Chapter 5: Burning Redemption

Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia

Very soon, they arrived at their destination. Haoyu said, "We've arrived — the grave's grave."

Jilian and the foreigner smiled, then set off to rescue Jianyi. They crossed the same bridge as before, but now half of it had collapsed — they could only walk along the beam.

While on the beam, Haoyu said, "Just a few days ago this bridge was perfectly fine. What happened?"

The foreigner replied, "Seems like the military blew it up."

Just as he finished speaking, Jilian slipped and fell, but thankfully Haoyu caught him in time.

Just after they crossed the bridge, a horde of zombies suddenly rushed toward them. The foreigner fired back while running. Seeing a convenience store up ahead, they didn't hesitate and rushed inside. As they closed the door and turned around, Jilian suddenly exclaimed:

"Mom!"

Jilian thought it was a hallucination. He rubbed his eyes and looked again,

"Mom, it really is Mom!"

He immediately ran forward and hugged her tightly, crying uncontrollably, "I thought I'd never see you again."

After calming down, Haoyu asked, "Why are you here?"

It turned out that after Zhang Mama got out of the car and was about to enter the school gates, a horde of zombies suddenly charged over. She tried to escape by car, but it was too late. She had no choice but to run toward the bridge. She twisted her ankle and thought she was done for when suddenly a young man ran over. He smashed the zombie with a bat and pulled her into the convenience store.

"We've been here for a few days since then," Zhang Mama said.

Zhang Mama then asked, "Why are you guys here?" Jilian told her the whole story.

Zhang Mama said, "Mom will stay with you. This time, I won't leave you again."

Haoyu looked on silently.

After eating and drinking their fill, they prepared to leave. Haoyu suddenly asked, "How should we address this gentleman?"

Zhang Mama responded, "Oh, just call him Uncle Li."

Jilian suddenly said, "Mom, later when we go out, just hide behind me."

His mom gave a warm smile.

In a panic, they found a car, but the engine wouldn't start. In the distance, the sound of zombie roars grew louder — a dark mass of figures surged toward them.

Haoyu glanced at the incoming horde, took a deep breath, and turned to Jilian:

"I'll distract them. You guys go!"

Jilian grabbed his arm: "No! We're leaving together!"

Haoyu shook his head, eyes full of determination: "Promise me — after you save him, live well."

He lowered his head and whispered, "I… have nothing left to stay for."

Before Jilian could react, Haoyu broke free from his grip and charged toward the zombies. He pulled the pin from a grenade and looked back at Jilian one last time, a bitter smile on his lips.

"No!!!"

Jilian screamed in anguish, trying to rush after him, but Zhang Mama held him back tightly.

BOOM—

A deafening explosion tore through the air. The car next to Haoyu was engulfed in flames. The blast wave knocked him off his feet. The ground shook violently as if the world were collapsing. Flames soared into the sky like Death's scythe, slicing through the silence.

Jilian collapsed to the ground, voice choked, "No… Haoyu… no…"

The group continued on to rescue Jianyi. On the way, they encountered a few zombies and killed them all.

They arrived at the destination, got out of the car, and entered a building. They saw Chen Qi sitting next to Jianyi, eating instant noodles. Seeing them, Chen Qi said:

"Yo, you really came. I thought you wouldn't. Didn't you say you'd come without your mom? Well, she's here too."

Jilian immediately grabbed his collar, about to curse him, but saw that Chen Qi was covered in grenades and quickly let go.

Chen Qi smugly said, "Come on, why don't you try me?"

Just as they were about to leave with Jianyi, a crackling noise came from behind. The commotion had attracted zombies.

Jilian quickly picked up Jianyi and ran. Suddenly, the wall collapsed, and falling debris cut Uncle Li's leg. Realizing he couldn't escape, Uncle Li grabbed Chen Qi.

Chen Qi shouted, "What are you doing?! Let go of me!"

Uncle Li looked at Jilian and said softly, "All my life, I've lived for others' expectations. I've never done anything for myself. Today, I finally get to do something I want. Go now!!!"

Then, Uncle Li pulled the pins from Chen Qi's grenades and charged into the zombie horde with him, sacrificing himself and buying the others time to escape. Zhang Mama seized the chance to drive the group away.

On the road, occasional zombies appeared, but the foreigner dealt with them swiftly. However, the zombie horde behind them surged like a tidal wave. Their footsteps and growls blended into a terrifying death march.

Worse still, the noise attracted zombies from tall buildings. The creatures broke through windows and leapt down one after another. They hit the ground like raindrops — some shattered, others staggered to their feet and pressed forward. It was like a doomsday version of

"dumplings into boiling water,"utterly chilling.

Zhang Mama gripped the steering wheel tightly, eyes full of resolve. Her foot was almost flooring the gas pedal. The car sped through the narrow streets, narrowly dodging abandoned vehicles with her skilled maneuvering.

Up ahead was a broken bridge. She gritted her teeth and accelerated. The car soared through the air, drawing a graceful arc, and landed on the other side. However, the impact knocked it off balance — the vehicle tilted and crashed into the bridge rail, half of it hanging in midair.

"Quick! Climb up!" Jilian shouted.

He was the first to crawl out of the window, followed by the others, carefully climbing onto the bridge. Just as they reached the top, the car made a horrible screeching noise and fell off the bridge.

They didn't have time to catch their breath and immediately sprinted toward the helicopter.

But just as they were about to reach it, Jilian looked back and gasped — the zombie horde had begun building a

"zombie bridge"!

One by one, they climbed onto each other's backs, stacking up like ants, trying to cross the broken span. The scene was eerie and horrifying, like the gates of hell opening behind them.

Reaching the helicopter, the foreigner immediately started it and lifted off at full speed.

Unexpectedly, the zombies had terrifying jumping power. They leapt and grabbed the helicopter's landing gear, forming a chain.

Realizing the danger, the foreigner stabilized the aircraft in midair and began dealing with the zombies.

Knowing this couldn't continue, he resorted to his final move. He called Jilian over and told him to stop hovering and pull left immediately.

Jilian asked, "What about you?"

The foreigner replied, "Just do as I say." Then he counted down — 3… 2… 1… now!

Jilian followed his instructions and pulled the lever hard to the left. At that moment, the foreigner leapt from the aircraft, knocking off the zombies and sacrificing himself along with them.