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墨書 Inktalez
In mid-April, on this afternoon, despite facing the encroaching Zombie Horde in the wild forest, the guards on the Log Wall could not resist the drowsiness of spring. Yawns spread like an infectious disease among the Militia, their mouths gaping wide like hippos, and their eyes bloodshot, creating a scene that was hardly harmonious with the current siege of Zombies.
Scarface Bald stood atop the tower on the east side of the main gate, surveying the enemy situation. He occasionally whispered a few words to his Deputy, who looked grave. After receiving orders, the Deputy hurried down the tower to relay Scarface Bald's instructions to Stubborn Man. Stubborn Man then communicated further down to the Armed Guard, who executed the orders one by one, directing the assembled Survivor Militia to various positions along the Log Wall.
The slanting sun cast a warm glow, a gentle breeze rustled through the trees, and the river flowed quietly. Dust floated lazily in the air. Inside and outside the walls, two dense crowds were about to add a splash of blood and flesh to this tranquil rural scene.
Scarface Bald, temporarily appointed as the commander, felt a headache coming on. The number of Zombies swarming in was beyond imagination. Although he had mentally prepared himself for this moment, seeing the tide of Zombies pouring out from the forest still cracked his once rock-solid heart. After all, it had been over half a year since he had encountered a horde of this scale. The Log Wall was sturdy but could only provide temporary safety; he firmly believed that the most effective defense was offense. However, those yawning and bewildered Militia inside the walls did little to bolster his confidence. The leisurely days had lasted too long; many had truly forgotten what it meant to survive.
The Horde had not yet fully emerged from the trees; there was still at least ten minutes of vertical distance from the highlands of the forest to Riverside Fortress. Given the Zombies' staggering pace, they likely had double that time as a buffer. This remaining time was crucial for those Militia outside who were hastily reinforcing their defenses. Zombies could not climb, so simple fortifications could provide unexpected resistance against them. Even at risk, Scarface Bald was unwilling to abandon this position.
A hint of excitement stirred within Scarface Bald. During his military service, he had missed out on opportunities for glory in times of peace; he never expected that a global disaster would give him a chance to fulfill his dreams. The only thing that displeased him was that his enemies were fellow countrymen. Although they were mindless Zombies now, their nationality did not change with death. Scarface Bald actually wanted to go Across the Ocean to fight foreign devils, but due to circumstances, that dream remained indefinitely shelved.
"Relax everyone, don't be nervous. Wait for your shot before throwing; don't waste resources," Scarface Bald commanded like a general, waving his hand to calm the anxious Militia. They were the first guards on the wall, each with a fertilizer bag at their feet containing sharpened sticks stained with old blackened blood and grime—clearly equipment recycled multiple times.
"Wait until they’re close before aiming; spread out when you throw—don’t all target one! Did you hear me?" Scarface Bald waved his fist at the air and continued, "Don’t crowd together from afar; remember not to make noise when you go out!" The response was sparse murmurs of acknowledgment.
Scarface Bald sighed in frustration and turned to Stubborn Man beside him. "Where's Sister Jia?"
"She seems to be missing," Stubborn Man replied after scanning the crowd.
"This woman..." Scarface Bald appeared somewhat annoyed as he licked his dry lips and asked again, "What about that new kid?"
"Not seen him; probably hiding away," Stubborn Man grinned and cursed lightly. "Once we finish off these Zombies, I’ll have to give him a lesson—damn it, no sense of urgency."
"A little scolding will do; don’t scare him off too much. It’s not every day we get some fresh blood," Scarface Bald rubbed his bald head and muttered, "This isn’t good; it’s clear we’re running low on manpower—what are we going to do?"
"We don’t need to worry about it; isn’t Sister Jia coming back soon? Let her handle it—we’ll stay out of it," Stubborn Man kept talking while keeping his eyes fixed on the slowly approaching Sea of Corpses. Suddenly remembering something, he asked, "Xiao Zhu isn’t dead at Zombie hands, is he?"
"It’s impossible." Scarface Bald shook his head and said, "Zombies don’t stab you in the back, but when they do, it’s brutal enough to pierce your lungs."
As they were talking, a Young Man ran up from the west wall, panic evident on his face even from a distance. "Brother, there are more coming from behind. We need to split up some people."
"Damn it." Scarface Bald spat and cursed, "We’re short on people over here."
Inside the house, Song Jiu, who had been mentioned by Scarface Bald, sneezed several times and left two long trails of snot on the clean floor in front of Pockmarked Girl.
Song Jiu pretended not to notice Pockmarked Girl's slightly disgusted gaze and continued to ask, "So you’re saying that about a hundred people in this camp are Zombies?"
"Not all of them; there should be about a quarter," Pockmarked Girl took a deep breath and said in her most sincere tone, "You have to believe me."
Song Jiu waved his hand dismissively. "Don’t give me useless information. Get to the point. I’ll decide for myself whether to believe you or not."
"What do you want to know?" Pockmarked Girl asked.
"Everything you know," Song Jiu frowned and thought for a moment before adding, "I’ll ask targeted questions, so think carefully before you speak. Those who lie to me don’t end well."
"Well, this is going to take a while," Pockmarked Girl sighed in relief, looking more worried that Song Jiu wouldn’t be willing to listen. Compared to that, Song Jiu’s warning seemed almost gentle.
Pockmarked Girl organized her thoughts, refilled her cup with water, and began her narrative. "First, let me introduce myself. My name is Tajikuli. I’m Uyghur and used to be a dance teacher."
"Hey, don’t Uyghur girls usually look mixed? You don’t have any ethnic features," A Hai chimed in cheekily.
Pockmarked Girl shot him a glare and retorted without backing down, "All the Han men I’ve seen are tall and strong; why do you look like a quail?"
Song Jiu chuckled and raised his hand to stop A Hai. "Ignore him. I’m Song Jiu; please continue."
"If I start from the beginning, I probably won’t finish until tomorrow. Let me give you a brief overview; if you have any questions afterward, just ask me, okay?" Pockmarked Girl’s attitude toward Song Jiu softened a bit after receiving his agreement. She continued, "I won’t mention irrelevant things from the past; first of all, I need to tell you that I was among the first group of people who came to this camp and I also participated in its construction."
"Of course, it wasn't like this back then. You lived over by the pigsty, right? Yes, the camp used to be just that—only livestock pens, two vegetable plots, and a few mud-brick houses." The Pockmarked Girl fell into her memories without surprise, suddenly recalling that she was supposed to be explaining things. She quickly cleared her throat and continued, "We sheltered here for nearly half a year. Due to the geographical location, we rarely encountered Zombie attacks. Plus, there was a period when the Zombies hibernated, which made things much easier for us. Over those months, we stockpiled a lot of supplies."
"This can be simplified," Song Jiu said, showing little interest in their humble beginnings and indicating that they needed to speed things up.
"Alright, in short, our little life was relatively stable. Later on, a few Survivors came to the camp. Our leader was very kind, so we accepted them, thinking that more people meant more strength."
"And then those people became Zombies," A Hai interrupted Pockmarked Girl again.
"Are you going to talk or should I?" Pockmarked Girl snapped back at him but ignored his comment and continued, "You're close enough, but it wasn't them; it was the people who joined later. At that time, we had no idea there were such things as Zombies. They all looked the same—could talk and jump—who would have guessed there were new breeds of Zombies?"
"Speaking of which, it's quite strange. Those Zombies didn't come early or late; they showed up just as the camp was getting bigger."
"What did they do?" Song Jiu's understanding of Zombies was still limited to that night of evacuation from the county town, so she was quite interested at this point.
"I don't know exactly what they did; all I know is that one day our people just disappeared." Pockmarked Girl shrugged and explained, "Of course, I only found out about this later."
"It's a bit confusing; can you clarify?"
"Let me put it this way: those Zombies captured our leader and a few key members. Do you understand?"
"And their purpose?"
"This is why I need your help. It's not just for me; it's also for yourselves." Pockmarked Girl nodded contentedly, finally getting to the point: "The Zombies have taken over here and turned it into a colony. They've expanded the camp and somehow managed to transport large quantities of supplies while recruiting Survivors everywhere."
"So the current camp is built by the Zombies?"
"Yes."
"And even the supplies are provided by the Zombies?"
"That's right."
"Damn, isn't that the great benefactor who spreads kindness everywhere?"
"Kindness my ass, they treat the Survivors like livestock," Pockmarked Girl shot a few disdainful glances and said angrily.
"Sounds pretty good to me. If I hadn't met Brother Jiu, I'd actually look forward to being taken care of like that," A Hai chuckled, earning another eye roll.
Pockmarked Girl sneered and said, "Idiot, do you not know what happens to pigs when they get fat?"
"Stop talking nonsense. Do you really think the Zombies are fattening you up just to eat you?" A Hai doubted Pockmarked Girl's words and continued to interject with skepticism.
Fortunately, Pockmarked Girl remembered who was the leader among the three, so she shifted her focus back to Song Jiu and continued, "They imprison the original people and then bring back the Survivors they find outside, giving these people power to manage the camp."
"Go on." Song Jiu silenced A Hai with a glance, signaling Pockmarked Girl to continue.
"It sounds like what we used to do, right? They bring back new camp managers who are actually fake Zombies while continuing to gather new Survivors. Once the number of new Survivors reaches a certain point..." Pockmarked Girl paused deliberately, teasing A Hai and the others before continuing, "Once the newcomers reach a certain number, the previous batch of Survivors just disappears."
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