Chapter 10: Blame

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The shelves were a mess, and there was not much left. It seemed quite a few survivors had already begun venturing out to gather supplies, and this convenience store had naturally become their first choice.

They had to move faster. They needed to empty the store today; otherwise, by tomorrow, there might not be anything left.

Just as Ye Nan and the others were frantically looting supplies, three young men hurried in from outside. They moved quickly, their faces filled with panic. They grabbed only a few packets of instant noodles before rushing away, terrified of running into zombies.

After they left, a man and a woman entered. The man had a ferocious scar across his face, giving him a particularly menacing appearance. He was tall and powerfully built, and he carried a machete.

The woman had long hair and above-average looks, but there was something sharp and mean about her expression that made her instantly unpleasant to look at.

The moment they entered, the two of them began stuffing food into their backpacks without a word.

The Scarface glanced at Gong Wanyu, Yan Ruoliu, and Li Siqi from the corner of his eye. He was immediately stunned by their beauty. Any one of these exceptional women would have been an extraordinary prize, yet three of them had appeared at once.

If there had not been zombies outside, the Scarface would certainly have taken all three women back with him and conquered them by force.

Ye Nan sighed inwardly. With so many people coming to the convenience store to gather supplies, more zombies were bound to be drawn here. He was just about to remind the three women to hurry when a horde of zombies charged through the doorway, biting anyone they could reach.

The long-haired woman was closest to the zombies. Terrified, she realized there was no time to escape. Then she came up with an idea. She shoved Yan Ruoliu with all her strength, sending her toward the zombies in an attempt to use her as a shield.

“Look out!”

At the critical moment, Gong Wanyu reacted swiftly and grabbed Yan Ruoliu, preventing her from being pushed into the zombie horde. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

“You wretch! You’ll die horribly!” Yan Ruoliu glared fiercely at the long-haired woman, her eyes blazing with fury.

She had come within a hair’s breadth of becoming zombie food. Naturally, she felt nothing but hatred toward the long-haired woman.

The long-haired woman snorted and changed targets, trying to shove Li Siqi instead.

This time, Gong Wanyu was prepared. She would not let the woman have her way. Tightening her grip on the fruit knife, she thrust it forward with all her strength.

With a wet sound, the blade pierced the long-haired woman’s heart.

Her face twisted with pain and hatred as she screamed repeatedly. But soon, no sound came from her at all—the zombies swarmed over her and swallowed her completely.

Li Siqi was still shaken. She touched her ample chest and cast Gong Wanyu a grateful look. “That was close. Thank you, Sister Gong.”

“We’re practically family. Why are you still thanking me? Come on, we need to leave now.”

Nearby, the Scarface was furious. His wife had just been stabbed to death right in front of him. He tugged at his trouser pocket, where a handgun was concealed, and hesitated over whether to use it.

If he fired, he could certainly kill the other woman, but he would lose three incomparable beauties. More importantly, the gunshot would surely attract even more zombies. By then, his own fate would hardly be any better.

While he was hesitating, the zombies had already rushed toward him.

With no other choice, the Scarface raised his machete, split open one of the zombies, and fled. Staying alive was more important.

Ye Nan wanted badly to pursue him and eliminate the threat completely, but the three women inside the convenience store were in danger. He had no choice but to turn around and deal with the zombies.

His Thunder Sword flashed again and again. The zombies were cut down as easily as vegetables beneath a cleaver, but by then the Scarface had already escaped far into the distance.

“Consider yourself lucky. If I run into you again, I won’t let you go.”

Ye Nan turned and called to the three women, “Let’s move.”

The four of them loaded up on food and headed back. With Ye Nan, an awakened ability user, escorting them, nothing unexpected happened along the way, and they soon returned to the villa.

After resting for quite some time, the four of them set out again to make a second trip.

By the time they finished, the entire first floor of the convenience store had been cleared out. Only some supplies remained in the small warehouse and lounge upstairs.

On their third trip, just as they reached the second floor, an old man and an old woman rushed up after them.

When they saw how many supplies Ye Nan and the others had taken—and that they were even using a handcart to transport them—their expressions immediately turned ugly. They began berating Ye Nan and his companions.

“What’s wrong with you young people? Don’t you know how to respect the elderly and care for the young? Since you have supplies, the first thing you should do is offer them to old people like us. Put down the food you’re carrying at once. Without our permission, you are not allowed to touch anything.”

The old man, Liu, spoke in a domineering tone.

“Exactly!” Old Lady Wang chimed in. “You’re hoarding and snatching supplies. That’s illegal. Once this disaster is over and society returns to normal, I’ll report you to the police and have you thrown in prison!”

Ye Nan replied coldly, “Idiots.”

Old Lady Wang nearly choked with rage. Pointing at him, she shouted, “You insolent brat! How dare you curse me? Get on your knees and apologize! I work for the neighborhood committee. Do you believe that one phone call from me will get you publicly criticized by the committee and have all your living subsidies canceled?”

“Go ahead,” Ye Nan said with a mocking laugh.

Li Siqi was even angrier than Old Lady Wang. She stepped forward and said, “I own this convenience store. Taking food without my permission is theft. If anyone is calling the police, it will be me. I advise you to show some decency. Don’t think you can abuse your age to bully people. This is the apocalypse now—who do you think is going to indulge you?”

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“Oh, heavens! They’re bullying an old woman! Come and see, everyone! What’s wrong with young people these days? They have no sense of public morality at all!”

Old Lady Wang immediately began acting shamelessly.

After everything she had experienced over the past two days, Li Siqi had seen through human nature. She had no intention of indulging Old Lady Wang and simply walked over and slapped her.

The crack of the blow rang out.

A handprint appeared on Old Lady Wang’s face. She stood there in stunned disbelief, never imagining that such a beautiful young woman would actually strike her without hesitation.

“Murder! She hit me! She hit me!”

Old Lady Wang dropped to the floor and began rolling around, throwing a tantrum.

Li Siqi slapped her again, showing no mercy whatsoever.

Now Old Lady Wang had one handprint on each cheek, making the two sides perfectly symmetrical.

Gong Wanyu and Yan Ruoliu wanted to laugh, but ultimately managed to hold it in.

Old Man Liu snatched up a broom from the side and charged forward, only to be kicked to the ground by Ye Nan.

“Try making another peep, and I’ll cut you both in half with my sword.”

Ye Nan raised the Thunder Sword in his hand. Terrified, Old Man Liu and Old Lady Wang no longer dared to say a word.

At last, the world was quiet.

Ye Nan and the three women began loading the supplies onto the handcart and into their backpacks.

Ye Nan was strong, so he was responsible for carrying the rice, flour, and bottled water. The women handled everything else.

They had just finished packing and were preparing to leave when two young people ran in. They were the bespectacled man and Peach.

Ye Nan remembered the pair well. Earlier, they had operated a drone and used a phone playing music to lure away the zombies.

When the bespectacled man arrived, Old Lady Wang and Old Man Liu seemed to have found their backbone and immediately began complaining about Ye Nan and the others.

“Son, look how badly your mother and father have been beaten! You have to stand up for us…”

“That’s right. We worked so hard to raise you, only for people to bully us in our old age.”

The bespectacled man had already been brooding over the fact that Ye Nan had saved Peach. Besides, Peach was watching from nearby, so he could not afford to back down. He picked up the iron rod in his hand and stood in front of Ye Nan.

“Move,” Ye Nan ordered coldly.

“You dare hit my parents? Are you tired of living?” the bespectacled man demanded.

“If you don’t want to die, get lost.”

“Damn you!”

The bespectacled man was completely enraged. Blood rushed to his head as he swung the iron rod viciously at Ye Nan.

If he killed Ye Nan, perhaps those three extraordinary beauties would become his.

Ye Nan reached out and caught the iron rod, then twisted it cleanly in two.

The three women were unsurprised, but the bespectacled man and his family were utterly dumbfounded. His strength was absurd. Was this man some kind of superhuman?

Peach stared at Ye Nan in astonishment. Only now did she understand why he could command the devotion of three exceptional women. His physical prowess was simply beyond belief.

She looked at Ye Nan, then compared him with her useless boyfriend, who was terrified whenever he saw a zombie. The difference between them was like heaven and earth. If only…

As she thought about it, Peach’s face suddenly flushed. She pressed her thighs tightly together, making her peach-shaped curves even more striking. Her figure was explosively alluring, just as one would expect from a woman who practiced yoga regularly.

The bespectacled man took a step back. He had always bullied the weak and feared the strong. Faced with someone as formidable as Ye Nan, he instantly lost the courage to fight.

Ye Nan gave him an eerie smile and kicked him to the ground. He would probably be in pain for quite some time.

During that period, if the bespectacled man was unable to go out and gather supplies, Peach would have no choice but to come begging Ye Nan for help. By then, would she not be entirely at his mercy?

“Heh heh.”

“If you ever attack me again, you’ll bear the consequences.”

Ye Nan fixed him with a terrifying stare. Then he activated his supernatural power, and an overwhelming aura erupted from his body, sweeping outward in every direction like a shock wave.

The bespectacled man and his family were forced back several steps. Their hearts were filled with terror. Ye Nan’s gaze had been horrifying. The instant he glared at them, they felt as though they had fallen into an endless abyss. Their entire bodies turned cold, and they could not summon even the slightest strength to resist.

Why was this happening?

This was utterly unnatural!

Only after Ye Nan had left did the bespectacled man gradually recover. He drew a long breath, and the oppressive sensation finally disappeared.

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But immediately afterward, he became extraordinarily angry again. Why was that bastard so powerful? Why could he possess three exceptional women? It was unfair. The world was simply too unfair.

Seeing the bespectacled man’s pathetic appearance, Peach thought even less of him. Instead, she felt a little more favorably toward Ye Nan. A powerful man like that was exactly the kind of man she had always yearned for.

The bespectacled man glanced at Peach and saw that she was still staring in the direction Ye Nan had gone. He exploded with rage.

“What are you spacing out for? Have you fallen for that pretty boy? Do you want to abandon me and run away with him?”

Peach glared at him. “What nonsense are you talking about? I’m your girlfriend. If you keep acting like this, we might as well break up.”

“Damn it, I knew you were getting restless and wanted to cheat on me!” the bespectacled man cursed. “If you really consider me your boyfriend, then sleep with me tonight and let me have you.”

“Don’t blame me,” Peach snapped. “Have you ever treated me like a girlfriend? All you think about, day and night, is getting my body. I must have been blind to get together with you in the first place.”

“Heh, there it is—you’ve finally admitted it. You just want to go after that bastard.”

“Believe whatever you want.”

“Bitch!”

Peach ignored him. She merely folded her arms and stood to one side, completely unaware that this posture made her soft breasts, wrapped tightly in yoga clothing, appear even more prominent and enticing.

Old Lady Wang and Old Man Liu hurried over to mediate. Their son had finally managed to find a girlfriend. If the relationship fell apart now, they would lose everything.

They had barely exchanged a few words when all four of them changed expression. Through the window, they saw two zombies charging toward the convenience store. They quickly grabbed the food and fled.

The bespectacled man was timid, so whenever they encountered isolated zombies, Peach was usually the one who dealt with them. After stumbling along in a panic, they finally made it back to their residence.

Remembering how forceful Ye Nan had been when he saved her, Peach looked down on the bespectacled man even more.

As for Ye Nan, after resting for a while, he set out once again.

This time, things did not go so smoothly. On the way, they encountered two Level One mutated zombies. Although Ye Nan dispatched them swiftly, they still gave the three women quite a fright.

Level One zombies were far more ferocious than ordinary zombies. They stood over two meters tall, their muscles bulging, their entire bodies radiating a savage aura. Ordinary people had no hope of fighting them and could only run.

If Ye Nan had not been an awakened ability user, he might have been torn apart by the Level One zombies long ago.

After killing them, Ye Nan removed the crystal cores from their bodies.

When they returned to the residence, Ye Nan did not continue searching for supplies. The warehouse on the second floor of the convenience store was nearly empty anyway, so another trip would have been pointless. Improving his strength was more important.

He took out the crystal cores and began absorbing their energy.

After completing the absorption, his strength increased once again.

Li Siqi sighed from nearby. “The three of us are still far too weak. If only we had suitable weapons. A gun would be ideal, but even a hand crossbow would do.”

Gong Wanyu suddenly said, “I may know where we can find guns.”

“Really?” Li Siqi asked in delight.

“Do you remember the Scarface?”

Li Siqi clenched her small fists and said bitterly, “Of course I remember. His name is Zhang Dahu. He’s the local bully in our neighborhood. Back at the convenience store, his wife even tried to push me toward the zombies to feed them, but Sister Gong killed her.”

“That’s right. I’m talking about him.”

“Hmph. He’s a thoroughly evil man. Before the peaceful days ended, he was involved with criminal gangs and may even have taken lives. He used to come to my convenience store to buy cigarettes, but he never paid. There was nothing I could do against him.”

Li Siqi’s expression darkened as she recalled those incidents.

“At the convenience store, I kept watching him,” Gong Wanyu said. “He was constantly guarding his trouser pocket. He may have had a gun hidden inside. He probably refrained from using it because he was afraid the gunshots would attract more zombies. We’ve already made an enemy of him. If we don’t kill him first, he’ll come for us.”

Yan Ruoliu added, “Now that you mention it, he had been trying to get his hands on me for some time. He only held back because he was wary of Wang Xingpeng’s strength. Otherwise, he would have attacked me long ago.”

Ye Nan became interested. “This man is not simple. The machete he used was made of alloy, and that kind of weapon cannot be bought on the open market. You need connections to obtain one. My guess is that he definitely has guns at home—and probably more than one.”

“Then let’s kill him and take his guns,” Li Siqi said worriedly. “He’s an evil man anyway, so he deserves to die. Besides, if we don’t act now and he awakens a supernatural ability too, we’ll be the ones in trouble.”

Ye Nan suddenly remembered something and asked Li Siqi, “I recall that three bastards nearly assaulted you before. They threatened me, saying they had already joined Tiger Brother. Could that have been Zhang Dahu?”

Li Siqi answered quickly, “That’s right. It was him.”

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