Edge of the Apocalypse

Chapter 112: Chapter 106: Officer Wang

Yu Dong asked hurriedly, "What’s going on? Are there zombies?"

The chaotic sounds on Qiao Yunliang’s end lasted for a moment before quieting down again.

"Haha... It’s nothing. Just a small wave of zombies. Ever since we established the settlement, it’s like the zombies can smell us. They just keep coming, one wave after another. We’re used to it."

"Oh... Okay, that’s good. I’ll let you get back to it. We can talk again when you have time," Yu Dong said, tactfully preparing to hang up.

"Don’t hang up yet... We’ve been conducting a lot of operations lately, so it won’t be convenient to call for a while. Yu Dong, you’re a good young man. I thank you for protecting Pingping and so many others. You all must stick together and survive until the day we achieve victory!"

Yu Dong smiled. "We will!"

Qiao Yunliang then added, "Pingping... your uncle might not be able to get news from you for a while, so let me wish you an early congratulations on a smooth and healthy delivery... With Yu Dong and the others, I’m sure you’ll be fine. Remember, no matter what happens, don’t give up hope. I... and many others like me... are fighting for the people of Dragon Country!"

"Yes! I know, Uncle."

Qiao Ping understood the subtext in her uncle’s words: if they couldn’t finish the job, a more powerful military force would come after them.

Hearing this, the others were filled with awe for such pure conviction.

Their confidence stemmed from their faith in their country.

They believed.

"Don’t worry, Uncle. Before you all get here... I, Huang Zhiqiang, will protect Sister Qiao and the baby!"

Huang Zhiqiang seized the opportunity to make an impression, lest her uncle only recognize Yu Dong later and not him, a soon-to-be family member...

After hanging up, Yu Dong felt a wave of emotion.

"It’s so tough. They have to kill zombies in the dead of winter... It looks like it’ll still be a few months. We’ll just have to wait patiently."

After encountering the climbing zombies, Yu Dong no longer expected the military to achieve a swift victory. As long as they could steadily and surely clear out the zombies, that would be enough.

「That evening.」

After listening to the national channel’s "Report on High-Incidence Areas of S-Virus Mutation" for the day, the group tuned the radio to the frequency for Officer Wang that Liangzi had given them.

"KSHHHHKK KSHHHHKK KSHHHHKK~"

After a burst of chaotic static, a somewhat casual voice came through.

"Hello, hello, hello~ Can you hear me? Can you hear me?"

"Alright, those of you who can hear me, pass our frequency on to those who can’t. A single sentence from you could end up saving a few lives."

"We won’t dwell on the old or ramble on about the new. Today, Officer Wang is gonna tell you all something interesting... We’ll pick up right where headquarters left off with their ’Report on High-Incidence Areas of S-Virus Mutation.’"

"To all the little brothers and sisters who listen to our channel regularly, does this sound familiar? That’s right... a month ago, Officer Wang already taught you this lesson. Pretty much the same thing, more or less."

"The three key factors for virus mutation. Those who remember this lesson, say it with me."

"Flesh-eating, congregation, and rain."

"Zombies that regularly eat human flesh will accelerate the virus’s mutation, and their bodies will get stronger. So, try your best not to get eaten. Otherwise, your death will be the least of the chain of events that follows."

"I don’t need to say much about congregation. I stress this every day, it’s on the test every day. What’s the most important thing for survival in the apocalypse? Food? Water? Shelter? Wrong! The most important thing is to stay away from the damned zombie hordes! The guys from HQ just now spoke in more scientific terms, something about S-Virus density, transmission and counter-transmission, viral co-evolution, blah blah blah... Anyway, it all boils down to one thing: stay away from the hordes. It’s not just that there are more zombies in there. That place is a petri dish for the virus, a real high-tech, hardcore operation!"

"As for the rain... the guys from HQ didn’t mention this one. It’s my own observation. The probability of mutated zombies appearing increases after it rains. They didn’t mention it, so maybe it’s for another reason, but just based on what we can see, don’t go wandering around just because the streets look clear of zombies after a downpour... You’ll learn your lesson after a green-furred zombie ambushes you once."

"Alright, that’s all I’ve got to say for today. As usual, let’s talk about our Huangyang Port shelter... It’s located right at Huangyang Port."

"We have plenty of food, water, and medicine. No need to go fighting through a pile of zombies for a few scraps. Officer Wang will practically feed you himself. No one who comes here will go hungry."

"Our shelter is the Caribbean International Cruise ship. Anyone who’s been on one knows it’s a hotel-style experience. Everyone who stays here says it’s great. The weather’s getting colder and colder, but we have heating. The elderly, children, pregnant women, all of you... you should transfer over here while you still can. Once it gets any colder, you won’t be able to hold out. The weather this year is real strange."

"Finally, we’re recruiting survivors from all over Yanhai City. We’re taking everyone. If you’re a living person, you can come. But remember this... once you’re under Officer Wang’s command, I don’t care what you used to be. If you’re a dragon, you’d better coil up; if you’re a tiger, you’d better lie down! I won’t hold whatever dirty deeds you’ve done in the past against you. But once you’re here... you’ll follow the rules of the Huangyang Port shelter. Don’t be getting any funny ideas. I welcome any and all troublemakers who think they can challenge me to come and give it a try."

"Oh, right, one more personnel report. Today, six badasses who fought their way out of the city arrived. Our resident count has officially broken one hundred!"

"Applause! Meeting adjourned!"

"KSHHHHKK KSHHHHKK KSHHHHKK~"

The radio broadcast ended, leaving Yu Dong and the others wanting more.

Qiao Ping’s lips twitched slightly. "This Officer Wang... has an interesting way of speaking."

She was used to the formal style of official announcements and wasn’t quite accustomed to Officer Wang’s manner of speech.

Huang Zhiqiang exclaimed, "I can tell Officer Wang is from the Northeast, just like us! We Northeasterners have got this whole live broadcasting thing down. It’s as easy as eating and drinking for us. He’s so cool!"

Huang Zhiqiang heard the sound of home in his voice, and it felt exceptionally familiar.

Zhao Youcai, however, picked up on something different.

"This Officer Wang... he’s quite a character. He took over a cruise ship, he’s in charge of a settlement of 100 people, and he talks a tough game. ’I welcome any and all troublemakers who think they can challenge me to come and give it a try’... He sure loves to show off!"

Yu Dong laughed.

"Perhaps that’s just what absolute confidence in one’s strength looks like. This Officer Wang definitely has an extremely reliable and organized team under him, and they probably have police equipment... Even if they can’t compare to the military, their deterrent effect on ordinary zombies and people would be immense."

Shen Xinyi was able to intimidate everyone behind them just by holding a pocket pistol. A fully equipped police team... intimidating a hundred or so people would be child’s play.

"Guns are just better... Having a gun makes you powerful." Yu Dong was quite envious. Before the apocalypse, there was no way he could have gotten his hands on a gun.

He was lucky to have met the right person to even get a compound crossbow.

The crossbow was incredibly useful; it was their only means of attacking zombies from a distance.

"About this zombie mutation they’re talking about... it’s giving me the creeps. I’m in chemistry, but I remember a biology teacher once said... if a virus isn’t controlled and eradicated, it can continuously form countless variants as it spreads, eventually causing a catastrophe that could sweep across all of humanity. If this S-Virus keeps getting stronger... can the military still wipe them out easily?"

Zhou had a strong sense of crisis when it came to viral mutation.

"Yeah... but what can we do? We’ve cleared the zombies in the neighborhood, creating a small safe zone for survivors crossing Binhai Avenue. That’s already the limit of our abilities."

After the death of Zhao Wenjie, Yu Dong had grown more conservative.

Their team formation was incomplete, making it even harder to guard against sneak attacks from mutated zombies outside.

He didn’t want to lose any more of his people.

"Sigh... that’s true. All we can do is manage our own little area. If everyone could do what we’ve done and clear out the zombies on their own doorstep, it would be a huge help to the military," Qiao Ping said.

In this day and age, just being able to "sweep the snow from one’s own doorstep" was already a virtue.

Someone like Yu Dong, who was willing to save more people and offer others a path to survival while still being wary of strangers... was truly a saint.

Most people in a leadership position were actually like Zhao Youcai: they seemed resourceful and decisive, acting forcefully toward others.

In reality... if Zhao Youcai were actually the team leader for any length of time, everyone would descend into a state of caution and mutual suspicion. The team falling apart would probably be the best possible outcome...

The more likely scenario was that one day he’d push someone out to feed the zombies, and the next day he’d get a club to the back of his own head, and that would be the end of his life.

Of course, Zhao Youcai was also improving. Qiao Ping felt that the current Zhao Youcai was starting to subconsciously imitate Yu Dong’s methods...

’Humans are such strange creatures...’

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!