A Violent Kill

Lin Shiyu snorted lightly. "You must've been conned, my dear brother. When your supposed end of the world doesn't happen in hours, you'll have to remember this lesson, okay?"

"Okay." Lin Chao gave up explaining and returned to his room, in anticipation of doomsday to come.

With the rate the virus spreads at, it would reach every corner of the city in a blink of eyes. There was no time for anyone to react. The city would enter a state of chaos, all the lights would eventually lose their colors, and it would become a cold, dark, place of ruin forever!

Hopefully, this body of mine is strong enough and won't be infected… Lin Chao prayed in his heart.

The earliest victims were mostly elders and children, as well as youths who were already sick or had been weak since birth. Ninety percent of healthy young people would be immune to the virus in the air. After all, it would be globally present, diluting the virus's concentration significantly. The human antibody was sufficient to fight the watered-down version of the virus until it got used to it.

The clock's ticking hands moved slowly.

"Ah!"

A terrified scream broke from the residential area.

Lin Chao opened his eyes. Realizing that there was nothing wrong with his body, he heaved a sigh of relief and looked down from his window.

There was a middle-aged woman who was walking her dog in the estate but the usually gentle poodle suddenly turned red in its eyes, its fur standing straight like spikes before it pounced toward the woman while howling. Her arms were spread wide for the poodle, thinking that the dog was playing around with her but she quickly discovered with fear that her pet had sunken its teeth into her throat!

Sharp heated teeth punctured the woman's throat as she felt warm liquid slide down her neck and shoulders. Her eyes widened in petrification and disbelief at the pet in her embrace.

Pop!

The woman's throat was torn apart, her head falling off like a ball. Blood sprayed from her neck and splattered everywhere, adding a wash of crimson to the nightfall.

Similar scenes happened in several areas around the residential estate. A young lady who was pushing a pram was seen pouncing and gnawing at male security at the doors. She was unusually strong as she held the male security guard on the floor no matter how he struggled until he was bitten to death.

The baby in her pram looked sinister; with veins popping up all over its face and sharp fangs growing from the sides of its mouth as it slowly crawled out of the pram...

A mess – the world was in a total mess!

Lin Chao was expecting it. Taking another glance at the commotion in the residential area, he then shut the windows tightly and drew the curtains close to conceal the lights so the zombies would not be attracted by them.

Hearing the shrieks and cries, Lin Shiyu ran over frantically and asked, "What's going on outside?"

Lin Chao was immediately relieved when he saw that she was not infected by the virus. He replied as he pulled a corner of the curtain up, "Look."

Lin Shiyu was stunned with just one peek.

Their residential estate was in pandemonium. People were desperately trying to hide. Those chasing after them were mostly old people who had been taking their night strolls or children who had been playing on the field. It was as if they had gone crazy at this moment, biting anyone they saw. They looked terrifying with eyes that turned white without pupils and faces that were covered in tiny bumps like a toad, it was a sign of overloaded toxin that could not be eliminated.

Cars collided with one another on the road as tires burned due to sparks from the explosions. Everyone was fleeing in distress. Screams, cries, shouts, and growls — they were everywhere.

"Wh-what is happening?" Lin Shiyu was dumbfounded.

Lin Chao sighed softly. "The doomsday that I mentioned is here. These people are infected by the virus and have turned into man-eating zombies. We've got to fight them in the future to keep surviving!"

"The same thing is happening everywhere in the world?" Lin Shiyu looked pale.

Lin Chao nodded. "Call an overseas number if you don't believe me."

Lin Shiyu did not try. She already believed his words subconsciously. Doubtfully, she asked, "Lil Chao, how do you know about this?"

"Uh, it's a long story…" Lin Chao answered with a cough.

Dong, dong, dong!

The door was suddenly pounded at so strongly, it was as if it was about to crack.

Lin Shiyu stepped back unknowingly in nervousness. "It's so loud. It shouldn't be our neighbor. Could it be…"

A frown knitted itself on Lin Chao's forehead. He did not seal the gap between the door and the floor with some cloth and caused the smell-sensitive zombies to sense traces of humans here.

Holding the steel bar, Lin Chao went close to the door and simultaneously, louder, more aggressive door rappings and low growls sounded. It was as if the thing outside smelled the blood on him.

The color drained from Lin Shiyu's face. "Wh–what are you going to do?"

Lin Chao looked serious. Peering from the peephole, a fierce festering face was in sight. Its bloody mouth was evidence that it had just bitten someone.

Seeing that there was no other zombies around, Lin Chao relaxed a little. He pushed the coffee table in front of the couch to the back of the door and placed it against the wall. Then, he gripped the steel bar and gently unlocked the door.

Roar!

As the hinge unlocked, the anti-theft door was flung harshly against the coffee table. The strong force pushed the table that was one meter by length and half a meter by width a few feet back, its momentum only stopping upon meeting the wall.

The hideous zombie charged over, growling with saliva dripping down its sharp canine teeth. Just as it was about to pounce at Lin Chao, it fell! Its legs were tripped by the coffee table!

Lin Chao knew that the zombies during the early stage did not possess much intelligence. They were similar to babies, only having the instinct to feed. This was what he leveraged on.

When the zombie tripped, Lin Chao raised the steel bar in his grasp instantly to land it hard and fast on its head.

Pow! Pow! Pow!

One heavy strike was dealt after another. The zombie struggled to get up several times but each time its head was raised, Lin Chao's blow hurled it towards the coffee table. The glass surface shattered, bloodying the zombie's forehead from the shards of broken glass that stuck to it.

Roar!

The zombie knew no pain. Its arms flailed to grab anything, catching Lin Chao's thighs accidentally. The powerful might shook Lin Chao for a bit, urging him to throw the steel bar faster.

With a bang, the zombie's head was crushed. Blood and brain, red and white, spilled over the floor, splattering against the greyish brown wooden surface.

Once the head was mangled, the zombie finally stopped moving.

Lin Chao wrapped his palm with a black trash bag before searching around the zombie's chest. His effort in vain, he withdrew his hand rather disappointedly and threw the corpse outside the door. Scooping up the brain that was spilled on the coffee table, he discarded those along with the corpse.

Completing the steps, Lin Chap relocked the door and sealed the gap with some rags to prevent other roaming zombies from catching their scent.

"That – that looked like Uncle Zhang from next door. How did he turn into this? He was like the zombies in movies. It's horrible…" Lin Shiyu uttered despite her fright after seeing the door was locked again.

Zombies?

Lin Chao was amused. The old times were a fun time. People would imagine random strange things, like science fiction movies, where the plots were shockingly similar to the current reality with a mysterious virus that caused the end of the world.

The only difference was that the zombies in the movies were too weak and were like toys. They were slow, could not evolve, and did not have much intelligence either. They were only scary because of their exaggerated makeup. If one could overlook the external monstrosity, they could be easily killed.

Reality was much crueler.

These actual zombies had speed and strength that were three times that of a normal human being. Their bodily systems were incapacitated but the virus was akin to a stimulant that enhanced their skeleton and muscles. A normal human being who was attacked would not be able to escape their grip at all, only being able to surrender to the final destination that was them being mauled to death.

This was only the early stage. After some time, the virus in the zombies would undergo a second transformation. Their strength would be significantly enhanced while certain special zombies would gain a low level of intelligence. Not only would they later be able to run and jump, but they would also be able to avoid obstacles and more. Zombies with and without intelligence significantly contrasted one another!

"Why aren't we infected?" Lin Shiyu asked in surprise suddenly thinking about it.

Lin Chao answered with a smile. "Those infected are mostly old people and children. Common youths have stronger immune system so they won't be infected."

"Oh…" Lin Shiyu realized. "My immune system is much stronger after being affected by that experiment back then, almost never catching a cold or falling ill. Although my physical self is a child's, my immune system is similar to an adult's."

Lin Chao was relieved after listening to her elaboration.

"What are we going to do now? Do we wait for the army to save us?" Lin Shiyu could not help asking.

Lin Chao shook his head. The army was still a mighty presence during the apocalypse but it was unable to help the commoners in the early stage. After all, the catastrophe was globally present and came without warning. The army was as frenzied as could be, and they would only find some semblance of order after a period of time.

By then, the zombies would have transformed again!

"The army can't be bothered with us for the time being," Lin Chao said while looking at her. "We can only survive depending on ourselves. With this food supply, we can hold out for at least two months."