Su You and Amber had just returned with a shipment of large agricultural machinery—plows, seeders, fertilizer spreaders, harvesters, and the like.

Under the guidance of technicians, they had even tested the equipment, so they hadn’t had time to check any messages yet.

Now, three boys who looked like high school students were blocking the road ahead of their vehicle, their faces uneasy. Su You had a bad feeling.

She nodded. “I’ll get out and take a look.”

The moment she opened the car door, the three boys rushed over. The one in the lead was a tall boy waving his shirt in the air.

Su You jumped down from the cab, her eyes sharp and cold. “What happened?”

When Michael saw someone finally coming out of the vehicle, he felt a brief sense of relief. At least they hadn’t been ignored or rejected.

But when he saw that the person who got out was a black-haired, black-eyed Eastern woman, he froze.

She stood about 1.7 or 1.8 meters tall, her hair tied back, her build strong.

A black sports vest paired with military-green cargo pants, black combat boots on her feet—she looked cool, but also not someone to mess with.

“What happened here?”

Su You swept her gaze across the three, and when none of them spoke, she asked again.

The urgency of the situation left Michael no choice. Thinking of what happened back at school, his eyes filled with fear. “Zombies. Our school was overrun. We barely managed to escape.”

Afraid she wouldn’t believe him, he hurriedly handed her a phone with a video playing.

“You can check the latest news, but with the signal unstable and the government restricting information, you may not find much.”

Su You glanced at the phone. The people in the video looked wrong—their eyes blood-red, strange blue-black blotches spreading across their skin. They had lost all reason, snarling like beasts, tearing into those around them.

Zombies?

The word ran through her mind. She looked up again at the three boys before her.

If this wasn’t some prank, it meant the city was in serious trouble.

Amber got out of the car as well, handing over her own phone. On screen was surveillance footage from a hospital corridor, recorded by someone’s phone.

Patients brought into the ER suddenly went mad and started biting people. Like an infectious disease, it spread quickly among the medical staff and patients. The hospital was thrown into chaos, filled with screams, cries for help, and the sounds of tearing flesh.

Before she could finish watching, the video was cut off—blocked.

“Yojie, it’s real!” Amber’s face was tense.

Su You returned the phone to the tall boy. “Just the three of you escaped? No one else?”

The Eastern woman’s composure was unsettling; she showed no panic even after hearing this. Michael felt like he’d found an anchor.

“Besides us, there are two girls still at the school gate. One hurt her knee, but I swear it was just from falling while running—no scratches or bites from the infected. The other girl is helping her.”

Unobstructed, Su You looked toward the gate.

Two hundred meters away, two girls were holding onto each other, glancing behind them as if some terrifying beast was hiding there.

In the distance, faint cries for help and the wail of fire alarms could already be heard.

Amber exchanged a glance with Su You, understanding her meaning. “It’s not safe out here. Let’s get them into the car first.”

But Michael didn’t forget Selina. “We still have two companions!”

Amber narrowed her eyes with a small grin, showing a tiger tooth. “Relax. Yojie’s already on it. You get in first—we’ll pick them up.”

Sure enough, the black-haired woman was already sprinting toward the gate. Michael wanted to warn her it wasn’t safe—until he saw her suddenly whip out a silver Desert Eagle and fire toward the gate.

Selina’s heart lurched when she saw the gun muzzle pointed her way.

The next second, a zombie collapsed behind the fence.

Drawn by the shot, more zombies surged from the direction of the cafeteria, running wildly.

Selina recognized several faces—classmates, teachers, even the gardener and the librarian.

But too many zombies were slamming into the gate, the flimsy fence shaking, ready to collapse under the weight.

She heard the Eastern woman shout, “Run!”

Hearing the commotion behind her, Selina didn’t think twice. She pulled her injured teammate and bolted.

Su You moved swiftly. The injured girl clenched her teeth through the pain, and with Selina’s help, managed to keep up.

By then Amber had driven the car up, sticking her head out the window. “Get in!”

One section of the fence gave way, toppling like dominoes.

With no barrier, the beasts charged straight at the survivors.

The two girls scrambled into the vehicle as Su You fired while retreating, not stopping until she leapt into the passenger seat, having emptied all eight bullets in her magazine.

She slammed the door shut. “Go!”

Amber floored the accelerator, mowing down several infected blocking their path.

Through the window, Su You saw one of them—half its jaw torn off—its greedy eyes locked onto the passengers inside.

The sight was nauseating.

As the vehicle sped down the road, distant air raid sirens and thick smoke filled the sky.

This district was on the outskirts, with fewer factories and residential blocks, so the roads remained fairly open.

Still, abandoned cars and panicked pedestrians occasionally blocked their path, forcing Amber to drive carefully.

Selina and her teammate huddled in the back seat, shaken. The injured girl whimpered softly. Selina tried to soothe her while checking her phone—she had just messaged her grandfather, but no reply yet. She had no idea if her family was safe.

But before fear could take over, a coil of rope suddenly landed on their laps from the front seat.

The woman’s cold voice followed: “Tie your wrists together, each of you with the others. If not, get out.”

The five students were stunned. After barely escaping death, this harsh demand felt unreasonable. One boy immediately protested.

Before Selina could stop him, he shouted angrily, “Why should we tie ourselves up? We’re not criminals!”

Su You replied lazily, “I can’t tell if you’ve been infected. Letting you on board was already mercy enough. If you don’t agree, get out. Your choice.”

The words left him speechless.

For now, the car was the only safe place. Outside meant certain death.

They had no choice but to silently bind their own wrists with their companions’ help.

Once they were done, Su You continued, “The school has fallen. It looks like the entire city of Snowell is in serious trouble—it’s extremely unsafe now. Where are you planning to go?”

Her voice turned colder. “But let’s be clear—I’m not a good person. I won’t be escorting each of you home. Decide among yourselves where I should drop you off.”