Chapter 158: 10:10

"Hard to handle?"

Zhang Su grinned and pulled out a walkie-talkie: "Hey, Bozi, we've got a situation here. If we don't get back within half an hour, tear down that wall we just passed, and lure the zombies at the main gate over here. Copy?"

"Copy that, hehe!"

Soon, the reply came from the other side—even faster than Old Li's group could react.

"You! Don't you dare!"

"You'd actually do this?"

That wild "hehe" sent chills down their spines, especially for Wu Daqiang, Xiao Liu, and Gangzi—their faces instantly paled.

"You talk to me about order? Fine, I'll play by the rules. But if you try to outsmart me, I'm the last person who fears flipping the table. Come on, Old Li, give me a proposal I can accept—but make it quick."

Zhang Su tapped his wristwatch and started the thirty-minute timer!

Tension instantly spread through the air.

Zhang Su spread his hands and spoke with serious sincerity—he wasn't bluffing; this was his true intention.

Xiao Liu glared furiously at Zhang Su.

From Zhang Su's perspective, bringing the three soldiers into his team would greatly boost their combat power, but clearly, the soldiers' style clashed with his own group's.

"No guns allowed!" Xiao Liu pointed at Zhang Su's shoulder: "Use your crossbow—three shots each, highest total score wins!"

Xiao Liu, still angry, slapped his rifle on the shoulder.

"In this environment, you'd risk everyone's safety by luring monsters to attack us? What's your real motive?"

Old Li, seeing the situation escalating, quickly intervened: "Young Zhang, Young Wu, how about this?"

Old Li's goal was to recruit more capable people to build a safe settlement. He feared Zhang Su but was deeply tempted by his companions.

But this silence wasn't disbelief—it was the feeling that this contest wasn't such a big deal after all.

Xiao Liu and Gangzi wanted to say more, but a senior NCO had spoken; they fell silent. After all, there was still the contest—just win it!

"Let me say one thing…"

"First, what are we competing in?"

"Exactly! This is clearly a trap! Damn it, flip the table!"

"Hey, comrade, don't get upset. I look out for my people, and you look out for yours—what's wrong with that? You don't expect me to have the awareness to save all of humanity, do you? I can't. I hope you can!"

"Alright, we'll cut our share by ten percent too—give it to Xiao Liu and Gangzi as a reward for their efforts. Fair enough?" Old Li said frankly.

"Look around, this barracks is perfect—farmland nearby, weapons in the buildings, high walls all around. Let's establish a safe zone here, shelter survivors, grow together—our future is bright!"

Silence. No one answered.

Instead of being angry that Zhang Su had exposed his scheme, Old Li smoothly pivoted to recruitment.

"We'd be happy to have you join us too!"

A flicker of something strange passed through Zhang Su's eyes. If it were just haggling, he could accept it—but openly poaching his people right in front of him? That was low.

His odd expression left Old Li's group puzzled.

"How about this: we have a contest. If you lose, you take twenty percent of our weapons and grenades. If you win… fifty-fifty split. That's our maximum concession."

"Fine, crossbow it is—deal!"

Hearing this, most of Zhang Su's group fell silent.

Zhang Su refused outright, sneering: "You two soldiers keeping some weapons for yourselves? Fine. But why only my side gets cut? Your side keeps twenty percent unchanged. Looks like you still think I'm an easy mark!"

"Impossible!"

Zhang Su shook his head, sighing: "Old Li, you're truly devious. Whether you stay here in the barracks or Wu Officer pulls those two soldiers into your group—you're already one team. What's the point of all this back-and-forth?"

"We've never even used rifles before—how are we supposed to compete?"

Zhang Su calculated quickly: a fifty-fifty split meant far more gear—ten thousand extra bullets alone. But he'd have to win first… lose, and he'd get only twenty percent.

"Shoot? You want guns? Let's see your marksmanship! Win, and it's fifty-fifty. Lose, you take twenty percent. Don't bother saying goodbye."

"Got it!"

And with Old Li—someone clearly unwilling to take orders—on the other side, the two groups would never get along.

"Betrayal, no integrity, Old Li—you talked to me about order before we teamed up. Are you even fit to speak of order? Fine! Since we're here, I'll ask: anyone here want to follow someone like you?"

Yet Zhang Su didn't get angry. His smile was harder to suppress than an AK-47's recoil. He said with a strange expression: "You're sure about shooting? There are so many zombies nearby—gunfire will draw them. You're not afraid of trouble?"

Under Old Li's proposed split, Zhang Su's group would get only thirty percent.

If Zhang Su couldn't see through this petty trick, he'd never have survived the apocalypse with his team.

Zhang Su's side was outraged—soldiers versus civilians in shooting? That was a level-down slaughter.

Wu Daqiang suddenly spoke, his expression conflicted: Zhang Su's words about betrayal and lack of trust had struck him. "You want weapons? I did promise you. But I never expected any of my men to survive…"

"We'll keep our twenty percent unchanged. Xiao Liu and Gangzi are essentially the barracks' owners—they've done so much, they deserve the lion's share. They take half, the rest goes to you, Young Zhang."

"This is too unfair…"

Meaning the two soldiers would get sixty percent, while Zhang Su remained at thirty percent.

"Deal!"

…

Indoor shooting range.

Natural light made it dim, but the environment was clean—thanks to the disaster hitting in the morning, no one had been practicing here. Still, due to flooding, the air carried a faint dampness and rot.

"Choose your target: moving, thirty meters, fifty meters," Xiao Liu stood straight, gesturing into the range.

"No power? How do you move it? Are you going to drag the target yourself?" Zhang Su asked, exasperated.

Xiao Liu felt embarrassed: "Then thirty or fifty meters—you pick."

"To show we take this seriously, our sharpshooter will compete. Old Tan, you choose."

Zhang Su nodded to Tan Hua.

Zhao De and the elders who knew the situation kept their eyes down, afraid their forced smiles might raise suspicion. The newer members looked slightly puzzled.

Old Li's group, including the three soldiers, all frowned—was that a fat woman?

Is this a deliberate humiliation? Trying to throw us off?

All tricks crumble before absolute skill!

Several of them looked down on Zhang Su's behavior.

"Huh?"

Even Tan Hua herself was surprised. Nervously, she said: "Boss, I—I'm not good under pressure. This is too important. Maybe you should go?"

"I trust you!" Zhang Su patted Tan Hua's shoulder. More than trusting her, he trusted his 【Insight Tag】. He added: "Think about how everyone went out to rescue your dad and Lanlan. Aren't you going to show your true worth for the team now?"

Hearing this, Tan Hua's heart swelled with gratitude. She looked around at everyone and nodded firmly: "I'll do my best!"

She took down her crossbow and said: "Thirty meters. It's too dark to see the fifty-meter targets clearly."

Old Li's brow twitched slightly—he sensed something off, but it was too late to back out now.

Xiao Liu nodded: "Fine. But for fairness, we'll use the same crossbow and shoot alternately—so fatigue doesn't affect results."

"No problem. For even greater fairness, don't use mine—use Boss Zhang's crossbow."

Tan Hua handed her crossbow to Zhang Su, signaling they could begin.

"Go, Aunt Tan! You're the fattest—oh no, the best!"

Zheng Xinyu waved her fist, cheering Tan Hua with humor.

"Go, Old Tan!"

"Aunt Tan, one shot, one kill!"

"Go, Little Tan!"

Everyone cheered for Tan Hua.

A row of thirty-meter targets stood ahead. Xiao Liu took the crossbow from Zhang Su, hefted it, and sighed: "Damn fine weapon. Too bad you're with the wrong guy."

"Enough talk—start already!"

Zhang Su shot back coldly, showing no mercy. Then he paused, adding: "Hey, soldier, wanna add stakes?"

Xiao Liu frowned, lowering the crossbow: "What do you mean?"

"Same bet as before. But if you win, you keep this crossbow. If you lose, we take ten percent more weapons. Deal?"

Zhang Su suggested slyly.

"Fine!"

"No!"

Xiao Liu answered quickly—but Old Li firmly rejected the added bet.

"Not wise, Xiao Liu. Stick to the original plan."

Old Li sensed something wrong, but the situation had gone too far to retreat—he had to avoid sinking deeper.

"Xiao Liu, I agree—no need. Just focus. You're the best shot in Third Squad!"

Wu Daqiang didn't doubt his soldiers' skill, but he trusted Old Li's judgment.

Xiao Liu scratched his head, slightly reluctant—he really liked this crossbow—but nodded: "Alright, no added stakes."

"What a shame…"

Zhang Su shrugged, unconcerned, arms crossed, standing aside.

Xiao Liu didn't know what he was regretting—he raised the crossbow and aimed.

"Go!"

With a soft cry, Xiao Liu fired—the bolt shot out with a *whoosh*.

"Nine-point-five rings!"

Gangzi hurried to the target, glanced at it, and called out the score.

Zhang Su walked over to the target too, frowning: "You tell me—where's the 0. here?"

"It's clearly shifted toward the bullseye within the nine-ring zone—naturally 9. . If this were an electronic target, it'd be at least 9. !"

Gangzi pointed solemnly at the spot where the crossbow bolt had struck.

"Alright, alright, impressive."

Zhang Su gave up arguing—he had absolute faith in Old Tan, far beyond mere single digits—and followed Gangzi back lazily to the firing line.

Tan Huajun had already loaded the crossbow, raised it, took a quick aim, felt no difference from her own weapon, then leveled it at the target, adjusted slightly, and with a soft click, the bolt shot out!

To onlookers, Tan Huajun seemed utterly casual and relaxed—four words: calm and effortless.

The group near Old Li couldn't help wondering if she'd even aimed—but the answer came quickly.

Thud!

The bolt struck the target dead center—no need to rush forward; everyone, even thirty meters away, could see it: perfectly in the bullseye!

"This…"

Xiao Liu and the others stared at each other, stunned.

Zhang Su still ran over with Gangzi to inspect the target. He pointed at the bolt buried in the center of the red ring: "What's this—10. something? So close to the center—it's 10. !"

(End of Chapter)