Who Is Thirteen

Boom—

The towering SUV sped along at an incredible pace, its earthshaking roar kicking up clouds of sand and stones from the roadside as it drove straight into the place later generations would call the "Dead City Zone."

The withered trees rolling past seemed to reflect a road leading to hell. The sky, shrouded in strange pale-red mist, was utterly bleak. The air was heavy, and the atmosphere oppressive.

Shang Jiudi looked at Chu Han in the front passenger seat. The half of his face visible to her was calm and composed. She tilted her head slightly and glanced at Chen Shaoye, who was driving while humming a tune. A smile unknowingly appeared on her face. That timid fatty had not actually been scared to tears.

It seemed she was the same. As long as Chu Han was there, she would no longer feel afraid no matter what happened.

G55 did not slow down in the slightest, and the four people inside were not affected by the oppressive surroundings.

Zombies—what was there to fear?

A dead city—what was there to be afraid to enter?

Five hours later.

Tong City had indeed fallen completely. It had been a long time since the four drove into the city, yet even getting close to the downtown area had proven difficult. They could only keep circling along the surrounding roads.

There were zombies everywhere. They truly were everywhere, lurking in every corner and ready to appear at any moment.

Tall buildings surrounded them, pitch-black and silent. The streets were littered with clutter. Not only was abandoned debris blowing everywhere, but many cars and even large buses lay crookedly across the middle of the road, forcing Chu Han and the others to change routes frequently.

And even more common were the black blood and rotten flesh covering the roads.

Night had fallen, and there was not a trace of light around them. The only sounds entering their ears were the howls of zombies, neither near nor far, like being surrounded by a pack of wild beasts in a forest.

"Where exactly is the person you're looking for?" Chu Han felt that searching for someone today was far too unrealistic. Obstacles restricting their movement were everywhere, and most importantly, nighttime put them at a severe disadvantage.

Shang Jiudi had clearly realized this as well. Her expression was anxious. "I'm afraid we won't find her today. I'm not sure whether she has moved, but she should be in the city center."

Chu Han frowned deeply. What Shang Jiudi said made sense. If that person had not turned into a zombie, she could not possibly have stayed in one place for too long.

But the city center?

Chu Han looked toward the heart of the city. That place was extremely dangerous!

"Who exactly is the companion you're looking for?" Chu Han could not help being curious.

"A woman." Shang Jiudi stopped there, her eyes filled with wariness. After a moment, she added, "Call her Thirteen."

Thirteen? Chu Han paused.

Meanwhile, the usually lively Luo Xiaoxiao was unusually quiet, completely unlike her normal way of doing things.

How strange!

Chu Han did not ask further. He instructed Chen Shaoye to avoid the zombies while looking for a place to settle down. They could only head for the city center tomorrow. Night was full of danger for humans, because zombies did not rely on sight to hunt. Day and night made no difference to those infected, but humans were different. Their eyes were among their most important senses.

Their top priority tonight was to find a place to stay as quickly as possible!

G55 drove along the road.

Chen Shaoye gripped the steering wheel tightly, trying to keep the car as quiet as possible. His voice was steady. "Boss, should we find an apartment building and rest for the night?"

"What about that residential complex across the street?" Luo Xiaoxiao suddenly pointed excitedly at a neighborhood ahead.

It was a fairly upscale place, with low-rise buildings and townhouses, and the landscaping was good as well. Quite a few trees were still lush and vibrant, far better than the barren desolation elsewhere. It would definitely be comfortable to live there. The environment was nice, and there might even be intact furniture.

Shang Jiudi's eyes lit up. "I think it'll work. This area is very quiet, and the zombies' cries are softer than elsewhere—"

"No." Chu Han suddenly cut Shang Jiudi off coldly. "This place won't do. Find somewhere else, farther away from here."

"Why?"

Shang Jiudi and Luo Xiaoxiao asked in unison. Chen Shaoye, who instinctively carried out Chu Han's orders, had already started turning the vehicle. G55's front end was now heading down another road. That was the effect of loyalty reaching 90%.

Chu Han glanced into the rearview mirror, an unknown gleam flashing through his eyes. His voice was cold enough to chill the hearts of the two women, one older and one younger.

"Zombies can sense heat."

Zombie genes differed from human genes. Besides using sound and scent to find prey, their most terrifying trait was their ability to sense heat. They had a tendency to unconsciously move toward places where many people gathered. That was why zombie hordes often appeared in the later years.

Sometimes, having more people did not necessarily mean it was a good thing.

Crack!

The lollipop fell from Luo Xiaoxiao's mouth and rolled onto the floor with a snap.

Shang Jiudi's body trembled, disbelief filling her beautiful eyes.

"Heat sensing?!" Her voice shook. "You mean they can detect where humans are—or, or where food is?!"

"You don't believe me?" Chu Han glanced at her.

Zombie genes held enormous research value. If humanity had understood zombies sooner, so many tragedies would not have happened in his previous life. Of the 20% of humanity that survived the beginning of the apocalypse, less than half remained a year later.

"How could you know? This... this is impossible!" Shang Jiudi resisted the idea fiercely. She could not believe it. If it were true, then what kind of terrifying environment were they living in?

Chu Han withdrew his gaze and did not continue discussing this theory, which would only emerge much later in the future. He pointed at the pitch-black residential complex ahead. "The sounds you hear are faint because there's a sound barrier here. The inside is definitely ten times more dangerous than it looks."

"Fatty Chen, keep driving. Find a supermarket." Chu Han gave the order as he began wiping down his iron axe. "Preferably one with a whole group of zombies trapped inside."

"How is that possible? How could it be like this? It makes no sense!" Shang Jiudi had fallen into a mental dead end.

Chu Han did not concern himself with Shang Jiudi's emotions. His way of thinking was vastly different from that of people now. He no longer had the concepts of the civilized age. What was reasonable or unreasonable in the apocalypse? The existence of zombies itself was unreasonable, yet they had still appeared. That was reality.

Half an hour later, G55 stopped in front of a small-to-medium-sized supermarket.

The supermarket's doors were tightly shut, and its walls were smeared with black blood. Several windows had been smashed open, with chunks of rotten zombie flesh hanging from the glass. Some had turned into thick sludge and dripped onto the ground.

At least a hundred zombies wandered in and out around the supermarket. The goods inside had been knocked all over the place by the zombies, but supplies were abundant. There were probably too many zombies here for anyone to dare come looking for food.

No humans—only zombies.

A good place. This was it!

Thank you, Between Flowing Clouds, for the reward!! Thank you all for your recommendation votes! Any more? The more, the better!

The lovely girl Mengling Xin, who often rewards me in the group chat, has gotten sick. It's quite serious. Please get well soon and take care of yourself. Thank you for your long-term support!