Take back what belongs to him

The next morning.

Ping Chengcheng had a bad feeling today.

She couldn’t shake the sense that something was going to happen.

Could it be that they’d run into danger at the granary?

Impossible… At this stage, none of the powerful variants had shown up yet—only a few Special Infected.

And almost none of the Special Infected were beyond what Ping Chengcheng could currently handle.

Except… for that one.

But that was a very particular type of zombie—an extremely rare kind. In the entire three years of the apocalypse, Ping Chengcheng had only ever heard of a single one.

She didn’t believe her luck could be that bad.

After a simple breakfast of porridge, Ping Chengcheng and Song Ning put on bulletproof vests under their clothes.

Each of them armed themselves with a submachine gun before dragging Huang Zhong out of the room where he was being held.

“Talk. Where is it? Take us there.”

Today, they planned to scout the granary first.

If it didn’t seem too risky, they’d bring others later to haul the supplies.

Huang Zhong hunched his neck and rubbed his ears, red from the cold.

“Uh… there’s a mountain not far from here, you know the one. The roads inside are kinda winding and twisted. Anyway, you drive, I’ll guide.”

This was the outskirts of S City.

There were indeed some undeveloped woods and hills nearby.

It made sense that military-grade supplies would be stored somewhere like that.

They brought Huang Zhong to the Sabretooth at the gate.

Song Ning shoved him into the backseat, then climbed into the driver’s seat.

Ping Chengcheng got into the passenger side.

“Start talking. Show us the way.”

Song Ning’s voice was cold and sharp.

Huang Zhong nodded obsequiously and began giving directions without hesitation.

The place really was well hidden.

It took them a full hour of driving, with Huang Zhong’s mouth going dry from nonstop talking, to reach the destination.

It was a building constructed into the side of a mountain.

Scattered debris had been left around for a long time, and the dried, blackened blood stains on the ground hinted at the danger lurking here.

Ping Chengcheng walked beside Song Ning, holding her submachine gun at the ready, prepared for anything.

Huang Zhong’s palms were slick with sweat as he was forced to walk in front, Song Ning’s gun muzzle pressed firmly into his back.

The granary door was slightly ajar.

In his rush to escape last time, Huang Zhong had forgotten to close it.

But that strange zombie definitely hadn’t left.

It had apparently chained itself inside while it was still alive.

Once inside, there was a slope.

If anyone so much as showed their head there, that zombie would gun them down without mercy.

It knew tactics.

It would wait until everyone was within range before pulling the trigger.

All Huang Zhong had to do was lie down and roll away the moment he got to the slope—then the zombie would take aim at Song Ning and Ping Chengcheng behind him.

They’d be riddled with bullets in less than a second.

Huang Zhong tried to conceal his excitement.

Once they were dead, he’d have two submachine guns in hand.

When he returned to the base, he’d catch those people off guard.

He knew these two were cautious and didn’t trust anyone, which meant only that guy Wu Sheng had a gun.

With surprise on his side, taking over the whole base wouldn’t be hard.

Screeech—

The large door was pushed open, letting out a grating metallic sound.

Song Ning tensed.

Her footsteps paused as she immediately scanned her surroundings.

No sounds.

Not even a zombie’s roar.

Ping Chengcheng’s delicate brows furrowed.

Something was off.

She snapped into full alert.

At the first sign of danger, she would grab Song Ning and retreat immediately.

Switching on a tactical flashlight scavenged from the police station, the three of them began walking up the slope.

Cold wind howled in through the open door, the sound sending chills down their spines.

The air smelled of grain, mixed with dust and smoke.

The submachine gun’s icy grip began to warm under Ping Chengcheng’s hands as her body entered a strange state—her thoughts becoming lightning fast.

“It’s just up there,” Huang Zhong said suddenly, pointing up the slope.

The cold barrel was still pressed into his waist.

“Go.”

He smiled, showing no fear.

But his back was drenched in a cold sweat.

Step by step, he ascended the slope.

All the while, he kept a close eye on the two behind him—yet they hadn’t followed him up.

That made him a little uncertain.

Would the zombie break protocol and shoot early?

Thankfully, nothing happened.

Inside was a vast, pitch-black space.

Nothing could be seen in the distance.

But Huang Zhong knew what lurked in the dark—a killing machine.

Seeing that Huang Zhong made it up safely, Song Ning and Ping Chengcheng both let out a breath of relief.

Their tension eased slightly as they stepped onto the slope.

The moment they moved, Huang Zhong’s breath hitched, his heartbeat pounding in his ears.

As their footsteps reached the slope—

Gunfire erupted, echoing through the cavernous building.

Huang Zhong, fully prepared, threw himself to the ground and rolled away!

Song Ning let out a muffled grunt.

Two thuds slammed into her chest—like heavy drums.

Her vision spun.

She collapsed.

“Sister!”

Ping Chengcheng’s internal alarm blared.

She reacted instantly.

In a blur, her body turned into an afterimage.

She dove in front of Song Ning.

The gunfire from the dark—tatatatata!—poured into her back.

Blood exploded outward.

“Huang… Zhong!” she growled through clenched teeth.

Her voice was hoarse, like a beast cornered and raging.

Blood sprayed from her lips.

She tried to summon her tentacles, but the ones growing from her back were immediately blasted back inside by the bullets.

“Chengcheng…” Song Ning looked at the girl shielding her, and then her vision went black.

She lost consciousness.

Huang Zhong grinned wickedly at the scene.

“Heh… Didn’t see that coming, did you?”

Ping Chengcheng had been careless.

She’d assumed that even if there were any Special Infected, she could handle them.

She hadn’t expected a zombie this rare to be here.

Just like the Butcher, this kind of infected mutated based on muscle memory from its former life.

But the odds were much lower.

In her past life, she’d only heard of one such zombie—encountered by a base while out gathering supplies.

She had thought it was just idle talk, nothing worth taking seriously.

She never expected to meet one herself.

Later, that zombie was captured alive and studied.

Its gun skills rivaled professional marksmen.

Its combat instincts were top-tier.

It was considered the ultimate hunter.

Too bad… it was a zombie.

After taking seven or eight bullets, Ping Chengcheng collapsed.

With the last of her strength, she dragged the unconscious Song Ning down the slope with her.

Then her mind went dark.

‘Song… Song Ning…’

Huang Zhong snorted.

That’s it?

And they thought they could take him on?

The blood of both women pooled and mingled on the floor.

Huang Zhong didn’t care whether they survived.

The girl’s back had been torn open by the bullets, revealing white bone.

A gaping wound the size of a bowl yawned open at her waist—exposing organs.

To him, this was certain death.

He didn’t notice the shredded remains of the bulletproof vest scattered in the blood.

Song Ning wasn’t dead either.

She had only been knocked unconscious by the sudden impact.

But because she wore an outer layer over the vest, Huang Zhong hadn’t realized she’d taken two bullets and survived.

From the pitch-black depths of the granary came the sound of chains clanging.

Huang Zhong panicked.

What if the zombie broke free and tore him apart?

He grabbed the car keys and both submachine guns, let out a cold laugh, and pushed open the screeching door.

He walked away.

He was going to take back everything that was his.