Apocalypse Escape: Day One of Survival

"Doctors aren’t gods!" Yu Tianfeng snapped, his movements swift as he drew blood for a lab test.

"They’ve likely been ingesting incense burner ash long-term. Their digestive systems are showing signs of infection. Furthermore..."

Xie Ning waved her hand before Yu Tianfeng could finish his spiel. "Send them back."

’What a waste of time!’

’That Wang and his brother are a couple of fools, dragging just anyone out here.’

But Wang Pingfeng wouldn’t give up. "You can’t be so dismissive! Isn’t incense burner ash non-toxic? You there, doctor, did you even check properly? Don’t spout nonsense."

Yu Tianfeng finally lost his patience and laid into Wang Pingfeng. "Are you completely uneducated? Just because something isn’t toxic means you can eat it? Even if the ash itself is harmless, some incense materials contain complex metallic substances. This couple has been consuming it in large quantities; God only knows how much they’ve swallowed."

"If this were just an early-stage infection, we could manage it with some medication and an IV drip. But as it is, their digestive systems have completely collapsed."

Song Shijun looked dazed. "Why would they eat incense burner ash? Can that stuff even fill your stomach?"

An embarrassed look crossed Wang Pinglang’s face as he quickly pulled his younger brother aside. "That couple isn’t from around here, and they’ve always been rather superstitious. When the outbreak first started, some of the elders in the lane said it was a sign from the heavens—demons sent to plague the nation. They even organized a few Daoist rituals on their own."

"They also said that swallowing incense burner ash could protect your body and help you avoid this disaster."

Wang Zongxuan and the others were utterly dumbfounded.

’They couldn’t believe someone would actually fall for such a bizarre story.’

Wang Zongxuan and Song Shijun picked up the young couple and carried them back inside the house.

Wang Pingfeng opened his mouth to say something else, but his brother yanked him back forcefully, shooting him a warning look.

’This brother of mine is such a clueless hothead.’

’Our very lives are in that captain’s hands. Whether we go or stay is her decision alone.’

’And he still dares to meddle in other people’s pointless business!’

Wang Meijuan quickly tried to smooth things over in a low voice. "Let’s go search the alley around the corner. Once we’re done there, this whole area will be cleared."

The three siblings were very familiar with the alleys of Wang Lane. This saved the team from many wrong turns and greatly improved their search efficiency and speed.

Around 2:30 in the afternoon, Xie Ning’s group finally finished searching the Wang Lane area. From a row of deathly still residential houses, they uncovered four more sallow, emaciated refugees.

These four men were in even worse shape than the three siblings had been.

Luckily, however, they hadn’t resorted to eating strange things. Although they were so hungry they were seeing stars, they could at least still walk slowly on their own.

Xie Ning had Song Shijun give the four of them some food and water, then said coolly, "We’re from the Starfire Team. I’m the captain, Xie Ning. We are here on behalf of Golden City Base to rescue survivors in this area."

"I’m only going to say this once."

"You don’t need to worry about a thing. All you have to do is stay quietly in the vehicle and not make a single sound."

"If anyone screams while we’re in a horde of zombies," Xie Ning’s gaze turned frigid as it swept over them, "feel free to try it and see what happens."

The four newly rescued men had been absolutely overjoyed just moments before.

Now, meeting the young woman’s indifferent gaze, they felt as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped over their heads. A chill shot through them, seeping deep into their bones.

"Life is precious." Xie Ning glanced at them. "I hope you all know how to value it."

"Also, while you’re with me, you only need to remember one word." Xie Ning slammed the front passenger door shut. "Obey."

"Drive."

This time, they were heading to search the adjacent residential complex. As they passed a dilapidated little supermarket, Wang Pingfeng started to open his mouth again, but his sister kicked him sharply.

The four gaunt men were huddled in the back of the van, dozing off.

’No matter how harsh this young woman was, she was the one who had snatched them from the jaws of death.’

’A life where they could eat until they were half-full and drink clean water was already a blessing.’

The large commercial vehicle and the smaller van drove one after the other down a fork in the road next to Wang Lane. A straight drive of about ten minutes brought Zone C’s largest rescue target into view: Canghua Home.

"This complex is divided into Zone One, Zone Two, and Zone Three. Are we searching all of them? It’s a pretty big area," Wang Pinglang said carefully.

Xie Ning studied the map in her hands. She confirmed that Zones One, Two, and Three were all designated as part of the search area for Zone C. Protocol dictated they had to sweep all of them.

"There’s also a commercial housing complex next to it."

Xie Ning nodded. ’The kindergarten next to the commercial housing probably isn’t worth searching.’

’Not unless the children were picked up at the very beginning of the apocalypse.’

’Otherwise, with toddlers left inside, there was no way anyone could have survived. Not without... a major miracle.’

"I’m not very familiar with this area, either. I have no idea where to start the search," Wang Pinglang said honestly, his tone extremely cautious.

When he saw that Xie Ning didn’t seem to blame him, he breathed a small sigh of relief.

A skinny young man in the back weakly raised his hand. "I... I think I can help lead the way. I was a delivery driver before the apocalypse, so I’m pretty familiar with the layout of the complexes around here."

"Good. Get in the second row and give directions." Xie Ning nodded, her sharp gaze landing on the motionless Wang Pingfeng. Her voice was stern. "You, get in the back."

Wang Pingfeng opened his mouth to argue, but Xie Ning cut him off coldly. "You wouldn’t want your sister to be squeezed in with three strange men, would you?"

Wang Pingfeng gritted his teeth. ’She’s definitely targeting me on purpose.’

Reluctantly, he hunched over and switched places with the delivery driver.

As they squeezed past each other, Wang Pingfeng deliberately shouldered the other man.

The driver faltered for a moment but said nothing, simply taking his seat and beginning to give directions.

"Turn left up ahead and go through the main gate. Once inside, turn left again for Building Five. The building numbers here are a mess; Building Twelve is right across from it."

Xie Ning nodded. "Stop by the guardhouse once we’re in."

Unlike his brother, Wang Pinglang wasn’t so clueless. He stopped when told and drove when told, remaining perfectly cooperative.

The two vehicles stopped one after the other in front of the guardhouse. Wang Zongxuan, Xiao Huang Mao, and the others got out and cleared a wave of nearby zombies.

Before long, Wang Zongxuan walked up to the passenger-side window of the small van. "Sis, the PA system inside is dead."

Xie Ning had anticipated this. She silently pulled a Bluetooth speaker and a wireless microphone from her bag. "Thanks for the trouble."

Wang Zongxuan’s mouth twitched.

Following the delivery driver’s directions, the two vehicles turned into the complex and stopped at the base of Building Five.

Ji Taixian took the microphone, climbed onto the roof of the commercial vehicle, cleared his throat, and began to speak. "Everyone upstairs, listen up! We’re the rescue team sent from Golden City Base!"

Wang Pingfeng’s expression soured. "Didn’t you tell us not to make any noise? What do you call this?"

"Your teammate is shouting into a microphone! Won’t that attract zombies?"

"If we don’t lure the zombies out of the stairwells to clear them out, how are the survivors waiting upstairs supposed to dare climb down?"

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