Chapter Twenty-Four: The Shatterer (Part Two)

“Hey, over here! You disgusting brute!” Zhao Qiang shouted, his gun still firing relentlessly.

Provoked by Zhao Qiang’s taunts, the mutant zombie seemed to grow even more enraged. It abandoned any attempt at defending its vital points, charging at Zhao Qiang with renewed speed.

Twenty meters. Ten meters. Zhao Qiang silently counted the shrinking distance. When the mutant zombie was less than five meters away, he spun and dashed for the window. Firing round after round as he ran, he flung himself headfirst through the window at the very instant the zombie’s enormous hand nearly caught him, covering his head with his arms as he leapt.

The next second, the mutant zombie followed, smashing through the entire window frame with its massive body. With a howl, it sailed over Zhao Qiang’s head and crashed into the ground below. A dull thud echoed as the creature slammed into the cracked cement, where it lay motionless.

Idiot! Zhao Qiang cursed inwardly, climbing back up to his original position using a drainpipe. But as he swung himself over the large hole in the broken glass, a furious roar rose from below. Zhao Qiang leaned out to look, just in time to see a huge shadow leap up and vanish through the second-floor window. All that remained where the zombie had fallen was a deep, cracked crater and a pool of foul blood.

Damn it! Not even a fall like that could kill it? Zhao Qiang could hardly believe it. The impact had left a crater in the cement, and yet the mutant zombie survived. Suddenly, the ground began to shake as if something was tunneling straight through the floor toward his position.

Zhao Qiang’s expression tightened. He realized the zombie possessed a terrifying intelligence now, and everything he had done had only driven the beast into a frenzy. He retrieved his Type 95 rifle from the rubble and ran for the rooftop.

Just as he made it to the rooftop platform, the mutant zombie’s furious roar echoed behind him again. Hell, this thing’s faster than an elevator! Zhao Qiang tossed aside his tactical backpack and began expertly reassembling his rifle. This time, nothing could go wrong—his pistol couldn’t even scratch that monster. His only hope was the firepower of his rifle.

The mutant zombie didn’t linger at the previous battlefield. Finding its opponent gone, it lifted its head and sniffed the air repeatedly. Soon, maddened with rage, it leapt again, smashing through the ceiling with brute strength.

The tremors beneath Zhao Qiang’s feet grew more pronounced and rapid—the zombie had locked onto him. Suddenly, something small and round rolled out from his backpack with the vibrations. A grenade! Zhao Qiang’s eyes lit up as he caught sight of the unexpected device.

Without warning, Zhao Qiang launched himself aside. A deafening explosion tore apart the spot where he’d just been standing. Amid swirling dust and flying chunks of cement, the towering figure of the mutant zombie emerged once more.

His ambush plan was ruined. He’d hoped to find a concealed spot to wait for the zombie to appear, but it had burst out from directly beneath him. If not for a sudden intuition and his instinctive leap, the zombie might have killed him in an instant. Stay calm. You must stay calm! Zhao Qiang told himself, drawing a deep breath to steady his racing heart.

Having failed to finish him, the mutant zombie grew even more frenzied. Roaring, its grey eyes scanned for the loathsome lizard—Zhao Qiang. Shots rang out; three bullets drilled into its chest, blossoming into bloody bursts. In the chaos, Zhao Qiang could only fire on instinct and, seeing he’d missed any vital points, dodged again, narrowly avoiding the zombie’s massive fist.

Its explosive power and immense size left Zhao Qiang with almost no time to aim at a target that, by all rights, should be easy to hit. In seconds, he emptied a magazine; the zombie’s chest was a mangled mess of flesh and blood, but it didn’t seem to care. Bullets pierced its skin but couldn’t penetrate the iron-hard muscle beneath. The force only slowed it slightly, unable to inflict real harm.

Relying on his agility, Zhao Qiang barely dodged the zombie’s relentless attacks again and again. There was muscle everywhere—the bullets couldn’t get through. But the legs? Zhao Qiang glanced at its lower limbs. Though its upper body was monstrously powerful, its legs weren’t much different from a human’s.

Seizing the moment as the zombie lost its balance, Zhao Qiang aimed at its knee. The bullet shot out, tearing through the kneecap and blasting a spray of shattered bone and flesh from behind.

With a roar, the mutant zombie’s right knee was blown out. Now, with only one leg, it could no longer support its massive frame. It crashed to the ground with a thunderous bellow.

Zhao Qiang exhaled in relief—at last, the monster was immobilized. The rest would be easy. He pulled out the grenade he’d kept ready and strode toward the fallen zombie.

In his relief, Zhao Qiang forgot—zombies are not like humans; they feel no pain. Once down, the mutant quickly rolled upright, seized its mangled leg, tore it off, and flung it at Zhao Qiang. Before he could dodge, the severed limb struck him in the chest, sending him flying like a broken kite.

He landed hard several meters away. The impact nearly knocked him unconscious, and he struggled for breath, his vision swimming with black spots. Lying on the ground, agony radiated from his chest as blood welled up in his mouth, making it hard to breathe.

There was no time to check his injuries—as his sight cleared, Zhao Qiang saw the mutant zombie scrambling toward him on all fours. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he raised his rifle, slammed in a fresh magazine, and fired.

Bullets spat from the barrel, but Zhao Qiang’s wounded body couldn’t control the recoil. Only a few stray rounds found their mark.

Come on, you bastard! If I die, I’m taking you with me! Zhao Qiang tossed aside his useless rifle, pulled out the grenade he’d never had the chance to use, and yanked out the pin.

The mutant lunged forward, but instead of finishing off the barely conscious Zhao Qiang, it grabbed him and lifted him in the air. Perhaps it wanted to torment its prey, or perhaps it simply wanted to declare victory. Its gaping maw opened wide, unleashing a roar right in Zhao Qiang’s face.

“Your breath stinks!” Zhao Qiang, seemingly at death’s door, suddenly spoke. His eyes snapped open, glaring straight into the zombie’s own. “Didn’t anyone tell you you should brush your teeth in the morning?” With that, Zhao Qiang summoned the last of his strength and shoved the grenade into the zombie’s mouth.

Feeling the foreign object, the mutant zombie hurled Zhao Qiang aside, frantically clawing at its mouth to remove it.

“Goodbye!” Zhao Qiang whispered as he watched the monster vanish in the ensuing explosion, then his head lolled to the side and he slipped into unconsciousness.