Chapter 47: The Tetanus Arrows
Yes, some people were gradually beginning to notice Zhang Yi's peculiar behavior.
In this frozen apocalypse, everyone was starving and freezing. Even those with stockpiled supplies were living miserably.
But he alone was well-fed, warm, and even had the audacity to install a fireplace in Tianhai City, a southern city!
Moreover, his reinforced security door clearly indicated he had prepared for this kind of situation.
Zhou Peng sneered and angrily said, "If that's the case, then Zhang Yi is even more despicable! He obviously knew the snowstorm was coming but only cared about himself and didn't warn the neighbors!"
"Spit!"
He spat on the ground harshly.
Due to his personal grudge against Zhang Yi, Zhou Peng never missed a chance to slander him.
Wang Min and the others, still frowning, ignored Zhou Peng.
After all, if they were in Zhang Yi's position, they'd prioritize their own families too, without caring about the lives of others!
"The real question is, what do we do next? Picking the lock failed, but can we forcefully break in?"
Wang Min said, looking at Zhou Peng, Sun Zhichao, and Ge Jialiang.
These three were the only men in their group, so if they were to break in by force, they would be the main muscle.
The group huddled together, whispering and discussing their plan for a while longer.
Through his surveillance cameras, Zhang Yi saw them leave the building.
He sat leisurely, holding a gun in his left hand and a crossbow in his right, watching as they left.
Zhang Yi could have acted and shot down two of them.
But he wasn't in a hurry. Life had become too dull lately, and he needed some excitement.
He wanted to see what these people would do to try to break down his door.
It was also a good opportunity to prepare for dealing with even more troublesome people in the future.
After quite some time, the group returned.
This time, they were carrying a large, thick piece of wood.
It looked like they had taken it from a bed.
The women stood to the side, holding umbrellas, wary of Zhang Yi potentially dousing them with cold water.
The three men lifted the wood and rammed it into the door with a loud "bang!"
The sound was deafening, and Zhang Yi could feel the walls shake.
However, he wasn't worried. If a 20-centimeter-thick steel door could be broken down by a few men, then the Hulk must be on their team.
Zhou Peng, Sun Zhichao, and Ge Jialiang slammed into the door with all their might.
Zhang Yi sat on the sofa, calmly watching them batter the door, while also monitoring his house's structural integrity through a phone app.
This app, designed by Dragon Security Company, allowed users to track the status of their homes at all times.
He didn't let his guard down, keeping his weapons firmly in hand. If he sensed any real danger, he would act immediately.
But after Sun Zhichao and the others had pounded on the door for what felt like forever, shaking the entire building, the door remained as strong as ever.
Apart from a few scuff marks, there wasn't even a dent!
Five minutes later, the group was completely dumbfounded.
"How thick is this door anyway?"
"Not even a bank vault is this sturdy!"
"Who would use a door like this in their house?"
Sun Zhichao and the others were on the verge of despair, their anger boiling over as they let out furious roars.
Those were the sounds of frustration and hopelessness.
Zhang Yi, watching through his surveillance cameras, smiled slightly, feeling much more confident about the quality of his safe house.
"Alright, it's time to teach them a lesson."
Zhang Yi stood up, put his gun in his pocket, and opened a metal box.
Inside were 20 crossbow bolts, all covered in rust.
Ordinarily, such alloy bolts wouldn't rust easily, but these 20 bolts were deliberately corroded by Zhang Yi.
Even a minor scratch from these bolts would carry the risk of tetanus.
In this post-apocalyptic world, where medical help was unattainable, these arrows wouldn't kill instantly. Instead, they would cause infections, leading to festering wounds.
If hit by one of these bolts, the victim would either have to amputate the affected limb to survive or suffer a slow, agonizing death.
Zhang Yi had learned this tactic from none other than Chen Zhenghao.
Although Chen Zhenghao had lost his leg, he had managed to survive using some methods.
But next time, if Chen Zhenghao were struck by one of these tetanus arrows, Zhang Yi wondered how he'd manage to survive!
With a devilish grin on his face, Zhang Yi climbed up to his shooting hole.
Fang Yuqing and the others were holding umbrellas, making it difficult to see the situation below.
Zhang Yi didn't care about that. He aimed and fired!
If they died, it would be lucky for them. If they survived, all the better!
"Whoosh!"
The tetanus arrow pierced through an umbrella, followed by a blood-curdling scream.
Without waiting for them to react, Zhang Yi swiftly loaded a second bolt and fired again, not even bothering to aim carefully. After all, they were all standing together.
Another scream rang out.
Zhang Yi quickly reloaded and drew the bowstring.
It was only then that the group realized what was happening. Screaming, they scattered and fled in all directions.
Zhang Yi, unfazed, calmly took aim and fired at them again, deliberately avoiding vital areas and targeting arms and thighs instead.
Of the six remaining people, three were hit by arrows, and one was struck twice.
However, due to the slow reload time of the crossbow, Zhang Yi wasn't able to hit each of them before they fled to a blind spot.
Zhang Yi shrugged.
No matter. Those who had been hit were already as good as dead, doomed to die in agonizing pain.
As for the others, Zhang Yi had all the time in the world to toy with them.
As he often reminded himself, time was on his side.
Despite the situation, Zhang Yi remained cautious. He didn't open the door to finish them off.
Even though the odds of getting hurt were minuscule, Zhang Yi wasn't the type to take unnecessary risks!
"Though the arrow supply could become a problem in the long run," Zhang Yi frowned, starting to think ahead.
He had originally bought 300 crossbow bolts and 300 arrows for his bow.
But after each use, it wasn't safe to go outside and retrieve them.
Though he still had plenty left, foresight was essential in times like these.
As Zhang Yi pondered, a sudden idea struck him.
He opened his alternate dimension and rummaged through it, quickly finding exactly what he needed!
The warehouse contained plenty of steel bearings, which could also be fired from his crossbow.
There were even glass marbles, the kind used in toys. Though not as lethal as steel bearings, when fired from a professional-grade crossbow, they packed a serious punch.
Even if he ran out of arrows, there were plenty of metal objects in his stash that he could dismantle and modify.
Zhang Yi immediately felt more at ease.
"With all this, I could live comfortably forever!"
While Zhang Yi was feeling pleased with himself, others were suffering miserably.
Fang Yuqing's group had originally planned to rely on their numbers to seize Zhang Yi's home.
But not only had they failed miserably, one of their group had died, and three more had been hit by arrows, forcing them to retreat in utter disgrace.
They didn't even dare to retrieve Lu Tao's body.