C7 Room 1116

Ho Lan was seething with anger upon discovering that Chu Yue had stripped the young girl of her human rights, treating her as mere cargo by stowing her away in his backpack.

"Mr. Chu Yue, where on earth did you pick up this silly white creature?" Chuxue asked, her lively eyes fixed on Chu Yue with curiosity.

"Miss Xue, don't waste your time on this guy. He'll only drag down your IQ!" Chu Yue, loudspeaker in hand, began searching for the perfect spot to set it up.

"Chu Yue, who are you calling low IQ? Who are you talking about?" Ho Lan glared at him, her teeth bared in irritation.

"Quiet, or I'll toss you out to the zombies! I bet they'd take a liking to you!" Chu Yue's tone was icy, showing complete disregard for Ho Lan.

As a result, he felt no qualms about discarding such a burden.

"…"

Deflated like a wilted cucumber, Ho Lan lost all her bluster, her indignation and anger swallowed down. She knew Chu Yue was not one to make idle threats.

The thought of being thrown to the zombies was too horrific for Ho Lan to even contemplate.

Now, all she could do was sit quietly, like a wronged little child.

"Collecting junk, scrap metal, second-hand phones, second-hand daughters, second-hand wives!"

The recording, a relic from someone else, needed only a push of a button by Chu Yue to play. As the distinctive, humorous call rang out, Ho Lan couldn't help but comment under her breath.

"Who would've thought Chu Yue could be so unexpectedly cheeky!"

Listening to the sounds emanating from the loudspeaker, Ho Lan murmured to herself.

"Miss Xue, once I'm strong enough, you'll never have to stay in a backpack again," Chu Yue promised, gently patting Chuxue's head as it peeked out.

"As long as I'm with Mr. Chu Yue, even if it means spending a lifetime in a backpack, I'm willing," Chuxue replied, her smile tinged with contentment and a feeling of safety.

"Silly girl," Chu Yue said, shaking his head. He was all too aware that Chuxue had no remaining family in this world; he had become her sole focus and kin.

The loudspeaker proved to be incredibly effective. In no time at all, the zombie horde that had amassed in front of Yanjing Normal University was lured away by the sounds it emitted.

"Why are you still standing there? Move it, now!"

Chu Yue shot Ho Lan a stern look, then instructed Chuxue to stay well-hidden before he dashed into the academy grounds.

Like a little chick pecking at grains, Ho Lan nodded vigorously and followed in Chu Yue's footsteps as they both charged into Yanjing Normal University.

The academy's streets were overrun with zombies. Judging by their attire, most were former students, with a fair number of security personnel among them.

Wielding the Half Moon Black Ring Blade, Chu Yue's eyes were devoid of any emotion as he ruthlessly decapitated the approaching zombies.

Ho Lan could barely watch, fighting the urge to vomit at the gruesome sight.

"Where's Yao?" Chu Yue asked as they took refuge in a building.

"She's likely hiding in the dormitory with the teachers!" Ho Lan managed to say, suppressing her nausea and pointing towards a cluster of buildings behind them.

"How far are we from the dormitory?" Chu Yue inquired, unable to gauge the distance or the layout beyond the building.

"It's at least two kilometers away," Ho Lan replied, doing her utmost to keep her composure.

"Let's make a break for the dormitory, now!" Chu Yue urged as he noticed the zombies starting to converge.

Exiting through the building's back door, they found themselves on a basketball court, but the corridor was teeming with zombies. Chu Yue was growing increasingly anxious, concerned for Chu Yao's safety.

After a tough fight to escape the horde and reach the basketball court, Chu Yue was taken aback by the sight before them. No fewer than a hundred zombies had assembled, forming a daunting barrier before Chu Yue and Ho Lan. Chu Yue's expression darkened at the sight.

A few zombies would have been manageable, but a hundred would pose a significant challenge, and more importantly, it could endanger Miss Xue.

Feeling restless, Chu Yue was relieved to remember the loudspeaker in his backpack. He set it up in the corridor and, with Ho Lan, took cover behind the door, waiting for the perfect moment to act.

"Buying junk, scrap metal, used phones, used daughters, used wives!"

The familiar voice and its effective lure were unchanged. As the announcement played, the zombie horde became agitated. Soon, they were scrambling over each other, frantically moving toward the source of the sound.

"Let's go!"

Chu Yue grabbed Ho Lan and bolted out without a backward glance. The sound had drawn zombies to the basketball court, where they were slowly converging, though their numbers were few.

They fought their way across the court and finally reached the girls' dormitory.

Inside the dormitory hall, however, there were zombies wandering about, including a dormitory manager.

"Alin!"

One of the zombies was a close dormmate of Ho Lan's, someone she had been particularly fond of. Seeing Alin transformed into a zombie sent Ho Lan's emotions into turmoil.

"She's already dead!"

Chu Yue gripped Ho Lan tightly to prevent her from running forward. Observing Alin's decaying visage, he surmised the time of her death.

It must have occurred a few hours after Ho Lan and the others had left. The exact circumstances were unclear to him, but one thing deeply troubled Chu Yue.

That was the safety of Chu Yao, who shared a dorm with Alin.

Now that Alin was a zombie, what about Chu Yao? How was she? What on earth had happened in the dormitory?

Alin's condition didn't seem like a natural infection; it appeared to be deliberate. There were no bite marks from zombies on her body, only a conspicuous needle mark on her wrist.

Chu Yue suspected that someone had intentionally spread the virus.

The virus had likely been injected into Alin's body.

With this thought...

"Yao Yao!"

Chu Yue's concern for Chu Yao intensified. He was desperate to ensure his sister's safety.

If the virus had indeed been deliberately spread and injected into someone's body, could Chu Yao have suffered the same fate?

"Ho Lan, we need to find Yao Yao immediately!"

With Chu Yao weighing heavily on his mind, Chu Yue ignored Ho Lan's distraught state and charged into the dormitory building.

The elevator was out of service, not due to a power issue, but because it was likely filled with zombies—unfortunate victims of the sudden outbreak.

Chu Yao's dorm was on the 11th floor. While not exceedingly high, scaling eleven flights of stairs in one go was a feat not easily achieved by the average person, especially since Chu Yue was encumbered by Ho Lan's presence.

"Hurry up! That noise is sure to have alerted the zombies on the other floors. If you're not keen on a close encounter with them, then get moving!" Ho Lan was already gasping for air by the time she reached the fourth floor. Seeing her struggle, Chu Yue regretted bringing her along.

"You... you... don't you have any... compassion?" Ho Lan felt completely drained. She desperately wanted to sit down and rest, but it was clear that Chu Yue wasn't going to entertain that idea.

Chu Yue shot Ho Lan a look and didn't bother with small talk, continuing his ascent to the fifth floor.

"Hey! Don't leave me behind!" Ho Lan realized there was no room for pretense and quickly got to her feet to follow him.

A man like Chu Yue, who clearly didn't prioritize her, wasn't about to start coddling her. Moreover, she and Chu Yue weren't particularly close.

In this life-or-death situation, Ho Lan's dramatics were too much for Chu Yue to tolerate. He wasn't about to be slowed down by someone he hardly knew.

Worried about his sister Chu Yao's safety, Chu Yue was in no mood for Ho Lan's antics. He had never been one to suffer fools gladly.

"Wait for me!"

Ho Lan climbed the stairs, covering her mouth, repulsed by the sight of the zombie limbs strewn about.

"Puchi!"

Chu Yue swung his Half Moon Black Ring Blade with ease, slicing through the advancing zombies as if they were mere vegetables.

"Shut up!"

Ho Lan's cries had undoubtedly drawn the attention of the zombies near the stairwell. Chu Yue's face twisted into a snarl as he barked at her.

Seeing Chu Yue's fierce expression, Ho Lan's face soured, and she muttered something under her breath.

Chu Yue didn't need to strain to guess her thoughts. She was likely grumbling about his stinginess, his lack of chivalry, and questioning his character – typical Ho Lan.

Once the fifth floor was cleared of zombies, Chu Yue dashed towards the eleventh floor, with Ho Lan gradually becoming more subdued.

Seventh floor.

Ninth floor.

Eleventh floor!

By the time they reached the eleventh floor, Ho Lan had collapsed on the ground, lying there like a frostbitten eggplant, gasping for breath.

"I'm so tired, utterly exhausted..."

When Ho Lan noticed Chu Yue's breathing was steady and he showed no signs of fatigue after climbing the stairs, she couldn't help but quietly label him as an oddity and a freak.

The eleventh floor seemed different from the others, though Chu Yue couldn't pinpoint exactly how. He just sensed something was off. Upon opening the stairwell door and stepping into the hallway, the reason for the floor's distinctiveness became clear. Specifically, it was the floors above the tenth that were unusual.

The eleventh floor's corridor had its floor and walls fortified with a steel mesh, entirely composed of steel bars. It was so robust that even a speeding car might not breach it.

Why the walls were buttressed with this steel mesh was beyond Chu Yue's knowledge. One thing was certain, though: Yanjing Normal University was no ordinary place. More precisely, it seemed a particular teacher or student was extraordinary.

The reinforcement of the steel mesh was clearly an afterthought, not part of the original design.

Oddly, there were no Zombies to be found on this floor. Despite the spattered bloodstains on the ground and walls, not a single Zombie was in sight. Even stranger were the distinct claw marks on the steel mesh.

Claw marks, not mere scratches!

This discovery deepened Chu Yue's concern for his sister's safety. What on earth had transpired at Yanjing Normal University for the eleventh-floor girls' dormitory to end up in such a state?

As Chu Yue's anxiety reached a fever pitch, he suddenly heard a series of gnawing and scratching noises. The source was Room 1116.

Chu Yao was one of the occupants of Room 1116, the very place Ho Lan had informed Chu Yue that his sister, Chu Yao, was hiding. At this moment, a cacophony of sounds emanated from Room 1116.

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