Chapter 11
Chapter 11: Head-to-Head
Sun Wang was born for gossip and intel. Twenty minutes later, he returned to their SUV with a grim face.
“They got here faster because they abandoned almost half the convoy,” he said. “Of the three military trucks that left our yard, the last one got swarmed. People were hurt. Those injured turned into zombies on the road, and the whole convoy blew apart.”
He patted his chest like he could press the fear back down. “Good thing Sister Lian Yi decided fast. We cut into the alleys, and everyone who followed us got out. But the ones who stayed with the convoy… almost half got swallowed. A lot of young soldiers were scratched. They’re arguing about what to do with them.”
His expression darkened. The soldiers he’d seen were barely older than he was.
“Yun Rou ran over saying she saw people turn about half an hour after being bitten,” Sun Wang went on. “She told them to deal with the injured soldiers early—for everyone’s safety.”
Sun Wang looked sick. Even in the apocalypse, it was hard to watch kids in uniform get written off like trash.
“Stay in the car,” Wu Lian Yi told the siblings. “And don’t be softhearted. I’ll go see.”
She walked straight toward the soldiers.
Yun Rou spotted her immediately. Her face tightened—then smoothed out. In public, with eyes everywhere, Wu Lian Yi wouldn’t dare do anything. Yun Rou slid closer to Zhao Chong Lin like she belonged there.
A young soldier stepped into Wu Lian Yi’s path. “Ma’am, please stay with your vehicle. We’ll be leaving soon.”
“I need to speak to your captain,” Wu Lian Yi said, voice steady. “I have information that affects your injured comrades.”
The soldier hesitated, then looked her over. Finally, he stepped aside.
Wu Lian Yi stopped in front of the tall man who looked like the commander. “Captain,” she said, clear and loud, “don’t listen to that woman. You’ll regret it.”
Heads snapped her way. Yun Rou’s face twisted for a fraction of a second before she forced anger into her voice.
“Wu Lian Yi, what do you mean? I didn’t do anything! Why are you targeting me?”
“Because you didn’t tell the whole truth,” Wu Lian Yi said. “If someone is scratched or bitten and doesn’t mutate immediately, they might survive. They might even awaken a superpower.”
Zhao Chong Lin’s eyes sharpened. “Ma’am, is that true? What evidence do you have?”
“I am the evidence.” Wu Lian Yi didn’t blink. “Yun Rou was my closest sister and my colleague. When the apocalypse hit, my fiancé dragged her away and left me to face the zombies. I was scratched. I barely survived—and I awakened strength.”
To prove it, she walked to a military truck, braced her hands, and lifted the front end clean off the ground.
The young soldier in the driver’s seat jolted, eyes wide. His hand slid toward his holster—then he saw his captain watching and froze.
Gasps rose from the crowd. Soldiers and civilians with awakened powers stared hard.
Yun Rou bit her lip, draping herself in innocence. “Captain Zhao, I didn’t know people could survive after being scratched. On the truck, I really saw bitten people turn after about half an hour and start attacking. We weren’t prepared—that’s why so many died.”
Zhao Chong Lin nodded slowly. He had been there. He’d fired the shot that ended the zombie climbing aboard. Still…
If there was even a chance his soldiers could live, he couldn’t ignore it.
“It depends on the person,” Wu Lian Yi said. “Your soldiers are stronger than ordinary people. Their odds are better.”
She didn’t deny Yun Rou’s experience—she just refused to let Yun Rou weaponize it.
“What should we do?” Zhao Chong Lin asked.
“Separate them,” Wu Lian Yi said. “Tie them up. Put familiar comrades nearby to talk to them, keep them awake, keep them fighting. The rest depends on their immune system and their will.”
Zhao Chong Lin nodded, then turned to bark orders.
Wu Lian Yi added, “One more thing. This rendezvous point is packed. The smell of living bodies will draw zombies. Don’t wait for everyone. Send people out in batches to the resettlement camp.”
“Understood,” Zhao Chong Lin said immediately.
Wu Lian Yi finally looked at Yun Rou and smiled.
Yun Rou’s skin crawled.
Satisfied, Wu Lian Yi returned to the SUV. “We leave now,” she told Sun Yi. “We drive through the night to the resettlement camp.”
“Sister Lian Yi,” Sun Wang asked, “we’re not moving with them?”
“It’s not safe here,” Sun Yi said flatly.
She’d been tense for a while. At Wu Lian Yi’s order, Sun Yi started the SUV, swung it around, and drove out of the rendezvous point toward the resettlement camp the radio kept repeating.
A few people sensed the danger too. When they saw someone take the lead, the boldest started their engines and followed.
Others watched the sun sink and decided night travel was too risky without the military. They stayed, waiting.
Zhao Chong Lin watched Wu Lian Yi’s SUV leave, then called his squad leaders together to plan staggered departures.
Forty minutes later, another unit on the same escort mission roared into the rendezvous point, barely holding formation. Over the radio, someone shouted until his voice cracked.
“Zhao Chong Lin! Captain Zhao! Move people out now! A zombie tide is on us! They’re getting faster—move!”
Zhao Chong Lin grabbed the radio. “Distance?”
“Over two kilometers!”
“Copy.” Zhao Chong Lin’s face went tight. “We’re organizing departures. Hold them as long as you can. We’ll support you.”
“Copy. Hurry!”
The transmission cut.
Deputy Captain He Hong Ming spoke fast. “We need an hour to get everyone out.”
“Too long,” Zhao Chong Lin snapped. “Speed it up or Gong Hai’s people get wiped out.”
He clenched his jaw, and a bitter thought cut through him.
Thank god they’d listened to that super-strength woman. Otherwise, they’d be the ones drowning out there.
Far down the road, Wu Lian Yi sneezed hard and rubbed her nose. “Someone’s thinking about me,” she muttered.