Chapter Eight: Forming a Team

In that moment, Xie Han’s mind suddenly opened up. He thought about all the discarded paper money in the apocalypse, and the countless caches of gold and diamonds in every city. If he could bring some back to his own world, becoming a billionaire would be the easiest thing in the world. Even if he couldn’t get his hands on the gold and diamonds in the cities, with food alone, he could amass endless wealth in the form of precious metals and gems.

But these thoughts only flashed by before being replaced by disappointment. He had only a single cubic meter of spatial storage—how many packets of instant noodles could he possibly bring? There was plenty of cash here, but all of it was printed with dates beyond 2050, still in red as the base color, but who knew which edition these notes belonged to? There was no way this money could be used in his own world. And as for the gold and diamonds in the cities—was there a city in the Chinese region with fewer than several million inhabitants? That meant millions of zombies. If one had a death wish, perhaps they could try to claim some.

Seeing all his imagined paths to riches cut off, Xie Han couldn't help but sigh heavily. His dreams of becoming a billionaire seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Qi Feiwu, seeing Xie Han accept her ring and bracelet, returned to her usual composure. She sat by the fire, casually set down her gun, and tossed a few pieces of wood onto the flames. Only now did Xie Han notice that what Qi Feiwu was carrying was actually an automatic rifle—he couldn’t tell what model it was. After decades of development, many things were no longer familiar to him. In this post-apocalyptic world, strength was everything. Without even a gun, someone like him probably counted among the weakest.

Xie Han offered an awkward smile as he sat across from Qi Feiwu. Glancing over, he saw that the three elders and three youths had already crawled into their tents. He asked, puzzled, “Qi Feiwu, it doesn’t seem like your team is all that capable, is it?”

Qi Feiwu’s face clouded. Her mood seemed low as she replied, “Should we just abandon them? After all, they’re living, breathing people. Anyone with a conscience wouldn’t leave them behind. In the face of this disaster, we should all unite if we hope to rebuild our home, even if it’s just a slim chance.” She gave a bitter smile and sighed, “But how many people really understand that? In the face of catastrophe, everyone reveals their true, ugly selves. To survive, anyone can become a stepping stone for others.”

Just moments ago, this woman had been the resolute captain of a team; now, in a blink, she looked heartbreakingly vulnerable. Sympathy stirred in Xie Han as he asked, “So, where are you all headed? The small town up ahead won’t be easy to get through.”

Qi Feiwu spoke despondently, “Half a month ago, the base we had guarded for three years ran out of food, and everyone fled. At that moment, the base was overrun by zombies—less than a third of us escaped. Along the way, many died of starvation. The elderly and weak are always the first to be abandoned, since they need food and water but can’t contribute to combat, often dragging the whole team down. We’re still hundreds of kilometers from the provincial base in Wangtian. With no food, the odds are against us.”

Xie Han looked at her strangely and asked, “So you couldn’t bear to leave them behind, and you chose to stay, leading them to form a new team?” Qi Feiwu nodded, her face set in determination. “In this world, women are at the bottom of the hierarchy, often reduced to being tools for men’s desires. But I want to prove to everyone that women can kill zombies too, and lead the weak and elderly to the provincial base.”

Xie Han shook his head. “To be blunt, it seems your dream will be very hard to realize.” Qi Feiwu’s expression turned pained. “Yes. When we left the base, our team had over thirty people. In half a month, only nine remain. Without food, and with hundreds of kilometers still to go, we simply can’t make it.”

In peaceful times, a few hundred kilometers would be just a three or four hour drive. But in the apocalypse, zombies were everywhere, and the roads were badly damaged. It would take at least half a month to cover that distance on foot. There were no safe supply points along the way; to eat, they’d have to snatch food from the hands of zombies, and face constant sudden attacks. The fact that this team had made it this far was already a stroke of luck.

Qi Feiwu gazed at Xie Han. “What about you?”

Of course Xie Han couldn’t reveal his origins. He shrugged. “I have nowhere to go. I wander from place to place, and maybe tomorrow I’ll be eaten by zombies. Alone, unarmed, how could I possibly cross hundreds of kilometers to the provincial base?”

Qi Feiwu hesitated, then stood up and hurried over to the strong man on watch. The two whispered and argued for a bit before returning to the fire. Qi Feiwu fixed Xie Han with her eyes. “I may be the captain, but Xu Qiang is our team’s firepower. It wasn’t easy to get his agreement to let you join us. Would you be willing?”

Looking at this rather pitiful team, Xie Han guessed the reason Qi Feiwu wanted him to join was that he still had some fighting ability. He’d thought it over—alone and unarmed in this world, he’d sooner or later become zombie fodder. This team might be battered, but it was still better than being by himself. With that in mind, Xie Han nodded. “Of course I’m willing.”

Qi Feiwu smiled, revealing white teeth. “Good. From now on, I’m your captain.” She drew a pistol from her thigh and tossed it to him. “There are only two automatic rifles in the team. You’ll have to make do with this pistol for now.”

Xie Han took the weapon, a thrill running through him. It was his first time handling a real gun, and the cold touch of the metal made him itch to try it out. But he suppressed the urge and tucked the pistol into a convenient pocket. Though it was his first time, he felt strangely familiar with firearms, as if he could shoot a branch off a tree a hundred meters away.

Seeing him put the gun away, Qi Feiwu took a map from her pocket, spread it on the ground, and pointed to a spot by firelight. “This is our route for tomorrow. We’ll need to pass through three towns and seventeen villages. You came from ahead, right? Is there any way to go around?”

Xie Han nodded. “Yes. There’s a small town seven or eight miles ahead.”

“Can you tell me about it?” Qi Feiwu asked.

Xie Han had fled through that very town, but hadn’t seen everything clearly. Still, he recounted what he remembered. After he finished, Qi Feiwu looked disappointed. “It seems a large group has already searched that town. Otherwise, the zombies wouldn’t be so densely gathered. I wonder if there’s any food left at all.”

Thinking of what he’d seen in the small town, Xie Han doubted there was much food left.

Qi Feiwu hesitated, then smacked the map and gritted her teeth. “Tomorrow, we have to go into that town. The team has been starving for three days—before we die of hunger, we must find some food…”

Xie Han was startled. That town held over thirty thousand zombies. With just two rifles and a pistol, it was no different from courting death. It seemed the hunger had pushed Qi Feiwu to desperation.