The Virus Puzzle

"I know."

Eugene replied, glancing at the woman's face as he did so.

Quite pretty, what a pity, no use for her now.

Bang!

Eugene fired, avoiding the woman's face and blasting her entire chest into minced meat.

Seeing this, Gavin turned and walked toward the Tyrannosaurus, saying.

"I'll go send that God of War on his way."

"Let me do it instead. I said I was going to blow his balls off, and I don't want to go back on my word!"

Eugene interrupted Gavin, then hoisted his shotgun and walked toward the driver, who was still coughing up blood, with a cold sneer, aiming the muzzle at his crotch.

On the ground, the driver wasn't looking at Eugene, nor even at the muzzle pointed at him, but was staring intently at Gavin as he approached.

Noticing the driver's gaze, Eugene glanced at Gavin and laughed, saying to the driver.

"Haha, of course you recognize him. I bet you didn't expect this, did you? The only GOAT in the sports world, the famous King of Cowboys, is here with me to send you to your death!"

As he finished speaking, Eugene jabbed the muzzle into the driver's abdomen, making him spray blood even more violently.

To the side, Gavin watched the driver, who was still staring at him while coughing up blood, and shook his head at Eugene.

"It's fitting that you're the one killing him. Otherwise, I'd be worried he was a fan of mine and that my doing it would actually make him happy."

"This son of a bitch almost took me out. Good thing he only hit the passenger seat, I... hm?"

Gavin was in the middle of lamenting, about to say something else, when a burst of static suddenly reached his ears. He hurriedly raised his SCAR and looked toward the source of the sound.

At the same time, Eugene also raised his gun vigilantly, aiming at the location of the noise.

Right before their eyes, the woman whose heart Eugene had just shattered was now forcing her upper body up!

Even though her lumbar spine was twisted like a pretzel, even though fragments of her internal organs were falling from her chest cavity.

Even though her blood had almost formed a stream...

At this moment, the Red Dress Woman was actually still crawling toward the two men!

"Gulp!"

Gavin swallowed hard.

Eugene simply cursed out loud.

"Shit, what is that thing? I'm certain she hadn't turned into a zombie before she died!"

"Don't fucking ask me, I don't know either. To hell with it!"

Gavin gritted his teeth and fired, a short burst blowing the head off the woman who was only seven meters away.

Watching the Red Dress zombie collapse, Eugene looked down at the driver, who was still spitting up bloody foam, and asked with a trembling voice.

"Boss?"

"I'm here."

Gavin carried his rifle, walking unsteadily to the driver and aiming the muzzle at the driver's heart.

Beside him, Eugene swallowed and asked in a low voice.

"This guy hasn't turned into a zombie yet. Do you think that after he dies, he might also..."

Bang!

Eugene's words were cut off by the gunshot.

Gavin blasted the driver's heart with one shot, then raised his foot to stomp on the driver's left hand, saying in a heavy tone.

"Don't ask me. We'll know once we run an experiment."

"Whatever you say. I'm looking forward to it—no, actually, I'm not looking forward to it at all. Fuck!"

Eugene cursed along with him, simultaneously raising his foot to stomp on the driver's other hand.

Gavin raised his wrist, staring silently at his watch.

Once the driver's last breath vanished, Gavin began to time it.

One second...

Seven seconds...

Whoosh!

The driver on the ground suddenly snapped his eyes open, and the force of his struggle transmitted through Gavin and Eugene's feet.

Watching the zombie driver constantly opening his mouth and roaring, sweat broke out on Eugene's forehead.

Gavin fished two cigarettes out of his pocket and tossed one to Eugene from a distance.

Catching the cigarette, Eugene pulled out his lighter and lit it with trembling hands.

After exhaling the first puff of smoke, Eugene asked Gavin in a low voice.

"Quarterback, do you think that after we die, we'll end up just like those two?"

As he said this, Eugene looked at the zombie driver with lingering fear.

Hearing this, Gavin exhaled a cloud of smoke, then held his gun with his left hand and drew a tactical knife with his right.

After plunging the tactical knife through the driver's eye socket and into his brain, Gavin twisted it heavily while responding.

"That doesn't matter. I couldn't care less what I turn into after I die."

"As for the current situation, heh, isn't that how it always plays out in the TV shows?"

Gavin pulled the knife out and wiped the blade clean on the driver's clothes.

Beside him, Eugene spat on the ground and continued to ask.

"You mean The Walking Dead? Fuck, we aren't really going to be like that show, where everyone is already carrying the zombie virus, are we?"

It was 2013, and The Walking Dead had already reached its third season.

The fact that all the survivors in the main cast carried the zombie virus and would turn upon death had spread widely along with the show's massive popularity.

Now, having witnessed the deaths of the God of War Man and the Red Dress Woman with his own eyes, even if Gavin didn't want it to be true, the reality was right in front of him.

Although he didn't know where the zombie virus had originated, when it started, or how it had spread.

He feared that before the zombie apocalypse even broke out, this virus had already infected every single person on Earth.

As for why his group had survived, Gavin couldn't yet find a pattern, and he might never figure it out in his lifetime.

But that didn't matter; what mattered was... seeing tomorrow's sun as many times as possible!

Thinking of this, Gavin threw his half-smoked cigarette to the ground, crushed it hard with his boot, and said.

"So what if we have the virus, and so what if we don't?"

"If I have the virus, will it stop me from drinking and eating meat?"

"If I don't have the virus, will my body be free of illness and disaster, healthy and long-lived?"

"What a load of bullshit!"

After saying this, Gavin returned to the side of the Tyrannosaurus and looked at the hood of the vehicle.

There were three bullet holes in the hood, so he slung his gun over his shoulder and lifted the hood to inspect it.

Eugene walked up behind him, took one look at the engine, and confirmed that the trouble wasn't major, then said to Gavin with a wry smile.

"You really deserve to be the boss, the way you talk is so carefree..."

"But you're right. As long as the virus doesn't stop me from fucking women, then the zombie virus inside us doesn't sound as scary as a common cold!"

After saying this, Eugene tapped the gun on Gavin's back while holding his cigarette, and continued with a slightly more relaxed laugh.

"Tsk tsk, this gun isn't cheap. SCAR-PDW, the civilian version of the SCAR. The bare rifle alone is at least two thousand bucks!"

"And he had this one modified. A normal civilian SCAR can only fire semi-auto, but this one can fire full-auto."

"Let me see, whoa, whether it's the laser sight or the switchable red-dot 3x holographic sight, it's all top-tier brand stuff."

At this point, Eugene couldn't help but show a look of adoration. He greedily stroked the body of the SCAR and continued.

"Boss, how much do you think this little beauty and all its accessories are worth?"

"How much?"

Gavin pried a bullet lodged in the engine out with his tactical knife, threw it aside, and asked Eugene.

Seeing that Gavin had taken the bait, Eugene revealed the answer with a satisfied expression.

"At least six thousand dollars!"

"Oh."

Hearing this, Gavin gave a flat "oh" and laughed.

"That's quite a bit cheaper than the stuff I have at home. I have a few HK416s, and each one has at least three different types of rail accessories."

After saying this, Gavin continued to search for other bullets hidden near the engine.

Eugene excitedly let go of the SCAR and took a heavy drag of his cigarette.

He threw the butt down, ground it into the dirt with his heel, and muttered to himself.

"I knew it. A rich guy like you only plays with the best, or the most expensive, or the kind like the HK416 that's both good and expensive, haha!"

Accompanied by Eugene's laughter, an RV sped over from the distance and finally stopped behind the Tyrannosaurus.

Once it stopped, everyone rushed out of the vehicle and looked nervously at the Tyrannosaurus, which was now missing its windshield.

Madison walked over to Gavin's side with a worried expression and asked.

"Fuck, you aren't hurt, are you, Boss? That asshole shot at you!"

Facing Madison's concern, Gavin stood up, patted Madison on the arm, and laughed.

"Do I look like I'm in trouble? But it was really dangerous just now. You know I don't like taking risks, so I had no choice but to take him out."

As he spoke, Gavin gestured toward the hood of the car for Madison.

"Since you're here, help me check if this car is still drivable. It doesn't look like it's smoking, so there shouldn't be any hidden issues, right?"

"Uh, this?" Madison was stunned. "I don't know how to fix cars..."

"What?"

Watching the awkward look on Madison's face, Gavin paused for a moment before suddenly breaking into a mischievous grin.

"Tsk tsk, a kid who grew up on the streets of Chicago. When you were out running the streets, I was still playing with cow udders at home~"

"Boss..."

Madison rolled his eyes and then looked toward the others for help.

Not far away, William stumbled out and whispered, "Let me take a look."

"You don't need to, you unweaned brat. I learned a thing or two in the military; I'll handle it."

Eugene was just that kind of show-off, and he certainly wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to impress in front of Madison!

Waving a hand dismissively at William from a distance, Eugene swaggered over to the front of the car.

As he passed Madison, he gave Madison's chest an exaggerated pat and mocked him, mimicking Gavin's tone.

"Move aside, kid who grew up on the streets of Chicago, tsk tsk~"