Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Zombie Animals

“Ahem,” Ying Yi said, clearing his throat. “Yeah. We saw.”

Everyone saw it. They didn’t just admire Wu Lian Yi’s brutality—they admired her nerve. She’d dived alone into a tide and walked out.

“And you and Sun Wang deserve credit,” Wu Lian Yi added, not interested in hoarding glory. “If the first strike hadn’t wounded it, I wouldn’t have finished so cleanly.”

“We assisted,” Ying Yi said. “You did the work.”

Wu Lian Yi nodded once. “Now that the leader’s gone, the tide’s scattered. Best time to cut it down.”

“That’s the command plan,” Ying Yi said. “They’re evacuating stranded civilians nearby and sending people to the farmers’ market to gather supplies. After you and Sun Wang recover, you’ll go guard the supply-search squad.”

It was lighter work. Safer. The other resting ability users could only watch with envy. Nobody dared resent it—not after seeing what Wu Lian Yi could do.

“Fine,” Wu Lian Yi said. “No problem.”

She pretended to pull a fresh black mask from a waist pouch—actually from her pocket space—then tossed chocolate bars to Sun Wang and Ying Yi. She ate one herself, quick energy and bitter sweetness on her tongue. Then she climbed into another vehicle and went to do her escort work.

Ying Yi held the chocolate, faintly embarrassed. Chocolate was rare now. He meant to thank them, but the pair had already moved—off the vehicle and onto the supply truck with practiced speed.

The deputy captain watched them go and murmured, “If every mission had teammates like that—strong, obedient to orders, decisive—life would be a lot easier.”

Fifteen minutes later, they reached the largest farmers’ market on the city’s edge. The moment the truck stopped, young soldiers jumped down and began hauling supplies from the storefronts near the entrance.

This place was a wholesale hub. Rice, flour, cooking oil, salt, sauces, vinegar, tea, spices, dried goods, fruit, vegetables—everything. In cold storage: frozen beef, mutton, seafood. Enough to keep a settlement alive.

The apocalypse hadn’t even been a month old. Early on, most people stayed home if they had food. But a few had planned ahead and dared to search. The market had been hit already; some shops were open and picked clean.

Deeper inside, though, most stores were intact. Farther from the exit, darker, with zombies drifting between aisles and shuttered doors. Ordinary people wouldn’t risk it. One mistake and they’d die right there, surrounded by shelves of food they’d never eat.

For the soldiers, the remaining zombies were small fry. The outbreak had started at midnight, when the market was closed. The dead here were mainly night delivery drivers, shopkeepers receiving stock, a few security guards, and workers—less than three hundred total.

The combat squad cleared them in under half an hour without making a huge commotion. Then the team started moving supplies. A small portion stayed on watch to clean up any stragglers.

Wu Lian Yi and Sun Wang approached the supply-squad captain, got a radio, and pushed deeper into the market, heading for the back where the others hadn’t explored yet.

“Keep your eyes open,” Wu Lian Yi told Sun Wang. “And pack for yourself when you can.”

“Don’t worry, Sister Lian Yi,” he said quickly, patting the empty backpack he’d found. “I know.”

Wu Lian Yi wanted meat and seafood. She’d swept a mall before but left the storerooms alone. This time, she was going straight for the warehouses. If she’d earned anything in this mess, it was a little comfort.

They cracked open warehouse doors one by one. Plenty of goods. Wu Lian Yi quietly took what she wanted while Sun Wang wasn’t paying attention, storing items in her pocket space without a sound.

Any zombies that stumbled out were handled by Sun Wang. He used his speed to cut them down, sharpening both his technique and his superpower through repetition.

Then a blur flashed—faster than Sun Wang.

Sun Wang jolted, accelerated, and snapped back to Wu Lian Yi’s side.

“Sister Lian Yi,” he whispered, eyes wide. “Look. What is that?”

Where he’d been standing, a black cat crouched, red eyes burning.

Calling it a cat was almost generous. Its body was skin stretched over bone, stinking of rot. Its vertical pupils were sharp and animal.

It was zombified—no question.

Wu Lian Yi’s eyes narrowed. Zombie animals already. That was fast. This one was likely a feral cat that had changed.

The market had always drawn stray cats and dogs. Food was everywhere.

“Sun Wang,” Wu Lian Yi said, voice cool, “it’s yours. Let’s see if you’re faster than it is. Don’t disappoint me.”

She shoved him forward and raised her radio, warning the supply-search squad: watch for zombie animals. The clearest sign—red eyes.

Five minutes later, the radio crackled again. “Requesting support! We’ve encountered zombie dogs!”

Not just one. A pack.

Probably because the soldiers had killed off nearby zombies, thinning competition—and because living flesh was a siren call.

Sun Wang fought the zombie cat first, using speed to keep it pinned. His blade fell in clean, ruthless arcs. The cat dodged the first swings, but Sun Wang landed two solid hits. A shrill, furious howl ripped through the aisles.

The cat was smart. It crept closer to Wu Lian Yi as it fought, eyes flicking toward her like it knew exactly who the real threat was. On the third knockback, it used the momentum and slashed its claws at Wu Lian Yi’s chest.

Wu Lian Yi coated her hand in lightning, ducked low, and caught the cat by the tail.

Purple electricity snapped through it.

The cat screamed. The sound made Sun Wang flinch.

“Sun Wang!” Wu Lian Yi barked.

She whipped the stunned cat toward him. Sun Wang didn’t hesitate. Before it could recover, he brought his blade down and split it cleanly.

A red crystal core—no bigger than a peanut—rolled out of the cracked skull and clicked to a stop near his boot.

He snatched it up instantly.