just said?" Lu Ze’s gaze was sharp, as if he were trying to see through the man's exterior to his true intentions.
"Hello, my name is Xu Yi. I am a researcher at the Eastern Base. You can call me Dr. Xu. I believe you must have heard of Necr-re1; it is something I developed. If I can return to the base alive, it will be a blessing for humanity, won't it?"
The Necr-re1 that Xu Yi spoke of was, in fact, a zombie virus serum he had created using data stolen from Professor Xie’s laboratory.
The serum had been injected into an infected human as an experiment. At first, it produced astonishing results. The infected individual did not mutate into a zombie like the others. Upon seeing this, everyone was overjoyed, believing they had made a breakthrough.
However, reality dealt them a heavy blow. Just twenty-four hours later, the person who was supposed to have been saved inevitably turned into a vicious, terrifying zombie. It was only then that people realized this serum could only temporarily delay the infection; it could not fundamentally eradicate the virus.
Despite this, Xu Yi’s research was still considered a remarkable achievement in this hopeless, apocalyptic world. Almost all the major bases had heard of a man who was working hard to develop a serum to combat the zombie virus—a man who might very well become the hero who would save the world and end this apocalyptic catastrophe.
"It’s truly disgusting. A failure who has achieved nothing, shamelessly trying to steal the fruits of someone else’s labor and dreaming of becoming a savior of the apocalypse? It’s laughable!" Xie Qi looked at the smug, arrogant Xu Yi with utter disdain, unable to hold back his emotions as he complained to the System.
948 rubbed its chin in thought. "He seems to be quite famous right now."
Upon hearing Xu Yi’s words, Lu Ze said with a cold expression, "I won't join you in deceiving people."
Knowing full well that there was a trap ahead and still involving many innocent people—he could never bring himself to use such inhumane tactics.
However, the moment Lu Ze finished speaking, a clamor arose from the crowd around them.
"Sigh, how can you call this deception? We are doing this to save the Doctor."
"That's right, young man. You can rest assured—let us ordinary people handle the job of attracting the others."
"Exactly, exactly. As long as we can lure more ability users to join, we can ensure the Doctor’s safety."
"Don't worry, once the Doctor is saved, you ability users will be great heroes!"
"The Doctor is our only hope. Can you really stand by and watch us die?"
"You're already in here anyway. If you don't cooperate, you’ll die. If you do, you’ll be heroes who saved the Doctor."
They babbled on incessantly, as if Lu Ze and his group were sinners of the apocalypse if they didn't agree.
This left Lu Ze and the others feeling both angry and helpless, because they knew very well that they had nowhere to go. If they didn't cooperate, the man who could potentially develop the serum would die. Besides, they were already trapped and couldn't leave.
But to go against their morals and drag others to their deaths was something they could not do. Moreover, voluntary rescue was entirely different from forced rescue; being coerced into saving someone felt deeply insulting.
Xu Yi, wearing an air of superiority as if he were already the savior of the world, continued, "You see, humanity cannot lose me! Without me, no one will be able to develop the serum! So, as long as you agree..."
"Slap—"
Before Xu Yi could finish, his words were cut off by a sudden, resounding slap. The blow came so unexpectedly that everyone was stunned.
For a moment, the room was deathly silent, with only the echo of the crisp slap lingering in the air.
A bright red handprint instantly appeared on Xu Yi’s face. He stared at the person in front of him, wide-eyed and in disbelief.
And the person who had slapped him was currently using a handkerchief to wipe his fingers with an expression of utter disgust, his eyes filled with contempt and disdain.