Chapter 58: Dispute

“Damn, what the hell is this? A zombie siege? How are we supposed to get through with so many of them?”

He Ze looked at the bridge, feeling a wave of nausea. These zombies could easily kick the bus into the river with a single blow.

The people inside the vehicles stared at the bridge in horror, covering their mouths tightly, not daring to make a sound.

Even the usually composed Shen Rangchen stood up from his seat.

Silence spread through the car, as if the glimmer of hope they had seen was once again shattered.

Even Lin Mu, faced with this scene, was close to losing his ability to think. What should they do?

For a moment, he even considered whether they should turn back and find another route, but they had already studied the map thoroughly.

And then there were the people on the bridge. They had clearly been hanging there for days, while below them were thousands of zombies, barely clinging to life on top.

Lin Mu turned to look at Fu Jingmo. This usually calm man had a faint smile on his face as he bent one leg, slowly and methodically tightening the laces on his combat boots before switching to the other leg.

Lin Mu showed a hint of confusion. Fu Jingmo glanced at the map again. The River Crossing Bridge ran north-south; to the left, westward, was the city center, but further east were some factories and large warehouses.

In just a couple of minutes, Fu Jingmo had already mapped out a route in his mind. If he could lure the zombies to that area, it might be possible to use the factory buildings to evade them.

“Lin Mu, go to the bus.”

He spoke casually, as if it were the most ordinary thing.

Lin Mu’s brows furrowed more deeply, and he didn’t move. He instantly realized what Fu Jingmo intended to do.

“Fu Jingmo, there are too many zombies…”

The man in the driver’s seat looked up, and smiled. His eyes are sharp yet carrying a hint of roguishness. He nonchalantly said, “It’s just to divert them. This side has factories; we can lead them there, and then you can cross the bridge.”

“Yeah, and we can take those few useless ones along as well.”

His pale hand pressed on Fu Jingmo’s arm, which was resting on the steering wheel, conveying a slight warmth. Fu Jingmo looked at Lin Mu.

Lin Mu’s eyes were light, unlike his own, which were as dark as ink and appeared fierce.

“I’m going with you.”

Lin Mu exhaled, and spoke with difficulty. There was no reason for Fu Jingmo to take the risk alone; having him along would add more strength.

“No need. I’ll be back soon. Wait for me at the safe zone.” He smiled, and glanced at the bus behind them.

Lin Mu clenched his fingers tightly, looked at him deeply and repeated, “I’m going with you.”

Fu Jingmo frowned, his expression turning serious. “Get off, Lin Mu.”

The air grew tense for a moment. After a while, Lin Mu unclenched his tightly bitten jaw, exhaled, and opened the car door to get out.

A feeling of anger welled up inside him, and his usually calm demeanor turned cold. Along the way, they had hardly had any disputes.

He was angry at his own lack of strength, but even more so at Fu Jingmo’s indifferent attitude.

Maybe he would die, with so many zombies. How could Fu Jingmo be so calm about going alone to divert them?

He suddenly realized that Fu Jingmo, who always seemed unafraid, might be ready to face death at any moment.

“Mumu, why are you here?”

The door of the bus opened, and Lin Mu stepped up.

“Move the bus to the side, be careful, and be ready to cross the bridge at any moment. Everyone should crouch down and stay silent.”

His voice was cold as he took the front passenger seat, staring intently at the SUV just five meters ahead.

Sensing Lin Mu’s mood, He Ze also fell silent.

Inside the SUV, Fu Jingmo made a quick inspection. Before the apocalypse, he had undertaken countless missions, all of them life-threatening and close to the edge of death.

It was just a matter of diverting the zombies. He couldn’t quite explain why he didn’t want to bring Lin Mu along. The spot on his arm where Lin Mu had touched seemed to still carry a slight warmth.

Looking at the zombies ahead, Fu Jingmo smirked coldly. He glanced at the rearview mirror; the bus had quietly stopped at the roadside.

Flexing his fingers and loosening his neck with a quick movement, Fu Jingmo gripped the steering wheel, hit the gas, and the SUV roared forward, quickly approaching the River Crossing Bridge.

The bus shrank in the rearview mirror. With a sudden brake, he stopped the car abruptly at the bridge entrance. Zombies, noticing the vehicle, staggered towards it, crowding around.

The sidewalk had knee-high railings, tripping several zombies.

Fu Jingmo turned on the car’s stereo. Fortunately, there were a few CDs inside, and the sound system was top-notch.

He opened the window and cranked up the volume to the maximum. In an instant, the roaring zombies on the bridge stopped, stunned for a few seconds, then rushed towards Fu Jingmo’s car.

He turned the steering wheel sharply, and the rear of the car swung out in a beautiful arc. The zombies followed the car’s swift movement, tripping and falling down one after another.

Fu Jingmo’s cold eyes calculated the speed at which the zombies were descending and glanced at the seemingly endless River Crossing Bridge.

The music in the car continued to play as the zombies relentlessly followed.

When the first zombie was about to touch the car, Fu Jingmo flicked a black blade out of the window, decapitating the zombies in front of him.

From a hundred meters away in the bus, Lin Mu watched the SUV near the bridge intently, his hands clenched tightly at his sides, nails digging into his palms without him noticing.

“It’s time. We can go now,” a voice in his mind screamed.

Even though he knew Fu Jingmo’s abilities and judgment were precise, he still hoped Fu Jingmo would leave quickly.

The zombies swarmed around the SUV, nearly surrounding it completely. Lin Mu’s view of the car was gradually obscured, and even He Ze looked worried.

Fu Jingmo glanced at the bridge. It was almost time. Regardless of how many zombies he could draw away, the rest would have to be dealt with by them.

The black blade flicked out again, creating a gap on the eastern side. With a stomp on the gas pedal, the car knocked over several zombies, driving towards the planned direction.

The zombies chased relentlessly as Fu Jingmo slowed down, keeping them just behind him.

Thousands, maybe even tens of thousands of zombies, rushed off the bridge, chasing after the car. The remaining zombies on the bridge wandered aimlessly in the suddenly spacious area.

“Wh-what’s happening?”

A fat man lying on the steel framework wiped the sweat from his forehead. His name was Li Xu, the CEO of a publicly traded company. He had been lying there for two days, barely hanging on.

Along with him were his wife, daughter, and younger son. His son had fallen off the structure the previous night, torn to pieces before his eyes. His wife had fainted from crying and now lay rigidly on the framework, fortunately held in place by low railings on either side.

On the opposite framework, there were three more people. He didn’t know them, but he blamed them for bringing the zombies.

Originally, they had planned to sneak across the bridge while it was quiet to reach the safe zone on the other side. But these three people had led a horde of zombies right to them.

Then more and more zombies came, trapping them there.

“Boom—”

A huge explosion erupted, and Fu Jingmo dusted off his hands before getting back into the car. Excellent, he still had two more explosives left from the mining area.

The zombies chasing him were blown away by the blast, and the loud explosion attracted even more zombies off the bridge.

He restarted the car and continued driving towards the factories.

From a distance, on the opposite side of the River Crossing Bridge, someone on the 14th floor of a building peered through binoculars at the scene.

“Hey, what’s going on over there?”

A young man watched the SUV on the other side as it led the zombies around like a dog on a leash and then casually threw out a bomb. Impressive, truly impressive.

“Take a look.”

Someone from behind stepped forward, taking the binoculars from the young man and looking towards the opposite side.