The next morning, after getting up and dressing, Nathan Cole headed for the government cafeteria with his two trusted men, Daniel Ward and Li Ming.
As for washing up, with both water and electricity cut off, where could they possibly find spare water for washing their faces and brushing their teeth?
Even the water left over from cooking and washing pots was carefully collected to flush the toilets.
Nathan sometimes thought that the infrastructure development and sanitation reforms of recent years had indeed brought enormous convenience to people’s lives before the apocalypse.
But now that the apocalypse had arrived and the water and power had been cut off, those former conveniences had instead become a nuisance.
The old dry latrines had either been torn down or converted into flush toilets. Once the water was gone, they were completely screwed.
If their numbers had not been relatively small, and if they were not about to begin their operation to restore power and water, they might truly have had to find a place to relieve themselves wherever they could.
After going downstairs, he saw that the survivors in the compound had already begun another busy day.
Some were sorting through the offices for useful supplies, while others were cleaning up.
When Nathan walked through the cafeteria entrance, a wave of heat rushed toward him.
Several female survivors were busily preparing breakfast.
The electric stoves were unusable, but the backup wood-fired stove and coal came in handy. Flames danced cheerfully in the furnace.
A faint aroma of flour filled the cafeteria. They were steaming buns.
Even little Sophie was running back and forth among the crowd, her small figure weaving between the adults’ legs. One moment she was helping pass something over, and the next she was curiously staring at the buns in the steamer.
When she saw Nathan enter, her eyes immediately lit up. She trotted over and, looking up at him, said, "Uncle Commander, you’re up! Sophie is making big buns for you!"
Nathan crouched down, gently picked Sophie up, and pinched her fair little cheek. Smiling, he asked, "Oh? And what did our adorable Sophie help with?"
Sophie wrinkled her tiny nose and began counting on her fingers with a solemn expression. "I helped the uncles and aunties pick vegetables, and I also helped them..."
Watching the little girl’s earnest expression, Nathan merely smiled and listened, warmth welling up inside him.
In the brutal apocalypse, Sophie’s innocent smile was like a ray of warm sunlight, dispelling some of the gloom in everyone’s hearts.
Sophie was a very sensible child. During the day, she never cried or caused trouble. She always quietly followed the adults around and helped however she could.
He had heard that only at night, when she went to sleep, did she demand her mother.
But how could her mother ever come back?
Whenever Nathan thought of that, it felt as though a huge stone were pressing on his heart, leaving it unbearably heavy.
He did not even dare imagine how many family tragedies this damned apocalypse had caused in places beyond his sight.
After breakfast was ready, Sophie was carried away by her father.
Steaming hot buns and thick rice porridge were brought to the tables. Nathan’s appetite was immediately stirred. He picked up a bun and took a huge bite.
After breakfast, the soldiers assembled in the compound.
Nathan walked up to Lucas Bennett, Third Squad’s leader, and said with a grave expression, "After we leave, the town government compound is in your hands. Keep the gates locked and strengthen security. Until we return, do not admit any survivors, even if you find them. If any of the current survivors cause trouble, you do not need to report it. Execute them on the spot."
With that, Nathan gave Lucas a heavy pat on the shoulder.
Lucas straightened his chest and replied solemnly, "Rest assured, sir. I guarantee the mission will be completed. As long as I live, this position stands!"
It was not that Nathan did not want to take in survivors, nor was he simply cold-blooded. The main issue was that the Third Squad left behind to guard the compound had limited manpower.
If someone with ulterior motives infiltrated them, or if the current survivors started causing trouble, the consequences could be irreversible.
Once he successfully restored the power and water supply and established a safe zone, he would naturally make every effort to rescue survivors.
Next, Nathan had the survivors return to their rooms, then entered an empty office.
He opened the System interface and spent 110 reinforcement points to deploy a large batch of ammunition for rifles, pistols, machine guns, shotguns, and grenade launchers in various types and calibers, including 5.45×39mm rifle ammunition and 12.7×108mm heavy-machine-gun ammunition.
After leaving a portion of the ammunition for Third Squad, they loaded all the rest onto the KamAZ-6350 8×8 high-mobility cargo truck.
Once the soldiers of First Squad and Second Squad had all boarded their vehicles, Nathan saluted the Third Squad troops remaining behind, then opened the door and climbed into his vehicle.
Then came the low rumble of engines. Vehicle Two, carrying First Squad, took the lead, followed in sequence by Vehicle One, Vehicle Three, and High-Mobility Cargo Truck Five. Carrying an air of iron-blooded menace, they drove out of the government compound and sped along Heping Avenue toward Jinxiu Gardens.
Having been delegated command authority by Nathan, Ethan Blake called out over the communications channel, "All vehicles, maintain a ten-meter interval and stay alert. Do not fire unless necessary!"
They had only just left the government compound, and Ethan did not want gunfire to draw in a horde of zombies. That would only cause enormous trouble for Third Squad, who had been left behind.
After the convoy had traveled a little over a hundred meters, wandering zombies began appearing on the road.
These zombies wore tattered clothes, had mutilated bodies, and stared with hollow yet savage eyes.
Upon hearing the convoy, they raised their heads one after another, then charged madly toward it.
At Ethan’s command, Vehicle Two did not slow down in the slightest and rammed directly into them.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Before the eight-ton steel beast, zombies were continually hurled through the air.
Some, after being knocked away, were swept beneath the blast-resistant tires as the vehicle advanced and crushed into a smear of flesh.
From Vehicle One behind them, Nathan watched the scene and could not help twitching the corner of his mouth.
What armored assault vehicle? This was clearly a human-flesh bumper car!
The distance from the town government compound to Jinxiu Gardens was less than two kilometers, and the convoy soon neared its destination.
Ethan called out over the channel, "All units, attention. We are about to arrive. Prepare for combat."
Click, click. Hearing this, the soldiers inside the vehicles pulled back their charging handles and chambered rounds.
Before communications had been cut off, Director Martin Hale had told Nathan that he was hiding in Apartment 401, Unit Three, Building Two of Jinxiu Gardens.
Following the map, Vehicle Two turned toward the southwest gate of Jinxiu Gardens under Ethan’s direction.
He planned to circle behind Building One, reach Building Two and rescue the target, then leave through the east gate.
Once the convoy entered the residential compound, zombies scattered throughout the area converged from every direction like African hyenas catching the scent of blood.
They snarled and roared, as though they wanted to tear everyone in the convoy to pieces.
"All units, fire at will!" Ethan ordered.
The soldiers leaned out from the vehicle roofs and began a feast of slaughter.
Dull gunshots rang through the residential compound, shattering its former silence.
Daniel Ward and the soldiers in the other two vehicles each operated their vehicle-mounted remote weapon stations and joined the fight.
Thump-thump-thump... thump-thump-thump! Twelve-point-seven-millimeter rounds, carrying tremendous kinetic energy, tore toward the zombies.
Faced with the metal storm, the zombies showed no fear, lunging at them like rabid dogs.
The large-caliber rounds fired by the vehicle-mounted machine guns blew zombies apart the instant they struck, creating a bloody scene too gruesome to look at.
The thunderous gunfire also triggered a zombie frenzy in the surrounding area.
Zombies outside the compound followed the sound and surged toward them.
Meanwhile, zombies indoors smashed through windows and leaped down. As long as they did not die in the fall, they immediately joined the attack on the convoy.
Besides the zombies, some survivors heard the gunfire and crawled to their windows to investigate.
When they saw soldiers had arrived, they became so excited that they jumped up and down.
Some directly opened their windows, leaned out, and began desperately calling for help.
"Help! Please, save me!"
"Over here! Can you see us? We’re over here!"
"Please, save me! I’m so scared!"
Jinxiu Gardens consisted of five eighteen-story buildings. Nathan had neither the time nor the manpower to rescue people building by building, so he could only pretend not to hear them and have the convoy move toward Building Two.
When they saw that the convoy had no intention whatsoever of rescuing them, the survivors froze at first, then began cursing loudly.
Their voices echoed between the buildings, full of fury and despair.
When the convoy reached the base of Building Two, Ethan directly ordered, "Dismount and engage! Victor Hayes, Gavin Cole, Tyler Grant, and Felix Monroe will rescue the target. Everyone else, establish a defensive line using the vehicles as cover and hold back the zombies."
Bang! Bang! Bang! The vehicle doors opened, and the soldiers rapidly dismounted.
First Squad’s deputy leader, Victor Hayes, led his men straight toward Unit Three’s entrance. After Felix Monroe smashed the entry access control, the four entered in sequence and advanced up the stairs toward the fourth floor.
The other soldiers used the vehicles as cover and fired furiously at the zombies closing in from every direction.
Against the metal storm of 5.45mm rifle rounds and 12.7mm heavy-machine-gun rounds, the zombies could not get close at all. The dense gunfire mingled with their howls, creating a chilling din.
Nathan leaned out from the roof of the vehicle and looked toward Building Two. Before long, he spotted a familiar figure.
Martin Hale was lying by a window, frantically waving a brightly colored long dress in his hand.
Seeing that Director Hale was not only alive but full of vigor, Nathan let out a slight sigh of relief.
Because Nathan wore a helmet, goggles, and a face covering, Martin did not recognize him at all. He simply kept waving the long dress and shouting for help.
Seeing that Martin had not recognized him, Nathan did not mind. He simply raised his AK-12 carbine and opened fire on the endlessly surging zombies.
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