"Thirty meters, twenty meters, he was getting closer to the zombie. His heart rate accelerated, his hands gripping the iron spear tightened, and he took a deep breath, repeating it twice, as he continued to approach the zombie. Ten meters, five meters, two meters..."
Zhang Xiaoqiang stood just about two meters away from the zombie, raising the iron spear, prepared to strike at the zombie's head at any moment. He observed carefully. The zombie seemed completely unaware of Zhang Xiaoqiang standing beside it, simply tilting its head to catch the rainwater. Zhang Xiaoqiang noticed that after days of rain, the zombie's gaunt cheeks were regaining their roundness, and there was some flesh on its claws. Its skeletal structure was also less prominent.
Stepping back two paces, Zhang Xiaoqiang glanced around in the dim light. The number of zombies in the garden had increased from over thirty to more than forty. Many zombies had also emerged from the corridors and rooms, all standing outside in the rain.
Zhang Xiaoqiang looked back, preparing to flee at any moment. He raised the iron spear and thrust it into the zombie's head. After tens of thousands of practice strikes, today's efforts paid off. The iron spear pierced into the zombie's eye socket and then pulled back out. The zombie collapsed onto the rain-soaked grass, splashing water in all directions.
Fearful of alerting other zombies, Zhang Xiaoqiang ran more than ten meters away and looked back. All the zombies remained motionless in their original positions. He immediately felt exhilarated. Killing zombies that didn't move was even more satisfying!
As the sky grew darker, Zhang Xiaoqiang rushed forward.
The 21st zombie fell under Zhang Xiaoqiang's iron spear, finally opening up the path to the convenience store. The visibility was getting lower and lower, and time was of the essence.
Rushing to the front of the convenience store, Zhang Xiaoqiang dealt with the zombified owner and charged inside. He couldn't find the light switch, so he grabbed a big cardboard box and stuffed anything he could find inside, finally adding a few packs of cigarettes. He then brought over two bottles of mineral water and tied them together with a woven belt, slinging everything onto his shoulder with the iron spear and heading home.
The iron spear, with the water and supplies on it, pressed on Zhang Xiaoqiang like a mountain, making him breathless. The galvanized water pipe ground against his shoulder, and the scorching pain kept attacking his nerves. He gritted his teeth and took one step after another towards home, the road becoming increasingly hard to see. The heavy rain continued to pour, bringing with it a cold and icy feeling that invaded his body through the collar of his raincoat, constantly taking away his body heat.
He could only persist, his legs beginning to weaken, and his arms shaking as he held the iron spear. He held his breath and ran towards home with all his might, finally reaching the platform. Seeing his door, he seemed to gain a little strength and rushed into the hallway with the last of his energy.
As one foot entered the hallway, the other foot hadn't been pulled back yet. He couldn't hold on any longer and fell forward with the iron spear and supplies, landing on the ground. Zhang Xiaoqiang desperately gasped for breath, turning his body and lying flat on the cement floor, gazing at the slanting stairs and ceiling as he continued to pant heavily.
Seven or eight minutes later, Zhang Xiaoqiang caught his breath and sat up, leaning against the wall. Bottles of mineral water, rice, canned fish with fermented black beans, various biscuits, and cigarettes were scattered around him.
"Heh! Hehe! Hahaha..."
Zhang Xiaoqiang laughed loudly, continuously laughing. Laughter erupted from his mouth, and tears flowed incessantly from his eyes, tracing his cheeks and dripping down onto his raincoat, merging with the rainwater.
He wiped the tears from his face, stood up, and began gathering the scattered supplies. The heavy rain continued to pour, and only the sound of raindrops filled the world.
His mind was blank, mechanically collecting and moving various items to the living room.
"Clank..." He closed the iron door, and Zhang Xiaoqiang snapped out of his daze. The raincoat was still on him, raindrops kept dripping onto the floor tiles from the hem of the raincoat, and the clothes inside were completely soaked. The icy coldness made him shiver.
Zhang Xiaoqiang changed into dry clothes, wrapped himself in a blanket, and sat on the bed. He turned the heater to the highest setting, and the radiant red light from the heater reflected on his face. The heat felt like countless tiny needles pricking his skin, causing a tingling sensation, but it still couldn't dispel the bone-chilling coldness that had penetrated his body. Zhang Xiaoqiang trembled, holding the blanket tightly, while the rain continued to fall outside the window.
He thought about the liquor he had found a few days ago. "Liquor can drive away the cold."
He retrieved the exquisite "Fragrance of Rice Flowers" hidden at the bottom of the box and unscrewed the cap. "Gudong!" A gulp of the 52% alcohol content white liquor entered his mouth. The strong taste almost made Zhang Xiaoqiang spit it out as it stimulated his taste buds, but he managed to swallow it with difficulty, feeling his tongue go numb. The white liquor flowed like hot oil down his throat, scalding his heart, and the burning sensation spread from the depths of his heart to his throat.
The coldness that had been restrained within his bones seemed to be slowly dissipating. He adjusted the heater to a lower setting, and Zhang Xiaoqiang held the blanket, staring blankly at the heater.
The rumbling in his hungry stomach reminded Zhang Xiaoqiang that he needed to eat something. He got off the bed, walked to the living room, and found a box of wafer biscuits. As he tore open the packaging, a cockroach fell out of the box and scurried all over the floor. Instinctively, he lifted his foot and stepped on the cockroach.
An empty mineral water bottle was placed on the computer desk, tightly sealed with two small holes on top. The cockroach quietly lay motionless at the bottom of the bottle. In the end, Zhang Xiaoqiang didn't kill it, but rather trapped it inside the bottle without giving it any food. He wondered how long it could survive without food.
In this despair-filled city, Zhang Xiaoqiang was like a castaway living on a deserted island, devoid of hope and a future. Apart from the wandering zombies downstairs, the only companion he had was this cockroach, a solitary creature that gnawed at his heart like a wild beast, constantly corroding his soul like a poisonous substance.
At times, Zhang Xiaoqiang would wonder if he was the last human left on Earth, and he, the king of the world, a solitary king.
"If you can't stand loneliness, then learn to enjoy it."
Zhang Xiaoqiang nibbled on the wafer biscuit, calculating how long his remaining supplies would last. He even entertained the idea of escaping the city during the rain, but he couldn't drive, let alone steal a car.
"Go outside?" Zhang Xiaoqiang shook his head, dismissing the crazy idea. He didn't know how long the rain would last, or if all the zombies enjoyed being drenched. He didn't know where he could go either. In his lifetime, he had only been to WH City and X City where his sister got married.
"The future looks bleak, sigh!" Zhang Xiaoqiang sighed.
Unconsciously, he finished the entire box of wafer biscuits. His mouth felt dry, so he picked up a bottle of mineral water and took a big gulp, but immediately felt weak.
Zhang Xiaoqiang collapsed onto the ground, holding onto the plastic water bottle. His entire body convulsed as if his heart was being repeatedly struck by a heavy iron hammer. He wanted to scream out loud but couldn't make a sound. Only a "cough, cough" sound came from his throat. It felt like his organs were thrown into a red-hot iron ball, rolling around inside his body, igniting every part. The burning sensation spread from the inside out, and his skin turned red. Zhang Xiaoqiang writhed in pain, experiencing agony he had never felt before. For the first time, he desired death, as only death could end this unbearable suffering.
Zhang Xiaoqiang, lying on the ground, repeatedly banged his head against the floor tiles. Blood flowed into his eyes, blurring his vision with a reddish hue. Zombies, food, survival... nothing mattered anymore. He just wanted to end this excruciating pain, even if it meant ending his own life. Instinctively, he kept banging his head against the ground, hoping to knock himself unconscious.
After what felt like hours or maybe minutes, the torment finally subsided. Zhang Xiaoqiang opened his eyes, his face covered in a mixture of blood, tears, and mucus. He curled up like a boiled shrimp, his body still involuntarily twitching, his teeth clenched tightly and unable to loosen.
Zhang Xiaoqiang lay still, doing nothing, thinking nothing. He had not yet recovered from the terrifying agony he had endured.
The mineral water bottle in his hand crumpled into a ball, and the water kept spraying out, splashing on his body and the floor. The clothes he had just changed into were soaked with blood and water stains.
An exceptionally chilling sensation crept into Zhang Xiaoqiang's body, not the kind of cold that chilled to the bones, but the kind that froze the marrow. Zhang Xiaoqiang dropped the bottle and tightly hugged himself, trembling all over. His previously clenched teeth finally loosened, and his upper and lower teeth kept chattering. His legs rubbed against each other, hoping to generate some warmth.
Zhang Xiaoqiang felt ice-cold all over and thought of getting to the bed, but he had no strength left. As the coldness inside his body grew heavier, his vision began to blur, and his mind became increasingly drowsy.
"Is it over?" Zhang Xiaoqiang muttered, "Will I see my old man and old lady?"
The intense pain brought Zhang Xiaoqiang back to consciousness. The sensation of being engulfed in flames made his entire body convulse again. He didn't know how many times this had happened. Each time he was knocked unconscious by the bone-chilling cold and then awakened by the searing agony that burned all over his body. He lost count of the occurrences and had no sense of time. If there was a hell on earth, he was already suffering in it.
The pain and coldness remained as intense as they were at the beginning, but Zhang Xiaoqiang's nerves had started to numb. Each time he passed out and woke up, his mind was no longer blank as it was in the beginning. He didn't know or want to know anything!
Still in pain, Zhang Xiaoqiang lay on the ground, staring at the ceiling. It was as if his body no longer belonged to him, and all the agony had nothing to do with him.
"There must be a virus in the rain, and I must have accidentally swallowed some rainwater," Zhang Xiaoqiang kept thinking. The coldness continued to roam throughout his body, as if even his blood was beginning to coagulate.
"I'm infected? Is becoming a zombie this agonizing?" Zhang Xiaoqiang continued to ponder. The chill in his body grew stronger, and his thinking became sluggish.
"Zombie mutation takes 45 minutes, haven't I reached that time yet? It's passing so slowly!" In that fleeting moment of dizziness, "Hurry up and turn into a zombie..." Darkness enveloped him.
February 1, 2013, 7:30 AM. The alarm on his phone kept ringing, waking Zhang Xiaoqiang up in his bedroom. He opened his eyes, still feeling somewhat blurry, and realized he was lying in the living room, damp all over. He tried to stand up but had no strength in his body. He propped himself up with his hands and sat up. He recalled everything that happened last night.
"Have I turned into a zombie?" Zhang Xiaoqiang hastily examined his fingers, which had neatly trimmed nails. He touched his teeth. "Normal..." he exclaimed. "I haven't turned into a zombie!" With a bit of strength returning to his body, Zhang Xiaoqiang struggled to stand up and walked to the bedroom. The reflection in the dressing mirror looked forlorn. His hair, not washed for a long time, was tangled, his face covered in bloodstains, his eyes slightly smaller, and he could clearly see the dark brown pupils.
Not turning into a zombie didn't make Zhang Xiaoqiang happy, nor did it bring him any despair. After enduring the hellish pain of yesterday, his current mood was one of tranquility. He looked out the window and saw that the rain had stopped!
Comments (0)
See all