Chapter 93: Nonstop Surprises (Ten Thousand Characters Complete)

“This guy’s got brains!”

Zhang Su hid behind the wall corner, watching Lu Yubo’s series of maneuvers, and couldn’t help smiling faintly.

“Too crazy, too insane…”

Kuang Miao stared at Lu Yubo leading the horde toward the pocket formation, his lips trembling—he could easily imagine himself in Lu Yubo’s place, being chased by hundreds of zombies, heart pounding with terror.

He looked with deep sympathy at Pei Lan and Song Yijun, already positioned near the pocket formation, and suddenly felt it was easier to kill zombies alongside Zhang Su.

If Zhang Su knew Kuang Miao’s naive thought, he’d douse him with cold water—but right now he had no time; his eyes swept the surroundings gathering intel, then suddenly asked: “Tell me, what’s most important when we storm the gas station?”

“Don’t make a sound!”

Everyone answered in unison.

Zhang Su nodded: “Right. No sound except the noise from hitting zombies. Absolutely no screaming—if you don’t want to die, clamp your mouth shut! Stay ready. When the zombies at the alley entrance leave with the horde, we slip in from the side!”

As he spoke, he heard the creaking of weapons being gripped tightly beside him.

It was impossible not to be nervous—any human felt fear—but now everyone had to overcome that fear.

Time passed slowly; as Lu Yubo moved, the entire zombie horde crept toward the pocket formation. Finally, the zombies near the alley entrance and the gas station exit also began to move.

“Shit!”

Zhang Su suddenly frowned.

Something had deviated from his expectations!

Because Lu Yubo’s position formed an acute angle with the gas station, the zombies at the alley entrance wouldn’t neatly follow the horde’s tail—they headed straight toward Lu Yubo, and at their closest point, they were only three or four meters from Zhang Su’s group!

That distance was practically brushing past—inevitably drawing the zombies’ attention.

Zhang Su now faced two choices: either immediately retreat to avoid the zombies’ path, or charge straight ahead and bring the fight inside the gas station!

“Fall back…”

Almost instinctively, Zhang Su was about to order a retreat—it was clearly safer—but then something even more unexpected happened.

Three figures burst out of the alley, timing it perfectly: seeing the zombies follow the noise, they turned and slipped along the wall into the gas station!

“Shit!”

Zhang Su hadn’t even taken a step back when his head burned hot—he’d taken advantage of others plenty of times, but never expected someone to cut him off at such a critical moment!

The noise here was too chaotic; his hearing advantage was useless now, otherwise this wouldn’t have happened. More importantly, he’d assumed the alley was blocked by helmet zombies—never imagined live people would suddenly pop out.

“What do we do, Brother Su!”

Zheng Xinyu asked urgently.

“Charge! Storm the gas station! We won’t let them steal our loot. Thirteen zombies total—even if there are more inside, it doesn’t matter. We head straight for the restroom, block the door, and kill!”

Zhang Su gritted his teeth, tightened his forearm guards, stood straight, and sprinted forward.

No need to urge—the other five ran as fast as they could, terrified of falling behind.

Survival in the apocalypse demanded no weakness, but also no mindless recklessness. If those intruders had been thirteen, not three, Zhang Su would’ve abandoned the supplies without hesitation and led everyone away.

The six sprinted along the wall, their breathing and footsteps naturally drawing the attention of over a dozen zombies at the alley entrance. After hesitation, most turned and chased after the gas station, while the rest continued toward “Wumeng Mountain.”

Twenty to thirty meters took only six or seven seconds—Zhang Su’s group reached the gas station exit. But when they rounded the wall and rushed inside, they froze.

They’d assumed Lu Yubo’s extreme maneuver had drawn away nearly all the zombies—but reality was grim: at least a quarter of the zombies remained inside the gas station.

These zombies might have just emerged from behind the convenience store, too slow to catch up with the main horde, now wandering aimlessly near the fuel pumps.

The three intruders had focused on dodging zombies—by now they’d reached the convenience store’s front door!

“Kill them!”

Zhang Su couldn’t let the cooked duck fly away—he rarely showed such ferocity, but now his eyes glinted as he turned to Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou: “The stuff they’re stealing inside is yours. Don’t hold back!”

If not for the pocket formation still open and zombies lingering near his van, he’d already jump in and drive off.

Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou’s faces twisted with complex emotion—they couldn’t think clearly—yet saw Zhang Su’s group charging ahead, so they gripped their weapons and followed.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Zhang Su’s damaged axe-hammer held strong; after initial wear, it seemed to unlock its true form—not decaying, but solidifying, cracking zombie skulls with crisp, satisfying snaps!

But after killing four or five zombies, the three intruders had already flung open the convenience store door and dashed inside. Once the door slammed shut, they immediately began dragging shelves to barricade it—blocking not just the zombies, but Zhang Su’s group too.

“Go through the back!”

Zhang Su called out, leading everyone toward the restroom—the zombies there were clearly fewer.

The people inside immediately noticed Zhang Su’s movement, realized there must be a back door, and sprinted toward the staff office. But one tripped over something and fell!

“Brother Su, they’re heading for the back door!”

Tan Huajun, most familiar with the gas station layout, saw their actions and shouted a warning.

“Fucking hell!”

Zhang Su cursed, glancing instinctively at his van—but immediately dismissed the idea of smashing through the convenience store door.

“Full charge inside!”

Zhang Su assessed the situation: the convenience store was now the only viable cover against zombies. If they crashed the van through, not only might the vehicle be damaged, but they’d lose all escape routes.

In a flash, Zhang Su passed his axe to his left hand, swiftly drew his dog-leg knife, and swung it wide and fierce at the charging zombies—his backpack shielded his chest, so he didn’t fear…

The sharp, hard dog-leg knife was a killer tool, but against zombies, precision mattered—best to sever heads outright; only if impossible should you strike the skull. That’s why Zhang Su disliked using it on zombies!

No time for hesitation now. His dog-leg knife whirled violently; the force of his sprint combined with the blade’s edge—first swing, a zombie’s head flew off. His left axe-hammer didn’t idle either, following the body’s rotation to deliver a solid punch to the chest of a zombie lunging from the side.

“Hold the rear!”

Zhang Su shouted, then sprinted ahead toward the back door!

The decapitated zombie collapsed instantly—but its rolling head still gnashed its teeth, terrifyingly alive. The one punched in the chest staggered back three steps…

Yet as it roared, desperate to charge forward and punish these foolish humans—

The rigid jaws of the caliper sank deep into his left eye socket; the zombie went limp and collapsed with a thud.

The hardened jaws of a caliper claw sank deep into its left eye socket. The zombie went limp and collapsed with a thud.

Zheng Xinyu and the two other women weren’t weaklings—they knew how dire this was. If the convenience store was fully barricaded, they’d be forced into a last-stand battle, with drastically increased danger.

Kuang Miao and Chen Hanzhou went wild too—the stench of decay and flying blood stimulated their nerves. Their weapons swung relentlessly—didn’t always land fatal blows, but always drew zombie attention.

The five of them created space for Zhang Su, shielding him from any zombie sneaking up from behind.

Reaching the building’s side, Zhang Su saw the back door—inside, a bearded man was just about to slam it shut.

“Everything’s ours! Goodbye!”

The bearded man roared and slammed the door shut.

“You’re asking for death!”

Zhang Su sprinted forward and kicked the door with all his force.

Combined with his own weight and two heavy backpacks, the two hundred and sixty to two hundred and seventy jin of mass shattered the fragile lock with a single impact.

His own weight plus two heavy backpacks—two hundred and sixty to seventy jin—shattered the fragile lock instantly…

The metal door flew open, slamming into the bearded man before he could dodge, knocking him senseless.

The bearded man let out a shriek, staggered back a few steps, and collapsed onto the ground.

The bearded man screamed, stumbling back and collapsing to the floor.

Another middle-aged man rushed into the back corridor; as he moved to help the hefty Master Zhao, a dark shadow across from him raised a hand and something shot toward him—he instantly recoiled.

Another middle-aged man rushed into the back corridor, ready to help the heavyset Master Zhao—when he saw a dark shape raise a hand and something fly toward him. He yanked his body back in panic.

Zhang Su wouldn’t stand at the doorway after kicking it open. Once his eyes adjusted to the dimness, he pressed forward into the corridor.

He hurled his axe to drive back the rescuer, then stepped forward and stomped hard on the bearded man’s wrist holding the knife—but the man had high pain tolerance, gripping it tightly without letting go.

“Ahh, you little shit, I’m gonna kill you—”

Master Zhao had barely finished his threats when a heavy kick struck his skull, knocking him unconscious instantly.

Master Zhao hadn’t finished his threat—his head took a heavy kick and he passed out cold.

Zhang Su sensed the shift in light—he knew his companions had arrived at the back door—and barked an order, then charged forward without looking back; he had to seize the convenience store quickly, for Lu Yu and the others would return soon!

Zhang Su sensed light shifting—he knew his companions had reached the back door. He gave the order without turning, sprinting ahead—he had to secure the convenience store fast, because Lu Yubo and the others would return soon!

He picked up the axe, pushed open the door between the office and corridor, and entered the same office where he’d first found Tan Huajun. Same as before—boxes of mineral water scattered messily on the floor.

His ears twitched constantly, trying to pick out useful sounds from the chaos.

Footsteps scraping, zombie roars, pounding on doors…

Too many random noises—he couldn’t isolate anything useful.

He thought hard. Uncertain if the group had ranged weapons, he pulled off his backpack and hurled it into the store.

The tactic worked: a bottle smashed against the wall.

The tactic worked—a bottle smashed against the wall!

“I warn you—don’t come closer, or I’ll—I’ll throw this at you!”

A panicked voice rang out, followed by another bottle flying through the air.

But as the man reached for another bottle, a shadow burst from the doorway—blazing fast, as if he knew the layout by heart. He leapt onto a round display case and launched himself straight toward the man.

Clang—the man’s bottle fell to the ground, its sturdy glass spinning but unbroken; he immediately crouched to shield a woman, unprepared for how bold the intruder was—using the moment of the thrown bottle to surge forward, leaping with astonishing agility, far beyond his ability to resist.

The man dropped his bottle with a clatter—it didn’t break, just rolled. He immediately crouched to shield a woman, stunned by how bold the intruder was—he’d used the bottle-throwing distraction to charge out, moving with impossible agility, far beyond his ability to resist.

Zhang Su knew the convenience store’s layout well—he’d spent half a day here, planning to spend the night, studying every corner, even drafting detailed layout changes… though he never used them.

Holding his bloodied dog-leg knife and axe-hammer, Zhang Su looked like a god of slaughter. He glanced toward the front door—over a dozen zombies pressed against the glass, pounding relentlessly. So far, no cracks. Whether it would hold—he didn’t know.

After confirming no immediate threats, he finally turned to the two huddled in the corner.

An older man, probably over fifty, his short hair streaked with gray, hugged a young woman. Even bundled like a ball, her head wrapped in cloth, she trembled violently—whether from cold or fear, he couldn’t tell. Her face remained buried in the man’s chest.

Judging by age, they were likely father and daughter.

Plop.

[101] Zhang Su pulled several plastic zip ties from his backpack and tossed them on the floor. “Bind your own wrists and ankles.”

"Ah, this... okay, okay, I'll tie myself up!"

The middle-aged man hesitated only two seconds before quickly releasing the woman in his arms, crawling forward on hands and feet, picking up the zip tie, gently binding her wrists and ankles, then tying his own, and tugging at the tie toward Zhang Su to show he was obeying.

"Honey, are you okay?"

Zheng Xinyu stepped into the convenience store, saw Zhang Su staring at the door, and hurried over to ask.

Zhong Xiaoshanyi and Tan Hua followed closely behind, entering one after another; at the very end came Chen Hanzhou and Kuang Miao, each holding one leg, dragging the unconscious Master Zhao inside.

"I'm fine!"

Zhang Su replied, saw the grime on them all, but noted their expressions had calmed—none were injured—and said to the group: "We need to clean up the outside!"

Hearing Zhang Su’s words, the group was not surprised—they all still had companions who hadn’t returned!

Lu Yu had lured the zombies into the pouch formation; judging by the time, it should be closing soon, and he’d arrive once done. Meanwhile, the convenience store was surrounded by twenty to thirty zombies—no one could get out, and none could get in, leaving them in a dire predicament!

No one spoke much, only nodded heavily in agreement.

Twenty to thirty zombies weren’t few, but with a proper plan and united effort, they weren’t insurmountable.

"We can’t charge out the front door. When you came in, what was the situation at the back door?"

Zhang Su picked up a pack of tissues, tore it open, wiped the dog leg, then slid it back into its sheath.

"We killed a few, but three zombies followed us—we blocked them outside!"

Zhong Xiaoshanyi briefly described the situation.

"That’s not many. We’ll break out the back door. Meanwhile, at the front door..."

CRACK!

Before Zhang Su could finish, a chilling sound of shattering glass rang out.

Everyone turned—and froze. Two zombies had begun smashing their heads against the glass, and the others nearby copied them, abandoning their slaps to join in headbutting!

The entire wall of glass now spiderwebbed with cracks like a highway network.

(End of Chapter)