[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-zombie-apocalypse-creation":3,"chapter-zombie-apocalypse-creation-zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-575":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Zombie Apocalypse: Creation",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1887531,2510,"Chapter 575 575: Story of A Refugee (11)","zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-575",575,"\u003Cp>The next part of my life was the most stressful time I ever had. A time that changed me fundamentally as a person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It all began with the five of us walking alongside the highway, traveling down with nothing in hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We had no water, no food. Nothing. The only thing we had was each other as we struggled down the road.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The highway section I originally planned to follow was completely blocked off by a car wreck, forcing us to take a detour down a dirt path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How long did this walk last?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I don't know off the top of my head. It felt like a week had passed. But the sun and the moon told me it has only been two days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone had completely lost track of time. It was all just endless trees everywhere, endless uphill and downhill on the dirt road.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the complete opposite of what my map had told me, even through the detour's own road signs, it didn't add up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zero villages, zero gas stations, zero human activity other than the potholes and abandoned cars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at this point, it was far too late to turn back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We just had to endure the hot, humid day as we continued traveling down in the hopes that we would reach some sort of human civilization.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Our minds and legs were starting to get numb. Our stomachs were constantly growling with hunger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone's lips were dry like cracked clay, dying from thirst as we struggled to cheer each other to continue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was even thinking of drinking my own piss if it wasn't for the fact that we didn't have any containers to put it in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My Mom and my younger sister were even starting to faint from the heat, forcing us to stop to take a break in the shade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I scouted ahead in the hopes of a water source, but what I saw finally gave me hope. It was a small village with a large sign that said \"Liangshuiquan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We had somehow managed to travel out of the entire mountain range from Pingdingshan and into Nanyang city's zone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I quickly ran back to bring the news to everyone, only to see my younger sister almost completely passed out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With no hesitation, I put her on my back as we resumed heading towards the town I had seen down the road.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When we finally arrived at the village entrance, we were immediately alerted by the dead silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not a single sound. No human noises. No zombies. Nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was almost as if the entire village had been abandoned—no traces of human activity anywhere in the village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I quickly handed my younger sister over to Dad, equipping my rifle before looking through one of the stone house's windows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one was inside—only a bunch of dusty old furniture and a photo of an old couple on a small desk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I instantly smashed through the window with the rifle's butt, breaking through the window before hopping inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After clearing the entire house, I opened the front door to let Dad put my younger sister on the couch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mom quickly ran over to the kitchen in the hopes that the water was still running, which surprisingly worked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a small sip, my sister was instantly brought to life as she coughed several times before sitting back up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone took a sip before I headed back outside, taking two metal sticks lying in the front yard before going inside again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I told Dad to stay behind and watch over everyone, handing him one of the metal sticks before I went alone to explore the rest of the village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The exploration itself took over half an hour, but it was all worth it as I found several dried foods hanging at one of the entrances to a house.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I even found a large water tower and a solar panel installed right before the outbreak, seemingly to be powering some sort of underground water pump.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I arrived at the village leader's house, I finally realized what had happened to everyone in the village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bus ticket receipt, with the destination being some government air raid shelter in the south, right between Nanyang and Xiangyang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I picked it up and shoved it into my pocket, heading back to my family before telling them what had happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We ultimately made the decision to stay in this abandoned village at least until we were fully rested.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After staying at the village for a week, we were all starting to get a little comfortable. Too comfortable to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We had almost unlimited food from the fish pond, unlimited water from the water tower, and spare clothes from the abandoned houses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Days of luxury, as I told myself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was just the feeling of freedom, not having to work some job for someone else. Or maybe it's just not needing to stand underneath the hot sun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could go for walks with Jieqiong all day long. Spend time together with her rather than looking at the same scenery every day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was almost as if we were back in the old hometown, except there was no meeting to attend or any need to worry about resources being rationed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything was going smoothly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing could possibly go wrong from here... Until Mom revealed something that shocked both me and my sister.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mom, you can't be serious. Dad, you... Really?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My younger sister couldn't finish her sentence. She just couldn't believe what Mom had just said out loud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hey, it's an accident, okay? We just got in the mood, and it just happened.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My Dad tried to make himself look a little better, but it only made the situation more awkward as Mom remained silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mom, are you sure it's not just some late period or something? Aren't you menopausal at this point?\" I questioned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When did I ever say that?\" Mom asked, looking back at me right in the eyes with a hint of anger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My bad... I just thought since you two are already in your 40s, your——\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ahem. That's enough.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Dad interrupted me from finishing, the room fell into silence. Everyone could feel that the atmosphere was a little tense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So what are we going to do now? Is Mom going to keep the baby or what?\" I asked in a grumpy voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dad looked over to Mom, whose face was still flustered like a fully ripened apple as she nodded her head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We are going to head south to Changsha. One of my co-workers in the construction told me there's a big settlement down that has everything.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What is the place called?\" My sister curiously asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don't know. All I know is it's located near Changsha. They told me an entire army group was stationed there before the outbreak.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Dad, you know how far Changsha is from here? It's almost three hundred miles. How the hell are we getting that far?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I finally couldn't hold in my frustration. At that very moment, my mind was filled with the desire to stay at the village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You think I don't know that? We're going to motorbike there. I already found a few functioning ones at the outskirts of the village.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Motorbike? Neither of us knows how to ride a motorbike. And there's no way it has enough gas for that entire trip.\" I argued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We'll just fuel up along the way. You know what, if you don't really want to go, I can go alone with her.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Dad snapped and stood up from the couch, it instantly calmed me back down as I realized how rude I sounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fine. I'll tell Jieqiong to pack up... Still can't believe you two.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I rolled my eyes as I walked out of the house. My mind was still a little grumpy over the fact that we needed to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at the same time, it was a wake-up call. There was no way for me to live in the village with Jieqiong forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially if we wanted to move our relationship forward, with no protection available, it would just mean celibacy for life between the two of us.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or we risk having her go through labor with no medical care. A certain death sentence that I would rather never have her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Zhaoxun, what was your family talking about?\" Jieqiong's voice suddenly appeared next to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The two of us together—Ahem, I mean Mom is pregnant. We need to pack up and go south to find a settlement.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wait, what? Really? How?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Jieqiong's surprise tone, my grumpy mood dissipated a little as I looked over to her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My Dad was a dumbass and just couldn't control himself. Just zero self-control over his lower body.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh... I'll go pack up now, then.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as she was about to walk off into the house next door, I suddenly grabbed her hand and held her in place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What's wrong?\" Jieqiong curiously asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Jieqiong, do you want to stay here? The two of us could stay if you want.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My offer made her freeze for a second before she stared straight into my eyes. It almost felt like I was being interrogated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Zhaoxun, what are you saying? You can't leave your Dad and Mom all alone like this. They are your family.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I... You're right. Ignore what I just asked.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1568,"2026-06-10T06:59:52.732Z",1,"novelbin.me","103602878a231ca88d8cd1448998b85d7378b0d40aa21d116135754a9c9dfbfe","zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-576","zombie-apocalypse-creation-chapter-574",829,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fzombie-apocalypse-creation-cover.jpg"]