As soon as they spoke, the three of them immediately sprinted towards the factory. It was an adrenaline-pumping race—people running ahead while lightning struck behind them, the thunder rumbling nonstop.

Qin Luo hoisted Xu Duoduo onto his shoulder without hesitation, supporting her waist as he dashed forward. Chen Xiaofei and Bai Shu ran at full speed, and finally, the three of them, along with a zombie, dove into the factory and slammed the door shut behind them.

“Boom!” The loudest thunderclap struck just outside, followed by another flash of lightning that illuminated the entire factory. The next explosion of thunder shook the ground, making several survivors scream in terror.

Wang Weihu roared, “What are you screaming for? Shut up! Nobody touch anything that might conduct electricity, or you’ll get electrocuted! Stay quiet, got it?”

His harsh reprimand quickly made the survivors fall in line, hastily covering their mouths and nodding.

He was fierce, no doubt.

But it was for their own good. After surviving in the apocalypse for days, they should have already known that screaming was practically a death sentence. The Survival Manual had been widely distributed by headquarters, yet these people still hadn’t learned.

The factory’s lightning protection held up, and after a few minutes of the most intense thunderstorm, the downpour outside suddenly intensified, hammering down like an endless flood. It was maddening.

They had no choice but to stay here for the night.

Everyone silently shared their food. Conveniently, this factory processed canned fruit, so there were still some leftover fresh fruits and canned goods that hadn’t been transported to the warehouse.

Wang Weihu warned them not to eat the exposed fruit—it was already contaminated. However, the canned products were safe to consume.

Meanwhile, those assigned to cooking earlier prepared a large pot of instant noodles.

The number of survivors from this residential area barely exceeded a hundred. Before the apocalypse, there had been nearly two thousand people.

Qin Luo took Xu Duoduo on a patrol around the factory, eliminating potential dangers, such as locking all doors securely.

They were in the packaging workshop, where the finished canned goods were stored.

Everyone found a corner to sit and eat. Some survivors, finally gathering their courage, approached Wang Weihu to ask what was really going on.

For once, Wang Weihu felt a little gratified. At least they were calming down.

He took the initiative to explain briefly.

Essentially, certain people had foreseen the apocalypse. The authorities had been preparing in secret for a long time, but the information wasn’t made public to avoid causing mass panic. The emergency alert was only issued three minutes before the outbreak to prevent early chaos.

Hearing this, the survivors couldn’t help but curse.

“What the hell was the point of telling us so late?!”
“Exactly! Who would’ve believed it was real?!”

Most people had dismissed the warning as a hoax. Some hadn’t even received the message due to poor signal, leaving them completely unprepared.

Tears and cries filled the room again. Everyone was grieving for their lost loved ones and the uncertain future ahead. But those who had survived this long had no desire to die—despair was unavoidable, but survival was instinctive.

Wang Weihu sighed. “If you didn’t receive the Survival Manual, raise your hand. I have physical copies. Electronic devices will be useless soon, so your phones won’t work. Better get used to it now.”

Restoring communications would take time.

Everyone just had to endure.

On the other side of the room—

Chen Xiaofei was tearing open a pack of dry rations. As he unwrapped the package, he glanced at the survivors and muttered, “Old Wang really is suited for this job.”

In their squad, Wang Weihu played the “father figure” role—handling both major and minor issues, from soothing survivors to sewing their clothes.

Bai Shu nodded in agreement. It wasn’t that he and Chen Xiaofei were unwilling to step up, but Bai Shu looked like a lanky scholar, and Chen Xiaofei had a baby face. Whenever they tried to talk to people, no one took them seriously.

It had to be Wang Weihu. At over 1.9 meters tall, his sheer presence commanded respect. People listened to him.

His leadership was the perfect balance of authority and approachability.

As for Qin Luo—

Their Qin-ge, their “Luo God”—his role was simple: pure combat. He was a relentless killing machine. He could fight, sure, but handling survivor relations? No way. Besides, his face was too eye-catching.

Too many potential romantic entanglements.

So Wang Weihu had no choice but to take on the role of their squad’s diplomat.

Xu Duoduo found their teamwork amusing. She had always known the four of them were close, but she hadn’t expected them to enlist in the army together.

Chen Xiaofei pulled out their rations. The four of them were eating bread, bottled water, and energy bars—one portion per person.

“Sigh, I really want something warm,” Chen Xiaofei lamented, his baby face full of sorrow.

“Be grateful we have food. Soon, even dry rations will be scarce,” Bai Shu said as he munched on his energy bar, simultaneously filling out a report on the lightning storm data they had recorded earlier. The report would need to be uploaded soon.

Qin Luo, however, suddenly paused. A question had just occurred to him—

What do zombies eat?

Just as he lowered his head in thought, he saw Xu Duoduo casually pull an 800ml insulated thermos out of thin air and hand it to Chen Xiaofei.

Chen Xiaofei blinked, bread still in his mouth. “Huh? What? Qin-ge, why is the squad leader giving me a thermos? Does she want me to open it for her?”

Qin Luo was just as confused. “How would I know?” Still, he reached out to open it for her—he was right there, after all.

Xu Duoduo seemed a little anxious at first, but then calmed down.

Qin Luo, still puzzled, unscrewed the lid—

The aroma of century egg and lean pork congee instantly filled the air.

Chen Xiaofei and Bai Shu both snapped their heads around in shock.

“Whoa, what the hell!”

Inside the thermos was a rich, thick congee, packed with century egg and tender pork. The texture looked silky and smooth, and it smelled absolutely delicious.

Xu Duoduo patted Qin Luo, signaling him to pass it to Chen Xiaofei.

Chen Xiaofei was stunned. “Oh my god, thank you, squad leader! Wait—how do you still have congee? Damn, it smells amazing!”

He kept rambling nonsense as he drooled, quickly taking the thermos.

Bai Shu, still chewing his bland energy bar, swallowed hard. Suddenly, his ration felt utterly unappetizing. With a dramatic sigh, he muttered, “Squad leader, you’re playing favorites.”

Then he pushed up his glasses—only to realize there were no glasses on his face.

Xu Duoduo reached into her space again and pulled out another thermos, this one deep blue. She had plenty of thermoses and insulated bottles.

Chen Xiaofei’s was light green. Bai Shu’s was deep blue.

“Thank you, squad leader! I was wrong, squad leader! You are the fairest person in the world!” Bai Shu quickly took the thermos and opened it—inside was the same fragrant congee.

Then Xu Duoduo stopped.

Qin Luo, who had been secretly anticipating his turn, suddenly grew anxious.

He waited a few seconds, then lost his patience.

“Where’s mine?”

He stared at her, incredulous.

“You can’t be this biased! I carried you all the way here! I don’t get one?!”

He was about to make a scene!