Yang Mu hesitated briefly before quickly moving to drag the stunned giant over to the safety of the table.

"Oh my god! What on earth is this thing?"

"A zombie, but somewhat unusual. It seems that the alcohol and what you did to her have left her with a semblance of humanity. Her demeanor towards you is affectionate, even smiling at you. Look, she’s trying to get closer."

"Get closer? This is a zombie... You, stay away!"

The giant, trembling, shouted at the zombie.

To his surprise, the zombie did indeed stop, tilting its head as it regarded Song Ren with a look of puzzlement.

"Run, run, this is too terrifying!"

Song Ren dodged around the table and rushed to the door, flinging it open and escaping outside.

Without waiting for Yang Mu's instructions, he quickly returned, attempting to close the door, but it only shut halfway before a robust figure burst through, shoving the door wide open. Song Ren sprinted back to Yang Mu, who now faced a towering figure at the door—an enormous, black zombie.

Yang Mu was equally stunned; the sight was truly formidable. With its jet-black skin and starkly white eyes, this foreign zombie was indeed more horrifying. It evoked a sense of familiarity, reminiscent of the zombies in foreign films he had seen.

The black zombie roared angrily and charged forward.

Yang Mu swung his axe as the zombie reached the opposite side of the table.

He felt a noticeable resistance; the axe did not cleave through the skull but merely grazed the scalp.

The zombie was too tall, and Yang Mu’s strength couldn’t be fully exerted. Additionally, the large head and likely substantial subcutaneous fat made it even more formidable.

The black zombie was ferocious, and its charge overturned the table.

Yang Mu dodged, but Song Ren was caught, pinned down by the zombie.

"Be careful!"

Yang Mu shouted in alarm as Song Ren struggled desperately.

At that moment, the female zombie leapt into action, pushing the black zombie off Song Ren and attacking it with a frenzied bite.

The black zombie, enraged, opened its gaping maw to retaliate against the female zombie.

The scene was terrifying: the two zombies, like beasts, rolled around the room in a violent struggle.

After a fierce battle lasting over ten seconds, the female zombie was clearly at a disadvantage. Her inherent weakness combined with the fragment of humanity left her weaker than a typical zombie.

The black zombie, being fully zombified, was stronger than usual and had a superior base strength compared to an ordinary human.

Thus, the black zombie was evidently superior, and the female zombie stood no chance against it.

Yang Mu was intrigued by the female zombie’s reactions.

Why did this zombie retain a fragment of its soul? Was it due to the alcohol or the acts she and Song Ren had engaged in? This was worth investigating. Yang Mu thought that this zombie should be taken out of the quarantine zone and handed over to scientists. It might hold clues to preventing the apocalypse.

From Yang Mu’s perspective, he also wished for the apocalypse not to fully erupt. After experiencing just one day, he realized the apocalypse’s cruelty—something even he found hard to bear.

He picked up the axe again and handed a machete to Song Ren.

"Quick! Save your girl!"

"Brother, she’s not my girl; I just brought her back after drinking."

"Stop talking!"

Yang Mu advanced, swinging his axe at the black zombie.

Despite Song Ren’s imposing stature and general rugged demeanor, the initial fear subsided. With a determined shout, Song Ren joined Yang Mu in attacking the black zombie.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Together, they managed to kill the black zombie, but the process took nearly two minutes.

Afterward, they both collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily. The female zombie was feasting on the black zombie's flesh, a grotesque sight.

Yang Mu rested for a few minutes before standing up and closing the door.

Returning to the sofa, he watched the female zombie devour the zombie meat. Eventually, the scene grew numbingly familiar, no longer appearing as gory.

An hour later, the female zombie, having devoured almost half of the black zombie, looked grotesque with a distended belly from overeating.

Initially, the female zombie had been bitten and had lost several pieces of flesh. Now, whether due to eating zombie meat or another reason, her wounds had healed, with new flesh and skin growing in place.

"Big guy, what’s her name?"

"I don’t know. We were just out having fun together, and everyone called her 'Little Demon.'"

"Little Demon... Let’s call her 'Xiao Yao.' By the way, what do you do? You seem quite strong."

"I’m a fitness and boxing trainer. Brother, let me catch my breath; this is too frightening."

"You’re not very brave."

"Who says? I’m brave, just not prepared for this bizarre situation. My heart’s racing; let me calm down."

"Alright, once you’re ready, put on gloves and clean Xiao Yao in the bathroom, especially her nails and teeth. After cleaning, dress her properly."

"What? I can’t do it!"

"Don’t be modest, brother. You’re the first to have slept with a zombie. Since she considers you her partner, it’s only right you take care of her. With zombies outside, having Xiao Yao as a bodyguard could be beneficial."

"Well... alright."

Song Ren, seeing some logic in Yang Mu’s words, reluctantly agreed.

"What’s your name?"

"Yang Mu."

"Your skills are impressive; let’s team up."

"Sure."

This was exactly what Yang Mu hoped for. Song Ren seemed straightforward and reliable. Whether he truly was as dependable would be revealed in time.

Once Song Ren had rested enough, he went to find gloves and a helmet to clean Xiao Yao. Yang Mu followed to help, concerned for Song Ren’s safety.

As they cleaned Xiao Yao, Yang Mu felt a strange, awkward heat—bathing a zombie was a first for him and a challenge for someone inexperienced in such matters.

Xiao Yao seemed to have overeaten and lay motionless, smiling foolishly.

During this process, Yang Mu observed Xiao Yao’s characteristics.

She was a half-zombie,

with an intelligence comparable to a young child,

lacking language skills and showing no sensitivity to human flesh.

Despite the zombification, her facial changes were less severe than an ordinary zombie.

Her lips, though slightly turned outward, resembled a normal person’s when closed.

The suspected zombie virus on her teeth and nails, once washed away, did not reappear, indicating she was different from a fully zombified entity.

Her diet leaned towards zombie flesh, and consuming it seemed to repair bodily damage.

She displayed goodwill towards humans, mistaking Song Ren for a loved one, and after interacting with Yang Mu, she also seemed to follow simple commands, much like a trainable dog.

Song Ren felt a sense of revulsion, itching at the thought of having been with a zombie, feeling weak and psychologically disturbed.

Yang Mu, however, was fascinated by Xiao Yao. If trained, she could become a lifesaving asset!

Thus, Yang Mu decided not to leave in haste and began studying Xiao Yao, dressing her and even applying makeup. He found contact lenses and a mask in her backpack and put them on her.

The effect was striking; she looked almost human.

Moreover, with the mask, Xiao Yao appeared even calmer.

Yang Mu concluded that zombies had highly sensitive olfactory senses, likely their primary means of detecting their surroundings. Wearing a mask to block this sense could prevent them from becoming frenzied.

"Xiao Yao, look at me. My name is Yang Mu. I am now your... your partner. You mustn’t bite me. Although your slime seems gone, we need to be cautious. Understand?"

"Growl."

Xiao Yao’s response was soft, almost like a cat, lacking the usual zombie menace.

"Hey, Yang... Yang Mu, don’t say that. I’m not his partner. By the way, which 'Mu' are you? The 'Mu' in 'wood'?"

"‘Mu’ from ‘Mu Yun Ji,’ meaning shepherd."

"Oh, that’s a lovely name. Your parents must be well-educated."

"It wasn’t my parents who named me; I chose it myself. It means ‘shepherded by heaven,’ as I am a wanderer."

"Ah, quite poetic... What now? I still can’t reach my parents."

Song Ren was distressed, lying on the bed, repeatedly trying to call.

Yang Mu developed a deeper fondness for the giant, appreciating his filial piety, believing that such a person couldn’t be entirely bad.

Yang Mu envied Song Ren, having parents to worry about. If his own parents were still alive, they too would likely be concerned for him.

But where were his parents? Did they miss him?

Lost in thought, Yang Mu appeared distracted.

Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed from outside.

Yang Mu quickly got up and moved to the balcony, with Song Ren following suit.

In the direction of Baihua Village, a location was engulfed in thick smoke and flames.

"What exploded? A gas station?"

Before Song Ren finished speaking, another tremendous blast erupted from the same location.

"Good grief! Was that a missile? Long-range strike? Yang Mu, did you see what just fell?"

Yang Mu saw it too—it appeared to be a missile.

He hurriedly took out his phone, searching for clues. If the military was active, there should be news.

Soon, Yang Mu found an update on the Hanning government’s official website.

"To rescue survivors in the quarantine zone, a certain military unit has devised a plan. Observations reveal that these zombie

-like creatures are highly sensitive to sound. The military will deploy remote precision strikes to create sound sources within the quarantine zone to attract zombies, thereby reducing their numbers elsewhere and aiding survivor escape. The first deployment point has been detonated at the intersection of Taohua Village West Street and Xiangru Street, confirmed as an uninhabited area swarming with zombies. Survivors in the quarantine zone should be aware of this and prepare for the announcement of eleven more detonation points. Every five minutes, the military will sequentially detonate these points to attract zombies. Nearby survivors are advised to evacuate to avoid unnecessary harm..."

Yang Mu’s eyes lit up. This plan was excellent. Apocalypse novels were indeed misleading; no matter how terrifying zombies were, they couldn’t match human ingenuity. There was hope now!