Cleaning the Environment

Sunshine Residential Complex, at the entrance.

The iron gate was locked, barring the zombies from entering.

Back when he was the only one living in the complex, he hadn't really wanted to lock the gate. There were zombies outside, but there were also survivors living here; what if they came back?

A zombie was slapping against the iron gate, mindlessly slamming its body into it with a booming sound.

Lin Fan watched, trying to recognize who it was from that rotting face, but it was truly difficult—a bit of an unreasonable request.

"Are you lost?" Lin Fan asked softly through the iron gate, then pointed elsewhere. "Maybe you should go look over there. This is Sunshine Residential Complex. I don't know you, so you shouldn't be from our complex."

The zombie's dull, slow, and clumsy behavior was just a ruse to deceive others, reacting to Lin Fan's appearance and his attempt at communication.

It provoked the zombie into shrieking, its face contorting hideously as it thrust its hands through the gaps in the bars, clawing wildly. The human before it held an immense attraction for the zombie.

Bang!

Bang!

The force against the iron gate grew stronger, and the commotion became even louder.

"Sigh."

Lin Fan let out a deep sigh. Why did everyone become so unfriendly after turning into zombies? Every single time, he was forced to defend himself.

The zombie before him hadn't managed to hurt him.

Perhaps it just wanted to play.

After a moment of thought, Lin Fan grabbed Frostmourne and opened the iron gate. He wanted to give the zombie a chance; perhaps there was a reason for their existence, and no one should be able to erase their freedom to live. But if they hurt others, then they were in the wrong.

As the iron gate swung open, the zombie lunged at him.

Squelch!

With one swing of his sword, he decapitated the zombie.

[Zombie killed]

[Points +1]

He thought about the trash cans in the complex that hadn't been hauled away, along with the zombie corpses. Such an environment was not good. In the past, he hadn't cared.

But now there were elderly people and children. It was especially bad for the children; constantly seeing bloody things would have a negative impact on their tender minds.

Previously, the government had launched protective policies prohibiting the appearance of pornographic or bloody imagery, but the results were poor. Many game promotions, when clicked, would lead to websites filled with "buxom" content that shocked the senses.

He couldn't control what was on the internet, but he could start with his own surroundings.

"Two elders, there are zombie corpses in the complex. It's not good if they stay too long. I'm going to move them to the trash station; it's not too far from here. When I leave, please lock the gate tight and just wait for me to return."

Lin Fan gave his instructions and then began to busy himself. The two elders wanted to help, but he refused. These were just small tasks, but they required physical strength; it was better for the old men to rest well.

Soon, trash cans were piled up at the entrance of the complex. Some of the zombies had been dead for days, emitting a foul stench that was truly pungent.

But thinking of the sanitation workers who cleaned the trash stations and often suffered through such smells, what was there for him to be unable to endure by doing it just once?

"Two elders, lock the gate well. Many people outside are very bad now; don't open the door casually."

After saying this, he pushed the trash cans toward the trash station.

"Brother Wang, with Little Fan gone, I want to ask, is his situation normal?" Zhou Aijun inquired. He was just asking; he didn't mean anything else by it.

"Normal? Of course it's normal. Stop letting your imagination run wild. How good is this kid? He's polite, kind-hearted, respects the elderly and loves the young. He treats us so well, even reminding us not to go out casually. He even knows how to grow his own vegetables to reduce the pressure of living. What could possibly be the problem?" Wang Zhongguo looked at his younger brother, feeling that his mindset wasn't quite right.

"Brother, I just feel like it's a bit strange."

"I think you've studied yourself into a daze. What could be strange about it? If I had a granddaughter, I'd introduce her to him no matter what."

Zhou Aijun didn't continue to invite his brother's angry retorts. He felt a bit suspicious—could it be that he really had studied himself into a fool, making his brain less sharp?

"Brother, you make a good point."

Elder Wang looked at the iron gate in front of them. "This gate isn't very good; it easily attracts the attention of zombies. I want to find some tools to create some cover and reinforce it while I'm at it.

You go check the security room and see if the cameras are working. If there's a problem, fix it. If they're fine, run a line to my room.

When I was young, I loved monitoring enemy movements. Since we live here and are being protected by this young man, we should do something too. We can't just eat, drink, and sleep all day. Do you really think this is a time of peace? We must pull ourselves together and throw ourselves into the fight."

"You got it."

On the street.

Lin Fan pushed the trash cans. These cans were hooked together, allowing him to pull a long line of them. Before long, he reached the trash station, which hadn't been cleaned in a long time and was reeking to the heavens.

He endured the stench, lifted the trash cans, and dumped the zombies inside.

There was a faucet next to the trash station for washing the cans. He rinsed the dirty trash cans until they were clean; the dirty water that poured out was murky and viscous, looking disgusting just to behold.

He had a grand ambition: to clean up the shops at the entrance of the complex as well. They were all dirty and messy, and he didn't have a job anyway.

Helping the owners clean them up and charging fifty yuan for the hard work—that shouldn't be a problem, right?

Of course, such things would depend on whether the owners agreed or not.

When it was time to get things done, he got them done.

It was best to just ask clearly.

At this moment, he finished cleaning and looked at the spotless trash can, a smile spreading across his face.

Hardworking people always feel a sense of joy when they look at the masterpiece of their own labor.

He pushed the clean trash can along, looking at his surroundings. With no sanitation workers around to sweep the streets, it was truly filthy, with trash scattered everywhere.

He walked the path back.

Suddenly.

A soda can was tossed right in front of him, hitting the ground with a crisp clatter.

Laughter drifted down from above.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

Lin Fan looked toward the source of the sound: Old Man Qiu Supermarket. It was just a shop, yet it was called a supermarket, which implied it was well-stocked with all sorts of goods.

On the rooftop of the two-story building stood four young men, looking to be about eighteen or nineteen years old. Their expressions were quite good—they looked energetic, not at all worn down or driven to madness by the arrival of the apocalypse.

"The trash cans in the residential area were full, so I brought them to the dump," Lin Fan said. "Is there something you need?"

He asked with a friendly tone.

He was in a good mood, happy to see other living survivors.

"Oh, holy shit, did you hear that? This guy actually said he was taking out the trash. What a talent—he's truly a unique specimen in this apocalypse," one of them, a guy with yellow-dyed hair, said with a loud laugh.

Ever since the apocalypse broke out.

The four of them had been living quite comfortably in Old Man Qiu Supermarket.

They had taken the place over completely.

They had food, they had drink, and for a while, they had even watched survivors running through the streets like monkeys, being chased by zombies.

It was as satisfying as it could get.

"Taking out the trash—isn't that a normal thing to do?" Lin Fan looked up at them. "Is there something wrong? If you need help, you can just tell me."

The yellow-haired guy smoked his cigarette without answering, his eyes looking at Lin Fan as if he were a complete idiot.

Another guy with a shaved head grinned, showing his teeth. "Are you a moron? We're eating well, living well, and sleeping well here. You're actually asking if we need help? You've got a screw loose."

"Do you want to bet that if I just shout once, you'll be the one running from zombies?"

Although they lacked nothing here, they lacked entertainment. Being four men stuck together all day was truly boring; their hearts felt empty and lonely. If only there were a girl around.

Unfortunately... so far, they had only ever encountered one girl.

That girl had been chased by zombies, and even if they had wanted to bring her inside, there was no way to do it. It had been a whole horde of zombies—who could stop that?

"Oh..."

Lin Fan waved his hand to bid them farewell. If there was nothing else, he wouldn't chat with them any longer.

Seeing Lin Fan about to leave.

The four survivors exchanged glances. They were genuinely bored and really wanted to see someone else being chased by zombies. They knew how zombies were—fast and strong.

But they were on a second-story rooftop; unless the zombies could fly, there was no way they were getting up there.

Just as Lin Fan was about to walk away.

A shrill, gloating cry rang out.

The four survivors cupped their hands around their mouths like megaphones and let out a loud "Oh!"—they were trying to lure the zombies over to watch the guy run in a pathetic panic.

Lin Fan shook his head as he heard the noise.

They were really quite mean.

How could survivors today act like this?

The sound was enough to attract zombies.

Gradually, Lin Fan's figure disappeared into the distance, but not a single ghost of a zombie was to be seen.

"What the hell! Don't tell me there aren't any zombies around here anymore."

"That's impossible... there shouldn't be so few of them."

"Then where the hell are the zombies?"

"Hey, look, there's one running out."

The yellow-haired guy pointed toward the alley entrance, expressing his regret over the single zombie that had appeared. It didn't come early, it didn't come late, it only showed up now—wasn't that just ridiculous?

Hearing the noise, the zombie looked around in confusion, appearing sluggish and strange. However, upon seeing the fresh flesh of the survivors on the second-story rooftop, it roared and ran over, slamming against the metal rolling shutter.

"Haha... what a stupid zombie. Is that all it's got?"

"You could keep hitting that until next year and you still wouldn't break through."

Bored to the point of insanity, the four of them picked up flowerpots from the side, aiming at the zombie's head below, preparing to smash it. It was the only game they had left to play.

Clatter!

A flowerpot smashed against the zombie's head, but unfortunately, it didn't do much; it was just amusing to watch.

This action only served to drive the zombie into a frenzy, but as they had said, what could a mere, scrawny zombie possibly do?

At this moment.

More than a dozen zombies surged out from where the first one had appeared, as if they had rushed over from a great distance. They followed the lone zombie and began pounding frantically on the rolling metal door.

"Holy crap! There are getting to be quite a few zombies."

"It's fine, let them come. The outcome is the same."

The four young men remained unfazed, lying there calmly while sipping beer and watching the scene below. When they grew tired of watching, they would go back to rest; without any humans around, the gathered crowd of zombies would eventually disperse.

To them.

The apocalypse had its perks.

Peace had its perks, too.

But in the apocalypse, being able to do whatever they pleased was what they loved most.

"Hey, look at that zombie. What's up with him? Why is he so tall and muscular? That's definitely not a normal zombie. Oh no, he's heading our way. Damn it, he isn't going to smash our rolling door, is he?"

"Impossible. Relax."

"That's right, they're all just small-fry zombies. Just because he's big doesn't mean he can do whatever he wants. I don't buy it."

ROAR!

The giant zombie bellowed as it sprinted forward with ferocious momentum, knocking aside the zombies in its path. With a loud bang that felt like the earth shaking and the mountains swaying, the rolling door collapsed instantly.

Little Yellow Hair: ...

Little Baldy: ...

Little Blue Hair: ...

Little Green Hair: ...

Thanks to Sadox and Bing Dong Han Xin De Lei for the ten-thousand-point tips.

Thanks to Yin-Ying, Lin Xiaojin, Morning Sun Apostle, Lin Xiaojin, Cloud Pavilion of Leisure, Lin Fan is a Crossdresser, Little Ye Ye, Cowardly Dragon, Meng Ganning, Yue Xiaochou, Heaven-Defying Old Bookworm, and other book friends for their tips. Thank you all.