Wen Sijia initiated another video call with Yang Mu.

Yang Mu no longer had the mood to banter with her, nor did he harbor any lingering bitterness. He was calm, detached, almost serene.

“I’ve been keeping an eye on things, but it seems the military has no real solution at the moment. Are you all doing alright?”

“In the two years we were together, you never cared for me. Now, in this situation, is it pity?”

In the video, Wen Sijia frowned, perhaps because her words echoed the truth.

She appeared to be seated in her study at home, wearing a pink silk nightgown. Her face, though bare of makeup, remained radiantly beautiful.

“You’ve changed,” she remarked.

“Changed? You talk as if you truly understand me, Wen Sijia. You never knew who I really am.”

“Let’s not go there... I’ll be straight with you. You might not make it out. From what I’ve gathered, the military has decided to abandon the operation. They’ve already lost too many resources.”

“…”

“Do you have any family? If you don’t make it, is there something you want me to take care of? After all, we’re still technically married.”

“Are you asking me to leave behind my last words? Sorry, but I’m not in the mood to die just yet.”

“That’s not what I meant, but given the circumstances…”

“I’ve told you before, I’ll make it out alive. By the way, Wen Sijia, didn’t the Wen Corporation invest in the subway project?”

Yang Mu was struck by a sudden idea.

“Yes, why?”

“We’re currently in Line 8, which hasn’t opened yet. If I remember correctly, Line 8 is supposed to connect with Line 2, and most of Line 2 runs outside the quarantine zone, doesn’t it?”

“That's right.”

“Are Line 2 and Line 8 fully connected underground now?”

“Not yet, there’s a stretch of about 500 meters still under construction.”

“Where is that section? Is it within the quarantine zone?”

“No, it’s adjacent to the zone.”

“I see...”

Yang Mu looked up and saw Xiang Ru, who had been fetching water, staring at him in shock.

He flashed her a faint smile and then asked, “Is there any way you can request your superiors to bring in a crew to quickly finish that incomplete subway tunnel? If they can bring a train inside, it could crash through at high speed — up to 120 kilometers an hour, maybe even faster if we disregard safety concerns. With that kind of force, even zombies could be pushed aside. If a train could reach our station, we'd only be about 300 or 400 meters away. If we can somehow build a passageway to the train, wouldn't we have a chance to escape?”

Xiang Ru’s eyes lit up. Without hesitation, she turned and rushed into the break room to grab her radio, swiftly contacting her team.

Yang Mu glanced back at the video. Wen Sijia was now holding her coat in hand.

“Your plan… it might actually work. How did you think of that? I’ll gather all the construction workers from our company right away. We’ll get Line 2 and Line 8 connected within a day. I’ll also contact the military to push for this.”

The call ended abruptly, likely because Wen Sijia had gone to change her clothes. It was clear she was taking this seriously.

Yang Mu couldn’t tell whether she was more eager to save him or Chu Hong.

When Wen Sijia spoke to Yang Mu, Chu Hong inexplicably retreated to the side.

Only after the call ended did Chu Hong rush over, embracing Yang Mu.

"You're so clever! We’re saved, right? This idea is brilliant, why didn’t you think of it sooner?"

Yang Mu shook his head with a bitter smile, saying:

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"It's just a desperate measure, nothing ingenious. I'm sure others might have considered it, but execution will be exceedingly difficult. After thinking long and hard, I couldn’t come up with anything else. If this works, we’ll have Wen Sijia to thank—seeing her sparked the idea."

"Yang Mu, Yang Mu, I can't quite figure you out. How did you become this kind of person?"

"What kind?"

Yang Mu turned to look at Chu Hong, who had been clinging to him for the past couple of days.

"Hard to describe… but in the world we used to know, I’ve never encountered a man like you."

"Talking nonsense. You bullied me for over two years, and now you're saying I wasn’t a man before?"

"That’s not what I mean! You were different back then. If you had shown this brilliance before, I definitely wouldn’t have bullied you... Besides, I never really bullied you. I was just going along with Sijia's mom criticizing you. Women are like that when they’re together."

Yang Mu felt conflicted; Chu Hong sounded so self-assured.

Their voices were low as they spoke, both too exhausted to muster much energy.

At that moment, Xiang Ru emerged from the door, her expression a mix of hope and dread.

"The plan isn’t entirely new. It’s been considered before, but the underground tunnels aren't clear, and there are hordes of zombies within a kilometer of this station. Getting the subway inside won’t be easy. However, the woman you spoke with has agreed to fund the project, reinforcing the subway, increasing its power and collision strength. She’ll also provide materials to help us build a path once the train plows through the zombies. The military just needs to provide manpower and weapons. The plan has received preliminary approval from the military; now it's all about progress."

Everyone brightened, smiles returning to their faces—there was a glimmer of hope for survival!

But at that very moment, a loud crash came from the surveillance room door, which shattered instantly, revealing a strong figure.

The special forces soldier, Ma Wusheng, had finally turned into a zombie, breaking free of his bonds and rushing forward.

Everyone was startled, and Chu Hong and Yelena screamed.

"Cover everyone, grab the weapons!"

Xiang Ru reacted first, but she had no gun; their weapons were left in the break room.

She stepped forward and delivered a spinning kick, sending the zombie flying back into the room. The force of her kick lifted the creature off the ground.

Yang Mu was impressed. This woman hadn’t eaten in days yet still possessed such explosive power and speed. At her peak, he doubted he could take her in a fight.

Looking at her fair, delicate skin, he wondered how she had honed such remarkable skills.

Perhaps she was a martial arts prodigy from birth.

No wonder Xiang Hai always said his sister was formidable.

The other special forces soldiers were equally impressive—not quite the invincible super-soldiers of fiction, but certainly capable by real-world standards.

Yet, here they were, trapped in a place where their talents were of little use.

The zombie roared and charged again, but by then, the other three soldiers had retrieved their guns.

Xiang Ru's face was grim, her voice trembling.

"Send him off."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three consecutive gunshots rang out, and the zombie collapsed. Xiang Ru, overwhelmed, sank to the floor, finally breaking into sobs.

They had started with six comrades; now three were dead. How could their captain not grieve?

The remaining soldiers, equally distraught, crouched beside their fallen comrade, eventually sitting down in silence.

"Watch out!"

Yang Mu suddenly spotted a figure leaping from the surveillance room and shouted a warning.

But it was too late.

The soldiers, still reeling from the emotional toll of killing their teammate, were also physically weakened from hunger.

Even a tiger can nap—and the figure that pounced on them was Wang Liang, who had also turned into a zombie after breaking free of his restraints.

He attacked two soldiers simultaneously, sinking his fingers into their necks.

Wei Xiaofeng and Li Shengdong were infected.

Xiang Ru, still in tears, was completely stunned.

In the span of seconds, her sorrow surged like a flood, as an even greater despair descended upon her.

Wu Feng stood frozen with his gun, staring at his infected comrades, slowly retreating as if trying to escape the horrific truth.

Their deaths were so senseless—not in battle, but in a pitiful, tragic fall.

Wei Xiaofeng's eyes clouded over, his teeth elongating grotesquely as he rapidly transformed into a zombie.

Yang Mu acted swiftly, raising his axe and striking the back of Wei Xiaofeng’s head.

This man, who had once fought with him and expressed a desire to be his friend, had now turned. Yang Mu felt the only gift he could offer was to end him quickly.

He kicked the body over, following up with another blow, and continued hacking until Wei Xiaofeng was dead.

Meanwhile, Li Shengdong had also turned.

Wu Feng, eyes red with fury, shouted as he squeezed the trigger, killing the newly transformed Li Shengdong as well as Wang Liang, who had become a zombie.

His gun was on full auto, firing until it ran out of bullets. Even then, he kept pulling the trigger, screaming madly, as if possessed.

Xiang Ru covered her face, crying silently, her body trembling as she slumped against the wall, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably.

This was sorrow beyond her capacity to bear. It was too cruel, too tragic for her to accept.

The phrase “joy followed by sorrow” found its truest meaning in this apocalyptic world.

Just moments ago, they had clung to hope, and now despair had swiftly taken its place.

No one spoke. Wu Feng moved their comrades' bodies into the surveillance room, tears of a soldier silently falling.

Yang Mu returned to his corner and sat down, feeling a wave of weakness after the exertion. He took out a piece of chocolate and placed it in his mouth.

Chu Hong glanced at him, saying nothing, and closed her eyes, lying down on the cold floor.

There was space on the bed, but the floor was cooler, and lying on it reminded her that she was still alive.

Over the past few days, Chu Hong had grown thinner, her complexion turning worse. She had even started coughing.

A few hours later, her cough worsened, accompanied by a fever, leaving her delirious.

Her symptoms soon spread to the others.

Only Yang Mu, Wu Feng, and Xiao Yao remained unaffected.

Indeed, fate is a mystery beyond comprehension.

The strong, the warriors, had perished one by one through misfortune, while the weak still lived.

But it seemed that even God could not tolerate such peacefulness.

Already weakened by hunger, they now faced an outbreak of influenza.

By the following morning, Yang Mu, Wu Feng, and Xiao Yao were the only ones left who had not fallen ill.