So it was you

Zhang Yi's lips moved, but in the end, he said nothing. Eight Corpse Crystals were enough to trade for four bottles of water.

So on their way out, Nan Shao cut off the three heads outside as well, tying four to himself and four to Zhang Yi. Noticing that Zhang Yi's limp was worse than before, he switched bags with him, carrying the heavier one himself. Zhang Yi's leg hurt so badly that even walking was difficult, so he did not refuse the kindness.

Chapter 12: So it was you

Traditional blacksmith shops had gradually disappeared from rapidly developing cities. The fact that one still remained in Ziyun County's old town owed much to the area's backwardness.

Perhaps the stench of decay from the zombie heads on their bodies masked their scent, or perhaps there really were few zombies nearby. The two reached the blacksmith shop without trouble. It had been daytime when the apocalypse struck, which was why so many storefronts were open. Yet even now, Zhang Yi had not figured out what had caused the apocalypse. It seemed that the sky had gone dark for three days, and when the sun returned, scorching sunlight baked the earth, plants withered, animals vanished, and humans mutated. Everyone wanted to know what had caused the disaster, where the animals had gone, and what was happening in other cities. Unfortunately, ordinary people could barely ensure their own survival, let alone spare the energy to investigate such things.

The blacksmith shop was open too, but there was no sign of the blacksmith. There was no telling whether he had become a zombie or one of the survivors. The once-roaring forge had long since gone cold, leaving only a furnace full of gray-white ashes, and dust covered the bellows. The shop mainly took jobs making farm tools, so its walls were hung with hoes, rakes, sickles, billhooks, and the like. Nan Shao immediately took a liking to the large smithing hammer left carelessly on the floor. He went over, picked it up, and hefted it. It actually weighed over a dozen jin.

"That's too cumbersome. It'll wear you out and hamper your movements." Having spoken, Zhang Yi went to find two billhooks and an axe and put them in the bag on his back, then found a wooden stick to use as a crutch. His leg would not stop hurting anytime soon, so this would have to do.

The shovel Nan Shao had picked up had begun to curl at the edge after cutting down four zombies, so he simply removed its handle and fitted it to a pickaxe. He had not forgotten how formidable the pickaxe in that woman's hands had been earlier. Its handle had just been a little short; replacing it like this was perfect.

There were plenty of iron tools in the shop, but the two could not carry much. They picked out a couple of spares and left. As they were leaving, Nan Shao still could not bear to leave the big hammer behind and hoisted it onto his shoulder. Zhang Yi said nothing more. He had already given the advice he should; since the other man still wanted to take it, he naturally had something in mind.

Not long after they left, another figure slipped into the shop. It was the woman. She had been following them all along, refusing to show herself because she did not trust them, even though they had previously shown her the way without asking anything in return when she was alone, had not mistreated her, and had even saved her. But in her past experience, those people had also offered her a helping hand, only to push her out without hesitation in the end. Had her ability not erupted at the last moment, the zombies would likely have gnawed her down to bare bones long ago. It could hardly be called a blessing in disguise, because that ability... better left unsaid.

She quickly took a machete from the blacksmith shop, then quietly followed the two again. First, she could use their strength to clear the zombies from the road ahead. Second, she hoped to lend them a hand if they found themselves in danger, repaying them for saving her life earlier.

Since no one had traveled the route Zhang Yi chose, a few zombies still appeared along the way from time to time. Most were dealt with by Nan Shao swinging his pickaxe, and Zhang Yi only needed to strike when Nan Shao could not handle them all. It had to be said that a pickaxe was remarkably lethal, especially in the hands of a strong man who knew some martial arts.

As a result, they killed rather a lot of zombies, making it inconvenient to carry them on their bodies anymore. Nan Shao used the big hammer to smash each head to a pulp with a single blow, while Zhang Yi was responsible for finding the Corpse Crystals inside. It took little time to extract all the Corpse Crystals, including those in the heads hanging from their bodies. Fortunately, Corpse Crystals were so tough that even ability users could not hope to smash them; otherwise, they really would not have dared do this.

But they had been delayed too long on the road. By the time they left the county town and reached the factory where the vehicles parked, the last vehicle back to town had already left. The factory stood empty, with not a single person remaining.

Both their expressions darkened. Zombies became more active after nightfall, but that was not the main issue. The main issue was that Yangyang was alone in the shack, and they could not feel at ease spending the night away. Yet even if they walked back now, they would not reach town before the gates closed, and the town gates would not be opened at night.

"Can you still walk?" Nan Shao asked Zhang Yi, who was leaning on his wooden stick. After working together all afternoon, he could tell that this man was a capable fighter. Neither his judgment nor his grasp of timing was something an ordinary person could match, and his strikes were ruthless and decisive, without the slightest flourish. If not for his leg holding him back, he should have been able to do very well even with a child in tow. Nan Shao just did not know what he had done before.

"We'll spend the night here." After struggling inwardly for a long while, Zhang Yi finally shook his head. Of course he wanted to get back to town today. Even if he was shut outside, he could enter as soon as the gates opened at dawn. But everyone knew how dangerous it was to walk through open country with nowhere to hide. Ordinary people did not dare do that even in daylight, let alone at night. He was worried about Yangyang, but he understood even more clearly that, for Yangyang's sake, however anxious he was, he first had to ensure his own safety.

Nan Shao looked at him silently and offered no objection. He did like the little boy and feel for him, but after all, he had only known him for a day. By no means had it reached the point where he would scramble to risk his life for him, especially when the boy's father had been the first to give up on continuing the journey. Merely raising the possibility was already enough.

Before dark, the two found the factory's office building. Only after confirming that every room upstairs and downstairs was free of zombies did they choose a room with an old-fashioned heating pipe running from beneath its window to the building opposite, then shut the door and windows tightly to rest. After baking in the sun all day, the room was like a steamer, but they did not dare hope for wind, because that would mean their scent could be carried far away, drawing zombies with their keen sense of smell.