Lu Zhao's hoarse "I'm fine" and evasive posture caused Gu Xun's outstretched hand to pause mid-air before silently retracting.
A deathly stillness descended upon the dormitory, broken only by the three men's stifled breathing and the distant, unsettling growls and thuds echoing from beyond the door. The fleeting relief of having survived the ordeal was swiftly replaced by a more overwhelming, more tangible fear—they were completely trapped.
This suffocating silence lasted less than ten seconds.
"Food," Gu Xun was the first to regain his composure, his low voice breaking the stalemate. "How much do we have left?"
The trio quickly took stock. Several packets of instant noodles, some crackers, half a case of mineral water, plus their individual snack stashes—even rationing carefully, it would only last three or four days.
"Water is key," Gu Xun glanced toward the bathroom. "If the water stops..." Before he could finish, the fluorescent tube overhead flickered violently several times, then went out with a hiss. The indicator light on the phone charger plugged into the outlet dimmed simultaneously.
The power was out.
Dim light seeped through the curtain slits, illuminating dust particles suspended in the air and the unmistakable gravity etched on the three faces. The pillars supporting modern civilization were cracking one by one.
"Damn it!" Jiang Jin growled in frustration, punching the wall with a dull thud.
Almost simultaneously, the scratching and snarling outside the door in the hallway intensified! The sounds grew closer, as if right at their doorstep!
"What are you doing?!" Gu Xun hissed, his voice low and sharp as he glared at Jiang Jin.
Jiang Jin realized he'd made a mistake, his face darkening, but he refused to back down. "What's there to fear? Bring 'em on—I'll take 'em all!"
"Thud! Thud! Thud!"
Heavy impacts began pounding against their dormitory's wooden door. The door panel shook violently, the lock groaning under the strain. Not just one! At least two, maybe even more zombies had been drawn by the noise!
"Barricade the door!" Gu Xun ordered decisively.
Lu Zhao and Jiang Jin reacted instantly. Together, the three of them shoved the heavy desk toward the doorway. The moment it pressed against the door, a tremendous force slammed against it from outside, sending the desk sliding backward!
Through the crack beneath the door, twisted shadows and rotting ankles were already visible.
"Hold it!" Jiang Jin's forehead veins bulged as he braced his shoulder against the desk.
Gu Xun scanned the room, quickly shoving several thick textbooks into the door gap and beneath the hinges to increase resistance. Lu Zhao helped pile chairs, suitcases, and other heavy objects behind the desk.
But the impacts outside grew heavier with each blow, and fine cracks began appearing in the center of the wooden door!
"This won't hold! The door won't last long!" Lu Zhao gasped, his heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst from his chest. Facing one or two creatures had been perilous enough before, but being trapped in this confined space now was unimaginably terrifying.
Jiang Jin's eyes hardened as he grabbed the steel pipe Lu Zhao had brought back earlier. "Damn it, let's fight them! Open the door and fight our way out!"
"You're insane!" Gu Xun protested immediately. "We don't know what's outside. Opening the door is suicide!"
"Then what do you suggest?! Just wait to die?!" Jiang Jin roared, his eyes bloodshot, fear and savagery tangled within them.
Just as their argument flared, a sharp crack echoed through the room! A hole had been smashed clean through the center of the door! A bluish-gray arm, caked in filthy blood, lunged inside, clawing wildly. It was mere inches from Jiang Jin, the closest one to the door!
Jiang Jin leapt backward in shock, instinctively swinging the steel pipe in his hand with all his might at the arm!
"Thud!" The sound of breaking bones echoed, but the arm merely twisted before continuing its frenzied flailing.
The gaping hole in the door let in the zombie's nauseating stench and excited growls even more clearly. More dark figures gathered outside, their collisions growing even more frenzied!
"It's over..." Lu Zhao stared at the widening crack, his heart turning to ice.
Just then, Gu Xun, who had been watching the situation outside intently, suddenly stepped forward.
He didn't reach for any weapon, merely extending both hands.
His face appeared unnaturally pale in the dim light, yet his gaze held an intense focus. As if all external noise had faded away, his world now contained only the precarious door and the surging malevolence beyond it.
A faint glow appeared in his palms.
At first, it was faint, gentle as a night pearl. Then, it surged, becoming blindingly bright and pure! Simultaneously, the lingering water stains from earlier washing, along with the half-empty mineral water bottles left by several people, seemed drawn by an invisible force. They transformed into slender streams of water, as if alive, converging toward Gu Xun's hands!
Water and light intertwined!
A thin curtain of water, shimmering with crystalline white light, instantly covered the inner surface of the damaged door panel! Though seemingly fragile, the water curtain rippled violently under the zombie's next fierce impact, layer by layer dissipating the immense force! The sound of the door panel shattering abruptly ceased!
"This... This..." Lu Zhao stared in disbelief.
Jiang Jin stared at Gu Xun in shock, as if seeing this roommate for the first time.
Gu Xun kept his eyes tightly shut, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Maintaining the water curtain clearly drained him. He growled, "Don't just stand there! I can't hold this much longer!"
His voice snapped Jiang Jin back to reality. Seeing Gu Xun struggling to hold on, a surge of emotion—part jealousy, part protective instinct—flared within Jiang Jin. Why Gu Xun? Why did Lu Zhao possess this power first, and now Gu Xun? Why was he left powerless to do anything but watch?
"Aaah!" Jiang Jin let out a low roar. The intense emotion acted like a catalyst, igniting something dormant within him.
A searing current of heat materialized out of thin air!
Two blazing flames erupted from Jiang Jin's fists! The flames were no illusion—real waves of heat baked the air, making Lu Zhao's cheeks burn!
"Get the hell out of here!" Jiang Jin roared, slamming his burning fists into the arm still flailing through the hole in the door!
"BOOM!"
The flames made contact with the rotting flesh of the zombie, erupting into a terrifyingly intense combustion! A pungent, acrid smell instantly filled the air as the arm rapidly carbonized and snapped apart in the flames! The snarling outside the door transformed into agonized howls!
The water curtain blocked the impact, but the flames delivered a devastating counterattack!
The force of the impact outside visibly weakened.
Gu Xun seized the moment, abruptly withdrawing the water curtain. His body swayed, his face growing even paler. The water curtain dissolved into ordinary streams, soaking the floor by the doorway.
The flames on Jiang Jin's fists gradually extinguished. Panting heavily, he stared at his hands—unscathed yet radiating terrifying power—his eyes filled with astonishment and doubt.
Lu Zhao observed the scene before him— Gu Xun's water and light, Jiang Jin's fire, combined with the wind he had previously manipulated...
Supernatural abilities.
All three of them had awakened extraordinary powers beyond ordinary humans amidst this apocalyptic crisis.
Outside the door, the chaos had temporarily subsided, but the danger was far from over. Inside the dormitory, the three exchanged glances. The relief of having survived the ordeal was replaced by a more complex emotion.
Power brought hope, yet also foretold even greater turmoil.
Especially Jiang Jin's gaze toward Gu Xun—a mix of concern, possessiveness, and an inexplicable excitement—made Lu Zhao's heart, which had just begun to relax, sink once more.
They now possessed the means to survive, yet the taut thread between them grew more fragile and perilous with this sudden gift of power.