Shen Qingqiu caught a subtle mischievous glint in the eyes of the person next to her, whose expression remained calm as water. This sight made her involuntarily smile.
While driving, Shen Qingqiu searched for supermarkets but found that the convenience stores and supermarkets they passed were all wide open and in complete disarray, clearly looted.
Xiao Muyu checked the time. It was only the second day of the apocalypse, just past 1 PM. Three of the four teams had already shown up, meaning there was still one more team outside.
“Have people already started hoarding supplies? Could it be that last team?” Chen Kaijie asked gravely.
Xiao Muyu stood at the entrance of a supermarket, shaking her head as she looked at the messy scene on the ground. “Unlikely. How many people can be in one team? Even if they needed supplies to last ten or fifteen days in this apocalypse, they wouldn’t need to clean out so many stores. Even if they were scavenging just in case, an outside player finding a place to stay would be lucky, let alone having the ability to transport and store so many supplies.”
Everyone’s expressions grew solemn. Shen Qingqiu’s face darkened as she looked at the scattered items on the ground, suddenly realizing something. Xiao Muyu glanced at her, and they both understood the reason.
“We’ve been too naive,” Xiao Muyu murmured, quickly getting back in the car. “Qingqiu, keep going. We need to stock up on supplies!”
“Captain Xiao, Vice-Captain, what’s going on? What happened?” Zuo Tiantian asked nervously.
Su Jin, who had been silent, suddenly had a realization. “We were all thinking wrong. This apocalypse isn’t just for players; it’s also for NPCs. Our competitors aren’t just players but NPCs as well.”
The first task is the primary one. If they can’t complete it, the rest doesn’t matter. While a few people don’t need many supplies to survive, an entire city does. The amount of supplies required is incalculable.
“I get it now. These supermarkets weren’t looted by players but by the residents here,” Chen Kaijie realized, his heart racing.
“The system set this trap for us. Since we entered the instance, we haven’t seen any NPCs except in our own location. The city is filled with zombies and deserted streets, creating the illusion that everyone died in this disaster.”
Shen Qingqiu’s expression was somber, finding it unbelievable. This guess seemed so presumptuous, yet none of them questioned it, leading to this severe mistake.
“Don’t feel bad. This is probably part of the game’s design. The most important thing now is to see if there’s anything left. No matter how much we can find, we need to gather as many supplies as possible,” Xiao Muyu said.
Just then, Xiao Muyu noticed a group of people emerging from a 24-hour convenience store in the distance, each holding machetes and iron rods, decisively killing the zombies attacking them.
They must have seen Xiao Muyu and the others and looked their way, but Shen Qingqiu ignored them and quickly drove away.
“Heh, first they lull the players into complacency, then let the NPCs sweep the supplies. If we run out of food, there will inevitably be conflicts, leading to violent clashes. Remember the system’s rule about not harming NPCs? This ‘harm’ is quite ambiguous. Killing is harm, but what about fighting or taking their food and starving them?”
Shen Qingqiu’s tone grew colder as she spoke. They initially thought the system was being considerate, preventing them from bullying the locals. Turns out, it was setting them up.
Shen Qingqiu’s words left everyone silent. They had just found the main clue to the third task, only to realize that the biggest problem was the most basic one.
“Though the situation is dire, don’t be discouraged. At least we prepared and gathered a batch of supplies yesterday. We can definitely last a few days,” Xiao Muyu said, trying to comfort everyone.
“Muyu’s right. Don’t let my words worry you too much. When it’s time to fight, I won’t hesitate. Since the system didn’t clarify, if push comes to shove, I’ll test its limits,” Shen Qingqiu said, turning a corner and stopping the car next to a mall.
“Vice-Captain, are we going into the mall?” Zuo Tiantian asked, seeing the sign for a large chain supermarket and guessing Shen Qingqiu’s intention.
“Small supermarkets and convenience stores are the first choice for regular people to search for supplies due to lower foot traffic and fewer zombies. But large malls, despite having more supplies, are riskier, giving us a chance,” Xiao Muyu explained Shen Qingqiu’s reasoning.
Once everyone got out, Shen Qingqiu parked the car in the underground garage, blending it with other vehicles to avoid drawing attention.
As soon as the car stopped, zombies started surrounding them. With Shen Qingqiu there, these low-level mutated zombies posed no threat.
They quickly entered the mall through a side door. The mall was indeed more crowded, filled with wandering men and women, all clearly mindless zombies.
The five-story mall had turned into a disaster zone, with the first floor being the worst hit as everyone tried to escape. The scene was chaotic, with severed limbs everywhere and some bodies broken from high falls, unable even to turn into zombies.
The blood on the floor had turned brown, staining the ground with streaks and pools of blood, creating a horrifying sight.
The mall reeked of a foul stench after one night. Shen Qingqiu pulled out a mask from her pocket and handed it to Xiao Muyu.
“Put this on. It’ll be more comfortable.”
“Where did you get this mask?” Xiao Muyu asked curiously.
“I found it in the cabinets at Nuoru Biopharmaceuticals, but there aren’t many,” Shen Qingqiu replied, adjusting Xiao Muyu’s mask. She glanced at Su Jin and the others but said nothing more, making it clear they didn’t qualify for one.
Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian exchanged winks, while Chen Kaijie shook his head, realizing certain issues.
They cautiously avoided the wandering zombies, looking for the supermarket entrance, only to find several zombies near the door, including a security guard with half his head cleanly cut off by a sharp weapon.
“Someone’s been here,” Xiao Muyu noted, frowning.
Near the supermarket entrance was a side door. As Xiao Muyu crouched down to inspect the body, a shadow swiftly lunged at them.
Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian were worried about Xiao Muyu’s words and didn’t notice the imminent danger.
Chen Kaijie, watching their backs, spotted the threat and could only shout, “Watch out!” Shen Qingqiu, bending down to check the body, immediately turned and kicked, narrowly avoiding the zombie’s claws and hitting its jaw.
With a sickening crack, the zombie fell heavily, struggling to rise with its jaw dislocated and unable to open its mouth, its hands clawing at its face, making a horrifying sight.
Seeing more zombies attracted by the noise, Shen Qingqiu raised an eyebrow, stabbed her iron rod into the attacking zombie’s neck, and severed its spine.
Pulling out the rod, Shen Qingqiu’s lips curled into a cold smile. “Task two requires a pass, meaning we need zombies, right?”
Su Jin gripped her weapon nervously and nodded.
Shen Qingqiu’s smile widened. “We need supplies and zombies to kill, so…” She deftly pushed aside the supermarket entrance curtain and beckoned to the approaching zombies.
Once the horde charged at them, Shen Qingqiu grabbed Xiao Muyu’s hand and said with a bright smile, “Run.”
The single word, spoken so lightly, carried no trace of tension, as if facing a fun game rather than terrifying zombies.
Su Jin, Zuo Tiantian, and Chen Kaijie, their scalps tingling with fear, saw Shen Qingqiu’s smile and could only inwardly lament their fate.
Their Vice-Captain was truly insane. They now understood the meaning of a crazy beauty.
“Vice Captain, you could at least give a heads-up. Even if you’re leading them inside, there’s no need to be so brazen. We’re really scared.”
Chen Kaijie felt adrenaline coursing through his body as he ran at full speed.
Shen Qingqiu laughed freely, “Really? I don’t think you’re scared at all. In fact, you seem quite excited.”
“That’s because you’re too brazen, Vice Captain. Now, it’s not just them treating us as prey; they are also our prey. Half a point each, they’re all just tools.”
Trust between people can be quite peculiar at times.
Scared? How could they not be scared? In the past, just seeing those things from the safety of their home would have terrified them out of their wits, let alone being chased by them.
But with Shen Qingqiu around, with their teammates around, they dared to go up and kill.
Shen Qingqiu’s ease and arrogance at this moment gave them immense confidence.
The five of them dashed down a staircase and straight into the entrance of an underground supermarket. Shen Qingqiu motioned for Su Jin and the others to follow, and they quickly slipped between the shelves, holding their breath and hiding.
A group of zombies roared in, some fast, some slow, some intact, some mangled. The sight of the mob squeezing in was indeed terrifying.
Soon, Xiao Muyu and the others heard a man’s terrified cursing.
“Damn, so many zombies! Zhong Ge!”
“Idiot, shut up!” followed another man’s low scolding and the sound of panicked footsteps. The zombies that had been aimlessly looking around the supermarket entrance suddenly found their direction and began crashing towards the shelves.
A few zombies ran right past where Xiao Muyu and the others were hiding. The virus had evidently dulled their reactions when they saw living people, and this momentary hesitation gave Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu the chance to swiftly take out all three zombies.
On the other side, Chen Kaijie and Su Jin used the same method, dealing with three zombies as well. The sound of their bodies hitting the floor was drowned out by the noise of the other zombies’ rampage, going unnoticed.
The five of them quietly moved forward. Encountering a zombie, Shen Qingqiu stepped up and swiftly slit its throat, beheading it cleanly.
The panicked voices from a group of people on the other side reached them clearly. It seemed they had run into trouble.
Shen Qingqiu glanced back at Xiao Muyu. At that moment, Xiao Muyu was also looking ahead. When their eyes met, there was an indescribable look in her eyes.
Shen Qingqiu looked for a few seconds, lowered her gaze slightly, and finally turned her face to look ahead.
After taking a breath, she raised an eyebrow and instructed, “I’ll go check it out. You guys stay hidden and don’t come out yet.”
Xiao Muyu frowned, reaching out to grab Shen Qingqiu, but her hand fell short. She lowered her head in frustration.
Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian carefully checked the shelves. The food had already been ransacked once; high-calorie and easily stored foods like chocolate and beef jerky were mostly gone.
Su Jin glanced at Xiao Muyu, belatedly realizing Shen Qingqiu’s intention.
“The Vice Captain knew someone was here, so she deliberately let the zombies in, right?”
They had noticed someone at the entrance but didn’t know who it was. To disrupt the unknown group, Shen Qingqiu had led the zombies in, regardless of whether they were players or local residents.
Xiao Muyu nodded. She had guessed Shen Qingqiu’s intentions from the beginning.
She considered herself equally cold-hearted, so she didn’t stop Shen Qingqiu’s ruthless plan. Moreover, this game was inherently inhumane.
But just now, when Shen Qingqiu looked back at her, she felt her expression might have been off. Otherwise, Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t have said she would go check it out.
This is a game, not reality. Using all means to survive is what a player should do.
That’s why, when Zhou Zuo pushed the two nurses out, no one but Lin Jian spoke up.
And when NPCs became their competition, Xiao Muyu also agreed with Shen Qingqiu’s approach. But having agreed, she shouldn’t waver, making Shen Qingqiu change her way of doing things because of her.
After Su Jin asked, Chen Kaijie and Zuo Tiantian were stunned. They were ordinary people, never committing crimes, just trying to survive diligently. They never thought of harming others.
It wasn’t just about their moral bottom line and legal restraints; it was also about the fear of harming others.
But clearly, in this environment, such fear was completely overshadowed by the danger of death. Besides, this was a game.
They could fully understand human selfishness and had selfish thoughts themselves, but they never acted on them. They trusted Xiao Muyu and the others because they were honorable.
Shen Qingqiu’s approach was clearly not that of a good person.
“In fact, it’s not like we just found out today. The Vice Captain has never been a good person, right? She’s pretty bad, but not in an annoying way.” After a while, Zuo Tiantian cautiously said because Shen Qingqiu never actively harmed people.
Su Jin, Chen Kaijie, and Xiao Muyu all turned to look at her. Zuo Tiantian said timidly, “Don’t tell the Vice Captain. She’s pretty good. I quite like her bad side, and besides, she’s very good to us.”
The previously tense atmosphere suddenly became amusing. Xiao Muyu and the others couldn’t help but laugh. Xiao Muyu added, “You’d better not like her bad side.”
Su Jin gave Zuo Tiantian a meaningful look. Zuo Tiantian waved her hand, blushing deeply. Then, they dropped the topic.
As time passed, Xiao Muyu keenly heard a few muffled sounds, and the frantic curses and screams from the other side gradually subsided.
There were nine people in that group, six men and three women. Facing over twenty zombies, they were undoubtedly scared.
In their desperation to escape, they ran in all directions. The three girls, clearly not athletic, were abandoned by their companions. If Shen Qingqiu hadn’t taken out the zombies chasing them, they would have been doomed. The three frightened girls were red-eyed, one hugging another and crying. Shen Qingqiu frowned.
“Th-thank you.” One of the girls, trembling with nervousness, still managed to thank Shen Qingqiu.
“Be careful not to attract zombies. Hide yourselves well. The area behind is clear.”
Shen Qingqiu didn’t look at them or acknowledge their thanks. After all, she was the one who led the zombies in.
With Shen Qingqiu joining them, the scattered zombies posed little threat. Soon, the men also realized the danger was over.
Someone noticed Shen Qingqiu and, with a voice full of caution, asked, “Who are you?”
Standing on a zombie, Shen Qingqiu stabbed her knife into it. Hearing the man’s question, she calmly wiped her knife on the zombie’s clothes and turned to look at him.
The man was stunned, staring at Shen Qingqiu, unable to move. His throat bobbed a few times, but he couldn’t speak.
**Author’s Note: Xiao Xiao: Only I can like her bad side.
Today, I accidentally saw someone recommending my story, saying my characters are both bottoms…**
