Xiao Yang and Lu You resumed clearing the remaining 50 villas from where they'd left off. Without Mu Wanqing, they focused on honing their teamwork, alternating positions—sometimes front and back, sometimes side by side, occasionally spinning back-to-back in coordinated strikes.
By the 90th villa, sweat drenched Lu You's clothes. The heat forced both to shed their jackets. Inside, five zombies and a mutated cat lunged at them.
Back-to-back, Xiao Yang felt the soft curve of Lu You's spine press against him—a distracting reminder of her figure. They dispatched four zombies smoothly, but as Lu You unleashed a lightning bolt at the fifth, the cat pounced from her blind spot.
Xiao Yang tackled her to the floor, shielding her body as his blade arced sideways. The zombie cat's head rolled away with a screech.
"Too close," he breathed, still pinning her.
Beneath him, Lu You flushed crimson, his warmth searing through her clothes. "Get… off. I can't breathe."
He scrambled up, pulling her to her feet. Avoiding his gaze, she busied herself harvesting crystals from the corpses. "Let's stop here. It's getting dark."
Xiao Yang agreed—10 villas could wait. Visions of Lin Shishi's cheongsam quickened his steps home.
Near the villa district's entrance, an uncleared cluster included the property management office. Inside a storage room, 20 survivors huddled in frigid darkness.
"Stop crowding inward!" A security captain snarled, flashlight beam cutting through the gloom. "Disturb me again, and no one gets food tomorrow!"
A woman wrapped in a banner shrank back. "It's just… the door's too cold—"
"Cold?" The light pinned her. "Come 'thank' me properly, then."
Two guards dragged her forward. Fabric ripped. Whimpers echoed as others turned away—survival depended on the captain's squad, the only ones brave enough to fight zombies.
Back at Xiao Yang's villa, crystals gleamed on the coffee table. Too exhausted to cook, Lu You slumped while Xiao Yang discreetly laid out a feast from his spatial storage.
Lin Shishi entered, eyes widening at roasted duck, braised pork, and steaming soup. "If I died after this meal," she breathed, "I'd have no regrets."