Yan Hao and Chun Cao jumped down, both showing signs of fatigue, but Zhou Rong cut straight to the point: “Base communication is down.”
The remaining team members gathered around, standing on the grass, nervously looking at each other.
“…No nuclear missile signs,” Yan Hao said softly: “Wasn’t it supposed to launch at eight? It’s already past eight-ten.”
“Could the plan have changed…”
“If the plan changed, the base would have notified us,” Yan Hao interrupted Chun Cao: “If it was postponed, the base would have sent another helicopter; delaying the launch would cause zombies to spread from the city center, and nuclear cleansing is best done as early as possible.”
Si Nan walked up from behind, stopping a few steps away, arms crossed, quietly watching them.
A terrible thought gradually rose in everyone’s mind, but no one spoke, not even moving, as if by keeping silent, that horrifying possibility would not exist.
The late autumn night was already cool, the wilderness undulating beneath the night sky, a faint yellow light from a distant streetlamp flickering by the railway.
“Your base,” Si Nan’s calm voice came from behind them, “something’s happened, right?”
Two or three special forces soldiers simultaneously shouted: “Impossible!”
“B Military District’s facilities are comprehensive, impregnable, with massive armed police deployed from the initial virus outbreak, not even a fly could get in! And the national government agencies, command headquarters, all survivors in the North China region, they all…”
No one continued, Chun Cao’s sharp voice gradually weakening.
Si Nan looked at her gently: “No fortress can resist internal collapse. Once the virus breaks out internally, the overthrow happens in an instant, you know this, right?”
Everyone recalled the civilians sent to the B Military District shelter by four helicopters just that afternoon, instantly chilling.
“Ying Jie,” Zhou Rong said in a low voice, “report location.”
Zhang Ying Jie held a tablet: “We’ve taken a detour, still 57 kilometers from B City’s suburbs.
The highway ahead is severely congested; recommend bypassing through the industrial zone. The nearest industrial zone is 8 kilometers away.
Zhou Rong slowly said: “If B City falls, it’ll be cleared by nuclear missile in two days at most. We can’t advance further.”
People in the minibus could no longer contain themselves, standing up and peering out, wanting to speak but hesitating.
After long contemplation, Zhou Rong finally made a decision under dozens of watching eyes:
“Camp here, inventory supplies, arrange accommodation for civilians.”
“Yan Hao,” he ordered, “compile a survivor list, prepare night shifts.”
A hush fell over the surroundings, with soft sobs rising and falling from the crowd.
Zhou Rong’s jaw was clenched. Suddenly, he punched heavily on a tree trunk. Yan Hao reflexively took half a step back.
“What are you doing!” Yan Hao growled: “What if you attract zombies?!”
Red threads slowly seeped between Zhou Rong’s fingers.
The extremely powerful, intimidating Alpha pheromones instantly broke through the suppressants, roaring like a wild beast and spreading in all directions. Zhou Rong forced himself to take a breath, trembling as he withdrew his fist. Yan Hao quickly pulled out a water bottle to wash the tree trunk and tried to splash water on Zhou Rong’s hand, but was silently blocked. Zhou Rong then licked his own wound, his gaze in the shadows bright as snow, like a pack leader unwilling to admit defeat despite being trapped.
“…We’ll do three-person shifts. We’ll leave for the industrial zone at six tomorrow morning,” Zhou Rong said hoarsely after a while. “If there’s no movement in City B within two days, I’ll go explore the city center myself.” Yan Hao wanted to dissuade him, but seeing Zhou Rong turn and walk away, he could only hurriedly follow.
Si Nan went to find Zhou Rong. When he reached the edge of the forest, he suddenly stopped sensitively. There was a faint, uncomfortable smell in the night air. The scent hovered in the air, strong, mature, and highly aggressive. He instinctively searched for its source, but after standing there for a while, his nerve endings suddenly jumped, and an indescribable dizziness slowly rose from his heart.
It was Alpha pheromones. But how could there be an Alpha in this wilderness? Si Nan looked around. The open space was lit by car headlights, with people preparing to spend the night gradually getting into their vehicles. “Are you okay?” A female voice suddenly sounded from behind. Si Nan turned around. Chun Cao was looking at him curiously. “…Did you smell anything?” “No,” Chun Cao sniffed hard, then her gaze became blank, her expression subtly changing. The next second, Chun Cao sneezed so powerfully it could shake heaven and earth, instantly spraying Si Nan all over. “It must be the smell of rotting corpses!” Chun Cao embarrassedly rubbed her nose, turning red as she pushed Si Nan towards the car: “Quick, go back and sleep, don’t worry about it! Go!” Si Nan looked slightly puzzled and was forcibly pushed back into the biochemical vehicle. · That night, the special forces were divided into three shifts. Chun Cao and Ding Shi were on duty until midnight, Yan Hao and Guo Weixiang took over until three, with the last shift from dawn being Zhou Rong and Zhang Yingjie.
The rear compartment seats were lifted, with several special forces soldiers lying haphazardly, snoring. He felt someone close beside him and, in the light from the car’s exterior, saw it was Si Nan.
Si Nan, with lowered body temperature in his sleep, unconsciously moved closer to the heat source, wrapping one of Zhou Rong’s arms around himself, his deep, steady breaths softly hitting Zhou Rong’s shoulder. Zhou Rong was somewhat dazed.
Zhou Rong raised his hand and brushed Si Nan’s stray hair behind his ear. Just then, footsteps sounded outside, and the car door was gently opened.
Zhou Rong immediately closed his eyes, feigning sleep. A few seconds later, he felt someone enter the car, almost silently crossing the makeshift beds, stopping in front of them. The person bent down, carefully lifting Si Nan’s hand.
Si Nan, having taken sedative-containing fever medication, didn’t wake up, only mumbling and turning over. Zhou Rong lay motionless and finally heard the person speak softly:
“Thank you for saving my life.”
—It was Yan Hao. Zhou Rong’s heart slightly trembled, his eyes almost imperceptibly narrowing.
In the dim light of the car compartment, Yan Hao lowered his head, breathing nervous and rapid, and kissed Si Nan’s temple. It was a kiss as light as a dragonfly touching water, both timid and devout. Yan Hao, like a child who had stolen candy, stood up and tiptoed off the car, closing the door.
★ Chapter 9
B Military District, Emergency Communication Room.
“The analysis summary report is out. All Omegas, male and female, have undergone gene identification. The target individual is not among them.”
The emergency red light flashed, reflecting on the sweat-covered face of a female researcher, whose chest was still heaving from running. An old man with general’s stars on his shoulder buried his face in his hands, then looked up after a few seconds: “I understand.”
The old man picked up the satellite phone on the control console and dialed a direct line contact code. After a long, drawn-out half-minute wait, the phone was answered: “Major Qian, please report the results.”
The old man opened his mouth but made no sound. The unspeakable silence said it all. “We will conduct a strict re-examination of all cities DC918 passed through. If the plane has crashed, there will definitely be traces somewhere.”
” The voice on the other end was also very heavy, pausing before asking: “Has the feedback from the 118 Unit’s Confidentiality Battalion come back?”
