Yang Bin and the others returned to their dorm room, pulling out several packs of bread and bottles of water from their backpacks.

They hadn't brought their packs when they went out at noon, so by now their stomachs were growling.

"Bin Ge, we're almost out of food. At best it'll last until tomorrow. We need to go find more."

"Yeah. Time to figure out where to get some."

"Looking at Zhao Kun's group, the cafeteria's probably a no-go."

"Obviously. That many people flooding the cafeteria would've drawn a massive horde. By now, getting in or out is probably impossible."

"So it's actually a good thing we didn't go."

"Definitely." Yang Bin shook his head. "Even if you got in and couldn't get out, that's one problem. But with that many mouths in there, how many days could the food even last?"

"True. If rescue doesn't come, those people are screwed."

"That's for the school leadership to worry about. We need to figure out our own food situation." Yang Bin said.

"I actually thought of a place," Chen Hao said.

"Where?"

"The supermarket. Campus has a bunch of them. We grab one and we're set for ten days, maybe half a month."

"Right, the supermarket. Good call. Tomorrow, that's where we're going." Yang Bin made the decision on the spot.

"Mm."

"Oh-Haozi, check online. See if anyone's talking about the crystals."

"On it."

Chen Hao pulled out his phone and scrolled for a while before looking up.

"Nothing. Right now it's all people begging for help, videos of groups killing zombies, and tutorials on how to fight them."

Yang Bin nodded. "Either nobody's found them yet, or someone has and they're keeping quiet. After all, everyone likes silently making a fortune."

"Right. Just like us."

"......"

"Alright. Rest up. Tomorrow we fight again."

"Mm."

Late that night, the Nine Stars of the Big Dipper reappeared in the sky. Across the city, zombies fell eerily still, one by one going silent. In the zoo, predators stirred as though ancient bloodlines had awakened inside them. Iron bars bent and snapped like wire. One by one, the beasts broke free.

The third day of the apocalypse.

Early morning.

Yang Bin and the others changed into fresh clothes, ate what little remained, and headed out.

They'd barely made it downstairs when they found a large crowd gathered below, clearly waiting for them.

Yang Bin's brow furrowed. He looked at Zhao Kun. "What's this?"

Zhao Kun smiled bitterly. "They're starving. Tried to go out for food at dawn, got chased back by zombies. Now they want you to lead them."

"I'm not babysitting that many deadweights," Yang Bin said flatly.

"We're not deadweights! We can fight zombies!"

"Yeah! We're not scared anymore!"

"Oh?" Chen Hao grinned. "Then why'd you come running back with your tails between your legs?"

"That-that's because the zombies got stronger! That's why we couldn't handle them!"

"Right. And I'm supposed to believe that?" Chen Hao's grin didn't waver.

"It's true! We're not lying!" Several voices rose at once, panicked and insistent.

Yang Bin's eyes sharpened. "Let's go. I want to see for myself."

"What about them?"

"If they can keep up, fine. But let me be clear-following us is dangerous. Don't expect me to save anyone."

"This..."

The crowd hesitated.

Zhao Kun and his two were the first to fall in step.

Seeing that, the rest gritted their teeth and followed.

The campus broadcast hadn't played since last night. Maybe the administration had given up. Most of the speakers were destroyed by now anyway-the sound barely carried.

Yang Bin's group hadn't gone far past the dormitory gate when they spotted two zombies crouched over a corpse, gnawing.

The moment the zombies noticed the living, they surged forward with frenzied excitement.

Yang Bin moved first. The iron pipe swung in a brutal arc and caved in the first zombie's skull in a single blow. Without pausing, he thrust forward into the second one's head. Another instant kill. The whole thing was smooth as flowing clouds and water.

Every pair of eyes behind him went wide. Killing zombies could be that easy?

Even Chen Hao and Hu Wenliang exchanged a look, impressed.

They'd always killed zombies by stabbing. This was the first time they'd seen someone just crush a skull outright. Bin Ge's strength had clearly jumped again.

Zhao Kun and his two stared at Yang Bin with undisguised shock. They could feel it-he'd gotten stronger. Again.

The three exchanged bitter smiles. The gap between them was only growing.

Yang Bin glanced back at the stunned crowd, looking genuinely puzzled. "Didn't feel like they'd gotten any stronger, though?"

"......"

The crowd stared at him, speechless. You killed them in two seconds flat. How would you even notice a difference?

Whatever lingering resentment anyone harbored toward Yang Bin's group evaporated on the spot. Nobody wanted to be on the receiving end of that pipe.

"How about we try the next ones?" Zhao Kun spoke up suddenly.

They'd fought plenty of zombies themselves. If the zombies really had gotten stronger, they'd know immediately.

"Sure." Yang Bin nodded.

They hadn't gone much farther when five zombies appeared ahead.

The moment they spotted the crowd, all five charged like rabid animals.

Yang Bin held back. Chen Hao, Hu Wenliang, and Zhao Kun's trio moved in simultaneously.

Chen Hao and Hu Wenliang drove their pipes straight into zombie skulls-but the strikes didn't kill.

Both frowned, twisted their grips, and shoved harder. Only then did the pipes punch through, finishing the job.

Zhao Kun's side fared worse.

Their pipes hit zombie necks dead-on but failed to break through. Instead, the zombies' raw momentum slammed all three of them stumbling backward.

To their credit, they had experience. One failed thrust and they were already stabbing again.

What followed was an ugly, grinding fight-Zhao Kun's group getting shoved back, recovering, stabbing again, getting shoved back again-all under the disbelieving stares of the crowd.

Finally, after five or six consecutive thrusts, the zombie necks gave way.

The three rejoined the group, breathing hard. Zhao Kun's face was grim. "They're definitely stronger. About fifty percent more than when this started."

Yang Bin nodded. His suspicion was confirmed. Zombies were growing continuously-getting noticeably stronger with each passing day.

"If that's the case," he thought, "then even with enough food, humans can't just hide. Sooner or later, the zombies will outgrow us. We'll be wiped out."

A heavy silence settled over the group. Zombies were already hard enough to deal with. Now they were getting stronger too?

How were they supposed to survive this?

"Let's move." Yang Bin shook his head, pushing the thought aside. One step at a time. Deal with what's in front of you.