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墨書 Inktalez
"Phase II" is located to the northwest of the Roundabout, officially named the Brilliant Tang Style Phase II Project. A few years ago, the North Old Town District underwent renovation, with over two thousand acres of land put up for sale. A well-known domestic real estate development company won the bid and invested heavily to create a northwest pearl, promoting a high-end lifestyle concept. Leveraging the ancient city's rich cultural heritage, they generated immense hype even before the launch, causing property prices to soar close to those in first-tier cities. At that time, during a housing speculation frenzy, ordinary citizens had no chance to touch this "high-end residence," but countless wealthy individuals rushed in. Before the first phase was even completed, it sold out completely. In just six months, it repeatedly set new records for housing transactions, creating a situation of overwhelming demand.
With the success of Phase I, Phase II quickly followed suit, building on the high-end concept while adding many new selling points such as "urban natural scenic area," "private backyard," and "silk pearl." The originally planned villa area was halved, and with a lavish expenditure, a brand-new development was finalized. Construction crews worked tirelessly, transporting tons of building materials and sand. The old city area vanished without a trace, replaced by vast foundation pits. The foundation piles stood tall against the sky, and soon after, twenty-eight-story modern high-rises would rise from the ground. The memories of the old city would soon be buried in dust and forgotten by people.
If everything proceeded smoothly, today's Intersection would be expanded into a new transportation hub; however, the Intersection remained unchanged from its former self—aside from the crowd that had transformed.
The highly anticipated "Brilliant Phase II" had just begun to rise but had yet to shine before being engulfed in dust; the luxurious residences of wealthy patrons had overnight turned into ghost towns, becoming a summer retreat for Zombies before anyone could even touch their thresholds.
As previously mentioned, Ming Junwei designated areas in all four directions—northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest—to ensure the safety of the Roundabout and specifically to deal with the Horde that could not be eradicated. Brilliant Phase II was one of these areas.
Compared to the large factories in the other three directions, this large community capable of accommodating over ten thousand people undoubtedly had a broader vision. Ming Junwei might not be able to raise high-rises from these foundation pits overnight, but he could fill them with Zombies again; all it required was time.
Luci and Yinuo led a group of Militia members who were rallying against a torrent of Zombies. On the long street, an unprecedented marathon event commenced with thousands participating; at the finish line stood steel-reinforced concrete structures that had long been yearning for attention.
"Sister Qian," Yinuo paused to catch her breath and looked at Luci beside her who was equally out of breath. She asked curiously, "Do you feel like there are more Zombies than before?"
"Listen to that noise; how could there not be more?" Luci shook her head with a wry smile. The Militia's firecrackers used to attract Zombies were all gone; they relied mostly on their voices for the latter part of their journey. Faced with an ocean of Corpses, everyone showed signs of fear but had no choice but to grit their teeth and take risks for future peace. Once they tried every means to avoid Zombies; now they were exhausting their brains trying to lead them.
Fortunately, Zombies lacked cognitive abilities. For these bloodthirsty monsters who had made devouring human flesh their mission, as long as you were willing to lead them by the nose, they would gladly follow.
Brilliant Phase II was just a hundred meters away; its construction fence was weathered and faded. You could still vaguely make out words like "safety" and "quality." The rust-covered gate hung locked; from afar, more than ten unfinished buildings stood tall against the wind. The gusts whistled through the uninstalled windows and doors of these high-rises, echoing mournful wails.
"Go open the door; be careful," Luci said as she tossed her keys to Yinuo and took a deep breath before heading back to reinforce their position. The Militia members were normal people; no matter how good their stamina was, they would eventually tire out. Once inside the construction area, they would inevitably have to run around again. For now, they should rest whenever possible and avoid close encounters with Zombies.
From here to Intersection, they encountered over a hundred corpses along the way—most were Zombies that charged into warning lines only to meet their end. So far, no Militia had fallen behind; men and women supported each other as they moved forward under Luci's leadership—sometimes hurriedly and sometimes slowly—adjusting their states while making the already agitated Zombies even more frantic.
Yinuo arrived at the gate and peeked through the gap. Inside, the wild grass swayed, but there were no signs of Zombies. The roar of the horde surged like a tide, making it impossible to distinguish whether the sounds came from inside or outside. To the left of the gate was a temporary security post, a simple hut made from a converted shipping container, with a plywood door secured by wire and windows covered with newspapers. Yinuo felt relieved, twisted the wire open, and slipped into the hut. There was no time to push a shopping cart out; instead, she found it filled to the brim with loudspeakers of various sizes and colors.
The circular waterway had only been partially excavated, covered with steel plates acting as bridges. Wiping her sweat, Yinuo turned to see Luci and her group leading the Horde closer, so she quickened her pace, pushing the cart with a clatter until she reached a row of deep pits. Leaning over to look down, a wave of putrid odor hit her face.
At the bottom of the pit lay countless blackened corpses stacked haphazardly. Among the remains were some shriveled Zombies aimlessly wandering about. In the distance, low growls could be heard; as she leaned in closer, she spotted several mangy wild dogs confronting a half-bodied Zombie. Hearing movement at the edge of the pit, the dogs turned their attention toward Yinuo, baring their filthy teeth. A chill ran down her spine as she quickly retrieved a row of neatly packaged batteries from the cart, inserted them into the loudspeakers still tagged with price labels, switched them on, and tossed them into the pit.
The second phase of construction covered a vast area; besides residential zones, there were extensive green spaces planned, complete with pavilions and water features. However, all that stood now were weathered remnants of structures amidst wild grass—foundations and piles of bricks and cement as far as the eye could see.
There were more than ten foundation pits; near the first phase of construction was a partition wall. Years ago, Ming Junwei had led a team to break through this wall, fully connecting two struggling neighborhoods while spending considerable time deepening the circular waterway's depth. Yinuo jogged along, tossing loudspeakers one by one into the pit while returning to the security post with one in hand and securing the door with wire.
At that moment, Luci had already led the Militia through the gate. Yinuo gave an "OK" gesture and rejoined the diversion team. The high-end construction site echoed with "Jiangnan Leather Factory" and "Song of the Water Truck," causing the Horde pouring through the gate to scatter in all directions, stumbling toward the chaotic sounds.
This tactic against Zombies had proven effective time and again; before reinforcements arrived, several vanguards had already rushed into the pit. The wild dogs were startled and fled as they realized that their half-bodied Zombie companion had summoned help with its cries. The barking echoed as they scattered from pursuing Zombies that had fallen into the pit.
The foundation pits lacked reinforcement work; in such chaos, it was easy for someone to fall in accidentally. Luci decisively led her team back through the partition wall into "Brilliant Phase One." The first phase was progressing much faster than the second; community roads and viewing structures were nearly complete. In a large fountain square stood a statue of a Greek goddess adorned with a floral crown and holding a lyre amidst scattered stones and waving dogtail grass, framed by gray high-rises that served as a backdrop for this postmodern scene.
Across from the fountain was a circular stone platform surrounded by lifelike columns made of white marble steps extending outward. Behind this platform loomed a massive screen shrouded in darkness.
Five iron chains connected between columns on the platform secured four uniquely shaped Zombies. One Zombie sported dry long hair wrapped in an American flag headband with heavy dark circles around its eyes; half its face was missing skin revealing its stark white jawbone. It wore an oversized T-shirt featuring an image of "rilynnson" paired with tight black leather pants and studded combat boots. One remaining hand bore two large skull rings while around its neck hung an eye-catching Iez Electric Guitar. Behind this Vocalist stood three emaciated Zombies dressed identically: Moxigan on rhythm guitar to one side and Sunglasses Bassist on the other; behind them was a Balding Zombie tied to a drum set—only the keyboardist was missing.
Luci's group rushed through the partition wall into the square while over a hundred Zombies relentlessly pursued them from behind. Yinuo held up her loudspeaker while running and shouted, "Visitors at the back, don't fall behind! Keep up!"
“Yinuo, forget about it! Get upstairs!” Luci called out as she counted how many Militia members were heading up in front of Building One. Seeing Yinuo still teasing Zombies at the partition wall, she hurried over to pull her back. As they passed by the stone platform, Luci paused for a moment and distractedly asked, “Hey, where’s the keyboardist?”
“Hah!” Yinuo turned at Luci's voice toward what had become Ming Junwei's drunkenly assembled rock band and chuckled before grabbing her loudspeaker again to shout at the restless Vocalist on stage: “Kaiser! Your keyboardist is missing!”
"Ha ha," the Vocalist lunged forward, the iron chain digging deep into her withered chest, her long hair a tangled mess, and her lipless gums appeared even more sinister.
"Sister Qian!" a Militia member jumped onto the second-floor balcony, pointing outside the construction site and shouted, "Two vehicles are coming after us!"
"Get upstairs!" Luci's expression turned serious; she had just witnessed the firepower of their pursuers. Most of the Horde had been drawn into the foundation pit, inadvertently creating an advantage for the enemy. The first-phase residential area was too vast; if they scattered to escape, they would easily be hunted down one by one. The situation was different upstairs, where there were many partitions in the unfinished building. With their own people above, the Zombies would have to exert considerable effort to reach them.
Yinuo understood immediately and opened the loudspeaker again, activating the Walking Dead Tour guide to lead the Zombies that had crossed the partition walls toward Building One.
"Yinuo, did you bring the zip line?" Luci suddenly recalled and asked urgently.
"No," Yinuo replied, taken aback and surprised. "It's too high, and I'd be a sitting duck up there."
"I'm not afraid," Luci said with a sly smile. Hearing gunfire erupting outside the construction site, she hurried up the stairwell to join the Militia members and asked, "What's going on?"
"I can't see clearly; there are more pursuers behind them," a Short-Haired Girl pointed out the window. In front of the construction site gate, two off-road vehicles blocked the entrance, while a group of six muscular men approached with rifles and shotguns. Meanwhile, two remaining guards were hiding behind a vehicle, firing continuously at a Store across the street.
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