Chapter 10: Escape (Part 1)

It paused only for a second, yet Tang Ling was able to feel the temperature of death mixed with fear.

If there were any other options, simply jumping down from a high spot would seem like a pleasant thing to do instead.

“Get your a*s in here!” Quark furiously bellowed in front of the door. Was the kid who had not seen the world frightened out of his mind?

Tang Ling lowered his head, not daring to think about anything regarding the main door of the Fifth Camp anymore. Even though he knew this place would turn into hell soon, the moment when hell arrived would still be suffocating.

Holding his grandmother and little sister, he sprinted quickly towards Quark’s shop. A thunderous charge sounded behind him as if it was the sound of an army chasing him.

This was the only exit in the Fifth Camp. At least, to those who had no backups and still wanted to leave the Fifth Camp, their only option was to go through this iron door.

The sorrow of nowhere to run finally exploded among the people.

The gatekeeper’s cry finally successfully spread the news about the impending doom out. This was only the first batch of people who rushed over in a panic.

Rather than waiting for death in a trapped environment, people always unconsciously searched for hope and also hoped that they could be the lucky ones who could escape the turmoil.

“Hurry up!” The arrival of the crowd caused a trace of panic to flash over Quark’s eyes, he started to rush Tang Ling.

No one was an idiot. Someone must have noticed Tang Ling running in front and how unusual he seemed.

If the crowd rushed in, his escape plan would go to waste.

It was a fact that bad assumptions would always come true quicker. Someone shouted, “Quark! Look at Quark! He is standing there. He’s resourceful. He must have a plan!”

Those words were like the fire of hope that ignited the people, quickly engulfing everyone. They made haste and chased after Tang Ling.

The short distance was the only advantage Tang Ling had. When he reached Quark’s door, Quark dragged him in immediately.

“Troublesome rats!” Quark grumbled.

Bang!

The door was slammed shut, but how long could the iron door stop the deranged crowd?

Quark felt insecure. He turned around for an iron rod, then put it over the door before he bellowed at Tang Ling, “Help! Do you want us to get destroyed?”

With the footsteps outside the door, the ramming of the zombies, the horrific cries from the people, the bloodthirsty roars of the zombies, nothing would be more chaotic than this situation.

Putting his little sister down in a frantic state of mind, Tang Ling pushed and pulled anything with weight and piled it up at the door violently.

This feeling was worse than being an executioner. The helplessness from the lack of power made Tang Ling yearn for it even more.

‘If such tragedy could stop…’

Tang Ling dared not theorize on that possibility. Right after a heavy container was dragged to the door with a bang, the first person who reached Quark’s door appeared. Through the little window of the iron door, he shouted with his life, “Let me in! I promise I’ll be the only one!”

As he shouted, he swung his fists, striking the iron door violently. His blonde hair got stuck on his scalp due to his sweat while his fists were bloody as he struck the iron door again and again, but he was not aware of it at all.

“Get the hell away!” A black face appeared behind the man. With a merciless punch, the newcomer then struck the man on the face and dragged his limp body away. Who would not want to be closer to hope?

One after another, the crowd started to pile up.

Following a loud thud, a deafening echo echoed throughout the dimmed underground passageway.

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“Aaah!”

“Damn it! I don’t want to die!”

Fear reached its peak at the very moment. Tang Ling’s heart turned into ice as the zombies rammed through the iron door. Hell had well and truly descended onto the Fifth Camp.

Tang Ling clenched his teeth and pushed the last part of the container against the wall.

He finally became the executioner who swung the cruelest sword. His chest started to suffocate unknowingly to the point that it hurt him. Instinctively, he turned to his grandmother and little sister in hope for some comfort.

Quark’s relaxed voice then sounded in his ears, “As a matter of fact, as long as we can hold for a minute, these filthy rats won’t want to sneak in anymore.”

“It’s all my blood and sweat. Why the hell should I share it with you all?” Quark shouted at the crowd outside the door. Amidst the despair and fear, some started to turn around. The zombie hunting fest had already begun.

Those who squeezed themselves at the front had no choice but to exert shocking strength. After minutes, the pitifully thin iron door broke, it started to break into many pieces.

“Damn it! Run! I’ve underestimated the urge to survive of these rats. They always believed in survivorship bias. It was no wonder that every generation had gamblers who’d risk it all,” Quark continued to nag but his steps were unusually quick. He pulled Tang Ling behind the mysterious door.

Entering the mysterious door once again, Tang Ling surprisingly realized that the wooden rack with the books about ‘Old Civilization Secret Code’ and held many little locked boxes was gone from the room.

Behind the wooden rack was an open tunnel.

This was Quark’s trump card! Thinking about the three secret passageways in his shop, it clearly stated that Quark was a ‘wily hare with three holes in his burrow’.

However, where did he hide the wooden rack in such a short time?

Tang Ling was curious but did not think of asking. He just kept quiet and held his grandmother tightly with his little sister in his arms.

The thing that he kept mum about was ‘it’ in his chest which seemed to have awoken from all the vigorous stimulation.

This would be scary!

With the thought in mind, Tang Ling picked up a big chunk of jerky from the floor and stuffed it into his cloth-wrapped baggage.

Quark sneered as he said, “Do you think you’ll have the time to eat after you get out? It’s either live or die at the end of this passageway!”

“What’s a jerky? Didn’t I leave behind all my precious stuff? Of course, I’ve hidden the most important ones. This is nothing but a mere trick.”

What does he mean? Tang Ling was not in the mood to think about that! The iron door should have been destroyed by now. Rapid and heavy rumbling came through the door. It was apparent that the blockade behind it would not hold any longer.

The house had an iron door, but how long could the iron door, which was made out of pieces of abandoned iron pieces, hold? However, Quark was not in a hurry to go into the tunnel. He was setting up something in front of the tunnel

“Quark, you old dog! Open the damn door and let me in! With me around, you might have a better chance of surviving. What can that scrawny kid do?” Someone barged in. It was that black guy whose fists were damaged beyond recognition to the point that the bones were visible.

He had really gone mad, going all out.

“Let me in! They are eating people!. F*ck! They are freakin’ eating people!!” Another panicked voice screamed.

The idea of installing a sliding window in the door was a lousy one. Tang Ling actually did not want to hear or see anymore. Judging from the increasing frenzied and chaotic noise outside, the whole Fifth Camp had plunged into chaos.

One could imagine how madly the several thousand who lived here ran and hid for their lives. Of course, they were trailed by the zombies feasting on them.

Quark was no longer nervous at the moment. He even had the mood to light up something called a cigarette.

“Come in,” Quark said to Tang Ling.

Tang Ling kept quiet. With his head lowered, he brought his grandmother and little sister into the tunnel. Behind him were at least 20 men madly attacking the last surviving door.

It would not hold any longer.

Nonetheless, sorrowful apathy sprouted in Tang Ling.

“Goodbye, goddamned Fifth Camp. Goodbye, ya’ filthy rats!” Quark shouted exaggeratedly and seemed to have lit something as a sizzling noise filled the air.

“Run!” Quark’s voice then sounded in Tang Ling’s ears.