Infinite Ebullience
Chapter 1139 - 24 No Escape

Chapter 1139: Chapter 24 No Escape

"Get lost."

Zhou Jingyu roared, firing his gun wildly in the hope of scaring off the zombie dog, but to no avail. One clamped onto his shoulder, bringing him to the ground, where the others swarmed and tore at him savagely.

Seconds later, Zhou Jingyu’s face was stripped of intact skin, a bloody mess, and he’d even lost an eyeball. Still, he didn’t have the courage to commit suicide by swallowing his gun and was bitten to death alive.

Li Wenbo saw Tang Zheng speed past on a motorcycle, cursing under his breath. He, too, wanted to grab one, but alas, had no target in mind.

Because of Tang Zheng, the team kept growing, with many citizens joining in to flee for their lives.

The twenty-minute journey was filled with panic and unease. Just as everyone reached the suburbs and was about to leave Chicago, they were met with a heavy blow.

Black iron wire mesh stacked three layers high and over five meters tall had been erected on the highway, completely blocking the way. Further ahead stood a solid concrete wall ten meters high. Soldiers dressed in military gear and wearing gas masks were busily working non-stop to fortify it and along the adjacent buildings, several makeshift watchtowers were being constructed with soldiers on guard, equipped with general-purpose machine guns providing powerful firepower to seal off the route.

Almost two thousand citizens were trapped here, crowded at the base of the wall like ants, their loud screams and curses demanding the soldiers take down the barrier. Some with fiery tempers began shooting at the wall and tossing bottles and debris onto the wire mesh.

The soldiers turned a deaf ear, simply readying their guns for action, and an immediate, deathly silence spread. The noise from the crowd considerably quieted down.

Seeing no way through, some citizens hurriedly left to find another route.

"What now?" The traffic police were getting restless. "Shall we try a different direction?"

"Impossible. The whole city must be under martial law, erecting these kinds of barriers." Li Wenbo was comparatively intelligent and didn’t want to waste energy. "What we need to do now is to incite those citizens to tear down the wall and rush out together. I just can’t believe those soldiers will dare to shoot."

"Times change." Middle-aged leader Zhang Antai came over, trying to get familiar, but his words were drowned out by a piercing loudspeaker announcement.

"Keep quiet, everyone step back fifty meters. Warning once, anyone who attempts to break through the quarantine line will be shot without exception."

A major wearing a gas mask stood atop the wall, followed by a group of soldiers also in black gas masks and three-proof suits, which made their appearance particularly intimidating.

This announcement first silenced the street, followed by a huge chorus of boos with many people giving him the middle finger.

"Stay quiet. The government won’t abandon anyone, but you may have been infected with the biochemical virus. To be responsible for everyone’s safety, we must quarantine you. However, rest assured that virus testing and protective gear are on the way. Once disinfected and vaccinated, you will be allowed to leave," the major said in a low, indifferent tone, hoping it would deter those harboring false hopes.

"Fuck, how long do we have to wait?" A burly man didn’t want to wait and yelled at the major.

"Approximately five hours," replied the major, immediately met with a wave of displeased hissing.

"Too long, we want out now. Citizens, if we wait any longer, we’ll be killed by zombies. Let’s move the wire mesh. I have explosives to blow open the wall," the burly man shouted loudly, trying to incite others to join him.

After witnessing zombies biting people, no one wanted to stay and wait for death, so they started pushing forward to clear the wire mesh.

"Kill him," ordered the major with a wave of his hand. If these people escaped, they would all be held accountable by military law.

The soldiers immediately aimed at the burly man and started shooting. The Browning M2 machine gun also began to fire warning shots on the open space in front of them.

The citizens were stunned, the more timid women even covering their ears and screaming. They stood still, not knowing what to do.

"Step back fifty meters," the major warned again. "You can take shelter in nearby buildings. If zombies approach, we will engage."

Nobody moved; the citizens still held out hope.

"Let’s go, let’s get out of here and hide in the hotel over there," Tang Zheng started the motorcycle and raced towards a hotel sixty meters away.

"Move it, if these people are also infected and suddenly turn into zombies, we’re done for," Li Wenbo, unwilling to let Tang Zheng steal all the limelight, seized every opportunity to express his views.

The newbies started pedaling their bicycles hard again, with over three hundred Americans also following to relocate.

"Drive off the Americans following you," Tang Zheng shouted to Kong Licheng.

Kong Licheng hadn’t figured out what to do when the soldiers on the lookout tower began firing. They had spotted a horde of zombie beasts madly pouncing on the road, including canines and various zombified ferocious beasts that escaped from a nearby zoo. Behind them, a crowd of human zombies had also gathered, seemingly smelling the scent of humans and moving toward them at a trot.

The soldiers’ firepower was fierce, but the zombie beasts were fearless in the face of death and incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, they broke through the barricade. Citizens had seen them and, scared out of their wits, ran into residential houses and shops on both sides of the street.

"Hurry up," Tang Zheng sighed, with no choice but to let these Americans follow. He twisted the throttle, and his motorcycle shot up the ten steps, crashing through the glass door and into the hotel lobby.

A man in a suit who was hiding with two chefs and watching the situation on the main street had his cheek cut by flying glass. Furious, he cursed and aimed the muzzle of his gun at Tang Zheng.

"Get out of here, this is my hotel," the man in the suit roared as he loaded his Remington shotgun with a click.

"Boss, maybe we should hide for now? Staying alive is what’s important," the chef, not being foolish, suggested, but the man in the suit wouldn’t listen.

"No, this hotel is mine. I won’t allow others to defile it," the man in the suit shouted angrily as he saw the group of Chinese tossing aside their bicycles and running up, "Didn’t you hear me? Get out."

Bang, bang, Li Wenbo’s AA12 spat muzzle flames as he fired slugs that shattered the glass before hitting the man in the suit, peppering him into a sieve with the powerful recoil knocking him back, leaving a large pool of fresh blood on the clean ground.

"Why waste words?" Li Wenbo panted, looking at the ragged corpse with wide-open eyes and suddenly feeling a surge of excitement. The feeling of controlling someone else’s life and death was just too great.

There were still some guests hiding in the lobby, watching nervously as Li Wenbo suddenly acted to kill. They were frightened, wanting to flee but not daring to leave, while the Americans who followed cared not for these matters as they saw the zombie beasts drawing near and barged into the hotel.

"Kong Licheng, Tong Dahong, stop them," Li Wenbo commanded fiercely with the air of a murderer, "Who knows if these guys are infected with the virus, throw all of them out."

"Stop, let them in," Dong Zixuan was startled and hastily stopped them. About twenty Americans, all armed, heard Li Wenbo’s words and immediately prepared to fight their way through.

Tong Dahong also broke out in a cold sweat. He had just pointed his gun at the crowd when he saw muzzles extending from among them as well—a shootout would likely get him killed.

Kong Licheng wasn’t that stupid; he hadn’t even raised his gun. What use was stopping them in a hotel that might be still housing many guests?

"Those with guns, come over and establish a defense in the lobby—don’t let the zombie beasts break through. Those without weapons, go back to your rooms and hide. Whatever happens, do not come out," Tang Zheng roared his orders to the team in English, and even the newbies understood, "Zixuan, go arrange the rooms. Let’s try to stay together as much as possible."

"All right," Dong Zixuan immediately took the group to the elevator, silently praising his decisiveness. As long as they locked the room doors, even if they became zombies, they wouldn’t pose a threat—infinitely better than Li Wenbo’s approach.

"Check the hotel’s occupancy record and pick a floor with fewer guests," Tang Zheng added before firing two shots at the ceiling, bringing a moment of silence to the chaotic lobby.

"Everyone find cover, and try not to show your heads," Tang Zheng said as he also ducked behind a large vase and raised his sniper rifle.

Listening to Tang Zheng’s clear and organized commands, hundreds of people felt reassured. Li Wenbo’s haphazard orders paled in comparison. At this moment, most of them recognized Tang Zheng’s position as the group leader.

The soldiers were firing, but they couldn’t seal off all the paths, and some of the zombie beasts broke into the residential buildings on both sides, biting and killing humans.

About a dozen had also rushed up the hotel steps, heading straight for the lobby.

Bang, Tang Zheng fired, his bullet piercing the head of a zombie dog, killing it. Others, fearing the beasts might break in, also opened fire.

"Aim before you shoot. Cease fire if you’re not sure. Do you want to attract all the zombies here?" Tang Zheng lowly growled again. Luckily, humans and soldiers in the other residential buildings were also firing. Otherwise, the noise from their volley alone could have made them targets.

Americans followed because they had seen Tang Zheng’s combat power and leadership. They obeyed.

"Li Wenbo must be feeling like he’s sitting on pins and needles, right?" Tang Zheng thought as he kept firing, plotting his next move. The Americans definitely needed to be isolated and to confirm the newbies’ resistance to infection, including the mother and child.

Indeed, Li Wenbo was not comfortable. Due to the attack order he had just given, he now became the target of hatred for all Americans. Cold sweat covered him as he wished to leave this place. To avoid being killed from behind, he began to back away, but this movement made him appear cowardly and incompetent, leading to even more contempt.

"Tang Zheng, just you wait," Li Wenbo thought, seething as he caught the undisguised contempt shooting his way.

"There’s a snake," Li Xizhu suddenly screamed. A zombified cobra was rapidly climbing and rushed up the steps.

Six or seven people fired, all missing as they instinctively retreated. Tang Zheng moved his muzzle, locked onto it, and shot it dead. While everyone thought they were safe, the horde of zombies on the streets being mowed down by the soldiers, ten or so Americans in the lobby suddenly started writhing in distorted agony. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to vote at Qidian (qidian.com) for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)