Chapter 89

Zhang Su narrowed his eyes and said calmly: "I've already said, you didn't clear the area properly, so we killed quite a few zombies ourselves. There won't be a single cent of protection fee, and as for those brothers of yours, they killed each other—that has nothing to do with us!"

"Killed each other? You're full of crap. That's impossible. The brotherhood of our Salvation Society is stronger than steel; how could they kill each other!"

Zhang Xin immediately denied Zhang Su's words. The protection fee was just a bonus; the real extortion was for the four lives. Naturally, he couldn't just let the other side say whatever they wanted.

"Heh, whether it's stronger than steel or not, I don't know. I just know they got into a huge fight over the distribution of supplies. We were hiding in a closet and heard it clearly; it was quite the lively brawl. By the time we came out, only one guy named Wu Daqiang was still alive, though he was severely wounded."

"Out of humanitarian concern, we didn't make things difficult for Wu Daqiang and let him go. We even gave him a few cans of food before he left. What? He didn't make it back?"

Zhang Su was composed, gesturing as he spoke. It sounded so authentic that even Zheng Xin and the other three began to doubt their own memories.

"I don't believe your bullshit! Even without the protection fee, four lives—two bags per life!"

Zhang Xin shook his head, unmoved.

"So, you think you've got us cornered, is that it?"

Seeing that the other side was completely unreasonable, the smile Zhang Su used for negotiations vanished from his face. A cold, sinister glint appeared in his eyes as he said: "Zhang Xin, right? I was willing to come over and talk to you to give you face. If you don't want face, I have ways of being shameless too!"

As the words fell, Zhang Su unbuckled his belt and drew the kukri military knife he used specifically for people.

Without needing Zhang Su's order, the other four had already formed a tacit understanding. Seeing him take out his weapon, they naturally entered a defensive state.

After more than a week of training, tempering, and fighting zombies, Zheng Xin and Zhong Xiao possessed a compelling, heroic aura once they took their stances.

Lu Yu, who was a daredevil by nature, shook the grain sampler whose grooves were already stained with blood, a ferocious grin on his face. He was clearly the type who took life and death lightly and would fight at the drop of a hat.

Tan Huajun was round and chubby, and because she was more approachable, her aura was slightly weaker, but she had mass. With her strange and imposing weapon slanted in front of her chest, the blood-stained measuring claws made people shudder.

"Boss Xin, these people aren't pushovers!"

"Damn it, these guys aren't just putting on a show, are they? Don't tell me those two little ladies can fight too..."

"Maybe we should just negotiate properly."

The people around Zhang Xin were intimidated by the aura of Zhang Su's group, and some immediately began to back down. Several who had held proper jobs before the apocalypse even showed fear on their faces.

Everyone was just looking for supplies; few were willing to truly fight to the death. All that talk about the brotherhood of the Salvation Society being stronger than steel was just bullshit.

"Boss Xin, the situation isn't right."

The man wearing glasses seemed to be the brains of the Salvation Society. He frowned and leaned into Zhang Xin's ear to say: "Look at the color of their weapons; every one of them has seen blood. This is a hard nut to crack. We just lost four men; we can't afford to kick this!"

Zhang Xin never expected the other side to be even tougher than him. It looked like they intended to play for real, especially those cold eyes that reminded him of some old friends behind iron bars. Just as he was struggling to make a decision, the other side spoke again.

"You know about the explosion at the gas station next door yesterday, right?" Zhang Su asked, pointing his knife toward the gas station.

Zhang Xin nodded: "I heard a bang."

"The explosion at the gas station attracted over a hundred zombies, and we are the ones who fought our way out of there! If your Salvation Society insists on testing us, I can lure those hundred-plus zombies over here, and we can see who kills more!"

Zhang Su revealed a crazed smile.

"That's really not necessary!" the bespectacled strategist hurriedly intervened.

"No need for that!" Zhang Xin spoke almost simultaneously, raising a hand: "Brother Zhang, there aren't many humans left. We should help each other and be united; there's no need for such dangerous competitions!"

Phew...

Hearing their boss make a concession, the people of the Salvation Society secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Even the guy in the knit cap, who had been shouting about killing Zhang Su, clicked his tongue in secret—there really were a lot of lunatics in this world!

Their lives were pretty good right now; they had food and drink. Only an idiot would risk their life...

What if there's no food or drink in the future?

We'll deal with that when the time comes!

The vast majority of people like to bully the weak and fear the strong. When they met someone who didn't fear death, they all turned cowardly.

Zhang Su's side stood in stark contrast to the opposite group. He didn't say a word, and the others remained in a tense posture, without the slightest relaxation.

After a standoff of about five seconds, Zhang Su slowly sheathed his kukri, and the people around him also slowly lowered their weapons, though their cold, sharp gazes remained fixed on the people opposite.

"Help each other and be united—well said. Then why don't you join us in clearing out the zombies at the residential complex entrance!"

Zhang Su pointed his axe toward the main gate.

"Brother Zhang, I advise you not to push your luck!"

Zhang Xin's thick, messy eyebrows knit together as he shook the meat-trimming knife in his hand, signaling that he wasn't someone to be trifled with either. Don't take an inch and ask for a mile just because I gave you some face!

"Both surnamed Zhang, your brain just isn't as useful as my husband's!"

This time, it wasn't Zheng Xin who called Zhang Su husband, but Zhong Xiao.

"You stinking bitch, what do you mean by that?"

Zhang Xin didn't expect to be looked down upon by a woman. An unnameable fire rose in his heart; if it weren't for the fact that the other side had a lunatic, he would have rushed up and kicked her twice.

Zhang Su didn't speak. How could someone as shrewd as Zhong Xiao say something reckless?

In Zhong Xiao's cold, charming eyes was a faint trace of disdain. She said coldly: "Phoenix International is your territory. Can you really be at ease with so many zombies lurking at the entrance? My husband is willing to lend a hand to help you clear the zombies, and you actually say he's pushing his luck?"

"These people look like idiots. Husband, let's not help this bunch. Let's just climb over the wall and leave. It's a bit more trouble, but so what? Let's leave the zombies here to keep them company."

Hearing Zhong Xiao call Zhang Su husband, Zheng Xin wasn't about to be outdone. Pouting and acting cute, there wasn't a shred of ferocity left in her; anyone who didn't know better would think she was begging a top-tier donor for a tip.

The people around Zhang Xin ranged from forty or fifty years old to barely over twenty. Suddenly being teased by two women, they became restless in an instant.

"Stop yapping!" Zhang Xin waved a hand at his men, then looked at Zhang Su: "Brother Zhang, you don't need to provoke me. I know what you're thinking—you just want to use our strength to help you clear a path to leave."

"But your woman got one thing wrong. The zombies at the complex entrance don't make me feel uneasy; they provide me with a natural barrier. I don't have enough time to keep them, why would I be willing to kill them?"

Zhang Su looked at Zhang Xin with a strange expression. A moment later, he grinned: "Why deceive yourself? Since you like zombies guarding the door, how about I give you a big gift?"

"Don't you mess around! What the hell are you trying to do?"

Seeing the strange smile on Zhang Su's face, Zhang Xin's heart hammered. He suddenly regretted running into this group of lunatics.

"There are about ten zombies in the garden. You handle those, and we'll take care of the ones on the road outside the gate. Do we have a deal, or not?"

Zhang Su had just made a rough observation. There weren't many zombies wandering outside the gate; most had been lured away by the explosion.

"We do the work while you watch from the sidelines? Don't even think about it! We can contribute, but you can't just stand idle. We'll enter the garden from the left, and you enter from the right. We kill them together!"

Zhang Xin knew he had to do something today—either completely tear off the mask with the other side or take the risk of killing zombies.

Killing zombies together meant less danger for him; fighting the other side as the leader meant the risk factor was too high...

Even with his butt, he knew how to choose.

This was the result Zhang Xin wanted, and also the result Zhang Su was willing to see.

"Good. Helping each other, united and friendly. Come, let's shake hands on our cooperation!"

Zhang Su strode forward and, with great nonchalance, extended the hand he had just been holding the knife with toward Zhang Xin. However, his action startled the opposite side; a few of the timid ones even took a few steps back, and one guy tripped over the threshold of the unit door and almost fell.

"Damn cowards!" Zhang Xin couldn't help but curse. He turned his head and also extended his hand: "Happy cooperation!"

Human unity requires a common enemy. Hunger is a common enemy, and zombies are too. Once the two sides reached an agreement, a temporary alliance was formed.

"You take the left, it's relatively closer. I'll take my men to the right first!"

After a firm handshake, Zhang Su let go and turned to leave.

Watching the five people walk away, the knit-cap guy beside Zhang Xin muttered: "Boss Xin, what do you think of that bunch's skills? Are they really as powerful as they say?"

"Won't we know in a moment? Everyone stay sharp, be brave, let's go!"

Things had reached this point; no one could back down. They followed Zhang Xin to the corner where Zhang Su's group had been hiding earlier.

"Brother Su, those dog-things won't try to stab us in the back, will they?"

Lu Yu asked in a low voice.

Zhang Su looked left and right to observe the situation while saying: "Everyone can't help but think that, which is why we split into two sides. But I think when facing a common enemy, everyone will be relatively restrained."

"I'm annoyed by that guy in the blue down jacket on their side. His eyes have been wandering over me and Xiao the whole time!"

Zheng Xin said with a frown.

Arriving at the spot, Zhang Su raised a hand to signal a stop. He turned to look at Zheng Xin: "Do you understand what I told you before? After coming out, make yourselves look uglier and dirtier—this is a form of protection! Once we get out of here, you can figure it out yourselves!"

Zheng Xin and Zhong Xiao suddenly remembered what Zhang Su had said. After encountering a group of hungry, thirsty men, they finally understood the meaning behind his words.

In peaceful times, even if someone coveted a woman's beauty, constrained by the law, most people wouldn't dare cross the line. But now, with civilization collapsed and struggling to survive in the apocalypse, inner desires needed to be vented, and the danger factor for beautiful women was rising in a straight line.

It cannot be denied that beautiful women can use their own advantages to cling to the strong and more easily gain opportunities for survival, but that is merely the existence of an accessory—a commodity that can be exchanged at any time.

"I'll do it now..." As she spoke, Zheng Xin grabbed a handful of dirt from the ground and smeared it on her face.

"Now is not the time for that. Let's solve the problem in front of us first!"

Seeing that Zhang Xin's eight men were in position, Zhang Su raised his fist in a preparatory gesture and continued: "Don't split up, move!"

With that, he swung his fist forward and was the first to walk toward the cobblestone path on the right side of the garden.

If Zhang Xin's group hadn't appeared, Zhang Su wouldn't have used such a direct method to kill the zombies. By using the terrain to set up various small traps, he could have cleared the zombies in the garden very easily.

Those techniques might not have been brilliant, but he didn't want to show them to the Salvation Society for no reason, so he ultimately chose the most primitive way to deal with the zombies!

Seeing Zhang Su act so decisively, Zhang Xin steeled himself. Without hesitation, he led the seven men behind him and charged forward.

The landscape garden was distributed horizontally from east to west. In the center, toward the right, was an octagonal pavilion. Between the pavilion and the small plaza was an artificial landscape river about two meters wide, filled with fallen leaves and bloodstains. Rusted water pipes protruded from the leaves, clearly having not had water for a long time.

The cobblestone garden path was stained with blood, and severed limbs and corpses were scattered across the small plaza. One could imagine how tragic it was when the disaster first broke out. Fortunately, the cold weather slowed the rate of decomposition, otherwise, the stench of rot alone would have been enough to make people unable to open their eyes.

About twenty zombies wandered throughout the garden. Perhaps because they hadn't found food for a long time, the zombies' skin looked even more withered, a dark brown tint within the blue-gray, and the shoes on their feet were tattered from the constant walking these past few days.

Awoo!

The calm garden became boiling the moment Zhang Su and Zhang Xin's groups charged in. The zombies smelled the long-lost fresh life and, as if receiving some kind of order, instantly became fierce.

The axe-hammer in Zhang Su's hand became a blur of motion. As the vanguard of the team, he held nothing back when encountering zombies. He smashed with the hammer side with great force, killing two zombies in less than five strikes. The thud-thud-thud sound made one's skin crawl.

Lu Yu finally witnessed Zhang Su's combat power. He felt as if he had been injected with adrenaline, but because Zhang Su was too fierce, he only managed to pick off one zombie. If not for Zhang Su stopping him, he would have rushed out of the formation several times.

The three women, Zheng Xin included, were under almost no pressure, but they didn't relax in the slightest. They clustered around Zhang Su and Lu Yu, handling the flank defense to prevent any "sneaky" zombies from suddenly jumping out of the bushes to hurt someone.

Zhang Su's group advanced smoothly toward the pavilion. In a short time, there were already six zombies dead at the hands of him and Lu Yu.

Superior weapons combined with precise strikes made Zhang Su and Lu Yu highly efficient at killing zombies, and their physical exertion wasn't particularly high.

Awooooo!

As the distance closed, the three zombies lurking inside the pavilion sensed the sound and the approach of fresh flesh and blood. They set off with stumbling steps and charged toward Zhang Su's group of five, their blood-red eyes seeming to brighten a bit, just like men who had been in labor camp for ten years seeing a pretty girl.

(End of chapter)