Chapter 8: Refusing to Help!

The middle-aged man was undeniably tough. He might have been a soldier or practiced boxing or martial arts when he was younger. Withjust a baseball bat, he fought his way down from the 16th to the 8th floor. Along the way, two more families joined them – two men, two women, and a child. The men, one bald and around fifty, the other younger with short hair, looked well-mannered; the former seemed like a government official, the latter like a corporate manager. The women maintained their elegance even in this apocalypse, and the ten-year-oldboy, dressed in branded sportswear, trembled behind his mother.

Though the bald and short-haired men held screwdrivers and kitchen knives, they were too afraid to get close to the zombies. Such short weapons were practically useless against the undead. The situation didn't improve with the increased number of people; it actuallymade the middle-aged man less agile due to the additional burden.

Cursing under his breath, the middle-aged man struggled. The increasing noise from below indicated more zombies were approaching,possibly even from adjacent buildings. He regretted his earlier outburst that had attracted more zombies.

Tang Ying, watching from above, saw the zombies about to pounce on the artist and the two women. She urged me, "Let's go help them!"

Help them? I was certain zombies wouldn't bite me, but why shouldI rescue others? I wasn't a saint or a bodhisattva, with no obligation to save anyone. If not for Tang Ying's beauty, I wouldn't have cared for her either. Rescuing those people would be a burden, and the middle-aged man looked too strong to challenge for leadership. Besides, I couldn't risk Tang Ying being attracted to the handsome artist or taken by the middle-aged man.

After a while, seeing my unresponsive expression, Tang Ying realized I had no intention of helping. I suddenly smiled and admitted,"Yes, I'm selfish. I don't want to risk my life for them." It was better to show her my 'true face' now than to cause trouble later.

While we were talking, the artist got bitten. Seeing the situation worsen, the middle-aged man ran upstairs, abandoning the two familieswho were immediately overwhelmed by zombies. "Save us!" the bald man cried out, but the middle-aged man didn't look back, focused only on reaching his room. The two women, trying to help their husbands, were also brought down by the zombies. The makeshift survival team was annihilated before they could even escape the building, serving as a meal for the zombies.