If Feng Jun had to pick one thing he enjoyed most in the Doomsday, it would definitely be playing poker with Li Lu. After skillfully mastering his ability, he immediately pulled Li Lu to have a man-woman showdown with their abilities activated. He even gave his ability a cool name: “Blood Eye.” As soon as his body felt different, he found Li Lu squatting in the kitchen and dragged her, wanting them to try the feeling of playing poker after activating their abilities.
Actually, Li Lu was quite interested in Feng Jun’s suggestion. Just as she was about to give in to Feng Jun’s persistent requests, the room door was pushed open by Song Zhan.
Feng Jun was already prepared to activate his Blood Eye State. Seeing Song Zhan, that simpleton, he immediately wanted to find someone to install a nuclear-proof door for his office. However, after hearing Song Zhan’s report, he immediately cast aside his personal desires.
According to the news brought back by the grain transport team that traded with Huai City, Huai City was completely surrounded by a Zombie Tide an hour ago. Feng Jun was already sitting in the command hall of Longmen Town, listening to Song Peng and several Commanders reporting the situation to him.
The 3D projection in front of him clearly indicated that the distance between Longmen Town and Huai City was only 70 kilometers. A normal adult could walk about 20-30 kilometers in a day, but zombies do not know fatigue, meaning that the Zombie Tide would reach outside Longmen Town’s walls in as little as one day. Feng Jun looked at the map with a solemn expression; his greatest fear had finally arrived, and now he had to face the impact of the Zombie Tide head-on.
“How many soldiers do we have now?” Feng Jun asked.
Song Peng said, “We have four thousand trained regular soldiers. If we mobilize and include all residents who can hold a gun, we would have about eight thousand people, but we cannot guarantee overall combat effectiveness and morale. Moreover, some survivor teams that recently joined us do not have much loyalty and might just run away.”
Feng Jun said, “First, send a batch of troops to the first line of defense to be on alert. When the Zombie Tide arrives, delay them as much as possible. Who among you has experience fighting a Zombie Tide?”
Song Peng, Song Zhan, and several officers looked at each other for a while, but no one spoke. Feng Jun couldn’t help but say, “With so many people, is there not one with experience?”
Song Peng smiled bitterly and said, “Boss, don’t be angry. Killing zombies and resisting a Zombie Tide here are two different things. To kill zombies, you just need to shoot, and even if you encounter a zombie horde, you can run away. Chen Jianbin also only established Iron Nail Town after last winter.”
Feng Jun nodded and asked, “If it were Chen Jianbin, or other small factions, how would they choose to survive a Zombie Tide in winter?”
“The Zombie Tide will spread out from the ruins in all directions. Survivors near the coast will go to small islands along the coast in advance. Those closer to the inland will choose to hide in intact underground Refuges, or migrate to the wasteland. If they are lucky, they can avoid the zombie horde in the wasteland. Actually, the best method is to pay a high protection fee and hide in Huai City. There, you can not only avoid the wandering Zombie Tide, but as long as you have money, you can live in comfortable and warm houses, without worrying about freezing to death in the wasteland,” Song Peng explained.
After hearing the methods Song Peng mentioned, Feng Jun made up his mind; he had only one path: fight to the end. Feng Jun could not abandon his hard-earned Longmen Town to take Refuge in Huai City. Even if he wanted to, it was too late, as Huai City was already surrounded by the Zombie Tide. According to the zombies’ pace, they would appear on the outskirts of Longmen Town by tomorrow morning at the latest. By then, he must find a way to lead his people to successfully resist the Zombie Tide.
Since Feng Jun couldn’t get any good suggestions for the time being, he first sent Song Peng and the others out, leaving himself in the room staring at the map in a daze. Counting the time, it was only half a month until the Lunar New Year. He didn’t expect to have to lead a small war so close to the end of the year.
Just as Feng Jun was worrying, Li Lu walked in from a side door. Seeing Feng Jun hunched over the table, secretly troubled, she unhesitatingly extended her arms and gently embraced him from behind.
Feng Jun was focused on thinking about how to deal with the Zombie Tide, and the warmth on his back pulled him back from his complex thoughts. Li Lu rested her head on Feng Jun’s shoulder, rubbing her cheek against his side face and saying, “What’s wrong? You’re worrying by yourself here.”
Feng Jun’s body trembled slightly, as if awakened from deep worry. Although he did not turn around, the subtle shift was evident; his previously tense body gradually relaxed, and his gloomy mood began to dissipate. Li Lu’s pure, water-like embrace, like peach blossoms blooming in spring, brought the scent of hope and comfort, making the heavy atmosphere gradually brighter and warmer.
Feng Jun held Li Lu’s hands, which were soft and boneless, inspiring an immediate urge to protect them. Feeling the warmth Li Lu brought him, Feng Jun’s confidence in resisting the Zombie Tide solidified. He said, “I’m thinking about how to get through this Zombie Tide. Although my strength is much greater than before, I always feel a lack of confidence, as if something is missing.”
Li Lu rubbed against Feng Jun’s shoulder, then said, “I will be with you. As long as you are here, I will always accompany and encourage you.”
“Thank you,” Feng Jun enjoyed the warmth of Li Lu’s cheek, and her encouraging words reassured him greatly.
Li Lu walked over to a nearby seat and sat down, telling Feng Jun, “Actually, just looking at our weapons and equipment, we already have the capital to contend with a single faction in Huai City. Just those two Titan Power Armors are considered strategic weapons in the entire Shangqing City.”
Feng Jun nodded; “I’ve already compared this with Song Peng, but I still feel like something is missing. I feel it might be in terms of personnel, but I don’t know what to do. If I fail, then everyone who follows me will die. I even feel it’s not worth it for them to do this for me.”
“You’re overthinking this. In the eyes of most people in Longmen Town, you are like a Savior,” Li Lu held Feng Jun’s hands. “Think about it, what kind of lives did most people live before you came here? Every day they had to hunt in the wilderness and scavenge in the ruins. They would fight fiercely for a bit of food, mostly eating hard-to-swallow energy bars, and living in simple tin shacks. Your arrival changed all of that, allowing them to obtain ample and delicious food just by working, and you built sturdy buildings so they could escape the severe cold. Although I don’t know what the general development trajectory of your world is like, in any era of war and famine, if you just give a loud shout for them to pick up hoes and fight others, there would be no problem at all, let alone dealing with zombies that threaten their lives.” Li Lu said this while tightening her grip on Feng Jun’s hands, her firm and tight hold conveying an incredibly clear belief and determination. Her eyes sparkled with light of affirmation and trust, like brilliant stars, dispelling the confusion and unease in Feng Jun’s heart.
Li Lu’s words gave Feng Jun a hint; she was right. If not for Feng Jun’s arrival, probably more than half the people in Longmen Town would still be worrying about food and drink, and might even freeze to death before the Zombie Tide arrived. Now, Feng Jun only needed to make the statement a leader should, and most people in Longmen Town would fight for him.
With renewed confidence, Feng Jun immediately called Song Peng and the other officers back, instructing them to distribute all equipment and weapons. He also planned to give a pre-battle speech at the entrance of Longmen Town. The officers, having received their orders, quickly sprang into action. Soon, all the soldiers were assembled, and most of them had changed into the new power armor Feng Jun had brought back. Gauss weapons and plasma weapons were also distributed.
The sky in the Doomsday was always gray, but this afternoon the weather was unusually good, with a large opening in the thick radiation clouds. Golden sunlight streamed through the clouds, shining directly on the walls of Longmen Town.
The afterglow of the setting sun fell upon the city wall, where rows of soldiers in power armor and mechanical exoskeletons stood neatly. Their armor gleamed with a cold light, like steel giants. The soldiers’ eyes were firm and calm, revealing an imposing aura that could not be underestimated.
Feng Jun, wearing a power armor, slowly ascended the city wall. This power armor had been painted by him in a red and black color scheme. Under the sunlight, the power armor appeared majestic and solemn, like an ancient general clad in armor.
Feng Jun stood on the city wall, with Li Lu behind him. Song Peng and Song Zhan stood behind them with a group of officers, and the residents of Longmen Town, having heard that Feng Jun was going to give a speech, also came out and stood along the streets, waiting for Feng Jun to begin his address.
Once the number of people exceeds ten thousand, it can be considered a sea of people. According to Song Peng’s statistics, Longmen Town currently had sixteen thousand people. Looking at the dense crowd, Feng Jun’s legs trembled slightly with excitement.
“I presume everyone has heard that Huai City has been surrounded by the Zombie Tide. This Zombie Tide is fierce, and even Huai City’s army may not be able to withstand it. In fact, I received the news a long time ago. As a leader, I could have left early with my personal guards, or entered a Refuge in Huai City, or left here to find another place in the wasteland. But I chose not to abandon you,” Feng Jun began to speak loudly from the city wall, his voice amplified throughout all parts of Longmen Town.
“Since the world government abandoned us in 2123, 93 years have passed until now, 2216. For these 93 years, we humans have been living in hiding and mutual slaughter, while those Mutants and zombies, they! They occupy human cities.”
“Human cities have become nests for Mutants, and we, whether we are pre-war people who woke up from Refuges or ordinary people born in the wasteland, can only live in this wilderness.”
“Today, I stand here to tell everyone: facing zombies, Mutants, and Mutated Creatures, we will not flee. We are here, and we will defeat them.”
“Perhaps some of us will die in battle, and the fight against the zombies will leave us with indelible scars. But everything today is for our descendants, so that they will no longer live the same lives as us.”
At this point, the soldiers and residents standing below the city wall were completely stirred by Feng Jun’s emotions and began to cheer. As soon as the first person stood up and cheered, the crowd’s emotions quickly became agitated.
Feng Jun’s speech successfully stirred the emotions of most civilians, and even some who were originally observing had their confidence strengthened. Just as Li Lu said, they had already regarded Feng Jun as a Savior, and all they needed was a few words from Feng Jun. Most people in Longmen Town were mobilized, so Feng Jun would no longer worry about the lack of personnel. The next step was to set up the firing points and gradually deplete the Zombie Tide with firepower once the zombies approached.
The arrival of the Zombie Tide was faster than expected; before early morning the next day, the UAVs on outer alert sent a warning of the Zombie Tide approaching.
Through the images transmitted by the UAVs, Feng Jun saw the vanguard of the Zombie Tide, countless zombies surging towards Longmen Town in the dark night. From the air, it looked like a red carpet made of flesh and blood laid across the ground. The zombies in this wave of Zombie Tide were very different from the zombies Feng Jun usually encountered; each one had varying degrees of limb mutation.
“Almost all of them are Mutants; there are no ordinary zombies at all,” Li Lu said, looking at the transmitted images.
“What about Mutants? I left a gift for these zombies on the way. You’ll see it in a moment,” Song Zhan said from the side.
The moment Song Zhan finished speaking, a dazzling light in the distance pierced through the dark night sky, illuminating the entire wasteland. Instantly, the ground trembled, accompanied by a huge roar. Then, red flames rose, dancing with broken sparks, illuminating everything around and reflecting against the dark sky.
Even from a great distance, Feng Jun could feel a shockwave roaring from the distant explosion point. Then, the distant firelight illuminated a small mushroom cloud rising.
“Nuclear explosion?” Feng Jun and Li Lu looked at Song Zhan in astonishment. Was this what he meant by surprise?
Before Feng Jun could speak again, Song Peng quickly said, “How could it be a nuclear bomb? Radiation would accelerate the evolution of zombies. These are modified neutron landmines sent by logistics. They are said to be particularly clean with no radiation, and have an explosion diameter of 2 kilometers. There aren’t many, only about twenty, and I buried all of them in the Zombie Tide’s inevitable path.”
As soon as Song Zhan finished speaking, another ear-splitting mushroom cloud lit up the dark wasteland. Due to the shockwave, the UAVs could not fly too close, but the footage clearly showed a large circular gap torn in the Zombie Tide on the ground.