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墨書 Inktalez
In less than twenty minutes, perhaps only eleven or twelve, Liu Hao shyly emerged with his head lowered, moving at a speed that could only be described as turtle-like.
Once Liu Hao completely stepped out, Zheng Yifan noticed the silent Bai Shuying behind him, her face flushed and following Liu Hao like a bird.
"I have fulfilled my promise; what about yours?" Liu Hao asked, glancing back at Bai Shuying, whose blush had yet to fade. After two years of pretending to be a virtuous man, the wicked fire within Liu Hao finally dissipated. He felt refreshed, as if his entire worldview had been shattered in that moment. No longer was he the man who pursued true love and ideals while silently giving of himself. Instead, he had truly broken free from everything, seeing the essence of the apocalypse and the nature of women clearly—just like Bai Shuying now. There was no madness, no resistance, no textbook-like determination to face death; only a sense of dependency. A feeling of conquest that he had never experienced before lingered around Liu Hao, surpassing everything else.
Liu Hao looked at the shattered tiles and knelt down hard. He pulled a dagger from his pocket and slowly drew it across his palm.
"I swear by my ancestors' names that for the rest of my life, I will follow Leader Zheng Yifan, clearing all obstacles for you..."
Zheng Yifan nodded and gestured for Liu Hao to rise. Turning to the remaining thirty-two women, he said, "Let them all follow us; their good days are over."
The panicked women had no ability to resist and could only gather their belongings—items that Liu Hao had provided for them over the past two years.
The group slowly made their way down the corridor. They did not use any special equipment to glide through the air; Liu Hao could only take them one by one to the upper floors before gradually transporting them.
Under Zheng Yifan's strict orders, the women followed behind with tears in their eyes, not daring to utter a single word.
They needed to start adapting to the reality of the apocalypse. These women would truly become Liu Hao's women, including Bai Shuying.
Their survival depended entirely on Liu Hao. In the future, obtaining food would require pleasing him to secure their right to live.
Since they lacked the ability to procure food themselves, they would let Liu Hao do everything for them.
However, nothing came for free; it was all an equal exchange. Liu Hao would provide them with food and opportunities to survive in return for a warm home. Otherwise, survival in this apocalypse would be impossible.
As they walked through the corridor, Zheng Yifan carefully examined what they were carrying; the large bags were astonishing.
Those belongings had become a burden for Zheng Yifan and his group. They were in an area swarming with zombies—not out in the wilderness—and they still needed to escape through a zombie-infested perimeter from above. There was absolutely no way they could carry so much with them.
Liu Hao stood at the front, still the same Liu Hao, but the feeling he gave them was completely different. It was as if he had transformed into another person, no longer the cheerful figure they once knew, but a dangerous lone wolf. The look in his eyes instilled fear in them.
The women's luggage had become a burden. The large bags were impossible to fly with and could even attract Zombies.
"Now! Throw all of that away, or you can stay behind. No one will accommodate you anymore, and no one will continue to feed you gluttonous pigs. You will become food for the Zombies or starve," Zheng Yifan's words blew away any thoughts of rebellion like a chilling winter wind.
The sudden change left them feeling very uncomfortable.
The girls sobbed as they discarded their belongings one by one, watching each item that belonged to them fall to the ground with reluctance. Those luxurious clothes had been bought from high-end stores in the Post-Apocalypse.
The diamond jewelry and jade were all acquired from the Jewel City.
Everything was of the finest quality; in the Post-Apocalypse, they were worth a fortune.
Under pressure from the girls, Liu Hao had even sneaked into the wealthy districts on the outskirts to search for priceless jewels.
He had even pried open safes and visited numerous banks to save up these treasures for them.
But now, Zheng Yifan demanded that they all give it up. The girls' faces turned pale, yet seeing Zheng Yifan, who resembled a fierce tiger, and Liu Hao, like a wolf, they obediently tossed everything onto the ground. This included Bai Shuying, who looked at Liu Hao, hoping he would help her bear the burden. However, Liu Hao completely ignored her because Zheng Yifan's orders applied to everyone. If Bai Shuying willingly followed him, he would naturally help her. But since Bai Shuying was forced upon him by Zheng Yifan, he fully complied with her commands. Zheng Yifan had made his dreams come true but also shattered his past fantasies and ideals about goddesses, completely altering his worldview and values.
They began to slowly move away from the skyscrapers, their bodies drifting through the air towards the Telecom Building Gathering Place.
Carrying individuals away was time-consuming; it took over two hours before Zheng Yifan finally spotted the Telecom Building.
The girls flying through the air shouted in astonishment, attracting quite a few Zombies. However, they were safe from attack while airborne and quickly reached the base of the Telecom Building.
Now, the Telecom Building was almost peaceful; the entire structure was filled with the aroma of food. This was Zheng Yifan's last command before leaving—to provide some Relief Food for those on the brink of starvation. They needed to be credited to receive this Relief Food.
Relief Food was meant to help the Survivors stay alive, but they needed to collect Essence Fruit to repay their debts. Of course, they could flee to other Gathering Places, but they would be blacklisted by the Telecom Building and would no longer be able to sell their Essence Fruit there.
For them, this was simply not worth the risk; they only needed zero Essence Fruit to repay the food they had borrowed.
Though the amount was small, it was life-saving food.
"Go in. You will see the true scene of the apocalypse, not two years ago, not that world still holding onto humanity. There is no kindness here, only the true Jungle Law," Zheng Yifan gestured for them to enter.
Inside lay the real Death Zone, devoid of sympathy.
The girls lowered their heads as they stepped into what appeared to be the territory of demons. The moment the first foot crossed the threshold, they felt a distinctly different atmosphere. The entire hall was filled with a bloody stench, and as they ventured further inside, they were nearly brought to tears by what they saw.
The first floor of the Telecom Building was where genuine refugees resided. Large pots stood in the center of the room, simmering fragrant Rice Porridge. No one maintained order because those refugees could barely move. The simplest Rice Porridge lacked vegetables and certainly meat; this meager mixture of water and rice was all that kept them alive.
Weight? Very few people here weighed over 100 pounds, including men. Their bodies were little more than skin and bones. Zheng Yifan looked at them with no trace of pity in his eyes. Those horrors were created by Xu Jie; Zheng Yifan's mission was to give humanity hope and ensure safety in the Gathering Place.
Liu Hao's expression showed no change; he had seen worse situations countless times—scenarios a hundred times more terrifying—and had even participated in them. Where did the food for those young girls come from? Most of it was snatched from people's mouths, often from Paupers—the last rations of Survivors who might even die for that morsel.
"Oh!" The girls gasped, covering their mouths in shock. They had never imagined that the outside world was like this; in their idyllic fantasies, they envisioned humans battling Zombies with firearms.
Just like in Resident Evil.
Yes, just like that old classic film depicted—humans trapped in a city under siege while troops and officials dispatched rescue teams to eliminate all Zombies.
They only needed to wait a few more months before returning home to live happily with their families.
But today, their self-deception had come to an end. Everyone in the Gathering Place learned from Zheng Yifan about the near-total collapse of their world. As an outsider, he brought shocking news that extinguished the last flicker of hope for those still clinging to delusions.
"Hey! Your porridge!" A staff member at the noodle shop kicked a girl lying on the ground. Without a hint of compassion, his foot struck her chest.
"Ah!" The girl let out a choked sound, struggling to breathe, but instead of crying out in pain, she fixed her gaze on the bowl of rice porridge in his hands.
"What a lucky fellow," he said, glancing at the rice porridge with a hint of disdain. "We've already dragged out dozens of dead dogs today. Even if there’s food, they won’t survive; it’s just a waste of resources." Finally, gritting his teeth, he squatted down and began to feed the girl spoonfuls of porridge.
"Hey! Look, this world is still full of love," Bai Shuying continued to teach her students about unity and kindness from behind.
"No! You can go ask for yourself, but I fear the answer will disappoint you," Zheng Yifan replied coldly to Bai Shuying.
Bai Shuying glanced back at Zheng Yifan, feeling intimidated as she lowered her head. After a moment's hesitation, she decided to go ask anyway.
The answer she received was destined to leave her unsatisfied and offered no comfort to her heart that longed for love even in the apocalypse.
Just one sentence. Cold and chilling.
"I’ve wanted to drink this treasure for a long time, but unfortunately, someone is watching over me. If I dare make even the slightest move that doesn’t meet their standards, they’ll definitely take me out."
With that, the staff member walked over to the next survivor. He had no illusions about being able to indulge this young lady; clearly, the food that looked so appealing would soon run out. He couldn’t afford to keep such a canary; all he could do was use his meager salary to look for a bus and play around with it. (To be continued...)
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