The airport was to the west, about a four-hour drive away. According to Kang Cheng’s plan, all they needed to do was cross a vast stretch of empty wheat fields and pass through a small supply station in between.
That supply station was located in a suburban villa district.
Not only were their supplies of food and drinking water running low, but the vehicle itself was also almost out of fuel.
The journey had gone relatively smoothly. They managed to reach the outskirts of the villa district just before the bus completely died.
From the outside, the villas looked picturesque, with blooming flowers and lush green trees. If one ignored the scattered infected wandering along the roadside and the few abandoned cars stalled in the middle of the road, the place didn’t look much different from how it used to be.
“Taozi and Old Zhang, go search for supplies. The rest stay put.” Kang Cheng climbed up onto the roof of the bus to set up his rifle for cover.
The two soldiers received their orders, opened the door, and stepped out.
Continuous rain and overcast skies had kept the temperature low. Inside the crowded bus, the warmth was still bearable. But the moment the door opened, Jiang Xinghuai immediately sneezed.
They had escaped in a hurry, and all Jiang Xinghuai had on was a thin hoodie.
Fu Yan had just taken off half of his suit jacket.
Hearing the sneeze, Jiang Liangyuan turned his head in their direction, then reached into his duffel bag and pulled out a jacket. He tossed it over. “It’s a bit big. Just make do with it.”
Jiang Xinghuai said nothing, lowering his head as he put on the jacket Jiang Liangyuan had thrown to him.
Fu Yan zipped Jiang Xinghuai’s jacket all the way up and quietly asked, “You started talking again?”
Jiang Xinghuai stayed silent for a while, fingers brushing the hem of the jacket. After a long pause, he finally spoke in a low voice: “If he were your dad, I definitely wouldn’t talk to him.”
“But he is my dad.” Jiang Xinghuai lifted his head to look at him, helplessness in his eyes. “Do you understand what I mean?”
Fu Yan nodded and gently patted his head.
“I really hated him,” Jiang Xinghuai said, his chin tucked into the collar, his expression calm. “When he went to save them and left me behind in that house, I swore I never wanted to see him again in my life. But I still remember when he was good to me. The first time he held me. The first time he bought me a toy. How he coaxed me to take medicine when I was sick.”
“I won’t forgive him. But that’s all it is. I just won’t forgive him.” That was how Jiang Xinghuai ended his words.
Fu Yan ruffled his hair again. “Mm.”
“Anyway, I’ve messed with him plenty before. He got so mad that he ended up in the hospital, but he never really stopped taking care of me. So, we’re even.” Jiang Xinghuai shrugged. “But my mom, after the divorce, she immediately remarried and went abroad. Married some blue-eyed guy.”
At that point, Jiang Xinghuai paused, then asked, “Hey, do you think it hurts more when a foreign zombie bites you, or one of ours?”
“In theory—”
“Open the door!” Kang Cheng’s voice came from the roof.
Jiang Xinghuai stood up and looked out the window.
The two soldiers who had gone out to search for supplies were running back, carrying a lot of goods and several people with them.
Four or five infected were chasing right behind them.
Kang Cheng was already positioned on the roof with his rifle. The moment they entered his shooting range, he opened fire.
Bang, bang, bang—
The infected pursuing them collapsed to the ground one after another.
They had rescued a total of four people. Three of them were a family: a father, a mother, and their daughter. The little girl looked quite young, about the same age as Qian Ranran.
The remaining one was a young man with dyed yellow hair. He wore a torn short-sleeved shirt, tall and thin, with a look that said he wasn’t easy to mess with.
“He and Lu Ying[mfn]the blond teen they were with[/mfn] are definitely going to have something to talk about,” Jiang Xinghuai muttered as soon as he saw the guy with the yellow hair. The sight made him start worrying again about his godfather’s group, especially about Old Geng, who had been infected.
After thinking for a moment, he lowered his voice and asked, “If we manage to get on the plane… can we go pick up Teacher Geng and the others?”
“Sorry. Our top priority is to ensure that Qian Ranran, who carries the antibody, reaches the underground base safely.” Kang Cheng, who had come over at some point, tossed two packets of instant noodles into Jiang Xinghuai’s arms. With a playful wink, he added quietly, “But once this mission is complete, I’ll request permission to conduct a rescue operation in your area. Tell me what your teacher looks like so I can keep an eye out.”
Jiang Xinghuai nodded earnestly. “He’s a fat guy.”
“Got it,” Kang Cheng said with equal seriousness, nodding firmly.
The bus continued forward. About two hours later, everyone finally saw the outline of the airport in the distance.
Kang Cheng judged that the airport wasn’t particularly dangerous. Troops had been sent earlier to clear it out. But nothing was ever absolute. Caution was still necessary.
The group was split into two lines, advancing in parallel.
Although the airport appeared quiet and safe, not a single person dared to breathe too loudly.
Including Kang Cheng, there were five soldiers in total. They positioned themselves at the front, back, and both sides of the formation.
Lei Pengtao led the way. Once he quickly confirmed a usable plane, he found the fueling equipment and began refueling it.
Kang Cheng pushed over the boarding ramp. Once it was secured, he signaled for everyone to start boarding.
Jiang Xinghuai and Fu Yan were near the back of the line. This was how Kang Cheng had arranged it. Women and children in the front, men in the rear.
No one spoke. They just stepped up onto the ramp one after another.
Click—
A sudden sound broke through the silence.
Zheng Yi had just set his foot on the first step. The instant he heard the noise, his body froze. His footing slipped, and he lost his balance, stumbling sideways.
Jiang Xinghuai, right behind him, reacted instantly, grabbing his arm to steady him.
Everyone froze, afraid to move.
“It’s fine.” Lei Pengtao gave an embarrassed smile, gesturing that the sound had come from his side while refueling.
A false alarm.
“Keep boarding,” Kang Cheng whispered, giving instructions.
Jiang Xinghuai let go of Zheng Yi’s arm and teased, “Uncle, your nerves are really—”
He didn’t finish his sentence.
All of a sudden, a muffled gulping sound came out of nowhere.
Jiang Xinghuai froze. Then, realizing something was wrong, he stiffly lifted his head to look up.
A skin-and-bone skeletal creature was hanging upside down from a tall lamppost. That swallowing sound had come from it.
Long, stringy saliva dripped from the corner of its mouth, stretching down like threads.
It tilted its head slightly, opened its mouth wide toward Jiang Xinghuai, and let out a harsh, grating “Hhha!” from deep within its throat.
“Holy shit!” Jiang Xinghuai yelped in fright, instinctively pulling out the iron rod he had tucked into his waistband.
The creature, seemingly provoked, opened its mouth again, about to shriek—
But before the sound could escape, several bullets struck straight into its open mouth in rapid succession!
It was Kang Cheng who fired the shots.
“Get on the plane! Everyone, get up there. Go!” Kang Cheng shouted as he jumped off the boarding ramp, hitting the ground with a roll before firing several more rounds at the creature hanging upside down above them.
The deafening gunfire tore open the curtain of chaos.
Screams from the crowd mixed with the roars of the monsters.
Everyone shoved and pushed frantically, struggling to get up the ramp.
Jiang Xinghuai grabbed Zheng Yi, who had been shoved to the side, with one hand, and with the other, he seized a little boy who had somehow been squeezed up beside him. He pulled both of them forward, running with all his strength.
But as he ran, he realized Fu Yan was no longer beside him. Panic surged through him. “Fu Yan!”
A hand suddenly pressed against his back, and another reached out, taking the little boy from him and lifting the child into his arms. Fu Yan’s voice came from right behind him: “Run!”
The mutated creature leapt down from the tall guidance light. It was incredibly fast. The one closest to it, Lei Pengtao, who had been refueling the plane, didn’t even have time to react.
The monster grabbed his leg, yanking him down. He fell hard to the ground, blood instantly running down from a cut on his forehead.
Kang Cheng sprinted over, firing several shots in rapid succession into the monster’s head. Half of its skull was blasted apart before it finally stopped moving, staggering once before collapsing to the ground.
Panting heavily, Kang Cheng pulled Lei Pengtao up. His heart, which had been in his throat, finally began to settle.
“Ahhh!”
A piercing scream split the air.
Kang Cheng whipped his head around.
There was another monster.
“Ah!” A woman, somehow pushed to the end of the line, was grabbed by the leg and dragged away within seconds.
Kang Cheng dashed after her.
The mutant creature let out a loud, guttural roar as it dragged the woman across the ground.
The sound was deafening.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye.
Fu Yan turned around, his brow twitching. Spinning on his heel, he shoved both the little boy in his arms and Jiang Xinghuai through the airplane door, then shouted, “Kang Cheng! Get back here!”
But Kang Cheng couldn’t stop. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the woman who kept screaming for help.
That woman was one of the people he had rescued just today.
The mutant’s shriek finally drew in a whole swarm of bloodthirsty creatures. They came charging in packs, wild and frenzied.
“Captain!” Lei Pengtao shouted, firing as he went.
Kang Cheng turned and started running back.
“Close the door!” he yelled.
He wasn’t sure if he could outrun those mutants. But if he couldn’t, and they waited to close the door, everyone inside the plane would be in danger.
“Captain!” Lei Pengtao fired several more shots.
“Close the door!” Kang Cheng roared, his voice full of command.
Fu Yan grabbed hold of the heavy cabin door and pulled with all his strength.
Everyone inside the plane watched as Kang Cheng sprinted toward them, the door slowly closing, the swarm of monsters right behind him.
One second—
Two seconds—
Kang Cheng darted forward and slipped through the narrowing gap!
Fu Yan threw his weight into it and slammed the door shut.
Clang—
The cabin door sealed tight. Not even a breath of air could get through.
Inside, the only sound left was the harsh, ragged breathing of everyone aboard. No one spoke. They were all frozen in shock.
Kang Cheng collapsed onto the floor, leaning back as he looked at his twitching calf. Gasping for breath, he suddenly let out a quiet laugh.
That small laugh was like a pin tearing open the suffocating plastic sheet that had been covering everyone’s heads.
“Damn, that was badass!”
“Holy shit, scared me to death!”
No one knew who started clapping first, but soon applause rippled through the cabin, wave after wave.
They had survived.
“Take a short rest. We’ll take off soon.” Kang Cheng, supported by his teammates, found a spot to sit down.
Everyone quickly found seats and settled in.
Wang Qinhai glanced at the long scratch marks on his arm—deep nail gouges. He pulled his sleeve down over them, then looked toward a little girl sitting a few rows ahead.
She was the one they had rescued yesterday. Wang Qinhai knew she carried the antibody.
He lowered his head, his trembling hands clenched tightly into fists.
“I’m going to the bathroom,” Jiang Xinghuai said, taking off his jacket and handing it to Fu Yan.
“I’ll go with you,” Fu Yan stood up.
“I’m not some little girl. I can go to the bathroom without holding hands,” Jiang Xinghuai said with a laugh.
“When you wash your hands, don’t go washing your face and head along with them again,” Fu Yan reminded him. “You’ll catch a cold.”
“So naggy.” Jiang Xinghuai braced himself on the seat backs in front and behind him and jumped right over Fu Yan.
“I need to go to the bathroom, too.” Qian Ranran, sitting in front of them, turned her head to look at Jiang Xinghuai.
“Oh? You’re talking again,” Jiang Xinghuai said, looking at her in surprise.
Qian Ranran turned her head away without responding.
“Hey! Come on, come on.” Jiang Xinghuai stood up and took her hand.
Wang Qinhai lowered his gaze and slowly stood up. He said to the soldier beside him, “I need to use the bathroom.”
Without waiting for the soldier to respond, Wang Qinhai started walking forward.
The soldier hesitated for a moment, then called after him, “Wait! There are two people up front. Go to the back!”
But Wang Qinhai acted as though he hadn’t heard, continuing to walk ahead on his own—faster now.
“Wait! I said wait, didn’t you hear me?!” the soldier shouted again.
This time, Wang Qinhai suddenly charged straight toward the two figures up ahead.
“Grab him!” Kang Cheng, sensing something was wrong, leapt to his feet.
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