Six o'clock.
At Teacher Luong's home.
Phi Phi was packing her textbooks. A day of study, for her, had its rewards, but these rewards were watching Dinh Dinh and Co Tu Thanh, the two top students, easily answer Grandma Luong's questions.
As for her, it was quite miserable. She understood the meaning of the questions, but the questions didn't give her the answers. She could only bite her finger, lost in thought, taking nearly half a day to figure them out.
Math truly was her weak point.
In the past, seeing math made her feel dizzy, confused, utterly lost.
The apocalypse descending caused immense trauma to her young soul; her father's death was the same. It took great effort, with care, to stand up again, to regain hope.
Who would have thought, introduced by Uncle Lam, coming to Grandma Luong's for education, she would once again fall into darkness.
"Ah, Dinh Dinh, Brother Tu Thanh, don't run so fast!" Phi Phi, who was packing her schoolbag, saw them sling their bags and disappear like a wisp of smoke. She stomped her foot in frustration, hurriedly finished packing her bag, "Grandma Luong, I'm heading home first."
"Go on, see you later," Grandma Luong said with a smile.
Phi Phi left with her schoolbag. As for Grandma Luong saying "see you later," she didn't take it to heart, figuring Grandma Luong probably wanted to talk to her mother about her studies.
She ran upstairs.
Room 804.
Phi Phi knocked, "Mom, open up quick, I'm back!"
She was used to this life: besides studying, still studying. Her living area was within the residential complex; it had been a long time since she'd been outside to look. Even if she could go out, she wouldn't dare. There were many man-eating zombies outside.
Thinking of those zombies' appearances.
She felt scared.
So ugly.
The door opened.
Phi Phi, while taking off her shoes, said, "Mom, studying today was so tiring."
As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed many people in the room.
Her eyes widened.
A bit lost.
Everyone was there. Even Dinh Dinh and Tu Thanh, who had run off earlier, were looking at her with smiles.
"Mom, is something going on?"
She stammered, her little head turning, thinking about what she had done in the past few days. Thinking carefully, it seemed she hadn't done anything bad, had been very obedient, always trying hard to study.
Ly Mai smiled at Phi Phi, then glanced to the side.
Phi Phi followed her mom's gaze to the side.
One look and she saw the cake placed on the table.
"Is it Mom's birthday today?" Phi Phi asked happily.
Ly Mai said, "Today is your tenth birthday. Your Uncle Lam found out it was your birthday and specially bought you a cake to celebrate."
"Huh?"
Clatter.
Phi Phi, who was holding her schoolbag, stood there dumbfounded, just like a scene from a TV drama. Due to excessive shock and joy, the schoolbag in her hand slipped and fell to the floor.
"Wow..."
"Thank you, Uncle! Thank you, aunties, uncles, grandpas, and grandmas for celebrating my birthday!" She herself didn't even know today was her tenth birthday.
Lam Pham smiled, "Come in quickly."
After Phi Phi entered, Grandma Luong also appeared slowly.
Phi Phi now understood why Dinh Dinh and Tu Thanh had run off so quickly; it turned out they knew it was her birthday and came early to wait for her.
The sentimental Phi Phi felt a bit like crying.
But she held it back. After all, it was her first tenth birthday; how could she just cry? She had to be happy, very happy.
Ly Mai looked at Lam Pham gratefully. When she learned Little Pham had bought Phi Phi a cake, saying today was her tenth birthday, she truly had all sorts of words she wanted to say.
At that moment...
What is a birthday?
Is a birthday more important than survival?
Being alive was already very good; who would still think about those things? But Little Pham told her, he flipped through the tenant registration information and saw Phi Phi's ID card. A birthday definitely had to be celebrated, especially the first tenth birthday.
At that moment, Ly Mai really didn't know what to say.
All the words she wanted to say could only condense into one sentence.
"Thank you."
Before the dining table.
The food wasn't abundant, very simple.
But no one at the scene said the food was meager. Everyone was very satisfied. To be able to enjoy such food in the apocalypse was truly a very happy thing.
They were happier than many other survivors.
Lam Pham clapped his hands, smiling at Phi Phi, his eyes sparkling, singing the birthday song, wanting to leave Phi Phi with a beautiful memory of her tenth birthday.
Of course, this was all he could do. The environment under the apocalypse wasn't good; many things needed to be found. If it were like before, it would be great; just running errands could get things delivered.
Ly Mai said, "Little Pham, will singing too loudly cause some trouble?"
She was afraid singing would attract zombies, bringing trouble to the residential area. She knew Little Pham was very formidable, very strong, could protect everyone, but she didn't want Phi Phi's birthday to bring trouble to the community. Having cake, everyone gathered together, was already very satisfying.
Truly very satisfying.
No other intentions.
Lam Pham said calmly, "It's okay, I'm here."
Those few short words were enough to display his confidence.
If these words were spoken by someone else.
Everyone might not necessarily believe it.
But these words came from Lam Pham's mouth. For them, that meant trust, absolute peace of mind.
The song rang out; everyone clapped for Phi Phi celebrating her birthday.
Although this birthday party couldn't even compare to a small birthday celebration, for Phi Phi, it was the most profound memory of her life. The apocalypse descended, and the people living together celebrated her birthday.
How could such an experience be forgotten?
It would even be forever etched in her heart.
Duong Quang Apartments, the street.
Zombies had been cleared out once by Lam Pham; their numbers could be said to be very few, or even gone. But zombies could move; they could wander here aimlessly.
Of course, if zombies wandered here and heard no movement, they would also gradually leave.
Now.
Some zombies were slowly wandering.
The sound of singing reached them.
The appearing zombies twitched their heads, looked towards the upper floor where the sound originated, the sound reaching the zombies' ears.
"Ugh ugh..."
The zombies' mouths twitched, letting out bursts of roars, ramming against the perimeter wall, ramming against the iron gate. Sound, for zombies, was the strongest stimulant, capable of making their kinetic energy stop and then completely erupt.
In the room.
Lam Pham, hearing the commotion outside, nodded to the crowd.
"I'll go downstairs to take care of something."
Then turned and left.
Everyone heard the commotion outside: collision sounds, zombie roars – that particular sound, as if all zombies could only make "Ugh ugh" sounds.
They looked at each other.
High EQ: I'll go downstairs to take care of something. Low EQ: I'll go chop them up to liven up Phi Phi's birthday.
So bloody.
Downstairs.
Lam Pham looked up at the sky. Night had fallen, with occasional residual light. It felt pretty good. The only regret was... when everyone was happy, unfriendly zombies always appeared.
He had no other intention.
Just to persuade them a little.
At the community entrance, the iron gate was being pounded, making a somewhat jarring noise. Fortunately, the surrounding zombies had been kindly chased away by him, so the number wasn't large.
Otherwise, if the previous situation happened.
He'd be persuading the zombies to leave until, by the time he was done persuading, Phi Phi's birthday party would have long been over.
He leaped over the iron gate.
Landed softly.
As he landed, the zombies pounding the gate roared, their pale eyeballs glinting faintly under the moonlight.
A sword light flashed, one strike piercing a zombie's head.
The distance was too close.
He didn't even have time to persuade the zombies; could only eliminate such unfriendly ones.
"Ugh ugh... Roar."
The obstructed zombies, seeing fresh flesh and blood appear, became unusually excited.
Lam Pham said, "A child is celebrating her birthday; it's not nice for you to be like this. Can you give me some face, don't be like this, just disperse."
He was willing to give the zombies a chance. For him, chopping zombies wasn't a technical task, not even a physically demanding one. Very simple, very easy; one or two slashes and he could take care of them all.
Watching the approaching zombies.
Lam Pham slowly raised Frostmourne in his hand.
The sword representing filial piety in the game, the evil sword, glinted with a silvery-white radiance under the moonlight. The light was dazzling, possessing an indescribable dominance, and handsomeness.
"When I swing my sword, you will have no chance of survival."
He murmured to himself.
Considered a final piece of advice for the irrational zombies.
"Darkness has fallen, aiding the wicked. Do you think you have backing, relying on the encouragement of darkness to do whatever you want?"
"Regrettable..."
Lam Pham entered the house, saw everyone was waiting for him, smiled and said, "Things are taken care of. Let's continue."
Everyone knew what he went downstairs to do.
But no one said anything.
A birthday should be happy; don't think about those things for now.
Continue to be happy.
Life should be like this.
If one is always gloomy, that's being unfair to oneself.
"Phi Phi, this is a gift from everyone for you." Lam Pham picked up a well-packaged box, handed it to Phi Phi.
Everyone looked at Lam Pham gratefully.
This gift didn't include their share.
It was bought by Lam Pham, who said it was a joint gift for Phi Phi.
Phi Phi looked at the gift before her, maintaining a smile from beginning to end, which suddenly stiffened a bit. Various terrifying images flashed in her mind. Open the gift box, the thing inside is...
Test papers?
"Thank you, Uncle. Thank you, everyone."
Phi Phi was a sensible child. Even if scared in her heart, she always kept a smile for everyone.
She hoped everyone would, seeing her smile, understand she was still a child, not always make her worried and scared. She wanted to properly enjoy a carefree life; no studying would be best.
"Open it and see," Lam Pham said.
Phi Phi swallowed, her hands trembling as she reached for the gift box. For her, this gift box seemed to contain a time bomb. A slight carelessness, and she could be blown to bits.
Her hands touched the gift box.
Placed it on top.
For a long time, dared not open it.
Lam Pham looked at Phi Phi's expression, knew Phi Phi was happily nervous. After all, anyone's birthday is very happy, extremely exciting.
He hoped the children were happy.
Because they were the future in the apocalypse.
The flowers of the future needed to be well protected, letting them grow up happily.
Dinh Dinh clasped her hands, saying expectantly, "Phi Phi sister, hurry and open it! Really want to know what gift it is!"
Phi Phi cast a lost look towards Dinh Dinh. How about... I give this gift to you instead?
Finally.
She slowly opened the gift. When she saw the gift inside wasn't test papers, she let out a sigh of relief.
It was a puppy toy. Saw the switch, also batteries.
Couldn't help but feel relieved.
She said sweetly, "Thank you, Uncle, Auntie, Grandpa, Grandma! I especially like this gift!"
As long as it wasn't test papers, no matter what gift it was, she especially liked it.
But...
"Good that you like it. Install the batteries, flip the switch, and it can make sounds. It has many poems recorded inside. Every day during rest time, lie on the bed, listen to a poem, memorize it. How nice."
Lam Pham patted Phi Phi's head and said.
Phi Phi, who was clearly very happy, heard these words, and a mask of pain instantly covered her heart. A BGM seemed to play in her mind.
She stared blankly at Uncle Lam, unable to recover for a long time.
Screaming in her heart, Uncle... are you really the devil in my heart?
Dinh Dinh said enviously, "Phi Phi sister, can I recite poems with you later? I especially like poems!"
Phi Phi: Oh, heavens! There's another little devil! They must be taking pleasure in torturing me! Boo hoo hoo...
"Okay." Phi Phi smiled, though the smile was a bit stiff.
Everyone was very happy at this birthday party.
Except, perhaps, for one...
Nighttime.
Second floor of the auto repair shop.
Four survivors were holding instant noodle cups, gnawing on bread.
Living supplies weren't considered hard to find, but wanting to eat hot meals like before was highly unlikely, mainly due to the lack of tools, and it was also a bit troublesome.
Being able to eat instant noodles now was pretty good.
At least it could fill the stomach.
That they could go out to find supplies already made them luckier than many other survivors.
Old Mao tilted his head back and drank the soup dry in one gulp, contentedly wiping his mouth, "Since the apocalypse until now, those who can live have survived; those who couldn't have mostly died. We can't use pre-apocalypse human nature to judge people now. As the saying goes, if a man doesn't fend for himself, heaven and earth will destroy him. Survival is the only thought in everyone's mind. Anything impossible before is now possible."
Old Mao sighed.
He used to be an auto mechanic, loved cars, was honest, pursued what he liked, and really didn't think so badly of people.
Who knew, after experiencing some things, his worldview was truly refreshed, thoroughly frightened by the evil of human hearts in the apocalypse.
If he still maintained his previous thoughts.
He probably wouldn't have known how he died long ago.
Don't just see him as the oldest in their team; his role was driving. Many things were usually decided by Big Sis. Mm... Big Sis was very young but capable. Old Mao calling her Big Sis showed his approval of her abilities.
The current four-person team was very good; he felt very secure. They had supported each other all the way.
Big Sis drank some mineral water, "Based on our observations during this period, there are several places we can't go. Tan Phong Guesthouse over there is a no-go; a group of survivors has gathered there. The two corpses downstairs indicate a struggle occurred there. The one in control there should be a fierce character."
"Our foothold is basically Old Mao's car. If we don't have the car, we can't even survive."
Everyone heard these words.
All nodded.
It was indeed like this. Their unity was one part; more important was that steel beast, much stronger than ordinary sedans, capable of resisting zombie harassment.
They had passed Tan Phong Guesthouse, seen the corpses on the ground, also noticed zombies around, and made eye contact with the survivors living upstairs – some had sinister gazes, some helpless.
In this situation, a little thought could make one understand the terror within.
Big Sis continued, "Also Son Thuy Hao Vien over there is a no-go. The person we encountered while driving, I've seen him before. He's one of the subordinates of Phong Lang Vuong Dai Phu, the leader of Hoang city's evil forces. When he saw us, he invited us to Son Thuy Hao Vien, but in reality, he just wants our car. If we go with them, there will be no good end."
She understood the meaning of "no good end."
She was female, considered herself not bad-looking. In this apocalyptic situation, supplies and women were both scarce resources. She wouldn't think Phong Lang Vuong Dai Phu would let her go; perhaps even his underlings could molest her.
Old Mao, Tu Trach Duong, and Sis Van showed grave expressions.
As Hoang city natives.
They had definitely heard of this character, belonging to the more vicious among the evil forces, absolutely a fierce character.
If really caught by this kind of person, it would definitely be tragic.
"And then there's Hang Co Inn. The survivors there have gone a bit mad," Big Sis said.
Hang Co Inn was a dilapidated small inn, just a single building. Many office workers used to live there. When they passed by, they were truly frightened by the scene. The street was littered with fallen, stinking corpses, all having jumped to their deaths from the inn.
It was highly possible that in the early stages of the apocalypse outbreak, some people were chased by zombies and died jumping out of windows.
More importantly... they suspected the survivors inside might be eating...
Cannot say.
Just thinking about it felt very terrifying.
Suddenly.
The sound of a car approaching from outside startled them, their faces changing drastically. They stood up abruptly, rushing towards the window. Unexpectedly, in the darkness, a sedan drove towards them.
"Get out of the way!"
CRASH!
A rock smashed through their second-floor window.
"It's them! Phong Lang Vuong Dai Phu's subordinates!" Big Sis said gravely.
Tu Trach Duong, "Damn! What do they mean? Are they trying to harm us?"
Old Mao said, "They're here for the car."
Immediately after.
A young man with a buzz cut from the car downstairs looked around. After confirming there were no zombies, he took out a megaphone, turned on the sound directly, and placed it in an abandoned car nearby.
A noisy sound blared out.
"Collecting scrap metal! Collecting old TVs, washing machines..."
Then the buzz-cut young man waved at them. The vehicle quickly departed, disappearing into the darkness.
"F***! They really want to harm us!" Sis Van exclaimed in shock.
As soon as his voice fell.
"Ugh ugh... Roar."
Zombie roars came from the surroundings. The initial car sound had already attracted zombies. The sound of collecting scrap metal from the megaphone attracted even more.
The roars grew closer and closer.
They looked at the pitch-black night, already seeing zombie figures appearing. Big Sis seemed to think of something, hurriedly extinguished the faint candlelight. In an instant, the attic was pitch black; only the sound of collecting scrap metal from outside could be heard.
"Ugh ugh... Roar."
Zombies appeared, instantly surrounding the car, searching for the source of the sound, and also for living flesh and blood. Unable to see flesh and blood, the zombies were very puzzled, but the sound of the horn stimulated their aggression to erupt, continuously roaring around.