Chapter Five: Beauty, Is This Your First Cigarette?

"Captain! Why don't I go out and take a look? What if there's a chance for a turnaround? We can't just stay here forever. This convenience store is spacious and has food and drinks, but we've been relieving ourselves inside—it’s becoming unbearable. We can't wait any longer."

"I'll go! I'm the most useless in the team, my performance is terrible, so even if I die out there, it wouldn't be much of a loss."

"Xiaobing... you..."

"Fine! Then you'll go!"

"Captain Tong! Letting her go is sending her to her death!"

"Should she always hide behind us? What if we all die? Who will she hide behind then? She made a grave mistake before; now is her chance to make up for it!"

...

After breaking through the siege of the corpses, I couldn't help but drag a few more down with me, earning some gene points before planning to escape. Just then, I heard muffled voices coming from above.

Some of the predators suddenly turned and charged toward the back.

Someone had come out from inside!

I widened my eyes as much as possible and saw a figure at the convenience store's stairway. She had even managed to bring down two or three of the corpses.

An opportunity!

I tightened the loosened bandages on my arm and hurried back toward the convenience store.

"Heave... heave..."

"Ah..."

As the sounds echoed from all sides, the woman’s hand trembled as she stabbed a corpse with her dagger. But there was no time to pull it back—rotting hands reached for her.

Swish!

Just as a corpse was about to sink its foul, decayed jaws into her, the air split with a sharp sound. The corpse's head spun 360 degrees upward and fell to the ground.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the second floor of the convenience store.

Her hand was so soft—smooth and tender, not at all like that of a survivor in this post-apocalyptic era.

In the darkness, I couldn’t see her face, but judging by her rapid breathing, she was a woman!

"Hurry, open the door! Those things will be up here any second!"

Hearing the urgency in my voice, the woman relayed the message inside, knocking according to the agreed signal.

Within seconds, the door swung open. The two of us slipped inside, and the door closed behind us.

No sooner had I turned my head than something was pressed against my forehead.

A gun!

"Isn’t this a little inhospitable for guests?"

Ignoring the person holding the gun to my head, I rummaged through my backpack for a candle and lit it.

Finally, the dim convenience store was graced with a faint glow.

"In the post-apocalyptic era, anyone who isn’t one of us must be viewed with suspicion. We have to be careful," the man said, keeping the gun trained on me. By the weak candlelight, he could clearly see my face.

He must be thinking, This guy with his greasy, shiny cropped hair and the sour stench clinging to him, sporting a beard that must not have been shaved for a month or two, looks like a scruffy man in his late thirties, maybe six feet tall.

I paid no mind to the gun and began rummaging around the store with the candle, eventually finding half a pack of cigarettes behind the counter.

This was a treasure—worth as much as a diamond in the old world.

I deftly pulled one out, held it under my nose, inhaled deeply, and sighed with pleasure, savoring a scent I hadn't known in ages.

"Mmm... Good things are best shared. Would anyone care for a cigarette?"

I lit the cigarette from the candle and took a deep drag, the taste intoxicating.

The others watched me warily, as if expecting some other move. They were guarding against me, just as I was against them.

At the slightest hint of murderous intent, I’d strike without hesitation.

"Hello, my name is Huo Bing, a member of the scavenger team from the Lone Land settlement."

The woman calling herself Huo Bing walked up to me, took a cigarette from my hand, lit it, and took a tentative puff.

She nearly choked.

"First time smoking, miss?" I chuckled, watching Huo Bing try to keep her composure.

She said nothing, just nodded.

"Well, isn't that something. I’ve taken your first, then."

I smiled lightly, ignoring the flustered Huo Bing, and shifted my gaze to the man still aiming his gun at me.

"You’re not worried about that thing going off? At this range, it doesn’t threaten me at all."

I blew a smoke ring toward Huo Bing, watching it expand and break against her face.

A flush crept across her muddy cheeks as she glared at me for my teasing.

I let out a few awkward laughs and spread my hands helplessly. It seemed that after months without conversation, my words were no longer welcome. No one bothered to respond.

As for handling firearms, there were few who could match me in this wasteland. Still, I was confident because I knew they wouldn't dare shoot—just trying to intimidate me. Firing a gun in this era was as good as a death sentence, especially inside a city.

"I don’t think you need to be so wary of me. We have a common enemy—those corpses outside. Pointing a gun at me won’t help. Better to focus on what matters," I said, shaking my head at his stubbornness.

It wasn’t just him; the other two men were also watching me from different corners, making my skin crawl.

I ignored them, opened my backpack, and began stuffing it with as much instant food as I could find. Expired or not, as long as it was edible, it would do.

I chose items that were compact and high in calories—biscuits, instant noodles, chocolate.

Then I grabbed a drink from the shelf, gulped it down, and refilled my canteen.

"Alright, this stash will last me a good while. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way," I announced, heading for the exit.

I had only come to gather supplies. The people here held no interest for me.

"I’d like to have a word with you."

I looked in surprise at the man who’d first pointed a gun at me, then nodded.

Inside the convenience store, the five of us sat in a circle at the far end, a nearly spent candle in the middle.

The yellow flame lit up our faces; at last, we could see each other clearly.

"My name is Tong Jia, captain of the scavenger squad from the Lone Land settlement, fifty kilometers away. We came to ZM City to search for supplies." Tong Jia reached out his hand. I looked him over and took it, shaking firmly.

"I’m Cao Fusheng, a local of ZM City—a wanderer. I’m gathering supplies to head for Sky Pillar in ZZ City."

Tong Jia frowned. "A wanderer? Sky Pillar? I didn’t expect you to survive alone in the post-apocalyptic era for so long, Brother Cao. That’s remarkable."

I chuckled. "A bit of skill and a quick mind—that’s how I’ve scraped by."

"Then you must know ZM City is haunted by a Nightmare—a monster that nearly wiped out our team."

No wonder there were so few of them hiding here. They’d run into the Nightmare.