Chapter 7: Messed Up

Purple Moon Warriors!

A trace of passion gushed out from Tang Ling’s eyes for one moment, then he calmed down the next.

If the Purple Moon Warriors of the Safety Sector were here, it should not be a problem even if the number of zombies increased, should it?

As a matter of fact, should the zombies be left unchecked, the tragic end that would befall the settlement was apparent.

In the safety zone, many entrances to the settlement were scattered over the place. There were obvious ones and hidden ones, let alone the ones dug up privately and not made known to others.

Should any single one of the entrance be broken through by a single zombie, the outcome would be…

As Tang Ling shuddered, he grabbed his sister and sprinted madly along the dark passageway.

Zombies were not black-toothed rats. Their perception towards fresh meat, especially humans, were sharp and that was their best guide.

The settlement would be surrounded!

Even if these zombies could not break through the settlement gates, surely it would not be comfortable to die of starvation in the settlement.

A scene where despair suffused while helplessly waiting for death’s arrival… What kind of hell would that turn the settlement into?

Thankfully, there were still the Purple Moon Warriors!

Tang Ling was unwilling to continue his deduction. The last glimpse he had of the Purple Moon Warriors when they appeared in groups would be his best calming pill. He even had the impulse to have a peek at what kind of battle would go down in the secondary safety zone.

After he sprinted madly all the way, Tang Ling finally saw the familiar tent.

The catastrophic change that happened all too suddenly clearly had not made its way down here. It was like every other night in the Fifth Camp of the settlement. A big fire was built in the center of the camp, bathing every shed in warm, yellow light. It was an icy night. If there was no fire, they would freeze to death.

The warmth emanated from the settlement temporarily expelled the fear from earlier. Tang Ling put his younger sister down, then held her hand as they walked towards their home.

“Brother.” His little sister’s voice revealed a trace of unfamiliar emptiness.

“Hm?” Tang Ling’s calm heart throbbed quicker by a beat.

“I saw it. Those monsters eating people… There was a lot, a lot of blood.” His little sister was calm, unlike her older self where a mere scare would make her cry.

A trace of iciness appeared at Tang Ling’s fingertip, then he quickly trickled into his heart, chilling it.

She finally saw the cruelty of this era, and it was a very shocking first time for her. The heartache made him stop in his steps as he hugged his little sister tightly.

About the zombies, the outside world, all the cruelty happening outside, what use would there be explaining them at this moment? Myriads of words transformed only into a series of short sentences. “It’s fine. I am here. I am always here.”

His words seemed to have rejuvenated his little sister. Her petite hands held Tang Ling’s shoulders tightly and she finally started to sob softly.

He felt conflicted as if protecting his little sister too well was a mistake. However, since the mistake was far beyond redemption, Tang Ling could only neglect it and continue forward.

The drapes of the tent were lifted up. Grandma was still patching up the broken shirt. The uneasy look on her face clearly stated that she still had not accepted Tang Ling’s decision to participate in the recruitment of the reserved warriors.

Looking up, Grandma thought of saying something, but San San’s tears and the commotion caused by the people outside who had just escaped their grim fate caught her attention.

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“What happened?” Grandma put the shirt down, her eyes full of panic and wild speculation.

Thanks to the cruelty of life, no one could afford to be blunt.

“Zombies. There were a lot of them, and they gushed into the safety zone.” Tang Ling patted San San’s back softly. It was not necessary for him to keep it a secret from his grandmother, and neither could he.

“Aah!” Grandmother shot up to her feet all of a sudden in a panic. She did not know what she must do at the moment.

“Don’t worry. The Purple Moon Warriors came.” Tang Ling put his hand over his grandmother’s frail shoulders, hugging her and his little sister into his arms.

Surprisingly, his words did not calm his grandmother. A silent while later, she suddenly turned calm and determined as she concluded, “We must leave.”

Tang Ling was very doubtful. He had never seen such an expression on his grandmother’s face. She was not going to take ‘no’ as an answer, and unconsciously, he wanted to listen to her.

But leave? To where?

It was not too difficult to imagine that the safety zone was currently swarmed with zombies. It was also uncertain whether or not the zombies had invaded the settlement.

Going out would be suicidal.

“Are you still hesitating?” It was rare but Grandma somehow got angry.

Tang Ling inhaled deeply, he clasped his grandmother’s shoulder and said, “Fine. We are leaving but before this, I have to… I have to  go find out about something. Don’t worry. It won’t take long.”

After his words, Tang Ling turned around and left. His grandmother didn’t stop him. The bond and trust between the three of them were as tight as such, similar to how Tang Ling did not ask his grandmother why she would choose to risk it and leave.

Grandmother also understood that Tang Ling had obeyed her. All he wanted was to be more secure.

As he walked out of the tent, the news had spread all over the Fifth Camp. People walked out from their sheds, discussing and guessing in groups of twos or threes and conveniently sighing about how many people were going to die to the zombie waves.

However, no one was overly panicked. The Purple Moon Warriors’ arrival was not just noticed by Tang Ling alone. One thing worth noting was that disasters had happened at the safety zone before in the past, like a small insect plague or a snake problem.

Nonetheless, as long as the Purple Moon Warriors were here, everything would be quickly solved. In the hearts of the regular people, the Purple Moon Warriors were almighty gods.

Tang Ling lowered his head and shuttled across the crowd in a hurry. The people, abuzz with the unusual excitement, did not pay extra attention to the quiet teen.

The exception were some who had lost themselves to sorrow and appeared occasionally, holding Tang Ling back and asking ‘Have you seen XXX?’.

He could not answer. Those who were missing must be dead.

A heavy feeling accompanied by a trace of unease enveloped Tang Ling. His grandmother’s attitude made Tang Ling feel very dubious.

‘What is this anxiety? Is it a hint from my Precise Instinct?’ Tang Ling thought of the illusion that he saw on the top of the little hill.

Could the incident be… With the thought in mind, Tang Ling walked past the entrance of Old Fox Quark’s shop and he was suddenly grabbed.

“I saw no one,” Tang Ling unconsciously replied. He had no time to deal with the pitiful souls who had lost their loved ones.

“But I did,” Quark’s voice echoed in Tang Ling’s ears.

Surprised, Tang Ling spun around suddenly. “You? What did you see?”

“Hundreds are dead. The Purple Moon Warriors didn’t do anything.” Quark’s tone, absent of the exaggeration that he used to display in the past, was calm and serious. It made him sound like a stranger to Tang Ling.

“You…” Unknowingly, an ember of rage burned in Tang Ling’s heart. No matter how far away the Purple Moon Warriors were to him, they had become the goal and idol that Tang Ling pursued.

How dare Quark insult the Purple Moon Warriors?! Even others in the settlement would not be able to hold back the urge to beat him up.

However, the long-time relationship with Quark stopped Tang Ling from doing so, and the rare serious look on Quark’s face silenced Tang Ling and all his arguments.

“Stop wasting time. There are zombies in here. You know I’m talking about the underground! A dozen minutes tops and we’ll be surrounded,” Quark started to speak in a hurry.

Tang Ling’s head buzzed, and in the next moment, he was pulled into Quark’s shop.