"Xiaodao...!" Song Xiaojian's heart lurched. "Brother Wang, what are you doing? Let her go!"

"Brother, I've got no choice. I'm sorry-if you don't go, we all die. This is the only way!" Wang Quan's voice dripped with cold malice.

On normal days, Wang Quan might have been overbearing, but he was still the man who'd saved both siblings.

Neither of them ever imagined he'd do something like this.

"Brother Wang, let me go!" Song Xiaodao thrashed wildly. "Don't send my brother out there! I'm faster than him now! And your leg's fine, isn't it? Why don't you go?"

Slap!

Wang Quan's palm cracked across Song Xiaodao's face.

The little girl's tender cheek swelled instantly, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

"Did I fucking ask you to speak?!" Wang Quan's eyes blazed with venom.

Song Xiaodao froze, unable to comprehend how a person could turn so fast.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

Several zombies nearby, drawn by the sound of the slap, broke into a sprint toward them.

Wang Quan hadn't expected to attract attention. His face drained of color, and his voice cracked. "Song Xiaojian! If you don't go right now, your sister and I die here too! Think about it-one death, or two?!"

Song Xiaojian's face went ashen. He had no choice at all.

"Brother, you can't go!" Song Xiaodao sobbed, tears streaming down.

Song Xiaojian managed a bitter smile. Suddenly, he didn't know what else to say to his sister.

There were too many words in his heart. A lifetime's worth. He didn't know which to say first.

"Before Mom and Dad died, I promised them-as long as I still have breath, I'll protect you." Song Xiaojian's voice was steady.

He couldn't bring himself to meet his sister's eyes. Instead, he fixed Wang Quan with a hard stare. "Brother Wang, I hope you'll treat my sister well. If you don't... even if I become a zombie, I will find you."

"Go on, don't worry. Xiaodao's just a kid. What could I possibly do to her?" Wang Quan's expression shifted to an easy smile.

His eyes flicked to the approaching zombies. "Go! Now!"

Song Xiaojian didn't hesitate. He turned and bolted from the shelter.

"Brother...!" Song Xiaodao tried to scream, but Wang Quan clamped a hand over her mouth.

She struggled with everything she had, but could only watch helplessly as her last family in this ruined world walked away without looking back.

Roar!

The zombies spotted Song Xiaojian and went berserk, their stiff limbs pumping as they gave chase.

Song Xiaojian sprinted across the uneven rubble, stumbling, nearly falling. He only wanted to lead them farther. Farther still.

Only then could his sister survive.

Deep down, Song Xiaojian knew the truth. The moment Wang Quan faced real danger, he'd throw Song Xiaodao to the wolves without a second thought.

Behind him, the horde swelled. Nearby zombies converged first, and as the noise grew, more came from farther away...

Wang Quan watched Song Xiaojian disappear into the distance. A smile crept across his face as he finally released Song Xiaodao.

"Relax. I won't let you die. Once I find somewhere safe, I'll sell you for a nice price."

Song Xiaodao didn't scream. She stared in the direction her brother had vanished, tears sliding silently down her cheeks.

She understood. If she drew more zombies now, her brother's death would mean nothing.

She would survive. She would live for him.

She would outlive them all.

"Come on. Let's find food inside."

Wang Quan dusted off his pants and stood, striding toward the half-collapsed entrance of the shooting range.

Song Xiaodao turned to watch his back. In that moment, the twelve-year-old girl's eyes held nothing but hatred.

She followed in silence.

...

Zhao Yin spotted the dark tide of corpses from a distance. Even more than the school-five or six thousand at least, a seething mass chasing a single boy.

"Holy shit!" The curse slipped out before he could stop it.

No one in his past life had mentioned a horde near the shooting range. He grabbed Little Monkey and ducked for cover. Rescuing the boy? The thought didn't even cross his mind.

Unlucky bastard. Zhao Yin couldn't figure out how some ordinary kid-not even an Evolver-had pulled that many zombies.

He and Little Monkey gave the horde a wide berth. Once the boy had led them far enough away, they circled back to the range.

Not a single zombie remained nearby. The kid had drawn every last one of them away on purpose.

Zhao Yin frowned. Was that boy insane?

He shook it off. The apocalypse bred all kinds.

Maybe the kid was just tired of living and wanted one last thrill.

Zhao Yin entered the range. The buildings still standing were riddled with cracks, ready to collapse at any moment. He headed straight for the old office with Little Monkey in tow.

According to intel from his past life, the range owner had lived on-site, keeping a young mistress tucked away in the office lounge.

When the apocalypse hit, a meteorite had flattened the office building. The sniper rifle was in the basement-the owner's private love nest.

Zhao Yin found the entrance quickly.

A slab of concrete, three or four tons at least, covered most of it. Only a corner of the metal door peeked out, exactly as described.

An ordinary person would've spent hours on this. Zhao Yin simply activated his Spatial Ring.

The concrete vanished.

He drew his butterfly knife. Clang! The blade punched into the electronic lock. A hard twist severed the mechanism.

"Open it," Zhao Yin ordered, pulling the knife free.

Little Monkey stepped forward. Its body swelled rapidly, golden fur bristling as the terrifying giant form emerged-a mountain of muscle radiating crushing pressure.

Massive fingers wrapped around the door handle. Little Monkey pulled.

Creak... creak...!

Metal shrieked against metal. The warped door tore free from its frame.

Roar!

A dark shape burst from the doorway, lunging at Little Monkey.

Zhao Yin identified it instantly-a middle-aged male zombie, unevolved. The clothes marked him as the range owner.

Little Monkey's palm came down like a flyswatter.

Crunch.

The zombie's skull collapsed into its chest cavity. Its hands still clawed at Little Monkey's thick fur, but couldn't even pull loose a few strands.

Little Monkey took that personally.

It raised the torn metal door overhead and brought it down like a hammer.

Splat!

Dark, brackish blood splattered everywhere. The basement had smelled faintly of mold before. Now it reeked of rot and viscera.

When the door lifted, the zombie was a flattened smear.

"Look what you did to the place." Zhao Yin shot it a glare.

Little Monkey knew it had overdone it. It scratched its head sheepishly.

Zhao Yin pinched his nose and stepped inside. Another zombie burst from the inner room.

A young woman-early twenties, clothes hanging in tatters.

Even as a zombie, it was obvious she'd been beautiful.

"Master, are those really not steamed buns?" Little Monkey started drooling immediately, the previous lesson already forgotten.

Zhao Yin's butterfly knife flashed. The pretty zombie's skull split cleanly in two.

"Not steamed buns," he said flatly.

He crouched and poked through both zombies' brains with the knife. No Corpse Crystals. He was about to move on when he caught Little Monkey still staring at the female corpse, drool pooling.

He sensed its thoughts: So big. Two of them. If only they were steamed buns...

"Quit staring. Once we find mutated wheat, I'll steam you a whole pot every day. Now move." Zhao Yin sighed.

Why did it have to grow that big? Look how hungry it made the poor thing.

Little Monkey followed reluctantly as they entered the inner room.

The stench hit like a wall.

The floor was covered in filth-excrement, used condoms, toilet paper, food wrappers scattered everywhere...