Chapter 2, Tunnel Breakthrough

The net cannot be removed! They have already unscrewed all the screws, yet the net remains completely still

That means there are zombies, indicating that there is danger ahead. Zheng Jieming thought to himself

How to break through?" Lei Yang was stunned for a while, then turned to ask Zheng Jieming. Lei Yang was already feeling close to exhaustion, having gone four hours without a drop of water. He felt dizzy in waves and did not know how much longer he could hold on.

Lei Yang carefully examined it for a moment, quickly put it away, and turned his head to continue watching the movements of the zombies with vigilance

The short-haired figure crouched low, moving forward while keeping his head down. Zheng Jieming closely followed behind, frequently glancing back. Fortunately, they had not been discovered, and he felt a sense of relief. The low growls of zombies came from the opposite side of the vehicle, with some zombies occasionally banging against the car body. The two paused, waiting for the banging to cease before continuing their advance.

I do not recognize it; it simply jumped down.

Zheng Jieming bent over and ran behind the two individuals

Pull hard! Lei Yang gripped the barbed wire with both hands and pulled down with all his might. The two of them exerted nearly all their strength, and the barbed wire emitted sharp cracking sounds, yet it still would not come down. They noticed some zombies suddenly turn their heads, their red eyes scanning the area like radar.

Two men ahead slowed their pace by the front of the car; they were "living people." In Zheng Jieming's heart, this term felt so warm and comforting

"Zombies shouldn't be able to climb onto the roof of the car. Do you want to make a bet with me?" Zheng Jieming was not entirely confident in his heart. In their current situation, they remained still, and the zombies had not yet discovered them. If they acted rashly, they would likely be found. However, if they continued to wait, it was only a matter of time before they were caught by the zombies, starved, or died of thirst. Zheng Jieming had already made up his mind; he needed to escape, and under no circumstances could he remain in this dark tunnel. Now, he just needed Lei Yang to also make up his mind, to share this heavy burden together and escape to safety.

"Oh, I see, me too." Just now, the two of them had been crouching and moving, their minds highly tense, and neither had noticed. Now that they had stopped and slightly relaxed, the blood rushed back, leaving both unable to move.

There are zombies everywhere in front, making it completely impossible to pass through

A moment of tranquility

The two moved quietly forward. Zheng Jieming realized that the sound of his clothes rubbing against each other was too noticeable, only to discover that the alarm had stopped at some point without his noticing

There is indeed no way to escape, as there are zombies at both ends. Zheng Jieming leaned forward to assess the situation ahead; from the carriage to the faint light at the far end of the tunnel, a large number of zombies were scattered, making direct passage impossible

"Speak softly. I dare not move forward." Another man, with a buzz cut, half-squatted, glanced back at Zheng Jieming, and continued to cautiously look ahead.

You have a hammer, see if you can pry it open! Zheng Jieming, reminded by Lei Yang, quickly took out the hammer, extended the handle of the hammer through the hole, and began to pry with force

"Good things, even the living find it so difficult to climb, and the dead cannot rise either!" Zheng Jieming became increasingly confident about breaking through.

"Lei Yang." The short crew cut tilted his head to glance at Zheng Jieming

Zheng Jieming's eyes sparkled, and a surge of excitement rushed to his mind. The two retreated to the junction between cars 5 and 6, standing upright. Unlike train carriages, the subway carriages do not have a ladder to climb up at the junction. Zheng Jieming crouched down, straightened up, and signaled for Lei Yang to step on his shoulders to ascend.

The short man suddenly turned around, confirming that Zheng Jieming was also a "living person," and waved his hand to beckon him over

Zheng Jieming observed quickly and noticed several weld points between the wire mesh and the ventilation pipe. He grasped the side of the wire mesh, attempting to pull the weld points apart. This action produced a louder noise, and some zombies had already noticed the movement of the two living people on the roof of the vehicle. One zombie let out a low growl like that of a vicious dog and charged towards the carriage, crashing heavily against the vehicle's body

He finally began to understand what was happening before him: the "Zombie Crisis" had truly manifested in reality

Wife? Children? Parents? Zheng Jieming continued to ask questions, noticing Lei Yang's anxious expression

"I don't know, is it also a person? It just flashed and disappeared." The short crew cut was filled with anxiety as he wiped the sweat from his forehead and brushed it onto his clothes

Another zombie fell from the window, and the female zombie shook her head before turning back. Zheng Jieming and the short-haired man breathed a sigh of relief as they dragged the short man towards the front of the car. Just as the two were caught off guard, the short man suddenly let out a blood-curdling scream, swung his left elbow back, broke free from the two, and quickly turned to run towards the bus station ahead. Zheng Jieming received a heavy elbow strike to the right side of his face and fell headfirst onto the tracks. The short man suddenly let out a blood-curdling scream, swung his left elbow back, broke free from the two, and quickly turned to run towards the bus station ahead. Zheng Jieming received a heavy elbow strike to the right side of his face and fell headfirst onto the tracks

Zheng Jieming no longer spoke, but simply raised his head to gaze at the ceiling of the tunnel. In his hand, he rubbed the red fire axe.

Lei Yang nodded, stepped onto Zheng Jieming's shoulders, and with both hands supporting himself on the carriage, he felt Zheng Jieming lift him up. His hands reached the top of the carriage, and with a strong push from his arms, he climbed up. Subsequently, he lay on the roof of the carriage and extended his right hand down, preparing to pull Zheng Jieming up.

"I wonder if the ventilation duct above can be traversed?" Zheng Jieming kept his gaze fixed on the ventilation duct at the top of the tunnel. The tunnel was not high, and the square-shaped duct appeared large enough to accommodate a person. Below the duct, a black mesh vent was installed at regular intervals. The nearest vent was directly above the roof of car number 6.

He could only stop. The short crew cut suddenly knelt down on the ground and remained motionless

What happened

Zheng Jieming placed the hammer into his pocket, gritted his teeth, and searched for the protruding parts along the edge of the carriage. He exerted a bit of force to push himself upward but failed to grasp Lei Yang's hand and fell down. He moved his wrist to loosen it and made another effort to push upward, finally grabbing Lei Yang's right hand. He then stepped on the protruding part to push himself up, and his left hand finally reached the top edge of the carriage. Lei Yang was tightly pressed against the roof of the carriage, pulling him up with all his strength, and the two finally climbed onto the roof of Car 6. Once at the top, they could clearly see dozens of zombies wandering in the tunnel at the rear of the train. On the opposite side of the carriage, the sides of Cars 1, 2, and 3 were already densely packed with zombies.

Zheng Jieming leaned over to take a look at the photo, in which Lei Yang still had a short buzz cut. The woman had an oval face, delicate features, and the boy beside her looked very clever, with a particularly prominent red mole on his left cheek.

Yes, yes, go back, walk back, get into the car. Zheng Jieming thought anxiously, his hands already dampened by the back of the short man.

Ah, now I am trapped. The short-haired man has recovered; he sits on the ground, leaning against the carriage, with no way out.

He immediately bent down, fearing that those "people" would turn around and see his figure. Deep down, he still resisted the description of "zombies"; he would rather believe that he had misjudged, and would rather believe that these were all mad "people"

How could the zombies possibly not hear this sound? Lei Yang bit his lower lip, watching a large number of zombies surge from the subway station, feeling as if millions of insects were crawling on his back. He slightly bent his knees to stabilize his body's center of gravity.

Zheng Jieming nodded, raised his right arm, and struck the weld point forcefully. A tremendous impact sound echoed through the tunnel, resembling the chimes of the New Year. This sound was rhythmic, coherent, and urgent, reverberating in the tunnel, mingling with the echoes.

Sister

Damn! Lei Yang spat out a mouthful of saliva, even though there was hardly any moisture left in his mouth

There is no entrance to the opposite tunnel here

A zombie dressed in a skirt twisted its neck and began to move stiffly towards them, step by step. The green light in the carriage reflected on its face, making its red lips and beautiful eyes appear strikingly vivid. Beautiful woman! Goddess! Please don't come any closer! I beg you, turn back!

The zombies heard the desperate cry for food, and they all turned around and stood up, their red eyes emitting fierce glints. The female zombie in a skirt twisted her head and let out a menacing roar, charging directly at the short individual. The short-haired one, quick-witted and agile, grabbed Zheng Jieming by the armpits and pulled him towards the front of the vehicle. The nails along the edge of the tracks scraped against Zheng Jieming's back, and he gritted his teeth, not daring to make a sound. The two of them bent down and held their breath. The female zombie swiftly passed by them, glancing left and right, and immediately quickened her pace towards the short individual. Subsequently, more than ten zombies surged past the two of them, pursuing the short individual.

The short-haired man crouched on the ground, moving towards the other side of the train. Zheng Jieming suddenly realized that they had just broken the window on the left side of the train to jump down and escape, so the right side of the train should still be relatively safe. Moreover, if he could reach the tunnel on the opposite side, perhaps he could avoid disaster

They will be fine, Zheng Jieming reassured. He thought about himself; his father had sacrificed his life on the battlefield when he was 12, and his mother subsequently went missing. His only close relative was his sister, who was currently overseas.

Zheng Jieming jumped out of the car, and two men had already rushed to the front of the vehicle. He silently prayed, hoping that those two would be safe—if anything happened to them, it would mean that the front of the car was also filled with zombies, leaving no way to retreat.

Do you know that short guy from just now

The term naturally sprang to Zheng Jieming's mind; it was a term he had only encountered in movies. Could it be that all of this was truly happening?

Go

Finished, the word flashed through Lei Yang's mind. He glanced around the carriage, which was already surrounded by zombies; jumping down was absolutely impossible. Ahead on the roof of the car, zombies were running towards them. Surrounded on all sides, he had already resigned himself to death.

I swear! Zheng Jieming! Look quickly!" Lei Yang patted Zheng Jieming on the back with his left hand, trembling as he spoke in a low voice

Um... uh... the short figure emitted a series of short nasal sounds, his eyes wide open. The female zombie seemed to sense something, paused, and peered into the carriage

Do you want to go out

Uh... uh... run... the short man continuously emitted gurgling sounds from his throat, suddenly sitting down on the ground, retreating incessantly. Zheng Jieming and the crew-cut man quickly crouched down, one supporting his back while the other covered his mouth. Six eyes were fixed intently on the zombies that kept falling, rising, and wandering, inching backward, fearful of startling them

I look at the platform, which is silent; I fear the ground is even more chaotic than here. The short-haired man has no hope for external rescue, his head lowered in frustration as he scratches his scalp incessantly, feeling utterly helpless. Now, both ends of the platform and the opposite side of the train are filled with zombies.

"Why has it stopped?" Zheng Jieming asked in a low voice, pressing his throat, while looking down the tunnel. In the distance, a faint glow of emergency lights could be seen; that was the next station. However, the tunnel had a slight curve, and he could not see the situation on the platform. Overall, he felt that it was very calm ahead.

Zombie

The short individual stood behind Zheng Jieming, looking back, and suddenly stepped back, colliding with Zheng Jieming's back

What’s going on? It’s still not opened! Zheng Jieming suddenly turned around and was met with a scene he found most incomprehensible—several zombies had already climbed onto the roof of the car, charging towards them from the roofs of approximately 2 or 3 vehicles!

How did they get up here! ? '' Zheng Jieming only felt a throbbing in his head, his vision turning white, and then he began to strike the weld points even more forcefully.

"Keng He - Picture - Book, of course I want it!" Lei Yang felt that this question was unnecessary. He took out his wallet from his pocket, which contained a family photo.

"Smash? Anyway, the scraps can't climb up!" Lei Yang suggested, as they had already run out of options.

"Break through." Three hours later, Zheng Jieming, parched and dry-throated, made a suggestion

It is estimated that it comes from the ground. Now, to go out, one must pass through the station, which is tantamount to being used as food

The two individuals walked to the 6th carriage, and the one with the buzz cut stopped in his tracks

The two individuals slowly crawled to the area beneath the ventilation opening, which was not far from the car roof; one could reach the air outlet by sitting on the roof. The air outlet was made of iron, and there was a ring of screws with a diameter of two centimeters at the junction. They carefully removed each screw and placed them on the car roof.

Hello, how should I address you? My name is Zheng Jieming

Wife. Child. Only 12 years old. Parents are in the southern province. In Lei Yang's mind, the image of his wife and child tightly embracing each other, hiding in the house, surfaced. He thought to himself that as long as he could be by their side to protect them, he would be willing to become disabled. Ah no, if I were disabled, how would I take care of them both

The powerful desire for survival compelled the two of them to make the risky decision to take a chance.

"Why aren't you smashing it..." Lei Yang turned back anxiously and saw the broken handle of the hammer.

Indeed, it is not far. I wonder how things are at home..." Lei Yang sighed, keeping his head tilted to the side as he observed the movements of the zombies at the rear of the vehicle. That group of zombies wandered aimlessly back and forth, completely unaware of the two of them hiding behind the car, engaged in their quiet conversation.

Why?

There was no way to escape in any direction. Zheng Jieming experienced a sudden ringing in his ears. He had a premonition that he was about to die in this dark subway tunnel. With his short buzz cut, he looked around to confirm that the zombies had already run off. He pinched Zheng Jieming's philtrum hard and leaned down to whisper gently in his ear.

"Damn it, my legs are numb." The short-haired man shook his head, continuously rubbing his calves.

Something happened ahead. Ah! The short-haired man said. Zheng Jieming felt a tightness in his heart and once again searched every dark corner of the tunnel carefully, yet still found nothing. He thought to himself, something happened behind as well. Ah!

"It’s hard to climb up," Lei Yang replied with a sigh

Go! Since we are still alive, we cannot sit idly by! The grip of the short crew cut brought Zheng Jieming back to his senses. He nodded at the short crew cut, indicating that his spirit had not been crushed.

Each carriage of the subway is quite long. As he passed by Car 1, he looked through the window and saw a scene of chaos inside. Amidst the swirling red and green mist of blood, a group of people were hunched over, tearing at a corpse. A woman's severed arm was drifting by the window. At the front of the train, several "zombies" stood motionless, waiting to discover new living beings

"Damn it! This is completely useless! Don't these bastards do any maintenance or cleaning? Why weld it so solidly!" Zheng Jieming began to feel anxious as he watched the zombies noisily surround the vehicle, banging on the body and trying to climb up. Their nails dug into the metal of the carriage, producing a chilling sound that made his skin crawl

"Run... run... run... ah..." The voice of the short man trembled incessantly as he grabbed Zheng Jieming's arm. Zheng Jieming felt his arm was damp and clammy. Turning around, he saw several 'zombies' jumping out of the window. No, it should be said that they crawled to the window ledge, lost their balance, and fell out headfirst, landing on the ground with their feet in the air. Then they slowly regained their balance and crawled back up. Some had arms that bent outward, clearly broken. New 'zombies' fell down, crashing onto the heads of the ones below, tumbling together onto the ground. One after another, several 'zombies' jumped out of the window. No, it should be said that they crawled to the window ledge, lost their balance, and fell out headfirst, landing on the ground with their feet in the air. Then they slowly regained their balance and crawled back up. Some had arms that bent outward, clearly broken. New 'zombies' fell down, crashing onto the heads of the ones below, tumbling together onto the ground. Their twisted bodies further confirmed to Zheng Jieming that this was a group of disgusting zombies.

I do not know what the ground is like

What is it

Will anyone come to rescue? Zheng Jieming took out his phone to check, feeling helpless, still with no signal

Inside Lei Yang's heart, turmoil surged as he firmly grasped the idea of breaking through. If I can get out, I will have hope of seeing my wife and little Lei, but if I stay here, I am already nearly exhausted. What if I can't get up or can't open it? The roof of the car is quite high; the zombies shouldn't be able to climb up, right? This guy should be reliable. Damn it, let's do it! The roof of the car is quite high; the zombies shouldn't be able to climb up, right? This guy should be reliable. Damn it, let's do it!

The poor short man, screaming in terror, dragged his wet trousers as he ran forward, having already soiled himself. He heard a group of zombies behind him screeching and chasing after him, completely lost in fear. Ahead, the emergency lights at the station still shone brightly, offering hope! He quickened his pace, like a sprinter launching into a hundred-meter dash, ten meters! Five meters! He crossed the line! The short man finally reached the platform, shouting loudly towards it. He quickened his pace, like a sprinter launching into a hundred-meter dash, ten meters! Five meters! He crossed the line! The short man finally reached the platform, shouting loudly towards it.

After an hour had passed, Zheng Jieming asked softly

Help! Save me! Save! Save...

Is your home nearby

Zheng Jieming and the short crew cut looked on from a distance at the short man. They heard his cries for help abruptly cease. A few seconds later, they saw a dark mass of zombies rushing down from the direction of the platform, overwhelming the short man in the darkness along with the pursuing zombies.

"Damn it! This is useless, I can't get it open!" Zheng Jieming struck again with force, and the plastic handle snapped with a sharp crack, breaking into two pieces. The sound of the handle breaking was so piercing and harsh to Zheng Jieming's ears as he held onto the broken half of the red plastic, frozen in mid-air in the tunnel.

If it cannot be opened, it will be surrounded. Lei Yang carefully examined the air outlet, wondering if he could easily remove the iron mesh at the entrance, if he could squeeze inside, and whether the space within was sufficient, all of which were unknowns

On the platform, groups of zombies were gnawing on fresh and delicious breakfast. His noisy cries for help attracted their attention, and their red eyes turned towards him in unison