"It's been a long day without you, my friend..."
From the distorted speaker of the radio, the iconic piano intro drifted out, followed by Charlie Puth's soaring falsetto. It was a melody from the old world—a song about brotherhood, loss, and the hope of meeting again in the afterlife.
In this sealed underground maintenance room, reeking of rot and death, the holy sound of the piano felt completely out of place. It was shocking. It was heartbreaking.
In reality, the response to these gentle lyrics was the teeth-grinding, wet sound of shattering bone.
SHUNK!
Using the momentum of the charge, my Tang Dao stabbed viciously into the eye socket of the first zombie.
It was wearing a security uniform. Maybe a dutiful middle-aged man in life. But now, half his face was rotted away, exposing black gums and white cheekbones. His open mouth was still stuffed with black minced meat—his unfinished "meal".
The penetrating power of the straight-edged Tang Dao shone in this moment. The tip shattered the orbital bone instantly, churning the mush that used to be a brain.
Black blood sprayed.
Warm, stinking, sticky liquid splattered my face. A drop even landed in my mouth. Salty and foul enough to make me gag.
But I didn't have time to be disgusted. I forced down the instinct to blink.
Because behind him, the tide of death was surging.
"RAHH—!"
Two more zombies scrambled over the fallen guard. Their fingers were withered like dead twigs, but their nails had mutated into razor-sharp claws. They clawed at my shoulders with suffocating speed.
"Get back!"
I roared. Adrenaline burned in my veins, sharpening my vision until I could see the fabric fibers stuck in their nails.
I kicked the dead guard in the stomach hard. Using the recoil, Zzzzt, I ripped the blade out of the bone and scrambled backward, retreating into the maintenance room.
SCREECH!
Sparks flew.
A zombie's claw missed me and raked the steel door frame. It made a teeth-aching grinding sound, leaving five deep white scratches on the rusty metal.
This was my strategy.
The door was narrow. Only one person could pass at a time. As long as I stood my ground like a nail, even an army outside would have to queue up to die.
It was a gamble of "One Man Holding the Pass".
"Wind Blade!"
Shadow's cold shout came from behind.
He was perched on the folding table in the center of the room. High ground. Golden pupils flashing in the dim light. He wasn't melee fighting; he was the "turret" of this temporary fortress.
He opened his mouth. A low roar like an engine revving came from his throat. A translucent, barely visible cyan wind blade shot out.
Whoosh—Snap!
The blade skimmed over my head with precision, slicing through the arm reaching through the door gap to grab my hair.
The severed arm fell. The cut was smooth as a mirror. Black blood sprayed.
"Thanks!"
I shouted, seizing the opening. Two hands on the hilt. Engaged my core. Swung a horizontal slash.
Cold light flashed in the narrow space.
The armless zombie didn't even have time to scream. A red line appeared on its neck. A second later, its hideous head rolled off like a ripe melon, tumbling to my feet.
"And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again...""When I see you again..."
The chorus hit its peak. The high notes echoed down the corridor, sounding like a prayer for the dead family behind me.
More zombies were drawn by the sound, crowding the door. Pushing, trampling, roaring like beasts. The stale air in the corridor was replaced by a thick stench of death that almost blinded me.
But I didn't dare close my eyes. I didn't dare stop.
I became a tireless killing machine. Mechanically repeating: Stab. Retract. Chop.
One minute. Two minutes.
Sounds short. But for someone struggling on the line of life and death, it felt like a century.
My arms burned. Muscles screamed. Every swing took everything I had. The web of my thumb cracked. Blood ran down the hilt, mixing with zombie gore, making the grip slippery and treacherous.
Bang! Bang!
Countless claws raked my arms and legs.
The "Magazine Armor" I spent the afternoon making proved its worth. The thick glossy paper and industrial tape blocked bite after bite, scratch after scratch.
But it had a limit.
With a crisp rip, the magazines on my left arm were shredded, exposing torn paper and bruised skin underneath.
Pain. Drilling pain.
But I couldn't retreat.
If I took one step back, the monsters would flood the room. They would trample that mattress. They would shred the final dignity of that family.
I promised Qiqi I'd let her finish the song.
"Come on! You bastards!"
I saw red. Forgot technique. Used the Tang Dao like an iron bar, hacking wildly.
Bodies piled up at the door, blocking half the entrance. The zombies behind had to climb over their dead, which gave me a moment to breathe.
"GRAAAH——!!!"
Suddenly, a roar like thunder came from the back of the horde.
It wasn't a normal shriek. It was heavy. Violent. Dust fell from the ceiling.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The ground shook.
A massively built zombie smashed through the others like a runaway meat tank, crashing into the doorway.
In life, he might have been a gym coach or a dock worker. Nearly two meters tall. Muscles bulging, bursting out of a shredded tank top. Skin was a weird grey-purple, covered in black veins ready to pop.
It ignored the pile of corpses, stepping right over them. Its massive shadow instantly engulfed me.
"C-Rank Strength Type? No, not yet. Enhanced E-Rank!"
Shadow barked a rapid assessment from behind. "Watch its hands!"
Too late.
The giant zombie had no technique. It just opened its fan-like hands, ignored the stab I aimed at its chest, and bear-hugged me.
It wanted to crush me to death!
SHUNK!
The Tang Dao pierced its chest.
The System blade was sharp, easily punching through tough skin and muscle, sinking three inches deep.
But it got stuck.
The blade wedged between its mutated, hardened ribs.
It didn't seem to feel pain. Didn't even frown. It pushed forward against the blade. The hilt slammed into my chest. The impact made me grunt, feeling like my ribs were cracking.
Those rough, massive hands were closing around me.
If a Strength Type grabbed me, I was dead. Spine snapped. Organs crushed.
Fear peaked.
I dug my feet into the ground, trying to pull the sword, but it wouldn't budge. I was an ant fighting an elephant with a toothpick.
"Shadow!"
I screamed in panic, voice cracking.
"I know! Shut up!"
Shadow moved.
He didn't use Wind Blade. Too risky at close range.
He leaped from the table high into the air, a golden lightning bolt. He didn't pounce directly. He bounced off the side wall, executing an impossible mid-air turn.
He turned himself into a cannonball.
BANG!
Shadow's hind legs slammed into the giant zombie's temple.
The force was immense. It created a visible shockwave.
CRACK!
A bone-chilling snap.
The zombie's neck gave way. Its massive head jerked ninety degrees to the left. Neck broken.
The impact threw its huge body sideways, smashing into the door frame.
It froze for a second. The hands reaching for me dropped halfway.
That was the moment.
The gap between life and death.
I let go of the stuck Tang Dao. I knew I couldn't pull it out.
My hand went to my waist.
There was another knife there.
The Rusty Machete from the Starter Pack. The one I despised. The one I wanted to throw away.
No technique. Just survival instinct. Just beastly madness.
I roared, using every ounce of strength left, and drove the rusty blade upward, jamming it under its chin.
The blade pierced the soft tissue of the jaw, bypassing the hard skull, going straight into the brain.
"DIE!!"
I gripped the handle with both hands and twisted wildly.
"Urrgh... ghk..."
A final, muddy rattle from its throat. Grey-white eyes stared at me, then the light faded.
Black gore flowed down the rusty handle, scalding hot on my hands.
The massive body swayed, then crashed down like a falling tower.
THUD!
The floor shook.
Its body landed right in the doorway, plugging the narrow gap completely. A mountain of meat.
The zombies behind couldn't push it. Couldn't climb over. They could only roar in impotent rage, scratching at its back.
Crisis averted. For now.
Zzz... zzz...
The music stopped.
"We've come a long way from where we began..." The line cut off abruptly.
The radio battery finally died. The tape made a warped, eerie stretching sound, then silence.
The only sounds left were my ragged breathing and the scratching on the door.
Over?
My legs gave out. I slid down the wall, hands shaking uncontrollably. The rusty machete clattered to the floor.
I looked at the pile of bodies.
One, two, three... over a dozen. Stacked like garbage. Twisted limbs. Black blood pooled on the floor, forming a meandering stream creeping into the room.
It flowed past my feet. Heading back.
I snapped my head around.
The stream of blood was heading for the family's mattress.
"Dammit!"
I found strength I didn't know I had. Scrambled up. Tore off my shredded jacket and pressed it hard against the floor to dam the blood.
I didn't want this filth to stain Qiqi's favorite dress.
Her parents dressed her up so she could leave with dignity.
The jacket soaked through. I took off my t-shirt. Bare-chested. I tore up cardboard boxes to block it.
Only when the blood stopped did I collapse again, gasping for air.
"Not bad."
Shadow hopped lightly off the table. Elegant as ever, picking his way through the blood to me.
He had a few drops of blood on him. Fur messy. Limping slightly on his right paw—probably twisted it on that kick.
But his golden eyes were sharp. Shining in the dark.
He looked down at me. For the first time, no sarcasm. No contempt. Just calm recognition of an equal.
"Style was ugly. Stamina is still trash. You slash like a lunatic with zero form."
He paused. Licked dried blood off my hand.
"But at least... in that moment, you didn't back down."
"You look a little bit like a warrior now, Bai Shi."
I grinned. It hurt my face.
"Warrior? I just... didn't want to die."
I looked at the corner.
Candle out. Radio silent. The family of three lay there, peaceful. As if the slaughter never happened.
My nose stung.
A belated funeral. A belated farewell song.
I don't know when this apocalypse ends. Or how long I'll live. Maybe tomorrow I'm meat in the doorway. Maybe the day after, I kill myself in despair.
But I know, right now, I won't choose a quiet death.
I touched the Tang Dao still stuck in the giant's chest.
I'm going to live.
With this blade. With this dog. In this screwed-up world. I will live fiercely, uglily, stubbornly.
For myself. And for those who couldn't.
"Shadow."
My voice was raspy.
"Hm?"
"Hungry."
Stomach growled like thunder amidst the gore.
"..."
Shadow blinked. Rolled his eyes. The cool persona shattered.
"Pathetic. Wait. I have half a bag of jerky in my space."
He turned, tail brushing my knee.
In a basement reeking of death, a man and a dog guarded a pile of corpses and three souls, sharing the last of the food.