Everyone jumped in surprise. Qi Yan, who was the last to enter the house, reacted quickly and tried to close the balcony door. But as soon as he moved, the uninvited guest suddenly hit the same spot on the glass again!
Thump!
The cracks in the glass spread from a localized area to the entire surface.
Everyone in the room gasped. Zhou Yilu slowly drew his sword; Qiao Siqi and Qi Yan's daggers were already in his hands. Song Fei flicked his fan open with a whoosh!
The third time.
Splash—
The entire piece of glass shattered instantly.
Several pieces of broken glass of varying sizes were stuck in the uninvited guest's face, but he was completely unaware of it. Once the obstacle was gone, he immediately rushed in!
The glass wasn't completely shattered; some pieces were still attached to the frame. The man rushed in, scraping and bumping, causing these shards to fly everywhere!
Qi Yan, who was closest to the man, turned his head slightly to the side, and a shard of glass narrowly missed his cheek. When he turned back, the uninvited guest was already standing in front of him!
Qi Yan wanted to use the knife, but the other party had already pressed down on him, and he had no way to raise his arm anymore!
In the blink of an eye, a black whirlwind swept in from behind, delivering a flying kick to the uninvited guest's side!
The uninvited guest's rather thin body seemed unable to withstand such a blow, and he crashed hard into the desk next to him, the inertia causing his upper body to tilt directly onto the tabletop!
Just when everyone thought he would stagger for a while before he could stand up straight, the man used a lever to make his upper body, which should have been struggling to maintain its balance, skim across the table like a dragonfly skimming the water, and in an unbelievable 180-degree turn, he actually regained his footing.
The entire process was smooth and seamless!
"This is fucking a snake demon..."
The incredible flexibility left Luo Geng, Qiao Siqi, and Zhou Yilu dumbfounded.
Qi Yan and Song Fei had anticipated this. One of them raised his 1.8-meter-long leg and kicked the other hard in the chest, while the other rushed forward the moment the other staggered backward, using his big red fan in his left hand to block the other's face and shifting his weight onto the other!
The uninvited guest grabbed Song Fei's arm tightly with both hands, as if to pull the fan away, or as if it was a conditioned reflex to maintain balance!
Song Fei didn't give the other party a chance at all, because he himself didn't even think about maintaining his balance; he was just focused on lunging forward!
With a thud, the uninvited guest fell backward to the ground.
Song Fei, who was now riding on his back, had somehow acquired a silver-white metal chopstick in his right hand.
A flash of cold light!
The fan in his left hand had already been partially withdrawn, while the chopsticks in his right hand were thrust straight into his face! The perfect coordination and lightning-fast execution of his two hands were breathtaking!
The man was like a frog with its head pinned to the ground, still twitching, and even tried to stand up several times! But Song Fei, who was firmly straddling his stomach, didn't give him a chance at all, and his hand holding the chopsticks wouldn't let go for even a moment!
Qi Yan, who had already filled in, slashed again without saying a word!
At the same time, Zhou Yilu and Qiao Siqi, who were slow to realize what was happening, rushed to the balcony and transformed into boatmen, desperately trying to pull up the bed sheet rope while shouting slogans.
The deadly rope was finally completely retrieved.
The uninvited guest on the ground was also completely turned into a corpse.
Aside from the brief hand-to-hand combat with zombies on the first day when he was completely bewildered, Luo Geng never had such an immersive experience again. At most, he would peek down from the balcony, and all he saw were zombies attacking lone classmates or zombies eating classmates who had jumped off the building—completely one-sided massacres.
Running for his life was the only thing Luo Geng believed he could do in the face of zombies these past few days.
Even when he fought bare-handed, he only managed to push his opponent out the door.
Now, four classmates who descended from the sky... no, from the bottom up, gave him a completely new answer.
It turns out that these monstrous creatures can be defeated, as long as one remains calm and has a clear division of labor: attack head-on without hesitation, defend from the side with your tall and long legs, keep your eyes peeled for any opportunity to strike, and guard the rear with meticulous attention to detail.
"You guys aren't my classmates, you're the Avengers…" If the atmosphere weren't so inappropriate, Luo Geng would have applauded the four people in front of him.
Zhou Lu crumpled up the bed sheet that had first saved his life but then caused trouble, and declared his ambition: "Then I want to be Iron Man."
Luo Geng chuckled and said sincerely, "Judging from your style of winning people over with your guitar playing, you definitely deserve Captain America."
Qiao Siqi excitedly leaned closer: "What about me? What about me?"
Every male student dreams of being a hero, and Luo Geng never hesitated to ask: "What are your special skills?"
Qiao Siqi thought for a moment: "Does being a second-generation rich kid count?"
Director Luo patted him on the shoulder: "Iron Man."
Qi Yan glanced over but didn't say anything.
How could Director Luo forget him: "Climbing up and down as if walking on flat ground, Spider-Man!"
Still straddling the corpse, Song Fei raised his head, his face gleaming with hope.
Looking at his supple physique, lacking equipment and muscles, yet still clinging to someone in hand-to-hand combat: "...Black Widow?"
Overwhelmed by the huge disparity, Song glared resentfully at the achievements beneath her, then realized that she seemed to be... squeamish about blood.
Compared to the previous times, Song Fei only felt nauseous this time, but didn't vomit. He felt that after a few more times, he should be able to eat duck necks while guarding the corpse parts.
The balcony sliding door is half broken, and a strong wind is blowing in from the door frame.
Five students, some wrapped in cotton-padded coats, others in down jackets, squatted on the ground, their hands tucked into their sleeves, examining the corpse.
At first glance, it looks like old men watching a game of chess on a cold winter's day.
"It has evolved?" This was the only possibility that Qiao Siqi could think of.
Zhou Lu was skeptical: "No one else climbed up when we were collecting the bed sheets. Does the zombie evolution process also have different levels of academic achievement? And you all saw how flexible and agile Song Fei's body was when he kicked him. How could he have evolved like this in an instant?"
As they spoke, Song Fei carefully removed all the shards of glass from the other person's face, squinted at them for a moment, and confirmed it was indeed Cui Menghan from the Dance Department of the Art Academy...
Qi Yan: "Shameless face-obsessed person."
The three students, completely clueless, looked at each other in bewilderment.
Qiao Siqi: "You can still recognize me with my face all ruined like this?"
Luo Geng: "You two even know each other from the art academy?"
Zhou Yilu: "Not only did they know each other, they also labeled each other with human labels..."
Song Fei and Qi Yan glanced at each other, then quickly turned their faces away.
Finally, Song Fei vaguely replied, "It's... from a photography group."
Luo Geng and Zhou Yi were skeptical, but it wasn't a key point, so they didn't pursue the matter further.
Qiao Siqi roughly understood. He felt that Song Fei wasn't lying. The Rainbow Group sounded like a group of photography enthusiasts who pursued beauty.
Even though Johns has a very discerning mind, he can only imagine things up to the basics. As for the inside story of Cui Menghan's persistent attempt to steal Song Fei's girlfriend, only the parties involved know the truth.
However, all the entanglements became a thing of the past the moment Cui Menghan mutated.
"He studied dance, so his body is naturally much more flexible and agile than ours. Could it be that it's not evolution, but just individual differences?" Qi Yan offered another guess.
Luo Geng instantly understood: "You mean that after they are infected, they all undergo mutations based on their own basic conditions?"
Qi Yan nodded: "The virus will cause intellectual degeneration, physical stiffness, and loss of pain sensation, but the degree of this mutation is likely to be the same or similar percentage. For example, if two mutants both degenerate by 30%, but they had different running speeds when they were normal, then this difference will still exist after the degeneration."
Qiao Siqi shook his head, still unable to fully accept it: "Individual differences are acceptable, but it shouldn't be so different that one person can't even hold onto the rope while another can climb up. That difference is too great. I still think it's more like evolution."
"The differences between people are inherently great." Song Fei was more inclined to agree with Qi Yan. After speaking, as if to prove it, he stood up, straightened his legs, bent over and stretched out his arms, finally managing to touch the ground with his fingertips. "You see, I can only touch this far."
Qiao Siqi stood up with some doubt, and followed suit, eventually touching the ground with half a finger.
Luo Geng found it amusing and did the same, pressing his entire palm firmly to the ground: "Hey, I'm softer than all of you!"
Zhou Yilu glanced at him sideways and said, "You have short legs."
Luo Geng was speechless: "If you're so capable, then come and try."
Zhou Yilu shrugged, calmly accepting the challenge. He bent over, his hand flying downwards, fingertips pointing straight for the ground, and finally... uh, stopped at his knee.
Zhou Yilu was in a daze, refusing to believe it, and tried again, eager to go on!
Gaba.
Qi Yan: "..."
Qiao Siqi: "..."
Luogeng: "..."
Song Fei: "I think I heard the sound of a leg bone breaking..."
Ultimately, Joschi had to admit that the differences between people are still enormous. But there's no way to prove that zombies climbing buildings is a difference, rather than evolution.
Frustrated by his dilemma, Luo Geng grabbed the bed sheet and ran to the balcony, where he surprisingly lowered the rope down again.
The four people were so frightened that their hearts almost jumped out of their chests, and they quickly ran over.
One end of the rope was gripped in Luo Geng's hand, while the other end was almost touching the ground. With Luo Geng's shout of "Come on!", more than twenty zombies surrounded the rope again, scratching and clawing at it, but they just couldn't get a hold of it!
At first, Luo Geng held the bed sheet tightly, remaining motionless and observing to see if any mutants could climb up. But gradually, his actions changed; he began to swing the bed sheet up and down, occasionally deliberately aiming it at the mutants' faces.
The mutants seemed to be infected with emotions as well, becoming increasingly anxious, with some even jumping up to grab the bedsheets.
Song Fei felt the scene was very familiar no matter how she looked at it, and finally realized: "Are you testing me or teasing the cat?"
That's not a bed sheet, that's clearly a cat toy!
Luo Geng realized that the test was almost over, so he decisively took the bed sheet away. However, his face still showed lingering enjoyment, and his eyes even welled up with tears of sadness: "I miss Snow White. I used to play with her like this all the time at home..."
The four friends had absolutely no desire to know the untold story of Luo Geng and his cat, and forcefully changed the subject—
Zhou Yilu: "It can be basically determined that it is an individual difference, which means that if a real fight breaks out, we still have a chance of winning."
Qiao Siqi: "We have a chance in a one-on-one fight, but we're definitely doomed by the 'sea of corpses' tactic."
Song Fei: "So we can't confront them head-on. We have to find a way to lure them away so that we can really escape."
Qi Yan: "A feint to the east while attacking in the west?"
Luogeng: "Wait, you guys haven't given up yet!"
The four people looked at Luogeng without saying a word, just staring at him intently.
Luo Geng's momentum gradually weakened.
Song Fei asked him, "If you don't break through, how many more days will your food last?"
Luo Geng lowered his head, tears streaming down his face: "We ran out of food at noon..."
It's not impossible to be trapped in a deserted city, but to be trapped in a deserted city with no ammunition or food is to not want to live.
After all the commotion, it was getting dark. The five of them were guarding the drafty dormitory. They didn't have enough cotton-padded clothes or down jackets, so they wrapped themselves in quilts. Those who didn't have enough quilts had to huddle together and discuss escape plan 2.0.
"A feint is one way," Luo Geng said. He was used to thinking things through when he was going to do something. "We can use our phones to play music at a set time, attracting all the zombies to our location, and then we can escape. But there's a problem. The mutants can not only hear, but they can also see. Their hearing will be distracted by the phone, but their eyes won't. As soon as one mutant sees us, the zombie horde will surge over in the blink of an eye."
Qi Yan narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Then let's choose a day when they can't see us."
The remaining four friends looked at each other and said, "...Hmm."
A bitterly cold night.
The quilt was hung by the sliding door to block the wind. The five students were either sitting, lying down, or doing pull-ups while holding onto the bed railings. No one was sleeping.
"Look at this, how about it?" Luo Geng rummaged through his chests and pulled out a short weapon that looked like a knife but wasn't quite a knife. His eyes lit up. "A genuine high-quality replica of the Type 56 triangular bayonet!"
Qiao Siqi raised his hand: "How authentic can a high-quality replica be...?"
Luo Geng shook his head with an expression that said, "Kid, you're too young." He continued, "Never doubt the seller's craftsmanship. Give him a good review, and he'll give you a miracle."
Song Fei was pouring boiling water, which was being heated quickly, onto the fan surface. He didn't know if it would disinfect the fan, but he was just trying to put his mind at ease.
After looking at it for a while, Luo Geng had been wanting to praise it for a long time: "Your weapon... is quite flamboyant."
Qi Yan was more concerned about something else that had sunk to the bottom of the boiling water basin: "Where did the chopsticks come from?"
Song Fei: "The cafeteria is convenient..."
Zhou Yilu: "Aren't all the chopsticks in the cafeteria made of wood?"
Song Fei: "The Korean-style window on the second floor."
Qi Yan was completely at a loss for words. But to be honest, this thing was quite practical; it was accurate with every poke, even better than a knife for getting into the brain.
It was seven o'clock in the morning, and the sky was half-dawn.
Everything is ready except for the smog.
As if the heavens themselves hoped they could find a way out of their predicament, there was no wind that morning, and the sun was slow to rise. Even when it finally got light, the sky was overcast and the sun was nowhere to be seen, with only a gray haze covering everything.
The fifth day of the zombie siege, heavy smog.
"Is everything ready?" Qi Yan asked.
Everyone: "Yes!"
Qi Yan nodded: "Take out your phones."
In the blink of an eye, five phones gathered on the desktop—Qiao Siqi and Qi Yan's Apple, Zhou Yilu's Samsung, Luo Geng's Huawei, and Song Fei's Oppo.
Qiao Siqi: "I think Huawei is resilient."
Luo Geng: "That's too kind of you. I think Apple is the better one."
Zhou Yilu: "Made in China are actually quite sturdy..."
Song Fei: "I can power it on for five minutes; it'll be very useful in a critical moment!"
Qi Yan ignored the argument, glanced at it, and picked up Qiao Siqi's apple without hesitation.
Qiao Siqi felt a pang of pain in his heart and couldn't help but protest: "Why not choose theirs! Besides, you're an Apple too, why don't you throw away your own!"
The other three eliminated contestants had already quickly put their phones back in their pockets. Qi Yan glanced at Johns indifferently: "Yours has a protective case."
The reasoning was flawless, and Joschi was speechless.
Twenty minutes later, five strong men, each carrying a backpack and a knife at their waist, had climbed down from the fourth-floor balcony. Four of them landed safely on the awning of the main entrance on the first floor. Below them was the ground; if they wanted to escape, they could simply jump down and run. But not yet. Another companion was on the balcony of the innermost dormitory room on the second floor, bending over as far as possible to lower his phone as close to the ground as possible, pressing play, locking the screen, and throwing it to the ground!
The smog was so thick that visibility was only about two meters. The four of them couldn't see Qi Yan's situation at all and could only wait anxiously.
Finally, a loud and rhythmic melody pierced the thick fog like a sharp sword, resounding through the sky—
"Genghis Khan! Civilized, powerful, wise, and exceptionally brave! Genghis Khan! Countless beautiful young women dream of marrying him! Hahaha! They all want to be his bride! Hoo hoo hoo hoo!"
Before the music had even finished two lines, countless figures flashed through the gray haze, all rushing toward the end of the dormitory building!
The four friends on the awning were startled. Damn, this song was so catchy that even they couldn't stop listening to it, let alone zombies.
Soon, Qi Yan rushed back to the shed to reunite with everyone.
The smog blocked the zombies' vision, but it also blocked Song Fei and his companions' vision. The gray, silent landscape before them left no one knowing whether it was truly empty or if there were still mutants hiding within.
"Charge?" Song Fei barely used his voice; the sound came out entirely from his breath.
We've come this far, we have no choice but to go for it.
Just as Qi Yan was about to nod, he saw a faceless mutant swaying under the awning!
Many mutants are mutilated, and the faceless are the most conspicuous among them, because zombies first eat their faces. Some people die directly, while others are mutated in the process of being eaten and eventually become faceless zombies.
Others saw it too, and their initial hope was instantly overshadowed.
There was no time to ponder why he hadn't been drawn by the sound; the more important thing now was how to deal with it. Taking down one zombie wasn't difficult, but the fight would inevitably attract the attention of other zombies, and that was the fatal flaw!
Qiao Siqi pointed diagonally ahead, trying to speak in hushed tones: "He has no eyes, he can't see, let's go around him..."
Qi Yan pursed her lips into a straight line. Avoiding it would be best, of course, but they were very close to the faceless zombie. Even if it couldn't see them, they could remain silent, but don't forget…
"They can also smell it," Song Fei said, pointing out the most fundamental issue.
They had fought against the faceless mutants before, and being unable to see was not an obstacle for them at all!
The music on the other end could stop at any moment due to an accident. There's no time to waste for them. Are they going to have to confront them head-on again and repeat the previous failures?
Just when they were at their wits' end, Luo Geng suddenly said confidently, "He can't smell us."
All four of them turned to look at him.
Luo Geng had already pulled out his secret weapon from his backpack—a half-bottle of Sixgod spray.