Xu Yan had always treated Xu An like a child. She always felt that without her care, he wouldn't eat well or dress warmly, and whenever Xu An went out on missions, she worried he would encounter danger.
But now, as the moment of separation arrived, Xu Yan realized that it was she who couldn't part with Xu An. She glanced at the people before her. If a conflict truly arose, she wouldn't be utterly helpless. In the past few years, under Xu An's tutelage, while Xu Yan's skills didn't match that of a young person like Xu An, they were more than sufficient against these "old, weak, sick, and disabled" individuals.
Xu Yan felt that the only person worth paying attention to among them was the thin, monkey-like man who had just threatened the old woman with a dagger. Only that man gave Xu Yan a sense of threat. Currently, he seemed to be harmless, but her gaze did not stray from where he stood.
She looked at the little girl in her arms and stroked the top of her head. The soft hair tickled her palm. Yueyue was the granddaughter of Xu Yan's friend whom she had come to visit. Xu Yan herself had never imagined that she would be able to find a friend she knew from before the apocalypse.
This friend was a famous female entrepreneur in Hua Guo, a major taxpayer annually. Through some unknown means, she had been secretly brought to the Lighthouse. The moment she saw Xu Yan, she was teary-eyed, constantly murmuring apologies. "We left in such a hurry, we didn't notify you. When I woke up, I was already on the Lighthouse. Our communication devices were confiscated. Xu Yan, I had a few old friends with me then, and I couldn't contact any of you. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't."
Xu Yan was grateful that the other person had been thinking of her all along. In truth, her own company was about to go public, but compared to the other's ancient family business that had been operating for over a hundred years, it was nothing. Their acquaintance was more like polite small talk at a cocktail party, yet Xu Yan never expected that a single act of kindness from her would make the other person remember her.
Xu Yan didn't even know when the change had come. She only remembered that when a huge commotion erupted outside, the entire residential complex had descended into chaos. The floor manager, who should have been at his post, had used his authority without authorization, opening all the residents' doors. This was why they had to hastily flee their homes.
Right and wrong were no longer clear. Xu Yan only remembered that by the time they escaped, the floor manager had already turned into a mindless zombie. And along their way, because Xu Yan had efficiently dealt with the zombies that attacked them, the two of them had managed to run towards the outside without incident.
However, the moment they opened the door, they were confronted by a son who had come to visit his mother. Seeing her son and granddaughter, the friend's eyes reddened, and she immediately shouted, "Why did you come here!" But as soon as the words left her mouth, the woman, holding her son and granddaughter, burst into tears.
Her son worked at a virus research institute. The fact that her son had escaped could only mean that the authorities could no longer control this incident. "Mom, Aunt Xu, why did you come out? It's not safe outside now."
Despite the difficulty, Xu Yan explained the situation. "It's not safe inside either. The manager became a zombie. Those inside will become zombies soon if there aren't many."
The three fell into an odd silence, but it lasted only a moment before the man, holding his daughter, said to his mother and Xu Yan, "There's no other way. We have to run." The three of them, with a child, not to mention two older middle-aged women among them, were in a precarious situation. Fortunately, Xu Yan's skills were still good, and she resolved many troubles for them along the way.
But sometimes, misfortune sought out the suffering. Just as the three thought they would safely leave the residential complex, a small horde of zombies suddenly emerged from behind them. Yueyue's father, in order to protect his mother, was dragged into the zombie horde. He didn't even have time to utter his last words, only managing to hand the child in his hands to his grandmother.
Xu Yan, seeing her friend frozen in shock, yanked her forcefully and pulled her away. But death did not release these two lonely middle-aged women. During their escape, due to the dense crowds and congestion, the zombies were not polite enough to wait for everyone to run out before chasing them.
Seeing her friend panting while holding her granddaughter, Xu Yan felt pity and snatched the little girl from her friend's arms. Years of training proved immensely useful. She carried a girl nearly eight years old and still had the strength to pull her friend along.
Looking at the excited expression on her friend's face, Xu Yan felt little emotion. She knew this battle had only just begun. As expected, due to the congestion, people ahead started pushing each other. The three of them had a very hard time avoiding being pushed down by the dense crowd.
Just as Xu Yan was pulling her friend to rush out of the complex gate, a sudden, immense force struck from behind. Someone, shouting inanely, using their male advantage, used their massive bodies to shove aside the crowd blocking their path, desperately rushing towards the gate. In the face of death, human ugliness was exposed without reservation.
Xu Yan could not blame them; everyone was fighting for their survival. However, for their own lives, these people forced others towards death. This was unacceptable. Not only did that man push violently, but beside him was an old woman with graying hair and calculating eyes. The old woman, taking advantage of others' inattention, pushed everyone blocking her path into the zombie horde. Among them was even a child who looked only fourteen or fifteen years old.
But in this critical moment of life and death escape, while the crowd was shocked and disgusted, no one truly had the courage to stand up and condemn this mother and son pair. Xu Yan, in a momentary lapse of attention, found her body tilting due to a powerful impact. Since she was holding a child, before Xu Yan could even regain her balance, she felt a tremendous force hit her waist. Instantly, her feet stumbled, and she was about to fall into the charging zombie horde.
At that moment, Xu Yan's life flashed before her eyes like a montage. She thought how sad her own daughter would be if she knew she died here today. Just as Xu Yan believed she was doomed to die, at the critical juncture, her arm was suddenly yanked with immense force. Xu Yan didn't even have time to see who had pulled her. Her friend's last words echoed in her ears. "Please, take care of Yueyue for me."