Tang Cheng’s steps trembled as he cautiously moved toward the kitchen door. There had originally been seven survivors in this store, but six of them had already been attacked by zombies.
Tang Wanyue, a fragile young girl, had even slimmer chances of survival.
He stepped into the kitchen.
A chill hung in the air. Though the kitchen wasn’t very spacious, it was packed with five or six zombies pacing back and forth, their mouths twisted in snarls. This sight further dimmed Tang Wanyue’s chances of survival.
Under the long table holding the utensils, in the storage room, and near the stove, Tang Cheng anxiously searched for any sign of Tang Wanyue. Fortunately, he didn’t see her corpse, which meant she must have escaped this shop. Perhaps she was somewhere else on this floor?
“It’s very likely Tang Wanyue is still alive…”
He hurriedly dashed out of the steakhouse and into the corridor of this floor. Along the way, several zombies roamed as if they were chasing someone, drawn here by a lure.
Searching everywhere, Tang Cheng spotted a white bag lying in the corridor leading west.
“That… that’s Tang Wanyue’s bag!”
He picked it up and confirmed it was her handbag. It seemed she had fled toward the west side.
“That’s right, I told Tang Wanyue before—if you encounter zombies, run toward the west side where there are fewer of them!”
A flicker of hope sparked in Tang Cheng’s eyes as he quickened his pace toward the western restaurant area.
This side was mainly home to Chinese restaurants, three in total, all quite famous.
A few zombies wandered sporadically along the hallway. With swift strikes of his stick, Tang Cheng sent them to meet their maker.
The doors to the first two Chinese restaurants were tightly shut. Scanning inside, he saw no people or zombies.
But the third restaurant right ahead had its door open. He could clearly hear zombies clawing at the door. Any movement inside meant Tang Wanyue was very likely there.
Holding his stick, Tang Cheng dashed inside. A few zombies clustered at the kitchen door, frantically pounding the wooden panel with their claws—it was obvious someone was inside.
Since becoming a zombie himself, Tang Cheng’s hearing had become unusually sharp. He faintly heard a girl curled up behind the door, trembling in fear and quietly sobbing. The voice was familiar—Tang Wanyue, the one he worried about most.
“Thank goodness, Tang Wanyue is okay!”
“My bread goddess is still alive…”
The huge weight in his heart finally lifted.
Tang Cheng put down Tang Wanyue’s bag, raised his stick in his right hand, and calmly approached the group of zombies!
“Ugh ya!”
“Ugh ya ya!”
“Ugh ya ya ya!”
With a series of headshots, the zombies collapsed one by one, departing for that blissful afterlife.
“Tang Wanyue, open the door! It’s me!” Tang Cheng dropped his stick and knocked on the kitchen door with his right hand.
“Yah aaa!”
A panicked shout came from inside, then a tense silence, as if she had clamped her mouth shut.
“…Don’t be afraid, it’s me, Little Zombie,” Tang Cheng said calmly to the other side of the door. “The zombies outside have all been taken care of. You can open the door now.”
“Little Zombie?” The voice inside sounded surprised, but she still didn’t open the door. Her voice trembled as she asked, “Then… are you… human… or zombie?”
“Of course I’m a zombie!” Tang Cheng answered without thinking.
“Yah aaa!” The girl inside screamed in terror. “I… I absolutely won’t open the door! Please, don’t eat me…”
“No, I’m human!” Tang Cheng suddenly realized Tang Wanyue was terrified and quickly corrected himself.