A single stab pierced through the head of the walker that had climbed to the top.
Its body immediately went limp and fell from the ladder, knocking down the walkers below as it crashed down.
I kept my nerves taut, staring unblinkingly at the scene below.
Misfortunes never come alone — just then, a roar sounded from not far behind me.
It startled me so badly that my heart skipped a beat.
I quickly turned around, holding my dagger defensively in front of me.
The attic was pitch dark — I couldn't see a thing — but judging from the echo of the roar, the attic must be pretty large.
Most likely, it was being used as a storage warehouse.
"Come out!"
Since I couldn't see it, I decided to lure it out.
Facing a walker head-on wasn't actually that terrifying.
The truly terrifying part was when one suddenly appeared out of nowhere and sank its teeth into some part of you — then it would be all over!
During this time, I quickly glanced at the situation below the attic again — more walkers were starting to climb up!
"Damn it!"
I couldn't help but curse.
Just then, the growling from inside the warehouse was getting closer and closer!
It crept nearer... until it was less than two meters away from me.
Finally, with the faint light coming from the attic entrance, I caught a clear glimpse —
It was a female walker, her hair in wild disarray, and a large chunk of her scalp was missing.
The walkers beneath the attic were already about to climb up.
Not daring to delay any longer, I quickly stepped forward and stabbed my dagger into her skull, piercing straight through her head.
At that moment, the walker at the top of the retractable ladder had already hauled half of its body up.
Seeing its gaping mouth — missing a lower jaw — and its face covered in rotting blood and filth, I don't know where the surge of viciousness in me came from, but instead of using the dagger, I rushed forward and stomped down hard with all my strength!
With that one stomp, half of its head was crushed instantly.
Brain matter and thick, black blood splattered everywhere.
I kicked the body down, knocking the other walkers below off the ladder once again.
Seizing the opportunity, I turned toward the pitch-dark room behind me and shouted a few times, trying to confirm whether there were any more walkers inside.
If there were, and I didn't deal with them quickly, it would truly be a case of wolves ahead and tigers behind for me.
Fortunately, the room behind me remained silent the whole time — which meant there probably weren't any more walkers lurking inside.
If there had been, no matter how quiet they tried to be, they would've made at least some noise.
Meanwhile, walkers had already started climbing up the retractable ladder again...
Staring at the sea of dark, indistinct heads below, a powerful sense of unease and loneliness flooded through my entire body.
Behind me was a darkness so deep that I couldn't even see my own hand; ahead of me were a pack of ravenous beasts, eager to tear me apart.
After cutting down another walker that was about to climb up, an image of Suo Tian suddenly flashed through my mind.
I remembered that night when the two of us, completely bare, had entangled together — and how, in the heat of it, he kept calling out "Chen Yang."
In truth, from beginning to end, he had only been calling my name.
Another thought struck me: if Yangyang ever found out that his traditionally reserved, almost old-fashioned sister had, in a moment like this, engaged in a one-night stand with someone — what kind of expression would he have?
Would he be deeply disappointed in me?
And if Mei Jing knew...
Just then, another walker clambered up.
As I raised my dagger, ready to stab it, I caught a glimpse of its face —
It was our department head from school.
She was a woman in her thirties, still unmarried, known for being extremely strict and nitpicky.
Every month, there were always a few days when she seemed to deliberately make life difficult for others.
Us teachers usually harbored resentment toward her but dared not speak up.
There were even rumors that she was the principal's mistress.
She always wore her face so heavily powdered that she looked like a vampire — but now...
That split second of hesitation nearly got me bitten by her rotting, blackened mouth.
I gasped sharply in fear, then, without any further hesitation, drove my dagger straight through her skull.
This old woman probably never imagined that one day, her head would end up so hideous — and that I'd be the one to pierce it through with a single blow.
After that, it became a mindless cycle:
A walker climbed up, I hacked it down and tossed it away.
Another one climbed up, I hacked it down and tossed it away...
Over and over again — I don't know how much time had passed.
Gradually, my mind began to blur and drift.
The roars of the walkers below blended into a kind of nightmarish lullaby, dragging my consciousness deeper into the fog.
I kept cutting down walker after walker, but their ceaseless howls only lured even more of them toward me from all directions.
After stabbing through I-don't-know-how-many walkers, my thoughts were a total, hazy mess.
I had been holding myself tense for so long, standing alone in the pitch-black darkness, facing an endless tide of the dead.
Even though I knew how dangerous the situation was, I couldn't control my exhausted nerves anymore.
At some point in the past, I had heard someone say —
True exhaustion doesn't come from the body, It comes from the mind.
Back then, I thought that saying was just melodramatic — but now, I realize it's a hundred percent true.
I squinted down at the ugly monsters below, their heads tilted up, hands reaching out, howling endlessly.
Couldn't they just give it a rest?
Just then, all the walkers below suddenly turned their heads toward the door.
Right after, I heard the sounds of splurt, splurt — the unmistakable sound of walkers being cut down.
They were finally here...
I was safe.
At last, I couldn't hold it in anymore — I let out a deep breath and slumped heavily to the floor, resting my head against the wall.
I closed my eyes.
I didn't want to move another inch.
The howls below gradually faded, and before long, everything fell silent.
"Chen Yang's up there," I heard Shen Feng's voice call out.
Then came the sounds of hurried footsteps and the creaking of someone climbing the ladder.
I still didn't open my eyes — just lay there sprawled out.
No matter what, I was utterly exhausted.
I had to rest for a bit.
The next second, a strong force yanked me forward — and I fell into a warm embrace.
Suo Tian?
His breathing was chaotic, and he held me tightly, almost desperately.
"Brother Suo, how's Miss Chen?"
It was Li Jiaqiang's voice from below.
Suo Tian froze for a moment, slightly loosening his grip on me.
He didn't immediately answer Li Jiaqiang.
But I could feel his gaze sweeping over me — I could even picture it: his lips pressed into a tight line, his eyes checking me from head to toe.
After a long pause, he let go of me and said, "Let's go."
I struggled to open my eyes and looked at him. "I can't walk anymore."
"You still have to get down first," he said, and then immediately turned and climbed down the ladder.
I was speechless for a while.
After sighing, I gritted my teeth, forced myself to stand up, and slowly climbed down the ladder.
Before my feet even touched the ground, Suo Tian scooped me up into his arms.
Since I had no strength left anyway, I didn't bother pretending or struggling.
I simply nestled into his arms and started observing the surroundings.
The room was filled with dozens of fallen corpses, lying scattered in every direction, with filthy blood splattered all over the place.
I frowned — what a waste of all those clothes.
Shen Feng and Mei Jing were also here.
It seemed that their groups had successfully reunited.
Seeing that I was okay, Shen Feng let out a long sigh of relief.
Patting his chest, still visibly shaken, he said,
"Big Sister Chen, seriously! You've always been smart during all our outings.
What happened today? Everyone was running for their lives, and you actually went back for a couple of old clothes?
You have no idea — when I saw you didn't come with us, I was scared to death!
If something had happened to you, Yangyang and Shen Xue would've skinned me alive when we got back!"
I smiled and responded, "How could something happen so easily? I'm an amazing person, you know!"
"Yeah, right. If you're really that amazing, let's see you stand on your own instead of being carried," Blondie immediately chimed in with a jab.
"Alright, alright. Miss Chen, you're lucky there was a small loft here for you to hide in," Li Jiaqiang said warmly.
"Let's hurry back so Miss Chen can get some proper rest."
His words warmed my heart.
It's easy to tell whether someone's concern is genuine or fake.
"Chen Yang, are you alright?" Mei Jing asked as we were heading out.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I glanced at her and noticed her expression looked quite strange.
I sighed inwardly —
Suo Tian was carrying me, and Mei Jing was probably feeling upset about it.
After we got back to the school, I jumped off the vehicle on my own.
The rest along the way, along with finally relaxing mentally, had helped me recover some strength.
The students seemed to be getting along quite well with the women —
at least compared to when we first saw them a few days ago, when their faces were filled only with terror and despair.
Now, they had regained some of the vitality and energy that kids their age should have.
At this moment, they were even voluntarily helping unload supplies from the vehicles.
To avoid worrying them, no one mentioned what had happened earlier.
But my drained and worn-out appearance still caught everyone's attention.
Lili was the first to speak, asking,
"Xiao Yang, what happened to you? Why are you covered in so much blood? Did you run into trouble outside?"
I looked down at my clothes — sure enough, they were splattered with dark, sticky bloodstains.
I hadn't really noticed before, but now that I saw it, the strong, rotten stench immediately hit my nose.
Waving my hand at Lili, I smiled and said,
"It's nothing. I just ran into a few walkers on the way back and took them down easily.
But... I couldn't bring back your maternity clothes."
I looked at Lili apologetically.
"Why even mention those useless things?" she said.
"It's so dangerous every time you all go out — you should only worry about what's really necessary."
Lili gently tucked a few loose strands of my hair behind my ear and continued,
"You're just a young girl, running around everywhere with the group and never once complaining. I understand how hard it's been for you. So from now on, don't worry about me. Taking care of yourself is what's truly important."
I nodded and didn't say anything more, feeling deeply moved inside.
So what if it was the end of the world?
Being cared for by so many people — even if my life hung by a thread, it was worth it.
Shen Xue boiled some hot water for us to clean up, and Sister Sun and the others had already prepared dinner.
After taking a shower and having dinner, I laid out the blanket I was given and lay down.
As usual, I had a room all to myself.
Mei Jing and Shen Xue shared a room,
Suo Tian had a room to himself,
Yin Shangtang and Jun Di shared one,
and Lili and Wang Jun stayed in another.
Shu Guang had returned to live with Li Jianguo's group, only coming down during the day to check on Rongrong and administer IV drips and such.
There were more than a dozen classrooms on this floor, plenty of space for everyone to stay.
I thought I would have trouble falling asleep, but because of how tense I had been all day, I ended up drifting off quickly after lying down.
However, I had a long, terrifying dream.
The dream was pitch black everywhere, and walkers kept appearing around me, no matter how many I cut down, there were always more.
It wasn't until I saw Yangyang's face among the horde of walkers...
that I woke up screaming from the nightmare.