"Meow, don't be afraid. Brother will protect you."
Chen Yi took out a tissue and gently wiped the remnants of breakfast from his sister's mouth. He then cradled her in his arms, stroking her hair with a light touch. Feeling the warmth of his body and his subtle, comforting scent, Li Miao'er's nervous tension slowly eased.
A faint rustle…
What's that sound?
Chen Yi's heartbeat quickened. A chill ran down his spine, as if a zombie had silently appeared behind him, teeth bared and ready to strike.
Instinctively, he pushed his sister aside, raised the machete, spun around, and slashed with all his might.
A small, tense scream escaped him.
Then he relaxed. A few steps away, a lone zombie had appeared. Not particularly fast, not particularly strong. Just… there.
It was an elderly zombie, white hair matted and face twisted in a grimace. Its scarlet eyes burned with a hunger for flesh, but only two jagged teeth remained in its gaping mouth. Its limbs looked shrunken, frail even, giving off almost no intimidation at all.
Li Miao'er stumbled back a few steps, wide-eyed with fear, before noticing her brother's calm stance. She quickly grabbed the machete, hands trembling and slick with sweat.
Hope, scan this zombie! Chen Yi thought, gripping the scimitar tightly.
This zombie is weak. Its overall physical fitness is below 15. Kill it by severing the head or piercing the heart. Do not waste effort hitting limbs or the body.
"Meow, don't be nervous. This is just an old zombie—not as strong as a normal one. Just cut off its head," Chen Yi reassured her calmly.
"I… I'll protect my brother! I'll hack it to death!" Li Miao'er shouted in her heart. With a determined cry, she ran to the zombie's side and swung the machete with all her strength.
Swish!
The zombie's head fell to the ground with a heavy thunk, its body collapsing backward.
Li Miao'er fell to the rooftop, still gripping the machete.
"Hush…"
She panted heavily, mouth open like a tiny cherry blossom, cold sweat dripping down her body. The exhilaration of killing a former human for the first time—far more thrilling than any extreme sport she had imagined—coursed through her.
"Meow! Are you okay?" Chen Yi asked, startled by her boldness. The zombie was already dead before he could even react. Its headless body twitched on the ground, a grotesque reminder of its tenacity.
Li Miao'er raised her small, flushed face toward him, chest heaving. "Brother… my arms hurt… and my chest too."
Chen Yi smiled warmly. "When we get home, brother will press them for you. The pain will fade soon." He helped her to her feet and scanned the rooftop. Thankfully, only this single zombie had appeared—otherwise, it would have been a nightmare.
"Brother, will this zombie's heart really turn into an energy spar?" she asked, eyes wide, standing next to the fallen creature with a dagger in hand. Yesterday's timid girl had vanished; today, she was brave and determined.
"Meow, the heart is on the lower left side of the chest. You can dig it out with your dagger," Chen Yi explained, crouching beside her. The zombie's body, nearly devoid of blood, twitched slightly even without its head. Its tenacious survival instinct was unnerving, but its intelligence was… nonexistent.
Li Miao'er held her breath, leaning forward to press the dagger into the blackened skin. The blade cut through like slicing tofu. An intense stench erupted, like sun-baked animal carcasses.
"Wow! Brother… there really is an energy spar!" Li Miao'er shouted, holding her nose and glancing at him in excitement.
Chen Yi leaned over carefully. The zombie's internal organs were nearly decayed, but embedded in the center of its chest glowed a crimson crystal, about the size of a little finger.
"Meow, dig out the spar," Chen Yi instructed.
Li Miao'er poked at it with her dagger, but the smooth surface kept slipping off.
"Brother, I need a tool!" she exclaimed, pursing her pink lips as she ran to the small vegetable garden, tearing off a piece of plastic film to extract the spar with her tiny hands.
"Meow, the quality of this gun barrel is pretty good," Chen Yi said, following her. Beside the plastic shed, he found two rusty iron knives and two red-tasseled guns.
He grabbed a long gun and executed the stab, sweep, and pick motions—creating a precise, fluid gun flourish with ease.
"Wow! Brother, that's so cool!" Li Miao'er's eyes sparkled, nearly forming crescents of excitement. She hadn't known he could handle firearms so deftly.
"Meow, this gun shaft is strong. The white wax shaft is good for performance but too elastic for combat. Still, it's perfect for pushing back zombies." Chen Yi handed the red-tasseled spear to her. He had trained under a martial arts master abroad for years, excelling in fists, kicks, spears, sticks, knives, and swords—but his true combat ability in actual battles was still limited.
"Well, brother, here's the spar. Let's go home quickly." Li Miao'er handed him the energy spar with a bright smile, clearly eager for his promised massage.
"Meow, don't worry. This zombie is probably Old Wang from the fourth floor. His wife passed away long ago, and his only daughter works out of town. Check if he had a key," Chen Yi said with a smile, tucking the energy spar safely away.
"Brother, Old Wang? The one who used to quarrel with Aunt Ye? Didn't he have two big gold teeth? This zombie only has two white ones," Li Miao'er asked, frowning in doubt.
"I heard Sister Qing'er say that Lao Wang got beaten up during an argument recently, and even his gold teeth were broken. The police haven't caught anyone yet, I guess," Chen Yi replied softly, leading her toward the vegetable garden.
The rooftop garden had originally been Lao Wang's. The old roof wasn't fully waterproof, which had sparked many arguments with Sister Qing'er's mother. Eventually, Aunt Zhang on the fourth floor spent money to reinforce the waterproof layer, ending the disputes.
I hope Sister Qing'er is still alive… I really want to meet her again, maybe even playfully tease her like before, Chen Yi thought.
Li Miao'er pouted, watching her brother's back with a slight frown. Her big, watery eyes blinked quickly, betraying a mixture of curiosity and impatience.