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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Ninety-Three: The Aftermath, Death, and Rebirth
"Ahhh!!"
With blood-stained teeth, the creature bit down hard on Pan Luo's wrist, twisting its neck to tear away a chunk of flesh.
The young girl let out a piercing scream of agony as she forcefully pulled her wrist free from the Zombie's grip. With her other hand, she yanked out the axe embedded in its skull and brought it down mercilessly into the Zombie's brain.
Pan Luo felt as if all her strength had been drained from her body. Trembling, she raised her right arm; the bite marks on her wrist were still fresh, tendons and blood vessels torn apart, and the wound bled profusely.
The scent of blood attracted more Zombies. Those gnawing on nearby corpses staggered to their feet, instinctively baring their teeth at Pan Luo.
Pan Luo stared blankly at her injured wrist. Aside from the intense pain, her mind was a void.
The Zombies stumbled closer, but before they could reach Pan Luo, a flash of steel cut through the air behind her, and several headless corpses fell to the ground.
Jin Bo flicked the blood off his blade and pulled Pan Luo towards Song Yao. "Get her inside."
Song Yao tore a long strip of cloth from her vest and wrapped it around Pan Luo's bleeding wrist, supporting her as they rushed into a nearby room.
Inside the room were five or six women, still shaken from the chaos. They were moving furniture to block the entrance. When they saw Song Yao enter with a blood-soaked girl, they quickly blocked her path.
"What happened to her? Was she bitten?" A curly-haired middle-aged woman stood at the entrance while the others gripped makeshift weapons—sticks, knives, and axes—watching the two with wary eyes. Occasionally, a Zombie would poke its head in, only to be met with shouts and strikes from the women, reducing it to a puddle of gore.
"She needs bandaging," Song Yao said urgently, pushing past the woman's blocking arm and helping Pan Luo sit on a mattress.
The Curly-Haired Woman grabbed Song Yao's arm tightly, frowning deeply. "She was bitten; she can't come in."
"She's not dead yet, let go." Song Yao's face turned cold as she shook the woman off her shoulder. Pan Luo's lips began to turn pale, and a faint bruise appeared under her eyes, stark against her pale face.
A few women exchanged glances, unsure of what to do.
Song Yao pulled open a drawer and rummaged through it until she found a towel. Carefully, she tore off the cloth that was stuck to the wound and pressed the towel against it. The wound was deep, biting into the upper part of her wrist. Song Yao couldn't tell if it had hit an artery; the blue-patterned towel was instantly soaked with blood.
"Sister Yao, I'm going to die." Pan Luo suddenly called out to her in a low voice, murmuring, "I'm scared."
"Don't be afraid, I'm here." Song Yao hugged the young girl, pressing her pale face against her chest and gently patting her thin back.
Several women blocked the doorway, while outside, a Zombie caught the scent of blood and was violently crashing against the wooden cabinet blocking the entrance. The women braced their backs against the cabinet, their faces reflecting a sense of impending doom.
"She can't stay here; she'll attract the Zombies." The Curly-Haired Woman sighed and reached out to pull Pan Luo away.
Song Yao opened her hand and shielded Pan Luo behind her, speaking in a low voice, "Who dares to touch her?"
"What do you think this place is? You reckless little girl." Another woman stepped forward with a wooden stick, pointing at Song Yao and scolding her. "Letting you in is already generous enough. That girl won't last long; do you want us all to die with her?"
"She's not dead." With nothing on her but determination, Song Yao clenched her fists and took a step forward. "No one is allowed to touch her."
Bang! Bang!
The cabinet shook violently several times before the two women holding it up lost their strength and fell to the ground. The cabinet toppled over as Jin Bo jumped in with a knife in hand.
"Ah!" The woman with the stick exclaimed upon seeing him and quickly clung to Jin Bo's arm. "Little Gold, you have to get this girl out of here; that girl is dying!"
Jin Bo glanced at her without saying a word and ran to kick open the wooden board blocking the side passage. Turning back, he said, "Get inside quickly; the smell of blood will attract the Zombies. You all hide here for a while; I’ll go find Jiang He."
Song Yao nodded silently and helped Pan Luo into the abandoned cave. The other women exchanged glances, standing still without moving.
Jin Bo swung his knife, taking down a Zombie that had crawled over a wooden cabinet. Before heading out, he turned back and said, "Don't provoke those two girls." With that, he plunged back into the Horde.
The women rebuilt the barricade at the cave entrance, whispering among themselves before running to the back of the cave to prop up a wooden board, sealing off the entrance.
The panicked crowd had drawn away some of the Zombies, while the remaining ones began their feast in Cave Number Four.
In the chaos, Jiang He and Chao Yifan found themselves back to back. Armed with a Great Knife and a machete, they fought their way through, relying on each other to carve a bloody path. They charged into an archway filled with severed limbs and blood, where several Zombies were cornering a middle-aged man who was desperately holding a square table against his chest. The Zombies surged forward, clawing at him as they tried to pull him away from the table.
The man struggled fiercely, but before he could rise, mouths dripping with various fluids had already latched onto him.
The two young men dragged a long table and mattress from inside to block the entrance. Jiang He and Chao Yifan moved forward with their knives, dispatching several Zombies from behind.
The man on the ground was covered in blood—his neck, abdomen, and thighs were torn and mangled. Blood flowed from his mouth and nose as he saw Jiang He and Chao Yifan. He raised his hand with great effort, pointing toward the square table in the corner.
The two young men blocking the entrance rushed over. Upon seeing the man lying in a pool of blood, they exclaimed in shock, "Old Wry Uncle!"
Jiang He and Chao Yifan didn't know who he was but approached the table to find an emaciated old man slumped against it, his eyelids drooping as he struggled to breathe.
"Damn," Chao Yifan muttered as he wiped his bald head. "This guy is the boss around here; I gave him a cut." He pointed at the blood-soaked area around the man's waist. "Didn’t expect him to still be alive."
"He won't last long," Jiang He said as he picked up a piece of cloth to wipe the blood from his face. "Let’s leave him for now." He then called over the two young men: "He's your guy."
The two young men were about the same age—lean youths in their early twenties—who had previously been fighting off Zombies alongside Jin Zhong and Jin Bo. When the Zombies charged into the corridor, they had scattered everyone. In the midst of battle, they hadn't found Jin Zhong or Jin Bo but had instead run into Jiang He and Chao Yifan.
Having established a temporary truce during their recent fight together, no matter what their true feelings were inside, they maintained a semblance of cooperation on the surface. The two young men helped their Uncle Two to his feet and poured some leftover tea from the table into Zheng Er's mouth.
The two leaned against the mattress, breathless and silent. No matter how dangerous their previous situations had been, their main task had always been to escape. Today, for the first time, they found themselves in the midst of chaos, and standing here unharmed felt like a miracle.
"I wonder how they are doing," Jiang He said as he peered through a crack in the door, glancing outside where the slaughter was nearing its end.
From the initial chaos to the subsequent flight, it had only been about five minutes. More than half of the crowd had perished in the initial turmoil. While Jiang He and his companions fought desperately, the other half regained their senses. Some took advantage of the confusion to escape through Tunnel 4, while others dove into nearby living quarters, clearing out the Zombies inside and barricading the entrances.
This was undoubtedly the most effective and simplest method. Just a moment ago, those who had been waiting in despair suddenly saw a glimmer of hope for survival. The instinct to live ignited boundless strength within them; women picked up weapons and clenched their fists, joining the fray against the relentless Zombies.
One entrance after another was blocked. Some were successfully sealed off, while others were breached by Zombies. The number of survivors outside dwindled, leaving only Zombies howling at the entrance and a gruesome corridor stretching over a hundred meters.
The corpses of Zombies dominated the scene, while the blood of the living stained everything red.
The stench of blood in Tunnel 4 was exceptionally strong; even through the barricades, one could catch whiffs of its metallic scent. Fresh blood flowed through cracks into the archway, forming winding lines of red that merged with pools of blood inside.
Jiang He rubbed his eyes and withdrew his gaze.
Everywhere was drenched in blood, littered with corpses. Flickering orange flames cast shadows that darkened the bloodstains, making the entire corridor seem even more desolate.
Occasional low moans echoed through the passage; some who had not died instantly lay on the ground, feeling life ebb away with their blood. The light before their eyes grew increasingly hazy until it finally faded into darkness.
Not everyone had managed to escape; many who had squeezed into the archway were not spared either. After all, the Zombies inside were not just waiting for them like housemaids.
There were ten archways along both sides of the corridor, but only four entrances were blocked with debris, keeping Zombies at bay.
After a brief silence, footsteps echoed from within the archway. The Zombies heard the commotion and abandoned their meal behind them, howling as they pursued.
"Let's finish this quickly," Chao Yifan said as he stretched his sore wrist and lifted his Great Knife, ready to head out.
The thought was not unique to Chao Yifan. As the wooden cabinet in front of the tunnel was pushed over, it toppled onto several Zombies, and Jin Bo along with two young men jumped out, weapons in hand, charging into the fray once more, unleashing a storm of bloodshed.
"Damn it, is this kid made of iron?" Even Chao Yifan, with his temperament, was left speechless after witnessing Jin Bo's combat prowess. He had seen Jin Bo's achievements firsthand—from single-handedly battling the Horde at Tunnel One to fighting fiercely at Tunnel Three, and now here he was, cutting down foes left and right. A normal person would probably struggle to even lift a knife under such circumstances.
"Great skill breeds great courage," Jiang He mused quietly. They were all wielding their knives in desperation; their approach was rudimentary—aiming for the head when there were few Zombies and wildly slashing when there were many, lacking any real strategy. In contrast, Jin Bo, despite being covered in blood and grime, moved with a fluid grace and agility that put those so-called martial arts heroes to shame.
"Shit." Chao Yifan was thoroughly impressed, but being impressed didn’t mean he would back down. Just as the Zombies at the tunnel entrance were distracted, he dragged his Great Knife and leaped out, cracking his neck before diving into the battle.
"Only Liang Bao can go toe-to-toe with him; the rest of us are no match," one of the young men reassured Zheng Er while they crouched in a gap, watching Jin Bo's performance with keen interest.
"Who is Liang Bao?" Jiang He asked after observing for a while. Aside from Jin Bo, everyone else seemed to follow similar tactics—some even less effective than Chao Yifan.
"Haven't seen him; not sure where he went," replied the young man on the left as he stroked his chin. "What about your people? Is it just you two?"
"Not sure," Jiang He said quietly, feeling a pang of sadness as he hoisted his axe and crawled out.
With few Zombies remaining, several young men emerged from the tunnels, gathering their strength to form a defensive line as they fought back against the dwindling horde.
The last frenzied Zombie was cleaved in two by Chao Yifan's Great Cleaver, its innards spilling everywhere. The group of young men finally could not hold on any longer; their weapons clattered to the ground as they collapsed onto the earth, exhausted and overwhelmed by the carnage.
As debris at the tunnel entrance was pushed aside, those who had survived cautiously poked their heads out to survey their surroundings. Some rushed out joyfully, some turned away to vomit, while others wept openly as they fell upon the bodies lying in pools of blood.
Jiang He craned his neck to look around; Xiaomi and Xiao Wei were safe and sound. They helped lift Chao Yifan, who was panting heavily on the ground. Those who could walk from inside had come out; there weren’t many left—no sign of Song Yao, Pan Luo, or Ming Junwei.
Jiang He felt dazed as he scanned left and right again, ensuring he hadn’t missed anyone.
From an unblocked tunnel emerged two figures: Jin Zhong and another young man.
"Diverted them all into the abandoned cave." Jin Zhong wiped the blood from his face and exchanged a slap with Jin Bo.
"You drew the Zombie away just now?" Chao Yifan glanced at him, managing a weak smile. "You guys are pretty ruthless; it's all so damn eerie."
"You’re not so bad yourself, swinging that big knife for so long," Jin Zhong grinned, throwing him a friendly look.
Jin Bo strode over and grabbed the bewildered Jiang He. "Stop looking around; I'll take you there."
"Huh?"
"I hid your girlfriend and sister in the abandoned cave," Jin Bo panted, his expression tinged with regret. "Your sister got bitten, and I couldn't find that other guy."
Chao Yifan and the others gathered around, their faces falling upon hearing that Pan Luo had been bitten.
"Brother Ming is also in the cave; I'm going to find him," Chao Yifan nodded to the others before quickly running into an archway.
Jin Bo led Jiang He and the others into the archway where Song Yao was hiding. The women inside hadn’t ventured out; they couldn’t bear the bloody scene outside and were huddled in the cave, crying for their men or children.
Suddenly, a wooden board at the back of the passage crashed down, and Song Yao emerged, cradling Pan Luo in her arms, her face smeared with blood and streaked with tears.
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