trap

Fear resistance seems to be a passive trait, and when Fan Li made a decision, his inner calmness emerged.

Before searching for food, he needed to make some preparations.

"This one is not thick enough."

"This one won't work either."

"This one could do, but it's a bit loose. I'll need to put on another pair of long johns."

Fan Li rummaged through his belongings, and after half an hour of preparation, he finally completed this "transformation"!

In the mirror, Fan Li looked slightly bulky because he had put on his winter down jacket and cotton pants. Even though it was only September, despite the significant temperature difference in the northern town where Fan Li resided, the highest temperature at noon was still around thirty degrees Celsius. During the time Fan Li spent changing clothes, he was already sweating profusely, with thick beads of sweat forming on his back.

But there was no other way. Fan Li had witnessed firsthand how a woman bit through a teacher's neck with her teeth through the door crack. Moreover, during the outbreak of the apocalypse, television had also broadcasted how zombies attacked, relying on their teeth and mouths to complete the assault. The victims would also undergo a transformation into bloodthirsty demons within a short period.

So, before embarking on his adventure, Fan Li made such preparations!

All set!

Fan Li took a deep breath, placed his hand on the doorknob. At this point, he was fully armed, not only wearing thick clothes but also wrapping a scarf tightly around his neck and mouth, leaving only his eyes to observe the surroundings. He also wore gloves on his hands.

Fan Li patted his chest, just in case, he brought along the music box. Although he didn't know its effectiveness or whether using it would bring him bad luck, the thought of Ellie's disfigured face brought him some comfort. After all, from any perspective, Ellie was much uglier and scarier than the usual zombies!

"Phew…"

Fan Li exhaled heavily, knowing that at this point, there was no turning back. Either he found new food and persisted to survive, or he endured and awaited death!

Fan Li wasn't foolish; he wanted to live, so naturally, he chose the option that still had a glimmer of hope.

Click.

With a crisp sound, Fan Li turned the doorknob. After three days, Fan Li stepped out of his house for the first time.

The doorstep was splattered with large patches of blood, clearly left by the teacher. In three days, the thick blood had turned black, and stepping on it felt sticky and slightly uncomfortable.

The woman in the apron and the teacher who had turned into zombies were long gone. Fan Li looked around, but there was no sound in the entire corridor. It seemed like the entire corridor had turned into a ghost domain, devoid of any living person.

A deathly silence brought a chilling sensation to Fan Li's chest, to the point that, even wearing cotton clothing, he no longer felt hot but rather coldness creeping from his chest to his limbs.

However, Fan Li didn't look back. He gently closed the door behind him, not locking it, and slowly headed upstairs.

The reason for doing so was to be able to return home as soon as possible in case of an emergency, without wasting time unlocking the door, and thus not affecting his chances of survival.

Click…

Click…

Fan Li had never listened to his footsteps so carefully. Even though he had deliberately controlled them, the faint sound still pierced through the scarf into his ears.

At the corner of the corridor…

Fan Li stretched his neck forward to look ahead.

The door was open!

As Fan Li expected, on that day of the sudden incident, the couple who mutated and fled did not close the door behind them.

It was noon now, and the sunlight streaming in from the window illuminated the doorway, making the bloodstains there very clear.

Thinking of the food about to run out, Fan Li gathered his courage and walked upstairs.

"Five…"

"Four…"

"Three…"

"Two…"

"One…"

When he counted to the last step, Fan Li gripped the hammer in his hand tightly. Perhaps he exerted too much force, as his entire right hand hidden in the glove turned pale.

In peacetime, anyone seeing Fan Li's appearance would mistake him for an outlaw, motivated by greed, lust, or other grievances, leading to a fully armed thug wielding a hammer ready to attack.

But only Fan Li knew that his motive for this "crime" was only one: food!

Fan Li climbed the last step, and he seemed to have already seen the food beckoning to him. As a married family, the reserves of food in the other party's home were naturally much greater than those of a single person like himself.

No more hesitation.Fan Li leaned half of his body and looked into the room, but as he did, his pupils instantly narrowed into thin lines.

The decoration style in the teacher's home was simple and fashionable, without intricate decorations. At the entrance, there was a shoe cabinet, followed by a sofa, with a coffee table and TV in front. Beside the sofa was a kitchen converted from the balcony.

At that moment, before Fan Li's eyes, the originally simple coffee-colored sofa was covered in bloodstains. A man with his neck bitten through, his head drooping, sat on the sofa, staring blankly at the ground.

He no longer breathed, so Fan Li didn't hear any sound from outside the door, except for the ferocious wound on his neck, his face also bore various degrees of tearing, as if bitten by an animal. His entire cheek had ruptured, and one could even see rows of gums and teeth covered in bloodstains.

As the instigator, the teacher's wife stood in the kitchen, still in the appearance Fan Li had seen before, wearing an apron printed with peonies. However, the "battle uniform" that once brought warmth to her husband and child was now stained with blood and minced meat.

The woman clenched her teeth, her eyes widened, like a puppet made to look frightened, standing straight in the kitchen, facing the direction where Fan Li stood—at the door!

The situation exceeded Fan Li's expectations. He had never thought that the two people who had been killed and bitten in front of his own door would return to their original home like this, without any sound, lurking silently upstairs.

Fan Li even absurdly believed that this was a trap deliberately set by the other party, a trap waiting for prey to come.

The woman noticed Fan Li.

"Squeak…"

"Squeak…"

The sound of teeth grinding echoed in the silent room. When it saw Fan Li, its expression became increasingly ferocious, its pupils dilated, its face trembling, and even its legs took a step forward, walking towards Fan Li.

And the teacher sitting on the sofa seemed to have sensed it too. His drooping head turned, his tendons were bitten through, unable to lift his head, so he could only maintain a drooping posture, which gave people an even more eerie feeling.

In an instant, Fan Li saw many things—not only the teacher's head drooping, the woman walking towards him, but also fruits on the coffee table, and instant noodles scattered on the kitchen counter and refrigerator.

Food!

Driven by the craving for food, Fan Li now resembled a starving wild dog. Even though he knew there might be a trap ahead set by hunters, if he wanted to survive, he had to face all challenges.

Resistance to fear!

Resistance to fear couldn't make Fan Li immune to fear, but it could help him stay calm in dangerous situations. It seemed that climbing a flight of stairs that took five minutes had exhausted Fan Li's strength to return. He muttered to himself, in a voice only he could hear, "Avoidance solves nothing…"

"Giggle…"

The zombie spotted Fan Li first, and the one to initiate the attack was still the woman who had previously worn the apron. It roared angrily, its eyeballs seeming to bulge out, filled with bloodshot veins. In addition to this, its teeth also chattered, sounding like starving ghosts crawling out of hell. Just one glance sent shivers down one's spine.

But Fan Li knew that now wasn't the time to run.

To survive, one needed food. And to get food, the best way was often to snatch it from the jaws of others. It was a vicious cycle; even if he managed to escape this time, when hunger gnawed at him, he'd have to venture out to find food.

Rather than dragging his tired body in search of sustenance later, it was better to deal with the two in front of him while he was still relatively strong. After all, the odds of victory were higher now if he faced them head-on.

Fan Li still had some cards up his sleeve. Compared to his initial panic and confusion, acquiring the Ellie music box had undoubtedly increased his resistance to fear.

"Close!"

Fan Li's focus was razor-sharp. Compared to the teacher sitting on the sofa, the woman in the apron was his prime adversary.

"She's not Aunt Mei I used to know; she's a zombie, a mindless one!"

Fan Li knew it wasn't time to be merciful. Standing before him wasn't the familiar neighbor of yesteryears but a zombie who had bitten her husband to death!

Gripping the hammer tightly, as the apron-clad zombie approached, Fan Li could even smell the foul stench emanating from her mouth. Without hesitation, he swung the hammer towards her head!

"Crack!"

A crisp sound echoed. Fan Li felt his arm go numb, and shortly after, the apron-clad zombie slumped to the ground. She seemed to have lost her ability to attack; her bloodshot eyes rolled up, and her limbs trembled uncontrollably. After a few seconds, she froze in a rigid posture.

"Congratulations, host, for earning the title 'First Blood.' Undoubtedly, you've taken the first step on your path to survival."

The blood-red font appeared before Fan Li's eyes. But before he could relax, the zombie that had been sitting on the sofa lunged at him. Fresh flesh was irresistible to any zombie.

With the distance too close, Fan Li instinctively crossed his hands in defense.

"Bang!"

Under the powerful impact, Fan Li fell backward.

"Thud!"

Fan Li crashed heavily onto the hallway rack near the door. He was about to retaliate, but the zombie was already upon him.

It was a terrifying sight; the teacher's neck had been bitten off by the apron-clad zombie, lacking tendon support, it hung limp around his neck. And now, as Fan Li looked up, the teacher's face was right in front of his, those crimson eyes locking onto his. Moreover, with excessive chewing, the ruptured cheekbones oozed out putrid blood.

The stench was indescribable, like a pot of rotten fish and shrimp left to ferment for over ten days. Not to mention getting close; just a whiff from afar induced a nauseating sensation.

And now, as they were close, a few drops of the rotten blood even fell on Fan Li's scarf. This action sent shivers down Fan Li's spine; by now, he was certain that after being bitten by a zombie, there was no miracle; ultimately, one would turn into a zombie even more ferocious than a wild beast.

Fan Li feared the blood might infect him. With all his might, he kicked the teacher away. But as he raised the hammer, attempting to end the creature's life, to his surprise, the kick didn't send the teacher far. Instead, the teacher merely took two steps back, then forcefully straightened up and pounced on Fan Li again.

The hammer tilted and struck the zombie's shoulder directly.

"Didn't hit the head!"

Fan Li's heart skipped a beat; he realized the zombie's strength had increased significantly from its previous life. His arm swung haphazardly, and just as his palm landed on the hammer face, Fan Li felt his arm go numb, and the hammer in his hand was flung to the lower floor.

"Not good, lost the weapon!"

Fan Li yelled in dismay, trying to turn and retrieve the hammer. But the teacher wouldn't allow it; with a lunge, it knocked Fan Li down, frantically tearing and biting. Luckily, Fan Li was wearing thick clothing, and the first bite missed, only latching onto the down jacket!

"Get off me!"

The figure before him wasn't the previous teacher but a creature indifferent to killing. Fan Li wouldn't show mercy. He swung his arm while desperately kicking at the creature's chest, trying to create distance between them.

"Creak…"

As the two were entangled, a sudden sound of footsteps echoed in the bedroom, causing Fan Li to freeze in horror, feeling as though he had plunged into an icy abyss, his heart almost ceasing to beat.

Before Fan Li's eyes, a girl of sixteen or seventeen with twin ponytails appeared, but unlike the previously beautiful and fair-skinned girl that would fit any boy's first love fantasy, she now had a ferocious expression, covered in bloodstains. Even her twin ponytails, which used to sway gracefully, were now dripping with blood. As Fan Li observed her, the girl, equally frenzied, stared back at him.

This was the teacher's daughter!

The entire family, all three of them, had turned into corpses!

With the hammer now downstairs, mere fists were futile against these two zombies!

"I… I still have the music box!"

Fear didn't make Fan Li despair at the sight before him. He knew he had no choice but to fight now. If he let the girl get close, he and his father would end up torn to pieces!

The girl advanced, her twin ponytails swaying as before, but in Fan Li's eyes, they were no longer innocent but rather scythes of death!

"Desperate times call for desperate measures!"

With desperation fueling him, Fan Li's strength surged to his legs, and with all his might, he kicked the teacher back into the room. The next moment, instead of running or getting up, he swiftly reached into his chest and pulled out an exquisite music box.

It was an incredibly eerie scene: faced with two ferocious and terrifying zombies, Fan Li lay on the ground, unarmed, with nothing but a music box transformed from a girl in his hand. If anyone were to witness it, they would surely think Fan Li had been frightened to the core, his consciousness clouded.

However, Fan Li had never been clearer than he was now, for from the moment he drew out the music box, he knew he had entered a moment of life and death gamble.

"Click… Click…"

The sound of the music box turning echoed. As the two zombies lunged towards him, Fan Li's face flushed red, and from his throat, he forcefully uttered two words:

"Elli!"