Chapter 2: The Beginning of the Apocalypse
This young woman was Su Ming's older sister, Su Qingge. Not only were they related by blood, but they had also relied on each other for survival since they were children. Their parents had abandoned the two of them and left when they were very young, leaving only their grandparents to raise Su Qingge and her brother, Su Ming.
When they were around ten years old, their grandparents also passed away from illness, leaving the two of them truly helpless and alone. They had no choice but to move into an orphanage, where the siblings continued to depend on one another.
Therefore, the relationship between Su Ming and his sister was beyond words, even far more intimate than that of typical siblings. It was precisely because he had been abandoned as a child that Su Ming had developed a cold and ruthless personality, one that bordered on dark and icy. In this society, his only relative was his sister, Su Qingge. Only in her presence would he release that small bit of human warmth.
Compared to Su Ming's cold and ruthless nature, Su Qingge's personality was quite similar. She was typically aloof and serious, rarely smiling or joking. The only difference was that she was slightly easier to communicate with than her brother.
Her experiences growing up in society had made her unwilling to trust others easily. On the surface, she appeared cold and arrogant, and she spoke to others in the same manner. Only when she was with Su Ming would she become gentle and considerate.
"What's wrong with Su Ming? Why does he sound so urgent all of a sudden? How strange," Su Qingge mused, sitting on a bench in the airport and looking at her phone.
Just as she was at a loss, a cacophony of noise suddenly erupted around her, accompanied by the screams of men and women, as well as several crashing and explosive sounds. It was as if her surroundings had instantly descended into chaos.
Su Qingge shot to her feet in surprise, her usually cool and detached expression changing. Her small mouth hung open in disbelief. Before her was a scene that was impossible to believe.
In the airport terminal, a man who had been getting a drink from a vending machine suddenly began to convulse. He violently grabbed his wife, who was standing beside him, and bit down hard on her neck. Blood immediately gushed out. It was a brutal sight.
The people nearby instantly fell into disarray, and this was only the beginning. At the same moment, the same situation occurred in more than a dozen other locations throughout the airport terminal. Zombie-like humans, clumsy in their movements, grabbed the bewildered people next to them and began to tear at them with their teeth.
In an instant, the entire airport terminal was in chaos. The men and women, children and elderly, who had been coming and going were either cowering in corners, trembling, or screaming as they fled in a frenzy, or kicking away the terrifying zombies that lunged at them.
Not far from the terminal, a Boeing 737 that had been taxiing on the runway veered off course and swiftly crashed into another plane waiting to take off on an adjacent runway. A ball of fire shot into the sky, accompanied by a deafening explosion.
"Are these... zombies? A virus?" Su Qingge covered her mouth, staring in shock at the scene before her. Even with her usually cold personality, she couldn't help but be terrified by the sight. It was simply hell on earth.
However, she quickly collected herself. Although Su Qingge was young, only 24 years old, she already held a double doctorate from S******d in Psychology and Computer Science and had even been invited by Oxford to be an honorary fellow.
Compared to her ordinary younger brother, Su Ming, Su Qingge was undoubtedly an outstanding woman. Today was supposed to be the day she returned to her home country, having just attended an academic conference in the United States. She never expected to encounter something like this right after getting off the plane.
Being exceptionally intelligent, she quickly realized that this was definitely not a simple virus outbreak. It was very possible that this was a global zombie virus, just like in novels or movies.
If that was the case, she needed to prepare immediately. With hurried steps, Su Qingge headed for the third floor of the airport terminal. It was less crowded there and was also where the airport restaurants were located, making it an advantageous position no matter what she planned to do.
Carefully dodging the attacking zombies, she was assaulted by waves of a foul, rotting stench and a nauseating smell of blood, causing Su Qingge to frown. Fortunately, the terminal was crowded, and the newly infected zombies were still preoccupied with devouring their own kind, allowing Su Qingge to reach the second floor with ease.
The surrounding crowd was still in a state of utter chaos, not yet having recovered from the initial zombie virus outbreak. Su Qingge frowned and, while running, pulled out her phone to dial Su Ming's number.
"Sorry, the network is busy. Please try again later." A busy tone came from the phone. Of course. With something this major happening, everyone was surely trying to contact their loved ones, making it difficult to get a call through.
Su Qingge began to grow anxious. Her brother was the only family she cared about. Now that something so terrible had happened, she wanted to contact Su Ming as soon as possible to make sure he didn't meet with any accidents.
What Su Qingge didn't know was that Su Ming was also trying to call her at that very moment, only to be met with the same busy signal.
On the other side of the city.
"Shit..." Su Ming slammed his fist into a nearby billboard.
He had just been about to get into a taxi to head to the airport. Before he could even step into the car, he saw the driver acting as if he'd gone mad, his body emitting a rotten stench. The driver shakily opened the door and tried to lunge at him.
Sensing something was wrong, Su Ming immediately backed away. Before the driver could catch him, a series of car crashes occurred on the road, and the strangely behaving driver was crushed to death between two vehicles.
"What the hell is going on?" The traffic on the road seemed to have gone insane. A chain of rear-end collisions and crashes happened right before his eyes, and flames shot into the sky. It was like the end of the world.
Several monsters like the taxi driver appeared on the surrounding streets, tearing into the crowds of people. The sight sent a chill of disgust through Su Ming. "Are these the zombies from novels?" he thought to himself.
Su Ming quickly retreated to an open area, watching the chaotic scene with a degree of terror. The once orderly city had become a complex and turbulent mess, with zombies and people chasing and biting each other everywhere.
The car crashes on the road had gradually subsided, but the sound of blaring horns was everywhere. The drivers who had been lucky enough to survive were mostly missing limbs. It was a human tragedy, plain and simple.
Gritting his teeth, Su Ming forced himself to calm down and observe his surroundings. There weren't many zombies right next to him, but there were certainly a fair number. More importantly, some were already staggering towards him.
Su Ming vaulted over a guardrail, the agility he'd gained from frequent fights becoming apparent. He rushed into an outdoor supply store. After a quick glance, he saw a female zombie, her pale body half-naked, hunched over a small child, tearing at it with her teeth.
"Fuck..." Su Ming cursed angrily. The zombie had already noticed him enter. It scrambled to its feet, baring its fangs and waving its claws, and let out a roar from its blood-soaked mouth...