Chapter 4

The next morning, I pushed five whole boxes of the highest grade canned beef stew outside the roller shutter door.

Old Ghost arrived as promised.

It stepped over the mess on the ground, its only remaining eye fixed on the tin can that smelled of meat.

"A gun." I pointed through the crack in the door, making a shooting motion with both hands, then pointed forcefully towards the north of the city. "The police station. I need an automatic rifle, and bullets. Get these, and all five boxes are yours."

Old Ghost instantly understood what I meant.

It let out a low, excited growl, its rotting finger bones scraping harshly against the iron gate. Then, it whirled around abruptly, howling at the street corner.

Eight tall, strong infected individuals staggered out. Without the slightest hesitation, Old Ghost led this bizarre "procurement team" straight towards the North City Police Station.

I leaned against the door and let out a long breath.

Given Lao Gui's current rate of evolution and execution, I should be able to see a bunch of black gun barrels by tomorrow morning at the latest.

But I miscalculated.

The dark red bloodstains on the ground gradually turned black and peeled off. The five cans of beef outside the door were covered in dust.

One day, two days, three days.

I paced back and forth in the supermarket like a caged animal, peering out from the ventilation vents countless times. Apart from the wind whipping up plastic bags from the ground, the streets were deathly silent, almost maddening.

Old Ghost has disappeared.

The deathly silence was finally broken by a terrible cough from the generator.

"Cough... Pfft..."

As the last half-liter of gasoline was squeezed out, the gasoline generator in the basement completely stopped working. The dim backup lights in the supermarket flickered twice and then went out instantly.

Pure darkness engulfed the entire space in an instant, like a tidal wave.

“Alex!” Sarah’s terrified voice came from behind the cashier, her voice trembling with obvious sobs.

"Don't make a sound! Hold your knife tight!" I grabbed the double-barreled shotgun and rushed towards the defensive position at the main gate in the dark.

The Red Lion Supermarket, now without power, is just a blind metal shell. Just as I was groping to load two slugs into my shotgun, the ground beneath my feet suddenly began to tremble.

"Buzz—"

The dull roar of a diesel engine tore through the night sky from the end of the street.

This isn't just one car, it's a convoy!

I lunged at the heavy shelves used to block the gap. Five blinding white beams of light cleaved through the thick fog like swords, shining directly onto the supermarket's iron door, momentarily blinding me.

The screeching of brakes filled the air. Five heavy military trucks formed a semi-encirclement, completely blocking the entrance to the Red Lion Supermarket.

"Quickly! Seal off all exits! Establish a defensive line!"

The sound of tactical boots shattering glass rang out rapidly. More than twenty fully armed soldiers in camouflage combat uniforms jumped off the vehicle with fluid movements, their tactical flashlight beams sweeping wildly across every corner.

military?!

My heart skipped a beat. Was it a rescue team? Or were they here to loot?

Before I could even speak, a tall figure jumped off the armored off-road vehicle in the middle.

It was a woman. She had short, neat hair, and her face appeared cold and steely in the backlight of the car headlights. She wasn't wearing a helmet, and she was carrying an M4 rifle equipped with a holographic sight.

She walked straight to the roller shutter door, her military boots stepping on the five boxes of canned beef left behind by the old man.

“Listen up, you inside.” The woman’s voice pierced through the iron gate through the loudspeaker, devoid of any emotion. “I am Emily, the captain of the Army Ranger Search and Rescue Team.”

I gripped my shotgun tightly, not rushing to speak. There was not a trace of "rescue" in her tone.

“We’re not here to rescue anyone.” Emily’s next sentence confirmed my suspicions. “The military is tracking an extremely dangerous horde of zombies. One of the mutants is carrying antibodies to the first-generation virus that was brought from the lab.”

Antibody?!

My mind went blank. Old Ghost led eight men to the north of the city—could it be… that he'd run into the military's target? Or had he stolen the antibody?!

"According to the last signal from the tracker, the monster carrying the antibody disappeared near this supermarket."

Emily abruptly raised the muzzle of her gun and slammed the butt against the roller shutter door. The sound rose sharply, carrying an undeniable air of killing intent.

"Open the door now and submit to a full search! Any obstruction will be considered treason!"

Cold sweat trickled down my forehead.

Open the door? The supermarket is overflowing with supplies I acquired through the system. If these bloodthirsty soldiers burst in, Sarah and I won't even be left with a trace. In this lawless apocalypse, even bandits know to eliminate all threats, let alone an army with overwhelming force!

"Sir, this is private property!" I pressed myself against the wall, my vocal cords stretched to their limit. "We only have starving civilians here, no mutants!"

There was a two-second silence outside the door.

Emily sneered and casually tossed the megaphone to her adjutant beside her.

"Private property?" Her voice, muffled by the metal sheet, carried a chilling edge. "Then demolish it."

She slowly raised her right hand, which was wearing a tactical glove, and swung it forward sharply.

"Snap—"

A sickeningly loud hum of heavy machinery filled the air.

I peered intently through the crack in the door, staring straight ahead. On the roof of that armored off-road vehicle, the turret was slowly rotating.

A thick, cold black gun barrel, gleaming with a deathly luster under the car headlights, was aimed precisely at the center of the supermarket entrance.

That was an M2 heavy machine gun.

With just one command from Emily, this large-caliber killing machine could tear this iron door, along with me behind it, into a shower of blood and flesh within three seconds.