Chapter 10: He Wants to Eat Meat!
The little zombie paused, tilting his head up to peer at Pei Zhi. Truth be told, Pei Zhi’s blood tasted by far the best—vastly sweeter and richer than any dead flesh he had chewed on. But since the man hadn’t let him drink it, he had settled for second best.
Now that Pei Zhi was willing to share his blood again, the little zombie was thrilled. Letting out a cheerful “Awoo,” he took the initiative to slip his small hand into Pei Zhi’s broad palm.
Pei Zhi gave his fingers a gentle squeeze. “Come on. I’ll take you to the river to get cleaned up.”
The little zombie quickly dug his heels in, tugging Pei Zhi back toward the gruesome scraps strewn across the dirt. “Awoo, awoo!”
That was the meat the wild zombies had been brawling over earlier. When Pei Zhi intervened, a single arc of lightning had scared the pack away before they could drag their prize off.
Now it was free for the taking—all his!
Pei Zhi’s brow knitted sharply. “You’re not picking that up.”
Miffed, the little zombie plopped right onto the dirt, folding his arms and refusing to budge.
He wanted that meat.
Pei Zhi felt a headache coming on. The creature had only just tasted raw meat, and the obsession had already taken root.
Leaving the scraps out here would only draw more wanderers to feast on them anyway, so he might as well let the boy take it.
“Get up,” Pei Zhi sighed. “I’ll help you carry it.”
Hearing those words, the little zombie scrambled to his feet and scurried over to retrieve the grisly prize.
Pei Zhi looked around for an old burlap sack to wrap it in, but when he turned back, he found the boy shoving the bloody limbs directly into his spatial pocket.
Worse, to make room, the little zombie was tossing out all the old supplies.
Bags of snacks, canned rations, juice bottles, sacks of rice, flour, and jars of spices—in the blink of an eye, the entire stockpile lay dumped across the grass.
The little zombie intended to throw every bit of it away. From now on, his storage space would hold only meat!
Pei Zhi stormed over, his face darkening like a thundercloud as he barked, “Put the supplies back!”
The little zombie refused. Stuffing the final scrap of meat into his pocket, he bounced to his feet, ready to set off.
Crack!
A bolt of lightning blasted into the dirt right in front of his toes. Frightened, the little zombie finally gave in, dragging his feet at a snail’s pace as he picked through the scattered cans and packages.
Watching his sluggish pace with mounting impatience, Pei Zhi crouched down and began stuffing the rations back into the boy’s pockets himself.
“Didn’t you follow me because you wanted to drink my blood? How do you expect me to produce blood for you if I have nothing to eat?”
The moment food entered the equation, the little zombie understood. He needed to keep Pei Zhi well-fed so the man could serve as a steady source of fresh blood. With that logic firmly established, the boy happily packed away every last dropped ration.
With a secret hoard of meat in his spatial realm, the little zombie embraced a wonderful, lazy routine. Whenever hunger struck, he pulled out a chunk to chew on.
He ate until his face and clothes were smeared with crimson gore, his entire body reeking of a rancid, fishy stench.
Unable to stomach the smell any longer, Pei Zhi dragged the boy down to the riverbank for a thorough scrub. He washed him three times over with shampoo and body wash until the foul odor was finally stripped away, rinsed his soiled tracksuit, and hung the clothes over a branch to dry by the campfire.
Midnight in the wasteland was dead silent. The flickering flames cast dancing shadows across their resting faces. Pei Zhi leaned back against a log, eyes half-closed as he dozed.
Curled up nearby, the little zombie kept his eyes shut while blindly reaching into his spatial storage. Fumbling out another scrap of meat, he shoved it into his mouth, his cheeks working at lightning speed.
Because he snacked all day, chewed through the night, and munched whenever boredom struck, he managed to burn through his entire reserve in less than three days.
Hunger gnawed at his belly once again. Trotting forward, he caught up with Pei Zhi, who was leading the way, and let out a soft, plaintive whine: “Awoo!”
Hungry!
Pei Zhi scanned the surrounding terrain. “I’ll find you some meat later.”
Hearing a promise of food, the little zombie chimed in with a delighted squeak.
They were still about two days’ travel from the Western District Base. Pei Zhi had already resolved to keep Jiang Xiaozhi’s true nature a strict secret once they arrived, making sure the boy was never dragged off by the laboratory researchers.
In the meantime, he would gather as much meat as possible to secretly feed the little zombie behind closed doors.
Passing through a wooded stretch, Pei Zhi caught two wild pheasants, plucked two fat fish from a nearby stream, gutted and cleaned the catch, and sliced the raw flesh into neat strips for the boy.
Staring at the neat pile of poultry and fish, the little zombie shook his head in complete disinterest, tilting his chin toward Pei Zhi with an expectant whimper.
He had no desire to eat this plain food. He wanted the kind of meat he had tasted days ago.
Pei Zhi’s tone hardened. “There isn’t any, and you are never allowed to touch that kind of meat again!”
He was determined to break the boy’s taste for human flesh, step by step.
The corners of the little zombie’s mouth instantly turned down. His delicate brow pinched into an angry knot, and he spun on his heel, scuffing the dirt with the toe of his shoe in a silent tantrum.
He had agreed to follow Pei Zhi specifically for the promise of meat, so why was he being denied now?
He was starving!
Deciding he was done following this stingy human, the little zombie ignored the strips of pheasant, spun around, and stomped off into the woods.
“Come back here!” Pei Zhi’s shout echoed behind him, but the boy never looked back. He figured he would just go wander with the other zombies down the road; that way, he could scavenge whatever leftovers they dropped.
“Get back here right now!” Pei Zhi’s voice rose an octave, sharp with irritation.
Feigning deafness, the little zombie picked up his pace toward a handful of wandering silhouettes in the distance.
Pei Zhi’s eyebrow twitched. “I’ll let you drink blood!”
The little zombie’s ears perked up instantly. Catching the words loud and clear, he pivoted on his heels, scampered straight back, threw his arms around Pei Zhi’s thigh, and tilted his face up with a sweet, flattering chirp: “Awoo!”
Pei Zhi extended an index finger toward his lips. “Bite.”
Having gone half a day without a bite to eat, the little zombie lunged with an eager snap. Sinking his fangs into Pei Zhi’s knuckle, he gulped the hot, sweet blood down in greedy mouthfuls.
Only when the wound stopped bleeding did the boy reluctantly release the finger, patting his tummy—roughly half full.
Pei Zhi pushed the cleaned pheasant and raw fish back into his hands. This time, the little zombie did not turn them down. Gripping the meat, he nibbled through it piece by piece, tucking whatever he couldn’t finish into his spatial storage.
Two days later, Pei Zhi arrived at the Western District Base with the little zombie in tow.
Massive concrete walls towered over the perimeter, their iron gates bolted tight beneath three bold, imposing characters: Western District Base.
Pei Zhi held the little zombie firmly by the hand as they approached the checkpoint. Up in the guard towers, the sentries spotted the figures below and cranked open the heavy gates to let them through.
Once past the threshold, standard screening was required. It was nothing elaborate—just several doctors in white coats inspecting newcomers for open bite wounds or decaying flesh.
Pei Zhi and the little zombie removed their shirts for the examination.
The little zombie was turned around and around until his head began to spin. Standing beside him, Pei Zhi kept a watchful eye on every glance the medical staff gave. He had scrubbed the boy down repeatedly and inspected every inch of his skin; there was no rot, no discoloration, and not a single bite mark. Unless someone had prior knowledge, nobody would ever suspect he was an undead creature.
Sure enough, the doctors cleared them without suspicion and waved the two through the inner gates.
It was the little zombie’s very first time seeing a human settlement. The compound was vast and sprawling, packed with dense residential blocks, green farming plots, and bustling market stalls lining the avenues with rations and daily goods.
Yet the little zombie cared nothing for the produce or the tools; his eyes were glued entirely to the people!
Tearing his hand free from Pei Zhi’s grip, he pointed frantically at a passerby, screeching with desperate excitement: “Awoo, awoo!”
Meat!
Walking, breathing meat! He wanted to eat!
Pei Zhi’s face dropped. Lowering his voice to a harsh hiss, he snapped, “Get over here!”
The little zombie didn’t listen. Lunging forward, he grabbed the stranger by the arm, bared his fangs, and snapped his jaws straight down!
The Food-hoarding Zombie Was Kidnapped by the Apocalyptic Boss
