Chapter 92: Split Up (A Few Minutes Later)

“Brother Su, there must be a more detailed plan—could you share it with us? Don’t worry, we won’t steal your idea.”

Kuang Miao spoke with serious intent.

Zhang Su laughed heartily. “I’m not afraid you’ll steal it. What I just told you is detailed enough: send someone to lure as many zombies away from the gas station as possible using phone music, while the rest slip in and kill the zombies to gather supplies.”

“Then… what happens to the people luring the zombies?” asked Song Yijun, who had been silent until now.

Zhang Su said, “There are two options: if you can move fast enough to shake off the zombies and return to the gas station, great. If not, head to the rendezvous point we agreed on!”

The four students frowned. The plan sounded extremely risky.

Kuang Miao said, “Brother Su, can we have a moment to discuss it?”

Zhang Su glanced at his watch. “Three minutes. Move fast. If you hadn’t suddenly shown up, we’d already be feasting at the gas station by now!”

“Right away, right away!”

Upon hearing this, Kuang Miao and the others immediately huddled together, whispering urgently.

Zhang Su didn’t stand idle—he called a few others into a tight circle, murmuring as if sharing secrets.

There were things he’d never told Kuang Miao and the others: first, the two groups’ ultimate goals were not the same!

Zhang Su’s group aimed for three vehicles—at least two: the Haranda and the Breadvan. The H6 was optional. But Kuang Miao’s group’s goal was to raid the convenience store for supplies!

Both groups intended to enter the gas station, but their duration of stay and exit methods differed.

Of course, if conditions were ideal, Zhang Su wouldn’t mind filling the H6 with supplies before leaving.

Also, the method for luring zombies was only vaguely explained to Kuang Miao’s group—he already had a concrete plan, but if cooperation failed, there was no need to reveal it.

Three or four minutes passed quickly. Kuang Miao’s group reached a decision. He looked at Zhang Su. “Brother Su, we think your plan is feasible—but… how will you assign who lures the zombies? You can’t make all of us do it, right?”

Zhang Su wasn’t surprised they agreed—after all, the convenience store’s supplies were too tempting. He smiled. “Your concern is unnecessary. We’re cooperating, not using you as cannon fodder! Let me ask: among you four, who’s the strongest fighter?”

“Him…”

Quickly, Kuang Miao, Pei Lan, and Song Yijun all pointed to the same person—the one who had been crouching on the ground crying earlier: Chen Hanzhou.

“Yes, I’ve trained in karate—I hold a high rank!” Chen Hanzhou said confidently.

Zhang Su chuckled. “Karate? That’s that Japanese nonsense, right? You fight zombies with bare hands? Show me.”

He trained under Master Chen the Mad Dog, learning the most practical, unrestricted combat techniques—he had little respect for styles that prioritized performance over real fighting.

“Th-this is just a joke, right? You obviously need weapons!”

Chen Hanzhou was instantly silenced. He knew killing zombies required destroying the brain—bare hands were unrealistic.

“Fine. Chen Hanzhou counts as one. Who’s the second strongest?”

Zhang Su didn’t press further.

Kuang Miao and Song Yijun exchanged glances, politely deferring—finally deciding Kuang Miao was slightly stronger.

“Alright. Then it’s Pei, Pei Lan, right? Pei Lan and Song Yijun will lure the zombies. Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou will come with us to storm in. I’ll assign one of my toughest to guard you during the lure—Lu Yu.”

“Yes, Brother Su! Leave it to me!”

Lu Yu pounded his backpack, making a solid thump.

“Um…” Kuang Miao interrupted. “Brother Su, we’re sending two of our four to lure zombies, but you’re only sending one?”

“Yeah, that doesn’t seem fair…”

Pei Lan spoke softly, her gaze flickering lightly over Zheng Xinyu and the other two women—as if hoping for a female companion.

“Do you think looting the gas station is easy? Do you think we’re taking your share by sending four people? Fine—then we’ll send five to lure the zombies, and you four clean up the ones left behind. Deal?”

Zhang Su spread his hands, slouching with a cocky grin. He made the offer bluntly.

He was confident: besides the H6, whose keys were still in the ignition, the keys to the other two vehicles were on his person. Even if Kuang Miao’s group got there first, they couldn’t drive off. More importantly, whether they could even get inside was doubtful.

Seeing Kuang Miao hesitate, Lu Yu grew impatient. “Brother Su, let me go alone. Don’t drag these little cowards along—they’re too scared to even breathe.”

“How dare you insult people…”

“Yeah, why are you being so rude?”

Chen Hanzhou and Song Yijun immediately protested—insulting someone’s height was low, what was this?

“Stop it, stop it! Brother Su, let’s go with your plan!”

Kuang Miao instantly backed down. He knew their combat strength well—handling one or two zombies was possible, but if three or five surrounded them, they’d be doomed!

And inside the gas station, there were countless zombies. If even ten remained, they’d have zero chance.

“Good. Now we can make a detailed plan. Listen up…”

Zhang Su pulled a loud, old-fashioned flip phone from his bag and explained to the three members of the lure team: how to lure as many zombies as possible, how to stay safe, and how to escape.

“I just thought of a great idea—just adjust the cars near the entrance to create a trap the zombies can get into but can’t get out of!”

As he spoke, Zhang Su smiled faintly, pointing to the scattered cars on the street—that was his real plan.

The earlier arrangements had been nerve-wracking, but this final tactic made everyone’s eyes light up.

“Yes! Set up a formation to lure them in, then seal both ends—perfect!”

Prompted by Zhang Su, Kuang Miao immediately grasped the idea.

Zhong Xiaoshanjian said, “We don’t need to seal both ends—just place a sound source outside the escape route. The zombies won’t turn back to leave through it.”

Going from zero to one was hard, but from one to ten was easy. The group quickly expanded on Zhang Su’s idea with enthusiastic chatter.

“Alright. Let’s begin step one!”

Zhang Su waved his hand, leading everyone out of the car wash.

Kuang Miao’s group hurriedly gathered their scattered belongings, slung their backpacks on, and followed Zhang Su’s team onto the street.

“Hey, Bozi, you and Pei Lan push the cars together—get familiar with each other. Don’t want any awkwardness later, got it?”

Zhang Su nodded to the two of them.

The arrangement made everyone’s eyebrows twitch slightly—was there something deeper here?

Especially Song Yijun, standing aside, puzzledly pointed at his own nose—as if asking, “Why not me?”

Lu Yu might be dumb, but he was male—and in matters of girls, he had a natural instinct. He understood instantly: Zhang Su was looking out for him. He quickly shot Zhang Su a knowing glance, then straightened his posture.

“Pei Lan, stick with me!”

“O-okay…”

Pei Lan nodded hesitantly.

Though her face wasn’t stunning, she radiated youthful energy—an innate magnetism for young men.

“Alright. Start. Remember: no matter what happens, don’t scream. Anyone who screams suddenly—I won’t hold back!” Zhang Su gave the order, and everyone got to work.

Any vehicle on the road that wasn’t overturned and still had intact wheels was easy to move—none had their handbrakes engaged. The only problem: some still had zombies inside.

*Squelch!*

Lu Yu pinned a zombie to the passenger seat with a spike, grinning at Pei Lan beside him. “Don’t worry—these zombies are just targets. Stick a steel pipe through their eye and you kill them.”

“O-okay, let’s move the car.”

Pei Lan turned her head, suppressing the urge to vomit—she couldn’t bear to look at the bloody scene.

“Lanlan, I noticed none of those three guys look like your boyfriend. You’re single, right?”

Lu Yu casually slipped into an intimate nickname.

Pushing the car, Pei Lan’s expression darkened. She shook her head sadly. “I have a boyfriend… but he didn’t escape from school…”

Recalling their final meeting in the cafeteria days ago, her eyes grew slightly red. The repeated blows were overwhelming.

Lu Yu’s heart leapt—this saved him trouble. He declared earnestly, “Don’t be sad. Follow me. In this world, you need someone to take care of you!”

“N-no, thank you. I’ll stay with Kuang Miao and the others. That’s… fine.”

Pei Lan bit her lip, softly declining Lu Yu.

Lu Yu, shameless as ever, acted as if he hadn’t heard. “Lanlan, I’m nineteen. How old are you? I guess seventeen, right?”

Pei Lan hesitated, then finally answered softly: “Same as you.”

“They say, to find a partner, ages must match. We’re made for each other!”

Lu Yu beamed, not noticing a figure appear behind him.

*Slap!*

A palm struck Lu Yu’s head, sending him stumbling, the car veering off course.

“Who the hell—Brother Su? What the hell was that for?”

Lu Yu turned, fist raised to strike—then saw it was Zhang Su. His face instantly fell.

“I told you to bond and coordinate with her—not to hit on her! Don’t you know we’ve got something big coming?”

Zhang Su scolded Lu Yu sharply.

He had indeed intended to pair Lu Yu with Pei Lan—but hadn’t expected him to be this eager, flirting while working!

“S-sorry! Won’t happen again!”

Lu Yu rubbed the spot where he’d been slapped, winking and sneaking a glance at Pei Lan—only to find she wasn’t looking at him. He felt deflated.

Zhang Su stepped closer, whispering into Lu Yu’s ear: “This world’s different now. Smooth talk won’t cut it—you need real skill. Understand? And stop acting like a beggar. Put up some dignity.”

Lu Yu shuddered, as if awakened by holy water. His eyes cleared, and he nodded firmly.

“Got it, Brother Su. I promise!”

“Good. Let Pei Lan practice too. Move fast!”

With that, Zhang Su glanced around, then walked toward the shared bicycles on the sidewalk.

After nearly an hour of frantic work, they finally set up the trap. The effort left Kuang Miao’s group pale and dizzy—not from exhaustion, but from hunger.

“Can you all ride bikes? These three shared bicycles are your steeds. In case of emergency, head to Phoenix International Community over there. Understood?”

Zhang Su pointed to the entrance of the nearby residential complex.

Everyone turned to look, then nodded in unison.

"Alright, no more delay—Lu Yubo, Pei Lan, Song Yijun, take the side road to the west side of the gas station. Once you’re ready, act—don’t wait for us; we’ll fully support your progress!"

With that, Zhang Su pointed toward the gas station and signaled Lu Yubo and the others to move out.

The four student youths encouraged each other, then Pei Lan and Song Yijun climbed onto their bicycles behind Lu Yubo and rode cautiously toward the distance.

Behind Zhang Su, Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou no longer held crude table-leg pipes; instead, they wielded batons and steering wheel locks scavenged from abandoned vehicles, resembling long-handled hammers.

They weren’t refined weapons, but at least they were far better than what they’d had before—enough to fight back if they encountered zombies.

Zhang Su watched Lu Yubo’s group cross the street, then turned to his companions: "When you see zombies, don’t hold back. They’re no longer human. You only have one life—use every ounce of your strength!"

Everyone nodded solemnly.

"Follow me!"

Zhang Su tilted his head toward the gas station and began creeping slowly along the base of the Phoenix International wall, closing in.

When the six reached thirty meters from the gas station, they encountered the outermost wandering zombies.

With a swift swing of his hammer, Zhang Su dispatched one zombie in two strikes, leaving Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou stunned.

They exchanged glances, both seeing shock in each other’s eyes—was killing zombies this easy?

They clearly remembered how, before, they’d smashed, pounded, and stabbed zombies with wooden table legs—only to fail utterly. How could Zhang Su kill them in two hits?

"So strong."

Both Kuang Miao and Song Yijun thought the same word.

Now they finally understood why the other four obeyed Zhang Su without question.

"Wait!"

Zhang Su halted twenty meters from the alley entrance and whispered: "If we go further, we’ll enter their perception range. Lure them out one by one and kill them!"

Without being told, Zheng Xinyu and Zhong Xiaoshanjian stepped forward, picked up small stones, and hurled them at the nearest zombie. When the zombie turned toward them, they slowly retreated—like candy-pushing kidnappers, gently pulling zombies away from the group.

"Your turn—go!"

Zhang Su nodded to Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou behind him.

They said nothing, only clenched their lips and nodded, then gripped their weapons and moved to the front line to face the two approaching zombies.

"Make them fall—it’s easier to kill them that way!"

Zheng Xinyu passed by them and reminded them.

Whoosh.

Kuang Miao had no time to think how to make the zombie fall—he swung his baton and smashed it into the zombie’s grotesque head.

Thud.

Aowu aowu!

The heavy strike echoed—but instead of the skull cracking as he imagined, the zombie only grew angrier, lunging faster at him.

At the same time, Chen Hanzhou’s situation mirrored Kuang Miao’s exactly.

Both believed they’d struck with maximum force, expecting results like Zhang Su’s—but reality defied their expectations.

"Keep going! Is there a cooldown on your basic attacks?"

Zhang Su barked from behind.

Only then did they snap to attention—dodging while searching for openings to strike again.

Zhang Su spread his arms, signaling the three beside him to retreat—he made no move to help, unless it came to the final moment…

If they couldn’t handle these two zombies, this group truly wasn’t worth leading.

Things didn’t turn worst. After a struggle, Chen Hanzhou remembered Zheng Xinyu’s advice—he swept a leg, knocking the zombie down, then smashed its skull with the steering wheel lock, now caked in blood that dripped from broken plastic shards.

"Help… me…"

But Kuang Miao’s situation was dire—the zombie had knocked him down, its neck pinned under his baton as he strained to hold it off, locked in a stalemate.

Chen Hanzhou rushed over, raised his weapon to strike the zombie’s head—but seeing Kuang Miao’s terrified face beneath, he realized it was too risky. Instead, he swung at the zombie’s abdomen, then bent low and shoved hard.

Ugh!

Kuang Miao groaned, pushing upward with his left hand while pulling his right arm back.

The zombie rolled sideways.

Kuang Miao had no time to rest—he sprang up like a firecracker, stomped on the zombie’s chest, and raised his baton high before driving it down.

Plop! Plop! Plop-plop!

Kuang Miao lacked Tan Hua’s precision—he hammered like a pile driver, mashing the zombie’s face into pulp, finally piercing its eye socket on the seventh strike!

"Good thing this crappy baton’s poor quality—if it were sturdy, you’d have shoved it right into the zombie’s mouth on the first hit!"

Zhang Su had stood close beside Kuang Miao the whole time—he wouldn’t help, but he wouldn’t let him die. If Kuang Miao truly failed, he’d save him—and then there’d be no more Kuang Miao.

Kuang Miao’s hands trembled as he stared at the bent, deformed baton—he understood Zhang Su’s meaning. Had the baton not bent, the recoil would’ve pulled him forward, possibly into the zombie’s jaws.

"Hurry up—we don’t have time to waste!"

Zhang Su glanced toward the distance; he could faintly see Lu Yubo’s group already in position.

Sure enough, before Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou could catch their breath, distant music blared.

"Wumeng Mountains connect to mountains beyond…"

At the same time, three bicycles appeared on the street outside the gas station.

"Hey everyone, hi! Come see God!"

Lu Yubo, acting like a madman, waved his phone wildly, screaming at the top of his lungs—anything to attract zombies, the crazier the better!

Zombies had no minds; falling for the trick was natural. After the noise, dozens inside the gas station turned toward the sound, low, guttural growls echoing through the compound.

One by one, shambling figures began moving toward the noise.

One, five, ten—zombies emerging from behind the wall now numbered too many to count.

Zhang Su’s group stood to the side, feeling the pressure of the approaching horde—their scalps tightened. If surrounded by this mass, they’d face utter hopelessness.

"Don’t rush, don’t rush, don’t rush—wait!"

Zhang Su stood at the front, eyes locked on Lu Yubo’s trio on the street.

Lu Yubo seemed to have forgotten to leave—he kept waving his arms: "Come on, come here, follow me, let’s go now!"

"Let’s go, Bo-ge!"

Song Yijun, on his bike, wanted to pedal away instantly—but Lu Yubo kept screaming, as if the whole world must hear his cries, ignoring the zombies now nearing the street’s center!

"Don’t you see there are still so many inside the gas station? If we run now, what about Brother Zhang’s side? You coward!"

Lu Yubo shook off Song Yijun’s hand, raised his arm high, and shouted toward the gas station: "Hey friends behind, how are you? Can you hear me? Come quick—there’s meat!"

Song Yijun turned pale, then glanced westward—and spotted several zombies approaching!

"Pei Lan, let’s go, go—forget this lunatic!"

Song Yijun stammered, his legs trembling—he shoved Pei Lan, ready to flee.

Lu Yubo turned back and snarled: "If you dare leave, I’ll feed you to the zombies later! I’m not moving—none of you leave!"

His vicious look froze Song Yijun and Pei Lan in place.

After a moment, Pei Lan gathered courage and tugged Lu Yubo’s sleeve.

"Bo-ge, we really have to go—more zombies are coming from over there! Let’s go!"

Her face was pale as paper; the advancing horde had turned her legs to jelly. Had she not had Song Yijun and Lu Yubo beside her, she’d have wet herself.

"Follow me—don’t panic!"

Lu Yubo gave the order, then pedaled his bike straight toward the three zombies on the west.

Aowu aowu aowu!

The zombie horde from the gas station let out meaningless growls and turned slightly, following Lu Yubo’s path.

"Go!"

As soon as the zombies turned, Lu Yubo shoved his phone into the side pocket of his backpack, shouted, and pedaled hard toward the ambush position.

Pei Lan and Song Yijun had waited a thousand years for this—they unleashed all their strength, chains sparking, pedals spinning like whirlwinds, instantly overtaking the leisurely Lu Yubo.

"Coward!"

Lu Yubo muttered, then turned back—just as he’d predicted, the zombie horde had turned, turned again, and collapsed in the middle of the road. The first dozen, confused by the sudden change in direction, were knocked down by those behind, unable to rise.

This fall slowed the entire horde’s advance.

(End of Chapter)