I Am The Protagonist 04

Both sides fell into silence.

Fang Zhiyi stared at the zombie’s hollow eyes and suddenly spoke up: "You there, keep going, ah? Me here, whoosh whoosh." He gestured toward the door a few times.

Little Hei was speechless. "You think it can understand you? Honestly, even humans wouldn’t get your way of talking."

But against all odds, the zombie seemed to ponder before shuffling aside to make a bit of space.

"It actually understood?"

Fang Zhiyi strode inside, determined to clear the place out before the protagonists arrived. He knew full well these zombies wouldn’t stop them.

But just as he passed the Level 2 zombie, it suddenly lunged, its neck stretching unnaturally as it snapped at him.

Its teeth clanked against something hard.

Fang Zhiyi was holding an iron, muttering, "Why did I even grab this thing?" He then glared at the zombie. "Heh, buddy, I know the drill—'different kind, different mind.' Since when do zombies go vegetarian?"

The Level 2 zombie swung its spindly arm at him, but Fang Zhiyi caught it mid-motion. The zombie’s face twisted in confusion before it vanished.

"Gotta move fast!" Fang Zhiyi muttered to himself, dashing deeper inside. He didn’t bother sorting—anything he saw went straight into his spatial storage. Space was the last thing he lacked!

Upstairs, without their commander, the zombies’ coordinated assault fell apart. Lu Jingxiao and the others immediately felt the pressure ease. Though puzzled, they focused on wiping out the remaining threats.

After a grueling fight, the Level 3 mutated zombie finally fell to their combined efforts. A headcount revealed heavy losses, and Qin Xue’s eyes reddened with grief.

Lu Jingxiao offered a few words of comfort before ordering the group toward the supermarket. Such a steep cost demanded proper compensation. But when they entered, they found nothing but empty shelves—and a one-legged zombie writhing on the floor.

It looked like the aftermath of a frenzied shopping spree.

"This… this can’t be!" Wang Wei stammered, unable to believe their prize was gone.

Lu Jingxiao’s expression darkened. This had been his call. Not only had they walked into an ambush, losing people for nothing, but now even the supplies were gone. He glanced back, catching the resentment in their eyes—though none dared speak up, cowed by his strength.

Then he remembered the singing toy.

"Someone’s screwing with us!"

His natural leadership shone through as he deftly redirected their frustration toward this unseen enemy.

They scoured the area, hoping to find the culprit, but came up empty.

Fang Zhiyi had long since slipped away through the parking lot.

He was busy—busy raiding their next target.

That night, Qin Xue nestled against Lu Jingxiao as he clenched his fists. "It’s alright," she murmured. "We just took a minor setback."

Lu Jingxiao’s tension eased slightly under her gaze.

"Has Weiwei returned yet?"

Qin Xue shook her head. Her younger sister was too reckless—who knew where she’d wandered off to?

"With her fire-based abilities, she can protect herself."

"Tomorrow!" Lu Jingxiao unfolded the map, eyes locked on his carefully plotted route. "We head here—a logistics park. Plenty of supplies, maybe even vehicles."

Qin Xue smiled and nodded, then pressed a finger to her lips before pulling out a chocolate bar and feeding it to him.

Lu Jingxiao finally smiled.

Meanwhile, Fang Zhiyi was already scouting the logistics park’s perimeter.

The next day, Lu Jingxiao’s group arrived at the park. Wang Wei marveled at the lack of zombies along the way. "We barely ran into any! Smooth trip."

Qin Xue beamed. "That’s because Jingxiao planned the route so well!"

Lu Jingxiao allowed himself a moment of pride—but it didn’t last.

The logistics park stood intact, eerily devoid of both zombies and usable supplies.

"Flower pots?" Wang Wei cursed.

"What’s this? A dog crate? Tiny as hell!"

"Toilets. So many toilets."

"Glass! Wow."

The voices grated on Lu Jingxiao’s nerves. How could this happen?

Before he could rally the group, Qin Xue frowned. "Wait… we didn’t see any vehicles, did we?"

"Vehicles?" Lu Jingxiao’s eyes widened. Right—the cars!

"Stop wasting time. Let’s go find—"

BOOM! An explosion rocked the area, followed by several more. The prefab buildings shuddered.

"…The cars." Lu Jingxiao stepped outside, staring at the plumes of black smoke in the distance. A sinking feeling took hold.

By the time they reached the scene, the vehicles were a tangled, burning wreck.

"Boss! Zombies—from the city! They’re coming!" A lookout sprinted toward them, panic-stricken.

Lu Jingxiao’s stomach dropped. A whole city’s worth of zombies? That wasn’t a fight—it was a death sentence. "Fall back! Now!"

Thankfully, they still had their own battered fleet. With yesterday’s casualties, there was even enough space.

The convoy sped off.

Lu Jingxiao sat in the lead pickup, gripping the map. The next stop was a rest area—a chance to refuel and resupply before exiting the city. But unease gnawed at him.

Someone was targeting him.

But how did they know his route? Coincidence?

Sure enough, the rest area offered nothing—no fuel, no supplies, not even a single zombie.

For the first time, despair crept in. Was he unfit to lead? No. That couldn’t be it.

He’d scouted meticulously. The only explanation was a traitor. His gaze swept over the passengers.

This was the apocalypse. The real threat wasn’t just zombies—it was people, desperate enough to kill for scraps.

Once planted, suspicion took root and grew fast.

"Change of plans." Lu Jingxiao’s voice was steel. "We skip the food warehouse. Head straight for the resort."

Meanwhile, Fang Zhiyi had just finished clearing out zombies and was happily stuffing crate after crate of canned goods into his spatial storage.

"Gotta hand it to the protagonist," he chuckled. "While others starve, his roadmap’s just a buffet!"