Chapter 7, Survivors

Seizing the opportunity, I quickly crawled down from the entrance and saw Su Wan's face was pale, devoid of any color. I asked, "Are you alright?"

I took the telescope and looked in the direction she had gazed, and a chill ran through me.

This time, without Su Wan's command, the chubby man skillfully opened the security door. I thought to myself, if this guy isn't naturally inclined to lock picking, then he must be a thief, and a habitual one at that. Could it be that he is not a chef, but rather a criminal at large? It seems I need to be more cautious in the future

The shotgun only had two rounds left. I quickly aimed my handgun and fired, "Bang!" The shot hit the zombie in the chest, but it merely paused for a moment before charging at me again. Without hesitation, I fired all the bullets in the chamber, "Bang bang bang bang bang bang," but still couldn't take it down. Just as I was at a loss for what to do, Su Wan's shotgun went off again, blowing the zombie's head apart. The zombie fell backward, landing on its back in the hallway. I fired all the bullets in the chamber again, but still couldn't take it down. Just as I was at a loss for what to do, Su Wan's shotgun went off again, blowing the zombie's head apart. The zombie fell backward, landing on its back in the hallway.

Xiao Nana struggled to break free from the fat man's large hand, spat several times, and then frowned as she asked, "How long has it been since you washed your hands?"

Ah—someone screamed

The beautiful host did not speak, and the overweight man behind her interjected, "It's not that no one is helping us; that skeleton soldier brother has brought us weapons and information, hasn't he!"

Su Wan nodded, handed a pistol to Xiao Nana, and then said: "My name is Su Wan, I used to be a patrol officer. This is Lao Hua, a writer, and the fat one is Yang Ke, a chef." After a moment's thought, she added: "All three of us are essentially in the reserves in our respective professions." It was then that I realized that although Su Wan was a police officer, she was clearly still in her internship period and could not be considered a formal police officer.

I took a glance at Xiao Nana's vomit, which was clearly something like rice soup or milk, and I knew that the fat person was intentionally trying to disgust her. I turned to Su Wan and asked, "Sister Wan, how come these zongzi are not afraid of guns?" Just as I finished speaking, another zongzi came running up from downstairs

Ah! What are you doing?" The young girl exclaimed, anxiously picking up the suitcase that had fallen to the ground. She angrily said, "The things inside are very important. Can you afford to pay for the damage if you break them?"

Ah? The young girl was momentarily taken aback, then smiled and said, "I truly appreciate it." After saying this, she pulled out a large leather suitcase from the inner room and placed it in front of the stout man

The fat man glared with his small eyes and said, "We've been knocking on the door for a long time and you still won't come out..." Before he could finish, the young girl retorted, "If I don't make a sound, are you going to break down my door? If those monsters running wild in the streets find out that my house has no door, will I still have my life?"

Su Wan swiftly drew her pistol and fired, the shot "bang!" hitting the dumpling's head. That fellow fell down without a sound and never got back up.

Fortunately, we safely walked down to the ground floor with the picture book without any incidents. After throwing Xiao Nana's belongings onto the cash transport vehicle and locking the car doors, we arrived in front of the door to Unit 2 of this building.

Look, there is another one over there. "I wonder who said that."

Xiao Nana stood behind the fat man, gritting her teeth and muttering, "How could my eyelash curler be with you?" The fat man pushed her aside and, with a reverse motion, inserted the bent wire into the keyhole. After fiddling with it for a few moments with his eyes closed, there was a "click," and the security door was opened.

Su Wan glanced at me and said, "Then let's hurry to 501, as I happen to have many questions to ask that Doctor Zhao with a doctorate degree." She turned to ask Xiao Nana, "Can you use a handgun?" I thought to myself how unnecessary that question was; in this day and age, due to the country's gun control policy, ninety-nine percent of Chinese people do not know how to use a gun. To my surprise, Xiao Nana nodded vigorously, "I can use one; I used to be a substitute in the provincial shooting team for a few days." In this day and age, due to the country's gun control policy, ninety-nine percent of Chinese people do not know how to use a gun. To my surprise, Xiao Nana nodded vigorously, "I can use one; I used to be a substitute in the provincial shooting team for a few days."

I will play as the forward, Lao Hua will provide cover, and the fat guy will be at the back. Let's go

I spoke in a hushed voice: "I understand now, the critical part of these monsters is their heads; as long as the head is struck, they will die immediately." The reason I had that doubt earlier was entirely because I had fired seven or eight shots without killing that zongzi, which made me lose confidence in my weapon.

Su Wan knocked on the door as usual, but as usual, there was no response. Xiao Nana became anxious and began to bang on the door with her handgun, shouting loudly: "Doctor Zhao! Are you home? Please open the door, we have come to rescue you!"

Beneath the tiles is a concrete poured roof, which cannot conceal anyone at all

None of us could articulate the situation clearly. Su Wan said, "Stop dawdling here; we should hurry to rescue the people. According to the information left on the wall by Doctor Zhao, it seems that there are survivors in Unit 2, Room 202, and Unit 4, Room 401. Time is of the essence; let us quickly go and save them"

Thus, the four of us climbed the stairs vigorously and arrived at the fifth floor. There, on the wall of room 501, we saw a large blood-red question mark, beneath which were the words: Unit 2, Room 202; Unit 4, Room 401

We opened the doors to each room and conducted a search. Soon, we discovered the third victim on the bed in one of the bedrooms. It was a boy around seventeen or eighteen years old, lying dead in his bedding. If it weren't for his body being as stiff as a piece of wood, we might have even doubted whether he was just asleep.

Upon reaching the rooftop, I found it to be empty and desolate, with nothing present. The only peculiar sight was a large area of tiles near the parapet, which were askew and scattered, as if they had been overturned by some object.

We all became anxious at once. How could this aunt know nothing about common sense? The chubby one quickly covered Xiao Nana's mouth and whispered to her, "What are you shouting for? Do you think those zongzi can't hear you? If you attract the zongzi over here, they'll first assault and then kill you. Let's see how you handle that"

Su Wan turned to look at me, and I quickly shrugged my shoulders, saying: "Don't ask me, I am the ultimate homebody; I don't even know whether the person living across from us is male or female."

The telescope was passed into the hands of the chubby man, who, after looking through it, turned pale, seemingly quite shocked. The telescope was then handed to the beautiful anchor, who, after taking a look, instinctively wanted to scream, but she sensibly covered her cherry-like mouth with her hand

The overweight man and the beautiful anchor climbed down one after the other. Upon seeing the scene before her, the beautiful anchor immediately vomited onto the man's sleeve. The man hurriedly shook off the vomit from his sleeve, then brought it to his nose to sniff, frowning as he asked, "What did you eat this morning? Why does it smell like diarrhea?" The beautiful anchor, too nauseous to retort, was leaning against the wall, dry heaving.

The young girl quickly said: "I know, I know. I am the broadcaster Xiao Nana from the radio station. I have interviewed Dr. Zhao, who holds a doctorate and is the most authoritative biologist in the country."

The fat man squeezed to the front of the door and said, "If we take pictures like this, I fear we will never have anyone open the door for us in our lifetime. Just watch me!" Su Wan was so infuriated that her nose almost twisted, and she exclaimed in astonishment, "Are you still thinking of using a gun?" The fat man chuckled and, like performing a magic trick, pulled out a strange-looking small clip from his pocket. With a few forceful twists, he transformed the small clip into a bent and twisted piece of wire.

Su Wan, with keen eyes, pointed to a building not far away and said, "Ah! Look over there, it seems there are a few people on the roof of that building." The chubby man casually handed her a military telescope and said, "Try this, I got it from Doctor Zhao's house. I don't know what that old fellow is doing with this thing at home." Su Wan said nothing, took the telescope, looked through it, then sighed and handed it to me.

Su Wan furrowed her brows as she returned to the living room, using the long handle of a mop to lift the man's nightgown. She glanced at the body wrapped inside the nightgown and said, "Everyone be careful, this family died under somewhat strange circumstances; there are no wounds on their bodies..."

Su Wan walked over and examined the area, frowning as she said, "Something is not right; the security door here is undamaged, and Zhao's doctorate does not require such desperation... Yes, that's it..." She pointed to a few inconspicuous scratches on the upper part of the window frame and remarked, "It seems Zhao escaped using something like a rope, but he did not flee downward; instead, he went up to the rooftop." Police are indeed police, with remarkably strong observation, judgment, and reasoning abilities. She then asked me, "Can one climb all the way to the rooftop from the corridor?"

I could no longer bear it, so I slung the shotgun behind my back, switched to a handgun in my hand, and with my free left hand, I lifted the large suitcase. I said, "Let's hurry, there are still people in Room 501 waiting for us to rescue them."

The fat man sincerely disgusted her: "Not only has the toilet in our place run out of water, but there is also no toilet paper. After finishing my business..." Su Wan angrily retorted: "What time is it? You still have the leisure to bicker!"

I searched the master bedroom, and saw that the window of the bedroom was open. I hurriedly called everyone over and said: "It seems that Zhao's doctor’s degree jumped out of the window to escape." The fat man greatly admired this: "Impressive, impressive. It seems that old man has risked his life; at his age, he is also playing Spider-Man by jumping out of the building."

Su Wan coughed lightly and said, "We are a few members of a non-governmental organization and do not represent government actions. You can choose for yourself: either come with us or let the fat man install another security door for you."

This time, the beautiful Xiao Nana was not surprised at all; she casually said, "What a coincidence, I am just an intern announcer as well"

Xiao Nana was clearly terrified, feeling nauseous and gagging a few times without being able to vomit. She quickly reached out to grab my arm, trembling as she followed me downstairs

Room 501 was completely empty, with papers covered in writing strewn all over the floor. The few of us searched each room separately, but found no clues.

Standing on the rooftop, we gaze far and wide, with the magnificent and vast city of Dalian before us. Bathed in the golden sunlight, the entire city is enveloped in a sense of tranquility. Who would have thought that beneath this seemingly deceptive calm, the entire city has already been transformed beyond recognition, riddled with wounds and scars

We cautiously opened the door to room 202 and were immediately confronted by the sight of a man in pajamas lying on his back on the living room floor

The small opening leading from the rooftop to the corridor was not large, and the connection below was not a staircase, but rather a row of iron ladders fixed to the concrete wall. Su Wan bent down and descended, and I mimicked her posture, bending over as well. However, before I could even place my foot on the ladder, I heard two gunshots, "bang bang," coming from beneath my feet.

The man was indeed dead, his body stiffened, and his eyes were fixed on the ceiling, with his pupils dilated. He appeared to be in his forties, plump and fair-skinned, clearly a civil servant or a small business owner who did not engage in physical labor.

"Is everything alright?" Su Wan asked me in return. "Hehe, yes, everything is fine, I almost really had nothing at all." Although she was smiling, there was no hint of joy in her expression. I understood her feelings; at this moment, she was probably feeling utterly dejected. I wanted to comfort her, but I didn't know how to start. It seemed that anything I said would be superfluous, so I could only symbolically pat her shoulder.

I nodded slightly, just about to say something when I suddenly noticed a notebook quietly lying by the wall under the windowsill. It was evidently dropped in haste by Zhao, the doctor, when he left. For someone of his stature, the items he needed to carry in an emergency must be of great importance. My curiosity was piqued, and I picked up the notebook and placed it in the pocket of my coat.

The four of us climbed all the way up to the rooftop through the hallway. As we passed by my front door, we noticed that my security door had also been damaged. I couldn't help but feel a sense of relief; it seemed that the group of intruders had attacked my home last night, but fortunately, I had left just in time

The overweight man became angry and turned to Su Wan, saying: "Sister Wan, I think we shouldn't save her anymore; she doesn't need it at all. The door of her house was broken by me, and I will replace it with a new security door shortly." He then asked the young girl: "What brand of security door do you want? Meixin's or Panpan's?"

The smoke gradually settled to the ground, revealing a beautiful young girl before us. She seemed like a startled fawn, staring at us with terrified eyes, and stammered, "Are you sure you are here to rescue me?" Upon seeing Su Wan nod, she immediately exclaimed in anger, "If you are here to rescue me, why did you break down our door?" The girl's voice had a distinctive quality; it was neither coy nor petulant, yet it sounded remarkably unique to the ears. It felt as if I had heard this voice somewhere before, but I could not recall where.

The fat man went up and kicked it, cursing: "Do you want me to carry your bed up as well?"

Su Wan quickly waved her hand at the person and said, "Don't be afraid, we are here to save you"

Su Wan looked at the chubby man with admiration, but suddenly her expression changed. She asked in a low voice, "Have you been a thief before?" Without waiting for the chubby man to respond, she opened the door.

The beautiful anchor still did not speak, but the trembling was not as intense as before. Just as I breathed a sigh of relief, Su Wan, who was walking in front of me, suddenly stopped. I quickly focused and stood guard. In a glance, I realized we had already arrived at the door of Room 202

I turned my gaze towards the sound and saw, beneath a cloud of white smoke, a figure retreating a few steps, standing there in a daze, holding a rolling pin that was more than half a meter long in hand

"Be careful not to touch those dirty things, or you might get infected," Su Wan advised us

On the roof of the target building, there are indeed three or four individuals, but they are not living people; rather, they are corpses. The state of death is exceedingly horrifying, as if they had died from severe dehydration. They are not human at all; they are simply four mummies. Those bodies lie stiffly on their backs on the rooftop, appearing extremely eerie.

Shotgun ammunition is generally divided into two types: solid slugs and iron shot, and we are currently using only iron shot. After my shotgun misfired, a large amount of iron shot mixed with sparks shot out with a whoosh, striking the wall with a loud "bang!" Instantly, white ash and brick debris flew everywhere.

I was startled and hurriedly bent down to the edge of the entrance. Tilting my head to look down, I saw Su Wan had already slipped onto the floor of the seventh-floor attic. Two half-grown zongzi tumbled to the ground at the stairway entrance, and at that moment, another zongzi popped its head out from the hallway and lunged towards Su Wan

I walked in front of Xiao Nana, truly afraid that her trembling might accidentally pull the trigger, and I could end up getting shot by her. Therefore, I quietly said to her: "Nana, do not be afraid. At this point, the more afraid you are, the quicker you will die. Summon your courage; no one can help us now, we can only rely on ourselves, do you understand?"

The stout man pointed into the distance and exclaimed, "What on earth is that? It has only been seven or eight days since the incident, how could those corpses have turned into something like dried eggplants? Even if they are lying on the rooftop under the strong sunlight, it is still winter; their bodies should have quickly frozen into popsicles."

At first, we thought he was dead, but his appearance and expression did not seem to indicate that. After calling out to him a few times without any response, we bravely approached to take a look, and we all gasped in shock.

The security door of Unit 2 was damaged more severely; the entire iron gate, along with its frame, had been torn down from the wall. The eerie stairwell resembled the gaping maw of a prehistoric beast, waiting for us to foolishly venture inside. We could not ascertain what dangers lay within, but we had no choice and could only brace ourselves to step inside. It was evident that Xiao Nana wanted to back out, but if she did not follow us, she would have to stay downstairs alone, which was far worse than being killed outright. We could not determine what dangers awaited us inside, yet we had no choice but to press on. Xiao Nana clearly wanted to retreat, but staying behind meant facing the terror of solitude, which was more daunting than death itself. Thus, despite appearing as if she were holding not a handgun but a live 220-volt wire, she did not lag behind a single step.

We turned our heads to look, and saw at the kitchen doorway a woman of similar age to the man sitting there, her back leaning against a fully automatic washing machine, also dead

You... that girl obviously belongs to the type that takes advantage of others while pretending to be innocent, and she is most afraid of encountering a rogue like the fat guy, and sure enough, she was immediately at a loss for words

The girl shot a glance at the chubby boy and asked Su Wan, "Sister, can I bring my own things?" Seeing Su Wan nod, she huffily slung the backpack from the corner over her shoulders, put on the small handbag from the coat rack, and picked up the tote bag... tucked her wallet in... The chubby boy impatiently asked, "Are you done yet? Do you need me to help you carry a few more items?"

The girl was taken aback and exclaimed, "Is the person in Room 501 still alive? Does that mean Zhao Qingshan's doctorate is still alive? That's wonderful! I was just about to ask him what those monsters all over the streets are."

Su Wan nodded, exhaled, and said: "In the future, when everyone shoots, remember to aim for the zongzi's head and don't waste bullets." Saying this, she took the lead and walked downstairs, and we hurried to follow. When we reached the zongzi that Su Wan had shot dead, we saw its brain oozing out from the cranial cavity, but it was not the white color we had imagined; instead, it presented a rather strange light gray hue.