Chapter 37: Boundless Claustrophobia

Du Yun drew a sharp breath, feeling as though the blood in her veins had frozen from fright. It wasn’t that she lacked courage, but the scene before her was simply too terrifying, sending chills deep into her soul.

The small town, encircled by mountains, was shrouded in tranquility—not the utter silence of an abandoned place, but a quiet where, beneath the faint morning light, thousands upon thousands of shadows drifted eerie and silent along the streets. Not a single sound broke the stillness; it was the hush after the world had been muted, making one's skin crawl with dread.

“There are way too many,” Du Yun whispered, swallowing hard in awe at the dense throng of zombies. Her eyes widened and stammered words spilled out. Instinctively, she clutched Peaches tightly; seeing the little girl equally frightened, she shifted her grip to a supportive hold. The two leaned on each other, hearts pounding wildly.

“A town this size can’t have that many people, so how can there be so many zombies? If you went to a big city, then you’d know what a spectacle really looks like!” Skinny Monkey, seeing Du Yun so shaken, found a release for his earlier embarrassment at his weaker attack power compared to hers. He sidled up and spoke, his mood settling.

Du Yun's fear was diluted by his words. Yes, this was only the beginning. To survive long in this world overrun by zombies, one could not afford to be afraid.

“You’ve seen it yourself?” Du Yun, now steadier, raised a brow in challenge. After all, it had only been a few days since zombies appeared in this world. On the first day, she’d joined up with the boss’s crew; she doubted they’d managed to reach a big city in such a short time.

“I was just guessing,” Skinny Monkey replied awkwardly, recalling how he too had been stunned by the sight of so many zombies. He chuckled nervously.

“Boss, what should we do?” Big Zhuang, having scouted the area and confirmed no new zombies were approaching, came over. The dense horde ahead, easily numbering a thousand or more, posed a deadly risk if they charged recklessly. But if they didn’t, what could they do?

“Wait,” the boss said, gazing at the town at the mountain’s foot. His brows were tightly furrowed and his eyes fixed on the zombies, observing their movements closely.

Du Yun, too, watched the zombies. Her mind was filled with stories about the apocalypse and zombies, each depicting them differently. Some zombies retained memories from their human lives; others lost all reason. Some feasted on human flesh, while others were vegetarians.

These zombies were certainly not herbivores—she could tell from the blood-soaked state of the little zombie she’d seen earlier. As for their intelligence, Du Yun couldn’t be sure, having never studied them in detail. Since she didn’t know, she had to assume they were clever; to underestimate them might mean death without even knowing how it happened.

The group hid on the mountainside, secretly watching the town below. Suddenly, somewhere within the town, a sharp crack echoed, thunderous in the silent air. Instantly, every zombie on the main street seemed switched on. Their movements accelerated tenfold; they surged madly in a single direction. Within mere seconds, only a densely packed sea of backs remained in view.

The deserted ground was stained deep red, almost black—a sinister reminder of the blood left behind by those who hadn’t turned into zombies when the disaster struck.

“Their mobility is astounding,” Du Yun murmured, staring in awe at the hundreds or thousands of zombies departing. The shock in her heart eclipsed even her earlier terror at seeing the zombie horde. She never expected that so many zombies, who seemed slow and awkward, could move with such speed—like a stampede of wild horses thundering past, overwhelming and magnificent.

“If they came for us, we’d have no chance at all,” Big Zhuang said, wiping his face with trembling hands. Sweat from the recent ordeal streamed down his cheeks.

“My heavens,” Skinny Monkey exhaled deeply, watching the zombies disappear into the distance. Only now did he realize he had underestimated their agility.

“Peaches, I’m going to let go of your hand now, please don’t scream, all right?” Du Yun took a few deep breaths, feeling her emotions settle. She lowered her head and spoke gently to Peaches, who was nestled in her arms. When the zombies had surged into action, Peaches had almost screamed, but Du Yun had quickly covered her mouth. If she hadn’t, the zombies wouldn’t have run away—they’d have come straight for them.

“Mmm…” Tears streamed down Peaches’ face, her cheeks flushed purple and veins bulging, whether from Du Yun’s firm grip or some other distress.

“Peaches, what happened just now?” Du Yun slowly released her hold, relieved to see Peaches had no intention of screaming.

“Little Ox… Little Ox…” Peaches sobbed, pointing towards where the zombies had vanished. Her tears wouldn’t stop. “Little Ox turned into a zombie too!”

“Little Ox?” Du Yun listened to Peaches’ choked explanation and finally understood who he was. Little Ox was an apprentice of Peaches’ father, a boy from the town, thirteen or fourteen years old. Whatever treats or toys he got, he always saved them for Peaches; they were closest friends.

Now her childhood companion had become a zombie, and Peaches couldn’t accept it, crying uncontrollably. Soon, another dreadful thought struck her. She stared at Du Yun with wide, pleading eyes. “Sister, do you think my father might have turned into a zombie too?”

“Maybe not. Didn’t you say you didn’t see him in the zombie crowd?” Du Yun struggled to comfort her. With so many zombies in the town, the odds of a person turning into one were probably over ninety percent. If that were true, Peaches’ father’s chances of being a zombie were, indeed, quite high.

“We need to find a way to clear out the zombies,” the boss, who had been silent and deep in thought, suddenly spoke. His words startled everyone present.