Apocalypse: the Most Ruthless Person

”Ah, fool, silly child!”

Yang Liehuo rushed forward and dragged the collapsed Zhang Zhikai. At this moment, Zhang Zhikai’s jaw was gushing blood, and he already had no consciousness or breath, dying painlessly. The greatest torment might have been the fear he experienced from the moment he was exposed till now.

The crowd was silent; everyone’s thoughts were different. Some were impressed by Zhang Su’s calm demeanor, some were horrified by the blood flowing from Zhang Zhikai’s chin, some felt solemn witnessing Zhang Su’s iron-handed approach, and there were also those heartless folks who were merely watching the spectacle.

No matter what feelings everyone had, no one felt sad about Zhang Zhikai’s death, except...

”Grandpa Huo...”

Su Xiaoya emerged from the crowd and approached the crouching Yang Liehuo, holding his shoulder. ”Don’t be sad anymore. Brother Zhikai, he...”

At this point, Su Xiaoya glanced at Zhang Su, seeing his calm and unwavering eyes, and continued, ”Brother Zhikai was too impulsive and made a grave mistake, don’t be sad!”

Made a grave mistake.

Plain yet very sincere words. Not completing the tasks assigned by the superior and even attempting to attack the leader of the force – what is this if not self-destruction?

”Good child, yes, yes, I know, I understand.”

Since the disaster erupted, Yang Liehuo rarely shed tears. This time, he was truly saddened because part of the responsibility for Zhang Zhikai’s death lay with him. If it weren’t for his protection and indulgence, this day would never have come.

”Old Huo, stand up!”

Zhang Su’s solemn voice echoed.

Yang Liehuo’s body trembled upon hearing this. He saw Zhang Su borrow power to kill Zhang Zhikai most clearly; the composed and effective manner shocked him. Previously, he had only heard Zhang Su was formidable but never seen him fight anyone. Tonight was the first time they fought side by side; strong, too strong, strong enough to intimidate him.

Slowly, he put down Zhang Zhikai. Yang Liehuo stood up, the not-yet-congealed blood dripping down his palm, looking at Zhang Su with mixed emotions.

”Don’t blame Brother Zhang; he has no choice, Grandpa Huo, he needs to consider the safety of many people!”

Su Xiaoya clung to Yang Liehuo’s arm, using a voice only he could hear to comfort him.

Yet the words entered Zhang Su’s ears word for word. He didn’t expect this little girl to be so understanding at this moment; no wonder she didn’t think much of Pang Dakun. Pang Dakun, who was several years older than her, often still acted like a child.

”Old Huo, look at them!”

Zhang Su turned around, pointing at the women from Kuanzhuang. ”Which of them doesn’t work harder than Zhang Zhikai? Look at the frostbite on their faces, the calluses on their hands. Everyone is striving for tomorrow, for the collective, for themselves! Celestial Horse Island doesn’t allow for greenhouse flowers, you know that, right?”

Greenhouse flowers do exist, but that is limited to a few with special talents.

Yang Liehuo naturally knew the camp’s rules. Facing the reprimand, he restrained his emotions and nodded heavily. ”I was muddleheaded, only remembering Zhang Zhikai’s father’s entrustment, forgetting my duties. I shouldn’t have. I accept the punishment.”

”Over the past half month, apart from your indulgence of Zhang Zhikai, you’ve been diligent in your work, responsible in the Reserve Team’s training, meticulous in life; your merits outweigh your faults, but merits don’t counterbalance faults. Merit calls for reward, faults demand punishment! You’re required to arrange the sentry posts within two days, take charge of night shifts for a month, and during this month, transport at least ten zombie corpses to Village No.2 daily, understood?”

The key issue lies in knowing on whom to deal the killing blow, who is the chicken to be killed to scare the monkeys, the monkey Zhang Su knows clearly. On how best to win minds and foster development, he learned many things from chatting with Yuwen Chang, and with the addition of Ma Changshou recently, his abilities in this aspect are improving.

Like Zhang Zhikai, such useless people are good if they can be helped up; if not, they should be removed. But Yang Liehuo is different; he has many strengths and needs a different approach.

With Zhang Su’s punishment of Yang Liehuo concluded, members of the Reserve Team silently breathed a sigh of relief; fortunately, Yang Liehuo’s life wasn’t forfeit.

Through this event, it not only taught the ordinary members a lesson but also served as a warning to the junior leaders; sheltering and indulgence are not permissible!

”Yes, I understand, I’ll ensure the completion of the task!”

Yang Liehuo’s lips trembled upon hearing Zhang Su’s words.

The punishment wasn’t light; for the next month, his sleep will likely not exceed five hours a day, but it’s a punishment he deserves. With his personality, he’ll certainly not do a shoddy job.

Clap, clap!

Zhang Su didn’t continue addressing Yang Liehuo. He clapped his hands to draw everyone’s attention to himself, then spoke in a loud voice.

”As our camp population gradually increases, it’s inevitable that people like Zhang Zhikai who are lazy and slack off will appear. Everyone must remember that it is not peacetime now; crises lurk around us. Previously, being lazy might have only resulted in a lower crop yield, but now it’s different. If what’s needed isn’t done, it could cost lives. I hope everyone can motivate each other to avoid making the same mistakes as Zhang Zhikai and Yang Liehuo!”

”Understood!”

”Alright, Brother Su.”

”I guarantee it won’t happen!”

Everyone’s voice sounded different, but what they meant was exactly the same.

Zhang Su scanned each face, and seeing no signs of dissent, he felt relieved and nodded, pointing to the chaotic battlefield, saying, ”The zombie horde brought us crisis and fuel. Clean up the battlefield and divide the zombie bodies into thirds. Village No.1 and Village No.2 each take a share and store it. I’ll go check on Qiu Hui!”

With that, Zhang Su turned and headed towards Village No.2.

As Zhang Su departed, the atmosphere at the scene finally eased a bit, and many people let out a long sigh of relief.

”Damn, Brother Su was really intense tonight...”

”Don’t mention it. I was just a bit away from him when we were killing zombies, and he cut through them like wheat, swish-swish-swish. It scared the hell out of me.”

”No, no, we need to urge Brother Su to teach us that Japanese woman’s martial arts techniques quickly. They’re so powerful, haha!”

Zhang Su was already strong, but after training with Ju Mumio for eighteen days, he had become incomprehensibly strong to them. Thinking they could soon learn these martial arts techniques and become stronger, the Elite Corps members were extremely excited.

”Hehe...”

”Hmm... why are you laughing so disdainfully?”

Zheng Xinyu felt a sense of joy hearing others praise Zhang Su’s strength, but suddenly heard Ju Mumio let out a scornful laugh.

Ju Mumio looked casually at Zheng Xinyu, then swept her gaze over the Elite Corps members preparing to clean up the battlefield, saying, ”Zhang Su is a prodigy, there’s only one of him. They can’t measure up.”

From Ju Mumio’s perspective, Zhang Su’s rate of improvement was something only found in anime. What took her twenty years to achieve, Zhang Su completed in less than twenty days. While it’s undeniable that he had a foundation, it still seemed fantastical.

In Ju Mumio’s mind, Zhang Su was like a prodigy, and she knew he must have some huge secret opportunity that belonged solely to him.

Hearing Ju Mumio’s praise for Zhang Su left Zheng Xinyu’s expression rather peculiar. Tilting her head, she looked at her: ”Hey, you really make people uncomfortable. Zhang Su is my husband, but it feels like you know him better than I do, hmph!”

Ju Mumio broke into a rare smile, curling her lips at Zheng Xinyu: ”Don’t worry, I’m not interested in men! But I’m quite impressive too. If you ever get tired of men, you can consider me.”

”Ah, spit!” Zheng Xinyu made a disdainful spitting gesture, shaking her head vigorously: ”I am not into women, no, no, no!”

Zhang Su, by now already inside the village, had no idea about the conversation between Zheng Xinyu and Ju Mumio. After getting his bearings, he headed towards the courtyard where Qiu Hui lived.

”Brother Su.”

Lü Leiyang, who was smoking at the door, straightened up immediately when he saw Zhang Su entering.

”You did well tonight!” Zhang Su patted Lü Leiyang on the shoulder and then motioned towards the already deeply asleep Qiu Hui with his chin: ”What happened, did you give her a sleeping pill?”

Lü Leiyang shook his head, looking worried: ”She suddenly got drowsy, wondering if it’s due to blood loss, or... that.”

Zhang Su naturally understood what ”that” meant and patted Lü Leiyang’s shoulder again: ”Don’t worry. You remember Xiaochen delayed a bit before cutting off his hand but didn’t zombify. You acted quickly; there won’t be an issue.”

”Yeah!”

Lü Leiyang nodded heavily, but still looked at Qiu Hui with some concern.

Once not very noticeable on Celestial Horse Island, Teacher Tony had grown increasingly responsible and assertive after becoming assistant team leader of the Reserve Team. His growth was evident to everyone.

”However...” After comforting Lü Leiyang, Zhang Su changed his tone and said softly, ”You still need to take precautions. You can’t watch her all the time. Tie her up with ropes. If she wakes up and is fine, then untie her.”

”Right, right, that’s exactly what we should do.”

Lü Leiyang found Zhang Su’s reminder crucial; he genuinely hadn’t thought of it, inherently believing Qiu Hui wouldn’t turn into a zombie...