Han Yanyan left home with her stomach growling. It wasn’t that she had no food; last night, she went from room to room, trading her ice for some food, and managed to have a decent dinner. But she heard that the squad would provide one meal for the search team, so she kept her breakfast as rations for the road.
It’s said that outside, there’s only one meal a day, and you have to rely on yourself for the rest. In a world full of dangers, those who are full have more strength for battle. Hence, Han Yanyan saved her food for combat rations.
She declined Ding Yao twice, and this time, there was no special treatment. Sun Lijun just waved his hand and pointed to a truck for her. Silently, Han Yanyan climbed into the empty truck.
The courtyard was a scene of hustling chaos yet orderly. Men were carrying backpacks, holding weapons, and boarding vehicles one after another. The truck's rear compartment was in tatters, full of holes. A protective layer of iron bars covered its outside, making it look like a big iron cage with a door.
Han Yanyan sat inside the cage, looking out through the holes in the covering. Her gaze immediately fell on Ding Yao. He wore a black tight-fitting combat suit, clearly outlining his well-defined muscles. His long legs clad in camo pants and combat boots on the ground, the entire aura exuded sharpness. Amidst the crowd, this man had an unusual striking presence.
Someone beside him handed over a tactical vest, which Ding Yao accepted and wore while his eyes suddenly turned toward the truck where Han Yanyan sat. Feeling a chill down her spine, Han Yanyan instinctively moved her body, avoiding the basketball-sized hole and sidestepping his gaze. Once she realized, she looked again, only to see Ding Yao had already walked towards an off-road vehicle, no longer glancing at her. Was it just a coincidence?
The convoy reached the city gate square. The search team members who had been waiting there gathered around promptly. Initially, there was only Han Yanyan and four squad members on the truck, but suddenly half a truckload of people climbed aboard. The hot summer air instantly grew suffocating with stifling odors.
Han Yanyan instinctively shuffled further inside and turned her head. Through the holes in the covering, she could see Ding Yao again. He was in the passenger seat of an off-road vehicle; his window was rolled down, and he flicked ash from a cigarette out of the window with an elegant gesture. Just as Han Yanyan thought this, the man who had previously been only in profile suddenly turned his head, his eyes piercing over like arrows.
Han Yanyan’s breath caught; the man's beast-like alertness was terrifying. She turned her head back.
Ding Yao looked at the truck for a few seconds, then beckoned someone over.
Han Yanyan observed the people who had just gotten on the truck. These were the recruits for the search team that Qi Tongtong mentioned, mostly ordinary folks or those with weak abilities. Yet, they each carried weapons—some had wooden sticks, others had iron rods, and a few even had kitchen knives in their belts.
Han Yanyan couldn’t help but touch the small fruit knife in her pocket. It was all she had, and she had picked it up at a night market. Compared with others' weapons, hers was obviously too small. Once they reached their destination, she needed to find a more suitable weapon...
As she thought this, the truck gave a lurch, and a sturdy youth clambered onto the truck bed, half his body visible. Dressed in a tactical vest, he was clearly a squad member. His eyes scanned around until they found Han Yanyan sitting inside. His eyes lit up. "Hey! You! Yes, you, beautiful lady."
Han Yanyan watched him warily. The young man cheerfully drew a machete from his belt, flipped the handle, and handed it to Han Yanyan. "Here, take this."
It was like giving coal in a snowy winter.
Han Yanyan knew she was heading to a place where her life could be in danger. Without hesitation, she stood up in the midst of envious gazes, accepted the machete, and thanked the young man. The young man grinned widely and jumped off.
Peering out through the truck's holes, Han Yanyan saw him walk to Ding Yao's off-road vehicle, say something to the person in the passenger seat, and then leave. Ding Yao didn’t show his face again, only extending a hand with a cigarette out of the window. Those fingers were long and slender, appearing strong.
Han Yanyan turned her head back, her fingers brushing over the machete’s blade, a small smile forming at the corner of her lips.
Upon lifting her gaze, she realized several people in the truck were staring directly at her.
In this mostly male truck, aside from Han Yanyan, there was only a stout woman. Her complexion was sallow, and upon closer inspection, one would find her "stoutness" only due to her large frame as she was actually quite lean.
In contrast, Han Yanyan's youth and beauty, her skin so tender it seemed water could be squeezed out of it, made her visually striking. Yet, only a few squad members glanced at her when they boarded, then they all tacitly avoided looking at her further. The newcomers, however, seemed utterly unfazed by her beauty.
In reality, they weren’t staring at her face, but rather at that machete.
It was clearly a fine weapon.
In a world plagued by zombies, a good weapon might mean the difference between life and death.
These people couldn’t care less about Han Yanyan’s beauty; hunger and warmth need to be met before lustful desires. They were struggling below the line of basic survival and had no extra energy for needs beyond mere sustenance. What they cared about now was grasping a little more hope of surviving.
Squad members were all wearing uniform tactical vests, and Han Yanyan, by all appearances, was just like them—a search party member. Yet she looked not only petite but also fragile. Some eyes in the truck gleamed with a sinister light; some began to grow restless.
Han Yanyan bet that if those squad members weren’t on the truck with her, someone would’ve already gotten up to snatch her knife.
This world was truly different from the one she had once inhabited.
Han Yanyan had heard that the Thunder Strike Squad would provide search team members with one meal a day. That "one meal" was actually just a steamed bun.
Within the base where the Thunder Strike Squad was stationed, former gardens had turned into wheat fields, and former fountains into rice paddies. Those crops were not naturally grown but tended by wood-element ability users. Han Yanyan had heard from Qi Tongtong that those wood users were quite extraordinary, capable of harvesting wheat and rice once every week. Thus, Qi Tongtong and others usually ate rice and buns, while men additionally got treats like biscuits or beef jerky, which they saved as currency or trade goods.
After distributing a steamed bun to everyone, the convoy set off.
Han Yanyan had been starving all morning, and she bit into the bun as soon as she got it. Upon looking up, she realized no one else was eating.
“It’ll take a few hours on the road; better save it ‘til we’re closer…” A haggard-looking middle-aged man said softly from across her.
Only then did Han Yanyan understand. She thanked him and took a couple more bites to fill her stomach a bit, storing the rest of the bun back into her backpack.
The vehicles rumbled out of the city gates. These gates were added later on; the ancient city walls used to be mere tourist attractions and long lost their original purpose, naturally lacking gates. After the zombie outbreak, survivors retreated into the Old City District, relying on the old city walls for survival, and thus gates were reinstalled, breathing new life into the ancient walls.
Although Han Yanyan’s mind was filled with information about this world, those details felt flat compared to witnessing everything firsthand. From the moment they left the gates, she peered through the truck’s gaps to observe.
Outside the city still lay Nanling City, appearing more modernized than the old city district with many high-rise buildings. But now, they all stood dilapidated, clearly devoid of life. Shops along the roads had open doors, or their windows were smashed; peeking inside, they were empty, evidently swept clean long ago.
Occasionally, a person or two, scavengers, could be spotted. Essentially, the so-called search teams were nothing more than groups of scavengers.
But Han Yanyan hadn’t seen any zombies yet.
Of all things upon arriving in the apocalypse, she was most eager to see superhumans and zombies.
Coincidentally, right before she unexpectedly had a car accident and was sent to this strange world, she was preparing to write a post-apocalyptic novel with zombies. Living in the suburbs, she had gone to the VR center in the city that day, watched a VR zombie movie, and played a VR zombie shooting game to gather inspiration for her story. Who would’ve thought that on her way back, a mysterious white light from the sky would transport her into this frustrating crossover world, as “Han Yanyan”?
She had already encountered superhumans, but now she wanted to see zombies. Yet outside the city gates, they journeyed on, and apart from the occasional scavenger, there were no zombies in sight. Though, in all fairness, the apocalypse had already been swept through almost the entire Nanling City.
Finally, like the others, Han Yanyan closed her eyes to rest. Getting up too early, she soon fell asleep.
A sudden unusual noise jerked her awake. Her heart seized, her body sprang to consciousness; this sudden awakening was commonly known as "being startled awake." It left her mind and heart feeling uneasy.
Enduring the discomfort, Han Yanyan asked, “What’s that sound?”
The person next to her gave a strange glance and said, “Huh?”
Han Yanyan pressed on, “What’s making that noise?” It was weird, a sound unlike any human or animal.
The occupants of the truck gave her the look reserved for a fool.
It dawned on Han Yanyan. She whipped her head around, looking outside through the truck's gaps. Decaying bodies, moving awkwardly—the zombies were chasing after the convoy. Han Yanyan held her breath.
She had finally laid eyes on actual zombies! This world truly wasn’t the one she had lived in!
It was a zombie apocalypse, just like in the novels.
These zombies were ordinary ones, shuffling with speeds comparable to or slower than humans, unable to catch up to the convoy. The convoy showed no intention of stopping for them and passed through several town-like places without pausing, except to allow short breaks for bathroom needs and stretching.
Though the search party included a few women, Han Yanyan stood out strikingly as the only young and beautiful one.
Taking heed of others' advice, she didn't devour the entire bun at once, instead nibbling only when hunger became unbearable. As soon as they returned to the truck, a squad member called out to those by some trucks, “Eat up now; in about an hour, we’ll reach Yihai.”
Han Yanyan pulled out the remaining small piece of the bun, nibbling while gazing outside. Just as she took a bite, a zombie emerged from behind a bush, lunging towards the nearest person. Han Yanyan's pupils contracted sharply.
Surprisingly, no one screamed or panicked. The person closest to the zombie merely dodged awkwardly from the sudden attack. Nearby individuals easily kicked the clumsy undead to the ground, quickly smashing its skull with an iron rod to fully end its "life."
Even the squad members didn’t step in. It was swiftly dealt with, as if it was nothing unusual.
Han Yanyan continued to gnaw on her cold bun. She was grateful she had a bite in her mouth when it happened; otherwise, she really couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t have screamed. Watching movies and playing VR couldn’t fully prepare her; when faced with real zombies, instinctual fear took over her mind.
This wouldn't do.
They still had a few minutes before departure when Han Yanyan unexpectedly stowed her bun away, jumped off the truck, drew her machete, and hacked at the fallen zombie's head!
Others looked at her as if she were strange. The zombie was already dead; what was the point of cutting it further?
Han Yanyan ignored their stares, forced herself to endure the disgust, and thoroughly smashed the already pulverized head. She hacked off the neck too and struck various other parts of its body, scrubbing the blade clean in the grass afterward before climbing back into the truck.
Ding Yao was with a few men smoking nearby.
Someone cursed, “What’s up with that woman? Gone mad?”
Ding Yao sat atop a barrier, fiddling with a lighter. He cast a glance that way and said, “Getting a feel for it.”
“Huh?”
Ding Yao didn’t bother explaining further, packing away the lighter as he stood up. “Line up, we’re moving out.”
The convoy set off again. By the time they reached Yihai City, it was already afternoon.
The vehicles drove into Yihai City, and from every corner, zombies poured out, chasing after them, gradually gathering in a large group behind the convoy.
Han Yanyan had practiced on the road with dead zombies, finding some confidence and overcoming her nausea—her adaptability was quite remarkable. Yet seeing the undead trailing en masse after the truck, the stench of decay seemed to assault her nose, making her shiver uncontrollably, breath becoming heavy.
White-knuckled, she gripped her machete, only to find that the squad members in the truck remained unfazed. Although the search team appeared tense, they weren’t panicked. Did they have some preparations or backup she didn’t know about?
That’s when a purplish electric grid materialized between the trailer of the last truck and the zombie horde, advancing forward in a crackling blaze...
Han Yanyan’s mind wandered to the laser grid from the movie "Resident Evil," that swiftly diced its victims inside a chamber.
Disembarking the truck, Han Yanyan stood at the rear, dazedly looking at the nearly hundred-meter-long pile of zombie parts on the road, her nostrils even caught a whiff similar to roasted meat.
What she had just witnessed left her speechless, her brain echoing with just two words—
Incredible!