Chapter 21: The Unexpected
The three of them quickly reached the western window. Zhan Yun skillfully used the rope Su Ruizhe provided to make a simple anchor, then lowered Su Ruizhe and Song Chengshu down first. After that, he climbed down himself, cut the rope, and retrieved it, successfully making their escape.
However, since there were people at the main exit, it was obviously impossible for them to take the vehicle out of the storage space and drive away. They planned to circle around and leave from the back instead—but who would have thought that as they walked, they would run straight into a group of people.
There were nine of them in total—six men and three women—each holding weapons like baseball bats, golf clubs, or chair legs. They looked like nearby residents who had also come to the supermarket in search of food. When they saw Zhan Yun’s group, their eyes lit up. Zhan Yun’s build alone suggested he was very capable in a fight, and although the other two looked a bit weaker, they had knives in their hands, which made them seem like solid combatants as well.
One man in a suit immediately stepped forward and said, “Are you three here to collect food as well?”
Zhan Yun gave a noncommittal nod.
“Then why don’t we go together?” the suited man suggested. “Xiao Wang here is a cashier at this supermarket, and her husband is a security guard here—he knows the place very well! We can search for supplies together!” He pointed to one of the women in their group.
But Zhan Yun and the others had already swept through more than half of the supermarket and had no intention of going back. They told them that someone had already smashed the glass at the front and gone inside.
“It’s fine,” the suited man said dismissively. “The supermarket’s huge—there’s no way they can take everything. Besides, the really good stuff is in the back warehouse. Little Wang and the others have the keys. We’ll go in from the rear and won’t run into them.”
At this point, if Zhan Yun’s group refused again, it would seem suspicious. After all, they were all out looking for food—turning down such a good opportunity would naturally raise questions. More importantly, Su Ruizhe didn’t want to miss the massive amount of supplies in the supermarket warehouse. The apocalypse had only just begun; most people were still in shock and panic, but they would soon realize how scarce food would become and start searching everywhere for supplies. Who knew if there would be another chance like this to gather resources in bulk? Having lived miserably in his previous life, Su Ruizhe had developed something of an obsession with stockpiling supplies this time around.
Zhan Yun quickly calculated the time it would take for the zombies to gather. If they moved fast, they should still be able to get out in time.
So the three joined their group and followed them around to the supermarket’s back door. A short but sturdy man stepped forward, took out a key, and opened it—it seemed he was the security guard.
The back door opened quickly, but inside it was still pitch-black. Unhurried, the suited man took a flashlight out of his pocket and lit up the corridor. Under his lead, the group silently made their way in, sneaking up the back stairwell to the warehouse on the second floor.
The security guard even had the key to the warehouse. He quickly unlocked the heavy padlock, and they went inside.
Sweeping the flashlight around, the suited man revealed rows of neatly stacked supplies. He opened a box and pulled out more than a dozen backpacks, handing one to each person. The security guard also placed a high-powered flashlight on top of a box, allowing them to barely see what was in front of them.
“Try to take filling foods,” the suited man said in a low voice. “Don’t bother with snacks.”
Everyone nodded and spread out.
Quietly, Su Ruizhe put away several boxes of instant noodles, candy, and biscuits into his storage space, then stuffed some sausages and water into his backpack. Zhan Yun and Song Chengshu did the same, focused on filling their bags. After all, appearances still had to be kept—they couldn’t very well leave empty-handed.
Even so, no matter how much these people wanted to empty the warehouse, their backpacks were only so big. The suited man slung his full pack over his shoulders, tore open a can of luncheon meat and wolfed it down, while still carrying two bags of rice in his hands.
Just then, an extremely miserable scream echoed throughout the entire supermarket, startling everyone who was collecting supplies.
“W-What’s going on?” someone asked, their voice trembling.
The suited man swallowed hard. No one in the room dared to breathe loudly.
That scream was like flipping a switch. Painful shrieks and frantic cries for help erupted one after another.
Clearly, the group that had entered from the front had run into zombies…
No one knew how much time passed before the screams finally stopped. Then, a set of chaotic footsteps approached from far away—coming straight toward them.
“Lock the door!” the suited man shouted sharply.
“What…?” someone looked at him in shock. The person running toward them should be a living human!
“How do we know he hasn’t been bitten by a zombie? And even if he hasn’t, what if there’s a horde of zombies chasing him? We can’t take that risk!”
As soon as the suited man finished speaking, the woman called Little Wang shakily locked the warehouse door.
The chaotic footsteps soon reached the door. The person outside tried to open it, but it was locked tight. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t get it open.
He began pounding on the door urgently. “Is anyone in there?! Anyone at all?! Open the door! Please, save me!”
Judging by his voice, he was a young man. Yet everyone inside the warehouse remained silent. No one responded to his pleas.
Then heavy footsteps appeared at the other end of the corridor. The young man’s cries cut off abruptly, replaced by rapid, panicked breathing that sounded especially clear in the silence.
“Ah!” He kicked the door hard once, then roared and charged away.
Next came violent crashing sounds, mixed with the low growls of zombies…
Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Every second felt unbearably long. When pounding on the warehouse door sounded again, Xiao Wang—who was standing closest—began to tremble all over, her legs giving out as she collapsed to the floor.
“Open the door… please… open the door…” The pounding was coming from low on the door now—the man was probably sitting on the ground. The despair and agony in his voice were heart-wrenching.
Everyone turned to look at the suited man. His face was ashen, but he clenched his teeth and said nothing.
In the end, it was Zhan Yun who strode to the door. He released the lock, cracked it open, and with lightning speed grabbed the arm of the person outside, dragging him in before slamming the door shut again. Zhan Yun’s heart, after all, wasn’t hard enough for him to stand by and watch someone die when they were fighting so dability userately to live.
The young man who was dragged inside looked dazed, still sitting on the floor. He wore a shirt soaked in blood, its original color completely obscured. His hair was a mess, and he looked like a college student.
“He’s injured!” someone suddenly cried out in terror, pointing at the wound on the man’s leg.
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