Chapter 12
Chapter 12: Joining the Mission
Yun Rou’s unease grew as the departures sped up. She climbed onto the second wave of military trucks immediately.
She’d wanted to stay close to Zhao Chong Lin, but he’d already taken his men back toward the city to support teammates. Yun Rou abandoned the idea without hesitation.
Meanwhile, Wu Lian Yi told Sun Yi to push the SUV harder. The farther they got from the city, the fewer zombies they saw, until the roads felt almost normal again—almost.
After Sun Wang ate, he swapped seats with his sister. His driver’s license was fresh—earned during vacation—but he loved cars and picked it up fast.
Sun Yi ate a small box of seaweed rolls, then closed her eyes to rest. She planned to take over soon. A novice driver in the apocalypse was a risk she hated.
She’d only dozed for fifteen minutes when inertia slammed her sideways. Brakes shrieked.
Sun Yi’s eyes snapped open. “Sun Wang!”
“Sis!” Sun Wang answered at the same time, pointing ahead with a trembling hand.
A dark mass of zombies flowed across the road like a living stain.
Wu Lian Yi had been resting too. She steadied herself, eyes opening sharp. One glance at Sun Wang’s panicked face told her everything.
“Sun Yi,” she said, clipped. “You drive. Floor it and punch through.”
“Got it.” Sun Yi’s scalp tightened as she stared at the swarm. She switched seats with her brother in a heartbeat and shouted, “Seatbelts!”
Then she corrected the angle, stomped the gas, and charged.
The cars behind them saw the lead vehicle stop—then surge forward again. They spotted the zombie mass and made their choice.
The closest vehicle was a family of three. The man driving barked at his wife, “Hold the kid!” Then he slammed the gas and followed.
Thud after thud hammered the road as bumpers crushed bodies. The stink of rot and burst flesh hit like a wall.
Luckily, the swarm wasn’t endless—about two hundred zombies wandering the four-lane road until the convoy’s noise drew them in.
Sun Wang’s earlier brake had been pure reflex. As they burst through and cracked the swarm open, his face burned with shame. He was inexperienced. He knew it.
Even Sun Yi’s hands went slick with sweat on the wheel. Behind them, more than thirty vehicles slammed through in succession, crushing and scattering the dead until the swarm lost two-thirds of its numbers.
By the time the sky began to pale, they reached the resettlement camp ahead of many others.
Guards stood at the entrance. Everyone had to get out, register, and submit to a body check. They clearly already understood that scratches and bites carried a high chance of mutation.
Wu Lian Yi lined up with the Sun siblings. When staff asked if they’d awakened a superpower, she only said her strength had increased. She didn’t mention her lightning ability.
Sun Wang admitted he was fast and demonstrated his teleportation. The distance was limited, but the utility was undeniable. They recorded him separately. At Wu Lian Yi’s quiet hint, Sun Yi didn’t reveal her perception.
Those with superpowers were assigned to a separate area. Because Sun Yi was Sun Wang’s family, she was placed with them in a cramped thirty-square-meter room. Small, but safe enough—for now.
“Sun Wang,” Wu Lian Yi said, “go find out when the others arrive—especially Yun Rou.”
“Got it, Sister Lian Yi.” Sun Wang slipped out immediately.
Wu Lian Yi turned to Sun Yi. “If you get a bad feeling, tell me right away. This is a temporary camp. That means it’s fragile.”
“I understand,” Sun Yi said. On the surface, she was the only ordinary one among them—and that also made her less of a target.
Sun Wang returned soon, breathing quick. “Sister Lian Yi, the camp is gathering people. They’re saying we need to rescue those still outside the city. When the evacuees came here, they drew a zombie tide.”
“What’s the pay?” Wu Lian Yi asked, blunt as ever.
“Food,” Sun Wang said. “And priority rights to choose housing in the survival base they’re building.”
“They want awakened people,” Wu Lian Yi said.
“Yes.”
Wu Lian Yi nodded once. “Fine. I’ll go. You two stay here.”
Sun Wang stepped forward. “Sister Lian Yi, I’m coming with you. If it turns into a mess, I can at least help you get out.”
Sun Yi bit her lip, then nodded too. The world had changed. Sitting still wasn’t safety—it was just waiting to be hunted.
“All right,” Wu Lian Yi said. She wouldn’t block someone who wanted to grow teeth.
They registered where Sun Wang had already scouted. As ability users, they were cleared quickly.
When weapons were handed out, Wu Lian Yi already had Lei Yao strapped to her back. She took only a pistol. Sun Wang chose a long-handled steel saber—picked for him by Wu Lian Yi.
“You keep that blade in your hand,” she said. “Lose your weapon, lose your life.”
“Understood,” Sun Wang said, serious now. He’d already fought zombies at the gas station. Beside Wu Lian Yi’s monstrous strength, his best job was to stay sharp and not die stupidly.
They were assigned to a truck filled with young soldiers, about twenty of them. After a short wait, three more ability users climbed aboard.
Greetings were exchanged. Then the truck roared away from the temporary settlement.
The squad leader raised his voice over the engine. “Everyone listen up. This is an emergency. You follow orders. Our mission is to link up with evacuating civilians and the escort soldiers. Priority is breaking away—not diving deep.”
“Yes!” the young soldiers answered in a single hard chorus.
The other five responded too, though one arrogant ability user only nodded, lips curled like he was above it. The squad leader frowned but didn’t waste time arguing.
The truck raced back toward the city. Two hours later, they met the lead convoy. After a brief exchange of information, they pressed on.
The evacuation vehicles swept past in the opposite direction, packed tight with people whose eyes looked hollow.
Half an hour later, they saw the convoy retreating while fighting—and beyond it, a black sea of zombies rolling forward.
“Prepare for battle!”