Chapter 190: Calmness Enables Response; Rage Leads to Defeat

"Prepare! Snap shots! Flanks, provide cover!"

Click-click-click.

A row of bolt-action sounds rang out; Zheng Xinyu and the other four, through days of relentless training, handled their assault rifles with ease—the stocks firmly seated against their shoulders, heads turned, sights aligned, triggers pulled!

Tap-tap-tap, tap-tap-tap-tap.

All five fired in unison, aiming for the zombies' heads; even if shots missed slightly, it didn't matter—thuds and wet pops echoed continuously as row after row of zombies collapsed under the gunfire.

Each person had thirty rounds; even controlled bursts emptied their magazines in barely a minute.

Everyone carried four fully loaded spare magazines; this reload drill was part of daily training—no one would fumble and delay the mission.

"Cease fire! Cease fire! We're back!"

As Zheng Xinyu prepared to swap her last magazine, Zhang Su's voice crackled through the radio.

Zhang Su warned them: there were still twenty to thirty zombies surrounding the vehicle—the danger was far from over; the most dangerous moment was always when victory seemed within reach and complacency crept in!

"Kill them!"

"Take them down!"

"Zombie horde? Pfft—humanity is invincible!"

"Stay focused! Don't get distracted!"

Seeing victory within grasp, the exhausted crowd regained their strength; hormones surged wildly, morale soared, and they fought with fierce ferocity—even the youngest, Mo Qianlan, gritted her teeth and fought hard against the zombies.

"Secure your rifles! Break out!"

"Boss, Sister Zheng's group is charging in!"

"Kill them! We've won!"

Someone collapsed onto the ground; as hormone levels dropped, exhaustion swept over their body, uncontrollable excitement made their limbs tremble, and their faces wore unrestrained grins.

Zhang Su's group had parked the RV on the mountain road, leaning out to kill zombies—ensuring their safety while maximizing efficiency; soon, four piles of corpses formed beside the vehicle.

"Boss and the others are back!"

"Ooooh!"

Everyone instantly understood: Zhang Su and the others had cut off the tail of the zombie horde.

On the vehicle, Lu Yu saw a group charging down the slope—he erupted in excitement.

After clearing the remaining zombies at the mountain gate, the group rushed down like tigers into a flock of sheep, fiercely slaughtering the last zombies surrounding the RV, their faces alight with exhilaration.

Meanwhile, Wu Lue climbed the wall and pointed downhill: "Boss, they're surrounded by zombies on the vehicle!"

The others wouldn't let Zheng Xinyu fight alone; those not assigned to shoot and unable to reach the wall to kill zombies readied themselves—on command, they launched another assault.

"Hahahaha, we won!"

Zheng Xinyu slung her rifle over her shoulder, the steel rod long lost somewhere; she drew her baseball bat from her back, leapt onto the pile of corpses, and plunged back into close combat with the zombies.

Moments later, as the last zombie's head fell with a thud, a brief silence settled over the mountain road to Tianmayu—then erupted into wild, ecstatic shouts.

"Hah! We won!"

Zhang Su and his team stepped down from the zombie piles, each of them caked in filth.

"Anyone hurt?"

Zhang Su's first question was about injuries.

"No!"

"Report, Boss: zero casualties!"

"Fucking hell, I feel my bones shifted again!" Zhao De sat on the ground, adjusting the sling holding his arm.

"Is a sprained ankle considered a work injury?"

Wang Xin limped two steps; he'd fallen while climbing the barricade, but luckily the piled corpses broke his fall—only a sprain, nothing worse. Had he impaled himself on the spikes or tumbled into the zombie horde, he'd be dead.

"Yes. Report every injury to Zhong Xiao—she'll distribute supplies. As long as everyone's safe, that's what matters. This defense was a major success. Good work, everyone!"

Zhang Su stood atop the zombie corpses, rallying the group; his gaze met Zheng Xinyu's and Zhong Xiao's briefly—each gave a slight nod, understanding passing wordlessly.

"You guys worked hard too!"

"If we'd known it'd be this easy, you didn't need to rush back!"

"Exactly! You went out on important business—leave the rear to us. Rest easy!"

If some bloated, self-important leader had given a speech after everything was over, dressed to impress, everyone would've sneered—but not with Zhang Su. Though they returned late, they'd killed just as many zombies as anyone.

Their absence was due to higher-priority tasks, not laziness.

"The horde is dealt with, but don't lower your guard. Clean up the corpses safely—take your time. Drag them all down to the fields and burn them."

Zhang Su stepped down from the corpses and spotted Guo Dachao and Yang Wenjie among the crowd—both armed, having joined the fight. He walked up to them and asked, "How do you feel?"

"Incredibly satisfying, Boss!"

Guo Dachao swung his steel rod, filthy all over, but his excitement was unmistakable—his lips trembled slightly.

"Fighting side by side? That's what real warriors do. Keep these weapons—you're both assigned them now."

Then Zhang Su turned to Liu Tianji: "Little Liu, come with me to check the surveillance. Everyone else, start cleaning up. Bring out those electric scooters—and Haranda too. Use them to haul the corpses."

"Surveillance?"

Watching Zhang Su and Liu Tianji hurry off, the crowd exchanged glances.

"Could it be… this zombie attack had something wrong with it?"

Lu Yu was the first to voice the doubt in everyone's mind.

"Brother's going to investigate—stop speculating. Get to work! Move!"

Compared to killing zombies, clearing their corpses was a massive task—but the camp had enough hands; over a dozen moved in unison.

"Boss… do you think this zombie attack was suspicious?"

Liu Tianji followed Zhang Su, puzzled.

"Don't ask so much—just watch first."

Zhang Su strode toward camp, staring at the sea of corpses, his mood low—he sensed something off about this zombie attack.

Soon, the two reached the surveillance room.

"Boss, this is the surveillance footage facing the highway."

Liu Tianji expertly pulled up the footage from one hour ago.

Due to angle and equipment limitations, the camera facing the highway couldn't capture distant scenes clearly.

Zhang Su fast-forwarded rapidly, found the timestamp, then slowed playback to watch.

"I knew it!"

In slow motion, Zhang Su spotted the anomaly immediately.

"What is it, Boss?"

Liu Tianji had watched closely but seen nothing unusual.

"Watch this spot—right before the zombies appear, look!"

At the top of the footage, obscured by trees, the image was blurry—but before the zombies entered the frame, several eerily unnatural figures flashed past. Not living humans… but human hands had done this.

Clearly, this horde hadn't been drawn naturally—it was deliberately guided.

"This…"

Liu Tianji pointed at the screen in shock: "Someone's luring zombies toward our camp?"

Zhang Su replayed the video repeatedly, then nodded: "If police were investigating, this grainy footage wouldn't hold up as evidence—but for us to confirm the truth? It's enough."

"Then… could it be Beitaizi Camp?"

Liu Tianji asked instinctively.

Zhang Su lit a cigarette, thought for a moment, then said: "Either an unknown faction… or Beitaizi Camp."

Currently, only four factions operated in this region: Xida Ying Village guarding the bridge and collecting tolls, Lianhe Village farming and raising livestock near Beidong Town, Tianmayu where Zhang Su was based, and the vanished Beitaizi Camp.

Further north, other factions surely existed—but they were too distant, with no grudge or reason to interfere.

"Exactly—it's Beitaizi Camp!"

After finishing his cigarette, Zhang Su concluded based on his earlier reconnaissance.

"Little Liu, you've never been to Niuziquan Town—you don't know the situation. Thousands of zombies were trapped in the streets there. They couldn't have gathered naturally. Beitaizi Camp did this—they clearly have unique methods for luring zombies."

Any group surviving the apocalypse must have a specialty. Zhang Su now knew Beitaizi Camp excelled at luring zombies, making explosives, and hiding their movements.

"Holy shit, Boss—these bastards are trying to wipe us out completely!"

Liu Tianji's scalp prickled after hearing Zhang Su's analysis.

Fortunately, the wall along the mountain road was nearly complete, and Yu Wen had led the construction of highly effective spike barricades—otherwise, defeating this horde would've cost at least ten times the ammo—and likely casualties.

It wasn't that they couldn't afford the ammo—it was the feeling of being deliberately sabotaged that choked them.

"First, they planted bombs on our only route in and out to weaken us. Then they lured zombies to attack our camp. This whole sequence was pre-planned. But if they can pull this off, they haven't gone far—they're hiding in some nearby village."

Zhang Su was no longer as furious as after the bombing. The enemy's cruelty and cunning surpassed imagination—only calmness could counter them. Rage would only sink you deeper.

(End of Chapter)